Do gods even need to exist? They can't do anything to us all simultaneously if we cursed their name together, yet they’re feared? All they do is work like an overseer and act incomprehensible! There is no help coming from them!
I question their existence because I observed that the gods don’t want us to prosper, they wanted sheep, and they will do anything to make their flock ignorant. I stripped myself of the awakened system, I fear what I’ll be after my death but if I had to choose, I will return to the earth as I was born from the gifts I was given.
─Excerpts from the Diary of an John Martin Heretic.
It was midsummer, the port was bustling as new merchant ships arrived and delivered goods and services to the city nearby. New clothes, spices and items to be sold. Kaharim checked all of his cargo before letting go to a carriage, it's mandatory over everything else. Can't let a bad product go out of the market.
“Kaharim,” A young man called.
“Vahel, what is it?”
“A Letter came from the magistrate, here.” Vahel passed a scroll, tied by a red ribbon and a wax seal keeping it together.
“Thank you, your services are always fast and reliable,” Kaharim smirked.
he tossed a gold coin towards the young man, who saluted with a smile before dragging himself somewhere else. For a merchant, information is his lifeline, he can't afford to be the last to receive the news. Kaharim opened the letter anticipating neither good nor bad news. But what he saw truly shocked him.
[Dear, all sailors.
merchants, pirates, the navy, and everyone who owns a boat or ship. This is an opportunity given by the empire. All sea-faring people are being hired by the empire to cross the sea. Refer to your local magistrate to apply.]
Kaharim raised a brow, the letter was an invitation, meaning he was not the only one who got this. But that's not the subject that got his attention. Every sailor and sea monger was being invited by this letter, something that was not done until a hundred years ago when the maritime trade was formed.
‘If every sea monger was being invited it could only mean one thing.’
The empire is exploring something beyond the sea.
‘Wait… don't tell me!’
Kaharim became excited, something beyond the sea could only mean one thing. They would cross the harshest sea and go forth, to the Ninth. He immediately cancelled appointments and some were placed on hold, his secretary was baffled by his actions but his feet soon led him to the magistrate's manor.
If the exploration of the Ninth Continent was successful and he was the first to build a place for himself there he would be one of the richest merchants in history.
***
It's strange, I'm certain that I agreed to convert soul energy to a hundred soul points and decided to ascend. But then, I was pulled somewhere, one that I didn’t expect to be but a place I didn't want to be in.
“So you ascended.”
The gods in front of me were clearer than the first time I'd been here, the one looking at me had the physique of a Greek god and looked lore-accurate to Zeus. Big muscles, a beard and a robe, doubt that he is wise though.
He looked at me with an annoyed look, my gaze wandered around the place and I saw different gods, I had my doubts, a lot of them felt like natural-born gods, then I looked farther, a weak presence and a dying essence.
Conceptual gods. Gods that aren't naturally born but created through the image of their followers. They're inferior to natural-born gods but stronger than deities and demigods.
“It seems that I did,” I replied nonchalantly
Multiple gods with strong presences went in front of me and looked down on me, I wondered why there was animosity between us, but I'm not going to take that lying down, if you want hatred, I can reciprocate.
“You should’ve bowed down and known your place.”
“What do you think when a false god was made powerful?”
“Do you think your followers would be safe?”
I was so confused at this point, I hadn’t done anything warranting this much animosity, even pulling my worshippers on this conversation, somehow I can't take it, it's like pulling my family into an argument unrelated to the topic.
“Pray tell, what have I done to be in this position of… malevolence?”
That somehow angered them more, I can't help but be unfazed by such behaviour, I'm confused and I'm not going to cower in front of these assholes.
“You don't know what you’ve done?! Birth of a new god and their rise of power will tip over the balance we’ve built for years!”
His angered voice caused small lightning to occur, looking down on me with such a tone grated on my nerves. So what if the balance you’ve created was going to be toppled? You should’ve thought of it properly when I came here and my position in this hierarchy.
“You talk like a mortal.”
I can't help but sneer, their eyes looked at me with nothing but pure malice, I can't help but say it over and over again but that's all I see, there's a god in the corner that seems uninterested, he’s probably a major god, thankfully he feels nothing about this.
Anyway, the talk with these gods went nowhere, it's filled with nothing but trash talk. The moment I felt ‘Complete’ I immediately descended back to the home of my followers, which was the Ninth continent.
[Year 20]
Time passed way too fast. I hovered above the continent and saw what it truly was, the presence of the other gods was easily felt from here, they were on other continents and their influences were no joke.
My true concern is from somewhere else. Multiple boats were trying to cross from the other continents and my continent. That's not good, I have failed to oversee what happened for the last 8 years and I need to catch up. I don't see the threat of the sailors reaching the ninth continent, the sea was harsher and the beasts lurking beneath were hungry, and even if they crossed, would they survive the monster season? Could they maintain their docks?
