Chapter 67: City of Redemption (Part 2)
The heavy door covered with relief carvings slowly opened. Father Hill motioned Wen Yin to follow and stepped in first.
The world inside the door formed an extreme contrast with the dilapidated and gloomy outside.
The towering dome is covered with murals depicting the scene of the Son of God coming to bless.
Countless candles burning with cold white flames formed a huge chandelier, illuminating the entire space with light.
The ground is so bright that you can see your reflection in it.
There are no shadows, no dust, everything is orderly, cold and solemn.
Father Hill also became extremely silent and cautious. He signaled Wen Yin to follow closely behind him and not look around.
[Host, the concentration of strange energy here is second only to that of the Temple.]
The prompt tone of 028 was unusually serious.
[Be careful.]
Wen Yin lowered her eyebrows, revealing only moderate awe and restraint, like a truly terrified wandering girl who had truly set foot in the holy land for the first time.
They passed through several corridors that echoed with ethereal hymns and came to a relatively small side door. On the door was a small choir emblem, a golden harp wrapped in white light.
Father Hill whispered a few words to a middle-aged woman in a nun's robe at the door, and the nun glanced at Wen Yin.
His gaze moved from her rough linen skirt to her muddy shoes, and finally stopped at her face, which, though flustered, was exceptionally clean and pretty.
"Follow me. The initial screening is simple. Sing the third verse of the hymn for the deacon to listen to. As for the faith review..."
She looked at Wen Yin meaningfully.
"The Holy Light will distinguish true from false."
She pushed open the side door and saw a small hall inside.
An elderly deacon with gray hair was sitting by the organ, flipping through the music.
There were several other girls waiting in the hall, who were obviously dressed much better than Wen Yin. When they saw Wen Yin's shabby appearance, they all looked at her with either curiosity or contempt.
The nun pointed at Wen Yin and said to the old deacon, "Father Hill recommended her. Let's try her out first."
The old deacon pushed up his glasses and looked at Wen Yin with a cloudy gaze, expressionless: "Let's begin the third verse of the Hymn."
There was no accompaniment, no warm-up. All the pressure instantly focused on Wen Yin.
Father Hill looked a little nervous.
The nun folded her arms and watched quietly, while the other girls looked more or less interested in the show.
Wen Yin took a deep breath, not out of nervousness, but to adjust her voice.
She slowly lowered her eyelashes, clasped her hands nervously in front of her, her fingertips trembling slightly, like a frightened lark.
Then she opened her mouth.
It is a clear and soft voice with a strange penetrating and ethereal feeling.
There was a slight tremor at first, but the sound soon stabilized.
Every note is perfectly in tune, every word is clear and full of emotion.
It is an infinite yearning for light and a humble prayer for salvation, which perfectly meets the requirements of the hymn.
But beneath this "perfection", there seems to be something else hidden.
Her voice was not one of numb devotion or fanatical praise like that of other nuns.
Instead, into that pure background, there is a trace of extremely imperceptible, fresh vitality and... temptation.
Like a white flower with dewdrops quietly blooming in a cold temple, it unknowingly attracts all beings that yearn for "vitality".
The old deacon stopped flipping through the music sheet and his eyes widened slightly.
The nun had lowered her arms at some point, her brows still furrowed, but there was something else in her eyes.
Father Hill secretly breathed a sigh of relief, even showing a hint of pride.
As for the other girls, the contempt on their faces disappeared, replaced by surprise and faint jealousy.
Wen Yin sang the last note, and the lingering sound dissipated in the small hall.
She immediately returned to her timid appearance, twisting her fingers nervously and secretly looking up at the old deacon, as if awaiting judgment.
silence.
After a few seconds, the old deacon coughed lightly and closed the music sheet.
"...the tone is pure, and the musicality...is acceptable."
He tried to keep his tone calm, but the slight pause revealed that his evaluation was far more than just "okay".
"Sister Lorraine, what do you see?"
The nun named Loran walked forward, stared at Wen Yin and suddenly asked a question with an interrogative tone.
"You, long for the protection of the Holy Light?"
Wen Yin raised her eyes, and tears instantly filled them, not because of fear, but because of "excitement" and "piety".
"Yes, Sister!" Her voice trembled, but she was remarkably firm. "I... I'm outside... There's no light... Only fog and fear... I long for light! I'm willing to dedicate everything to serving the Holy Light! I hope you'll give me a chance!"
Wen Yin's performance is impeccable, perfectly blending the desire for "security", the awe of "divine power", and the urgency to change destiny.
Sister Lorraine looked at her for a long time, and the scrutiny in her eyes finally subsided a little.
Perhaps she didn't notice anything "unclean," or perhaps Wen Yin's deceptive appearance and voice convinced her otherwise.
“…quite devout.”
Sister Lorraine finally spoke, "Go to the temporary quarters in the side hall and change your clothes. Starting tomorrow, you will study canon law and basic sacred music with the new recruits. After a month of observation, if you don't meet the standards, you will return to where you came from."
