The 100,000 Ways to Die in Bizarre Fashion had finally started up again. It had only been a day, but Yang Qizhou felt rather fond of it.
The plot, though, left him speechless.
Once again, it was a fall from reality into illusion. Once again, a gigantic face with nine eyes and thirteen mouths appeared in the sky. It was enough to make him think the "Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World" was about to descend, but the buildup wasn't over yet.
What a waste of emotion.
The text kept scrolling. The adventurer, hopping back and forth between death and resurrection, had returned to the River of Death. Would he choose a normal resurrection, or use the power of the Doom-Bringing Raven to turn back time?
Yang Qizhou chose the second option: turn back time.
If he resurrected normally and the Fire-Stealing Priest completed the divine descent ritual in the meantime, all his efforts would have been wasted.
"An adventurer shamelessly using cheats, you returned to the moment when you made your last choice."
"The hazy, dreamlike giant face appeared in the sky once more, and unknown whispers echoed in your ears. Lena believed the Fire-Stealing Priest had begun the divine descent ritual and voiced her guess."
"Having been bitten to death by the dog once again, you knew the truth and remained calm, telling her the time hadn't come yet."
"Lena calmed down."
"The two of you continued toward the Fire-Stealing Priest's residence and arrived at the room where the Evil Altar had been set up."
"You saw the Fire-Stealing Priest standing atop the altar. Half his body had already twisted into an illusion, fish gills had appeared beside his ears, and his reflection was growing more and more transparent. His form was becoming increasingly indescribable, and he had descended into madness."
"He said he wasn't surprised that you and Lena had arrived."
"He also laughed maniacally, saying he was about to receive the gift of the 'Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World' and transcend the suffering of the flesh, becoming a hidden life-form able to move between reality and illusion."
"You saw that Lena was heartbroken. She rebuked the Fire-Stealing Priest for abandoning his faith."
"The Fire-Stealing Priest laughed scornfully and said in a sinister voice that the Ancient Fire-Stealing God wasn't a true deity at all. It was merely an incomplete thing born of Blasphemy, fooling its followers to maintain its divine status. The 'Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World,' on the other hand, had existed since ancient times as a divine sovereign, and could truly protect Fire-Stealing Village from the unknown horrors of the Wilderness."
The Ancient Fire-Stealing God wasn't a true deity?
It was merely a byproduct of Blasphemy?
Yang Qizhou narrowed his eyes. This passage had revealed quite a lot of hidden information.
He still couldn't tell whether what the Fire-Stealing Priest had said was the truth, or whether the "Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World" had made it up to trick him into abandoning his faith.
He'd make a note of it for now.
The game continued.
"Lena grew agitated and argued against the Fire-Stealing Priest's blasphemous words."
"The adventurer's instinct to question everything made you pay attention to this information. After all, as an atheist, you wouldn't blindly worship a deity."
"The Fire-Stealing Priest lost patience and commanded an unseen hound to attack you."
"You heard a dog bark."
"This time, you weren't bitten to death, because Lena blocked the vicious dog."
"The Fire-Stealing Priest watched and praised Lena, saying she was every bit her father Porter's daughter. She could even hold her own against the Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World's servant, the Root-Court Hound, which traveled between illusion and reality."
"The Fire-Stealing Priest began chanting the Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World's divine name. He paid you no mind, thinking you were trash."
Hey, hey, hey! When are you going to stop, you damned narrator?
I know my character's pretty trash right now. He can't even beat the weakest shrimp on Ancient Earth. But you don't have to keep rubbing it in, you bastard.
Yang Qizhou grumbled inwardly, seething with resentment. Still, he'd learned the name of the invisible hound from the Fire-Stealing Priest.
"The Root-Court Hound can travel between illusion and reality. That's pretty cool."
"If I could raise two of them, I'd be the coolest guy around."
The game continued.
Yang Qizhou quickly reined in his wandering thoughts.
"You knew the crucial moment for stealing the divine descent ritual had arrived. You began chanting the Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World's divine name alongside the Fire-Stealing Priest."
"The Fire-Stealing Priest was furious at first, cursing you as a despicable thief trying to steal a 'divine gift.' But he soon laughed scornfully, saying that the divine descent ritual required an altar, an offering, and the divine name. All three were indispensable. You had only the divine name, but no altar, and you didn't even have the 'sacred relic' required for the descent. Recklessly chanting the divine name would only anger the deity."
"The Fire-Stealing Priest swore that once the divine descent ritual was over and he had transformed into a hidden life-form, he would imprison you in a Cage of False Reality and have the Root-Court Hound gnaw on your flesh day and night. You would suffer endless pain without being killed, and be tormented forever."
Damn, that was brutal.
Yang Qizhou was stunned. If he were imprisoned with no way to die or escape, wouldn't that render the account useless?
That method was cruel and terrifying, too.
"The Fire-Stealing Priest finished chanting. He raised both hands and waited to be bathed in the gift of the Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World."
"You finished chanting, too. Knowing full well that the Rag Stained with the Great Lord's Blood on the altar was no longer the original one, you wore a deeply mocking smile."
"The divine descent ritual was complete."
"You saw Lena frozen in midair, her figure gradually disappearing, as if her existence were being erased with an eraser. The terror on her face was plain to see."
"You then saw a pillar of pure white light descend from the heavens. Within it was an indistinct figure, more than ten meters tall, with no features and limbs twisted into strange shapes."
"You felt an immense divine might surge toward you. Your whole body tensed, sweat poured from you, and you didn't dare look directly at the exalted figure."
"The Fire-Stealing Priest's laughter grew even more frenzied. But before he could revel for long, he saw in horror that his own body was disappearing, as if his existence were being erased with an eraser."
"He screamed madly at the ancient, colossal, exalted figure of the Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World, insisting that he was a follower. But the divine sovereign paid him no heed."
"You felt the gaze of the Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World. This exalted being already knew that you had offered the 'sacred relic' and chanted the divine name. Your devotion pleased the deity, who bestowed two servants, the Root-Court Hounds, upon you."
"You obtained 2 'Root-Court Hounds.'"
Yang Qizhou was beside himself.
It was as if the deity had read his mind. He'd just said that raising two Root-Court Hounds would be unbelievably cool, and the Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World had granted his wish in the blink of an eye.
Thinking about the trap he'd set for this deity, Yang Qizhou felt rather bad for the old god.
The text kept scrolling.
"The Fire-Stealing Priest couldn't believe his eyes. He couldn't accept that the gift meant for him had fallen into the hands of a trashy little thief. He cursed madly, unable to understand why."
"You gave him a mocking smile and asked... Were you really sure the 'Rag Stained with the Ancient Sovereign's Blood' on the altar was the original sacred relic?"
"The Fire-Stealing Priest was stunned."
Before you continue