Chapter 173
Lu Chuan held two tools related to Blissful Void Dream.
The S-rank Dream Hypnosis could target anyone — player or NPC — plunging them into a dream where they’d reveal everything they knew. But at the moment, that was overkill for these small fry, so he set it aside.
The A-rank Lingering Sweet Dream was far more useful now. Within a dungeon, it could be used up to ten times, drawing one or more people into a pleasant dream of the user’s choosing.
Without that item, Lu Chuan wouldn’t dare impersonate a high priest of Blissful Void Dream.
In this timeline, without the Main God System, Blissful Void Dream had no way to verify his story. A fake name and identity would simply throw the god off. If it ever investigated Xi Jiangyuan, it would only grow more confused — sensing a close tie, yet finding no trace of him.
Heh.
Lu Chuan gave himself an approving nod.
“What’s a mortal incarnation of a god?” the naïve cultists asked.
“It’s the god’s embodiment in the mortal world,” Lu Chuan replied gravely. “I represent the god’s will — that’s all you need to remember.”
The cultists were skeptical.
If he was that powerful, how had they captured him?
“I happened to be ambushed by some gods and their followers,” Lu Chuan sighed, as if annoyed by his fate. “After a fierce battle, I was left weak — that’s when you caught me. If I weren’t still recovering, I wouldn’t even look twice at faithless strays like you.”
He exhaled, eyes cold. “Very well. Since you don’t believe me… I’ll make you believe.”
After speaking, Lu Chuan silently activated the item [Lingering Beautiful Dream].
The effect triggered, and one by one, the cultists at the scene collapsed, falling into endless dreams.
Naturally, those dreams were centered on the bright futures they each believed in.
[Host, those sacrificial victims have also fallen asleep, what should we do…] #888 suddenly reminded him.
Ah, right—besides the cultists, there were other sacrifices still being bled.
Lu Chuan glanced at the other captives bound to the pillars and gave them some medicine so they wouldn’t die of blood loss. As for the ones who were beyond saving, Lu Chuan sighed and could only grant them a final happy dream before death.
“It’s fine, they’re just leaving a step earlier. Once I’m done using this batch of cultists, I’ll send them off to die as well,” Lu Chuan said calmly. “First, we’ll use them as cannon fodder to help conquer the world.”
It almost sounded terrifying the way the host said such ruthless words with no expression.
888 couldn’t help but think so.
By the time [Lingering Beautiful Dream]’s effect wore off, the cultists already fully believed in Lu Chuan’s identity.
After all, he had truly given them the ability to live entirely different lives in their dreams. If they could live there forever, it would mean complete escape from this dangerous, collapsing world.
Thus, their faith in Lu Chuan came as naturally as breathing.
Having gathered his first batch of believers, Lu Chuan also discovered a little trick.
Now that order had just collapsed, and under the endless assaults of evil gods and their minions, humanity had almost no power to resist such unknown beings and forces.
But Lu Chuan had power.
Slowly, he gathered manpower, teaching these cultists how to perform divine descent rituals, how to pray for the power of [Dreams of Nothingness] to fight other evil gods.
Yes, using the name of the [Dreams of Nothingness] god, Lu Chuan began “black eating black”—on one hand expanding that god’s influence, on the other hand drawing hatred upon Him. Meanwhile, through deliberate maneuvering, Lu Chuan accumulated more and more followers and led them to raid other evil cultists, quickly amassing astonishing wealth.
It was well known that in order to develop their churches, gods would initially bestow divine-powered weapons. To players, these weapons were simply “items.”
Naturally, those were what Lu Chuan aimed to seize.
Who knew how many random attacks he’d still face in this world? And whenever the timeline shifted, everything he carried could be consumed. Therefore, Lu Chuan had to ensure that in every time segment, he had enough “bullets” to protect himself.
His mad spree of plundering items inevitably drew resentment.
More and more cultists and evil gods tried to besiege him.
If he encountered strong ones, Lu Chuan would run without hesitation; if they were weak, he would lead his people to take a bite out of them—despicable to the extreme.
But, as the saying goes, “If you often walk by the river, your shoes will get wet.” Soon, Lu Chuan and his followers ran into the true mortal vessel of another evil god and its cult.
This god was named [Rat of Pestilence], said to rule over plagues. Its human form looked like a rat spirit, with a pointed chin and whiskers, radiating a sly, nasty cunning.
Its followers were person-sized gray rats.
And its human cultists were covered in strange wounds and diseases, yet could still walk normally—like walking sources of infection.
“Holy Son, this god is very powerful. They say it’s the most fearsome in the south,” a believer whispered nervously to Lu Chuan. “And the one leading them is also a human vessel of the god, just like you. But this one is deeply favored, with many minions protecting him.”
“[Rat of Pestilence] is just a minor god, so naturally it guards its sole human vessel jealously,” Lu Chuan replied evenly. “But our god, the [Dreams of Nothingness], is fathomless. A human vessel like me? There are countless. If I want to stand out, I’ll need you all to make achievements, so that our god looks on us with favor.”
