The Temptation of the Holy Spirit Scroll

The Eight Spider Lances kept attacking, but they still hadn't struck her.

Lord Holy God still hadn't made a decision.

Zhao Xiaoya thought that since time had slowed and she could hear Lord Holy God's voice, this had to be a hint from the Holy God. As long as she proved her worth, perhaps she wouldn't have to die.

My fighting ability is incredible, on par with a Soul Saint!

Zhao Xiaoya assessed her combat ability. She didn't dare claim anything beyond that; after all, she could barely beat her grandfather.

In Lu Ma's eyes, those words appeared across Zhao Xiaoya's stricken face in conspicuous red letters.

"Oh? Strong combat ability means I'd gain another bodyguard. But I could just have Ning Fengzhi release Chen Xin to serve as my bodyguard. A Soul Saint's combat strength, tsk tsk, it's nothing special. Fifteen seconds left. Let's see if she has anything else to say."

Zhao Xiaoya's heart sank.

Right. How could she have forgotten? Setting aside Lord Holy God's own formidable strength, Ning Rongrong was hardly short on experts, either. Gu Rong and the others might look like they were losing outside, but she knew her grandfather was just bluffing. That old geezer would be beaten soon enough.

But she quickly thought of other things she could offer.

I can help you join the Holy Spirit Cult!

The moment she said it, she regretted it.

To outsiders, the Holy Spirit Cult was a great place. But the Holy Spirit Cult belonged to Lord Holy God in the first place. How could she be so stupid, wasting one of her chances?

Lu Ma didn't respond.

He was thinking about how Sima Xi had previously suggested that he "try joining the Holy Spirit Cult."

To be honest, he was tempted. But Sima Xi's suggestion had been based on the game's high degree of freedom and lack of guidance.

Now that the game had a quest system, and "Disrupt the Third Saintess Ritual" on the left side of the interface proved it, he wasn't in any hurry to join the Holy Spirit Cult. At least, there was no need to join right now.

"Ten seconds left."

He murmured, waiting eagerly for her next words.

Zhao Xiaoya racked her brain for something she could offer.

Strength, influence—Lord Holy God didn't need either. What about money and treasure?

No, no. What kind of person was Ning Rongrong? She was from the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect!

If it was gold and silver, it would have to be something the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect didn't have, and the Holy Spirit Cult didn't have, either.

She didn't have anything like that.

Brains? Was she questioning Lord Holy God's intelligence?

That wouldn't work.

What else was there?

Zhao Xiaoya was going crazy. She couldn't think of a single thing she was good for. At first glance, she seemed like a complete waste.

"Five seconds left."

Lu Ma was a little disappointed. The other party had gone a full five seconds without saying anything.

Wait! I took a Holy Spirit Pill, a Holy Spirit Scroll, and a Seventh Elder Token from my grandfather! I have other talents, too. I can satisfy you in spirit...

Zhao Xiaoya could already feel the cold touch of the Eight Spider Lances. She stopped worrying about it and listed every possible thing that might interest Lord Holy God.

Thinking about it carefully, Lord Holy God probably didn't need anything at all. He just wanted her to show her sincerity.

Lu Ma looked at the other party's words and noticed those three items.

If he chose execution, he could only get one item, and it might not even be one of those three... The game was practically forcing him to choose redemption!

If he were a transmigrator, he wouldn't choose redemption even if it gave him a mountain of loot. He couldn't swallow the humiliation of being killed.

But he was a player, a game tester, a player who had to plan carefully to get the best returns.

The benefits redemption would bring him were undeniably huge. And once Zhao Xiaoya was redeemed, he could also order her to do things she didn't want to do, just to get even: make her kill herself, use her as a meat shield, and so on...

Lu Ma had even considered redeeming her and then killing her outright, just to pull a sneaky move. After all, the game still had a high degree of freedom. Redeeming her first and killing her later weren't mutually exclusive.

But on second thought, Zhao Xiaoya still had some value. Better to let her serve her purpose to the fullest before killing her.

It also brought to mind that old saying:

It wasn't that he wouldn't kill her, but that he'd kill her slowly, gradually, cleverly, and with a sense of rhythm. Let the prepared die first, and let the first deaths lead to... Ahem, that was a digression.

"Fine. I accept."

Lu Ma held down A.

The Eight Spider Lances slowly withdrew into Ning Rongrong's body.

Zhao Xiaoya breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed her sincerity had been enough.

Then she saw countless blue threads appear before her. The threads formed a sheet of paper and entered her mind.

Zhao Xiaoya had a vague feeling that she could never betray him again. Even the slightest thought of doing so would make her wish she were dead.

Of course, she had no intention of betraying him anyway.

In the next instant, a pure stream of Soul Power poured into her body. Her Soul Power Level kept breaking through, and at the same time, a fifth Soul Ring coalesced.

Zhao Xiaoya felt it all happen, her face full of disbelief.

Was this a reward?

She dropped to her knees.

"I, Zhao Xiaoya, swear to serve you until death."

Ning Rongrong reached out and pulled her to her feet.

In reality, Lu Ma was biting his fingernail, while Ning Rongrong stood frozen in place. She had considered this outcome and, though she'd found it frustrating, accepted it. But she didn't understand what was happening now, either.

The same thought came to them almost simultaneously:

Wait, how did she just break through?

[Zhao Xiaoya, Level 51, Loyalty: 100%, Sin Value: 49%]

[Agreement in effect. You may command Zhao Xiaoya at any time.]

"Bring me the Holy Spirit Pill, the Holy Spirit Scroll, and the Elder Token."

Ning Rongrong's voice sounded in Zhao Xiaoya's ear. At the same time, she saw Ning Rongrong hold out her hand.

"Oh," Zhao Xiaoya replied, quickly taking out the items and placing them in Ning Rongrong's hand.

Her instincts told her that she could no longer hear Lord Holy God's voice. But it didn't matter. Ning Rongrong was the true Saintess and Lord Holy God's representative, so she could listen to her, too.

[Holy Spirit Pill: Stockpile 2]

[Holy Spirit Scroll (Part Four): Automatically destroyed after all uses are expended 1/3]

[Seventh Elder Token: Within the Holy Spirit Cult, the token identifies its holder. Whoever holds this token is the Seventh Elder of the Holy Spirit Cult. Note: The Holy Spirit Cult's elders hold regular meetings.]

After checking his inventory, Lu Ma began observing the surroundings.

He'd been caught up in the fight earlier and hadn't known where he was or why he'd ended up there.

The Simulation said Ning Rongrong had come with Gu Rong and Ning Fengzhi, but neither of them was in this scene.

"Then is this some kind of instance, like the Soul Fighting Arena?"

Lu Ma considered the possibility and walked to the edge of the space. The Eight Spider Lances unfolded, and he attacked the purple crystal wall.

"Crash."

The "wall" broke.

"So it really is."

Lu Ma scratched his head and controlled the character as she went through the hole in the wall. Zhao Xiaoya followed behind, still dazed.

As expected of Lord Holy God, she thought.

Ning Rongrong landed lightly on the ground, her body returning to its original size. Then she looked around again.

The sight of the vast whiteness made Lu Ma uncomfortable, so he immediately enabled graphics optimization.

"Mm, seems like there wasn't any need to turn it on."

Lu Ma said, since there was nothing inside the Smoke. But in the places where the Smoke didn't completely block his vision, he saw three people fighting desperately.