Chapter 58: Chapter 53: Disaster Is Always One Step Behind Me
Luh Yao glanced at the top-right corner.
Population: 13,395 Faith: 4,910
Previously, he had spent nearly ninety percent of his Faith to unlock the [Golden Field] and subdue the Blood Knight. But after just a week, his Faith Value had already bounced back quite a bit.
This was partly due to gaining over 1,500 new followers, but the steady Faith income from his various artifacts was also a major contributor.
Luh Yao counted the artifacts in his possession.
Faith +1/hour: [Energy Staff], [Cactus Ball Attendants], [Drifting Letter], [Magical Fish Spear], [Tearful Amber].
Faith +2/hour: [Evil Bone Whistle].
Faith +3/hour: [Skinner’s Statue].
A total of 7 artifacts.
Over 24 hours, that generated 240 Faith each day.
That’s why he recovered so quickly after taking such a major hit.
Luh Yao mused that in just a month and a half, he could get back to over 10,000 Faith from these artifacts alone. He felt a sense of security whenever his Faith reserves were plentiful.
With Isabel, a level 60 Blood Knight, and plenty of Faith to burn, Luh Yao felt he had finally secured a foothold in the Broken World.
Just then, he got a phone call.
It was his boss.
"Go to the office now and pick someone up for me."
"She’s a girl, about five-seven, wearing a red dress. Her name’s Amy, she has short hair, and she’s in her twenties."
"Remember that key I gave you last week? Give it to her. That’s all you need to do."
"Grab a cab. I’ll cover the fare."
"Get there and back quickly," his boss added.
Even though it was Saturday, Luh Yao had no choice but to start putting on his shoes and head out.
It couldn’t be helped.
A man’s gotta eat.
Luh Yao had a special duty at the company: his boss would often have him run personal errands. These ranged from picking up various women and taking them to different places, delivering gifts to them... or sometimes delivering packages to mysterious individuals.
He didn’t really mind, though. His boss paid him a small, but reliable, monthly stipend for these tasks. Getting paid to do a job—can’t argue with that.
He took a taxi to the company. When he found Amy, a tall man was standing next to her. It was Sister Peng’s fiancé, Officer Fu Chenggang from the criminal police squad.
When he saw Luh Yao, Fu Chenggang nodded at him.
Amy’s gaze flickered between the two of them. "You two know each other?"
Fu Chenggang said they did.
"What a coincidence."
Amy smiled. "I’ll be going then. Talk later."
She took the key, said thanks to Luh Yao, then went downstairs, started a white BMW, and left.
"Smoke?" Fu Chenggang took out a pack of cigarettes and offered it.
Luh Yao shook his head. "I don’t smoke, thanks."
Fu Chenggang nodded and lit one for himself. "I just found out today myself. Amy’s dad... turns out he’s Boss Huang from your company."
As if sensing Luh Yao’s confusion, Fu Chenggang explained, "Amy and I have known each other for years. She only recently returned to the country. She came to me to discuss a few work-related things."
He glossed over it and changed the subject. "Luh Yao, I want to ask you about something."
Luh Yao was instantly on guard.
"Are you close with Xiaoyi?"
"Sister Peng?"
"Mhm."
"To be honest, I’ve only been at the company for a few months. Sister Peng has been nice to me, but I don’t actually know her that well."
"Oh."
Fu Chenggang nodded, then gave a short laugh. "Xiaoyi and I broke up."
Luh Yao was stunned.
’They broke up even though they were engaged?’
"That’s a shame," he said sincerely.
Fu Chenggang stuffed the pack of cigarettes into his pocket. "Now, in my capacity as a police detective, I need to ask you about a few things."
As he said this, he seemed to become a different person. His gaze sharpened, and his face took on a faint, oppressive air.
Luh Yao had a nagging feeling that something was wrong.
Still, this was a police inquiry, so he recounted what little he knew.
In fact, Luh Yao really didn’t know much about Peng Xiaoyi.
