The gods are bored to death.
They're lazy and don't want to do any work. In fact, they've long forgotten how to cultivate.
They're jobless, hopeless, useless, and completely irresponsible beings who only care about playing, sleeping, eating, making bets, and gambling with each other.
In short, every bad quality you can think of—you'll find it in them.
Whenever a crisis threatens the cosmos, the gods could easily fix it with just a flick of their fingers. But instead of doing that, they push the responsibility away.
That's when they bring out their gambling robes.
At times like that, they simply look down into the lowest realms. With their all-seeing and omnipresent power, they search across the mortal worlds for special candidates full of talent and potential, capable of growing up and eventually reaching the cosmos.
Each god picks one candidate.
Then, they place their bets, cast their lots, and sit back to enjoy the show—watching as their chosen mortals struggle through endless trials and hardships, climbing through different heavens in the harsh journey of cultivation.
They knew one of these candidates would rise above the rest to solve the cosmic problem for them. A champion will be born.
Of course, not all candidates make it. Many die on the way. Cultivation is the road to immortality, and also a brutal path where the strong prey on the weak.
So the gods have to be careful when choosing.
They consider many things, using ancient skills and "mandra" to predict the future. Only when they are 999% sure of a candidate's potential do they finalize their bet.
After that, they sit back, cross their legs, and wait in idleness.
Sometimes they wait thousands of years. Sometimes tens of thousands—or even millions. But one thing is for sure: it has never been just a few hundred years.
And now, once again, the gods are ready.
The current number of champions each god has so far, is as follows:
—Nika, the Sun God: 4,009 champions
"Hehehe! Chichichi! Jijiji!"
Nika, rolled around on a white floating cloud, smacking his own face in joy, then flopping onto his back and belly, laughing without a care in the world.
He was always happy.
All 4,009 of his champions were inside the ring with him. Like Nika himself, they rolled on their bellies and laughed out loud, their laughter echoing through the sky.
---
The Buddha God was the complete opposite. He sat quietly, eyes full of tears. Though he knew gambling contradicts the peaceful teachings of the monastery, and he detested such an act, he still always took part in it, and he was incredibly skilled at it. Hence, caused his sadness
He clasped his hands in prayer. His wooden prayer beads clacked together.
"Amitabha," he whispered.
—The Buddha God: 10,010 champions
"Amitabha," all 10,010 of his champions echoed in unison. But their prayers could not ease the sorrow in their master's heart.
---
Nuwa was a spirit snake born from the first primordial mother. She was stunningly beautiful and had a body that made even gods look twice—generous curves, a full bosom, and a round, soft bottom barely covered by her yellow flowery dress.
She was a forbidden fruit through and through.
She was a goddess and a seductress. And she was so cunning that even the heavens stayed wary of her every time.
She slowly swiped her tongue over her Roseberry lips, and the air shimmered with a warm, seductive energy.
—Nuwa: 6,000 champions
Her champions were part human, part snake, with scales in many beautiful colors. They, too, were striking and graceful, a reflection of their master.
---
The Divine Phoenix Goddess was here too.
She sat inside her ring on a feather throne, aloof and proud. One hand propped her chin while her long, elegant legs crossed one over the other.
—The Divine Phoenix Goddess: 5,200 champions
All 5,200 of her champions knelt around her in a perfect circle, their heads bowed low. None dared meet her eyes.
---
—The Brahma God: 7,614 champions
The four heads on Brahma's shoulders all shook slowly and in sync, each one murmuring the same word:
"Poor. Poor. Poor. Poor."
He had to win the next round.
If the stakes were still the various gods betting their worlds, then all the more reason to win. His champions had nearly eaten through all the worlds he owned, and even the ones he had won in earlier bets.
He was going broke.
---
—Pangu: 6,940 champions
Pangu also knew he needed to win more—but his reasons were very different.
He wanted more wins and more worlds so as to offer them all in the long run to Nuwa, hoping it would impress her.
