Adam, lost in the memories of his old friend, stood still for a minute.
Everyone, noticing the look on Adam's divine face, understood what he was going through.
In the beginning, when all the ordinary people from Earth were transmigrated, some were playing with their babies, some were sleeping, and some were studying, but they suddenly saw a light in front of their eyes and found themselves in front of their planet.
They were separated from all their friends and families.
Humans are social creatures; without someone to talk to and spend time with, they could easily become mentally unstable.
And this ancient god in front of them had spent so much time alone in this huge multiverse; they couldn't even imagine the mental fortitude that allowed him to withstand such a degree of torture.
They were unable to withstand even a single day without their loved ones and frantically typed in the God Chat to find them.
This they understood his sentiment towards his lost friend.
"Everything was going well for the gods," Adam continued, his voice returning to a dramatic tone, as if trying to narrate a movie scene.
"We created life forms, learned about faith, collected faith points, and fought in the void against void beasts. We killed many of them, but their numbers kept on increasing. But eventually, we won that battle."
"However, no god was able to leave their home, their universes and realms, and return to the void. Thus, the void remained empty and formed new gods every few million years, and void beasts every now and then." Upon hearing this, every one of these gods became agitated.
"Doesn't that mean the void beasts are innumerable and still growing, as the old gods who kept them in check have died?" one god, who couldn't hide his thoughts, exclaimed loudly.
All the gods who heard him were aware of this, but they didn't speak.
Adam, ignoring this grave plea, continued his history lesson.
"Everything was stable. Every now and then, gods competed to see who killed the most void beasts. Thus, the void became our playground and hunting ground. But one day, apart from the space that a god created called God space, another space was created." Adam made this scene dramatic and showed a projection of this new realm.
The realm was in all different shades of red, but always dark.
It grew many types of creepy-looking plants and races.
Sunny looked at the projection and saw the realm he had seen with his own eyes.
"The Demon Realm," he thought.
"We were unaware of this realm at that time, but later understood that it was created by void beasts to tackle our faith generation, which gave us powers that they couldn't use," Adam said, his anger towards the void beasts clear.
"But, they were also very weak compared to our faith resources, so we easily killed all the demons and demon lords. But no matter how many times we killed them, the demon lords kept coming back."
"They revived again and again; we killed them again and again. At some point, they submitted to us and stopped bothering us, slowly beginning to gather their strength by targeting our life forms in a way that we wouldn't notice."
"After millions of years of surrender, a million years ago, they initiated a war on us and killed all the gods. Unlike them, we can't come back after dying."
Adam said this and paused for a few moments as he tried to remember each and every face of the long-forgotten gods, whose luster had been lost from this world millions of years ago.
"I, as one of the oldest and strongest, survived this battle and hid in my Realm of Advancement, locking all the space. And I only escaped when the demons stopped paying attention to the forgotten gods."
"I found your planet in one of the universes and decided to use all the faith points of me and my fellow dead gods to convert you all into gods, to fight the demons."
Everyone nodded upon hearing this.
They felt fear thinking about this mission but knew that they didn't have any other options; being a god was not something anyone could discard.
After this, Adam began to teach them how to control faith and life forms better.
His teachings were truly great and showed his billions of years of experience.
Sunny also began taking notes in his mind.
Soon, the three hours ended.
"So, the time is up for the teaching and history. Let's dive into questions and answers," Adam said, taking this Q&A section like a game.
Many gods raised their hands.
Adam randomly pointed towards a blond male, who was one of the top gods in his universe and also the one who bid 200 million for Aerion.
"Is the multiverse finite?" This question left many amazed and others dumbfounded.
"Are you too dumb? He clearly said that all the universes in this multiverse were created by the old gods, so doesn't that mean it's finite?" one god said sarcastically. Immediately,
many others followed suit and mocked the one who asked the question.
Adam interjected all the gods and said, "The multiverse you all are currently in was created by me. There are billions of universes inside this multiverse."
Adam took a pause and then said, "Oh, I forgot to tell you that all the gods created many universes later on, after the first was completed."
