The system is a mystery. Even now, I have no knowledge of it. However, it must have been created for a reason. The best case scenario would be that the creator is searching for a successor, and the system is test administrator. The worst case scenario would be that the creator needs some sort of sacrifice, and the system is a method of controlling us.

But why would such a powerful being need a successor?

The only certain thing is that the system contains an immense amount of power. Only when that power is completely exhausted will the system disappear.

Thus, I came up with a way to deplete every drop of that power.

Foreseeing one’s future is like lifting yourself up. No matter how strong someone is, they cannot lift themselves off the ground. Similarly, no matter how strong someone is, they cannot predict their own destiny. If one tries, their soul will dissipate.

However, nothing is absolute, and with enough external power, one should be able to forcefully hold their soul together.

At least, that’s my theory.

If my experiment succeeds, I will have not only removed the system, but also managed to see my future, and be better prepared for it. If it fails, I’ll still have my clones. It’s a risk worth taking.

Closing my eyes, I start to look into the future.

A thousand year, a million years, ten million years, a hundred million years…

Countless images flash through my mind, each appearing and disappearing right after a glimpse, until I arrive at a scene.

Two masters are fighting in a boundless universe. Looking at them, I know that a single strand of energy from the fight would be enough to reduce me to dust.

One of them has a crown on his head, and a scepter in his hand. When he strikes, I can feel the power of an empire channeled through the scepter. Judging by his clothing and domain, he should be The Emperor.

Strangely, I feel a certain sense of familiarity with the other one. Could it be … me? The domain used confirms it. If it’s me, then the universe should be mine as well.

Meanwhile, I can feel my soul under heavy pressure, on the verge of dissipation. As I expected, the system injects energy, keeping my soul stable. As I continue to watch my body crumbling, the pressure increases, and the system consumes more energy to stabilize my soul.

It’s only now that I can truly appreciate how much energy is stored inside the system.

As I'm fighting The Emperor, countless deities from The Emperor's world flood through the cracks of my universe. The gods of my universe are simply too few, and are quickly overwhelmed.

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After my gods fall, The Emperor’s minions start to attack me. Though they are weak individually, each having less than a trillionth of my strength, there are simply too many of them.

Eventually, I’m forced to escape. I open a passage in space, only to find it blocked immediately after.

That’s when I realize that The Emperor set up a formation around my universe, preventing me from teleporting away.

As the Emperor gathers all his power in one strike, he yells, “Heretic, how dare you reject the kindness of the Great One!”

As I lay critically wounded, I detonate my universe in an attempt to take him down with me.

A moment before my universe explodes, the river of time, which vanished right after the universe was created, appeared once more.

This time, the boat lies in splinters at the shore, and the currents of the river, which were once fierce and powerful, are now slow and lethargic.

I see my body beginning to crumble.

At this point, all the energy inside the system is depleted, and I immediately return to the present.

Thinking back about the fight, there’s one thing in particular that disturbs me. How did The Emperor manage to set up a formation around my universe without me noticing?

I definitely would have sensed it if a formation was set up right outside my universe. After all, setting up a formation around my universe would be like building a wall around your house.

I can only think about two ways it could have happened. The first was that a calamity hit my universe, and The Emperor took advantage of that time to lay down the formation. The second, more disturbing conclusion is that there was an accomplice who laid down the formation while I was fighting The Emperor.

I’m more inclined to believe the second conclusion. When The Emperor attacked, he said, “Heretic, how dare you reject the kindness of the Great One!”

It’s likely that the Great One is the creator of the system, and his kindness refers to the system.

What most likely happened in that timeline was that I found a way to separate the system from my soul, incurring the wrath of the Great One, and he directed the other world deities to eliminate me, most likely offering a reward to the one who did, as well as giving them my location.

The formation is likely the work of others cooperating with The Emperor to share the bounty.

However, the Great One did not eliminate me himself, and instead used others to get rid of me. This most likely means that he has lost most of his power, and cannot spare any strength to eliminate me.

This also means that it is highly likely that the Great One is rearing us like farm animals, waiting until we ripen to slaughter us.

Now, it’s time to make plans on how to prevent the future. The Emperor’s attack should occur in roughly two billion years.

The easiest way to avoid death would be to create more clones. However, the Great One has given the other world deities my location, and he will most likely also give away the locations of my clones. Each of my clones is significantly weaker than my true body, and the other world deities will have no problems eliminating them. However, there may be hope if I can hide my location...

Another way is flee the moment I’m attacked, but I’ll eventually be hunted down anyways.

Thinking back about the fight, I realize the reason I lost was not because I was weaker than The Emperor, but that my universe’s overall strength was simply pathetic. My strength was actually slightly higher than The Emperor, but the flood of his subordinates overwhelmed me.

Getting an idea, I grab a soul and begin to inject power into it.

I split off an infinitesimally small part of my true spirit, inserting it into the soul of my creation, coexisting with the original true spirit.

Watching it take form, I smile and say, “Your name shall be Iris, goddess of progress."