Samsara Paradise: Dream Weaver of Connections.

"Hurry up! Although this area has been cleared, it is not necessarily safe. Follow us if you don't want to die!" The leading black-robed man had three octopus-like tentacles hanging from his deformed right arm, and the eyeball-shaped tumor at the end was constantly rotating to monitor the surroundings.

There were intermittent gasps from the team. A dozen figures wrapped in black robes were staggering forward, their robe corners occasionally revealing twisted limbs - some had anti-knee joints and insect-like elytra, and some had three gill-like slits on the back of their necks that were oozing mucus.

Lin Yi's nose was filled with the stench of rotten flesh and sulfur. He saw a hunched figure at the end of the team suddenly stagger. His hood slipped off, revealing a half-melted face. His skin drooped to his chest like a candle, and his exposed gums emitted purple mist with his breathing.

The reason why this group of believers gathered here is that the alienation in them has penetrated deep into their bones and they can no longer hide in the territory.

The church had no choice but to recall them.

Most of these people have never set foot outside their territory in their entire lives, so for them, this trip is undoubtedly the first time in their lives.

"Your Excellency the Bishop, I heard that there is a way to solve our physical abnormalities here. I wonder if you know it?" A believer who looked to be in his forties or fifties quietly approached the leader and took out a bottle of extremely precious wine from his arms.

In this desolate land, money has long lost its original value, and supplies are the real hard currency.

Rodney looked at the bottle of wine handed to him by the other party, and his Adam's apple rolled unconsciously.

If Rodney were in the territory, he would undoubtedly be a high-ranking figure, but in the church headquarters, all the people he would hit with a brick would be the powerful and wealthy.

Rodney quickly looked around, and the people behind him saw what was happening and turned their heads away, pretending not to see it.

He then reached out and took the bottle of precious wine, carefully hiding it in his robe, with a barely perceptible look of satisfaction passing across his face.

He cleared his throat, and his voice was very low and hoarse, as if bewitching: "Well, there is a way. However, there are many tricks involved, and it is not something that can be explained in a few words."

A ray of hope instantly lit up in the believer's eyes, and he hurriedly took out an exquisite little box from his arms. The box was inlaid with dark patterns, and faintly exuded an atmosphere of luxury.

The spices in the box are rare even in the territory.

He held the box in both hands and handed it to Rodney respectfully, with a pleading tone in his voice: "Sir, as long as it can solve the problem of my body, you can take all of these. Please show me a clear way."

For most of the people who come here, they don’t actually want to leave the territory.

Just like the man giving the gift in front of him, he was originally a minor noble in the territory. If the traces of alienation could no longer be concealed, who would be willing to leave his comfortable life and come to this place full of oppression and unknown to suffer?
Rodney's gaze lingered on the small box for a moment, and a hint of greed flashed across his eyes, but it was fleeting and was perfectly hidden by his hypocritical smile.

He took the box and gently rubbed the lid with his fingertips, as if weighing the value of the things inside.

Rodney pondered for a moment and slowly said, "It is not easy to cure the abnormality in your body. It requires an extremely rare medicinal herb, and only the archbishops at the core of the church are qualified to use this herb."

The believer's breathing quickened: "Then what should I do?"

Rodney raised his hand, signaling him to be patient, with a meaningful smile on his face: "I can say a few good words for you in front of the Archbishop. However, you also know that the Archbishop is very busy, and not just anyone can see him. Moreover, even if they do see him, they will not easily act without sufficient 'sincerity'."

His tone was calm, but every word was as sharp as a knife, hitting the believers' weak spots directly.

In fact, Rodney himself also wanted to get that kind of medicinal material. If he could get it, he would have gotten rid of this damn alienation and returned to the territory to enjoy the glory and wealth. Why bother dealing with these ants here?
The believer gritted his teeth, a trace of determination flashed in his eyes: "Sir, as long as you can cure my problem, I am willing to pay any price! Tell me, what else do you need?"

Rodney sneered in his heart, but he still put on a serious expression on his face: "How about this, you go back and prepare a list first. I will see how to help you operate according to this list."

"Understood, sir! I have some good stuff here. Please go first, and I will come to you later."

