Dusk Cathedral, Zheng Yichen couldn't help but raise his eyebrows as he looked at this place. It's human nature, even if you've lived in your city for years, even decades, you might not have visited every spot within it. When you hear someone mention some local place, it can feel unfamiliar because you've never been there.
Upon seeing this great cathedral, Zheng Yichen experienced that very sensation, which could roughly be translated into an astonished, "Holy shit, Hazy City has places like this?"
Contrary to what he had imagined, the Dusk Cathedral wasn't like a flea market at its entrance, with a large number of Hunters setting up stalls and hawking their wares.
The reality was that there weren't many people around, and the overall atmosphere was fairly quiet. The cathedral as a whole exuded a dusk-like hue—this sense of color became even more pronounced upon entering. He arrived around noon, and stepping inside gave him a sense of time disorientation.
It was as though he jumped straight from the bright midday sun to the evening.
Inside the cathedral was very spacious. Some Hunters were casually sitting in seats, chatting with one another; long tables in front of some Hunters were covered with cloth, upon which were placed items such as horns of some creatures, treated furs and the like, and claws of certain beasts.
There were also some mighty-looking cold weapons.
Beyond these, there were a few active women within the cathedral, dressed in what seemed to be standard attire, somewhat similar to the nun's habit that Zheng Yichen was familiar with, but not quite the same overall. Their uniform made it easy to distinguish them from the Hunters in the cathedral, preventing any mix-ups.
At the same time, there were no statues or murals in the cathedral, only the ever-present theme of 'Dusk.' The colors of dusk were not harsh to the eyes, nor did they seem dark. In such a color environment, one could feel a lazy illusion.
Zheng Yichen thought that it might be quite nice to come here for a nap when he had nothing better to do. With the cathedral's spacious interior, he could probably lay out a bedroll, right?
Besides, there was no worship of any gods here, only a reverence for 'Dusk.' Zheng Yichen wasn't sure why the cathedral worshipped such a 'scene,' but then again, faith is a personal matter. As long as it didn't affect him, it didn't matter what others believed in.
After all, many people believe in a little bit of everything, and whomever comes through in a pinch is the one they'll pledge their firm belief to afterward.
"Hello, is there something I can help you with?" A woman from the cathedral, well, she seemed to be a nun, approached Zheng Yichen with a faint smile and asked.
"It's my first time here."
The nun nodded slightly, "So, are you here for healing or to repair a weapon?"
Am I that transparent? Zheng Yichen thought, as the nun put it so bluntly, and he pulled out his fishing rod, which he had custom-made. While the material was decent, overall, it was like asking a skilled blacksmith on Earth to forge a sword for a couple thousand dollars.
Certainly, the quality was much better than those few-hundred-dollar swords bought online, but it wasn't considered an exceptional weapon either.
Moreover, most of the time, this thing served the role of a fishing rod in Zheng Yichen's hands, and it wasn't really the fishing rod that came into play in a real fight.
"Do unusual weapons work as well?"
"Of course," the nun replied, glancing at the transformed fishing rod in Zheng Yichen's hand, her smile unfaltering.
"Also, are there any particular rules here?"
The nun handed over a thin booklet to Zheng Yichen—it was a 'brief' on the Dusk Cathedral, similar to the kind included in a tourist guide at landmarks, the sort that you'd glance at and skip over.
The truly important part was the section on the church rules, where one could get trash bags inside and find trash bins, so littering was prohibited, and smoking was allowed but only in designated smoking areas. Swearing was permitted but not too loudly, and dueling was forbidden. Those skilled in martial arts counted as engaging in armed combat if they threw a punch.
Harassing the nuns in any shape or form was prohibited. The nuns had received professional training and had high combat abilities. Nuns could heal injuries but not cure diseases, and corpses were not included in the healing services.
The Dusk Cathedral could repair damaged weapons, but they did not custom-make any weapons. Scrap items were not eligible for repair.
It was permissible to spend the night inside the cathedral, and bedding was to be provided by the individual, selecting a suitable place to lay down. However, it was prohibited to obstruct passageways or other people's movement with one's bedding. The long tables were for placing items, not for people to lie on or place feet on, unless in the form of parts. A charge applied for consecutive overnight stays, and staying twice within a week counted as consecutive nights.
The cathedral did not provide meals, and those who feared hunger should bring their own provisions. For those seeking water, there were water pipes with treated water safe to drink.
It was prohibited to vandalize or intentionally damage the cathedral's internal facilities.
The above were the precautionary measures in place within the Dusk Cathedral. In summary, it was... rather free, as long as you didn't hit people. Swearing was no issue, harassing nuns was seeking death, Zheng Yichen glanced at the young nun standing before him.
She had orange-red eyes, almost the same shade as the cathedral's theme, and her hair was the color of autumn maple leaves.
Facing Zheng Yichen's gaze, the young nun showed no discomfort and openly met his look, "Do you have any other questions?"
"Not for now." In fact, Zheng Yichen was quite curious about what would happen if someone broke the rules here, and just how high these nuns' combat abilities were.
Would they pull out an intimidating weapon from beneath their skirts if faced with someone severely violating the rules?
Healing injuries but not curing diseases was generally fine, but it's a pity that his own injuries had mostly healed. He had taken a beating from some stones, but because of his protective gear, his back was just bruised significantly without any bleeding, and the impact to his arm had caused internal muscle damage.
Natural recovery would do, and his own healing abilities were still rather good. There was still some pain, but it did not affect his mobility or combat ability.
"If you have other questions, feel free to approach any nun in the cathedral."
Zheng Yichen shifted his gaze back to the other nuns inside the Dusk Cathedral. Some were cleaning the cathedral's floors with tools. He noticed a small detail: aside from their differing hair colors, the nuns' eye colors all seemed to be identical.
Was this a hiring requirement here?
People in this world were of a mixed kind, which Zheng Yichen had long gotten used to.
He found an empty spot to sit and pulled out his phone. The Wi-Fi here was decent, with a pretty fast connection. In less than half an hour, the nun who had left earlier returned to hand Zheng Yichen his repaired fishing rod.
The previously deformed tip and the overall damaged structure were completely restored, the rod extending smoothly as before. Aside from the previously damaged parts not being repainted, it was almost as good as new.
The repair cost over three hundred, which wasn't exactly a bargain. A fishing rod wasn't a blade, and In Hazy City, with the right craftsman, he guessed that after some bargaining, he could have gotten it fixed for around a hundred. But the Dusk Cathedral did not haggle over prices.
The nun who collected the money left without a word, passing by some Hunters who acted as if she wasn't there at all, not sparing her an additional glance.
This was probably the reaction of those who frequented the Dusk Cathedral, right?