Yes, I became a god just by exercising.

Chapter 85 The Governor's Wife Goes Mad
"How could we let this crazy woman in..."

Ethan grumbled, his tentacles quickly turning back into arms, and his gaze turned toward the church entrance.

Xia Fa was also quite puzzled. After standing still, he turned around and looked over as well.

Immediately, his pupils trembled slightly.

There, at the church entrance, where he had just stood, stood a woman.

She's a woman who, with just one glance, would be clear to anyone that she's gone mad.

The woman had bright red hair that was meticulously styled and maintained, and she wore an elaborate silk cake dress. If you only saw her from behind, no one would associate her with a madwoman.

But once you see her face, her distorted face, you'd never doubt that she's gone mad.

Her eyes were crooked, her left eye was squinting, while her right eye was wide open. Her head was tilted to the left, and her mouth was crooked, with her upper and lower lips separated, creating an exaggerated distance.

Even though she's gone mad and her features are distorted like this, you can still tell that she must have been a very beautiful woman when she was young.

Saliva kept dripping from the corners of her mouth, but she just stared blankly at Xia Fa.

"You...you saw...did you see my daughter? My poor daughter, sob, sob."

She seemed to be asking Xia Fa a question, but it also seemed like she was talking to herself. She only asked one question before a sobbing sound came from her throat.

But strangely, she wore a smile on her face, a poignant smile:

"My daughter... sob... so cute... look... isn't she adorable? Do you want to... sob, hug her?"

As she spoke, she handed over the non-existent "daughter" that she was holding in her arms.

Fensne pulled Xiafa back two steps warily, as if afraid that the madwoman would go crazy again.

Ethan looked at a clergyman with a serious expression and said in a low voice:
"Jack, take her out and send her to the governor's mansion."

The clergyman named Jack, who was clearly bound by a powerful secret code, had bulging muscles that made his robes bulge. He agreed and pulled the madwoman out.

The madwoman didn't resist at all, letting Jack pull her along, but she kept murmuring in a crying voice with a smiling expression.

"My daughter...she's so cute, but she's gone missing...sob...would you like to hold her? Hold her..."

For some reason, her silhouette as she was pulled away into the distance under the sunlight seemed so lonely and pitiful, yet also somewhat eerie.

"Who is this?"

Seeing her walk away, Xia Fa couldn't help but ask a question.

Judging from the madwoman's attire, she was definitely not a commoner; that silk cake dress alone was something an ordinary person couldn't afford.

“She’s Governor Ellis’s wife, alas…” Ethan began, his tone quite wistful.

"Then her daughter...?" Xia Fa asked, somewhat puzzled.

“That’s the crux of the matter: Governor Ellis and his wife never had a son or daughter.” Ethan shook his head, but his tone was very firm.

"Yes, the couple clearly didn't have a son or daughter, but a few years ago, the governor's wife suddenly went mad. She went around telling people that her daughter was missing, asking if anyone had seen her daughter. Occasionally, she would suddenly appear as if she were holding her daughter, and would ask passersby to hold her too, but in reality, there was nothing in her arms."

Fensne was deeply impressed by this and spoke up somewhat timidly.

After all, in this world, loss of control and madness have always been a persistent and inescapable dark cloud hanging over the heads of extraordinary individuals.

The governor's wife's behavior... was just too much like that of a superhuman who had completely lost his mind due to mental pollution.

But unfortunately, the governor's wife was not an extraordinary person.

Xia Fa pondered for a moment, then asked:
"She probably didn't sign any secret agreement, right?"

Everyone shook their heads, indicating no.

Xia Fa's eyes flickered slightly. He thought to himself, "That makes sense. If the governor's wife were a superhuman who had signed a secret pact, she would have been imprisoned in the church's dungeon long ago in this mental state."

But why would a perfectly normal person go crazy, or even become so mentally deranged?

Chestnut sighed softly and said:
"The Governor's wife not only did not sign any secret contracts, but she was also not mentally corrupted. Governor Ellis once specifically requested our Silver Church and the Natural Church to test her. In fact, Lieutenant General Bedivet also used a secret artifact to test her and confirmed that she was indeed not mentally corrupted."

Xia Fa asked, puzzled:
"Then why would she do that?"

If there's no mental pollution, how could someone suddenly go insane? And why is there a daughter who doesn't exist and has since disappeared?

The main thing is that, judging from the Governor's wife's expression just now, she seemed to have really had a lovely daughter.

When the governor's wife looked at the non-existent daughter in her arms, the tenderness in her eyes, so maternal, was absolutely genuine.

Chestnut shook its head slightly:

"No one knows why she went mad. Governor Ellis spent a lot of money and hired many powerful superhumans, but they still couldn't cure her. She used to believe in our god [Silver Universe], which is why she was able to enter our church."