"I, personally, as the strongest, created the largest multiverse. If you were to try and go through all the hurdles without using any space wrap to reach the end of the multiverse, you would require billions of years to travel through it" Adam said as if just stating a fact.
"As a god, you would also require billions of years and trillions of faith points to travel just one universe. And there are billions of universes in this multiverse. Then there are the multiverses of my brothers and sisters, then there are billions of realms."
Adam began to do calculations and eventually dropped the bomb.
"With your current pace of collecting faith points, you would require more than trillions of years just to exit my multiverse."
Hearing Adam's answer, all the gods felt a huge wave of both pressure and relief.
If the multiverse was this big, the chances of encountering void beasts were slim for them.
"So doesn't that mean we wouldn't encounter any void beasts for a long time?" one god asked, his question coming out without even asking for Adam's permission.
But Adam didn't mind this and calmly replied, "Not really, as I, God Adam, the firstborn of all the gods, made my multiverse nearest to the void, so that I can defend my fellow less powerful gods." Adam answered with dignity.
Every god felt both respect and anger towards this ancient being. If not for their powerlessness, they would have slapped him hard on the face.
"Well, it doesn't really matter if you are far away or near the void; they can teleport to great distances with ease, and by great distances, I mean universes," Adam said, as if to create more tension among the gods.
Now the gods became accustomed to this god, who played with their hearts.
One sentence would make them sigh in relief, and another would fill them with worry.
During this whole time, Sunny didn't say anything and just listened to everything.
Slowly, some questions were being asked related to the universe and how to create universes.
Adam replied to the questions one by one.
Then, Strategist asked one question: "What is your talent?"
The ears of every other god moved, and they all looked at Adam intently.
Sensing the gazes of every god, he felt that if he didn't answer, they would bite his head off.
"I have multiple talents, like talents for magic, affinity for every element, immunity to all curses and poison, divine defense, and many other talents for attacks. And my special talent was..." Adam paused and thought for a moment, as this talent was his greatest secret. But he still said,
"Overgrowth. Through this talent, all my life forms had the chance to break past the limits of mortal life and become immortal."
All the gods turned silent. Strategist's eyes turned red, as if the thought of life forms becoming demigods resonated deeply with him.
He wanted this talent for himself but had no way to get it and sighed.
But suddenly, his eyes lit up again, and he hopefully asked, "You said that we are in your multiverse, so technically we are your life forms. Does this talent also apply to us, as we are your life forms?"
The question asked by Strategist this time was confusing for many, but they knew of his wisdom and didn't disturb him.
"I lost my position as a god when I ran away in the face of danger from the demons. All my demigods lost respect for me. They still protected my escape route and died. You could even say that I am just a life form in this multiverse," Adam said, gritting his teeth.
Adam blamed all this on himself.
"But don't think I was a coward; that's why I ran away. I wanted to fight until the end. But all my brothers and sisters, they sacrificed everything and gave away all their resources to me, so that I can come and take revenge for all of them."
Everyone looked at Adam and knew that the last hope of all the previous gods were none other than the "new gods."
Sensing the tense moment, Adam tried to ease up the atmosphere and said, "Don't worry about having demigods. Every godly year, there will surely be atleast one hero born in your territory "
"And if you cultivate it well, it can become a demigod easily, because these heroes have one or more SS-Grade talents and many smaller-grade talents."
"Thus, the more you survive, the more strength you will have."
"As for divine embryos, they are a luxury even to the old gods. When a demigod dies, there is a chance of a divine embryo manifesting in your world. I don't know how it works, but it does, and that's all that matters."
Adam said this jokingly, but it eased the tension built up in all the gods' hearts.
Kairos also felt happy upon hearing this, as his demigod had been captured by Sunny.
Many more questions were then asked by other gods, and the atmosphere again turned into a murmur.
In the end, when only five minutes were left, Sunny finally asked, "Adam, why are you so unreliable?"
This was Sunny's gamble to get what he wanted the most, his gaze perfectly hidden behind his black mask.
Every god looked at Sunny; they didn't know he was God Cosmos and felt that this god had a death wish, saying such things to Adam, the firstborn.
