Chapter 4: There are too many pornographic books. What should I do?

The basement of the house was very secluded. The cabinet beneath the wall sconce had been closed for years. Opening it revealed some winter supplies like cotton clothes and quilts. After clearing them out, there was a thick wooden partition at the bottom of the cabinet. No one would suspect the wooden partition beneath the cabinet unless they moved the entire cabinet away.

The thick solid wood partition was heavy, and Will needed some tools to pry it open. Below it was a sloping passage. Carrying an oil lamp, he walked step by step through the narrow passage, descending at least twenty meters before his feet touched the solid ground of the basement. The basement wasn’t large; Will quickly estimated that its true location should be beneath the resting pavilion in the courtyard. He wondered when his father had built it. Or perhaps, it wasn’t built by his father at all, but by the previous owner.

There weren’t many things stored in the basement. Because it was so troublesome to retrieve items, everything here was large, seldom-used items that had been stored for years. Well, probably. When he was little, Will had wanted to use this place as his secret base, and he had secretly come here a few times with his father, so he still had a general impression. But after his mother caught him and forced him to study, he barely came here anymore. The familiar armor was still as shiny as new; it seemed his father cherished it greatly, occasionally maintaining it. Next to it was a two-handed greatsword, at least four feet long, which Will couldn’t even lift.

A large wooden chest was locked. Will had never seen his father open it, and he didn’t know what was inside. However, seeing the occasional nostalgic look on his father’s face, it was probably some old items. A handmade wooden shelf held many objects, some Will recognized, others he didn’t. Most weren’t precious, but without exception, they were all old.

A delicate saddle, its numerous marks proving it had been heavily used before. Two steel gauntlets, their many scars seemingly bearing witness to their owner having endured more than one perilous battle. A foot-long dagger, not resembling one for roasting meat. The fur boots were very similar to those worn by the mercenary warriors Will had seen, only these were more worn. Judging by the size, they might have been used by his father when he was young. There was also a set of leather armor, unlike steel armor, it was inconspicuous but much lighter. Although it hadn’t been used for a long time, Will found it difficult to tear. Next to it was a complete set of equipment for a warhorse, but there were no warhorses at home?

A small wicker backpack caught Will’s attention. His father had once hidden it because Will had almost burned it one time when he came down here. That was the first and only time his father had ever hit him. Remembering that experience, Will felt a faint ache in his backside; it was not a pleasant memory. It was also after that incident that his father rarely brought him here anymore.

His recollections ended there. Will couldn’t help but gently caress the small wicker backpack. Although very old, it was still well-preserved. As if possessed, Will gently opened the wicker box, and a scroll made of animal skin came into view. Did people still record information on animal skin scrolls? More than a hundred years ago, Cai Lun (laughs), a follower of the God of Craftsmen, invented papermaking. After being blessed by the God of Craftsmen and becoming a Sage (a special type of divine favored one, without divine powers like attack or defense, only wisdom enhancement, and able to enter the divine kingdom after death; there are also ordinary people who are granted the title of Sage by the king for their great contributions), it caused a huge sensation. After multiple improvements, paper officially replaced animal skin as the new medium for human writing within a few years, and animal skin, this primitive recording medium, gradually exited the stage of history.

Besides in libraries and museums, there was actually an animal skin scroll hidden in his own home. Will was very curious about this ancient item. As soon as his finger touched the scroll, the pendant amulet on his chest suddenly shimmered with a faint light, and a dull voice sounded in his ear, “Special document found. Apostle function activated. Humble Apostle of the Great God of Wisdom, Chaos Gode, would you like to dedicate the knowledge on the animal skin scroll to the Great God of Wisdom, Chaos Gode, in exchange for the divine grace of the God of Wisdom?”

“Huh~, how could this happen? Aren’t gods supposed to be high above, unconcerned with worldly affairs? Why would this god I’m appealing to have the time to pay attention to an ordinary person like me?”

