Bishop Mayne stepped through a circular staircase and walked deep underground.

This is a naturally formed sinkhole, at least as deep as four heavenly towers, with a diameter of about twenty zhang, more than enough to fit into a lord's castle. The cave was not dark at first, with skylights in the high dome, and light streamed through the windows into the ground, leaving meandering specks of light on the ice-forged stone walls.

As the height decreases, the light spots gradually dim and soon merge with the stone walls. However, the center of the crater reflects a faint blue light, and the further down you go, the more obvious it becomes, and even if you don't hold a torch, you won't fall into the dilemma of not being able to reach out and lose your fingers.

The staircase at his feet was like a small snake around the pit, clinging to the rock wall.

The staircase is made of granite, rectangular in shape, three fingers thick, enough for two people to walk side by side. One end is embedded in the rock wall, and the other end is suspended in the air. In order to prevent accidental falls, wooden railings are erected at the ends of the overhangs, and the railings are connected by ropes.

He hadn't counted how many stairs there were, but he knew that the laying of each stone slab was a daunting task. The stonemasons of the church were suspended by ropes, carved deep enough grooves in the solid rock, and then tucked the stone slabs into them. Every movement had to be done with care, because as many as 300 people slipped or broke the rope and fell to the bottom of the pit.

If the Hermes Cathedral, built overhead, is a symbol of the indomitable spirit of the Church, then the Hermes Institution hidden deep in the cave is the true heart of the Church.

The stone walls along the stairs are inlaid with the Divine Punishment Stone, and every hundred paces there is a Judgment Army standing guard, and there is a Divine Punishment Army standing by the intruder at any time. Between the dome and the mezzanine of the cathedral floor, there are many sandbags and rubble buried. If the Holy City's defenses fail and the crowd has to evacuate, the Pope will set up a trap and bury the place with gravel and rubble.

Even though it wasn't the first time Mayne had been to the Hermes Mechanism, the feeling of walking in mid-air still made him feel dizzy. Especially when you look up, you always have the illusion that you are falling.

He breathed a sigh of relief when his feet were on solid ground.

At the bottom of the sinkhole is a large disc-shaped white millstone with a mirror-smooth surface, and you can even see your own reflection clearly when you stand on it. The light coming in from the skylight of the dome will be refracted several times in the pit wall and will converge on the grinding stone at the bottom of the cave. Even if no torches are lit, the bottom of the sinkhole is not pitch black.

Only at the bottom of the pit will you realize that sunlight is not colorless. The grinding stone was illuminated and reflected a faint blue light, and when you looked up, the entire sinkhole was lit up by this blue light, showing a cold color. If you look closely, you can also notice that there are countless dust flying in the brighter light, like tiny creatures recorded in ancient books.

Using the naturally formed holes in the wall at the bottom of the cave, the church opened up and enlarged them, and built the Hermes Organ. Thanks to these holes in all directions, the air here is free of circulation, and there is no such rotten and dull feeling as being in the depths of the earth.

Mayne stepped through the gate, and the defenses were suddenly much tighter. The Inquisitors here are in teams of five, guarding each level - they are the most loyal samurai of the Church, and once they accept this duty, all of them will spend their lives in the Institution and never return to the surface.

In fact, only he and the Pope had access to the Authority, not even the two Archbishops Heather and Teflon.

But Mayne didn't know exactly how many forks in the path there were. In addition to this main road due south, there are many branching passages on both sides, and as you follow them all the way, you will often find more branches. Some were exploited by the church, while others were simply sealed. He had heard that during the construction of the mechanism, several craftsmen had strayed into the unmarked forks of the road, only to get lost in them, never to find their way back.

The straight main road leads to the depths of the mountain, and there are checkpoints every 30 zhang (about 100 meters) or so. Mayne knew that the traps had different tasks between each level. The outermost section is the living quarters, where the samurai who are on duty at the bottom of the cave live. The second section is the archives, which are used to store documents, fragments and ancient books. The third section is the prison area, where some prisoners who cannot see the light are held...... and the innocent.

After crossing three levels, Mayne stopped. Further on, there is the Privy Quarter, where all the research and inventions of the Church come from, and where you cannot go without the consent of the Pope. In more than three years as archbishop, he has only been in once.

Mayne turned to the left and turned into a fork in the road.

The fork in the road was very short, and it didn't take long for him to come to the end, and when he saw the bishop appear, the inquisitors guarding the door immediately clenched their fists and struck their chests, "My lord!"

Mayne nodded, "Open the door." ”

Inside the door is a hallway, and on the wall are flaming pine resin torches, like countless dancing points of light in the darkness, extending along the corridor to the end. There are many thick wooden doors lined up on both sides, and a number plate is hung in the middle of each door.

The samurai of judgment raised his torch and walked in front to lead the way. Mayne walked along, noticing the changes in the numbers on the number plates. When he saw the mottled number marked with the word 35, he stopped, took out the key and inserted it into the lock hole, twisting it slightly. The sound of the lock opening was particularly harsh at the bottom of the silent cavern, and a faint echo could be heard at the end of the hallway. As if to send a signal, there were many wails behind the doorways, both men and women. If you listen carefully, most of the words are "Let me out!" "Help me!" and "Please, kill me!" and so on.

Mayne was unmoved. He ordered the samurai to stand guard at the door, then went into the room and closed the wooden door to block out the noisy noise.

Through the iron railing, the bishop saw an old man sitting at the head of the bed—perhaps not old, but now graying with gray hair and wrinkles on his forehead. The beard had not been shaved for a long time, and it almost hung down to the neck. He had not seen the sun for so long, his skin was horribly pale, and his hands and feet were as thin as bamboo poles.

Mayne glanced at the lunch box by the iron railing, the food in it had barely moved, and he sighed, "You should be kind to yourself, the church is not short of such food." All three of your meals are made to the king's standard, except for the absence of alcohol. Even the fish is the best cod from the clear water port. You must be familiar with what it tastes like, Your Majesty Wimbledon?"