Yuna smiled bitterly and said, "At this point there's nothing left to hide."
She was right. Now that the city lord was dead and the city was destroyed, there was nothing left to say.
This is a common story: the son of a city lord falls in love with the daughter of a town carpenter, who himself built the statue in the center of the square. If it weren't for what happened next, this would be a Cinderella story. Unfortunately, the city lord's son is not the prince in the story, and the carpenter's daughter is not the lucky Cinderella.
It's a deception from beginning to end. The new city lord is a man who aspires to become a god. He read in some book that should have been burned that eating the diamond heart of the Son of God will grant him eternal life. Knowing that the statue was made by a craftsman, he approached the craftsman's daughter, obtained the blueprints, and found the diamond heart.
"The golden armor protects the Son of God. To obtain the diamond heart, the armor must be removed first," Yuna said. "I pried open the outer shell of the Son of God statue without my father's knowledge, causing the golden armor to fall piece by piece. I secretly collected the fragments of the golden armor and kept them, fearing punishment from God."
"No," Lu Mingze retorted, "The golden armor wasn't dropped by you. The statue wanted to use the gold flakes to help the starving residents of the town. That's his wish. To him, you're helping him."
Yuna smiled and said, "You speak so nicely. I kind of like you. It's a pity that you are a little short."
Lu Mingze, who was constantly criticized for being short, was a little angry. He stood up and said, "First, I'm not saying nice things, but I heard the statue's inner voice, and it told me. Second, I'm not short, but I'm not tall. Even if I'm short, so what? My soul is as upright as the sky!"
The book on my chest moved again, as if laughing.
Yuna also smiled and said, "Prince, you are so cute. If you were the one who ruled the city twenty years ago, we would still be as happy as we were then."
"Happiness is something you create yourself!" Lu Mingze held Yuna's nimble hands. "Since you've collected the fragments of the golden armor and know the design of the statue, you can definitely help him recreate the golden armor, right?"
"Yes, but what's the use?" Yuna said calmly, "This city has been occupied by demons."
"No, the light will always be there!" Lu Mingze said, "I've already captured the bandits outside the city, recovered the holy sword, and gathered the city's residents. As long as the statue is rebuilt, I believe that light will surely dispel the darkness. Once the demonization is over, people can walk in the sunshine, build the city together, and regain happiness."
"You found the Holy Sword?" Yuna was stunned. "And you eliminated the bandits too? Do you know how powerful those bandits were? Some of them were the new city lord's personal soldiers, and some were criminals. The new city lord used the blood of some executed prisoners to awaken a demonic ritual beneath the city lord's mansion, and then shared the diamond heart with some nobles. After they died under divine punishment, the people guarding outside and the remaining prisoners turned into demons. I've seen them go crazy, it's terrifying."
"They've been killed." Lu Mingze pulled Cao Qian, Guan Ling, and Qian Jinlai over and said to Yuna, "My three powerful knight companions did it. They were purified by the magic left by the bishop, and now I have them imprisoned in a cell under the City Lord's Mansion, awaiting the people's judgment."
The three people who were called knights felt a little embarrassed, but fortunately Yuna couldn't see their blushing.
"I, I want to go and take a look!" Yuna grabbed Yan Hebi's arm and stood up, saying excitedly.
"I will take you there," Lu Mingze said, "but please also wear the golden armor. Since you caused the golden armor to come loose, you will be responsible for restoring it."
"Can I, can I still be forgiven?" Yuna's fingers trembled slightly.
"If you want to be forgiven, you can't just say nice words," Lu Mingze said, "You have to earn forgiveness with your own hands."
"My hands..." Yuna's trembling stopped. Her slender fingers clenched into fists, and her voice gradually became firm. "My father died when the disaster struck. If there is anyone in this world who can repair the statue, it must be me! Help me carry this box out. It contains the golden armor fragments and my tools."
"I'll do it!" said Yan Hebi, who finally caught up with the situation.
He held the bottom of the box with both hands and lifted it hard, but the box did not move at all.
Gold has a very high density and is very heavy!
Cao Qian glanced at Yan Hebi, picked up the box with one hand, put it on her shoulder, and walked to the stairs. She estimated that the weight of herself and the box might collapse the wooden stairs, so she simply jumped up without taking the stairs.
Yan Hebi: "…"
This pink-haired girl has such terrifying strength!
"Can you see the sunlight?" Lu Mingze asked.
Yuna touched the cloth covering her eyes and said, "I will never be able to see the sun again, but because of this, I can walk in the sun."
Lu Mingze helped her walk to the ground. The warm sunlight shone on Yuna. She looked up and said, "The sun is so nice. Fortunately, you came during the day. I feel a little weird at night."
"Isn't the place where you were demonized already..." Lu Mingze asked cautiously.
Yuna said, "That's true, but the wound will hurt at night. If I meet someone then, I might hurt myself. I'm filled with guilt, and the magic of the night will amplify this emotion, making me extremely pessimistic. I won't attack you, but I might cut off my own hands."
