In the center of the city stood a massive Gothic cathedral, its roof featuring a bell tower and flying buttresses extending for a hundred meters.
How should one put it...
It looked a bit like the Cathedral of Favonius.
Grinya stood at the cathedral's entrance, looking up at this tall building that was exceptionally prominent in the city.
'Is this where the evil god wants to go?'
Grinya suddenly began to tremble slightly.
'If I'm caught in this situation, would it count as a voluntary surrender?'
'Could those big shots in the church really see that there's something wrong with me?'
"Excuse me, young lady, is there something I can help you with?"
Father Luen, carrying a book, approached her with what he considered a very kind smile.
The girl before him seemed to be having some difficulties; perhaps finding faith in the Original God would brighten her mood.
"Yes, I need help. I'm looking for something," Grinya said. "It might be a glowing statue, or perhaps a beacon that can emit a beam of light."
Luen lowered his head and pondered for a moment.
"Perhaps I can help you, for I believe the great Original God will not abandon any of His believers. Perhaps it is because you heard the deity's call that you have come here."
'The deity's call?'
'No, there's just an icon on the map, that's all,' Lu Xun thought to himself.
But Grinya's mind was reeling at that moment.
Father Luen's words might have been a casual remark, but to her ears, it was quite different!
After all, she knew that the one currently residing in her body was a genuine "deity"!
So, the reason it had gone to such lengths to come here was that it had heard the call of the Primordial God!
With a manifestation similar to an evil god, yet having a close connection with the Primordial God, what was its true identity?
Grinya followed Luen into the cathedral, looking up to see unique pointed rib vaults. The interior of the cathedral was vast, at least a hundred meters long.
She could see many believers and clergy members praying there.
At the far end, the stained glass of the dome refracted iridescent light, which fell upon the massive statue like shimmering particles.
Regarding the statue's appearance, Lu Xun had only one thought.
It was a complete mess.
It felt like the bodies of several people had been mashed together, giving it a very strange look.
"That is the Primordial God we believe in; the five deities are all represented here," Luen explained to Grinya.
"..."
'It really is just five people's bodies mashed together. I truly cannot compliment this kind of avant-garde design approach,' Lu Xun thought.
"How does it feel? Does it give off a warm, holy sensation?" Luen asked with a smile.
"Um... first, tell me, what is your name?" Grinya asked.
Luen was momentarily stunned. He couldn't figure out the connection between his name and that question, but he still answered truthfully.
"My name is Luen Karl."
Grinya looked up, focusing her gaze above his head.
【Saint Luen Karl (lv46)】
Grinya expressionlessly withdrew her gaze.
Appraisal complete—he was a powerhouse she couldn't afford to provoke.
"It's beautiful, very beautiful!" she immediately followed up on the previous topic with a bit of insincere praise. "Just at first glance, I can feel that this statue has a messy kind of beauty!"
"That is quite a vivid compliment," Luen said with a chuckle.
"May I... go forward and touch it?"
"Oh no, that would be an act of sacrilege! You must never do that!" Luen's expression changed slightly as he hurriedly waved his hands.
Lu Xun frowned.
If he couldn't touch it, how was he supposed to unlock the anchor point?
He controlled the character to approach slowly. Luen kept a close eye on him from the side, preventing any sudden blasphemous actions.
An "Interact" option appeared on the screen.
'Good, this thing really can be interacted with. I wasn't wrong.'
Lu Xun breathed a sigh of relief and clicked the "Interact" button.
Then, he suddenly saw his character, Grinya, start moving on her own.
She stared at the statue of the Primordial God with an indifferent expression and slowly raised her arm. Under Luen's suffocating gaze, she boldly flipped her middle finger!
Before Luen could even fly into a rage, he was horrified to find that the statue actually responded to the girl's outrageous behavior!
The statue suddenly emitted a golden light. To the astonishment of everyone in the cathedral, the light slowly pulled at her middle finger!
【Statue anchor unlocked. Obtained 1000 Source Crystals and 100 Prestige!】
【Character gained experience points.】
【Lv. 3 - Lv. 5】
"..."
Luen's mouth fell open, wide enough to fit an egg.
He looked at his own middle finger repeatedly, his face filled with disbelief.
"Could... could this be some hidden gesture for praying for a deity's blessing?"
Luen made up his mind and, mimicking Grinya, raised his middle finger toward the statue.
In the next moment, he was sent flying backward in front of everyone, crashing heavily onto the ground with blood constantly spilling from his mouth.
"Father Luen!"
The faces of some people in the cathedral who knew Luen turned pale with fear as they rushed to his side.
Luen's eyes were wide and round as he stared fixedly at Grinya's silhouette.
'No!'
'Why?!'
...
After walking out of the cathedral, Lu Xun looked at the map again.
A portion of the previously dark map had been lit up. The name in the top left corner represented the area he was currently in.
【Katar Kingdom — Yiertaya】
The name of this city was Yiertaya.
In various corners of the city, blue mission icons had popped up.
There was no need to say more; Lu Xun could naturally guess that these were side quests waiting for him to complete.
"There are quite a lot. Let me see... what should I do next?"
The dazzling array of tasks made it hard for Lu Xun to decide for a moment.
Suddenly, Lu Xun noticed that among these tasks, a red icon was particularly conspicuous.
He had a strong impression of red missions because he had just accepted one that morning.
The mission content was to find the missing princess and destroy the Diao Cult's plot.
Judging by the dense blue icons on the map, red missions were very rare. Perhaps there was some connection between these two missions.
His intuition told him that hidden missions were very important, so he decided to first check the location marked with the red mission icon on the map.
【Deli's candy house】
...
"Welcome, please come again!"
Deli said with a smile. After seeing off another mother with a child, the smile on her face quickly faded. She instantly deflated like a punctured balloon, looking utterly world-weary.
"I don't want to work. I want to die."
Deli wailed toward the heavens.
Ding-ling-ling.
Someone pushed open the shop door, and the sound of the bell at the entrance drifted in.
Deli instantly straightened her back, a professional standard smile on her face.
"Welcome to Deli's candy house. What can I get for you?"
Lu Xun raised his camera view and looked at the red question mark over her head. He knew he had come to the right place!
Grinya: "Excuse me, do you need any help?"
Without beating around the bush, Lu Xun went straight to the point, cutting through the fluff!
Basically, he got right to it. He really couldn't be bothered to play word games with a game NPC.
Deli's eyes lit up upon hearing this, and she was overjoyed.
"Are you here to look for a job?"
"That's wonderful! I finally don't have to work myself to death alone anymore, and I won't have to put on a fake smile for those customers all day!"
Watching her so excited she seemed manic, laughing like a mentally unstable fool, Grinya felt a bit afraid.
'She hasn't gone crazy from believing in an evil god, has she?'
"Well, here's another kid being tormented by work."
Grinya suddenly heard the evil god's sigh, its tone filled with pity and concern.
Rate on N.U.
