odessanovel Chapter 422
Chapter 422
Recently, the oddly-behaved System 07 rolled over in its space, turning its pristine white orb into a flattened pancake. It sensed Yue Fuguang's fleeting killing intent but chose not to intervene, closing its eyes to its own troubles—brooding over how to explain things to its host.Unaware that her system harbored secrets, Yue Fuguang asked Yu Mochun, "Fourth Uncle, what's happening up ahead?"
"Fuguang, there are some villagers blocking the road, seeking your forgiveness," Yu Mochun replied, wiping sweat from his brow. The heat was unseasonably intense.
What? Yue Fuguang almost had to clean out her ears. What was all this nonsense?
Seeking her forgiveness? Forgiveness for what? She didn't even know these people!
Could it be the Zhou family? No, that couldn't be. The grass on their graves was already overgrown. Even if they had reincarnated, they couldn't have become adults yet, let alone be blocking her path now.
"Forgiveness for what?" she asked.
Just then, the withdrawn System materialized in her hand. Its shimmering body rolled once before speaking telepathically: [Master, I know. They were once your worshippers. Because they angered you, they can no longer offer sacrifices to your statue. Now, they're blocking the road to atone and beg you to revoke your decree, allowing them to worship you again.]
Sure enough, what Yu Mochun and Yu Huaixian said next confirmed the System's words. Finally, Yu Huaixian said indignantly, "These people use you when it suits them and discard you when it doesn't. They show no respect. In my opinion, you shouldn't forgive them."
Hearing that this was the issue, Yue Fuguang felt little emotional stir.
After all, in her homeland, useful gods were enshrined high, while those who proved ineffective—some even had cannons aimed at their temples—were not unheard of.
Of course, the God of Wealth was an exception. Whether effective or not, people would kneel for hours before his statue. Blasphemy? That simply didn't exist!
Still, understanding the situation was one thing, but Yue Fuguang didn't consider herself a magnanimous person. She lacked the tolerance to forgive easily. If they only realized their mistake today because of the lack of rain and begged for forgiveness, what about next time? What if they sought wealth, children, or other blessings, and she couldn't fulfill their wishes? Would they betray her again?
Yue Fuguang nodded. "Second Cousin is right. Since they cannot worship me, let them find another god to serve."
She smiled and waved her hand. "There are many gods here—ones far more effective than I. There's no need to cling to one deity."
Her voice, light and serene, seemed casual but carried over two miles, sounding as though she were whispering directly into everyone's ears.
The villagers lining the roads bowed their heads lower, while the people kneeling to atone turned pale and mechanically knocked their foreheads against the ground in a dull thud, thud, thud.
Yue Fuguang sighed softly. "I can no longer hear you."
Her words were gentle, carrying no stormy anger, no reproach or condemnation. Yet they were colder than any insult. It was as if she had removed a door from its frame, leaving only a wall where it once stood.
Those kneeling and chanting let their blood drip into the dust, flowing into the dry, cracked earth. But it was useless. The goddess could not hear them!
"There's no need to kneel. Everyone, stand up." The villagers felt a gentle force lifting them to their feet.
As the creaking carriage passed by, her voice called out, "Wind, come!"
And a breeze swept through their coarse clothing and tangled, withered hair. Strands of hair brushed against their faces, blurring their vision but sharpening their hearing.
Then came, "Clouds, come!"
They felt a shadow suddenly gather above their heads. The scorching sun that had dried their hearts and cracked the earth was hidden behind thick, layered clouds.
The world darkened. As the wind surged and clouds rolled, the majestic presence of the goddess manifested. Before the crowd could recover from their shock, a not-so-loud command—"Rain, come!"—rang in their ears like thunder.
Instantly, wind and rain poured down in sheets, raindrops hitting the dry, hardened soil, forming coin-sized patterns like copper coins.
These patterns merged together, moistening the earth, and the villagers, like the newly planted crops, welcomed a rebirth.
"Thank you, Goddess, for the rain!"
"Thank you, Goddess, for the rain!"
"Thank you, Goddess, for the rain!"…
Along the path Yue Fuguang's convoy traveled, the villagers fell like cut wheat, kneeling in the direction of her carriage and pressing their foreheads into the mud. Sweat and rainwater mingled to drench the land beneath them.
Some attentive individuals even carried incense and candles, lighting them on the spot to offer prayers. Curiously, despite the heavy wind and rain that should have extinguished the flames, the incense lit successfully. Three slender trails of smoke rose gracefully in the downpour, faintly coalescing into the shape of the character "abundance."
Seeing this, every villager rushed home as fast as they could, a single thought echoing in their minds: "Offer incense!"
They, too, had to present incense to the goddess! They, too, needed a bountiful harvest in their fields!
Having accomplished all this, Yue Fuguang took credit but also finally reaped rewards. Someone remembered to replenish her ammunition—no, rather, to replenish her incense offerings.
Without a massive influx of incense energy, her power would only last for a single round trip. Moreover, her abilities still had infinite potential for growth.
As Yue Fuguang walked, she brought down the long-awaited rain upon the land of Dayan. The path she tread, winding many times around Dayan, would later be called the Rainy Path by the people, also known as the Goddess Road.
This was years afterward, when Yue Fuguang, the goddess, had long left this world, yet traces of her presence remained. Whenever someone walked this road, the elderly would recall the goddess, recount how her rain had saved them, and tell more legends about her.
But that was a tale for later. For now, Yue Fuguang had only just completed the rain-making task over one prefecture. To avoid harming the crops in the fields, her carriage moved faster than usual.
After the convoy left Quanzhou, it headed straight for Yingzhou. On this day, Yue Fuguang and her party arrived at Yingchuan Prefecture in Yingzhou, named after the Yingchuan River that flowed through it.
Unfortunately, after more than half a year of drought, this jade-belt river had dried up, leaving only black silt and countless cracked fissures, like ugly scars on the river’s body.
When Yue Fuguang passed by, she paid special attention to this river. By the time her group headed toward Yingchuan City, where they would stay for the night, this mother river, over thirty miles from Yingchuan Prefecture, had begun to revive with faint signs of life.
Seeing that it was nearly time for the evening meal, the party, knowing Yue Fuguang must be hungry, quickened their pace.
Suddenly, the fast-moving carriage slowed down and came to a halt. Before Yue Fuguang could ask, He Jin approached the window and reported in a low voice, “My lady, we are about to enter Yingchuan City ahead. Huang Xie, the prefect of Yingchuan, has gathered all the officials and local gentry to await you at the Ten-Mile Pavilion.”
“Huang Xie, the prefect of Yingchuan?” Yue Fuguang recalled the file on this man she had once read.
Huang Xie, aged forty-six, was a jinshi of the fifth year of the Fengshuo era, the same autumn the Great Yan emperor changed.
As soon as Emperor Mingxi ascended the throne, this man was assigned as a county magistrate in the provinces. His official career went smoothly, and he was promoted to prefect of Yingzhou just two years ago. He could be considered a minister of some weight in Emperor Mingxi’s eyes.
Yet despite this, Yue Fuguang, tired from the journey, had no intention of stepping down to exchange pleasantries with them.