CHAPTER 396: CHAPTER 187: INQUISITION

At this moment, the colony constituting the secondary monster has gradually taken shape.

Shen Yue looked at the scene in the distance with a serious expression, and the worry in his heart grew deeper.

The forms of combat were becoming increasingly diverse.

If previously they could almost eliminate all enemies with just guns and cannons, now, with the frequent appearance of secondary and even primary monsters, their response methods must be upgraded.

Fortunately, the Huaxia Army still possesses nuclear weapons, a massive tool that crushes all strategies.

What if there were no nuclear weapons?

How should this monster be dealt with?

No wonder Fu Xi classified it as a secondary monster.

Given human technology and combat power in this world, when facing such a thing, there really is almost no way to fight back...

At this moment, Jin Zhong had already deployed the nuclear bomb and returned to the team.

Without any hesitation, Shen Yue led the group in a quick retreat.

Ten minutes later, the group retreated to three kilometers away.

Accompanied by a strong flash, the nuclear bomb exploded.

"Boom!"

The high-temperature flames engulfed everything, and under the mushroom cloud, all impurities and sins were cleansed.

Jin Zhong silently watched the explosion from a distance, tears streaming down his face due to the intense light penetration.

Taking a deep breath, he spoke:

"Captain, I want to borrow your vehicles."

"Where are you going?"

Shen Yue asked.

"The Church Protection Army of Liangxi City... those heretics have abandoned the civilians here and retreated ahead."

"They will leave from Tai Lake and definitely land in Suzhou."

"I must rush there to intercept them."

"They must pay for their actions."

"The judgment of the Holy Trinity... I must personally deliver it!"

...

At the same time, on Tai Lake.

Several steamships spewing black smoke are slowly moving southeast.

The Archbishop of the Mechanical God Sect and the City Lord of Liangxi stood at the stern, gazing far into the direction of Liangxi City.

He also saw the flash from there and the faintly visible mushroom cloud.

No need to ask the Holy Hall, he already guessed what had happened there.

Another "sun" has risen.

Undoubtedly, to eliminate the monsters there, the Huaxia Army has once again used their most powerful weapon.

This news completely eased the worries in his heart, but the reason he felt relieved was not because of the result of "monster eliminated," but because of the fact that "the nuclear bomb exploded."

He let out a long breath and said to the Priest beside him:

"I was worried about how to explain this to the Holy Hall, but now, there’s no need for me to explain."

"The Huaxia Army has taken over, intervened in this crisis."

"No matter what happens, it’s their responsibility..."

When the words fell, the Priest beside him nodded thoughtfully, but then cautiously asked:

"Seems like... maybe not entirely?"

"Ultimately, we have to take responsibility for the poor evacuation, and in this regard, we have no excuses."

"The Church Protection Army of the other cities, although they also didn’t arrive in time, in front of the Saint they can say that the time was too tight, the Church Protection Army was slow to assemble, the transport tools were insufficient."

"These are understandable reasons... but what about us?"

"We were originally in Liangxi City... we could have done something..."

"Archbishop, maybe we shouldn’t... shouldn’t have retreated so hastily..."

"It’s my fault."

The Archbishop nodded without reservation, then said:

"I underestimated the monster’s lethality, I didn’t expect it to kill all the city’s residents in such a short time."

"This definitely met the standards of a secondary monster, maybe even a primary monster."

"But for this reason... our retreat can be explained."

"After all, even if we stayed there, could we have saved those civilians?"

"You should be grateful for my decisiveness, otherwise everyone on these three ships would have likely died in Liangxi City."

"Yes..."

The Priest let out a long breath and continued:

"You are right."

"I’m just worried that such ’cowardly’ behavior might bring punishment from the Saint."

"No, it won’t."

The Archbishop shook his head.

"Before the nuclear explosion, perhaps we had the possibility of being punished."

"But after the nuclear explosion, no one can blame us anymore."