"Ah, God Cosmos, why do you think so?" Adam said, as he was aware of every god's name.
"Oh, you know my name. Well, it isn't unexpected. You are the all-knowing system, so do you know what my talent is?" Sunny checked the waters; he wanted to know how much Adam knew about the gods.
"No, I don't. I am aware that no god should share their talents with each other, so I never tried to look at your talents and what you do. The system was just a part of my soul that didn't merge back with me and will die when its time was up. Thus all the data will also be lost," Adam said without thinking.
"Then I don't mean you are unreliable but the part of your soul which I don't know how you turned into a system," Sunny asked probingly.
Upon noticing the conversation between the leader of the old gods and the potential leader of the new gods, all the gods fell silent.
They just began to listen to the conversation between Adam and Sunny.
Adam suddenly began to cast some seals, and a third eye opened in his glabella.
And suddenly, he flared up, "You have the gall to say that? God Cosmos"
"I gave all my divinity to the system, so that it can help you all until the first godly week. It was meant to help you all," Adam said as he defended himself against Sunny's allegations.
"But you spent all my collected faith points on trading. I never thought any god could do so many transactions," Adam now blamed Sunny.
"Trading anything requires a huge amount of faith; even just sharing a message in a universe will cost multiple faith points. You can imagine the price yourself for trading items." Adam further complained about Sunny.
All the gods who heard this were unable to comprehend how Sunny could have used up all the faith reserves that were meant for all the gods.
"Haha, you're blaming me now? Instead of this, you should have reserved more faith points for us gods," Sunny replied.
Adam fumed with flames upon hearing this. But Sunny wasn't doing this just to make Adam angry.
He knew that Adam posed no threat to him, as his perception was high due to his God's Eye.
"We are going to take revenge for you, after all," Sunny said, and the anger that flared in Adam quickly subsided.
"Well, Adam, I want to invite you to spend your leftover time in my world. Will you give me this pleasure?" Sunny asked Adam.
Adam began to ponder the request.
He had nothing to do, and his time was very limited, about one or two days.
God Cosmos was currently the leading god of all the gods, so Adam didn't want Sunny to have any bad feelings toward him.
Thus He agreed to Sunny's request.
After a few more dialogues with other gods, the souls of all the gods returned to their bodies in their God space. It marked the end of the seventh day.
In Sunny's God space, he was not alone. Adam's soul was also with him.
"You can visit my world," Sunny said to Adam, pointing toward Veridia. "It is called Veridia."
As Adam descended into Veridia, Sunny began to put his thoughts into his divine talent, "Skill-Resonance."
The system was no longer there to help him copy a talent from his life forms, so now, in the system's absence, he needed to do it himself.
Sunny focused on Umbra and thought of copying the talent "Cloning."
He could also copy Adam's talent, but he decided against it for now.
While Adam's "Overgrowth" talent helped life forms push past their limits to reach the demigod realm, Sunny's current life forms were not yet at their talent limits.
The few who had reached their maximum potential were only at C-Grade or below; even with "Overgrowth," they would require a huge amount of time to reach DemiGod realm.
Thus, he had decided to invite Adam to Veridia, as his talent clearly stated that he could copy the talent of any life form on his territory.
Therefore, Sunny copied the "Cloning" technique from Umbra.
He felt a familiar feeling, one he had felt when he copied the "Magic Affinity" talent from Nova.
But there was no system to show Sunny his current talents.
Sunny thought for a second and then used his "God's Eye" on himself.
His "God's Eye" had the ability to show detailed information about someone.
He couldn't see the information of other gods because of their defenses, but looking at his own information was easy.
[God Name: Cosmos
Profession: Mage (C-Grade)
Talents: Skill-Resonance (SSS-Grade), Mana Affinity (SS-Grade), Cloning (SS-Grade)
Faith Points: (you guys guess, I forgot)]
Sunny thought about the talent "Cloning," and the detailed information of this talent appeared in his mind.
[Talent: Cloning
Grade: SS
Description: Can use faith points to create a clone. The clone can work and think independently and will have all the strength of the user. Anything the clones achieve will be provided to the main body.
