Having decided on the disposition of the two instances, Bai Yi reviewed the recent upgrade again, and realized she had overlooked something very important.
She reopened the panel, and fortunately, this time the tasks for territory upgrade and superpower upgrade were still viewable, rather than obscured by random garble.
[Upgrade Requirements: Lord level reaching lv.70 (60/70), one complete World Core (2/1), Lord becoming a belief and acquiring 1 million human followers (103k/1000k), securing allegiance from 10 Lords (5/10)]
Of the previous requirements, Bai Yi already knew one was a complete World Core, and she had anticipated the level requirement for the Lord.
The former was already completed, and although Bai Yi hadn’t made additional personal progress on the latter, meeting the requirement was only a matter of time.
But the remaining tasks seemed somewhat interesting.
"Acquiring a million followers isn’t hard, but it actually has to be human followers...
Witches are completely removed from consideration, which complicates things...
And where did those one hundred and thirty thousand followers come from?
There are at most over thirty thousand humans in the territory, even adding in those truly believing in me on Witch Star, it’s still a bit short...
Could they be from this world?
But where in this world did I get followers from?"
At first glance, Bai Yi couldn’t determine where she had so many followers.
Then she suddenly remembered there were still some humans on Witch Star, but even when adding them up, the numbers didn’t match.
Upon further reflection, it slowly dawned on her that although unlikely, it’s possible people in this world also have faith in her...
But if the remainder represent her followers within the Demon Dynasty, the issue is, she hadn’t spread any faith!
Where did the followers come from?
Could it be that the heroism of my Insect Swarm has attracted the admiration of ordinary people?"
Bai Yi suddenly considered this possibility.
When faced with powerful Non-human creatures, part of humankind often deifies them.
Even if it initially starts as a means for some individuals to make money, as more people believe, it naturally becomes a genuine religious organization.
Even if it might just be one-sided worship, it doesn’t prevent them from treating it as a spiritual support.
Just like Bai Yi’s recent encounters, where in the virtual instance there are people who worship those monsters.
Or, more famously, various Cthulhu sects that follow similar patterns.
Wait a minute, oh no, have I become an Evil God!
But all things considered, in this light, those human followers appear quite normal now.
With this line of thought, Bai Yi deployed the hidden Fei Wen across the current cities to search for these individuals for her.
Although they hid very securely, this cautious hiding precisely made it easier for Fei Wen to find them.
After all, who can compete with "mosquitoes" in hiding?
Even though they have now gained the ability to blend with light, their traditional skills haven’t been lost!
Very soon, small groups with diverse beliefs in the Insect Swarm were found in corners of various cities.
Even though the leaders of these organizations might have different intentions, their subordinates were genuinely devout followers.
Believing in the rhetoric of the organizers that "faith in the Great Insect Swarm will grant Eternal Life when the swarm descends."
Of course, this promise of Eternal Life would be flexibly translated into "overthrow," "obtain land," "have enough to eat," etc., according to different audiences.
Under the rule of beasts, to have enough merit to accrue enough luck and fortune, those beasts are much better than the original human officials.
Yet, poverty still exists, even intentionally guided by the beasts.
Not only to create contrast so more common people can appreciate them, but also to extract the food they want from these unnoticed poor people.
Moreover, due to their guidance, these poor people are more hopeless than they were under human officials.
Not just on the rules layer, but even ordinary people who once pitied them now draw clear lines and even become part of the covert oppression.
Now, these hopeless poor people naturally only need a slight push to turn to faith.
If this was before, Bai Yi wouldn’t have known about these humans, and un-commanded, the Insect Swarm wouldn’t have shown a trace of mercy.
Or rather, even if Bai Yi knew, she would likely ignore these opportunists, straightforwardly treating them as ordinary people.
Even though amongst them there must be ordinary people from the lower tiers, she would not treat them differently.
She would certainly let them understand the consequence of haphazardly believing in an unworthy god.
These humans have found a good use.
They stumbled upon the truth, turning that rhetoric into reality, truly becoming believers of the Insect Swarm, fulfilling their wishes when the swarm descends.
Although it might not guarantee Eternal Life or great wealth, at least once Bai Yi regards them as people, basic survival needs can be guaranteed.
This includes but is not limited to fair judgment, opportunities for work, and so on.
If they meet the requirements and have sufficient talent, they might even gain Eternal Life—conversion to a witch.
"Heh, it seems the independent continent plan truly is necessary.
Also, the strategy for the Insect Swarm’s actions must change.
Since there’s no need to rush Conquest progress, let’s design a bit more and spread the message, letting more humans know the benefits of believing in me.
Even perhaps, when devouring the great cities, deliberately letting some people escape, spreading the news within the participating cities that belief in me spares them from death.