Chapter 175: Divine Favor (Twenty-Four)

Chapter 175: Divine Favor (Twenty-Four)

Ultimately, the Grim Reaper Guild managed to hire the services of the Dream-Returning Fish at the price of twenty million points worth of items per person.

This price was evidently the charging standard disclosed by many players on the forums regarding the Ronghua Guild, but compared to fifty million per person, it seemed exceptionally reasonable, virtually a hefty discount.

The collection of items was also straightforward; Professor Zhang had a reputation on the forum for doubling the price immediately if there was any dilly-dallying.

In the absolute seller's market, to save their own skins, they had no choice but to agree to whatever price he proposed.

Everyone hurried to comply, fearing that any delay might prompt him to hike the price further with just a few words.

The independent players could also witness the Grim Reaper Guild members queuing to exchange items for the fish.

Among them were those who came to inquire. Hearing the "twenty million," they were initially stunned but soon felt a sense of "it is only expected."

The price set by Zhang Daoan was within reach for players capable of clearing a level five instance, not exactly emptying their coffers, but certainly a hefty expenditure.

It had been discussed on the forums at the time, and now the players were well aware of the price. Without further ado, a group of players handed over the items immediately.

Only the Grim Reaper Guild's members gathered together, whispering amongst themselves.

Zhang Daoan evidently treated all regular players impartially: bring twenty million, and the fish is yours to borrow.

This sudden demand of a whopping fifty million from the Grim Reaper Guild...

"What on earth did Yang Chi do to offend him?"

The members of the Grim Reaper Guild were utterly baffled.

Meanwhile, the Dream-Returning Fish was diligently at work, while the table in front of Zhang Daoan was covered with a layer of luminous items, looking even more spectacular than the last time at the [Digital Cruise].

Nie Shuangshuang couldn't help but mutter under her breath, "The speed at which Brother Zhang is accumulating wealth is faster than a robbery!"

Qiao Mai chimed in, "Robbery? Even the system's item generation rate can't match the speed of his plundering, right?"

This fish's discovery and exploitation were primarily credited to Zhang Daoan, who, without even taking a look, directly pushed all the items in front of him to Jie Fangcheng.

Jie Fangcheng paused for a moment.

On their side, a table full of items attracted much attention. All the players in the hall, whether they had paid the points or not, were closely watching the developments here.

Such incidents had occurred before, but back then, Jie Fangcheng was much more forthright!

Now, he touched his nose, looking somewhat uncomfortable.

"Take them, take them."

Nie Shuangshuang was stunned at the sight.

When she had first met Jie Fangcheng, he had demonstrated his generosity. He used her items so freely, smashing a watch worth over a million without a second thought, discarding a cape worth several hundred thousand as if it were nothing, a veritable gold-devouring beast on two legs.

Although the items in front of him weren't worth a million, they were valued in the hundreds of millions... but Jie Fangcheng clearly belonged to the type who didn't care much about wealth.

Would he feel uncomfortable because of this?

Nie Shuangshuang couldn't help but remark, "Why are you being so polite with Brother Zhang?"

After saying this, Nie Shuangshuang felt a kind glance from Zhang Daoan, who then said, "It doesn't matter who takes them."

Jie Fangcheng touched his nose again, this time not refusing.

He glanced around, but didn't find any speed-increasing items.

"There's nothing I need."

Only then did Zhang Daoan begin to gather up the items.

"I'll sell these and buy you the speed-enhancing items you need."

Zhang Daoan's backpack wasn't exactly short of items, but with them clearing one instance after another daily, they genuinely had no time to purchase items.

Hearing this, Jie Fangcheng started to feel awkward once more.

The two effortlessly determined the fate of items worth hundreds of millions, making even the ordinary players flabbergasted. Not to mention the president of the Grim Reaper Guild, Yu Yizhou, who holds the third place in the player point rankings. Even he wasn't affluent enough to casually exchange items worth such a hefty sum.

What is the relationship between these two?

Ascending to the third position on the leaderboard, Yu Yizhou was indeed a sharp-witted individual, his gaze shifted from Zhang Daoan to Jie Fangcheng, and back again.

At this moment, a guild member engrossed in thought beside him suddenly spoke up: "I've figured it out! The one should be called 'The Saint Warrior'; look at his sword, it's so emblematic! The other should be called 'Claude'; notice his glasses..."

Yu Yizhou was speechless: "You think fifty million is easy to come by, don't you?"

"What do you mean??"

"Fool! How do you think Yang Chi offended someone? 'Heartless Sword' and 'Thousand Machines End', rhyming much? Do they look like a pair?" Yu Yizhou gestured stealthily, "It's this!"

"Is it true or not?" The crowd exclaimed in astonishment.

From Jie Fangcheng's perspective, he could only see them huddling together, whispering about some newly discovered matter, occasionally uttering phrases like "No way, seriously?".

However, the Grim Reaper Guild's players always maintained a distance from regular players, so not many were curious about what had astonished them this time.

After all the items were collected, the silver fish "whooshed" and darted back into Zhang Daoan's body. It didn't seem forced at all, more like one of his innate abilities.

Among the many players present, only a few remained unaffected. Even though most players felt "those are just NPCs", similar to watching a TV series, the audience would laugh or cry for the characters within. The so-called "God's" established rules were too devoid of humanity, making it difficult for any conscientious person to ignore them completely.

Those who truly ignored them... probably weren't worth saving anymore.

