Chapter 174: If You Do Not Abandon Me

Chapter 174: If You Do Not Disdain

“Are you going to the feast?” Qi Yuan asked, looking at Qi Qi.

Qi Qi was momentarily stunned.

Her train of thought couldn’t keep up.

“…Yes.” After a moment of hesitation, she answered seriously.

Upon hearing this, Qi Yuan’s expression shifted: “Such deep scheming—traveling all the way from Tianfu to Qingshui Village just for a taste of pig’s head meat!”

Qi Qi: “???”

She was utterly bewildered.

“I didn’t come for the pig’s head meat.”

“Didn’t you just say you wanted to go to the feast?” Qi Yuan said quickly.

“I…”

“Then what did you come here for?” Qi Yuan interrupted her.

“I came for something inside the divine statue…” Qi Qi said, and then suddenly came to her senses.

She had almost been tricked into revealing too much.

The man before her was truly a deity.

With just a few simple words, he had led her in circles, nearly making her spill her purpose.

But then she thought, there was no need to hide her goal anyway, and she said, “O Divine One, this humble maiden has come for an object within the divine statue.”

When Qi Qi finished, the villagers of Qingshui Village exchanged glances.

The divine statue seemed to be gone.

“I’m waiting for the feast; we’ll talk later.” Qi Yuan gave a kick.

The pig beneath his foot let out a squeal as he sent it flying into Wang Zhongshan’s hands.

Qi Qi was speechless.

Beside her, the maidservant Xiao Xue was also holding onto a pig.

There were too few villagers, so she had to take charge of it.

Now she looked aggrieved: “Miss, what do we do?”

She was an unmarried maiden, and this was the first time she had ever held a pig.

“Follow along to the feast.”

…

In the large cauldron, the water was boiling, steam rising to the heavens.

Great chunks of pork gave off a rich aroma, wafting through the entire village.

Qi Yuan waved his hand grandly: “Wang Zhongshan, summon the mourning troupe from Shijia Village.

The weeping here is too half-hearted and dull.”

Wang Zhongshan was taken aback for a moment, then quickly nodded: “Yes, Divine One, I’ll call them over right away.”

Nearby, Shen Tu couldn’t help but say, “The people of Qingshui Village can weep too!”

Qi Yuan glanced at Shen Tu: “Forget it, your Qingshui Village weeping is too fake.”

Qi Yuan then looked at Chen Xifan of Chenxi Village, a look of approval on his face: “Your village’s chef has good skills; he knows how to prepare a feast, better than Shijia Village.”

Upon hearing this, Chen Xifan hunched his back: “May I prepare feasts for the Venerable One every day.”

Just that day, the deity of Qingshui Village had marched grandly into their Chenxi Village.

Their own deity, upon seeing fat meat arrive, had rushed out excitedly to greet it.

The outcome was grim—beheaded with a single sword stroke.

The temple guards of Chenxi Village had turned into divine aberrations, only to be slain one by one by Qi Yuan.

Apart from a few villagers who stubbornly resisted, most chose to save themselves.

They had been forced to worship the new deity, offering young boys and girls every year, harboring resentment in their hearts but powerless to resist.

Toward Qi Yuan, the people of Chenxi Village felt both fear and gratitude.

The feast began, and it continued.

Fatty pork was served, and everyone present had their appetites stirred.

The village chief of Qingshui Village, Yu Lei, sat together with the priest Shen Tu, flanked by a fat man and a thin man.

“Origin Celestial Venerable is the guardian deity of our Qingshui Village, and yet… the people of Shijia Village are so sycophantic,” the thin man said, a hint of jealousy in his voice.

“Alas, it’s all my fault for wanting to sell the divine statue, thoroughly offending the Venerable One,” the fat man said, his face full of distress.

Back then, after the battle with Shijia Village, Qingshui Village had already been on its last legs.

The fat man, once plump, had nearly starved to skin and bones.

The divine statue in the temple was useless to keep, so selling it seemed reasonable.

“Actually, shouldn’t we, the subjects, be the deity’s arms and legs?

Our village’s guardian deity is a bit… excessive.

He does everything himself, charging in with his sword!

That’s far too dangerous,” the thin man said, his voice full of worry.

It was as if a king personally led every campaign, charging ahead faster than his soldiers.

How could the villagers not be shocked?

If anything happened to the deity, Qingshui Village would be finished.

“It’s because we’re too weak!” Village Chief Yu Lei said, puffing on his pipe, smoke curling from his mouth.

The others at the table looked embarrassed.

Indeed, they were far too weak to relieve the deity of his burdens.

If each of them were strong, they wouldn’t fear being overlooked.

“We lack strength, we lack skill in mourning, and even preparing feasts, we’re no match for Chenxi Village,” the priest Shen Tu couldn’t help but remark.

The group looked helpless. In theory, they were the Origin Celestial Venerable’s direct followers, yet… they feasted every day.

