Chapter 22: Transformation
Su Xiao examined the corpse of the resentful monk on the ground. No matter how he looked at it, he felt this thing had a different "style" from the Holy Grail World.
It wasn't just this resentful monk; the distant gate of the Ryuudou Temple also gave him a sense of incongruity. Could it be that the current Ryuudou Temple was occupied by a group of "monks"?
Su Xiao felt this possibility was unlikely. The main factions of the Holy Grail World were the Holy Church and the Mage's Association. For an "outside force" like "monks" to occupy Ryuudou Temple wasn't very plausible.
Thinking this, Su Xiao suddenly realized his thinking might have fallen into a logical trap.
First of all, this resentful monk's fighting style wasn't that of a monk, but rather leaned towards a biological mutation style, like the exoskeleton that burst out from within.
Moreover, when Su Xiao checked the information on that "resentful monk," he noticed a piece of data: Life Assimilation Degree 30%. This was probably the key point, not the identity of the resentful monk as a monk.
With too little information known at present, the situation inside Ryuudou Temple could only be determined after entering.
After hiding the corpse of the resentful monk on the ground, Su Xiao advanced up the mountain through the woods beside the stone steps.
The surroundings were eerily quiet along the way. Ten minutes later, Su Xiao arrived near the main gate of Ryuudou Temple.
Entering Ryuudou Temple through the main gate wasn't a wise choice, but after arriving near the gate, he discovered that the two golden "lanterns" he had seen earlier weren't lanterns at all. He had been misled by the temple scene, coupled with the dim light and the distance.
In front of Ryuudou Temple's gate were two door lamps. Because the lampshades were golden, the light they emitted was also golden. As for the sense of holiness, that was entirely an illusion.
At this moment, Ryuudou Temple's gate was tightly shut, with no guards in front. Even so, Su Xiao didn't plan to approach. He had a vague feeling that if he got close now, he would immediately be detected by the enemy. There were likely warning mechanisms or barriers near the gate.
Su Xiao's goal was to complete the talent awakening mission. It would be best to sneak in without alerting the enemy, but this possibility wasn't high. He would most likely have to fight his way in, otherwise the mission difficulty wouldn't be so high.
Moreover, if it were a covert infiltration, no one was better at it than Bubu Wang. Unfortunately, a mission of LV.21 difficulty would very likely involve combat with enemies.
Su Xiao circled around the front gate and began moving along the walls surrounding Ryuudou Temple. After walking a distance along the three-meter-plus-high wall, he heard voices coming from inside.
"Kill... kill me, I beg you..."
The voice was extremely weak, as if it would expire at any moment.
"Kill you? That won't do. You can't die before entering the Eternal Life Pool, hehehe."
"Fresh flesh and blood, I really hope..."
"Take your claws away. This human is nourishment for the Eternal Life Pool."
The sound of arguing came through. Su Xiao stomped on the ground, hoisting himself up to cling to the outside of Ryuudou Temple's wall, with only half his head peeking over.
After seeing the scene before him, Su Xiao's pupils contracted sharply, and he instinctively hid his head back behind the wall.
The scene behind the wall was somewhat horrifying. Su Xiao wasn't frightened by the horrifying sight itself, but by the sheer number of enemies.
Behind the wall was an empty courtyard, with over a hundred people in it. These people were all bare-chested, busy working in the open space.
Judging by their temperament and appearance, among these people were civilians, merchants, and possibly other professions. They had different looks, varying heights, weights, and builds, but they shared one common feature: their heads were covered in red "scars," identical to the "scars" on the previous resentful monk.
If one looked closely, they would realize those weren't actually scars. The scalp had been repeatedly pierced from the inside, naturally forming these red marks, similar to the principle behind ear piercing.
It seemed the situation inside Ryuudou Temple was different from what Su Xiao had imagined. It wasn't a large group of monks. The young monk he had encountered earlier was probably an ascetic, judging by the severely worn clothing on his knees.
How could an ascetic monk, who often performed three kneels and nine prostrations and spoke gently, become a so-called resentful monk?
After seeing the situation before him, Su Xiao understood what was happening. It wasn't just that ascetic monk; the hundred-plus enemies in the open space were also likely transformed from ordinary people.
Judging by their movements and gazes, they hadn't lost their sanity or been controlled, but had already accepted their current state.
These hundred-plus bare-chested individuals were busy in the open space. At the edge of the space were several large iron cages, containing dozens of ordinary people with terrified expressions and slightly trembling bodies.
These ordinary people didn't shout or make meaningless pleas for mercy. Some women among them were tightly covering their mouths, crying silently. This was the reaction of people seeing an extremely terrifying scene—they didn't even have the courage to cry out loud.
In the center of the courtyard was a magic circle. This circle was special, not drawn with dye or blood, but outlined with some kind of white powder.
There was a large amount of magic power underground at Ryuudou Temple, and this white powder could draw out the underground magic power and form a magic circle.
This magic circle was overall circular, about five meters in diameter. Due to the extremely abundant magic power supply, the circle appeared very three-dimensional.
Su Xiao used the Apostle's Eye to check the information on a bare-chested middle-aged man, wanting to confirm his previous speculation.
[Comparing intelligence attributes... Comparison complete. Our intelligence is twice that of the enemy. Obtained 100% of enemy data.]
Data as follows:
Name: Resentful Servant (Life Assimilation Degree 25%)
Category: Humanoid Creature (Intelligent Being)
Health: 100%
Mana: -
Strength: 39
Agility: 43
Stamina: 53
Intelligence: 30
Charm: 4
Skill 1: Evil Faith (Passive) - Health +200, Willpower +5.
Skill 2: Bone Ejection (Passive) - Can partially eject bones, Defense +7.
Skill 3: Life Assimilation (Active) - Can increase 'Life Assimilation Degree' and restore health by devouring biological flesh. When 'Life Assimilation Degree' reaches 100%, the resentful monk will evolve.
Sure enough, it was roughly as Su Xiao had guessed. Ryuudou Temple wasn't occupied by monks. The 'Life Assimilation Degree' was the key to the transformation of these resentful creatures.
And now, Su Xiao was witnessing this transformation process.
Several Resentful Servants walked up to the iron cages holding ordinary people. The desire in their eyes was undisguised. They craved the flesh and blood of these humans, but for some reason, they restrained this desire.
Creak~
The iron cage door, covered in rust and bloodstains, was opened. The ordinary people locked inside huddled together like frightened livestock, moving towards the inner part of the cage.
A Resentful Servant stepped into the cage, his gaze sweeping over the ordinary people hiding in the corner. Among them were working-class laborers and seductive nightclub girls.
"This one, this one, and this one."
The Resentful Servant pointed out three ordinary people. The legs of those three began to tremble, their lips turning blue, clearly terrified out of their wits.
"No, don't pick me. My son is still waiting for me at home. He can't live without me, he can't."
A young white-collar worker, his face full of despair, finally couldn't bear the fear in his heart and began to shout loudly, his hands gripping the iron bars at the corner of the cage tightly.