CHAPTER 307: CHAPTER 307: STRUCK BY FIVE THUNDERBOLTS

In the beginning, everyone tried to unite and fight back.

But when blood, pain, and death struck the villagers’ dazed minds and weak bodies, the ephemeral concept of unity quickly crumbled.

If compliance could guarantee not starving, why fight desperately?

Even if one fought desperately against them, who would care for the gravely wounded? With little medicine and few doctors, wouldn’t it eventually benefit someone else?

Many small calculations naturally left them as scattered sand, and the villagers at the bottom could no longer stand up.

"Gulp!"

Li Shuiwang swallowed hard, his parched throat burning painfully.

Originally, Grandma didn’t want to succumb to violence, but when the Great Kings took out machetes claiming to chop off her fingers and toes one by one and pull out her teeth, leaving her only grandson in a desperate plight, she could only helplessly agree to continue praying for more food.

But now the Great Kings want to learn the ritual blessings, ostensibly to learn, but in reality, they want to grasp the means to obtain food.

As for their attitude towards Grandma—the Priest prays for food to fall from the sky, which means the divine supports the Three Kings; if the Priest can’t pray for food, it’s her incompetence causing everyone to starve together.

"God, if you can see our suffering, please manifest!" The old Priest looked with compassion at the villagers kneeling in slavery nearby.

When she felt that food was about to arrive, she suddenly stood and angrily pointed at the three burly men: "The food sent by the divine in mercy for the people is meant for everyone to eat and drink and survive. Using divine grace as a tool to threaten others will surely bring divine punishment!"

The roaring wind swept up dust, whirling past the altar, causing her wide priestly robe to flutter noisily, which added some solemn majesty to her long-brewed indignant reproach.

Those waiting for the harvest couldn’t help but be slightly startled.

Immediately, white rice, sweet and sour fruits, and fresh lamb fell from the sky, accurately caught by their hastily sewn bags, and the Three Kings exchanged glances and laughed heartily.

"You said it wrong, see, there’s nothing written on divine-given food about who can eat or not. Since we’ve been managing the village for a while, divine food falling from the heavens shows it’s supporting us."

"Exactly! Isn’t everyone full and happy?"

"Everyone’s willing, so why are you complaining? Are you unhappy that your grandson eats well and lives comfortably?"

"I say, you better teach your grandson the spells to pray to the divine before you die of old age. Otherwise, if you pass away without teaching him, won’t he starve to death?"

"If the villagers starve to death because of your precious grandson, he’ll be a sinner for eternity!"

...

The Three Kings giggled and laughed, not taking the elderly Priest seriously.

Were it not proven that only her prayers at the altar could bring food, her grandson would have long been forced into labor.

In any case, living through disasters was considered a profit, facing a lifetime guarding barren land without the chance to enjoy life and prestige; now, who knows when life might end? They should live recklessly!

"Grandma, don’t pray to the divine next time." Li Shuiwang, unable to resist, vented his anger, "Why should your sincere prayers fatten these beasts? Better we all starve to death together!"

He didn’t dare say these words loudly, only muttering them as he helped Grandma down from the altar, glancing at the villagers who were intimidated by seven or eight henchmen, grinding his teeth in anger, "Since they’re willing to be slaves, let them!"

The old Priest, still angry, pointed at the white rice with disdain, "This food was prayed for on behalf of all living villagers; your actions will surely bring heavenly punishment!"

"Yeah sure, punishment! You just talk big." The Great King stepped forward, grabbing ten pounds of fresh lamb with a grin, "I spared those people’s lives because you said so. Don’t..."

Before he finished speaking, a bolt of lightning suddenly streaked from the sky.

"Crack!"

At the moment of impact, sparks flew, as if igniting a celebratory firework.

Lightning came and went quickly. The Great King, who earned his title through his robust physique, had a charred face, opened his mouth but couldn’t speak and instead spat out a puff of black smoke.

