All Gods: Starting with Two Families

Chapter 169 The Goodwill of the TempleThe crowd by the port was still whispering; those golden ships were too conspicuous, and no one could help but take a few extra glances.

Leon Us was about to open his mouth to respond to the lavishly dressed woman when, suddenly, the crowd was shoved aside violently.

A person stumbled out.

He was disheveled, his clothes in tatters. But Leon Us recognized that Face—the young master of the Iron Shield Family.

The people of the Us Territory were all stunned. The road on North Mountain had been sealed off, and spies were watching it day and night. When did he come down the mountain? How did he get down?

”The Pantheon is above!”

The young man fell to his knees with a thud, looking up at the sky, his voice hoarse and fanatical: ”The [God of Jealousy] has returned to their position!”

His eyes burned with a kind of madness as he stared fixedly at the lavishly dressed woman—no, he was staring at the ship behind her, at the golden coin statue, at those symbols representing another deity.

Leon Us had not yet reacted to what had happened, but the lavishly dressed woman had already moved.

She did not even look at the young man directly. She simply reached to her waist, pulled out a scroll, and gently tore it open.

A golden light shot out from the scroll, so fast that one did not even have time to blink.

Before the fanatical expression on the young man’s Face could change, the light had already passed through his body.

He knelt there, frozen for an instant.

Then he fell over stiffly.

Dead.

A deathly silence instantly descended upon the pier.

The onlookers widened their eyes and opened their mouths, but could not make a sound.

Some subconsciously stepped back, some had weak legs and fell to the ground, and some covered their mouths, afraid to scream.

Leon Us’s hand was already pressed against his sword hilt.

The lavishly dressed woman threw the torn scroll to the ground and clapped her hands, as if she had just finished a trivial matter.

She turned her head to look at Leon Us, that standard smile appearing on her Face again.

”Apologies, I’ve dirtied your pier,” she said, her voice still gentle. ”I’ll have someone clean it up later.”

Leon Us stared at her, not letting go of his sword hilt.

The lavishly dressed woman did not mind, just bowed slightly: ”This is a gesture of goodwill from the Pantheon.”

She paused and swept her gaze over the terrified crowd around them.

”There are too many people here; shall we go somewhere else to talk?”

Reception room.

Leon Us had the best refreshments prepared. Exquisite porcelain, silver teapots, black tea just shipped from the continent, served with honey and milk. This was the highest standard he could offer as a lord.

The lavishly dressed woman sat in the guest seat, picked up the teacup, and took a sip.

Then put it down.

The movement was light and elegant. But Leon Us saw it; she only took one bite of the exquisite pastry and never touched it again. It was that polite, Face-saving, yet actually completely disdainful attitude.

He suddenly felt a bit uncomfortable.

The Us Territory had been making a fortune every day for the past three months; he thought he was rich enough. The gold coins in the warehouse were piled up like mountains; he thought he had enough.

But now, sitting in front of this woman, he realized that his little bit of wealth might only be enough to fill the gaps between her teeth.

The lavishly dressed woman was named Alicia, said to be a minor priestess of the Goddess of Gold Coins.

Her clothes were made of a material Leon Us had never seen; the gold thread embroidered on the hem of her skirt was brighter than real gold, and the gemstone necklace around her neck could buy half of Us Castle.

She sat there, clearly smiling, clearly speaking very politely, but the sense of superiority that permeated from her bones could not be hidden.

Leon Us picked up his teacup and took a sip, not speaking.

Moby sat next to him, holding the pot of sunflowers in his arms. Luna stood in the corner, as quiet as if she did not exist.

Alicia was not in a hurry. She slowly sipped her tea—though she only took one sip—and her gaze swept over the furnishings of the reception room; that scrutinizing gaze made Leon Us feel uncomfortable all over.

The atmosphere was a bit awkward.

Limited by the characteristics of the God-Forsaken Land, the Divine Thought of a deity cannot be too far from their believers. To facilitate communication between the gods, the four believers could only sit there and make awkward small talk.

This was a temporarily constructed space, not large, gray and hazy all around, with nothing else. Only three existences were floating within it.

One was Zhou Zheng. His Divine Thought was still in the form of that molting Feathered Serpent, majestic and mysterious.

One was the God of Ascension. That small mirror floated quietly, surrounded by twelve lunar phases.

And one more—

It was a gold coin.

Pure gold, the size of a wagon wheel, with the head of a beautiful woman engraved on one side and intricate patterns engraved on the other. It floated there, emitting a soft golden light.

The Goddess of Gold Coins.

Zhou Zheng looked at the gold coin and was silent for a moment. He had seen deities in various forms, but this was truly his first time seeing one in the form of a pure gold coin.

”One of the uses of the divine order tokens,” the Goddess of Gold Coins spoke. Her voice was very pleasant, like the crisp sound of gold coins falling into a money bag. ”It can establish a temporary communication space within a certain range.”

She paused, and her gaze—if a gold coin could have a gaze—fell upon Zhou Zheng.

The Goddess of Gold Coins got straight to the point, with a condescending attitude:

”I hope you will join the Pantheon.”

”As a Child of Luck from the previous Ganges Epoch, the Pantheon allows your inclusion.”

The Goddess of Gold Coins continued, her tone carrying a sense of natural superiority, ”We can ensure you achieve victory this time.”

Zhou Zheng finally spoke: ”And the cost?”

A contract appeared in front of the Goddess of Gold Coins.

Golden paper, golden characters, edges shimmering with a faint light. Zhou Zheng glanced at it; the content was very simple:

1. Deities of the Pantheon must contribute 30% of the faith they receive to the Pantheon.

2. After joining the Pantheon, mutual attacks are not allowed, except in the God-Forsaken Land or voluntary duels.

This contract... was not only not harsh, it could even be called generous.

Thirty percent, not much.

In a place like the God-Forsaken Land, to be able to obtain the protection of the Pantheon, to ensure victory, and to obtain a divine office—what was this small cost?!

If he had not come into contact with that knowledge regarding [authority], and if he still thought that condensing a divine office was the ultimate goal, he probably would not have hesitated long before agreeing.

But now—

He looked at the Goddess of Gold Coins.

The gold coin was still emitting a soft light, the beautiful woman’s head was engraved vividly, and the corners of her mouth seemed to carry a faint, elusive smile.

The Goddess of Gold Coins saw his hesitation. She did not press him, did not persuade him, just smiled faintly.

”My believer will stay on the island for three days,” she said. ”You can find her at any time.”

Then her figure began to dissipate.

The temporary space also began to collapse.

Zhou Zheng watched the place where the gold coin had disappeared, silent for a long time.

In the reception room.

Alicia suddenly stood up.

”I have disturbed you,” she said, bowing slightly, her smile still perfect. ”It is getting late today, so I will return to the ship first. I will come to visit again tomorrow.”

Sensing the deity’s indication, Leon Us understood and stood up to see her out.

The contract left behind by the Goddess of Gold Coins appeared in Zhou Zheng’s field of vision.

All-Knowing Eye!

His gaze pierced through the surface of the paper, through the divine script and the rules it carried.

Finally, in the deepest part, Zhou Zheng discovered a line of small text.

That line of text was extremely hidden, concealed within the intricate patterns, hidden in the shadows of every stroke.

If it were not for the All-Knowing Eye, it would have been impossible to discover.

Zhou Zheng stared at that line of text, his expression changing.