Riku bolted upright in bed, jolted awake.
Riku Dola. The leader and guide of the two thousand humans during the Great War, the young leader of the human settlement, and a boy possessing an incredibly powerful will.
At this moment, Riku felt as if he had just woken from a nightmare. He dreamed that while he was asleep, his wife, Schwi, had gone alone to set up the "Passage Control" and had run into a fatal crisis.
But it had to be a dream. After all, right before falling asleep, he had specifically asked his partner to hold his hand...
Wait? Where is my Schwi? Where is my big, living Schwi?
Riku shot up, realizing that his wife was nowhere to be seen by his bedside.
And a strange, glowing panel floating in front of him seemed to prove that he wasn't dreaming at all.
Riku had been literally "blasted" awake by the massive influx of information transmitted from this panel.
"Curio Forger... forging Curios..."
Riku didn't understand the phrase, [You there? I have a plan to bring the human race from darkness into the light! V-me 50, and listen to the rest of the plan!], but the basic information about the Curio Forger provided by the panel was simple and easy to grasp.
[You there? You there? You there? You there? You there? You there? You there? You there?]
[Do you have any Curios that can be used to find someone?]
Discovering that his wife was not in the room and nowhere to be found, Riku grew frantic.
For some reason, his intuition was screaming at him that something terrible was about to happen.
"Hmm?" Previously, it was always Chen Li sending harassing messages to clients who wouldn't reply. This was the first time he had been bombarded with messages the moment communication was established.
Even Sparkle and Brother Sunday only started harassing him daily after they got to know him well.
[I know you're in a hurry, but don't panic just yet. The slap glove has already been sent to you.]
Although he didn't know what was happening on the other side, since the client wanted something specific and Chen Li happened to have it, he didn't mind lending it out for a trial run.
Upon reading the description of the slap glove, Riku was pleasantly surprised and expressed his deep gratitude.
But when he actually received the glove, Riku encountered a very frustrating problem.
His heavily bandaged left arm, scarred and ruined by Black Ash, was almost completely immobile, making it impossible for him to use it to put the glove on his right hand.
Because the design of the slap glove was rather... innovative, it was the type of glove that was virtually impossible to put on without the help of a second hand.
"...I have to say, this is the simplest, most direct, and most absurd reason for a teleportation I've seen so far," Chen Li couldn't help but remark as he arrived in this new world via the teleportation function of the Guide to Forging Curios, looking at the boy in front of him.
The boy was wrapped in bandages, seemingly suffering from extensive burns all over his body. His left arm appeared useless, his left eye was covered in gauze, and he looked utterly miserable.
Chen Li truly hadn't expected that his reason for coming to this world wouldn't be because the other party needed him to forge a Curio, investigate the world's condition, or awaken a collective consciousness, but simply to help put on a glove.
Wow, you're a real genius.
While speaking, Chen Li didn't forget to help him put the glove on.
He began to consider whether he should implement a simpler activation method for the [Sound of One Hand Slapping], and perhaps change its design to something a bit more modest.
Thinking about it, for the myriad bizarre races out there, requiring two functioning hands was perhaps a bit too mechanically demanding.
While Chen Li was pondering new designs for the glove, Riku had already started slapping.
With a horizontal swipe of his right hand, a spatial rift violently ripped open. Riku leaned his upper body through, slapped himself in the face, and then looked at Schwi, who was mere inches away.
The slap glove was great for sneak attacks and hit-and-runs, making it incredibly convenient. But for a prolonged conversation, it was better to keep the hole open.
Riku, who had just been mentally praising the miraculous effects of this item, drastically changed his expression when he saw Schwi's current state.
"Do you have a Curio that can deploy an invincible defense?!" Seeing Schwi reduced to what looked like scrap metal, and then looking up at the winged being in the sky gathering energy to its absolute peak to unleash a god-slaying strike, Riku whipped his head back and yelled at Chen Li.
Riku didn't try to drag Schwi back through the spatial tunnel because the item description had stated more than once that it was a one-way path.
Schwi Dola. An Ex-Machina, a race entirely composed of mechanical lifeforms. She was also Riku's wife.
Although she looked like a human girl around ten years old, she was an Ex-Machina, so it was perfectly fine.
"I do, friend, I do." Chen Li wasn't blind. He could see the situation perfectly well through the open rift. Without a word of nonsense, he tossed his [Friends Circle] terminal straight out.
