6: Chapter 6 Family Banquet

Shanhai Tower.

One of the top-tier Divine Kingdom restaurants in Qinghe City.

Rumor has it that its owner is a life-type deity who has reached the third rank. The restaurant stands nine stories tall, and the entire building itself is a powerful Divine Kingdom artifact capable of automatically gathering free-floating divine power to nourish the ingredients within.

As Fang Chuan and Zhang Chao stepped through the main entrance, a graceful attendant wearing formal attire walked up to greet them. She emanated a faint aura of divinity, clearly marking her as a divine being herself.

"May I ask if you are students Zhang Chao and Fang Chuan? Mr. Zhang and Mrs. Zhang have been waiting for you in the 'Yunqi' private room for some time."

The two followed the attendant up to the third floor. The door to the private room was slightly ajar, and the sounds of irrepressible laughter and conversation could be heard from within.

Zhang Chao pushed the door open. "Dad, Mom, we're here!"

Inside the room, a gentle-looking middle-aged couple sat at the table.

The man was Zhang Chao's father, Zhang Zishan. He was slightly plump with a kind face, dressed in casual clothes, but there was a steady composure in his brow that came from long-term authority. He was a peak demigod powerhouse with a Divine Kingdom rating of D+.

The beautiful woman beside him was Zhang Chao's mother, Chen Rong. She was very well-preserved, looking only in her early thirties, with eyes as gentle as water. Seeing the two enter, she immediately stood up, her face beaming with a smile, and walked over quickly to take hold of Fang Chuan's hand.

"Xiao Chuan, come here and let your godmother look at you." Chen Rong looked Fang Chuan up and down, her eyes filled with concern. "You child, haven't you been eating well lately? Why do you seem to have lost weight again?"

As she spoke, she insisted on pressing Fang Chuan into the seat beside her.

Zhang Chao, left out in the cold, was immediately displeased and wailed, "Mom! You're being too biased! I'm your son too, and I've lost weight too!"

"Alright, alright, you've both lost weight, you've both lost weight." Chen Rong rolled her eyes at her son, then patted his head, her eyes filled with doting affection. "Eat more later; today I ordered everything you two love to eat."

Watching this scene, Zhang Zishan smiled and shook his head. His gaze fell on Fang Chuan, and he said gently, "Xiao Chuan, you must be hungry." He then turned to the attendant outside the door and ordered, "Bring out the dishes."

The family was happy and harmonious, and the attendant quickly brought the dishes out like a flowing stream.

Steamed deep-sea grouper, honey-glazed fire lark, jade green bamboo shoots... Every dish was prepared with high-ranking ingredients produced within a Divine Kingdom, containing pure energy that was highly beneficial to newly awakened divine beings.

"Eat up, everything is still hot," Zhang Zishan urged.

Fang Chuan did not stand on ceremony. He picked up his chopsticks, a warm current flowing through his heart. Ever since he saved Zhang Chao back then and was adopted as their godson, he had truly experienced the feeling of having a family.

The Zhang family had repeatedly suggested he move in with them, but Fang Chuan felt it would be inconvenient as an outsider, so he had always lived in the room allocated by the state, only coming over to share meals frequently.

After a few rounds of drinks and tasting the dishes.

Zhang Zishan set down his glass, looked at Fang Chuan, and after a moment of contemplation, said, "Xiao Chuan, Xiao Chao told me everything after he came back. Don't take what happened at the awakening ceremony to heart."

His tone was sincere. "A Divine Kingdom rating doesn't explain everything; post-awakening management is the key. You don't need to be discouraged; we will have your back no matter what."

As he spoke, he looked at Fang Chuan. "Your mother and I have discussed it; we have two idle Divine Kingdom buildings at home, an [Abundance Altar] and a [Breeding Totem]. I will have someone send them to you in a few days to help you expand the foundation of your Divine Kingdom first."

As soon as these words were spoken, even Zhang Chao, who was sitting nearby, was stunned.

Divine Kingdom buildings!

These were special items created by auxiliary-type deities that could be placed directly into a Divine Kingdom to provide various powerful buff effects. Their value was far above that of ordinary resource cards.

The most basic F-rank Divine Kingdom building had a starting price of 20,000 faith points at the exchange, and even then, they were rarely available. Buildings like the [Abundance Altar] that could increase resource output and accelerate Divine Kingdom expansion were at least E+ rank, and their value likely exceeded 50,000 faith points!

