Chapter 25: Believers Surge in Numbers, Personal Mission IV Complete
"Human Warriors?"
"Heh heh heh——"
"I love eating Human Warriors the most — they're chewy, and their blood and qi are so rich."
"Let me count——"
"One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine——"
"So many Human Warriors?"
"Looks like I'll be eating well for quite a few meals. There's even a peak first-grade Human Warrior among them..."
The enormous fox demon licked its lips, its fox-like face filled with naked greed.
Its dim-witted brain couldn't quite count exactly how many Human Warriors stood before it.
But one glance told it there were a lot.
Grab them all!
These were the finest two-legged sheep!
A ferocious snarl spread across its fox face. The demonic aura surging from its body instantly transformed into blood-red ropes, shooting out to bind Li Youming and the others.
"Demon, you court death."
A flash of killing intent crossed Li Youming's eyes.
The 'qi' within his body surged to life at once.
A vast amount of qi circulated in a specific pattern, and in the blink of an eye, a swirling white cloud mist formed before him.
The white cloud mist billowed and churned, blocking every one of the blood-red ropes.
The blood-red ropes plunged into the white cloud mist and could not pass through.
And in the next moment——
Li Youming extended a finger and pointed.
A massive golden blade blazing with rich golden radiance materialized from thin air, flashing forward to slash into the fox demon!
"Ahhh——!"
The fox demon shrieked. One of its arms was severed, blood gushing freely.
And in the very next instant——
A full five golden blades hung in the air, transforming into five streaks of golden light that struck relentlessly at the fox demon's neck!
The fox demon exerted every ounce of its strength, using its demonic aura to resist.
But the golden blades were razor-sharp, and the five strikes came in an unbroken chain — the demonic aura simply could not hold them back!
In just a single flash.
The fox demon's neck was severed, and its head tumbled to the ground!
Scalding demonic blood sprayed across the earth. The headless corpse stood in place for a moment before collapsing.
Staring at the fox demon's corpse on the ground, the two elders who had collapsed in terror were frozen in place.
They could not believe their eyes.
The fox demon was dead?
Right before their eyes, someone had killed it?
Both men stared in a daze.
"Fellow villagers!"
"I have slain the fox demon!"
"But this land is overrun with demons and monsters. Come with me to Four Seas Village at once — there, you will be sheltered by the Ordained Earth God, and you need never again fear becoming food for demons!"
"Settle in Four Seas Village, and every household will receive a home. Every person will receive five pounds of meat and one hundred pounds of grain!"
Li Youming declared in a steady, resonant voice.
Bolstered by the 'qi' within his body, his voice carried throughout the entire fox village.
The villagers who had been cowering and trembling inside their homes were startled.
What?
The fox demon had already been slain?
Had they heard correctly?
He was actually saying he had killed that terrifyingly powerful fox demon?!
Gradually——
People peered through the cracks in their walls and caught sight of the enormous fox demon's corpse lying on the ground. Every single one of them stared with wide, disbelieving eyes.
The fox demon was truly dead?
The bolder villagers had already rushed outside. Gazing at the undeniably real fox demon corpse before them, they wept tears of joy:
"The fox demon is really dead!"
More and more villagers emerged.
In the end, every last villager gathered around, staring at the fox demon's corpse with overwhelming emotion. Nearly all of them shed tears.
Their loved ones had been devoured by the fox demon.
Now that the fox demon was slain, the blood debt for their kin was repaid!
"Benefactor!"
"Please accept this old one's bow!"
The elder who had come out first bowed tremblingly toward Li Youming, his voice choked with grief:
"My three sons, one daughter, two daughters-in-law, and four grandchildren — all of them were eaten by the fox demon!"
"Benefactor, you have slain the fox demon. This old one has nothing with which to repay you, but I vow to repay your kindness in the next life, even if I must return as a blade of grass or a ring in your mouth!"