"Yes, thank you!" Wen Yin immediately bowed, her voice filled with infinite gratitude.
Father Hill also smiled and said, "Then study hard."
-
The temporary dormitory in the side hall is far less magnificent and luxurious than the main hall. It is more like a cold and solemn barracks.
On both sides of the long stone corridor are tightly closed wooden doors.
The air was filled with a faint scent of cold incense, mixed with the coldness of stone and a kind of... indescribable feeling of oppression.
Father Hill handed Wen Yin to an elderly nun and left.
The older nun handed Wen Yin a rough but clean gray novice robe, a thin blanket and a hard pillow.
She pointed to an empty room at the end of the corridor and quickly explained the rules in a flat tone:
"You are not allowed to leave your room at will after dark. If you hear any sound, do not look, listen, or ask. You may not go out until the morning bell rings three times. Do not delay your daily prayers, work, and singing. Remember, the Holy Light is watching over everything you do."
After saying that, she turned and left as if completing a procedure, and her footsteps disappeared in the empty corridor.
Wen Yin pushed open the door assigned to her.
The room was extremely small, containing only a narrow bed, a rough wooden stool, and a small wooden frame fixed to the wall.
There are no windows, and the only source of light is a crystal stone embedded in the wall above the door, which emits a faint white light.
The light had the same origin as the Son of God's radiance, was equally cold, and could only illuminate a corner of the room.
More shadows piled up in the corners of the walls and the high ceiling, slowly wriggling as if they had life, but were barely suppressed by the faint light.
She changed into the gray nun's robe under the light, and the rough fabric rubbed her skin a little uncomfortable.
Wen Yin folded her old clothes and placed them on a stool, then sat on the edge of the hard bed.
[028, Any findings?] She muttered to herself.
028's childish voice rang out: "Yes, I've noticed that the strange energy in the cathedral is more concentrated in brighter areas."
[For example, the strange energy in the main hall just now was greater than here, and here…] 028 paused, [The strange energy around the glowing crystal stone above the head was greater than the shadow under the bed.]
Upon hearing this, Wen Yin looked up at the crystal stone above the door that was emitting a faint white light, then lowered her head to look at the shadows accumulated in the corner of the wall.
[A crystal stone that originates from the same source as the Holy Light…] A gentle and soft voice echoed faintly, [As if all the information pointed to the 'Holy Son'.]
028 added: [And just now, when the Son of God passed by on the street, the strange energy I detected... reached its peak.]
[If nothing unexpected happens, he should be the source of this world's weirdness.]
Wen Yin stared thoughtfully at the faint light emitted by the crystal stone for a long time, and then remembered the inexplicable cold and stiff feeling emitted by the people on the street after being baptized by the holy light.
If light itself becomes the source of alienation, then the so-called baptism and protection...
Wen Yin's voice softened a little.
[This mission seems a bit difficult.]
As soon as he finished speaking, heavy and regular footsteps were heard in the corridor outside the door.
[It's the church guards on patrol.] 028 explained.
Wen Yin only heard the footsteps passing by her closed door, without stopping at all and gradually moving away.
[028, Can you detect the movement patterns of people nearby?] She asked in her mind.
[Yes. The current period is free time and dinner time, and most people are staying in the residence and dining hall. The host can conduct a simple exploration, avoiding restricted areas.]
028 answered quickly and projected a simple local map on Wen Yin's visual interface, marking several possible safe areas.
Wen Yin stood up and adjusted her gray nun's robe, making sure she looked like just another confused and uneasy newcomer who might be trying to familiarize herself with the environment.
She gently pushed open the door. The corridor was empty and quiet, with cold white stone walls stretching into the distance, and identical crystal stone lamps at regular intervals.
Shrouding everything in that lifeless white light.
Occasionally, a nun wearing the same gray robe would hurried past with her head down, and none of them showed much interest in Wen Yin.
Wen Yin followed 028's instructions and passed by the prayer room. It was empty, with only the eternal candle burning coldly.
Passing by the washroom, I heard the extremely faint sound of running water, but I couldn't hear any human voice.
Finally, she came to a smaller dining hall.
The dining hall was lined with long wooden tables and benches, and at that moment a dozen nuns were sitting there eating in silence.
The food was simple: a piece of black bread whose ingredients were unrecognizable, a small bowl of clear soup with almost no oil in it, and a small cup of water.
No one spoke, only the occasional clatter of cutlery.
Wen Yin silently went to get her own portion and found a seat in a corner to sit down.
The bread was hard and had a stale bran smell; the soup was bland and cold, with only a hint of salt; the water was normal.
Wen Yin ate in small bites, but her eyes swept across the entire dining hall inconspicuously.
She noticed that the closer the nuns got to the larger crystal lamp hanging in the center of the dining hall, the stiffer their postures became.
The few people sitting in the dimly lit area at the edge were also silent, but when their eyes occasionally moved, there seemed to be a trace of emotional fluctuations that belonged to living people.
