Qianyuan: My crew comes from the world of anime.

Luo Tianming quickly put on his gas mask.

Another person said, "Don't worry, that kind of highly virulent virus takes effect very quickly, is highly contagious, but is also very deadly. It usually dies before it can infect the next person. Back then, those terrorists only killed a few dozen people besides their own to contain the spread."

“Look, we’ve been here for more than ten days and nothing’s happened.”

Luo Tianming: "Oh, so how do you live here without electricity?"

Another believer said impatiently, "If there's no electricity, we can use the reactor on the submarine to generate power. The electrolysis oxygen generator is enough for us to breathe, and we can burn the excess hydrogen!"

"Alright, stop talking nonsense! I'm freezing to death here!"

Luo Tianming continued unhurriedly, "Why didn't you carefully verify my identity?"

"What if I'm a spy sent by the Alliance to cause sabotage?"

"Yes, yes!" The believer, shivering from the cold, began to jump up and down, trying to warm himself up. "The missionary has already told us about your situation, so hurry up!"

They asked again, and Luo Tianming answered with the name "Robert Schumann".

He was then led to a warm cabin...

The believers nearby bowed to him and then brought him some free food and water, which was quite thoughtful.

However, he didn't intend to eat anything, as the contents of the food had likely been tampered with by the cult.

As soon as he turned around, Luo Tianming saw the missionaries who had arrived earlier than them.

Upon seeing the gas mask on Luo Tianming's face, he paused for a moment, then said in a hoarse voice:

"Captain Luo, won't you try some?"

"?"

"The people in our church are guaranteed to be good cooks; you'll never forget the taste after just one bite."

Luo Tianming looked at the food in his hand; it was a hamburger.

He was quite surprised.

Upon opening the wrapper, you'll find a piece of meat with an incredibly pink color, sandwiched between two pieces of seaweed bread.

"What's this?" He asked, moving the thing away a little in confusion.

The missionary calmly said, "Algae-climbing hamburger..."

Luo Tianming's expression at that moment was even more unbearable than if he had seen something like parasites.

Chapter 113 The Advantage Lies With Me

"..."

He quickly covered the hamburger wrapper back up and said as if nothing had happened:

"This isn't some sectarian joke, is it?"

"..."

Missionary: "You seem surprised. I thought you Easterners didn't mind this kind of thing. When there's not much food, we have to find other substitutes."

"Fortunately, this ocean is not lacking in life..."

Luo Tianming said with an expression of disbelief, "That can't be algae crawlers... Didn't you notice why those algae-mane crawlers have a pair of hand-like appendages, webbed feet, and their vestigial hind limbs..."

The missionary suddenly exclaimed in surprise, "Oh, I didn't realize... Captain Luo is actually a marine biologist. I knew I hadn't misjudged him."

"Indeed, according to unofficial sources... the algae-mane reptiles do have similar DNA to humans, have the same primate hands as us, the same jawbone structure, and can even be parasitized by the Painted Skin."

"This is enough to prove that they were the inheritors of a civilization that existed before Europa. We just don't know what happened to them that caused them to degenerate into what they are now."

"I've heard that the Alliance has a site researching algae crawling. Do you know anything about it?"

Luo Tianming: "..."

Even if he knew, he couldn't just say it, because the Alliance's research showed that their behavior was even more monstrous than this, where algae crawled on a cutting board.

…………

"Alright," Luo Tianming tossed the algae-covered burger in his hand over and said, "If you want to talk about marine biology, there's no need to do it here. There are more important things to do."

A slightly regretful sigh came through the headphones.

"..."

It seems she really enjoys this kind of topic.

missionary:"……"

He coughed slightly, and all the nearby members of the Painted Skin Cult hid at the very edge of the inner room to ensure they couldn't hear what the others were saying.

It seems he wants to say something that can't be known by others.

After confirming once again that no one else around could hear, the missionary slowly began to speak:

"Captain Luo, I know you have a lot of questions you want to ask, but I can't answer many of them. Please don't ask me why I can't answer them."

Luo Tianming nodded and got straight to the point: "Then I'll ask you this: why is the Painted Skin Cult holding this 'alternative concert'?"

missionary:"……"

Luo Tianming: "You can't even say that?"

Missionary: "...Alright, I can make an exception and answer that question. The answer is—I don't know."

"?"

The missionary said without a trace of remorse, "I really don't know. I'm completely baffled about this 'concert,' and even the archbishop himself hasn't come forward to explain it."

"The only thing we can guess is that something big must have happened recently that we don't know about, which has disrupted the Alliance and even the Jupiter Separators. So we can take advantage of this time when both sides are busy to do something that demonstrates our organization's existence."

"Why make a show of force?" Luo Tianming asked suspiciously. "Could it be that your sect misses the temperature in the incinerator and wants to be stuffed into it again if the Alliance catches you?"

Missionary: "Ahem... Captain Luo, please watch your words."

Luo Tianming: "Am I wrong? It's not good to stay quietly in the gutter. Why do you have to run to the Europa Alliance and jump around like that? Unless you are all immortal, I can't think of any good that would do you any good."

"What if I said... the Painted Skin Cult wants to end this state of being confined to the 'dark corners'?"

The missionary's voice exuded an air of authority.

