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At this time, it was a test of the believers’ faith, and all she needed to do was to steadfastly hold to her own beliefs and continue to trust in the Disease Demon

Lord.

Thus, she said to the City Lord beside her, “Carry on, I have seen that the battle is going smoothly.”

“Good.”

The Personal Soldiers infected by Disease Bugs began to mobilize.

A portion of the corrupted Personal Soldiers started moving toward the north side, where other City Lords’ territories were located.

Facing Personal Soldiers as corrupted as mountains, those City Lords would be powerless, only able to watch helplessly as the monsters devoured their lands. To deal with these terrifying monsters, their only choice was to seek refuge in the Demon God Temple, receive protection from the Demon God Temple, and create similar Personal Soldiers to resist the monsters.

Afterward, the City Lords who acquired monsters would attack in all directions, causing more and more City Lords to seek refuge in the Demon God Temple and, ultimately, grant the Demon God Temple unprecedented power.

This was the Demon God Temple’s opportunity, a chance given to them by the healers, but it was predicated on their proving they had the strength to defeat the healers.

If, however, they demonstrated an inability to combat the healers, then obliteration would be their only outcome.

But it didn’t matter, for the power of the corrupted Personal Soldiers was absolute; the healers would not have the capability to confront these Personal Soldiers and were doomed to defeat.

And, in fact, the situation was very much as the temple keeper had imagined.

After trying over a dozen methods, the players discovered that they were utterly helpless against these colossi.

Impervious to blades and arrows, resistant to fire and water, even if the young and strong managed to hack off a few pieces of flesh, the original wounds would quickly heal, with no impact whatsoever.

After determining the trajectory of the opponents’ movements, all they could do was to get others to evacuate, to clear a path along the monsters’ route of march, thus minimizing losses.

The Squad Leader who was captured by Xiemen Waidao was also within the evacuation zone.

Seeing Xiemen Waidao entering with a knife in hand, the Squad Leader sneered,

“You finally couldn’t resist revealing your true colors, could you?” “He actually knows your true colors,” Mukuai 1234 said happily beside Xiemen Waidao. “Everyone outside says you’re a great saint; finally, there’s someone who gets it.”

“I was wondering why someone has been tarnishing my reputation recently, so

it was you.”

“It has nothing to do with me; I’m just telling the truth.

“You’re leaking player privacy!”

Xiemen Waidao sliced through the Squad Leader’s ropes and then pointed outside, saying, “Something is coming, we can’t resist it; you should just run.

Moving his wrists, the Squad Leader looked at Xiemen Waidao with a strange expression, “Are there a bunch of archers lying in ambush outside, ready to shoot me as I embrace freedom?”

“Like it or not, go! Mukuai 1234, let’s go outside and organise the evacuation. Realising that Xiemen Waidao really left him behind and didn’t care anymore, the Squad Leader paused for a moment, then noticed the chaos outside, as if people were indeed fleeing.

Walking out uncertainly, he discovered that the vast village had been abandoned, and everything that could be taken had been moved away, leaving a stark emptiness behind.

Before he could understand what the villagers had in mind, an immense fear struck him, making him scream involuntarily, “What is that!

A massive monster appeared from the north, a gigantic creature writhing between the mountains. Even the Squad Leader, who was accustomed to seeing Disease Beasts, fell into a state of terror, his entire body numb and immobilized.

Its unfamiliar form made it seem like a non-human entity, yet bizarrely, it was composed of human shapes; this contrast and peculiarity sent the Squad Leader into even greater panic.

With great difficulty regaining his senses, the Squad Leader took control of his body with a strong will and quickly left the area.

Not long after his departure, the massive monster swept through the village like a natural disaster, pulverizing both the residences and the healers buildings.

Having destroyed the village, the monster’s pace did not slow as it barreled toward its next destination.

The Squad Leader wanted to see where his comrades were, but realizing that the monster had come straight from the north, he became anxious.

The north was the direction of the City Master Mansion, and if the monster’s preferred targets were humans, then the City Master Mansion might also be under threat of attack.

