Chapter 41: The Dragon God’s Chosen Temple Guardian

“The divine dragon has manifested!”

A crisp child’s voice called out from the crowd, though his mouth was instantly covered by someone.

But even without his reminder, everyone saw the astonishing transformation within the Dragon Temple.

Qing Li, Qing Qishan, and the others stared wide-eyed at the scene before them.

They saw a misty shroud faintly appear above the statue of the white dragon, and a white dragon-shaped physical form gradually manifested from within, eventually transforming completely into the true white dragon.

Vroom—

In an instant, everyone felt their minds go blank for a moment.

The white dragon had truly manifested.

At this moment, even Qing Qishan felt his scalp tingle.

When the white dragon truly appeared, he actually felt an immense dread in his heart.

Even though he had seen the white dragon with his own eyes before, now that he was close to it at such proximity, he found himself starting to feel afraid uncontrollably.

The white dragon before him wasn’t large, far smaller than what he had seen in the sky that day.

Yet he only felt more shocked, even experiencing an instinctive throb of fear.

“We pay homage to Your Highness, the Divine Dragon.”

Qing Li was the quickest to recover, taking the lead to kowtow to the white dragon, and Qing Qishan and the other villagers also knelt on the ground one after another, calling out loudly.

At this moment, a little boy in the crowd was staring curiously at the white dragon floating in the air.

Just moments ago, he had been unable to resist shouting, and then his father had covered his mouth and pressed his head down.

He had wanted to see what the divine dragon looked like, but he couldn’t move at all; his father’s grip was exceptionally strong.

However, his father could no longer spare any attention for him now, and Qing Shuishi successfully lifted his head.

Thus, he finally saw what the divine dragon—whom every household in the village had been talking about over these past few days—looked like.

Qing Shuishi’s first reaction was, ‘The white dragon is so beautiful and cute.’

‘Why does everyone seem so afraid of Him when He is so good-looking?’

The seven-year-old Qing Shuishi was completely bewildered.

Just then, he saw the divine dragon turn to look at him, and he quickly bared his small canine teeth in a smile at the dragon.

Subsequently, he saw the divine dragon suddenly breathe a puff of air toward everyone.

“Whoosh.”

Suddenly, Qing Li and the others felt a wave of warmth wash over their bodies, and they instantly felt refreshed.

Qing Shuishi touched his body; once the air the white dragon breathed touched him, he felt warm and exceptionally comfortable.

“So powerful,” Qing Shuishi’s eyes widened.

“Thank you for Your blessing, Lord Dragon!” Qing Li said with trembling excitement.

He felt the chronic minor ailments in his body disappear instantly; the divine dragon’s power truly was miraculous.

But what excited him most was that the dragon’s manifestation today proved His approval of their actions; He truly intended to stay in Qingshui Village.

Although Qing Li was already over fifty, he was completely unable to calm down at this moment.

The other villagers were also excited, clearly perceiving the changes in their bodies, which proved the white dragon wasn’t angry with their actions and had approved of them.

[I am the Lord of the Dragon Realm, the King of White Dragons, and starting today, I shall be the Qingshui Dragon God of this place. If you treat me with sincerity, I will protect you with sincerity in return.]

The majestic voice echoed within the hearts of all the villagers of Qingshui Village.

“We obey the command of the Qingshui Dragon God, and we will devoutly worship You,” Qing Li roared.

“We obey the command of the Qingshui Dragon God, and we will devoutly worship You!” the villagers responded in unison loudly.

[Good.]

The white dragon glided gently within the Dragon Temple.

Then, a faint white light completely shrouded the temple.

Subsequently, something occurred that left Qing Li and the others dumbfounded.

Massive stones flew from the sky one after another, and a colossal trench split open on the ground around the Dragon Temple, with the stones embedding themselves into the trench to form a foundation.

Soon, these stones formed a colossal perimeter wall, completely enclosing the Dragon Temple.

