Hell Game: Starting from Metropolis

"Thank you."

Anco walked over and took the map, then rubbed the area of ​​Old Atlantis on the map with his fingers.

"Ugh!"

After a long while, he let out a long sigh.

"Stop looking. The old Atlanta is history. Your present and future are in the new Atlanta. Your family is here too. Look forward."

Liu Zheng patted his shoulder with his tentacle.

"I understand, thank you for your guidance."

Anko returned the map to him.

"Speaking of which, how is Old Atlantis doing now?"

Liu Zheng asked.

"Old Atlantis has been burned down by fire, and the entrance has been sealed off by the church. If there are any living creatures left, they should all be wild beasts."

Anko said with some sadness.

He nodded, seemingly lost in thought.

Old Atlantis has been closed for decades, and the beasts that still live inside should have a high drop rate of Blood Gems.

However, Old Atlantis is still listed as a backup option, and the priority is to obtain the Blood Gem directly through the Blood Healing Church.

But if the Blood Healing Church doesn't have enough stock, then he'll have to get his supplies from Old At.

Although those residents with the beast-like disease were somewhat pitiful, turning into beasts was tantamount to death.

The living are always more important than the dead.

"Give me a room with good soundproofing, and lend me this."

Liu Zheng pointed to the box used for the Great Baptism and said.

"My lord, what do you want?"

"Of course we need to gather some intelligence, using the Metropolitan method."

He looked at the unconscious hunter and said with a smile.

Everyone shuddered at his smile; even the calico cat shrank its ears.

Ten minutes later, Liu Zheng walked out of one of the rooms looking displeased.

"Sir, is the intelligence gathering not going very well?"

The old woman asked cautiously.

"No, it went too smoothly."

He snorted and said.

This hunter looked like a tough guy, but he turned into a coward during the interrogation.

Liu Zhengcai carved a few flowers on his body, and he confessed everything.

I don't know if it's because he's too weak-willed, or if the "interrogation master" is just too effective.

However, this hunter was not of high status and did not know much about him.

Currently, hunters in Atlantis are divided into two groups: workshop hunters and church hunters.

Workshop hunters are like mercenaries; they obey the church's orders but also have their own independence.

There are several workshops in Atlantis, each specializing in crafting different equipment, and each workshop has a different fighting style for its hunters.

There is both cooperation and rivalry between the workshops.

Church hunters, on the other hand, are directly under the church and receive orders from its higher-ups. Their equipment and supplies are provided directly by the church, making them the strongest hunters.

Moreover, unlike the workshop hunters, who are mostly outsiders, many of the church hunters are locals from Atlantis.

This is said to be due to the ideas of Beethoven, the chief hunter of the church.

He viewed hunters as protectors of Atlantis, and thus dedicated himself to recruiting hunters from among the local Atlanteans and training them to protect their homeland.

This hunter's name is Verus, and he is a hunter belonging to the "Ironsaw" workshop.

The unique feature of their workshop is their preference for using various models of meat saws; they almost never use other melee weapons.

The area around Anke's house was the responsibility of the "Iron Saw" workshop.

As for the truth about the beast disease and the Pale Night, Verus was unaware of it.

He did know about blood gems; the "Ironsaw" workshop had some, but the quality wasn't very high.

If there's a large quantity of high-quality blood gems, it must be in the workshops of the Church Hunters.

Liu Zheng opened the map and looked at the center of the map.

Now we have no choice but to go to the church town.

Chapter 264 The Church's Chief Hunter and High Priest

The man carrying a sheathless greatsword walked into the hall, his gaze fixed on the church's main altar.

Each level of the main altar is symmetrically decorated with statues wearing hooded robes, all of them with their hands raised as if in prayer.

Only the statues on the top level are different.

It was a headless statue, holding a bottle and pouring some kind of liquid down.

On the lowest level of the altar, which is also the very center of the main altar, lies a human skull.

A person wearing a white hooded robe is kneeling before the skull, with their hands clasped together as if in prayer.

A few strands of silver hair fell from the hood, landing on her slender, pale fingers.

"Grand Master Amelia".

The man shouted.

"Ah, Beethoven, the master."

The woman seemed to awaken from a dream, and responded softly.

"Are you okay?"

The church's chief hunter asked with concern.

“I am well, Master, the wisdom of High Priest Dickins has always protected me.”

Amelia said calmly.

"That's good."

Beethoven nodded and didn't ask any further questions.

He is the church's sharpest sword; a sword that only needs to kill the enemy, without needing to think too much.

High Priestess Amelia is the brains of the Blood Healing Church; he trusts in her wisdom.

"How's the situation outside?"

Amelia asked.

"Everything is under control. This outbreak of the beast disease is more serious than the last one, but we also have more manpower and supplies than before."

Beethoven replied.

Forty years later, he still looks almost like a middle-aged man, except for some wrinkles and more gray hair.

As the church's chief hunter, he naturally received the highest-grade "blood therapy," and the "blood essence" he obtained from hunting was also the most abundant.

“Very good. The Church and I both believe in you, Maestro Beethoven. As long as you and your knights are here, humanity will eventually triumph over the beasts.”

Amelia said gently.

"This is my duty, and also my honor."

Beethoven placed his hand on his chest and said.

Just as Amelia was about to say something, footsteps suddenly came from outside.

A church hunter carrying a greatsword similar to Beethoven's walked to the door, but did not come in; he simply looked at Beethoven's back.

"what's up?"

Beethoven turned around and asked.

"A mobile squad has reported that they have spotted a strange outsider."

The church hunter bowed his head and replied.

“Strange stranger? Let’s go outside and talk, so as not to disturb the High Priest’s contemplation.”

Beethoven glanced at Amelia and said.

“It’s alright, Maestro Beethoven, let’s talk here. I’d also like to hear some news from the outside world.”

Amelia gently shook her head.

"Yes, Archbishop Amelia. Please continue."

Beethoven nodded his chin at the church hunter.

“A strangely dressed outsider was wandering around the city, accompanied by a local middle-aged man and a little girl as guides.”

"The church hunter said."

"A middle-aged man and a little girl? Have their identities been confirmed?"

Beethoven frowned.

"The middle-aged man's identity has not been confirmed, but the little girl is likely Father John's daughter."

The church hunter replied.

"Father John."

Beethoven paused for a moment.

He knew this young man was skilled and virtuous, a very outstanding hunter.

He also tried to recruit the other party into his ranks, but unfortunately, due to their differing beliefs, he was unsuccessful.

Were they coerced by that outsider?

Beethoven asked again.

"It doesn't seem so. Father John's daughter even took the initiative to hold onto the hem of his clothes, and seemed to rely on him quite a bit."

"The church hunter said."

"What are they doing in the city? Are they just wandering around?"

Beethoven said with some doubt.

"It's unclear. They might use persuasion or coercion to open residents' doors, but they don't bring any extra supplies when they come out."

"According to the hunters' identification, they mainly entered places like shops or food stores."

The church hunter looked more confused than he did.

"Did they harm the residents?"

A flash of anger crossed Beethoven's face, and the greatsword on his back seemed to gleam slightly in response to his fury.

He admired ancient knights and heroes, and demanded the same of himself and his men. He could not stand those despicable people who harmed ordinary people.

"No, the hunters didn't hear any screams or smell any blood."

The church hunter shook his head.

"So they forced their way into the residents' homes just to satisfy their strange fetishes?"

Beethoven said, somewhat speechlessly.

"No, according to the hunters' subsequent inquiries, the residents did sell them supplies, but we don't know how they hid them."

"Is that so? Did they spot our people?"