Notes:
1 -> The clone can exist without any ongoing cost; it is just a one-time cost of faith points.
2 -> Each new clone you create will have their cost increase exponentially.
3 -> These clones will always listen to the command of the creator.]
"-_-" Sunny was shocked as he checked this information again and again in his mind.
In the end, after confirming it more than five times, he said in amazement, "My talent is this powerful? Even Umbra would be jealous if she saw this."
He immediately created a clone of himself, and the cost was just 10 faith points.
This clone looked exactly like him but still appeared lifeless.
With one thought from Sunny, the lifeless body of the clone shook, and he immediately came to life.
"Woahhh!" both Sunnys exclaimed at once.
They looked like twins. Sunny then manifested the attire he wore when he visited Veridia.
He handed the robe and mask to his clone and asked it to cover itself.
Sunny then created another clone.
The price was 100, then 1,000, then 100,000, then 1 million, then 10 million, and then 100 million.
Sunny wanted to create more, but his reserves ran out.
He had made seven clones of himself, and the next one would cost 1 billion.
"I am bad with names, so let's just go with numbers," Sunny said as he looked at the seven clones, who were now covered with his signature robe and mask.
"You are clone number one," Sunny said, pointing to all the clones and naming them one through seven.
He then began giving them tasks.
The first two clones were given the task of practicing magic.
The next two were given the task of learning different fighting techniques.
The final three were given the task of keeping their eyes on the demigods and Veridia, as Sunny didn't want to be in constant fear of another demigod demon attacking.
Now, Sunny was officially unemployed.
His only task of trading was gone with the system.
And now, even practicing magic was also gone, as the skills achieved by the clones would be reflected in him.
He didn't even need to keep his eyes on Veridia, as three clones were performing this duty with all their attention.
In a world filled with lush greenery and hidden treasures, a new city, named "Citadel of Veridia," stood majestically, built of various kinds of stone.
In the center of this city was a giant statue of God Cosmos, fully covered in a black robe and mask, with a portal at its base that led back to Veridia.
Currently, the leadership of this citadel was a matter of shared power, as both the Elves and Humans did not want another race to rule them.
Even with the fight between Anaske and Vel, the victor was not decided.
Thus, they found another solution: they divided all the life forms into two groups—melee fighters, led by Anaske, and ranged fighters, led by Vel.
As they both fought many battles in this realm, the previous tension between the elves and humans dispersed.
There were even half-elves present in their cities, and they didn't face any racism.
They were always in the limelight because they showed that the elves and humans were living in harmony.
The sons and daughters of Anaske married the sons and daughters of Vel, thus creating the first royal family of both Elves and Humans.
Through these marriages, many children were born.
It was possible for a human and an elf to have a human or an elf child, in addition to half-elves.
Thus, the royal family was filled with humans, elves, and half-elves.
With Anaske and Vel as the leaders, they named this royal family "Celestin," which became the last name of all the royal family members.
Currently, four people were sitting in a hall, chatting and pointing at different locations on a map.
These four people were the top leaders of Veridia: two kings and two high priests.
They were discussing the expansion of their territory in the Realm of Advancement while also discussing the demon attacks.
These demons were from different races, and many of them felt hostile toward non-demonic races and attacked them unconditionally.
Thus, the only way for others to increase their territory was to fight and defeat these demon cities.
They could ask for demigods like Shenlong and Loki for help, but they decided against it, as the situation was not dire.
"In the North, the Malacite race of demons is causing a ruckus for all the hunters of Veridia, while the other three cities are still maintaining their distance from us," Anaske said to Vel and both high priests.
The Malacite are a race of demonic brutes, marked by their fiery, inner essence that manifests as glowing cracks across their dark, rock-hard flesh.
Their most fearsome trait is the crown of jagged, bone-like shards that grows from their shoulders and spine, giving them a monstrous and intimidating silhouette.
These demons are known for their immense physical strength and relentless fury in battle, often serving as the shock troops or siege specialists in a demon army.
They are a race born of brute force and chaos, leaving behind a trail of ash and shattered earth wherever they tread.
"The other three demon races are just testing our strength by sending the Malacite race to fight us," the high priest of the Elves, Faelor, said.
