Firefly Journey

Lin Yuanran kept his eyes and ears open, listening intently at high intensity, but he obtained very little information, since no one would talk about their extraordinary power.

Just as he was getting bored and wanted to go home, the young owner of the tavern came over, along with his two henchmen and Wendy.

“I’ll say it’s here; he’s been coming here often lately,” Olek Andrei said, pointing to Lin Yuanran.

Wendy Jupes, hands on her hips, approached Lin Yuanran with a hint of annoyance: "I went to your house to look for you but you weren't there. I didn't expect you to actually be at the bar."

Lin Yuanran asked, "Is there something you need?"

"I can't come to you if I have nothing to do?"

"Yes, and you're warmly welcome."

Olek said, "You're really careless. Next Wednesday is Wendy's birthday, her sixteenth birthday. How could you forget about it?"

In the Principality of Bema, turning sixteen signifies growing up, being able to get married, and living independently away from one's parents. It is the most important birthday in one's life, bar none.

Wendy seemed annoyed that Ario had forgotten such an important day, and her tone was somewhat unfriendly.

Lin Yuanran certainly couldn't forget, but his mind was entirely focused on obtaining extraordinary power, and other things had to take a backseat.

He smiled gently: "However you want to live, I'll definitely go along with it. Or, what gift would you like? How about ten jars of milk candy?"

“Only kids like sweets,” Wendy said.

Lin Yuanran said casually, "But you're just a child."

"No, I won't be after next Wednesday."

"Alright, alright, you've grown up now, so I'll see you off."

Wendy said with exasperation, "My father will be celebrating my birthday at home next Wednesday. You absolutely have to come. Gifts aren't important."

Lin Yuanran stood up and stretched: "Definitely. Before that, I need to go back and get some sleep."

"Do you even care about this?!" Wendy almost stomped her foot, but Lin Yuanran had already reached the door.

"Are you going back?" Before anyone knew it, Fengling stood up and came to the door.

Lin Yuanran said, "Yes, I'm a little sleepy."

"Let's go together then."

After saying that, she walked ahead. Lin Yuanran tilted his head, thinking, "You're a superhuman, are you afraid of encountering ghosts while walking at night?"

He strode forward and followed.

Wendy's fair face immediately darkened, as if she were asking those around her, "Who is she?"

"Who are you talking about?" Bernie, who had no sense of propriety, said.

Olek knew what Wendy was asking, but he was completely unfamiliar with wind chimes and didn't know anything about them.

At this point, Dupippon said, "The outsider living in Ario's house is said to be very rich. Since she arrived, Ario has been going to buy meat every day."

"Let's go then." Wendy breathed a sigh of relief; this seemed reasonable.

“I’ll take you home, it’s late at night.” Olek glanced at the counter, afraid that his father would conscript him.

“Don’t you need to stay and help?” Wendy said. “Torreg is my home, I don’t think there will be any problems.”

Olek wanted to say more, but was interrupted by a dignified voice.

"There are quite a lot of guests today, come and help out."

Although he really wanted to walk a distance with Wendy, strolling under the moonlight would be so romantic, wouldn't it? But he couldn't disobey his father's orders, so Olek had no choice but to obey.

DuPippen and Bernie both harbored feelings for the beautiful Wendy, but at this moment, neither of them would suggest offering to give her a gift. Not only would they be rejected, but they would also attract Ole's attention and be expelled from the group—a losing proposition.

The wind chimes were in front, and Lin Yuanran was behind, with about five or six meters between them.

Every now and then, the wind chimes would glance back to make sure Lin Yuanran was still there.

Back home, Lin Yuanran couldn't help but ask, "Are you afraid of the dark?"

“When I was a child, my parents were often not home. When I couldn’t sleep, I could only read fairy tales. It was very dark outside the window.”

Wind Chime openly stated her weaknesses, as if it were a trivial matter.

Lin Yuanran also felt that this was a small matter. Everyone's experience is different. Some bad things that happen in childhood will become shadows stored deep in memory and accompany one throughout life.

"I was just kidding," Fengling suddenly said.

"Uh?"

Is she playing a prank?

Fengling added, "You seem quite interested in matters concerning extraordinary individuals?"

Lin Yuanran's eyes gleamed with curiosity: "I think no one would be uninterested."

Fengling nodded gently, satisfied with the answer. The goal of a person's life is nothing more than to make life better for themselves and their family and friends. Money is one way, but in this world, extraordinary power is another.

"What do you want to know? I can tell you."

Fengling's eyes were filled with pity, as if she were looking at a ragged child begging on the roadside. What was commonplace to her was something that the small-town boy could never attain.

Lin Yuanran also felt sorry for himself. He had inexplicably come to another world, but he didn't even have any special abilities. He was not well-fed or dressed, so it was only natural that he was pitied.

"Is it okay? I'd like to hear it."

Feng Ling nodded and sat down on the old tree root. Lin Yuanran felt a little embarrassed and stood in front of her.

"Sit down," Fengling said, somewhat puzzled as to why he preferred to stand. Was he perhaps sitting in the tavern for too long and wanted to stretch out?

Lin Yuanran obediently sat down, one body length away from her, with enough space in between for at least two more Worstines to sit.

"What do you want to know?"

Lin Yuanran didn't stand on ceremony and asked directly, "I've heard of the Ancestral Gods, but I only know about the sun god Julius. I've heard them say that there are seven Ancestral Gods in total?"

What Lin Yuanran was asking was common knowledge in the outside world, but because the town was remote, the belief in the ancestral god could not spread here, which led to his ignorance.

Of course, that's not entirely true; at least Julius has a small number of followers in the town.

"The Sun God is the protector of the duchy and also the god with the most believers in the world." Wind Chime began to tell the story. "Legend has it that when the world was first created, monsters roamed the earth, causing great suffering and devastation to humans and other races."

"In the long struggle against the demons, seven ancestors stood up and fought against the demons with their mortal bodies. They are the 'Seven Ancestor Gods'."

Among them, the followers of Julius, the god of light and wisdom, established the Church of Light, which has been passed down for more than 10,000 years and remains prosperous.

The duchy's initial independence was due to the support of the Holy See, therefore, the duchy now regards them as its state religion, and the people's faith is naturally Julius.

Lin Yuanran listened with great interest and asked, "Are you also one of His believers?"

As Fengling mentioned before, she comes from St. Louis College, which is the Vatican's talent pool. This question is ridiculous; isn't it a given? Could she possibly believe in an external god?

“I suppose so,” Fengling said. “Freedom of religion has been advocated for thousands of years. As long as it doesn’t break the law, it doesn’t matter if you believe in an evil god. This question is meaningless.”

"Okay, what about the other churches?"