More than half a year had passed since the last war. Hedong City had recovered considerably, and few traces of the fighting remained.
More factories had sprung up in the suburbs, and the industrial zone continued to expand.
Looking into the distance, one saw chimney after chimney, belching smoke day and night.
Electricity still couldn't fully meet demand, and most factories ran on coal-fired steam power.
There were also many more people on the roads who either spoke foreign languages or halting Chinese.
Most came from the four Southeast Asian countries that had fallen to the God of Bloodshed. Jiangnan Province had evidently taken in a large number of refugees during this time.
Another world, desert.
Blood mist swirled around Chen Shouyi, radiating waves of heat. After practicing the Thirty-Six Forms of Hardening seven times in a row, he finally stopped. His muscles twitched in spasms, and his body swayed on the verge of collapse.
"I've been stuck for half a month, and it still isn't working!" He exhaled a plume of hot white breath and shook his head.
Even without looking at the Status Panel, Chen Shouyi knew there had been no effect whatsoever.
A score of 19.9 seemed to be the limit for a mortal. No matter how he trained these past few days, he couldn't break through it.
Do I really have to become a god through faith, like the Barbarian God? he mused.
For him,
becoming a god was simply a matter of whether he wanted to.
He had had two chances to obtain a divine portfolio, but had turned them both down.
One was the "Ocean" portfolio, and the other was "Bloodshed."
With more than a hundred thousand followers and his influence,
if he obtained a divine portfolio in advance, it would take at most