Chapter 177: Divine Servants (Part 26)

Chapter 177: Divine Servants (Part 26)

Confused, Jie Fang Cheng followed him into the room.

The room was just as they had left it; everything seemed in order.

Zhang Dao An circled the room but found no clues. He then moved outside to scrutinize a cabinet still standing in the yard.

The cabinet was old, marred by scuffs and scratches from years of use. Zhang Dao An methodically pulled open each drawer, finding them filled with ordinary household items; even a bag of rice was tucked away in the bottom drawer.

This bag of rice seemed to have been forgotten in the cabinet, surprisingly sprouting a few buds.

Zhang Dao'an paused for a moment, picking up the bag of rice for a closer look.

Then, his gaze seemingly inadvertently swept over the drawer holding the rice.

The interior of the drawer was mottled and worn, showing clear stains of blood where the user seemed to have accidentally cut their hand at some point.

The blood stains highlighted the scratches inside the drawer, oddly forming patterns reminiscent of irregular Arabic letters.

The temple…

That was the only clue.

Zhang Dao'an redirected his gaze and placed the rice back where it was.

"Any findings?" Jie Fangcheng asked.

He simply shook his head, saying, "The leads are too scant, let's head back."

It was the first time he had uttered such words, causing Jie Fangcheng to start slightly before swiftly following him back to the Shenju Tower.

With the resistance leader gone, Zhang Dao'an seemed somewhat troubled, maintaining silence all the way and leaning against the wall to observe the bustling help center once back in the tower.

The players were enthusiastically assisting the residents, yet today, a few faces seemed to be missing from their ranks.

Independent players who hadn't purged the Huan Meng fish from their minds began to harbor uncontrollable feelings of disdain.

What exactly were these god-favored individuals doing? Aiding residents was one thing, but setting up aid stations? Had they forgotten that their original mission, to wander the city bestowing blessings upon the residents, was to let these humble civilians experience the love and power of the gods?

But now, these individuals were not even wearing the robes of the gods, behaving like service personnel, attending to one task after another, completely deviating from their original purpose. Even the once reverential looks from the residents seemed to have changed these past few days.

This cannot be allowed!

The identity of the god-favored should be held in high regard, embodying the gods themselves!

The gods are benevolent and dignified, yet the actions of these god-favored individuals now hold no trace of majesty.

As the number of people seeking help dwindled, a gaunt resident approached hesitantly.

"Honorable god-favored, I have been very hungry these past few days. May I pray for some food?"

The player in charge responded without a second thought, "Of course!"

They had just decided yesterday that, starting today, they would no longer require the volunteering NPCs to contribute as much food. However, with the orders just being issued, there was still a surplus of food from today and the past few days. While everyone was discussing how to redistribute this excess food back to the residents, this resident came forward, prompting the player to readily hand out a portion.

The resident, who received the food, devoured it on the spot, a sight that left a sour feeling in the players watching.

The onlooking residents exchanged glances before quickly flocking to the front of the help station.

"Honorable God's Chosen, I am still hungry as well. Could you spare a little for me too?"

"Sir, my child hasn't had a meal in several days! Could you spare some for me as well?"

The remaining meals and fruits were continuously handed back to the citizens. As word spread from one person to ten and ten to a hundred, the previously dwindling number of people at the aid station started to increase once more.

Although Jie Fangcheng wasn't the brightest, having lived for so long and witnessed numerous ghostly tales, the current scenario seemed to overlap with a previous case he had encountered.

"This is going to be bad," uttered Jie Fangcheng.

Zhang Dao'an looked at him.

Jie Fangcheng quietly explained, "I handled a similar case before. There was a small town where the lord was a very benevolent person. The city was quite prosperous due to its proximity to a water source, despite its small size. But one year, a flood hit, submerging the farmlands, and the lord opened his granaries to aid the victims."

Such incidents were not uncommon historically, but the lord of this small town was perhaps too kind-hearted.

"He believed that the residents who lost their crops and homes to the flood suffered great physical and mental hardships. They deserved better accommodations. Thus, he asked the wealthy families in the town to offer up 'unused' houses to shelter the victims and donate 'excess' food to help those who were hungry. He also led by example, depleting his private reserves."

Zhang Dao'an seemed to have anticipated the outcome, "At first, he was praised by all except for the wealthy who despised him. But as time went on, the displaced people who could initially not afford the city's luxuries moved in, occupying homes they couldn't have afforded before and indulging in delicacies they couldn't have tasted. They saw the affluent wasting food while they themselves struggled to find enough to eat. When the flood receded and the lord wanted them to return to their impoverished lands to farm, they refused, didn't they?"

"Yes," Jie Fangcheng nodded, "By the time I arrived to handle the case, the kind-hearted lord had turned into a ghost, tortured for his private assets by his close aides."

To have become a ghost, one could only imagine how brutal the "torture interrogation" must have been.

"A ruler with only kindness and no strategies will not suffice."

