BXBX NOVEL Chapter 242: The Goals of the Blood Cult
But in reality, he was overthinking it.
Only the two Patriarchs hesitated for a moment before respectfully stating, "No problem, please feel free to proceed."
"We just need to know if you require any additional materials."
Sterl shook his head. "No need, just a few modifications will suffice. The materials you\'ve prepared are abundant, even exceeding what is normally required for an array."
What he said was an objective observation; the zealots were highly efficient, and the variety of materials stored in this one base was enough to completely rebuild the array.
Moreover, after deactivating Shadow Stealth for a detailed inspection, Sterl discovered quite a few items called [Demon Soul Crystals] within the base.
After examining them, he gained new knowledge—
Demons, besides traversing dimensional rifts to arrive in the main world, also had another method: they could abandon their physical bodies and transform their souls into soul crystals, transferring them to the main world.
As long as their followers in the main world helped inject flesh and blood energy, they could be reborn.
However, the drawback of this method was that if the followers in the main world betrayed them, the demon would effectively be dead for real.
At this moment, the soul crystals and various flesh materials in the base were sufficient to construct over a dozen legendary demons!
Sterl couldn\'t help but estimate that if every base was somewhat similar, they could instantly produce nearly 200 legendary demons??
Although the demons created in this way would be different from those legendary demons that reformed after death, possessing a boss-like template, they might at best be elites; nonetheless, they were still legendary!
With such a large quantity, to be honest, a small place like Florence simply couldn\'t withstand it…
However, for Sterl, this was great news!
The more legendary demons there were, the more resources he could farm…
At this point, Sterl directly began to take action, using his spatial sensing abilities and understanding of the Blood Sacrifice Swallowing God Array to help the Blood Cult members optimize the array.
Clearly, as Sterl had suspected, the profession of Array Master was extremely rare. In fact, within this stronghold, the Blood Cult members didn\'t have even one person who was proficient in arrays; only a few had a bit of spatial talent and could recite the construction of the Blood Sacrifice Swallowing God Array from memory.
Therefore, when Sterl first started working, the two Patriarchs remained somewhat cautious, having those few who understood arrays pay close attention to Philip Waldo\'s actions.
As Sterl worked quickly, he manipulated the already refined crimson materials, causing them to detach from their original spatial nodes and infuse into nearby, more rational nodes.
The other Blood Cult members present watched this scene with dumbfounded expressions.
"Philip Waldo" moved his hands gracefully, like a pair of dancing butterflies.
The surrounding energy surged and shimmered in vibrant colors.
"How is it? Is he up to something?"
"Is he really repairing the array, or is he doing something else?" The two Patriarchs quietly approached the few cult members with spatial aptitude to inquire.
Those members wore serious and solemn expressions.
"Report, leaders, we completely don\'t understand."
The cult members said honestly, feeling helpless.
The gap in their understanding was just too vast.
A professional Array Master manipulates the array based on the spatial conditions of different locations to arrive at the optimal solution. In contrast, when they constructed the array, they were relying on the Archduke of Blood\'s distant perception from Hell to barely sense the conditions in Florence, crafting a step-by-step manual to set it up.
They themselves didn\'t even know what they were operating; they just hoped the grand array would eventually activate.
At this moment, under Sterl\'s manipulation, the operational efficiency of the entire array increased by over thirty percent.
Though many of the Blood Cult members did not understand arrays, they were observant enough to sense the changes immediately.
In the base, the array exuding the power of a strange, bewildering star had previously felt somewhat clumsy; now it surged with energy, moving smoothly.
Instantly, the cult members no longer harbored doubts about this mysterious Philip Waldo; he was undoubtedly a pillar of strength and a trusted aide within the cult!
Yet Sterl maintained a calm demeanor, finding the expressions of those around him amusing…
Indeed, they really ought to thank me!
In this instance, Sterl wasn\'t engaging in any underhanded tactics; he was simply streamlining the array\'s operation. After all, just because the Blood Cult members in this base didn\'t understand arrays didn\'t mean there wasn\'t someone in the Blood Cult of Florence who did.
Sterl was simply seeking to better understand the style of array arrangements within the Blood Cult, which would be useful for his future operations.