"What if they are weakening us by sending the Malacites and just waiting for the perfect ambush?" the high priest of the humans, Einar, said.
As all the leaders were discussing this matter, a guard came with urgent news.
"My king! Three of the four demonic tribes are marching in the direction of our cities!" The guard stumbled and fell but still looked at the four leaders of their citadel.
Anaske helped the guard sit and said casually, "What's there to fear? Even if four of them attacked at once, it would still be them who would lose."
It was not just a boastful statement; all the citizens knew of their guardian Nova and his deeds.
When Nova visited the Realm of Advancement, he killed all the S-Grade monsters and powerhouses of the demon races.
"Guardian Nova paved the road for us; now it's our time to walk on it," Vel said as he walked out to address the soldiers of his army.
Anaske also walked out to address his melee army.
Currently, the army of Veridia had two A-Grade powerhouses (the A-Grade fighter Anaske and the A-Grade mage Vel). They had many D-Grade and below in the regular armies, C-Grades as army chiefs, and B-Grades as commanders.
Anaske and Vel were available for emergency support if the A-Grade of the other side attacked.
After boosting the morale of both armies, Vel and Anaske both sat on their respective thrones and were discussing the war with their commanders.
Suddenly, a towering pressure emitted from the center of the throne room.
A white mist manifested out of nowhere and shaped itself into a humanoid form.
"Veilborn?" Anaske felt chills upon witnessing this demon; they were the fourth demon tribe.
He didn't fear this race in particular, but the pressure emitted by this demon was suffocating.
The Veilborn are a race of demonic entities that manifest as wisps of white, sentient mist.
Unlike other demons, they lack a true physical form, instead existing as an all-encompassing white fog.
Within their cloud-like bodies, menacing shapes can be seen, hinting at skeletal features and clawed hands.
They have no mouth and thus no voice but communicate through a chilling, internal whisper that echoes in the minds of their victims.
The Veilborn do not engage in direct combat but instead suffocate their prey by drawing the very life and air from their surroundings, leaving behind only a desiccated husk.
All the leaders of the citadel shivered as they looked at this menacingly beautiful entity.
While back in Veridia, one new race came into existence .
This race is a powerful and have dark, obsidian-like scales covering their body. Their head is crowned with a series of sharp, jutting horns that sweep back, and their face is characterized by a strong, bestial jawline.
The eyes, which glow with an internal, fiery light, add to their fierce and commanding presence.
A majestic pair of wings with a leathery texture and a complex bone structure sprouts from their back, indicating not only their draconic heritage but also a capacity for flight.
Their build is muscular and athletic, suggesting a warrior's strength and agility, and their hands are tipped with sharp claws.
A new race came into existence in the northern part of the western continent.
They were called the "Dragonborn," a powerful and imposing people with dark, obsidian-like scales, horns, and fiery eyes.
They were the result of the diluted blood of Nova, the black dragon demigod.
Sunny, through his three watchful clones, immediately became aware of their emergence.
He decided not to interfere, as their inherent strength was more than enough to establish them as the apex predators of the continent.
A mental thought from Sunny reached Nova. "Nova, congratulations."
The black dragon's voice, tinged with confusion, echoed in Sunny's mind.
"Master, why are you congratulating me?"
"Go to the northern part of the western continent and see for yourself," Sunny replied, a hint of amusement in his tone, then broke the mental connection.
Nova, intrigued, immediately teleported to the western continent.
Her eyes widened as she saw the Dragonborn.
She flew toward them, and as she approached, the Dragonborn instinctively bowed.
A blood connection, a deep, ancestral echo, resonated within them, telling them who she was.
They assumed she was a god, but Nova corrected them with a firm but gentle voice.
"I am not a god. I am a demigod, a guardian created by the true God Cosmos, our master." She then spent time with them, sharing wisdom and establishing guidelines.
She told them they were not to fight with the other races and that their strength was to be used for protection, not conquest.
With the fertility buff provided by Sunny, she was confident their population would thrive without conflict.
With her task done, Nova returned to patrolling Veridia, ever vigilant for any new demons that might have slipped into their world.