Hovering in the sky and charging her attack, the Flügel noticed the sudden appearance of Riku and the golden shield that emerged from the rift to envelop that hunk of scrap metal, but she paid it no mind.
In this world, there were sixteen Exceed races. The Flügel ranked sixth among them, standing below only the Old Deus, Phantasma, Elf, Dragonia, and Gigant races.
But as the Flügel were created by the strongest God of War, their angelic beauty also symbolized death and slaughter. Thus, they were known as angels of death, and were one of the very few races to have ever successfully slain a supreme Old Deus.
As the youngest and strongest of the Flügel, Jibril could obliterate an ocean using only 5% of her Heavenly Smite's power. And right now, she was going all out!
So right now, the advantage was hers!
Jibril could easily discern the weakness of the newly appeared race, so she didn't care.
"I apologize for calling you scrap metal earlier. I take it back. You are a danger that must be definitively eliminated. I judge you to be an enemy worthy of my full power!" Jibril's voice was cold and merciless.
"Heavenly Smite!"
Heavenly Smite was the only named technique of the Flügel, and their ultimate means of attack.
Although using it would drain her energy and reduce her to the form of a child, Jibril didn't believe for a second that the Ex-Machina below, or the organism beside it, could survive this blow!
And this was Jibril's utmost respect for Schwi, an Ex-Machina who had managed to survive for 251 seconds against her!
"Riku..." Seeing the boy carved into her heart suddenly appear before her, Schwi reached out to him, and then used every last ounce of her strength to push him back into the black hole.
It was too dangerous here.
Finally, Schwi diverted all her remaining energy to protect the ring Riku had given her, resting on the ring finger of her left hand, leaving the rest of her body completely defenseless.
Because only by doing this could she preserve this ring.
BOOM!
A strike capable of destroying heaven and earth slammed viciously into the golden shield.
Golden light engulfed the landscape, obliterating everything in sight under the terrifying impact.
A massive mushroom cloud rose from the epicenter...
And Jibril, completely drained of energy, plummeted from the sky.
Thud! Jibril felt like she had crashed into something.
Looking down, she saw a figure glowing with golden light, perfectly protected by a golden shield, standing on the scorched earth exactly as they had been before the Heavenly Smite.
Seeing this, Jibril was utterly dumbfounded.
No, seriously? You took a Heavenly Smite head-on?
And you're fine? How can you possibly be fine?!
SMACK! A slap landed squarely on Jibril's face.
Jibril looked completely bewildered.
The beauty of the slap glove lay in the fact that it had no cooldown, and the slap was guaranteed to hit.
However, since the target could be switched, it meant you didn't just have to slap whoever you intended to hit; you could slap yourself, or even a dog walking by.
Using the slap glove again, Riku obviously couldn't bear to slap Schwi, nor did he want to slap himself, so he conveniently delivered a backhand to Jibril, who was sprawled against the shield.
Ignoring Jibril, Riku turned to Chen Li behind him.
"Do you have a Curio that can heal an Ex-Machina?"
According to the data Riku had obtained from Schwi, once a Flügel unleashed a Heavenly Smite, they would fall into this energy-depleted state, virtually incapable of fighting back.
"I do, friend, I do. But it's not a Curio." Chen Li poked his head through the rift as well.
Theoretically speaking, for a robot like an Ex-Machina, the word 'repair' would be much more fitting. But there was a certain power that, as long as the target was damaged, could heal absolutely anything—Abundance.
It didn't matter what the injury was. If it was broken, it could be fixed.
It was broken beyond belief.
Chen Li plucked a single grain of wheat from the Ear of Wheat and tossed it onto Schwi.
A gentle green light instantly enveloped Schwi, and flowers bloomed wherever the light fell...
When the light dissipated, Schwi, who had been beaten into a lump of scrap metal with an incomplete chassis, was completely restored. Even her missing limbs, scattered who-knows-where, had regrown out of thin air.
Her clothes? Her clothes had been repaired as well.
It was utterly broken.
The Abundance was quite miraculous, wasn't it?
Ordinary Abundance energy might not necessarily fix clothes, but this divine artifact was a physical piece of the Aeon of Abundance.
"Look, your wife is back to full HP," Chen Li said, grabbing Riku by the back of the neck and dragging him back just as the boy was about to jump through the black hole.
"If you go to the other side, how are you going to send your wife back without the return coordinates? Are you going to rely on me?" After squeezing through the black hole himself, Chen Li wagged a finger at Riku and pulled the glove off the boy's hand.
