“Haha… haha…”
On the plains, laughter from several people rose and fell in turns.
On a flat piece of ground, the adventurers had set up a tent. Inside a pot over the fire, water boiled with various dried vegetables floating within, emitting a fragrant aroma.
On a nearby wooden rack hung their spoils from this trip—over a dozen white-eyed rats, a whole nest, and there were even unexpected bonuses.
After destroying the rats’ den, Sebastian discovered a stash of grains and plant roots rich in starch. These white-eyed rats had inherited the same habits as their predecessors—diligently collecting all sorts of food, only to end up benefiting Sebastian and his team.
“Little Evan, you actually managed to trip and fall while running. That’s quite a talent!”
A male archer mockingly looked at Evan, who was missing a front tooth: “Our hunt was a great success. The only loss was Evan’s tooth… haha…”
“…”
What could Evan say?
He could only sit on the ground with tears in his eyes, hugging his knees in silence.
“Alright! Everyone has to take turns keeping watch after dinner. Evan, you’re first!”
Sebastian, though strict on the outside, was actually quite considerate. Having been entrusted by Evan’s parents, he naturally wanted to show some favoritism. At this moment, he shoved a hot, charred-looking piece of something into Evan’s hands: “Get to work after you finish eating!”
“Okay…”
Evan softly replied, his speech slightly whistling through his missing tooth.
He picked up the blackened item and took a bite. The taste wasn’t great at all—it felt like chewing sand—but this was the most basic ration for survivors every day.
As for the others, who had each received a piece of roasted meat, Evan didn’t even dare to hope for the same. In fact, just having another bowl of hot soup would make him extremely satisfied.
“Chief, you’re being unfair. Why did you assign Evan to the first watch?”
The male archer asked with his mouth full of rat leg, his words slightly muffled.
Standing guard at night, naturally the later shifts were more difficult.
Sebastian, however, gave him a sharp glare and retorted without hesitation: “If you let him take the whole night shift, would you feel safe sleeping?”
The plains at night were filled with dangers. Even a lone mutated wolf could potentially bring disaster to this small adventuring team.
Sure enough, upon hearing this, the male archer immediately had no more complaints.
“I…”
For some reason, upon hearing those words, Evan—who had been holding back his tears—suddenly felt his eyes well up, and large tears began to roll down his cheeks.
“I really am that useless…”
He hated his own weakness. At home, he was a burden, and even after leaving, nothing had changed.
“Why can’t I awaken my special abilities? Even after praying day and night, the Savior God never responds to me. I can’t become a priest or a paladin…”
In this era, there were only two paths for new humans to rise above their station: the first was to awaken special abilities, and the second was to receive divine favor.
Of course, there was a third path—becoming a reincarnator—but unfortunately, Evan had no access to that information.
“Do you understand your own weakness now? It’s okay. We’re a team. You must work hard and strive not to be a burden anymore!”
Sebastian came to Evan’s side and said earnestly.
“I understand, Chief!”
Evan wiped away his tears and replied loudly.
“Hmm?”
However, he suddenly noticed Sebastian’s expression change drastically as he looked into the darkness: “Who’s there?”
“Someone?”
The alert adventurers immediately grabbed their weapons, with the two archers already drawing their bows and nocking arrows.
“I’m just a regular traveler, with no ill intentions!”
A voice came from the darkness. It was very young, carrying a tone of casualness and ease: “I saw the firelight here, so I came to check it out!”
As the voice spoke, a figure appeared within Evan’s field of vision.
He was very young!
That was Evan’s first impression. The person appeared to be around twenty years old, dressed in a white shirt and jeans. His eyes carried a sense of wisdom, and his smile was gentle, making it hard for anyone to feel dislike toward him.
“Are you alone? Traveling the plains at night?”
Sebastian’s expression turned even more serious.
The entire adventuring team shared the same sentiment. Looking at the stranger’s clean and neat clothes, then back at their own leather armor covered in grass and dust, everyone couldn’t help but feel a sense of inferiority. A single thought echoed in their minds: “A special ability user!”
Only those who had awakened their special abilities could walk so freely across these dangerous and deadly plains.
“Oh, welcome, honored sir!”
Sebastian immediately put on a friendly smile, and with a meaningful glance, signaled the team to lower their weapons.
“Leena, go get a bowl of soup for this gentleman…”
“Please just call me Steven!”
Wu Ming replied with a calm smile, then casually sat down on the empty ground, right next to Evan.
“Mr. Steven…”
The name sounded ordinary enough, and of course, there were many famous people with that name. Sebastian didn’t associate it with the missing Pope at all. He politely replied: “My name is Sebastian. I belong to the nearby Caspar Camp. It’s a pleasure to meet you! You mentioned you’re a traveler?”
