Chapter 63

Chapter 63

The story of how Lann came to possess a holy book began earlier.

Players were fervently completing tasks, afraid of missing out. Black Cat had just finished a task when, surprisingly, Druid was nowhere to be found.

Opening the friends list, Black Cat saw that Druid's coordinates were at Arkham Hospital.

Black Cat: ? What's that guy doing at the hospital?

Considering Druid's inexplicable luck in always landing special tasks, Black Cat decided to go find him.

Arkham Hospital was as expected, a hive of activity. When Black Cat entered, he noticed that almost all the medical staff were constantly on the move. Even those at the reception or in the pharmacy looked uniformly solemn and ready for action.

Oddly, there was little sign of fatigue on their faces. Everyone looked energetic, as if they had just woken up from a refreshing nap. Quite a strange sight.

Without disturbing the busy medical staff, Black Cat checked Druid's coordinates and went to find him, only to discover Druid peeping into a little girl's hospital room.

"You know that's a crime, right?"

Black Cat whispered in Druid's ear.

Druid nearly jumped out of his skin: "What are you doing, you scared me to death!"

"What are you doing peeping at a little girl? Even in the game, you could get your account banned," Black Cat said.

"Get lost, she's the little girl I saved!" Druid rolled his eyes.

"Oh, right, I remember her," Black Cat recognized the girl inside.

"Then why don't you go in?"

Druid opened his mouth: "I don't know how to go in."

"Huh?"

"Even if I go in, she probably won't recognize me," Druid said. "Remember, we 'died' in the hospital before. To the NPCs, we're not the same people we were."

Black Cat paused for a moment before realizing, "Oh, right."

In the hospital's central court, they had looked directly at Lann, suspected of breaking a seal, which led to their characters' demise. Now, their characters were essentially new.

"Wait, then how did Lann recognize us before?"

But considering his true identity, it didn't seem too surprising that he could do that.

"That's why I didn't dare to go in," Druid sighed. "I'm no longer the one who saved her in the cabin. To her, I'm just a stranger now. The NPCs in this world are very intelligent. What if she looks at me with unfamiliar eyes?"

Black Cat grabbed Druid's head and shook it.

"What are you doing? Let go of me."

"Checking if there's water in there," Black Cat said bluntly. "Did you forget you saved her again recently? Isn't that reason enough to go in?"

"But..."

Before Druid could finish his hesitation, Black Cat unhesitatingly pushed the door open: "Excuse us."

Typically, people in a hospital room become alert when a stranger enters – a basic instinct for self-defense. However, the little girl on the bed didn’t react. About ten years old, with black hair down to her waist, she was wrapped in bandages, one eye covered with a medical eye patch. The only exposed eye looked empty.

The entrance of the two players didn't seem to catch her attention at all.

The situation was more serious than they had anticipated.

Druid looked at Black Cat, who spread his hands, indicating he was clueless, as he didn’t have any psychoanalysis skills.

Druid, feeling helpless, approached the bed: "Hey, are you okay?"

There was no response; the little girl ignored both his voice and presence.

"I'm the one who tried to stop you on the street, remember me? And this is the person who gave you first aid."

Still, there was no reaction.

The little girl's pupils were unfocused, clearly locked in her own world.

Druid, feeling helpless and about to give up, was nudged by Black Cat to make one last attempt: "Do you remember Andrew? I am his friend. He talked to me about you."

Andrew was the name of Druid's previous character. At the mention of this name, the girl finally showed a reaction, shifting her gaze to Druid.

Druid breathed a sigh of relief. A reaction was a good sign. He continued, "He wanted me to tell you not to give up hope in life. Do you remember the adventures you had? As long as you don’t give up, there will always be..."

"Where is he?"

The girl's voice was hoarse as she asked, "Where is he? Why hasn't he come to see me?"

Druid found himself at a loss for words.

"Dad and mom are dead. Mom was killed by a bad man with an axe, and dad died in the mouth of a monster that appeared suddenly. They say it's a disaster, because Annie wasn’t a good girl, so she caused her parents' death."

"That's not true, Annie is a good girl!"

"Then why hasn't brother Andrew come?"

Druid opened his mouth, feeling the harsh reality of the game for the first time.

Damn it, why couldn't they have the same character card as last time!

