Chapter 35 She actually started preaching to another evil god while traveling with him…
"Xiao Wu, you're here!"
Upon catching a glimpse of the Dongshi afternoon controlled by Du Yu, the stiffness on the woman's face did not disappear; a strange ecstasy spread across her pale face. The lights suddenly went out, and her brown eyes shone extraordinarily in the darkness.
Du Yu narrowed his eyes, walked towards the woman, placed one hand on the table, leaned forward slightly, and looked down at the seated woman with a half-smile on his face:
"Who are you?"
"Xiao Wu, I've found a solution..."
The woman excitedly grasped Du Yu's wrist, her joyful words trailing off as she seemed to realize the unusual nature of his reaction. She paused, almost mechanically, her neck arching slightly upwards, her voice still carrying a hint of grievance:
"Didn't we meet just a few days ago? Don't you recognize me? I'm Xiao Jiu! Didn't you used to joke that we were the two of us, the Supreme Emperors?"
Ignoring Dong Shijiu's stiff expression and just listening to the grievance in his voice, Du Yu couldn't find anything unusual. But why would a dead person arrange to meet another dead person at a bar?
That's right, the invitation that Du Yu just received on the computer came from Dong Shijiu, who had a stiff face and a wronged voice—a dead man!
If there was even a slight chance that Dong Shiwu's overdose of hallucinogens could have been discovered and rescued in time, in Dong Shiwu's mind, Dong Shijiu was definitely going to die!
Her problems were far more serious than Dong Shiwu's. If Dong Shiwu was driven to death by heavy debt and mental despair, Dong Shijiu was purely worn down by her physical health.
She worked in the factory for twenty years. In order to get a performance-based loan, she replaced both of her hands with prosthetics. Before she could pay off the debt for the prosthetics, she lost her left eye and a small part of the back of her head at work. Because she did not receive timely treatment, she suffered serious sequelae.
She was seriously injured in a subsequent accident, becoming almost completely paralyzed. The prosthetic body she had previously replaced was severely damaged in the accident and was almost unusable.
When Dong Shiwu met her, she was struggling to pay exorbitant medical bills. Even Dr. Li, who was in charge of human experiments, looked down on her and rejected her application. She was desperate and even her last dose of nutrient solution was provided by Dong Shiwu.
In fact, the final straw that broke Dong Shiwu's back was her conversation in Dong Shijiu's apartment.
The two talked about the past twenty years. When Dong Shiwu left, Dong Shijiu was barely breathing and had begun to have a final burst of energy before death. If it weren't for the arrival of a top-notch medical team from Shangcheng, how could Dong Shijiu be sitting here talking to himself?
"Oh right, I forgot."
Dong Shijiu withdrew his hand, smiled brightly, and the stiff expression on his face became much more natural. "The miracle is right before our eyes. Mortals will naturally be surprised and suspicious. You have not seen the glory of my god, so of course you will doubt me."
"My god?"
Du Yu keenly caught the keyword, and his expression turned strange.
Dong Shijiu didn't notice Du Yu's unusual reaction. He pulled Du Yu down to sit, quietly leaned close to her ear, raised his wine glass, and whispered:
"Yes, I have been deceived and stupid for the past thirty years, but my God did not despise me. On the contrary, He has been merciful and generous in bestowing miracles and healing my flesh and blood."
Du Yu's pupils contracted slightly, not because of the evil god mentioned in Dong Shijiu's words, but because of the hand holding the wine glass.
The fingers are slightly thick, the joints are protruding, and calluses are faintly visible on the fingertips. This is a normal pair of ordinary worker's hands, not the blue bionic hands that had oozed subcutaneous fluid and lost their biomimetic function a few days ago!
Dong Shi Jiu's hand is back!
Even disregarding funding, given the medical standards of the City of the Sun, limb regeneration is a major surgery that takes several months to complete. How could Dong Shijiu possibly recover in just a few days?
Not only his hands, but Du Yu's gaze swept over them, and all of Dong Shijiu's old injuries—eyes, burns, old scars—disappeared!
