Countermeasure

Now that Eriga had returned, the four Spawns of the God had become five. Even if he exhausted all his trump cards, there was no way he could defeat five Dominators—and high-stage Dominators at that. Although he had three Dominator-level spirit servants and one Dominator-level yin corpse, they were only at level seven, whereas the Five Spawns of the God were level eight. Of course, if he couldn't beat them, he didn't have to fight. As a Night Walker and Illusionist, if he wanted to hide, no one would ever find him! Zhang Yuanqing pondered as he smeared the yellow mud. Logically speaking, avoiding tonight and steering clear of any confrontation with the Five Spawns of the God was the optimal choice. Afterward, he could abandon the identity of Amini, disguise himself as an ordinary person, and lie low in the villages outside the castle to avoid them. Once they sacrificed their maternal half-siblings to awaken their so-called sacred relic, he could sit back and watch the tigers fight, letting the High Priest of the God of Light and the Five Spawns of the God battle each other to the death. But... could this dungeon really be that simple? Could an S-rank dungeon truly be cleared just by hiding away and waiting for the enemies to tear each other apart until Paphos Island sank? Zhang Yuanqing believed that was impossible. *There must be some underlying condition forcing me to get involved. I just don't know what it is yet. There's no way the dungeon will let me slip past this life-and-death crisis so easily...* Zhang Yuanqing worked absentmindedly. *Once night falls, I'll seize the time to sleep with Herasine and get tonight's daily task done first. That way, I can free my hands to deal with any unexpected situations.* *Then I'll slip away to a secluded spot on the island to read the stars and see how to counter this.* After weighing his options for a moment, he settled on a plan. Soon, the sun sank below the sea's horizon, leaving only a golden-red twilight clinging stubbornly to the edge of the sky, dyeing the ocean crimson. The day's labor came to an end. Zhang Yuanqing and Herasine laid down their tools, washed the mud from their hands and feet by the well, and received four loaves of bread, half a roasted leg of lamb, and two bowls of vegetable soup between them. While the two sat in the garden where the craters had been filled in, chatting, laughing, and enjoying their dinner, the beautiful goddess Saiketia strolled over and said with a beaming smile, "Amini, Herasine, there is something I need your help with." Here it came! Zhang Yuanqing put on an enthusiastic, fawning smile. "Oh, beautiful goddess, as long as it is your bidding, I will strive to fulfill it even at the cost of my life, I swear!" Herasine was furious. She glared at her sycophantic lover, then chimed in, "Lady Saiketia, what do you require of us?" A faint smile graced Saiketia's fair, exquisite face. "Because of the battle, the basement of the main building where Mother resides has collapsed. As you know, that building is forbidden; no one is permitted to enter. "However, the collapsed section must be repaired by someone. Letting you go inside is far more reassuring than sending slaves." Herasine understood her meaning. Compared to slaves, illegitimate children who possessed the Goddess of Beauty's bloodline were naturally best suited for the task. She agreed without hesitation. "I'll go right now." Saiketia smiled and shook her head. "No, there's no rush. Once full dark falls, I will come back for you. After a busy day, finish your dinner, return to your room to rest, and gather your energy." She looked toward Amini, blinking playfully. "Amini, what about you?" *Are they worried about causing too much commotion and letting the slaves discover the secret underground? The Spawns of the God also need time to unseal the Goddess of Beauty...