Those time travelers that year

'This formation set up by these extraterrestrials, though crude and rudimentary, still possesses a method that can seize the power of heaven and earth. While it cannot achieve the feat of stealing the sky and changing the sun, it is still incredibly astonishing... It's just a pity that this kind of formation requires a soul, and such methods, which are no different from demonic practices, are indeed contrary to the laws of nature.'

"...If heavenly laws existed in this world, by now, divine punishment and calamity would have already descended, mercilessly annihilating these fools who dared to defy their fate."

'However, it is precisely because of these reckless outsiders that I have the opportunity to start over!'

Having said that, the City God turned his gaze to this world, to the kingdom of the deity who was rejected by the heavens and earth but was still able to eke out a living.

The saying "When a person dies, it's like a lamp going out; the soul returns to heaven and earth" doesn't apply in some worlds, just like this one, where these people were killed by ghostly soldiers. Faced with the slaughter of a group of 'monsters,' these ordinary people naturally felt fear and despair. It was precisely at this time that their faith was most fervent. Unfortunately, the god they spoke of could not save them, which caused them to develop a deep resentment towards the god who could not save them in their despair at the moment of death.

This resentment drove them to endlessly curse after death. In the eyes of the City God, this was karma, a force that, when accumulated to a certain degree, could make even powerful figures tremble with fear, let alone a City God in his current predicament. Even in his prime, when he was supported by the dragon energy of an entire dynasty, he dared not ignore this karma…

'To honor only one, what a laughable plan!' Watching the karmic burdens born of resentment, along with the souls filled with despair and fear, being absorbed and accumulated, the City God observed all this with a solemn expression and a hint of dread. '...To honor only one, meaning that one must bear the karma alone! This is a super privilege even the Supreme Heavenly Emperor doesn't enjoy! What a pity, what a pity, in this way, this deity won't even have the slightest chance.'

Clearly, in the City God's eyes, the deity of this world was not at the level of the Heavenly Emperor. If this god had succeeded in his plan to absorb the heart of this world, he could naturally be called the Heavenly Emperor. But he failed, which is why he was so unlucky in the face of the surging karma. Now, what these reincarnators are doing is gathering a huge amount of karma together, making it like a bomb, and preparing to shove it all at that deity.

What will happen is obvious.

'It's time!' Watching the large number of dead souls being drawn into the formation, the City God nodded, then reached out and pressed his hand in this direction. An unobservable golden light instantly spread out, sweeping across the entire battlefield. The area affected was exactly within a thousand miles centered on the capital.

The Heavenly Net, originally used to suppress the enemy and strengthen itself, suddenly retracted. The situation within the city, where the vanguard was thoroughly defeating the opposing Reincarnation Squad, abruptly changed. The City God had withdrawn the Heavenly Net he had secretly set up, no longer providing any power boost to the vanguard members. Caught completely off guard, the vanguard members immediately panicked.

In the instant their strength plummeted, the remaining, barely surviving reincarnation teams seized the opportunity to turn the tide. Had they not been able to control the Yin soldiers, the vanguard team would have been wiped out in a single encounter.

"Little Zhao!? What on earth happened!?" Under the cover of the ghost soldiers, Captain Wu, who had broken free from his position, shouted, "Why did this happen!"

"...Wait a minute, Captain, I'm checking!" Zhao Hao shouted. "It's almost time! What's going on? How can it be so much faster!?"

"How long is it!?"

"It's part of the plan..."

"How could it be so fast?!"

"...Hmm, it seems the Yin soldiers have started a massacre, and most of the souls have suddenly surged in, causing the alchemy array to skip the energy accumulation phase!"

"Then what are we waiting for!" Old Wu shouted. "Let's unleash our trump card, eliminate those guys who are vying with us for the world, and our private world will be within our grasp!"

"Yes, Captain!"

……

Accompanied by flashes of azure lightning, countless azure bolts of lightning began to emerge from every corner of the capital. These azure lightning bolts crisscrossed and quickly connected throughout the entire capital, forming a massive circular array that could be seen unfolding from above.

As the magic circle activated, Zhao Hao, who was inside the Imperial City Cathedral, held a pure white jade seal in one hand and infused it with the surrounding power of faith. Instantly, the seal radiated golden light, and a massive golden pillar of light shot into the sky from the cathedral.

Under the excited gaze of the City God, hidden between reality and illusion, the golden pillar of light formed by the power of faith shot into the sky, instantly piercing through the network in different dimensions. Across layers of space, it followed the connection and touched the divine kingdom that was sealed by the Heavenly Heart in overlapping time and space.