But this wasn’t the end.

More and more stones flew from the sky, and finally, the original Dragon Temple the villagers had constructed crumbled and merged with the incoming stones.

The earth split open, forming a deep foundation, and stones fell into it.

In no time, a colossal stone palace appeared where the original Dragon Temple had been.

On the front of the palace hung a stone plaque with five characters: [Qingshui Dragon God Temple].

And in the center of the palace, a massive stone altar appeared directly.

Upon it sat the white dragon statue.

The statue remained its original size, appearing somewhat inconsistent with the massive new palace.

However, in the hearts of the villagers, this statue appeared even more miraculous.

Vroom—

With this, the white light dissipated completely, and the white dragon circled through the crowd once, conveyed a thought to Village Head Qing Li, and then turned into white mist that merged into the statue and vanished.

A miracle!

This truly was a miracle.

Those who witnessed this felt an unprecedented shock within their hearts.

They had watched those giant stones fly around them, yet none had harmed them from start to finish.

This was too incredible; only the divine dragon’s power could achieve this.

Once Qing Li recovered his composure, he said loudly with excitement, “Fellow villagers, the Lord Dragon has issued a decree. He will send a temple priest to our Qingshui Village, and from now on, our village will truly be protected by the deity!”

Thud.

The shock brought by the Qingshui Dragon God hadn’t fully dissipated, yet the new wave of excitement and joy had already completely engulfed everyone.

Before long, under Qing Li’s lead, the villagers knelt and paid homage one by one.

The only minor interlude was that when the villagers returned home with excitement, Qing Shuishi was beaten thoroughly by his father while everyone else was celebrating.

Qing Shuishi cried miserably, and seeing the excited expressions of the villagers made him weep even harder.

***

Inside the stone house on the peak, Xi Yu, who had returned to his human form, could still perceive the joy of the villagers.

Expanding the Dragon Temple was a decision he had made long ago, and today was the most suitable opportunity.

As for the stone materials, he had sourced and cut them from other mountains several days ago; he had even studied how to construct the building several times, and today, under the control of his dragon power, it was completed in one go.

As for blessing Qingshui Village, it was even simpler—directly gathering some Mutation Particles of this world and injecting them into their bodies, though it actually had little effect.

As for why he had made such a commotion today, there was naturally a reason.

His mood over these past few days was exactly like that of the villagers, unable to remain calm.

He had already finished reading the [Faith Scriptures].

And Xi Yu had been deeply shocked, believing that the secrets of becoming a Food Sequence Lord contained within this scripture were enough to drive any entity below the Sequence Lord level mad.

Because it detailed the staggering secret of how to become a Food Sequence Lord.

Xi Yu hadn’t expected that he could obtain such a massive amount of information so easily from [No. 13 Hospital]. He hadn’t expected to obtain the secret he had wanted most in his past life so easily from a divine wonder.

He finally understood why he had never encountered a Calamity Lord in his previous life.

The answer lay within the [Faith Scriptures].

To become a Calamity Lord, one had to possess believers of their own.

Believers could carry the Calamity Lord’s power, and the Calamity Lord could likewise use the power belonging to themselves within the believers to increase their own strength in return.

Thus, at this stage, every Calamity Lord was incredibly fearsome.

The power of some could even surpass that of weaker Food Sequence Lords.

And the reason they were called Calamity Lords was because to some Food Sequence Lords, they could indeed be considered a calamity.

But similarly, believers were also the Calamity Lord’s weakness.

Destroying the believers would also affect the Calamity Lord; the Calamity Lord’s strength relied on the collective power of their believers to increase, which was why killing believers could indeed weaken the Calamity Lord’s power.

But as long as the Calamity Lord accumulated more power, they would be stronger when becoming a Food Sequence Lord in the future—there were differences in strength even among Sequence Lords.

Therefore, to reduce future competitors, the Food Sequence Lords would do their absolute best to hunt down Calamity Lords.

