Chapter 154
Lu Chuan, however, had his own principles.
Once he realized something about this situation didn’t add up, even with the Seed of Fertility right in front of him, he didn’t recklessly reach out for it.
“Little System, try again. There’s really no way to reach the real Cang Jiu?” Lu Chuan suddenly asked.
[Ah? Okay, I’ll try.]
#888 didn’t know what the host had discovered, but as a sharp and tactful system, it knew Lu Chuan never spoke without reason. Since his expression was so serious, something beyond their expectations must have happened.
#888 tried hard to reach Cang Jiu.
Until now, it had never thought there would come a day it would take the initiative to seek him out.
At that very moment, in Cang Jiu’s true location—The ingot on the hilt of his sword was buzzing faintly, intermittently, but continuously.
Cang Jiu curled a finger and flicked it lightly.
The sound stopped.
“To avoid suspicion, I’ve only been communicating with him through writing—nothing else. And even so, he still noticed?” Cang Jiu wasn’t angry at being seen through by Lu Chuan. On the contrary, he seemed rather pleased.
Of all people, it was Lu Chuan who had been in closest and longest contact with him.
He had even given Lu Chuan a mark so strong it had taken physical form, able to shield him from the corruption of many hostile gods.
If not for Lu Chuan being the so-called candidate for the God of Wealth, that alone would have been enough to make him the high priest of the [God of Desire].
So when Lu Chuan suddenly reined in his impulses and refrained from reaching for the Seed of Fertility, it was all the more remarkable.
God or player, no matter how well they hid their true selves in daily life, when the moment of truth came, they would act on their desires, more or less. Lu Chuan, however, was the opposite—he usually followed his impulses, but when it truly mattered, he could resist them and stop himself.
Cang Jiu smiled faintly.
He didn’t answer Lu Chuan’s call.
Now wasn’t the time to be confronted by him. He hadn’t yet reclaimed what he wanted.
[Host, it’s no good. I think I can reach Cang Jiu, but he’s ignoring us.] #888 tattled, [He won’t even give us a proper reply.]
“Seems like he’s guilty,” Lu Chuan smirked. “As I said, the title [God of Desire] really isn’t for nothing.”
888 was bewildered, not sure why Lu Chuan was suddenly saying these things.
“Let’s go,” Lu Chuan said, turning away.
[But the Seed of Fertility!] #888 cried. [Host, it’s right there in front of us, aren’t we taking it?]
“If I’m right, when all is said and done, the seed will land in my hands anyway. If I’m wrong, then even if I pick it up now, I still won’t be able to leave this instance. In that case, what use is it to me now?” Lu Chuan smiled faintly. “What’s mine will be mine. No one can take it away.”
#888 half-understood.
Lu Chuan first went to find Shen Li.
Better to start with the easy part.
There was no way he would go near the battlefield where the [Mother of Fertility] and the [Black Swan] were fighting. If they suddenly noticed him in the middle of their battle and decided to turn on him, he’d be in deep trouble. So it was safer to regroup with his allies first.
Earlier, Lu Chuan had told Shen Li to take advantage of the chaos and grab the Church of Fertility’s treasures. So by now, Shen Li should be in the logistics warehouse.
At that moment, Shen Li had secretly stashed away about a cubic meter of gold and silver.
“Captain Shen, hiding away some private treasure, are we?” Lu Chuan’s voice came from behind.
Shen Li’s hands shook, and he quickly dropped the gold, raising both hands in surrender as he turned toward Lu Chuan.
“The rest is all yours! I was guarding it here the whole time. Just took a little labor fee, that’s all.”
He didn’t dare look Lu Chuan in the eye.
It was his first time lining his pockets like this, and he wasn’t used to it.
“What you took isn’t worth much,” Lu Chuan said kindly. “Try that pile in the corner instead—that one’s far more valuable and will fetch a lot more money.”
The Church of Fertility’s treasure vault was impressive.
The warehouse was piled high with gold, silver, and jewels, many of them priceless heirlooms. Clearly, these were offerings donated by believers.
Generally, a church’s wealth came entirely from its followers’ donations. So the richer the congregation, the richer the church—and vice versa.
Otherwise, back when Lu Chuan had offered Shen Li a “Penance Voucher” to pull in countless churches, how else could it have worked?
There simply weren’t many avenues for wealth in this world.
