Chapter 123: Citywide Celebration

Li Wenjun hadn’t expected this Young Master to be so petty. He had only accidentally pushed him, and now the man wanted to beat him up—it was utterly unreasonable.

But Li Wenjun was no pushover. When a servant tried to grab him, Li Wenjun seized the man’s arm instead and hurled him straight at the Young Master. The two collided like bowling pins, knocking over a group of people. Only then did the crowd realize a fight had broken out, and they scrambled to clear the center, pushing toward the edges.

“Get off me! Everyone, attack!”

The Young Master kicked away the servant who had crashed into him. Seeing the crowd disperse, he sneered—this brat was done for, and his men now had room to move.

Li Wenjun didn’t want to waste time here. The Church would teleport directly to the Spirit King Tree’s location. Even though Banwang City had built a road leading to the Spirit King Tree’s town, traveling on foot would take not days but an entire month. If he missed today, he wasn’t sure he could still receive the Blessing.

Li Wenjun drew the dagger from his robe, pointing it at the enemies poised to pounce.

The Young Master’s eyes lit up at the sight of the dagger.

“A filthy beggar with such a fine weapon? He must be a thief—beat him!” With so many people around, the Young Master didn’t want to tarnish his reputation. Spotting the dagger, he quickly fabricated an excuse to position himself on the moral high ground.

“Damn, I’ve really run into an idiot.” Li Wenjun’s clothes were indeed tattered, making any explanation difficult. Seeing dozens of men closing in, he hesitated no longer and struck first.

The Young Master took a longsword handed to him by a subordinate and lunged at Li Wenjun. Though not particularly skilled, the Young Master came from an Aristocratic background and had access to far more resources than a lowly beggar. His Level had reached 20, and many of his men were former Adventurers with decent combat abilities.

Despite Li Wenjun’s superior fighting techniques, he was outnumbered. Before long, he was beaten black and blue, and the dagger was wrested from his grasp by the Young Master.

“Give it back!” Two henchmen seized Li Wenjun’s arms, pinning him in place as he glared furiously at the man before him.

“Is this yours? Look at what you’re wearing—that stench, those rags. Could someone like you afford such a weapon? I think I’ll hand it over to the Church for you, you thief.”

The Young Master glanced disdainfully at Li Wenjun’s clothes and spat on him.

“What’s the difference between wearing this and wearing nothing? I’ll change it for you free of charge—don’t say I bullied you.” With that, he used the dagger to lift Li Wenjun’s woolen sweater. The moment the blade touched it, the garment shattered into pieces.

“I’m going to kill you!” Li Wenjun’s eyes turned blood-red at the sight of the destroyed sweater. His hoarse roar startled the Young Master, who instinctively took a step back.

“Everyone, stop!”

Originally planning to go receive the Blessing, Mark somewhat helplessly led the city defense troops to investigate the cause of the crowd’s commotion. Actually, he had left these matters to his subordinates to manage, but Liya suddenly asked him to check, saying that one of the main figures causing this chaos was also one of the Blessing Targets.

As the main person in charge of the Elf Church, Liya was responsible for this Blessing team and naturally couldn’t get away.

There were only twenty slots for Humans. Although the number wasn’t large, the crowd of onlookers was huge. She could spot at a glance if anyone from the Blessing team was missing, as she had conducted detailed investigations on every Blessing Target.

The missing person was a Youth named Dru. This Youth was a Human specially recommended by Xiong Da, and Liya had also conducted a thorough investigation on him.

While covertly following Dru during a Forest hunt, she accidentally discovered that he possessed a Special Skill. This Skill was extremely powerful, which might be why Xiong Da had specifically recommended him.

As the City Lord of Banwang City, Xiong Da had information on all the city’s residents. Moreover, Lucy held information from the Adventurer Association. Combining both sources, it was easy to identify who had purchased the Magic Mirror. Through some investigation into living habits, they quickly confirmed that Dru was actually Li Wenjun.

Although Xiong Er had spoken quite impressively in the group chat, she had only mentioned Li Wenjun to Liya. However, Liya hadn’t found anyone named Li Wenjun in Banwang City, so she didn’t bring it up again.

Mark dispersed the crowd, but the scene before him was astonishing.

More than ten naked grown men lay on the ground, including that Young Master, who was also naked and unconscious, displaying everything under the broad daylight. The younger female residents among the onlookers shyly turned their heads away, while the older ones began to laugh.

“Are you Dru?”

Mark glanced at the situation on the ground—they were only unconscious, not dead—then asked the Youth standing in the middle of the crowd.

“Yes!” Li Wenjun nodded, holding a tattered woolen sweater in his hand.

“It’s time for the Blessing. Come with me to the Church. Arrest these fallen guys first; I’ll deal with them when I return.” Mark didn’t intend to ask about what had just happened. Even with his toes, he could guess that it was surely that Young Master who had stirred up trouble.

For someone like Dru, who came from a humble background and was still selected for the Blessing, it was either because of formidable strength, exceptional talent, or because he had someone from the Elf Church backing him. As for why he himself was selected, whether it was due to his relationship with Xiong Da or his talent, Mark had no idea.

The onlookers in the crowd began to whisper among themselves. After all, that person had just accused this Dru of being a thief, and now he turned out to be a Blessing candidate.

“A thief can also receive the Blessing?”

“I heard the one lying on the ground is Young Master Jindier, a notorious bully. Do you actually believe his words?”

“No wonder he bullied this poor kid who was chosen for the Blessing. I heard Jindier’s father contributed a lot of money to the Elf Church’s construction but still didn’t get a Blessing qualification.”

“It seems the Elf Church really looks at talent and piety when making selections. Does that mean we also have a chance?”

“Enough said. Starting tomorrow—no, starting now—I am the most loyal Believer of the Spirit King Tree, Sylph!”

Although a minor incident occurred midway, the celebration continued as planned. The daughter of a business street owner in Banwang City had the fortune of becoming a Blessing Target, so he generously covered all expenses for Church Believers on the food street. Any Believer who worshipped the Spirit King Tree could enjoy all the delicacies on this street for free today.

Thus, today unexpectedly became Banwang City’s day of celebration. From morning till night, feasts continued nonstop, with scenes of people playfully splashing water and frolicking visible in every street and alley. Children clutched free chicken drumsticks in their hands, playing games amidst the bustling crowds.

Having lived in this city for so long, Luke was witnessing such a vibrant spectacle for the first time.

In the past, when a Church Demigod came to select a Blessing Target, the atmosphere was always solemn and reverent, with the Demigod standing in the city as the entire populace knelt in worship. Now, however, the entire city cheered and celebrated for them, rejoicing together for a brighter future.