Author: 木尺素 / Mu Chisu

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

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Chapter 16

“Damn, that’s impressive! The buff introduced by the game designer must have been meant for players to deal with Li Dafu! Qian Ge dealt with Li Dafu in such a unique way that he saved the buff!”

“Before the Believer No. 1 attacked Qian Ge, just hearing her child cry caused his health to decrease. The same goes for this winged monster; affected by its wind, Qian Ge’s health started to drop…”

“The believers are indeed formidable, but their unique traits can be used to Qian Ge’s advantage!”

“So before Believer No. 19 launched his ultimate move, Qian Ge was waiting, biding his time until his HP dropped to 5%. Once the follower used his ultimate move, under the buff’s effect, Qian Ge would be completely immune to damage! He succeeded, and now Believer No. 19 can’t move! His skills are all on cooldown! They should take this chance to flee while they’re still on cooldown!”

“That being said, it was a risky move! How could Qian Ge be so sure about the timing? What if his health reached 5%, and the believer didn’t unleash his ultimate? If the believer continued to reduce his health gradually, the buff would only shield minor damage. Qian Ge would still be doomed!”

“Didn’t Qian Ge manage to get some small health recovery potions from that mini game? Those potions might not seem very useful normally, healing only about 1% of health, but they are perfect for adjusting the health level here!”

“But Qian Ge is really tough on himself…”

Zhu Qiang: “Yes, but it’s effective. Look at Little Brother Swordsman, with tears in his eyes, looking guilty… After this, I think he will completely become Qian Ge’s little brother.”

Yu Xian: “Following Qian Ge means there’s meat on the table! I want to be his little brother too!”

……

Inside the game.

The shadows of trees swayed as the wind continued.

Currently frozen in the air due to his ultimate’s cooldown, Believer No. 19 and the three players were stunned by Zhou Qian’s actions.

It took them three seconds to react. They quickly rushed to help Zhou Qian up.

At this moment, all four were in terrible condition, but Zhou Qian was undoubtedly the weakest.

Yet Zhou Qian looked up nonchalantly, first at Believer No. 19 in midair, then turned his gaze to Qi Liuxing.

Upon meeting Zhou Qian’s gaze, Qi Liuxing instantly looked away.

Zhou Qian laughed. “What’s wrong? Can’t look me in the eyes?”

“I just…” Qi Liuxing, fists clenched, managed to respond, “Why did you just…?”

He gritted his teeth, and his voice was hoarse. “Even with that buff, you could have died.”

Zhou Qian patted him on the shoulder, calmly meeting his gaze. “Maybe I was using you?”

“You… I now feel… Maybe you aren’t…” Qi Liuxing hesitated, unable to find the right words. He still couldn’t come up with an opinion on Zhou Qian.

Yun Xiangrong interrupted, “Given the cooldown of the believer’s ultimate, we should hurry to the treehouse!”

Zhou Qian: “No need.”

“You lunatic. We’re all in bad shape, and there are so many believers still powering up on the other side, we—”

Yun Xiangrong’s voice stopped abruptly as she noticed something and instinctively grabbed Gao Shan’s hand.

The couple, Qi Liuxing, and Zhou Qian, whose faces were half covered in blood, all looked towards Believer No. 19 in the sky.

Suddenly, the believer turned away, no longer staring intently at the players, and with a scream of extreme pain, plummeted to the ground.

“No! Don’t stab me!”

“It hurts!”

“Ahhhhhh!!!”

“Don’t, don’t, please don’t cut my leg…”

“Don’t!! My head!! No!! Please spare me!!!”

The ground beneath Believer No. 19 became wet from the sweat of his pain. But he bore no wounds. The pain was only mental.

His screams were eerily familiar to the players. It resembled the pain experienced by the Great God Epoh.

When a person encountered true pain, the tears shed, the look in their eyes, their body language, and even the roars from their throat, were all extremely shocking.

People who are easily empathetic could easily be affected and, consequently, feel the same sadness as others.

Gao Shan was the first to be affected.

Upon hearing the wail of Believer No. 19, a sharp pain struck his heart, and his eyes quickly turned red.

Then an even stranger event occurred.

From across the lake, a similar wail echoed.

The thirteen believers who hadn’t yet ascended to godhood knelt to the ground in unison, screaming in extreme agony. The loud wails spread throughout the paradise, and feelings of sorrow, pain, suppression, and disappointment surged like a tidal wave, overwhelming everyone with intense negative emotions.