This is something even the top medical team in the City of the Sun couldn't do!
Seeing that Du Yu understood, Dong Shijiu sat back down with satisfaction, raised his chin, and said, "This is all thanks to my God! Xiao Wu, don't listen to those vampires in the council. This is all their jealousy and slander of my God! This city is beyond saving. Only faith in my God is the only salvation."
At the end, Dong Shijiu suddenly stood up, crossed his arms over his shoulders, made a gesture of hugging himself, closed his eyes, and a sweet smile as if he were fast asleep appeared on his lips.
Fortunately, amidst the chaotic dance of demons around them, Dong Shijiu's movements weren't too abrupt. Du Yu's eyes were strange; she finally understood why Dong Shijiu had summoned her—she wanted to drag her into the evil god's cult!
Du Yu's lips twitched. Does your god know how hard you've been trying to spread your religion to another evil god?
Feeling uneasy, Du Yu suddenly stood up, grabbed Dong Shijiu's hand, his gaze intense, and his voice choked with emotion: "Since that's the case, I won't pretend anymore. Xiao Jiu, I'm here today with a mission from my master!"
"This city is full of traitors; only my Lord will bring ultimate salvation."
Dong Shijiu seemed completely bewildered. Du Yu's reaction was wrong. How could someone be proselytizing to a cultist and then pull out another evil god?
Dong Shijiu stared blankly for a few seconds, like an overloaded machine, before finally snapping out of a rage like a stray dog whose tail had been stepped on:
"Nonsense, all nonsense! Human life is full of suffering, only in Paradise can there be true joy, and only our God is the one and only God. Little Wu, don't be fooled by the evil god!"
"Oh? Is that so?"
Du Yu hesitated for a moment, "The one I worship is the Great Listener, which sounds very powerful. Xiao Jiu, who do you worship?"
Upon hearing this, Dong Shijiu's anger subsided slightly, and the restless struggle in the shadows behind him also calmed down. His eyes darted around, and he remained frozen for a few seconds before sitting down, the fanaticism in his expression diminishing somewhat.
"'Lord of Listening'? I've never even heard of that name. Who knows who made it up to scam people out of money? Xiao Wu, don't be fooled."
Dong Shijiu stared intently at Du Yu, her voice low. Although her tone hadn't changed, her voice sounded strangely pleasant, almost like she was humming as she spoke.
“The name of a god should not be spoken lightly. I will only say it once, Xiao Wu, you must listen carefully—my god is named [Mi Mi Yin].
"Decadent music?"
This time, Du Yu didn't need to pretend; she genuinely had never heard of this name before.
"Hmph, the council's lackeys keep blocking information and hunting down my god's devout followers. It's understandable that you haven't heard of my god's name, but now the only path back to paradise has been revealed. Are you still going to remain obstinate?"
Seeing Du Yu hesitate, Dong Shijiu's voice was tinged with a hint of irritation: "Xiao Wu, you're my best friend, that's why I'm here to advise you. Others want to pay homage to my god..."
"Xiao Jiu, I believe you."
The woman sitting in front of her interrupted her, swallowed hard, and seemed to be facing a dilemma, her voice hesitant: "But the people at the Church of the Lord of Listening said that if you join them, you can get three hundred credits every month..."
"This scam is so old-fashioned! Why don't they give you some eggs?"
Dong Shijiu slammed his fist on the table in exasperation and sneered, "Giving out money every month is nothing. Xiao Wu, if you join us, we can even help you settle your five million credit points debt..."
"Really?!"
The woman's hesitant eyes suddenly lit up. She leaned forward urgently and grabbed Dong Shijiu's hand as if it were a lifeline: "Xiao Jiu, I'm willing! I'm willing to join! Let me join!"
Dong Shijiu was choked before she could finish speaking. Du Yu swept away her previous hesitation, her eyes filled with joy. Her voice inexplicably lowered, and she didn't know why she felt like she had been tricked.
Dong Shijiu asked hesitantly, "Then... what about that Lord of Listening you worship?"
