Yun Shu looked at the kneeling crowd, her calm gaze sweeping across their soot-stained faces.
Then, she turned her eyes toward the collapsed mine shaft.
If she were a true deity, she would have stood by coldly and refrained from interfering with human life and death to avoid entangling herself in karma.
But her cold exterior was, after all, a disguise. At her core, she was still human, not a god who viewed mortals as ants. How could she not feel anxious in her heart upon seeing people trapped in such misfortune?
She had not expected that even after exploiting a bug to crush and scatter the White Jade Lily of the Valley—which brought good luck—around the mine, such a large-scale collapse would still occur.
This accident had happened far too suddenly.
Just moments ago, she had been at another mine using mine carts and safety lamps to farm Shock Value. If the system's monitoring alarm hadn't gone off, she probably wouldn't have known that someone at No. 7 Mine had struck gas, triggering an explosion that caused the shaft to collapse.
On her way here, she had quickly devised a rescue plan. Before revealing herself, she had used the Mountains and Rivers Map, a formation component of the Mystic Sound of the Nine Heavens Set, to protect the living beings within the mountain.
However...
The protection duration of the Mountains and Rivers Map was not long. She had to pinpoint the exact location of everyone buried inside the shaft to rescue them within the limited time.
That was the difficult part. She had tried using the Eyes of Good and Evil, but it was completely useless since they only worked if she could actually see the target.
The system was helpless as well.
Its monitoring function did not have X-ray vision.
Calm down. Don't panic. Yes, I must stay calm. The more I panic, the messier my thoughts will get, and I won't be able to think of a solution.
Forcing herself to calm down, she suddenly remembered that the Mirror of Retrospection Set had an earring component called the Echo Drop. Its skill allowed her to hear the inner thoughts of others.
Since the Mirror of Retrospection Set had already been upgraded to Level 5, this component's skill had also upgraded from targeting a single individual to targeting an entire area.
With this in mind, she decisively equipped the Echo Drop.
The moment a pair of small, exquisite amethyst earrings appeared on her ears, a cacophony of voices flooded her mind.
“It hurts so much... Save me...”
“I'm here... Help... Save me...”
“The Divine Lady actually came to the mine! Will she save those trapped inside the shaft?”
“Divine Lady... Please manifest your power... Save me... I really don't want to die... My wife and child are still waiting for me to come home...”
“If she interferes, will she be punished?”
“My hand hurts so much... I can't move it at all...”
“Fuyan said that the last time the Divine Lady summoned rain to save people, she was punished by the Heavenly Dao. No, I cannot stand by and watch her suffer heavenly punishment for our sake. Even if I have to bear everyone's curses, I must beg her to think twice. She cannot risk herself...”
“Is this the Divine Lady?”
“What should I do? My legs are so weak. Will the Divine Lady think I'm being arrogant and disrespectful? In the storybooks, when gods meet disrespectful mortals, they wave their sleeves and reincarnate them into pigs.”
“No, please! I don't want to turn into a pig...”
“Is there... Is there anyone who can hear me?”
“It's so dark...”
“Am I going to die...”
Only Yun Shu could hear these thoughts; the system could not.
Therefore, she had to distinguish the voices herself and trace their locations to find the trapped victims.
This was no easy task, but fortunately, she had an excellent memory and had undergone rigorous, multi-dimensional training before working undercover. With the system recording alongside her, she pinpointed all the victims at an unbelievable speed.
Likely due to the lucky effect of the White Jade Lily of the Valley, although those trapped inside the shaft were injured, they were all still alive.
As long as they were pulled out before the Mountains and Rivers Map's skill expired, they would be out of danger.
Now, it was time for her performance.
“I perceive a glimmer of life remaining in those trapped within the shaft,” the Divine Lady said, her eyes cast down with a look of universal compassion. “Whether they live or die depends entirely on your choice.”
Before he could even think, Shen Jue blurted out, “May I ask, Divine Lady, how should we save them?”
The moment the words left his mouth, regret washed over him. What if saving them ended up harming the Divine Lady again?
The Divine Lady gently stroked the cold jade flute in her hand.
“All things have spirits. If you are willing to offer your own merit to the creatures of the mountain to help them reincarnate as humans in their next life, they may be willing to help you rescue the trapped.”
The crowd looked at one another in bewilderment.
Shen Jue kept his head lowered, not daring to look directly at her. “If I may be so bold as to ask one more question... will this matter bring harm to you?”
“You are the ones performing the rescue,” she replied calmly. “This karma will naturally be tied to you, and has nothing to do with me.”
Hearing this, Shen Jue let out a sigh of relief, his anxious heart finally settling back into place.
As long as it wouldn't bring harm to the Divine Lady, then all was well.
With that thought, he bowed respectfully to the ethereal and aloof deity, clasping his hands. “Please guide us, Divine Lady. How do I offer my merit?”
“Consider this carefully,” the Divine Lady said, looking at Shen Jue as she spoke slowly. Her tone was completely devoid of emotion, betraying neither joy nor sorrow.
“No matter how precious merit is, it cannot outweigh human lives!” Shen Jue declared resolutely.
Fang Shuo looked left and right, then timidly raised his hand. “Divine Lady, I am also willing to offer my merit.”
The Divine Lady swept a cool glance over him.
“You have no merit.”
Fang Shuo's cheeks burned hot. “...”
“Dad, save me! This is so embarrassing! I wish a hole would open up in the ground and swallow me whole. If I had known, I wouldn't have tried to copy that tall guy.”
“Should I say something to save face?”
“But I don't even know what to say!”
“Now that I think about it, I really haven't done any good deeds in my life. Fortunately, my family kept a tight leash on me, so I didn't do anything bad either. Otherwise, the Divine Lady would probably call me wicked...”
Yun Shu looked at Fang Shuo's pale face, her ears growing a bit irritated by his overly active inner monologue.
If she didn't still have a use for Fang Shuo later, she would have ordered the invisible system to knock him out with a club.
No one present laughed at Fang Shuo. The miners only wanted to grasp that final sliver of hope to save their loved ones.
“Divine Lady, please save my son! If I have any merit, you can take it all...”
“Please, save my brother...”
“My father is still inside...”
They had given up earlier only because they knew the chances of survival were microscopic.
Now that the Divine Lady had given them a sliver of hope, who among them would willingly watch their family members die?
The Divine Lady raised her hand, bringing the jade flute to her lips.
She closed her eyes and began to play a soft melody.
The sound of the flute was clear and crisp, not overly loud, yet it seemed capable of penetrating solid rock and soil to reach the deepest parts of the earth.
At first, nothing happened.
The crowd had no idea what the Divine Lady was doing.
Suddenly, the ground began to tremble slightly.
A massive woodchuck burrowed its way out of the dirt.
Right after, countless woodchucks popped their heads out from the soil, the grass, and the crevices in the rocks. Shaking the dirt from their plump, round bodies, their bead-like black eyes sparkled as they turned in unison toward the source of the flute music.
At the same time, those who were willing to offer their merit saw specks of golden light begin to float up from their bodies.
Rate on N.U.