As soon as the glove left Riku's hand, the black hole closed. Then, Chen Li slapped the air, and the black hole reappeared.
Chen Li didn't want to slap Riku, he didn't want to slap Schwi, and he definitely didn't want to slap himself, so he conveniently delivered a slap to Jibril, who was trying to sneak away.
Jibril tried to dodge, but it was physically impossible.
"Alright, you can go back now. I'll clean up the scene." Chen Li picked Schwi up by the scruff of her neck and tossed her through the spatial tunnel.
The slap glove only created a one-way passage.
"Didn't expect a bonus drop. You're pretty tough, little one, managing to actually damage the Friends Circle shield," Chen Li chuckled, looking at the tiny figure on the ground.
Being able to consume one of Chen Li's "Friends" (the shield's charges) was already quite a feat.
"Who are you? What do you want?" Jibril stared warily at the creature in front of her.
Jibril had seen this type of harmless creature before, but had never paid them any mind.
Just as a human wouldn't care about an ant.
But the individual before her was different. Jibril could sense an incredibly dangerous aura emanating from him.
Even without factoring in the miraculous tools in his possession, Jibril felt she stood no chance against him whatsoever.
The aura he emitted was complex—so complex it seemed to encompass all phenomena.
Yet it was also incredibly pure—as pure as a black hole capable of devouring everything.
God knows what that black hole had swallowed, just as God knows if the being standing before her was actually an Old Deus wearing the skin of a human!
"Cleaning up the scene. You're part of the scene too," Chen Li stated.
"..."
"Do you want to hear my reasoning?"
"No, there is no need. In this Great War, whatever one does is permitted." Jibril shook her head.
Just as Jibril had wanted to capture the Ex-Machina named Schwi for her collection, if this being—whatever it was, it was definitely not a human—wanted to sever her head for a trophy, Jibril wouldn't be surprised in the slightest.
The only thing that made Jibril feel stifled was that he was swooping in for a cheap kill!
Waiting until she was completely drained of energy after unleashing a Heavenly Smite to capture her as loot... wasn't that just too despicable?!
"Makes sense," Chen Li couldn't help but nod.
Chen Li had watched the No Game No Life: Zero movie and knew the original ending.
He originally wanted to string Jibril up and whip her, but hearing her logic, he felt she made a very valid point.
"How do you plan to dispose of me?" Jibril asked.
"By rendering you harmless. If the Flügel realize the existence and the threat of the human race because of you, it would be a devastating blow to humanity. Just like eliminating the residual traces of this power, I have to ensure all tracks are wiped clean." Chen Li used the authority of the Herrscher of the Void to scoop up the earth tainted by the power of Abundance, tossing it into his inventory.
There were sixteen Exceed races in this world, each with its own special abilities. If they actually used the power of Abundance to research some chaotic monstrosity, it would be something Chen Li absolutely didn't want to see.
And this was the same reason Chen Li had stopped Riku from coming over.
It was fine for Chen Li to handle it because his passive trait as a transmigrator made him an anomaly, exceptionally difficult to observe.
But Riku could be observed.
While Chen Li could easily lead the human race to a rapid rise, how the development of this world's humanity was decided shouldn't be up to him, especially when they already had an outstanding leader like Riku.
"So... you brought her back?" Riku asked, staring as Chen Li hauled Jibril back by the wings, dangling her like a duck.
"I couldn't exactly leave her there, could I? I cleaned up the traces there too. Though I don't know if the Flügel have some special telepathic link with each other, I severed every connection on this gal anyway. That's why I dared to bring her back, to ask how you'd like to handle her," Chen Li said.
The [Myriad Phenomena Severance] could even cut the river of time itself, let alone some communication signals.
"My opinion..."
After learning from his Ex-Machina wife, Schwi, that the ultimate goal of this eternal Great War spanning six thousand years was to obtain the Star Cup—a conceptual device symbolizing absolute dominion over the world—Riku had decided to intervene. To stop this excruciatingly pointless game, he joined it, establishing six rules for his "Ghosts" (his human comrades) to follow:
[1] Do not kill anyone. Because Riku's heart did not wish to kill anyone. [2] Do not let anyone die. Because Riku's heart did not wish anyone to die. [3] Do not be found out. Because being discovered meant death. [4] Any method used is not cheating. Because as long as it's not exposed, no deception counts as cheating. [5] Their rules have nothing to do with us. Because Riku's heart found their mutual slaughter to be utterly abhorrent. [6] Any violation of the above rules is considered a defeat. Because Riku's heart believed that a victory won by breaking the rules held no value.