At this point, he had already completely mistaken Wu Ming for a powerful lone special ability user and was now speaking with even more respect.
After all, a high-level powerhouse like him could wipe out their group as easily as playing a game. If they angered him, the consequences would be unimaginable.
“Yes! Traveling this world and seeing how it has changed—that’s my purpose.”
Wu Ming said candidly.
The world’s transformation was evident in many ways. After a few years of dormancy, new plants began to flourish, and the ecosystem was re-establishing itself. Naturally, Wu Ming wouldn’t miss such an opportunity and was now conducting research and observation around the world.
Meeting Evan and his group was simply a matter of fate.
“By the way, I heard that Caspar City is the headquarters of the Church of Redemption! Are Jay and Robin there?”
“Jay? Robin? Do you mean the Pope and the Chief Paladin?”
Evan’s eyes immediately widened: “How can you address them by their names like that?”
Although the Savior God had never responded to his prayers, Evan was still a devout follower of the Savior. Deep in his heart, he held a dream—that one day, he would bring his family to that ideal divine kingdom. How could he tolerate this?
“Oh…”
Wu Ming simply responded with a light hum, showing neither arrogance nor anger or alarm.
Sebastian, on the other hand, wisely changed the subject: “Mr. Steven, please enjoy!”
He presented a full bowl of hot soup and tore off a piece of roasted meat, slightly blushing as he said: “Sorry… this is all we have…”
Wu Ming naturally understood that this adventuring group was in a rather difficult situation—the roasted meat didn’t even have any seasoning.
When survival became the main concern, any form of luxury naturally had to take a back seat.
“It’s fine. Thank you for your hospitality!”
Wu Ming reached into his backpack and pulled out several loaves of bread: “As a token of appreciation, please share them with me!”
“This is… cream white bread?”
Sebastian rubbed his eyes, speaking in a voice filled with disbelief: “Not that hard, black stuff, but real white bread with eggs and cream? A delicacy only the upper class can afford?”
In fact, as soon as the white bread was taken out, Evan couldn’t help but swallow hard.
That sweet aroma had already conquered his sense of smell. And when he took a bite, experiencing the soft and sweet texture, tears once again involuntarily welled up in his eyes.
Throughout his memory, he had never tasted anything so delicious.
It wasn’t until he had unconsciously devoured his portion while wolfing it down that he suddenly noticed the strange expressions on his teammates’ faces.
Sebastian held the white bread as if it were a precious treasure. The others swallowed hard but only ate half, carefully packing the rest away.
“Damn it… I forgot to save some for my family…”
Evan immediately fell into intense self-reproach and guilt.
As if the Savior God had finally answered his prayers, Steven from across the table smiled and handed him another piece—right at that moment, Evan felt as if he saw the Savior God beckoning to him.
After offering the food, the entire team’s respect for Wu Ming increased yet another level.
There was no helping it. In this highly stratified society, someone who could obtain such food and casually give it away must be an extremely powerful special ability user.
“Mr. Steven, you mentioned you’re a traveler. Have you been anywhere interesting? Could you tell me about it?”
Evan carefully stored his white bread before eagerly asking.
Not only him, but even Sebastian couldn’t help but perk up his ears.
“Well, almost all over the world. The Spice Islands overseas, Azalea, Pandorn… I’ve visited them all. Recently, I’ve returned to Golden Oak for some business!”
Although the Church of Redemption had grown here, and Jay had finally become the new Pope as he wished, a major hidden danger had already been planted.
His distortion of the doctrines and the establishment of original sin had already caused discontent among some people, and the situation was now escalating to the brink of eruption.
Wu Ming, having observed the changes across the entire world, had just arrived in the Kingdom of Golden Oak. Naturally, he wouldn’t miss such a grand spectacle.
He was also deeply interested in where this secular church would ultimately head after his restraints were removed.
“All over the world?”
Evan let out a cry of astonishment. Even Sebastian secretly shook his head, thinking that Wu Ming was joking.
After all, in this dangerous world, even someone who had managed to travel across the entire historical territory of Golden Oak Kingdom was already an extremely powerful special ability user.
Even the Pope and the Chief Paladin probably couldn’t travel the entire world, could they?
“So what’s going on in Pandorn and Azalea?”
“In Pandorn, an organization called the Hermit Society controls everything, enforcing a system of slavery. As for Azalea, it’s in a state of chaos…”
As the conversation deepened, Sebastian was horrified to realize that what the other person said might actually be true.
Evan, on the other hand, was wide-eyed with fascination, feeling as if a new and wondrous world was slowly opening its doors before him.
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