Chapter 85

The first day as a god.
For the first time, Gu Yi'an deeply experienced an emotion called boredom.
Every person or object she saw, she could instantly perceive the infinite possibilities existing within them or it.
She would know what would happen to them or it in the next second.
Everything about them or it was already known to her.
Omniscience is divinity.
And what a god could not foresee were only the people or things connected to Him.
Because the god Himself was the variable.
If the god did not change anything, then He could also see His own future.
She was now a god.
A god who found it all rather dull.
Gu Yi'an and Lu Zize slowly descended the mountain and arrived at the village.
The players had already reported the incident to the police the day before. The authorities had arrested the criminals and stationed guards to secure the area.
The guards, however, failed to notice two individuals entering the village right under their noses.
Gu Yi'an and Lu Zize watched as the police excavated evidence of the crimes.
She knew this evidence would be crucial in convicting the villagers, and she could already foresee their fate, death by execution.
But she wanted to witness their sentencing with her own eyes.
While waiting for the verdict, Gu Yi'an diverted her attention to another matter she had to address, the Game of the Gods.
She had taken over the Game of the Gods and, along with it, the two administrators Lu Zize had originally left in charge: the Pure White Space and the Black Text.
The Pure White Space was Lu Zize's earliest creation, capable of traversing any world at will.
The Black Text was a later creation, endowed with greater cognitive abilities and even learning his mischievous nature.
Though there were countless instances of them, they shared a collective consciousness, obeying the commands of the god.
Previously, they had obeyed Lu Zize; now, they obeyed her.
Gu Yi'an conveyed her ideas to them, and thus, the Game of the Gods underwent its first update.
Countless players, whether resting or immersed in game worlds, suddenly found themselves transported to the Pure White Space.
Floating in mid-air, the Black Text stood out starkly against the pure white backdrop.
[Welcome to the Game of the Gods.]
[This is a blessing bestowed upon you, the dying, by the god.]
[Praise the god, for He has mercifully granted you a chance to choose anew.]
[You may choose to live or die.]
[Now, what is your choice?]
The Black Text remained suspended in the air.
Most players stared at the text in confusion.
They couldn't comprehend why the god had suddenly brought them back to the Pure White Space to ask such a question.
Was the god simply bored?
The coordinated appearance of the Pure White Space and the Black Text confirmed to the players that this was indeed the Game of the Gods.
Thus, their first thought was that the god was toying with them.
They speculated that the god might have devised even crueler and more torturous methods.
The more they thought about it, the more convinced they became of their assumptions.
For these individuals, the two choices presented by the Black Text offered no real dilemma.
Between life and death, they would, of course, choose to live.
One by one, the players selected the option to survive.
The moment they made their choice, the Black Text in the Pure White Space transformed once more.
[Welcome to the Godhood Game.]
[This is a journey of human evolution.]
[The line between human and god lies in a single thought of yours.]
[You may choose to give up at any time. Only those who persevere to the end can become gods.]
The players gazed at the text before them.
At that moment, they finally realized that the Game of the Gods had undergone some unknown change.
It seemed to have gained a touch of humanity.
After the players finished reading, the Black Text in their vision shifted to display new content.
[New Player Exchange established for trading items.]
[New Player Comprehensive Power Ranking created to motivate players to enhance their strength.]
[Additional features will be rolled out in the future. Stay tuned.]
These players stared at the black text floating mid-air, gradually realizing that this game was encouraging them to evolve into gods.
They began to feel deeply unsettled.
A game that toyed with people and watched them die had suddenly transformed into one that spurred human evolution, how utterly absurd.
There’s no such thing as a free lunch.
Precisely because the game asked nothing of them, they grew even more wary.
Was some deity secretly scheming to take something from humanity?
Why did this encouragement for humans to evolve into gods feel even more sinister than the previous deity’s amusement?
Gu Yi’an, of course, was aware of these players’ thoughts.
She, too, was now a god.
Viewing things from a human perspective versus a divine one was a uniquely peculiar experience.
Humans suspected the gods of coveting something from them, yet as a god herself, she knew she harbored no such intentions. All she wanted was for this god-making game to genuinely produce a new deity.
Because now, she was truly weary of divine existence.
She had fragmented her consciousness into infinitesimal parts, observing each player one by one. Though she hadn’t lost herself in the endless flow of information, her human emotions had thinned to near nothingness, devoid of desires and needs.