"What is that? How can it compare to five million credits! Xiao Jiu, I'll join now, where do I collect the five million?"
Dong Shijiu was almost overwhelmed by Du Yu's enthusiasm. She tried to pull her hand away, but couldn't. Suppressing the strange feeling welling up inside her, she lowered her voice:
"Alright, Xiao Wu, you are now a believer of our God! Our God's grace is impartial and will not let down any believer... However, since you have just joined, you still need to prove your piety to our God."
Du Yu had already started searching for Dong Shiwu's payment QR code, but when she heard the second half of Dong Shijiu's sentence, which showed a change in tone, she stopped listlessly, put her left leg across her knee, and clicked her tongue in her mind.
Pshaw, that's just empty promises. They're all evil gods, so why is Mimi Yin so rich?
Dong Shijiu seemed unable to sit still under Du Yu's questioning gaze. She watched as Du Yu finished reciting Mimi Yin's prayer, hesitated while stroking her wine glass, and then gritted her teeth and made a decision, "My god will reward your piety, Xiao Wu, wait for me a moment."
After the prayer was recited, the spirits within the container stirred. Du Yu suddenly sensed that something enormous seemed to be watching over them from the invisible void, a gaze that felt tangible and attracted/tempted the spirits.
However, without Du Yu suppressing it, the spirit stirred a few times and then stopped moving, as if it lazily greeted the invisible being and continued to lie down.
In Du Yu's perception, that gaze paused for a few seconds, seemingly looking back and forth several times with great surprise, before disappearing unwillingly after gaining nothing.
It seems that one evil god will not become a follower of another evil god.
Du Yu's small experiment quickly yielded results. As she watched Dong Shijiu's figure disappear into an office on the third floor, she made up her mind.
It seems that their choice of this bar was not accidental. Even if it wasn't their gathering place, it provided them with some cover.
His gaze swept over the few people who had been staring at them, and he shook his head inwardly.
It's said that the moment a person believes in an evil god, their mind is warped, and becoming unrecognizable even to their own family is an understatement. If it had been Dong Shiwu instead of Du Yu who came today, she might not have been able to leave this bar after refusing Dong Shijiu's proselytizing.
After all, it's quite common for someone to disappear here.
"Hey, what are you doing here?"
A short figure emerged from the restroom, nearly stepping on a tattered green slipper before realizing what was underfoot.
Ji Xiangbiao chuckled at the green slipper, pulled up his pants, stared at Du Yu sitting in his seat for a few seconds, and waved his hand, "This is not a place for you. If you don't want to die, get lost."
Du Yu quickly noticed the apprehension in the girl's eyes, and swirled the wine glass in his hand. "I made an appointment with a friend, but she had something come up."
"friend?"
The girl glanced down at the two glasses of wine on the table, her shoulders twitching. She let out a sneer, "The friend who pushed you into the fire?"
It seemed that giving the advice had exhausted all the girl's patience. She looked at Du Yu as if she were dead, patted her on the shoulder, and said, "Be more careful next time."
Du Yu swirled the foamy wine in his glass, the liquid rising and falling with the small vortex in the center. It seemed that quite a few people knew this was the hideout of Mimi Yin.
"Xiao Wu, I'm back!"
Dong Shijiu hurried down carrying two file folders, chin raised, as proud as if standing on an award podium: "These contain your mission. Only by completing our god's test can you truly join us, but..."
She raised her chin even higher, and Du Yu immediately pressed her for an answer. Dong Shijiu handed Du Yu a thick folder and pointed to it: "Although your request can only be fulfilled after the mission is completed, I know your situation. Inside is the operation fund that I specially applied for for you from His Holiness the Bishop."
Du Yu pulled out five credit cards, each worth 10,000 yuan, from the folder and nodded in satisfaction. Although five million was still just a pie in the sky, it was still equivalent to ten months of Dong Shiwu's salary.
She took back her points card, flipped through the documents inside—mostly professional topographic maps and several distribution maps—and asked faithfully, "I, Dong Shiwu, will definitely complete the mission—what does my god need me to do?"
