# Chapter 33: Ying's Growth
Compared to the heated discussion atmosphere in the surface church, the atmosphere beneath the church, in the dungeon, was exceptionally silent.
Harsh gray-white holy light radiated from Artemis's fingertips. The mold and black blood it touched were like water stains under the scorching sun, instantly purified and vaporized. Intense sacred aura swirled around the old bishop, forming a small sanctuary.
Nearby, Joshua used battle qi to incinerate the chaotic monsters transformed from cultists. Amidst shrill screams, those twisted and nauseating abominations were slowly burned into nothingness by flames imbued with the power of order.
Purifying the dungeon didn't take the two of them long. A few minutes later, they had cleansed the prison hall.
"Cultists... they truly give no peace. Let's leave the rest for others to practice on."
Stretching his wrists and walking toward the exit, Artemis scanned the other areas of the dungeon and couldn't help but sigh: "Even though Moldavia's surroundings have been relatively peaceful, and even the magic tide from two years ago didn't cause much harm, how can people still throw themselves into the embrace of evil gods?"
His voice carried a hint of confusion. He knew that ordinary people became cultists mostly because they couldn't survive otherwise.
The reason the western human settlements had so many cultist gatherings was primarily the great drought forty years ago. The entire Western Mountain region suffered widespread crop failure. Even with mages helping, it was the same. Many farmers couldn't even feed themselves, yet still had to pay taxes as usual. In despair, these poor souls either committed suicide or threw themselves into the embrace of various cults, leaving a legacy of trouble that persisted to this day.
War and natural disasters were the soil for cult development. But the Northern Lands, aside from the great magic tide two years ago, had experienced no natural disasters. Logically, there shouldn't be so many cultists.
"Reasons can be found anytime. As long as desires aren't satisfied, chaos will continue to spread."
Hands behind his back, standing to the right of the old bishop, Joshua looked unconcerned. He raised his head slightly, recalling: "We're still relatively well off here. The Far South is the real disaster zone for cult proliferation. You know that because of the dragon calamity, the entire coast and southern forests have fallen. The kingdom's three legions are holding the central front and the Southern Ridge Fortress, unable to attend to other matters. Hundreds of thousands of people still haven't escaped the occupied zones. That's the best breeding ground for depravity."
In Joshua's memory, because mad dragons wouldn't attack chaos-aligned beings, the occupied zones of the Far South in his previous life were basically filled with villages controlled by cultists. Using safety and food as bait, they mass-produced brainwashed fanatics among refugees as spies, infiltrating the kingdom's defensive lines to wait for opportunities to sabotage.
In his previous life, Far South players' main task in the early second version was to outwit various cultists, uncover their disguises. Some even did the opposite, disguising themselves as cultists to infiltrate occupied villages and gather enemy intelligence.
"The situation in the south has indeed been somewhat unfavorable lately."
Following Joshua's lead, Artemis also recalled some intelligence sent by the church. As he walked, he spoke with some concern: "The Five-Colored Dragon Clan hasn't launched large-scale dragon beast attacks for two weeks now. The Holy Mountain suspects they're gathering enough forces to launch a single decisive assault on the central defensive line and completely occupy the Far South Kingdom."
If the Far South Kingdom truly fell, the Holy Mountain couldn't remain unaffected either. That was precisely what the old bishop worried about. No matter how powerful Pope Igor was, he couldn't withstand an all-out attack from the entire Five-Colored Dragon Clan.
"So that means... their arrival in the Empire..."
Robzek and Saya's faces immediately surfaced in Joshua's mind. He recalled the church delegation's behavior in the Imperial Capital—clearly, they did have a special mission.
The Holy Mountain was currently allied with the Far South Kingdom against the dragon calamity. They must also be suffering under the current situation... Perhaps the church delegation came to the Imperial Capital to negotiate aid?
But the Empire had just finished its final war with the orcs. Whether the Emperor's five directly subordinate legions or other troops, they were all exhausted from long service. It was unlikely they would cross half the continent to fight dragon beasts. They should know this too. In his previous life, there had been no news of an alliance between the Empire and the Far South forces.