Rather than remain a god, she’d much prefer to be human again.
Gu Yi’an made up her mind: once she had set the god game in order, she would return to an ordinary life, living out each day in simplicity.
Most players in the god game chose to live on, becoming participants in this so-called god-making game.
But a portion of players resolutely chose death.
Among them was someone Gu Yi’an knew.
She saw Tang Jiu.
Gazing at the black text in the pure white space, Tang Jiu’s face showed relief and tranquility.
“They’re actually letting us die?”
Tang Jiu murmured to herself, “That deity would never have let us go. Is it a new god now? Must be a new one, and a kind one in human eyes… Whatever. I choose death.”
The black text in the air shifted.
[You have chosen death.]
[You have attained eternal peace.]
Tang Jiu’s eyes rested on the final two words, and a smile graced her lips.
“Finally, I can rest.”
The black text dissipated, the pure white faded away.
Tang Jiu’s body materialized in a bedroom somewhere in the world.
She lay on the bed as if asleep, her sleeping face serene with a faint smile, as though lost in a pleasant dream. Yet, her body showed no signs of life.
She was dead.
Shortly after, Gu Yi'an appeared in the bedroom.
She glanced at Tang Jiu, who seemed to be dreaming sweetly, walked over, and placed a few candies by Tang Jiu’s pillow.
If souls, after dissipating, truly journeyed to a world unknown even to gods, then she hoped Tang Jiu could enjoy some candies there and live a little more happily.
Just as her classmates had wished for her.
Since Gu Yi'an had only recently become a deity, her ability to divide her consciousness was still unrefined.
While focusing her mind on the divine game, she could no longer spare any attention for Lu Zize and the others in her own world.
In Gu Yi'an’s rented apartment, Lu Zize, in his notebook form, lay on the desk as usual.
The hanging ghost, in the form of a sunny doll, landed on the desk. It glanced at the black characters floating above the notebook and let out a deep sigh.
"I understand what you mean. You helped the princess become a deity, and now she’s ignoring you, even more distant than before you were together."
If the hanging ghost weren’t utterly incapable of defeating the notebook, it would have turned and left right then.
Such a promising situation had deteriorated into this mess.
The Ghost King truly was something else.
"You shouldn’t have let the princess become a deity so soon."
No matter how you looked at it, the mistake lay in rushing her ascension to godhood.
Though the Ghost King had acted with good intentions, it was too hasty, like a human infant trying to run the moment it learned to walk.
How could the Ghost King be so delusional?
The hanging ghost dared only think these words to itself. It sighed again, its thoughts swirling with unspoken criticisms it didn’t dare voice directly to the notebook.
Instead, it said tactfully, "Look, the princess is so career-driven. Handing the game over to her only implies that you see her as a subordinate. You might as well have let me manage the game temporarily."
Oops, it had accidentally revealed its own ambitions.
Quickly, before the notebook could react, the hanging ghost added, "Ghost King, stop reading those books on how to chase after girls. You’re already her boyfriend, what you need now is a guide on being a good partner. Change your reading material."
The black characters above the notebook shifted once more.
The hanging ghost glanced at them.
"Ghost King, I know."
It dropped the humble "your servant" and said plainly, "You gave the princess the most precious thing you have. But even as a deity, she’s still human, human! You have to think from a human perspective."
The hanging ghost emphasized this point heavily.
It had learned this lesson the hard way.
It never should have offered human legs to the princess, suggesting she eat human flesh. Now, even after her ascension, the princess barely remembered it, a loyal, understanding, and highly capable subordinate.
At least the little girl in the small coffin wasn’t on the princess’s mind either, which gave the hanging ghost some consolation.
The black characters above the notebook changed again.
The hanging ghost was growing tired of looking but had no choice.
It read the new message: "How do we break this deadlock?"
The Hanged Ghost pondered for a long while before suggesting, "Lord Ghost King, why don't you be a bit bolder? Stick close to the Princess Consort, wherever she goes, you go. Just throw your pride out the window. The Princess Consort is human, so you should learn to act like one too. Otherwise, even if you care deeply for her, you're approaching things from a god's perspective, while she sees things from a human standpoint. Your perspectives are completely different; you're not even on the same wavelength."
The black characters on the notebook shifted.
"How do I stick close to her?"
