In the self-service seafood restaurant of the shopping mall:
A person dressed as a Taoist priest waited alongside an unknown eight-legged creature shrouded in a robe.
These two beings were Qing and the deity he worshipped.
The eight-legged deity appeared to be similar to an octopus.
However, on its plate lay a dozen grilled squid tentacles, which it seemed to be enjoying heartily.
"Qing, are you sure the other party is really a fanatic follower of a provincial-level deity?" the eight-legged deity asked while eating the squid, its tone betraying some impatience.
An hour had passed since the agreed-upon time, but the so-called fanatic follower of the provincial-level deity had yet to show up.
Regardless of whether the other party represented a provincial level or not, it wanted to kill that damned person.
"My lord, there is absolutely no mistake. His divine aura is much stronger than mine, and he is in human form. He is definitely a fanatic follower of a provincial-level deity," Qing assured, patting his old Taoist robe.
Most deities on Blue Star were strange and unusual, and humanoid forms like Tom and Jerry standing on two feet were rare, let alone actual human forms.
Deng Ru's genuine human appearance undoubtedly marked him as a follower or similar role.
"That's good. This time, to overthrow the old thing in H City, we do need the help of a provincial-level deity," the eight-legged deity's grievance lessened somewhat upon hearing Qing's assurance.
.....
Inside the shopping mall, Deng Ru found the seafood buffet restaurant indicated on the location.
"Hmm, this is the place. Let's go in," Deng Ru said, glancing at the sign.
"Okay, Deng Ru ge," Qiu Yuan very proactively linked arms with Deng Ru.
From a distance, the two of them looked like a couple just starting their romantic relationship.
"...."
Qiu Yuan's sudden action obviously startled Deng Ru for a moment.
But he didn't say anything to stop her.
It was quite nice, actually. After all, he had been a single dog in his previous life.
Now that he had been reborn as a deity, why shouldn't he flirt with a girl?
"Friend! We're here!" Qing saw Deng Ru from afar and waved to him with his eight-legged deity, jumping up and down to attract Deng Ru's attention.
"Hmm, they're over there. Let's go," Deng Ru pointed to the two guys, one tall and one short, who were jumping around excitedly.
For some reason, he found this pair of deity and follower strangely amusing.
Approaching Qing's seat,
"Finally, you're here, my friend. Help yourself to whatever you want. Don't be polite," Qing greeted Deng Ru with enthusiasm.
"Uh, let's talk about business first. What do you two want to see me about?" Deng Ru looked at Qing with a black line on his face.
Damn it, who the hell is being polite here? This is a buffet, and you're pretending to be generous and welcoming? He felt like giving Qing a smack right now.
"Xiao Yuan, help yourself to whatever you want. Don't worry about us," Deng Ru temporarily dismissed Qiu Yuan.
"Okay, Deng Ru ge," Qiu Yuan obediently left the table.
"Hello, friend," the voice of the eight-legged deity was muffled by the robe, sounding particularly dull.
"Hmm? Is this the deity that Brother Qing worships?" Deng Ru looked at the eight-legged deity.
When he saw the skewers of squid in front of the deity, he couldn't help but be taken aback.
What the hell? An octopus eating squid? What's the difference between this and a human eating a live Neanderthal?
"Yes, I am the deity of Xuande County," the Xuande deity declared without any hint of concealment, showing its sincerity.
"So you're the Xuande deity. I've heard that Xuande is a county with over nine million people. I've long admired you," Deng Ru pretended to be impressed by the Xuande deity's identity.
Although he had guessed the Xuande deity's identity a long time ago, as there were only a few counties with such a large population, it wasn't hard to figure out.
"Before we get to the main topic, I have some questions for you. I've noticed that you have the emotions of that young girl within you. Technically speaking, absorbing emotions is a unique ability of deities. Those fanatical followers need to absorb our purified divine power to cultivate."
"Yet you, as a follower, seem to be able to absorb emotional energy that only deities can. How is that possible?" The Xuande deity's voice became slightly stern, and its eight tentacles constantly surrounded Deng Ru's body.
It seemed to be trying to inspect something, obviously having some suspicions about Deng Ru's identity. Absorbing emotions was a unique ability of deities and couldn't be done by humans.
Otherwise, the conversion of divine power would no longer be exclusive to deities, and the covenant between humans and deities would become fragile.
"My lord, what are you doing? Brother Deng Ru is my friend. I've already checked him out. He's just an ordinary fanatical follower. How could he possibly be a deity?" Qing was startled by the sudden action of the Xuande deity.
Deng Ru had a provincial-level deity backing him up. Offending him would mean trouble not only for the Xuande deity but also for the entire Xuande County.
The Xuande deity's actions were undoubtedly risking the future of the entire Xuande County.
"..." Deng Ru was also caught off guard, mentally cursing himself for overlooking a crucial detail.
He had hidden the emotional auras provided by the ants but forgotten to specifically mask the emotional faith provided by Qiu Yuan. She had been his follower for so long that her emotions and auras had left traces within him.
Especially when his other followers were mostly ants, Qiu Yuan's emotional auras stood out even more. And with her standing right beside him just now, her auras were too easy to recognize.
Fortunately, he hadn't shown any obvious flaws in his performance.
"Xuande deity, what are you talking about? Qiu Yuan and I have been childhood friends. It's only natural that I have her auras within me. Brother Qing, do you remember when I asked you about ways for ordinary people to absorb divine power?" Deng Ru kept his composure, holding a glass of water steady without spilling a drop.
"That's right, my lord. Brother Deng Ru did ask me about methods for ordinary people to cultivate divine power," Qing confirmed Deng Ru's words.
"Well, after asking Brother Qing, I still failed. So I took a risk and forcibly absorbed Qiu Yuan's emotions. Obviously, I failed again, but her emotions left traces within me," Deng Ru managed to cover up his lie.
Whether they believed him or not, he didn't care. If they didn't believe him, he would make them believe by force.
"...I see. You're quite similar to Qing in that you're both passionate lovers," the Xuande deity withdrew its tentacles, and the voice under the robe returned to its muffled state.
It didn't entirely believe Deng Ru, but since he was willing to explain and they couldn't find any evidence to prove he was a deity, it decided to let the matter rest. At least Deng Ru didn't seem to have any malicious intent.
"My lord, there's no need to mention that," Qing's mood obviously changed when the word "passionate lover" was mentioned.
"Speaking of passionate lovers, it seems that your childhood sweetheart is also on the list of brides that the old geezer in H City intends to marry. I've seen the list, and there's a girl named Qiu Yuan who looks exactly like your childhood sweetheart. You call her Qiu Yuan too, so I assume it's her," the Xuande deity seemed to have its own pride and didn't continue the topic of Qing's love life. Instead, it shifted the focus back to Deng Ru's situation.
"Yes, Qiu Yuan is indeed on the list of brides that the old geezer in H City intends to marry. That's one of the reasons why I agreed to conspire with Brother Qing," Deng Ru didn't deny it. Qiu Yuan was indeed one of the reasons why he wanted to overthrow the deity in H City.
"Haha, see, my friend, our goals are aligned. If you want to keep your childhood sweetheart safe, conspiring with us is your best choice," the Xuande deity said in a muffled voice. One of its tentacles emerged, giving off a slimy feeling and dripping with some unknown liquid.