As the Human Path Declines, the Divine Path Must Forge Ahead!

"Mid-tier third rank."

"He's already stronger than that Tiger Spirit."

"Within Cangmu Town, he should be among the strongest."

Li Yue was satisfied.

Only a powerful Temple Keeper could better manage his Believers and help their numbers grow.

Of course—

The second Grand Sacrifice of the year was not far off.

What kind of Offerings could a Temple Keeper with mid-tier third-rank strength bring him?

He was looking forward to finding out.

After all, his Offerings could be amplified a hundredfold!

The main reason he had developed so quickly, almost a whole level ahead of the other Blue Star Deities, was the effect of Hundredfold Amplification.

A single step ahead, and you stayed ahead.

Without Hundredfold Amplification, he wouldn't have been promoted to Subordinate Ninth Rank Orthodox Land God on his very first day after crossing over.

How could he have earned such a vast amount of divine power later by selling Yin Soldier Artifacts, and risen so quickly to Principal Ninth Rank Orthodox Land God?

That was why he was looking forward to the next Grand Sacrifice, too.

Of course.

Obtaining rare items required more than strength. It also took luck.

And throughout the process, he, the Deity, could not lend a hand.

Everything depended on Li Youming himself and the other Believers in the village.

Whoosh—

With a thought, he opened the "Personal Quest" interface.

[Personal Quest—Five] had been completed, and the sixth Personal Quest had appeared.

[Personal Quest—Six]

[Quest Description]: Your actions in killing two third-rank Demonic Creatures will surely draw the attention of the other Demonic Creatures in Cangmu Town. Once again, make your Divine Might known. As the Human Path declines, the Divine Path must forge ahead, making the Demonic Creatures tremble in fear.

[Quest Objective]: Slay five third-rank Demonic Creatures (0/5)

[Quest Reward]: Twenty sets of first-rank armor, five sets of second-rank armor, three second-rank Blessing Talismans, and seventy units of divine power

"As the Human Path declines, the Divine Path must forge ahead..."

Li Yue murmured.

Killing another five third-rank Demonic Creatures would be a piece of cake for him.

Besides, he wouldn't even have to make a move. Li Youming could complete this quest for him.

"But this time—"

"The reward is armor."

"Looks like it's meant to prepare for God War..."

Li Yue's gaze turned deep and distant.

God War was undoubtedly a sword hanging over the heads of all Blue Star Deities who had reached Subordinate Ninth Rank.

Once God War began, it would be a fight to the death!

It would end only when one side was killed.

Having crossed into this world and become a Deity, with such vast prospects ahead, who would willingly die at another's hands, only for all the Believers they had painstakingly nurtured to become someone else's spoils?

He opened the "Regional Chat" interface. It had been a while since he'd checked in, and he'd missed it.

Besides, he needed to keep tabs on how far the other Blue Star Deities had progressed.

At once—

A flood of messages flashed across the interface.

[Shocking! The Fox Spirit I captured a few days ago actually tried to get me to play some saucy games with her today! I'm a dignified Subordinate Ninth Rank Orthodox Land God, not that kind of God! But her tail really is soft... "Fox Spirit photo"]

[Envious of the big shots! Everything's different once you reach Subordinate Ninth Rank. I'm still a dozen or so units of divine power short. Any rich ladies willing to support me? I'd be happy to play whatever rich-lady games you like when we meet!]

[Buying first-rank Blessing Talismans in bulk for four and a half units of divine power each. Contact me if you're interested!]

[Big brothers, this humble girl has taken in a group of homeless Silkworm Demons. I've listed five sets of first-rank Silk Armor. Could you support your little sister? "Revealing photo"]

[My God! The town where I am got slaughtered by Demonic Creatures! Does that mean I'll have a whole lot fewer Believers from now on? Damn it!]

[Asking again: who was the one selling Yin Soldier Artifacts for the astronomical price of twenty units of divine power? Let me know if you find out! "Grinding teeth.jpg"]

[What are you planning to do, guy above? You've been asking for days. That's a real big shot. He reached Subordinate Ninth Rank early; he might even be close to Principal Ninth Rank by now. The big shot who sold those Yin Soldier Artifacts must've earned quite a lot.]

[Principal Ninth Rank? Terrifying! "Gasping in shock!"]

[I'm still an unranked Wild God. The big shots are already pushing for Principal Ninth Rank? Are you cheating?]

After looking for a while, Li Yue closed the "Regional Chat" interface.

"Looks like more and more Blue Star Deities are reaching Subordinate Ninth Rank."

"But why is that person asking about me?"

"Could it be that he bought more than one of the Yin Soldier Artifacts I sold?"

Li Yue looked puzzled.

It wasn't impossible.

Maybe he'd run into some urgent situation and bought several.

"Hm?"

"Someone's messaging me privately?"

He paused in surprise when he saw that someone had contacted him privately.

He opened the interface.

It turned out to be a message from Chu Yue, the female Deity who had contacted him before:

"I have some Spirit Rice Essence. Interested?"

"I'll let it go cheap."

Spirit Rice Essence?

Li Yue's eyes lit up slightly.

Spirit Rice Essence was the concentrated essence extracted from the stalks left over after the Spirit Rice harvest!

Its function was simple: it could speed up the growth of Spirit Rice.

Under normal circumstances—

White Jade Spirit Rice took four years to ripen.

But in a Grade C Spirit Field, it needed only one year.

That was one of the ways a Grade C Spirit Field surpassed a Grade D Spirit Field.

It could bring Spirit Rice to maturity much faster.

And Spirit Rice Essence—

could shorten that time even further.

After using one portion of Spirit Rice Essence, that mu of Spirit Field would reach maturity in just two months!

A single portion of Spirit Rice Essence usually required the stalks from twenty mu of Spirit Rice to extract.

"How much are you asking?"

He sent back.

A mu of White Jade Spirit Rice grown in a Grade C Spirit Field should yield around three hundred jin.

But in a Grade D Spirit Field, it would yield only about two hundred jin.

Those three hundred jin of White Jade Spirit Rice could help the village produce around thirty more Body Refining Realm martial artists.

They would only be lower-tier first-rank martial artists, but they were still martial artists.

Having a great many more martial artists would significantly boost the productivity of every part of Four Seas Village.

By his estimate, it should be worth around sixty or seventy units of divine power.

"Thirty units of divine power."

The female Deity named Chu Yue replied.

"Too expensive. I'll take it for twenty."

"No. Twenty-eight at the lowest."

"How about twenty-two? Let's make a deal and be friends."

"Twenty-seven. I can't go any lower."

"Twenty-three. I can't go any higher."

In the end.

Li Yue bought a portion of Spirit Rice Essence for twenty-five units of divine power.

He was curious.

Chu Yue, the female Deity, had offered Spirit Rice Seeds for sale last time and was selling Spirit Rice Essence this time. Had she found some kind of Treasure Land?

He was a little envious.

He was a dignified Principal Ninth Rank Orthodox Land God, with a Jurisdiction spanning a thousand qing, yet he hadn't found a single Treasure Land.

His Ghost Messengers often roamed beyond his Jurisdiction, too, but they hadn't found anything either.

Luck.

It really was something you couldn't envy your way into.

He shook his head and looked toward Li Youming, who was still barely able to contain his excitement. A dignified, detached voice rang out in the man's mind:

"The tiger demon in the Land of Demons has been slain by Me."

"You may lead people to the Land of Demons and bring the Human Race there back to Four Seas Village."

"There are many third-rank Demonic Creatures in Cangmu Town. The Human Race has declined and become their prey."

"You must uphold My will, walk among the mortals in My stead, and slay the Demonic Creatures."