Aside from many Sequence 2 entities not knowing how to ascend to a Calamity Lord, this was the most direct reason why Calamity Lords were so rare.

Another point was that to fight over believers, Calamity Lords would often launch the most brutal wars against each other. This would not only lead to internal wear among them, but was also usually the trigger for them being discovered and hunted by the Food Sequence Lords.

Thus, Calamity Lords usually either perished directly or rapidly ascended to become Food Sequence Lords.

And ascending to become a Food Sequence Lord was actually very simple.

It was to devour all of one’s believers.

The believers nurtured by a Calamity Lord were also called Faith Fruits, and to a Calamity Lord, Faith Fruits were the most delicious food in the world. But Faith Fruits would exert a fatal attraction on Calamity Lords, causing them to lose control and devour all the fruits before they had accumulated enough, which completely terminated their possibility of becoming a Food Sequence Lord.

Only when they gathered a sufficient number of Faith Fruits and devoured them all at once could they complete the ascension of their status and become a Food Sequence Lord.

But this ascension only had one opportunity; once becoming a Food Sequence Lord, it was no longer useful, so believers were only useful during the Calamity Lord phase.

Once becoming a Food Sequence Lord, basically everyone except for other Sequence Lords and those divine wonders was unable to do anything to Them.

Furthermore, all mutation traits had no more effect on Them; all existences below the Calamity Lord level could only become food on Their plates. Thus, to all things in the world, They were the most terrifying existences standing at the peak of the food chain.

After digesting this knowledge, it took Xi Yu a long time to calm down.

And he finally confirmed two things now.

First, the white dragon was not a Food Sequence Lord, but a Calamity Lord, which was why he currently possessed the [Believer] ability.

Second, the white dragon had likely wanted to break through to become a Food Sequence Lord, but had abandoned the attempt.

It was abandonment rather than failure, otherwise his use of [Believer] power in this life wouldn’t have enhanced the white dragon’s strength.

Ascension only had one opportunity; if it failed, it couldn’t be attempted again, and the [Believer] ability would be completely lost. That he could still use [Believer] power now proved that the white dragon had simply abandoned the attempt; he just didn’t know what had happened to the dragon’s past believers.

But because of this, the white dragon possessed power close to that of a Food Sequence Lord, which was why he hadn’t felt the Lord of the Abyss was completely irresistible when facing him.

To some degree, a Food Sequence Lord wasn’t necessarily much stronger than a Calamity Lord, even though the white dragon was currently only a half-step Calamity Lord.

At this thought, Xi Yu couldn’t help but think of the white dragon in his inner world.

Perhaps because it abandoned that cautious attempt, due to some reason, the white dragon’s soul had hidden within its inner world, and then his own arrival had occurred.

But even so, this still couldn’t explain how his transmigration had occurred.

Discovering these matters was quite a blow to Xi Yu.

He wanted to become a Food Sequence Lord to protect the Middle Continent, to protect those he cared about. But if becoming a Food Sequence Lord required devouring those he wanted to protect, then even if he succeeded, what would be the point?

Likely, the white dragon’s abandonment of ascension in his past life was due to this.

But Xi Yu wouldn’t give up on becoming a Food Sequence Lord; becoming a Food Sequence Lord didn’t necessarily have only this one method, and in any case, he would rely on his own strength to search for a way.

Furthermore, the [Faith Scriptures] also brought a sliver of hope to his heart.

Xi Yu couldn’t open the final page of this scripture; even after transforming into the white dragon, he still couldn’t open it, and in the end, he didn’t force it. But this made him increasingly convinced that there was surely more than one way to become a Food Sequence Lord, making him even more confident.

Although [Believer] carried such a massive hidden danger, currently, Xi Yu didn’t plan on stopping its cultivation. In any case, this ability was currently his only way to return to the Middle Continent, so he certainly wouldn’t give it up.

As for the negative effects of [Believer], he would just do his best to restrain them.