"No wonder the statue told me to come back during the day," Lu Mingze said, understandingly. "He's actually been watching you the whole time. Otherwise, he wouldn't have known you'd go crazy at night."
Yuna was struck by lightning. She murmured, "God... is he always watching me?"
"If it's the god in your heart, yes." Lu Mingze said, "Everyone can be his or her own god."
The sunlight shone on Lu Mingze's golden hair (his hair color in this world is golden), and he looked at Yuna with a smile, like a god.
Cao Qian frowned as she thought of Qian Danniu's guess. She looked at Qian Danniu and whispered, "I always thought your idea was ridiculous, but maybe you're right this time."
Qian Jinlai said "Pah, pah, pah" three times: "I hope that's not the case."
Several people came to the statue. Yuna placed her palm on the base of the statue and asked softly, "Have you been watching me? Do you blame me?"
At this moment, she heard the statue's voice echoing in her mind: "I am very grateful to you. It is you who allowed me to use the gold flakes to help the hungry residents so that they would not starve to death. It is you who helped me."
Yuna's blindfold was wet with blood and tears. She pressed her forehead against the statue's feet and felt forgiven.
Lu Mingze looked at Guan Ling and asked, "Can you restore Yuna's eyes to their original state? That is, before they were contaminated by the evil spirit. Our craftsman needs eyes, right?"
"Maybe." Guan Ling said.
He stepped forward and touched Yuna's eyes, performing the second "Broken Mirror Reunited" technique. Yuna's eyes lit up, she took off the cloth, and saw Lu Mingze in the sunlight at first sight.
Yuna was stunned. Her knees softened and she knelt down in front of Lu Mingze and asked, "Son of God, are you now able to manifest in the world?"
"Wait a minute!" Lu Mingze pulled Yuna back. "I'm not a statue. The statue is over there. I'm a prince sent by the king."
"But..." Yuna looked at the statue and then at Lu Mingze. The Son of God in her memory was exactly the same as the prince in front of her.
Cao Qian and Qian Danniu exchanged glances, and even the slow-witted Guan Ling and Yan Hebi, who was confused about the situation, felt that something was wrong.
Cao Qian pulled Lu Mingze aside and asked, "What were you like when you first came to this world? I've never heard you mention it before."
Lu Mingze got angry when he mentioned this and said, "I suddenly appeared near the square. I didn't even have any subordinates, only a mission. I asked the system why a prince didn't even have a carriage. Was I airdropped into the city? The system told me that existence is reasonable and let me find the answer myself."
The four people and the wordless book were all silent.
"What are you looking at?" Lu Mingze looked at his companions.
"Let me explain." A sound suddenly came from Lu Mingze's chest.
"Wow!" Lu Mingze was startled and took out the wordless book. "Xing Ye? Can you speak now?"
"We can talk once the intimacy is high enough," Wu Zi Shu said. "I didn't tell you before because I was afraid of scaring you. Now that my guess has been confirmed, I have to tell you."
Yan Hebi stared at the book in Lu Mingze's hand, always feeling that the book contained his lost memories.
The wordless book said, "Something Lu Mingze said before reminded me of me. He believes that God is the collection of people's beliefs. I think this statement makes sense. This world is divine, and people's worship and respect for the statue give it divinity. Similarly, people's hope for salvation can also form a new collection of beliefs.
"The system said that the king sent the prince, and I believe the system didn't lie. But the system didn't explain how the king 'sent' the 'prince'. Was he sent by delegation like the sheriffs of the past, or was he sent through prayer, asking God to 'send' another son of God to save the city?
"Do you still remember that the statue that always maintained a kind heart actually wanted to take over your body the first time it saw you?
"The Diamond Heart was eaten underground in the City Lord's Mansion. The location you reappeared after refreshing was near the City Lord's Mansion, and the first thing you touched was the statue. I believe this is not a coincidence."
After listening to Xing Ye's analysis, Lu Mingze said in surprise: "So I really was parachuted in? Then according to your guess, I am..."
"That's right, you are the divinity that has been re-condensed in response to people's prayers, that is, the Diamond Heart." The Wordless Book said solemnly.
As soon as he finished speaking, Lu Mingze heard the narrator's prompt: "Congratulations to the player for finding the Golden Armor and the Diamond Heart. The Golden Armor quest is currently at 0.51, the Diamond Heart quest is at 0.51, and the current total quest progress is 3.26. Friendly reminder, the Golden Armor quest will be completed after Yuna puts the Golden Armor on the statue; the Diamond Heart quest can only be completed after returning to the statue."
"I am Diamond Heart. The mission is considered completed only when I return to the statue? Then if I die at the moment of completing the mission, will I be considered to have passed the level?" Lu Mingze asked.
Narrator: "Players must survive perfectly to complete the game."
Lu Mingze: "…"
It's worthy of being a game with five times the difficulty, it's as tricky as it can be!