In short, he was smitten. Completely and hopelessly by that seductress. Which is definitely not a good thing.
The problem was, he didn't even realize just how bad it was.
He was already screwed and he was bound to one day enjoy the sweet, pleasant dream... of suffering.
That was guaranteed.
And in the end, his poor champions would have no choice but to suffer right along with him—drinking from the same bitter cup.
---
On the other side of the ring, the Dragon God stood tall, full of confidence. He let out a mighty breath, releasing fire into the sky. His champions followed his lead, breathing flames of their own.
The clouds in the heavens churned with fury, and in response, rained down molten lava onto the Dragon God's ring.
But instead of fleeing, the Dragon God and his champions cheered with joy.
They bathed in the lava like it was a warm spring, laughing as the fire crackled around them.
His confidence wasn't without reason—so far, he had the most victories among all the gods.
—The Dragon God: 10,800 champions
---
And then there was Fuxi.
—Fuxi: 8,600 champions
...….
...….
And so it went, with the other gods' count of champions until it came to Luo Zhen's turn.
He was just an inconspicuous god sitting quietly at the far edge of the ring.
His face was dark with gloom, and his heart felt heavy.
It was clear he had seen the worst side of gambling, over and over again.
—Luo Zhen: 0 champions
He had no champion standing beside him. He stood inside an empty ring.
And worst of all, he had nothing left to bet—except for one last world. The only one he still owned.
That world was what he planned to stake once again, hoping—just hoping—that maybe this time, luck would finally smile on him.
"Hohoho!"
Suddenly a voice cut through the air and a skeleton old man with nothing but bone appeared out of thin air onto the high altar that stood above everything.
His appearance was rather intriguing, but he was the GFOC himself: The Godfather of the Cosmos.
Behind him was a violinist, ready to make an intro at any moment.
Suddenly the intro came, sonorous as the wind. Soothing like the lilies of the heavenly gardens. So sweet and enticing like the joyful whispers of the golden Nightingale.
"Hohoho!"
GFOC chuckled and his mouth was hollow just like the pitch black empty socket of his eyes.
The music was starting to sweeten him. The melody was starting to drill into his bone that had no flesh. His head and body with no organs and heart was starting to vibrate. His long skeletal legs were starting to rebel on their own.
"Ya-ya-ya-yahoo!"
He roared and raised his finger into the sky, throwing away the cudgel he was formally leaning on. His eyes sparkling with twinkles and stars.
"Yahoo!"
The other gods shouted after him and they started to sway their tushes left and right.
The violinist was inspired by the joy of the crowd, his head swelled like it would burst apart any time and his hand played skillfully more than ever.
He further gripped his bow and the music he played on the violin changed. It was faster now, and it was becoming like booming and banging. It could cause a wild crowd to erupt any moment.
"Hohohooo…!" GFOC cried with excitement and threw himself in the air.
The music was really doing him like he wanted to go crazy and no one would believe that his skeletal long legs could perform such feats of steps as he danced frantically more than the rest of the gods.
It would be so disgraceful, if any mortal saw these sights from the gods.
They were gods for all that mattered and now they were acting like comic figures displayed in theatres of the mortal world.
Which mortal would want to pray to them anymore, even the faith they once bore would dash and crumble if they knew these gods only know how to laze around and shove away duties.
The champions behind these gods were once mortals too but times had let them view these actions from their respective gods as normal and even they too could not resist the allure of the music.
"GFOC!"
"GFOC!"
...…
The gods sang and raised their fingers to the sky in reverence.
"Hohoho!"
Immediately the music stopped, all erratic actions stopped and there was silence like none ever before. It was as though their previous anomalies hadn't been.
"It's time again for us gods to cast lots in the mortal world. The Cosmos is troubled!" GFOC threw his bone arms wide to the side and declared.
There was a resounding clap and sounds of wild expectations from the crowded gods.