In his past life, having survived the countless torments of the draconic instincts, he had held out; he didn’t believe he would succumb to the negative effects of the believers.

Since even the white dragon could manage not to devour its own believers, Xi Yu didn’t believe he would be any worse.

Of course, at this moment, Xi Yu suddenly thought of something; could his constant suffering from the draconic instincts not be without reason, but rather a form of training from the white dragon?

Xi Yu merely let out a sigh in the end, not dwelling on it further.

The white dragon in his inner world had never given him a single piece of information, so he couldn’t be certain.

But if it truly was a test, there had to be a way to control the influence of the instincts.

But why hadn’t the white dragon’s soul intervened in the matter of Ding Ren?

These were all his own speculations, and Xi Yu had no answers.

Perhaps the white dragon in the inner world wasn’t its soul, but simply a soul body from the soul transformation.

Regardless, all of this was ultimately too far off for him.

It wouldn’t be too late to consider these things when he truly became a Calamity Lord.

For now, he had to increase his strength first.

Otherwise, if he truly encountered a Food Sequence Lord, with his current strength, he would be unable to resist.

While [Believer] was troublesome at the Calamity Lord stage, currently, this ability was exceptionally useful for Xi Yu.

And through the [Faith Scriptures], he now knew how to use the [Believer] power in a more comprehensive manner.

Previously, the Fate Connection values he perceived actually represented believers as well.

However, those believers were different from the [Believer] he had personally selected; the believer he selected could not only inherit a portion of his strength, but could also control ordinary believers in the future, thereby assisting him in mastering the collective believer power.

And ordinary believers didn’t have this capability.

They couldn’t truly provide faith power, but Xi Yu could bestow his own strength upon them.

And currently, bestowing his strength upon believers was highly useful to Xi Yu, most importantly helping him release the white dragon’s increasingly powerful strength.

Furthermore, once the believers’ strength grew, they could also do many things for him. At the very least, he would gain many helpers in this unfamiliar world.

***

Early the next morning, Xi Yu descended from the mountain, changing his direction to walk toward Qingshui Village.

He didn’t wake up early; by Kun Star’s time, it was already past nine in the morning.

Thus, the people of Qingshui Village had already come out to work at this hour.

Over half a month had passed, and the villagers were currently inspecting the fields.

The water level in the fields now was very thin, which made them a bit nervous, as the fields would be completely dry in a few days.

But thinking that the divine dragon currently lived in the village, they felt there was no need to worry. Still, he was the divine dragon, after all, and they didn’t dare count on him for everything.

Qing Qishan was weeding the fields.

While busy with work, he didn’t think of anything else, only occasionally stopping to rest and instinctively recalling the events of yesterday, a smile playing on his lips as he looked toward the Qingshui Dragon God Temple.

With water in the fields, the crops had been revived, and the weeds grew even more vigorously.

Washing the mud from the weeds, he threw them onto the field ridge. Turning his head, he suddenly saw a figure on the road in the distance.

Qing Qishan was taken aback; even from a distance, he could see it was a young, elegant man.

But why would such a person appear in their small mountain village?

With his doubts, Qing Qishan quickly walked up from the fields.

Before he could walk over, a young man from the village welcomed the young gentleman.

“The temple priest is here! The Lord Dragon’s temple priest is here!”

In an instant, everyone who heard the voice ran over from the fields.

Qing Qishan’s eyes bulged; he was the temple priest?

So young!

Not only young, but exceptionally handsome; as he drew closer, Qing Qishan realized he had never seen such a handsome person in his life.

Although Xi Yu was indeed young, appearing like a half-grown child to the elders in the village.

Yet no one dared be disrespectful to him.

The Qingshui Dragon God Temple had just appeared yesterday, and even if someone wanted to run a scam, they couldn’t have known so quickly. Furthermore, the Lord Dragon was right here, so seeking death wasn’t done this way.

It was just that they were highly shocked by his appearance.

