Lucien’s brow furrowed even tighter.
He clearly understood the filth concealed behind Old John’s ambiguous words.
“So, that impure aura—the source is them?”
“Theoretically, yes.” Old John nodded, then pointed toward the dazzling Holy Light ahead and explained:
“But that’s exactly the problem. These dryads and elves, their form of existence… how to put it… it’s because they’re too ‘unrestrained.’ That pure, unmasked life desire is so intense it actually… at the energy level, infinitely approaches the trait of ‘holiness.’”
“Ridiculous!” Lucien scolded sharply. “Desire is original sin; how can filth be equated with holiness?”
“I think it’s ridiculous too! But it’s the truth! For us clergy with Holy Light inside, this place is like being under the blazing sun with no umbrella—so bright it blinds you, so piercing it hurts! Look, I can barely keep my eyes open.”
Indeed, Old John squinted, looking tormented.
Lucien felt it too.
The light before them appeared bright and pure, but some quality hidden within made him feel genuine disgust and repulsion deep in his soul.
It was like someone disguised the filthiest sewage as the sweetest spring water, trying to force him to drink it.
“I must go in and investigate.” Lucien’s tone brooked no argument.
He had to confirm with his own eyes whether the “heresy” he was looking for was hidden in this strange forest.
“No!” Old John hurriedly stopped him.
“Lord Valois, you can’t enter! This place is a source of spiritual contamination for us! And if you barge in like that, the ‘natives’ inside absolutely won’t cooperate—and might even attack you proactively.”
“Then what do you suggest?”
Old John’s eyes darted as he suddenly thought of something. He grinned slyly: “I do have a way, or rather, someone for the job.”
“Who?”
“My new assistant, Fan Zhuo.” Old John said. “That kid’s a freak.”
“Oh?” Lucien raised an eyebrow.
“He was trained by Sage Nolan. His mindset is different from us normal clerics.” Old John lowered his voice, speaking confidentially.
“In his understanding, monsters are just monsters, completely unrelated to the concept of ‘women.’ So… he seems immune to the ‘Holy Light Pollution’ of this forest. And… the monsters there actually seem to like his scent.”
“What?” Lucien’s pupils contracted sharply, shock finally flashing across his face. “Immune to Holy Light Pollution? Completely unaffected by monsters? Such peace of mind… how is that possible?!”
His hand clenched the sword hilt so tightly that his knuckles turned slightly white.
“Absolutely true.” Old John patted his chest in assurance. “That nine-tailed fox in Area C and that slime queen act like gentle kittens around him. This kid was born to be a warden for monster girls!”
Lucien fell silent.
His handsome face showed shifting expressions.
A cleric who could ignore monster seduction and even attract high-level monsters…
If what Old John said was true, then this Fan Zhuo man was either a saint of unparalleled holiness, comparable to a living saint…
Or… the most deeply hidden, most terrifying heretic!
“Tomorrow.” Lucien finally spoke, his voice colder than before, “Have him come here. I will personally supervise him as he investigates this forest.”
“No problem!” Old John agreed immediately.
As long as he could get rid of this hot potato and let him do whatever, it was fine.
Lucien said nothing more, simply turning back to fix his gaze on the forest emitting that strange Holy Light through the thick fog.
In his eyes flickered an unnoticed mixture of deep disgust and a trace of… curiosity.
He wanted to see whether this man, so highly praised by Old John, was truly a saint—or a devil disguised as one.
***
When Fan Zhuo returned to his room, it was already late at night.
He pushed the door open; the room was pitch black.
White Rabbit wasn’t there—probably back at her charging station.
Fan Zhuo let out a sigh of relief. He needed time alone to digest the day’s revelations.
He walked to the window. Through the thick alloy frame, he could vaguely see the faint glow coming from Area B in the distance.
That was where Lucien planned to investigate.
“Heresy…” Fan Zhuo frowned.
The information he had gotten from Ye Ying confused him.
Something about the key to the ‘Gate of Gods,’ and seven keys left by the ancient deities… these things sounded far beyond the reach of someone like him.
What concerned him even more was that the heretical fluctuations Lucien was tracking came from the deepest levels of the prison’s underground.
Fan Zhuo recalled Old John mentioning the warden of Area A, described as the “Moving Sun,” a mysterious presence.
If even she needed to personally guard something, what level of danger was that?
“Forget it, thinking about this is useless.” Fan Zhuo shook his head. “What matters most now is improving my strength.”
He sat cross-legged on the bed and began to introspect his body’s condition.
His “deep contact” with Ye Ying had successfully elevated him to the rank of [Cleric], causing a qualitative change in his holy power.
If before his power was like a deliberately guided small stream, now it was a lake belonging to him alone—calm and profound.
More importantly, he could feel this power’s hunger.
Like a child who just tasted sweetness, it craved more “nourishment,” more energy from monster girls to sustain itself.
Fan Zhuo clearly sensed that if he touched Alfea or Ye Ying now, the energy absorbed would be several times greater than before.
And after conversion through the [Ring of Holiness], his strength would increase rapidly.
“Is this my cheat?” Fan Zhuo whispered to himself. “Getting stronger through intimate contact with monster girls…”
He suddenly recalled the novels he had read before crossing over.
The protagonists always had various cheat systems, and his cheat was “get close and get stronger.”
It was somewhat embarrassing to think about.
But he couldn’t deny the great potential of this ability.
This prison held hundreds of monster girls of various types; if he could “conquer” them one by one—
Fan Zhuo shook his head, forcibly cutting off this dangerous thought.
Greed will swallow the elephant.
He hadn’t even fully “taken” Ye Ying yet; thinking about others was clearly overambitious.
Moreover, every “contact” was a huge test for him.
The last time with Ye Ying, he was almost overwhelmed by the massive energy.
If not for the [Ring of Holiness] converting it in time, he probably would have ended up a dried corpse.
“Step by step, step by step,” Fan Zhuo reminded himself.
Just then, there was a soft knock on the door.
“Lord Fan Zhuo?” White Rabbit’s gentle voice came from outside. “Are you back?”
Fan Zhuo’s heart skipped a beat.
At this hour, why was White Rabbit looking for him?
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