Chapter 172 | Playing Goddess in a Dying Dynasty

A clear, resonant cry of a phoenix echoed through heaven and earth.

It was a phoenix!

Its entire body was covered in crimson feathers like flowing fire, its tail feathers trailing a long rainbow, and every single feather was dazzlingly brilliant.

In the next second, thousands of flower petals materialized out of thin air, pouring down from the clouds tens of thousands of feet high. Crimson as fire and bright as sunset clouds, they drifted down and blanketed the entirety of Xindu City.

A strange, exotic floral fragrance suddenly drifted through the air.

Upon the phoenix's back, the red-robed Divine Lady held a lifelike golden lotus in her arms, her skirts fluttering even without any wind.

Her silver hair was styled into a high, cloud-reaching bun, adorned with a pure gold kingfisher-feather hairpiece set with rubies and a peony-shaped dangle. A few stray locks of hair fell along the sides of her cheeks, complemented by a pair of teardrop-shaped red coral earrings that shimmered with a brilliant luster.

Once the phoenix flew directly over Xindu City.

She leaped down from the phoenix's head, her wide red sleeves unfurling in the wind as flower petals of various colors drifted down around her.

Red, pink, white, and purple—the sky full of falling petals was like a tangible rain, landing on every upturned face.

She walked on the empty air. With every step she took, a golden lotus shimmering with light bloomed out of the void beneath her feet.

Everyone stared up at her, forgetting to breathe.

【Shen Yu Shock Value +100】

【Shen Jue Shock Value +100】

【Pei Wanning Shock Value +100】

【...】

【Current Shock Value: 66550000】

Seeing that she could still harvest several million Shock Value points from the people of Xindu City, Yun Shu suddenly felt they were even easier to reap than chives. But it made sense. The entrance special effects of the Peerless National Beauty Set were indescribably beautiful. Especially after being fully upgraded, the overall color had changed from pink to red. Stepping down from the sky on golden lotuses was incredibly eye-catching.

Seeing the Divine Lady, who had been missing for over half a year, finally descend in her true form, Shen Yu and the others could not help but feel their eyes redden as a light mist gathered in them.

During this period, whenever they had a spare moment, they would silently pray that the Divine Lady, who was being punished in the Deity-Locking Tower, would be safe and sound.

Now, seeing with their own eyes that the Divine Lady was unharmed, their hearts, which had been hanging in suspense all this time, finally settled back into place.

“We welcome the Divine Lady...”

One by one, the commoners lowered their bodies to kneel, not feeling any pain even as their knees struck the gravel.

Children were pressed down by their parents to kneel as well, but they could not help but steal glances at the sky.

The Divine Lady's gaze swept over the soldiers in blood-stained armor standing before the city gates, as well as the elderly, the weak, the women, and the children.

She spoke.

Her voice sounded as if it came from a very distant place, yet it also seemed to ring softly right beside everyone's ears.

“You did not fight for selfish gain, but so that the people of this world may live and work in peace.” Her expression was cold yet compassionate. “Since you fought for peace, every inch of blood-stained earth on the battlefield shall bloom with flowers of peace and bear fruits of victory, bringing a scene of tranquility to this world.”

Before anyone could figure out what the flowers of peace and fruits of victory she spoke of were, they saw an exquisitely beautiful carriage break through the clouds and fly in from the horizon.

Crafted with pure gold as its frame, vermilion silk as its curtains, and hanging tassels adorned with coral beads and pearls, it was incomparably magnificent.

Wherever the wheels passed, glowing clouds paved the way and petals fell like rain.

Taking advantage of everyone being blinded by the upgraded carriage, Yun Shu quickly switched to the Goddess of Harvest Set with extreme speed, and then activated the skill to ripen crops.

She had no other choice.

The skills of the Goddess of Harvest Set could not be used in mid-air like those of the Peerless National Beauty Set. Otherwise, she could have waited until the carriage flew away from Xindu City before changing her outfit and using the skill inside.

While everyone was still unable to open their eyes under the brilliant light, Yun Shu had already switched back to the Peerless National Beauty Set.

The entire process took less than a second.

The invisible system could not help but comment, “Host, with your hand speed, you'd succeed in anything you do. Even if you ended up so destitute that you had to sell sugarcane on the street, you'd peel them faster than anyone else.”

Yun Shu: “...”

Time was tight; she did not have the leisure to banter with the system.

After using the Revitalizing Withered Trees skill of the Peerless National Beauty Set, she flew back onto the carriage under everyone's watchful eyes.

The little fox hurriedly followed her and parted the tassels to both sides, creating the illusion that the tassels had opened on their own.

As the tassels fell back into place, the carriage rose into the sky.

At that moment, the skills of the Goddess of Harvest Set and the Peerless National Beauty Set took effect simultaneously.

In an instant, all things began to grow. Beneath the wheat stubble that had just been harvested in the thousands of mu of fertile fields outside the city, new green shoots burst through the soil, maturing at a speed visible to the naked eye. Waves of golden wheat surged and fell in the wind, stretching from nearby all the way to the horizon.

In the courtyards of the commoners' homes, various melon and fruit vines climbed up bamboo trellises and began to grow wildly, the heavy fruits bending the vines.

Not only did the commoners' crops and fruits yield a bountiful harvest, but many things they had never seen before also grew from the ground.

A child reached out and plucked a red fruit from the vines that had suddenly sprouted beside him.

The fruit was slightly larger than a green jujube, bright red and heart-shaped, its skin dotted with golden seeds, cradled by green leaves.

Smelling its sweet fragrance, he took a bite. “Mother, this is delicious! It's so sweet, try some!”

Fed half of the fruit by the child, the woman initially wanted to scold him for acting impudently in front of the Divine Lady. However, the fruit in her mouth was so sweet and refreshing that she could not help but swallow it.

“So sweet...” Tears fell from her eyes involuntarily.

In the sky.

The little fox looked at the massive patch of strawberries in the fields, then turned to look at Yun Shu in the carriage, asking in confusion.

“Host, after your previous nighttime rampage in the Goddess of Harvest Set, the soil of Xindu City is extremely fertile, and almost all the seeds you generated can be grown here. But why did you only scatter strawberry and corn seeds for Xindu City?”

“Right now, I control not just Xindu City, but the entire north. Resources must be distributed reasonably.” Yun Shu watched as the citizens of Xindu on the ground discovered the corn.

“After all, my goal has always been to help everyone in this world escape poverty, become rich, and achieve a moderately prosperous life.”

Since they were communicating through brainwaves and did not need to worry about being overheard, she laid her cards on the table with the system.

The little fox fell silent for a moment. “That's very difficult.”

“The one thing Huaxia people fear least is difficulty.”

Yun Shu paused, then added, “Besides, doing our best is already the best possible outcome.”

The moment her voice fell, within Xindu City, clusters of flower buds suddenly burst from the withered branches of old trees. First came peach blossoms, then apricot blossoms, crabapples... Flowers of all four seasons bloomed simultaneously.

The crowd at the city gates was already dumbstruck.

Shen Yu gazed up at the carriage in the sky, tears streaming uncontrollably from his eyes as he murmured, “How can there be such a wonderful deity as the Divine Lady in this world...”

Despite being highly educated and well-read, he could not find a single word to describe her, repeating only the word “wonderful” over and over.

Anyone with a mind could figure out that these flowers of peace and fruits of victory were surely bestowed upon them by the Divine Lady out of pity for the commoners suffering from the severe drought and the ravages of war, using her divine power to grant them this blessing.