Li Qing was no chartan; he was a staunch atheist with no knowledge of religious rhetoric.

  His pn was hastily conceived, and his imitation of a deity's descent sounded crude and amateurish.

  But while he cked theological expertise, he possessed a keen understanding of psychology.

  The initial Great Flood, unleashed at the slightest provocation, had already instilled overwhelming fear. By the time the second deluge struck, terror would grip their hearts, dreading a repeat of the apocalypse and driving them to submission.

  Through a combination of intimidation and enticement, Li Qing was confident he could force their surrender.

  Simultaneously,

  Though Li Qing knew nothing of theology, he was well-versed in the history of human civilization.

  How had gods first emerged?

  In primitive feudal societies, humans feared what they couldn't comprehend—wind, fire, thunder, and lightning. Unable to grasp their underlying principles, they attributed them to "gods" and "demons," offering sacrifices to river gods, mountain gods, and the sun god in hopes of forgiveness and salvation.

  And now,

  Li Qing himself was poised to become their incomprehensible "Outer God," likely to be petitioned for mercy.

  From there, he could begin to divide the kingdom's popuce, recruiting ignorant, superstitious "Fungal Traitors" to establish a church. Sowing internal discord, he would rally them with the cry: "Crush the Fungal Swarm's tyranny! The world belongs to the Giant God!"

  After establishing the church, Emperor Atabia became a terrifying figure. The leader of this civilization had become Li Qing's primary target for elimination.

  If he succeeded...

  Li Qing would undoubtedly issue his first Divine Edict, maniputing the deluded and superstitious followers to send this "truth-seeking" emperor to the gallows. They would parade him through the streets, subjecting him to public scorn and garbage-throwing, before finally beheading him.

  Yet Emperor Atabia stood firm, addressing the colossal divine figure looming in the heavens:

  "You demand we build temples to you, Giant God? The Atabians will not worship you! Reverence stems from ignorance, and so-called 'gods' are merely powerful beings! We have already deciphered the principles behind the Great Flood."

  "Therefore, Giant God of the Heavens! Your majesty and mystique hold no awe for us! We refuse to kneel before you. You have miscalcuted!"

  "Oh?" Li Qing said in surprise. "You've actually deciphered the mechanisms of the Great Flood?"

  "It's a Divine Art—a massive, malevolent, world-destroying magic, isn't it?" Atabia said.

  Li Qing said, "I see. So you believe the Great Flood is a Divine Art wielded by a God-level Civilization?"

  "I created the Fish to decompose the floodwaters," Emperor Atabia replied.

  Across the gss, he addressed Li Qing directly: "If life can be broken down, it can certainly be synthesized. This massive Great Flood was synthesized within your body and then spewed forth from your mouth."

  If I was a ninja, I could use the Water Release technique but...

  Your Majesty I cannot.

  Even if I could spew that much water, it would completely drain me.

  Li Qing countered, "Why are you so certain that the world-destroying Great Flood came from a Deity's mouth?"

  "There's no need for Your Majesty to expin! I can answer that! God, ever since you destroyed the world, we've been conducting extensive research on you!"

  Facing the unseen gaze from the Heavens, another minister stepped forward and decred loudly:

  "Historical records mention that the Divine Language unleashes terrifying vibrations, ear-splitting shockwaves, and corrosive acid rain. Doesn't that sound remarkably simir to what we're seeing now?"

  Li Qing's eyes widened in realization.

  Indeed, the resembnce was striking.

  This was practically an enhanced version of the Divine Language.

  God speaks: vibrations, ear-splitting shockwaves, houses toppled, acid rain.

  Welding, spraying alcohol: vibrations, ear-splitting shockwaves, water demolishing houses, acid rain.

  Ning Guochang spits saliva.

  I, Li Qing, former companion of the Creator God, amplified version, spew forth the Great Flood from my mouth.

  "Evil God, stop trying to deceive us into surrendering!" A minister stepped forward, decring, "This is no ordinary magic—it's the Breath of God!"

  "Simir to the Divine Language," he continued, "it's chanted from the mouth, but on a vastly grander scale. It manifests as heaven-piercing lightning and world-shattering high-frequency thunder—the preparatory stage for invoking the Divine Language itself!"

  "After all, even someone as mighty as you can't effortlessly unleash a world-annihiting spell capable of destroying all living beings!"

  "We Atabians have deciphered the principles behind the gods' world-destroying Divine Arts. We've developed temporary self-compition techniques, transcribing them into Divine Script, allowing our bodies to temporarily wield such immense Evil Bck Curse Arts!"

  "Gods are merely powerful humans!"

  "The realm of the gods is simply a world several civilization tiers ahead of our own!"

