Dimensional Codex System: I'm really not a cultist!
Chapter 563 - 562: The Right Way to Open a Door

Chapter 563: Chapter 562: The Right Way to Open a Door

Leaving the small chapel, Fang Zheng followed Dr. Yushefka’s directions, ascending the stairs.

Along the way, he encountered several individuals dressed in white robes, like priests, divine staff who had clearly lost their minds. Upon seeing Fang Zheng, they wordlessly picked up their wooden sticks and attacked him. Fang Zheng faced no challenge against these enemies; their wooden sticks had no real defense, and compared to the greatsword in his hand, they were as fragile as paper. Often, with a single slash of his sword, Fang Zheng would cut the unfortunate souls and their wooden sticks in half.

These creatures were much easier to deal with than the cultists in the Dark...

However, just as Fang Zheng reached the end of the staircase, a giant iron gate barred his way. Although he wanted to try to find a mechanism to open it, regrettably, it seemed that the area had already been completely sealed off.

"It’s useless."

Just then, a voice came from behind Fang Zheng. He turned his head and saw Eileen approaching from not far behind. She stretched out her hand, pointing at the iron gate in front of Fang Zheng.

"This gate is completely sealed off during the hunt night. It won’t open until the Hunting Captain returns after the hunt is over. Only the Hunting Captain is qualified to open this gate, it’s impossible for anyone else."

"I see."

Hearing Eileen’s explanation, Fang Zheng shrugged his shoulders. Then he took a couple of steps back and took a close look at the iron gate in front of him. Clearly, the sealing of this place had not changed the fate of the main cathedral because Fang Zheng could see two huge, mutated creatures pacing back and forth there, seemingly already corrupted by the nightmare, turned into frightful monsters.

"You planning to give up?"

Eileen asked with a slight smile, watching Fang Zheng.

"Of course, maybe if you find the Captain’s Badge, you can open this door, but I don’t know where the Captain’s Badge is..."

"No need."

Fang Zheng shook his head, interrupting Eileen’s speech.

"I have a simpler method."

As he spoke, Fang Zheng gripped the greatsword in his right hand tighter. He squinted his eyes as the power began to flow along the pitch-black blade. Soon, the previously smooth blade began to show scorch-like traces. Suddenly, Fang Zheng raised his greatsword high and struck down hard at the gate!

"BOOM—————!"

Eileen saw a series of sparks emerge before her, and the next moment a deafening boom sounded. The thick, shut iron gate was cleaved open by Fang Zheng’s sword, fragments scattered like shrapnel, and the creatures on either side of the gate, taken by surprise, were impaled by the gate’s pieces, collapsing to the ground with mournful cries, turning into corpses.

"Huh..."

Fang Zheng sheathed his greatsword and took a breath. The strike he had just performed was with all his might, but it was sufficient for the moment.

"Well, I’ll be going ahead."

Fang Zheng turned his head, nodded at Eileen who was standing dumbfounded not far behind, and then he continued to stride toward the direction of the cathedral.

".........."

Watching Fang Zheng’s departing figure, Eileen was silent for a while before she let out a light hum.

"What a monster."

After saying this, Eileen followed in Fang Zheng’s footsteps and entered.

It looked like the Archbishop was beyond saving.

Watching the last insane divine staff member fall before him, and facing the tightly shut gates, Fang Zheng couldn’t help but sigh. Even though Eileen mentioned the entire church had been sealed, the nightmare’s corruption and frenzied mutations couldn’t be stopped. Considering the state of the people outside the main cathedral, it was hard to imagine that the Archbishop inside could maintain her sanity.

But regardless, it was best to go in and see for oneself.

With that thought, Fang Zheng stretched out his hand and slowly pushed open the gate in front of him.

The interior of the cathedral was still relatively peaceful, at least not the bloody scene with bodies everywhere that Fang Zheng had anticipated. Lit by candlelight, the cathedral appeared quiet and serene. It even gave off an illusion that it was completely unconnected to the cruel, dark, and bloody world outside.

Fang Zheng walked slowly into the cathedral, and soon he heard a faint voice echoing inside the cathedral.