"Did brother Andrew... die too?"

Seeing his silence, tears fell from Annie's eyes. She just stared at him, then suddenly covered her head and screamed shrilly.

The scream attracted a nurse from the neighboring room. A red-haired head nurse quickly rushed in, scanning Druid and Black Cat with a sharp gaze: "What's going on here?"

It looked like Druid and Black Cat might be sent to jail if they didn't explain clearly.

Black Cat hurriedly explained, "We're good Samaritans who happened to pass by the accident scene! I even administered emergency treatment to this girl, so we came to check on her condition."

"Right," Druid wiped the cold sweat from his brow, "You can check the surveillance; we really didn't do anything wrong."

"I will verify that later. For now, please leave the room!"

Black Cat and Druid were ushered out and could only wait outside the ward. Through the window, they saw nurses rushing to sedate the hysterical little girl to prevent her from harming herself. She eventually calmed down and fell into a deep sleep.

Ten minutes later, Head Nurse Mary, who had left earlier, returned and said to Black Cat and Druid, squatting at the door of the ward: "I confirmed with the paramedic from the ambulance that day. He said the girl did receive first aid from someone."

"Glad the misunderstanding is cleared up," Black Cat sighed in relief, then quickly asked, "Can I inquire about the girl's condition? Does she still have any family with her?"

"No, our investigation found that her only immediate family members died in the accident, and we can't contact any other relatives at the moment," Mary shook her head. "Fortunately, her physical injuries aren't severe. It's the psychological trauma that might be more serious, which could lead to her being transferred to the psychiatric ward if it worsens."

No one knew better than Druid what the psychiatric ward was like: "Can’t we get a psychologist to see her?"

"The hospital is currently short on medical resources, and she'll need to wait," Mary sighed. "Moreover, her treatment costs are still pending, so she might not be high on the priority list."

Mary put it gently, but Black Cat and Druid understood: "We can help with the medical expenses. Can we get a specialized doctor for her?"

"...Currently, all the qualified psychologists in the hospital have been summoned to the VIP wards."

"Great, even in the game, we face such brutally realistic issues," Druid almost lost his composure, but Black Cat coolly asked, "What if we bring in a doctor from outside?"

"That's against hospital policy."

Druid clenched his fists in frustration.

"However, nurses patrol at 5:30 PM, but lately, the doctors and nurses have been so busy they might miss a ward or two," Mary said before turning to leave.

"!" Black Cat slapped Druid's arm, "Hurry up, it's 4 o'clock now."

"What's the rush? I'm calling someone now!"

Five minutes later, Matcha Milk Green arrived with a medical kit: "Where's my patient... huh? Isn’t that Black Cat and Druid? Big shots!"

"You are..." Druid felt that this girl looked familiar but couldn’t recall where he had seen her.

Black Cat: "She was involved in the main storyline before..."

Matcha Milk Green: "Yes, yes!"

"The professional kidnappee!"

Matcha Milk Green, with a bemused expression: "...that's a bit excessive."

Indeed, although Matcha Milk Green had participated in main missions, she hadn’t made much of an impact and was embarrassingly kidnapped by NPCs twice, earning her this nickname.

Matcha Milk Green huffed and set down her toolkit: "The me now is different from before. I've completely transformed and discovered my true talent."

Black Cat: "Psychoanalysis?"

"Really?" Druid asked skeptically.

"Just tell me if you need my treatment or not!"

"Ahem, please, after you."

Regardless, Matcha Milk Green was the player with the highest psychoanalysis skills Black Cat could find at short notice, and they had to ask for her help.

After showering Matcha Milk Green with compliments, she finally smiled and said, "Alright, tell me about the patient. You know, I've recently learned a powerful way of speaking. In this game, players need to role-play to roll the dice, and a good performance even earns bonus dice!"

Druid sighed in relief and quickly explained the little girl's situation to Matcha Milk Green.

"I see, the shock of losing her parents one after the other has made her unable to accept reality," Matcha Milk Green sighed. "I've encountered several such cases recently while doing faction dailies. It's just a game, why does it have to be so realistic in such aspects?"

"Exactly," Black Cat agreed.

Matcha Milk Green sighed, "You two should step out. I'll do a psychological analysis on her."

The two left reluctantly, with Black Cat whispering, "You’re confident about this, right?"

