Chapter 596.2: Descent of the Kingdom of Heaven

The Brocade Lake Municipality was boiling like a pot of water, and so was the official forum.

When the Jungle Corps brothers brought Brother Chicken’s kill count back to the forum, the result thread was instantly flooded with cries of awe.

Although there were plenty of gamblers lamenting their losses, the majority were excited spectators praising the performance.

Lawless Madman: Midnight Bro is insane!!! (voice crack)

Quit Bullshit: 21 of them?! Too damn strong!

Makka Pakka: Unlike a certain lizard... weak! ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Garbage: Fuck off!

Tail: Waaah, I’m crying from envy! Sisi! Tail also wants to transform! QAQ

Sisi: There, there, Tail, don’t cry.

Roshan: Sssssss... Tail at 2.5 meters tall with 1 meter wide shoulders? Can’t even picture it!!

Sesame Paste: Ahahaha... Roro’s gonna get crushed. (￣～￣)

Midnight Pubg: NPC transfer location: Ebers! No hype, no cap, it’s really good! (˵ ¬ᴗ¬˵)

Garbage: Damn, you guys formed a party and didn’t call me! T.T

Little Bookworm: You’re not even in our Corps, why would we call you?

Garbage: What! So heartless?

Make Me: Damn, this guy hogged all the glory!

Prone Model: Rat Bro, what about your little brothers? ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Make Me: Already picked them back up. My respawn CD is just one day. (≖⩊≖)

Prone Model: Damn!

There was even a funny side story. After Make Me vanished into a beam of light on the battlefield, his rat minions didn’t go far.

Not from loyalty, more because their boss wasn’t picky, and the mutant scraps left behind could feed them for a long time.

So after mourning for just a few minutes, the rats threw a feast right where their boss had fallen.

Then, the next day, the big horned rat they had gnawed clean suddenly came back.

That resurrection on the spot move stunned all the rats. They squeaked and kowtowed in worship.

Though he couldn’t understand their chatter, Make Me could clearly feel that, in their eyes, his image had become even more divine and mighty.

Me Quiet: By the way, why hasn’t this fog cleared yet?

Night Ten: I’ve got a bad feeling.

Quit Smoking: What feeling?

Night Ten: In MMOs, after clearing the mobs, don’t you usually still have to fight a boss?

Quit Smoking: WTF?! You’re already dead, don’t jinx it!

Irena: Night Ten’s a perception type. I trust him. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Ample Time: Mm, can’t rule it out. The Torch Church seems very sensitive to our antibody research against Na Fruit. If that force was all they had, it would’ve been sloppy.

Escaping Mole: Also, there’s something weird... The real target was just the antibody carrier, right? Did they really need to send a whole Mutant Human unit?

Such a huge operation, even if they reached Pinecone Ranch, the New Alliance had plenty of time to send aircraft and extract the key people.

It would’ve made more sense to send more assassins.

Spring Water Commander: Yeah... Feels like the fog wasn’t covering the mutants. More like the mutants were covering the fog.

Night Ten: What do you think it is then?

Spring Water Commander: How should I know... All I know is that you guys better be cautious.

...

And indeed, though he died early, Night Ten’s jinx came true again.

According to players stationed near Pinecone Ranch, locals entered the Divine Trance shortly after the fog rolled in.

That this was without the Spirit Interference Device!

Luckily, the players had already used the device to override Frequency Band 03’s brainwashing signal. Otherwise, the disaster the night before would’ve repeated.

Since preparations were in place, most survivors stayed home. Even when entranced, they just stood or sat still.

Unfortunately, the fog was spreading outward in a radius of over 10 kilometers. By dusk, it had reached the edge of Brocade Lake Municipality’s urban area.

Visibility was slowly improving as the mist thinned, yet the range it covered was expanding.

Worse still, the spore cloud no longer clung just to the ground. It spread upward, even reaching the edge of the clouds.

Such was the situation in Brocade Lake Municipality.

“... It’s like a stone dropped into a lake. The ripples are lower, but the circles spread from the center all the way to the shore.”

...

Aboard the Heart of Steel.

After hearing the captain’s briefing, Staff Officer Vanus rushed in, thought for a moment, then gave his view.

The captain frowned.

“What are those zealots planning?”

Chu Guang, who had been silently gazing out the window, suddenly spoke. “I’m actually more concerned about something else.”

Vanus turned. “What?”

Chu Guang continued. “What exactly is the Sanctuary?”

Vanus fell into thought.

The next moment, the bridge doors opened, and Frost entered from the corridor. “... Our drones patrolled several hundred kilometers south and recorded this.”

It handed a tablet to Chu Guang.

