The rumors about Silent Hill have existed since the Old Era.

Back then, the Elm Forest was still a cursed "Forest of Death." The exorcists, overwhelmed by the endless strange occurrences, were powerless to deal with the low-risk anomalies near their homes, allowing the forest and the depths of Silent Hill to remain unchallenged.

In the legends, Silent Hill is often associated with the monsters people know. Some say vampires that rest by day and roam by night live there, others claim to have seen werewolves running through the woods, while the most credible voice, the woodcutter, asserts that it is merely a hill that invokes a foreboding feeling repelling any who come near.

The woodcutter was correct, for Silent Hill remained silent throughout the two decades following the end of the Old Era, until Old Belfast transformed into the Land of Light, and those bat monsters, as large as houses, emerged from the hill to fill the skies of the Land of Hope.

And surprisingly, the wild guesses turned out to be closer to the truth: both the bat monsters and the vampires can be classified as belonging to the "bat" species.

Lu Li attended the afternoon tea of the Mother of the Marsh. Aside from Elena, the consciousness of the Ashes District was also present. Through prior exchanges, the Mother of the Marsh told Lu Li to help the Ashes District gain self-awareness, and then she could help name it—she always reveled in spreading humanity.

Unexpectedly, the Twisted Shadow returned to the camp and joined the tea.

"The Shipwreck District has been resolved."

The Twisted Shadow returned the Doomsday Apocalypse: "Capture one, transform one."

In front of the Immortal Wall, two Weird Leaders with differing treatments were surrounded by Twisted Cultists as they approached the camp.

One crawled, while the other was enveloped in seawater.

The progress of the Agate Lake Camp in reclaiming the Land of Hope increased once more.

Now, only Silent Hill remains.

Lu Li put away the Doomsday Apocalypse and headed to the slaughterhouse to harvest humanity. When he returned to the verdant lawn adorned with budding flowers, even the consciousness of the Ashes District felt his "goodness," releasing a hint of friendliness.

"Is it ten portions yet?" asked the Mother of the Marsh.

"Very close," Lu Li replied.

Tentacles emerged from beneath the veil of the Twisted Shadow, slicing the cake for her sister and placing it before her. "What is your plan for dealing with Silent Hill?"

Lu Li handed the Doomsday Apocalypse back to her. "First contact, then entice."

If they can silently dissolve and weaken Silent Hill's power, there's no reason to waste strength fighting against it.

Moreover, bat monsters with air superiority make excellent servants, aiding them in better controlling and protecting the Land of Light—the Mother of the Marsh, when she was still the Old Mother, had "bat monster" followers, but they sided with the Old Mother during the split and perished when the Old Mother disappeared.

This time the Twisted Shadow brought her sister Elena along, as a sister, she wanted to teach her the various forms of power of the Alien God.

Passing through the Sailor District, Lu Li paused momentarily at the Detective Agency.

"If you'd like, you can move back in," offered Ophelia, who was accompanying him.

"Not yet," Lu Li replied.

They reached the Shipwreck District, the damp and rusted steel forest fell silent as the anomalies residing within vanished, with only the Twisted Cultists scouring the area over and over again due to Lu Li's presence.

Lu Li stopped before a cruise ship whose bow had crashed into the ruins, with a damp, fishy wind blowing through a broken opening leading to the ship's cabin.

This was their nest, although it was now empty, Lu Li did not venture into the narrow opening.

Such nests were found beneath the dozens of sunken ships in the Shipwreck District.

Like the Land of Vortex, the real threat vanished, but the traces left behind still poisoned the land.

However, this wasn't a difficult problem.

The earth beneath Lu Li's feet trembled and arched, worms emerged from the ground, and at the direction of the Mother of the Marsh, plowed through the fragmented streets, their mouths making contact with the iron ships.

Unlike the comforting sound of digging into rock and soil, consuming the ship hulls produced the harsh screech of a file against metal. The worms faced some resistance, but only some.

Slowly and steadily, they consumed it, wiping away the protruding area of land like an eraser.

Andrea might not like the scene.

"Philo-Rowena said…"

The Mother of the Marsh softly murmured at this point. "The Lord of Silent Hill wishes to see you."

Similar to the Ashes District, but is the reason the same?

The Mother of the Marsh asked Lu Li to wait a moment, her true form would be over soon.

"The Twisted Shadow is enough, the camp needs guarding."

"The followers and believers should hold until we return."

Summoning the remaining worms to arrive, when the Mother of the Marsh appeared, Lu Li passed through the silent Shipwreck District, reaching the ruins of the Elm District.

The withered Elm Forest welcomed Lu Li's arrival with excitement.

The Twisted Shadow landed and followed Lu Li, embraced by cultists, deep into the Elm Forest.

As they approached the clearing where Silent Hill lay, the Lord prepared for their arrival: bats, as large as houses, lined up, standing at the sides of the brand new red carpet laid underfoot, extending to just before the low hill slightly taller than them.

At the end of the red carpet, a framed painting adorned with gold thread sat on the throne.

In the oil painting, a man dressed in ancient noble attire slowly turned and spread his arms.

The bat monsters unfurled their thin wings like canopies, forming towering walls.

"The great Count Dracula welcomes the guests!"

Neither the Mother of the Marsh nor the Twisted Shadow released their presence at this charade; only Ophelia showed a hint of caution.

Lu Li paused his step at meeting an "old acquaintance."

"Lady Anel's gallery?" Lu Li recalled it.

The elegant middle-aged man smiled subtly. "I haven't mistaken, it was indeed you the bats found that day. Oh, my old friend, twenty years have passed, yet you remain the same, just like me."

His words triggered Lu Li's thought of the recent "attack" by the bat monsters, was it a misunderstanding?

"Are you the Lord of Silent Hill?"

Proudly, Dracula nodded, "They are my subjects, children, lower your wings."

The bat monsters retracted their fleshy wings, causing the sense of oppression to fade away.

"And where is your Miss Anna?"

Dracula still remembered the old times, which is why he chose to meet Lu Li rather than wage war.

"She's gone missing."

"Oh, that's… too wonderful—I mean, woefully sad."

Dracula hastily corrected himself under Lu Li's calm black eyes, his gaze shifting to Lu Li's side.

"Evil God?"

"I am an Alien God," the Mother of the Marsh corrected.

"I know, I know, you humans always love categorizing preferrably and unfavorably, the closeness and the alienness."

The Mother of the Marsh did not correct it again.

"Is that settlement on the hill yours? If I'd known sooner, I'd have reached out. You know, I was terrified watching you deal with the Land of Vortex…"

After the meeting, Dracula seamlessly reverted to his past garrulousness.

Whether what he said was true no longer mattered.

Silent Hill unsurprisingly became an ally.

Lu Li summoned Merchant Anthony, asking him to relay to Matthias that the Land of Hope had been reclaimed.

For all the residents, this day felt like living a dream.

Just three days ago, they were still anxious over the disputes with the Land of Vortex and the Ashes District, but now—

They transitioned from being residents of Agate Lake Camp to residents of the Land of Light.

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.