When Luo Ge woke up.
He found himself in a pure-white space.
There was no solid ground beneath his feet, yet he did not fall, as though the entire world consisted of light and nothingness.
He looked down at his body and discovered that not only was he missing an arm, but there was also a large, pitch-black hole in his chest.
His body had also reverted to its appearance in his original world, taking on a soul form...
"Am I dead?"
"Is this the otherworld version of hell?" Luo Ge muttered to himself, feeling somewhat dejected.
Man, dying in such a bizarre way is really hard to get over. If I'd died a glorious death in battle, that would've been one thing, but dying without even knowing why...
...How should I put it? It just feels like I got cheated.
He had not even had time to become the strongest man in this other world.
His dream had ended in such a hurry.
And come to think of it, did people who died in another world actually revert to their original appearances?
He looked down at this body from his previous life, and an absurd suspicion suddenly arose.
Maybe...
There was never any reincarnation at all. All of this was just some pointless fantasy a college student had before dying after being hit by a dump truck.
"Hello there! Nice to meet you, little bro Luo Ge. I'm the god who's here to save you."
Luo Ge raised his head.
An unidentified, entirely white being had appeared before him at some point, its whole figure solemn...
No!
How should he describe it? It was like... a lump whose facial features were so blurry they looked pixelated, utterly comical.
"Excuse me..."
Luo Ge ventured, "Where is this?"
"Oh... this is the Void World at the center of the Six-Faced World."
"So you mean this isn't the afterlife? Like the underworld? The realm of the dead?"
"Nope. You seem pretty smart-good morning, little bro Luo Ge."
Luo Ge was a little speechless as he looked at this fellow who called himself a god and immediately addressed him as little bro.
His tone was far too breezy. It did not fit the word "god" at all. He felt like some punk you could find on any street corner.
"...Who are you?"
"And why did I come here?"
The fellow who called himself a god stood before Luo Ge and cleared his throat, adopting a serious expression as though he were about to deliver an important speech. "Nice to meet you. Let me introduce myself first!"
"I am a god, the Human God, Hitogami."
"Hitogami?"
That word.
Luo Ge's pupils contracted slightly.
He remembered-back amid the wind and snow in the Red Dragon Mountains, the Dragon God had indeed said "Human God" before killing him.
He had even told him to pass a message to the Human God after he died.
So that meant... that Dragon God really hadn't falsely accused me?
Fuck!
I was the Human God Apostle all along?!
Was he really something like a Human God Apostle? But he had clearly never even met the Human God.
Becoming an apostle out of nowhere... that was strange.
Suspicious, Luo Ge asked tentatively, "Hey! Were you the one who summoned me to this other world?"
"How could that be?"
"I'm the kindhearted Human God, concerned for every living being... how could I do something so evil? Only that naughty Dragon God would do something like that."
Hitogami spread his hands, his tone carrying a peculiar hint of innocence.
"'Naughty'? What a weird word to describe him with. Do you have some history with the Dragon God?"
"You've got a grudge against him, right?"
"That's exactly right!"
"The current evil Dragon God... isn't the First Dragon God from back then, but the first Dragon God was an evil god who destroyed the world. Speaking of which, back in ancient times, this world originally had six sides, making it the Six-Faced World."
"Everyone lived peacefully and harmoniously... but one day, driven by his ambition to rule the world, the naughty Dragon God personally led the Five Dragon Generals in destroying the other five worlds. In the end... I wanted to save the world, alas... but the evil Dragon God defeated me."
Luo Ge did not interrupt Hitogami, merely listening quietly as he told his story. Most of it consisted of Hitogami denouncing the Dragon God's evil deeds and bad-mouthing him.
Luo Ge did not immediately take Hitogami's one-sided account at face value, but he still agreed. "Right, right, right! You couldn't be more right... that guy really was awful. He's someone who needs to be defeated."
"I'm so glad... you think that way."
Hitogami seemed to have been eagerly awaiting that response from Luo Ge, and he danced about with delight.
"Little bro Luo Ge... anyway, take my side. In the future, we'll defeat the Dragon God together and save the world!"
"Putting the Dragon God aside for now, um..."
"Since you call yourself the god of this world, do you have a way to send me back to my original world?"
Hitogami spread his hands in a regretful gesture. "No can do. Even I can't do that. Don't tell me you don't even know basic common sense?"
"I see..."
Then this god really doesn't seem good for shit, Luo Ge mused.
