Chapter 277 [New Home] (5k6)
The church’s high festival? Rossio Carlos? Thomas chewed on the name silently.
On the way to Red Maple City, he had heard the clergyman Mayyev mention this respected "Grand Priest" more than once.
From Maiyev's mouth, Thomas learned many stories about "Rosio Carlos".
For example, he is the holder of the record for being promoted to the fourth level of destiny the fastest among the existing clergymen of the 'Holy Court'. He has killed countless heretics of the third and fourth level of destiny. He also led the Red Maple City Church to develop and grow step by step. The conspiracy of the enemy "executor" was smashed for the first time, etc...
--powerful! To Thomas, "powerful" was synonymous with Rossiu Carlos.
Thomas looked around. The originally agitated players were also looking forward to it. They all seemed to have learned about the deeds of "Roseux Carlos" from other priests and were full of curiosity about him.
But the high priest of the church has not yet appeared. Thomas saw that other players, who were "refugees", were still being brought into the church one by one by the priests. The number of players gathered here soon reached More than two thousand people attended.
In addition to the players, the priests also brought in some civilians from Red Maple City and refugees wandering outside the city.
It seems that this is not a rally aimed at the symbolic identity behind the "players" group? But a gathering like a "citizens' assembly" in the ancient West? Thomas guessed.
Soon, more than five thousand people gathered in the inner courtyard of the church.
Most of the people gathered here are civilians, half of whom are players, and the rest are real civilians.
Thomas reported this result to their panel detection - those real civilians are just "ordinary NPCs", with levels ranging from lv.1 to lv.5, and have not embarked on any extraordinary destiny.
Thomas, who was aware of this, no longer focused on them, but waited silently while chatting with other players in the [World Channel].
Just around the crowd, more than two hundred priests with first- and second-level destiny had surrounded them.
Although there were indeed players who were eager to do something, but after looking at the meticulously vigilant priests beside them, they still chose to follow their hearts and temporarily suppressed the urge to commit suicide.
At this time, the players all bowed their heads and remained silent, only discussing enthusiastically in their minds. The citizens who were "invited" were whispering among themselves, speculating on the church's purpose of calling them here this time.
While everyone was discussing in private, suddenly, the statue in the center of the altar lit up with a dazzling light.
Everyone's attention was attracted by the light of the altar statue. Thomas then saw nine clergymen dressed in sacred attire appearing on the altar.
At this time, Thomas realized that Maiyev, who had been in front of him, had left at some point, and he appeared among the nine clergymen on the altar!
New characters suddenly appeared, causing players to divert their attention and throw detections at them.
Unsurprisingly, the detection results showed that except for the names of the priests who appeared on the altar, almost all other entries were question marks!
That’s the church’s first-level combat power after the ‘Great Priest’, right? It’s said that their priesthoods are all ‘deacons’? Thomas thought to himself, and then he saw the "deacons" on the altar walking to both sides, leaving a large space in the center of the altar vacant.
The atmosphere in the venue suddenly became silent. Suddenly, Thomas seemed to hear a sound like the neighing of a war horse.
There was a twitching sound in the air, and Thomas felt that a bright light seemed to flash at the edge of his vision.
He then looked up and saw a sight that shocked him for a long time——
That's a golden Pegasus with wings on its back! It galloped high in the air, leaving an obvious golden light in its path!
And on the back of the Pegasus, a priest wearing a gold-patterned robe is riding it and landing on the altar!
--boom! At the moment when the golden Pegasus fell on the altar, a slight roar sounded, and a circle of bright golden light suddenly bloomed on the altar, causing light mist to block everyone's sight.
"Woc, what is that!" Players in the channel expressed shock, and many players echoed.
Thomas was also greatly shocked - this is definitely the ability of [Glorious]! And whether it's in terms of special effects or intensity, it's much stronger than the one Mayev used before!
Moreover, that Golden Pegasus... is that some kind of summoned object, right? Like a guardian beast, a mythical beast or something? It seems that [Glory] also has a system of summoning objects...