* Zhang Yuanqing bowed and said, "Even if you ordered me to die, I wouldn't hesitate for a second." Saiketia gave a soft giggle, swayed her rounded hips, and walked away with graceful, measured steps. Herasine's pretty eyes widened as she snapped, "Amini, the way you acted just now was like a monkey without any dignity—a monkey in heat trying to court a mate!" Zhang Yuanqing put down the mutton bone and half a loaf of bread, grabbed Herasine, and pulled her along. "We haven't finished the bread! Amini, what are you doing?" "Showing you my apologies and my sincerity." Before the sky had completely darkened, the bed in Amini's room began to creak and sway. Mingled with the creaking were Herasine's bitten lips and her muffled, desperately stifled moans. Forty minutes later, Zhang Yuanqing cleared the "daily shag" debuff, pulled Herasine into a dreamland, and transformed into starlight, vanishing from the room. Moments later, he appeared in a secluded forest somewhere on Paphos Island. Taking out the Daluo Astrolabe, he sat cross-legged and looked up at the dense canopy of stars. Paphos Island was near the tropics, so the night sky was resplendent and gorgeous. Zhang Yuanqing immersed himself in stargazing. As the astrological signs shifted, the river of destiny gradually cleared before him. In less than fifteen minutes, visions of the future flashed through his mind. He saw Cupid's chubby, cute face against a blurred background, the little God of Love roaring in fury: "Where is Amini? Where is Amini?! "These dirty-blooded bastards—we must gather enough of them to awaken the sacred relic! We're just short by one! We must find Amini..." Amid the furious roars, Zhang Yuanqing opened his eyes. He had just deduced the future where he hid away, and the conclusion was: the cost of hiding was death! As for how he died, the stars gave no hint, let alone any vision of the scene. However, as a Stargazer, interpreting the future was an essential skill. "To awaken the sacred relic, every single demigod on the island must be sacrificed. Without me, the awakening fails. Then, when the High Priest descends upon Paphos Island, no one can stop him, and I die at his hands. Because he is at the peak of level nine, stargazing can't divine any specific details..." Zhang Yuanqing sucked in a breath of cold air. Dodging tonight wouldn't save him from the grand finale. Yet if he didn't hide tonight, he would end up on the sacrifice list. He was still no match for the Five Spawns of the God; going head-to-head would lead to the exact same outcome. Even if he threw down all his trump cards and somehow won by a fluke, it would be a Pyrrhic victory at best. Once the High Priest of the God of Light took the stage, it would still be a bad end. "An S-rank dungeon is still an S-rank dungeon, and your granddaddy is still your granddaddy!" Zhang Yuanqing frowned deeply. He channeled starlight into the astrolabe once again, beginning his second stargazing. Through divination, he needed to carve out a path to survival. ... *Knock, knock!* The knocking woke Herasine. Instinctively, she reached toward the pillow beside her, but felt no sign of her lover. She jolted awake, sat up, and looked around, a lingering trace of confusion in her pretty eyes. *Knock, knock!* The knocking sounded again. Herasine threw off the animal-skin blanket and walked toward the door. "Is that you, Amini? Where did you run off to in the middle of the night?" Opening the crude wooden door, she found Saiketia standing outside, tall, slender, and strikingly seductive. Seeing her, Herasine remembered that they had work to do tonight and hastily greeted her, "Honored Saiketia, good evening." Saiketia maintained her gentle, friendly smile. "How did you sleep?" "Wonderfully! Thanks to your kindness, I had a sweet dream." Herasine returned the smile. "Yet Amini doesn't seem to have woken up..." Saiketia looked into the dim room, only to see the bed completely empty. She froze for a moment. "Where is Amini?" Herasine shook her head blankly. "He wasn't here when I woke up." Saiketia's expression darkened. Right then, Amini's voice echoed from down the hallway: "Oh, my beautiful Saiketia, your arrival makes this humble room feel bright and spacious, radiating brilliance." Watching Amini return, Saiketia's stern look softened into gentle warmth, and she smiled. "Amini, where did you go? Herasine couldn't find you and was terribly worried." Zhang Yuanqing gazed infatuatedly at her breathtakingly gorgeous face. "The moon is very beautiful tonight!" Saiketia didn't understand the literary reference; otherwise, she would surely have invited him to bed for a chat. She said, "Let's go. Everyone is waiting for you two. Cupid is impatient; he'll be angry if you're late." *Using Cupid to pressure me?