In this cyberpunk era, why are you still playing the traditional villain?

But when he looked at Shen Qin again, there was a clear sense of foolishness in her eyes, which did not seem like she was deliberately pretending to be stupid.

"..."

Little Curly actually had a deep impression of Shen Qin, the leader of the "Forgotten Ones" back then. They had a lot of dealings with her back then... She's completely different from who she is now, okay?

So how did you become like this? I feel so sorry for you...

Forget it, I seem more pathetic than myself.

Ugh.

……

On the other hand, there is another pitiful person in this world, and that is Pan Ling.

After her junior sister ruthlessly emptied her wallet, she finally got a reply from her.

"I do not know."

"Um?!"

The foolish apprentice was truly dumbfounded this time. "You're not going to keep me in suspense too, are you, Junior Sister?"

"I really don't know."

The older woman looked at her sincerely, "I'm more curious why you think I really know? Even Aunt Xie would be more likely to know, right?"

Xiao Ke'an doesn't care about such brain-teasing questions.

"If you didn't know why you agreed, why did you only tell me after I treated you to so much food?!"

Pan Ling was on the verge of tears, and reached out to snatch the bags from the other person's hands, shouting, "Give them back!"

So angry!

I finally decided to slack off for once, and ended up losing so badly?

"These two things don't conflict."

The white-haired loli shrank back, displaying a rare display of skill, "Isn't it only right that you show some respect to your junior sister?"

Everyone says the foolish apprentice turned out to be cunning, but the real cunning lies here.

"I don't care, either give it back to me, or you have to help me solve the problem!"

Pan Ling said irritably, "Otherwise...otherwise I'll spank you!"

She realized that her master might really be playing a trick on her, because the problem was that she couldn't read Xia Ke'an's thoughts; the other party's mental strength was far superior to hers... She was genuinely being tricked and had no way to complain.

But now she knows how to solve problems reasonably. She doesn't have the guts to deal with the master, but it's not hard to teach this little guy who takes money and does nothing a lesson.

Even among the weak, there are differences. Although they are all beings with almost zero combat power, it doesn't seem difficult for Pan Ling to overpower Xia Ke'an in terms of martial arts. This has nothing to do with ability.

"...No, no, no, I was just kidding."

Seeing that she seemed to be serious, the old lady immediately became timid.

It's clear that during the time she spent pulling Gu Yi's hair, she learned a lot of the good qualities from Miss Black Rabbit.

"Then hurry up and tell me."

Pan Ling glanced at her, stopped what she was doing, and urged her on.

"I really don't know. I guess Dad meant for you to figure it out yourself?"

The older woman blinked. "But I can try to find out for you, is that alright?"

"...That's pretty much it."

The silly apprentice thought for a moment and nodded. To be honest, she didn't really want to punish Xia Ke'an, but being teased was certainly not a good thing.

But since my junior sister is so adorable, it seems I have no choice but to forgive her.

"Don't worry, I will do my best!"

Xia Ke'an laughed, patted her chest proudly, and said, "I'm a very loyal and righteous senior sister!"

……

The old lady kept her word and went to find Xu Shi shortly after returning to the mansion.

She timed it perfectly, and just as she passed by Xie Qingyan, she brushed past him.

Xia Ke'an could tell at a glance that the other person looked even more radiant than when they had separated, and the blush on their face had not yet faded... It was obvious without even thinking that the two of them had been shamelessly intimate just now.

Here we go again, you perverted daddy… The white-haired loli rolled her eyes helplessly, then pushed open Xu Shi’s door.

Xu Shi had just finished showering and came out wearing a bathrobe.

"Coming?"

He wasn't surprised at all, as if that door was reserved for his obedient daughter. "Did that silly girl send you to ask?"

"hold head high."

Xia Ke'an nodded, easily nestled into his lap, and let out a satisfied groan, "It's been so long since I've been alone with you like this."

Back when they were still in Night City, the two of them used to chat like this all the time.

"It seems that's true."

Xu Shi smiled and, as if by muscle memory, began braiding her hair. "So, how are you going to deal with her later?"

"They're definitely going to put all the blame on you. What can I do if you refuse to tell the truth? Xiao Ke'an is so pitiful, how could she really do that?"

The older woman said nonchalantly, "I'm more worried about you... Tell me honestly, did you accidentally tell Xie Qingyan that woman just now?"

