Ever since Norton decided to pursue both approaches simultaneously, he began implementing reforms within the Church. All the nobility who had been transformed into third-generation vampires were completely exiled. Under the guidance of Low Bishop Goode, Norton made them leave Rino City and go develop in whatever cities they pleased. Although third-generation vampires couldn't reproduce, Low Bishop Goode was a second-generation vampire! With his existence, this batch of released vampires wouldn't easily go extinct. Of course, whether they went extinct or not was irrelevant to Norton. What he wanted was to release the vampires, to let people begin encountering these new-style vampires, so that over a long period of time, the image of new-style vampires would gradually replace that of the old-era vampires. Beyond this, the Rino City Church began widely recruiting new acolytes. There were no restrictions regarding age or gender—as long as you signed up, you would be selected. The only catch was that after selection, you would be completely cut off from the mundane world. The sole benefit was becoming a Church member, exempt from manual labor. As soon as registration opened, the poor of Rino City swarmed in. Although the Church's current measures ensured they could eat, who wouldn't want to slack off if given the chance? A group of ill-intentioned poor people entered the Church, and the Church truly accepted every single one! Before long, they were dressed in the pure white robes symbolizing the Church, but from then on, no one could see their figures during daylight again. And as time passed, Rino City's progress finally stepped into steady development. In the Church calendar year 2232, two years had already passed since the Papal States declared war on surrounding nations. News finally returned from the frontline battlefields that had been silent for so long. Thanks to the Papal States' system being a Vatican-centralized authority, its control over local regions was not just slightly stronger than that of the major lord states—it was significantly superior. Within a short time, the Papal States conscripted two hundred thousand poor soldiers to the battlefields, launching wanton aggression against surrounding small countries. The vast difference between centralized authority and the lord system was starkly contrasted in this moment. While the emperor of the Boar Empire was still maneuvering among the various lords, unable to make decisions, the Papal States' soldiers had already marched right into their homes. The fundamental purpose behind the new Pope, His Holiness Adam, launching this war was consumption—to drain the vitality of all nations in the Southern Continent! Therefore, the Papal States exercised absolutely no supervision over their own military forces. The entire Papal States army completely degenerated into genuine bandits, everywhere committing arson, murder, pillage, rape, and violence—perpetrating every evil imaginable. These disaster victims, who had nearly starved to death in their own country, were organized and then unrestrainedly unleashed their inner wickedness without any restraint. Wherever they passed, they practically scraped the very earth itself. Men, regardless of age, were all killed. Women, regardless of age, all suffered violence. The poor of the Papal States weren't picky at all—as long as it was a woman, they took her. As for other wealth, whether gold, silver, jewels, or pots and pans, if it could be used, they bundled it up and carried it away. Usually terrified of poverty, their desires suppressed too harshly, now that they seized the opportunity, they had lost even the most basic humanity! As poor people continuously transported their plundered wealth back in large and small bundles, and as the pleasures of the frontlines became known to the Papal States' citizens in the rear, even the poor who had originally been too fearful and timid to go to the battlefield couldn't resist anymore. Within just two years, the Papal States consecutively conscripted four hundred thousand poor people into the battlefields—and this was only those registered! There were also those not on the records. To conserve the Church State's manpower and resources, the swarming poor who later wanted to join the battlefield were no longer registered, nor were supplies distributed. In short, one message: if you want to plunder, just go yourself! Take whatever you can get. If you want to return, you only need to hand over fifty percent of your wealth to come back to the country. If you don't want to return? That's fine too. After all, over there besides robbery and killing, you have no other means of survival. Staying there and not returning is also a continuous scourge. The Papal States' tactics were utterly shameless. These four hundred thousand people weren't soldiers—they were four hundred thousand criminals without any bottom line. The various lord states weren't failing to organize soldiers for defense and resistance; it was that conventional military methods were completely useless. This poor people's army simply refused to confront them head-on. When the army arrived, they fled, running to other places to continue their atrocities. They couldn't be completely captured, they couldn't be effectively fought, and they couldn't be chased down. They could even stand among their own country's beggar groups, making it impossible to distinguish who was who! The various small kingdoms loyal to the Boar Empire suffered heavy losses. With a large-scale disorder based on four hundred thousand people, the number of security personnel needed to suppress it would have to multiply. Finally, the emperor of the Boar Empire realized: to counter the Papal States' shameless tactics, they either had to use the same methods or directly organize a massive army to pressure the Papal States' territory! But lord states were different from the Papal Palace—slaves were the lords' wealth! How could they possibly release these slaves to serve as expendable cannon fodder? If they all died, who would farm the land! Moreover, letting them plunder—once they had money, who would still be slaves? There were already enough lords; no lord wanted more lords to emerge. Therefore, the Papal States exercised absolutely no supervision over their own military forces. The entire Papal States army completely degenerated into genuine bandits, everywhere committing arson, murder, pillage, rape, and violence—perpetrating every evil imaginable. These disaster victims, who had nearly starved to death in their own country, were organized and then unrestrainedly unleashed their inner wickedness without any restraint. Wherever they passed, they practically scraped the very earth itself. As the Boar Empire's royal family finally formulated large-scale combat plans, striving to deliver a fatal blow to the Papal Palace regime. Simultaneously, within the Papal States, terrifying rumors of a certain creature began spreading widely. "Have you heard? Someone died in that village over there! Died with bite marks on their neck, their entire body drained of blood! Could this be those vampires they've been crazily talking about lately?" "What? Damn it, wasn't that just a rumor? How did it become real?" "Oh, still calling it a rumor? There have already been over a dozen vampire attack cases in Joseph City! Damn it, now the entire Joseph City is locked down. Who knew these things would come to our small village? What should we do!" "What should we do? Quickly go to Joseph City and ask the Church for help!" The passage of two years finally allowed the vampires Norton had released to begin showing results. Perhaps some vampires hid away, not daring to confront the Church directly. But there were always those who, thinking they had gained superpowers, became arrogant and forgot their limitations. Relying on their strength, they committed atrocities recklessly in various cities, wildly sucking human blood, completely transforming from humans into monsters. But because of this, they gradually built the reputation of the new-style vampire species. This aligned perfectly with Norton's intentions. Fınd the newest release on 𝙣𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙡⚑𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙚⚑𝙣𝙚𝙩 And as the Church formed encirclements and hunts against these new-style vampires, their approximate numbers didn't seem to decrease—instead, they increased day by day. Creating the strong impression that a vampire calamity was about to erupt.