The zombie disaster passed without much trouble; the martial god cultivators had the necessary experience. Surviving the zombie outbreak was simple in theory: as long as everyone killed a zombie of the same rank, they would be safe. However, finding enough zombies as strong as rank 12 wasn’t easy, and it wasn’t without risk. But over a long period, it was possible.

After 100 years of hard work, all Martial Gods eventually killed a monster of their own rank and gained immunity. Lower-realm cultivators also gained immunity alongside them. Afterward, killing zombies became much easier. Those with immunity could approach zombies and attack them up close. The zombies would still retaliate, but their fighting power weakened considerably after being attacked at close range.

In this way, the area near the city was cleared of all zombie monsters. Eventually, all zombies were eliminated. The strongest cultivators, beasts, and their descendants became immune, ensuring they were neither infected nor pursued by the zombies.

The past century, however, had come at a cost. Varkun died while taking on a secret task with a deadly danger rating. The mission involved searching for a rank 15 beast. They managed to find it, but the beast discovered them. No one likes being spied on, and a beast is no different. With just one roar, the rank 15 beast killed Varkun. Even a Martial God stood no chance of escaping such a powerful creature.

There were many more casualties, but overall, more than 90% of martial god cultivators, and over 80% of lower-grade cultivators, survived the zombie disaster. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the end. Just as they were starting to grow comfortable, the next disaster arrived: the dark disaster.

The dark disaster is simple yet the deadliest. The sun disappears from the sky, and the world is plunged into darkness. Over 100 years, every source of light vanishes, leaving the entire world in blackness. Even lighting a fire provides no light. Gradually, even spiritual senses weaken until they disappear entirely.

The best and most rational way to survive this disaster is to hide in a cave and sleep for 100 years until the light returns. But, unfortunately, one can’t simply do that—there are monsters in the darkness known as dark leeches. Dark leeches are mysterious creatures that can only live where they cannot be sensed. Researching them is nearly impossible because any form of observation involves "seeing" or "sensing."

Dark leeches are precisely what their name implies—leeches. They attach to their host’s body and drain their life force. A rank 1 leech can’t harm a martial god, but there are countless mortals, and leeches as strong as rank 15 also exist. The dark disaster is the most terrifying of the five disasters, and survival depends mainly on luck. The fortunate may live through the century without encountering a single leech, while the unlucky might stumble upon a high-ranking one.

...

Mike emerged from closed-door practice. After a century, he had finally broken through to the martial god realm.

“Huh? Why is it so dark?” He gazed at the sky in confusion. It was pitch black, with no trace of light.

A dark sky in most worlds isn’t truly black. There are always sources of light, such as the moon and stars. Most people believe the sky is dark because they cannot see that light. With advanced equipment, one could still detect light, even in the darkest night. As a martial god, Mike’s sight was far more advanced than any equipment, so he should have been able to see something.

“There’s really no light at all! This is very strange,” Mike thought. He didn’t know about the five disasters, having gone into seclusion right after the appearance of the beast tide.

“Let’s ask Master Green,” he decided. Mike still owed 20 years of mandatory tasks to Master Green, so meeting him sooner or later was inevitable.

...

“My queen?” Master Green bowed. Lana wasn’t physically present, but distance meant nothing to her. She could see everything in this world, whether near or far.

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“Too boring! It’s too boring! I’m going to hype it up a little!” she exclaimed. The last two disasters had bored her to death. Too few people had died. She was hoping for mountains and oceans of corpses, but it hadn’t happened.

“My queen, I did my best, but without directly interfering, I couldn’t increase the casualties.” Master Green bowed again. The martial gods had learned too much about the disasters and were able to prepare. He had tried to increase the death toll by setting up dangerous tasks, like spying on powerful beasts, but it hadn’t had much impact overall.

“No worries. I’ll handle it myself. Soon, dark beasts will attack. The weakest will be rank 12, and the strongest will be rank 15. Prepare for a life-and-death battle,” Lana said in a flat tone.

“Yes, my queen!” Master Green replied.

...

Mike knocked on the door.

“Come in,” Master Green called.

Mike entered and sat down. “Master Green, I’ve broken through! I’m a martial god cultivator now!” He was pleased with his current strength. Though, compared to his original quasi-rank 10 power, it wasn’t much, in the current situation, this level of strength was far more reassuring.

“Mike! Congrats! Now, take this task.” Without any extra words, Master Green handed him a piece of paper. The task involved rebuilding the summer capital.

The confederation originally had three capital cities, but after the disasters, two were abandoned, and everything consolidated in the main capital. The reason was simple—it’s much easier to defend one place than three.

Mike glanced at the paper and nodded. It seemed like a safe task. There were already plenty of martial god practitioners there, and the area was clear of beasts. His role was to oversee the construction, protect the town from potential beast infiltration, and maintain public order.

Essentially, Master Green had just appointed him mayor of the summer capital. If this were made public, many martial god cultivators would compete for the task. It was a low-risk task that offered influence and a lot of free time. The mayor could delegate duties and use the time to advance in cultivation.

“Thank you!” Mike said, leaving with a smile. He knew this task was a favor—it was too good. So, he didn’t pretend to be dissatisfied. If he fails to show some gratitude, next time, Master Green might assign him a much more challenging task.

After Mike left, Master Green sighed. He was a bit jealous of Mike. The queen had ordered him to send Mike away. Dark beasts would soon invade, but the queen didn’t want Mike to die, so she had him sent away.

"The queen doesn’t even give such favorable conditions to me, even though I worship her," Master Green thought.

“Why does the queen favor this guy?” he wondered. Mike was, of course, talented. He had broken through to the martial god realm in just a century, but that was only possible because of the resources Master Green had provided. It’s possible the queen even gave him a unique gift that dissolved the poison in the low-quality pills Mike had been using, which explained why he only bought cheap pills with high impurity levels.

Still, the queen was a being of unimaginable power. Even the most talented martial artist was insignificant in comparison. Master Green couldn’t understand what made Mike worthy of her attention.

“Nobody is worthy of the queen’s love,” Master Green mused, dismissing the unsettling thought that his queen might have fallen in love. It seemed impossible. The queen was the enemy of life, the eradicator of existence, the embodiment of evil. How could such an entity feel love?

Yet, the thought lingered in his mind. In millions of years, he had never seen the queen personally protect anyone—except Mike. Not once, but multiple times, she had called personally, ordering him to go easy on Mike. That’s why Master Green had loaned Mike a trillion RM. Otherwise, there was no way he’d give out such a massive loan to someone he barely knew.

If loans were that easy to get, everyone would apply, promising to pay them back over tens of thousands of years. Typically, loans had to be repaid within 100 years, with a minimum of 1% interest per year. Master Green had made exceptions before, but never as extreme as Mike's loan.

After all, while martial cultivators live long lives, they aren’t invincible. What if they died by accident? Giving out loans couldn’t be a losing business. The longer the repayment time, the higher the risk.

Despite the federation’s various insurance systems, Master Green’s loans were never insured. If the borrower died midway through repaying the loan, Master Green absorbed the loss. Most practitioners kept their wealth in storage rings or portable treasures, and if they died far from home, the chances of recovering anything were slim.

Sending more martial gods to retrieve the deceased’s storage ring was out of the question. The borrower had likely encountered a rank 12+ beast, and sending more cultivators would only result in more losses. Risking lives to recover a debt was pointless.

Before the disasters, Master Green had operated under strict withdrawal limits on his funds from his diamond card. Every loan was carefully managed to balance risk and reward. But once the disasters struck, Lana lifted all restrictions. She gave him complete freedom to withdraw as much as he needed.