# Chapter 2194: Conflict Among Believers
A Hai's bewilderment and Xu Huo's questioning made this believer somewhat displeased, and he no longer continued conversing with them.
A Hai still couldn't accept it. "Can the Goddess's Birthday also be changed?"
He had grown up hearing the stories of the Goddess and the ancestors, and had already sanctified this fixed festival. Moreover, this date was very special—it was the opportunity for the surviving ancestors to resist against all odds, symbolizing the courage and spirit of the ancestors, and also the core quality passed down through generations in their nation. The reason their country could keep getting better was all because of the selfless contributions of their predecessors. Changing the Goddess's Birthday seemed to alter the meaning of the Goddess Cult itself.
The two remained silent as they entered the city. Because Xu Huo was an outer zone player, his pass only allowed him a straight path leading to the sacred temple. He could go to the areas this path passed through, but he couldn't set foot in other designated zones of the sacred land.
A Hai was a local and wasn't restricted.
But this time, A Hai didn't head to the temple with the same high spirits as before. Instead, he suggested finding a place to eat and rest first.
"Do you know what kind of person that ancestor who turned the tide was?" A Hai suddenly asked during the meal.
Xu Huo was willing to hear more.
"I heard from the old doctor that that ancestor was actually a lame girl. Her family and compatriots all died in battle. She was the survivor, the nation's last hope, but she didn't hide. Instead, she chose to stand up and fight. It was her dying belief that moved the Goddess, and the Goddess fulfilled her wish, allowing her to both retain her fertility and gain a body stronger than a man's."
A Hai said gloomily, "The Goddess didn't choose dual-sex from the beginning. It was because of the surviving ancestor's plea that the Goddess gave us the choice of dual-sex."
"First came the survivor's plea, then the Goddess's response, and only then did we have dual-sex."
"Why change the Goddess's Birthday? That way, the efforts made by that surviving ancestor seem insignificant. Since the Divine Envoy's ancestors had long felt the Goddess's call, why didn't they pray to the Goddess to save the nation, instead of watching the country be nearly destroyed?"
"Was it because the Goddess didn't choose them, so they couldn't change reality?"
"If dual-sex had existed long before, then they should have been stronger than ordinary men and women. Why didn't they appear in the war records?"
Before Xu Huo could respond, other diners in the restaurant couldn't help slamming the table. A believer stood up angrily, "That's because the Divine Envoy's ancestors had already sacrificed themselves! They truly felt the Goddess's call, but they sacrificed themselves—and they did so to protect the weak, like that female ancestor who contacted the Goddess!"
"Our nation was able to continue not because of any single person, but through the joint efforts of the entire country!"
"Besides, it's been so long since those events. Who knows what really happened back then? If the Goddess descended into this world because of a lame woman, then why are all the people in our country dual-sex?"
"Isn't that proof enough?"
"If the Divine Envoy's family hadn't found the old records, we probably still wouldn't know the truth!"
As the other person spoke these words, outside the window one could still see the statue of that survivor who had contacted the Goddess back then. The statue didn't show whether this person was lame, and even blurred the gender. But in this story, the survivor's gender wasn't important. What mattered was that from this point on, dual-sex became the mainstream in this district.
"How can you speak about the heroic ancestor like that?" A Hai shouted angrily. "If her experience is fake, why does the temple still have Holy Maidens continuing the tradition?"
Logically, in a district where dual-sex dominated, whether one was male or female wasn't that important, and a new word could have been created to represent dual-sex. But the fact that the dual-sex individuals chosen by the temple were still called "Holy Maidens" was proof.
"Then you tell me, why can't they communicate with the Goddess?" the other person also questioned. "Only the Divine Envoys can communicate with the Goddess!"
A Hai was momentarily stumped. He opened his mouth but didn't know how to refute. At this moment, Xu Huo interjected from the side, "Was it your own eyes that witnessed the Goddess communicating with the Divine Envoy?"
"The Goddess only communicates with the Divine Envoy. How could I possibly..." The believer stopped mid-sentence and glared fiercely at Xu Huo. "You dare to question the Divine Envoy?"
"I'm not questioning anyone," Xu Huo said with a smile. "I'm just purely curious. After the Divine Envoy communicates with the Goddess, how do they demonstrate the miracle? According to your claim, the Goddess only speaks to the Divine Envoy. The Divine Envoy must prove that what they say truly came from the Goddess, right? Otherwise, how can they claim that only they can communicate with the Goddess?"
"You're an outer zone player. You're neither a believer nor someone from here. Why should a miracle be shown to you?" another believer interjected. "Openly questioning the Goddess's Birthday that the Divine Envoy changed through several rounds of voting—are you here looking for trouble?"
"Looking for trouble is a stretch," Xu Huo paused. "But I don't really believe in your Divine Envoy... If they truly could converse with the Goddess, wouldn't my verbal offense invite divine punishment?"
"How would the Goddess and the Divine Envoy bother with an outer zone player..." The first believer's matter-of-fact words were cut off by Xu Huo. "Since they don't care, that means they allow others to question. So why are you getting so worked up? Isn't that indirectly tarnishing the Goddess's reputation?"
This left the believers present both angry and speechless. But at this moment, Xu Huo stopped talking and didn't continue. Instead, he looked up at a scenic tower diagonally ahead, where a player had appeared.
The other person was staring at him. Xu Huo smiled faintly and nodded in greeting across the street and buildings.
Divine punishment?
It seemed this so-called divine punishment also had two sets of rules.
The eye pattern he had seen earlier in Purple Lake City, and the spiritual power aggregate in the Hall of Inquiry—their intensity was indeed beyond what ordinary players could match. They were undoubtedly the abilities of an instance. But the person who had just attacked him was a player, probably trying to make the "divine punishment" seem real. Unfortunately, it hadn't succeeded.
The player on the tower quickly left. Xu Huo said to A Hai, who was still in low spirits, "If you really can't figure it out, you can go ask the Goddess when you enter the sacred tower."
"Ask the Goddess?" A Hai was somewhat surprised. "Would the Goddess answer this question?"
"Whether she will or not, you'll know once you ask," Xu Huo said. "Maybe the Goddess would be willing to talk to you."
These words drew some mocking expressions from the surrounding believers, but no one spoke sarcastically.
After hesitating, A Hai nodded firmly. "I'll go ask right now."
With that, he didn't even finish his meal and ran straight toward the temple.
When he left, not only Xu Huo but also many believers in the restaurant spontaneously followed. Besides wanting to verify the fact that "only the Divine Envoy can communicate with the Goddess," it was also for the purpose of surveillance.
(Chapter End)