Armed Train in the Apocalypse-Chapter 366 - 247: Second Priest, Is He Really That Strong? (Part 2)
"Bullshit."
Su Huan cursed.
His mood, which was originally decent, clouded over.
Not much hunting lately, just damn car repairs every day.
"You guys go ahead and fix it." Su Huan said, raising his head and glancing around at the deserted island left by the retreating tide, with a small mountain standing in the center, "Is this New Eden?"
Shu Wei nodded and said, "We’ve already reached the center of Jingchao Lake. This is Tide Watching Island, a famous tourist spot in Ningxi. For now, compared to before the apocalypse, its size has shrunk, likely due to tidal incursions. Captain He captured members from New Eden who are from here."
Shu Wei listed out the important information.
Listening to her reminder, Su Huan recalled those unlucky dozen.
When he returned, only four were left.
The whole story wasn’t complicated, just survivors fleeing to Tide Watching Island after the apocalyptic flood.
All sorts of folks gathered on the island, eventually forming groups, which were gradually unified by a Divine Witch into what is now New Eden.
Things started off normal, with the main goals being construction and survival.
Then, under the leadership of the Second Priest, New Eden gradually changed its nature, holding a sacrificial ritual every now and then.
The so-called rituals were just a deadly competition.
Initially, there were excuses, with everyone voting to elect participants for the ritual, but later it was decided by a few priests.
Those who died became sacrificial offerings to please the deities.
The dozen or so people ran out to escape from New Eden.
Then, recklessly trying to rob an armed train at the cultivation pod.
As for what happened to those four people now, Su Huan didn’t know.
Not that he couldn’t find out; he just had too much to deal with and was too lazy to ask.
Su Huan jumped over a puddle in a deep pit, patted the rough skin of the giant whale, clicking his tongue.
"You’re pretty fast, care to run again?"
"Woo—"
The giant whale seemed to understand Su Huan’s words, letting out a short wail before suddenly flipping over to slap down at Su Huan.
"An ant trying to shake a tree."
Su Huan’s eyes gleamed blue, sparks flew.
Shu Wei furrowed her brow, turning to look at the other side where two women walked toward them, one after the other.
...
Half an hour later, Su Huan, drenched in blood, sat on a rock, with a giant whale piled mountain-high at his feet.
Bai Lu and Giraffe held a jet of fresh water connected from the train, washing the station master.
Yu Yue gathered Su Huan’s cleaned long hair behind her, tying it with a string.
Shu Wei looked at the two women before her, her expression slightly odd.
"Did you say the prophecy led him to come?"
The High Priest solemnly recited her prophecy, "Walking on dragons, hunting giant whales, draped in dazzling light, like the Thunder God..."
"Sounds pretty accurate."
Su Huan stood up, carefully sizing up the two.
No impression.
Completely normal.
Ever since leaving the Acid Rain Zone, he barely knew anyone, and those he knew in his past life were either beside him or unknown to be dead or alive.
The one called Ah Duo was clearly a beast-type "Defender," ordinary path, strength depended entirely on the type of beast genes.
What surprised him was that this Ah Duo had actually reached Tier One.
With just her alone, she could crush the whole Iron Mountain Shelter.
The so-called High Priest should be an "Evolver" similar to a "Collector," akin to Mountain Goat, but the logic behind it is more "arcane" than Mountain Goat’s.
To truly understand it would require throwing it into Director Xu’s lab.
In his past life, he’d encountered these mystical scavengers.
The unrestrained use of their powers quickly aged them to look seventy or eighty.
Among the few who could die of old age in the wilderness.
Because the reason couldn’t be found, this ability gradually became a taboo in the wilds.
Now he could somewhat guess that the limitation of using this "Prophet" type ability might lie in "Basic Attributes," certain key attributes were insufficient, requiring life force to offset deficits each time the power was used, leading to premature aging.
Su Huan asked with interest, "So then, now that you’ve found me, what do you plan to do?"
The High Priest showed a sacred smile, "Only you can lead us out of this world-ending catastrophe."
Bai Lu whispered to Giraffe nearby, "She seems to have good insight."
Giraffe twitched her lips, "Half of her eyes are clouded, almost blind, you believe that?"
"I believe in the station master."
Su Huan furrowed his brow, standing before the High Priest, waving his hand left and right.
She maintained her smile, "I’m not blind yet, though you might not believe what I say, time will prove everything."
"Prove what, that I’d be your savior?"
Su Huan said nonchalantly.
The High Priest’s voice suddenly grew serious, "I can nominate you to become the new High Priest, but there are many things you have to do beforehand."
Hearing this, Ah Duo’s expression changed.
"But the ritual has already begun, we don’t have that much time..."
As she spoke, Ah Duo’s gaze fell on the armed train hovering by Tide Watching Island.
She wasn’t a savage, naturally understanding what such large vehicles signified.
Strong personal power and organizational backing.
Perhaps the High Priest’s premonition was right; this person might be able to resolve the crisis they face, albeit slightly deviating from the prophecy.
She wanted to defeat the Second Priest for sure, but not to trade one master for another.
She wanted the whole of New Eden under her control!
"The ritual has started?"
Su Huan seemed to think of something interesting, whispering to Yu Yue.
The latter turned and ran to the train.
"Alright, let’s talk about your situation, how many people are on the island, how strong are they, talk while we walk."
Like a man hosting guests, Su Huan walked ahead.
Shu Wei and the two bodyguards tossed water hoses aside and quickly followed.
The High Priest paused for a moment and tagged along.
"Kid, I know you’re powerful, but you’ll have to face many tough trials, without exception..."
The damn "mystical speech" style made Su Huan’s hand itch.
His main goal was to salvage the data center, while also resting a bit, with plenty of matters waiting for him on the train, no time to play religious role play.
Gritting his teeth, "Focus."
Seeing his sign of impatience, Ah Duo hurriedly spoke on behalf of the High Priest.
"If you want to be the High Priest, you need to face them and the Second Priest. I suspect the Third Priest has secretly sided with the Second Priest."
Su Huan calmed slightly, "How many are with the Second Priest?"
"Over three hundred."
"On such a large island, only three hundred people?"
"Only those blessed by the gods count as people."
Ah Duo said.
Su Huan realized.
Connecting prior information, he instantly understood the fundamentals of New Eden.
The so-called sacrifice was actually "raising Gu." Through mutual slaughter, they cultivated evolvers.
Under the pressure of death, or during the process, killing certain mutant beasts or zombies had a chance to become an evolver, as the conditions for becoming one weren’t overly complex; exposure to high concentrations of universal energy sufficed.
Though New Eden didn’t grasp the fundamental reasons behind evolution and chose crude methods, they’ve still achieved their aim.
Three hundred evolvers are no small number.
In his past life, many small settlements couldn’t gather such people.
Even if becoming an evolver wasn’t difficult.
But such crucial information was always held by the few.
"Here’s the problem, how many are your people?"
"About thirty." Ah Duo bit her lip, "But not all can be trusted; they might have already sided with the Second Priest, making your situation difficult."
Situation difficult?
Giraffe and Bai Lu at the back struggled to hold in their laughter.
Su Huan gave them a glance.
These two women seemed to have assumed he’d become their new High Priest at New Eden.
"Second Priest, quite powerful?"
(Tomorrow a hundred red envelopes will be sent in the group.)
