I Am God × Preaching on the Dark Continent
They immediately tucked their tails between their legs and became more vigilant.
First of all, it's certain that he's dreaming... Secondly, he hasn't dreamed since he was injured and left the guild ten years ago. Today, he had just started thinking about "making a comeback" when he was inexplicably pulled into this unfamiliar dream space. Based on Old Kohler's understanding of "Nian" and "strange events," something unusual must be going on!
"Your Excellency, what do you intend to do?"
Old Kohler observed Roy discreetly, occasionally glancing at him out of the corner of his eye, secretly maintaining his distance from the "Humanoid Snake Monster" beside him... Vanessa coiled her serpentine tail, supporting her body, further emphasizing the fullness of her ample breasts. Like Old Kohler, she silently observed him and Roy, secretly on high alert. "Woof woof..." Hearing Old Kohler's "dog talk," Roy's face was veiled in mist, making it impossible to see his features. In his ears, the notification sound from the control panel appeared because of the appearance of Old Kohler and Vanessa...
[Hint: The [Monster Compendium] has been expanded...]
[1. Kobold: D-rank Wise Species Magic Beast. (Note: Wise Species: a general term for a type of magical beast, such as humanoid Magic Beast or Phantom Beast Rare Beast, that possess intelligence comparable to humans.)]
[Rating: D]
[Manifested Aura: D(5415/10000)]
[Potential Aura: C-(5470/100000)]
[Current Status: Old and frail, with long-standing internal injuries; strength reduced to less than one-tenth of its peak]
[II. Siren Naga: A D-rank Wise Species "Rare Beast"]
[Rating: C→D]
[Manifested Aura: D(1415/10000)]
[Potential Aura: C(84211/100000)]
[Current Status: Ailing body, suffering severe natural erosion due to excessive "pollution" accumulated in the body that could not be eliminated in time, with one foot nearly teetering on the edge of losing control...]
So, is this a case of "one old" and "one disabled"?
Roy's eyes flickered thoughtfully... Although the so-called [Generalized Gate of Domain] has a general "randomness", it must still follow the <Law of Equivalent Exchange>. The selected dream subjects are limited by their own strength, and their status is generally not very high.
"Your Excellency?" Old Kohler frowned as he waited for a reply.
Vanessa's tail twitched slightly, filled with unease.
Roy glanced at the two of them expressionlessly, then, with a thought, called out Taiyi.
From the vast expanse of white mist, another person emerged.
His face was gentle, a smile playing on his lips. As soon as he reached Roy, he immediately bowed his head, prostrated himself on the ground, and said devoutly, "My Lord, you have finally awakened."
Taiyi spoke, seemingly overwhelmed by his "emotions," he inadvertently unleashed his [training]!
Then, there was a loud "boom"!
The boundless Nen Qi of [True Meaning of Scorching Heat] erupted in an instant. With Roy's Absolute Domination over "Self-Dream," it amplified in one step, instantly igniting this vast white dream space and transforming it into a scorching inferno!
"Woof woof... Such strong training!"
"What did he call that man... my lord?"
Old Kohler's heart pounded wildly, and he jumped three feet high. While releasing [Entanglement] to protect his body and avoid the raging flames, he shouted at Roy, "Your Excellency, no offense intended! I don't know why I'm here!"
"It wasn't unintentional; perhaps for some special reason... we saw [God]!" Vanessa Siren Clan also used [Entanglement] to protect her body. Unlike Old Kohler, her [Entanglement] was imbued with a shimmering light, like water, resisting the "fire" with much greater ease than Old Kohler's.
The girl suddenly remembered a phrase she had seen when she visited the Tidal Cathedral with her parents as a child, beneath the towering statue of the "Great Siren"—"Behind all the unknowns, there is a God watching..."
With a thought, it imitated Taiyi, curled its tail, lowered its body, and prostrated itself on the ground, respectfully saying, "Vanessa Siren Clan, the ' City of Purification,' pays homage to the great being."
Suddenly, the fire that was burning towards the girl changed direction and swept right past her...
"Woof?" Old Kohler opened his mouth, paused for a moment, then followed suit, quickly lay down, and, imitating Vanessa, prostrated himself on the ground, facing Roy, and recited the name "Great," announcing his own name.
Just then, two notification sounds appeared in my mind...
[Hint: "Potential Believer" Vanessa Siren Clan... Kohler Spencer... Needs further development...]
[Note: "Urgently needs development," no miracles have been observed, and there is doubt about God. The host can increase the loyalty of "Potential Believer" through "Grace"...]