Judging by their conversation so far.
This Hitogami probably had nothing to do with that system from back then. It was the system's mistake that had sent him to this other world.
As for the Dragon God and the Human God, they were probably gods of this world, and appeared to have lived for a very long time, at least.
Most importantly.
These two gods were probably on opposing sides, belonging to two mutually hostile factions.
"Little bro Luo Ge, would you like to hear my advice?"
"No."
"Huh? Why not?"
"Aren't I already dead? What do you expect a dead man to do? If you want to deal with the Dragon God, go do it yourself." Luo Ge pointed at his pierced chest, looking utterly speechless.
"Oh, don't be so discouraged. You're not dead."
"Huh? I'm not dead! Why the fuck didn't you say so sooner?"
"Wait! Then what's happening to me right now?"
"Hmm..."
Hitogami seemed to reorganize his words. "Right now, you're unconscious, and I'm communicating with you through my thoughts."
"Oh, right... that Dragon God guy really didn't kill me?"
"Congratulations, you really were lucky. When you were cornered and bravely jumped off the cliff, you actually fell into a teleportation magic circle."
"You were teleported away."
"So that means I'm saved."
Luo Ge was ecstatic.
"Now, now, you're celebrating too soon. The naughty Dragon God beat you into such a miserable state that, although you aren't dead, you're pretty close."
Hitogami's words were like a bucket of cold water thrown over Luo Ge.
For some reason.
He kept feeling that Hitogami sounded as though he were gloating when he said that.
Fuck, weren't we supposed to be on the same side? Yet here he is, looking like he's enjoying the show.
Still...
Suspicious as this fellow calling himself the Human God might have been, one thing was beyond doubt.
He was the Dragon God's enemy.
As the saying went, the enemy of your enemy was your friend.
"Since you call yourself a god and came to me at a time like this, you should be able to save me too, right?"
"Of course, little bro Luo Ge... I guarantee I'll save you."
"Hey, you agreed pretty quickly. Then tell me, how exactly are you planning to save me?"
"Although I can't personally intervene in reality, I can give you some advice. Want to hear it?"
"Just advice? Is that really reliable?" Luo Ge looked doubtful.
"It is..."
"I guarantee it is. Don't forget, the Dragon God is our common enemy."
He gave Hitogami a somewhat suspicious look.
Luo Ge continued probing. "I just don't feel like there's any such thing as a free lunch. Say, are you really that kind? You're not some scammer, are you?"
"I almost fell for a telecom scam before..."
"Oh, why are you still doubting me? I'm really... really not a scammer. You're my most important companion. Don't worry! I'll help you."
Hitogami sounded a little anxious, his voice brimming with sincerity. "Don't you want to defeat the evil Dragon God and take revenge for yourself?"
"Well said!"
Luo Ge immediately chimed in. "O great god, please grant me the power to destroy the world and help me kill that fucking Dragon God!"
"..."
Hitogami fell silent.
Luo Ge stared at him suspiciously. "You talked such a big game earlier. Don't tell me you can't actually do it?"
"You can't beat the Dragon God either?"
"Hey! You're underestimating me!"
"I'm a god! The supreme Human God, a true God Rank being! That Dragon God is just a demigod. He's no match for me!"
"If that's the case, go slap the Dragon God to death."
"Ugh, I can't."
Hitogami suddenly crouched on the ground like a deflated balloon, his entire white outline curling into a ball. "Ah... I can't do something like that... I simply can't."
"I'm sealed inside this Void World right now. I can't get out at all."
"Otherwise, ten... even a hundred Dragon Gods together would be no match for me, the Human God."
"So you want to use me to defeat the Dragon God?"
"Huh? Use you?"
The dejected Hitogami suddenly jumped up. "Don't put it so harshly-the Dragon God nearly killed you too... he's your enemy as well, isn't he?"
"Heh, wasn't that because I got dragged into your mess? Otherwise, why would he have tried to rip my heart and lungs out the moment we met?"
Hitogami was left almost speechless by that retort and huddled there without another word.
Yet the next second, Luo Ge changed tack. "Still, you were right about one thing. The Dragon God really is someone I want to defeat. Beating that guy would definitely feel like a real accomplishment."
"Tell me, what do I have to do to defeat him?"
At those words, Hitogami immediately brightened. "Looks like you've finally figured it out! I'm on your side. Anyway, from here on... follow my advice."
"And you'll gain the power to defeat the Dragon God..."