I went back to the foreline village and saw how things were different, but the biggest change was probably Lazarus he wore Yak clothing of the highest quality and fox fur draped around his neck and his pants were easy to move. Now he has a tattoo, one that came from the orcs.
“Lazarus.”
“F-Father! What happened? You disappeared for years!”
“I Ascended to a higher realm, what happened?”
Lazarus filled me in as usual, for the time I was gone the monsters soared high, and he had no choice but to fight back as well, he was taught the spear and from orcs, he was taught swordsmanship, however, the orcs swordsmanship are crude, due to their large physique he could only make use of a few techniques.
Checking the core members of my main sponsored children I saw how they have changed, Mari became a mother and a better mathematician, and she has matured beyond belief, Kasha, and Kavo as well. They looked different as well. Kasha’s Skills have expanded, she didn't stay idle all these years, she studied philosophy which is something she discovered on her own and made a better lifestyle for her people.
She also developed the skill [Natural Speaker] which makes her voice weigh with value, like reporters when they speak, it's clear and loud for everyone to understand. Kavo has the most change, now he has a wife and he is way busier unlike anyone else. He learned how to fight because sometimes the monsters would be able to cross to the village, and his clinic was near the forest.
He gained the title [Battle Medic] which was fitting.
After I was done checking Foreline Village with Zoe I went to the Marshland Village to check on Magnus. He started telling me stories I missed from the time of my absence.
In the eight years, they got bold, they built rafts which is in the earlier stages. And they sailed near the coasts. Their diet extended from small fishes and some frogs and crocs to completely large fishes that their rafts cannot store. They started developing better rafts and became bolder, now they reach the coasts of the sea and they fish a lot of good fish, now that I am a Minor god I can see things I previously couldn't,
Stolen novel; please report.
I could see that these fishes are mana-dense, which means that these fishes have a lot of potential to nurture soul energy. I observed what happens when they eat the fish and it kind of surprised me.
From the moment it was cooked in the flames to the mouth of the fishermen. I saw how the mana is absorbed and turned into soul energy, and it was bad, the absorption of the soul energy has a lot of waste coming out in the absorption process.
“Is this why only a few people could go beyond the demigod level?”
Well, that was my observation too far, my most pressing problem right now is probably the manpower in foreline village. I swear if the monsters continued to attack and it wasn't dealt with the foreline village would be forced to move, not when the orcs taught the villagers how to farm properly.
In the past 8 years, the Orcs and Foreline villagers exchanged knowledge and helped one another. The farms created in Foreline village are successful, the orcs brought their seeds and saplings to cultivate and in years they feed the village.
Thankfully as I left I gave the Aidens the right to exercise my power of blessing people, Lazarus did exactly that, his mission here is to scout for talent for me to bless, but it seems he blessed the people themselves when he had the chance.
“Father, would you like to take a look at my sons and daughter?”
“Three children in almost a decade, Lazarus you're way too active.” I teased
“I-I can't help it! My wife is way too demanding…”
With that, I just burst out laughing, in my past life I never had children, but I did cadre to my cousins, that is the closest thing I have to taking care of children, I can't help but look at my son proudly, it didn't matter in my mind that I created him he was a part of me.
“Sure Lazarus, let me see my grandchildren.”
Lazarus smiled shyly and led me to a wooden house, within 8 years the Orcs taught the Villagers carpentry, which gave them a better life, there were these cone tents from the marshland village but the wooden houses are better. I entered the house floating because I don't need to stay on the ground anymore, floating costs no SE and it's convenient to just float.
Lazarus had three children, two sons and one young daughter. When I entered their house I couldn’t help but notice the three heads in the wall, it's the village tradition to commemorate hunts, but it was orcish that they made the head of the beasts they hunt into a trophy, I could recognize one but not the two.
A Scorn giant, and the other two. The system portrays their name every time they get the kill, but I only need to send my intent and the system immediately tells me what they are.
[Scourge Malifex]
[Omniarc Kaputo]
The Scourge Malifex is shaped like a doghead, however, there are 6 eyes and they're beady they don't have teeth, only sharp outlines as their skin and skeleton seem to merge on the teeth. The Omniarc Kaputo is like two claws combined to form a head like an excavator claw placed with three sharp claws and two were combined, I don't see an eye on that thing.
“Father.”
Lazarus called on me, my gaze went back to him and the three heads that seemed to look at me, which indicated they could see me.
“This is Moyo,” Lazarus reached for the oldest, “This is Rei and this is Kaina” and he pointed at the last two.
Kaina seems to be only two years old, though she was already walking, Lazarus would her, what a needy child. Oh, and they were looking at me. They can see me, which is… surprising.
“How are you darlings,” I spoke to the three children.
Kaina is filled with curiosity. The two were excited as well.