"Don’t worry, I specifically switched my character card for this. All the points on this card are allocated to [Medicine] and [Psychoanalysis]," Matcha Milk Green assured. "If you don’t trust me, why don’t you switch to a specialized card as a backup?"

Due to the game's role-playing nature, a player can have up to five different character cards, allowing them to specialize in combat, investigation, medicine, or social skills. If it weren't for the game's limit of using only one card at a time, a single player could form a complete team.

Black Cat: "Alright, you go ahead with the treatment. If you fail, let me know in private, and I'll take over."

So, Black Cat and Druid stepped out of the room, leaving Matcha Milk Green at the bedside. She pulled out a comic book from her toolkit.

"Your name is Annie, right? I'm Matcha Milk Green, nice to meet you~"

Hearing this name, Druid and Black Cat outside the room nearly lost their composure, but the little girl on the bed showed no reaction.

Matcha Milk Green inwardly sighed, realizing even such a quirky name didn't provoke a response from the girl – a tough case indeed.

With no other option, she resorted to her strongest tool. Matcha Milk Green opened the comic book: "Do you like drawing? I love it and have drawn a lot. Would you like to see them with me?"

The little girl's gaze remained vacant, not focusing on either Matcha Milk Green or the comic book.

Matcha Milk Green flips through the drawings, feeling it's not yet time to roll the dice, "The first drawing depicts a place called Akam City in this world, where many Akam people live together happily."

The little girl's gaze flickers, showing a reaction.

"But one day, a group of bad guys targeted this peaceful place. They devised an evil plan to destroy the city. Many people tried to stop them, but unfortunately, despite their great efforts, they only partially succeeded. The evil villains summoned numerous monsters who rampaged and killed people in the city."

The little girl's gaze finally settles on the drawing, just as Matcha Milk Green turns to it. The drawing is not of high quality, but vividly depicts monstrous figures trampling over stick figures, with lots of blood painted in red on the ground.

The little girl starts trembling all over, while Black Cat and Druid outside the hospital room are stunned.

Player Channel:

Black Cat: What are you telling a little girl who's psychologically traumatized?!

Matcha Milk Green: Trust me, this method works every time!

"But fortunately, the gods did not abandon the city. At the last, most critical moment, when everyone fell into a deep sleep and their dreams, He descended, defeating the villains trying to destroy the city, driving all the monsters out of Akam City. Thus, the remaining people were saved," Matcha Milk Green says softly, "Annie, you were chosen. Your dad and mom would want you to live on, for them as well."

Annie doesn't speak, her lips trembling as she asks, "Why me? Why didn't He save my mom and dad?"

"Because He was still very weak, but even so, the Lord made an effort to save Annie," Matcha Milk Green says with a slight smile, "It must be because He heard your parents' voices, saying they want their daughter to live on well."

Outside the hospital room, Druid and Black Cat watch in stunned silence as Annie's eyes fill with large tears, her frail body trembling as she collapses.

Matcha Milk Green: [Now's the time! I've touched her heart, system! Requesting reward dice!]

[System: Reward dice request approved]

[Psychoanalysis: Major Success]

Matcha Milk Green gasps in astonishment, quickly capturing a screenshot of this moment and sending it to Druid and Black Cat.

Black Cat, Druid: !?

Matcha Milk Green: You guys owe me a treat now!

Black Cat: No problem!

[Your words profoundly impacted Annie. Overwhelmed by the intense emotional shock, she faints. In her dreams, she sees her home's little garden, with a man and a woman there. She runs out to them, and they embrace her.

"I want to go with you," Annie says.

The man and woman smile, stroking her head, telling her, "Don't worry, Annie, we are always with you."]

When Matcha Milk Green received this system notification, she felt momentarily choked up. Looking down at the little girl lying on the bed, she noticed her expression had gradually relaxed, tears in her eyes but a smile on her lips.

Matcha Milk Green quietly leaves the hospital room, also sharing this message with Druid and Black Cat.

Druid: "...Major success in psychoanalysis has this effect?"

Matcha Milk Tea: "How would I know? It's my first time rolling a major success. It's terrifying, what if I have a massive failure next time due to luck balancing."

Black Cat: "Haha, don't worry, you'll keep having good luck."

Matcha Milk Green: "Hm? How do you know that?"