Adding the two together, that was 100,000!

Fang Chuan was shocked. He hurriedly waved his hands, refusing without a second thought. "Godfather, this absolutely cannot happen! It's too valuable! And... I only have an F- rank Divine Kingdom; giving these two Divine Kingdom buildings to me would be a complete waste."

This wasn't an excuse; it was the law of the Divine Kingdom.

An F-rank Divine Kingdom was like a wooden bucket with countless holes; no matter how much water was poured in, it would quickly leak out. Placing high-ranking buildings inside meant that perhaps not even one-tenth of their effects could be utilized.

"What do you mean by waste!" Chen Rong glared at him playfully, though her tone was incredibly loving. "If your godfather gives it to you, just take it. We are a family; isn't helping each other what we're supposed to do? Are you still going to treat us like outsiders?"

Fang Chuan smiled bitterly.

Of course he wasn't treating them like outsiders; it was just that he knew better than anyone that he didn't need these at all.

A daily Hextech was equivalent to a Divine Kingdom building every day.

His [Hedge Fund+] was the strongest money-printing machine, and his [Golden Spatula Synthesis] was the most efficient believer factory. An F- Divine Kingdom rating didn't matter to him; it wouldn't stop him from growing powerful quickly.

"Godmother, Godfather, I really cannot accept this." Fang Chuan's attitude was firm. He looked into the sincere eyes of the two elders and explained earnestly, "Zhang Chao has an S- rating; his future is limitless, and he is at the point where he needs a large amount of resources to build a foundation. Give these two buildings to him, and within ten years, he will be able to ignite his divine fire. Give them to me... I might not even break through to demigod in a hundred years."

These words were realistic and also cruel.

Zhang Chao scratched his head while listening from the side, wanting to say something, but was stopped by Fang Chuan's gaze.

Seeing Fang Chuan so insistent, a flash of approval crossed Zhang Zishan's eyes, along with a deeper sense of pity. This child was just too sensible, so sensible that it made people's hearts ache.

He was silent for a moment, then finally sighed. "Very well, since you insist, I won't force it. If you change your mind one day, it won't be too late to come to me."

The atmosphere became a bit stifling.

Chen Rong quickly tried to smooth things over, filling Fang Chuan and Zhang Chao's bowls with food. "Alright, alright, let's not talk about this anymore. Eat! Xiao Chuan, eat more of this fire lark; it's good for your health."

By the end of the meal, no one mentioned the Divine Kingdom buildings again.

The dinner ended, and Zhang Zishan and Chen Rong prepared to leave.

Before leaving, as if remembering something, Zhang Zishan took out a palm-sized, cracked stone emblem from his Divine Kingdom storage space and handed it to Fang Chuan.

The emblem was dark gold, engraved with a blurry pattern that looked like a grinning ghost face, yet also like a copper coin. The entire emblem was covered in the marks of erosion from the passage of time, and its divine luster was dim to the extreme, as if it could shatter at any moment.

"Xiao Chuan, take this."

Zhang Zishan handed the emblem over, his eyes filled with a touch of reminiscence. "I obtained this by chance in an astral ruin years ago. Although the core laws inside have long since collapsed, the material is so tough that even my demigod fire cannot melt it. The totem on it is strange, but it carries an aura of blessing.

Since you awakened a talentless Divine Kingdom, coming into contact with more ancient relics might allow you to forge a new path and comprehend your own unique divinity."

For a peak demigod powerhouse, this was indeed a worthless piece of junk.

However, the moment Fang Chuan took the emblem.

That cold, mechanical voice suddenly rang out in his mind!

[Ding! Detected special item—Broken fortune star emblem (1/3)!]

[Activation conditions for the 'Fortune' bond have changed!]

[Collect three broken fortune star emblems to synthesize a complete 'fortune star emblem'! The race wearing this emblem will permanently gain the 'Fortune' bond!]

Fang Chuan's heart skipped a beat.

This world also has emblems?

He forcibly suppressed his surging thoughts, accepted the emblem with a calm expression, and bowed deeply to Zhang Zishan and Chen Rong.

"Thank you, Godfather, I really like it."

His voice was calm and steady.

Looking at Fang Chuan's sincere appearance, Zhang Zishan nodded in gratification, assuming the child was just being sensible and couldn't bear to reject his good intentions.

Little did he know that the "junk" he had casually given away had a true value far exceeding that of the two Divine Kingdom buildings!