“The rest is yours, I won’t touch it.” Shen Li worried Lu Chuan was speaking in irony.
“I’m not angry,” Lu Chuan said seriously. “I’m just shocked you’d actually do something like this.”
Heaven must be raining red today—Shen Li, of all people, stashing private money? But since Shen Li had found such a huge treasure vault, taking a finder’s fee was only fair.
Besides, no matter how much Shen Li hoarded, wouldn’t it all end up back in Lu Chuan’s hands anyway? Shen Li simply wasn’t the kind of man who could hold on to wealth.
“Ahem, close to ink makes you black.” Shen Li coughed awkwardly. “If you hadn’t scraped me clean before, I wouldn’t have done this. I just lost control for a moment seeing all these jewels.”
Lu Chuan stepped closer.
“Earlier, when you met the god-servant paired with me—did you have any physical contact with him?” Lu Chuan asked suddenly.
Shen Li was bewildered. What was Lu Chuan asking this for out of nowhere?
“Maybe. I wasn’t paying attention. Why? Was there something wrong with him?” Shen Li asked curiously.
Lu Chuan was silent for a moment. “Little System, scan him. See if Cang Jiu left any marks on him—any traces of the [God of Desire]’s divine power.”
#888 immediately complied.
[Yes! There really is, host!] #888 gasped. [It’s such a tiny amount that it was hidden very deep—if I hadn’t scanned specifically, I’d never have found it.]
As expected.
“Will this mark harm Shen Li?” Lu Chuan asked.
[Not really. The amount of divine power directly affects the effect of divine arts. With so little on him, it just makes Shen Li slightly more prone to desire. At most, if a god tried to possess him, this mark could shield him for about thirty seconds.] #888 hesitated, but answered truthfully.
“So you’re saying Cang Jiu was doing him a favor?” Lu Chuan laughed.
[Not exactly.] #888 was also confused. [But once a god places their mark, it’s like stamping their brand—essentially a locator. No matter how far, they can still influence the marked one. Host, I think Cang Jiu has ulterior motives.]
“He wants to steer everything in this instance according to his will, hiding behind us players the whole time,” Lu Chuan narrowed his eyes. “From the very start, we’ve been unknowingly helping him. Don’t forget, Little System—this instance’s key was given to me by him. Even the idea of condensing my own divine seed came from him.”
The moment Cang Jiu suggested Lu Chuan condense a seed, he had already begun his plan.
After handing over the instance key, Cang Jiu entered the copy under the pretense of tending to Number 18. Maybe Number 18’s issue was real, but that was only because Cang Jiu also wanted the [Mother of Fertility]’s corpse. Even without entering, he’d have found a way.
Back when he appeared as the Executor, Cang Jiu had already met Shen Li and the others. Shen Li just hadn’t connected the god-servant here to Cang Jiu himself.
So, who knew when exactly Cang Jiu had placed marks on them?
“Brother Shen, how’s the battle outside?” Lu Chuan asked.
“Oh, still going. The [Mother of Fertility] is starting to falter. She’s reclaiming the power she bestowed—I saw with my own eyes a blessed host turn old in an instant, their strength pulled back. A god only reclaims their gifts for one reason: weakness.”
The battle against the [Black Swan] had drained her far more than expected.
She was forced to recall the powers she had once granted, using them to replenish herself.
Meanwhile, Cynthia and Lilus were cutting down god-servants nonstop. [Mother of Fertility] couldn’t even recover them—because the stronger ones were already slain by the sister and brother duo.
The power of the Mother of Fertility was gradually failing, while the Black Swan, for some unknown reason, only grew stronger as the fight went on. Slowly, the scales of victory began to tilt.
After joining forces, Cynthia and Lilus had slaughtered most of the divine attendants, but they were so exhausted that they could barely move. They huddled together in a safe corner to rest for a moment.
That peaceful scene was broken by the arrival of Lu Chuan and Shen Li.
“What are you two doing here in the middle of all this chaos?” Lilus frowned at Lu Chuan and Shen Li, clearly displeased. He had just been about to reminisce with his sister, only for these two to ruin the mood.