Black Cat: "Look, players have been doing good deeds recently. Aren't we continuously accumulating virtual merit?"

Druid, Matcha Milk Green: "Darn."

It makes so much sense. What cyber mysticism!

After the banter, Black Cat asked, "Did you plan that speech beforehand?"

"Hmm? Sort of, but it's not entirely my creation," Matcha Milk Green waved her hand dismissively, "Some players have been secretly preaching, and I noticed it was quite effective. I thought about making my own script. You know, foreigners really buy into this religious stuff!"

Druid pondered, "Maybe it's the environment. Religion is quite common overseas."

"There are really players preaching?" Black Cat asked, full of curiosity.

"Yeah, especially near the Black Poker district. Loads of them there," Matcha Milk Green replied, packing away her tools into her medical bag. "I still have some integrity. I didn’t dupe the kid completely. Those preachers don't care, and anything involving the Gatekeeper seems particularly effective."

"Wait, but Lanen is the Shepherd God, not necessarily the Gatekeeper, right?" Druid questioned.

"Yeah, oh well, it doesn’t matter. All the churches here claim that the Gatekeeper is their deity, sympathizing with humans and saving the people of Arkham. It's crazy," Matcha Milk Green shrugged.

Good grief.

Interested, Druid glanced at Annie, who was still unconscious, then said, "Where are they? I want to see this."

So, they took a taxi to the district, just as Matcha Milk Green described, a noticeably poorer area. Strangely, it was crowded today, even with well-dressed 'upper-class' people clearly not from the neighborhood.

The crowd was intensely focused, listening to something. As Druid and Black Cat approached, the voice grew louder.

"Do you know why those monsters appeared? It’s because God couldn't bear humanity's sins any longer and punished the people of Arkham City!"

The speaker was a man of average appearance but with an indescribable charisma, his game ID being [God Among Us]. He stood in the center of the crowd, arms spread, his speech full of passion.

"Nonsense!" someone in the crowd said tearfully, "How could God do such a thing?"

"Why wouldn’t He? Isn't it recorded in the Bible that Jehovah, unable to bear humanity's sins, flooded the earth, destroying all living creatures?" [God Among Us] said.

Without waiting for a response, he continued:

"If you really had no objections to this outcome, you wouldn't be here now. So, I ask you, why can't you accept the death of your loved ones, friends, or the consolation offered by priests in churches?"

"Because of guilt, regret, sorrow, sadness, despair, because you see no hope in life, because you constantly question yourself why it was you who survived."

The crowd was eerily silent. [God Among Us] looked into everyone's eyes, speaking slowly and deliberately, "I’ll tell you why. Because you, all of you, are just pitifully fortunate, nothing more."

"What, did you think I would tell you that it's because you are chosen like Noah to board the ark? That I would feed you the same lies these religious people use to deceive?"

Druid, Black Cat: ...

Isn't he criticizing himself as well?

"Ask yourselves, if you truly believed the consolations of the priests, you wouldn't be standing here now. Why? Because your hearts are filled with confusion. If everyone is sinful, why is it so unfair that only Arkham City is struck with this calamity? If God is truly omnipotent and omniscient, why can't He precisely destroy only the truly guilty? If He is truly all-powerful, why choose the worst way to correct humanity's mistakes!"

Player Channel:

Druid: "Why does he keep dissing God?"

Matcha Milk Green: "It’s because he's accurately targeting his audience. Don't think these people gathered here by chance; they are either plants or players who were Christians but now have wavering faith."

Black Cat: "So, you mean to say..."

Matcha Milk Green: "Exactly, he's undermining God’s influence. But don’t worry, he does it equally to all churches. It just so happens this group is Christian. The last group was Zoroastrian."

The player on the stage continued his impassioned speech. Through his words and interactions with plants in the crowd, Druid and Black Cat watched as the believers' eyes filled with doubt. Some covered their faces, others looked angry and sorrowful, clearly emotionally stirred by the man on stage.

In this special time of wavering hearts and shattered worldviews, [God Among Us] was a masterclass in seizing the moment and infiltrating minds, so adept that Black Cat couldn’t help asking, "Isn’t he some sort of MLM leader in real life?"

Matcha Milk Green glanced at him: "Apparently, he didn't choose speech or persuasion skills, just charisma and evasion."

