At this time, Igura finished checking his future development route and had a very complicated expression on his face.
The young butler who was smoking noticed this scene and asked, “Mr. Bokin, do you have any questions?”
“Not really, I just feel… the people here are really fortunate.”
Igura sounded a bit desolate, “The answer I obtained with 82 points, in the previous country, is something I couldn’t obtain no matter how much money I spent. But, Mr. Butler, since you have lived here since you were young, you probably can’t understand the sentiment of someone like me from the countryside, right?”
“That’s not necessarily true.” Pancake smiled and said, “Although the gospel is selflessly bestowed upon the world, not everyone is qualified to consume it. When I first prayed for the gospel, I was also shocked by the greatness of the Omniscient Weaver.”
“Speaking of which, I have a question since last night.” Igura asked, “All the rankings have less than 10,000 spots, and each ranking only has 10 positions. Even if we don’t consider the overlapping ones, the total number of spots in the entire country is less than 100,000. And the rankings are the only source of points. So how do ordinary people obtain points?”
“Organizational rankings.” Pancake explained concisely, “For example, if a funeral service company is on the ranking, Miss will allocate a certain proportion of points to me. As long as ordinary people join the top ten companies in various fields that can be on the ranking, their salaries will include points.”
“In addition, points from various types of city rankings will also be distributed to workers in various fields. For example, a large portion of the points from the ‘Security Ranking’ will be distributed to the Red Hats. Basically, any citizen who pays taxes will receive a certain amount of points at the end of the year as a welfare.”
Igura nodded, “It sounds fair…”
Asho, who was editing questions, raised his eyebrows and said, “Igura, do you really think it’s fair?”
Igura subconsciously wanted to refute, but when he saw Pancake’s surprised expression, he knew that Asho was right. However, even after thinking for a while, the swindler couldn’t figure out what was suspicious about this place.
“Igura, you’re a smart person, so naturally, you can’t see the deceit in this.” Harvey laughed, “Because you are confident that you can join a good company through hard work and gradually grow by obtaining your first points. But even a corpse can tell that the positions or companies eligible to receive points are limited. Those who are qualified to compete for these positions must use points to perfect themselves in all aspects.”
“Points are a universal currency, and no one thinks they have too many. Unlike wealth, even if a person is extravagant, there is a limit. But points can be easily used up. Therefore, the Gospel Kingdom must follow the Pareto principle, where a large number of points flow into the hands of a few. In addition, there is a family system here. The deeper the accumulation of the older generation, the easier it is for the younger generation to be on the ranking. The lower class has no resources to compete with point families.”
“Really?” Igura frowned, “There should be free basic education here—”
“So, Igura, you are too smart, so you can’t see through it.” Harvey said, “Can a child from the same orphanage as you become a Second Wing Sorcerer like you? Your intelligence and self-discipline have already exceeded the average person. You can perfect your knowledge system just by self-study, but ordinary people need guidance and help to fill in the gaps, and that’s where points come into play.”
“Of course, maybe I’m wrong.” Harvey looked at Pancake, “Maybe points really are a gift from the Gospel Kingdom and haven’t become a barrier between classes.”
Pancake flicked the cigarette ash off his hand and smiled, “Mr. Harvey, you’re mostly right, but because of the loopholes in the Gospel Book, the social system of the Gospel Kingdom is not that simple.”
“Loopholes?”
“Miss seems to have not mentioned this,” Pancake said, “In addition to the ‘Criminal Ranking,’ most normal rankings also consider personal credit.”
Almost instantly, Asho saw a strange light in Igura and Harvey’s eyes—that was the joy of laid-off workers suddenly discovering new job opportunities.
“Although not all crimes will be caught, in fact, even if someone commits murder or other crimes, as long as the Red Hats don’t find out, it’s equivalent to not doing it. But the Gospel Book records all illegal activities in the credit system. If someone suddenly falls off the ranking, as long as the Red Hats are willing to investigate, they will most likely find something.”
“And the loophole in the Gospel Book is: if you didn’t do it yourself, it won’t affect your credit.”
