【 THE SLAUGHTERED VILLAGE 】

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“Village! It’s a village!”

At the sight of the scenery at the end of the road, the players immediately grew excited, and even their pace became noticeably lighter.

In an instant, they broke into a run, overtaking Evé as they rushed ahead toward the settlement.

The mission she gave them included a bonus reward for the one who could complete it first. So whoever finished the investigation first would receive greater rewards than the others.

Although everyone present was already considered a veteran within the game, this was their first time questing alongside the Goddess herself. Naturally, they all wanted to leave a good impression on Evé.

Thus, the moment they glimpsed an opportunity to advance the mission, even the usually laid back Li Mu could not help but quicken his steps.

As Eve gazed upon the village in the distance, her expression softened slightly.

The sealing power within this world was highly peculiar to the extent that even her divine perception had been significantly suppressed.

Under such constraints, Evé was unable to use her divine senses to investigate beyond a range of five kilometers.

With her perception suppressed, she had originally prepared herself for the possibility of leading the players in exploration for several days.

Now, however, being able to discover a village inhabited by this world’s local residents so quickly was undoubtedly a positive sign.

Yet Eve’s softened expression did not last long.

After taking a few more steps forward, her brows gradually furrowed, and her gaze toward the distance became tinged with solemn look.

The players did not notice the change in the Goddess’s expression as they were already eager to enter the village and begin interacting with the local NPCs.

However, after running a few steps, Cypher suddenly came to a halt. He sniffed the air lightly and looked at the others.

“Hey, do any of you smell blood?”

“Blood?”

The other players were momentarily stunned.

Demacia took a deep sniff and scratched his head in confusion.

“No… I don’t smell anything.”

Even so, despite not detecting the scent Cypher mentioned, the group instinctively became more alert.

Cypher was a hunter by class, which is highly sensitive to scents and traces, especially after acquiring the abilities of a blood elf.

Soon after, Boxlunch, who was walking at the front, suddenly stopped. He crouched down and began examining the wheat by the roadside.

Seeing this, the others turned their attention toward him and noticed the serious expression on his face as he rubbed a broken stalk of wheat between his fingers.

“Box, is something wrong?” Little Salty Cat asked cautiously, tightening her grip on her staff.

Boxlunch nodded.

“This appears to have been cut by a sharp weapon.”

He then glanced toward the side of the road and pointed at a patch of disordered wheat that could easily be overlooked.

“There are signs of a struggle.”

A struggle…

Upon hearing this, the players instinctively turned to look at the Goddess, only to realize that at some point, the smile on her face had disappeared and in its place was a solemn expression.

Seeing this, the players’ expressions also grew more serious.

If there was any unquestionable authority within the group, it was definitely the Goddess herself.

Therefore, the change in her demeanor clearly indicated that something was wrong with the village up ahead.

Their expressions tightened as they entered a state of readiness.

Boxlunch continued cautiously forward.

The others exchanged glances before following closely behind him.

The group advanced further.

After several hundred more steps, even Demacia, who had the weakest perception among them, could detect the rust like scent of blood in the air.

At that moment, Boxlunch stopped once more.

He stepped into the wheat field to one side and used his short blade to part the stalks.

Within the wheat lay the body of a human dressed as a villager, still clutching a farming tool.

The man was already dead.

Ghastly wounds were visible on his body, likely inflicted by a sharp weapon. The blood had darkened, staining the ground a deep crimson.

“He should be someone from that village. Judging by his looks, that village seems to be a human settlement,” Optimist said in a low voice.

The others nodded.

“This person had been dead for quite some time already, probably over a day or two,” Cypher added after examining the corpse.

Over a day…

The players’ expressions turned grim.

The body lay hidden among the wheat beside the dirt road.

If it had been over a day without discovery, then…

The village ahead…

Once again, everyone turned their gaze toward the Goddess.

When Evé noticed their gaze directed toward her, she let out a soft sigh and spoke gently,

“Prepare for battle.”

These words fully confirmed that danger lay within the village ahead.

“Melee warriors in front, mages in the rear. Stay alert and observe your surroundings carefully,” Li Mu commanded calmly.

At his order, the ten players immediately sprang into action, rearranging themselves into the standard ten person squad formation commonly used in most battles.

