However, some devout believers with high faith levels were worth two or three ordinary ones.
The time that followed was essentially just the routine grind of continuing to spread faith.
...
The growth of the faith value was faster than Jiang Lin had anticipated.
By the time the statue of the God of Holy Light was erected in the seventh village, the total faith value had already surpassed three thousand.
The natives, who had been tormented by the pollution for months and had watched their loved ones turn into monsters one by one, had almost no resistance to the power of the Holy Light.
Jiang Lin did not need to waste words. As long as they saw the golden light disperse the dark red lines inside their companions' bodies with their own eyes, and saw those who already had one foot in the abyss open their eyes and regain their sanity, they would spontaneously kneel before the statue.
Jiang Lin stood beside the newly erected statue, looking at the village of about eight hundred people before him.
A few young, sturdy men had taken the initiative to help transport stone and timber, building a simple shelter at the entrance of the village.
“Things are stable here as well.”
Cyrus crouched by the base of the statue, embedding the final rune stone into the array core. A pale gold halo spread along the ground, forming a protective barrier about fifty meters in diameter.
“With this one, we now have seven statues.”
“It's not enough.” Jiang Lin's gaze swept past the low rammed-earth walls of the village, looking toward the horizon further south. “This planet is too large, and we are moving too slowly.”
“If we want to speed up, we have to leverage the power of the locals.” Cyrus stood up and adjusted his glasses. “You could consider training a group of missionaries. Let them take the blueprints of the statues and the basic training methods of the Paladin Breathing Technique to travel even further.”
Jiang Lin fell silent for a moment, then nodded.
It was a good idea.
He turned and walked back to the center of the village, finding a young woman who was distributing dry rations to the villagers.
“I need you to do something for me.”
The girl looked up and answered without hesitation.
“Please speak, my lord.”
“I am going to teach you a breathing technique.”
“Once you learn it, you will be able to use the basic abilities of the Holy Light to heal minor wounds, purify weak pollution, and sense filthy auras.”
Her eyes lit up.
“Then can we also become messengers of the gods like you?”
“It still requires a long period of cultivation.” Jiang Lin did not overpromise. “But at the very least, you will be able to protect yourselves and help those around you.”
He spent half an hour teaching the introductory chapter of the Paladin Breathing Technique to several of the more talented youths, along with the basic breathing methods.
These people would become the first sparks of the God of Holy Light on this planet.
At dusk, Jiang Lin sat cross-legged beside the statue, sinking his mind into his Apostle Brand to check the latest faith value statistics.
【God of Holy Light Anchor: 7】
【Total Faith Value: 4,127/10,000】
【Activated Nodes: 0/10】
【Faith Value Required for First Node: 5,873】
“Almost there,” he murmured to himself. “With three more, we should be able to break ten thousand.”
Just then, a dark red bolt of lightning suddenly flashed across the northern sky.
The lightning was silent, tearing through the pale purple sky and reflecting the entire northern horizon like flowing blood.
The light lasted for about three breaths before dissipating, but the residual glow lingered for a long time.
The color of that sky was deeper than before, like an expanding bruise.
Lothar's voice came through the communication device, urgent and low:
“There is trouble in the north. That rift is expanding.”
“Good and I saw something coming from that direction. Humanoids, people wearing black robes.”
“Not many, seven of them, heading southwest. Be careful on your end.”
“Seven black-robed figures.” Cyrus's voice came from the brand, carrying a trace of solemnity. “Could they be Demon God Apostles?”
Jiang Lin stood up, his golden eyes looking toward the shifting colors of the northern sky.
What was bound to come had finally arrived.
He turned to look toward the village.
Those talented young people were practicing the breathing technique before the statue.
Their movements were still unrefined, but their expressions were focused and earnest, with the golden Holy Light flickering faintly with each breath they took.
“Cyrus, I'm leaving this place in your hands.”
Jiang Lin said.
“Are you going north?”
“Yes. I'm going to track those Demon God Apostles.”
“They are heading southwest, and there is a town of two thousand people in that direction. Mavis and Selene are there.”
Cyrus fell silent for a moment, then adjusted his glasses.
“By yourself? The other side has seven 6th-ranks.”
“Don't I have all of you?” Jiang Lin activated the communication device's call function. “Lothar, Good, flank them from the north to the southwest. Mavis, Selene, set up defenses in the town. Dorian, Victor, you're on perimeter reconnaissance. Cyrus, guard the statue here and be ready to reinforce at any time.”
