Stealing the Gods' Boon, Root-Court Hound...

The ten thousand bizarre ways to die had finally begun again. After a day of absence, Yang Qizhou actually felt a sense of familiarity.

However, the plot left him speechless.

It was another descent from reality into illusion, and once again, a giant face with nine eyes and thirteen mouths appeared in the sky, making it seem as if the "Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World" was about to descend, though the prelude had not yet ended.

What a waste of emotions.

The text continued to scroll, prompting the explorer—who kept jumping back and forth between death and resurrection—to arrive at the River of Death once more. He had to choose between a normal resurrection or using the power of the "Doom-Bringing Raven" to rewind.

Yang Qizhou chose the second option: rewind.

If he were to resurrect normally, the Fire-Stealing Priest would complete the divine descent ritual during the interim, and all his efforts would be for naught.

"Shameless explorer using cheats, you have returned to the moment you made your last choice."

"The blurry, dreamy giant face appears in the sky once again, and unknown whispers echo in your ears. Lena believes the Fire-Stealing Priest has already begun the divine descent ritual and voices her conjecture."

"Having been bitten to death by a dog once before, you know the truth and remain calm, telling her that the time has not yet come."

"Lena settles down."

"The two of you continue toward the residence of the Fire-Stealing Priest and arrive at the room where the evil altar is set up."

"You see the Fire-Stealing Priest standing upon the altar. Half of his body is already twisted and illusory, fish gills have appeared by his ears, his reflection is becoming increasingly transparent, his figure is growing more and more indescribable, and he has fallen into a state of madness."

"He expresses no surprise at your and Lena's arrival."

"He laughs maniacally, claiming he is about to receive the grace of the "Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World" to transcend the suffering of flesh and blood and become a hidden lifeform capable of traversing between reality and illusion."

"You see that Lena is heartbroken, and she rebukes the Fire-Stealing Priest for betraying his faith."

"The Fire-Stealing Priest lets out a disdainful laugh and, in a gloomy tone, tells you both that the Ancient Fire-Stealing God is not a true god at all. He claims that entity is merely a remnant of Blasphemy, fooling believers to maintain its status, while the "Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World" is a divine lord who has existed since ancient times and can truly protect Fire-Stealing Village from the unknown horrors of the wilderness."

The Ancient Fire-Stealing God is not a true god?

He is merely a product of Blasphemy?

Yang Qizhou narrowed his eyes. The secret information revealed in this text was quite substantial.

However, it was impossible to determine for now whether the Fire-Stealing Priest was speaking the truth or if this was a lie fabricated by the "Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World" to make him abandon his faith.

He would make a note of it for now.

The game continued.

"Lena appears agitated and refutes the Fire-Stealing Priest's blasphemous remarks."

"The explorer's nature of questioning everything makes you take note of this information; after all, as an atheist, you do not blindly worship gods."

"The Fire-Stealing Priest loses patience and commands invisible hounds to attack you."

"You hear a dog bark."

"This time you are not bitten to death, because Lena blocks the vicious dog."

"The Fire-Stealing Priest watches this and praises Lena, saying she is worthy of being Porter's daughter, as she can even trade blows with the Root-Court Hounds, the kin of the "Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World" that traverse between illusion and reality."

"The Fire-Stealing Priest begins to chant the honorific name of the "Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World." He does not take you seriously, considering you to be trash."

Hey, hey, hey, are you done yet, you damn narrator?

I know the character's strength is currently trash, unable to even beat the weakest shrimp on the Ancient Earth, but you don't have to keep reminding me over and over, you jerk.

Yang Qizhou cursed inwardly with deep resentment, though he did learn the name of these invisible hounds from the Fire-Stealing Priest.

"Root-Court Hounds, capable of traversing between illusion and reality—that sounds pretty cool."

"It would be awesome if I could raise a couple."

The game continued.

Yang Qizhou quickly reined in his wandering thoughts.

"You know the critical moment to steal the divine descent ritual has arrived. Following the Fire-Stealing Priest, you begin to chant the honorific name of the "Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World"."

"The Fire-Stealing Priest is first indignant, cursing you as a despicable thief attempting to steal a "divine gift," but he soon laughs dismissively, saying that the divine descent ritual requires an altar, a sacrifice, and the honorific name—all three are indispensable. You have the name, but no altar, and you don't even have the "sacred relic" for the descent; chanting the name will only anger the god."

"The Fire-Stealing Priest swears that once the ritual is over and he has transformed into a hidden lifeform, he will imprison you in a Cage of False Reality, letting the Root-Court Hounds gnaw on your flesh day and night, making you suffer endless pain without killing you, leaving you in eternal torment."

Damn, that's brutal.

Yang Qizhou was completely shocked. To be imprisoned, unable to die and unable to escape—wouldn't this account be ruined?

This method was truly cruel and terrifying.

"The Fire-Stealing Priest's chanting ends. He raises his hands high, waiting to be bathed in the grace of the "Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World"."

"Your chanting also ends. Knowing full well that the "Rag Stained with the Great Lord's Blood" on the altar is no longer the original one, you reveal a look of deep mockery."

"The divine descent ritual is completed."

"You notice that Lena is frozen in mid-air, her figure gradually disappearing as if her existence were being erased by an eraser. You clearly see the terror on her face."

"You then see a pillar of pure white light descend from the firmament. Inside is a blurry figure that cannot be clearly seen; it is over ten meters tall, lacks facial features, and its limbs are twisted."

"You feel infinite divine might surging toward you, and you cannot help but tense up, breaking into a cold sweat, not daring to look directly at this sublime figure."

"The Fire-Stealing Priest's laughter grows even more frantic, but before he can revel in it for long, he discovers in horror that his own body is also disappearing, as if his existence were being erased by an eraser."

He screamed frantically at the ancient, colossal, and sublime figure of the Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World, emphasizing his status as a believer, yet this great deity paid him no heed.

You have received the gaze of the Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World. This sublime existence is now aware of your act of offering the "Holy Relic" and chanting the honorable name. Your piety has pleased the deity, and He has bestowed upon you two of His kin, the Root-Court Hounds.

You have obtained Root-Court Hound *2.

Yang Qizhou could not remain calm.

This was truly a case of getting exactly what one wished for; he had just been thinking about how cool it would be to keep two Root-Court Hounds, and in the blink of an eye, the Lord of the Dreamy Hidden World had satisfied his desire.

Thinking of the trap he had dug for this deity, Yang Qizhou felt quite sorry for the old fellow.

The text continued to scroll:

The Fire-Stealing Priest could not believe his eyes, unable to accept that the grace which should have belonged to him had fallen upon a lowly thief. He cursed madly, unable to comprehend why this had happened.

You wore a mocking smile and retorted with a question... Are you truly certain that the "Rag Stained with the Blood of an Ancient Great Lord" on the altar was the original Holy Relic?

The Fire-Stealing Priest stood frozen in disbelief.