The Hanged Ghost mused, "Like in those human TV dramas, kiss her! Kiss her until..."
"Hanged Ghost."
A cool, clear woman's voice came from behind the Hanged Ghost.
The Hanged Ghost, in its sunny doll form, froze, then slowly turned around.
It gradually tilted its little head upward.
It saw a familiar, elegant beauty looking at it with a calm expression.
The Hanged Ghost had seen this kind of calm expression far too many times.
Usually, it meant the Princess Consort's heart was anything but calm.
The Hanged Ghost's little mind raced, trying to recall if it had done anything wrong.
Oh no.
It had just encouraged the Ghost King to cling to the Princess Consort and even told him to kiss her.
The Princess Consort had always disliked such overly intimate gestures.
It was doomed.
The Hanged Ghost realized that the advice it had just given the Ghost King might have upset the Princess Consort.
"Princess Consort, it was Lord Ghost King who made me say it," it immediately spoke up in its own defense.
Gu Yi'an glanced at the notebook behind the Hanged Ghost.
The notebook lay there quietly.
Yet, Gu Yi'an could somehow sense a hint of grievance from it.
Gu Yi'an felt a bit guilty. It seemed she had been neglecting it.
Now that Gu Yi'an had control over this world and could know everything that had happened in the past, she naturally learned of the conversation between Lu Zize and the Hanged Ghost.
After reading that dialogue, Gu Yi'an immediately reflected on her own actions.
Lu Zize had handed over the multiple worlds and The Game of the Gods to her to help resolve her physical issues, making her a god as well.
But after becoming a god, her first actions were to check on the villagers' fates and change the mechanics of The Game of the Gods. She had hardly paid any attention to Lu Zize and hadn't even thanked him for making her a god.
After becoming a god, Gu Yi'an gradually realized something.
The Game of the Gods seemed to be the only amusement for a god.
Anything related to gods would inevitably involve variables, and thus The Game of the Gods was filled with endless unpredictability. Among all the things that could be known, it was incredibly fascinating.
In a sense, this might be the most precious thing the deity possessed.
And He had given it to her.
Gu Yi'an glanced at the notebook on the desk, then shifted her gaze to the nearby ghost.
She said, "Hanged Ghost, I told you not to corrupt him."
Last time, it was also Hanged Ghost who taught Lu Zize a bunch of things, making him act unlike his usual self. Lu Zize had been perfectly fine before, never doing anything out of line, but Hanged Ghost had led him astray, filling his head with strange thoughts.
Hanged Ghost: "?"
It corrupting the Ghost King?
The Ghost King was the worst of them all!
In an instant, Hanged Ghost understood the Ghost King’s true intention in seeking its advice.
Her Highness was now a deity, she could easily uncover past events. She must have witnessed their earlier conversation and, in the process, learned of the Ghost King’s feelings.
The misunderstanding between the two of them had instantly dissolved.
And after reading those words, Her Highness must now be filled with immense guilt toward the Ghost King!
Hanged Ghost had an epiphany, it was no match for a scheming notebook.
In Her Highness’s eyes, filtered through countless layers of bias, the notebook was pure, innocent, and kind-hearted, while Hanged Ghost was the one constantly urging it to learn mischief.
Hanged Ghost gave up on defending itself.
It turned and drifted toward the door, muttering, "Your Highness, you will lose your most loyal subordinate."
It, Hanged Ghost, Her Highness’s number one subordinate, had resolutely decided to run away from home today!
Right in front of Gu Yi'an and the notebook, Hanged Ghost drifted toward the door.
Slowly, it reached the door crack.
But no call came from behind.
Hanged Ghost, now at the door crack, began to panic.
Had Her Highness really not called out to stop it?
There was no other way.
Turning back now would be too embarrassing, it had to make Her Highness value it.
No, it absolutely had to run away from home today.
Hanged Ghost flattened itself into a thin sheet and squeezed through the door crack.
Gu Yi'an watched the white ghost leave and frowned slightly.
Strange, why hadn’t Hanged Ghost stopped even when she called it?
She glanced at the notebook on the desk. She had already not spoken to it because of the game incident, she couldn’t ignore it over something else now.
Hesitating for a moment, she tapped the small coffin hanging from her phone.
The coffin lid was pushed open from the inside.
"An'an." A little girl climbed out of the small coffin and stood obediently on the desk.