“Received.” Lothar's voice was brief and firm.
“Understood, understood. I've been wanting to meet them for a long time anyway.”
Mavis's voice carried a hint of excitement.
Jiang Lin took a deep breath, circulating the holy light magic essence within his body to the limit, his golden eyes glowing faintly in the dusk.
He had fought 6th-ranks before. Although he hadn't completely crushed them, his strength had improved significantly during this time, and he also had spatial magic and that bizarre new talent of his.
It should be fine.
He stepped forward toward the southwest, his pace steady and without a trace of hesitation.
After walking about three hundred meters out of the village, Jiang Lin stopped.
His spatial perception caught seven faint auras moving rapidly through a hilly area ahead.
“Found them.”
Jiang Lin was in no hurry to make a move.
He lurked in the shadows of the hills, his spatial perception like an invisible spiderweb, locking tightly onto the seven moving auras.
“Lothar, how long until you arrive?”
He asked in a low voice through his Apostle Brand.
“About fifteen minutes.” Lothar's voice came through, accompanied by rapid breathing; clearly, he and Good were rushing at full speed. “Don't act rashly. There are seven 6th-ranks on the other side.”
“I know.” Jiang Lin's gaze pierced through a gap in the rocks, landing on the seven black-robed figures. “I'll keep an eye on them first and wait until you're in position before we strike.”
“Received. Don't push yourself too hard.”
The call disconnected.
Jiang Lin continued to lie in wait, suppressing his breathing to the minimum, the magic essence in his body flowing smoothly and silently.
The seven Demon God Apostles moved quickly along the dry riverbed, completely unaware that they were being watched.
Their speed was extremely fast, and they maintained precise distances from one another, clearly a well-trained team.
Jiang Lin followed silently from their flank, keeping a distance that wouldn't get him detected, while pressing one pre-prepared spatial anchor after another into the rocks and ground along the way.
Fifteen minutes passed quickly.
By the time Lothar's voice echoed in his brand again, Jiang Lin had already placed eleven spatial anchors around the riverbed, forming a sealed zone three hundred meters in diameter.
“We're in position, behind the hills three hundred meters north of you. Good is on my right, ready to go.”
Jiang Lin exhaled slowly and stood up.
“Received. I'm going in.”
He stepped out of the shadows, standing on a protruding rock in the middle of the riverbed, blocking the path of the seven black-robed figures.
The seven black-robed figures stopped simultaneously.
The leader was the tallest, revealing a well-defined, pale face beneath his hood.
His gaze swept over Jiang Lin, and then he let out a low laugh.
“A 4th-rank mid-stage? Have the Seven Righteous Gods run out of people to use?”
Jiang Lin did not answer, merely standing quietly in place.
Meanwhile, behind the hills, Lothar gripped the hilt of his greatsword, his brow furrowed tightly.
His gaze pierced through a gap in the rocks, locking firmly onto the distant golden figure.
“Holy crap, this kid really went up to block them all by himself...” he muttered under his breath, his tone laced with worry. “There are seven 6th-ranks on the other side.”
Good crouched beside him, his massive shield resting across his knees, his bald head glinting under the dark purple sky.
He grinned, though his smile carried a hint of uncertainty.
“Boss Lothar, do you think he can hold his own?”
“Even if he can't, he has to.” Lothar took a deep breath as the golden holy light magic essence began to surge within his body. “Get ready to support. The moment the other side makes a move, we charge.”
Just as he finished speaking, the leading Demon God Apostle in the riverbed moved.
He clenched his right hand, and a long blade condensed from dark red energy formed in his palm. The blade was pitch-black, with dark red light flowing along its edge. The light churned and swirled in the air, emitting a sickening scent of pollution.
Then, he took a step forward, and the blade slashed straight down toward Jiang Lin's head with a vicious force that seemed capable of splitting the world apart!
“Let's see how many of my strikes you can take, you 4th-rank brat!”
The slash descended at an incredible speed, tearing through the air with a piercing screech.
Even before the blade reached him, the fierce wind from the strike had already pressed a fine crack into the rock beneath Jiang Lin's feet.
Lothar's heart instantly leaped into his throat. His legs were already tensed with power, and he was about to charge out.