They actually harbored a rebellious thought: was this temple priest reliable?

***

Under the escort of the villagers, Xi Yu headed directly to the Qingshui Dragon God Temple.

The temple was in front of the village, and passing it was necessary to head into the village.

Since he was currently acting as the temple priest, he naturally didn’t have to enter the village.

After so many days, he still felt it was a bit magical; his human form could breathe in this world without any issue. Furthermore, this world not only had humans, but many things were extremely similar to the Middle Continent, even the time was twenty-four hours, and he felt as if this place was like the ancient times of the Middle Continent.

And Qing Li and the others also hurried over upon receiving the news.

Currently, Xi Yu was looking at his statue in the main hall.

As he looked, he couldn’t help but feel a bit of shock himself. Inside such a colossal palace, even he couldn’t help but feel awe.

It seemed his efforts yesterday hadn’t been in vain.

Although the people of this world looked very similar to Middle Continent humans, he truly had no way to treat them as Middle Continent people immediately.

Furthermore, he had discovered that the people of this world were even more in awe of the white dragon, which was good, keeping the dragon at a distance from them.

This was also one of the reasons why he had specifically assumed the identity of the temple priest.

This made many things very convenient for him to do; otherwise, if the people here knew he was the white dragon, heaven knows what chaos would occur.

They would likely kneel upon seeing him, and this was highly likely to happen.

Qing Li spotted Xi Yu in the center of the hall at a glance, and despite being warned by the villagers, he was still shocked.

Xi Yu was indeed too young.

He had thought the temple priest would be at least thirty or forty years old, but now he felt completely caught off guard. However, his attitude didn’t dare be careless in the slightest, and he bowed respectfully. “Qing Li, the village head of Qingshui Village, pays respects to the temple priest.”

“There is no need to be polite, Village Head.” Xi Yu supported him with a hand, which left Qing Li somewhat flattered.

“The temple priest hasn’t eaten yet, has he? Why don’t you come to our village for a simple meal first?” After bowing respectfully to the statue, Qing Li quickly invited Xi Yu.

His mind was filled with doubts; Xi Yu’s young age was one thing, but his hair and attire were highly strange, completely unlike the style of their Great Sheng Dynasty, and there was no telling where he came from. But since he was the dragon’s temple priest, no matter how strange he was, it was only natural.

“Thank you for your kindness, Village Head, but I’ve already eaten,” Xi Yu refused.

“Since I’ve already arrived at the Dragon God Temple, I should lead everyone to pay respects to the Lord Dragon first. Then, I’ll also read out the Lord Dragon’s scriptures and teachings to the villagers,” Xi Yu said solemnly. “Please have people call everyone from the village over; if convenient, please have everyone come.”

“It is convenient, and this is only right,” Qing Li nodded quickly. He had planned to invite the priest to perform this on an auspicious day, but he hadn’t expected the young priest to not want to waste a single moment.

“Temple Priest, let me go,” Qing Qishan quickly walked over to bow to Xi Yu.

“Go ahead then,” Qing Li said quickly. “Come back quickly.”

Qing Qishan bolted immediately.

Once he left, Qing Li said quickly, “Where does the temple priest plan to rest today? I’ve already prepared a house for you in the village; why don’t you go rest first?”

Xi Yu declined with a smile, “Thank you for your kindness, Village Head, but since I am the temple priest of the Lord Dragon, staying in the temple is only natural. Additionally, you don’t have to worry about my meals or my daily needs here in the future; I can resolve them myself.”

Qing Li’s eyes widened slightly; this temple priest was young and empty-handed, so what would he eat if he didn’t eat food?

Could the temple priest have achieved the legendary status of a celestial being capable of fasting?

Regardless, his reverence for this mysterious priest grew another layer.

***

The people of Qingshui Village arrived very quickly.

In truth, many had wanted to come, but had been stopped by Qing Li, and now with Xi Yu’s invitation, the entire village arrived.

