Chapter 509: Chapter 299: Farewell (Part 2)
“Heh, you do seem to have a good sense of self-awareness. How about a different reward, then, stay here and be the Sect Leader?”
“I’ll pass on that, too. I still prefer the days of freedom; a small car is enough for me.”
Wu Wei’s words once again left the people here silent for a while.
“Sigh… If only we had been so open-minded back in the day, how nice that would have been.”
“Indeed, contentment brings happiness, but it’s too late for regrets.”
...
“Heh…”
The successive sighs made Wu Wei feel a bit strange, but soon the voice of the Supreme Elder rang out:
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“Compared to the other two, you may be ordinary, but being ordinary is actually your best quality. Fine, we’ll take note of your suggestion. The Food God Token is yours. If you ever have other ideas, just come and find me.”
The token flew out, and Wu Wei felt as if something had been added to his body, making his sensations in the game world quite different from before.
After giving thanks, Wu Wei left the place and found that as soon as he stepped outside, his small car was right there, with the boy seated by the side, dejectedly resting his chin on his hands.
Seeing the suddenly appearing Wu Wei, the boy excitedly threw himself at him, hugging Wu Wei’s waist and exclaimed, “Uncle, I really thought you wouldn’t come back. They said you’d become an Immortal.”
“How could that be? I don’t have that kind of power.” Wu Wei said, rubbing the boy’s head.
“So what are you going to do now?”
“Continue running my stall, of course.”
“But you’re the Food God now!”
“Can’t the Food God like running a stall?”
“That makes sense, so what are we eating tonight?”
“Let’s fish first; we’ll eat whatever we catch.”
Pushing his cart, Wu Wei took the boy and walked towards the sea. The sea breeze, tinged with the scent of the ocean and freedom, felt so warm it made one want to sleep.
Keeping the Food God Token he had received securely, Wu Wei pushed his cart towards the seaside.
In Gong Gong’s small shop, the three Iron Guards also received news that their exclusivity rights had been rescinded.
The monopoly on culinary resources was no more, and everyone would have access to various ingredients in the future. The rivalry between the Gourmet Alliance and the Freedom Front would continue, but it was bound to ease significantly.
Independent players would now have their own living space, able to secure the ingredients they wanted without joining guilds, turning guilds gradually into interest-oriented groups rather than profit-oriented entities.
Having worked so hard for so long, it was surprising to Gong Gong that a player had suddenly leapfrogged them. It made him realize how plans couldn’t keep up with changes and how any little twist could alter the course of events.
Some players had already begun to leave the guilds, and Gong Gong was too indifferent to continue managing, deciding to just let things take their course.
“Gong Gong, what do you plan to do now?” the Military Governor asked.
“First, figure out why the boss is angry; I get the feeling he wants to skin me alive.” Gong Gong said helplessly, lying on the table.
“You’d better think about what set him off. His temper isn’t bad, and it’s not too late to apologize now.”
“Too many things, I can’t figure it out.”
“You…”
“Never mind, if I can’t figure it out, then I won’t bother. I’m going out for a while.”
“Where to?”
“Nanan City, to explain the current situation to the Ghost Bride.”
Taking a carriage, Gong Gong headed for Nanan City and from afar saw the Ghost Bride and the Ghost lady standing by the city gates, waiting for her return.
Meanwhile, inside the Food God Sect, Fang Cheng was finishing up the last details.
The trial in the Sumeru Illusion had concluded, and the hidden secrets were now revealed, ready for him to uncover.
The Supreme Elder, sensing Fang Cheng outside the door, called out, “Heavenly Lord, forgive me for not coming out to greet you, but may I ask you to come in?”
Pushing the door open, Fang Cheng saw the Supreme Elder of the Food God Sect.
The darkness surrounding Fang Cheng was almost nonexistent; through the intense blackness here, he saw the current Supreme Elder and the other high-ranking members of the Food God Sect.
