The remaining believer was trembling in pain, clutching their eyes and groaning.
The familiar red mark appeared on them, already showing cracks.
Mithra, after replenishing Stabilize, pulled out the hammer from her body and brought it down on their head.
The red mark shattered and then reformed. The life lock was broken, and the believer was instantly restored, their sword falling away.
The Planet Blue believer scrambled to their feet, trying to escape.
But Nie Hong was waiting. He quickly used Immobilize to restrain them, then, after activating Reinforce Body on his hands, unleashed a flurry of punches and palm strikes, finally sweeping their legs out from under them.
The believer collapsed, clutching their face. Nie Hong sighed in relief.
"That was fucking stupid," he cursed.
Mithra shook her head and stepped on the believer, asking, "How did you get here? When did you arrive? How did you provoke them?"
The believer didn't dare breathe and quickly answered.
They were among the Planet Blue explorers who had recently arrived at the newly opened teleportation point near Gross Mountain. Unfortunately, Gross Mountain wasn't a particularly interesting place. The temperature had recently dropped significantly, and most people weren't willing to waste time searching for hidden treasures. Without any obvious benefits, most Planet Blue citizens had quickly dispersed.
However, these two and their few remaining teammates had been more cautious.
With some exploration, it was easy to discover the once prosperous mining town of Gross. After all, there were quite a few people in the nearby city who had worked in Gross Town.
Then, while investigating the town, they were approached by a distressed person who wanted to hire their team.
The person was named Hundr Hokuten.
Hundr said he was from the family that owned the mine, but he had been studying abroad and hadn't received any replies from his family for a long time.
At first, he thought his letters had been lost. After all, Dreamland was vast, and delays in mail delivery were common. It was also normal for his family to be too busy to reply sometimes.
But as time went on, he grew suspicious and decided to return for a visit.
When he arrived near Gross Mountain, he learned through some remaining family contacts that something had happened in Gross Town.
His family hadn't conducted any business for a long time, and Gross Town was completely isolated, as if it had disappeared.
When he vaguely learned from an informant that the Night Hunters church had taken over years ago, he became worried.
However, while he could travel safely in Dreamland on his own if he avoided trouble, challenging the Night Hunters church, even just a branch, was beyond his capabilities.
It just so happened that a Planet Blue teleportation point opened at the foot of Gross Mountain, and many Planet Blue citizens arrived. He had heard rumors and even witnessed the abilities of some of these individuals, so he decided to hire some skilled people to help him.
Of course, judging by the outcome, he might have been too optimistic.
Around dusk, Hundr and his hired team returned to a drastically changed Gross Town.
They made no attempt to hide their presence, openly searching the town, which quickly attracted the attention of the Night Hunters church.
Even though the church was at a crucial moment and didn't want to be bothered, such blatant actions were too much to ignore.
The church sent out a knight and a team of believers to intercept them. Hundr's team did have some skills, and they managed to evade capture in the town, though they suffered some casualties.
As the night deepened, the church's power grew, and the curse spread throughout the town. The large number of cursed creatures appearing made things difficult for them.
Hundr finally decided to go to his family mansion to search for clues.
And that's when it happened.
"That knight knew Hundr's identity and was waiting for us outside the mansion! Then... we were separated during the attack, and Hundr stubbornly ran into the mansion, leaving us outside to be chased... We didn't even get paid! Damn it!" The Planet Blue believer's eyes were filled with resentment.
Mithra nodded. "Okay, we understand. Thank you for explaining."
She picked up a nearby sword.
Suddenly, Nie Hong grabbed her arm.
Mithra looked at him and said calmly, "You're not trying to stop me, are you?"
"I...I want to try..." Nie Hong took a deep breath, ignoring the sweat dripping down his face.
Mithra stared at him silently.
In the resettlement center's library, Mithra had seen a book analyzing the likely psychological changes experienced by Planet Blue citizens in Dreamland.
Although most of the content was rather bland and generic, there were some interesting parts.
For young Planet Blue citizens who had grown up in modern society and enjoyed a peaceful life to become strong in Dreamland, they had to go through a psychological transformation.
The first stage was killing Dreamland beasts. This was quite common. Killing any animal, or even witnessing a tragic incident and remembering the feeling, could achieve a similar effect. It was mainly to understand the concept of death.
The second stage was killing a Dreamland citizen. This presented a significant hurdle. Some more conservative individuals couldn't easily take the life of a person essentially no different from themselves. This wasn't related to their origins, but stemmed from Planet Blue's societal values.
However, many people overcame this hurdle and broke through their ingrained societal conditioning, at least in Dreamland. This stage was mainly to realize that what they had learned growing up allowed them to take a life, and it was often much easier than killing livestock.
The third stage was killing a Planet Blue citizen in Dreamland.
This stage wasn't about breaking through existing concepts but about challenging and trampling on one's own values.
Were Planet Blue citizens superior to Dreamland citizens? Perhaps. After all, having multiple lives was extraordinary, and being able to teleport was much better than riding a carriage.
But even Planet Blue citizens with multiple lives could still die. In conflicts of interest, one should not hesitate to act. In a place like Dreamland, if you encountered something unpleasant, you could act boldly.
After realizing this, the young and innocent Planet Blue citizens might become less naive, but they would also become stronger.
Because while they might not actively harm others, if they faced harm from their compatriots in the future, they could face it calmly.
What? Why not mention killing Planet Blue citizens on Planet Blue?
Nonsense. That's illegal.
After a moment of silence, Mithra handed the sword to Nie Hong. "I still think you're a child."
"Would anyone crush a child's head with a hammer?"
"That's why I asked if you had extra lives."
"Ah, thanks. Without that hammer blow, I wouldn't know how aimlessly I would have lived," Nie Hong chuckled.
Mithra, still expressionless, simply nodded.
Nie Hong took the sword and looked at the terrified Planet Blue believer before him, a compatriot, a fellow citizen...
No, just another piece of scum he would inevitably encounter on the road to adulthood.
He plunged the sword into the believer's chest.