Bear School Astartes

Upon hearing this, Ludwig, Maria, Chuila... this small group of hunters, even in Yan’an, still maintain the occupational habits of a Yan Nan Hunter.

They all frowned or became serious, letting go of their casually placed long legs.

This already represented a significant emotional response and sudden change for hunters in Yan’an.

Meanwhile, Archbishop Lawrence continued speaking from the pulpit.

"Yes, that’s right. The Grey Blood Disease, this plague, has a source."

"And, just as rumored in the city... the source comes from a small fishing village not far from Yan’an."

A small fishing village. The mountains where Yan’an is located are actually near the sea, so the Yan Nan People’s tables are often graced by fish.

The source of these fish is that small fishing village.

Although the small fishing village supplies Yan’an with plenty of seafood, Yan Nan People never liked it and never cared about it.

Yan Nan People are inherently xenophobic. Outsiders coming to Yan’an suffer cruel hardships, becoming jokes enjoyed by Yan Nan People of all ages.

But this small fishing village is even more xenophobic.

Even the nearest Yan Nan People only know that the small fishing village has its own unique beliefs; they don’t want to understand the outside world, and the outside world shouldn’t try to affect them.

They just fish, supplying large quantities of fish regardless of season or weather.

Just as Yan Nan People reject outsiders, saying "it’s the dirty outsiders who brought the plague."

Now, the Yan Nan People suffering from Grey Blood Disease have started spreading the news that "the Grey Blood Disease comes from that disgusting, fishy-smelling village."

And the archbishop from the Healing Church is undoubtedly putting the final stamp on this theory.

"We’ve identified the source of the plague." Maria lifted her head, revealing her doll-like face beneath the triangular hat adorned with swan feathers.

"So what do you need us to do? Go to that fishing village to find the original sample of the plague? I can set off immediately."

Maria is not only a hunter; after the outbreak of Grey Blood Disease in Yan’an, she often helped at the Healing Church’s medical aid institute, her medical knowledge not much different from that of the church clergy.

Thus, she immediately understood the potential help in solving the plague by tracing its origins.

But the White-haired Blood Nobility’s slight joy immediately turned into astonishment in the next moment.

"No, we don’t need to find any plague samples."

On the pulpit, Archbishop Lawrence calmly spoke.

His voice was soft, but in the reverberation and spread of the cathedral’s structure, the volume was quite loud.

"We just need to go there and hunt, and that’s enough."

"Hunt?" Chuila, compared to Maria’s astonishment, was slightly less surprised and immediately caught the key point, "Who is the target of the hunt?"

Lawrence still replied unhurriedly: "A strange creature in that small fishing village. And... everything that stands in our way."

"The Grey Blood Disease is poisoning Yan’an through arcane methods from the small fishing village. Trying to solve it through research is too slow; we must strike directly at the source."

"Wait!" Maria almost couldn’t stop her astonished emotions; she stood up from her chair. "Archbishop Lawrence, did you just say ’hunt everything that stands in the way’?"

Given the fishing village’s level of xenophobia... no, let’s downplay it, even comparing it to Yan’an’s xenophobia.

How could it be possible that no one would stand in the way when a group of foreign hunters charge in to hunt something?

But unlike Maria and a small number of hunters, the vast majority of hunters actually didn’t care about Lawrence’s speech earlier.

Most of them continued to whisper like before, mostly discussing the benefits and pleasures of blood, as well as hunting techniques and experiences.

However, after Lawrence spoke this sentence, the scene almost immediately quieted down.

The chatter turned to a soundless stillness in an instant.

It was precisely because of this abrupt transition that it seemed increasingly uncanny and terrifying.

Chuila pressed down the brim of his hat, rapidly scanning from side to side.

At the instant this order from the archbishop was given, except for a few hunters, the remaining Old Hunters unanimously stopped their conversations and directly shifted their gaze to the pulpit.

Almost everyone... instinctively cracked a smile that sent chills down people’s spines.

Like people addicted to anesthetic powder seeing new goods.

The pathological desire was almost palpable!

"If doing so can save the people of Yan’an..." After Maria’s questioning, Ludwig opened his mouth to break the chilling silence of the Old Hunters.

He spoke with some difficult hesitation, but his tone was somber and determined.

"Then I and the Church Hunters will do it."

Maria countered him sharply: "Then are the people in the fishing village not considered people?"

And Ludwig, who had already made his decision, was equally direct: "Sacrifice the small for the big, how many people are in Yan’an? How many people are in the small fishing village? Not to mention they were the ones who poisoned first!"