No one could hear such collective cries and not be moved. Not to mention Gao Shan, even Qi Liuxing and Yun Xiangrong couldn’t help but shed tears.

The only one unaffected was Zhou Qian.

Yun Xiangrong looked at him and asked, “Why don’t you…?”

Zhou Qian openly admitted, “Because I have a condition.”

Yun Xiangrong: “……”

A moment later, the three reminded each other to plug their ears, feeling slightly better.

After a while, singing echoed from across the lake. The voice was mysterious and melodious, emotionless as if it came from ancient times.

Meanwhile, the Great God Epoh, previously covered by falling flowers, began to move. His body, wrapped in countless leaves and flowers, slowly rose into the air. He opened his eyes in a manner that seemed to look down upon all living beings. His eyes no longer showed any compassion; only coldness and cruelty.

Though he didn’t speak, the mysterious song seemed to be coming from him. The song overshadowed the believer’s wails, allowing the players to let go and exchange puzzled glances.

After a pause, Gao Shan asked, “What’s happening…?”

Zhou Qian pointed to the magnificent apples on the tree across the lake.

“These apples are born from the pain of the Great God Epoh. After eating them, the believers will feel the same torture they inflicted upon the god—”

His tone turned cold, and he smirked. “This is called getting what one deserves, or an eye for an eye. It’s only fair.”

Having shared his hypothesis, Zhou Qian glanced at the system panel’s timer.

About 15 minutes had passed since the believers ate the apples.

Looking across the lake again, those thirteen believers who had eaten the apples hadn’t yet ascended.

What would happen to them?

As this question crossed his mind, Zhou Qian quickly got his answer.

Across the lake, amidst the serene song, the believers were reliving the pain Epoh had once felt, continuously wailing. However, their cries were completely masked by the song, turning their agony into a silent film.

Some of them rolled on the ground, clutching their heads in pain, some banged their heads against the ground or trees, seemingly to ease the pain. A few seemed to regain some clarity but were in even greater distress. Unable to endure their pain, they rushed towards the Sin Lake, diving in without hesitation, only to be torn apart by its waters.

A minute later, all the chaos ceased.

For those thirteen had turned to dust.

[Players have discovered two hidden plots of “Apple Paradise” by participating and witnessing.]

[Hidden Plot ①: 15 minutes after eating the apple, one will feel immense pain contained within it.]

[Hidden Plot ②: Not everyone can successfully ascend to godhood after eating the apple. Those who can’t ascend within 15 minutes lack the potential to become gods. They will suffer a backlash from divine power and consequently disintegrate.]

All four players received this notification.

Of the 20 believers, excluding one who died prematurely, seven became gods. Zhou Qian did the math; the success rate was about 36.8%.

Among those seven, six were killed by the players, leaving only Believer No. 19, who was now rolling in pain near Zhou Qian and the others, tormented by the anguish from the apple.

After witnessing all the believers on the opposite side vanish, everyone’s eyes turned to Believer No. 19.

Gao Shan spoke, voicing the doubt everyone had. “All other believers are dead; what about him? What will happen to him? Can he become a god?”

Zhou Qian narrowed his eyes, staring straight at the direction of the Great God Epoh.

God Epoh, who oversaw all life, silently hovered in the middle of the giant tree trunk. His dark pupils showed no emotion. The innocent purity he once exuded was nowhere to be found. A hidden, profound intent to kill was concealed in the deepest darkness behind him. At this moment, it was surging, waiting for the moment to break free—

Once this intent was unleashed, perhaps everyone on this land would be devoured by him. No one would survive.

“The Great God once told me,” Zhou Qian began, “To gods, humans are like how ants are to humans. So, when the believers were still humans, he wouldn’t even bother about them. But now…”

A hint of a smile appeared on Zhou Qian’s face. He continued, “Now, Believer No. 19 is no longer human. He ate the apple, passed the trials, passed the physical tests, and transformed into a god. Epoh won’t kill humans. But what if… the opponent is also a god?”

“When you’re just a mere ant, I wouldn’t mind you causing a minor disturbance, and I can endure a few bites. However, if you act recklessly and try to stand as an equal, then death would only await before you evolved and became stronger than me.”

Upon hearing Zhou Qian’s words, Qi Liuxing immediately understood.

Joy appeared in his eyes as he asked, “So… we don’t need to deal with Believer No. 19 anymore? God Epoh will kill him? You…you guessed this all along?”

“I had a hunch. But I wasn’t entirely sure,” Zhou Qian responded. He opened his system panel and found that he only had 10 gold coins left.