But Chen Li wasn't even from this world, and he had just saved his wife. Naturally, Riku wasn't going to bind him with these six rules.
"She is your spoil of war," Riku finally said.
"If that's the case... alright then." Chen Li had already figured out how to handle her.
"So how do you intend to dispose of her?" Riku was very curious.
"I'm going to eat her."
"Uh, so... you're into this type?" Riku was taken aback.
Having degenerated into a child's body after using Heavenly Smite, Jibril looked incredibly young.
"..." said Chen Li.
"But I can understand. At your age in our human settlements, you'd already have several children by now," Riku nodded thoughtfully.
Since humanity was a race merely scraping by in this Great War, to ensure the continuation of their species, it was completely normal for the marriage age to be lowered to whenever one gained the biological capacity to reproduce.
"But you two aren't the same race, so there might be a reproductive barrier," Riku couldn't help but advise.
Though Riku felt he really had no leg to stand on here, considering Jibril the Flügel was at least a biological organism, while his own wife was an Ex-Machina.
And Schwi also looked very young.
"I meant that literally! I'm going to eat her! Where the hell did your mind wander off to?!" Chen Li was starting to lose his composure.
"...You're treating a Flügel as food?" Everyone turned to stare at Chen Li.
Jibril had already mentally prepared herself to be killed by Chen Li. After all, people die when they are killed. In this Great War, no one was exempt from death.
But this method of death was just far too terrifying, wasn't it?!
"Guh! Just kill me!"
"Sigh, it'd be such a waste to kill you... Stop looking at me like that, my way of eating is a bit different." Saying this, Chen Li grabbed the wings on Jibril's back—the symbol of a Flügel—plucked a single feather, and popped it into his mouth.
"Hiss, that hurts..."
After consuming the feather representing the Flügel, Chen Li could feel his physical attributes strengthening, along with gaining additional resistance against Flügel attacks.
"Tastes pretty good." Chen Li's eyes lit up.
"Hey, Jibril, your feathers can grow back, right?" Chen Li suddenly asked.
"Of course they can, what are you trying to do?" Jibril looked at him, instantly on guard.
"To turn you into my snack dispenser and have you gather more snacks for me, obviously! A target with no value to be exploited naturally has no value in living. You don't actually want me to eat you, do you? In return, I'll spare your life." Looking down at Jibril, who was stubbornly craning her neck to glare at him, Chen Li licked his lips.
"!!!" A sensation that she could be devoured at any moment violently washed over Jibril's entire being.
Jibril finally realized what that aura she sensed from Chen Li was!
It was the aura of a predator! An aura that stood above all creation, hunting everything in existence!
Any living being, whether a Flügel or even an Old Deus, was nothing more than food in his eyes!
It felt as though even the stars in the sky were merely morsels destined for his jaws!
Greed, insatiable hunger...
What a terrifying monster!
This being was absolutely not human!
"I understand! I'll provide you with food! Whatever food you want to eat, I'll get it for you! As long as it concerns food, I will obey you!" Crushed by that unique, oppressive presence, and already anxious due to her energy depletion, Jibril's mental defenses instantly shattered.
"Deal." Chen Li opened his palm, where the [Compulsory Transaction Gold Coin] was flashing with golden light.
"What... is this?" Staring blankly at the gold coin in Chen Li's hand, Jibril felt as if she had just tumbled into a pit.
A deep pit!
An impossibly huge, deep pit!
"The Compulsory Transaction Gold Coin. It forces both parties involved in a transaction to execute what they promised," Chen Li explained.
Jibril looked as if she were mourning her dead parents, while Riku's eyes suddenly lit up.
If the absolute enforceability of this Compulsory Transaction Gold Coin could be turned into the rules of a game, making it impossible for anyone to violate them, then...
"The Aeon of Voracity's [Taste] really is useful. Kid, you must be terrified, right?" Chen Li smiled, patting Jibril on the head.
The [Gourmet Cells] Curio didn't inherently terrify people.
"Aeon of Voracity?"
"An Old Deus from another world... or you could say, an existence far exceeding an Old Deus. But it's hard to compare across different worldviews. Because I took a bite out of it, I can mimic its scent, or rather, its aura," Chen Li shook his head, not elaborating further.
"..." To Chen Li's explanation, Jibril didn't feel relieved knowing the aura was mimicked; instead, she grew even more tense.
After all, if he had literally taken a bite out of an entity called the "Aeon of Voracity," it meant his true power was undoubtedly even greater!
