Chapter 1598: 537. The much-anticipated Confinent Play did happen, but the form was a bit strange.
During his ti in Crimson Castle, Murphy often heard prayers.
Especially after the Temple District of the city had consecutively welcod Avalon Church, Winter Wolves Religion – Eye of Wolf God Monastery, the playful Church of the Sacred Light, and a group of Berserker Priests lured by the mountain people from Ice Bay, various prayers had already transford parts of the vampire city into a so-called “sacred land of faith.”
Although combining the words “vampire” and “faith” always gives off a strange feeling akin to blending pancakes with rice and buns, it was undeniably a routine part of life in Crimson Castle. Moreover, in the now sowhat stabilized Transylvania, the widespread promotion of proper faith was not necessarily a bad thing for the rulers.
After all, this was a world where divine spirits truly existed. Adapting to local customs was imperative—you see, even an intellectual like Old Chen occasionally wandered over to the Avalon Cathedral. Of course, it was hard to say whether Old Chen went there to pursue faith or simply to chat with Mother Mary Ann…
In any case, according to so gossip on the forums, people had spotted Professor Chen and Mother Mary Ann strolling together in the city at dusk—and not just once.
Hey!
These baseless rumors are truly enough! You gossip lovers even stoop to Old Chen’s age group—unbelievable!
Yet, considering Murphy was now inside the Great Labyrinth where violent, heretical Goat n lurked, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say this filthy Earth Palace was the most sinister and chaotic place he had encountered since his rebirth. And now, in such a “crucible of wickedness,” he heard prayers, crystal clear.
Not the typical muddled, mumbling pleas from ordinary believers worrying about personal troubles and desires, but sothing ethereal. Just hearing the voice conveyed a sense of “holiness.”
It was conveyed in Elvish, every syllable crisply enunciated, with a lody-like chant or praise linking between sections with perfect flow. This was definitely not the work of an ordinary believer.
In fact, even Old Eugene, the fervent Avalon Church mber, couldn’t match the sound Murphy was hearing right now.
This must be a High Priest affiliated with so church. Whether she was praying for herself or pleading for those trapped souls bound to be hard in this Earth Palace was uncertain.
Or perhaps… was this so kind of dark Goat Man secret technique?
From the slaughter earlier, Murphy had already confird the Goat n carried traces of astral contamination upon them. There was a high likelihood they were conducting acts of corruption here in the Earth Palace, potentially establishing a connection with mysterious entities from the Star Realm or even the Warp.
And judging by the prevalent mutated limbs of the Goat n Murphy had killed, it was certain this contamination had lingered for quite a long ti.
Nevertheless, after Murphy confird twice in succession that his own spirit state was normal, devoid of “possession,” and hadn’t triggered the Oga Program’s automatic retaliation, he clenched his weapons, accompanied by George—the astral Alpha Wolf—and approached the source of the voice.
Though there was no evidence, Murphy had a hunch this prayer was deliberately guiding him to that place under these precise circumstances.
However, the Baphot Underground Palace was an extraordinarily complex three-dinsional labyrinth. Relying solely on sound for navigation here was extrely challenging. This accursed place was evidently ancient, built with complicated structures deliberately designed to be disorienting, and the Goat n had carried out even darker modifications to preserve their wicked secrets.
Strange visual illusions filled this place, turning the terrifying labyrinth into an almost impassable “forbidden underground.”
Not only did outsiders get lost here; even so Goat n would lose their way into an alley and fail to find their route back to their bases. The Goat n Murphy had killed earlier were clearly in such an awkward predicant, aimlessly wandering the labyrinth.
Murphy speculated this may well be part of a “sacrificial rite.”
He had learned from Triss that Goat n traditionally conducted gladiatorial sacrifices. Failing to exploit such a daunting labyrinth would go against the wicked nature of Goat n.
These crude and savage creatures would throw their captured victims into the maze, reveling in their fear and resistance to death while harvesting this despair to achieve their sinister objectives.
Indeed, such dark rituals truly existed on this continent. Triss often ntioned similar matters during Murphy’s spiritual energy lectures. At certain tis in history, such ceremonies occurred at the edges of civilization, resulting in horrific casualties.
This was how certain extremist heretics sought to please their “divine spirits.”
The Vampire Lord was convinced: whatever the Goat n were doing here, the vile activity had persisted unabated for centuries under the guise of the Black Disaster. The despair and agony collected must be astronomical…
“The Goat n wish to please an Evil God—no, that doesn’t quite capture it. Rather, they want to ‘awaken’ one.”
This Earth Palace had once been a place of worship for that Evil God. It was abandoned when the last Era ended, but the Evil God had left behind so degenerate techniques. If certain conditions were t, the Goat n could awaken it.
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