Am I that kind of person?

Xu Shi tugged at her hair and said irritably.

"Don't pull!"

Xia Ke'an complained, "Aren't you the same? I've never seen anyone worse than you."

“You’ll get a spanking if you talk to your dad like that.”

"How could you bear to part with it?"

Say it again, and see if I'm willing to let you go.

……

If Pan Ling were present, she would probably be furious—because she really didn't expect that Xia Ke'an actually knew the answer to that question.

All I can say is that this older woman has pretty good acting skills; she can easily get away with being cute by using her own advantages.

Unfortunately, this conversation couldn't be transmitted, so all that remains is this scene of a loving father and filial daughter.

"Let's talk about something practical. You haven't told me yet how you plan to open this so-called Protestant church."

Pan Ling was nowhere to be found in their conversation. The older woman asked very seriously, "You look so confident, are you really sure you can do it?"

"If you don't know how, can't you learn?"

Xu Shi laughed and said, "If all else fails, we'll just follow the Vatican's approach. We'll do exactly what they do."

There is no church in Night City; it's just a joke created by players or netizens... but the underlying logic isn't difficult.

In short, the idea is to make it seem more sophisticated, then select a spiritual leader who is like a "saint," and create some so-called "miracles," which is enough to attract most ordinary people.

Don't even mention that there are supernatural abilities in this land. The Holy See in the Hualan Empire has stood firm for so many years.

This is actually still inseparable from the pyramid structure of "ascended beings". People with top abilities are always a minority. Most people are still ordinary as always, or have abilities that are not very useful, and live a life that is not much different from ordinary people.

In this respect, the two city-states are surprisingly similar.

"sounds good."

As he recounted the details, the older woman nodded repeatedly. "So, who do you plan to appoint as this spiritual leader? Yourself?"

Who are you asking?

Xu Shi looked like he'd seen a ghost. "Don't you know who's best suited for this position?"

Of course, the most suitable one is the sweet daughter in my arms, okay?

Honestly, there are no "miracles" that are simpler and more straightforward than prophecy.

In particular, what do many people go to church for? Besides prayer, they engage in superstitious activities such as fortune-telling and divination, which is precisely the area that the white-haired loli excels at.

She can make short-term predictions almost effortlessly, and longer-term ones are not difficult for her either.

"Of course, you alone are definitely not enough. Xiaoling and I also need to cooperate with you so that our sect can grow stronger in the shortest amount of time."

Xia Ke'an instantly understood his meaning; the three of them, being psychic beings, truly could manipulate everyone at will.

She even knew Xu Shi's tricks—if it were just her, she could make predictions, but if you don't know what the other person is thinking, you can't always use your skills effectively.

Pan Ling's mind-reading ability can fill this gap perfectly. Imagine, when someone hasn't said anything yet, they already know what that person is thinking, and can even give advice or point out the way. How much of a shock that would be to the person!

Finally, combined with Xu Shi's abilities... this time, "United We Stand" will come into play, and it will strengthen the believers' faith without them even realizing it. It couldn't be more perfect.

This combination of punches is something that most people would find very difficult to withstand.

"So exactly how long ago did you think of these things?"

Seeing that he spoke eloquently and without a single stutter, the old lady couldn't help but ask out of curiosity.

"Perhaps it was when they set out to fight the sea god?"

Xu Shi thought for a moment and replied, "It probably already has an outline by then. All that's left to do is flesh it out."

"Including the transaction of the Poseidon Stone?"

The white-haired little girl laughed and said, "I'm truly impressed by you, little boy."

Some things really need to be connected to fully understand them – what seemed like a blow to the economy of the imperial capital at the time was actually a weakening of the Papacy's influence.

If they can't resist joining this farce, this outcome will be inevitable—the Vatican may not suffer any economic losses, but it may suffer in terms of public sentiment.

Because the Papacy's followers are already a large group, and countless others suffered heavy losses in the Poseidon Stone incident.

Then it's inevitable that some people will think about this question: since this is not a good thing, why would the Vatican, which they have always believed in, also get involved?

If someone suffers a severe loss because they purchased Neptune Stone products from the Vatican, their faith will naturally be further shaken, causing them to waver.

In such a situation, the impact on the Vatican is far more significant than it appears. It's like a towering ancient tree that may seem lush and verdant, but in reality, its interior has been hollowed out by insects.