I Have a God Simulator

Gazing out over this vast grassland.

Tao God felt a sense of sorrow.

This was a primitive, backward world, one without even the most basic of towns. To see these plains lying so desolate and unused... ’What a tremendous waste.’

In the Crawling Area, every inch of land was precious.

Over there, a World Dimension could overlap at any moment, spawning a horde of monsters to begin a massacre. It was nothing like the peace and tranquility of this place.

The Divine War never ceases.

The slaughter and crushing of Believers, the Altars and Divine Statues hidden in the shadows, the battlefields stained with the blood of Apostles and Heroes... Only those who could withstand it all, whose Faith was passed down across Eras, could truly be called Gods.

It was a cruel jungle meant only for the strong.

This place, however, was merely a placid shoal for nurturing Apprentice Deities. No, calling these apprentices "Gods" was giving them too much credit. They were merely cannon fodder, pawns in the fight for a chance to join the Gods.

Or, to put it more elegantly, the Chosen Ones.

They knew nothing about this world.

Most of this cannon fodder would become complacent, enamored with the title of "God." They would naturally assume themselves to be not only chosen, but unique.

And who could blame them?

All beings possessing Wisdom seek to avoid pressure and responsibility, craving limitless pleasure and power.

Tao God recalled his own Stairway to Divinity; he too had passed through such a naive phase.

From resentment to doubt, from helplessness to acceptance, from hardship to despair, and from a desperate struggle back to reforged glory.

This was the path to godhood.

To earn a place among the Gods, one had to bear the burdens of a God.

The path of a God’s ascension was fraught with peril. As their Fire of Faith spread, igniting one continent after another, they crossed Eras and entered countless worlds, rising from God to Titled Deity, and then to Main God...

They had to lead entire worlds across each new frontier. Only by distinguishing themselves in the Crawling Area and breaking into the infinitely terrifying Flying District would they earn the right to pursue the distant, unattainable Transcendent Zone.

In the process, most Gods would fall during the endless cycles of rise and decline. A rare few were able to swim against the tide, drawing ever closer to that truly infinite, boundless plane of existence.

Tao God knew full well that he currently lacked the ability to advance any further.

Even ascending to the rank of Titled Deity was still a distant dream.

He considered himself one of the more low-key, down-to-earth Gods.

However, recent events had proven that for a God, being too low-key and unassuming was not necessarily a good thing.

Because he was usually so inconspicuous in the Divine Palace, Tao God had always been the most overlooked Subordinate God. He had avoided conflict for many years, causing his ranking in the Divine Hall of the Gods to plummet. He now stood at a lowly 19th in the Divine Palace.

The Whistleblower had ordered him and Haili God to undergo Demotion and enter this Fragment World to find a key.

Tao God fell into utter despair.

The might of a Titled Deity was not to be challenged. Tao God could only grit his teeth and endure the humiliation. He was forced to personally destroy the civilization and wonders he had built within his World Dimension, abandon his Divine Body, and fall to the immobile state of an apprentice.

This was the cruel reality of the Divine Hall of the Gods.

Aside from a few special exceptions, the Gods had almost no power to resist the Titled Deities to whom they were subordinate.

Never challenge a higher God. That was the iron-clad rule.

Tao God felt nothing but regret.

’If only I had known. I should have shown off my power more often, participated in more Divine Wars, and done everything I could to raise my rank.’

’But now, the Whistleblower just sees me as useless!’

Shaking off his remorseful brooding, Tao God surveyed the land around his Divine Statue.

Inconspicuous green mushrooms dotted the grassland. This was his favorite Miracle.

The Strain could be used for both offense and defense.

In their early stages, they reproduced rapidly in rainwater. Once the Strains matured, they transformed into mobile beings known as the Fungi People.

Although the Fungi People couldn’t provide any Fire of Faith and possessed no intelligence, they were the best soldiers and Scouts. They were perfectly suited for finding the key.

’Who’s to say this misfortune isn’t actually my chance?’

A vicious thought took root in Tao God’s mind.

’Once I have the key, I won’t rush back to the Divine Hall of the Gods. First, I’ll draw enough power from the Golden Field.’

’When I rejoin the ranks of the Gods, I’ll show you all the meaning of cruelty!’

’Including you.’

’Whistleblower.’

’Just you wait!’

...