Gu Yi'an tapped her little head and said, "Hanged Ghost has run away from home. Go bring it back."
The little girl nodded. "Okay, An'an. If I can’t beat it in a fight, I’ll eat it and come back."
Gu Yi'an: "...Don’t eat it. Communicate properly and bring it back."
The little girl still listened to Gu Yi'an. Though a bit disappointed, she agreed to the request.
The little girl also drifted out through the door crack.
As soon as she left, she came face to face with a white ghost floating mid-air.
The little girl and the ghost stared at each other.
One second.
Two seconds.
The ghost burst into laughter. "Haha, you got kicked out too!"
Before it could finish, the little girl delivered a swift kick straight to the ghost’s mouth.
The laughter cut off abruptly.
The two ghosts descended into a chaotic brawl.
Inside the room, Gu Yi'an, now a deity, was naturally aware of the commotion outside the door.
She was staring at the notebook, unsure of what to say, when it suddenly opened on its own, revealing a line of text.
"They're fighting."
The notebook broke the ice, easing the awkwardness between them.
Gu Yi'an smiled slightly, as if it were nothing out of the ordinary. "Yes, those two are really going at it."
She said, "I don't know how to make them stop."
New words appeared on the notebook: "You can send the fire dragon to mediate."
"The fire dragon?"
Gu Yi'an thought it over. The fire dragon usually just watched the show when the little girl and the hanged ghost fought, making it an object of hatred for both ghosts. Every time, it ended up getting the worst of the beatings.
Sending the fire dragon to mediate might just result in both ghosts ganging up on the little fire dragon.
Just as Gu Yi'an was hesitating, another sentence appeared in the notebook.
"You have to trust me."
At the doorway, the little girl and the hanged ghost were in the midst of a chaotic brawl when suddenly, a third party appeared beneath them.
Both ghosts looked down simultaneously.
They saw a palm-sized fire dragon fluttering its wings as it flew up.
The little fire dragon couldn't speak human language, so it could only flap its wings, gesturing for the two ghosts to fly inside.
The moment the hanged ghost saw the little fire dragon, it froze.
Even when the little girl kicked it in the head and sent it flying, it didn't retaliate.
The little girl paused, no longer fighting.
She flew closer to the hanged ghost and heard it muttering to itself, "So that's it, so that's it."
The little girl was puzzled. "Can ghosts get their brains knocked loose?"
The hanged ghost glared at her. "What knocked loose? Haven't you realized it yet?"
Hovering in mid-air, the little girl asked, "Realized what?"
"Me, you, and it," the hanged ghost tilted its chin toward the little fire dragon, "the three of us third wheels have been kicked out."
It said mournfully, "We might never be able to go back."
If the Ghost King still found them an eyesore, they would never be allowed back in.
Inside the room, Gu Yi'an occasionally glanced at the situation outside the door with the two ghosts and the dragon.
This time, she saw the two ghosts and the little dragon huddled pitifully in the corner by the doorway.
The little fire dragon let out a sob from time to time.
The little girl was using the hem of a white sunny doll to wipe her tears.
"It's all your fault. An'an has abandoned us."
The white sunny doll strained its unpleasant voice, not even bothering to fuss over its hem being used by the little girl to wipe away tears. It cried out, "Your Highness, I will never run away from home again!"
The two ghosts and one dragon were putting on quite the show, acting as if they had been cruelly abandoned.
Gu Yi'an replayed the past scenes in her mind and understood how the two ghosts and one dragon had imagined the situation. She couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time.
She turned her gaze to the notebook.
At that moment, a new line of text appeared on the notebook.
It was the exact same sentence as the previous line.
"You have to believe me."
Gu Yi'an smiled softly and whispered, "Of course, I believe you."
If I don't believe you, who else can I believe?
The atmosphere inside the room was warm, while outside, it was bleak and sorrowful.
The little fire dragon cried for a while and eventually fell asleep.
The little girl cried until she had no more tears left. Unable to keep up the act, she asked the hanging ghost, "We've cried so much, and An'an still hasn't softened. Will she come back for us?"
The sunny doll stopped shouting as well. It sighed, a wave of indescribable bitterness and sorrow washing over it.
"Let's wait. Wait until they remember us. From now on, we should keep a low profile, be more aware of our surroundings, and avoid lingering in front of Her Highness. No matter what, we shouldn't be third wheels."