Dong Shijiu was very satisfied with Du Yu's loyalty. She gestured for Du Yu to put away the folder, pulled out a piece of paper from the thin folder, and pushed it to Du Yu: "Your mission information is in there. This is your mission objective..."
Du Yu's gaze fell on the drawing on the paper. He looked puzzled, but was slightly startled. This evil god church that had appeared out of nowhere was also looking for the Holy Grail!
The paper clearly depicted an ancient-looking metal cup, with mysterious patterns engraved on its surface, patterns that Du Yu had seen on the fragments of the Holy Grail.
No one knows who painted this picture. Although all that was placed in front of Du Yu was a piece of paper, Du Yu seemed to be able to vaguely see the ancient holy chalice that was an arm's length long, and even vaguely sense the mysterious aura surrounding the chalice.
"Don't look at this too much. Just remember this."
Once Dong Shijiu was certain that Du Yu had memorized the drawing, he immediately put the drawing back into his bag as if it were a hot potato, and the faintly emanating sacred aura disappeared.
"Don't worry, I will definitely try my best to find this thing."
Dong Shijiu was moved by Du Yu's sincerity and nodded in satisfaction. God had given her the ability to discern people's hearts, and she could sense that Du Yu was speaking her true feelings at this moment.
"Work hard! The church is in dire need of manpower right now. If you really find this thing, God might reward you with the position of bishop!"
...
"Knock knock knock".
Night had fallen, and the moonlight was hazy. This place was located on the edge of the entire lower city, where the gray fog was almost visible to the naked eye. Even the drunkards on Paradise Street wouldn't get lost here, yet someone was knocking on the door of this small clinic.
"who?"
Cat Whiskers was startled. Her mental energy had already passed through the door, and she was ready to attack. If the other party was sent by the enemy to investigate, she was confident that she could knock them unconscious with a sneak attack.
The newcomer wasn't dressed like an enemy; his oversized red T-shirt looked as dull as dried blood in the deep night. A smile suddenly appeared on his unremarkable face, as if sensing Cat Whiskers' probing; eight white teeth gleamed coldly in the moonlight.
"Hello, nice to meet you, I am Bishop D."
"Bang!"
A muffled thud, like a gun hitting metal, came from behind the door, followed by a series of panicked and bewildered shouts.
Du Yu crossed his arms and looked around at the unremarkable black clinic in front of him. After more than ten minutes, the door finally opened.
The door closed behind him with a crisp "click." Du Yu nestled comfortably in the beanbag chair in the reception room, his face resting on a cushion, looking at the little girl opposite him who looked wary and had a large bump on her forehead for some reason.
"...How do you prove it?"
The other party seemed to have finally recovered from the extreme shock. Several gazes scrutinized him up and down, but Du Yu seemed not to notice. He stretched out his hand, palm up, and a cluster of purple flames happily burned around it before reluctantly disappearing.
Another silence fell over the reception room; nothing could better prove Du Yu's identity than this.
Cat Whiskers fidgeted restlessly in the silence, and spoke as if facing a formidable enemy. He was startled by the hoarseness in his voice as soon as he spoke:
"I wonder what you need us to do for you today?"
Even on the day he prayed to the evil god, knowing that his soul, memories, body, and everything else did not belong to him, Cat Whiskers was startled when that being's retinue, without warning, knew his whereabouts and appeared before him.
The cold reality, suppressed by those seemingly frivolous offerings, was so strong that it was impossible to ignore. She was finally forced to raise her head and face it head-on, personally shattering the false peace and stability that had been so precarious.
How can one harbor any illusions when trying to negotiate with a tiger for its skin?
Her gaze swept over the surprised and somber faces in the room, and her expression quickly returned to calm. "Qiuqiu stays. Everyone else, go do what you're supposed to do."
Years of leadership had instilled a sense of authority in everyone, who subconsciously obeyed. Cat Whiskers clenched the cold sweat in his palms, sat up straight, and looked at the unseemly messenger of the evil god.
Du Yu saw the undercurrents before her eyes. She was used to being unrestrained in the wasteland. Even if she could put on airs like a big shot, she was too lazy to bother. She didn't need any loyalty.
