Chapter 12: A Tall Tree Catches the Wind
Days passed, one after another, and the Church of the Water God grew like bamboo shoots after a spring rain—silently, yet with startling speed.
Neuvillette's plans were implemented methodically. In the启蒙 schoolhouse, the rhythmic cadence of Teacher Wang's lessons and the children's稚嫩 recitations became the courtyard's most pleasant background music. The small workshops gradually found their footing—the basket-weaver's wares and the carpenter's little stools earned a modest local reputation, while the auntie's snack stand had become the church's storefront signature, its wafting aromas forever drawing passersby to stop and linger.
What pleased Furina most was that her "deluxe" cakes and the miraculously effective Coagulation Powder had made a real name for themselves. Not only were commoners rushing to buy them, but even low-ranking soul masters and small-time merchants were coming in, drawn by reputation. The nineteen packs of Coagulation Powder had long since sold out, demand far outpacing supply. Gazing at the empty inventory, Furina mentally calculated that she'd have to exchange for another batch the moment her points recovered.
The number of believers grew steadily and soon burst past the five-hundred mark. More and more came from the surrounding villages, and word had even spread to remote areas—people heard tell of a "Church of the Water God" in Thunderclap City that not only helped children awaken their martial souls for free, but also distributed "holy relics" that could cure the sick. Whole families were packing up and traveling great distances to come.
Even more gratifying, low-ranking soul masters began applying to join the church of their own accord. Most were those of limited talent whom sects and academies had overlooked. They'd set their sights on the church's welcoming, down-to-earth atmosphere and the latent opportunities it offered (and, of course, they'd probably heard about those uniquely effective pills and cakes). Neuvillette screened them rigorously and ultimately accepted three soul masters of passable character, each with distinct martial souls, assigning them to security, instruction, and procurement respectively.
The very night the number of believers hit five hundred, the system notification Furina had been waiting for finally sounded.
[Ding! Mission "Make the Church of the Water God Great" complete!]
[Rewards disbursed: Points +5000, Growth-type Divine Artifact "Splendor of Still Waters" x1]
A surging flood of points poured into her account. Furina gazed at the once-again abundant number and couldn't stop grinning. What made her heart race even faster was the elegant, exquisitely crafted longsword that silently materialized in her hands, its entire body wreathed in an azure halo of flowing light. The blade seemed to ripple with coursing water. It felt cool and temperate to the touch, and it held within it an indescribably powerful energy.
"Splendor of Still Waters..." Furina ran her fingers gently along the blade, utterly enchanted. She could feel the bond between herself and the divine artifact—a resonance as deep as blood.
With points in hand, her confidence surged. A grand sweep of her hand, and Furina not only replenished their daily operating funds but also exchanged for another batch of Coagulation Powder and a smaller quantity of other pills as strategic reserves. She even distributed "bonuses" to Neuvillette and a few core members.
The Church of the Water God's reputation in Thunderclap City blazed at high noon. Commoners saw it as a land of hope, and many even began secretly enshrining tablets to the "Water God" in their homes—though the image of the Water God they imagined always unconsciously bore Furina's own chin-lifted, self-satisfied expression.
However, the church's prominence had grown too great. It was only a matter of time before it drew some unwanted ire.
Thunderclap City, the City Lord's Manor.
Crash! An exquisite porcelain cup was hurled to the floor, shards scattering in every direction.
"Useless! All of you, utterly useless!" Lei Bao, the Lord of Thunderclap City—a middle-aged man with a dark, brooding face—was roaring at his subordinates. "A pathetic little cult putting on a holy show, and in just a few months they're practically overshadowing me, the City Lord! What exactly do I pay you for?!"
The men before him trembled in terrified silence. Finally, an advisor-type stepped forward, steeling his nerves. "My lord, please calm your anger. This Church of the Water God is indeed... peculiar. That woman, Furina, is a food-type soul master—and by my estimate, a top-tier food-type martial soul at that. She's also gotten her hands on some unusually effective pills from who knows where, and she's won over no small number of hearts. And that newly arrived white-haired man—anyone can see he's no simple character. He's got the whole church running like clockwork..."