Thomas was thinking about this with excitement. His eyes widened and he focused on the haze of light that was slowly dissipating on the altar, not wanting to miss any detail of the scene.
Until the light mist dissipated, the golden Pegasus had disappeared, but the priest who drove it appeared calmly in everyone's field of vision with a smile on his face.
It was a priest with black hair and golden eyes, wearing a white priestly robe.
He looked quite young, but his face did not have the childishness that a person of his age should have, but a calm expression as if he was keeping something secret.
And the decorations on the priestly clothes he wore were more complex and more beautiful than those of other priests, which seemed to illustrate his identity.
The "deacons" around him performed sacraments to the newly emerged clergy one after another, and the clergy scattered around the crowd also looked at him devoutly, with their eyes full of reverence.
At this time, Thomas saw that the civilians of Red Maple City gathered here seemed to recognize him. The eyes of most of them were also full of respect, which was enough to indicate something deeper.
Afterwards, like most players, Thomas conducted a panel detection on the newly emerged young cleric.
And the result of the feedback was exactly as he guessed——
Rossio Carlos! That is indeed the church’s “high priest”, Luo Xiu Carlos!
The results of the detection on his panel were similar to the detection on the previous cleric Maiyev. They were all full of big question marks.
Even the detection results of "Roshu Carlos" and his specific destiny only showed question marks!
That may be caused by the really huge level difference... However, Thomas is convinced that just based on the scene he just saw, the "hosting ceremony" of this church must be the [Glorious] destiny!
While thinking about these, Thomas vaguely felt that the "high priest" on the altar seemed to glance in his direction.
But that sense of glance quickly disappeared, and Thomas did not clearly see any changes in the face of the great priest on the stage, which made Thomas vaguely suspect that it might be an illusion caused by his excessive concentration.
While thinking about this, the "Grand Priest" on the altar slowly spoke:
"Welcome to you, guests from afar, and hard-working citizens."
"I am the leader of the church, Rossio Carlos. I sincerely thank you for accepting the church's invitation to come here."
invite? Thomas tried to figure out the word. He looked at the civilians beside him. There was no special reaction on their faces. It looked like what the great sacrifice said.
Rossiu Carlos then said loudly:
"I know that you are all loyal subjects of the empire. And in this borderland, you originally wanted to live a peaceful life away from disputes."
"But - war! The unjust and blasphemous war suddenly broke out, drawing us all into the center of the whirlpool!"
"As everyone knows, the Dark Principality, the nest of criminals, has invaded our country! In the name of revenge, they ruthlessly trampled on the land of the empire, destroyed ancient churches, kidnapped innocent people, and insulted Chaste women break the spines of young children and make wine cups from their heads, and they take pleasure in doing so as the pride of the victor!”
"Everyone - some of you have had their hometowns destroyed, so you have to leave your hometown and come here. Some of you have ancestors who were residents of Red Maple City, but lost their homes due to the enemy's shameless invasion."
"I understand your pain because I have seen too many similar tragedies."
"But, now, the city you are in - a fortress that has endured countless enemy attacks but has never collapsed or fallen - Red Maple City! This is the last fortress and the last home on the frontier of Songyuan Territory."
"However, this last homeland is facing threats from enemies, and our homeland is being devastated and invaded. But we are not lambs to be slaughtered. We should be freedom fighters. We are fighting to defend our dignity and freedom. war!"
“To this end I exhort you and I encourage you.”
"We will drive the vicious thieves from our territory, and we will engage in a noble and holy war - a war of judgment!"
"Let all evil deeds and conflicts cease, and good intentions and peace will eventually take root and grow!"
"For this purpose, we are gathered here, and now we can still bask in the same warm sunshine."
"But the war will not stop. I know you will be afraid, frustrated and even desperate - but there is no need to be afraid, for a moment we will be protected, and the church will always be on your side."
"I promise you."
"No matter where you came from, since you are standing here now, standing on the land of Red Maple City, we are comrades with one will."
"I will give you shelter and enough shelter from the wind and rain; I will give you clothes so that you will not huddle in the cold; I will give you money and food so that you will not be trapped by hunger."