Looking at the believer's departing back, Rodney sneered. In his eyes, this believer was just a lamb to be slaughtered, and he had already sharpened his knife, ready to peel off the fattest meat from this lamb.

"Let's go."

Seeing Rodney leaving, the believer suddenly stopped and the respect on his face disappeared in an instant.

He spat fiercely on the ground and cursed in a low voice: "You bastard, you still want to frame me? With your tricks, you are worthy of being in the church? It seems that your status is just like this."

He sneered and took out a ring from his arms.

The ring is engraved with an exquisite purple gold flower pattern with very delicate patterns.

This ring is an item urgently needed by an archbishop in the church, and it is also his last trump card.

"As long as the alienation problem in my body can be solved, all these efforts... are worth it." The believer whispered to himself, with a fierce look in his eyes.

Seeing the others leave, Lin Yi realized that this was a great opportunity. As long as he killed this guy and used his identity to sneak into the camp, information about the ruins would be readily available.

The cultist was about to leave when he suddenly felt a chill on his neck. A dagger was silently pressed against his throat.

The blade was icy cold, and just a slight scratch would extinguish his life like a candle flame.

"Don't make a sound, or you will die immediately!" Lin Yi lowered his voice, and his cold words made the other person's body freeze instantly.

"You... who are you? What do you want to do?" The believer's voice trembled, and fine beads of cold sweat oozed out of his forehead and slid down his cheeks.

"If you hand over the archbishop's information obediently, perhaps you can still have a chance to live." Lin Yi exerted a little force with the dagger in his hand, and the sharp blade easily cut through the believer's skin. A trace of blood slowly seeped out, dyeing the blade red.

The believer's pupils suddenly contracted, and his mind raced. He swallowed and asked tentatively, "You... you have a grudge against Archbishop Mike?"

In his opinion, the internal forces of the church were complicated. Who could climb to the position of archbishop without stepping on countless corpses? It was normal to have enemies everywhere.

He subconsciously thought that he was just a small person who was accidentally involved in this power struggle.

Lin Yi did not answer, but stared at him coldly, and the force on the dagger increased a little more.

The believer's heart was beating like a drum, and the shadow of death seemed to be about to swallow him up completely in the next second.

"He killed my brother for this position, so of course I have to find an opportunity to kill him." Lin Yi continued speaking, with a hint of suppressed anger in his tone.

He knew that this kind of half-truth was the best way to lower the other party's vigilance.

When the believers heard this, a hint of joy suddenly flashed in their eyes, as if they had found a like-minded person.

He lowered his voice and gritted his teeth and said, "Brother, you and I are not enemies at all! I actually want to kill that bastard Mike! For what he has, I almost handed over 80% of my property. If I have the chance, I will definitely kill him with my own hands!"

His expression was ferocious and his tone was full of resentment, as if he really had an irreconcilable hatred with Mike.

In fact, he was not lying. Mike's greed and exploitation had long made him intolerable. The family's wealth was not blown by the wind, but accumulated through blood and sweat.

Lin Yi heard this, a trace of suspicion flashed in his eyes, but on the surface he pretended to believe it. He slightly relaxed the dagger in his hand, but remained vigilant, and said coldly: "Oh? Don't be kidding me with this. If I find out that you are lying, you know the consequences."

The believer waved his hands and explained anxiously, "Brother, how dare I lie to you! Look, this ring on my hand is the task Archbishop Mike gave me. He said that as long as I help him do a few things, he can cure my alienation problem. But up to now, I have done a lot of things, but he has been dragging his feet and not giving me the antidote! So, I really have no choice but to come to him in person to ask for an explanation!"

Just as the cultist was racking his brains to think of how to make up more details, Lin Yi's dagger slashed across the cultist's throat.

The believer's eyes widened, he covered his neck in disbelief, blood gushing out from between his fingers.

His body fell weakly to the ground, and a "ho ho" sound came from his throat.

[You killed the cultist Clemens Rupert and obtained 0.4% of the Origin of the World. You now have a total of 58.1% of the Origin of the World.]

As Clemens Rupert's breath completely dissipated, the ring in his hand rolled to Lin Yi's feet, making a crisp sound.

At the same time, a spore bomb slipped from his hand.

Obviously, under the seemingly "harmonious" atmosphere just now, both sides were secretly calculating and no one really trusted the other.

