It was an upside-down tree.

A gigantic tree of death hangs upside down from the church floor.

Its roots extend upwards, seemingly ready to break free from the constraints of the earth and take root in the world above.

The lush branches that droop deep into the ground have a head hanging from the tip of each branch, exuding a strong stench of decay.

Player Phantom Princess has suffered a mental attack, resulting in a -10 HP reduction.

Xia Ning: !!!

She was unconvinced; she was too used to ugly things and wasn't easily subjected to psychological attacks.

However, when Xia Ning turned her head and saw Greta's status, she realized that the system had only reduced her immunity and defense values ​​by 10 points.

Greta seemed to be on the verge of collapse. She frantically scratched her face, her eyes bulging outwards, and blood flowing from between her fingers.

"It's...they..."

Greta's language also became fragmented.

"Leave the town...become a saint...God...is calling me..."

Her expression contorted, and she crawled on all fours like an animal toward the tree of death, which was laden with corpses.

That ugly, lifeless, upside-down tree contracted and expanded like a heart.

Xia Ning grabbed Greta by the back of the neck and poured two vials of [Basic Antidote] into her mouth, finally bringing a glimmer of light back into her unfocused pupils.

As if waking from a nightmare, Greta convulsed on the ground, covered in sweat, before slowly sitting up.

"……grown ups?"

Xia Ning said coldly, "Stay close to me, or you'll become fertilizer."

Greta, who had survived the ordeal, clutched the feather of the Gray Mist Messenger and said to Xia Ning with lingering fear, "They are the ones who left the town!"

Xia Ning nodded noncommittally.

She has basically figured out the situation.

Leaving the town would immediately make them nourishment for the first evil god.

If you stay in the town, you'll be kept by the second evil god, fattened up, and then slaughtered.

As they spoke, intricate and beautiful patterns suddenly spread out beneath Xia Ning and the others' feet, extending to five points and connecting to form a pentagram array.

Without hesitation, Xia Ning grabbed Greta and jumped away from the magic circle, shrinking into a corner underground, close to the soil.

Standing to the side and watching, she realized that the magic circle was not so much beneath their feet as it was directly beneath the upside-down tree.

The branches and leaves, which had been throbbing like living things, began to close up, forming a giant oval cocoon with branches, leaves, bones, and decaying matter.

Evil is conceived within it.

Black blood dripped from the gaps in the branches and leaves, emitting the stench of rotting corpses.

With a loud bang, the space trembled violently, and the ground beneath Xia Ning's feet began to crack.

At the same time, a huge body emerged from its cocoon.

Six scarlet pupils turned black, like the deep, dark ink of a night.

The monster raised its head, its six eyes seemingly piercing through the earth and clouds, seeing the beings high in the sky.

Its lower body resembles a Western dragon, its head resembles a fish from the sea, and it has six eyes on both sides.

The monster's wings also created a hurricane, and the world changed color in an instant.

The powerful gust of air made it impossible for Xia Ning to stand up. Her body was embedded in the mud wall, and she had the illusion that she was about to be crushed.

The younger sister nestled in Xia Ning's arms.

Greta's mortal body simply couldn't withstand this level of air pressure, and he suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood.

Fortunately, the monsters didn't seem to be targeting them, or even paying them any attention.

Black blood flowed from the broken tree cocoon, pooling on the ground like a black pond.

Xia Ning squinted, straining to look at the black surface of the water.

There is a reflection of a town on it.

The system voice then sounded—

"Weather forecast: Bloody night is coming."

Xia Ning didn't have time to think before she saw the monster tear the ground apart with a claw, and the blood-red moonlight shone on the ethereal white mist.

The powerful gust of air whipped Xia Ning's hair and clothes backward, forcing her to raise her hands to shield her face.

The piercing screams came from all directions, like the sounds of hell.

Their world shook again, this time the tremor came not from their feet but from above.

The falling rocks disturbed the air underground.

The monster broke free from the earth's constraints and soared into the sky with a roar; the hurricanes whipped up by its wings were enough to uproot giant trees.

The church above ground was reduced to ruins.

Xia Ning looked up through the broken earth.

The night was thick with fog, and a red moon hung high in the sky.

-

Five minutes ago.

Og completed the final step of the ceremony.

He carefully placed a gold coin on the altar, then drew his dagger and plunged it into his shoulder without hesitation. Blood gushed down his arm, and the blood-stained gold coin greedily absorbed the life force of its owner.

In an instant, all six eyes on the gold coin turned their pupils simultaneously.

Aug felt fear instinctively at first, followed by a surge of ecstasy.

He succeeded! He finally succeeded!

Unlike the foolish and naive priest who thought he could survive in the cracks, Aug was not like him.

He knew all too well that once a person falls into depravity, they will only continue to sink into the abyss.

Since he has given up his soul, he must fall completely!

Today, he will sacrifice the entire town, carrying the blessings of "God," to establish a new divine kingdom.

And he, Aug, is the eternal king, providing a continuous stream of nourishment to the "gods".

Aug's thoughts raced. Beneath the crimson hue, he saw desire, violence, lies... madness.

An indescribable aura surged forth, incantations flowed and transformed, and the misty town became an altar of life.

-

Inside the tavern.

Tears of pain streamed from Albert's cloudy eyes, and his hair turned completely white overnight.

Just fifteen minutes ago, his wife was clutching the hem of his robe, and seeing that she was getting better. Suddenly, she vomited a mouthful of black blood and died with her mouth open.

She left with her eyes open—she died with her eyes wide open.

With tears blurring his vision, Albert reached out his trembling right hand and closed his wife's eyes.

"Take my soul, God or Gray Mist, stop making me suffer."

Albert knelt down and lay prostrate before his wife's bedside.

Just then, he heard the sound of the door being pushed open.

“Greta, your mother…”

Albert turned his head away in grief, then stared wide-eyed in horror.

"Lauren?!"

Lauren's eyes were vacant, and there was a hole in her chest, pierced by a sharp blade.

Albert watched as the chest, devoid of a heart, was filled with gray mist.

The next second, a loud bang came from the sky, and a huge shadow loomed over the town.

Lauren uttered a phrase in a language completely incomprehensible to humans, and then his entire body began to convulse, his image becoming blurred, and white mist continuously billowing from his hollows.

A thick fog quickly enveloped the entire tavern and spread to the surrounding area.

In the mist, a slender human-shaped shadow could be faintly seen.

-

Under a blood-soaked night.

Players, sacrifices, and two avatars from the heavens are conducting their final hunt in the town.