He took it, and at a glance, his brow furrowed in surprise.

Vast swaths of gray-green fog blanketed the land. Only the occasional mountain or forest jutted above the haze.

Farther south, the thick fog formed an impenetrable wall, as if freezing space itself.

From outside, nothing inside could be seen.

Chu Guang frowned and asked Frost, “Where is this?”

“South of the Brocade River Province, at the southern coast of the Central Continent, the Ocean Edge Province. Our drones encountered signal jamming and electronic warfare entering the airspace, but our AI outmatched them. They’ve returned.”

Pride showed on Frost’s face. Drone operations were its specialty, and electronic warfare was Eclipse’s forte. No amateurs were going to beat their tech.

Chu Guang wasn’t focused on those details. He had seen the Torch Church’s abilities before.

What concerned him was something else...

“When did it become like this?” the captain asked in Chu Guang’s stead, staring at the screen.

But Frost, an android, could only shake its head helplessly.

Vanus thought deeply, then said, “My guess? The past few months, while we were fighting the Army. Otherwise something this big couldn’t have escaped Dawn City’s notice.”

Chu Guang nodded. “I think so too.”

But it was still just guesswork.

Even if the Torch Church had finished their plan long ago, they could’ve easily sealed the news in their territory.

Judging by their methods in the Brocade Lake Municipality, they lured survivors with promises at first. Once people grew dependent, the fangs came out.

By then, Na Fruit plants covered the land. The fungus infested nearly every inch of soil.

Add the Spirit Interference Device...

When their so-called Kingdom of Heaven fully descended, the locals were already prisoners of the Torch Church.

No news escaping was only natural.

If not for New Alliance traders and mercenaries from Brocade River Province, if not for players already in the south, they might never have known until Brocade Lake Municipality itself became part of the Torch Church’s Kingdom of Heaven.

Chu Guang turned to Frost. “What’s the Highest Council’s stance?”

“The Council deems this an emergency situation, and...” Frost trailed off, swallowing the rest.

But Chu Guang knew what she left unsaid.

All their suffering tied back to that century-old conflict.

Even if Ideal City wasn’t directly to blame, as descendants of the Production Department, they bore responsibility.

However, it wasn’t the time for blame.

Chu Guang pressed on.

“Our researchers believe the spore release is Stage Three of Na Fruit’s fungal evolution. Based on experiments, those already infected will fall into trance within 12 to 72 hours of exposure.”

“Those who never consumed Na Fruit will slowly succumb to poisoning. Eventually, their immune systems will collapse, and they become part of the land...”

“And that is the essence of the Kingdom of Heaven.”

If swallowing Na Fruit was once voluntary, by Stage Three of the descent of the Kingdom of Heaven, consent no longer mattered.

The spores forced themselves into every living being’s lungs and mouths.

Whether survivors wanted it or not, the Torch Church’s kingdom would descend.

Those shrouded in the spore would lose all suffering forever. But the price was their identities, their lives reduced to Na Fruit fungal breeding beds, manipulated by psychic devices to perform simple labor.

Only stronger mutants, chosen Apostles, and the Complete Human could live a proper life.

Until perfected, it was no heaven.

𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

It was hell.

Seeing Frost’s widened electronic pupils, Chu Guang continued, “According to Hyrja’s research, that genetic fragment was cut from Mutant Slime Mold DNA. Based on the Hive in Springwater City, spores are an information medium. That suggests a central node has to exist here, like a Hive.”

The Sanctuary was decentralized. However, the Kingdom of Heaven was different. It was a biotechnological pseudo-utopia.

The Sanctuary was spiritual, but a biological core was hidden somewhere in this land.

It was the heart, issuing orders to all their subjects, sustaining the Kingdom of Heaven.

Frost asked seriously, “Where do you think it is?”

Chu Guang answered, “Most likely the Champion Group’s laboratory. What do you intend to do?”

Frost’s tone was grave. “I’ll recommend the Highest Council deploy strategic weapons to destroy it. The damage has exceeded any regional threat.”

Chu Guang sighed, unsurprised. “But those underground labs are nuclear-bunker grade, like an unnumbered Shelter. What weapon can breach it?”

He had seen it in Yore’s memory. That elevator ride was long.

Frost froze. “Ah...”

Before it could propose alternatives, Chu Guang pressed on. “We need that artificial Hive. Only by understanding it can we defeat it. Our people will try to seize it, but the Mutant Humans won’t make it easy. I’ll need your support.”

It seemed Frost had already gained some approval.

Frost agreed without hesitation. “No problem. We’ll provide whatever support is necessary.”

“This isn’t just your threat anymore.”

“It’s ours too.”