[The existence of holy light...] Wen Yin silently chanted in her heart, [It seems to suppress individual thoughts and emotions.]
[Indeed…] 028 confirmed, [Then the host needs to be careful to limit the time of exposure to strong light.]
Wen Yin quickly and silently finished the tasteless dinner, then put the tableware back to the designated place, lowered her head like the other nuns, and returned to the room along the same route.
-
Time passed slowly. The windowless room couldn't see the sky outside.
Through the internal timing of 028, Wen Yin knew that it should have been completely dark outside.
Although the room was always filled with the same dim white light, an atmosphere of deeper night permeated through the stone walls.
Almost at the same time, Wen Yin heard a voice.
Not the patrol's footsteps.
It was an extremely subtle sound, as if something was crawling along the cracks in the wall.
The sound seemed to originate from the other side of the wall, or from the ceiling itself, coming and going with a disturbing regularity.
Wen Yin immediately remembered the old man’s warning during the day: at night, “they” would become active.
And she noticed that every time the squirming sound became clearer, the light of the crystal stone above the door would flicker accordingly, as if increasing the output to fight back.
028 was collecting data in the background: [Based on energy pattern analysis, this phenomenon occurs every night, so there's no need to worry too much.]
028's comfort failed to completely dispel the eerie feeling lingering in the air.
Wen Yin lay down on the hard bed with her clothes on, pulled over the blanket that was so thin that it could hardly provide any warmth, and forced herself to close her eyes.
She needed to rest so that she could have a clear mind for tomorrow.
Amid the omnipresent faint crawling sounds and white light, falling asleep became extremely difficult, and the mind was always in a state of shallow alertness.
She didn't know how long it took before she was finally dragged into a chaotic state of confusion by exhaustion.
However, sleep is not relief.
As if in the blink of an eye, a cold chill suddenly surrounded her.
It was not a change in ambient temperature, but a coolness that seeped from deep within her limbs.
Wen Yin wanted to open her eyes, but found that her eyelids were as heavy as lead and she couldn't open them at all.
She wanted to move her fingers, but her body seemed to no longer belong to her. It was completely out of control and sank heavily into the bed, unable to even turn over.
It's like being sleep-deprived.
She can clearly "feel" everything around her.
The disgusting cold glow of the crystal stone above the door, the creeping sounds that seemed to intensify in the shadows of the corners, and even the regular and stereotyped footsteps of the patrolling guards in the distance.
But her body completely betrayed her, becoming a cold shell nailed to the spot by invisible shackles.
Then, an indescribable feeling of being watched poured down like ice water, enveloping her entire body.
That was not the gaze of a human, nor the gaze of any living creature.
It was a... pure scan of light, cold, precise, and emotionless.
It seemed to penetrate the thin blanket, penetrate the rough nun's robe, and fall directly on her skin, even trying to drill into her bones and explore everything hidden in the deepest part of her soul.
Under this inhuman gaze, even breathing became a luxury.
The chest cavity was compressed by an invisible force, making every slight rise and fall extremely difficult.
[028……?]
Wen Yin called out with difficulty in the depths of her consciousness, but received no response.
It was as if her connection with the system was also cut off and disturbed by this sudden coldness and gaze.
Then, the "gaze" began to become more focused.
It first scanned her entire body, then slowly moved upwards, and finally, locked onto her face.
Especially... her lips.
When I was singing just now, the source of the voice that "contains vitality and temptation" flowed out.
That cold gaze lingered there, with a creepy... desire to explore.
It was as if there was an invisible existence, standing very close, intently "observing" this "object" that could make the sound that attracted it.
Time loses its meaning at this moment.
It could be just a few seconds or it could be as long as several hours.
Wen Yin tried her best to stay conscious, using all her willpower to fight against the cold and heavy oppression that froze her.
She couldn't reveal any flaws, couldn't show even a trace of fear, anger, or desire to fight back.
Even in this seemingly deserted, invaded sleep.
I don’t know how long it took, but the icy gaze slowly faded away as abruptly as it had appeared.
The numbness in the body gradually faded away, and a faint tingling sensation came back from the fingertips, as if the blood had started flowing again.
Eventually, the feeling completely disappeared.
The room seemed to have returned to "normal."
There was only the faint light of the crystal stones, the faint sound of creeping, and the occasional footsteps of patrols outside the wall.
Wen Yin suddenly opened her eyes.
Her chest heaved violently as she breathed in deep gulps of icy air. The cold sweat on her back had already soaked through her rough robe.
The room was empty.
The door is closed.
The light of the crystal stone is steady and cold.
Everything seemed to be just a nightmare for her.
But the lingering coldness and numbness in her body, and the terrifying feeling of being completely seen through and even "marked", were still imprinted on her nerve endings with incredible realism.
She slowly sat up, her eyes once again fixed on the luminous crystal stone.
That was not a dream.
It's "he".
It is the inhuman being that sits high above the temple.
After she fell asleep, in a way she couldn't understand, it "came".
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