Feasting was fine, but if they didn’t improve themselves, they would surely be gradually sidelined.

“It’s a pity we’re too weak to give back to the Divine One.

And now that the world has changed greatly, it’s hard for deities to rebuild their divine bodies…” Village Chief Yu Lei said, his face hesitant.

After the great upheaval, ancient deities could no longer rebuild their divine bodies or step into the realm of true gods.

Thus, many ancient deities did not bother to seriously manage their domains.

Otherwise, in ancient times, the stronger the people of the fiefdom, the stronger the deity would be.

“Say, if we were to emulate the new gods and allow the deity to assimilate us, would the deity become stronger?” the fat man couldn’t help but mention.

The new gods surpassed the old gods, first because the new gods were endless.

Second, the new gods would assimilate their people, merging them into one.

Just like those divine aberrations in Stone Family Village—if the evil god still lived, they would eventually become temple guards, part of the evil god, losing all their consciousness.

“What nonsense are you talking about? Those are the deeds of evil gods, and besides, we have no control over such power,” said the priest Shen Tu.

The few of them chuckled and did not continue the discussion.

Yet a trace of worry lingered in their hearts, as if lost about the future.

On the other side, Qi Qi ate pig head meat, occasionally stealing glances at Qi Yuan, who was feasting.

“Xiao Xue, what do you think of him?” Qi Qi asked quietly.

Xiao Xue, her mouth greasy, having not eaten so well in a long time, said, “He’s truly a great benefactor!”

Anyone who let her eat well and drink well was a great benefactor, a good person.

“He seems wild and unrestrained, but he’s actually thoughtful. With just a few simple words, he nearly made me spill all my origins,” Qi Qi recalled their earlier conversation, feeling that Qi Yuan was unfathomable.

If Qi Yuan knew what Qi Qi was thinking, he would surely cry out in protest.

“Wisdom!” praised the maid Xiao Xue as she ate pork.

Qi Qi continued, “I heard he single-handedly slew the new gods of Stone Family Village and Chenxi Village.”

“Bold and strong!” Xiao Xue flattered without a second thought.

The pork was too delicious; she had to eat it every day.

“Say, should I give him the Yin Birth Stone?” Qi Qi stole another glance at Qi Yuan.

Now that ancient gods could hardly break through to true godhood, a single Yin Birth Stone would draw the covetous eyes of many ancient gods and even divine beings.

Only then did Xiao Xue stop eating pork, furrowing her brow in thought. After a long pause, she looked at the fragrant pork and said, “Other than him, we truly have no better choice.” The Heavenly Prefecture collapsed, and the Qi family was destroyed.

In recent years, Qi Qi and her maid Xiao Xue had depended on each other, knowing few seniors or masters.

As for those they could trust, they were even fewer.

Perhaps this deity of Qingshui Village was truly someone to rely on.

Qi Qi’s thoughts churned as she looked at Qi Yuan, and finally, she seemed to make a decision.

On the other side, Qi Yuan felt his strength growing and thought that killing new gods and holding feasts was truly satisfying.

“Level 21.”

Having slain two new gods, he had risen from level 1 to level 21.

This was because, in terms of cultivation, he was only at the Golden Core stage, while the two he killed were at the late Divine Infant stage, so his experience bar shot up quickly.

“If I kill more, I can reach level 90. Would that be… the Yin God realm?” Qi Yuan mused.

He felt that coming to this world was really quite good.

It seemed full of elite monsters, and killing them made the experience bar rise fast.

The only flaw was that after every fight, he had to eat, or else he’d be too hungry.

“I hope in this world, I can condense my Divine Infant,” Qi Yuan sighed.

Just then, Qi Qi approached with a determined expression: “Deity, in truth, I came to Qingshui Village for a very important matter.”

“I know—to eat pig head meat,” Qi Yuan said, glancing at the young girl.

He couldn’t help but marvel that at such a young age, she was already at the Golden Core stage.

In the Canglan Realm, she could have made the Eastern Lands Prodigy List.

In this Mortal Heart Realm, truly everyone was like a dragon, and every place was full of prodigies.

“Why must the deity tease me? I have come to offer you a gift,” Qi Qi said with a charming smile.

Qi Yuan grew interested: “What gift?”

“Would the senior take me to see the deity’s statue in Qingshui Village?” Qi Qi asked.

“Is it that thing in the statue you mentioned earlier?”

“Yes,” Qi Qi nodded.

“Alright, let’s go see it.” Qi Yuan waved his hand grandly. “You all continue feasting; I’ll be back soon.”

The feasting crowd breathed a sigh of relief when they saw Qi Yuan leave.

They ate with even more joy.

A streak of light flew by and landed before the temple of Qingshui Village.

“Where is the statue?” Qi Qi looked at the empty temple, a surprised expression on her face.

