HP - Chapter 47

Kingdom of Gods 25

The next morning, Feng Zi knocked on the doors of Zhong Xu and Ji Zhou’s rooms.

“You two have already accepted the Pantheon’s invitation. According to the rules, all members are required to wear masks. You may choose your masks first; crafting them will also take some time.”

Zhong Xu and Ji Zhou casually named an insect, after which Feng Zi led them to breakfast and then took them on a tour of the base.

“The Pantheon aims to establish a free and happy Kingdom of Gods.”

Using this single theme, Feng Zi elaborated for two full hours, talking as they walked, without taking a single sip of water in between. By the end, his voice had turned hoarse.

Ji Zhou casually picked up a cup of water from the table. “Have a drink to soothe your throat.”

“Ah, thank you.”

At that moment, they were standing on the highest level of the Pantheon—a glass garden. Looking down from the railing, they could see people moving about on every floor. The lower the level, the smaller the figures appeared, like ants.

Zhong Xu and Ji Zhou were both preoccupied with the important locations they had just toured—for example, the library and the Zhaolu resource storage room.

Their importance was obvious at a glance: all of these places required passing through security checks to enter.

“Are you two thinking about something?” Feng Zi asked as he drank. “If you have any questions or anything you don’t understand, feel free to ask me.”

Zhong Xu asked calmly, “Which floor is Ran Ran on?”

Hearing her mention Ran Ran, Feng Zi relaxed slightly, then smiled. “She’s on the second floor, mainly responsible for the base’s entire lighting system.”

“There’s such a position?” Ji Zhou raised an eyebrow.

Feng Zi only smiled without answering.

Ran Ran’s ability could only be brought into play in desperate situations. In ordinary times, it was too meager, so she had been assigned to a position that had not originally existed and could be eliminated at any time.

Moreover, she was kept because at certain moments she could serve as a pawn.

“So what positions will be arranged for us?” Ji Zhou asked, crossing his arms.

Before Feng Zi could respond, a voice drifted over.

“Feng Zi, you may leave. I’ll take it from here.”

The person approaching gracefully was White Butterfly.

She sat down on a sofa nestled among lush blossoms and gestured toward the seats in front of her, indicating that they should sit.

“In the Kingdom of Gods, it’s rare to see such greenery,” Ji Zhou murmured as he took his seat, gazing at the clusters of flowers in the garden.

The game had begun beneath a sky filled with yellow sand, as if foreshadowing ill omen. Over the years, skyscrapers had risen from the earth and advanced technologies had emerged one after another, yet the Tree of Faith remained grey, and flowers were almost nowhere to be found.

“This is the Pantheon’s capability.”

White Butterfly smiled, then shifted the topic. “But I can’t give you an answer just yet, because we still need some time to become more familiar with one another.”

Zhong Xu tilted her chin slightly, signaling for her to continue.

White Butterfly paid no mind to her attitude and went straight to the point. “Zhong Xu, our purpose in seeking your cooperation is very simple—we will not allow the players to clear the game. No one is allowed to leave this world.”

The moment those words were spoken, it was as if she were dancing on Ji Zhou’s last nerve.

Yet his composure was excellent. His eyes darkened slightly, but he said nothing.

“Does the Judgment Eye know about this?” Zhong Xu asked.

“Of course they know. The Pantheon has always been open and aboveboard,” White Butterfly replied. “Our cooperation with the Judgment Eye is simply a matter of each taking what we need. They knew from the very beginning that our paths were different, yet they still chose to scheme alongside us.”

It was just that both sides were firmly convinced they could ultimately defeat the other.

“To be frank, early this morning the Chief Judge of the Judgment Eye called me, asking whether I already knew your whereabouts.”

White Butterfly smiled sweetly. “They were able to guess that the first thing the Pantheon would do upon identifying the Sinner would be to protect that Sinner. That way, no one would be able to clear the game.”

Ji Zhou could not hold back. “You do realize this is a game.”

“So what? As long as the Pantheon can firmly control this world, then after a few years, everyone will gradually forget that this is a game… After a few more generations, perhaps no one will remember at all.” As she said this, White Butterfly’s smile turned strange. “And how can you be certain that our previous world wasn’t a game world as well?”

“…”

Ji Zhou was left speechless.

“What are the benefits?” Zhong Xu asked.

“Most members of the Pantheon were dissatisfied with their lives in reality.”

She said only that single sentence; the rest was self-evident. Humans who had achieved nothing in their original world came here and suddenly possessed the immense possibility of climbing to the very peak. That sense of achievement naturally captivated them.

Of course, what lay behind this might be far darker than what White Butterfly had described.

After all, if the Pantheon truly gained control of this world, it would mean they could do whatever they pleased.

But none of that mattered.

Ji Zhou thought to himself that before any of that could happen, they first had to find a way to survive and leave this place.

“So, Zhong Xu, you don’t need to do any work at all. Just cooperate with us and eliminate every possibility of clearing the game.”

Ji Zhou said, “What about me?”

White Butterfly sounded reluctant. “Since you’re Zhong Xu’s friend, I’ll let you do a little less.”

“…”

“Your combat ability is exceptionally strong. Wouldn’t it be a pity not to use it to fight monsters?” White Butterfly projected an image onto the tabletop.

The image displayed the current state of the city.

Compared to what Zhong Xu and Ji Zhou had witnessed with their own eyes yesterday, today it was yet another upheaval. The entire world was dim and devoid of light.

“The Reversed Disaster is truly terrifying. God Zhou, we may occasionally need to trouble you to lead a team down to clear some of it out, so that it doesn’t spread and affect our Pantheon.”