Now he had a rough idea: the cult\'s arrays were all based on a fixed template, leading to numerous errors and oversights.
Sterl observed the expressions of the cult members around him and realized they had begun to trust him. He casually asked, "What is the specific plan for this operation?"
"Our Lord only summoned me and instructed me to utilize my array capabilities for support."
He didn\'t consider these cult members to be fools; he simply wanted to take a chance. If their reactions were intense, it would mean his identity could be exposed, but if he could glean any intelligence, it would be a significant gain.
However, as expected, even though these people had tentatively begun to trust Sterl, they still didn\'t know the purpose behind the array arrangements…
After asking for a long time, he received no information. Instead, he himself gained insights based on the operational patterns of the array and some of the special "materials" around him.
But for now, Sterl was still only guessing; he needed to visit more bases to gather additional intelligence to corroborate his theories.
Before long, he completely adjusted the array and then voluntarily bid farewell to the Blood Cult members: "Next, I will go to support other bases."
"You all need to pay attention to hiding; I will do my best to cover for you."
The cult members responded with fervor.
"Understood! My lord!"
"We will not let your efforts go to waste!"
…
For a while, Sterl mingled among various Blood Cult bases, using the identity of Philip Waldo to propose repairing the arrays.
Naturally, not all members of the cult were willing to accept his help.
Even with the Holy Stone of Blood proving his identity, these individuals responded somewhat coldly, stating that the arrays were gifts personally bestowed by the Archduke of Blood, and how could mere followers alter them?
Sterl didn\'t push the issue; he quietly noted the locations of the bases that refused his good intentions, planning to later bring people to directly destroy them as a feat for the players.
After helping the Blood Cult "optimize the arrays," Sterl also made some rough inferences about the goals of the Blood Cult based on the operational conditions of the various arrays.
He discovered that the previously missing individuals were mostly outsiders with no blood ties to the local residents of Florence.
A few of the surviving individuals in the Blood Cult bases were local Florentines, seemingly caught by chance; although their situation was dire, they were still alive.
Furthermore, there were vague but discernible traces within the different sub-arrays of the Blood Sacrifice Swallowing God Array—this array was designed to extract something.
Combined with the information that local Florentines were captured by the Blood Cult yet still remained alive, Sterl began to piece together a grim picture.
Sterl deduced that the target of the Blood Sacrifice Swallowing God Array likely involved all the local residents of Florence—he discovered that some of those hidden within the Blood Cult bases even included powerless beggars.
It seemed that the Blood Cult aimed to utilize the Blood Sacrifice Swallowing God Array to extract something from the bloodlines of these individuals.
At first, Sterl hadn\'t realized that whether someone was considered an outsider depended on their bloodline; he had primarily inferred the Blood Cult\'s general objectives through his research on the arrays and worked backward to identify the patterns.
"The only question left is, what special properties lie within the bloodlines of Florence\'s residents?"
Sterl mused, curious about the array\'s operation. The Blood Sacrifice Swallowing God Array was designed to refine all living beings within the royal city.
For Sterl, unless the benefits were extremely compelling, he would never accept becoming stronger in such a manner.
He had a new approach in mind; inspired by the Anti-Element, Sterl planned to shift the array\'s refinement mode from targeting the main world to focusing on the anti-world—specifically, various demonic entities in Hell.
As for the specific methods of operation, he wouldn\'t have to run to each Blood Cult base to execute them one by one. Once the array was combined into one, he could directly overturn the situation.
Although Sterl couldn\'t operate a divine-level array himself, he could still make minor modifications. If worse came to worst, he could always ascend to godhood and force it to work.
At this moment, Sterl reflected as he exited one of the Blood Cult\'s bases.
He faced the sunlight, looking ahead.
Now, he only had one last Blood Cult base to visit, which was the one near the royal palace…
However, Sterl had no intention of proceeding there.
The array at the palace was the core of the ten different arrays; he suspected that the mysterious Blood Cult pontiff and some core members were located there.
Philip Waldo had already blended in well at the various bases, and there was no need to take such a significant risk by contacting the pontiff.
Moreover, because the palace\'s array was the core, there were two backup versions located in the other bases.
Sterl didn\'t need to investigate further to understand how the Blood Cult arranged its core arrays.
From here on out, all of his decisions would simply need to…