Tao God snapped out of his thoughts, suddenly noticing a change on the ground.

’Why are there fewer Strains?’

He gazed down at the grassland surrounding the Divine Statue and quickly found the cause.

A group of furtive little creatures was gnawing on the Strains.

’Rabbits?’

’Damned inferior vermin!’

’No.’

’Ordinary rabbits wouldn’t eat the Strains. The toxins within are too much for them; they would die quickly and turn into fertilizer. I previously killed a large group of Fish People that came ashore and used their bodies to cultivate the Strains with great success.’

But these rabbits showed no fear of the poison. They gnawed at the Strains with a ferocious hunger.

Tao God stared at the rabbits.

’Mad Rabbits?’

’Ah, so their minds are broken.’

Just as Tao God predicted, the rabbits quickly died after eating the Strains. New Strains sprouted from their corpses, which became fresh nutrients.

Hmph.

’Inferior species, in the end. Just waste that can’t even produce the Fire of Faith.’

A flash of disdain crossed Tao God’s mind.

’The priority for now is to lay low and cultivate more Strains. With a large enough army of Fungi People, I can easily take over the entire continent. Then I can harvest the Fire of Faith from the terrestrial species, making slow and steady progress.’

Tao God was very satisfied with his plan.

’Haili God has an aggressive style. He’s probably still messing around somewhere in the sea.’

’Even though this is just a Fragment World, its depths and borders might hide some troublesome monsters. It would be for the best if he ran into them first.’

’As for the Apprentice Deity here?’

’I hope that fellow does a good job gathering and nurturing Believers, preserving the population and Faith for me in the meantime. He’d better know what’s good for him.’

That was a minor issue.

Tao God prepared two plans.

The first plan was for if he found the key himself. In that case, he would just need to develop his power steadily.

The second plan was for if Haili God found the key first. In that event, Tao God would not hesitate to initiate a Divine War—he would eliminate his rival right here and seize the key.

Haili God’s Apostles are made from bone, a finite resource.

’My own Strains, however, have unlimited growth potential!’

Given enough time to develop, they could spread to every corner of the land. When that happened, the Fungi People army would easily crush the Skeleton Creatures.

In short, everything was under control.

Tao God had no doubt that he would be the final victor.

As he was conducting his mental Inference, he suddenly felt something was wrong.

Tao God snapped his gaze to the sky.

The clouds suddenly turned red.

A burning boulder pierced the clouds, dragging a long tail of flame as it crashed to the ground, instantly incinerating a large patch of Strains!

Then came the second, the third, the fourth...

A meteor shower rained down, bombarding the area around the Divine Statue.

High-temperature impacts gouged massive craters in the earth. Flames erupted on contact, turning the surroundings into a sea of fire as animals fled for their lives in every direction.

His Apostle, which had been observing the Fungi People, took a direct hit from the celestial bombardment.

It tried desperately to burrow underground, to split apart its sludge-like body... but the instantaneous, intense heat melted it on the spot. The spark of life within the Apostle was extinguished completely.

’No!’

Tao God was beside himself with fury!

’What is that thing in the sky!’

’How could there be such a natural disaster!’

’This isn’t a natural disaster. Is it a divine Miracle? No, it’s not a Miracle.’

’A monster that can create this kind of disaster... It shouldn’t be possible for it to exist in this Broken World!’

Tao God had no time for further thought. He immediately activated his Miracle: Rainfall. He had to put out the fire, or all his hard work over the past few days would be for nothing.

Just as he was busy fighting the fire, he suddenly sensed a strange, icy presence.

’Did something touch the Divine Statue?’

’What was it?’

Tao God looked around and saw a Snowman on a white horse fleeing from behind his Divine Statue, vanishing into the distance in the blink of an eye.

’It was an Apostle?’

「At the same time.」

Tao God realized he was short 1,600 points of Faith, and one of his Faith Artifacts had vanished into thin air!

He was so furious his limbs went cold and his entire body trembled with rage.

’MOTHERFUCKER!’

’How can such a bizarre, disgusting monster exist here?!’

’You dare steal a God’s Fire of Faith?!’

’Damn it all! What the hell is wrong with this world?!’

He quickly calmed himself and came to the most logical conclusion: Haili God had launched a sneak attack.

’It could only be him.’

’That despicable lizard!’