Only when interests move people's hearts can the relationship between God and man be one where each gets what they need, which is the most suitable relationship at present.
She sank deeper into the sofa, glancing at the two men who looked like they were facing a formidable enemy, and said with a smirk, "Don't be nervous, I'm just here to ask a question: Do you want revenge?"
"What's the meaning?"
The girl paused, her face showing a seriousness and wariness far beyond her years, unsure of what the other person meant.
The pirate crew she had poured so much energy and effort into was now almost completely destroyed. How could she not hate it? How could she not want revenge?
But the first thing she said when she came to my door was revenge… Was she willing to help me? Or was this the will of the person behind it all? And what price could I possibly pay?
You should know that, right?
Du Yu chuckled lightly, not giving Cat Beard too much time to doubt and suspect, "The destruction of the pirate group was not only the work of the Gentlemen's Association, but also the shadow of the financial magnates."
In the information age, there are no secrets. The destruction of the Catbeard Pirate Gang was a major news story in the Lower City, and even Dong Shiwu, who didn't have much time for entertainment, had heard about it.
Combining the information available to the public, and with what he learned from Cat Beard, Du Yu could easily deduce that the destruction of the pirate crew was not merely a matter of gang warfare.
Cat Whiskers clenched her fist on her knee, the veins on the back of her hand bulging for a moment. Of course she knew what the Bishop D was saying; she even knew more.
Otherwise, the first thing she would have done upon returning would not have been to remain patient, instead of using her A-level ability to cause trouble for the bald men in the Bald Men's Association.
In the Lower City, the most well-known members of the Hunter's Guild are their pirate crew, along with the Bald Guys' Gang and Black Hawk's group of charlatans. Although the pirate crew is the smallest in size, it is not weak.
If it weren't for the concerns of the tycoons who support those bald men, how could she have tolerated them until now?
Du Yu observed her behavior and said, "We have the same goal, we have a common enemy, don't we?"
"...What price do I need to pay?"
Cat Whiskers slowly lowered her head. She admitted that she had wavered in the face of the evil god's temptation. In the days since her return, a familiar face had appeared in her dreams every night. How could she not hate it? Even if it meant sacrificing herself...
"No, no, no, don't say that."
Du Yu shook his head, put down the cushion in his hand, and sat up straight, which was rare for him. "You have just entered into the Lord's embrace and have not yet heard the Lord's teachings. We don't care about any price."
Cat Whiskers stared wide-eyed at the middle-aged woman opposite him who claimed to be Bishop D. Her expression seemed genuine, and she uttered something even more unbelievable:
"Offering a price and waiting for God's promise is too outdated! You might as well think of it as a transaction. God will put a price on what you want. If you can afford it, you can buy it. If you don't want to buy it, you can talk about it next time. Even if the deal doesn't go through, we can still be on good terms."
Even Wenren Qiu, who was usually calm and composed, was taken aback by the other party's words. Such remarks would be considered blasphemous even among cult members.
If you view God's gifts and tasks as a transaction, then what do you see God as? A company boss who can outwardly comply but inwardly defy, and slack off on assigned tasks?
Is this person really proselytizing? Does she even know what she's saying?
"What good would it do God to turn you all into slaves who obey His every word?"
The other party seemed to realize his doubts and shook his head. "Slaves have to be responsible for their food, drink and excrement, while employees have much simpler responsibilities... It's already the 301st year of the new calendar, it's time to adopt some capitalism."
Cat Whiskers' heart pounded in shock at the other person's ramblings, but a secret hope also arose within her. She steadied herself and tentatively asked, "If I want the Light... Gentleman Society to perish, what do I need to pay?"
The woman opposite him had a look of smug satisfaction, like a fish that had taken the bait. A purple fire seemed to burn in her ordinary eyes. She snapped her fingers, revealing an approving expression.
"That's more like it."
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Author's Note: Facing her followers, Dudu said: I don't need loyalty.
When facing her competitors, Dudu said: I am extremely loyal!
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