Abundant Martial Arts Virtue

West Suburb Dock.

Wu Xiaode squatted in a dark corner, gazing at a large ship that was moored.

The ship was brightly lit and heavily guarded, exuding an overwhelming aura of evil.

"The most recent ritual should start at midnight," Fei Fei said.

"How is the ritual conducted?" Wu Xiaode asked.

"The ship heads to international waters, where all souls are sacrificed in one go, sometimes summoning the God worshiped by the Church to bestow treasures," Fei Fei explained.

She glanced at the ship and sighed, "We're too late; no one can board that ship now."

"That's not necessarily true," Wu Xiaode said.

He took a step forward.

The dark night, the clouds, and the countless sentries all disappeared.

Time had changed.

It was now early morning.

Amidst the morning mist, the ship slowly docked at the shore.

A few sturdy men disembarked from the ship, yawning and saying:

"Let's go, the ship is in position, let's grab some food; there's more work to do tonight."

"It's still early; why not gamble a bit first?"

"Let's eat first."

"Right, eat first and then play for a while."

The group walked away arm in arm.

Wu Xiaode easily avoided the gaze of a sentry and boarded the ship directly.

"Around the afternoon, a batch of Full Consciousness Storage Cards will be brought on board, and then the security will become very strict," Fei Fei said.

"What time in the afternoon?" Wu Xiaode asked.

"Around four o'clock," Fei Fei replied.

Wu Xiaode fell into deep thought.

If he went directly at four o'clock, a fight would be inevitable, which might alert the enemies.

Though he could save people, he wouldn't be able to see who was behind the scenes.

"What time is the ritual held?" he asked again.

"Usually at nine in the evening, in international waters," Fei Fei said.

"It's boring just staying here; let's go straight to nine o'clock," Wu Xiaode walked forward, stepping into the Void.

Nine o'clock.

International waters.

It was still the same large ship.

The ritual had already started!

Candles were lit everywhere on the ship.

People in long robes gathered on the deck, chanting the name of the "Lord of Dark Night" in unison.

This all still resembled the Evil God Church, but what differed from ancient Evil God rituals was—

Thousands of black storage cards were placed around the ritual.

Each storage card represented one soul.

And in the center of the entire ritual was a huge electronic display.

This deviated somewhat from the traditional practices of churches like those of the Evil God.

As the chanting continued, a bishop dressed in a black robe finally made his entrance.

"Believers!"

As he spoke, everyone went silent.

"The realms of heaven, earth, and humanity are covered in filthy 'red dust' particles, preventing us from discerning the truth of the world."

"God has mercy on humanity."

"Thus, we have the Sacrificial Method."

"Sacrifice nine thousand souls, and the True God will briefly part the 'red dust,' allowing us a glimpse of its true form."

The bishop raised his hands high and exclaimed loudly:

"—As we draw near to God, He shall grant us eternal power!"

All the believers erupted.

The crowd chanted the name of the "Lord of Dark Night" one voice after another.

Amidst this tumultuous prayer, the bishop began to recite a complex spell.

The machines storing the Full Consciousness Storage Cards were wheeled in, plugged in, and activated.

The giant screen in the center lit up.

Countless people appeared on the screen.

These were the souls inside the Full Consciousness Storage Cards.

Now, they could only stand on the screen, watching despairingly as they were sacrificed.

Taking advantage of this moment—

In a corner, a man dressed in the robes of a low-ranking believer reached out.

"Souls..."

"should pass through me and then proceed to the Netherworld."

As his words fell.

The Book of the Dead suddenly unfolded beside him in the Void.

—"Super Shadow Followers" activated!

On the huge screen, all the souls immediately became alert.

There was no time for hesitation.

The worst outcome was right before their eyes!

If there was another path to take, no matter what it was, it was worth a try!

In the Void.

One card after another turned into afterimages, flying into the Book of the Dead.

In a blink of an eye.

All the souls on the screen had vanished!

At that moment, the bishop had just finished reading the last of the spell.

He too noticed what was happening.

"What's going on?"

he asked urgently.

"I don't know," a few of the church members said, their faces sweating with fear, "All the souls in the Full Consciousness Storage Cards have disappeared!"

The bishop was stunned, then relaxed and laughed dismissively:

"You really don't understand?"

"If not for the Divine, who else could take away all the souls at once?"

A believer hesitated, "Last time, we had to throw everything into the Fiery Flame and corrode it with sulfuric acid to complete all the sacrifices, how come this time—"

The bishop interrupted him impatiently: "The Divine have their ways of handling things; otherwise, tell me, who else could search and take away nine thousand souls at once?"

Everyone seemed to think it made sense.

The scene gradually calmed down.

After a few breaths.

Wu Xiaode suddenly felt something and looked up at the sky.

In the heavens.

The fog of the dark night seemed to penetrate the world, revealing an unreal space.

