Chapter 816: Faith Theater and the Land of Piety

Faith Theater and the Land of Piety

Cheng Shi naturally didn't know what Watching Ai Si was thinking; he only wanted to know what the old man under his scalpel was thinking.

The limping old man crawled on the ground, trembling all over. Feeling the bone-chilling temperature of the blade tip, he used a puddle of warm urine to warm himself as his body temperature dropped rapidly.

Seeing the snow beneath the old man being soaked and melted, Cheng Shi's eye twitched. He silently retracted the blade in his hand and wiped it vigorously on Zhang Jizu, who had just arrived.

Zhang Jizu froze, but soon his eyes narrowed into slits. Seeing Squinty Old Zhang's expression turn dark, Cheng Shi hurriedly put away the scalpel and said:

"Answer my questions, and I guarantee you can live. But remember, you only have one chance.

What's your name, where are you from, and who sent you?

If you don't speak or speak incorrectly, look at this squinting Yama in front of you; he will personally send you to meet the noble 【Death】."

The limping old man looked up, felt the anger slightly brewing on Zhang Jizu, and shivered, hurriedly wailing:

"... I'll talk, don't kill me, I'll talk!

Wells sent me. He is the leader of the South District scavengers, guarding the south side of the Land of Piety.

Just now, many unfamiliar scavengers went crazy, broke through the blockade, and rushed to the outskirts of the Faith Theater. They ran inside regardless of anything, not afraid of the interrogation of the Land of Piety at all, even triggering the Ghost Tide of the theater.

Wells was furious, so he sent us out to search. Once we see unfamiliar scavengers, we either drive them away on the spot or notify him to send people to clean them up.

They must ensure that before the Ghost Tide subsides, no outsiders rush in to cause trouble.

Everything I said is true, don't kill me, I hadn't even sent the signal before you discovered me, really."

As he spoke, the limping old man took out a rusted signal gun, which looked like an antique scavenged from a scrap heap.

But the three people on the scene didn't care about the signal gun in his hand at all; rather, the density of information in this scavenger's words was high enough that for a moment, the group couldn't quite wrap their heads around it.

"Wait, one by one. First, what is the Faith Theater?"

The limping old man was stunned, thinking to himself that these people were indeed newcomers. Newcomers who could fight so well—Sandlais was really going to change. But no matter how the sky changed, for someone like him with no power and no combat ability, it was all the same. So he didn't dare to hide anything and poured out everything he knew.

"The Faith Theater is the largest building in the center of Sandlais town, and it is also the place that all the old scavengers here dream of stepping into. Legend has it that there is a way to become a god directly inside, so everyone wants to go in and take a look.

But that place is too terrifying and not easy to approach. The outskirts of the theater are shrouded in fog all year round, and there is an invisible ghost patrolling the surroundings in the fog. Everyone who wants to approach the theater will be discovered by it and... executed."

Hearing this, Cheng Shi frowned and looked at Zhang Jizu: "How does this sound like the methods of your Benefactor?"

Zhang Jizu was also a bit puzzled, but he didn't speak, instead listening silently.

"That's not just death; that's a double trampling of body and soul!" The limping old man seemed to recall some terrifying experience and shivered all over, "Once it discovers you, it will quietly come behind you, tell everyone the biggest secret deep in your heart, and then when you are terrified to the extreme, it will..."

The old man shrank, his eyes drifting, his voice trembling, but then came a sudden, unprovoked roar:

"'Snap,' and twist your neck..."

"Ouch!"

Before he could finish, the limping old man was kicked away by Cheng Shi.

He fiercely threw a scalpel, which stuck into the top of the old man's head, cutting off a few strands of his hair. With a dark face, he scolded irritably:

"I told you to report the facts, not to tell me ghost stories. You're here playing up the emotions!"

"Not Old Brother, are you really afraid or pretending?"

"Turns out you're afraid of ghosts but not people, huh."

As he spoke, Cheng Shi flashed another scalpel.

The limping old man was scared to the point of wetting himself again. He curled up on the ground and spilled out the rest of the story like beans.

After listening for a long time, the group understood.

The biggest secret of the town was hidden in the Faith Theater shrouded in fog, but because of the existence of this "ghost," no one could walk in.

Scavengers had come up with many methods, but as long as they made the slightest sound while advancing, the ghost would directly locate the "intruder" and make the person die socially and physically.

So for so many years, the scavengers' persistent exploration had only barely allowed them to see the appearance of the theater, but they could never enter.