“G-grandpa!” Moyo said first.
I guess he is excited, I chuckled and placed my feet on the ground, walked up to the 8-year-old boy and with enough SE I ruffled his hair. I did the same with the three children. We had a chat, but what interested me the most was when I asked them what they wanted to do when they grew up.
“I wanted to be like Dad!” Moyo declared.
Lazarus became a warrior and a hunter, both in between. He has high prestige in the village, it was 7 years ago when he became like that. Moyo was 1 year old and Mari was introducing him to her friends. When suddenly a Scorn boar came rushing towards Mari and her friends.
Fortunately, that time, Lazarus was on site so when he saw the boar rushing he ran like he never had done before and fought the boar barehandedly, the boar wasn't a beast, it was a monster. He could’ve been ripped to shreds but the boar was unfortunate to meet Lazarus with the dad power. It was beaten to a pulp.
I guess with a hundred thousand SE he had the power of a thousand souls. He was strong as a demigod even in a base, unexercised, state. Now, Lazarus was a sleek and lean dad who could beat anyone who tried to ask for his daughter’s hand in marriage.
“What a father’s son.”
Lazarus laughed, he ruffled his son’s hair. He is a family man.
For Rei, this got me interested.
“I want to explore the stars…” he was soft-spoken but not timid.
“Stars?”
“Hmm, they're pretty.”
Hmm, I guess that's a child's curiosity, though I'm quite curious, so with a thought I gathered enough information with the follower's panel, the Orcs seem to have converted to me, and thanks to that I learned that none of my followers had [Astronomy] as a skill. I looked at Rei and thought a bit.
“Would you like to know how?” I asked Rei and he tilted his head, “Would you like how to explore the stars?”
To that question, Rei’s eyes twinkled and he nodded innocently. I smiled and gave him a blessing. [Astronomy{E}], it has the knowledge of star tracing, naming and other skills combined, but knowledge is mostly given here. At this point, my past life is just a reference, when I became a Minor god I became more tied to the laws of reality and the abyss I only need to refer to a specific law or a chemical process and my mind would produce the answer.
All the knowledge I gave to Rei was such things, as star alignment, star luminosity etc. basically college degree stuff. Last was Kaina. I looked at the young girl and she looked at me, she raised her hands which surprised me, sorry Kaina, I’m intangible.
“So darling, what do you want to be when you grow up?” I asked, just out of curiosity towards Kaina.
“Mmm… dunno”
A simple answer came out, I laughed a bit and turned my gaze towards Lazarus.
“I’m going to Arkum and his hunters, but before that… here.”
I gave Lazarus a title, he’s a demigod, so he would have a title demigod, but that isn't enough. I gave him the title [Champion] the effects are simple he has [true damage] that I tailored. What is true damage? Simple as it sounds, if the enemy has a barrier it will be ignored, if the target is illusive, invisible or intangible? That doesn't matter, the damage from being punched by a demigod will still feel like a punch from a demigod.
Though the effect only delivers 10% true damage, it cost me 15,000 SE and it only gave Lazarus 10%, the system that delivers these is foolproof, so the creation of that effect for fifteen thousand is surely going to deliver a proper effect despite how downcast it looks.
“Uhm… father?”
“Lazarus, the fight isn’t over yet, correct? And it is getting worse.”
I remember the boats that were sailing towards the ninth continent, I estimated that if they managed to cross the harsh waters, the monsters of the sea and the unending storms they would get here within a century minimum. I need to deal with the monster problem, and then make sure my followers won't meet an end from those gods.
The harsh waters of the ocean separating the Ninth from the rest of the continents are filled with reefs, whirlpools, giant monsters and beasts that devour everything. I'm pretty sure it will take a lot of ingenuity, manpower and resources for them to cross.
“So… father… what is your plan?”
“To make sure you all survive? A lot. Expect me to disappear from time to time.”
“Alright.”
Without a bye I disappeared from the spot, ascending to a Minor god gave me a lot of perks, I could finally make my power system that I could bestow to my followers… no, scratch that, I'm giving it to the entire Ninth continent. I was gone for 8 years, to that time, the villagers managed to navigate the system and they exchanged a lot of things in the store.
[Hadro]
Status: Minor god
Followers:580
SE production: 700/y
Aidens: Magnus, Zoe, Lazarus.
First I looked at my status, Minor god, previously Lesser. Now that I am of higher form I am now more capable of other things. The first thing I would like to do is create my realm. Right now, with 8 years worth of collecting offerings and from the store cuts I got 160,000 (minus the 15,000) first and foremost I made 50 soul points.
The reason why my realm failed to open the first time is that I am of lower ranking, the system saving me from the gods, thankfully, and the second reason is that I needed Soul Points, not Energy. Soul points are a full soul, the standardized measurement.
