The church was a large building with a pointed roof located in the depths of the town. When Sandora and I were observing the situation from the air, we noticed that this building had a very different architectural style from the surrounding buildings. However, we did not expect the religions of this world to be so strange. From the beginning to the end, they only cared about the "sealing technology." All religious activities revolved around this goal. Ancient relics did not appear every day, so most of the time, the church was left empty.
There were no daily prayers, no fixed rituals, and no need for believers to listen to the teachings of the gods. As long as there was nothing related to ancient knowledge, it was as if the Lost Church did not exist.
This was the first time we had seen a religion with such a clear purpose that it did not even place much importance on its own propagation. If a normal religion did this and did not have a true god behind it, it would have been finished long ago. However, the Lost Church did not have to worry about this. They had ancient technology in their hands, and the clergy were armed like the Star Troopers. Moreover, they pursued elitism from top to bottom. The difference in power between them and ordinary people was close to the difference between the gods and mortals. So, this church did not show any signs of decline.
Celine was the only clergy in the town, so naturally, she was the manager of the small church. She told me that the church had not been opened for more than half a year because the ancient ruins next to the town had never been opened to the public. Not many adventurers would come here to do business, and the ordinary people would not come into contact with "taboo knowledge." So, there was no need for the church to be opened. Half a year ago, the church opened because the higher-ups wanted to come here to look for some information. The strange style of the Lost Church was obvious.
However, although it was not open to the public, there were still dedicated volunteers responsible for cleaning the church every day. Celine would also come here to clean the church. So, the facilities in the church were always available, and there was no sign of dirt. The adventurers quickly gathered in the church. I hugged Sandora and squeezed into the crowd to watch the fun.
The interior of this rural church was very simple. Eighty percent of the usable area of the building was a very spacious rectangular hall. But unlike ordinary churches, there were no seats in the hall. There were only a few cushions against the wall for people to rest on. The rectangular hall had a very high dome, and the roof was hung with intricate metal chains and ornaments, perhaps with some kind of symbolic meaning. On both sides of the hall were large stained glass windows, and these large windows kept the deep long hall from looking dim.
At the end of the hall was the place where Celine "worked". I used the word "theoretically" because I didn't think it was an altar. In fact, it was an alloy workbench.
The workbench was more than two meters long and one and a half meters wide. It was silver-white and had a smooth surface. Obviously, it was the most well-maintained part of the church. Considering its special nature, Celine must have taken care of it herself. On one side of the workbench, there were many scrolls and cards in hardwood boxes. Perhaps these were the reference materials that Celine would use when "working". On the other side, there were many exquisite little tools, as well as … some things that even I couldn't understand. Perhaps these were equipment left behind by the ancients. Of course, it was even more likely that these were created by the Lost Gods themselves.
Standing behind the workbench, Celine had already put on a solemn black robe. She still looked tired and lazy, but her attitude was still very serious when she worked. More than a dozen adventurers were reporting to her about the situation outside the ruins of the "Ancient Tower." Celine nodded slightly as she listened. Occasionally, she would ask some questions about the details. This scene looked like a geological survey team coming back from a report. It didn't make me think of the sacredness of a "religion." However, this was indeed a religious ceremony, and it was the "Taboo Knowledge Inquiry Ceremony" that the God of Science and Technology had decreed …
"It's far worse than the religious scene that Liliana created." Sandora lay down comfortably in my arms and muttered in a voice that others couldn't hear, "It's even worse than Icetis' lively prayer ceremony. It seems that the previous popes of the Lost Gods didn't really study religion. They just wanted to seal up their knowledge. As long as the ancient technology was still in their hands, they could maintain the authority of the church even without complicated ceremonies. On the other hand, a low-level priest like Celine … seems to be dead set on believing in the existence of the God of Science and Technology. "
At this moment, Sandora wasn't invisible anymore. After confirming that even a "professional" like Celine could be fooled by the ancient curse, Her Majesty the Queen was no longer willing to hide. Although I still felt that it was strange to carry a large ball of light everywhere I went, Sandora didn't seem to think so. Her current golden appearance would attract a lot of attention no matter where she went. On the way to the church, we had attracted almost half of the reinforced company's onlookers … Sandora didn't care about it. After all, Her Majesty the Queen naturally treated these unrelated people as people who came to congratulate her. However, this made me feel all sorts of awkward on the way here. Fortunately, when we arrived at the church, everyone focused their attention on business. A strange ball of light wasn't enough to cause them to lose their etiquette in the temple of the "God of Science and Technology."
"The interior of the ancient tower should be very spacious, and there are many auxiliary buildings around it. Some of them look like old warehouses, but most of them are empty," an adventurer with a full beard, who seemed to be the most experienced among the adventurers, reported on the situation on behalf of the others. "There are no signs of unauthorized opening, so the warehouses should have been empty from the beginning. The tower was built on a rocky platform … "
Now that we were talking about the location and structure of the ancient tower, Celine continued to listen and nod. I estimated that she would fall asleep in about ten minutes, then …
Something unexpected happened.