“We came to find you. The situation is almost settled now,” Lu Chuan said with a smile. “You’ve killed nearly all the attendants, and all the blessed Mother of Fertility have had their power reclaimed. The rest are either cowering in their rooms or trying to flee—they’ve lost the will to fight. If nothing unexpected happens, the Mother of Fertility will die soon, and we’ll clear this instance smoothly.”
“What?” Lilus was aghast. “Shouldn’t we be fighting the Mother of Fertility ourselves? That’s not right—I’ve been looking forward to this. At the very least, I want to leave a mark on her!”
“With your ability?” Lu Chuan said sarcastically. “Forget leaving a mark on a god—you didn’t even last three seconds last time.
Quite the endurance, huh? Three-second man.”
Lilus leapt up in fury.
[Host, they both carry marks left by the God of Desire,] #888 whispered.
From Lu Chuan to his teammates, they had all been branded by Cang Jiu, yet he hadn’t shown up until now—a fact that already spoke volumes.
By reasoning backward from the results, Cang Jiu’s intentions became clear.
Just as Lu Chuan had said, once the Mother of Fertility died, the Main God System would judge the players as having cleared the instance. Even the Black Swan had only come to target the Mother of Fertility after hearing the intel Lu Chuan provided. From that perspective, the players’ success could easily be credited to Lu Chuan.
But on closer thought, there was a flaw.
The Black Swan was only a mid-tier deity; killing the Mother of Fertility outright would be extremely difficult.
According to Lu Chuan’s estimation, the Black Swan and the Mother of Fertility would likely “perish together” under Cang Jiu’s script.
Yet the Main God System would have no proof of this.
First, Cang Jiu’s true body hadn’t come here.
Second, operationally, Lu Chuan’s maneuvers were the most visible, with his teammates serving mainly as support.
As the linchpin of this scenario, Lu Chuan not only bore the task of dealing with the Mother of Fertility, but also played the vital role of diverting the Main God System’s gaze.
Lilus, as bait, had successfully lured out the Mother of Fertility.
Then Cynthia and Lilus cut down most of the divine attendants, cutting off her retreat.
Shen Li destroyed the wealth of the Cult of Mother of Fertility, greatly delaying any chance of its remnants reviving the Mother of Fertility.
Altogether, their efforts to clear the instance only perfected Cang Jiu’s concealment.
If Lu Chuan guessed right, this case was just like the one with Xi Jiangyuan—Cang Jiu had entered the instance to reclaim his own power.
The Black Swan and the Mother of Fertility were merely prey Cang Jiu had carefully chosen.
Lu Chuan was the executor of his script.
Meanwhile, the Mother of Fertility and Black Swan were consumed by their own desire. Every time they wanted to stop, the fire of lust reignited their fighting spirit, forcing them to battle to the death.
They wished to halt, but couldn’t.
It was as if something controlled their minds, compelling them to fight until one of them died.
Cang Jiu rested his chin on one hand, waiting patiently.
Only when the two deities were on the brink of death did he finally emerge, unhurried.
Who knew how the outside world imagined these gods? To Cang Jiu, they were grotesque beyond measure.
The Mother of Fertility original form resembled a black goat, its body covered with countless eyes and udders, all clustered together in an inky mass. Yet it exuded a bizarre allure, enticing others to approach and couple with it—a sight capable of inducing lifelong nightmares.
As for the Black Swan, in name it was a swan, but bore little resemblance apart from a long neck and wings. The rest was a chaotic mess.
They were like amalgams of countless things.
Only when such beings became strong enough to reshape their forms into stable human figures could they truly be called high-tier gods.
At her peak, the Mother of Fertility had been a plump, healthy woman, belly slightly rounded, radiating warmth and motherly love.
But that form had died long ago; what remained now was merely half of her revived body.
“You don’t look well,” Cang Jiu said softly. “Seems eating my flesh didn’t grant you much strength—a bit of a waste.”
The Mother of Fertility and Black Swan stared in shock at Cang Jiu, who had appeared out of nowhere, seemingly intent on mocking them.
Yet as soon as they thought to attack, some force bound their bodies.
Was this the power of the God of Desire?
Impossible. The God of Desire had refused to submit to the Main God, unlike the God of Exchange, and so the Main God sent countless Reapers and gods to devour him, strip away his authority, and seize his divinity. Those outside claiming his name were nothing but fakes.
But the moment Cang Jiu spoke, the two felt that long-lost power.