The newly expanded Dragon God Temple was much larger than before, and the plaza in front could accommodate thousands of people. Furthermore, the plaza was paved with large stone slabs, clean and orderly. Thus, even if the entire village came, it could accommodate them.

A dense crowd of people stood on the hard stone plaza currently, looking at the young priest with curiosity.

“Fellow villagers of Qingshui Village, hello. My name is Xi Yu, and I am the temple priest designated by the Qingshui Dragon God. Starting today, I will assist you in communicating with the Lord Dragon, and I will also read out the Lord Dragon’s scriptures and teachings,” Xi Yu spoke loudly.

In truth, his voice wasn’t particularly loud, but every villager heard his words clearly, even the elderly.

This single action instantly made the villagers of the village believe in the young priest.

Indeed, the priest designated by the Lord Dragon was extraordinary, and they bowed respectfully. “We pay respects to the temple priest.”

The voices rose and fell, and since they hadn’t practiced, the voices of the village weren’t uniform, but their tone was exceptionally respectful.

Xi Yu smiled and raised his hand. “Everyone, no need to be polite. I will need your care for my life here in the future.”

The reason he had the elderly come along was not to exploit them. Rather, what he wanted to say today was very important to them, and perhaps only by seeing it with their own eyes could they perceive the power contained within.

“Alright, please follow me to pay respects to the Lord Dragon first,” Xi Yu said loudly.

The villagers immediately grew solemn.

The sacrifice ended quickly, and then Xi Yu said to everyone, “Next, I’ll introduce the Lord Dragon’s scriptures and teachings to you; please stand and listen.”

Fortunately, Xi Yu specifically said so; he had seen some people instinctively wanting to kneel.

“Fellow villagers, the Qingshui Dragon God achieved his status through good deeds, and thus he harbors good intentions and endless love. His role is good deeds and salvation, and His teaching is also very simple: save all things, save all beings. All living beings, as long as they are free of sin, can be saved. Whether it is natural disasters or human calamities, they are all within the scope of the Lord Dragon’s salvation.”

“Therefore, believers of the dragon must spread the Lord Dragon’s teachings, and let the people of the world and all living beings know the name of the Lord Dragon. If a believer calls out the name of the dragon in times of danger, they will surely receive the dragon’s response. You perform these good deeds to assist the dragon’s descent to save all things, and this is of boundless merit.”

Xi Yu’s words weren’t fast, spoken one by one so everyone could understand.

“Therefore, as the priest of the Qingshui Dragon God Temple, I hope the believers of our Qingshui Dragon God can proactively head to various places to spread the Lord Dragon’s teachings, letting the people of the world perceive the Lord Dragon’s love and greatness.”

Once Xi Yu’s words fell, the villagers of Qingshui Village looked at each other.

They understood the young priest’s words, but they couldn’t process them.

The Qingshui Dragon God Temple had just been built, and while they indeed revered the divine dragon, and many believed devoutly.

But to have them become believers and head out to spread the dragon’s teachings was something they had truly never thought of.

They had been farmers all their lives, never having left the village much, and now having them head to other places was simply beyond their imagination.

No matter what, they couldn’t bring themselves to leave their homes.

Xi Yu wasn’t surprised by the villagers’ reaction.

Expecting the people of Qingshui Village to head outside based on a few words was unrealistic, of course, and he hadn’t expected these words to be of much use.

However, these words still had to be spoken; this was a precursor.

The next matter was the key.

Of course, he had also confirmed that there were no powerful existences in this region before doing so, otherwise he would have been more low-profile.

“The believers spread the Lord Dragon’s teachings, and the Lord Dragon will naturally bestow His blessing to protect your safety,” Xi Yu said loudly. “Of course, before this, those who have performed great deeds in constructing the Dragon Temple will receive the Lord Dragon’s blessing today.”

“Village Head Qing Li, and villager Qing Qishan, please step forward.”

