N-M Chapter 218 Remember, we are not a cult.
Chapter 218 Remember, we are not a cult.
Lin Fan and his group quickly returned to their temporary base at the Umbrella headquarters building.
It was called a base, but it was actually just a three-story old office building that was barely intact and had been simply renovated.
The first floor is a canteen and meeting room, the second floor is a dormitory, and the third floor is where Li Xiulan and others rest.
When Lin Fan brought Domingo and the others in, Lin Jianguo was sitting at a folding table on the first floor, drinking porridge.
Upon seeing his son, his eyes lit up at first, but he quickly looked away and began to gulp down his porridge.
His guilty look was impossible to hide.
"father."
"Yes." Lin Jianguo replied without looking up. "You're back?"
"I'm back."
"Was the journey smooth?"
"good."
"That's good, that's good."
The conversation between the father and son was extremely brief, and even somewhat awkward.
Levi, who had been pretending not to exist, immediately took the opportunity to slip into the kitchen and have someone prepare more food.
Li Xiulan plopped down between the father and son, and said irritably:
"Can't you two talk things out properly?"
Lin Jianguo suddenly stood up: "Wife, I'll go cook for everyone!"
After saying that, he dashed into the kitchen.
Lin Fan watched his father's retreating figure, feeling nothing at all, and even a little amused.
Men, living like their fathers, there's really no one else like it!
Seeing that others had left or fled, the Night Owl felt somewhat uneasy standing there alone. Noticing Domingo and the others, it quickly went over and warmly invited them to sit down.
Soon, members of the Dark Night team brought up bowls of white porridge.
Domingo and the others had been starving all the way, so when they saw food, they didn't stand on ceremony.
Although it was just a bowl of white rice porridge with pickled vegetables, everyone ate it very seriously.
It's not that the porridge is particularly delicious.
Instead, all of them were listening intently as Mr. Kobayashi was being reprimanded.
What can the mighty Lord of Calamity do?
I still get scolded by my mother!
The three cardinals sat in a corner, exchanged glances, and simultaneously lowered their heads to drink their porridge.
The faith wasn't broken, but it did develop a crack.
On Lin Fan's side, Li Xiulan kept questioning Lin Fan about his experience in the Vatican.
Lin Fan naturally only mentioned what he could, omitting details of his multiple sudden deaths and mental control.
But who is Li Xiulan?
Those were people who had experienced integration.
Although she achieved success naturally due to her talent, she still experienced some of that sense of being torn apart.
Hearing Lin Fan say this, he could immediately tell what his son was deliberately avoiding.
I simply couldn't be bothered to beat around the bush with him.
"How many times did you die while fusing with the Origin Crystal?"
Hearing his mother ask this, Lin Fan paused for a moment.
"...not many times."
"several times?"
"Maybe... ten or so times, I don't know the exact number."
Ten or so times?
I'm afraid there's more than that.
Although Li Xiulan wasn't there, she guessed that her son must have had a terrible time.
"Holy crap—"
At this moment, Lin Jianguo, who heard the noise, poked half his head out of the kitchen. When he saw his wife turn around, he quickly shrank back.
Li Xiulan turned her head and looked at Lin Fan again.
Even knowing that her son possessed the ability to infinitely regenerate, she still couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache, a mother's worry for her son.
"Does it hurt?"
"fine."
"Lin Fan".
"...It hurts a lot."
Li Xiulan didn't say anything more.
After a while, she stood up, walked up to Lin Fan, and reached out to pat his head.
"So you won't die as many times as before."
"Um."
Domingo, who was not far away, heard the conversation between the mother and son and was completely stunned.
How to avoid dying a few times?
What kind of family is this? They talk like they're making their final arrangements.
……
Seeing that the tigress was gone, Lin Jianguo was finally "liberated" from the kitchen.
At this moment, only Lin Fan, Lin Jianguo, Domingo, Levi and Night Owl remained on the first floor.
"Old Lin, you're being unfair, making me bear the consequences myself."
"Come on, you didn't see how your mother disciplined your old man. If you had, you wouldn't be saying this..."
"Come on, with your looks, you think my mom would be moved?"
Lin Fan was too lazy to argue with him, so he leaned back in his chair.
"I heard that Raccoon City is now completely yours. Tell me about the current situation in Raccoon City!"
Hearing this, Lin Jianguo rolled his eyes:
"What do you mean by 'belonging to me'? That means it belongs to the country. I'm just acting as a temporary representative."
Then he said in a serious tone,
"Not long ago, some information was sent to me from China. The entire Raccoon City covers an area of about 230 square kilometers."
I had Night Owl investigate before. Currently, Dark Night can only control a small part of the East District, which is about five percent of the city's area.
The spore-infected area you created covers nearly 70% of the city's area; the remaining 25% is a gray area—no spores, but also no people.
"There are no survivors in Raccoon City?" Lin Fan frowned upon hearing his father's explanation.
You should know that he is now planning to turn Raccoon City into a new holy land.
If there isn't even a single living person, what's the point of building this?
"That's not the case."
However, the outlook is not very optimistic.
According to current intelligence, at least several thousand survivors are still scattered throughout the city.
They mostly hid in buildings, surviving on stockpiled supplies.
Some formed small groups, while others went their own way.
But as time went on and supplies dwindled, some people began to take the risk of fleeing.
"What about the zombie density?"
"The core infection zone is very densely populated, with scattered gray areas, and occasional stragglers wandering in from the outer perimeter of the eastern district. Levi's squad has to clear out a batch of them every day."
Levi nodded in agreement.
Lin Fan pondered for a moment and then looked at Domingo.
"You heard everything?"
"I heard you."
"Then you should understand what I want you to do next."
Domingo stood up, his expression solemn.
"Save the survivors and spread the light of the true God."
Lin Fan nodded:
"That's right, Raccoon City is a dead city now. Before, it belonged to the United States, so I didn't care."
But now that it's ours, we have a responsibility to manage it well. There are still thousands of lives at stake in the city, and those are valuable resources!
Try to rescue those who can be saved.
He paused for a moment.
"Of course, you can also take this opportunity to promote the 'True God Cult'."
Upon hearing this, Domingo instantly understood Lin Fan's intention, and a fervent glint flashed in his eyes.
"Sir, I know what to do. Don't worry, I will make these survivors loyal believers in our church."
"Stop, stop, stop. Don't get so worked up. I don't care what you do, but I do have a few rules."
Lin Fan raised his finger.
"First, there should be no coercion. Saving people is saving people; whether they believe in the true God or not is their own business."
Domingo frowned slightly, but nodded nonetheless.
"Second, don't make it too sinister. Blood sacrifices and offerings are all forbidden, lest it turn into something like a cult."
Your public relations should revolve around one core message: God's protection, food, shelter, and immunity to zombie bites. I will grant you the ability to avoid zombie bites later; that will make it more believable.
"Third..." Lin Fan looked into Domingo's eyes, "If you encounter any survivors with special abilities, report to me immediately."
Domingo understood immediately and knelt on one knee.
"I obey the command of the true God's spokesperson."
Lin Fan:
"...Stop kneeling, get up. And, and how many times have I told you, just call me by my name, don't use any other names."
Why?
"Do you want to eat a steel pipe?"
Domingo thought of the steel pipe from earlier and its owner, and decisively got up.
"Understood, Mr. Lin Fan."