"Phew, thank goodness. It looks like the Great Enshrined's impotence won't become common knowledge."
After seeing off quite a few people who admired the Great Enshrined, sympathized with his plight, and had even donated whale rubber for him, the Spirit Hall Chamber of Commerce employee finally saw that no one else was coming to donate whale rubber and hurriedly breathed a sigh of relief.
But he had breathed that sigh of relief too soon.
Not long after those people left, another large group rushed to the Spirit Hall Chamber of Commerce. They all smelled of alcohol, and quite a few had flushed faces, as though they were drunk.
No, they were fucking drunk!!
"Shit, are they here to cause trouble?"
The Spirit Hall Chamber of Commerce employee panicked.
He had worked here for so long without ever encountering anything like this. This was Spirit City, after all. Who on earth would dare come to the Spirit Hall Chamber of Commerce to cause trouble?
Could they be from the Clear Sky Sect? Spirit Hall had forced the Clear Sky Sect to seal off its mountain, after all.
Could these people be harboring a grudge, too afraid to take revenge on Spirit Hall directly, and coming to cause trouble at the Spirit Hall Chamber of Commerce instead?!
"Hey, young fellow, it's me! I just donated a piece of whale rubber!!"
Swaying drunkenly as a Spirit Hall deacon supported him, the drunken patron took the lead and came straight up to the Spirit Hall Chamber of Commerce employee.
"Oh, oh, it's you. Why did you drink so much? Your face is so red, too. I didn't recognize you at first."
Seeing a familiar face, the Spirit Hall Chamber of Commerce employee felt somewhat reassured.
He had thought they were here to cause trouble. Since this man was leading them, surely they weren't here to cause trouble?
"They really do know each other!"
"Then it's true that Spirit Hall's Great Enshrined is impotent?!!"
The people who had come from the tavern to watch the fun turned pale with shock. They had thought the man was just spouting drunken nonsense, but it actually turned out to be true.
"Wait, you really just donated a piece of whale rubber to the Great Enshrined?!"
The Spirit Hall deacon was dumbfounded. Spirit Hall's Great Enshrined was his idol, after all. Now that upright, supremely righteous figure in his heart seemed to have cracked a little.
"Would I lie to you? The moment I heard the Great Enshrined was impotent, I was the first to donate a piece of whale rubber to him. I was the first!!"
The drunken patron stressed, "The Great Enshrined showed me great kindness back then. I truly couldn't bear to let him suffer like this, so I was the first to donate a piece of whale rubber to him!"
"Bullshit! I was clearly the first to donate!"
The Spirit Hall Chamber of Commerce employee grew agitated. "You were third at best! The two of us were clearly the first to donate whale rubber to the Great Enshrined!!"
"Holy shit, the Great Enshrined really is impotent?!!"
The hearts of the people who had followed from the tavern to watch the fun lurched. It really was true. Even the Spirit Hall Chamber of Commerce employees had admitted it, and they had been the first to donate whale rubber.
"Uh..."
Realizing he had let something slip, the Spirit Hall Chamber of Commerce employee hurriedly tried to salvage things. "This is Spirit Hall's secret. We will disclose nothing. Please leave. We absolutely will not reveal a thing!!"
"It's true! It really is true!!"
"Gasp! The Great Enshrined really is impotent?! How high-spirited Spirit Hall's Great Enshrined was back then! Who would have thought his twilight years would be so bleak!"
Some of those who had followed from the tavern to watch the fun had still been skeptical, but seeing the Spirit Hall Chamber of Commerce employee being so evasive, they had no choice but to believe it!
"Wait, it's actually true?"
The Spirit Hall deacon froze. That incomparably towering, utterly sacred figure in his heart really had shattered.
No, no, no, no. How could I look down on the Great Enshrined for something like this?
Although the Great Enshrined was hailed as Invincible in the Sky and was one of the Soul Master World's two towering peaks, he was still human. Every man had troubles he could not speak of!
"The Great Enshrined is a hero of our Soul Master World! We absolutely cannot let a hero shed both blood and tears!!!"
The Spirit Hall deacon shouted, his blood surging with such fervor that he all but burst into flame.
Even his eyes grew wet. "I'll donate a piece of whale rubber to the Great Enshrined too! Even if it costs me years of savings, the Great Enshrined is worth it!!"
"Good lad! I was right about you!!"
The drunken patron let out a shout, inspired by the Spirit Hall deacon. "Even though you misunderstood me just now, if you're donating whale rubber to the Great Enshrined, you're my brother!! I'll donate another piece. I can't let you outdo me!!"
"I'll donate a piece too. I really have no use for the stuff anyway!!"
Many of the tavern's patrons were moved and opened their purses to donate whale rubber. "In his early years, the Great Enshrined rooted out countless cancers in the Soul Master World and saved countless Soul Masters' lives. He was a great hero who saved Soul Masters from fire and flood! His twilight years shouldn't be so miserable!!"
"On behalf of Spirit Hall's Great Enshrined, I thank you all for your selfless contributions. But this is Spirit Hall's secret, so please don't tell outsiders!"
The Spirit Hall Chamber of Commerce employee hurriedly accepted the whale rubber and collected the Gold Soul Coins, actually feeling somewhat moved.
He had never imagined that the Great Enshrined's righteous deeds in his early years had benefited so many Soul Masters.
And now, so many Soul Masters were grateful for the Great Enshrined's contributions to the Soul Master World. Upon hearing of his plight, they had generously opened their purses to help, solely to repay his kindness from back then.
Surely the Great Enshrined would feel gratified when he heard about this?
"Of course, of course! We absolutely won't make a secret like this common knowledge!!"
The tavern's patrons nodded repeatedly. In high spirits after donating whale rubber, they turned around and headed back to the tavern to drink.
Once back at the tavern, the patrons hurriedly asked the bartender for more drinks. Having just done a great deed, they were in a truly wonderful mood and began gulping down their drinks.
"Ahh-"
Draining his cup in one gulp, a red-faced drinker said in satisfaction, "We really did a great deed today!!"
"Yes. Who would have thought Spirit Hall's Great Enshrined had such an unspeakable affliction? Who could have imagined it before?"
One drinker sighed. "To think the Great Enshrined bore such an unspeakable affliction and suffered for decades. No man could fail to sympathize!!"
"I don't have much money. I only donated ten Gold Soul Coins just now. I hope it can help the Great Enshrined a little."
"Are you not planning to get by from now on?!!"
Another drinker was shocked.
He knew that drinker's financial circumstances. Although the man had a little money, it wasn't much. Ten Gold Soul Coins might well have been more than half his wealth.
"Didn't you donate too? You even donated an entire piece of whale rubber. You're the generous one!!"
That drinker marveled at the other drinker's generosity.
"Yes, I donated an entire piece of whale rubber, but that was only because I have money. That piece of whale rubber is nothing to me, and I have no use for it anyway."
The other drinker spoke heartily, without the slightest contempt for the man who had donated only ten Gold Soul Coins:
"Unlike you. You actually gave more than half your wealth!"
"You've already shown your sincerity. For someone of your means to give ten Gold Soul Coins, you're a true man, through and through!!"
"Even the Great Enshrined would be moved to tears if he heard what you gave!!"