"Seeking the ancient blood, let us pray, let us yearn to partake in the Eucharist. Let us join the Eucharist, consume the ancient blood... Our thirst for blood shall be quenched, fear will be soothed, but even so, we must not lower our guard, for our will remains weak and immature..."

Fang Zheng lifted his head and looked towards the source of the voice. At the altar deep within the cathedral, a woman wrapped in a long white robe knelt, murmuring her prayers. The originally immaculate fabric of her robe was stained with fresh blood, turning it a bright red.

"Archbishop Amelia!"

At that moment, Eileen also hurried in. Upon seeing the figure kneeling in prayer before the altar, she couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"It’s so good to see you’re alright, I’ve been so worried..."

"..."

At the sound of Eileen’s arrival, the figure who was kneeling at the altar slowly turned around. She lifted her head to look at Eileen. To their shock, Fang Zheng and Eileen were taken aback after seeing the woman’s face clearly!

Beneath the silver-white and smooth hair was an emaciated face that seemed like a living corpse, gaunt and sallow. Her eyes were filled with chaos, and her entire being seemed to be on the verge of collapse.

"Archbishop Amelia..."

Seeing this scene, Eileen too was at a loss for words. But before she could figure out what to do next, she saw Amelia clench her hands tightly and bow her head in agony.

"Oh, Lawrence, save me... Lawrence..."

The voice that came from between her hands was almost that of a beast whimpering. Even Fang Zheng felt a shiver run through his body at the sound of it. He turned his head and glanced at Eileen standing by his side.

"Alright, what do we do now, Miss Eileen? The archbishop... I think she’s beyond saving..."

"...Indeed."

With sad eyes, Eileen watched Archbishop Amelia. Although the number of their encounters was not many, watching someone she knew descend into such a state was certainly not an easy choice to make. So Eileen sighed lightly, then drew two daggers from her waist.

"I shall grant her peace."

"Wait, you know her, don’t you? I’ll do it."

Watching the Black Crow prepare to step forward and swiftly end the archbishop’s suffering, Fang Zheng hastily spoke up. Considering the archbishop was already as good as dead, it might be better to take matters into his own hands - perhaps he could gain some "experience" like when he took down the fake Dr. Yushefka.

"There’s no need. Relieving a frenzied comrade is a mission of mine as a Church Hunter, and my duty..."

At this point, Eileen paused for a moment before finally looking at Fang Zheng.

"But... thank you."

Yeah, thanks, now leave the experience for me, right? NPC killings don’t give experience, do they...

As Fang Zheng watched Eileen walking towards Amelia, he was completely at a loss for words. He had thought about taking advantage of Eileen’s distraction to quickly take down the apparently mad archbishop. However, after some consideration, he decided to let it go; after all, how could he, a supposedly powerless young woman, kill her and not necessarily gain experience, and might cause dissatisfaction in Eileen. So, after pondering for a moment... he gave up.

"Woo... Aaaaah..."

Just then, the archbishop kneeling on the ground started to moan in pain before suddenly sitting upright with a scream.

"Ah... Ahhhhhh!!"

With the screams, Fang Zheng and Eileen watched in astonishment as Amelia’s body rapidly changed shape and swelled. Her head elongated, and her bones splayed outward. Even the body hidden beneath the cloak split open, spewing out sprays of blood. In the blink of an eye, the frail woman who had been kneeling had transformed into a massive creature twice the size of a person. It had wolf-like pointed ears and antlers resembling those of a deer. The originally silver-white hair now covered most of its body like a cloak, while the torn pieces of the white robe had become bandage-like strips wrapped around its limbs.

"How could it be... such severe beastification..."

Witnessing this scene, Eileen clenched her teeth. She had seen her comrades turn into beasts more than once, which was why she had chosen to slaughter hunters in a frenzy. But she had not expected the source of beastification to have reached the Church’s interior, nor for Archbishop Amelia to have been spared.

"We must be careful; it’s more dangerous than those beasts outside!"

However, what Eileen didn’t expect was that after seeing the monster, Fang Zheng abruptly pushed her aside.

"Move over, let the professional handle this!"