An ear-piercing sound suddenly came from the forest in the northwest. It sounded like some kind of siren ringing through the sky. Before the siren could be heard, there was a low roar that seemed to be an explosion. Accompanied by these strange sounds, everyone suddenly felt a strange numbness in their bodies … The entire church was in an uproar!
"It's a taboo curse! The curse of the ancient civilization has leaked out! " I don't know which adventurer suddenly shouted, but the situation suddenly went out of control. All the adventurers grabbed the weapons in their hands, and some of them scratched their exposed skin while grabbing their weapons. "Pi pi pa pa" sounds of static electricity came from the gaps of many people's clothes, and some of the female adventurers even screamed, "Resonance! It's resonance! That tower is the Tower of Rumbling, it's attracting disaster! "
"It's an environment with strong electromagnetic waves, and it's mixed with strange high-power clutter." In the chaos, Sandora and I were the only two people who maintained absolute calm. Her Majesty the Queen's current state didn't affect her senses, so Sandora quickly knew what was going on. "It seems that a giant antenna has been activated … Maybe there's some kind of malfunction, and the antenna's power is out of control, and it's shining in the direction of the town."
At this moment, there was more and more static electricity in the air, and some of the special metal parts in the church began to slowly heat up. The out of control electromagnetic waves were washing the place. Needless to say, I also knew that something was wrong with the ancient tower!
However, just as Sandora and I were about to take action, Celine suddenly slammed the workbench in front of her. She was always quiet, but this was the first time she shouted, "Quiet! Stay calm! There's a protective device here! "
As soon as Celine's voice trailed off, the static electricity in the surrounding air stopped worsening, and Sandora and I sensed that there seemed to be a barrier above the town, blocking the electromagnetic radiation from the direction of the forest. It seemed that the church knew about the situation of the ruins next to the town, so there was an emergency protective device here. Perhaps there was an electromagnetic shield device hidden under the church?
"The ancient tower has been activated, it's an emergency," Celine confirmed that the protective device of the church was activated, and then she let out a sigh of relief. Then, she put away the excavated items on the workbench and quickly ordered, "Split up a part of the adventurers here … Just the few of you, go and inform the civilians not to leave their houses, and don't touch the metal objects in their homes before the sky turns blue again. Pay attention to fire and abnormal smoke at all times, and most importantly … Don't leave the town's walls! The rest of you, go and inform the adventurers on standby to go to the ancient tower! "
The adventurers were indeed a well-trained group. Although the sudden situation had thrown them into a panic, under Celine's command, everyone immediately took action. At the same time, Celine turned to look at me and said, "Mr. Scholar, please wait in the town. You are not here to fight …"
"I'll go with you," I shrugged, "In fact, I have a lot of experience in dealing with ruins."
"That's not the reason," Celine's expression was a little confused, "It's the situation this time … We may have to enter the core of the ancient tower, and may even come into contact with some forbidden places in the ruins. You are not an adventurer, so you can't come into contact with higher-level forbidden knowledge."
Damn, there's such a restriction? Only adventurers can come into contact with the core of the ruins?
Previously, it was quite smooth to use the pretense of "scholar". I thought there was a loophole in the management of the ruins, and anyone who claimed to be a scholar could come into contact with forbidden knowledge. But I didn't expect that there was such a difference between "scholar" and "adventurer": Only the latter was officially recognized as a professional, while the former was actually a civilian scientist who could only watch from the sidelines. What happened to the good luck buff that the protagonist would hit the bull's eye as long as he fooled others? I felt like I had been an enthusiastic spectator for two days!
I thought about it and decided to go with her, "Actually, I also have the qualifications to be an adventurer …"
Celine was surprised, and then she asked a very practical question, "Why didn't you say so earlier? May I ask if you have the exploration permit?"
My first thought was: What's an exploration permit? Then I instantly reacted: As expected, when it comes to the core of ancient knowledge, the management of the Church is really strict. It turns out that being an adventurer requires a permit!
So the "scholar" identity that I used to fool others can only allow me to explore around the ruins? I was really lucky that I didn't expose myself before, but how should I solve the problem of the exploration permit now?
Sandora's ball arched in my arms, and she lazily muttered, "I knew that Ah Jun's mouth wouldn't be enough … Celine, look at my eyes … Forget it, look at me, we don't need the exploration permit, do you understand?"
"… Okay, let's get ready to go to the ruins now." Celine was slightly confused by the light released by Sandora's ball, and then she muttered to herself. The surrounding adventurers were in a daze, and they took the initiative to ignore the abnormal situation here.
