Ten minutes later, the four arrived at the partition between the third and fourth layer. This place was clearly different from elsewhere. There was a tall, sturdy metallic wall separating the Shrine from the rest of the village, and each of the entrance was posted with special guards.
Like the patrols, the special guards were armed with anti-gravity guns, but while the patrols used normal metallic shields, the special guards used anti-gravity shields.
———
Item Name: Anti-gravity Shield
Item Type: Armor
Quality: Excellent
Defense Point: Medium
Element: Damage Mitigation
Equip Requirement: Fighting F, Level 10
Remark: Said armor is able to stop a flying object that is smaller than one cubic meter with a force less than twenty-five newtons, like a flying baseball, falling luggage, and so on. But if someone tosses a fridge at you and attack from close range, the defensive ability of this shield is no different from a normal metallic shield.
———
“Alright, Miss Molly, you can leave now.” When they were only one street away from the wall, Feng Bujue stopped moving. “For your own safety, I’d advise you stay as far away from here as you can.”
Molly stopped moving, but she did not give up. She still wanted to convince Hank of his mistake. “Hank, you have to seriously consider this. The things that he said… Darwin, the evolution theory… freedom… These are words of madness. In fact, they are probably the corruption practiced by the demonic tribe. Do not fall for their words…”
“Thank you for your concern, Miss Molly,” Hank replied. “If I do not return, please help me tell my mother that I’m sorry.”
Molly was stunned. She had nothing else to say as she stood there, watching Hank turn and walk away. The three did not converse with her anymore. They took big strides toward the nearest entrance. Along the way, Feng Bujue and Flashes of Sword removed the protective gear that they had been wearing.
Flashes of Sword fished out the anti-gravity gun that he had confiscated from Hank and returned it to its original owner. “We will try our best to protect you, but it’s safer for you to have a weapon on you.”
“Don’t worry, Hank,” Feng Bujue said. “The special guards spent most of their time doing nothing, standing outside the gates. Their fighting ability is not even on the same level as harvesters like yourself who have to spend their days fighting against mutated creatures outside the village. As long as you can overcome the fear they have sown into your heart, you will be fine.
“After we rush through the wall, we will head directly toward the Shrine, so try to keep up.”
Hank nodded. “I will try my best.”
They finally arrived at the entrance. The guards on duty were dumbfounded. When they saw Feng Bujue and Flashes of Sword’s appearance, they were confused for a very long time, thinking, These two are probably the legendary ’outsiders’.
However, since they had not met one before and had only heard propaganda about them, with two standing right before them, they were quite flustered.
And the man who strode next to the outsiders. Even though, from his apparel, he was identified as the villager from the first segment, what was with the anti-gravity gun that he held in his hand and the grim expression that he had on his face… Did he plan to force his way into the Shrine?
The special guards were baffled, but it was the leader who recovered the fastest. Without waiting for an introduction, he raised his anti-gravity gun and demanded in the most powerful voice that he could, “Stop right there! What are you doing?”
He glared at the trio in turn. “You two… why are you dressed in such curious apparel? Who are you?
“And you? Why are you armed in the village?”
The three did not speak; their response was silence.
Several seconds later, Hank laughed.
“If this was yesterday, when stopped by a patrol even when I have not done anything, I would have been so nervous that I’d be shaking.” He shook his head. “But now, facing the interrogation of the special guard leader, I feel nothing. Haha… I think I’m starting to understand… So, this is what Corben has done to us.”
“You dare address the God’s Child by his name?” The guard leader looked at Hank in shock.
“If I still saw him as God’s Child, of course, I would not use his name in vain,” Hank said, “but if I see him as a pile of sh*t, I can address him however I want.”
“What are you talking about! You blasphemer!” the guard leader roared. “Quick, take him down!”
The eight guards that surrounded them swarmed forward. In that instant, Flashes of Sword made his move.
In less than ten seconds, following punches and groans, the guards fell like dominoes. They did not faint but groaned on the ground, unable to get up even if they wanted to. Flashes of Sword did not use his blade. He did not want to harm innocents, and with his ability, dealing with these people with his bare hands was more than enough.
“Oh… That’s quite impressive. You can do so much without the use of any skills,” Feng Bujue observed.
“It’s because they are too weak,” Flashes of Sword replied. “Their physical attributes and reactions should be weaker than normal humans. From the game’s point of view, they are at least thirty percent weaker than a level one player, and I am a level seventeen professional player. This kind of result is not worthy of compliments.”
Since Hank and the guard leader would not have understood them anyway, the two players talked about this freely.
At that moment, the guard leader was frozen in fear. From his perspective, he felt as powerless as human beings would during an alien invasion. Actually, these special guards had nothing to do normally. In a small village like the Village of Heavenly Blessing, where rules were closely observed, there were few criminals, and there had been no more than ten people who had dared fight against the hierarchy in the past one hundred years.
Furthermore, general safety was the jurisdiction of the patrols; the special guards were only responsible for the safety of the priests and the Corben family. In other words, the special guards’ fighting experience was zero. They had not even met a villager who dared spit when they were close to the wall. That day though, they encountered three who wished to barge into the shrine, and in less than ten seconds, the whole platoon of special guards was taken down. Thus, it was understandable for the guard leader to have such a response.
“Drop your weapon.” Feng Bujue walked up to the leader. The guard leader swallowed and cleverly chose to oblige. He tossed the gun away. Feng Bujue saw the leader’s face, which was blanched from being scared, and he patted the man on his shoulder with a smile. “Why so serious? You should learn to smile more often.”
Facing the demon from hell before him, the guard leader forced himself to produce a smile that did not reach his eyes.
The three calmly continued on their journey. They walked past the guard leader and walked through the entrance into the fourth area.
The guard leader was petrified. Ten seconds later, he collapsed onto the ground and started to gasp for air like he was suffering from asthma. On the streets of the third layer, many villagers soon gathered, and the rumors were flying. A few witnesses had seen the earlier exchange, but they could not register in their mind what had really happened.
Two minutes later, the guard leader jumped up like he had woken up from a dream and screamed with a face full of panic, “Outsiders! We’ve been attacked by outsiders!”