“Your sins are monstrous and your hearts unrepentant. Today, I shall bring down divine punishment to cleanse this world and uphold the Heavenly Dao.”
The clouds above began to churn.
The moon was swallowed whole, and a wild wind surged up from the valley floor, whipping the clothes of everyone present.
The light on the token in the Divine Lady’s palm suddenly exploded, sending a silver-white pillar of light straight into the heavens.
The first bolt of heavenly thunder struck down.
It landed with pinpoint accuracy on the head of a bandit.
It was the very same one who had just raised his blade to strike Gouwa.
He didn’t even have time to let out a scream before his entire body was reduced to a pile of charred ash.
A gust of wind blew, and he was scattered.
The bandits finally broke.
“Divine Lady, have mercy! Have mercy...”
Some threw down their blades and knelt, kowtowing so hard against the stones that their foreheads became a bloody mess.
Some collapsed to the ground, trembling uncontrollably.
Some tried to run, but their legs were as weak as noodles; after crawling a few steps, they could no longer get up.
The second bolt.
It struck the bandit who had tied Gouwa up.
The third bolt. The fourth. The fifth.
Each bolt of heavenly thunder seemed to have eyes of its own, landing squarely on the heads of the bandits without harming a single innocent person.
One by one, the bandits were turned to ash.
“Shouldn't a god have mercy on all living beings?! I am one of those beings too, you cannot kill me!”
“To kill is to protect life; to sever karma is not to kill the person.” The Divine Lady lowered her eyes and whispered, “All is for the sake of the people.”
“You’re no god! I’ll kill you!”
One man tried to resist, raising his blade and charging forward.
But before he could even take three steps, the heavenly thunder fell, turning both the man and his blade into flying ash.
The one-eyed brute was the last one left.
He sat paralyzed on the ground, watching his subordinates vanish one by one before his eyes. The color drained from his face, his crotch was soaked through, and his entire body shook like a leaf.
“Forgive me... I beg of you... forgive me...” His lips quivered violently, his face a mess of tears and snot.
Yun Shu looked at him, her expression completely unmoved.
Men like these who had tasted human flesh could no longer be called human. Leaving them alive would only bring more calamity.
The final bolt of lightning struck down.
The one-eyed brute was instantly turned to ash.
【Wang Er Shock Value +100】
【Li Si Shock Value +100】
【Zhang San Shock Value +100】
【...】
【Current Shock Value: 4750】
The Thunder Decree in Yun Shu’s hand gradually faded away.
The clouds in the sky dispersed, and the moon emerged once more, large and round, bathing the creek valley in silver light.
The old man bowed his head, tremblingly presenting the treasures to Yun Shu with both hands, stammering, “Divine Lady... these... are the ones... you left behind that day...”
“Mundane objects are of no use to me.” Yun Shu swept a cold gaze over them. “You may use them as you see fit.”
“How could we? We don't deserve such a thing. These treasures should be used to build a temple for you, My Lady...”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Yun Shu’s gaze shifted to the refugees kneeling on the ground, their voices overlapping. Her voice was cold, betraying no emotion.
“Did I not say that I require no offerings? Why do you still insist on building a temple for me?”
The refugees looked at one another.
The lingering pressure from those bolts of heavenly thunder had not yet dissipated.
Now that the Divine Lady was questioning them, no one dared to speak, fearing that a single wrong word would incur her displeasure.
And so.
Everyone instinctively turned their gaze toward Shen Yu.
Among them, he was the only scholar. Surely, he would be more eloquent than them.
Shen Yu stood at the edge of the crowd.
His moon-white robes were stained with mud, and his sleeves still bore traces of the yellow clay from when he was plastering the walls earlier.
Feeling the pleading gazes of the crowd, he took a deep breath and stepped forward.
“It was my idea,” he said.
Yun Shu’s gaze moved to Shen Yu.
Those eyes were as clear as a deep pool, devoid of any obvious emotion, simply watching him calmly as she waited for him to continue.
Shen Yu did not avoid her gaze.
This was the first time he was being watched so directly by the Divine Lady. It would be a lie to say he wasn't nervous, but he forced himself to remain calm.
“The matter of building the temple is not because the people wish to use it to constrain you, Divine Lady, but because they are terrified.”
He paused, seemingly weighing his words. “The world is in chaos and the people are suffering. Only by placing their hearts before your divine statue can they find peace in their daily lives. In their desperation, this is their hope for survival.”
After a long silence, she spoke: “Who are you?”
“This humble one is Shen Yu.”
He bowed slightly, his posture composed.
Even covered in mud, he could not hide the innate nobility in his bones. “Merely a scholar.”