Druid: "...Sss, no wonder this guy feels so contradictory. Wait, you mean to say he’s this persuasive in reality too??"

The visage of the God Amongst Men was such that he wouldn’t attract a second glance in a crowd, suggesting he didn’t invest much in appearance points. However, when he stood at the podium, he exuded a charisma that made it impossible for others to look away, capturing everyone's attention.

Moreover, his public speaking skills were notably polished, evidently honed from years of experience on the podium.

Seeing the timing was right, God Amongst Men pulled out a red leather-bound holy text, “I solemnly introduce to all, our true savior and Heavenly Father, the Redeemer of Akam, rejoice, for the great Shepherd has returned from death.”

Having said that, he opened the first page of the holy text, “All of this begins with a distant legend. My Lord was born from the forest and nature, a precious gem nurtured by heaven and earth, possessing a countenance beyond worldly beauty and a heart of benevolence and kindness. He sees all creatures of the forest as equal and friendly...”

Ahhhhhh, stop talking, please stopppp!

Upon witnessing this scene, Lann wished he could descend just to cover the mouth of God Amongst Men, or perhaps temporarily lose his hearing or memory, to avoid this embarrassing situation.

Mainly because God Amongst Men's adulation was too forced, like a middle schooler's Mary Sue fan fiction, yet he seemed completely unembarrassed, speaking with resounding conviction, oblivious to the discomfort of the audience and the subject.

“Holiness and nobility are virtues naturally engraved in His heart, innocence and wildness are His characteristics as a Beast God...”

Lann’s toes were already curling in his throne, and to prevent himself from exploding on the spot, he maintained his last will and turned off the forum live stream.

No, this can’t be!

He must find out what exactly is going on!

Lann quickly contacted Carmen, thankfully due to Carmen's habit of praying in the morning, afternoon, and evening, he managed to reach him swiftly.

“Carmen, what's the deal with the holy text?”

Carmen paused, "I haven't finished compiling the holy text yet. How did you know about it?"

Lanen relayed to Carmen the news of players using the unfinished scripture for preaching outside. Carmen's mouth hung open, and after a long pause, he stuttered, "I, I've been busy welcoming new members to the faith and compiling the scripture. Sometimes the believers would come asking about it, so I showed them and even took some of their suggestions into consideration."

Who would have thought that these people would take the unfinished scripture and go out to preach – no, proselytize!

Carmen was near tears, mainly because he hadn't expected Lanen to find out about this. He had planned to perfectly complete the scripture before telling Lanen. qwq

More importantly, the scripture was still a work in progress. How could they use something that hadn’t been reviewed by Lanen for preaching? It was utterly absurd.

"I'm truly sorry, Lord Lanen. I'll go stop them right away," Carmen immediately set off for that district.

Lanen breathed a sigh of relief. Thankfully, Carmen was still reliable.

Meanwhile, when Carmen arrived at the district and headed straight to where [God Among Us] was speaking, the audience had changed. Black Cat and the others were snacking on seeds and watching the spectacle when they saw Carmen storm up to [God Among Us], visibly furious.

Seeing Carmen, [God Among Us] remained calm and even made a ‘wait a moment’ gesture, indicating he was busy.

Carmen, holding back his anger, whispered in his ear, "What exactly are you doing? If I remember correctly, lending you the scripture was for feedback, not for you to publicize it extensively."

"What nonsense are you talking about?" [God Among Us] didn’t panic but looked at Carmen in surprise, "As a believer, isn’t preaching our inherent mission? And isn’t the purpose of the scripture for preaching?"

"That's true, but the scripture isn’t completed yet!"

"Ah, that’s where you're wrong, Mr. Carmen," [God Among Us] sighed deeply, "The wisdom of the ancients tells us that practice brings true knowledge. If the scripture's purpose is to better convey our Lord's great works to the faithful, how can we work in isolation, ignoring the actual needs of the believers?"

"…?" Carmen looked at him bewildered.

"Mr. Carmen, did you attend university?"

"No, our knowledge has been passed down through generations."

"That explains why you're unaware," [God Among Us] sighed deeply, "Modern preaching is about evolving with the times. To effectively preach, we must ground our approach in reality. The best scripture not only conveys God's will but also continually develops new doctrines. Only evolving doctrines are truly correct. Only teachings derived from practice can captivate the faithful. If you don't believe me, wait and see the results of my work."

