I Have a God Simulator

Heat waves billowed and churned over the wonder.

The Black Volcano was like some living creature rising from the depths. Its volcanic cone expanded further, bulging ridges spreading in all directions and swallowing large swathes of the surrounding forest.

In the intense heat, the trees withered and blackened. Their green leaves vanished without a trace, and the thick trunks shriveled into thin, black slivers.

The surrounding landscape was transformed as a result.

A series of notifications popped up in the simulator.

[The Muspelheim Fire Box has unleashed a sea of fire.]

[The Fire Dragon Spirit has awakened.]

[The Fire Dragon is continuously absorbing the Fire Element.]

[Aegir’s Fire has been enhanced in the sea of fire.]

Luh Yao double-clicked the wonder.

...

[Aegir’s Fire LV2]: The Deep Sea God imprisoned a Fire Dragon and forged it into a wonder capable of launching powerful Flaming Giant Stones. The resupply speed of the Flaming Giant Stones is dependent on the Fire and Earth Elements.

Life Value: 14,000/14,000 (6/6)

Damage: 2,900

Defense: 0

Speed: 21

All nearby Fire Element units will gain an increased growth rate.

...

The changes on the stat panel were straightforward.

After Aegir’s Fire upgraded to LV2, its Life Value increased by 2,000, meteorite ammunition by +1, damage by 500, and speed by +1.

Just as Luh Yao had envisioned, opening the Fire Box further activated the volcanic wonder. The two had excellent synergy.

He wasn’t sure if it was because the wonder leveled up or because the sea of fire had been unleashed, but the depleted ammunition of Aegir’s Fire was instantly replenished.

This put Luh Yao in a good mood.

He still needed to gradually explore and adapt to the new Era’s environment. Having more supplies and reserves on hand would make it much easier to handle any situation that arose.

At first, he worried the Fire Box might cause the sea of fire to spread uncontrollably. However, judging from the pixelated view of the scene, although the volcano had grown a size larger, the flames weren’t spreading on a massive scale from its crater.

This was thanks to the Fire Dragon Spirit.

The Fire Box constantly produced fire while the Fire Dragon continuously absorbed it, creating a small, self-contained cycle.

After confirming that the situation around the volcano was completely stable, Luh Yao moved on to his next project.

He selected the [Dwarf Fortress] from his Artifact Bar.

The fortress under his cursor appeared green, but it turned red when moved over the sea or sky, indicating it couldn’t be placed there.

Luh Yao understood.

Classic-style fortresses could only be built on land.

’But where to build it requires careful consideration.’

His first thought was the mountain range between Yao City and Yan City. If he placed the Dwarf Fortress there, between the Twin Cities, the three locations could support one another.

Luh Yao thought for a moment before changing his mind. He decided to build the Dwarf Fortress next to Saniluo.

The Ghost City Saniluo had two natural advantages.

First, it was located on the far southern end of the continent. Its surroundings were stable, the territory vast, with an abundance of mountains, seas, trees, and stone, and there was very little competition. It was essentially a large retirement home for his Believers.

Second, its primary inhabitants were Ghost Souls and Fish People, along with a small number of Sand Worms willing to work in the city. It could now be considered a pilot area for an Extraordinary City.

Come to think of it, the Sand Worms’ status in Saniluo was a bit unusual.

At first, Luh Yao had thought the local Ghost Souls had tamed the Sand Worms, but he later discovered that wasn’t the case.

Ever since Luh Yao had transformed the desert into a forest, the Sand Worms had found themselves under immense pressure. With other monsters now appearing in the wild, competition had become fierce. Some of the Sand Worms chose to migrate far away, while others remained burrowed beneath the nearby beaches.

As time passed, the Sand Worms that remained and the Ghost Soul citizens began to interact and trade... Gradually, they started coming into the city to work.

In a way, this was also a new branch on their evolutionary path.

The Sand Worms were a prime example.

In short, Ghost City Saniluo would provide the newly arrived Dwarves with a more relaxed environment, allowing them to gradually adapt to this brand-new world.

Luh Yao placed the [Dwarf Fortress] beside a range of low hills near Saniluo. To help the Fireplace Race settle in, Luh Yao also temporarily dispatched the Blood Knight to reassure the Dwarves.

As the fortress settled, a cloud of dust rose up around the Dwarf-forged wonder.

A notification appeared on the simulator.

[The Dwarf Fire Furnace Clan has entered this world.]

Luh Yao saw that the Apostle Mark in the top-left corner of the game interface also showed +1, changing the total to 3.

Soon, little figures emerged one by one from the Dwarf Fortress, 42 in total.

