Alien Hotel.

Chapter 704 Release
As Yu Sheng and his group entered the depths of the Spirit Infusion Furnace, while the Hermitage priests were still hiding in their secret bunkers, orbital bombardments from the Unified Fleet continued to fall on the planet, and fierce battles raged across the surface of the Holy Land.

A massive, imposing landing module descended from the sky, crashing into the ruins with a deafening roar. Deep-sea warriors clad in heavy powered armor descended from the orbital plane and began suppressing the palaces and temples that still showed signs of life.

Along with the landing module, troop transport shuttles carrying elite marines and various atmospheric bombardment ships specifically designed for planetary suppression also entered the atmosphere.

On a plain somewhere in the northern hemisphere of the Holy Land, smoke filled the air, war raged, and a gale-force wind, carrying a rain curtain with the smell of blood, howled across the plain.

A marine corps lands on a planet at the junction of plains and mountains. Tactical shuttles deploy shields on the spot after landing, serving as temporary bunkers. The squad commander looks out at the battlefield from the force field bunker and sees more support units descending from orbit to the surface.

Just as three heavy landing pods landed nearby, the roar of heavy firepower came from the smoke. Then, a huge, iron-black cube pierced through the thick clouds. It began to decelerate in mid-air, and after a brief ignition of its thrust reversers, the cube disintegrated into pieces. A large number of tactical walking vehicles and cooperative combat robots rained down near the landing pods, beginning to assist the deep-sea forces in advancing towards the mountains.

In the more distant sky, huge flashes of light could be seen sweeping across the heavens from time to time, illuminating the clouds as if to ignite the sky. That was the planetary suppression forces in near-Earth orbit firing, sparing no effort to destroy any cult ships that might take off from the planet's surface on the launch pad, while simultaneously covering more landing troops as they passed through the atmosphere.

At the edge of the horizon, deep within this plain, the sea of ​​fire and lightning storms caused by the annihilation of energy were still raging. A huge ring-shaped wreckage could be seen tilting and collapsing on the plain. Nearby were large building structures that had fallen from the sky. The ground around the wreckage was glowing red with flames, and there were also a large number of ghostly blue foxfires that seemed to be alive, moving and wandering in the smoke.

That was the Gate of Eden, which had already been destroyed.

"What an amazing thing..." the landing force commander muttered to himself. The tactical analysis module on his power armor reported an astonishing energy level to him, and the jumping waveforms on his visor reminded him of the terrifying power still surging within the collapsed ruins. "They just dismantled this thing like that?"

"This is Advance Team 23," a voice from a nearby friendly unit came through the communicator. "Our mission is to assist you in destroying the anti-aircraft gun in the northern part of this area. We have now reached the surface and are about to approach the assembly point."

"Advance Team 22 received," the commander responded immediately. "Assembly point secure. Proceed according to plan."

The communication ended, and the squad commander breathed a sigh of relief. However, at that moment, a buzzing sound suddenly came from his power armor helmet, and a red light flashed at the edge of his field of vision on the visual indicator.

A sense of urgency surged within him, and he instantly turned his head to look in the direction indicated by the red light, while simultaneously raising the rifle in his hand.

A tall and elegant figure stood amidst the smoke of battle, with more than a dozen heavy brass-colored armored figures standing beside her.

A chill ran from head to toe. The moment the squad leader recognized the figure, he knew something was terribly wrong—he didn't have time to think, and instinctively pulled the trigger.

A barrage of particle beams rained down on the tall, elegant killing machine. However, the human's firing reaction couldn't keep up with the artificial saintess's speed. She passed through the barrage with the lightness of a stroll in the rain, and before the next blink of an eye, the blade was already pressed against the power armor's throat.

The other brass knights charged only a step slower than the artificial saintess.

But the expected death did not come.

With his muscles and nerves taut and his heart pounding like a drum, the squad commander watched in a cold sweat as the beautifully disguised killing machine in front of him came to a complete stop.

She remained in the pose of raising her hand to thrust out her blade, while the force field greatswords in the hands of the surrounding brass knights were also raised high in the air. However, the entire squad stopped just like that, as if a freeze button had been pressed out of thin air.

For a moment, no one dared to move.

……

Blood seeped into the crystal, staining the holy light crimson. A chime-like echo of psionic energy lingered in the hall, seemingly mixed with some discordant sounds for a moment, but in an instant, all the noise merged back into the gentle echo.

Luna looked up and saw a radiance spreading from behind Yu Sheng, like a splash of rosy light that transcended all illusions and reflected in the wilderness of the soul.

She blinked gently, and when she opened her eyes again, she found herself standing in front of that solemn cathedral.

The canopy of the giant crystal tree looms over the church, its branches and leaves stretching out endlessly, like a crystal sky.

