Cao Cao opened his eyes wide. He had not expected to receive a reply so quickly.
And the residents of the city—naturally, they too had heard the words of the gods. They stared stupidly up at the dark sky, struck dumb.
Then they knelt to the ground and kowtowed frantically.
The people were simple.
And in that simplicity, they were also endearing. Whoever showed them kindness—they knew it in their hearts.
"God has appeared! Prime Minister Cao prayed on behalf of the people, and the gods have answered!!!"
"God, please save this world. Sun Quan is an evil demon..."
"God, my Li Ergou will give you his life from this day forward..."
...
Words like these kept rising up in waves.
As for maintaining public order—troops had been stationed outside the city as well. They felt the emergence of divine power and knelt to the ground one after another, chanting the name of the gods with absolute devotion.
Inside the Eternal Temple.
Liu Che looked down at Sun Shangxiang, who was lying in his arms, and said softly: "Xiangxiang, wake up..."
"Mmm... I want to sleep a little longer..."
The girl grumbled with displeasure, shifted her position, and continued to doze.
Liu Che was a little helpless. He could only continue: "Your brother is being controlled by Yuan Luzhi. If you don't wake up, I'll send someone else down to the lower realm instead."
"Huh? My brother..."
The young girl shot upright all at once. Drowsiness vanished instantly.
"Yes. Yuan Luzhi's subordinate—the fox demon Daji—has been stoking the flames continuously. Now your brother has become a monster. Recently, every last person in an entire city was sacrificed..."
"I... what should I do?"
"Well, given that this will be your first time in the lower realm, I'll have Hong Hong accompany you for a while. And while you're at it—capture the fox demon."
Although Sun Shangxiang was very strong, she had never actually been to the lower realm before, after all.
And that was true enough. Liu Che did want a fox named Daji. It would make quite a good pet.
Under his notification, Tu Shan Honghong made her way to the teleportation array.
A moment later, Sun Shangxiang arrived—small and pink-faced, having rushed over in a hurry.
"Sister, let's go."
"Mm."
The two goddesses joined hands and flew toward the divine light.
Within the Three Kingdoms World.
The dark night sky was torn asunder by divine radiance.
Two glamorously dressed goddesses descended slowly from the heavens. Many of the people below recognized one of them immediately—it was Sun Shangxiang, the great lady of Soochow!
"Chief Priest Cao Cao, we greet the two goddesses."
"Get up. Where is my brother?"
"At present, he has withdrawn to the vicinity of Wu County. According to frontier intelligence, he is mobilizing his forces to construct an altar for Yuan Luzhi to descend upon."
Sun Shangxiang could not help but clench her fists upon hearing Cao Cao's words.
Tu Shan Honghong, standing beside her, said: "Don't worry, sister. Since we are here, we can guarantee your brother's safety. Let's go..."
"Yes!"
Sun Shangxiang responded and shot into the air.
The smell of blood in the atmosphere was unmistakable. It made her feel even more anxious.
Boom.
A shockwave erupted across the sky.
The two goddesses streaked toward Wu County like twin meteors.
Jia Xu was stunned. It had only been a few days since he had last seen her. Sun Shangxiang possessed such terrifying power now?
Good heavens.
The maidens of God truly were extraordinary.
"Wenhe, tell the army to begin preparations. We march on Wu County in half an hour. This time—I will flatten the land of Soochow entirely."
"Yes, my lord."
Jia Xu snapped out of his daze and quickly relayed the orders.
When the people of the city heard that Cao Cao would be marching alongside the goddesses, they too fell into a frenzy of activity.
After half an hour—all soldiers save the one thousand left to garrison the city set out together.
"This is wonderful! The demons can surely be defeated this time!"
"Yes! We must work hard ourselves too—we cannot let the gods and the Prime Minister down!"
From that day forward, the city was given a new name.
The City of God.
Countless people would come on pilgrimage every year. It became a beautiful sight in the land of Soochow.
Three cities near Wu County.
All resources had been mobilized—people and materials alike—under the command of military orders. Work had begun immediately.
Many people did not even eat at midday. They labored ceaselessly until nightfall, when work finally stopped.
And the food awaiting them was nothing more than some vegetables and thin soup.
How could such meager fare sustain anyone?
Many people chose to protest.
What they received in return was the lash of a whip.
And afterward, two hundred people were executed for failing to meet their labor quota.
Inside the city, Sun Quan leaned against a bench and rested.
Black horns crowned the top of his head, rising and falling with each breath.
In the next room, Daji was absorbing the resentment that saturated the city. Her cultivation base was recovering steadily.
"There aren't enough dead. The seventh seal still hasn't been broken. Damn it..."
The furious fox demon kicked over the table. Baring her teeth, she cursed.
When she had been suppressed in the immortal realm—to ensure she could not wreak havoc—nine seals had been planted upon her. Now six layers had been unlocked. The number of her tails had recovered to six as well.
But now it had stalled.
Which meant her strength was no longer sufficient.
"But right after slaughtering an entire city... even if Sun Quan is an idiot, he won't keep doing this. No... I need to bring Cao Cao's soldiers here instead."
The fox demon Daji—trapped in these troubled times—had originally relied on the power of enmity to improve her strength. Now that the cultivation base could no longer be replenished, naturally she was unwilling to stop.