"Grace"?
Must we give before we receive?
Roy thought about giving porridge to the poor, treating the sick, and distributing eggs to the elderly... He gradually realized that acquiring the Nen of others through [Faith] and using it for one's own benefit also requires "giving," and the more one "gives," the greater the "reward" will be.
"Taiyi, you mustn't be so presumptuous..."
A soft voice, like a resounding bell, echoed in this boundless dream world.
The fire died down, the heat subsided... Vanessa and Old Kohler lay prostrate on the ground, involuntarily letting out a sigh of relief. But when they glanced over again... they were immediately shocked!
Roy chuckled self-deprecatingly, "I just took a simple nap, and when I woke up, everything had changed, and people were no longer the same."
He was like a man weathered by life's storms, having witnessed both the beauty and the bitterness of the world, lamenting the fleeting nature of time, his once divine realm now shrouded in white mist. He slowly raised his right hand and softly uttered, "Return."
"Boom!"
The vast, white dreamscape began to shake violently, as the Sun-Earring Boy's voice faded...
The wind rises, the clouds gather, and a Great Sun ascends into the sky, followed closely by towering World Tree that stretch as far as the eye can see, serving as pillars and supporting churches... Majestic, towering, and exuding the aura of time, they dazzle and mesmerize, as if they were meant to be this way, as if they had always been this way, only to rise and fall for a time, and if Human World, they would surely shock the world!
"Woof!" Old Kohler had never seen anything like this in all his years of life. His head was practically raised to the sky, and he stood there dumbfounded!
Beside him, Vanessa tried her best to maintain a devout expression, looking up at the temple, constructed from hundreds of interwoven World Tree, Human World. Compared to the Tidal Cathedral built by the Great Siren in the past, this magnificent temple, with a Great Sun hanging from its top, was undoubtedly far superior!
"The temple is Divine Power; the more majestic it is, the more powerful it is..." Vanessa suddenly remembered the [Toad-man] who had boasted to her last night about how great their [God of the Swamp] was, how the temple He personally built stretched across nearly ten thousand miles of the swamp... She felt like an ant, looking up at Him...
At the summit of a temple of unknown height, beneath the radiant red sun, a throne floated down, and Sun-Earring Boy with an indistinct face descended in one step, leaping to sit upon it... She and the foolish Kobold beside her rose into the clouds, their feet creating plumes of smoke. Looking up again... they saw a warm smile...
"Blessed are you." Taiyi, seated at the foot of the throne, looked down at the snake and dog kneeling on the cloud and said gently, "The Lord says that since it is fate, he grants each of you a Grace. Why don't you bow in gratitude?"
Vanessa and Old Kohler prostrated themselves on the ground, each glancing at the other out of the corner of their eye, and quickly kowtowed, saying, "Grace!"
As their hearts pounded in turmoil... their minds opened up, and Roy easily captured their thoughts through [the circle]—it was all about supporting their families!
Old Kohler, frail and elderly, hopes to return to his prime, rejoin the guild, and earn money for his unborn child... Vanessa runs a hot spring, earning a living by exorcising "impurities" from customers. She hopes to obtain something called "Qin Pill" to dispel the accumulated "impurities" within her, allowing her to continue serving customers and prevent the hot spring from being downgraded...
Roy cast a focused glance at Vanessa. The so-called "Qin Pill" was actually an "anchor," a crystallization of her deep-seated love for the Great Siren in her heart, Crystalline Melody talent that defied the erosion of nature...
These "Crystalline Melody" could be a beautiful piece of music, capable of moving the Great Siren, and through "anchoring love," allowing him to regain his reason, which was gradually being eroded by nature.
Indeed, the Dark Continent is full of wonders, truly an eye-opener!
Roy sighed, and in an instant, an idea formed in his mind... First, he would emulate Muzan, feeding his Believer divine blood to rapidly increase their strength. Second, he would materialize some famous piano pieces from his past life from his own Cognitive World and give them to Vanessa to help her dispel the "filth" accumulated within her...
Having made up his mind, before killing Muzan, Roy temporarily bestowed a scroll of "Water Breathing" upon Old Kohler. Then, through his "Nen" and imagination, he conjured up piano pieces composed by renowned pianists such as Chopin, Beethoven, and List, packaged them, and transformed them into two orbs of light, one aimed at Old Kohler and the other at Vanessa...
A ball of light flew over and instantly entered between their eyebrows...