While the warrior was pondering these matters, footsteps sounded at the dungeon entrance.
In quiet places, sounds were especially clear. Joshua could easily tell there were three people approaching. Without guessing, he knew it must be Ying, Lin, and Loranda.
"Master."
Sure enough, a crisp voice rang out. The silver-haired girl's figure quickly appeared in the warrior's field of vision. Upon seeing Joshua, Ying quickened her pace. She happily hugged the warrior's right arm, then looked up to report: "Lord Loranda said he needs to talk to you about something. I feel like there's something to do!"
"Having something to do isn't necessarily good. Don't be so happy just because you might get to cut people."
Letting the girl hold his right arm, Lin also silently walked to his side. Joshua smiled and shook his head. He also noticed that since returning from the Ilgena World, Ying's personality had undergone some subtle changes. Previously, even if the silver-haired girl wanted to be used, she rarely expressed expectation so directly. But now, she could voice her hopes in such a cheerful tone.
—It feels like... she's grown up?
Indeed. As fellow divine mechanisms, Lin had received knowledge infusion from the previous generation count and the old steward since his creation. His memory core recorded the knowledge needed by all previous generations of divine mechanisms. So even though he was the younger brother, Lin's personality was slightly more mature than Ying's. This could be seen in his daily interactions with people.
As for Ying, she had initially lost to Lin in the synchronization rate experiment, so she wasn't trained as the next generation Radcliffe Family head's weapon. When Joshua signed the contract with her, the silver-haired girl's personality was like a blank slate. She even seemed somewhat 'cold' because she didn't know how to express herself.
But over the past two years, living together with the warrior and communicating with people in the main city, Ying had gradually learned various communication skills—like now, hugging Joshua's arm and acting cute. Before, this would have been absolutely impossible.
"Loranda, you don't look well."
Turning his head, Joshua looked at the paladin who was slowly approaching. He did indeed appear somewhat exhausted.
"Of course. After all, I only rested half a day before starting hard work again."
Smiling bitterly as he joked about himself, Loranda actually knew his current state was poor. It wasn't just because of last night's all-night interrogation. The battle in the Ilgena World was also a major factor. For him, that battle had been somewhat too strenuous.
After all, the paladin wasn't Joshua, who had the Azure Orb and the Father of Nature's healing to quickly recover his condition.
"Speaking of which, Loranda, I saw your friends from the church in the Imperial Capital."
Since he had been thinking about the church delegation's purpose earlier, seeing the paladin made Joshua quickly recall this matter: "They seemed very familiar with you. They could tell at a glance that you had been in contact with me."
"...Is that so? Who?"
Loranda had originally wanted to tell Joshua and Artemis about the intelligence on the new batch of cultists, but hearing the warrior's words, he forced that question back and asked curiously: "My comrades belong to the Holy Grail Knight Order. They should still be stationed in the Plague Lands. They couldn't possibly be in the Imperial Capital."
"The regimental commander of the Free Hammer Knight Order, Robzek, and the High Sister of the Granden Monastery, Saya."
Speaking both people's full names directly, Joshua keenly noticed the change in Loranda's expression. He couldn't help but frown: "Why do you look even worse? Aren't these two your friends?"
"No... they are my friends."
Compared to before, Loranda's complexion had indeed become even worse. But this wasn't due to fatigue, but other, deeper reasons: "But that's impossible... Even if the entire Holy Grail Knight Order were to visit the Imperial Capital, it would be more likely than them coming..."
Squinting slightly, Joshua didn't continue speaking, waiting for the paladin to explain.
Under the warrior and Artemis's gaze, Loranda thought for a moment before frowning and speaking in a low voice: "Regimental commander Robzek is a friend of my mentor. He usually oversees my training and taught me the secrets of using the warhammer. And Saya... she's like an older sister to me. Ever since I entered the church, she's been taking care of me..."
After speaking, the paladin raised his head, his blue eyes filled only with confusion and worry: "But two years ago, they accompanied the Granden Second Combat Monk Regiment to garrison the Abyss of Anos for a five-year tour of duty. Logically, they absolutely couldn't return now, unless something major has happened at the Abyss of Anos!"