***

Both Qing Li and Qing Qishan were taken aback, feeling a bit dazed.

How had the Lord Dragon’s blessing suddenly been bestowed during the reading of the teachings?

But both stepped forward instinctively, and Qing Qishan shivered with excitement. They had already experienced the divine dragon’s blessing once, which had been exceptionally comfortable, and although it hadn’t seemed to have a major effect, he was currently called out by name before the village, which filled him with immense pride.

The other villagers also stared wide-eyed at this sight.

The Village Head and Qing Qishan were to be blessed by the Lord Dragon individually today?

Qing Qishan’s family was dumbfounded, filled with surprise and joy, and his children nearly shouted, though they were stopped by the elders nearby.

With dazed confusion, the two arrived before Xi Yu.

At this moment, both were highly anxious yet expectant, not knowing what the Lord Dragon’s blessing would be this time, and whether it would be the same as yesterday’s.

Xi Yu looked at the two, smiling and nodding. “The two of you need not be anxious. Next, your bodies might experience some pain, but just endure it for a bit.”

“Yes, Temple Priest,” they said quickly.

“Qing Li, the village head of Qingshui Village, and the villagers are all Grade 9 True Believers. I pray for the Lord Dragon’s blessing upon the two believers,” Xi Yu bowed respectfully to the white dragon statue.

Seeing his appearance, the villagers stared wide-eyed, not daring to move.

The two of them stiffened almost instantly.

They suddenly had a powerful feeling that this blessing would be completely different from yesterday’s.

Vroom—

Suddenly, a cloud of mist appeared out of thin air above the Dragon Temple, and then everyone seemed to see the white dragon slithering within it.

Swoosh— the villagers knelt on the ground one after another.

But they still couldn’t help but look up; they saw the white dragon fly before Qing Li and the other.

The next moment, they saw the white dragon open his mouth and breathe, and two beams of white light descended upon their bodies.

The villagers’ hearts shook; they could all see that this blessing was indeed different from yesterday’s.

***

Xi Yu himself didn’t see this scene, nor did he know such a vision would appear.

Currently, his consciousness had already arrived within the inner world.

Bestowing strength upon believers was something he couldn’t do himself; only the white dragon could. And within the inner world, he could directly borrow the white dragon’s power, without needing to transform.

Among the villagers of Qingshui Village, the points of light belonging to Qing Li and Qing Qishan were the brightest, so bestowing the white dragon’s power upon them first was the most suitable choice.

And this was also highly representative.

However, it was his first time doing such a thing, so he was highly cautious.

Currently, through his believer ability, he injected the white dragon’s power into their bodies bit by bit, and then monitored their physical conditions carefully.

This kind of thing couldn’t be tested in advance, and he would only find out once he actually attempted it. Currently, he focused all his attention with care; if any accident occurred, he could terminate the process immediately.

The white dragon’s power was no small matter, and any ordinary person might not only receive no benefit, but might actually be dissolved to death by the power’s traits.

Now he hoped the [Believer] ability truly was miraculous.

On the plaza of the Dragon Temple.

Seeing Qing Li and the other engulfed in the white light, all the villagers stared wide-eyed, and some even covered their mouths, while their families watched them with immense worry.

This blessing was truly significant.

They were all expectant, yet a bit worried.

But currently, the sensation Qing Li and the other felt was completely different.

When the white light descended, they had been highly terrified initially. But the next moment, an indescribable, comfortable sensation began to erupt within their bodies bit by bit, making them close their eyes instinctively, and even feel slightly drowsy.

But a sharp, stinging pain quickly jolted them awake.

Subsequently, they both perceived an incredible change occurring within their bodies.

Something black seemed to seep out from their bodies, subsequently turning into ash within the white light, and they clearly perceived their bodies being filled with strength, which made them feel exceptionally powerful.

Qing Li’s perception was especially clear.