“So those who are not qualified to be on the ranking also have work they can do.”
Igura pondered, “I thought the funeral service company was responsible for the dirty work…”
“The funeral service company doesn’t do wet work, at most, it trims branches and leaves, and gets rid of pests and bacteria.” Pancake pointed outside with his cigarette, “Asura is actually a three-layered city.”
“The second layer is blessed by the sun, and the first layer is the trunk that supports the earth.”
“And there’s the… negative first layer, responsible for absorbing nutrients… the roots.”
…
…
In the sewers of Asura, the Mermaid Palace.
“Are you really not going to buy a dehumidifier?” Annan squatted by the pool and complained, “It’s so sticky and uncomfortable.”
“This humidity is just right for us merfolk.” Sili Moro in the pool lazily moved his body, splashing water with his tail fin, which was blocked by the barrier created by Annan with a wave of her hand, “Don’t make a fuss, I don’t want to go back all wet.”
“You can change clothes here.” Sili Moro put his hands on the edge of the pool and spoke as if singing, “Anyway, your agency has been removed from the Task Ranking, and as someone who betrayed their employer, you probably won’t have any more commissions in the future. Why not come and play in the water with me since you’re so free?”
“You’re well-informed.”
“The water knows everything.”Silimoro dragged his chin and looked up at Annan, “Why not join us, Mermaid? Although you are not a sea monster, you can’t become a Ten Seas Witch. But I will value you and hold a Foam Ceremony for you!”
“Thank you for your kindness,” Annan said sarcastically, “But I don’t have anyone I like, and I’m not interested in losing my voice.”
Mermaids are a branch of the fish people, but they are very different from fish people. Fish people have evolved limbs while retaining fish-like features, while mermaids have upper bodies that are not much different from humans, with only coral-like fins on their heads, but their lower bodies are like snakes and fish.
Thanks to their outstanding talent in the divination faction, mermaids are almost the only uncrowned kings in the Gospel Kingdom’s inner world. They are naturally able to obtain the most information from the Gospel Book at the lowest cost. The Ten Seas Witches are rooted in the nine most prosperous cities in the Gospel Kingdom, such as Silimoro in front of Annan. All members of the inner organization of Azura are under her control.
Mermaids do not refuse outsiders to join, but new members need to pass the Foam Ceremony: either murder their loved ones or lose their voice. By completing one of these tasks, they can gain the trust of the mermaids and even share some of their divination talents. However, they will also lose the qualification to enter the normal rankings, which is equivalent to a pledge to the inner organization.
“I want—”
“If you want to discuss something, you know the rules.”
Annan paused and helplessly lay on the ground to do push-ups.
Mermaids have a strange hobby—they like to watch people exercise. It’s fine during normal times, but if you want to talk business with them, you have to exercise and chat with them at the same time, just like drinking at a social gathering.
“I want to use my favor to ask you to do something for me,” Annan said, panting after doing a few push-ups.
Watching the sweat on Annan’s forehead, Silimoro smiled mischievously, jumped out of the water pool, but didn’t splash any water. She slid next to Annan, her slippery voice echoing like a duet, “Are you sure? This favor will help me become a Sea Witch. After using it, you will no longer have any privileges in the Mermaid Clan.”
“I’m sure.”
“State your request, and the water is listening.”
“In the past fifteen years, in the Azura region, were there any deceased Echoing Children?”
Silimoro summoned her deep blue Gospel Book, and with a thought, the relevant resources automatically organized and presented themselves. After obtaining the Gospel Book, it would automatically gather all the information around the holder. When the holder needed it, they could open the Gospel Book at any time to review everything they “once knew,” without consuming any points. It was like carrying an independent library with them.
“There were 76,” Silimoro said with a gloating smile, “There were almost no successful cases. The best one died at the age of five.”
“Did your people handle all of them?”
“Of course, they wouldn’t dare to personally touch such wet work. They entrusted our people to carry out the final execution,” Silimoro said, “But if you want to obtain the miraculous techniques of these families, I can’t do it. We have signed a contract. In the Gospel Kingdom, even legendary sorcerers cannot violate the contract on the Weaver’s Paper.”