His impression of Sister Peng was that of an older-sister type who loved to gossip. She was sharp, a smooth talker who never offended anyone, and she knew the rules of the workplace inside and out. But he didn’t think she was malicious—at least not toward him, since their interests never clashed.
Other than that, Luh Yao only knew that Sister Peng had a cousin whose personality was a bit like his own.
"Xiaoyi doesn’t have a cousin."
But Fu Chenggang said, "She was adopted by an elderly couple as a child. She doesn’t have any relatives, and there’s no cousin in her family tree."
Luh Yao asked tentatively, "Did something happen to Sister Peng?"
Seeing Fu Chenggang’s strictly professional demeanor, he realized something must be wrong.
Fu Chenggang instructed, "This is an official inquiry, so I must ask you to keep this confidential."
"Understood."
The officer continued, "I hope you’ll cooperate with my work, and with the police..."
Luh Yao immediately cut in, "Sorry, Officer Fu. I’m a simple guy, I have a big mouth. I’d just end up messing up your investigation... I think I’d better go."
With that, he slipped away downstairs, hopped on a shared bike, and rushed home.
’Trouble is always one step too slow for me!’
’Are you kidding me?’
’Do I look like some sucker who’d fall for that?’
’You guys do your investigation, I’ll just go to work. I’m just an innocent bystander. A high-risk job like a police informant is definitely not for a cautious guy like me.’
Luh Yao decided that whatever was going on with Peng Xiaoyi, he was staying out of it. He’d finish his work and get out. No more car rides, no more talking about her. From now on, his interactions with Peng Xiaoyi would be strictly business, at the office only.
...
Returning to his computer, Luh Yao felt a wave of relief.
’The life of a wage slave is fraught with peril. Being an Apprentice Deity is so much more relaxing.’
A new notification popped up on the screen.
[The Garlic Tribe is under attack by the East Sea Clan.]
Luh Yao was taken aback.
’Are you serious? I was gone for just an hour, and the East Sea Clan already launched an attack from the sea?’
He scanned around and finally located the battlefield: it was at sea.
In the distant eastern seas, a naval battle had erupted between the Garlic Tribe’s galley and the ships of the East Sea Clan.
The East Sea Clan’s dugout canoes were hunting the Garlic Tribe’s galley.
However, due to the difference in their Shipbuilding Technique, the single galley was faster and more maneuverable than the twenty-odd dugout canoes. The galley plowed through the canoes, sinking a few along the way, without its retreat being affected at all.
From the high deck of the galley, the sailors fired long-range shots with their bronze-tipped arrows. Their range and stopping power completely suppressed the archers on the canoes.
Despite the huge disparity in numbers, in actual combat it was the more numerous East Sea Clan that was constantly losing ships and men.
Furious with humiliation, one of the East Sea Clan’s female captains summoned a Sea Monster from the depths.
Three LV9 Sea Monsters appeared and immediately attacked the galley.
’So much for a fair fight, huh?’
Luh Yao cracked his knuckles. ’Then you can’t blame a God for personally stepping in to beat up some little monsters.’
He cast a Miracle.
Ten bolts of [Lightning] instantly rained down on the trio of Sea Monsters!
Amidst flashes of blue light, two of the Sea Monsters were struck dead on the spot. The last one, heavily wounded and terrified, dove underwater and didn’t dare to resurface.
The little people on the galley raised their arms and cheered.
"The great Yao God protects us!"
"The Sea Monsters can’t harm us!"
"The omnipotent Yao God, the invincible Yao God!"
On the other side, the members of the East Sea Clan were stunned by the lightning from the heavens.
The fleet of canoes dared not pursue any further.
"They have a God protecting them! We can’t attack them."
"Forget it, just let them go. We have the protection of the Prayer God, too."
"Since the Barbarians have left, we’ll spare them."
"Come back and we’ll finish you! Foreigners!"
"The sea is the territory of the East Sea Clan! Get out of here!"
Even though they were terrified by the Miracle, the East Sea Clan was still talking tough.
Luh Yao decided he was going to set these little people straight today.
’The Prayer God? He’s doing time in prison.’
’Times have changed, kiddos.’
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