Lin Yi picked up the ring and found that it was indeed as Rupert said.

[Purple Gold Flower Ring]

Origin: Red Sky Continent

Quality: gold

Type: Special equipment/disposable consumables
Equipment effect: Increases the wearer's Charisma by 5 points, and increases Charisma correction by +20 points when negotiating with descendants of the Purple Gold Flower Dynasty.

Special Effect: Can open the door to a certain place. Rating: 408
Introduction: This ring was made at great expense of the Zijinhua Dynasty. It is said that only the descendants of the Zijinhua Dynasty can understand the true value of this ring.

Looking at the body of Clemens Rupert in front of him, Lin Yi let the little blood wrap around his arms and legs, simulating the other party's alienated form.

In this camp filled with church members, if you don't have any signs of alienation, you will appear out of place and attract unnecessary suspicion.

After completing his preparations, Lin Yi took out a sophisticated voice changer from the storage space and placed it against his throat.

He coughed twice, and his voice gradually became low and hoarse, which was 80% similar to Clemens Rupert's voice.

Five minutes later, Lin Yi walked quickly along the stone road and quickly caught up with the team that was about to enter the territory.

The church’s outpost is just ahead, but it is just a decoration. After all, almost all those who can reach here are members of the church.

The existence of the sentry post is more for formal deterrence rather than real warning.

"Sir, these are the supplies I just brought back. I hope you can say a few good words to the Archbishop." After entering the camp, Lin Yi disguised himself as Clemens Rupert and handed over several packets of precious medicinal materials to the other party.

According to Rupert's identity, Lin Yi taking out these items would not arouse other people's suspicion. It would only make other people think that Lin Yi was really prepared to spend a lot of money on this trip.

Rodney took the herbs, glanced through them casually, and a hint of barely perceptible satisfaction flashed in his eyes.

However, he still put on a condescending attitude on his face, and snorted coldly: "Humph, with just this little thing, you want me to speak well of you in front of the archbishop? However... seeing that you still have some sincerity, I can say something for you."

Lin Yi lowered his head, a slight sneer appeared on the corner of his mouth, but his tone was still humble: "Thank you very much, sir. I am very grateful."

Rodney waved his hand and said in a cold tone: "Okay, go to the place arranged by the camp to rest first, and someone will assign you tasks later." After that, he turned around and left quickly, as if staying for another second would be a waste of time.

The other people in the team glanced at Lin Yi with a slightly mocking look, as if they were looking at a stupid sucker.

Although everyone wanted to solve the problem of physical alienation, Lin Yi's behavior of revealing all his cards right at the start was undoubtedly extremely stupid in their eyes.

The group followed the guidance of the church and came to a temporary territory.

The simple building stands out on the barren land.

Lin Yi followed the crowd into the house, and a damp and moldy smell hit him in the face.

The furnishings in the house were extremely simple, with a few shabby beds placed randomly, and one could even see mottled stains on the bed boards.

The walls were covered with mildew, and some miscellaneous items of unknown purpose were piled in the corners, making the whole space look shabby.

"What the hell is this place? We were brought here from far away, and we have to live in a place like this?" A church member couldn't help but complain, his tone full of dissatisfaction.

"That's right! After all, we are well-known figures in the territory, and the church treats us like this?" another person echoed, with obvious anger in his voice.

Those who can come here have a certain status and influence in the territory, otherwise the church would not spend money to bring them here.

The scene before them disappointed them greatly, and they even felt despised and humiliated.

"What the hell is this place? Are we forced to live in such a shabby place?" A burly believer slammed the package in his hand to the ground with a thunderous sound, making the house buzz.

His face was filled with anger, and his eyes were fierce: "We are well-known figures in the outside world, and your church is just perfunctory to us?"

Once someone takes the lead, others will follow suit to vent their dissatisfaction.

Complaints and curses came one after another, and the whole house suddenly became noisy, as if a volcano was about to erupt.

The church member who led the group here frowned, a hint of impatience flashed in his eyes, but he quickly suppressed it.

He took a deep breath, forced a smile, and explained, "Everyone, please be patient. This is just a temporary residence. The camp has limited resources. The Archbishop is currently handling important matters and cannot take care of these trivial matters for the time being. After some time, we will naturally arrange better accommodation for everyone."