GFOC continued, "the stake this time, is the entire cosmos itself."
"W-what!"
All the gods staggered inside their rings, nearly toppling over from shock.
The entire Cosmos?
Whoever's champion won… would claim the Cosmos itself. That meant they would also rise to become the next GFOC.
The weight of that hit hard. The gods held their breath, stunned. At that moment, none of them noticed the sly, gleaming look in GFOC's hollow eye sockets.
He was smart, and he had made his plans.
The truth was, the Cosmos had been falling into chaos far too often lately. And GFOC was tired watching over it. He just wanted to find a peaceful place in one corner of the cosmos to hide and sleep all day long.
"I must win!"
"I will win!"
The gods are crazy at this point.
They erupted into a frenzy. Desperation and desire lit up their eyes. Madness began to show.
But in the middle of all the chaos, Luo Zhen remained calm.
He sat quietly inside his empty ring, unmoved.
He knew fighting for the Cosmos was far beyond his reach. That kind of reward wasn't meant for a small, forgotten god like him.
But at least, he thought with a bit of relief, the stake wasn't their personal worlds this time.
He only had one world left—and he couldn't afford to lose it.
Still, this was a rare chance to cast a lot for free.
He had nothing to lose… so why not try?
Like the rest of the gods, he looked down into the mortal world and began to cast his lot.
But unlike the others, who were fueled by ambition and greed, Luo Zhen cast his lot casually—with no real hope or expectation.
Just one quiet toss… and fate would decide the rest.
—------
Macau, China.
The city was full of tall buildings and colorful, lively streets. It looked like no one there had any problems. But in the shadows, some people lived with bad luck following them every day.
Chu Feng was one of those people. He was broke, poor, and miserable. He had lost everything by gambling it away at the city's biggest casino.
But today, things changed. His luck finally turned around. He had just won one billion, five hundred thousand dollars in cash. The money was packed neatly in a leather suitcase.
As he stepped out of the casino, he felt alive for the first time in years. He noticed how beautiful the city really was—cars like Porsches, Ferraris, and Lamborghinis zoomed by.
"Now that I've made it big, I might as well get me one of those," he said to himself with a small smile.
He looked up at the tall buildings and imagined owning one. Then his eyes landed on a place he had always admired from afar.
It wasn't the sign that caught his attention, but the women inside—the kind who knew how to entertain any man who could pay the right price. To Chu Feng, it wasn't a motel—it was paradise.
Maybe I should visit there first, before I buy a car or a building, he thought, glancing at the suitcase in his hand.
But before doing anything, he knew he had to go to the bank. Carrying so much money was dangerous. He didn't want to risk it.
He left the street and took a shortcut through a quiet alley. It was the same path he always used and had always felt safe.
But today was different.
To his surprise, the alley wasn't empty. A group of men stood in his way, blocking the path. They wore evil grins. Some of them held bats, tapping them against their hands. Their eyes were full of greed.
Chu Feng's heart pounded. He didn't understand what was going on—until he looked down at the suitcase he was clutching.
They want my money, he thought.
Panic rushed through him.
He had worked for years, lost so much, and finally won. Now someone wanted to steal it?
No way. He wasn't going to give it up—not even if it meant risking his life.
He thought about the beautiful women in that building, the Porsche he wanted to drive, and the fancy apartment he dreamed of. He pictured himself in a warm bath, sipping champagne poured by his own maid.
This caused his arms to be wrapped tighter around the suitcase. He trembled, even though the men hadn't said anything yet, only eyeing him like a prey.
"No! You can't take this from me! I'd rather die than give you my money!" he shouted on his own.
The gang laughed.
"Well, well. So it really is money in there," one of them said.
"How much is it?" another asked, stepping forward with his bat.
Chu Feng stiffened and backed away, terrified.
Whack!
Before he could run, someone hit him hard from behind.
Everything went black in an instant.