Global Fog Survival

Chapter 10: The Church of Suffering

Ahead, a tall church stood amidst the withered forest, like a slumbering giant beast lying in the woods. In the thin, hazy light, Colin could make out the church’s features. It was a Gothic-style spire church, its walls grayish-white, appearing to be only two stories high.

Due to years of neglect, the decorative patterns on the walls had mostly peeled off, leaving a layer of lime at the base. All these signs indicated that the church had been abandoned for a long time. Upon closer inspection, one could vaguely see that the wall patterns were likely some kind of thorny vine plant. These thorny vine patterns wrapped around the walls repeatedly, appearing both protective and restrictive.

“The ‘Mother of Suffering and Thorns’…” Colin couldn’t help but recall the words he had vaguely heard before, whispering softly.

As he spoke, an invisible breeze seemed to pass by, causing goosebumps to rise on his skin. The breeze carried a strong stench. Colin gagged and covered his nose and mouth, squinting to see a large pile of meat chunks in front of the church’s three-meter-high wooden doors.

?Heavily Rotten Wolf Meat*4?

?Heavily Rotten Rat Meat*3?

?Moderately Rotten Deer Meat*4?

?Heavily Rotten…?

The severely rotten and foul-smelling meat chunks formed a small hill, with numerous shallow grooves resembling water buckets. These seemed to be traces left by the moving priest. Colin gathered the moderately rotten meat without hesitation.

At that moment, he began to understand the meaning of the words he heard in Kaidish’s dream. The priest, transformed into a monster by his obsession, was constantly worried about the children’s hunger, hunting other beasts, and bringing their flesh back. However, he didn’t dare to open the door. Mechanically and uselessly, he carried out his internal obsession, convinced that the children inside were still alive.

Yet, Colin knew from his dream that the priest probably realized what had happened inside the church before he died. Bringing peace to the children was not just a system task but also the last wish of Father Kaidish, who bore the wheel. He couldn’t bring himself to do it.

Looking at the tightly shut doors, Colin paused briefly before taking action.

“My lord, I’ll open the door, and you can wait behind,” Servant One volunteered. After seeing Colin nod and cautioning him to be careful, Servant One, bearing the wheel weapon crafted by Father Kaidish on his back, placed his hands on the double wooden doors. With a push, the doors creaked open, the sound of grinding hinges filling the air.

The doors, sealed for decades, slowly opened. A strong, pungent odor of decayed corpses wafted out, making the rotting smell of the animal meat outside seem almost mild by comparison. Servant One immediately gagged, despite having prepared for it.

Colin and the others, standing further back, found it slightly more bearable due to the diluting effect of the open air and the forewarning provided by the rotting meat outside. The doors were now ajar, just enough to fit two fingers through.

Curious, Colin peered inside and saw that the interior of the church was also filled with gray fog, obscuring his view. The lack of light inside made it even more terrifying and unknown.

“Open the doors a bit more to let the stench out and air in, or we won’t be able to explore properly,” Colin instructed. Although the church wasn’t completely sealed, the accumulated toxic gases inside, like methane, would be much more concentrated than outside. Without letting fresh air in, they might succumb to unknown toxins before encountering any “wailers”

As the doors opened further, Colin and his team could see some of the church’s interior layout: disordered benches, a red carpet leading to the back, and several small, skeletal remains covered in thick dust. They appeared extremely gray and decayed.

Suddenly, as the doors opened wider, an unexpected event occurred. At the entrance, a few small, prone skeletons, face down on the ground, began to raise their heads. Their blood-red, hollow, and creepy faces stared at Colin and his team outside the door.

Rattling sounds filled the air as their skulls trembled and their jawbones quivered as if trying to open.

“Attack,” Colin commanded, moving forward with his axe. With a swift chop, he shattered a skull.

The creatures, labeled “Mutant – People of Suffering – Wailers,” had an obvious attack method just from their name. Colin couldn’t let them open their mouths and attack. Surprisingly, these mutants were weak; one axe swing was enough to destroy them.

In less than ten seconds, the three of them easily dispatched the six skeletal corpses at the entrance, much easier than Colin had anticipated. However, they only collected nine drops of blood from the six corpses—a pitiful amount. Colin lost interest in collecting the rotting flesh and bones, as they were abundant and nearly useless.

Opening his parchment, Colin frowned slightly. The progress bar for killing six “Wailers” barely moved.

“At this rate, does it mean there are at least sixty ‘Wailers’ inside the church?” Colin felt troubled. The Gothic-style church, though not huge, was at least the size of a small mall, with dozens or even hundreds of “Wailers” scattered randomly. Finding them all would be a hassle.

Still, having come this far, he couldn’t leave empty-handed. The only advantage was that Colin had plenty of time, with enough blood to fuel his lamp for a long duration.

Soon, the church doors were fully opened. In the fog-shrouded darkness, the sound of clattering bones echoed continuously.

“Let’s hope this mission ends safely,” Colin murmured, holding his lantern as he entered the church to begin his “clean-up.”