"Your sister-in-law's situation is a bit… peculiar," Lu Chengxuan explained slowly.
Jiang Nuannuan and Lu Chengxuan met in college. They had planned to marry after graduation but were instead selected to enter Dragon Shrine. It was during that time in Dragon Shrine that Lu Chengxuan learned the truth.
The sudden arrival of deities had caught everyone off guard. Jiang Nuannuan, in order to protect Lu Chengxuan, had taken on a deity's curse.
"A deity's curse?" Lu Zhi instinctively glanced at Shen Qi.
At that moment, a certain deity was offering a piece of tofu to Lu Zhi's mouth. "Aren't you hungry? Eat first."
Lu Zhi's face flushed slightly. He glanced at his brother, then quickly stuffed the tofu into his mouth, mumbling, "I can do it myself, you eat yours."
Completely oblivious to Lu Chengxuan's and Shen Qi's unspoken rivalry, Chu Shiling teased, "Hey, hey, hey, watch it, there's a single person here."
Lu Zhi's ears turned red. He changed the subject, "Don't interrupt, Ge hasn't finished."
Lu Chengxuan, as if not noticing Shen Qi's possessive gestures, continued, "Rather than calling them deities, it’s more accurate to say they are aberrant-level anomalies cloaked in the guise of deities."
The classification of anomalies: Level one to three were considered low-level, four to six were mid-level, seven to eight were high-level anomalies, and above that were aberrant-level anomalies, which humanity was currently powerless to confront.
Lu Zhi thought of the colossal anomaly within Dragon Shrine that had torn through the sky's barrier. That must have been an aberrant-level one, right? If Shen Qi hadn't been there, and that anomaly had descended into reality, humanity would have suffered a devastating blow.
"Speaking of which, everyone is tacitly aware. Anyone who has entered Dragon Shrine twice will inevitably discover some issues with these so-called deities," Chu Shiling spoke with a serious tone. He discussed humanity's research on Dragon Shrine, noting that the appearance of deities within Dragon Shrine wasn't the first time. Most importantly, he highlighted the significance of excavating the abyssal layers. Unraveling the secrets of the abyssal layers would allow humanity to determine whether Dragon Shrine was a blessing or a curse bestowed by deities.
"We, as transcendent beings, are called the future powerhouses of humanity, but it's more accurate to say we're like livestock being passively nurtured," Chu Shiling sneered. "Have you seen the paintings from the freshman orientation class?"
Lu Zhi knew exactly what he was referring to – the depictions of transcendent beings destined to become ingredients on the dining table of aberrant-level entities.
"However, that one I saw is different," Lu Chengxuan's eyes were deep. "The one I saw, who claimed to have cursed your sister-in-law, was humanoid."
Shen Qi, appearing as an invisible man, slowly raised his calm, silver-gray eyes.
Lu Zhi actually knew that the anomalies humans currently classified as aberrant-level were not the most dangerous. The truly perilous ones were those that had already become false gods, appearing with complete human forms.
Lu Zhi pondered for a moment and said, "Ge, if what you say is true, then it should be a false god, right?"
Lu Chengxuan's gaze sharpened. "A false god? Why do you think that?"
Lu Zhi thought, *I can't possibly say I know how things develop later, and that false gods and aberrations are worlds apart, can I?*
"The initial abilities of us transcendent beings came from a golden leaf. So, where did the power of this leaf originate?" Lu Zhi spoke slowly.
"When humanity is in crisis and on the brink of death, there are two instinctive actions: escape and call for help. In such a situation, who would we call for help?" Lu Zhi pointed towards the ceiling. "Deities, of course. We pray for deities to descend."
Lu Chengxuan and Chu Shiling's expressions shifted slightly.
"Let's consider another point. Why is it that we have never seen a deity descend into reality to this day? Why do anomalies only kill ordinary people and devour transcendent beings?" Lu Zhi deliberately used an exaggerated tone, as if speaking of far-fetched fantasies. "Could it be that the deities' descent into reality is restricted? Or, when transcendent beings are consumed by anomalies, does that power actually come from the bestowal of true deities? Those anomalies masquerading as deities, taking on human forms, is it because they have devoured a large number of transcendent beings, absorbing their energy to advance? Anomalies becoming gods, isn't that a false god?"
Having finally reached this point, Lu Zhi took a sip of tea and pretended to be shy, scratching the back of his head. "Ge, this is all just my wild speculation." He had said enough. With Lu Chengxuan's intelligence, he would surely make many connections.
"Amazing, Little Lu." Chu Shiling listened, dumbfounded. "No one has ever proposed this idea before." Tracing back to the source would require digging through records from a thousand years ago to find even a few clues.
"A deity's curse."
Shen Qi, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke, "What did the false god you saw look like?"
Lu Chengxuan glanced at him and replied, "Why I'm sure it was a deity is because it had a pair of golden eyes, the kind only deities possess, but there was no divine compassion or mercy within them."
Upon hearing Lu Chengxuan's words, Shen Qi's aura turned cold and terrifying. His body seemed to plunge into an endless darkness in an instant. Lu Chengxuan and Chu Shiling immediately felt an unparalleled pressure.
"What's wrong?" Lu Zhi grabbed Shen Qi's hand. It was as cold as his own.
Shen Qi clasped Lu Zhi's hand back and closed his eyes. The chilling aura slowly subsided.
"Happiness has come a little too suddenly," Shen Qi's tone was icy, but his gaze towards Lu Zhi was gentle. He caressed Lu Zhi's eye socket with his finger and murmured, "My dear, what color eyes do you like?"
The topic had veered quite far, and Lu Zhi didn't react immediately. "They all look good, but I prefer black. Pure black can also be very beautiful."
Shen Qi's lips curved upward slightly. "Is that so..."
Lu Zhi didn't clearly hear his follow-up words but remained keenly aware of his brother's and Chu Shiling's reactions. "Ge, Chu Ge, eat your food quickly, it's getting cold."
Lu Chengxuan frowned, looking at Shen Qi, especially at his hand caressing Lu Zhi's face possessively. But in the end, he said nothing.
"My heavens…" Chu Shiling seemed to snap back to reality at that moment, patting his chest with lingering fear. "As expected of China's number one powerhouse. That aura… not many people can withstand it."
Lu Zhi thought, *Who can withstand the wrath of a deity?*
Later, Lu Chengxuan asked about the trip to Holy Island, and Lu Zhi answered everything. Before Lu Chengxuan left, he cautioned, "Be careful." Lu Zhi couldn't help but laugh or cry. Why was he staring at Shen Qi when he said that? Was he warning him to be careful of Holy Island, or careful of Shen Qi?
Lu Zhi waved goodbye to Lu Chengxuan's departing figure. "Ge, remember to notify me as soon as Sister-in-law wakes up."
Lu Chengxuan waved his hand without looking back and quickly left.
Only then did Lu Zhi go to meet Jiang Yue and the others, preparing to head to Holy Island.
However…
"Shen Qi, you're very strange today." Lu Zhi had rarely seen Shen Qi so quiet.
Shen Qi held his cold hand and rubbed it. "Thinking about some past matters."
Lu Zhi tilted his head, his black eyes bright and clear. "What matters?"
Shen Qi calmly replied, "A thief."
Lu Zhi was surprised. "A thief? What did they steal from you?" *Who, who was so audacious as to steal from a deity?*
Shen Qi rubbed Lu Zhi's eye socket with his fingertip. "Eyes."