Black mist descends, and I and the witches take refuge in the dungeon.

The rapid sound of horses' hooves suddenly stopped outside the church.

The next moment, there was a series of somewhat unsteady and heavy footsteps.

The sound came from the main entrance; the steel soles of the shoes collided with the ground, making a sound like a death knell.

The old priest had just finished explaining the last rule when he heard the series of footsteps. He immediately stood up and walked quickly toward the door.

Before the old priest could reach the door, the church door was pushed open.

The moment the door opened, a gust of cold wind, carrying with it dampness and the smell of rust, rushed in.

Renee stood at the doorway, her silver armor mostly shattered, the armor on her left shoulder almost completely broken, revealing a shirt soaked in blood underneath.

At this moment, Renee looked extremely disheveled.

His short, dark gray hair was stuck to his forehead with sweat, his complexion was terrible, and his eyes held a deep sadness.

She was carrying a soul lamp in her hand, the lampshade of which was cracked, but fortunately, the warm yellow light was still burning.

Behind Renee, there were only three people.

But you should know that when Renee went out, there were a total of ten people with her.

Seeing this, the old priest's brows furrowed with an indescribable sorrow.

He didn't blame Renee; instead, he strode forward, a pale golden light appearing in his hand.

After being bathed in this pale golden light, Renee's complexion became slightly rosy. She opened her mouth, her voice hoarse:

"Father Olay, the situation is terrible. The area north of Norton has been completely swallowed by the black fog, and the dead have come back to life."

Renee's first words had already made the old priest feel uneasy.

What does it mean for the dead to come back to life?

"You remember, at the very beginning of the disaster, the former lord of Norton, that stingy baron, tried to escape in an elven carriage, but the black mist swept in so fast that he was instantly swallowed up."

And some familiar faces of death, hidden in the black fog north of Norton, have all come back to life.

The old priest frowned even more deeply as he listened to Renee's words.

"Are those dead who came back to life attacking you?"

Renee nodded, a bitter expression on her face.

"Not just the dead who came back to life, but also the living, namely the knights I took out."

The old priest paused for a moment, then continued:

"That's impossible. They are the purest believers; they cannot be..."

"But it is true, Father Ores. They were bewitched by the black mist and attacked their own comrades. I personally killed five of them! The last one was killed by the others who were not bewitched."

As she said this, Renee's eyes reddened. She took a deep breath to calm herself and continued:

"Not only that, Father Ores, we must leave here! Time is running out! The resurrected dead are all heading this way!"

However, this time, before the old priest could speak, Mil's voice rang out:

"Please tell me the specifics of the situation, word for word, so I can decide on the next course of action."

The moment Renee heard Mil's voice, she instinctively looked up.

Not far behind the old priest, Mil was walking briskly from the west corner, with Andre Bell close behind.

Renee's gaze lingered on Andrebel's face for a moment before returning to it, her voice hoarse:

"The city wall has collapsed, especially the northern section, which has almost completely become ruins."

I was planning to go check on the situation, but less than ten seconds after I led the team there, the soul lamps began to go out!

Ten people, ten soul lamps in total.

One of them goes out almost every three seconds.

It was as if someone walked over and extinguished the soul lamp.

I don't know what's going on, but I can vaguely see that it seems to be made by something inside the black mist.

I immediately led my team to escape, but the team members, after the Soul Lamp went out, were completely bewitched.

They began to attack us, while the undead in the black fog rushed towards the center of the town!

Those things reek of decay. We must leave this place quickly, or the people here will surely die!

The Vatican can't stop those things. According to my calculations, the soul lamps inside the Vatican won't last until nightfall tomorrow.

Upon hearing this, the old priest let out a long sigh.

After recounting this, Renee subconsciously glanced at the giant soul lamp on the dome.

Well, I don't know if it's just Renee's imagination.

She felt that the Soul Lamp was slightly dimmer than when it had come in, and even the edge of the flame seemed to tremble slightly, as if it had been blown by something from the outside.

The old priest was silent for a moment, then said in a muffled voice:

"How is the situation in the town? If we need to evacuate, have you planned the route?"

"Yes, I had already done my research before I came back. Right now, in the entire town of Norton, only the road to the east is still barely passable."

However, there are also many collapsed houses that need to be cleared quickly. According to my estimate, if we were to evacuate all the refugees here...

Excluding the elderly, the weak, the sick, and the disabled, they should be able to reach the east coast before the soul lamp completely goes out.

There lies the town of Heron, a large town with powerful individuals at the fourth rank or higher. Although the Holy See doesn't have many people there, it shouldn't have fallen like Norton Town.

Renee looked at the old priest, knowing what he was hesitating about.

"Father Aules, you take the able-bodied men and leave, and I will cover the rear. I will try my best to take the old, weak, sick and disabled with me. I swear to you in the name of the Goddess of Light."

I will not let any civilian die before me.

The old priest looked at Renee, and the wrinkles under his eyes tightened.

The refugees in the church, who had been quiet, began to murmur amongst themselves after seeing Renee's miserable state.

The bitterness on their faces became even more pronounced. Some whispered among themselves, while others knelt down in the direction of the goddess statue, hoping to find a sliver of hope for salvation from there.

Some people have already started packing up the few belongings they have, while others are just sitting there, staring blankly ahead.

Mil stood a few steps away and overheard the entire conversation between Renee and Ores.

Whether it was Mir's imagination or not, he looked at the pale gold threads on his forehead and felt that they suddenly became much brighter.

But no one around could see it.

The pale gold threads remained steadfast, pointing towards the Vatican's basement.

Before Mir could say anything, the system panel in his mind popped up automatically, and a line of bright red text appeared in his consciousness:

[Special Mission Triggered: Territory Expansion!]

【Great and Almighty Lord, lead the lost sheep to Your land, let them bask in Your grace, let them feel Your greatness, and let them submit to Your mercy!】