The cathedral stands beneath a giant tree, its black walls and spires exuding a solemnity akin to death.

Many figures gathered under the crystal tree, while others were arriving from the mist near the church, and still others had just arrived in the Wilderness of Souls but would soon be guided to this gathering place.

The knights also reported that some other wandering souls were lingering around the large campfire in the wilderness.

Those were saints and knights who had served for over two centuries—their personalities and memories had been completely worn away during their service. Wandering around the large campfire was their only remaining instinct for warmth and light.

Luna stood on the temporary platform that appeared in front of the church, took a deep breath, but her expression remained tense.

She was nervous, extremely nervous.

She was naturally lively and cheerful. When she was in the wilderness of the soul, she could chatter with Yu Sheng for half a day without stopping, and she could also chatter and make noise for a whole night when she caught Eileen wandering over.

But she wasn't a big shot; she never imagined she could become one.

Since leaving the village, she had never spoken in front of so many people, let alone guided anything or directed anyone.

This matter seems to be more difficult than she imagined.

But everyone was waiting for her to speak.

These minds, suddenly awakened from their cognitive fog, now desperately need to know what exactly happened.

A ray of light suddenly emerged from the edge of my field of vision.

Luna turned her head in surprise and saw a blurry shadow floating beside her. This "living saint" raised his hand and offered her a translucent candy phantom.

Luna paused for a moment.

The other person still didn't speak, but Luna felt as if she could directly "hear" what she meant.

—If you're nervous, eat a piece of candy; it will calm you down.

Long, long ago, when a naive country girl first boarded the church's carriage, this is what her brother, who handed her candy, said.

After a long service, this was the only thing she still remembered related to "humans".

Luna blinked, and as a spirit herself, she reached out and took the candy formed from the illusion.

After a moment, she took a soft breath.

“Listen to me, everyone,” she turned to the figures gathered in front of the cathedral, “I am just like you…”

……

Deep within an underground bunker in the Sacred Polar Ring, a tense and uneasy atmosphere permeates the air.

The bombing from near-Earth orbit continues, news of the fall of cities and factories keeps coming in, reinforcements are slow to arrive, and the number of the defenders of the faith who remain on the surface to resist the infidels is constantly decreasing.

However, at this critical moment, communications from the Central Temple District bunker suddenly went down.

Without the Holy See's command, order is crumbling.

"Still no news from the Central Temple District?"

A high-ranking sage in charge of the ring diocese sat in a high-backed chair, solemnly questioning the newly summoned lower-ranking priests.

A distant rumble pierced the earth; a surface facility somewhere seemed to have just exploded. Underground bunkers trembled and shook, the lights in the dome flickered, and tiny debris fell to the floor.

“Not yet,” the lower-ranking priest said, his head bowed, his voice tinged with humility and nervousness, “It’s possible that the heretics’ orbital suppression forces have created interference in the atmosphere…”

What about physical communication networks?

"The polar continental shelf has been breached by the fortified torpedo, and all underground and submarine communication cables have been severed..."

The high-ranking priest couldn't help but curse.

Anxiety rose in my heart.

He subconsciously glanced at the tall figure standing to his side and behind him, as well as the brass knights guarding the various entrances and exits of the hall.

These loyal fighting machines made him feel a little more at ease.

But the next second, unease surged up in his heart like a bone-deep shadow.

What exactly happened in the Central Temple District? Was it just a communication outage caused by interference?
Before the communication was lost, other underground bunkers received a brief signal from the central temple area. In the call that lasted less than a second, there were vague sounds of screams and explosions.

Did the infidels breach the bunker there?
Many people have actually considered this possibility, but dare not think about it in detail.

How could the place where the Holy See is located possibly fall?

There are also guardian armies there, as well as artificial saintesses and knights responsible for protecting the church's property. Moreover, the saintesses and knights there are definitely more powerful, newer, and more numerous.

How could it have fallen—how could it have fallen so quickly?
The high priest glanced back uneasily.

The artificial saintess remained standing silently behind him.

But suddenly, she tilted her head.

Those inorganic mechanical eyes moved slightly, their gaze falling on the priest.

A moment of doubt flashed through the high priest's mind—why did she suddenly move?

In that instant, he felt as if he saw a trace of human-like liveliness on the face of this mindless killing machine.

He never had another chance to confirm whether it was just his imagination.

A chill flashed across my neck, my vision sluggish, my thoughts became sluggish, and the surroundings gradually darkened. The powerful spiritual energy that I had instinctively gathered had not yet taken shape before it dissipated into the air as my thoughts crumbled.

The last thing the high priest saw at the edge of his vision was the brass knight guarding the entrance to the hall suddenly turning around, his greatsword, imbued with a disintegrating force field, sweeping across like lightning and slicing a cultist who was screaming and trying to escape to report the news in half at the waist.

(End of this chapter)