Soon, the adventurers who were on standby in various parts of the town were also summoned, and under Celine's command, they gathered at the entrance of the town in a mighty team, while Celine herself returned home, and when she appeared in front of everyone again …
She was already armed like a future female warrior who was going to fight aliens with her life.
"It's the Church's holy armor!" The experienced adventurers immediately exclaimed when they saw Celine appear with a particle rifle. "The situation has already become so serious?!"
Celine was still wearing the solemn black robe. She did not seem to be worried that such clothes would hinder her movement in the forest. At the same time, under the robe, there were a lot of strange gadgets and backup energy blocks hanging on her belt. She was carrying a meter-long particle rifle on her shoulder, a small alloy knife in her left hand, a small metal box that looked like a power backpack on her back, and a Bible hanging on her waist. If she were to appear in Hollywood, she could basically appear in any kind of movie except for animated films!
Sandora couldn't help but sigh, "… A strange phenomenon caused by the breakdown of civilization …"
"Will Alou be fine at home?" While all the adventurers were busy checking their equipment and nervously preparing for battle, I couldn't help but ask Celine about the little girl.
"She has never experienced something like this before … but I believe that child will take good care of herself." Celine clicked the safety of the rifle, and then looked up at the sky, "The Church has set up such barriers in the settlements around the ruins. As long as she doesn't leave the town, she will be fine."
The sky was now a strange pink color, which was the result of the intense collision between the electromagnetic shield that enveloped the entire town and the microwave environment in the air. Sandora had just carefully probed and discovered that there was indeed an electromagnetic shield generator under the town's church. Because it was hidden and had been shut down, we actually didn't discover it. But when you thought about it, it was normal. Even if the Church had sealed away all their ancient technology, this kind of protective equipment must be prepared in every human town. After all, after a high-tech war, there would definitely be a high-intensity radiation environment, and if the survivors wanted to survive in the post-apocalyptic world, they would need to have anti-radiation protective equipment.
The Church only needed to ensure that these protective equipment would not be directly exposed to the civilians.
Celine took out some kind of detection device from her waist and tested the electromagnetic environment outside the town. Then, she pointed to the front and said, "Let's go!"
Just like that, the single mother who led a difficult life had become a powerful high-tech combat nun. I could vaguely see her and her husband when they were adventuring outside.
After departing from the small town, we crossed a wide wooden bridge over the river. After walking for a few dozen meters, we would be able to enter the forest. However, our path wasn't a straight one. Instead, we took a large detour. It was obvious that we were avoiding something in the middle: the deadly electromagnetic waves.
The ultra-high-power antenna system itself could also be used as a thermal weapon. As long as the frequency was suitable, being irradiated by a microwave antenna was equivalent to being locked in a microwave oven. The ancient tower in the forest was obviously some kind of communication device. Right now, it was emitting intense microwave radiation and several other harmful electromagnetic waves. The microwaves caused the water to heat up, while the electromagnetic waves of other frequencies caused metal to be charged and abnormal sparks to appear in the air. The town was temporarily fine because of the protective shield, but there were many strange and terrifying scenes outside the town. The river next to the town was steaming, and schools of dead fish floated on the surface of the river with their bellies upturned. A large number of birds were startled out of the forest, shrieking in fear as they frantically circled the forest like headless flies. However, they were completely unable to leave this area. Unlucky birds kept accidentally falling into the invisible death zone in the air, and then their bodies stiffened as they fell to the ground. These birds' brains were already cooked before they hit the ground.
In another direction deep in the forest, we could see thick smoke rising. Hopefully, the scale of the forest fire wouldn't be too big. However, it was now the season of abundant rainfall, and the water content of the trees was very high, so such a catastrophic event probably wouldn't happen.
These strange scenes were nothing to Sandora and I. At most, we were curious to guess how many sets of antennas in the ancient tower had gone out of control to produce such a complex and chaotic electromagnetic environment. However, it was different for the adventurers. Under Celine's lead, people avoided the danger zone directly illuminated by the antennas. However, everyone could still feel the numbness from the static electricity. They silently chanted the name of the God of Science and Technology and clenched their weapons in their hands. Some adventurers were even chanting incantations. They firmly believed that the evil knowledge in the ancient ruins was leaking out, and many adventurers probably had the mentality of dying for glory while following Celine.
But in the end, no one was left behind. Although the adventurers were not as knowledgeable and determined as the clergy, they were still the elite force. These all-rounders who could fight, fight, fight, and fight would not back down at this time.
Soon, the team entered the depths of the forest. Celine was still fiddling with some small equipment, trying to find a safe direction to approach the ancient tower. At this moment, we heard a faint cry for help from not far away. "Help … Help!"
"Over there!" A sharp-eyed adventurer immediately spotted a dark figure under the bushes in the distance.
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