Personal Soldiers need to prioritize the safety of the City Lord at all times, so upon realizing the City Lord might be in danger, he didn’t bother to summon his subordinates; he immediately followed the trail of the monster toward the City Master Mansion.

Although he had been imprisoned for a while, Squad Leader’s body, during that period, had not only not weakened but had actually improved somewhat. The food here included both meat and vegetables, and they were liberal with the use of oil; they even dared to use three eggs for scrambled eggs!

The rice was pure white, without any sand or foreign objects, and its fragrance was mouthwatering.

Adhering to the principle that every bite he took meant one less for the healers, Squad Leader had been eating unrestrainedly during this time, desperately eating, until he finally gained about five pounds and his strength increased considerably.

Sensing the growth in his body’s strength, Squad Leader did not feel much joy, as he had begun to find everything along the way strange.

This monster should be able to sense where crowds of people were gathering. Many villages had been destroyed by the monsters, and refugees were everywhere.

At this time, the importance of healers was especially evident.

These selfless healers were aiding the refugees, and the massive distribution of various supplies, along with the saturation rescue efforts, resulted in only minor injuries among the villagers, with seemingly no deaths or disappearances.

Despite the disaster, the refugees also behaved commendably. They did not cause trouble amidst the chaos, nor did they hoard goods for profit. Some able-bodied people formed protective squads to help the healers fend off Disease Beasts and distribute supplies.

Some children even found it quite fun.

After all, previously, to prevent the spread of disease, children would stay inside their houses and could not go out.

Even though the healers had arrived, the old customs couldn’t be changed overnight, and adults still preferred to keep children inside the house rather than going out.

But now, with no houses left, adults were too busy salvaging supplies to take care of the children. The children finally got to play with their peers as long as they didn’t stray from the refuge; then there was no problem.

Seeing this scene for the first time, Squad Leader felt that this was how children should be.

The refugees were calm and cooperative, and one could even hear laughter and joyful voices, which made Squad Leader feel as if this place hadn’t suffered a disaster.

The stark contrast between the grim scenery and the spirits of the populace led Squad Leader to reevaluate the meaning of being a healer.

It seemed what the people needed was not a City Lord, but healers…

Dismissing the disgraceful thoughts from his mind, Squad Leader tried to convince himself that the City Lord was indeed the most important.

But it wasn’t just one or two cases; along the way, the same scenes were everywhere, which made Squad Leader increasingly doubt his previous ideas. Fortunately, he arrived at the City Master Mansion half a day later. Although there were signs of towering Disease Beasts’ activities, the city walls had not collapsed, and there were no signs of disaster.

Everything inside and outside the City Master Mansion was normal which, upon his rushed return, reassured Squad Leader but also left him somewhat puzzled.

If there was no disaster, could it mean that the Disease Beasts were born here? Staring at the traces, Squad Leader noticed that they started narrow and shallow.

But as the Disease Beast moved southward, its tracks grew deeper and the surrounding width increased, indicating that the beast’s size was growing over time.

After looking at the traces for a while, Squad Leader hung the waist knife he had found on the road on his belt and placed a Heart Protection Mirror inside his chest, covered by his clothing, before shouting, “I am the Personal Soldier Squad Leader, and I have come back alive from the battlefield.” He shouted three times before the city gates finally opened. Expressionless soldiers stood on either side of the gate, their dull and turbid eyes like those of dead fish, looking at Squad Leader and making him feel a hint of eeriness and discomfort.

The interior of the city remained quiet, but this quietness was especially eerie now; the strange cries of insects had vanished, turning the entire city into a grave-like place.

Standing not far ahead was the casually dressed City Lord, smiling and watching him.

Everything was as usual; his body, despite being middle-aged, was still robust, and there was still a sparkle in his eyes.

Opening his hand, he smiled and said, “You’ve returned, Squad Leader.” Facing the City Lord, who was acting as if everything was normal, Squad Leader hesitated for a moment and then finally knelt halfway.

“I have returned, City Lord.”