But not everyone had long patience, and there were plenty of smart people among the scavengers. So one night, two large scavenger groups in the east and north of Sandlais abandoned all agreements for orderly exploration and jointly launched a charge toward the theater.

They thought that no matter how powerful the ghost was, it had to kill one by one, so as long as there were enough people who deserved to die, someone would eventually be lucky enough to rush to the theater and push open the door to the God's Throne while the ghost was held up.

Everyone thought that lucky person would be themselves, but reality was always cold.

The scavengers were wiped out, with no survivors.

The scavengers hiding outside listened to the "gossip" for an entire night.

And it was that night that the number of deaths was so high that the fog on the outskirts of the theater boiled. After that, everyone who entered it would die on the spot, regardless of whether they made a sound. This terrifying phenomenon lasted for a long time before it subsided. Afterward, the scavengers realized that not too many people could die in the fog at the same time.

That was why everyone set up barbed wire on the outskirts of the fog, established a patrol team, and strictly forbade lone wolves from breaking in at will, destroying the cooperation between large groups and the research on the fog. And this circled-off area was called the Land of Piety.

And today, another batch of scavengers rushed in without knowing any better. The fog of the Land of Piety had already boiled, which meant that for a period of time, no one could enter the town center again.

After the three players finished listening, everyone's expression was a bit ugly.

Cheng Shi frowned and asked: "How long will this fog boiling last?"

"I don't know... Only Wells knows. The results of these regular studies are all in their hands. We are just begging for food to survive, really."

The words were indeed true, and they were true from beginning to end.

But precisely because they were all true, Cheng Shi felt a bit uneasy in his heart.

"You, say a lie for me to hear."

"?" The limping old man was stunned, not understanding what this lord meant.

"I told you to say a lie, don't make me say it a third time."

"I... don't hate you."

?

It was indeed a lie, but...

Old brother, you've lost your sense of proportion.

So, under the chuckles of Zhang Jizu and the belly-laughing gaze of Watching Ai Si, Cheng Shi slit the limping old man's throat with a knife, then took out the brooch from his bosom. He still hid the brooch in his palm, not letting Zhang Jizu and Watching Ai Si see it, and asked the corpse:

"Have you seen any unfamiliar scavengers like us today?"

The limping old man's corpse said no.

Cheng Shi felt slightly relieved and casually reached out to revive the old man.

"The mental energy consumed to save someone is on you two, remember to compensate me. Let's go, it seems Wells is the key to our trip.

To ensure we can find that thing before the trial ends, we must accelerate."

As he spoke, Cheng Shi took the lead and walked out. Watching Ai Si followed closely with a strange expression. Zhang Jizu narrowed his eyes, reached out, and felt the old man for a while, confirming that this was indeed an old man with no strength, before pacing after them.

Seeing the three leave, the limping old man climbed up from the ground, trembling, and let out a sigh of relief.

These strangers went to find Wells, which meant he definitely couldn't return to the stronghold. To avoid conflict, it was best to go to the outskirts of the town to hide for a while!

Thinking this, the old man stepped out and fled in the direction Cheng Shi and the others had come from.

But just as he fled near the ice shard where Cheng Shi had stood, the limping old man discovered with horror that the lord who had just granted him death had appeared in front of him again!

Looking at the lord who had just changed into a windbreaker, the old man instantly crawled on the ground and wailed loudly.

"Lord, I was wrong, I was really wrong."

"Where were you wrong?" Windbreaker Cheng Shi raised an eyebrow, seemingly seeing what had happened.

"I... I shouldn't hate you, I really don't hate you!"

"... You say this lie with such righteousness." Windbreaker Cheng Shi hummed, squatted on the ground, and patted the old man's shoulder, "Speak, say what you just said to me again, and I'll let you go."

The old man was stunned. Although his brain was muddled, he immediately said it clearly.

Windbreaker Cheng Shi really didn't make things difficult for him and let him go. But not long after, the old man saw this lord again in front of a broken house.

Only this time, he had changed back into a jacket.

"..."

The limping old man was shocked. He looked at the lord in front of him with horror and slapped himself in the face.

For a moment, he felt that the weird fog of the Land of Piety seemed to have spread out. Otherwise, why wouldn't this lord let him go, chasing him to ask about some dispensable "secrets"?

But this time he learned to be smart. Before Jacket Cheng Shi could speak, he poured out everything he knew.

Jacket Cheng Shi curled his lips and looked toward the center of the town, smiling meaningfully.

"They are fast enough, but sometimes, fast is not a good thing."

After finishing, he let the limping old man go and plunged into the wind and snow ahead. ===== CHAPTER 817 =====