After November set in, the weather turned cold quickly.

Last month still looked like midsummer, but this month many people have already started wearing down jackets.

Since the mutation, influenced by Original Force, the climate in Jiangnan Province has become extreme, with unbearable heat in summer and bitter cold in winter.

Early in the morning, Chen Shouyi changed into the suit and tie he had from the Capital City.

He got into the vehicle for transport to the Provincial Government Building to attend an awards ceremony with him as the main character.

During the meeting, he received a certificate, along with several handshakes.

Chen Shouyi also gave his first public speech, reading a pre-written script with a serious expression for a dozen minutes filled with main thematic remarks; the seats at the conference were fully occupied by Martial Artists and senior military and governmental officials.

After the speech, the applause was thunderous, akin to a storm.

Many unfamiliar or familiar Martial Artists clapped emphatically, their faces displaying admiration.

Unfortunately, Song Yingjie and Qin Liuyuan, whom he was most familiar with, did not come, which was slightly disappointing.

Looking at the enthusiastic atmosphere in the audience, Chen Shouyi let out a long breath; a subtle smile played on his once tensed face, clearly surprised at his own speaking talent.

Evidently, in the past, such talent was buried with no opportunity for expression.

The real reward from the province, of course, wasn't a certificate worth a few bucks, nor was it the honor and the thrill from giving a speech amid a monotonic life.

...

In a small conference room.

Chen Shouyi picked up a share transfer document.

Sitting beside him, Zhang Miaomiao wore a fitted office attire, her round, slender legs encased in gray silver stockings were tightly aligned, seamless.

"This is for me?" Chen Shouyi asked in surprise.

"Yes, to reward you for your special contributions to our province, the decision was made in the provincial committee meeting to gift you 1% of the shares in the Jiangnan Province Steam Turbine Group Company," Zhang Miaomiao explained gently, her body leaning slightly towards Chen Shouyi.

1% of shares in Jiangnan Province Steam Turbine Group may not seem much, but even before the mutation, this famous provincial state-owned enterprise in Great Xia Country's steam turbine manufacturing sector was a giant, with assets exceeding tens of billions.

Not to mention since the mutation, with the influx of various resources over the past year, its business has not only not reduced but has rapidly expanded into a behemoth spanning various sectors.

The entire group is involved in steam engines, mechanical manufacturing, steam automobiles, and even military industry.

In Hedong and throughout Jiangnan Province, it holds significant sway.

Though its strategic position has somewhat declined with the gradual restoration of electricity and gasoline/diesel engines.

Yet, 1% of shares, even if reduced to pre-mutation values, would be worth over a billion.

Even Chen Shouyi appeared slightly unsettled facing such a fortune.

His nearly money-filled cabinet, although not counted, had roughly over twenty million total,

His current basic monthly subsidy was 2 million, and sometimes adding bonuses from tasks, the highest being 7 million, averaging around 4 million monthly.

Nearly fifty million annually.

Enough to buy tens of thousands of bicycles, changing thirty daily wouldn't be an issue.

Wait, calculating this way, a billion doesn't seem much, just two years of salary.

Am I really this wealthy?

Chen Shouyi calmly perused the document thoroughly, finding no restrictions; even if he packed up and moved to the Capital City or elsewhere, the shares would still be his, clearly demonstrating the province's generosity in this regard.

Though Jiangnan Province doesn't have as much resources as the country, they never scrimp on money.

Chen Shouyi took the pen, quickly signed his name on the document, pressed his fingerprint, and turned to ask, "Is there any other reward?"

Zhang Miaomiao couldn't help but smile slightly, then took out a briefcase from beside her: "Inside this is the Divine Blood you requested, a total of twenty milliliters, please confirm."

Twenty milliliters!

Back then, when he killed that Demigod, the blood was gushing like a fountain, casually collecting would exceed this amount.

Sigh, should have brought some back if known.

Unfortunately, the situation was too perilous at the time, with the Thermobaric Bomb ready to drop above; all he could think about was running.

Chen Shouyi opened the briefcase, glanced, and immediately closed it: "No Divine Marrow?"

"The Divine Marrow has been used up!" Zhang Miaomiao said.

Compared to Divine Blood, the amount of Divine Marrow is pitifully scarce, and more valuable to researchers; even if available, it's unlikely to be given away.

Chen Shouyi felt slightly disappointed.

Though it's fine without Divine Marrow.

Smart parents and siblings aren't necessarily good things; escaping quickly during danger suffices!

...

In the evening, Chen Shouyi shared the Divine Blood with his parents and sister, needless to mention the family's delightful surprise.

Back in his bedroom, he checked the attribute panel.

These days have not only seen progress in Archery but his physique has arduously increased by 0.1 point, reaching 17.3, matching his strength. He sighed, aside from his perception, other attributes' growth has slowed considerably.