Although the Goddess stood behind them, everyone still heightened their vigilance to the utmost degree.

From the moment this quest was triggered, its background had already explained the Goddess’s current condition. The players knew that in this world, her strength was also being suppressed by an unknown force.

As such, the Goddess currently need to conserve the power of her incarnation, so she would not act unless absolutely necessary.

Thus, as the quest only active participants, the ten of them could not afford to lower their guard at any time.

Of course, for Evé, conserving her strength was merely a convenient explanation.

The real reason was simple…

With these ten players present, there was no need for her to personally handle every menial task. And as long as their group’s efficiency was not compromised, she had no intention of intervening like their caretaker.

After realizing that something was wrong with the village, the group proceeded with even greater caution.

As they drew closer, the traces of combat became increasingly evident.

The ground was stained with blood, and from time to time, fresh corpses could be seen in the vicinity, all dressed as human villagers.

Moreover, the manner of their deaths was almost identical.

Each dead bodies bore wounds inflicted by sharp weapons, resembling blades, though some bodies also displayed claw marks akin to those made by wild beasts.

Many of the dead still wore expressions of terror, as if they had witnessed something horrifying before their final moments.

The ten players advanced while carefully observing their surroundings, restraining themselves from looting the bodies.

Even when they occasionally spotted corpses dressed as soldiers, whose equipment appeared quite valuable and even carried faint elven stylistic elements, they held back.

After all, the Goddess was right behind them, and at such a serious moment, one’s appearances still mattered.

Upon entering the village, a scene of utter devastation met their eyes, as though it had been ravaged by bandits.

There were even more bodies scattered across the ground, not only ordinary villagers, but also the elderly and children.

Each corpse bore signs of extreme brutality, suggesting they had been tortured before death.

Like the initial dead person in the wheat fields, they too had all been dead for over a day.

The horrific scene caused the ten players to frown. Particularly the two female players even turned pale, only recovering after switching their gore censorship settings to mosaic mode.

Even though they had experienced numerous battles, witnessing such a gruesome sight still left them deeply unsettled.

“Should we split up and check for any survivors?” Demacia asked, frowning.

Li Mu pondered briefly and instinctively glanced at Evé, only to find her gaze fixed on the distance.

A thought stirred within him.

Following the direction of her gaze, Li Mu spotted a church-like structure within the village, one in which clearly bore some elven architectural features.

After a moment’s consideration, he said to the others whilst pointing at it:

“No. We should head to that church-like building first.”

Noticing his subtle cue, the other players nodded and followed his suggestion.

At the same time, they observed that the Goddess moved along behind them, much like an NPC accompanying players in an escort quest.

This quietly reassured them.

Though she had said nothing, her actions implicitly confirmed that their decision was correct.

The church was not far.

In less than five minutes, their group quickly arrived at the entrance to its courtyard.

However, as they approached, Boxlunch, who was at the forefront, suddenly stiffened and raised a hand, signaling everyone to be silent.

The rest of the players immediately held their breath.

Soon, faint voices could be heard coming from within the courtyard.

It was a language they did not understand, sharp in tone.

As they cautiously drew closer and peered inside, they finally saw the source of the voices.

Inside the church, there were seven or eight humanoid creatures covered in fish scales. Their heads resembled those of fish, their bodies tall and robust, with strength ranging from lower to upper Silver-rank.

Beside them lay several metal weapons, their shapes unmistakably matching the wounds seen on the dead villagers.

In that instant, the ten players understood who had slaughtered the villagers.

The creatures sat around a bonfire, roasting something.

When Dōngdōng saw clearly what was being cooked over the fire, a wave of nausea rose in her stomach.

It was… an infant, still attached to its umbilical cord.

Not far away, a figure dressed like a priest lay collapsed on the ground. She had slightly pointed ears and a face drained of all color.

Clearly the female priest was a half-elf.

Her abdomen had been torn open by a gruesome wound. Her blood had long since drained away, indicating she had already been dead for quite some time.

Her priestly robes were soaked in crimson, their design bearing a striking resemblance, nearly ninety percent, to the attire of the old Church of Nature clerics before its reforms.

An elven priest from the Church of Nature…

This realization surfaced in the players’ minds almost simultaneously.

Then, their gazes toward the fish headed creatures grew cold.