Every villager knelt before Li Youming, overcome with gratitude.
"Fellow villagers."
"Pack your things right away. I will take you out of here immediately."
"If you remain here, you will surely become prey for other demons!"
Li Youming helped the elder to his feet and spoke in a firm voice.
Everyone nodded eagerly.
To be able to leave this place — they could ask for nothing more!
And with such a powerful benefactor to protect them, perhaps their days ahead would finally hold some hope!
By evening.
Li Youming led the large group of fox village survivors back to Four Seas Village at last.
Seeing wolf meat hanging at the doorways of every household, all the fox village survivors could scarcely believe their eyes.
The people of Four Seas Village — every single household had meat to eat?
What kind of blessed life was this?
They had long since forgotten how many years it had been since they last tasted even a scrap of meat.
They had smelled it, of course.
But that had always been the fox demon eating people!
"Chen Mazi, register and record them all."
"Liao Jinxian, assign them their homes, meat, and grain."
"For those who are alone with no family, arrange four people to a house."
Li Youming gave his instructions.
The fox village survivors numbered one hundred and twelve in total.
Among them, only three were elderly, and only six were children.
The rest were able-bodied men and women in their prime.
So few elders——
Naturally, because that brutal existence made it nearly impossible to survive to old age.
So few children——
That was a matter of the fox demon's particular tastes.
"Rest tonight. Tomorrow, bring them to the Land God Shrine to offer incense!"
"Zhang Ronggui, you're in charge of that."
Li Youming continued issuing orders.
The others accepted their assignments and immediately set to work.
The Four Seas Village residents stood nearby, curious, offering warm and friendly smiles to the somewhat timid fox village survivors.
For the fox village survivors, everything here gave them a dreamlike feeling.
Bathing?
In the fox village, only those who were about to be eaten the next day were ever allowed to bathe.
Eating meat?
Eating their fill?
Wearing clothes that actually covered their bodies?
These were things they had only ever dreamed of.
And now——
All of it was here.
Many quietly wiped away tears, obediently following along with the arrangements.
* * *
And so, one month passed.
Li Youming had brought back over eleven hundred people in total from the "Land of Demons," and had slain seven demonic beasts.
All of them had only just reached the second-grade level — none were a match for Li Youming.
After all——
He was not a Warrior. He was a Temple Priest consecrated by a god!
The 'qi' within his body allowed him to cast the Minor Golden Blade Art and the Minor Cloud Mist Protection Art.
These two divine arts clearly gave him far greater power against demons than a Warrior of the same level!
* * *
At this moment.
Dawn had barely broken.
A great many Four Seas Village residents had already gathered before the Land God Shrine.
Before the shrine——
A large open area had long since been cleared and leveled.
Whether they were the original villagers from the four merged villages, or the survivors from the Land of Demons who had joined Four Seas Village over the past half-month, all of them now knelt upon the ground.
Everyone quietly offered incense and prayed.
Even the newly arrived survivors from the Land of Demons appeared remarkably devout.
After all——
Their current lives, compared to those days when they never knew which day would be their last before being devoured by a demon, were incomparably better!
And both Temple Priest Li Youming and the original Four Seas Village residents had told them:
All of this was the blessing of Lord Zhangyue.
They had also recounted, with great pride, every miraculous divine event that had taken place in the village.
The stories left the newcomers stunned one after another, and without even realizing it, they too had begun to venerate Lord Zhangyue — and with great sincerity at that.
Within the Divine Domain.
Li Yue gazed at the throngs of villagers kneeling before the Land God Shrine, and a smile touched the corner of his lips.
[Personal Mission IV] had been completed.
The requirement of one thousand five hundred Believers had been met.
"It is time to manifest another divine miracle..."
"Let your faith grow ever more devout."
He murmured softly, his gaze calm and serene.
More than three months had passed since he became a god, and he had fully grown accustomed to this feeling of looking down upon all living beings from on high.