Carmen, highly skeptical but unable to think of a counterargument, could only sit silently among the audience.

Then, he watched as the people around him seemed genuinely captivated by [God Among Us]'s preaching style, enamored and fanatical.

Carmen: ...?

How could this be?

Could it be that he was really wrong?

Carmen couldn't help but fall into deep contemplation.

After converting a new group of followers, [God Among Us] approached Carmen confidently: "Priest, what do you think of this approach?"

Carmen was still conflicted: "But, I wonder if the Lord would be displeased, and the wording of this scripture is too...” too straightforward.

"Why would He be? The Lord's heart is so broad, He wouldn’t be upset over our minor changes. On the contrary, if we successfully attract more believers with the best scripture adapted from practice, our Lord would surely be pleased. Moreover, scriptures of various churches are becoming increasingly straightforward, otherwise how to attract more followers? The polished version only needs to maintain its prestige, while the preaching version can openly proclaim His greatness to the masses. You've seen the effect," [God Among Us] spoke gently, "Don't you want to share His burdens?"

These words struck a chord with Carmen. The once indignantly determined Carmen left with a face full of life’s uncertainties.

After their discussion, Black Cat, unable to contain his curiosity, approached: "Brother, did you receive a similar mission?"

"Not at all," [God Among Us] replied, "I just noticed your discussion on the forum and found preaching quite intriguing, so I gave it a try... Ah, this feeling of standing on a stage, it’s been a while. This game, acclaimed for its high degree of freedom, truly satisfies any player’s needs."

Black Cat: ?

"If I may ask, brother, what do you do in real life?"

[God Among Us] smiled mysteriously: "Don’t worry, it's nothing illegal."

"Darn, that makes him even more intriguing!"

Black Cat wasn't the only one thinking this. Lanen, after watching the live stream, especially witnessing Carmen’s return, was utterly baffled.

"Wait a minute, get this guy out of here! Where are the cyber police? What about the laws against cyber MLMs? Just because it's in a game doesn't mean he should get away with this!"

Just as Lanen was about to 'descend a divine decree' to remind Carmen that he was being deceived, suddenly, he heard a prayer.

It seemed to be coming from Edmund.

"My Lord, please forgive my impromptu intrusion," Edmund spoke gently, "I have an urgent matter to report to you."

An urgent matter?

Lanen immediately put the scripture issue aside, focusing on connecting with Edmund.

"What's the matter?"

"Actually, over here..." Edmund recounted recent events, particularly about Destiny in Me and his group.

Lanen listened intently, his expression growing increasingly grave as Edmund narrated.

While he knew players joining the Inspection Bureau was inevitable, he hadn’t expected it to happen so quickly, even with his intervention…

"Did they mention my identity?" Lanen asked.

"Uh, no, actually, the Inspection Bureau here doesn't seem to believe them," Edmund said, then realizing the implication of Lanen's question, "...You mean they might know your identity?"

"Don't worry, they only know one of my identities," Lanen thought, relieved that his previous misdirection to Black Cat was effective; at least the players who joined the Inspection Bureau weren't sure if he was the Gatekeeper.

"So, they still pose a threat to you," Edmund's voice deepened.

"And to you as well," Lanen sighed, "They know your identity and that of Archie. I was negligent. Edmund, your identity might already be compromised. Leave that place immediately."

"But if I leave, it will certainly draw their attention. They'll tell the Inspection Bureau about your identity! And my fleeing will only prove their point!"

"Your safety is what's most important right now," Lanen disagreed, but curiously, there was no immediate response from Edmund.

"Edmund?"

Edmund's hands, hanging by his sides, slowly clenched into fists.

He looked down at his reflection in the bathroom mirror; the reflection stared back at him, slowly breaking into a deranged smile.

"It's okay, I'll handle them."

Lanen paused, "Edmund?"

The voice sounded different from Edmund's usual tone, sharper and more bizarre.

"My dear lord, don’t worry," the clown spoke, his tongue playfully clicking against the roof of his mouth, his expression manically gleeful, "I will dispel the Inspection Bureau's suspicions and then, in the most reasonable way, make them forever silent."

"Please excuse me for a while."