"But the best thing is to give you hope that you can win a better future with your hands."
"I invite you."
"I invite you to fight for Maple City and consider this place your true home."
"..."
…
When listening to Rossiu Carlos's speech, Thomas was indeed a little excited.
I have to say that the high priest's speech was indeed very contagious. Although Thomas was not a real "refugee", he was deeply touched.
The faces of the real "civilians" around him were filled with excited expressions. Some of them had red eyes, bulging veins on their necks, and their eyes seemed to be burning with fire.
Compared to himself and other players, those are the real "refugees"... Thomas thought to himself.
At the same time, in front of Thomas, his panel suddenly popped up. That was the reminder that I had accepted two tasks——
[Main Mission: Judgment War (?? Difficulty)]
[Recommended level: lv.1~lv.100, first level life path and above]
[Task Type: Main Mission]
[Task description: At the end of the Apocalypse Calendar 767, the cavalry of the "Dark Principality" broke through the border of the Nolan Empire, and the Dark Duke officially declared war on the Nolan Empire.
You came to the continent of Fanor in troubled times, and the Ring of Apocalypse gave you the power to choose your camp.
Join the "Nolan Empire" and cooperate with the Supreme to launch a just trial against the thieves of the "Dark Principality"? Or join the "Dark Principality" to overthrow the empire's dominance and achieve revenge?
Or become a witness of this war and join the "Holy Tower Theocracy", "El Dorado Federation" or "Kasyapa Pure Land"... Of course, you can also become a lone wanderer.
All roads are opening before your eyes, and you only have to step on one of them.
Now, make your choice and wait to witness the results of your choice. 】
[Main mission guidance: Choose your camp]
【……】
Holy shit...it's the main quest!
Just after listening to the church's "Hosting Ceremony" speech, the main quest unexpectedly popped up on the panel!
Thomas looked at the refreshed content on the panel with bright eyes. Although he didn't know what the real principle was that triggered the main line, it was obvious that he finally had a vague idea of what he should do next.
But now, the flashing light on the panel seemed to be urging him to make a choice of camp.
After listening to the church's "Grand Ceremony" speech, Thomas decided to join the "Norland Empire" without much hesitation.
【……】
[Main mission guide: Choose your camp (Completed. Current camp: Nolan Empire)]
[Automatically generate mission goals based on the current camp. The current camp is "Nolan Empire"]
[The first phase mission goal: Assist the "Nolan Empire" army to resist the invasion of the "Dark Principality"]
[The second phase mission goal: Assist the "Nolan Empire" army to capture the territory of the "Dark Principality"]
[Third stage mission goal: Assist the "Nolan Empire" army to destroy the "Dark Principality"]
[Remarks on the main mission: By killing enemy units and successfully assisting your team in completing specific goals, you will receive mission points (the final mission completion reward will be settled based on the completion of the stage mission objectives and the number of points earned)]
[Current mission points: 0]
[List of completion rewards: basic experience +120000+, exclusive destiny random skills*1~3, exclusive destiny random skills*1~3, exclusive destiny random expertise*1~3, skill slots*3~10, skill slots* 3~10...Settlement depends on the completion of the mission goal...]
【……】
After confirming his own camp, the content after the [Main Mission] quickly appeared on Thomas's panel.
And when he saw the list of rewards for completing the mission, Thomas's eyes almost went straight——
Damn it, this reward...
The basic experience reward... is as high as six figures? !
That's not all. After the main mission is completed, skills, skills, and expertise will even be rewarded... Although Thomas has not yet embarked on his destiny and achieved extraordinary achievements, he has already felt how sweet the rewards he will receive after completing the main mission are.
It is indeed the main mission! Thomas secretly admired it in his heart. He looked at his character panel again. At this time, the experience required for him to level up at level 1 was only a few hundred. He couldn't help but become more and more greedy for the rewards after completing the main story.
However, Thomas also knew that if he wanted to complete a [main mission] like this, it would have to wait a long, long time.