His hair was scorched, his face was burned, but his bulging eyes remained red. His sturdy right leg stepped forward, reaching out as if seeking help from his companions. However, the Second Prince and the Third Prince, who witnessed this scene up close, were too scared to react and took a few steps back together.

One step, two steps, his scorched feet leaving behind several bloody footprints, he finally collapsed to the ground with a thud, howling in agony for a while before completely passing away.

"Did you see that? How dare anyone embezzle the food bestowed by the gods, smitten by the heavens with thunderbolts!" Li Shuiwang was both terrified and exhilarated, trembling all over without knowing whether it was from fear or joy, "Who else wants to die? Who else dares to snatch?"

A large pile of grain lay quietly there, just a few steps away from the corpse of the once most arrogant Great King.

Whether it was the remaining two strong men, the lackeys, or the submissive villagers, none dared to make a sound.

"The shaman always said they would get retribution, and there’s immediate karma!"

"Shh! The gun hits the bird that pokes its head out; let’s wait and see."

"Maybe it’s just a coincidence? Didn’t every prayer go smoothly before?"

...

The villagers did not dare to speak, whispering to each other. Some lackeys were scared, worrying what they would do if the Celestial God truly punished them. They had indulged in food and drink without any restraint and committed no less evil, so wouldn’t that mean they would face the worst fate?

"Stop pretending here!" The Third Prince saw that everyone was losing morale. The good days he just started enjoying seemed too short-lived if they ended now, so he immediately stepped forward to protect his interests.

If the gods were indeed so efficacious, why didn’t every curse from the old crone work before?

Yet now the Immortal delivering food could hear?

"These are all mine!" He stepped forward to drag the bundle, wanting to claim all the food for himself.

"Crack!"

Another thunderous lightning bolt struck.

The sound of painful howling instilled fear, and no one dared to doubt the old Priest’s words anymore. Even the Second Prince crawled on the ground, continuously kowtowing and confessing, hoping for the gods’ forgiveness.

"Granny, what god is exactly protecting us? Let’s build a temple for her!"

"Yes, yes, not only should we build a temple, but we should also erect a statue for worship!"

"Thanks to the Celestial God’s help, otherwise we’d truly have no way out!"

"Now it’s good, everyone can eat and drink without worry. Since we’re idle anyway, let’s enshrine the Celestial God! We believe in the Celestial God, and the Celestial God protects us, isn’t this a great thing?"

This time, no one dared to take more than their share. After dividing the food by headcount, the villagers enthusiastically gathered around the old Priest, clamoring to build temples and statues for the gods.

She swept her dim eyes around the circle and said in a deep voice, "The gods never asked us to worship and offer to them; it is we who sought help from the gods, aiming to exchange devout faith for their protection.

I pray to the Sun Star Monarch on behalf of all my fellow villagers. The food he bestowed is an expression of divine compassion, so do not fight, do not grab, do not be greedy—just take your rightful share.

In addition, if you are truly sincere, you don’t even need me to pray on your behalf. Sincerity brings efficacy without needing any spell. Next time I ascend the altar to seek assistance from the gods, you can also follow alongside, for he can hear the prayers of devout believers."

The hasty construction came to an end, with everyone receiving enough rice to fill their bellies and a little fruit and mutton. Soon around the village, smoke curled up, dispersing the faint aroma of food.

[You have a new order, please check it!]

Busy in a new dungeon for half a day, Jiang Yuan heard the prompt and returned to the Floating Market to check, apparently not recognizing the order from the old place—[50 portions of spinach; 50 tomatoes; 50 cucumbers...]

"Strange, can’t be a vegetable vendor coming to me for stock, right?"

Looking at the charity order requesting a pile of vegetables, he muttered quietly while checking the inventory, "Two or three hundred pounds of vegetables in exchange for over twenty thousand Faith Value, which can even upgrade my title later. Although marked as a charity order by the system, the price is pretty good, much more useful than giving Gold Coins..."