“From the moment you began fighting for desire, you were already trapped,” Cang Jiu said, curling his fingers into a fist.
The gods struggled to rise but couldn’t move.
Their long exposure to desire had turned them into the God of Desire’s playthings.
No wonder.
No wonder the Main God System had not only dispatched all its Reapers but also allied with so many deities to slay the God of Desire, even generously letting them devour his body.
So this was the terror of the God of Desire?
Too late for regret.
In the next instant, the two colossal deities were utterly snuffed out.
From their bodies, tiny points of light floated free, landing in the center of Cang Jiu’s brow.
Far away, his true body felt itself becoming a little more complete.
This trip had been worth it.
Cang Jiu had long set his sights on the Mother of Fertility.
Unlike the high-ranking Mother of Fertility, she lacked status but was ambitious. Back when Cang Jiu hadn’t fully revived, plotting against a top-tier god at her peak was far too difficult, so he had shelved the plan.
But soon, the Mother of Fertility was killed by other master-ranked players.
A god at their height was hard to deal with, but one mid-revival was easy prey!
Cang Jiu chose Lu Chuan as his helper.
As a candidate for the God of Wealth, Lu Chuan’s growth path naturally drew gods and those tied to them. Cynthia and Lilus, for instance, had deep ties to the Mother of Fertility.
That’s why, when giving out the dungeon key, Cang Jiu knew Lu Chuan would bring the siblings. The Mother of Fertility hid deep—had Cang Jiu come alone, finding her early on would’ve been difficult, and he risked the Main God noticing. But with Cynthia and Lilus, the Mother of Fertility would smell them and emerge of her own accord.
Lu Chuan’s role was even more critical.
Only he could, without knowing the plan, devise strategies against gods that aligned with Cang Jiu’s intentions.
Few players could stand against deities, but Lu Chuan was undoubtedly among the best.
He excelled at turning others’ strength to his advantage, and as a Wealth God candidate, his divinity was high—immune to the temptations that might sway lesser players.
With the lure of the Seed of Fertility, Lu Chuan was bound to enter this instance and become the Mother of Fertility foe.
All Cang Jiu had to do was stay hidden behind him, letting the Main God System focus on Lu Chuan while quietly drawing everyone into his script.
Nor was Cang Jiu without rewards to offer.
He planted desire marks on Lu Chuan’s teammates.
These marks merely magnified their own desires at key moments, guiding them to act as Cang Jiu wished.
In the end, when the Mother of Fertility died, they’d all clear the instance, Lu Chuan would claim the Seed of Fertility, and Cang Jiu would gain his prize—a win for all.
The only potential variable was Lu Chuan catching on too soon.
To minimize that risk, Cang Jiu hadn’t even allowed himself speech, communicating with Lu Chuan only through writing.
That way, Lu Chuan would have little chance to coax anything out of him.
But what no one expected was that Lu Chuan actually stopped at the very moment when the Seed of Fertility was within easy reach.
If Lu Chuan had seized the Seed in advance, the [Mother of Fertility] would have immediately realized it, flying into a frenzy as her hope was shattered. At that moment, Cang Jiu would have detonated the body of his current God Attendant, blocking the [Mother of Fertility] and even selling Lu Chuan a favor in the process. And if Lu Chuan obtained the Seed, the Main God System would only further conclude that the entire dungeon had been orchestrated by him.
Moreover, once Lu Chuan indulged his desire and took the Seed of Fertility, his bond with Cang Jiu would have grown tighter—that was Cang Jiu’s little selfish wish.
He had originally planned to keep Lu Chuan in the dark, letting him clear this dungeon smoothly, obtain the Seed of Fertility, and leave without ever realizing the truth.
But it seemed the plan had failed.
Still, that was fine.
Cang Jiu knew Lu Chuan well.
First, he had never harmed Lu Chuan’s teammates.
Second, he had never harmed Lu Chuan himself.
Third, he had already prepared gold as an apology.
With those in place, even if Lu Chuan were upset, he wouldn’t be able to stay angry.
After an unknown stretch of time, the Main God System’s prompt finally came.
[Detected: the divine being Mother of Fertility has perished. Player’s mission successfully completed.]
[Dungeon will end in one hour. Please explore freely.]
Everything was settled.
Author’s Note:
Cang Jiu: My wife really is impressive—he can actually control his desires o(////?////)q
