Chapter 172.2: A Feast for Thirty Days

Qi Yuan shouted, "Since the evil god is dead, it's time to start the feast! I've killed over thirty of the evil god's lackeys, so this feast will last thirty days!"

His voice rang throughout Stone Village.

The villagers were utterly dumbfounded.

A feast? What?!

The burly man surnamed Wang hesitated, then finally shouted, "Hurry! Let's prepare the feast!"

The others hurriedly nodded.

"Yes, begin the feast!"

At this point, survival was already a blessing. They would simply do as the ancient god commanded. Soon, Stone Village was brightly lit as banquet tables were set up everywhere.

The villagers of Clearwater Village exchanged glances. After receiving Qi Yuan's permission, they eagerly joined the feast. When they saw the tables laden with food—even meat—they could hardly keep from drooling. They had been hungry for far too long. Without a god's blessing, their water source had dried up, and their crops barely yielded anything.

Stone Village, on the other hand, had granaries overflowing with grain, fat pigs, chickens, ducks, geese, and fish.

Even Qi Yuan was a little surprised. No wonder everyone believed in the new god. Following a new god really did mean good food. Over thirty tables were set.

Seeing that Qi Yuan didn't lift his chopsticks, no one else dared to either.

Instead, Qi Yuan stood up and raised his cup. "Today, we gather together with heavy hearts. Heaven weeps, earth mourns. My good brethren, the guardian god of Stone Village, the Wolf-Dog God, has tragically passed away today, leaving us forever."

His voice was impassioned and even tinged with sorrow. The people of Stone Village looked at one another in confusion. The Clearwater villagers wore equally baffled expressions.

Qi Yuan then extended his palm. "On this sorrowful day, we remember her deeply."

The burly man surnamed Wang immediately caught the signal and gave a look.

At once, several middle-aged women dressed in white stepped forward. "O’ God, you died so miserably!"

"

Waaah...

"

These women were professional mourners, hired to cry at funerals. They wailed with heartbreaking sincerity, as if a close relative had truly died.

Hearing them, Qi Yuan finally felt a sense of ritual. "Begin the feast!"

He dug in immediately, nearly attempting to swallow a pig's head whole. That was just how hungry he was. Since transmigrating, he had never felt hunger like this.

Meanwhile, The Clearwater villagers ate like reincarnated starving ghosts. Some even secretly stuffed food away while eating.

***

Back in Clearwater Village.

Two old men lay on a pile of straw, chewing on cornbread.

"

Haa

... When will days like this ever end?"

"Soon enough. If our god dies in Stone Village, Clearwater Village will be finished too. Good thing I still have some dried rations, at least I won't starve to death."

"Our new god is just too strange. If he'd stayed in our village, we might've held on a bit longer. Going to Stone Village is like throwing a meat bun to a dog."

Their words echoed the thoughts of almost everyone.

No one believed Qi Yuan could defeat the new god. Even if he did, his end would be miserable. In present-day Feihuang City, new gods dominated half the land. Ancient gods had almost nowhere left to stand.

Just then, rustling sounds approached.

One old man frowned. "Sister Jiang, what are you doing out in the middle of the night?"

A frail middle-aged woman lifted her head. Her eyes shone, though her voice was weak. "Going to the feast to eat."

"

Huh

?" The old man thought that what she said sounded familiar. Hadn't he heard them somewhere earlier today?

"Lord God killed the evil god. Stone Village is holding a feast. We're going to help out and eat."

The old man froze. Lord God killed the evil god? At the evil god's home ground?

His eyes lit up. "Feast!"

Nothing else mattered.

***

Stone Village.

With the evil god slain, and the largest household wiped out by Qi Yuan, mountains of grain and food were seized.

On the first day, the feast was for the evil god. On the second day, the feast continued. So many had died, after all.

One day, a scrawny horse pulled a carriage. Inside sat an elderly man in a scholar's robe, thin as a withered branch. His eyes were closed, and he seemed seriously injured.

Huang Mengying asked with concern, "Sir, are you alright?"

"That new god of Gale Wind Town is quite powerful," the scholar said weakly. "The town has five hundred guards, akin to impregnable iron walls. I fought at their home ground and suffered heavy injuries. I'll need three years of recuperation before I can act again."

At the end, he sighed with self-reproach. "I have failed City Lord Huang's trust."

Huang Mengying's worry deepened, though she still said, "As long as you are safe, sir."

The scholar sighed. "It's a pity. Six out of seven towns have fallen to the new gods. Feihuang City can barely hold on."

𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

Having always worshiped ancient gods, there was even an ancient god enshrined within the Feihuang City. However, twenty years ago, said god suddenly fell into an unending slumber. The situation in the city changed overnight. Many powerful families secretly rallied for the welcoming of new gods.

Huang Mengying's father, the city lord of Feihuang City, refused to accept new gods and suppressed those families. Unable to overturn Feihuang City directly, those families colluded with nearby towns, plotting in villages to topple ancient gods and welcome new ones.

As a result, the vast majority of the villages had turned to new gods. Those still faithful to ancient gods were few and far between.

The scholar was a close friend of the City Lord, a late-stage Violet Palace powerhouse.

He had been personally invited to eliminate the new gods of the six towns and sever their influence. Unfortunately, after killing only one new god, he encountered a second and was gravely wounded.

At that moment, the sound of a suona horn drifted over, lively and festive. Such sounds were exceedingly rare in villages near Feihuang City.

The scholar paused in surprise. "Boy, what's going on in the village ahead?"

"Sir, I'll go ask." The boy driving the carriage jumped down and ran ahead. Not long after, he returned. "Sir, that's Stone Village. They're holding a feast!"

The scholar was baffled. "Stone Village? A feast?"

If he remembered correctly, Stone Village had an evil new god.

"The ancient god of Clearwater Village killed Stone Village's evil god. He then threw a feast!"

Hearing this, the scholar broke into a smile. "Such an interesting affair, I must go and see it for myself."

Beside him, Huang Mengying was equally intrigued. What was happening before them was truly baffling. In times like these, ancient gods killing new gods was already rare. Even more so killing one and then openly holding a feast afterward.

After all, new gods were powerful. Barely able to protect themselves, many ancient gods avoided provoking them.

Huang Mengying said, "Let's go take a look,"

She was well-versed in local gazetteers and knew the gods worshipped by every village under Feihuang City.

The god of Clearwater Village was the Dogtail Grass God, the lowest tier imaginable for a god. How could such a god possibly kill the evil god of Stone Village?

With different thoughts in mind, the scholar and Huang Mengying rode toward Stone Village.

What greeted them was a scene of blazing lights and bustling activity. They also saw several coffins laid out on the ground, with people wailing in mourning.

A funeral turned into a feast. The sight was absurd beyond words.