Chapter 173.2: He Must Be a Righteous God

On a dark mountain road, the young woman, Qi Qi, wore a resolute expression.

Beside her, her maidservant—Little Xue—panted. "Miss, how much farther?"

Qi Qi said firmly, "According to the map, we're close."

She hailed from a great clan. When she was young, an evil god descended and annihilated her entire family. Qi Qi was the only survivor. Now, she was headed for a certain remote village, bearing a clan relic.

According to the relic's records, that village’s divine statue had been crafted by her ancestors. Inside lay a treasure: the Yinbirth Stone, capable of creating a True God. As the new and ancient gods clashed, the ancient ones steadily faltered. How could they not, when new gods kept appearing without end?

Once fallen, ancient gods were lost forever, without any chance of being reborn. A great change in heaven and earth, one hundred thousand years ago, was the reason. Divine beings could no longer break their limits to reach the True God realm. Thus, every fallen ancient god was a permanent loss.

Scattered across the world, however, were rare treasures like the Yinbirth Stone, capable of helping one ascend. Of course, they were exceedingly rare. The number of ancient gods increased far more slowly than they fell.

That was the purpose behind Qi Qi’s trip to Clearwater Village. With it, she could create a new ancient god, and maybe even avenge her clan.

Little Xue asked, "Miss, do you think what that old granny said earlier was true?"

Earlier on the road, they had encountered a lunatic old lady who claimed Qi Qi was of noble birth. The woman even urged Qi Qi to follow her. Of course, Qi Qi refused.

She laughed bitterly. "My parents are dead. What use is noble birth now?"

Little Xue nodded since it made sense. "Miss, what if the guardian god of Clearwater Village is still around? How are we supposed to retrieve the statue?"

Normally, to take something from a divine statue, one would require the god’s permission. After all, a statue was essentially a god's vessel.

Qi Qi's eyes lit up. "I brought a treasure that can create an even more precious statue. As an exchange for the stone, I’ll create a new statue for the god. And don’t forget about the token,

hehe

."

When her ancestors created the statue, they had made an agreement with the god.

Qi Qi’s gaze then dimmed. "I've heard Clearwater Village may already be finished. We might not even see the god. The statue may be empty."

Now, with the clash of gods, many villages had already become playgrounds for evil gods. The people lost their will, becoming puppets who only worshipped evil gods, merging into them.

Stone Village was a prime example. Give that evil god another hundred years, and its villagers would become walking corpses, becoming part of the god itself. The god's strength would then soar.

After several hours, Qi Qi and Little Xue finally reached Clearwater Village.

Seeing the desolate village, pain flashed through Qi Qi's eyes. The Mortal Heart World had once been peaceful and prosperous. Now, half suffered endlessly, half had become living corpses.

Qi Qi asked an old woman, "Granny, where are the villagers? And where is the god?"

The granny eyed her warily. "Who are you?"

"My name is Qi Qi, from Tianfu—"

"Tianfu?" The granny examined Qi Qi closely, grief surfaced upon confirming her bloodline. "You carry the blood of the ancient clan too?"

When the evil god descended ten years ago, the people of Tianfu refused to worship them. Enraged, the evil god had destroyed the city. Tianfu became a scorched earth and all its people perished in battle.

Naturally, the granny trusted Qi Qi more.

Qi Qi nodded, calm and emotionless. "Yes."

"Our god went with the villagers to subjugate the evil god of Chenxi Village. The god said Chenxi Village has lots of pigs. Killing the evil god would make it easier to hold a feast," the granny said cheerfully, drooling slightly. None of the earlier sorrow remained.

Qi Qi froze.

Um, what?

She was deeply confused.

Why would their god go fight another god? Is Clearwater Village’s god that powerful?

That couldn’t be. Since Clearwater Village's statues were made by the Qi family, she knew exactly what level they were. How could a powerful god be born from them?

Qi Qi asked, "Granny, where is Chenxi Village?"

"Go straight three li down the main road. Once you see a pavilion, then turn right."

Qi Qi hurried off with Little Xue. "Thank you!"

On the road, Little Xue frowned. "Miss, this god is incredibly bold, attacking an evil god! Feihuang City is basically a fallen zone!"

Most surrounding cities had already been taken over by new gods. In such an environment, ancient gods were always at a disadvantage. Many chose not to resist, with some even becoming lackeys of the new gods. For Clearwater Village's god to strike an evil god was truly unexpected.

Qi Qi said, "Perhaps Clearwater Village's god is a righteous Venerable, unwilling to watch evil gods slaughter the masses."

Admiration had already arisen in her heart before even meeting him. She imagined a great god, one willing to sacrifice himself for all beings. Even though such ancient gods would easily perish in today’s world, they were unquestionably worthy of reverence.

"And such Venerable Ones are the easiest targets for evil gods." Little Xue sighed. "Those who cling to life and submit to new gods live the longest. This world is too unfair."

They quickened their pace toward Chenxi Village.

Suddenly, Qi Yuan’s hurried shout rang out. "You're a dignified Nascent Soul cultivator, yet you can't even catch a pig?! Hurry up! If we don't catch them, how are we going to hold a feast?!"

Qi Qi and Little Xue looked over. A massive herd of pigs came charging in. Fat, sturdy, all cultivators—most at the Core Formation realm. They fled in panic, kicking up clouds of dust.

Behind them stood a handsome man, a sword on his back, his hands in his pockets. He shouted angrily while stepping on a fat pig, "If we didn't need them alive, I'd have chopped all their heads off already!"

Divine radiance shone from him.

𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Qi Qi's eyes widened. "H-he's the god of Clearwater Village?"

Little Xue was stunned. The towering, majestic god they were imagining about was catching pigs?

Qi Yuan shouted from afar, "Hey! What are you two standing around for? Hurry and help block the pigs! I'll reward you with a pigtail to eat!"

Shen Tu, dragging a pig in each hand, gazed at Qi Qi pleadingly.

Qi Qi sighed and pulled out a formation disk.

Nine Heavens Yin-Yang Dragon-Trapping Formation!

The moment it activated, the space around her distorted. More than a hundred golden-armored divine generals appeared, spears in hand, advancing with solemn might.

"Ensnare!"

With a roar, their spears transformed into celestial cords, binding every fleeing pig.

Qi Yuan clapped. "Not bad, not bad. I'll reward you with a pig's head later."

Qi Qi felt awkward. Such a powerful formation was being used to trap pigs...

Yulei and Shen Tu came over, giving her approving looks.

"Good girl!"

"Impressive! You stopped hundreds of pigs, just like that."

Under their praise, Qi Qi felt her toes curl hard enough to dig out a villa.

"

Hehe

... It was no big deal," she said with an awkward but polite smile.

Watching villagers haul away the pigs, she walked toward the handsome man, trying hard to stay composed.

Seeing the pig still squealing under his foot, her lips twitched uncontrollably. "Venerable One, may I ask if you are the guardian god of Clearwater Village? I am Qi Qi, from Tianfu."