Karl: You're Testing Me Again!

In the dim background, flickering candlelight, and a hooded figure. Though his face was obscured, Karl perfectly fit Yuan's image of Death.

After Karl spoke, the command center fell into complete silence. Yuan hadn't expected that a casual remark would actually draw Karl out.

"Hiss!" Yuan's expression remained calm, but inwardly, he gasped.

"Shiver, shiver!" The guards behind Bruis trembled incessantly, annoying Yuan.

"Quiet!" Yuan snapped at them without hesitation, drawing Karl's gaze.

"Taotie? Heh, Taotie!" A slight shift in tone put immense pressure on Bruis and his two companions.

"Our God, Karl!" Bruis's voice grew hoarse. He didn't know how to face this supreme deity, the one who had led the Taotie Civilization for tens of thousands of years.

"Oh? Am I still your god?" As Bruis called out, a flicker of light flashed in Karl's eyes.

"Of course, you have always been the supreme god of the Taotie, our God Karl, Your Excellency."

Bruis's unwavering tone seemed to soften Karl's gaze.

"Then what are you doing here?"

"We, we, we are!" Bruis stammered, unsure what to say to Karl.

"Tsk, tsk, a god whose reputation precedes him is indeed oppressive. Bruis, have you forgotten what I said? You have no secrets before your god. It's not shameful to have aspirations, but it is shameful to not dare admit them."

"Heh, you're right." Karl greatly admired Yuan's performance. "You are a competent scholar, and perhaps you will be an excellent god."

"We want to progress so badly!" Bruis sighed deeply. Though fear still lingered in his eyes, there was no turning back now. It was better to face death head-on than to die trembling.

"For 2,700 years, you led us from primitive civilization to Astral Civilization. We revered you, served you, and created death for you. We have lived this way for tens of thousands of years.

We also want to progress, we want to experience the scenery of God-making civilizations, and that is why we are here today."

Under the astonished gazes of the Taotie soldiers behind him, Bruis straightened his body. His eyes openly displayed his ambition and longing for God-making civilizations.

"We don't aspire to become gods, but we crave power. We pursue strength, we pursue death. It was your choice, our God, you etched it into our genes, yet you restrict us."

"Tools should act like tools. Uncontrolled tools are either discarded or destroyed." Karl's eyes turned cold, and a terrifying aura permeated the hearts of everyone present.

Yuan watched the scene indifferently. If Karl wanted to kill them, he would have done so already. Why wait? This great god, what didn't he know? Why was he rambling on with them here, delaying?

Was he buying time? Yuan thought, scoffing at himself. Why would he need to buy time from them? Couldn't he just summon a star and blow them up?

"Buying time? Buying time?" Yuan's heart skipped a beat as he recalled the murals detected by the probe.

Under the bright sun, God's creations spun rapidly, and disaster struck. That passage repeated in Yuan's mind several times, and suddenly, he seemed to understand something.

Yuan's expression changed drastically. He slammed his hands onto the table, the immense force collapsing the command console. The earth-shattering explosion stunned everyone.

Karl, who had been looking stern, blinked and looked around curiously, seemingly puzzled by the explosion.

"Thump! Ding-dong-clang!" A small device slipped from Bruis's hand, making a soft sound as it hit the ground.

Karl's expression changed. He turned abruptly and looked. The warship's main cannon was emitting wisps of smoke, and the ruins were shattered by the blast.

The three rings within the hourglass cone, which had been spinning rapidly, now lay still.

"What are you doing?" Karl asked, word by word.

"Hey, it's come to this, why are you still asking me? Death God Karl, why have you been buying time?" Yuan's tone was nonchalant.

"You know what I'm doing?"

"Not at all." Yuan spread his hands, looking helplessly at the astonished Death God.

"But I know you definitely don't want me to have a good time right now. Whether it's a kind test or a malicious probe, I don't want it. So, since this place is useless anyway, let's just blow it up."

Good heavens, what a guy! Karl was almost amused. He truly wasn't worried about the consequences if he angered him, or did he not want the benefits? Who was he showing that greedy act to before?

"You're testing me again!" Anger flared in Karl's voice for the first time.

"Heh, yes, Your Excellency Death God. Please forgive me, after all, I am too weak. When I become the God King one day, I will be completely honest with you."

Seeing Yuan's innocent demeanor, Karl was amused. Honest? More like I'll bring you my head.

"How did you know?" This was another of Yuan's tests. He wanted to experiment and see what state this projection was in.

Was it a divine clone, a simple logical program, or a virus? Most importantly, could it manipulate the Dark Dimension, could it perform the terrifying feat of the Great Worm Bridge again?

The appearance of the Jade Wall earlier hadn't dispelled Yuan's doubts. Perhaps the Jade Wall already had a programmed response, allowing it to appear and hover at Karl's beckoning.

Therefore, he had handed the interface to Bruis. Under the guise of moving supplies, Bruis had severed many information connections on the warship and even switched the main cannon to manual mode.

When he realized Karl was stalling, he remembered the murals depicting the so-called divine power. Regardless of whether it was a weapon or a test, Yuan didn't want to accept it.

Even if he made a mistake and destroyed valuable data, he wouldn't care. Scholars were indeed greedy for knowledge, but one had to be alive to be greedier. No matter the outcome, gambling wouldn't make things worse, so why not?

Thus, the scene before them unfolded. The facts proved Yuan had gambled correctly. The Karl before him lacked the ability to control the Dark Dimension, or perhaps he was too far away, or subject to some restriction.

Indeed, Karl didn't want a major confrontation. Under the suppression of Holy Kaisha, he didn't want to expose too much at this juncture.

Moreover, the changes in the Great Worm Bridge had already attracted the attention of the Angel Civilization. At this moment, even Death God Karl had to praise Yuan for choosing the perfect timing.

Karl clapped his hands, a satisfied smile on his face.

"Yuan, you are truly remarkable. You have learned all the knowledge of the Taotie Civilization. In a way, I am also your teacher. Today, I will teach you a lesson."

"Of course, I am honored. Please enlighten me."

"The probes of the weak are always just probes; they shatter at the slightest touch. Look, it has awakened."

As he spoke, a pillar of light shot up into the sky above the ruins.

"Roar!"