Ethan said with lingering fear, "Thank goodness, Xia Fa. If she had grabbed you just now, she wouldn't have let go unless we knocked her unconscious or hypnotized her... For the sake of the Governor, we had no choice but to hypnotize her, but our church doesn't have any superhumans who have signed a secret contract with a hypnotist, so we'll have to seek help from the Church of Nature."

Fensny also shrank her neck:

"Yes, I don't know why she suddenly came to the church and went crazy today, thankfully..."

After chatting for a while about the rumors surrounding the governor's wife who had gone mad, the atmosphere gradually calmed down, and the topic returned to the black bag.

"You can buy it at the Extraordinary Market in Rum City. It's not expensive, around 100 gold pounds. By the way, you should check the goods before you buy them, so you don't get ripped off. Some of the black bags are of poor quality, with an internal space only the size of a jewelry box."

Chestnut explained it to Xia Fa in detail, and then said:
"By the way, you can occasionally find some useful secret treasures at the Extraordinary Market, but it all depends on your luck."

Xia Fa nodded slightly and smiled:
"Then I'll go buy one this afternoon."

Perfect timing! He still couldn't explain the origin of the horse-slaying sword he obtained in the city of the giant jaw beast. After going to the Extraordinary Market in the afternoon, he could openly carry the horse-slaying sword, which had been transformed into a folding knife, with him.

And now, he still keeps the folding knife hidden in the inside pocket of his clothes.

Seeing that there was nothing wrong and they were just waiting for the files to be delivered, Chestnut returned to the archbishop's office, while Xia Fa simply sat on a pew in the church.

He suddenly remembered something and looked up at Ethan, a burly man with short military hair:
"By the way, Ethan, do you have any books related to the occult?"

Ethan smiled, revealing a set of bright white teeth:

"I've been waiting for you to ask this, and I've prepared everything for you!"

He held out his hands in a cupped-back gesture, and a large stack of books immediately appeared in his hands.

Judging from this, this is also someone who can produce black bags.

Xia Fa glanced at the catalog and immediately felt a headache coming on.

The books were, in order:

Detailed Explanation of the Basics of Ritual Formations

Secret Texts and Divination

The Manual of Mysterious Identification and Combat

On the Combination of Secret Treasures and the Secret Abilities of Extraordinary Individuals

Activating Alchemical Metals

Although he knew long ago that the mystical system of this world must be vast and complex, Xia Fa still felt a little dizzy and lightheaded, as if he had returned to his school days.

"Let me take a look at this one first."

Xia Fa pulled out "Secret Texts and Divination," which was perfect timing, as he planned to learn divination to find out what abilities and taboos the horse-slaying sword, as a sealing object, possessed.

Ethan smiled and said:
"Okay, take your time reading. These are textbook-style books on mysticism compiled by scholars from the nine major churches. They are relatively easy to understand. If there is anything you don't understand, you can ask me."

With a gentle wave of his hands, the other books vanished instantly.

Xia Fa looked on with great envy. Putting aside everything else, once he had these hundred-gold-pound pouches, he could put all of his ten thousand gold-pound banknotes, two high-level secret contracts, the Mithril Holy Emblem, and most importantly... the overlord-level secret contract Silver Throne worth three million gold pounds inside.

Although this still wouldn't stop powerful beings of demigod rank or higher from robbing them, at least they wouldn't have to carry it around in their pockets all the time, which would be too troublesome.

Only the Zhanmadao (a type of sword), as a sealing item, seems unable to be placed in the Deukuro (another type of sword), and probably not in its folding sword form either.

The morning sunlight streamed in through the church's arched doors, and in the bright light, Xia Fa opened the book "Secret Texts and Divination".

"For divination, citrine is needed. Extraordinary powers are used to inscribe cryptic text into the citrine..."

"Or they could pray to the gods [First History], asking that His records contain the information the diviner seeks..."

"Either ascend to the Protoss Realm through a mental entity and gather information there..."

"If it is a prayer to the gods [First History], the specific ritual and array required materials and procedures are as follows: three drops of jasmine essential oil, one piece of cast iron..."

Xia Fa read it word by word, and before he knew it, he was completely engrossed in it.

But as he was reading, a sharp, piercing pain suddenly shot through his lower back!
He suddenly realized that his mind was completely pulled out of the book, and he immediately thought of the information he had seen before about the entity "Patriarch of Ten Thousand Poisons".

And three days ago, before entering the church, I experienced a strange, sharp pain in my lower back.

"Could it be..."

Xia Fa's expression changed slightly. There was only one way to confirm whether he had truly been implanted with bee eggs by Veronica, the terrifying, powerful, and beautiful Poison Patriarch.

He reached out and slowly touched the painful spot on his lower back...

(End of this chapter)