Moreover, it seems that this "Judgment War" will not end so quickly. If you want to quickly improve your strength, you still have to start with small tasks within your ability...
Thomas thought this, and he remembered that the panel seemed to have skipped two tasks in a row just now, so he temporarily hid the main task aside and looked at the panel of the second task.
[Trigger commissioned tasks]
[Commissioned Mission: New Home (Normal Difficulty)]
[Recommended level: lv.1]
[Task Type: Delegated Task]
[Task description: After listening to the speech of Rossiu Carlos, the "Grand Priest Master" of the Red Maple City Church, you are protected by the church as a "refugee" who fled here, but you are not willing to do so. 】
[Among them, Luo Xiu Carlos has extended an invitation to you. He sincerely invites you to join Red Maple City and contribute to the defense and construction of Red Maple City. 】
[Task goal: Accept the invitation of Rossiu Carlos, get a job in Red Maple City under the arrangement of the church priests, and actively participate in the work for more than 12 hours in total (current options: church patroller, city Builders, wall guards, blacksmith apprentices...). 】
[Completion reward: Basic experience +1000, Luo Xiu Carlos' favorability +10%, depending on the level of contribution, you will be rewarded by the church, and you may get an invitation to officially join the church, side court, and Fangbeiyuan]
【……】
Oh... It turns out that coming to the church to listen to this speech also corresponds to a side mission... Thomas looked thoughtful.
He has finished browsing the contents of the [New Homeland] mission. Although its completion rewards are much smaller than those of the main mission, it is a mission that current players can complete!
Moreover, although 1,000 experience points seems small, it is enough for players to upgrade their current levels by 4 or 5 levels!
In addition, the most critical reward for completing [New Home] lies in the half line of text after it.
——It is possible to get an official invitation to join the church, side court, and square monument courtyard!
This is the only opportunity known so far. Thomas looked thoughtful. This is the opportunity in front of him to obtain extraordinary power!
This time I had to do it.jpg
After looking at the chat channel, it seemed that many players had the same idea as me.
Thomas then secretly decided that after the party here was over, he would go to the clergy of the church to get a job. While slowly studying what the world was made of, he was preparing to explode and try to complete the task within a day.
…
After gathering the "refugees" and citizens whose property had been destroyed, and giving a speech in the church, Luo Xiu left the altar and left the rest to his clergy.
After that, he returned to the Holy See of the Bishop and observed the subsequent situation through the perspective of "fog shadow".
Most of the players seem to be very motivated. After they received new clothes and five silver coins in relief under the leadership of the clergy, they wanted to start their new "job".
Looking at the scene in front of him, Luo Xiu felt that his previous speech should be a success.
He indeed aroused the emotions of many "players". In order to further expand the infection, he also specially asked the clergy to summon civilians to spread the feeling of hope amidst despair as much as possible.
Now, Luo Xiu felt that in addition to players, calling additional civilians was indeed the right choice.
Although this allocates a lot of manpower, it does allow players to experience the current situation of Red Maple City more truly and immersively, and avoids unnecessary suspicion caused by only players.
Although the players have nothing to do with this world, Luo Xiu knows that people are always emotional creatures.
This can be seen from the fact that most players chose to join the Nolan Empire camp in the main mission triggered by "participating in the main event for a certain period of time" after the speech.
After that, Luo Xiu advanced more than 200,000 experience points to more than 2,000 players who chose to join the Nolan Empire camp and issued a "commissioned task" to them - [New Homeland], which allowed the players to have the future focus of action.
After these steps, most players will now "play" according to his guidance. This is what Luo Xiu wants to achieve.
Then, what needs to be done next is very clear.
Luo Xiu's eyes suddenly became a little deeper.
Regarding the "Bishop of the Dead" Passaro and his "Heir of Death", the Gu that has been cultivated for so long is finally about to be harvested.
There is also "Holy Abyss", this hidden organization that Luo Xiu actually established himself, and it is also the main position prepared for the players.
Also waiting for the right time for it to appear.
…
(End of chapter)