Personal Mission, Choosing the Temple Keeper

Thunder shook the ears.

It was as if the heavens were proclaiming something.

The villagers of Li Family Village were startled, hurriedly looking up at the sky, only to find no sign of rain; it was merely a bolt of dry lightning.

"Could Lord Zhangyue have truly partaken of it?"

Li Youming hunched his back, murmuring to himself.

He was the most respected elder in the village.

He was also one of the two martial artists in the village at the Body Refining Realm.

Although he was old and could no longer fight much, if he were to truly fly into a rage, killing two or three grown men would still be no problem.

After all—

In his youth, he had achieved success in the Stone-Splitting Palm and had undergone two transformations of his vital energy and blood, resulting in formidable palm power.

Even a few years ago, a single strike from him could shatter a rock the size of a human head.

The most important assets of the village had always been kept in his care, especially this Body Strengthening Grass, which had been stored for seven years without incident.

During the two grand sacrifices each year, this Body Strengthening Grass had always been placed on Lord Zhangyue's offering table; why had it vanished this time?

"It must have been Lord Zhangyue who partook of it."

A trembling old man nearby spoke up, his gaze toward the statue of the Land God exceptionally devout.

"I think so too."

"Our village's Land God is very efficacious. A few years ago, Pi Hou's wife couldn't conceive, so Pi Hou came here to pray to Lord Zhangyue for a child. Less than a year later, Pi Hou's wife gave birth to a big, healthy boy."

Another elder chimed in.

After the villagers searched the surroundings once more and still found nothing, the village chief, Li Deyang, said helplessly:

"Uncle Youming, it must be that Lord Zhangyue has partaken of it."

Although he was the village chief and the only other Body Refining Realm martial artist in the village besides Li Youming, he did not truly believe in the Land God.

After all—

If gods truly existed, would this world be so rampant with demons and evil spirits?

He only appeared enthusiastic about the annual grand sacrifices because he felt it gave the villagers peace of mind, which was beneficial for his governance as village chief.

In his heart, he even harbored a suspicion that Uncle Youming might have just hidden the Body Strengthening Grass himself.

However, as village chief, he would not speak recklessly without evidence, as that would be detrimental to unity.

"Lord Zhangyue has manifested his spirit."

"Since Lord Zhangyue has partaken of the offering, he must protect the sons of our village from being harmed by demons and evil spirits."

Li Youming knelt down once again, bowing devoutly toward the statue of the Land God.

Many of the elders followed suit and bowed again.

Village Chief Li Deyang watched Uncle Youming's devout appearance and for a moment wondered—

Could it really be that Lord Zhangyue had manifested his spirit and consumed the offering?

No—

That was impossible.

There were no gods in this world.

Only the martial path was the sole means to secure one's life!

[Personal Information]

[Name]: Li Yue

[Divine Title]: Lord Zhangyue

[Divine Position]: Li Family Village · Orthodox Land God

[Divine Rank]: Subordinate Ninth Rank "Consume 1,000 units of divine power to promote to Principal Ninth Rank"

[Divine Power]: 262 units

[Incense]: 2,005 units

[Divine Arts]: Dream Projection Art "1 unit of divine power", Golden Blade Art "1 unit of divine power", Confer Ghost Soldier "1 unit of divine power", Confer Temple Keeper "10 units of divine power", Disease Removal Method "5 units of divine power", Flight Method "10 units of divine power", Yin Soldier Artifact "10 units of divine power", Earth Escape Method "10 units of divine power", Strengthen Yin Soldiers "10 units of divine power", Cloud and Mist Method "10 units of divine power", Heavenly Thunder Art "10 units of divine power"

"I feel so much stronger..."

"Even when using the same amount of divine power to cast the Golden Blade Art, I can tell—"

"It will be significantly more powerful than when I was a 'wild god'..."

Li Yue looked at the "Personal Information" panel appearing before him, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

That was not all.

He looked at his own body, which no longer appeared translucent.

He wore the Land God Vestments, a Land God Crown upon his head, held the Land God Seal in his left hand, and clutched the Land God Register in his right.

His appearance was vastly superior to what it had been before.

"Does this mean I've officially been granted a position?"

"As expected—"

"No matter the world, the end of the universe is always the same."

The smile on his face widened by three parts.

He beckoned gently.

Instantly, two thousand and one strands of incense wish-power rose from the corner of his Divine Domain and surged into the Land God Seal.

Immediately following—

Two strands of pure white divine power, their impurities completely refined by the Land God Seal, flew out and merged into Li Yue's body.

The divine power within him instantly grew to two hundred and sixty-four strands.

"Having an official position really makes a difference."

"This Land God Seal is truly useful."

"If I didn't have this Land God Seal, refining two thousand strands of incense wish-power into two strands of divine power would have taken a full two hours."

"With the Land God Seal, it's a matter of an instant."

He said with satisfaction.

Subsequently—

He opened the "Personal Quest" interface.

He was very curious about what kind of tasks the "mastermind" who had transmigrated so many people to become gods would issue.

[Personal Quest—I]

[Quest Description]: As a god, even if your divine power is meager, you still require a Temple Keeper to spread your faith.

[Quest Objective]: Convince a believer to voluntarily come and become your Temple Keeper.

[Quest Reward]: Two Tier 1 Blessing Talismans, two strands of divine power.

"Convince a believer to voluntarily come and become a Temple Keeper?"

Li Yue raised an eyebrow.

Seeing this task, he immediately thought of the divine art he possessed: Dream Projection Art.

Clearly—

This task required the Dream Projection Art to be completed.

After all, even though he was an Orthodox Land God, he understood that a god should not reveal himself before believers.

Once a god appears directly before a believer, losing all mystery and majesty, how could the other party continue to worship you?

As a god—

One should remain high above, mysterious and majestic!

Only then will mortals be more inclined to worship!

"And this reward..."

Li Yue's eyes brightened slightly.

He didn't care much for the two strands of divine power.

After all, he was now an Orthodox Land God with two hundred and sixty-four strands of divine power.

However—

He did need those Tier 1 Blessing Talismans.

These Blessing Talismans were not for him as a god, but for the believers.

A Blessing Talisman could allow a believer to directly ascend from a mortal to a Tier 1 Body Refining Realm martial artist.

The importance of a believer goes without saying.

In this world teeming with demons, monsters, and evil spirits, danger lurks at every turn; naturally, the stronger a believer becomes, the better they can resist these threats.

Not to mention—

Only when a believer's strength increases can they provide higher-grade offerings!

"Temple Keeper..."

"Which believer should I choose..."

Li Yue's gaze fell upon the Land God Register in his hands.

This Land God Register recorded the information of every villager in Li Family Village, down to the smallest detail.

Every good deed or bad act they had ever committed was fully documented.

Furthermore, it possessed a sliver of the functionality of the Book of Life and Death!

With a single stroke of his brush, he could directly strike out the name of any villager recorded in the Land God Register.

Once struck out—

That villager would die immediately.

Moreover, by doing such a thing, he, as the Land God, would face no punishment, nor would it require the consumption of any divine power.

This was his authority as an Orthodox Land God!

"I shall choose from those five Grade B Believers..."

Li Yue's expression remained calm as he reviewed the life stories of the five individuals.