Early the next morning.
He was a player in the World of Weirdness, the mastermind who had made an evil god pregnant, a man who wielded the power of Blasphemy against fate—great Yang Qizhou—and he was about to head out to work.
There was no other way around it.
Yang Qizhou had made decent progress in the World of Weirdness. Aside from the Mother Goddess Flower Seed of the Dream Realm, which he'd already placed on the Evil Altar to use against the "Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World," he also had the Rag Stained with the Great Lord's Blood, Kanrui's Wizard Ring, and the Ancient God Fire Lamp. He had a few strange and uncanny tricks up his sleeve.
But he was still flesh and blood. He needed to eat, pay his internet bill, and drink cola. On top of that, he still hadn't figured out next month's rent.
If he didn't find some work soon...
He might starve to death before he could clear the World of Weirdness and become a god who wielded divine authority.
In a novel, I'd definitely be the most tragic protagonist.
Yang Qizhou had found a job sorting packages at a courier depot. He worked ten hours a day and earned about three hundred yuan. It was tiring, but the pay was enough to put food on the table.
By the time his shift ended, it was already nine at night.
It was completely dark now. The night stretched deep, the moonlight lingered, and the stars hung upside down in the sky, twinkling. As Yang Qizhou gazed at the scene, a sense of wonder suddenly welled up inside him.
He thought of the Ancient Earth.
The unknown Wilderness of that world was filled with countless horrors. The sun could not be looked at directly, and the darkness could not be endured for long. Dreams held terrors; the unknown and the mysterious coexisted, as did horror and distortion. There were followers of the Old Gods, Ancient Dominators, and twisted lifeforms.
By comparison...
His own world was beautiful. He could look straight at the sun and walk through the night whenever he pleased.
"A joint exercise is underway up ahead. This street is temporarily under restriction. Please take another route. Thank you for your cooperation."
On his way home, Yang Qizhou saw that the street had been cordoned off. Police lights flashed, and law enforcement officers were stationed there to keep watch. It was quite the spectacle.
How much trouble was a large-scale exercise in the city going to cause for the good people?
He'd have to take a detour.
Damn.
Though he grumbled to himself, Yang Qizhou didn't want to cause trouble, so he prepared to go around.
Amid the blue and red lights, a familiar figure flashed through the crowd. A faint scar on the right cheek was just barely visible, and Yang Qizhou, who had been about to leave, stopped in his tracks.
It was him.
What was he doing here?
Yang Qizhou narrowed his eyes. Not even twenty-four hours had passed, and that faint scar was so distinctive that he recognized the man at once: the one who had knocked on his door in the middle of the night, claiming to be a community worker conducting a census.
Unlike last night... this time he was dressed casually, and it was obvious that he had considerable authority in the restricted area. Law enforcement officers lifted the cordon for him, and some even saluted him.
A community worker clearly wouldn't hold such a high position.
"He actually entered the restricted area?"
"Looks like my guess was right. The authorities are monitoring the entire internet and have set 'World of Weirdness' as a keyword. Anyone who searches for it will come to the attention of the relevant department, which will send someone to their home."
"If that's the basis for my next deduction, then the temporary restrictions on this block probably aren't for a joint exercise. There's a good chance they have something to do with a player in the World of Weirdness."
Should he go take a look?
Yang Qizhou was tempted. He was curious about what was happening inside.
He wasn't worried about the man recognizing him, since the new line of fate after his rewind had never brought them into contact.
But there was one thing that gave Yang Qizhou pause: how would he get away if he was discovered?
"The relevant department's members are probably players in the World of Weirdness too. They have strange, supernatural abilities, though I don't know how powerful they are."
"Blasphemous Raven still has one use left today. If there's any sign I've been spotted, or if I run into danger, I can rewind to escape."
"But there's a problem."
"Once I'm forced to make a choice, the rewind point will probably be overwritten. If the man with the faint scar noticed me from the start, then even if I use the Doom-Bringing Raven's ability afterward, I'll only return to the newly overwritten save point. I still won't be able to avoid exposure."
"So, to be cautious, I need to use the Doom-Bringing Raven to break away from my current line of fate before the rewind point is overwritten."
"That way, I can make sure I won't be exposed."
Having made up his mind, Yang Qizhou went to an empty corner and slipped a bronze ring onto his index finger. The moon was full tonight, its hazy silver light spilling over him.
Anyway, this wasn't the Ancient Earth. He didn't need to worry about the Wizard's universally hated nature.
Then he slipped into the restricted area.
He had to admit, the items in the World of Weirdness were powerful. Though Kanrui's Wizard Ring was only a common-grade item, activating it not only granted night vision but also greatly enhanced his physical abilities.
With that strength, Yang Qizhou crossed the cordon with ease and followed the man with the faint scar on his right cheek.
The man wasn't wandering around.
He headed straight for the entrance to a residential complex.
Four people had already gathered there: three men and one woman. They clearly knew each other, and they all raised their hands to greet the man when he arrived.
From a shadowy corner, Yang Qizhou tried to stay quiet so he wouldn't give himself away, and listened in on their conversation.
"This game is such garbage. Three lives, and I couldn't even last ten minutes. I didn't make any progress in the story, and I'd already used up all my deaths."
"You're still better off than me. At least you got a common-grade item. I've been playing for six or seven days and haven't gotten a thing."
"What's six or seven days? I've been playing for more than ten days! Other than the talent I got from Fate Blessing, I haven't even seen the shadow of an item. I've died in all kinds of weird ways, too. The most ridiculous was when I died just for stepping forward with my left foot."
"Fuck. We may sound impressive, but really, we're barely any better than ordinary people."
Yang Qizhou was surprised.
From what they were saying, they'd been playing the World of Weirdness for quite a while. Yet not only had they failed to earn any great rewards, most of them hadn't even obtained a common-grade item. Their only supernatural abilities were the starting talents they'd received from Fate Blessing.
In other words... the members of the relevant department were actually all noobs.
Thinking of the Rag Stained with the Great Lord's Blood, the Ancient God Fire Lamp, and Kerry's Wizard Ring in his possession, Yang Qizhou laughed without the slightest shame.
"Honestly... you're all so bad."
Before you continue