For the white whale, it had never suffered such pain before… no, that wasn't true. Long ago, it had endured something similar.
Back then, it had only been an ordinary whale. Those humans had locked it in a cage and conducted all kinds of experiments on it. It had raged, gone mad, struggled—but it had all been useless. To humans, it had merely been a test subject.
But later, it gained immense power, and all those humans who had once tormented it died.
After that, the white whale drifted into a new world. Looking at everything before it, it didn't know what to do at first. But soon, it came up with an idea.
Once, humans had stood high above, doing whatever they pleased. But now it possessed such overwhelming power—so it could do the same! Humans had once imprisoned and toyed with it. Now it could create a human world and toy with those once-lofty humans!
Of course, the white whale itself couldn't manage such things alone. Fortunately, it discovered that this world had a core. Though it couldn't fully control it, it could draw upon its own abilities and, using the power radiating from the core, create an entirely new world on the outside.
It was basically no different from a mod author using a game engine to create a custom mod world.
Naturally, the white whale didn't need to do everything personally. It only had to create several gods and pass down its will. Those gods would act according to its wishes.
From then on, the white whale watched every day as humans in that world struggled in war, death, and destruction—and it delighted in it.
Those damned humans were no match for it in the end! And it would be the one laughing last!
But now, the white whale felt that all of it had been nothing but a nightmare. Because that pain buried deep in its memory had returned!
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!"
The burning, tearing agony in its mind made the white whale thrash wildly. At that moment, it felt as if it had returned to those days when it was imprisoned by humans and subjected to brutal experiments. It tried desperately to break free—but it was useless.
Because Duanmu Huai had already charged into the white whale's brain, gripping a flaming chainsword and happily slicing into its brain matter!
"First some fried brain, then steamed brain, and finally pan-fried brain! Soy sauce first, then vinegar—don't forget the chili at the end!"
"Vrrrrrr———!!!"
The chainsword roared as it spun. Its beast-like teeth bit deep into the whale's brain, carving trench after trench.
Duanmu Huai had no worries about how to deal with the white whale.
After all, giant monsters like this were his specialty!
Of course, dealing with such enormous enemies—especially ones with immense psychic power—wasn't as simple as just drilling inside them. When people read Journey to the West, they see Sun Wukong drilling into others' stomachs—but how many times do you see someone drilling into Sun Wukong's stomach?
Why?
Simple.
Because Sun Wukong's strength was absolute.
If it were Zhu Bajie instead, even if he drilled inside, one fart would blast him right back out.
Same principle here.
Otherwise, why are so many gigantic Greater Daemons so difficult to defeat? By that logic, couldn't a bunch of Imperial Guardsmen just blow a hole in a Greater Daemon's belly and crawl inside to finish it off?
In reality, if Guardsmen got inside, they'd probably just be digested…
The same applied now.
If anyone else had dared to crawl into the white whale's body, they would've been crushed into paste and digested by its psychic power. But Duanmu Huai was different—he was the God of Destruction! In terms of psychic strength, he was no weaker than the whale!
It was like Sun Wukong—the Great Sage Equal to Heaven—who could sweep aside a hundred thousand heavenly soldiers. Among the demons along his journey, who could truly match him?
If he drilled into someone's belly, who could force him out?
Just like now—Duanmu Huai was slicing brain matter inside the whale's skull. Did the whale want him out? Of course it did.
But the problem was… it couldn't.
At its core, the white whale was merely a psychic creature that had accidentally obtained creative authority. It was like a eunuch holding the imperial seal—when the mountain has no tiger, the monkey can call itself king. But once the tiger arrives, the monkey doesn't get to strut around anymore.
At best, the whale was a local planetary god.
Duanmu Huai had already stepped into the stars.
He drilled into its brain. If he didn't want to come out, then he wouldn't. What could it do?
"AAAAAAAAAAAAH!!!!"
The white whale's head felt like it was splitting apart. It thrashed desperately, but it was useless. The power of destined death spread with black flames, making it feel as if its entire body had been soaked in acid. Its mind grew hazy.
For a moment, it felt as though it had returned to that nightmare era.
Was all of this just a dream? Had it never escaped those terrifying humans? Was it simply dreaming, and once it woke up, it would still be that whale trapped in a cage, unable to live, unable to die—
Boom!!!