“I don’t need their techniques,” Annan said, “Did you also handle the disposal of the bodies of those Echoing Children?”
“Of course, it’s just a side job for us.”
“How is the quality of those Echoing Children?”
“It’s considered very good. After all, they have been iterated for so many years,” Silimoro said, “Almost every one of them is a genius of high intelligence in all factions. Some even have the Silver Faction realm at the age of two. But these geniuses created by miracles have a short lifespan. To deceive the Weaver’s Festival and obtain a seat, they need to have a lifespan of at least ten years. Otherwise, the Weaver’s Festival will not recognize these Echoing Children.”
Echoing Children were a special product unique to the Gospel Kingdom. These babies were subjected to miracles during their gestation period, developing their spiritual intelligence prematurely. Almost every one of them possessed talents in all factions. As long as they could live to the age of ten, they would inevitably master a Golden Faction.
But they rarely lived to be ten years old.
The purpose of these Echoing Children’s existence was to launch surprise attacks and deceive the Weaver’s Festival.
As long as these children could live to be over ten years old and have their potential recognized by the Weaver’s Festival, they would almost certainly become true Echoers. After all, although the rankings of the Weaver’s Festival were random, Echoing Children were geniuses in all factions. No matter what question you asked, if they couldn’t answer it, it would be considered your loss.
Of course, the rewards of the Weaver’s Festival would naturally be taken by their families, and the Echoing Children would be kept until they died a natural death. Without rewards to extend their lifespan, the Echoing Children could only live up to fifteen years at most. After all, such forcibly created geniuses were too contrary to common sense. If there were no serious consequences, the Gospel Kingdom would have ascended long ago.
Just as the Blood Moon Kingdom excelled in biological modification, the Gospel Kingdom was deeply rooted in artificial geniuses—from the first day the Weaver’s Festival appeared, countless people have been thinking about how to deceive the “prophecies” of the Omniscient Weaver.
Perhaps in the future, stable geniuses who could live to be twenty years old could be created. But for now, Echoing Children were more like a lottery for major high-scoring families. Winning was naturally a joy, and losing was also expected. It was like verifying the accumulated technological achievements of the past fifty years, equivalent to an arms race.
Annan said, “I need you to modify the information of the Echoing Children to three specific individuals, and even create an illusion that they did not die but have been active in the outskirts, sewers, and forests.”
Silimoro was somewhat surprised and asked casually, “No problem. Do you need to choose their birth years?”
“No need. Just modify all the deceased Echoing Children in the past fifteen years.”
“All of them?”
“All of them.”Siri Moro squinted slightly.
She knew what Annan was trying to do.
The Gospel Book had many loopholes, one of which was the ‘search loophole’. When the Gospel Book wanted to search for people with the same name and surname, it was possible to mix the information of multiple people into one person.
But this loophole was fixed a long time ago. As long as you were born in the Gospel Kingdom, the Gospel Book would give you a number that only it knew, and there would be no confusion even with the same name and surname.
Annan undoubtedly knew this, but she was willing to expend her own favors to merge the history of the Echo Child into these three people. This meant that she was very confident in triggering the ‘search loophole’ of the Gospel Book, making the Gospel Book mistakenly think that these three people were also prodigies of all factions.
In other words, these three people…
Suddenly, a contract woven paper was extended in front of Siri Moro.
“Although I trust the integrity of the Asura Sea Witch, it’s safer to sign a contract,” Annan insisted, completely exhausted, she collapsed on the ground. The amethyst earring swayed with a flickering light. “Once the contract is signed, I will give you the names and appearances of those three people.”
Siri Moro took the woven paper and signed her name. Watching the paper burn and disappear, she asked, “You’re willing to risk the reputation of your agency for this? Was your full support for me becoming the Asura Sea Witch also for this moment?”
Annan nodded, her tired face full of determination.
“I’ve staked the name of Doran on this.”