Chapter 154: Caught in a Bug, Returning to Hell
In the blink of an eye, half a year passed.
The True Soul Orb had been completely absorbed by the two of them.
Since the gap between a Lower God and a Mid God was too vast, Shirazawa divided it into nine minor grades, using stars to represent them. According to his grading system, he and Shiraori had currently reached the Three-Star Lower God level. He only needed to obtain two more divine authorities and enough divine energy for his grade to reach the pinnacle of a Lower God—which was Zeus's realm.
If he mastered four types of authority, he could break through to a Mid God. But that required a massive amount of energy and sufficient divinity, as well as the most critical element: a complete world of his own. After all, as a god, how could one not have their own territory? A god should be omnipotent within their own world. One could either plunder and occupy an existing planet within the grand world, or create one's own by upgrading an alternate space. No matter which method, it required a great deal of time.
However, a Mid God was still very far away from him. He had better finish his main quest first before talking about anything else.
"Darling, come quickly and look at the new clone body I just pinched out."
In the back garden, Shiraori was sitting on a rocking chair wearing a white dress, rocking, rocking, rocking. Seeing Shirazawa come over, she immediately called him over to admire her brand-new result.
Since she had completely mastered the contract divine authority, the now-leisured Shiraori had begun to build her Tenth Army. However, the little spider clones she made before didn't have their own thoughts and relied entirely on a capability similar to
As for the Nightmare Vestiges—the white army—although they possessed their own individual consciousness, their appearances were all spiders. It was very troublesome to get things done with them; they weren't as useful as a human form.
"Get up."
The high and mighty goddess asked for the other party's name, "What is your name?"
"Please let Master decide," the girl knelt beneath the white gauze and replied respectfully.
"A very smart decision. From now on, you shall be called Shiro-One."
"Subordinate Shiro-One thanks Master for bestowing the name."
After being named, a more solid connection was established between the two. Just like when D named Shiraori back then, the subordinate-superior relationship became unbreakable. Unless she could break the shackles of the grand world's rules, Shiro-One would belong to Shiraori for the rest of her life. No, next life, and the life after that too. After all, there was still a contract binding them; after Shiro-One died, her soul would still return to Shiraori's jurisdiction.
It was essentially catching a bug in the system.
"Hey~ Darling, do you want to try making a few clones too?"
Shirazawa thought about it and decided to pass. Shiraori could use contracts to let a soul directly inherit its various capabilities from when it was alive, but his faith divine authority couldn't do that. If they wanted to maximize efficiency, it was best to leave all the souls under Shiraori's management. That way, even if Shiro-One met an accidental death, she could be rapidly reborn at Shiraori's hands and inherit the various capabilities she had previously cultivated.
For this purpose, she had researched a new type of clone. An army of humanoid spiders that could be completely independent.
Looking at the white girl doll in front of Shiraori that was lifelike and looked just like a real person, Shirazawa wasn't too surprised. "This is the brand-new experimental subject?"
"Yes." Shiraori nodded proudly.
"Constructing a body using the versatile spider silk is feasible, but the issue of an independent consciousness for the clone still can't be solved. It seems kind of useless," Shirazawa said, rubbing his chin.
"Are you sure?" The corner of Shiraori's mouth curled into an arc.
The next moment, the white girl slowly bowed toward Shirazawa, "Greetings, Master's Wife."
Shirazawa blanked. It could actually move? And what the hell was that title?
"Hehehe, how is it? Do you like it?" Shiraori revealed a sly smile.
Shirazawa remained silent for a few seconds, then carefully scrutinized the white girl, quickly discovering the clue. "Where did you... get a soul?" he asked.
After the bystanders of this alternate world died, their souls would be sucked away by the System, which was why not even undead creatures could be born. So, where did Shiro's soul come from?
Shiraori giggled. "Of course I snatched it from the System's hands."
"..." Shirazawa.
Probably only this child could pull off something like this.
"As long as someone signs a contract with me, my right of command will override the System. This soul belonged to someone who died accidentally after signing the contract. According to the contents of the contract, everything the contractor possessed during life belongs to us."
Shiraori boasted triumphantly, "What do you think!"
"You really are something." Shirazawa extended a thumb in praise. He should have guessed it earlier.
"The benevolent God gave me a brand-new body and life. Thank you, Master, for your grace." The white girl sincerely expressed her reverence for the deity.
In a strict sense, Shiraori was indeed her savior. Not only had she fished her out of the System's cage, but she had also given her a spectacular body. She, who was supposed to die, could live another life and even hope to follow Lord God into the Divine Realm to enjoy an eternal lifespan. This was simply a stupendously good thing. As for the price—a mere soul, she might as well not want it.
Looking at the girl who was rationalizing it all on her own, the corner of Shirazawa's mouth twitched. This was a textbook case of being sold and still helping the person count the money. What was so good about being a corporate drone for a lifetime?
Even if Shiraori hadn't stepped in, the girl would have reincarnated anyway. Taking a gamble, she might have been born into a wealthy family; though life might be unadorned, she could have enjoyed wealth and glory. Isn't slacking off great?
But the way things were now completely cut off the other party's future options; one could see the end at a single glance. It was equivalent to dying without losing levels or losing stats—simply invincible.
"You go ahead and play, I won't meddle. The constraints of faith aren't as convenient as a contract, you're more suited for this."
"Alright then, I'll assemble the Tenth Army as quickly as possible."
The two shared another moment of tenderness before Shirazawa left the Demon King's territory, leaving Shiraori alone to manufacture the clones.
Everyone in the protagonist group was working hard to prepare for the great war two and a half years later. The preparation work on his hands was already finished, and he was beginning to look for a way to apotheosize Ariel into godhood.
Thus, Shirazawa used an unknown smartphone to contact Menka, who was working as a drone in Hell.
Very soon, a black train burning with hellfire appeared out of thin air in the middle stratum of the labyrinth, where he had set up a large dimensional teleportation array.
...
"Back so soon."
The familiar City of Hell, the familiar back garden, the familiar big sister of the Underworld.
Yuzuki lazily blew out a smoke ring, enjoying the happiness brought by slacking off. Although more than half a year had passed since Shirazawa returned to the alternate world, less than five or six days had flowed by in Hell's time. The riots in the Underworld were still ongoing; Menka was still very busy, and Yuzuki was still slacking off.
"Didn't you say you wanted to consider it for twenty years? You made up your mind so quickly?"
Facing Yuzuki's banter, Shirazawa smiled awkwardly. He hadn't known that the flow of time in Hell was different from other worlds.
"I came this time to consult about some questions regarding becoming a god. I'm temporarily not ready to participate in the war of the Pantheon," Shirazawa said candidly.
"Oh?" Hearing these words, Yuzuki raised her eyebrows. She stared at Shirazawa with great interest, "You want to create a god?"
"Yes." Shirazawa answered without hesitation.
Yuzuki let out a soft tsk. "The idea is nice, but unfortunately your status isn't high enough, you can't confer godhood. Unless..."
"Unless what?"
"Go beg Lord Evil God~"
"..."
"Even if I, Shirazawa, starve to death, die outside, or jump down from right here, I will never beg that person for a single word!"
"Heh, then where are you planning to go right now?"
"I haven't witnessed the scenery of the Underworld in this lifetime yet, I want to go take a look."
"..."
The tediousness without twists or hope is the true torment.
---
[100 Ps = 1 Bonus Chapter.]
[25 total review = 1 Bonus Chapter.]
[] Patreon:
➔ Unlock advanced chapters & exclusive supporter roles in discord!
➔ For 50 adv chapters. [email protected]/Prince_of_LanLi