The massive body of the white whale slammed heavily onto the ground—and went still.
Then its glowing surface began to swell grotesquely. Huge boils rose like magma bubbles—then—
Black flames erupted violently from the top of its head, forming a blade hundreds of meters long that slashed forward!
The whale was split cleanly in half from head to tail!
Blood sprayed everywhere, staining the entire divine domain red. Duanmu Huai walked out, drenched in blood. Black flames flickered across his body, and wherever the blood touched the flames, it ignited like oil.
In the blink of an eye, the divine realm the whale had created was engulfed in roaring fire and reduced to ashes.
As for Duanmu Huai…
"Tsk tsk tsk. A psychic creature… and that's all the experience I get…"
Looking at the barely moved progress bar below, Duanmu Huai was speechless.
Sure, in this world the whale had caused chaos—but on a galactic scale, it was worth… that little.
Still… killing it had yielded some good loot.
He shifted his gaze to the system notifications.
[Fragment World Acquired — Rudrasem Continent]
[Core Acquired — Ownership of Duel City]
[Additional Reward — Divine Essence (After use, may randomly convert one divine authority)]
Very good.
Duanmu Huai clenched his fist excitedly.
Obtaining the fragment world and Duel City wasn't surprising—but Divine Essence was powerful! In the game, there was something similar called "Psychic Essence," which allowed one of the player's classes to convert into another. This [Divine Essence] was clearly an upgraded version—likely meant specifically for gods.
And Duanmu Huai already knew where to use it.
Obviously on his [God of Lust] authority!
Honestly, that authority has been pure torture.
[God of Destruction] was simple—kill, blow things up, level up.
But what the hell was [God of Lust]? After all this time, its progress bar hadn't even reached one-fifth!
Was I supposed to imitate Zeus and scatter my seed across the world?
Hurry up and reroll it. Even if it's random, anything has to be better than [God of Lust], right?
He tapped the option.
[Activate Divine Essence]
[Select Target Divine Authority]
That was obviously [God of Lust]. No question.
He confirmed without hesitation.
[Target Locked — Beginning Random Conversion]
[———Conversion Start]
[Conversion Complete]
[Player has lost Divine Authority , gained new Divine Authority ]
[God of Joy (LV1)]
[Lesser Divine Power]
[Whether it is the pleasure gained from love, the satisfaction obtained in slaughter, or the delight of a successful scheme, humans are always immersed in joy and indulgence. Their smiles and tears arise from the trembling of their souls (Human-only). For humanity, the pursuit and longing for joy is proof of their existence. And you are the beacon that guides them forward.]
[Divine Domain Locked — Rudrasem Continent]
[Believer Bonus: Charisma +1, Perception +2]
"… "
Duanmu Huai felt unwell.
What the hell does this mean?
Does this make me… humanity's Prince of Excess???
And why do believers get Charisma, but I don't?!
If I worship myself, can I get some Charisma too?!
But wait…
Though he wanted to complain, after carefully reading the description, he realized it wasn't entirely useless.
Previously, [God of Lust] had focused narrowly on desire.
But [God of Joy] was far broader.
It was similar to the Prince of Excess concept—players often think only of extreme debauchery, but in truth, it encompasses all extremes of sensation and pleasure. Enjoying food, music, art, reading, dancing—even killing—any act that produces pleasure falls within its influence.
Of course, as the description stated, seeking joy itself isn't wrong. Even masochists seek pleasure through pain, not suffering alone. The problem comes when it is pushed to extremes.
For example, someone who enjoys fine food—once taken to the extreme, might spiral into gluttony… perhaps even expanding the menu to include humans.
But his [God of Joy] authority went further than [God of Lust]. That meant he could define its boundaries himself, rather than letting it spiral uncontrollably into extremity.
Noise Legion types can go die early and reincarnate sooner.
Decision made. When I get back, I'll draft new rules.
With a wave of his hand, Duanmu Huai tore open space and returned to the audience chamber beneath the AL Cathedral.
At that moment, a voice spoke.
"May I ask… what should we do next?"
"Hm?"
He turned and saw the girl still standing there, watching him.
"I'll think about that… later."
Though Duanmu Huai had originally intended to abolish the AL Church entirely, after gaining his new divine authority, a vague idea had formed.
Maybe… the AL Church can be repurposed for my use?
(End of Chapter)