Unknown Great Existence

Zai fumbled along the wall for a moment before retrieving a metal test tube from his sleeve and thrusting it into the surface. The dark blue liquid inside gradually vanished.

The door, from which blood had been gushing, slowly creaked open.

The overwhelming stench of blood could not be completely masked, even by the floral-scented plague doctor's mask.

Bai Yi followed Zai into the section where dangerous objects were confined.

Buzz~ A long, dark corridor stretched ahead, with rooms on either side, each marked with numerous inscriptions. These were all sealing runes, including those of magic, alchemy, and plague doctors, and their power was considerable.

Bai Yi even sensed a faint aura of something legendary.

Recalling the dangerous orc on Zai's operating table when he first entered the plague medical base, the appearance of the white plague no longer seemed so surprising.

Once we find the world's core, we can unravel the world's sealing science, and the benefits should be substantial.

As the white plague neared, the dangerous creatures in the cells began to stir restlessly.

Sneaking further into the heart of the shelter, they came upon a display stand holding a black cup. Countless forbidden inscriptions surrounded it but did not confine it.

Bai Yi approached cautiously, watching Zai with a vigilant gaze. Yet, the ever-composed 001 seemed unphased, even too lazy to react.

Half a cup of black liquid remained in the vessel, suggesting it had been only half a month since the last time it had been consumed.

"Don't disturb it," Zai warned. "If a single drop is lost, it will increase by a third."

Bai Yi paused with his hand outstretched, then said, "Don't worry. We can leave an ancient god's believer for them to drink."

Bai Yi touched the cup, initiating a scan with his panel.

[Name: Black Death Pathogen.]

Attributes: Dangerous Object.

Rules: Ignore all obstacles, create Black Death-like entities, and release the Black Death Curse.

Description: A cup that appeared from nowhere, bringing disaster and despair.

Price: 1 gold coin.

Bai Yi glanced at the price—only one gold coin—and fell silent. The pricing of these objects was always peculiar.

It was clear, however, that the Plague Doctor had ultimately destroyed this cup. Perhaps they believed it to be the source of the curse.

But Bai Yi's focus wasn't on scanning it. He picked up the cup, withdrew a test tube, and carefully poured a drop of the liquid into it.

Buzz~

A sinister energy pulsed, and the liquid in the cup rapidly increased, filling almost four-fifths of it in an instant.

Zai's eyes darkened slightly, but considering how useful the evil thoughts had been to them, he resisted the urge to act.

Bai Yi examined the liquid in the test tube, which began to dissipate quickly, before scanning it once more.

[Name: ???]

Properties: ???

Effects: ???

Description: ???

Price: Cannot be sold.

Just as expected!

A look of realization crossed Bai Yi's face, and at that moment, the liquid in the test tube completely disappeared.

"How is it?" Zai's voice was filled with nervous anticipation. An alchemist who could independently study dangerous objects might uncover something valuable.

Bai Yi responded seriously, "Mr. Zai, I have a question for you."

"What's the matter?" Zai's anxiety deepened. He no longer exuded the calmness expected of a leader—after all, this was a matter of Fenghuo's survival.

"What will you do if the Black Death's destructive flames cannot be stopped?" Bai Yi asked softly.

Zai fell silent, pondering for a moment before replying gravely, "You've seen the introduction of the dangerous objects. You must know that the rules of many of them conflict. If there's truly no other option, we should use that conflict to eradicate all dangerous objects in this world at once, because we cannot allow a second Beacon to emerge."

"I understand," Bai Yi nodded and answered Zai's earlier question. "The situation is worse than I thought, but we've located the source of the Black Death curse."

Zai's voice was filled with surprise. "Really?"

Bai Yi nodded solemnly. "Indeed."

"What is it?" Zai asked, his voice hesitant. He feared the answer but pushed on. "Do you truly know? What's your reasoning? We've examined the liquid, but found nothing."

Bai Yi hesitated, then realized that these people were from a sub-space—no different from NPCs in a simulation. After all, after the climax of despair, they always revived.