* Zhang Yuanqing scoffed inwardly. Hearing Cupid's name, Herasine indeed looked frightened. She hurried back to the bed, slipped into her straw sandals, and tugged Zhang Yuanqing's arm. "Amini, let's hurry." Zhang Yuanqing nodded and followed Saiketia out of the spire-topped building where the slaves rested. The three walked through the quiet castle. Due to the daytime battle, many buildings had collapsed. In the silent night, it looked like an ancient castle abandoned for years, utterly eerie. Before long, they arrived in front of the main building and saw the Five Spawns of the God gathered outside, along with fourteen demigod bastards. Among these illegitimate children were men and women, old and young; the eldest already had graying hair. The "demigods" kept their eyes lowered submissively and remained silent, carrying themselves like low-status concubine-born children. Seeing Amini and Herasine arrive, Cupid flapped his wings and circled around Zhang Yuanqing, saying with a smile: "Oh, God of Justice of Paphos Island, my dear Amini! After tonight, there will be no more strife or enmity between us. I won't target you ever again, I swear." In the dark, his eyes shone brightly, glittering with excitement and delight. Cupid circled behind Zhang Yuanqing, rested on his shoulder, and whispered, "I'll let you in on a little secret: I was the one who made you and Herasine fall in love." His eyes were brimming with mockery. Menia furrowed her brow. "Cupid, there's no need to speak of that." Her gaze swept over the "demigods." "Everyone is here. Let's head down to the basement." "Wait!" Zhang Yuanqing spoke up. Menia's brow furrowed even deeper. "Amini, repairing the basement is an extremely important task. Whatever grudge you have with Cupid can wait for later." *If we really go into the basement, there won't be a later!* Zhang Yuanqing assumed a humble posture. "Honored Goddess Menia, you misunderstand. I don't mean to blame Cupid. Quite the contrary, I wish to offer Cupid a dance—the most magnificent dance in the world!" "Offer a dance for me? Oh, a dance for me!" Cupid hovered and swooped through the air, laughing loudly. "Amini, I'm quite looking forward to it!" Zhang Yuanqing took a few steps back, moved his hand behind his back, quietly retrieved an old yellow gourd, and set it on the ground. Then, under the bewildered or scrutinizing gazes of the crowd, he spread his arms with palms facing the heavens and began twitching like an epileptic patient having a seizure. Immediately after, his style shifted drastically: he swayed his hips and waist gracefully, his arms undulating like serpents. Suddenly, the muscles in his limbs bulged, and the dance grew vigorous and powerful, every swing of his arms and turn of his body kicking up gusty winds. Thirty seconds later, Zhang Yuanqing ceased all movement and bowed toward the yellow gourd: "Treasure, please turn!" A ray of fine light shot out from the gourd's mouth. Bearing eyebrows and eyes, it whistled toward Cupid, pinning itself between his brows with lightning speed and spinning rapidly. Before everyone's astounded eyes, Cupid's head tumbled off, his fair little face splattered with blood and frozen in stark terror. It all happened far too fast; no one had time to react, and no one could have anticipated such a turn of events. Dumbfounded, every single one of them began doubting their own eyes. At that moment, another Amini emerged from the shadows. Before anyone could react, he darted in front of Cupid's corpse, crushed the head underfoot, bent down, and snatched up the small bow, the golden arrow, and the lead arrow. That Amini drew the bow, nocked the golden arrow, and shot it toward Amini. A flash of golden light pierced clean through Zhang Yuanqing's chest, looped around in a circle, flew back, and shot through Goddess Menia's chest. At this instant, Saiketia was the first to react. Her pupils contracted sharply, and she cried out: "Quick, take back the golden arrow!" She still didn't understand what was going on, but she realized what the two Aminis were trying to do. Eriga's expression hardened as his golden wings flapped. Countless wind blades slashed like a torrential downpour toward the Amini wielding the bow and arrow. Just then, Goddess Menia stepped forward, erecting a brass-colored rampart between the two sides that blocked the indestructible wind blades. Catching the returned golden arrow, the avatar Amini drew the bowstring once more, aiming at Cynthia the Siren and his true body.