His gaze swept over the other attributes; just as he was about to close it.

"Huh!" He looked at the 12.85 Faith Value, his face slightly surprised.

How could it be this much?

It seems that his Faith Value has been rising at an abnormal speed these days.

The growth curve of Faith Value has been fluctuating greatly. At its slowest, it grew less than 0.1 in a day, with the least being just 0.02 (that day was mostly night in the alien world).

While at most, it could increase by one point.

For example, during sacrificial days.

The difference is fifty times between the two.

Therefore, he usually just glanced at the number, rarely paying attention to how much it grew.

Until today, when he saw the 12.85 Faith Value, Chen Shouyi suddenly realized the abnormal growth in Faith Value over these days. On average, it gained more than 1.23 points per day.

"This is strange!" He frowned slightly, feeling that nothing major happened to his Barbarian Believers?

They eat, sleep, and eat again, occasionally have a fight, or engage in some propagation activities. Other than that, in this severe winter season, there's nothing much to do.

At this moment, he caught sight of a newspaper on the table, with the subtitle:

"The Growth Journey of the Provincial Security Chief Advisor Chen Shouyi"

This newspaper was something he casually bought a few days ago while passing a newspaper kiosk. He thought it was written well, so he brought it back to study.

Although it's heavily fictionalized and completely made up.

For example, it said he encountered Martial Arts at the age of six, became a Martial Artist Apprentice at nine, a Martial Artist at eleven, and a Great Martial Artist at fourteen... In short, it described the growth journey of a genius.

However, this newspaper also happened to address the issue of his extraordinary improvement speed in strength. After all, the span of a year is beyond normal human comprehension.

Of course, these are not the main point.

The main point is, recently, the province has been promoting him quite a lot.

"Could this be the reason for the sudden increase in Faith Value?" Chen Shouyi mused.

Faith, in essence, is a kind of emotion—reverence, admiration, adoration, worship, as well as fear, hatred—various emotions can more or less generate the Power of Faith. Obviously, with the promotion, his name is no longer obscure.

"If that's really the case, the increase is still too little!" Chen Shouyi thought to himself.

Nowadays, newspapers are the only channel to learn about the outside world.

Not to mention the Jiangnan Province, even in the entire Hedong City, there are millions of people reading newspapers every day.

However, even so, the Faith Value generated is only equivalent to those more than a thousand Barbarians on the small island.

At least it's better than nothing.

...

In the middle of the night, a sleeping Chen Shouyi was suddenly awakened by the sound of a ringtone.

He opened his eyes and glanced at the clock on the bedside.

Two in the morning!

He couldn't help but feel a sinking feeling. Receiving a call at such a late hour clearly signified an emergency.

He quickly picked up the phone. After listening for a while, his face slightly changed as he said in a deep voice, "I'll be right there!"

He quickly dressed, grabbed his weapon, and went out the door.

A car was already parked at the doorstep.

In just over ten minutes, he got out of the car at the entrance of the Provincial Government Building.

The place was already under complete lockdown by soldiers, and one by one, corpses were being carried out from the building and placed in the square, amounting to over a hundred bodies. Most were soldiers guarding the place, along with several on-duty government officials.

He noticed that the cause of death for almost all was a twisted neck.

Upon seeing Chen Shouyi's arrival, the police chief who had arrived before him quickly came over with a group of people. After a brief introduction, the police chief, with a grave expression, began to explain the situation:

"The estimated death toll exceeds two hundred, including hidden snipers in the vicinity and machine gunners at elevated points. Based on the time of death, the killer started outside and moved step by step to kill inside the *** building, then left, all within less than half an hour, perhaps even shorter. Our preliminary assessment is that the killer is from the alien world."

After speaking, he couldn't help but wipe his sweat. In such a situation, if anyone bears the greatest pressure, first would be the military for inadequate defense, followed by him.

Moreover, a deputy high-ranking official was killed this time.

Chen Shouyi felt heavy-hearted as he listened. Decapitation tactics work well against Barbarians, and they work equally well against humans.

Clearly, after several setbacks in skirmishes, the Barbarian God realized that it couldn't conquer humans quickly and decisively, so it stopped charging blindly and began to use its advantages.

Human civilization is strong yet fragile.

Once order is disrupted, the public becomes a flock of lambs to be slaughtered.

"Did anyone notice?" Chen Shouyi asked in a deep voice.

"Some soldiers spotted the killer, but the speed was too fast to catch up!" the police chief quickly replied.

A group of high-ranking police officers accompanied Chen Shouyi for a tour inside the building, but what else could he discern?

As soon as they stepped out of the building, a car sped into the square with a screech, and a police officer quickly got out, whispering to the police chief, "The City Government Building is under attack!"

P.S.: Stuck with writing today, feeling dry and uninspired. Will definitely have two chapters tomorrow.

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