"Because no one knows what exactly happened in that city."

"No one knows whether the residents of that city are already dead or are in the process of evacuating."

"So, you must make sure our warriors remember one thing."

"Liangxi City had already started evacuating a while ago; it’s just that it’s not happening quickly enough."

"The believers in Liangxi City are still alive; they did not die at the hands of monsters."

"It was the Huaxia Army, those heretics who used extreme measures to hunt monsters, causing the civilians who couldn’t evacuate in time to be sacrificed with that monster."

"Do you understand?"

"...Understood."

The priest nodded slowly.

At this moment, a sense of guilt rose within him, but he also knew that he had no choice now.

The steamship gradually approached the port of Suzhou City. The bishop slightly moved his somewhat stiff legs, walking from the stern to the bow.

The bishop of Suzhou City, who was there to receive them, was already waiting with the Church Protection Army in the distance. The berths at the port were ready, and with a slight tremor, the three steamships successfully docked.

Immediately, the gangplank was lowered.

Accompanied by a few Church Protection Army soldiers, the bishop was the first to step onto the gangplank.

Safety was near.

His tense heart finally relaxed completely.

From here on, he no longer needed to worry about those monsters or those civilians and could focus solely on dealing with the Holy Hall’s examination...

With that thought, a faint, barely noticeable smile appeared on the bishop’s face.

He waved to the bishop opposite and, with steady steps, stepped onto the dock’s surface, just about to turn back and order everyone to disembark when suddenly...

"Bang!"

A gunshot rang out suddenly.

Then.

"Bang bang bang bang bang-----"

A dense rain of bullets shot from the shore and the water towards the three steamships. Countless grenades were thrown, and the deafening explosions stunned the bishop, who had just stepped ashore.

He had no idea what was happening, but the next second, multiple bullets had already penetrated his body.

He didn’t feel pain, only a great dizziness and weakness.

His body fell limply to the ground. He struggled to crawl away but saw a team suddenly emerge from nowhere, rushing at the steamships with terrifying automatic rifles.

Assault, boarding, fulfilling roles, searching, cleaning....

Like a whirlwind, that team swiftly cleared all armed Church Protection Army soldiers from the three steamships, while in the distance, the Church Protection Army stood there stunned, as if unable to react.

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"

The bishop saw the man opposite shouting in fear and then quickly retreating with his team.

At this moment, hope surged in his heart.

Perhaps he could still be saved.

The Church Protection Army in Suzhou City was not weak. If they could defeat this unidentified team, perhaps he could survive!

He struggled to crawl forward, hoping to find an unnoticed corner to hide in.

But a foot had already stepped on his back.

"Found you."

The man said softly.

The bishop fearfully looked back, and then, with wide eyes, he said:

"It’s...it’s you..."

"Jin Zhong!"

"Why...why??"

"This is judgment."

Jin Zhong’s tone was immeasurably calm.

His gun was already pointed at the bishop’s head.

"This is betrayal! You have no right to judge me! Only the Holy Hall has the authority to judge!"

"What exactly do you want to do?? Are you planning to oppose the Holy Hall? Are you planning to oppose the Divine Sect?"

"It’s not too late to stop now... I can plead with the Saint for you!"

"This is a misunderstanding!"

"This is not a misunderstanding."

Jin Zhong’s finger slowly pressed the trigger.

"Stop! Stop!"

"The Church Protection Army in Suzhou City is already here! Do you want to die?! They won’t spare you!"

"Bang!"

Without any unnecessary words, Jin Zhong pulled the trigger.

The bishop’s head exploded into pieces, and the red and white mixture on the ground was unspeakably filthy.

Jin Zhong took a deep breath and looked towards the distant Church Protection Army.

At this moment, above his head, a bomber loaded with air bombs roared past.

The shadow swept over Jin Zhong’s body as if a ghost was pouncing on the enemy.

He exhaled gently, raised his gun, and said:

"Let’s see who dares move?!"