Then, he saw Jiang Lin's movement.
The movement was not fast; in fact, it could even be called leisurely, as if he had known exactly where the strike would land and was already waiting there.
Jiang Lin raised his sword, the blade of the Eight Extremities Holy Sword colliding precisely with the dark red blade.
There was only a very crisp clink, like two pieces of porcelain gently tapping against each other.
Yet with that gentle touch, the aggressively descending dark red blade was parried away from the center, the edge scraping past Jiang Lin's side and hitting nothing but empty air.
The moment the strike missed, Jiang Lin's figure vanished from the spot.
Lothar's pupils shrank abruptly.
He had absolutely no idea how Jiang Lin had moved. He only felt as if something had flashed before his eyes.
The golden figure had already appeared three Zhang away, standing diagonally behind the apostle with the long blade.
The longsword in his hand thrust toward the opponent's left ribs at an incredibly tricky angle.
The speed was too fast.
It was so fast that even the 6th-rank peak Demon God Apostle didn't have time to dodge completely.
He could only twist his body violently at the last moment, turning what would have been a fatal thrust into a flesh wound that scraped along his ribs.
Dark red blood seeped from the wound.
The leading Demon God Apostle stumbled back two steps, stabilized his stance, and looked down at the moderately deep wound on his side. When he looked up at Jiang Lin again, the disdain on his face had completely vanished.
“You...”
“Like I said, as long as I can beat you, it's fine.”
Jiang Lin's voice remained calm. With a gentle flick of his wrist, he shook off the residual blood droplets on the blade.
Behind the hills, Good's jaw nearly hit the ground. His lips twitched several times before he finally squeezed out a coherent sentence:
“Did you see how he flashed just now?”
Lothar did not answer.
Because he hadn't seen it clearly either.
He only knew that this blond youth, at the 4th-rank mid-stage, had not only blocked a strike from a 6th-rank peak Demon God Apostle head-on but had also managed to wound him in the counterattack.
“This kid...” Lothar slowly breathed out those words, his voice carrying a complex tremor that even he didn't realize. “When he told me earlier that he could fight, he really wasn't just bluffing.”
The leading Demon God Apostle clutched the wound on his side. Dark red blood seeped through his fingers and dripped onto the dry riverbed, making a faint hissing sound as if burning the soil itself.
His expression shifted from pale disdain to a grim, livid gravity. His dark red eyes glared at Jiang Lin, as if trying to carve this overly handsome face into his very bones.
“A 4th-rank mid-stage, blocking my strike head-on and even wounding me in return.” His voice was much lower now, carrying a trace of genuine wariness. “What on earth are you?”
Jiang Lin did not answer.
His gaze swept past the apostle's shoulder, landing on the six black-robed figures behind him.
His spatial perception had already locked onto the auras of all seven individuals.
The leader, 6th-rank peak, shadow-attribute specialization, excelled in close-quarters combat.
The tall, thin one on the left, 6th-rank mid-stage, had magic essence fluctuations leaning toward corrosion and toxins.
The short, stocky one on the right, 6th-rank peak, had a heavy aura, like a mobile shield wall.
The four in the back, two 6th-rank mid-stage and two 6th-rank early stage, had magic essence fluctuations leaning toward fire and frost, with one possessing an extremely subtle aura, likely an assassin.
Their team composition was very complete. With a front line, damage dealers, an assassin, and crowd control, these seven were enough to crush any native force on this planet head-on.
“A pity,” Jiang Lin suddenly said.
The leading Demon God Apostle narrowed his eyes.
“A pity about what?”
“A pity you ran into me.”
The instant those words fell, Jiang Lin's figure vanished again.
Instant Light Flash.
This time, he held nothing back, activating it at full power.
The backlash of forcibly tearing through spatial laws sent a sharp pain through his right arm, his meridians feeling as though they were being pierced by countless fine needles simultaneously, but he did not pause.
When he appeared for the second time, he was standing behind the tall, thin poison-attribute apostle.
A flash of sword light shot straight for the back of the neck.
The tall, thin apostle's reactions were incredibly fast. Almost at the exact instant Jiang Lin appeared, a circle of dark green poisonous mist exploded from his body, carrying a strong corrosive odor that hissed as it burned the surrounding air.
At the same time, his body lunged forward, attempting to widen the distance.
...
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