Chapter 17 Falling Moon Forest_1

Under the grim white moonlight, the forest was dead silent.

Duanmu Huai gripped his War Hammer, striding through the dark forest. The headlamp illuminated the shadowy path, clearly revealing the entangled vines and crumbling pillars before him.

This was the place.

Duanmu Huai stared at the pillars, his gaze suddenly intense.

The Elf Scout, being well-versed in gathering information, had provided Duanmu Huai with several reported haunted locations around the City of Silver. Despite being unclear about Duanmu Huai's intentions, she had been more resourceful than Elisa.

Which included this Falling Moon Forest.

According to the Elf Scout, the forest once belonged to an evil Necromancer. The necromancer was ultimately exterminated by soldiers, and rumors of haunting began to circulate in the forest. And it was not just rumors. Mercenaries, traders, patrols, all reported hearing eerie wails and screams from the forest. Some even claimed to see lights and hear music deep in the forest.

The Lord had once sent people to investigate, but there was no response. After that, this place was abandoned.

Duanmu Huai was here not just out of curiosity or for a simple side mission. He was here to find power to defeat the God of Filth.

Among the Chaos Evil Gods, the God of Filth was actually the most difficult one to deal with—even though all the Chaos Evil Gods were tricky, but in Duanmu Huai's ranking of trickiness, the God of Filth at least would rank second.

The reason lies in its very nature.

Usually, most people who see viruses and plagues being spread assume the God of Filth is a symbol of death and destruction. However, that's not the case. Although the God of Filth does not possess the enormous power of the Brutal God or the deceptive magic of the God of Trickery, it excels in manipulating invisible viruses in an unparalleled manner. There are even rumors that all viruses in the world, as trivial as a cold or as severe as a plague, are the masterpieces of the God of Filth.

Not only that, the God of Filth is exceptionally "loving". Unlike other Evil God Cultists who have to pass various tests and even endure a baptism of blood and fire to be accepted, the God of Filth accepts all believers unconditionally—be it beggars or emperors, noblemen or warriors. The God of Filth would extend its rotten, stinking arms, embracing these pitiful lives, offering them equal love.

For its followers, spreading viruses isn't an evil act. Instead, they believe that infecting others with diseases and plagues is simply one way to bring them into their familial, class-and-race-free abode. Even those who die from the plagues aren't forsaken. Their decomposing bodies give birth to new life, contributing to the cycle of life on this world.

Life, endlessly budding.

Thus, among the players, the God of Filth was jokingly referred to as the "Loving Father", the "God of Life and Hope" (Dog-headed).

Strictly speaking, from the perspective of the viruses, the God of Filth indeed seems like a kind father. It's just that—its values are radically different from those of ordinary people.

It's like keeping pets. While most people prefer cats and dogs, some enjoy raising maggots. The problem arises when they insist that raising maggots is the right thing and demand everyone else do the same.

Therefore, the "God of Life", the "God of Filth", is hard to handle using ordinary methods. Even divine arts and the Holy Light don't work particularly well on its followers. Regardless of how disgusting they may appear, with rotting bodies, pus-filled boils, they're still vibrant, living beings—just like maggots, flies and mosquitoes. The Holy Light can't possibly work on them.

So, there are only two effective methods to completely eradicate the servants and army of the God of Filth.

The first one is to burn them all. Just set them on fire, and all's well.

After eliminating the Plague Apostle, Duanmu Huai had once asked the Elf Scout to build a fire to sterilize his Power Armor. He had stayed in the roaring flames until he was sure all the viruses were killed.

The other option is the use of the power of Undeath.

The power of the undead works on the soul level, quenching the flame of life, turning everything into a lifeless void. Even viruses and bacteria aren't exceptions. No form of life can survive in the face of such a profound force of death.

It could be said that death is the best weapon against the God of Filth and its followers. However ugly or filthy, they're still vibrant lives—and the flame of life can never evade the gust of death.

Of course, dealing with the undead isn't easy. Controlling the undead and the Vampire Card Group is a dangerous task, as physical attacks have no effect on them. At the very least, weapons with elemental attacks or magic are required. Without those, one would simply be throwing oneself away.

Duanmu Huai himself only knew Psychic Blast, an ability related to one's spiritual energy. Fortunately, his Thunder Warhammer came with elemental lighting damage, and the Puppet Card Group was considered part of his magical abilities. Using Puppets to deal with the undead wouldn't be a problem.