“This… all these fragments on the ground are it,” Qi Yuan said. “Maybe my flashy entrance was too intense, and the statue couldn’t bear it and shattered.”

Hearing this, Qi Qi fell silent. After a long while, she said, “The statue of Qingshui Village was forged by my Qi family, extraordinarily sturdy—even a peak divine being would find it hard to destroy.”

“Maybe it’s because I was too dazzling.”

Qi Qi glanced at Qi Yuan, not quite understanding his words.

But recalling what he had said before, she felt there must be deep meaning.

She looked at the fragments on the ground and slowly said, “Back then, when the Qi family forged this statue, they buried a Yin Birth Stone inside it.”

As she spoke, she watched Qi Yuan’s reaction, but saw him unmoved.

She was inwardly amazed—a true master could hear of such a treasure as the Yin Birth Stone without changing expression.

This only strengthened her resolve to invest.

The Origin Heavenly Lord had a promising future.

“Now that the world has changed greatly, ancient gods cannot break through to the realm of true gods.

But the Yin Birth Stone can help ancient gods step into the true god realm.”

Qi Yuan bent down, cupping the statue fragments in her hands.

“Though the statue is broken, from these fragments, I can still extract the Yin Birth Stone for you to break through to the true god realm.”

Qi Yuan, meanwhile, was lost in thought.

He was, after all, a player.

Would this restriction of the great world change affect him?

In the Wangyue Continent, it seemed that the Great Sun had once set a rule forbidding all beings from breaking through to level 100.

Qi Yuan seemed to have been affected by it as well.

If so, then the Yin Birth Stone would be useful to him too.

“One should not accept a reward without merit. Come on, what quest do you have for me?” Qi Yuan treated Qi Qi like an NPC handing out quests, and now he had simply activated the task.

As for the Yinborn Stone, it was merely a quest reward.

“Lord Deity, why must you be so particular between us?” Qi Qi said, her face flushing slightly.

She continued: “When our ancestor forged the statue, he made a pact with its spirit: that the deity who emerged from the statue should take this humble maiden… this humble maiden…”

Qi Qi’s crystalline ears turned translucent red, her voice tinged with shyness.

Qi Yuan’s eyes widened: “You don’t mean we’re betrothed, that you’re my fiancée, and today you’ve come to break off the engagement, do you?”

Many thoughts flashed through Qi Yuan’s mind.

If he were jilted, should he utter that classic line: ‘Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west—do not bully a youth for being poor’?

But what if she didn’t break it off?

Should he seize the initiative?

A flicker of bewilderment passed through Qi Qi’s beautiful eyes; Qi Yuan’s words left her confused.

“Back then, the pact our ancestor made with the statue’s spirit was… that this humble maiden would worship the Lord Deity… as her adoptive father.”

Qi Yuan was taken aback.

He had just gained one daughter, and now another?

“Even though we both share the surname Qi, calling me godfather is a bit much.

As for our ages, who knows who is older or younger?” Qi Yuan had always thought of himself as young.

Now to end up with such a grown daughter—it could easily lead to misunderstandings.

“This is the pact between our ancestor and the statue’s spirit,” Qi Qi stammered. “If the Lord Deity does not acknowledge it, then let the matter rest.”

As she spoke, she produced a token.

A yellow silk cloth, on which the original pact was recorded in writing.

Qi Yuan looked at the shattered statue on the ground, then murmured at last: “To guide me here, the statue broke. I will remember this debt. Today, I’ll make a concession and accept you as my daughter.”

Hearing this, Qi Qi felt joy, yet still blushed: “Adoptive Father!”

Qi Yuan found it odd: “Better call me godfather instead.”

For some reason, hearing ‘adoptive father’ made him think of Lü Fengxian.

‘Godfather’ was much better.

The associations were far more proper.

Qi Qi was momentarily stunned, but finally called out sweetly: “Godfather!”

Addressing an ancient deity as godfather did not weigh heavily on Qi Qi’s mind.

Most ancient deities were heroic spirits who died in battle in the distant past.

Such venerable spirits had taken part in the ancient… Hongtang War, dying for the Mortal Heart Realm—every one of them deserved Qi Qi’s respect.

The years they had lived far exceeded Qi Qi’s own.

Having become his adopted daughter, Qi Qi quickly slipped into the role: “Godfather, now that you have obtained the Yinborn Stone and have hope of reaching True Godhood, you must not continue as before, focusing only on improving your own strength. When you encounter enemies, try to avoid taking the initiative to fight.”

“Oh?” Qi Yuan was surprised.

He did not see the connection.

“Godfather, do you not know that the power of a True God is not only about oneself, but also about one’s subjects?” Qi Qi said.

“Mm.”

Qi Yuan had fought the evil god of Shijia Village and the evil god of Chenxi Village.

They had received the villagers’ blessings, greatly enhancing their strength.

But the villagers of Qingshui Village were too weak, and Qi Yuan did not have them bless him.

(End of this chapter)