The Divine Lady said slowly, “Since you are but a scholar, why do you not seek an official career?”
The moonlight fell upon her brow, cold as frost and snow.
“Attaining a rank might save a hundred or a thousand people, but it cannot save everyone under heaven.” Shen Yu spoke with blunt honesty, “The only one who can save this chaotic world is you, Divine Lady.”
Silence fell for a moment.
The Divine Lady’s long eyelashes lowered slightly. “The affairs of the mortal realm have their own laws of cause and effect, much like a river has its own course. I will not interfere excessively in mortal matters.”
Shen Yu took another step forward and bowed deeply, his posture respectful but not subservient.
“The Divine Lady is wise. I am not asking you to defy heaven and change fate, nor am I begging you to forcibly alter the karma of the world.”
He looked up at the peerless Divine Lady, his eyes as clear as a stream.
“A river has its course, but if the dikes burst and the dams fail, it requires guidance and diversion to protect the lives along its banks.”
The Divine Lady’s eyelashes fluttered slightly. She did not look up, her fingertips lightly twirling a faint wisp of cloud-mist. “The Heavenly Dao cycles, and prosperity and decline have their measures. The end of this chaotic era also has its time.”
“But in this chaotic world, the very foundation of the people's lives has been trampled upon. How can there be any talk of orderly laws?”
“Just as plants grow toward the sun, if a violent storm breaks their stems and destroys their roots, the plants won't even have a chance to grow. How then can they follow the natural cycle of flourishing and withering?”
Shen Yu bowed deeply once more. “I know that the Divine Lady does not wish to interfere with mortal karma, and I would never dare ask you to decide the unification or division of the world. I only pray that the Divine Lady takes pity on the living beings of this world and exerts a small amount of effort to set things right, protecting a sliver of hope for thousands of innocent lives.”
“This is not excessive interference in mortal affairs, but rather upholding the original heart of Heaven and Earth and protecting the righteous path of karma, so that the rivers of the human world may flow back into their proper channels.”
The Divine Lady finally looked up, her gaze as clear and shallow as a cold pond.
“You certainly have a way with words.”
“If you wish to build this temple, then build it.” Her tone was indifferent. “However, there is no need for any incense or offerings.”
“I do not consume such things.”
As soon as she finished speaking, the Divine Lady transformed into a wisp of clear breeze before everyone's eyes, vanishing without a trace.
The crowd was silent for a heartbeat before erupting into a clamor.
“Young Master Shen.”
“Xiao Shen.”
“Young Master...” The refugees surged forward like a tide, surrounding Shen Yu.
Seven or eight pairs of hands grabbed his sleeves at once; some pulled at his arms, others at his hem.
Faces crowded in front of him.
Anxiety, hope, and terror were all jumbled together.
“What did the Divine Lady mean by those words just now? I didn't understand a single thing...”
“Young Master, say something! Is the Divine Lady willing to accept us?”
“Will the Divine Lady appear again?”
The noisy voices flooded his ears, wave after wave.
Shen Yu stood there, his lips parting slightly, but for a moment, he couldn't make a sound.
It was only then that he realized his back was soaked with cold sweat and his palms were slick and clammy.
The spine that had been so straight while arguing before a deity was now feeling a delayed stiffness.
He took a deep breath, slowly relaxed his hands, and looked at the thirsting eyes around him.
“Don’t worry,” he said, his voice a bit lower than usual. “The Divine Lady has likely acknowledged us. From now on, we are all her believers.”
He tried to make his words as simple and easy to understand as possible for the refugees.
“That’s wonderful! That’s wonderful!”
“To think that I could actually become a believer of the Divine Lady... am I dreaming?”
“Quick, quick, everyone put in some effort. We’ll get the Divine Lady Temple built within the next two days.”
Some cried, some laughed.
But without exception, there was light in their eyes.
...
Yun Shu used the System Space to change locations. She collapsed onto a rock, completely discarding her refined image.
She said weakly, “Talking to a pedantic scholar like Shen Yu is exhausting as hell.”
A snow-white fox hopped over to her side. “Host, you are the Divine Lady. How can you use such language?”
“I’m just a fake goddess. It’s enough to put on a front in public; if I kept it up in private, wouldn't I be an idiot?”
Yun Shu turned her head to look at it.
“How much Shock Value do I have now?”
“Host, let me tell you, that last wave alone earned us a full 3,200 Shock Value!”
The little fox’s nine tails wagged excitedly from side to side.
“After deducting the cost of entering the System Space, you have 4,500 Shock Value left!”
Yun Shu rubbed her chin. “System, bring up the prize pool. Let’s go for a ten-pull.”
Rate on N.U.