So Bai Yi spoke with calm certainty. "The evidence comes from the outside world. The time that has passed there is far longer than you think. You might find it difficult to understand even if I explain."

He added seriously, "In simple terms, there's an ancient god behind your Fenghuo Kingdom. If you kill it, you'll end this curse."

"God?" Zai paused. His bird-beak mask obscured his expression, but the weight of the word was clear.

Silence fell as Zai processed the information. If this was indeed the work of a god, what was the purpose of their existence as plague doctors? Was there truly a solution to the Black Death curse?

Bai Yi didn't disturb his thoughts and calmly made his way out. "You can discuss this with others. The believers of the gods must die, and the gods themselves must perish. It's better to decide whether to resist or accept death. Choose soon."

Zai didn't follow him out. Bai Yi returned to his room, lost in thought.

What they had uncovered was unsettling. The top entities in this world included new gods, ancient gods, evil gods, and planar gods.

The power of the new gods stemmed from faith and divinity.

Ancient gods, born of the earth and sky, were born powerful and looked down on all other gods, except their kin.

The planar gods were similar to new gods, but needed to grow through practice and ultimately gain recognition from their plane to ascend.

The planar gods, like the monarchs of the abyss, wielded immense power but were bound to their domains and could not escape.

The evil gods were a strange breed. They were former planar gods or new gods who had betrayed their rules, becoming abominations cast out by the world.

However, the source of the Black Death didn't seem tied to any of these gods. While telling the Plague Doctor that killing the god would end the curse was both true and false.

Destroying the ancient god of this sub-space would end this particular curse, but only if the information they had was correct.

The core of the world was tied to that ancient god—or rather, to what would "explode" upon the god's death.

Though the White Plague couldn't perfectly replicate the formation of this nightmare world, it was remarkably close.

First, there was indeed an ancient god, but it wasn't the perpetrator—it was a victim.

Secondly, the space-ban wasn't the same as what the Plague Doctors believed. In reality, the creatures in the Beacon Kingdom couldn't even perceive the ban.

An unknown presence had altered the minds of millions, trapping them in this kingdom and waiting for death, including the legends.

That presence was incomprehensibly powerful, beyond the abilities of anyone from the sub-space to understand. This was why only Plague Doctors from the sub-space could recognize the ban.

The final story revealed a terrifying battle between an ancient god and another being in an unknown dimension. Somehow, this being triggered the Black Death curse, which spread across the continent and eventually reached the Fenghuo Kingdom.

Despair and curses sent the Beacon Fire Kingdom down a strange path. Eventually, the Plague Doctors detonated these dangerous objects, leading to the death of the ancient god and the kingdom's fall, revealing the truth of despair.

And that terrifying being continued to roam the chaos of the illusory dimension.

When gods fight, mortals suffer—and the Fenghuo Kingdom was the perfect example.

Bai Yi's reasoning wasn't mere guesswork—the peculiar behavior of the panel was a key clue.

The Black Death Curse's creation required placing an object in a "weak space," praying for a response from the dimensional turbulence, and receiving feedback in the form of the curse.

Dimensional turbulence was a place of broken space, filled with the gravity of countless realms, highly destructive and chaotic.

In Shia's world theory, the world was divided into four layers. The first layer was the Shia continent, the material world, and the health dimensions.

Tear open the space of the material world, and you would enter the layers of space and turbulence—traversing this layer involved entering the dimensional turbulence.

But this place was nothing like the dimensional turbulence the Plague Doctors thought they knew.

The Black Death Curse's source pointed to an ancient god, whose death would trigger an explosion—a ripple that could affect the very core of the world.

Bai Yi had a deep understanding of this now.

He looked at the faceless mask in his hand and whispered softly, "You'll help me, won't you?"

A strange aura spread. Tentacles exploded from his body, gently stroking the mask through his suit.

The scene shifted into something deeply unsettling.

Buzz~

The mask quivered violently before settling back into its motionless state.

Bai Yi took off his plague doctor's mask, smiling as he donned the faceless mask in its place.

It had agreed.