Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

Translator: Kinky || https://kinkytranslations.com/

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Chapter 10

Across the lake.

A vast shadow on the ground was steadily approaching Zhou Qian, completely engulfing his silhouette.

Accompanying the shadow from the sky was a gigantic branch.

The branch was covered in countless leaves, looking as if they were opening their mouths, ready to bite and tear at Zhou Qian’s flesh.

The other two believers faced a situation similar to Zhou Qian’s.

Their faces turned pale, and their eyes displayed immense fear.

It’s over. These snake-like vines, with their gaping mouths, would surely tear them apart! They were naive to think they could actually harm a god!

Believer No. 2 was the first to react, turning to run.

Perhaps because he had harmed Epoh the most, he now appeared the most panicked.

But luck wasn’t on his side. Just as he was about to step onto the crystal bridge, he misstepped, plunging into the lake.

In an instant, his body was torn apart, blood misting the air, swiftly consumed by the silent waters.

Believer No. 1, running behind him, narrowly stopped at the edge of the lake upon seeing his fate. She immediately turned around, quickly kneeling towards the giant tree and Epoh.

She bowed her head repeatedly, pleadingly saying, “I… I was wrong! Great God Epoh! I was wrong!”

“But you said we could do whatever to you—”

“No. I shouldn’t have! I was wrong! I shouldn’t have been so selfish! All of this is my fault! I shouldn’t have directed my life’s resentment towards you! I’m sorry! I…”

Throughout this ordeal, Zhou Qian glanced back only briefly before returning his gaze forward, calmly watching the demonic leaves approach him.

In the next moment, Zhou Qian was entirely consumed.

He stood tall and straight, like a blade, unwavering in place. He was immediately swept up and enveloped by the leaves, disappearing from sight.

Almost everyone held their breath, thinking Zhou Qian was surely doomed.

But soon, the leaves retreated from his body.

He emerged untouched, with all the blood stains on him gone.

It turned out the leaves only absorbed the god’s blood from him, not intending to kill him.

With his hands casually in his pockets, Zhou Qian smiled as he looked in the direction of the Great God Epoh.

He had guessed right again.

He deduced from two points that God Epoh wouldn’t harm anyone with the leaves.

First, it defied logic. If Epoh wanted people to torture him and then kill them afterward, it made no sense.

Considering it from a conspiratorial angle, if Epoh had ulterior motives in being tortured, then he would need all 24 followers to complete the ritual. If he killed them now, the remaining would be scared off, ending the ritual.

So from any perspective, it made no sense for him to kill.

As for the second reason, Zhou Qian had quickly checked his watch for information.

In the current stage of the game, when faced with hostile entities, the system would always provide information such as their HP and attack levels.

However, when the leaves approached, the system detected nothing.

From this, Zhou Qian deduced the leaves meant him no harm.

Indeed, he emerged unscathed, as did Believer No. 1.

The only one to meet an unfortunate fate was Believer No. 2, who frightened himself into the lake.

Zhou Qian felt no pity for him. If one does no wrong, they fear no retribution. It was his own harm towards Epoh that made him so afraid of retaliation.

However, this situation seemed too lenient for Believer No. 1.

Zhou Qian glanced at her and heard the goddess say, “Please Believers No. 1 and No. 3 return to the other side of the lake. Now, Believers No. 4, No. 5, and No. 6, come forward to meet the Great God. You can do whatever you want to him.”

……

The 24 followers were divided into 8 batches. After returning to the lakeside, Zhou Qian watched as the remaining 7 batches approached God Epoh, each employing various cruel methods on him.

Apart from the three players, including Zhou Qian, all other followers took action.

If Believers No. 1 and No. 2 were a bit restrained due to caution, the rest became increasingly brutal upon realizing there were no repercussions.

In their everyday lives, bound by morals and laws, many wouldn’t dare act out their darkest desires.

But now, with the opportunity provided by God Epoh, it undeniably unleashed the darkness within them.

Mad emotions were like contagious germs, infecting everyone in an instant, fermenting the violent factors in their blood to the extreme.

Originally there were some believers who were unwilling to harm the Great God Epoh. But at this time, the kind-hearted people seemed to be treated as monsters. In the end, either under coercion or threats, they still acted against the great god Epoh.

This turned into a feast of humans torturing the god.

The climax of this feast was when a believer took an ax he brought and cut off Epoh’s leg. When he threw that leg into the lake, the believers erupted in jubilation.

As things progressed, the brutality of the followers was astounding. Seeing someone chop off a leg, another follower seemed to want to compete and actually decapitated Epoh’s head and threw it into the lake.

Witnessing this scene, even Zhou Qian, who had almost lost his emotional experience, frowned deeply.

Among the young couple, Yun Xiangrong, who had always been calm, covered her face with both hands, unable to bear watching. The honest Gao Shan was already in tears. “How could they do such a thing? This is unbelievable.”

“There’s nothing surprising. In such a situation, if you are reluctant to take action, you might be killed as an outcast. This is the most terrifying aspect of human nature,” Zhou Qian said solemnly while his eyes narrowed as he looked at the opposite shore. “What’s more, they have also witnessed the fact that the Great God will not die no matter what. So they don’t have to take any responsibility and can vent as they like.”

