Returning to her clean but cramped rental room, Grinya Loran's legs gave way, and she buried her face into the bed, sobbing silently.
She had even forgotten how she managed to walk back from the academy.
Everyone had thought she would successfully enroll in Yiertaya Academy, but reality had dealt her a crushing blow.
As expected... no miracle had occurred...
The living expenses her father had given her were nearly gone, and the cost of living in Yiertaya was simply too high. Even a room like this, far from the inner circle, cost twelve silver coins a day!
Even though her father was a lord, their family's monthly income was only five gold coins, which was five hundred silver coins. There was no way he could support her living in a major city like Yiertaya for long.
Now, her only option was to pack her things, take a carriage home, and continue her life in that remote town, inheriting a lord position with a monthly salary of only five gold coins.
She wasn't satisfied.
She really wasn't satisfied!
She had clearly worked so hard. For over ten years, she had studied diligently every single day, reading books even when she was sick and practicing swordsmanship in the mud even when it was pouring rain outside.
In those ten years, she had never given herself a chance to rest because she didn't want to see the wrinkles on her father's face grow deeper day by day, and she didn't want her family to continue suffering at the kingdom's border.
She had pinned all her life's hopes on today. She could have... she could have become a student of Yiertaya Academy with great honor.
But everything, all those beautiful fantasies, had been destroyed by the evil god!
"That damn evil god!"
She couldn't hold it back, her voice thick with tears.
But the moment she shouted those words, she regretted it.
If she insulted the evil god so loudly, it would surely hear her, wouldn't it?
But then again, maybe not. It had absorbed the remains of other evil gods and was currently in a deep sleep, so it might not have the time to deal with her.
She thought with a glimmer of hope.
Then, in the next second, she lost control of her body.
Watching her body move uncontrollably, Grinya Loran was plunged into utter despair.
It was over. Had those rebellious words just now been heard by the lord evil god?
Father, mother, it seems I'm about to die...
In the real world at this moment, Lu Xun had just logged into the game when a message popped up in front of him.
【A new functional module has been updated. The Gathering feature is now open. Would you like to experience it?】
"What is this?"
Lu Xun was startled by the message that suddenly appeared.
A Gathering feature?
What kind of new novelty was this? Was it to gather with game friends and receive rewards?
But wasn't it still in the closed beta stage?
He was the only player in the entire game, so how was he supposed to gather with other friends?
Filled with confusion, Lu Xun clicked on the new feature.
Instantly, in the next second, his vision was covered by a sudden surge of grey mist, turning everything into a blur.
...
"What is this?"
When that indistinct voice rang in her ears again, Grinya Loran's heart trembled with fear.
What should she do?
The lord evil god was angry!
Should she kneel down and apologize immediately?
But she couldn't even move right now. What should she do, what should she do...
Suddenly, she felt her vision blur, as if a sudden patch of grey mist had covered her eyes.
The surrounding air seemed to stop flowing, and the sound of dense, maddening whispers constantly echoed in her ears.
She was terrified at this moment, so she didn't dare focus her attention on listening to those voices.
When her vision cleared again, she was no longer in that cramped rental room.
Instead, she was stepping on a layer of grey mist. The sky was a hazy grey, with a few blood-red stars flashing past occasionally.
She stared blankly ahead. There was a long, pitch-black table with chairs lined up on both sides, looking cold and profound.
She stood at one end of the long table, while a blurry shadow already sat in the master seat at the other end.
It only needed to sit there quietly, doing nothing else, to make one realize instantly that it was the master of this place, the one who dominated all fates here!
Having witnessed such a miracle, how could Grinya Loran not understand? The one before her was the evil god that had been residing within her body!
Her legs couldn't stop shaking, growing weaker and weaker as her knees drew closer to the ground.
"Why don't you sit?"
The lord evil god spoke.
Its voice was still indistinct, making it impossible to sense any of its joy, anger, or sorrow.
But just this one sentence instantly gripped Grinya Loran's soul.
This was the evil god's domain. Even if the Original God still walked the earth, it would be impossible for it to save her.
The only one who could save her was the one sitting there, whom she could not see through no matter what... the lord evil god.
She could only do as the lord evil god said, trembling as she sat on the chair in front of her.
She sat across from the lord evil god, separated by the long table.
"I'm sorry, Lord evil god..."
After thinking for a long time, Grinya Loran could only squeeze out those few words.
Just when she needed her silver tongue the most, her clumsy mouth failed her as usual.
The blurry, grey-white shadow fell silent for a moment, then slowly said:
"You have nothing to apologize for."
Grinya Loran was stunned. Only then did she find the courage to slowly raise her head and gaze at this great existence.
At this moment, Lu Xun looked at the screen and was somewhat confused by the young girl apologizing to him.
Why was she suddenly apologizing for no reason?
However, Lu Xun himself was quite surprised by the scene before him.
He had thought that this so-called Gathering feature was for gathering with other online players to exchange information or items.
He hadn't expected it to be a meeting with the NPC he controlled.
This was the first time Lu Xun had observed this character from a third-person perspective, and he suddenly felt that the modeling of this girl was even better than her character art.
Had he really been controlling such a beautiful girl in battle all this time?
The thought was actually quite exciting!
However, since his identity in the game wasn't Grinya Loran, then what exactly was the identity he was playing in this game?
Lu Xun couldn't quite figure it out.
This stupid Gathering feature had pulled him in without providing any prompts, leaving him unsure of what to do at this moment.
Crucially, not only was he silent, but the white-haired girl across from him didn't say a word either.
Since his last sentence, the atmosphere had fallen into an eerie silence.
Lu Xun sighed, turned on his voice key, and said:
"If there's nothing else, the meeting is adjourned."
He planned to first research how to use the VR headset.
Adjourned?
Grinya Loran was momentarily stunned and looked around at the situation again.
So, this was a gathering organized by the lord evil god?
There were so many empty seats, yet she was the only one present...
Lu Xun was just about to exit the gathering when he suddenly remembered something. He stopped his movements and said to the white-haired girl with a serious expression:
"You are someone I value greatly. I will help you achieve your dreams. So... do not let me down."
This single sentence struck Grinya Loran deeply.
She looked at the mysterious existence shrouded in grey-white mist in disbelief, and tears suddenly burst from her eyes.
This was the first time she had felt the feeling of being trusted.
Princess Ruiya and the others didn't believe in the real her, so she had never felt happy because of them.
She was used to being questioned and mocked.
No one ever believed she could succeed; even her father hadn't held out hope for her.
It was as if her entire life was destined to struggle in the mire of failure.
This was the first time she had been recognized.
And the one who recognized her was even a deity.
Even if it was an evil god...
But what of it? It believed in her and was even willing to support her dreams. If even an evil god was willing to hold the greatest expectations for her, what reason did she have to choose to give up?
"Respected deity..."
Grinya Loran summoned her courage and spoke loudly to the unknown existence before her:
"May I ask if I have the qualification to become your believer and learn your divine title?"
A prompt suddenly popped up on Lu Xun's interface.
【Please create your divine title!】
"A god?" The corners of Lu Xun's mouth curled up slightly.
It was the first time he had been called a god with such a respectful and pious attitude. He was starting to like this white-haired NPC more and more.
"Hmm... From now on, you shall call me..."
"Xun Shen."
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