"I don't care what tricks they're using!" Lei Bao cut him off, his eyes fierce. "Thunderclap City has room for only one voice—mine! Who the hell do they think they are, this Church of the Water God? A rabble of mud-legged peasants and third-rate soul masters banded together!"
He paced back and forth, breathing heavily. "They can heal, can they? They can help with awakenings, can they? Then make some trouble for them! Send people to stir things up! Say their cakes made someone sick! Say their pills are counterfeit! And drop by the tax office—have them give that church a thorough calculation of exactly how much they owe!"
"Y-yes, sir..." his men hastily acknowledged.
"And one more thing," Lei Bao narrowed his eyes, a flash of greed passing through them. "Find out... where exactly those pills of theirs are coming from. If we could get our hands on that source..."
A few days later, the Church of the Water God indeed began encountering some "minor troubles."
First, someone showed up howling about a stomachache from the cake and refused to leave the doorstep (though his acting was so painfully overblown that even the onlookers could barely stomach it). Then tax officials came knocking, demanding to audit the accounts with an arrogant air, heavily implying that some "greasing of palms" was in order. At night, some thugs even tried lobbing trash over the courtyard walls—only to be easily apprehended by the soul master guards on night duty.
Such petty provocations were, of course, hardly enough to trouble Neuvillette. Impartial and razor-sharp in logic, he dismantled the troublemakers' arguments in just a few sentences, leaving them speechless. Faced with the tax officials, he produced the church's meticulously prepared ledgers, neither servile nor confrontational, and gave them not a single fault to seize upon. As for the street toughs, they were marched straight to the city guard post.
But Furina was still livid.
"That Lei Bao! He's clearly just green with envy at how well we're doing!" She paced back and forth in her room, her cheeks puffed with fury. "What a petty, small-minded little man!"
Neuvillette, for his part, remained calm. "A tall tree catches the wind. This was inevitable. This is merely probing—there may well be more moves to come." He paused in thought. "We need to further strengthen our ability to defend ourselves. Those newly recruited soul masters aren't of particularly high rank. Perhaps some modest advancement might be in order."
Furina's eyes lit up. "Right! We have points now! The shop's full of good stuff!"
She immediately pulled up the system shop, her eyes scanning the pills and soul tools.
"Profound Water Pills... perfect for building their foundations right now." Muttering to herself, she exchanged for three Profound Water Pills (spending 600 points) and then looked over the soul tools.
"Tier-1 Soul Daggers, Tier-2 Soul Shields... they're low-tier, but better than nothing." She spent another 600 points and exchanged for three daggers and two shields.
When she handed these items over to the three soul masters, they were so overcome they could barely speak. The value of Profound Water Pills was something they'd long heard of—treasures with a price but no market, capable of improving innate constitution and boosting soul power! And the Pope had simply given them away with such generosity!
"We will give everything we have to defend the Church of the Water God!" The three dropped to one knee, their voices trembling with emotion.
Furina, slightly embarrassed by their intense reaction, waved her hands. "Get up, get up. Do a good job, and there'll be plenty more good things in store for you!"
With the support of the pills and soul tools, the three soul masters saw dramatic improvements in both strength and loyalty. Neuvillette also adjusted the patrol and guard arrangements, tightening the church's defenses considerably.
The City Lord's Manor's petty schemes momentarily quieted down. But the air seemed thick with the oppressive stillness that heralds an approaching storm.
Clutching her newly acquired divine artifact—the Splendor of Still Waters—Furina stood at the slightly refurbished entrance of the courtyard, gazing toward the City Lord's Manor faintly visible at the heart of Thunderclap City. A smile curled at the corner of her lips, equal parts confidence and provocation.
"Looking for trouble? Bring it on. The Pope... ah, no—the Water God herself accepts your challenge!"