In the Northern Continent, the humans continued to prosper.
Their cities hummed with the clanging of hammers as they advanced their engineering.
They were building cannons and handguns and even starting to explore the uses of engines.
Meanwhile, the elves were pushing the boundaries of magic, discovering new spells and techniques.
Both of these new advancements were shared with the Citadel of Veridia through the transmission stones developed by the elves.
These innovations helped the forces of the Citadel loot more treasure from the Realm of Advancement and fight the demons more effectively.
All treasures not immediately useful were sent back to their respective continents, creating a powerful cycle of progression and shared growth.
On the Eastern Continent, the dwarves and the machina race worked tirelessly, their forges burning hot with a steady supply of minerals provided by Sunny.
Their collaboration was driving Veridia's technological and magical progression forward.
Sunny watched it all, his ultimate goal to unite all the races and create a single, powerful empire that would one day expand across the whole universe.
Back in the Realm of Advancement, Morticia, the S-Grade Veilborn demon, stood before Anaske and Vel.
A palpable pressure radiated from her semi-corporeal form, chilling everyone in the throne room to their core.
After a long moment of tense silence, her voice, a haunting whisper that echoed directly in their minds, broke the stillness.
"I am here to help you fight against the other three tribes."
Anaske's eyes narrowed. "That... is an unexpected offer," he said, trying to keep his voice steady. "But why? What is your motivation?"
"Our kind is not as foolish as the others," Morticia's voice replied. "We understand when a battle is unwinnable. And your champion, the mighty black dragon, has made her intentions for us Veilborn very clear."
Vel exchanged a glance with Anaske. "Guardian Nova... this is her doing again," Vel murmured, a mix of awe and frustration in his voice. "We can handle the three tribes ourselves. They have no S-Grade powerhouses. We will not fight dirty."
"Do you truly believe that?" Anaske scoffed, looking at his fellow leader. "A war of survival is a dirty business. But if you wish to stand on principle, so be it." He turned back to Morticia. "We accept your offer of neutrality, not your aid. We will not engage in a multi-front war with all four tribes, but we will fight this battle on our own terms."
Morticia's ethereal form seemed to shrug. "As you wish. My kind will hold the fourth front. But I will not be directly participating in your battles. The black dragon's orders were to protect you, not to fight for you." Her form dissolved into a white mist, vanishing from the throne room.
Anaske and Vel, now alone, began to discuss their plans for the battle. They knew their army, though well-trained, had its limitations. "Our people are powerful," Anaske said, "but we are a generation behind the demons. They have their racial talents and other acquired skills. We are still mostly single-talent fighters."
"That's why we have to be smarter," Vel countered. "Our confidence lies in the information we have. We know their weaknesses, their fighting styles, and the weaknesses of their individual powerhouses. We will use that knowledge to our advantage."
As they spoke, a low rumbling could be heard from the distance.
The three armies of the Malacite, the Obsidianborn, and the Cinderhide demons had combined, a monstrous force of millions marching toward the Citadel of Veridia.
The Citadel's own forces, a mere four hundred thousand, looked small in comparison.
Suddenly, the portal at the base of the God Cosmos statue flickered and hummed with power.
From it emerged a continuous stream of life forms of all shapes and sizes. Titans, giants, orcs, dwarves, fairies—all the races of Veridia poured into the city. A collective gasp of awe and relief swept through the defenders.
They knew that if it came from the portal where it can't be a foe.
And also among these lifeforms, many gave them the pressure much heavier then the Veilborn leader.
They immediately knew that the other hidden races of Veridia have arrived with their DemiGods.
Even the demigod of human and elves also came with these lifeforms.
They knew the Demigods wouldn't fight and are attending this fight just to check the progress of their race.
Their numbers, once small, now swelled dramatically.
Then, the final group emerged: the Dragonborn, their obsidian scales glinting in the light.
And behind them, a familiar, towering silhouette appeared, filling the portal with its immense form.
The humans and elves of the Citadel fell to their knees.
"We greet the Guardian Dragon!" Vel and Anaske declared in unison, their voices echoing across the city. The tide of battle had turned.