“All the organizations on Europa have never been friendly to our sect. Perhaps the archbishop wants to take this opportunity to return to the public eye.”

Luo Tianming replied decisively, "Impossible. At most, the Alliance can only allow you to exist in the gray area. They won't create an unpredictable enemy for themselves. Besides, your Archbishop Yakov is a wanted criminal by the Alliance. Based on that alone, they would never let you go."

Missionary: "What if... the archbishop is no longer Yakovsubra?"

Luo Tianming: "..."

! !

"What did you say?!"

In contrast to his shock, the missionary calmly said, "If the leader of the Painted Skin Cult is no longer the wanted Yakov Subra, then can the Alliance accept the open existence of the Painted Skin Cult?"

"..."

Luo Tianming couldn't guarantee the answer was 100% accurate, but he couldn't deny its existence either.

If the Painted Skin Cult were to actually get a less radical leader, the Alliance might try to win them over... especially in the context of fighting Jupiter separatism, it's not impossible that the Painted Skin Cult could be turned into a tool.

But the question is: is it really possible?

Can the Painted Skin Cult abandon its founder, Yakov Subra?

Luo Tianming: "I think... the premise of this matter is not very valid. If the sect abandons Yakov Subra, then who will perform the ritual of coexisting with the painted skin?"

That's right, that's the real key.

Archbishop Yakov possessed all the details of the rituals involving the painted skin, while the rest of the population was completely unaware of them.

If Yakov is abandoned, then the ultimate ideal of the Painted Skin Cult—that all humanity achieves symbiosis with the Painted Skin—cannot be accomplished.

"..."

When asked this question, the missionary replied:

"That's exactly why I've brought you here. Many people in the current sects have the idea of ​​having the archbishop perform the 'ritual' publicly. Incidentally, some also believe that if we change the archbishop, the Alliance might ease its pursuit of us a bit."

Luo Tianming continued, "So that's why we had this 'concert,' everyone trying to force us to abdicate?"

"What is the archbishop's opinion on this matter?"

The missionary shook his head... which meant he neither knew nor could know:

"As of now, the archbishop... what title he will use, and whether he will even appear at this concert, remains a mystery."

Luo Tianming: "How could he not show up at such an important meeting?!"

"At the very least, there should be an 'agent' who appears."

missionary:"……"

Luo Tianming then realized that the missionary's previous statement made it seem as if some people disagreed with changing the leader.

"Could this 'agent' be you?"

Luo Tianming asked cautiously.

Missionary: "It's 'we'."

Luo Tianming: "..."

Who would have thought that he would accidentally become Archbishop Yakov's agent and have to attend such an important meeting?

"Then..." Luo Tianming asked dumbfounded, "What are the factions within the Painted Skin Church now... to put it simply, how many factions are there?"

missionary:"……"

Luo Tianming understood his meaning: "You mean: everyone except us wants to replace the archbishop?!"

Missionary: "It's convenient to talk to intelligent people."

"..."

Now, Luo Tianming couldn't wait to jump back onto the Nautilus and use the engine to accelerate and leave all this trouble behind.

Chapter 114 When Humanoid Stars Shine

But things have come to this point, and there's no point in trying to 'escape' now.

Before coming here, Luo Tianming was already prepared to be on a pirate ship. This incident was perhaps a test for him by the Painted Skin Cult.

If he succeeds, he can instantly gain the highest level of trust within the entire Painted Skin Cult... Even if he fails, he can still gain sufficient influence within the Painted Skin Cult through this incident.

The worst-case scenario is that he not only fails to retain his current position as archbishop, but also offends the newly appointed 'archbishop'...

Fortunately, there are still two days before the 'alternative concert' officially begins, so Luo Tianming still has a little time to make arrangements.

The collective mutation of the Painted Skin Algae in the lower levels of the cold cave led the Alliance to conduct a fairly strict search and control of many Painted Skin Cult members.

Representatives from some sects will arrive a few days later...

Luo Tianming first had Lucy restore the site's internal network infrastructure, and set up monitoring and listening in some necessary places to monitor what was happening on the entire site.

He then proactively restored a portion of the small nuclear reactors, actively shut down the ventilation system, and restarted heating in the planned areas of the site.

This action improved the opinion of many believers... In addition, the missionaries brought a lot of delicious dried mushrooms from Chongshan Station, which improved the food of many believers.

This scene is a bit eerie.

A group of believers were hallucinating while eating mushrooms, shouting things like "Painted Skin Savior" and "Long Live the New Humanity," which is practically the epitome of a cult.

"..."

-

After he had won over the hearts of the people, the submarine of the 'big shot' who followed them arrived at Vienna Station.

Luo Tianming and the missionaries arrived at the airlock connection point in advance to greet them, in order to win the favor of some people first.

In order to obtain more information, Luo Tianming asked, "Who was the first one to arrive?"

The missionary said, "His code name was Beethoven. He was in charge of finances in the church. As for his personality... you can guess from the code name he gave himself."

"..."

Then, a large transport submarine docked.

A guy who looked like a 'fathead fish' was the first to come down from the airlock. He first scanned his surroundings with his 'nostrils' and finally saw Luo Tianming and the missionary standing near the entrance of the passage.