I Have a God Simulator

Luh Yao examined the Fire Box.

This one tiny artifact was responsible for the sea of fire surrounding the High Furnace World.

...

[Muspelheim Fire Box]: Faith +10/hour. When activated, it forms a continuously and slowly expanding flame area around it. All nearby Fire Element units will gain an extra growth speed.

A special substance formed by Rule Power; cannot be enhanced. It can condense and incubate Fire Elements at a relatively fast speed.

The Fire Box of the first Fire Giant in the Fire Country, Muspelheim.

...

The Fire Box looked like jade, cool and smooth to the touch, but inside was an unending stream of Fire Elements.

If measured by Faith generation, it was a top-tier treasure on the same level as the [Natural Magic Staff].

The Magic Staff was a relatively pure piece of combat equipment, while the Fire Box was a terrain-generating machine capable of transforming the local environment.

Luh Yao felt it was a pity.

’If only the Blood Knight could have packed up all the creatures in the sea of fire and brought them out.’

However, even if there was a way to bring the Fire Elemental Creatures out, housing them would be a problem. The Pixel World was in the middle of an Era Update; there was no place for those monsters to live.

Luh Yao suddenly had a thought.

’In the Pixel World, there’s something that seems like it could synergize with Fire Elements.’

The wonder: [Aegir’s Fire].

—The replenishment speed of Flaming Giant Stones is related to Fire and Earth Elements.

’If I place the Fire Box inside the volcano of [Aegir’s Fire], will it be able to rapidly replenish the Flaming Giant Stones?’

Both of them could increase the growth speed of Fire Element units.

Theoretically, they were a perfect match.

Luh Yao wanted to try it out immediately, to see if the [Fire Box] and [Aegir’s Fire] would have a chemical reaction and turn it into a rapid reloader.

He tossed the Fire Box into the Star Ring behind him and turned his attention to the second piece of loot.

It was a perfectly symmetrical octagonal castle, with an octagonal tower on each side, simple yet stately.

Luh Yao leaned closer to the model to get a better look and found it was full of details: at the entrance was a pointed arch, a pointed lintel, and a dripstone above it. The pillars were engraved with flames and swords, the walls were carved with a group of armored Dwarfs, the castle windows had drop stones for defense, and the marks on every single brick and stone were clearly visible...

Even just as a model, it was a work of art.

...

[Dwarf Fortress LV4] [Artifact Form]: A wonder established and forged by the Dwarf Fire Furnace Clan, the symbol and settlement of the entire tribe.

Life Value: 23000/23000

Damage: 100

Defense: 200

Speed: 0

[Symbiote]

Can exist in a symbiotic state with multiple individuals, gaining additional buffs.

[Folding Forging]

[Dwarf Fortress Exclusive Ability] The Dwarf race’s repeated forging and hammering allows the fortress to shrink and fold, switching to Artifact Form for easy migration. The degree of foldability is related to the wonder’s level.

...

As expected of a level 4 wonder, it came with two abilities.

The [Folding Forging] ability actually allows a wonder to switch to Artifact Form. The Dwarfs could pack up and leave at any time, making it a Divine Skill for moving and traveling.

Not only was it a Dwarf base that could switch into an Artifact, but it also had turret-like attributes, as if it had a built-in battle Totem. If placed in an area of Chaos, it would act as a stabilizing anchor.

Luh Yao returned his focus to [Symbiote].

He asked the person in question, the Blood Knight.

The Knight said, "My lord, this fortress *is* the Fireplace Race."

Luh Yao was completely baffled.

Nevied explained somewhat clumsily, "The Fireplace Race became the reliefs on the fortress walls. This is the fortress’s ability; it lets the Dwarfs become one with the fortress."

...

When the Blood Knight announced he was taking the entire Dwarf Fortress, it caused a debate among the Dwarfs.

The Knight had changed the fate of the Fireplace Race, freeing the Dwarfs from their fear of fire. At the same time, he had also dealt with the seemingly powerful Cloud Giant in the sky, exposing its true, weak form.

The Dwarf Fortress was extraordinarily significant, representing the heritage of the Fireplace Race.

But if it was gone, it could be rebuilt.

There was no issue with giving it to the Knight.

The disagreement among the Dwarfs was that one group wanted to go with the fortress and follow the invincible White Knight, while the other wanted to stay and rebuild the High Furnace World.

The two groups argued incessantly.

In the end, the entire Fireplace Race split into two groups, with a small number of Dwarfs leaving with the fortress.

The crux of the Dwarfs’ debate was which side to listen to. The Fireplace Race had always acted as a collective, so for them, this was actually the biggest dilemma.

Ultimately, the Fireplace Race had to make a decision that went against their ancestral traditions: those who wanted to stay would stay, and those who wanted to leave would leave.

Breaking with old customs made the Dwarfs feel both excited and guilty.

Nevied, however, didn’t care about all that. He picked up the folded fortress, ran all the way to the passage he had come from, and left that small world awaiting its rebirth.

Only a dozen or so minutes had passed outside, but seven years had gone by in the High Furnace World.

...

Luh Yao patted the Blood Knight’s vambrace. "Good work!"