  Li Qing frowned deeply as he listened.

  The principles they described, though seemingly foolish from his perspective, were astonishingly brilliant.

  Because theoretically, they were achievable.

  If Li Qing weren't this weak imposter of a Chaos Outer God, but rather a true God—a biological civilization that had evolved from single-celled organisms over tens of thousands of years using their method—he might have truly perfected this approach.

  Modifying their own genes, spewing alcohol—these Divine Arts were child's py for them.

  They could even synthesize diamonds from carbon within their bodies, produce sulfur internally, eject sulfuric acid, and generate high-intensity bioelectric currents. None of these Divine Arts posed any challenge.

  From this perspective, they had indeed "guessed correctly."

  It was only then that Li Qing realized the Atabians were far more formidable than ordinary primitive feudal peoples.

  Typically, natives of such eras blindly worshipped and submitted to powerful forces, instinctively revering deities. But the Atabians remained clear-headed.

  Their sheer popution size expined it. Surpassing even Earth's popution, such a massive popuce had given rise to heroes and sages whose wisdom bordered on the divine. Under their guidance, the Atabian civilization had transcended ignorance and superstition.

  This was a God-level Civilization still in its cradle, its potential terrifyingly immense.

  "Evil God, you cannot enter our world, can you?" Emperor Atabia suddenly chuckled. "Indeed, the universe is governed by immutable ws. In the grand scheme of things, all things exist in bance. Even a mighty Evil God like you cannot easily descend upon our world. If you could, our world would have been destroyed long ago!"

  The emperor was exceptionally clever, having clearly anticipated this.

  "So, Evil God, you can only use your Divine Arts from beyond the Wall to unleash the Great Flood upon our civilization, wiping out the mortals on this nd."

  Li Qing remained silent. "..."

  It was a fwless pn, expining why the emperor dared to lie in wait for me here.

  But one thing was wrong.

  The Wise Ones of this civilization had overestimated my power.

  It wasn't that I couldn't enter; it was that I, this Evil God, feared to enter. I sensed that the moment I stepped inside, you would tear me limb from limb, settling both old scores and new grievances.

  You are the true terror.

  At that moment, Emperor Atabia stood tall and straight as a pine, his colossal eyes gazing down from the heavens. With unwavering dignity and defiance, he decred, "Atabians, we need not revere him! We need not worship him!"

  "You seek to colonize our world, no doubt with sinister intent. But we Atabians will never be sves! We will never become a colony of any so-called God-level Civilization!"

  "Come then, and destroy us."

  His features were exquisitely sculpted, like a wax figure of a valiant emperor. A wild mane of bck hair, formed from fgel, danced across his head, and his face bore the unwavering dignity and solemn resolve of a ruler.

  "I know why you've come. You seek to unleash another Divine Art, to annihite all life on our world. Do it! We Atabians will endure into the next century. We will ultimately seize control of this world, venture beyond it, and stand as equals to your God-level Civilization!"

  Li Qing regarded him calmly.

  Negotiations had clearly reached an impasse. After this impending apocalypse, their next era might not be as the Fish.

  A lofty, divine voice descended from the heavens:

  "This is your final warning. To defy God and refuse to atone for your Original Sin—is this the collective choice of all Atabians?"

  Whoosh!

  The sea surged.

  The world fell into sudden, deathly silence.

  Every Atabian held their breath, as if the next doomsday were imminent.

  Emperor Atabia's expression remained impassive. Behind him, the Wise Ones stood resolute, their spines straight as steel, their resolve unshakeable.

  "The people of Earth, stubbornly ignorant and deluded, dare to defy Heaven and strike down the gods."

  From the vast and distant heavens, a voice resounded, devoid of emotion, like a cold, timeless deity of the firmament.

  "Since humanity's sins upon this earth are so grievous, I shall unleash the Violet Heaven Divine Thunder. The Violet Fmes will incinerate the countless Atabians across the nd."

  Li Qing sighed inwardly and raised the ultraviolet mp.

  Click!

  The mp fred to life, bathing the world in an apocalyptic glow. Instantly, the heavens and earth were shrouded in violet radiance.

  The gss windows blocked most ultraviolet rays—precisely why Li Qing had chosen such a powerful mp. But the intensity before him should be more than sufficient to annihite these microscopic creatures.

  "Impossible! This time, there's no lengthy incantation! It's instantaneous!" A horrified cry rang out as the terrifying, unknown power descended, its brilliant light engulfing the world.

  Every Atabian craned their necks upward, as if witnessing the end of days.

  In the final moments before their bodies melted away and their consciousness faded, they glimpsed the magnificent violet world above them.