Anna squatted beside Monica. She could sense that although Monica's spirit was weak, she was indeed recovering steadily and showed no signs of collapse, which made her feel relieved.

Her emerald eyes looked at Mark: "That monster... is solved? What about Maple Leaf Town...?"

"It's all over..." Mark shook his head helplessly. "Now that the Lord of Gan Shi is dead, who knows what will happen to the other townspeople."

......

The next morning, the bleak sunlight struggled to penetrate the thick clouds and sprinkled sparingly on Maple Leaf Town.

Team Mark stood behind the dilapidated iron fence of the deserted churchyard, looking at the street in silence.

Maple Leaf Town no longer has the laughter and joy of the past, no longer has windowsills decorated with flowers, and no longer has the warmth of curling smoke from cooking fires.

The townspeople were like puppets with their souls taken away. They had expressionless faces, empty and numb eyes, and walked out of their wooden houses with stiff and slow movements.

They no longer talked to each other, nor did they look around with any curiosity or friendliness, but seemed to be pulled by invisible strings.

They lined up in a long, silent and desperate queue, taking mechanical steps, and walked towards the sugar maple forest in the south that was now covered with dead gray.

Their goal is clear.

Going to the holy land that once brought them happiness, now there is only a grave that buries the truth and countless solidified empty shells.

"Fuck..." Enzo cursed softly, his voice no longer filled with the usual irritability, only the chill of witnessing a strange scene. "This... This is even more frightening than a city being massacred by monsters..."

Anna pursed her lips, her knuckles turning white as she gripped the longbow. The elf's sensitivity to the breath of life allowed her to clearly sense that the townspeople no longer exuded the vibrant aura of "humanity," but rather a hollow, exhausted, and ultimately dead silence.

Mark looked expressionlessly at the numbly advancing column, the trainee inquisitor badge on his chest feeling cold against his skin.

He took out the communication scroll Ruby had given him, injected a trace of weak magic power into it, and reported everything that happened in Maple Leaf Town.

From the church notes, Ronin's fall and the parasitism of the Lord of the Gnawing, to last night's horrific encounter, the annihilation of the evil god and the abnormal state of the townspeople today.

Use the most concise and emotionless words, imprint them in the scroll, and then activate the sending.

Of course, he would not reveal the fact that a mysterious existence appeared and killed the Lord of Gan Shi in seconds.

The scroll transformed into a faint stream of light, vanishing into the sky and teleporting towards Ruby Montoya in Osborne Town.

He helped the Church of Holy Light to eliminate heretics, and the aftermath naturally needed to be handled by the Church of Holy Light itself.

After doing all this, Mark took a deep breath of the cold and turbid air in the early morning. The ubiquitous sweet scent of maple syrup completely disappeared, leaving only the smell of dust, decay and despair.

"Pack your things." His voice had returned to calm, but with a deep sense of fatigue. "Get out of this damn place."

Enzo and Anna nodded silently.

Enzo carried Monica, who was still unconscious but breathing steadily, on his back, and his movements were unusually careful.

Anna picked up the weak Xiao Mu and carefully placed him in a shoulder bag covered with soft cloth.

Mark took a last look at the silent church and the line of townspeople marching numbly outside, then turned around without any reluctance.

In the bleak morning light, Team Mark left this land that had been completely poisoned by sweetness, leaving only empty ruins, and once again set foot on the gravel road on the northern border of the Lily Kingdom.

Mark rubbed his still aching forehead. The complex information brought by the newly acquired [Soul Harmonizer] profession floated in his mind, like a giant beast lurking in the deep sea. He didn't know whether it was a blessing or a curse.

[Name: Mark Stewart]

[Occupation: Cleric (IV), Soul Harmonizer (I)]

[Level: LV.32 (10%), Lv.8]

[Body: 38 (40)]

【Strength: 42 (20)】

【Intelligence: 42 (50)】

【Min: 35】

【Essence: 42 (80)】

【Charm: 42】

[Skills: Holy Judgment (activated), Holy Light Healing, Holy Light Blessing; Soul Harmony, Glutton Spice, Food Enhancement]

[Faith value: /(100/100)]

[Special Status: ([Holy Light Disgust (Fake)]); [Seraphim's Gaze]]

————

The gravel road was steaming with heat waves under the midday sun, and the air was filled with dust and the fatigue of surviving the disaster.

Enzo carried the still unconscious Monica on his back, his steps as heavy as if he was dragging a mountain, and he muttered something incoherently.

Cursing the damn sun, the damn road, and the damn wild god.

Anna walked in front holding Xiao Mu, and the elf's pointed ears turned slightly, vigilantly filtering out the noise in the wind.

"Damn it! Take a break! My legs are about to break!" Enzo finally couldn't help it and carefully placed Monica under the shade of a relatively flat rock on the side of the road.

He slumped down on the ground, grabbed the water bag and drank it gulp. The smell of cheap beer mixed with sweat filled the air.

Mark rubbed his forehead and was about to say something when Anna suddenly raised her hand and made a gesture of silence. Her emerald green eyes cast sharply towards a higher valley ahead of the gravel road.

The wind brought the faint sound of weapons clashing, rough roars and shrill screams.

"There's movement up ahead... There's a sound of fighting, and there are quite a few people involved."

Anna's voice was very low, like drops of night dew.

Enzo perked up instantly, his eyes gleaming with brilliance as the square-peened hammer slipped silently into his hand. "Fuck! A fight? A warm-up right here? I'm just fuming with anger!"

He made a move to charge forward.

"Wait!" Mark pressed down on his restless shoulders with considerable force. "Let's see what's going on first! Don't be stupid. Monica hasn't woken up yet!"

The three of them climbed silently to the top of a not-so-steep stone hill beside the road, and lay down behind the rugged rocks, looking down.

On the gravel road at the bottom of the valley, a caravan consisting of five or six carriages was blocked.

The beasts of burden pulling the cart pawed their hooves restlessly and neighed in fear.

The caravan's guards numbered about twenty men, wearing a patchwork of leather armor and armed with spears, swords, and several leather-covered wooden shields.

They were leaning against the carriage, forming a simple circle and desperately resisting the enemies outside who were attacking like hyenas.

Judging from the patterns on their bodies, the ones besieging them were none other than the Mountain Tiger Bandits, whom Mark's team had met several times before!

Those thieves all had fierce eyes and were as agile as wild wolves in the forest.

They were outnumbered, numbering over thirty, and their weapons and equipment appeared to be far inferior to those of Blood Claw and the others they encountered in the Rotten Dragon Swamp.

Their attack method was also disorganized. They just relied on their ferocity and numerical advantage to attack the caravan's defense line in waves, uttering meaningless strange noises and foul language.

"Tsk, they're evenly matched..." Mark squinted his eyes and observed.

Although the caravan guards were few in number, they were able to maintain their formation with the help of the carriages, and the leading guards obviously had some experience.