But such an explanation obviously could not calm the anger of the people.

"Wait some time? Wait until how long? We have come here from thousands of miles away, not to suffer in this shabby house!" A tall and thin believer sneered, his voice sharp and harsh.

"That's right! Did the church bring us here just to let us live in a place like this? This is really too much!" another person echoed, his tone full of sarcasm.

Lin Yi stood aside, observing all this quietly.

He quietly walked over to a relatively calm believer and asked in a low voice: "Brother, you don't seem to care about the accommodation conditions. Is there any way?"

The church member glanced at Lin Yi, a trace of vigilance flashed in his eyes, but he soon relaxed. He lowered his voice, with a bit of helplessness and sarcasm in his tone: "What's the use of complaining? The church is very deep."

Suddenly, a cold voice came from outside the house, piercing everyone's ears like a cold blade: "What are you making so much noise for! Be quiet!"

The room suddenly fell silent, and everyone's eyes turned to the door.

A middle-aged man in a black robe strode in.

He glanced at everyone in the room and said coldly, "If you don't want to live here, you can leave now. But I remind you, if you leave here, your alienation problem will never be solved!"

"Your Excellency the Archbishop."

"Your Excellency the Archbishop."

Everyone in the room bowed their heads in greeting, their voices filled with awe and fear.

The middle-aged man in a long robe looked at everyone and said, "I know what you are thinking. But you should know that there is no place for you in the entire continent except here. If anyone doesn't want to stay, you can get out now. But I remind you that there are many people out there trying their best to get in."

"Why do you think we took so much trouble to bring you here? To save you." Archbishop Mike's voice suddenly became soft, with a bewitching power, "The church has never given up on you. As long as you cooperate, the alienation problem in your body will eventually be solved."

At this moment, a voice broke the silence: "Your Excellency the Archbishop, we all understand your painstaking efforts."

Lin Yi looked in the direction of the voice and found that the person who spoke was the calm believer from before.

His tone was respectful, yet tentative: "It's just that the accommodation conditions are too poor. We are exhausted from the journey and need a good rest so that we can better cooperate with the church's actions."

Archbishop Mike's eyes fell on Jerry, and his tone softened a bit: "How about this, everyone please stay here for tonight. I will have someone arrange better accommodation for you tomorrow."

After saying this, Archbishop Mike turned and left the room, leaving the church members in the room looking at each other in bewilderment.

The crowd that had been noisy just now suddenly quieted down and sat back on their beds.

Those who can come here are not fools. The reason they make trouble is just to test the attitude of the church.

It now seems that the church has no intention of abandoning the donkey after it has served its purpose, which is good news.

Lin Yi walked up to Jerry and asked in a low voice: "Brother, what's your name? It seems that you know a lot about the situation here."

Jerry glanced at Lin Yi, and said with a bit of self-mockery in his tone: "Just call me Jerry. I've been to this damn place once."

"The archbishop who just came over is Archbishop Mike, who is in charge of the logistics of the entire camp. He always uses this method to appease the newcomers. On the surface, it is to solve the problem, but in fact it is just a delaying tactic. When I came here last time, I was also fooled by his rhetoric." Hearing Jerry's words, Lin Yi's eyes lit up. He didn't expect that the person who just came over was Archbishop Mike mentioned by Rupert.

Lin Yi nodded and continued to ask: "You said they want to squeeze out our usefulness, what do you mean specifically?"

Jerry looked around warily, and seeing that everyone was talking in low voices, he leaned close to Lin Yi's ear and said in an almost inaudible voice, "I suspect that they are conducting some secret experiment by gathering people like us with alienation problems together. As for Archbishop Mike, he appears to be righteous on the surface, but he is actually cruel and ruthless. I was lucky last time, and the alienation in my body suddenly regressed a lot, so the church let me go back. I didn't expect that the alienation has worsened recently, so I had to return to this damn place."

Lin Yi was about to ask something else when he suddenly heard heavy footsteps outside the house.

A church guard pushed open the door and shouted, "Everyone, go to bed early. We have important arrangements tomorrow!"

Everyone responded and lay down on the bed.

Lin Yi also lay down, but his mind was racing. (End of this chapter)