"You're the kid here! I'm much older than you—you'd be scared to death if I told you! Hurry up, I know what happens if I can't finish it." Higokumaru, standing under 1.4 meters tall, glared up at the clerk and slapped the counter with surprising force.
In Higokumaru's mind, she was being incredibly intimidating. But to everyone else, she just sounded like a precocious little girl trying to act tough, which only made her even more adorable.
"Older than me? Then tell me... how old are you?" The clerk chuckled, amused by her bravado.
"It's been so long, even I've lost count. But... you're not even a speck compared to my age!"
After more than fifty thousand years, Higokumaru had long since lost track of her exact age and saw no point in keeping count.
Could she possibly throw a grand centennial banquet when she turned a hundred thousand years old?
"Where's your master?" the shop assistant asked, clearly disbelieving Higokumaru's words.
"Master?" Higokumaru glanced back at Phoenix and the others behind her. "She's here, Sister Phoenix. This person doesn't believe me."
Higokumaru hurried to Phoenix's side. Phoenix had warned her to behave. Otherwise, given Higokumaru's notoriously short temper, this place would have been wiped off the map long ago.
"We'll take five hundred pounds of seafood to start, please," Phoenix said as she approached the counter, repeating Higokumaru's earlier request.
"..."
"Hey, I'm talking to you..." Phoenix stared at the shop assistant, who was staring back at her, mesmerized. She had to repeat herself.
"Ah... what did you say? Five hundred pounds? ...Alright..."
The shop assistant finally tore his gaze away. He had never seen anyone as beautiful as Phoenix before, but the same ridiculous order—five hundred pounds of seafood—left him wondering if they could possibly finish it all.
After placing their order, Phoenix and her companions found a table and settled in to wait for their meal.
About half an hour later, several large platters of seafood were brought to their table.
"Enjoy your meal," the server said.
-
"Let's dig in!" Higokumaru exclaimed, her eyes lighting up at the sight of lobsters, hairy crabs, and succulent shellfish laid out before her. Without hesitation, she reached out her small hands and began devouring the feast.
Modern food, with its rich and diverse flavors, far surpassed anything she'd ever tasted in the ancient world. And with such an abundance, it was pure paradise for Higokumaru.
After devouring her share in mere minutes, Higokumaru raised her hand again. "Boss, bring another five hundred pounds!"
In that instant, the faces of the waitstaff and chefs turned pale.
"Higokumaru, King, your milk tea!"
Erica and Liliana, who had stepped out for a while, returned with several cups of milk tea and handed them to Phoenix and Higokumaru.
Higokumaru was still battling the seafood, devouring yet another mountain of dishes. Looking at her tiny stomach, it was utterly baffling how she could possibly fit it all inside.
"Mmm," Phoenix murmured, accepting her milk tea and taking a sip. Higokumaru was the main seafood consumer; Phoenix, Erica, and Liliana had barely touched it.
As Phoenix sipped her milk tea and watched Higokumaru devour the seafood, her phone rang.
"Lu Yinghua..."
Phoenix stared at the caller ID. She had given Lu Yinghua her phone number in this world, but she couldn't understand why he would call her now. Could it be that Luo Hao had emerged from her seclusion?
"Hello..."
"Martial Aunt, a Heretic God has descended upon Helan Province..."
"What? A Heretic God?"
"Higokumaru, finish up quickly. We have urgent matters to attend to," Phoenix said to Higokumaru, a smile spreading across her face as she ended her call with Lu Yinghua.
"Oh..." Higokumaru replied, immediately accelerating her feasting pace.
"King, what's happened?" Erica asked, looking curiously at Phoenix.
"A Heretic God has descended upon China," Phoenix revealed, knowing such an event couldn't be kept secret for long.
"A Heretic God..." Erica and Liliana exclaimed in surprise.
"Yes, preliminary speculation suggests it's a native Chinese god of war," Phoenix explained.
Lu Yinghua's earlier description had painted a picture of widespread, bizarre battles erupting across Helan Province. Gangs and organizations, many with no previous grudges, had inexplicably declared war on each other, abandoning all restraint.
Fortunately, these were mostly minor, underground factions, and the Holy Cult of the Five Mountains had swiftly suppressed the chaos after the initial outbreak.
Almost immediately after the chaos erupted, the Five Prisons Sect realized it was caused by a Heretic God and swiftly located its trail.
However, Cult Leader Luo Hao was still in seclusion and unreachable. Therefore, Lu Yinghua turned to Phoenix.
For a Campione, a Heretic God was their prey, and any other Campione daring to steal their kill would be unforgivable. The Heretic God that had descended upon China was undoubtedly Cult Leader Luo Hao's rightful prey.
Even if other Campiones knew of this Heretic God's presence, they wouldn't dare attempt to slay it. Cult Leader Luo Hao would never permit such an intrusion.
Yet this particular Heretic God presented an unusual situation. With Luo Hao still in seclusion, they couldn't afford to wait for her return to deal with it. By then, the damage to the Chinese Continent would be catastrophic. Moreover, Luo Hao had previously instructed the Holy Cult of the Five Mountains to fully obey the Seventh Godslayer's commands.
The Cult Leader even addressed the Seventh Godslayer as her "sister." It was reasonable to assume that Luo Hao wouldn't object to this course of action upon emerging from seclusion.
"A native Chinese god of war?"
"Is it Chiyou? Or Xingtian?"
Though Italian, Liliana and Erica, as Campiones, possessed a basic understanding of various national mythologies.
When one speaks of China's war gods, these two immediately come to mind.
Neither of them is an ordinary deity.
Both were enemies of the Huang Emperor, though ultimately defeated and slain by him (the Heavenly Emperor).
Throughout China's five-thousand-year history, dynasties have risen and fallen countless times, resulting in a fragmented and inconsistent mythology.
Yet, even amid this turmoil, the tales of Chiyou, Xingtian, the Huang Emperor, and the Yan Emperor have endured.
"I hope it's one of these two!" Phoenix muttered. "If it turns out to be some obscure tribal war god, I'll be sorely disappointed."
She could only cling to this hope. Chiyou and Xingtian's Authorities were undoubtedly immensely powerful.
Regardless of which god manifested, Phoenix considered it a windfall.
With Luo Hao currently in seclusion, Phoenix had unexpectedly gained a Heretic God. Taking Luo Hao as her disciple and sharing her experience had proven remarkably fortuitous.
Otherwise, how would this Heretic God have fallen into her lap so easily?