Master of the City of No Night, Belia: I really like the gift you sent, Brother. Thank you!
Master of Gods, Emperor Chen: I love the gift, Sister, but I need to use it to test something. There’s a chance the purple energy crystal might be destroyed in the process.
Master of the City of No Night, Belia: Test what? Is it very important to you?
Master of Gods, Emperor Chen: Er... yes, very important.
Master of the City of No Night, Belia: Then you should use it. A gift from your sister is yours to do with as you please.
Master of Gods, Emperor Chen: Wait, do you even know what this thing you gave me is? It’s a Rare-grade purple energy crystal! It’s worth a king’s ransom and so priceless you can’t even find it on the market. You must have some idea how valuable it is, right?
Master of the City of No Night, Belia: I have no idea. I already told you, I just found it lying around.
Master of Gods, Emperor Chen: Well, you’d better be sure about this. If I use it up and you ask me to pay you back, I could never afford it. Oh, by the way, where did you find it? Tell me, maybe I can go pick one up too.
Master of the City of No Night, Belia: ...
Master of Gods, Emperor Chen: I’m serious. This thing is worth at least fifty million. Selling the two of us wouldn’t even cover a fraction of its cost.
Master of the City of No Night, Belia: That’s not important.
Master of Gods, Emperor Chen: How is that not important? That’s a ton of money we’re talking about!
Master of the City of No Night, Belia: I said it’s not important! It’s the thought that counts, don’t you get it? [Pouting_Child.jpg]
Master of Gods, Emperor Chen: Hahaha, alright, in that case, I won’t hold back. Don’t worry, when your big brother makes it rich someday, I’ll buy you two of them—one to wear and one to smash just to hear the sound.
Master of the City of No Night, Belia: You idiot, Chen Pingchuan! Go to hell!
Master of Gods, Emperor Chen: ???
[You are no longer friends with this user. To continue the conversation, please send a new friend request.]
"Weirdo," Chen Pingchuan huffed, baffled that he’d been blocked. He was starting to think this "sister" of his was a little neurotic.
"See? This is what happens when parents spoil their kids. It’s like a deadly poison," he muttered to himself. "I’ll have to teach her a good lesson one of these days. Spare the rod, spoil the child. Hmph."
After his short monologue, Chen Pingchuan decisively cupped the purple energy crystal in his palm. His lips parted slightly, his expression solemn and grave.
[Ding! Energy Crystal (Purple) detected. Absorbing energy...]
[Energy has been credited. A portion of the seal has been automatically lifted.]
[Name: Chen Pingchuan]
[Occupation: Student, Laborer, Weapon Master, Online Troll (Novice Stage)]
[Strength: 4.2/16.8 (Sealed)] (Note: The average adult male has a value of 1. Talent currently in effect.)
[Agility: 1.9/7.6 (Sealed)]
[Spirit: 2.1/8.4 (Sealed)]
[Constitution: 2.05/8.2 (Sealed)]
[Title: Fast Gunman - The Fiend (Green) -> High negative effects detected. Title has been removed. A compensatory reward has been issued. Automatically acquired Talent: Restless Spirit]
[Talents: Strength Doubler (Green), Heaven’s Reward (Green), Parasite (Purple), 24k Titanium Alloy Dog Eyes (Yellow), Friend of Women (White, Improvable), Restless Spirit (Compensation)]
[Remaining Simulation Value: 744]
[Remaining Simulation Attempts: 1]
[Simulation Mode: Fully Upgraded] -> [Click for details.]
As the purple energy crystal vanished from his hand, Chen Pingchuan didn’t know what to feel.
Should I be relieved that I’m not crazy and this simulator thing is real? Or should I be agonizing over the fact that I just vaporized fifty million? Sure, I can pull money out of that space, but just as the AI said, what if it’s a finite amount? That would be a disaster.
The more he dwelled on it, the more it stung. Chen Pingchuan decided to focus on studying the panel provided by the simulator instead. This time, when he reached for the screen of light in front of him, it didn’t just phase through his fingers like before. It felt solid, as if he could actually touch and click on it.
[Detail 1: Attribute seals are nullified during simulations. In reality, they can also be slowly lifted through physical training.]
[Detail 2: The Restless Spirit talent is a unique talent with no rarity grade. Its effect is singular: For one day after dying in a simulation, the host may observe their own corpse from a third-person perspective. Even if you are turned to ash, you can still admire the beauty of your own cinders.]
[Detail 3: Simulation attempts are replenished once per month. Other recharge methods are not yet available.]
[Detail 4: Simulation information will be simplified. For some simulations, only the final result will be provided, with the process being automatically skipped.]
[Detail 5: New Simulation Mode: Immersive Full-Dive Experience. You may choose to personally enter the simulation at any time to experience events firsthand, making it more vivid, detailed, and stimulating. All it will cost you is a trivial amount of Simulation Value.]
[Detail 6: All talent rewards can be temporarily placed in storage by consuming one percent of their exchange price in Simulation Value. You’ll never have to worry about lacking the points to claim a talent again!]
[Detail 7: Compensatory Talent Reward: Please choose one from the following options—Necromancer, Abyss Summoner, or Divinity. Talent descriptions are hidden. Please choose carefully.]
[Detail 8: The simulator provides exclusive text packs to liven up your interface.]
Chen Pingchuan sucked in a sharp breath.
It’s all real. If all of this is real... then who am I? To think I was some assassin from a mysterious organization... that seems ridiculous now. Am I... a god?
[Ding! Congratulations on choosing Divinity. In the future, you will find you have made a wise choice. P.S. With the Divinity talent, you can now increase your strength by absorbing the faith of all living beings. What are you waiting for? Go and gather believers!]
At that moment, Chen Pingchuan became utterly convinced of his own divine nature.
Holy shit, I’m a god! But what about my parents? Do gods even have parents? And what about the blank spots in my memory, my uncanny sixth sense, the feeling of being a stranger in my own room... Did I... usurp this boy’s body? No, that’s not quite right. It’s more like I’m possessing him. I occupy his body, and I’m being influenced by his will. My divinity is no longer pure... Analysis complete: I’m a god in exile! The reason I’ve been afraid to show my face, why I’ve been laying low all this time, must be because a more powerful god is after my body. That god is probably the one responsible for my fall from grace!
The more Chen Pingchuan thought along these lines, the further down the rabbit hole he went. By putting himself in the shoes of a god, he found that all his questions suddenly seemed to have answers. Everything made perfect sense.
"If I am a god, then these seeds... are probably the boons I bestow upon my followers," Chen Pingchuan mumbled. A handful of multicolored seeds abruptly appeared in his right palm, the purple one shining with the most bewitching light.
[Ding! Do you wish to commence a simulation?]