Of course, Lu Chuan knew his “Holy Son” identity was a complete sham. But since he was a player, with strength and items, even if the believers had doubts, they wouldn’t voice them.
Other evil gods, many of whom lacked the power to form full human bodies, would guard any suitable vessel fiercely until something better came along.
The fact that Lu Chuan had no [Dreams of Nothingness] minions around him naturally caused some suspicion.
“Holy Son, you are surely the most outstanding,” the believer assured him. “But this god is not easy to provoke. With our current artifacts, we may not be able to resist them.”
“With so many of us, no matter how careful, trying to leave will draw their notice. They must have already spotted us, only hesitating because they don’t know our strength,” Lu Chuan said seriously. He thought back to his experience instance—he’d never heard of [Rat of Pestilence]. Which meant either it had died during the divine chaos, or it had devoured others and evolved into something stronger.
The first possibility seemed more likely.
The so-called “Era of Divine Chaos” referred to the time when the world’s order had just collapsed, and countless gods descended on Earth to scramble for faith. It was the darkest period in human history—humanity’s population plummeted from tens of billions to under one hundred million. But from that era came the rise of investigators, who discovered patterns in the birth and death of gods, and carved out slim chances of survival.
Where gods died in battle, their divine power seeped into the world. Investigators who found such forbidden zones could, under that influence, awaken their own abilities.
That was the origin of humanity’s power to resist gods.
And during that time, with mass human death and divine tampering, potions and black technology also exploded.
Because the gods fought savagely over humanity’s faith, countless gods were born and perished.
Those who survived were the ones Lu Chuan would later meet in the experience instances.
Lu Chuan rubbed his chin, eyeing the cultists and minions of [Rat of Pestilence] greedily.
This god didn’t look weak. Its authority was interesting too. If he could strike a deal and use their power to corrupt other cultists, it would be immensely useful.
After all, plagues spread exponentially. If unleashed, they could wipe out entire cults of other gods. Of course, doing so would quickly unite the other gods against [Rat of Pestilence].
But what did that matter to him?
Whichever god died—it wasn’t his problem.
Reviewing his stash of items, he saw he still had healing tools and fully cooled-down offensive ones. He could afford to play a little wild.
With that, Lu Chuan waved his followers further back.
Then, under his wide cloak, he hid the [Infinite Holy Pistol] and [God’s Loan], ready to defend himself at any moment.
Afterward, in the guise of the [Dreams of Nothingness] Holy Son, he boldly approached the cultists of [Rat of Pestilence], demanding to meet their hierarch.
The mortal vessel of [Rat of Pestilence] had already sensed the group of cultists ahead, intending to devour them and possibly claim another vessel body.
But before he could act, the other side approached him first.
“Sir, I’ve come to discuss a deal,” Lu Chuan struck first, declaring, “Otherwise, you’ll no longer be a friend of the [Dreams of Nothingness], but an enemy.”
The mortal vessel of [Rat of Pestilence] sneered at Lu Chuan, clearly unimpressed. “When your god stands before me, then we’ll talk. A mere human is nothing to worry about…”
The next moment, Lu Chuan drew the [Infinite Holy Pistol].
He flicked out the divine bullets inside and eyed the rat-god’s vessel with a hint of amusement. “Would you like to see which gods these bullets came from? Your divine power may work well on humans, but against gods stronger than you, it’s useless. Otherwise, why would you have to enter a human body and play at being a hierarch?”
Don’t be fooled by the lofty-sounding titles—gods had ranks, too.
Just like that fake god pestering Messiah—good for nothing but harassment, and dying in disgrace.
In these times of godly resurrections and wars, lesser gods could only cling to their little plots of land, praying their authority wasn’t stolen by higher ones, slowly gathering believers to grow stronger. That was their only path to survival.
[The Plague Rat] was in the same situation.
During this era of divine turmoil, its ability to expand was far too restricted.
Humans were easy enough to subdue, but disease was not a method that could immediately kill either humans or divine followers. This made its position and power awkward.
Lu Chuan realized this, which was why he deliberately sought out [The Plague Rat].
He didn’t mind making the gods’ chaotic struggle even more chaotic.
“You really do carry a tangled mix of divine power auras. You’re not just a follower of [Beautiful Dream of Nothingness], are you?” [The Plague Rat], showing up in person, had the advantage of having gained a much deeper understanding of humans.
Even though humans were currently at a disadvantage, their restless, meddlesome nature was far too strong.
Humans were clever and full of potential. Given just a little space, they could grow rapidly—and then begin resisting.
Their souls, whether noble or vile, each held their own precious qualities.
That was why the gods were all so eager to pursue humans.
They loved human souls, and the stronger the soul, the more they loved it.
Compared with gods, who were endlessly vast and innately powerful, humans lived short lives—but possessed strange powers of their own.
[The Plague Rat], with a narrow domain and no great combat ability, had no choice but to personally recruit believers.
Gods like it were not rare, though not exactly few either.
