This Is Called Prudence

Quintessa smiled. "Then let's begin the second course of treatment, Master. Choose the direction you want your evolution to take."

Tang Chuan had already spread his arms, ready to suffer humiliation, but he had not expected this twist.

He asked in surprise, "I still have to choose an evolutionary direction? There wasn't a step like this in the first course."

Quintessa patiently explained, "The first course was different. Its main purpose was to lay a solid foundation for your future evolutionary path, allowing you to adapt to most evolutionary forms. That was why it was more well-rounded. Your strength, agility, resistance, and healing ability were all enhanced across the board."

"However, starting with the second course, we must begin defining your future life form according to your wishes. Even deities have certain areas where they are exceptionally strong, as well as areas where they are comparatively weak."

"I cannot make that decision for you, nor can every aspect develop evenly. Or rather, all-around development sometimes means that nothing stands out particularly."

Tang Chuan understood. That really was the case. So the first course had merely laid the groundwork for his future evolution.

After thinking for a moment, he asked, "How do I choose? Give me a template or something so I can think it over."

Quintessa nodded. "You may choose five attributes and rank them in order. Based on the sequence you provide, I will prioritize evolving the attributes toward the front."

"For example, strength, agility, reaction speed, resistance, self-healing ability, bodily control over elemental power, and so on. You may choose from all of these attributes."

Wasn't this just allocating skill points?

But unlike a game, these skills would truly manifest on his body through the Fantasy Attribute and Diluted Divine Power!

Once Tang Chuan understood that, he became somewhat excited.

After thinking for several minutes, he solemnly said to Quintessa, "Escaping comes first, self-healing second, defense third, reaction ability fourth, and strength fifth. I won't consider abilities like bodily control over elements for now. Evolve my life form according to that ranking!"

The reason he ranked self-healing second instead of defense second—

Was because Tang Chuan believed that if he encountered danger, it was fine even if he got hurt a little, as long as he could escape.

As long as he survived to the end, he would be invincible.

So defense would have to settle for third place.

As he spoke, Tang Chuan thought of another point and added, "The Divine Core can completely resist mental attacks. A Main God's will cannot be shaken; that is an iron law of the universe. So just pile these attributes onto me in the physical sense."

Quintessa was speechless. "That's too cautious, Master. Have you really thought this through? This concerns the direction your future life form will take. Are you sure you want to rank strength so far back?"

Tang Chuan said, "(￣へ￣) This is called prudence. Watch your words. I've already made up my mind."

Quintessa said helplessly, "All right, as you wish. But what counts as being cautious in your eyes? Does Kubana count?"

Tang Chuan said, "Of course. He became a traitor through excessive caution. It shows that his faith was not firm enough."

Quintessa said, "Master, isn't that called a double standard?"

Tang Chuan immediately turned serious. "How could it be? I never use double standards. It is merely an ideological difference caused by asymmetry in class and information under the realities of the situation, as well as differing perceptions between idealism and materialism."

Quintessa stifled a laugh. "Fine, whatever you say. Now, imagine a rough outline of a life form in your mind, and then we'll begin."

"Okay."

Tang Chuan answered, then focused his thoughts. One biological form after another emerged in his imagination as he weighed them against each other.

In the end, he thought of a game from Azure Star called "Prototype Slaughter." The Darklight Virus infecting its protagonist provided an excellent template for a human-like form.

However, he removed the Darklight Virus's ability to infect others and devour their attributes.

Put all those attributes into survival abilities for me!

Once I return to being a Main God, how could I possibly lack the strength to crush others?

Tang Chuan said to Quintessa, "I've decided. Take a look and distribute things reasonably for me."

Quintessa said, "Um, Master, you need to take off the hat on your head first."

Without suspecting anything, Tang Chuan quickly removed the Crown of the Wine God he had won from the drinking contest and handed it to Quintessa.

"This is my trophy. Keep it safe for me. A king's crown must not be lost..."

"Hurry, my memory is bad. I'm already about to forget it."

Quintessa gave a wry smile as she stored away the Crown of the Wine God. "All right... We'll begin now!"

The Metal Watch on Tang Chuan's wrist instantly expanded and stretched, transforming into a smooth metallic egg that enveloped his entire body.

Inside.

The Divine Transformation Device began operating. Driven by Diluted Divine Power, gray gas began venting from every direction within the egg, while over a hundred hair-thin needles pierced Tang Chuan's acupoints and clusters of neurons.

Evolution began once more.

Cangmang Star.

Canghuang Continent.

Several more years passed. Under the gods' influence, the civilization of this world began advancing toward city-state civilization at an astonishing pace.

Cities and palaces began rising throughout the main territories of the Eagle Empire and the Sun Empire, while statues of the God of War and the Sun God sprang up everywhere.

The Eagle Empire led the way, after all, since the core technologies remained under its control.

The main reason was that the cement, firebrick, and concrete formulas developed by the sage Kubana were simply too useful!

They greatly guaranteed both the construction speed and structural strength of the cities.

Although the Sun Empire obtained crude versions of those formulas through various means—

There was one technology that the Eagle Empire's two leaders, primary and secondary, kept under strict control and could not afford to lose!

Gunpowder!

Yes, through his own wisdom and the Enlightenment Books in his mind, Sage Kubana had already refined black powder from materials such as saltpeter!

However, to prevent technological leaks, the extraction of gunpowder was personally supervised by Hu'erlun and Kubana!

They even went so far as to have criminals condemned to death redeem themselves through labor, imprisoning them in sealed environments and forcing them to develop it day and night!

After enduring one hundred days of intensive labor, those prisoners, half-dead from exhaustion, believed they had redeemed themselves and could regain their freedom.

The leaders did indeed take them away.

However, they were not sent home. They were simply killed!

Anyone who left the palace could potentially cause a technological leak, and that was something Hu'erlun and Kubana refused to allow!

As for where those condemned criminals ultimately went, no one cared.

For one thing, they had all been secretly summoned into the palace by the leaders.

For another, at worst, they were dead.

In most people's eyes, they deserved to die anyway. People of this era would not concern themselves with the fate of death-row prisoners.

Under this extreme exploitation, Kubana quickly produced crude versions of the "Explosive Barrel" and "cannon"!

Although the Sun Empire's influence continued to grow, and under the great power of Archmage Loserius, the number of Supernatural Beasts joining the Sun Empire had reached a terrifying total of nearly one hundred—

These supernatural creatures possessed enormous, powerful bodies and tough scales that were difficult to break.

Some even possessed intelligence comparable to that of humans.

They should have been invincible existences to humanity in this era.

Yet under the leadership of the Explosive Barrel, cannons, and Hu'erlun, the strongest creature on the surface, the Eagle Empire could now attempt to face the Sun Empire in open battle!

The constant border conflicts seemed to herald the imminent emergence of the continent's ultimate victor.