“Ding~, reading the apostle’s mind, answering the apostle’s question. Gods are high above and do not pay attention to ordinary believers. God is benevolent, God is fair, and God is also ruthless. The one contacting you is the god’s proxy spirit, who can, to a limited extent, help you make sacrifices to the god and bestow divine grace on their behalf. Proxy spirits have seven levels. Apostle Will will become a probationary apostle of the lowest level after activating the apostle function. Contributing the first piece of knowledge will earn one hundred contribution points. Do you wish to sacrifice?” The voice came from the pendant amulet on his chest; Will was very certain.

Will didn’t rush to respond to the proxy spirit but first looked through the animal skin scroll. This was a knight cultivation method. Without comparison, he didn’t know if it was good or bad, but even the worst knight inheritance was extremely precious, basically inaccessible to ordinary citizens. So his father hadn’t been bragging; his family truly came from a knightly lineage, and his family was just a branch. His father might also be a true knight. The cultivation method was illustrated with text, and the content wasn’t extensive, just three pages of animal skin. Will tried hard to memorize the content but found it unrealistic in a short time.

“Great God’s proxy spirit, can I transcribe and back up the content before sacrificing this precious knight cultivation method?” Will still yearned for extraordinary power. The heroic knights in knight novels, who trampled goblins, punched hellish demons, slashed cunning dragons with their swords, flew through the sky on griffins, and married beautiful princesses, were definitely the goal of all young boys.

“The god needs knowledge, not the physical object carrying the knowledge. Contributing knowledge will not make you lose the animal skin scroll. Humble probationary apostle, do you confirm that you wish to contribute the knowledge from the animal skin scroll?” The proxy spirit’s words almost choked Will. If that was the case, you should have said so earlier; he had been struggling to memorize it for quite a while.

“Confirm contribution of animal skin scroll knowledge.” Since there was nothing to lose, what was there to worry about? As soon as Will finished speaking, the pendant amulet on his chest shot out a faint light, sweeping across the animal skin scroll. “One copy of Basic Knight Breathing Method, 75% compatibility with apostle, already sacrificed. The Great God of Wisdom, Chaos Gode, has confirmed receipt. Apostle function successfully activated. Apostle’s current level is probationary apostle. Acquired one hundred contribution points. Spatial storage function activated. Do you wish to activate apostle space?”

“Um, can I ask what the apostle space is?” Will was a bit confused; why were there so many things he didn’t understand?

The proxy spirit seemed unable to refuse and explained carefully: “After the apostle activates the function and establishes a connection with the Great God of Wisdom, Chaos Gode, they can utilize some of the god’s abilities. The apostle space is a separate private space opened by the Great God within the divine kingdom, allowing the apostle to access and use it at any time. Upon the first activation of the apostle function, with the special grace of the Great God, activating the apostle space requires one hundred contribution points. If you miss this opportunity, the next activation of the apostle space function will require one thousand contribution points.”

“Activate. Choose to activate the apostle space function.” Good heavens, a tenfold price difference. He wasn’t going to be a sucker.

“Ding~, Apostle space function successfully activated. Please check it yourself, Apostle.”

“Apostle space function successfully activated. Exchange function activated. Activating the exchange function requires one hundred contribution points. Insufficient contribution points, activation denied.”

A piece of information entered Will’s mind, and he instinctively followed it. He seemed to see a small space. How small was it? Hmm, it could barely fit his fifty-year anniversary collector’s edition of Playboy. Hey, wasn’t this the best place to hide books? Stored in the apostle space, he wouldn’t have to worry about it being discovered, and he could take it out at any time to give to others, pretending he had been carrying it all along. Hmm, he was getting smarter and smarter.

With a thought, the fifty-year anniversary collector’s edition of Playboy disappeared from his hand, and with another thought, it reappeared in his hand. Will was having a lot of fun.

“Ding~, the Great God of Wisdom, Chaos Gode, is very satisfied with the knowledge the apostle sacrificed for the first time and has decided to grant the apostle a certain reward. The proxy spirit has discovered the apostle’s thirst for certain knowledge and bestows several books, hoping the apostle will continue to strive.” As soon as the proxy spirit’s voice fell, a thick stack of books appeared before Will, colorful and wonderfully exciting: ten issues of the regular edition of Playboy.

God, have mercy on me. I really don’t love Playboy that much. I was just experimenting with the apostle space; I don’t actually like Playboy!