The People's God: Sacrificing Trillions to Ascend

After releasing an attack with such a wide radius, Qin Shuang felt fatigued. Yet instead of exhaustion, she felt a surge of joy instead at having wiped out an entire village of evil bandits.

As they died, a huge amount of essence flowed into her Divine Weapon Atlas and unlocked her fourth Divine Weapon. She eagerly showed it to Han Wu. It was a coin; one side bore the engraved image of a Thunder Sparrow, while the other displayed her face. Unusually, this coin shared a trait with the Explosive Locust Blade: both had only 1 point of durability.

“How do you use this coin?” he asked.

Qin Shuang decided to demonstrate. She placed the coin on her fingertip and took a deep breath. The coin started absorbing Lightning Energy from the surrounding air, gradually turning white from the edges inward. Five minutes later, it was fully saturated and was completely white.

She stopped gathering energy and flicked the coin toward a mountain outside the village. A bolt of lightning roared forth, punching through everything in its path. Upon hitting the mountain, the coin exploded and released a powerful electromagnetic pulse. The mountain neither shattered nor evaporated. Instead, a crater five meters in diameter appeared on its surface.

What caught Han Wu’s attention, however, was the distance. They were at least three kilometers away from the mountain. The range, area of effect, and destructive power went beyond anything that could simply be called strong. A clone formed from 10 Divine Essence that could release such an attack would kill 99.999% of her foes on impact. Even Han Wu wasn’t confident that he could withstand it.

Qin Shuang lifted her chin proudly and asked, “How is it?”

Han Wu gave her a thumbs-up. “You are amazing, babe.”

She was genuinely pleased by the praise from someone she loved. “You surely know how to make me happy.”

The coin-shaped Divine Weapon was powerful, but it had a glaring downside. It required too much time to charge. Even if she supplemented the process with her own Lightning Energy, it would only cut the charging time in half; it couldn’t be used instantly. This weapon was best reserved as a killing blow when sufficient time was available.

It was unsuitable for regular combat, so it was slightly different from Han Wu’s Explosive Locust Blade. Still, obtaining such a powerful Divine Weapon would greatly benefit her.

Han Wu searched the village and killed the surviving bandits before leaving with Qin Shuang. From that day on, the place would most likely be known as Widow Village. Only women and children remained, and the food left behind would sustain them for a long time.

The couple resumed their journey and soon reached Kang City. After inspecting their identity plates, the guards allowed them entry. Though small, the city was surprisingly livelier than Qixia Town and the surrounding villages.

Shops of every kind lined the streets. Han Wu visited a pawn shop and exchanged the jewelry he had looted from the bandits for gold.

The shop owner attempted to deceive him, claiming that the jewelry he brought was worthless scrap in an effort to drive down the price.

Han Wu used the Small Locust Blade and initiated a friendly conversation. The owner quickly admitted his mistake, apologized, and offered all the gold and gold-backed notes in the shop as compensation.

Han Wu accepted the outcome with satisfaction. He wasn’t unreasonable. If the natives treated him with respect, he would return it. If they broke the rules, he would show them that he could be even more unreasonable.

After he finished his business, night soon fell. He brought Qin Shuang to an inn to rest. They planned to visit the mine the next day to purchase rare ores.

Before sleeping, Han Wu counted his assets: 700 gold coins, 2,000 gold-backed notes, a Divine gem, and a deed to land outside Divine Weapon City.

Han Wu inspected the gem. It possessed an effect called Explosive Flare, which was highly effective. He intended to embed it into his Explosive Locust Blade to amplify the explosion’s destructive power and imbue it with Fire Energy. The added Fire Energy would increase the explosion’s strength tenfold.

However, embedding the Divine gem wouldn’t be simple. The Explosive Locust Blade had only 1 point of durability, and even a minor impact could shatter it. This increased the difficulty for any blacksmith. Furthermore, Divine gems were invaluable, so the blacksmith would have to be extra careful during the process. A single mistake could significantly reduce the gem’s effect.

Han Wu needed an extremely skilled and experienced blacksmith to complete the work. An ordinary blacksmith wouldn’t suffice.

He asked the inn servant and learned that only one blacksmith of that caliber was available. Everyone called him Master Ou, and his workshop was at the mine entrance. Han Wu decided to seek him out while purchasing ores the next day.

***

The night passed without any incident. At dawn, Han Wu and Qin Shuang set out for the mine.

Even though it was still early, the plaza in front of the mine teemed with people.

After his experience in Qixia Town, Han Wu had learned some of the rules here. He brought Qin Shuang with him and tried their best to pass as a native couple. Thankfully, no one paid them any attention.

He brought her to Master Ou’s workshop and saw a long queue already forming. Warriors lined up to upgrade their Divine Weapons.

From the length of the line, Han Wu inferred that Master Ou’s craftsmanship had to be exceptional. Otherwise, so many people wouldn’t wait so patiently outside.

How long will I have to wait?

As he considered his options, an apprentice stepped out of the workshop and shouted, “Master Ou is in a bad mood today and won’t be forging. Everyone, please go back.”

The warriors sighed and groaned, but none dared to argue. They dispersed quietly.

Han Wu didn’t intend to leave. He needed to reach Divine Weapon City as soon as he could and couldn’t afford to waste time in Kang City.

He stepped forward and intercepted the apprentice that was heading back toward the workshop. “Young man, can I ask some questions?”

The apprentice cast him a wary glance and said nothing. Han Wu quickly took out a gold coin and stuffed it into the apprentice’s hand.

The apprentice smiled. “Is there anything you need? I will answer truthfully.”

Han Wu had no idea what to make of the sudden change. To think he would be so adaptable at such a young age!

Han Wu really wanted to say that he preferred the apprentice’s earlier arrogance, but held his tongue. “What has Master Ou so stressed? I might be able to help.”

“It’s nothing major. Master Ou is researching a new material, but it requires many carapaces from Steel Beetles. The hunting team told him that it would take half a month to collect enough. That’s why Master Ou is upset.”

“Are those carapaces that hard to acquire?” Han Wu asked.

“They aren’t hard to find. There are plenty of them in the mines. They literally live in hives, and we can’t even exterminate them. The problem is quantity. Master Ou needs thousands of catties,” the apprentice replied.

Han Wu’s eyes lit up. “I might be able to help. Could you tell him that if I provide what he needs, I’d like his help embedding a gem into my Divine Weapon in return?”

The apprentice couldn’t make that decision on his own, but since he had accepted the gold coin, he decided to relay Han Wu’s request.

Before long, he returned. “Master Ou has agreed, but the deadline is today. He won’t accept it if you return after sundown.”

Han Wu nodded. “No problem.”