If Heavenly Smite was the only named technique of the Flügel and their strongest attack, then Divine Smite was the ultimate strike unleashed by their creator, Artosh the God of War, the strongest Old Deus. It gathered the power of all the Flügel, using them as a medium to fire his full power—essentially the god-tier version of Heavenly Smite. Its destructive force was said to be capable of piercing through multiple planets lined up in a row.
As the strongest God of War, Artosh could easily have won the Great War whenever he pleased, but he chose not to.
Judging solely by this display of destructive output, the God of War might seem a bit lacking compared to the Aeon of Voracity, who treated devouring planets as a casual hobby. However, because Artosh's core concept was being the "Strongest," if a stronger entity appeared in his world, the God of War would conceptually become even stronger...
So Chen Li didn't bother making comparisons.
If an Aeon really descended upon this world, and it elevated the God of War to the level of an Aeon, that would be incredibly fun to watch... though Chen Li felt it wouldn't be exaggerated to quite that extent.
"Then..." Riku started to speak, but shut his mouth when he looked at Jibril.
Snap! Chen Li snapped his fingers, and Jibril, who had been reduced to a toddler's size, instantly reverted to her normal form.
Overjoyed to find herself restored, Jibril shot a malicious look at Chen Li...
"Don't look at me like that, or I won't mind having a pot of 'Little Jibril Stewed with Mushrooms.' And this restoration is temporary. As long as I will it, you will revert to your powerless state at any time. Go outside and get me some Spirit Corpses. Since I'm in this world, I absolutely have to taste how salty or bland this Black Ash is. Remember, no funny business, and you are forbidden from harming humans," Chen Li ordered Jibril.
"Understood." Because of the Compulsory Transaction Gold Coin, as long as it pertained to gathering food, Jibril had to absolutely obey Chen Li's commands.
If he commanded her not to try any funny business, she physically couldn't try any funny business.
Chen Li could even order Jibril to go fetch the God of War for him, since in Chen Li's eyes, gods were also food.
But that would clearly be sending Jibril to her death.
"You can even eat Black Ash?" Riku couldn't help but ask.
The Elves ranked third among the 16 Exceed races. Spirits were the power source for the vast majority of magic, and the use of highly destructive magic directly resulted in their deaths.
They were essentially a living form of "mana."
Spirits mostly concentrated in erogenous zones, such as... the wings of the Flügel.
But what Chen Li had eaten earlier was a living spirit.
Spirit Corpses, also known as Black Ash, were the remnants left behind when spirits died.
This substance was an extremely lethal toxin, possessing intense corrosive properties. However, most races, aside from humanity, had innate biological ways of handling it.
This substance also had another characteristic—since it was the byproduct of dead spirits, and all magic required the use of spirits, it could block magical detection and scrying.
For example, the reason Riku suffered from extensive burns all over his body, rendering his left arm and left eye nearly useless, was because he deliberately smeared Black Ash over himself.
Humans couldn't sense the presence of spirits, so they could only rely on this crude, agonizing method to prevent their "schemes and trickery" from being seen through by other races.
Riku had even inhaled it into his body. If Schwi, as an Ex-Machina, hadn't forcibly pumped decontamination fluid down his throat, Riku would have died long ago.
This was exactly why Riku asked the question.
"As long as it enters my body through my mouth, I will digest it. It won't cause me any harm."
"Thank you very much for your help. If it weren't for you, Schwi might have..." After Jibril left, Riku expressed his deep gratitude to Chen Li.
"Don't mention it. Meeting is fate. Besides, even if Schwi had died, it wouldn't have been a big deal, because I have resurrection Curios right here."
Hearing the first half of the sentence, Riku felt deeply moved. Hearing the second half, his feelings became incredibly complicated.
Riku felt as if he had just stumbled upon the motherlode of treasures.
Or rather, it would be more accurate to say the treasure had stumbled upon him.
"Though your wife doesn't seem very happy," Chen Li remarked.
"That's probably because Schwi told me she shared her feelings for me as a precious sample with the entire Ex-Machina network..." Riku sighed helplessly.
The Ex-Machina were a race tightly bound to reality yet absurdly advanced. Information gathered by a single unit would be transmitted to the Prüfer (Examiners), the Befehler (Commanders), and ultimately the All-Befehler (Supreme Commander) Einzig, who would then share it with all Ex-Machina.