Receiving the praise, Blood Knight Nevied stood ramrod straight. "I only followed my mission."

Luh Yao was in a great mood.

This time, not only had he obtained two strategic-level Artifacts, but he had also acquired a new Race: the Dwarfs.

Once deployed into the Pixel World, the Dwarfs would gradually integrate, bringing more change and possibilities.

Finally, Luh Yao turned his focus back to the Blood Knight himself.

He had a feeling that Nevied had undergone some kind of indescribable change during those seven years of slaughter. It was a subtle shift in his aura.

One look made Luh Yao hold his breath.

...

[Apostle LV83] Blood Knight Nevied

Life Value: 12544/12544

Mana Value: 2611/2611

Damage: 170

Defense: 140

Speed: 19

[Strong Fate]

After long-term near-death experiences, has gained a new understanding of life, receiving a large bonus to Life and Defense.

[Indestructible]

Has special resistance to ranged damage.

[Moving Spellcasting]

Can cast spells while in mobile combat, at the cost of slow speed.

[Fire Element]

Can continuously restore Life Value while in fire. Attacks inflict additional Fire Element damage.

[Corruption Creation] (10 Mana)

Uses corpses and salt to create Corrupters. The Corrupter’s strength is related to the corpse.

[Enchantment LV55] (55 Mana/sec)

Attacks inflict additional Mana damage.

[Fleshly Weakness LV2] (150 Mana)

[Nevied’s Exclusive Ability] The Whistleblower bestowed upon Nevied the ability to form a legion. Nevied can raise the Tier of Corrupters through training and Calling, evolving them into the more elite Rotting Guard.

...

Holy shit!!

Level 83!

That’s the value of seven years of grinding monsters for levels!

’As expected of my number one tough guy.’

His excitement still lingering, Luh Yao began to carefully study the Blood Knight’s current stat panel.

Needless to say, his level had leaped up compared to before.

Nevied’s [Thick Hide] had been replaced by [Strong Fate], greatly increasing his Life Value and Defense. And this panel was without the buff from the [Forest Sword]; he would be even stronger in a team fight.

Furthermore, [Enchantment] had risen to LV55, drastically increasing his Magic damage, but the Mana consumption had also multiplied.

If he kept Enchantment active, Nevied could only fight at high intensity for 40 seconds. It was more for dealing burst damage at critical moments and couldn’t be used as a standard tactic.

The years of meat-grinder battles in the sea of fire had given Nevied the new ability [Fire Element].

This series of changes made Luh Yao think.

’It seems an Apostle’s abilities aren’t set in stone.’

’Innate talents were one thing, but other abilities could be formed and learned later on.’

’From this perspective, although Apostles differed in their innate strength, it wasn’t impossible for them to catch up or even surpass the naturally gifted later on.’

The Blood Knight was a case in point.

But from the huge changes to Nevied’s stat panel, Luh Yao could also indirectly sense that the battles in the sea of fire must have been incredibly brutal. For the Blood Knight to have been on the verge of death multiple times, the Emperor Giant Elephant’s level must have been astounding.

Unfortunately, Nevied didn’t have the ability to see his opponent’s level; that was an ability exclusive to Gods.

The Blood Knight gave a simple assessment: "The giant elephant’s damage output is close to Selena’s, but its defense is stronger, and it possesses Flame Magic that is difficult to resist. Its body type is huge, and speed is its weak point."

’In other words, a version of the Tyrant with higher Combat Power, lower speed, and more powerful Magic.’

Luh Yao felt a little relieved.

’If it had been anyone else on this exploration mission, it might not have gone so smoothly.’

As for the flame patterns on Nevied’s armor, they came from the [Head of Greed]. This artifact evolves by devouring flesh and blood, and during the Blood Knight’s years of slaughter in the sea of fire, it had also evolved to LV5.

"My lord, the Head of Greed was a huge help. It allowed me to constantly enter a high Morale state, further accelerating my movement and attacks. Without it, I would have had a hard time killing the Emperor Giant Elephant."

Luh Yao looked at the [Head of Greed] on Nevied’s armor.

...

[Head of Greed LV5]: Faith +2/hour, Morale +4. The Head of Greed seeks powerful flesh, growing and evolving by devouring it.

...

Each point of Morale gives every member of a Hero’s unit a 4% chance to enter a high Morale state. In this state, movement speed and attack speed are doubled for 10 seconds.

In other words, the Head of Greed gave the Blood Knight a 16% chance with every attack to enter a state of doubled movement and attack speed, which was equivalent to a powerful 10-second buff that could be randomly triggered over and over.

Artifacts that increased Morale and luck were rare. These two stats weren’t very useful when low, but once the numbers got high enough, the extra benefits would be substantial.

For example, the Snowman with 10 luck. Its repeated success at stealing fire was inextricably linked to the random beneficial events triggered by its luck.

Luh Yao was very satisfied with this experimental pioneering attempt in a crossover zone.

He looked forward to the day the world update was complete. He also wondered how the little people inside were doing now.

Luh Yao opened the simulator.

The screen displayed:

[Era Update in progress...]

[Update Countdown: 32:10:22]