They barely maintained human forms, but their bodies were covered in mouths, with wet tongues probing from the many mouths scattered across their flesh, and from time to time, a thick groan would arise.
“Hungry…”
“So hungry…”
“Anything will do, just give me something to eat.”
“I’m tired of salted fish, give me some fruits.”
“Elder, please give me something to eat.”
These voices, like malevolent spirits from the netherworld, carried an endless hunger as they collided with him.
Without stifling these voices, the seated Supreme Elder said to Fang Cheng with a wry smile, “Although we are merely illusions, it seems we have embarrassed you, Heavenly Lord.”
“What’s going on here?” Fang Cheng asked.
“You have already seen the previous illusions, Heavenly Lord. After we first arrived here, the Food God Sect began to strive for renewal and actively developed, eventually reconstructing this place.”
A mouth crawled out from another spot, whispering, “In just a few decades, we rebuilt our homeland here, even better than before.”
Another mouth emerged, “However, the remnants of the Greed Demon Lord’s malice persisted. We thought they had dissipated, but a trace remained in our minds.”
Hearing this, Fang Cheng nodded, “I see.”
Demon Lords are not easy to kill; even the survival of a single thought can lead to their revival.
Some troublesome creatures could even resurrect themselves simply by being remembered. This annoying feature had been quite troublesome back in the day.
He had been thorough in killing them back then, but they could still be brought back to life—on one hand because they were remarkably resilient, and on the other because the outsiders indeed had some methods.
If he ever had the chance to capture one of these outsiders, he would have to properly dissect them to study what they truly were.
While Fang Cheng was contemplating, the Supreme Elder’s illusion quietly waited until Fang Cheng signaled to continue, “The thought could have been suppressed, but… but…”
“But you fell?” Fang Cheng asked.
With a bitter smile, the Supreme Elder replied, “Yes, we fell. After seeing the peace around us, the Food God Sect began to relax and chase after gourmet delights. We retraced the path walked by your Angel Envoy, and in the end, the Greed Demon Lord’s malice erupted fully, and we utterly degenerated into slaves of our own greed. We forgot the motto ‘food is the heaven for the people’, and even the populace that supported us vanished, the world declined, degenerating into the state you see now.”
“Didn’t the people from the Immortal Assembly intervene?”
“They left behind a marker, designating our place as a reception venue. However, since the outbreak of the malice, we didn’t dare to contact them, fearing they would also be implicated. Moreover, by the time we realized something was amiss, it was already too late. All we could do was seal the malice here, preventing it from spreading further.”
A long sigh echoed, the last reverberation of this civilization.
Having understood the situation, Fang Cheng said, “I also need to contact the people from the Immortal Assembly; can you give me the marker?”
“Huh? Shouldn’t you be able to tell at a glance? Oh, I understand now.”
With grateful eyes, the Supreme Elder’s illusion gazed at Fang Cheng as a glittering marker flew out, landing in Fang Cheng’s hand.
Watching the marker fall into Fang Cheng’s hands, the Supreme Elder said contentedly, “Then, Heavenly Lord, I leave everything in your hands.”
“Hmm, go in peace.”
One by one, the illusions disappeared, and the many greedy mouths turned into black mist falling into the ground, merging into the earth, becoming nourishment for the Demon Lord’s revival.
As the last to vanish, the Supreme Elder asked Fang Cheng just before dissipating, “Heavenly Lord, we…”
“You’ve done well.”
“Thank you.”
With a smile of relief, the Supreme Elder disappeared on the spot.
The hall immediately became empty and still, but the silence was short-lived as a wicked and wild laughter filled the space.
However, the laughter did not last long; the newly formed black mist was met by a mere glance from Fang Cheng.
With that single look, its entire existence was negated, and all the black mist scattered into nothingness under his gaze, as if it had never existed at all.
With the demise of the malice that saw off the final illusion holding out here, Fang Cheng, clutching the marker, whispered, “Farewell.”