Originally, because Schwi attempted to comprehend the human "heart," encountering numerous contradictions due to theoretical errors, she was eventually disconnected by the Befehler—effectively discarded.
But just now, sensing she wouldn't live to see Riku again, Schwi transmitted her emotions (her research on the "heart") to the entire Ex-Machina race, hoping they would help Riku achieve his wish of ending the war.
If Schwi had died, then everything she did would have been deeply meaningful. But now, Schwi was still very much alive.
She currently felt as if she had just NTR'd herself.
Because when Schwi's feelings for Riku were received by all the Ex-Machina, it meant that every single Ex-Machina had just fallen in love with Riku.
Of course, Schwi didn't know the term for it was NTR.
"But that's not important. I recall you saying at the beginning that you had a plan to bring the human race from darkness into the light?" Riku asked.
"Now I have more than one plan. Here, take this. This Abundance divine artifact will continuously heal your body. By the time we finish chatting, you'll be pretty much fully healed." Chen Li handed the Ear of Wheat to Riku.
The Aeon of Abundance really was doing Chen Li a lot of solids.
Riku's condition was much better than Schwi's had been, so he could be cured without needing to consume an actual grain of wheat.
"Thank you," Riku thanked him again.
The moment he held the ear of wheat, Riku felt a slight itch in his previously blinded left eye...
"Don't mention it."
"So when you said you had more than one plan, you meant..."
"Originally, I planned to forge a Curio called an Elf... Honkai Ball, which would grant humanity the ability to use Honkai Balls to capture the other races. It's an item I intend to forge for other worlds, but I don't think you'd mind sharing the prototype."
"Mhm," Riku nodded.
Forget about sharing. Chen Li had saved Schwi; Riku would give him whatever he wanted.
"Relying on the unique resilience of humanity, this plan could absolutely succeed. If we then use a miraculous item to awaken the collective consciousness of the human race, using that consciousness to shelter humanity, humans should be able to live quite well after the Great War ends," Chen Li said.
"What is a collective consciousness?" Riku asked immediately.
"Well... think of it as a special deity constructed from the combined subconscious of all living beings within a civilization. It will shelter the growth of that race and possesses various miraculous abilities."
"An Old Deus?"
"It does sound somewhat similar... but a collective consciousness doesn't possess direct combat capabilities. However, in this world, who knows? It might actually manifest as an Old Deus... or allow a proto-Old Deus to emerge." As Chen Li spoke, he glanced at the chess set sitting on the table in Riku's room.
From Chen Li's perspective, sitting opposite the chessboard was a blurry, humanoid figure seemingly waiting for a game to begin.
And hovering above this figure's head was a shining Entry.
If nothing went wrong, that should be the yet-to-be-born God of Play—Tet.
A god believed in only by Riku and Schwi.
In this world, Old Deus were a race that manifested based on wishes. Born from the planet's concepts, they acquired their 'Divine Core' through wishes and prayers.
Chen Li could theoretically combine the two...
But doing so wouldn't be a good thing for either humanity or the Old Deus.
Humanity wouldn't be able to accept having a creator or manager looming over their heads, and the Old Deus wouldn't be able to accept being reduced to daily pooper-scoopers for their human "pets."
It would be a mutual disdain.
A collective consciousness, on the other hand, wouldn't have this problem.
After Chen Li explained the specifics of the collective consciousness, Riku seemed to form some new ideas.
"Can this collective consciousness alter the rules of the world?" Riku asked immediately.
"If you're trying to use it to create a world where games decide winners and losers, you'll still need the Star Cup. A collective consciousness isn't omnipotent," Chen Li shook his head.
Okay, truth be told, Chen Li just didn't have enough Civilization Value on hand.
Otherwise... Out of sheer curiosity, Chen Li had used the [Then I Ask You] Miracle Card on his [Toying with the Vassals at the Beacons] card, and received an unexpected answer.
The highest tier of collective consciousness Chen Li could awaken was called... the Will of Heaven.
Substituting the Will of Heaven with one's own will.
Replacing the management rights of the "World" within the borders of a civilization with that civilization's collective consciousness.
Achieving an artificial World Will in another sense.
It was the "Heavenly Dao" functioning beneath the "Great Dao."
A collective consciousness of this magnitude, aside from interfering with conceptual constructs like fate and causality, could also strike out directly at the material world with devastating force.
But Chen Li's Civilization Value was nowhere near enough for that.
"Do you also know about the Star Cup? Did that Flügel tell you?" Riku was a bit curious.