‘Followers of a Demon Lord, Storm Murlocs.’

Eve’s emotionless voice echoed within the minds of the ten players.

The moment she saw these creatures, her divine sense allowed her to immediately discern their racial name—Storm Murlocs.

Their appearance matched the oceanic monsters described in the memories of the elven souls once provided by Hela, creatures that had fought against the shadow elves.

They were followers of Leviathan.

Followers of a Demon Lord…

The players’ expressions gradually turned dangerous.

At this moment, in the players’ eyes, these murlocs were as good as dead.

“I’ll restrain them first. Then we strike together and eliminate them.”

Li Mu signaled to the others.

Everyone nodded and prepared to attack.

Li Mu raised his staff and chanted softly. Immediately afterward, eight thick vines burst forth from the ground, each as wide as a bowl, coiling tightly around the Storm Murlocs.

Caught completely off guard, the creatures were instantly bound by the summoned vines.

With a unified shout, the players charged forward, swinging their weapons and unleashing their skills as they cut into the immobilized enemies.

There was no suspense in this battle.

Thess ten players were among the elite in the whole server, each possessing exceptional skill and standing at the peak of the intermediate Silver-rank.

Even though one of the seven or eight Storm Murlocs had reached the upper Silver-rank, it failed to react in time to the players’ ambush and was swiftly hacked to pieces along with the others.

However, just before being slain, the strongest of the Storm Murlocs struggled to lift its head and released a long, piercing howl.

“Not good… it’s calling for reinforcements!”

Li Mu’s expression shifted slightly, having already activated the skill [Nature’s Whisper.]

In the next instant, a cacophony of noise erupted from outside the church. Before long, more than three hundred Storm Murlocs poured in from all directions of the village, brandishing sharp and grotesque weapons as they surrounded the players.

Most of them were at the Silver-rank. Among them was one whose presence sent a chill down the players’ spines.

It was the aura of a Gold-rank expert.

Surrounded by over a hundred Silver-rank enemies and a single Gold-rank foe, even these highly skilled players grew solemn.

We will not win at this rate…

This realization flashed through their minds.

Yet despite this, their expressions showed neither panic nor fear.

They exchanged glances, then quickly gathered around Evé.

“Goddess, there are too many enemies…”

“Goddess, one of them is a Golden-ranker!”

“Goddess, what should we do?”

Their anxious expressions betrayed their clear intention to rely on her.

Eve: “…”

She glanced at these players, then at the charging Storm Murlocs.

Her gaze instantly sharpened.

At that very moment, every murloc rushing toward the group froze in place and found themselves unable to move.

At the same time, an indescribable fear surged within them, as if they had been locked onto by something beyond comprehension.

Evé cast them another calm glance, her eyes seemingly imbued with the power of some fundamental divine law.

As her gaze swept over them, every Storm Murlocs in the vicinity stiffened in place.

In the next instant, under the astonished eyes of the players, every Murlocs trembled slightly, their bodies breaking apart into countless drifting particles of light before slowly dissipating.

It was as if they had never existed at all.

Witnessing this scene, the Golden-rank murloc leader revealed a look of terror.

Though the scene was strangely beautiful, the lethal force hidden within it, along with the incomprehensible power it embodied, filled him with dread.

It dropped its weapon and quickly turned to flee.

Yet under Eve’s gaze, the Golden-rank Murloc managed only a single step before meeting the same fate as the others, its body collapsing into ash.

“Damn… that’s… that’s insanely strong… just one look and they’re all gone.”

“As expected of the Goddess…”

“What skill was that just now? Can we learn it?”

The ten players looked on with undisguised envy.

Evé offered no explanation as what she done was merely an application of the power of divine laws.

Although the incarnation she’s currently using could only exert strength at the Gold-rank, with the aid of such power, she could still overwhelm anything below the Legendary-rank.

It did, however, consume considerable divine energy. Even Evé felt a trace of fatigue after eliminating the murlocs.

Alas, the incarnation was still too limited in power due to the world’s suppression.

Even so, compared to directly intervening, this approach carried far greater presence in front of the players.

Sigh… Maintaining this divine stature of hers is so damn burdensome.

Afterward, Evé extended her hand slightly, drawing forth the soul of the Golden-rank murloc leader and beginning to read its memories.

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