With that, 50 soul points were spent and within my inner existence I imagined the form of my realm, there's the typical heaven and hell which I doubt I would make. I checked, how much for time dilation, the conversion would be 1:100 or 1 day equals a hundred.
That would cost an extra 100 SP, but I don't mind I wanted more, so I added more conditions, but it turns out that it wasn't that easy, every hundred days the soul points needed to be multiplied. From 100 to 300 to 900, in the end, 365 days is 950 soul points so my 160,000 Soul Energy became 55,000, is it a shame? Not really.
Thought I had to maintain the quota of my realm, but it turns out I don't have to, this realm is closed only to me and my followers. When deciding my realm, I referred to my past life. Heaven? Nah, impractical. Hell? There’s one already, a realm shared by any god and deity.
I checked what I wanted with this world.
I was reborn as a god after dying in an unfortunate accident.
A world of magic, where gods exist.
I recalled my previous world, where lots of history was made. And one thing I have missed is the complete study of God particle. I want to see that if possible, so I made my life’s purpose here to help these people. Since it's like that it is easy to imagine what my Realm would look like.
Rows and rows and columns and columns then stairs of multiple floors. I imagined a library, rows and rows of bookshelves and columns and columns filled with books, and not only that, mahogany desks lined up to an area and lastly, the reception desk. My Realm is a giant Library, the stories of my followers are all here what they learn and what has been learned in my past world would be here, and anything I learn would also be here.
After making it I entered inside, the smell of wood from the books and shelves made me feel comfortable. I also added computers, if someone died, their soul would be brought here, and of course, they have two choices, either to reincarnate back in nature or to eternally rest, which is being absorbed by me. The choice of staying here existed the moment they went into my realm, so I didn't add that choice because it was already chosen.
After making my realm I stayed there for a while, the time dilation would be enough to make me think of something since I don't have to maintain it. Countermeasures are what I need, from the colonizers coming from the other continents and the monster uprising.
The power system, it's time to make it. When I ascended I completely felt separated from mortal desires, I don't know why those gods feel this and instead talk like them, however, I don't see that as a bad thing, because they’re making my job easier.
I decided that the power system should be capable of both utility and assault. Devising one would be hard, however, as I looked around me, books that filled me made me realise that a Power System doesn't need to be hard. A magical language should suffice, applications may vary, such as magic circles, talismans and wards.
For that, I need a magical language. Latin, Greek and old English, theres a lot to reference from. But I don't plan to use any of those, nor rune nor anything that refers to my past life. I will create a new magical language from scratch, you may think that I'm being stupid, but I can think of everything I've learned in particle physics within a second, I'm no human anymore.
In a minute, it is all within a minute when I finished everything, from verbs, nouns and sentences, I made up a different language. After that, with all these letters and alphabets I wrote a book, a book of creation if I made the world, I described everything with every word I made up and then took a look.
A book with the thickness of a thumb is in my hands, all I have to do is materialise this and give it to my followers.
I went out of my realm, as of now, the only way to create magic is by skills I created. Now they could freely do so with this book, I hope it fills its purpose within my people.
***
The monsters have stopped gaining numbers, but instead started coming in with more power, the village is in danger, yes. That's why they plan on moving, but some don’t want to, saying it's a shame, which is true, the farmers have just started seeing the gains of their lands.
So they put forward a proposal, to go inside and vanquish the problem for once and all.
But as they do so they get a quest from their systems, from the god that had given them power.
[Quest]
«One and Undivided»
There are more tribes and there are more races in the continent than to meet the eye. Gather them all together and stand together, united as one under one banner.
There were no rewards unlike the last, but this made them wonder, a quest with no rewards? There is probably more than to meet the eye.
“Saentel, what do you think?”
“We have a problem with the monsters, they may not be of quantity but they sure have risen in quality these days.” a man with a wise beard spoke.
“Then why send us to find the other tribes?”
The council, as they call it consists of elders and thinkers from orcs and Foreline village itself. It was created a year ago as the populace of Foreline grew bigger. Naturally, decision-making and important roles were handed out by them.
“I see what's happening” Kavo called out.
“You do?”
Arkum asked to which Kavo nodded. “If we ever try to solve the problem ourselves and dive deep in the forest, it would most likely be that we’ll die, luckily the thing that Arkum had fought stayed in the forest, and we have yet to see more dangerous monsters.”
“So we should gather people up?”
“Probably, I doubt we’re the only ones having the same problem.”
Kavo continued to argue and place logic in their conversation, he was not the same young boy back then, but now he has the wisdom and wits of a seasoned man. He has a part in the council because he is one of only a few who has medical skills and expertise, his medical opinion is invaluable to the village.
“So, we gather strength and then solve the monster problem. Any objections?”
None, none objected. And on that night, the time of the week when they give an offering to Hadro, a book appeared on the altar. It turned the village upside down.