"That's not important. We can discuss that in detail later. You just need to know that a collective consciousness can help a race survive much better. You will likely need this."
"Then is there a method to increase humanity's ability to protect itself? After all, even if the Great War ends, humans are far too fragile in the hands of the other races," Riku asked.
Riku didn't want to see the human race, or even a single human, die ever again.
"I do, friend, I do. You see that Abundance divine artifact in your hands? If you plant it anywhere in the earth and let it take root, it will grant you a blessing known as Abundance. From then on, you can lead humanity to use this blessing to evolve from the human race into the Celestial race, fundamentally transforming into a far nobler species."
"Even if their heads are severed, as long as they are reattached in time, they can continue to live. An endlessly long lifespan, immensely powerful physical constitutions, and a regenerative ability bordering on immortality... Although humans who become Celestials might not surpass the Flügel, they could absolutely secure a mid-tier position among the sixteen races," Chen Li explained.
Chen Li suddenly felt as if he had truly become an Emanator of Abundance, spreading the blessings of Yaoshi in a different world.
The upper limit for the Celestial race was very high. The problem was that this world didn't provide a high ceiling for human growth, because humans couldn't even sense spirits, and this world didn't have Paths to walk.
So even if humanity accepted the blessing of Abundance, they would at best be considered a buffed-up version of the Warbeasts.
"So, Chen Li, what is the price?"
"Becoming a Denizen of Abundance inherently requires no price. At most, after reaching a thousand or so years of age, one might develop Mara-Struck due to emotions wearing down over time... It's akin to an irreversible mental illness that leads to a loss of physical control. But that's a problem for a millennium from now."
Furthermore, this world didn't have HooH, the Aeon of Equilibrium. Whether Mara-Struck would even exist here was another question entirely.
Because one theory suggested that Mara-Struck was a constraint imposed by the Aeon of Equilibrium to balance the Denizens of Abundance.
"But it's worth noting that the blessing of Abundance can be plundered. Once the human race becomes the Celestial race, they will lose their original advantage of being so weak they go unnoticed. Instead, they will be coveted by countless beings. While having an awakened collective consciousness would prevent genocide, humanity would suffer heavy blows in the early stages," Chen Li continued.
In fact, after accepting the blessing of Abundance, being plundered by other Denizens of Abundance was the standard reality for planets that sought the Aeon's gift.
Some Denizens of Abundance would even deliberately guide other planets to seek the blessing.
Pigs must be fattened before slaughter.
"That..."
"Let me finish. But if you are willing to let me make a slight modification to the Ex-Machina, all problems will be easily solved." Chen Li cut off whatever Riku was about to say.
This was why Chen Li said he had more than one plan.
Originally, Chen Li thought the timeline in Riku's world might be around the middle or even early stages of the plot. He hadn't expected it to already be the late stages of the Great War.
Theoretically, if Chen Li had arrived a few days later, Riku's ashes would have already grown cold.
But now that Schwi had transmitted her feelings for Riku to the entire Ex-Machina race, making the whole network willing to fight for Riku, a turning point had arrived.
"What modification?"
"I have a virus in my possession called the [Machine Spirit Virus]. Its downside is that it grants mechanical lifeforms freedom, but its upside is that it allows mechanical lifeforms to accomplish whatever they believe they can accomplish. Miraculous, isn't it? If the Ex-Machina are infected with this virus, they could very well leap up to become the most powerful race on this planet," Chen Li stated.
However, because the Machine Spirit Virus's enhancement of individual units was limited, it wouldn't trigger the God of War's "Strongest" conceptual mechanic, meaning Artosh wouldn't receive a corresponding power boost.
At the same time, since the entire Ex-Machina race now loved Riku, granting them freedom wouldn't result in rebellion, because emotion isn't a constraint.
Freedom didn't equal betrayal, just like Unique Herta didn't rebel against the original Big Herta.
The Machine Spirit would only make the Ex-Machina more individualistic and scattered.
Unless someone managed to enrage the entire Ex-Machina race simultaneously... like by killing Riku.
"Since Schwi shared her feelings for you with the Ex-Machina, you can absolutely empower the Ex-Machina, making them the strongest race in the world to shelter humanity. They can help humanity weather the growing pains of transitioning into the Celestial race."
"..." Riku fell into deep thought.
Because the blueprint Chen Li laid out for Riku was simply too enticing.
Awakening a collective consciousness for humanity to protect them from the unseen, pushing the unique resilience of the human race to its absolute limit.