While she was lost in thought—
The sky outside lit up.
"Hey... it's not dawn yet. Why is there such a bright light..."
Daji pressed her finger between her brows and peered out the window.
She saw two women standing in the air.
Their cold eyes had already locked onto her.
Huh.
The fur along Daji's tails stood up in an instant.
No—she had been found!
In an instant she reacted. Countless tendrils of black smoke spread around her body, enveloping her slender form. She moved to tear open the space and flee.
At the same time, she screamed: "Sun Quan! An enemy is here! Are you still sleeping?!"
Sun Quan in the main hall jolted awake. A terrifying breath erupted from his body.
"Who is it?! Cao Cao's people!"
The hoarse, distorted voice made everyone nearby frown.
But Sun Shangxiang, watching from above, wept silently.
That monster Yuan Luzhi had truly turned her brother into... this.
"Let me handle it..."
Tu Shan Honghong saw the young goddess beside her, eyes red with silent tears. She plunged downward through the atmosphere, tracing a sweeping motion with one finger—delineating the entire city in a single arc.
Brilliant, colorful flames wrapped around the neighborhood like a cage.
"Yeah... what is this?"
Daji opened a tear in space and prepared to slip through with a sly smile on her face.
But the moment her foot crossed the threshold, her shoes were burnt away instantly.
If it weren't for her quick reaction—
Her own legs would have been incinerated by that terrifying flame.
Even so, it frightened Daji badly.
She turned around and looked at the woman with golden eyes. Her little cherry mouth gradually fell open.
Because behind the other woman—
Sixteen dreamy tails were fluttering freely in the air.
My god... my god.
Sixteen tails. Was she dreaming?
Daji rubbed her eyes. The other party's tails were still there.
Who was she?
Why did she possess such overwhelming strength?
Daji kept trying to find an answer, but could not arrive at one no matter how hard she tried.
"Fox demon. You have done much evil. The gods have ordered me to arrest you and bring you before them to atone for your sins..."
Tu Shan Honghong looked at the other fox's envious, awestruck eyes and enjoyed herself immensely.
What a fox. It was originally such a vain race. And the look in the eyes of a fellow fox made her even prouder still.
One's own tails could be stowed and released at will. In general—when fighting or resting—the tails were kept hidden. Only when she released the power of the gods would she unfurl them, wielding them as though they were extensions of her hands.
Daji, still transfixed, heard Tu Shan Honghong's words.
Suddenly she snapped back to her senses.
"I... I shouldn't die!"
"Well, you won't die. You'll be kept in a cage as a pet, or put to work as a miscellaneous servant girl. So... don't bother trying to run. In this world, I am invincible."
White, open palms reached toward Daji.
She was scooped up in a single grab.
It wasn't that Daji didn't struggle—she simply was ignored entirely.
On the other side, Sun Quan walked out of the main hall. The moment he saw his sister standing before him—
He fell into silence.
"Sister... Sister..."
"Brother. It's me. I'm Sun Shangxiang..."
"No... you are not my sister. My sister was taken away..."
The hoarse, distorted voice made Sun Shangxiang clench her lower lip. At the same time, she moved further from Yuan Luzhi's influence.
Because of her brother's demonic corruption—even if he were rescued, his original body had long since been destroyed. It could no longer be used again.
Perhaps it was resentment alone that was sustaining Sun Quan now. Yuan Luzhi's power had devoured Sun Quan's body and consumed his soul.
What Sun Shangxiang could do was let him rest in peace. Let his soul be transferred to the Divine Realm.
Because she understood a truth. Even if she asked the gods, or asked the sisters of the Temple of Life—
Sun Quan could never accept the reality of what he had done. The massacre of fifty thousand people from his own homeland was something no resurrection could undo.
Let him go to reincarnation. Let him be reborn, and become an immortal in the Divine Realm in his next life.
And Sun Quan's fiancée had already entered the gods' service. Regardless of the purpose—Sun Quan could not be resurrected.
Reincarnation was his only path.
Colorful divine power enveloped Sun Quan. The demonic energy was purified directly.
His incomplete true spirit—
Looking at his sister's tear-streaked face, he finally recovered his clarity.
"It turns out... you saved me. I'm truly sorry. Because of a moment of anger, I was overtaken by Yuan Luzhi...
Everything Cao Cao said was true. My sister has become a goddess. You are so beautiful..."
Every word struck Sun Shangxiang's heart like a blow.
She wept and said: "Brother, it's alright... You will be reincarnated. You will remember me. I'll see you again in the Divine Realm."
A radiance of lotus enveloped Sun Quan's soul.
It condensed, slowly, into a spirit seed.
And vanished in Sun Shangxiang's palm.
The soul had gone to reincarnation. She had left her own mark upon it—so she need not worry about finding him again in the future.
When everything was over—
The people of Wu County discovered the presence of Sun Shangxiang and Tu Shan Honghong.
"Do not be afraid, folks and elders. My brother, Wu Hou, has already been reincarnated. This time it is the Sun family's failing. I am sorry, everyone.
It will not be long before the messengers of the gods will come to take charge here and bring happiness to all of you.
Sun Shangxiang promises this—as your goddess!"