"Whether it was intentional poisoning or an arcane accident, that’s still up for debate. We all know how dangerous those who research arcanes are, and how dangerous arcanes themselves can be."

"I believe in the church’s investigation results." Ludwig and Maria’s voices echoed back and forth in the Great Cathedral, among which the Church’s First Hunter’s tone was very resolute, "Time waits for no one, as of now, how many people has the Ash Blood Disease already killed? Do we want it to continue?"

"Besides, they really don’t count as humans anymore, Maria." Archbishop Lawrence said softly at the lectern, interjecting into the hunters’ dispute.

"According to our investigation, the arcane is indeed out of control, just as you thought. Everyone in the small fishing village has turned into monsters; the Ash Blood Disease is just the mess left after the humans are gone."

"Tell me, Maria. When you hunted the beastified patients in the alleys of Yan’an, did you ever think of them as humans?"

Lawrence looked at the silent female hunter. He didn’t wait for her response, but that itself was a kind of response.

"That’s how it is, Maria. The other party is all beastified disease patients, rather than humans. Just go ahead and hunt without reservation."

Under the triangular hat adorned with swan feathers, the Blood Nobility furrowed his brows.

If that’s truly the case, then indeed, there’s no need to hold back. Being Cainhurst as well as residents of the Yanyan Region, the concept of ’beastified disease patients should be hunted’ is a matter of course.

But.....is that really the situation?

Maria looked at Ludwig on another bench. The Church’s First Hunter greatly exhaled a sigh of relief after Archbishop Lawrence provided such a clear and accurate response.

He fully trusts the Healing Church, and if the hunting target is just something like beastified disease patients, he feels no psychological pressure.

But Maria wasn’t able to trust the Healing Church as easily as Ludwig, to persuade herself in such a manner.

But at that moment, Maria, with her head down, happened to look towards her teacher beside her.

First Hunter Gremman slightly lifted the brim of his already frayed hat with his fingers and nodded to his student.

This meant he was also willing to verify that there was no problem with Archbishop Lawrence’s words.

Ludwig entrusted his trust to the church, while Maria entrusted her trust to her teacher.

After Gremman nodded as well, Maria’s brow unfurled, and she sat down again calmly, resuming the composed and cold professional demeanor of a Yan Nan Hunter.

No one had any more objections.

Archbishop Lawrence glanced around and spoke again, beginning to directly outline the mission requirements.

"This mission is accompanied by scholars and clergy from Byron Vis, who will be responsible for confirming the targets, and will even start some small research on-site if needed."

"To swiftly resolve the long-raging Ash Blood Disease, we will dispatch a majority of hunters to this operation, Gremman, and Ludwig."

Saying this, Lawrence called the names of the two individuals.

The first and oldest hunter merely held his cylindrical top hat without speaking. Ludwig, on the other hand, stood directly, his expression serious and solemn.

"You are all listed in the personnel for this operation, and I must remind you... among those arcane-created ’accidental products’, some will be quite difficult to deal with."

Incorporating both the First Hunter and the Church’s First Hunter into this grand hunt, the difficulty level of this hunt was straightforwardly revealed from the onset.

However, the majority of old hunters present felt nothing, indeed even that spine-chilling smile at the corner of their mouths, brimming ever wider!

In their brains, there was no concept of ’powerful enemies’, only one thought - ’The blood shed by powerful enemies must be especially sweet’!

And behind Lawrence, the gloomy scholar who had been discussing with him earlier stepped forward two steps and came up beside him.

"Additionally, Byron Vis has some other requirements for the hunting process."

The scholar supplemented, his voice equally gentle and elusive, but compared to Lawrence, bearing more of the characteristic somberness of a scholar, sending chills down one’s spine.

"We require that after you hunt each prey, you cut open their skull."

"In the brain, the scalp, even in the bone... however you do it, but you must examine thoroughly."

"We want to see if there are ’eyes’ under their skull."

Are they searching for the Inner Eye?

Maria’s broad scope of knowledge instantly made her aware of this point.

The Inner Eye is indeed the foundation of Master William of Byron Vis’s Spiritual Vision theory.

But why... is the arcane causing the accident in the small fishing village related to Byron Vis?

Why need to find evidence of Master William’s academic research beneath the skulls of those ’accidental products’?

But knowing these matters, and caring about them, there was only Maria silently beside her teacher.

The remaining hunters, after hearing the mission requirements, began their spine-chilling murmuring again.

"Brain? I don’t like playing with prey’s brain, there’s not much blood to let out there."

"That’s because you lack skill, hehe, you can start peeling skin from the carotid artery upwards!"

The old hunters were immersed, fervent and eager.

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