Meanwhile, in the city of Qiming, there were previously divine servants, a group of strict overseers. The god-chosen, who now helped unconditionally, seemed incredibly benevolent in comparison, their images magnified and noble.

But now, the divine servants were gone, leaving behind only the gentle and kind god-chosen.

Most of these god-chosen were compassionate, easily swayed by tears and tantrums, a stark contrast to the harsh divine servants of the past, and now seemingly easy-to-manipulate "rulers".

"However, the players are still somewhat better than that lord. At least in terms of power, even all of Qiming city combined couldn't match the current Nie Shuangshuang, right?"

Zhang Dao'an nodded in agreement.

On the other end, the food left in the players' hands quickly ran out. The crowded aid station was filled with residents who couldn't get food, and for a moment, cries and pleas resounded, causing the players behind the station to feel a trace of panic.

But the prowess of the god-chosen was undeniable, and no one dared to complain. Despite the shortage of food, the atmosphere was still filled with words of gratitude.

The morning passed hurriedly, and it wasn't until lunchtime that everyone realized something was amiss.

"Is this all we've collected?"

The NPC responsible for collecting and transporting the food wore a bitter expression: "Honorable God's Chosen, you shouldn't have distributed the food to those lowl... those residents so easily. Now they claim they are too hungry and believe you wouldn't bear to see them starve, hence they refuse to contribute food."

The food collected previously was more than enough to feed a hundred people with leftovers, but the lunch distribution left everyone just half full, and they still had to send meals to the young gods residing in the Divine Residence Tower.

The children were in their growing phase, and even though they were just NPCs, the group of adults couldn't bring themselves to withhold their food.

After lunch, they went to search for the young gods in the afternoon, but for the first time, they couldn't find a single one.

What should we do?

Countless individuals are hesitating within, some even harboring regrets.

We really shouldn't have distributed those leftovers to the residents; now we can't even sate our own hunger.

Not finding the deity's children is even more terrifying; if we can't gather a hundred of them, our fate will be sealed in this instance.

Could it be... the method we initially adopted was the correct strategy to clear the level?

Engaging in good deeds in the morning to accumulate divine power and praying in the evening - following this routine at least ensures the location of a deity's child the next day.

Only Ronghua seems to maintain a tranquil demeanor.

Their composure seems to stem more from a confidence backed by strong pillars: Jie Fangcheng with his strength and Zong Dao'an with his intellectual prowess.

With the support of these two formidable pillars, if they can't conceive a better strategy to clear the level, it is unlikely anyone else can.

Only Jie Fangcheng knew that Zong Dao'an had personally mentioned that there were "no clear leads".

However, whether there truly are no leads or he's just concerned about being monitored, that could only be clarified by asking him tonight.

No deity's children were found in the afternoon, but Wei Yuan and his group were still able to set up stalls to offer assistance in exchange for money.

This managed to provide a hint to the players, prompting them to hastily set up stalls to offer help for a fee.

To their surprise, despite the free assistance available in the morning, the paid stalls in the afternoon still managed to attract business.

Dinner was thereby earned through these paid assistance ventures.

The NPC who had been actively helping with cooking dinner previously did not show up this time, citing personal matters at home.

The players had to prepare the meal themselves and even deliver it to the children upstairs, epitomizing a laborious life spent earning money.

To nurture.

A child.

Before dinner, Zong Dao'an made a quick trip to the floor where the deity's children were located, returning shortly thereafter.

Jie Fangcheng spent the entire day with him and honestly, Fangcheng wondered if his lack of intellect was the reason why, despite following Dao'an all day, he only grasped that there might be an issue at the home of the deceased rebel leader, with little clarity on other matters.

Therefore, after dinner, Jie Fangcheng curiously held onto Zong Dao'an's hand firmly.

"Speak, tell me."

Zong Dao'an glanced down at his hand but didn't resist.

A flash before their eyes, and they once again entered the realm of Zong Dao'an's mental world.

Upon entering this time, Jie Fangcheng paused momentarily in astonishment.

After the last entry, it had been a cafe, but this time it transformed into an amusement park — a seemingly functioning one at that, absent of other visitors yet outfitted with luxurious and complete facilities.

They were presently situated atop the Ferris wheel, granting them a panoramic view of the scenery below.

Even though he was aware that this was Zong Dao'an's mental space, Jie Fangcheng couldn't help but look around curiously. He noticed that the park was not only lavish but also somewhat familiar. Some iconic installations were virtually exact replicas. Hence, before inquiring about the status of the instance, he became curious about this realm of thought first.

"This amusement park bears a striking resemblance to that famous one, doesn't it!"

Zong Dao'an acknowledged graciously, "Yes, it is modeled after that."

Jie Fangcheng chuckled, "It's fortunate this is within your own mind. Otherwise, such replication might have earned you a lawsuit by now."

Zong Dao'an smiled and spontaneously broached the topic of the instance's situation.

"There is a slight clue. The method used by the deceased NPC to leave behind a clue is quite familiar. If my suspicions are correct, we might... have to take a gamble this time."