There were only so many humans to go around, so the powerful gods took the lion’s share, and the weaker ones got scraps—nothing more.
“You’ve seen through me.” Lu Chuan smiled. “To be honest, besides [Beautiful Dream of Nothingness], I’m also a follower of [Mother of Fertility], [God of Exchange], [Omniscience God], and [God of Desire]. And, as you can see, I’m not without ability. The gods are quite satisfied with me.”
[The Plague Rat] warily eyed the pistol in Lu Chuan’s hand. It could clearly sense that this weapon could harm it to some extent—and this human seemed to have even greater powers.
That was what it couldn’t figure out.
During its past attempts at gathering believers, it had once encountered a human claiming to be a “player,” with power comparable to a god. It had barely managed to escape.
Humans were so weak, and yet once in a while, one of them would turn out monstrously strong.
But these humans called “players” hadn’t converted all of humanity into their followers, and that was what [The Plague Rat] could never understand. In the end, it could only conclude that humans were too diverse, incapable of uniting without friction.
“Since you’re under the protection of so many gods, what business do you have with me?” [The Plague Rat] raised its guard to the maximum. If this human showed the slightest hostile intent, it would kill him on the spot. Those powerful gods were far too busy to notice the loss of one follower anyway.
“I came to make a trade with you.” Lu Chuan smiled at [The Plague Rat]. “I want you to give me some of your divine seeds.”
Asking for divine seeds right off the bat—was this deliberate provocation?
[The Plague Rat]’s expression immediately changed.
Its mortal vessel had at least looked vaguely human before, but now it no longer resembled a person at all.
It released its divine power, intent on killing this audacious human.
[What the hell, a filthy rat dares to lay a paw on you, Host?!] #888 was furious. A god of this level—even if Lu Chuan killed it on the spot, the most that would happen was some trouble later when it revived.
“Calm down, System. We’re asking nicely right now,” Lu Chuan soothed #888. “Of course, if it refuses, I have plenty of strength and methods.”
[Of course, Host, you’re the best!]
Even without #888’s intervention, the divine power [The Plague Rat] unleashed was instantly dissolved by the mark Cang Jiu had left on Lu Chuan.
The gap between gods was glaringly obvious.
“You want my divine seeds? What do you have to offer in exchange?” [The Plague Rat] calmed down immediately. It hadn’t expected this human to be under the protection of such a powerful god. Since it couldn’t kill him, it had to at least hear him out.
“I don’t have anything else to trade,” Lu Chuan said with a smile. “But I can help you kill off the other minor gods and seize their domains. That way, you won’t remain a mere lesser god—you could rise to middle-tier or even high-tier.”
Lesser gods had narrow domains and weak power, forced to expand little by little. Middle gods usually held at least two domains and had churches with working systems that could recruit followers without constant divine appearances. High gods—like [Omniscience God] or [Mother of Fertility]—could freely descend and manipulate the world itself.
[The Plague Rat] was stuck between the lesser and middle tiers.
Not the weakest, but nowhere near strong.
Yet its domain was incredibly useful against humans and animals alike.
Without self-protection, being hunted down by other gods was only a matter of time.
Of course it knew its situation—that was why it walked in a human body, unable to face stronger gods head-on, forced to slowly grow its believers.
“Why should I believe you?” [The Plague Rat] resisted the idea. A human claiming he could help devour other gods’ domains—was that even possible?
“I think you misunderstand.” Lu Chuan cocked his pistol, casually releasing the divine mark Cang Jiu had left. Power belonging to the [God of Desire] spread out, temporarily suppressing [The Plague Rat].
888 sensed distant signals trying to connect.
Hmph, must be that Cang Jiu again.
The moment the Host used power, he was discovered.
888 chose to ignore it. The Host was handling business.
“Right now I’m making demands. All you need to do is answer yes or no.” Lu Chuan tilted his head. “If yes, give me your divine seeds, and we’ll work together to devour other gods. If no, I don’t mind turning you into one of my bullets.”
Looking at this utterly fearless human, [The Plague Rat] felt, for a moment, as though the man was stronger than itself.
Was this really a human?
It couldn’t help but wonder.
But faced with the gun barrel and Lu Chuan’s overwhelming divine aura, it could only lower its head, temporarily submitting.
“Fine. I agree.”
“That’s better.” Lu Chuan holstered his pistol with a faint smile. “I’m a peaceful man. If I don’t have to shoot, I’d rather not.”
After all, each shot drained his sanity, and without calming potions, he’d have to spend Sanity Cards instead.
But each card only added ten points. Using them would release that unstable 70-sanity version of himself, and then all his gear would be ruined.
“How many divine seeds do you want?” [The Plague Rat] asked bitterly. “Their potency is limited. They may not meet your expectations.”
“No need to be so modest.” Lu Chuan’s eyes curved in a smile. “Just a few dozen will do. Ideally with enough power to contaminate an entire river, so that everyone who drinks it falls sick. That’s the kind of effect I want.”
[The Plague Rat] stared at him in shock.
What was this—some follower of Death?