"But now that we have all recovered, shall we continue gathering divine power tomorrow? How will we find the Godchild if we don't?"

However, continuing to accumulate divine power under their current circumstances seemed implausible, as everyone fundamentally lost faith in the deity.

Without faith, could they still gather divine power? How were they supposed to find the Godchild?

"No rush, let's look for clues first."

This was all Zhang Daoan said.

With his statement, everyone else could only proceed with what they were supposed to be doing.

After dinner, the now-awake players no longer feared the starlight outside, forming groups to venture out in search of clues.

However, such elusive "clues" were nowhere to be found. In the evening, every household in Qiming City tightly shut their doors and windows. The entire city resembled a dead zone, where not a single sound could be heard.

This was also one of the rules set by the deity.

The inhabitants of Qiming City ought to maintain healthy bodies and lifestyles, adhering to an early-to-bed, early-to-rise routine.

Due to this "rule", the entire city quieted down at night.

At this moment, traversing through such a tranquil city, someone couldn't help but lament, "These residents are incredibly well-domesticated, aren't they?"

How did they manage to stay asleep just because the deity decreed no waking up at night?

Hearing this lament, Wei Yuan only commented nonchalantly, "Players aren't much different, are they?"

The residents of Qi Ming city adhere to the "deity's" rules, just as players abide by the rules of the game.

That "deity" is a malevolent entity. Is the creator of this infinite game any better?

As he uttered these words, silence enveloped the surroundings once again.

Indeed, while many rules within Qi Ming city seem devoid of humanity to them, they somehow appear remarkably reasonable when applied to restrain players within the instances.

They perceive the residents of Qi Ming city as being tamed, yet aren't they, the players who dare not defy the death rules, also domesticated by the game?

The sky twinkled with stars, the quiet city bathed in moonlight, and the breeze caressed gently. Judging by the surrounding scenery alone, the scene was truly beautiful.

The group wandered through the city, yet due to their frequent assistance to the residents during the day, they were already well-acquainted with the urban landscape.

Before they knew it, they arrived in the vicinity of the temple.

Under the night sky, the grandiose temple appeared somewhat eerie against the backdrop of surrounding bushes, its interior devoid of candlelight and no longer maintained by the deity's servants.

The crowd pushed open the temple doors.

Squeak—

White moonlight poured in through the open door, casting a layer of frost-like glow on the ground.

Inside the tranquil temple, darkness engulfed everything, bringing a chilling sensation to the environment.

This scene, observed by the players who had experienced numerous instances, did not induce fear. Instead, it merely suggested: this place has such a terrifying atmosphere, there might be some clues here.

The group entered in single file, forming small teams to explore the surroundings for any irregularities.

Zhong Daoan and Xie Fangcheng paired up. After entering the temple, Zhong Daoan scanned the area, his gaze lingering momentarily at a particular spot before quickly moving away.

Xie Fangcheng was genuinely curious about his current train of thought but restrained himself from asking due to Zhong Daoan's earlier remark about "the instance possibly being monitored by Ji Chaoyang."

"Let's check out the statue over there."

Zhong Daoan suggested.

Upon reaching the statue, Zhong Daoan squatted down to fumble around its base, swiftly activating a hidden mechanism.

The residents would cut their fingers and let blood drip.

It is known that the deceased deity's servants would resurrect after consuming the residents' blood...

Inside the mechanism, a cup holding a half measure of fresh red blood appeared before them.

Zhong Daoan took the cup out and brought it closer to inspect the contents by smell.

He paused for a moment, then handed the cup to Xie Fangcheng.

"What's the matter?" Xie Fangcheng asked, simultaneously lifting the cup to take a sniff, only to freeze in the next moment.

There was no scent of blood.

Although the blood in the cup was supposedly from the city residents' prayers, it carried a faint floral aroma instead of the expected bloody smell.

Something was amiss.

Zhong Daoan had previously helped a woman who was a victim of domestic abuse; he remembered the unmistakable smell of blood as it flowed from her head.

Was there something wrong with the cup?

From somewhere, Zhong Daoan produced another cup, pouring the blood from the original cup into the new one, before making a small cut on his finger.

His own blood dripped into the cup. He sniffed it again, this time detecting a faint bloody odor.

As he contemplated the cup, he recalled what Xie Fangcheng had heard earlier - the deity's servants discussing their plans in the temple on the night before they died.

They had mentioned wanting to replace the current city residents since their devotion during prayers at the temple had waned.

At the time, one of the servants mentioned that the Chief Deity’s Servant — the "Dream-Returning Fish" that was descending onto Wei Yuan, could facilitate the replacement of the city's inhabitants once the descent was complete.

Why was that? How could the incubated "God’s Chosen" replace the residents so easily? And what was the deal with this blood?

Why would the "Dream-Returning Fish" resurrect upon consuming the blood?

Zhong Daoan simply lowered his gaze to the cup in his hand. Out of the corner of his eye, he seemed to catch a glimpse of something. He then pulled out a handkerchief, patiently wiped the cup clean, and placed it back where it belonged.

The blood-stained handkerchief, perhaps due to a lapse in attention, was placed alongside the cup underneath the statue.

Xie Fangcheng, who saw this from the side, chose to pretend he hadn't noticed.

As they were restoring the area under the statue to its original state, a surprised exclamation of "Oh my god" rang out.

"Oh my god! What's this at the back? Are they farming here?!"