Above the ship, a massive figure slowly moved.

The bishop also looked up, spreading his arms and shouting:

"Indulge to your heart's content, Lord of Dark Night!"

"If our deeds have pleased you, please grant us a touch of your glory and encouragement."

"We will serve you forever!"

His voice, filled with solemnity and devotion, scattered far across the sea.

Suddenly.

A laugh that completely shattered the atmosphere sounded.

"Lord of Dark Night? Parading under such a grand title to devour souls, what exactly are you?"

Flashes of blade light.

Cold gleams of the blade swept across the deck, chopping the bodies of the believers into pieces.

The screams rose and fell.

"Look, there are many souls here; they've always worshipped you."

The long blade sheathed.

Wu Xiaode stepped through the bloody water, moving step by step among the corpses, until he stood in front of the bishop.

—He had intentionally left this bishop unharmed.

"Who are you? Do you think by killing us, the Divine will remain indifferent?"

The bishop coldly said.

Wu Xiaode slapped him to the ground, grabbed his collar to lift him up again, and slapped him once more.

The bishop tumbled to the ground, completely stunned.

Wu Xiaode spoke softly:

"Even the Devil knows to fear the unknown, yet you use the lives of thousands to please a being that feasts on souls."

"Killing you would actually be letting you off easy."

After he spoke, he looked up toward the colossal figure in the sky.

"Hey—"

He shouted:

"I've already taken the previous batch of souls, now only these guys' souls remain."

"So here comes the question—"

"Are you going to eat them?"

As he spoke, soul after soul emerged from the bodies of the believers.

Quickly realizing their plight, they knelt down in a gesture of prayer.

God.

And its followers.

What was the final consequence?

Wu Xiaode lifted the bishop again, holding him high.

"To eat or not to eat? If you eat, I'll kill him; if not—"

"I will take these souls away!"

He shouted loudly.

Before his words had settled, the immense figure in the sky dived down.

It opened its vast mouth, filled with sharp teeth.

It seemed it wanted to eat—

—despite these being the followers who provided it with souls.

The last trace of composure in the bishop's eyes vanished, and in panic, he said:

"No, it shouldn't be this way."

"My God—"

Swish!

A blade swept through.

The bishop's head soared into the air, his soul following suit.

Facing the angry gazes of the souls—

Wu Xiaode smiled as he sheathed his blade, then said:

"Your God wants to eat you, you certainly won't refuse, right? After all, you're so devout, even willing to sacrifice other people's souls."

The bishop's soul froze, then suddenly comprehended.

It looked up at the increasingly close "God", and hurriedly started to run towards the edge of the deck.

"Hey, are you going to jump into the sea? Don't forget the life preserver!"

Wu Xiaode reminded.

The bishop's soul stopped in its tracks and immediately grabbed the life preserver tied to the railing.

"Foolish."

Wu Xiaode spat out two words, his gaze deepening:

"No wonder they say ignorance is the convenient path to being controlled by an evil god."

The bishop's hand passed through the life preserver.

He suddenly remembered, he was a soul now!

This delay meant it was all too late.

Even the other believers' souls saw that there was no escape this time.

They were in disarray, weeping, screaming, cursing, even trying to flee—

But it was too late.

From the depth of the sky, that giant mouth opened wide, taking a forceful inhale.

All the souls soared into the sky, whooshing into its vast maw.

When the gigantic mouth closed.

All sounds also disappeared.

Wu Xiaode quietly watched the creature feed, then asked:

"Tasty?"

Deep in the sky, a thought descended and circled around him, issuing a voice akin to that of a human:

"You must...replace them..."

"Find me...more...souls…"

Wu Xiaode shrugged and said, "What if I don't want to?"

The surrounding voices twisted and grew more piercing:

"I am a 'God' from the Upper Realm, refuse my divine command, and you're in big trouble."

God?

Divine command?

Wu Xiaode laughed, rubbing his hands:

"Honestly, we all encounter troubles in life. The powerful and mighty can quickly get out of them, but ordinary people cannot."

"The reason some of us wander in this realm is that we have no one to rely on, and can only rely on ourselves."

"Whenever this moment comes, my choice is always..."

"To truly embrace the word 'fight'."

"Here, tagging Fei Fei—"

"Fei Fei, watch me, you need to watch closely."

"The other sisters in the Book of the Dead, how are you? Everyone, please enjoy a real-life combat show now!"

As he spoke, he extended his hand, spread his fingers, and made a pressing gesture towards the depths of the sky.

An invisible wave surged from his hand, wrapping around the huge figure in the depths of the sky.

Rows of ice crystal words appeared:

"You have activated your Holy Level Death Skill:"

"Love, Dreams, World Peace."

"The battle is about to begin!"

In an instant.

A long health bar silently appeared in the sky.

It floated just above the "God's" head.