Then, before the two could recover, Roy sensed that his Dream Domain was on the verge of collapse due to the severe depletion of his "Nen Qi." With a wave of his hand, he severed the two hazy mists connecting Vanessa and Old Kohler...
The two were sent back to their respective worlds through the [Generalized Gate of Dreams].
"Squeak~" The door to the dream world closed.
Northern Frontier of the Dark Continent.
The Kobold Tribe Settlement, the Howling Moon Wolf King's Territory, and the ancient town of Yellow Village in Bone-Crusher City.
In the dead of night, Old Kohler, holding his pregnant wife, was suddenly awakened from his sleep, feeling a sticky sensation on his back, and realizing that he had been covered in a cold sweat.
His wife was fast asleep beside him, and his three-year-old son was next to him.
Old Kohler stared wide-eyed at the rafters, replaying his dream in his mind, and swallowed hard, saying, "What a bizarre dream..."
Humans... Snake-Person... gods... Servant of God... temples... Grace... scenes played endlessly in his small dog head like film reels... Old Kohler had never imagined he would have such a realistic dream, so realistic...
The ball of light bestowed upon me by the [god] in my dream still lingers in my consciousness, so real that it gives me a hazy, illusory feeling!
Old Kohler sighed after a long pause, tiptoed out of bed, tucked the blankets around his wife and children, glanced around, left the bedroom, went to the basement, and took out the nail-headed hammer that had been gathering dust for nearly ten years.
Turning around and stepping outside into the courtyard, facing the bright moon, he unveiled the ball of light, and a piece of information instantly flooded his mind...
It's called "Water Breathing"!
"Water Breathing - First Form: Water Surface Slash... Second Form: Water Wheel... Third Form: Flowing Dance..."
Old Kohler's mace moved, dancing with the information... His dog eyes went from suspicion to shock to excitement, accompanied by the final move, "Tenth Form: Constant Flux."
As the dance ended, he awkwardly leaned on the mace, panting, his emotions churning like waves. He suddenly realized... this was a very useful Breathing Style that could instantly boost his combat power, allowing him to deliver a surprise attack to his opponent!
So... the Grace is real, and the dream is real... then...
Old Kohler recalled the great man who sat high on the throne, bearing the Great Sun... His knees buckled, and he prostrated himself on the ground once more, humbly bowing his head and saying, "Thank you for your Grace!"
Suddenly, a gust of wind arose, carrying with it a wisp of light, which drifted far into the night sky.
Located in the Land of Hot Springs Tangchi, an unknown distance from the territory of the Howling Moon Wolf King, at No. 54-09, 7th Street, Shuilan District, on the western outskirts of Valentia.
On the enchanting bed, two snakes, one white and one green, their tails intertwined...
As expected, Vanessa got her face covered in saliva from her sister Lola again.
She awoke from her dream, Youyou opening her eyes. Her golden, vertical pupils were reflected on the ceiling, and she remained lost in thought for a long, long time...
She pulled a tissue from the bedside table and wiped her face. The snake-like tail of her hand meandered down the windowpane, reaching the window where she carefully savored the dream she had just had... The girl gazed at the night sky, letting the Moonlight bathe her, draping her in a veil of light. With a complex mix of trepidation, anticipation, and fear of disappointment, she unveiled the ball of light in her mind—the ball of light Grace of her dream—and at just the right moment...
Then she heard a melodious piano tune explode in her mind, traveling down her consciousness, piercing her soul, and striking her heart, causing her entire body to stiffen. When she came to her senses...
I felt all my fatigue and "filth" disappear, and I immediately felt refreshed and relaxed, as if I had been reborn!
"What a beautiful melody, what an inspiring melody, what a soothing melody..."
One by one, the pieces were laid out... "fresh sheet music" that Vanessa had never heard before. She couldn't quite judge how they compared to the pieces that the singer-poet had specially composed for the Siren Clan; at least...
The girl's face showed piety. Holding up a corner of her pajamas, she bowed slightly and said, "Thank you for your Grace, Lord."
Thoughts soar to the heavens with the Moonlight...
A moment later, Roy, who had just exited the dream and could no longer maintain the [Generalized Gate of Dreams], heard the clock in the corner chime, opened his eyes again, and immediately received a notification from the panel.
[Hint: Power of Faith +1... From "Potential Believer" Kohler Spencer... Please hold Bestowal Ceremony for him as soon as possible to Officialization...]
[Hint: Power of Faith +1... From "Potential Believer" Vanessa Siren Clan... Please hold Bestowal Ceremony for her as soon as possible to Officialization...]