Ji Zhou stared at the projection, his expression grim. “They’ll attack their way up here sooner or later, won’t they?”

“Don’t worry, don’t worry. The Pantheon has been able to stand tall until now, and now even dares to make enemies of all players. Of course we have a trump card up our sleeve.”

With those words, White Butterfly rose and left.

Ji Zhou turned to look at Zhong Xu and blinked.

The unspoken understanding between teammates: then find out what her trump card is.

The communication devices on their wrists vibrated at the same time.

It was a message from Qiu Heming and Ning Zhi.

Seeing the message, Ji Zhou’s expression shifted slightly. “They’ve found a large amount of the resource ‘Zhaolu.’”

From the information they had previously obtained, Zhaolu was a game resource—simply put, an upgrade material that could bring a qualitative improvement to Tarot card abilities.

“But… those resources are completely surrounded by members of the Pantheon.”

“Monopolizing resources…” Zhong Xu replied to the message, telling Ning Zhi and the others not to deliberately search for unoccupied resources.

Since the Pantheon had made this move, it proved they had dispatched a large number of personnel to locate and occupy resources.

There was no need to compete with them; it was better to spend their time elsewhere.

Feng Zi poked his head out, grinning as he said that people from the Tarot Path were causing trouble nearby and that they needed Ji Zhou to go down and lead a team.

Ji Zhou muttered, “Not a moment to rest.”

“Be careful.” Zhong Xu paused slightly. “Not just of players who’ve activated Reversed cards.”

“Okay. I know.”

Their gazes passed through the glass toward the horizon, where dark clouds churned and heavy rain fell without pause.

“Ah Xu finally shows some concern for me for once. Too bad I didn’t record it.” Ji Zhou had already started walking away, waving a hand behind him without turning back.

Zhong Xu remained seated, as if spacing out for a long time, her unfocused gaze fixed on the blooming clusters of flowers.

It wasn’t until nearly noon that she stood and began walking downstairs.

“This is the library. You may enter after applying for and receiving approval from your direct superior. Please go through security before entering,” said a staff member standing outside the library to Zhong Xu.

Zhong Xu looked past the security scanner inside. Bookshelves reaching all the way to the ceiling were filled with books, and a faint scent of ink drifted toward her.

“Are these all books from the real world?”

The staff member smiled. “There are also history books of the Kingdom of Gods.”

“Oh? Written by players?”

The smile on the staff member’s face faded slightly. “Everyone here is a god. Please do not commit a taboo.”

What a perfect example of self-deception—lost in a dream they had woven for themselves, unable to break free.

Perhaps everyone here recognized Zhong Xu. The staff member paused briefly, then added, “There are many ancient texts inside, dating back to antiquity. Most were collected by our Pantheon from all over the world.”

“If I want to go in, whom should I apply to?”

“Lady Zhong Xu is an honored guest. You may enter directly.”

Before stepping into the library, Zhong Xu glanced around. She wasn’t sure whether it was because this floor housed the library, but the foot traffic was especially sparse and the atmosphere very quiet.

What caught her attention, however, was that outside the room next to the library, there were heavily armed guards stationed.

What place was that?

Although puzzled, Zhong Xu did not ask. After passing through security, she entered the library directly.

“Oh? She went to the library.”

In a room filled with fragrance, White Butterfly lay on a spa bed, eyes closed, as a beautician gently massaged her.

“Although you expected her to go to the library, I still find her behavior somewhat difficult to read. Should we use a drone to follow her?”

Feng Zi spoke softly from behind the curtain.

“Wouldn’t using a drone to follow her be the same as directly telling her we’re monitoring her?” White Butterfly said calmly. “No need. Let her lower her guard. As long as she doesn’t leave the Pantheon, everything is negotiable.”

“Yes.”

“By the way, what did you mean when you said her behavior was difficult to read?”

Feng Zi hesitated. “She stayed in the library all day, but only flipped through a few pages of books… The rest of the time, she just kept walking in circles.”

“Walking in circles?”

“Yes, circling along the bookshelves…”

“Did she leave at all in between?”

“She did, but it totaled less than an hour. She went to the cafeteria and the garden—probably just to eat and get some air.”

“Haha.” White Butterfly suddenly laughed. “So perceptive. No wonder they chose her.”

Feng Zi, however, remained somewhat confused.

“Don’t worry about her. Let her play.”

Feng Zi withdrew.

The smile on White Butterfly’s face gradually faded. She opened her eyes and sat up, a trace of melancholy surfacing in her gaze.

“What’s wrong?” A tall figure lifted the curtain and walked in.

Seeing who it was, the beautician quickly lowered her head, left, and closed the door.

Scorpion King stepped closer and drew White Butterfly into his arms. “You look very sad—and very happy.”

“We may not be able to hold out much longer,” White Butterfly said.

“Then don’t hold out. Didn’t you say this stage isn’t a certain-death situation? As long as you’re alive, nothing else matters.”

White Butterfly tilted her face up, staring at him blankly, then suddenly leaned in and kissed him.

Scorpion King tightened his embrace, deepening the kiss, and reached up as if to lift her mask.

White Butterfly raised a hand to stop him, her gaze dark. “Have you found him? Any leads?”

“Why bring up another man in bed?” Scorpion King bit her lip as if in punishment and quickly stripped the person in his arms bare.

“Wait… wait…” White Butterfly’s eyes were hazy. “Zhong Xu might be in our room right now.”

“If she’s willing to watch, I don’t mind.”

“What nonsense are you talking about? I mean OUR room!”

“…”

Sevyn here ~~~

Enjoy!