Gao Shan couldn’t understand. “I really don’t understand. The great god clearly helped them! Why aren’t they grateful, but instead resent him?”

After a moment of silence, Zhou Qian said indifferently, “The reason is simple. If they get something too easily, people will take it for granted. As a Great God, he should fulfill their wishes without reservation. So, once the Great God disappoints them, they hate him.”

With a sarcastic smile, Zhou Qian added, “When Epoh was useful to them, they worshiped him as a god. But once he became useless… Well, you’re seeing the outcome.”

Except for the three players, each believer tortured the great god Epoh for a full 5 minutes.

When the last group of punishing believers returned, the giant tree on the opposite bank began to move again. Its branches wrapped around the broken body of the Great God, regenerating his limbs and head.

When Epoh reappeared, he looked the same with closed eyes, but his complexion had become paler.

Zhou Qian sensed something and looked at the giant tree behind Epoh. The entire tree was changing, and soon everyone’s attention was drawn to it. The giant tree was blooming!

Thousands of branches shook, and soon pink buds sprouted and quickly bloomed into white flowers.

In a flash, like a spring breeze overnight, the giant tree was full of snow-white flowers. With the blooming, a refreshing fragrance wafted over, even across the lake.

The fragrance seemed to have a magical power, making everyone feel relaxed and worry-free.

The flowers bloomed in an instant and also withered in an instant. The petals fell like snow, covering the ground.

The snow-colored petals fell all over Epoh’s body. His hair, his bare shoulders, even that freshly regrown leg, were all covered in petals. His face was ashen, almost blending in with the color of the flowers.

If not for the prominent nose, the faintly reddish lips, and those lowered black eyelashes, Zhou Qian would have had a hard time distinguishing him from the fallen petals.

Thousands of flowers withered, replaced by one fruit after another growing on the giant tree.

The fruits were full and juicy, a pure bright red.

They were apples.

In Apple Park, apples finally grew.

……

The voice of the goddess echoed from afar, as if from the clouds.

“Pain is also a way for gods to feel the world.”

“After descending on this land, the god experienced human joy, sorrow, desire, and envy… Now he has experienced pain and understands the emotions of this land and humanity.”

“The god’s suffering ritual has come to an end. No believer should harm him anymore.”

“The weakened god will return to his homeland to recover his spiritual power.”

“The doors of Apple Park will open in an hour. Those who want to leave can do so by then.”

As the goddess’s voice faded, Epoh, perched on the giant tree, closed his eyes.

The two goddesses looked at him, shared a smile, and turned to the believers, continuing in a sing-song manner.

“The apples of the Apple Park are born from the pain and blood of the Great God Epoh. Gods who consume them will become stronger; ordinary people who eat them will become gods, possessing great divine power.”

“If you want to become a god, hurry up and eat an apple.”

Most of the believers were still indulging in their excitement from the ritual. The words of the goddesses undoubtedly ignited their excitement even further.

“Really? Can we become gods?!”

“Just by eating apples?”

“If we have divine power, can’t we achieve our desires?!”

The goddesses replied in unison.

“Of course.”

“Not only humans, but animals can too.”

“In fact, both of us were originally animals. Only after eating the apples did we gain divine power!”

One goddess transformed into a rabbit, hopping onto a tree branch and disappearing into the jungle. The other turned into a snake, playfully hissing at the believers, its eyes not menacing but rather teasing. The snake then coiled around a nearby tree branch and disappeared.

As the two goddesses vanished, four players received system prompts.

[Main Quest Triggered: Exit the Apple Park to clear the level.]

[Tip: Consuming the apple grants divine power but may lead to a loss of consciousness for a short period.]

The first to ask was Gao Shan. “What does this mean? Can we also eat the apples? Should we?”

Zhou Qian turned his gaze from the system panel to the believers, all showing greedy expressions.

“What you need to consider,” Zhou Qian began, “is not whether we should eat the apples but what will happen to us after these believers consume them.”

Taking the system’s hint and the goddesses’ words together, it was easy to infer the next events. Believers would eat the apples, lose their minds, and attack the players indiscriminately. The gates of Apple Park would open in an hour. Until then, they were trapped.

“The current rank of the believers is at least E. What do you think their rank will be after becoming gods?”

“A believer fell into the lake and died, so there are 19 left. Even if they are all Rank E, they still outnumbered us by almost fivefold. If they were to become gods, we’re done for!” Yun Xiangrong worriedly said. “So many apples, so many people… How do we stop them? We’re in big trouble!”

There was a sound of a blade being drawn. Zhou Qian turned to see Qi Liuxing pulling out a shining long sword.

He lifted the sword, standing as straight as the blade itself.

The taciturn boy moved forward, declaring, “We must stop them from eating the apples. Right now, they are 19 ordinary people. Once they consume the apples… we can’t cope. We’ll die here!”

“Wait—” Zhou Qian suddenly called out.

“What?” Qi Liuxing gave him a disdainful glance. “Your little tricks won’t work here. If you’re scared as a weak non-combatant, you can hide behind me.”

“I won’t hide. In fact, I want to lead.” Zhou Qian was calm amidst the crisis. “We shouldn’t stop them from eating the apples. In fact, we should encourage it.”

“What do you mean?” Qi Liuxing obviously thought Zhou Qian was out of his mind.

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