He spent 5 coins to buy a tissue and meticulously wiped the blood from his mouth and fingers, saying, “Have you heard the story of the Garden of Eden? The apple is the forbidden fruit. Mere humans, tempted by the devil’s serpent, dared to eat the apple to gain wisdom like God… Thus, God would be angry.”

The lake was as blue and calm as ever. But a wind began to blow on the opposite shore.

As the song grew sharper, petals flew, whirling like a snowstorm, filling the entire space. Amid the snowfall of petals, God Epoh’s pupils were pitch black, devoid of any light.

He looked in the direction of Believer No. 19, slowly raised his hand, and beckoned him with his index finger.

No one knew the magic God Epoh used, but Believer No. 19 vanished from his spot, only to quickly reappear on the opposite shore.

He knelt at God Epoh’s feet.

At this moment, it seemed the apple’s painful effects had subsided. The Believer No. 19 no longer suffered or screamed. His eyes no longer glowed red, but the wings on his back remained.

Having gone through the process, he successfully transformed into a god and regained his sanity.

Yet, he became extremely fearful.

Kneeling before God Epoh, he trembled incessantly, murmuring words too soft to hear, presumably begging for mercy.

But it was already too late.

God Epoh, surrounded by the snowy petals, gently laid his hand on top of Believer No. 19’s head. Instantly, the believer silently turned to ash, mingling with the countless petals before falling to the ground, resembling piles of snow.

It seemed God Epoh was tired. He sat back down by the tree and closed his eyes in exhaustion.

The world became completely silent. There was no more wailing of believers, no killing, and not even the sound of picking apples.

The four players could almost hear each other’s breathing.

Suddenly, the system prompts came again.

[Players triggered hidden plot ③: After successfully becoming a god, it will provoke God Epoh’s attack.]

[Players Zhou Qian, Yun Xiangrong, Gao Shan, and Qi Liuxing have triggered all stages of the hidden plot and completed the hidden achievement. Congratulations. Rewards will be settled together once players clear the game.]

Upon reading these two lines, Qi Liuxing, Gao Shan, and Yun Xiangrong finally relaxed.

All hidden plots had been triggered, and the highly threatening believers were all dead. They just needed to wait for 45 minutes for the palace doors to open, and then they could leave!

The ceremony to torment the god ended around midnight. According to the goddess, the palace door would open at 1 in the morning. As long as the players leave the palace after that, the game would be considered cleared.

Now, not only could they clear the dungeon, but they also achieved a hidden achievement that only 10% of players could obtain. All the previous battles seemed to have paid off, and no one wasn’t thrilled about it.

But just then, another system prompt came through.

[Players have triggered the method to obtain the “Ultimate Hidden Achievement: Deification”.]

No one expected that behind the hidden achievement, there was even an ultimate hidden one. Yet, at this point, almost no one was willing to pursue this achievement.

What did deification entail?

It meant that of those who ate the apple, only 36.8% had the physical constitution to adapt to the divine power contained within the apple and then successfully become deified. If one didn’t deify within 15 minutes, they would disintegrate into dust after experiencing the pain that God Epoh once felt. And even if they succeeded in deification, not only would they experience all that pain once more, but they would also face Epoh’s attack.

Losing 15 minutes of consciousness, attacking former teammates, betting on the mere 36.8% chance of deification, transforming into an unrecognizable creature after deification, and then facing Epoh’s wrath…

None of these steps were something any player would willingly undergo.

“Contentment brings happiness.” Yun Xiangrong pulled Gao Shan by the arm towards the palace door and said, “Let’s wait there for the door to open. And take a good rest.”

“I agree.” Qi Liuxing quickly chimed in.

However, Zhou Qian took out something red from his bag.

It was unmistakably an apple.

“I picked this when I went over to pull a strand of God Epoh’s hair. It’s perfect timing.”

The other three players stared at him, almost in shock, yelling in unison, “Are you out of your mind?”

Playing with the apple in his hand, Zhou Qian simply said to them, “Now there are no believers blocking your way. You can easily cross over and each pull out a strand of Epoh’s hair. In this way—”

“After I become deified, I won’t attack you all. We can coexist peacefully.”

Yun Xiangrong, Gao Shan, Qi Liuxing: “……”

Zhou Qian: “Of course, just to be safe, I’m giving you a heads-up. Be careful. I only have 5% health left.”

Yun Xiangrong, Gao Shan, Qi Liu Xing: “………”

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The author has something to say:

Zhou Qian: Go pull his hair out!

Epoh: ???

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