Chapter 535: I Had Not Become a God Yet, and There Were No Gods in the World

Xu Zhi calmly saw Meng Po off. He also knew that the pent-up emotions in her heart had been resolved, and he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. It seemed that through his continuous efforts, he had become quite skilled at being a 'chicken soup' mentor, helping people dispel worries and alleviate depression in their Dao hearts. Medusa, Emperor Qi, and Caroline had all been like this before. As powerful beings who stand high above others, most of them are inherently proud, but when faced with no clear path forward over thousands of years, they inevitably feel lost. He needed to be a spiritual counselor, guiding them to continue their pursuit of truth.

For a Creator God, this might also be a very important job, as 'working' can be quite exhausting.

Just like internet employees who work 996 (9 AM to 9 PM, 6 days a week) for their bosses every day, tirelessly earning money and constantly being pushed, they eventually become physically and mentally exhausted, feeling lost, much like an overworked ox toiling away at work. Large companies often have mature solutions for this: they usually have a psychological counseling room on a certain floor to provide guidance to employees, ensuring they continue to work hard for the company, dedicating themselves and sacrificing their hairline in the process.

“Honestly, from this perspective, the principle seems to be the same.”

He suddenly chuckled, finding it both funny and frustrating. Where had his thoughts wandered? He felt as though he'd drifted far beyond reality. Snapping back to the present, he looked at the empty Hall of Reincarnation. “It’s time to get down to business.”

A moment later.

“It’s time to begin,” he said, standing up and gracefully moving towards the vast cycle of reincarnation, where black and white light intertwined. With a wave of his hand, several Rubik's Cubes appeared—the ten thousand cubes he had previously created. “There are only over two hundred character arcade machines right now... I’ll use two hundred for a start.”

He slightly extended his hand.

Swish!

Countless blank, transparent thoughts drifted away, distantly flowing into each arcade machine. Amidst the cheers of the crowd, no one noticed that something was slowly growing and converging within them.

“This way, people will truly be imprisoned inside the arcade machines, making them a real arcade hell of the underworld! In a sense, each square arcade machine will be like a deity statue in a temple. People will worship, offer incense, and make offerings before them, allowing the 'spirit' within these statues to awaken and gain sentience.”

Temples in the world are not inherently home to gods; gods only emerge when enough believers worship them.

“As for the rest, it’s a matter of waiting. Future deceased souls will queue up on the Yellow Springs Road, awaiting their turn in Fengdu... They can also pass the time by playing arcade games, honing their combat skills, and incidentally generating faith. This significantly increases efficiency.”

Naturally, organizing the rules of a world is a complex task. Xu Zhi was quite satisfied with how players’ wild antics had refined these settings, as the outcome was ultimately positive.

The dark and mysterious histories players fabricated using these characters also perfectly aligned with Xu Zhi’s intentions!

This was because he indeed intended to monopolize an era, preventing anyone from becoming a god, which was currently a significant limitation for the gourmet world.

However, the current inability to become a god wouldn’t cause any immediate reaction. But once there were more Heavenly Emperors, and the era became more glorious, when Heavenly Emperors started approaching Rank 8, they would seek ways to break through and become restless...

Perhaps, those fictional ancient histories might become reality in the future?

Who knows?

The Six Paths of Reincarnation, after all, was a new world still under construction, and everything about it was unknown.

However, it was evident that the unique structure of the Six Paths of Reincarnation — with continuous rebirth, innate talents, and increasingly powerful abilities that replaced the function of genetic bloodlines — allowed the civilization of this world to develop extremely rapidly. In just over three hundred years, there were already many Heavenly Emperor-level masters.

Although their civilization’s development speed far surpassed that of the Ancient Desolate World in its time, it was still far inferior to the high-tech Ishdarans.

There was simply no comparison.

The Ishdarans, with supercomputers for brains and the ability to link up, could collectively deduce all things in the world with immense computational power. To them, the universe held no secrets. Known as a 'cheating' divine race, they had now completely become a Creator Divine Race, hidden within the ancient lava region of a parallel universe, beginning to set that universe’s parameters, world rules, and create continents...

“Still, this history isn’t interesting enough,”

Xu Zhi suddenly raised an eyebrow and chuckled. “Perhaps I should create a character too, one who is suppressed and tormented in hell... I could try using a segment of memory as a foundation, combined with the incense of sentient beings, to see what kind of unknown character I might create?”

After all, many arcade games feature hidden characters and mysterious easter eggs.

“So, this hidden character would occasionally appear fleetingly, replacing the chosen opponent in battle, initiating a fight with you. They would be elusive, moving between various arcade machines, with an appearance probability of roughly one in a hundred billion... After all, these players are so fervent and have such fast hands that they can play tens of thousands of times a day. Only then would it take decades to discover this character...”

“And decades are nothing when considering the lifetimes of dozens or hundreds of years these powerful beings experience. A single period of secluded cultivation or training would be roughly equivalent.”

He immediately became interested. With a wave of his hand, he grabbed a transparent thought and injected an opening sequence into it.

The visuals were something he created using programming software from his 'hard drive brain.' He utilized the Ishdaran's magical technology and the computational power of a demon core brain; he himself was a supercomputer. The CG effects he produced were naturally far more dazzling and realistic than the players' pixelated visuals.

Title:Jue Wushen.

As a special hidden character, there was no poetic title. Instead, there was a more unique opening sequence of light and shadow.

Amidst pitch darkness, the sky shattered and the earth cracked.

“I shall reverse the Six Paths and become a true god, today!” a being roared, tearing open the dark universe with brilliant light.

“Through countless ages, I have lain dormant since a prehistoric era, waiting until this day, finally ushering in a brilliant new age! In this life, I will join forces with the contemporary prodigies, and we shall certainly extract the true name of reincarnation, striving for this one existence, not seeking a next life... This epoch, I will not fail again!” Roars echoed endlessly between heaven and earth, filled with an aura of disdain for the world!

Who knows how long passed before endless blood rain fell across the entire world, extinguishing the Grand Dao and suppressing all living beings with blood, as if an eternity of desolation had settled. Even the vast cycle of reincarnation subtly showed cracks. This was an enlightened one from a prehistoric era, teetering on the brink. “No, I refuse to accept this! No living being in this world can break free from these shackles, transcend the Six Paths of Reincarnation, and become a true god... not even you can become a true god!”

The world fell into complete silence; no living beings remained.

After an unknown period, a faint voice drifted from the void:

“When I was not a god, no gods existed in the world.”

Swish!

The character’s opening image finished playing. Satisfied, Xu Zhi watched as it transformed into a hazy beam of light, shooting out and entering an arcade machine, becoming the most mysterious hidden character.