The blessing of Abundance could elevate humans to Celestials, granting them long lives and powerful bodies.
And the Machine Spirit Virus could empower the Ex-Machina to provide a physical aegis for humanity. The only price required was Riku's own guilt—the guilt of using himself to hijack the entire Ex-Machina race for the sake of sheltering humanity.
However, Riku happened to be extraordinarily adept at deceiving himself. He could even place a mental lock on his own heart, sealing his emotions deep within.
"Is there really... no other price?" Riku asked, his voice slightly hoarse.
Riku couldn't shake the feeling that everything had happened too suddenly. It felt exactly like a seductive conspiracy designed to lure one into the abyss.
"If I had to point out a flaw, it's that when humans are weak, they will do everything in their power to strengthen themselves and defeat their enemies. But once they become powerful, they indulge in infighting... But to prevent humanity from infighting by refusing to let them become strong is putting the cart before the horse. After all, they are both races. By what logic is it acceptable for the Flügel to be powerful to the point of perfection, but unacceptable for humanity to become strong?" Chen Li argued.
Humanity also had the right to be the protagonists of heaven and earth.
Weakness was indeed an advantage when overcoming the strong, but one shouldn't obsess over remaining weak.
Otherwise, what was the point of defeating the strong?
Humanity wasn't some cursed race chosen by fate to forever remain the perpetual underdog before all other races, were they?
However, Chen Li also understood Riku's hesitations. Even Chen Li himself was experiencing a feeling of: 'Am I harboring malicious intentions? Am I offering these enticing strategies merely to test if Riku is someone who aligns with my ideals, ready to eliminate him if our "Paths" don't cross?'
As for what the future would look like if humanity were drastically altered now, that wasn't something Chen Li needed to worry about.
As long as the world wasn't destroyed and the human race experienced positive improvements, Chen Li was happy to see it happen.
Chen Li believed that a man who could establish the rules of not killing anyone and not letting anyone die would undoubtedly be an outstanding leader.
The sole advantage of an autocracy was that if the ruler was wise, the civilization would prosper in their light.
This meant that as long as Chen Li ensured Riku couldn't die, he could ensure humanity never strayed from its original intentions.
So, Chen Li began to wonder if he should forge an immortality-granting Curio for Riku, a throne that would allow him to command humanity forever, as long as he sat upon it.
As for the design of the Curio... a Golden Toilet seemed like a brilliant idea.
And it would be even better if this Golden Toilet could suppress something beneath it. Like... suppressing the Old Deus?
Perhaps humanity would use it as a stepping stone to venture beyond their world and into the stars.
And if he threw the Machine Spirit into the mix...
Chen Li couldn't help but feel that these settings, when added up, looked awfully familiar.
"I need to consider whether to elevate humanity into the Celestial race," Riku said.
Riku believed that if a single person could truly make a decision impacting the fate of an entire species within a few minutes, that person was far too arrogant.
"Of course, no problem. That's something you only need to consider after the war is won. After all, spreading the blessing of Abundance to the entire human race will take time. You might even have the chance to personally visit the worlds where the Celestials reside to investigate. What about the Machine Spirit Virus?"
"That is something I cannot decide," Riku shook his head.
Riku could indeed be a strategist who calculated everything, but now that there was a sliver of hope for victory, he didn't want to drag the entire Ex-Machina race into it due to his own selfish desires.
"The only decision I can make right now is what I should pay you in return. You've provided us with so much help. What reward do you seek?" Riku asked Chen Li.
"The victory of the game."
"You want the Star Cup?" Riku understood.
This wasn't an unreasonable request; it was entirely expected.
Why else would an outsider involve themselves in this Great War between the sixteen races if not for the Star Cup? Just for fun?
"No. What I want is for you to win the game called [Life] using the six rules you established." Chen Li shook his head.
[Game: Life] Entry extraction in progress... Progress: 0/1 (Progress increases by witnessing the victory of the game. Witnessing the game achieve a perfect ending will increase the Entry's brightness.)
"Is that all?"
"If possible, could you let me take a bite out of the Star Cup? Just one bite, a small one."
"I have no objections."
"And let me borrow the Star Cup for a moment."
"What are you trying to do this time?" Riku wasn't interrogating him; he was genuinely curious.
"If holding the Star Cup grants omniscience and omnipotence, then I was wondering... could I take a bite out of this [World]? Just one bite, a small one," Chen Li pinched his fingertips together "shyly."
In a daze, Riku looked at Chen Li's fingertips and saw... the entire universe!
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