These figures were all bald with thick beards, and each was clad in either iron mail or Copper Armor. This appeared to be the standard gear for the Fireplace Race.

The way to distinguish between male and female Dwarves was very simple: male Dwarves had beards, while females did not.

Luh Yao clicked on a Dwarf.

...

[Fireplace Race LV15] Gao Youzhuang

Life Value: 235/235

Mana Value: 52/52

Damage: 10

Defense: 13

Speed: 7

[Sturdy LV5]

Life Value is higher than normal. Can maintain a vigorous fighting spirit for extended periods.

[Forging]

Born with excellent forging skills.

[Elf]

An Elf Creature, possessing a long lifespan but also growing very slowly.

[Fireplace Race]

A special branch of the Dwarves that can consume slag and crushed stone for sustenance.

...

Upon seeing the Blood Knight, the Dwarves excitedly gathered around him.

"Lord Undying Knight, greetings! My name is Weii Ermeng!"

"Lord Knight, do you eat slag? This is the finest slag! I picked it out myself—every piece is perfectly plump!"

"This place is so strange. So many trees and grasses. Is there no fire here?"

"I smell ore! There are lots and lots of ores here to be mined."

"New ores, fresh slag! I can already smell the steaming delicacy!"

"Those fools who stayed behind, hahahaha! There’s so much more slag out here!"

The Blood Knight gave simple replies to the Dwarves’ questions.

One Dwarf mustered his courage and asked, "Lord Knight, the ore in this world... can we mine it? We won’t take much, just enough to refine some iron. If we can’t forge, the whole Fireplace Race gets antsy."

Luh Yao noticed that this Dwarf, who got antsy if he didn’t forge for even a day, was Gao Youzhuang.

"You can."

Another Dwarf said, "Lord Knight, the slag! I carefully selected this slag for you... Look! So plump, so porous, and very fluffy! It’ll be nice and crispy!"

"I do not eat it."

A dejected expression appeared over the head of the Dwarf who had offered the slag.

Luh Yao took a closer look and was surprised to find that this was a female Dwarf named Huoo Shaoyun.

Although she was a female Dwarf, aside from her lack of a beard, she was indistinguishable from the males around her, clad in iron armor with a rugged build.

"Lord Knight, will there be Cloud Giants here?"

"No."

"Lord Knight, can we go look around? I mean, a bit farther away from the fortress."

"You may."

...

The newly arrived Dwarves had many questions.

The Blood Knight answered each question, mostly with terse, blunt replies.

Yes or no. No reasons, no explanations.

But this blunt style was exactly what the Dwarves respected, and happy expressions appeared over their heads one after another.

The Blood Knight mounted his white horse and rode to Saniluo to inform Mayor Chapman about the Dwarves. Chapman was delighted. To welcome his new neighbors, the Fireplace Race, he rode over on a Sand Worm to pay them a visit.

Chapman had the Sand Worm carry a large number of gifts, including food like fish, meat, wheat, potatoes, soybeans, and grapes, as well as linen, cotton, and wine.

The Dwarves were stunned by these gifts.

Exclamation points popped up over the heads of the Dwarves as they tasted meat for the first time.

"This flavor rivals that of the finest slag... To think such delicious food exists in the world."

"It’s frightening. I only had one bite, and I already feel like I can’t live without it."

"Fearsome meat, captivating meat..."

But what made them happiest of all was the wine.

Male or female, as soon as the Dwarves started drinking, they became incredibly excited.

"Wine! So this is wine!"

"The Fireplace Race has legends about wine, but they’re from a distant past. It was said to be a treasure offered to the God... Can we really drink this? Does the God permit it?"

"Come on, drink up!"

Once they were tipsy, the Dwarves lost all their inhibitions and quickly hit it off with Mayor Chapman.

They all declared that if anyone needed refining or forging done, they should come to the Dwarf Fortress. The Fireplace Race would absolutely forge the finest ironware for them.

"Really? That would be wonderful! If we could make use of the Fireplace Race’s superb skills, all the citizens of Saniluo City would be overjoyed."

"It’s nothing, don’t mention it! You’re friends of the Fireplace Race! Ahahaha!"

With a single offensive of gifts, Chapman had won over this group of naive Dwarves, who had been isolated from the world. The relationship between the two parties warmed up quickly.

At that moment, however, Luh Yao received a message from Isabel.

"My Lord, the Dark Sun is flying toward the edge of the world. It seems to be trying to escape."

Luh Yao was not pleased.

’What do you think this place is?’

’A place you can come and go as you please? Did you ask for my permission?’

’Trying to escape now?’

’Too late!’