He was fifty-two this year, which was considered long-lived in Qingshui Village, but he still felt his body was far from what it once was. Although he hadn’t resorted to a walking stick yet, his legs still felt weak when walking, and he instinctively wanted to lean on something. Especially when it rained, the pain made him unable to move.

If he stood for a long time, he couldn’t bear it either, and standing for just a bit earlier had been difficult. But now he suddenly felt strength in his legs, his body was no longer shaking, and his waist straightened instinctively.

Not only that, but his spirit was also much better, and the once blurry world became clear in an instant; he even felt he had grown ten years younger.

This sensation was simply too enchanting, and he truly didn’t want it to stop.

He was even more worried this was all his illusion, and once the blessing ended, he would return to his previous illness-ridden body.

After an unknown amount of time, the comfortable sensation finally ended.

Qing Li perceived his state with reluctance, and then he was stunned.

He couldn’t help but clench his fists; they were truly filled with strength. He wasn’t dreaming; his strength hadn’t vanished, and his legs were currently filled with power, to the point where he felt he could carry two hundred pounds of grain and run around the village without issue.

The intense joy completely engulfed Qing Li, leaving him speechless with excitement.

And beside him, Qing Qishan’s sensation was even more intense; he was currently in his prime, and at this moment, he felt his body was filled with explosive strength, making him want to unleash this strength with all his might.

However, he restrained himself, not daring to offend the Lord Dragon in the temple.

To his surprise, the temple priest Xi Yu produced a stone out of thin air, looking at him encouragingly. “Try and see if you can shatter this stone with one punch.”

Striking a stone with bare flesh?

Normally, Qing Qishan wouldn’t do such a thing even if his head were broken, but currently, he had no fear at all. Since the priest was encouraging him, he didn’t hesitate, letting out a roar and punching down.

Thud.

Crash.

The stone was shattered into pieces.

Qing Qishan was stunned, and the villagers of Qingshui Village were also dumbfounded.

But just then, a loud cry drew everyone’s attention once more.

“Father, you actually look younger?!” Qing Li’s eldest son stared wide-eyed and shouted.

“The Village Head really looks younger!” the villagers also shrieked one after another.

“Old man,” Mother Cheng also covered her mouth, in disbelief.

Qing Qishan shattering a stone with one punch was one thing, but Qing Li directly looking younger was far too terrifying.

Had they not witnessed Qing Li turning younger within the temple, they would have nearly treated him as a demon.

But now, only shock remained in all the villagers’ hearts.

***

Xi Yu, whose consciousness had returned to his body before them, was also highly pleased; things had developed far more smoothly than he imagined. Bestowing strength not only didn’t cause pain, but they had actually enjoyed the process, and the dragon power had even cleansed their bodies.

With this, his plans were completely secured.

Xi Yu smiled at all the villagers of Qingshui Village. “Everyone, no need to be surprised; the Lord Dragon merely bestowed a trace of divine power into Village Head Qing Li’s body. Although it doesn’t have a major effect, strengthening their bodies and making them as strong as bulls is absolutely not a problem.”

“In the future, if they receive more divine power, even longevity and riding the clouds won’t be impossible.”

Vroom.

The plaza fell silent.

The villagers of Qingshui Village’s minds went blank for a moment, and then they came to their senses, feeling they were truly going mad.

‘Making the Village Head look younger is called “no major effect”?’

But once they heard of longevity and riding the clouds, they were completely dumbfounded. It seemed that compared to those, looking younger was indeed nothing.

“Everyone, no need to be envious; as long as you become the Lord Dragon’s believer and elevate your believer status, everyone will have opportunities in the future.”

Once everyone calmed down, Xi Yu spoke unhurriedly with a smile, “Alright, this matter is finished for today. In the future, Village Head Qing Li and Qing Qishan can share their experiences of the blessing with everyone.”

“Next, we’ll continue to discuss the matter of you guys heading out to spread the Lord Dragon’s teachings; who wants to sign up?”

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