The world has turned into Hell's Game, why should I stay human?
Chapter 263 - 259: The Giant Hand in the Blood Moon

Chapter 263: Chapter 259: The Giant Hand in the Blood Moon

Pale moonlight streamed in through the glass window, casting colorful shadows.

In the center of the Church, only one color remained on Liu Zheng’s body.

Blood-red.

The skin below his neck had been stripped away, and from head to toe, he was studded with tacks just like those on the helmet man.

Of course, those stripped-off skin areas were quickly regenerating, but no one else could see them.

Because he was enclosed within a blood-red armor filled with sharp barbs piercing into his flesh.

On Liu Zheng’s back, an image was embroidered with iron wire, exactly depicting the Twisted Saint.

All twelve rituals had been completed, and the Great Baptism, which hadn’t been passed by anyone for over a century, finally witnessed another successful challenger.

The old woman looked at him excitedly, her complexion unnaturally flushed.

Liu Zheng’s expression, however, was quite calm. Some parts of the ritual had indeed been challenging, but afterwards, only pure pain remained.

For him, plain pain was the easiest to endure, as the physical malformation itself had altered his pain perception system.

Otherwise, even the sensation of "Blood and Flesh Rebirth" alone could have driven him mad.

"Congratulations, outsider, you have successfully passed the Great Baptism. Your name will be engraved behind the Twisted Saint, forever etched in the history of the Church of Suffering,"

said the old woman.

"That won’t be necessary, I’ve already signed enough articles."

Liu Zheng shrugged, driving the barbs deeper into his shoulders.

"Go now, outsider, use the blood from your body to write your name on the back of the Twisted Saint’s statue,"

the old woman ignored his words.

"Must I do this?"

"This is part of the Great Baptism. Without completing this step, I cannot hand over the Twisted Holy Grail to you,"

said the old woman.

"You aren’t trying to trick me, are you?"

Liu Zheng asked suspiciously.

"You are the only one who has passed the Great Baptism in many years. I even want you to take up the burden of becoming the Pope. Why would I deceive you?"

The old woman asserted seriously.

"I’ll pass on the position of Pope. I think being a delivery guy has more prospects,"

he said, shaking his head in refusal, then he walked behind the statue.

The back was smooth as new and bore no other names.

"After you write your name, you might see some visions. Do not resist; let go of your body and mind to feel them. Perhaps you will see other things too. Do not be afraid, the suffering of the Saint will protect you. With your will, you will definitely be able to withstand the shock,"

the old woman advised.

"I knew it wouldn’t be so simple,"

Liu Zheng rolled his eyes.

However, he did not refuse and instead took out a pair of pilot sunglasses to wear.

These were given to him by Red Pig, one of the effects being to ignore all visual-induced damage, negative effects, and reduction of rationality for 30 seconds.

Although it was unlikely to be necessary, it was always good to be prepared.

Liu Zheng opened his armor, took some blood from within, and then wrote his name on the back of the statue.

The blood was quickly absorbed by the surface of the wood, disappearing without a trace.

In a daze, he seemed to see the Twisted Saint turning its head towards him, its expression pained, its eyes looking at him with pity.

And behind the Twisted Saint were no longer various murals, but row upon row of towering bookshelves.

Suddenly, a strange-looking creature crawled out from the shadows.

It had a pockmarked head resembling an almond, in the middle of which was a mouthpiece ringed with sharp teeth.

Behind the head was a bloated body like a spider’s, underneath which were many spider-like thin limbs.

The rest of it remained unseen, as it had only revealed half its body, with the other half still hidden in the shadows.

The creature, resembling a spider, blankly raised its head, locking eyes with Liu Zheng.

In its face’s pits and hollows were purely black eyeballs.

Countless gazes fixed on Liu Zheng, and he felt as if he saw the sky split open with waterfall-like torrents of fresh blood pouring from the cracks, falling upon the moon.

The once pale moon was stained blood-red, and beneath the blood moon lay mountains of human corpses.

"Rationality drop exemption successful."

As the system alert sounded, a long, withered hand with sharp claws reached out from the blood moon, grabbing toward Liu Zheng.

"Damn, what is this, a Russian nesting doll?"

He was about to use his pilot sunglasses when both the Twisted Saint and the spider creature made their moves.

The Twisted Saint covered Liu Zheng’s eyes with vine-like hands while the spider creature closed its own eyes.

All fell into darkness until Liu Zheng felt the invisible force dissipate and only then did he open his eyes.

The church was still brightly lit before him, and the old woman was looking at him expectantly.

"What did you see, sir?"

She asked respectfully.

"I saw the Twisted Saint and a very ugly spider,"

Liu Zheng replied.

"Can you describe the surroundings of the Saint?"

The old woman didn’t care about the spider and pressed on with her question.

"I didn’t see it clearly, but there were many bookshelves, probably a library or something of the sort,"

he recalled and responded.

"It must be Carcarens Academy’s doing, those despicable thieves!"

The old woman said through gritted teeth.

"Carcarens Academy?"

"It’s the only university in Yate, dedicated to researching human evolution and cosmic knowledge. The Blood Healing Church was founded by people from Carcarens Academy,"

the old woman explained.

"I see. So, you mean to say that people from Carcarens Academy stole the real body of the Twisted Saint?"

"Exactly, that must be it. Those madmen would do anything to gain knowledge,"

the old woman said bitterly.

The Pain Church had always been suspicious, as ordinary people had no reason to steal the Twisted Saint.

The Twisted Saint himself did not grant miracles; since his "death," he had served the Pain Church more as a symbol and spiritual guide.

Furthermore, the Pain Church did not hide the Twisted Saint; anyone entering the church could pay homage.

Only that group of research fanatics from Carcarens Academy would steal the Twisted Saint to obtain knowledge and then treat him as a forbidden relic.

The Pain Church, lacking sufficient evidence to raise allegations and powerless to force a search, could only continuously perform the Great Baptism, hoping to thereby make contact with the Twisted Saint and confirm his location.

It was also for this reason that when Liu Zheng asked for the Twisted Holy Grail, the old woman agreed so readily.

Compared to the real body of the Twisted Saint, a Holy Grail was nothing.

"That’s terrible, I personally strongly despise such behavior. So, can you give me the Twisted Holy Grail now?"

Liu Zheng said nonchalantly.

"You certainly are qualified to keep it, sir,"

the old woman bowed, lifting the Twisted Holy Grail upwards with both hands in extreme reverence.

"Thank you."

Liu Zheng took the Holy Grail, feeling utterly indifferent inside.

Unwarranted favors breed suspicion of hidden motives or theft, especially since he had already guessed what the old woman wanted him to do.

Helping was not out of the question, but it all depended on what price she recognized.

His gaze shifted from the old woman, focusing on the Twisted Holy Grail.