"Hahaha, the passage is connected!" Upon seeing this scene, and clearly capturing the coordinates of the divine kingdom suppressed by the Heavenly Heart, the City God laughed with delight.

And there was another person smiling as well.

Just outside the City God's Palace, a place between reality and illusion, a figure appeared.

424. But I didn't see what was behind me...

This place is where reality and illusion intertwine, a separate dimension created by the City God through his seal. Centered on the divine talisman, this world is both real and illusory, and the City God, whose avatar is formed from the talisman, can completely dominate this small space while wielding the seal. However, in the imperial capital below, the reincarnator holds not the City God's seal, but merely a false object formed from the power of faith and infused with some divine power transformed from the City God himself.

Logically, when this figure appeared nearby, and even stepped into the divine domain where the City God's residence was located, the City God should have noticed it immediately. Strangely, as this figure easily walked to the core of the divine domain, to the City God's position, and casually surveyed the entire domain while observing the City God's keen interest in the current favorable situation, the City God didn't notice anything amiss.

This is not surprising! If the City God knew, he would definitely understand what this situation was like. After all, in the great world he originally came from, there was such a situation. After all, he was just a human deity, and in that world, there were countless people who surpassed him at his peak. At his strongest, even with the dragon energy of a dynasty supporting him, he was only comparable to an Earth Immortal with a blessed land. Before that, there were Heavenly Immortals who created their own independent grotto-heavens, and even above that, there were Golden Immortals, who were known as great beings. It is said that there are even more powerful figures above that, but unfortunately, with his position as the City God, he could only access this much information.

A celestial being could easily conceal their presence and sneak into this place if they wanted to, not to mention that the current City God has not yet fully recovered their strength.

Therefore, if he had known, he would have run as far away as possible immediately, or simply pounced on the ground like a tiger. Unfortunately, he didn't know, and even if he had, he probably would have chosen to put up a stubborn resistance.

That makes no difference!

So he still didn't know if it was better to just watch the figure strolling by, observing the City God's actions as if he were examining a rare object—or perhaps a top-quality ingredient.

After a while, a dark aura emerged from the figure that had secretly infiltrated, and then naturally blended into the surrounding environment. Without the City God's notice, it merged into the newly formed divine domain and into the City God's residence.

Then, the figure smiled, and then, as if nothing had happened, strolled out as if taking a walk. Throughout, the City God remained completely unaware that a newcomer had entered his divine domain. Even more unbeknownst to him, this outsider scrutinized him from head to toe for quite some time, as if appraising food.

At least in the world he was born into, he survived a great calamity, but in this world now...

How pitiful!

……

The City God here, unaware that he'd been labeled as the dessert, was gleefully watching the changes unfold on the battlefield among the mortals below...

When the reincarnator Zhao Hao raised the replica seal high, the power of faith accumulated over the years by the entire empire for the One Lord, centered on the Imperial Capital Church, began to converge upon him.

At this moment, the massive transmutation circle that enveloped the entire capital and even extended beyond its borders was also deployed. The Territory Transmutation Circle, which in the Fullmetal Alchemist world was activated by the Flask Man in order to seize the truth, displayed its power for the first time in this world.

In an instant, all the living beings in the entire capital fell to the ground. Except for the reincarnators who were still fighting the Yin soldiers, all the natives of the capital had their life force and souls directly drained at this moment.

Not only in the capital, but the light of the transmutation circle rapidly expanded outwards. Wherever it passed, every living human being was instantly stripped of their life and soul by the transmutation circle. The life and souls stripped away all converged into the transmutation circle and then surged towards the church at its core.

The life and soul energy of everyone in the city, plus the religious beliefs of the entire empire. At this moment, the energy converging into Zhao Hao's hand was so vast, far beyond his imagination. This energy could completely obliterate the entire capital and reduce him to ashes as well.

At this moment, following the information and memories obtained by those 'accidents', Zhao Hao subconsciously directed all of this energy towards the sky.

Although the world's sole deity has fallen into slumber for some reason, his divine kingdom has also fallen into slumber. During this slumber, the dimension in which the entire divine kingdom resides has been sealed off layer by layer by the celestial consciousness of this world. This seal severs the transmission of faith power, forcing this deity to remain permanently in another dimension, never to see the light of day again.

However, while this blockade severed the flow of faith, it did not prohibit resentment and curses. To this world, this god was an object of curse and hatred. If he hadn't once been the chosen one of the world, and if the world's divine consciousness hadn't ultimately been incomplete, a 'protagonist' would have long ago risen against the heavens to take his place.

For thousands of years, the fragmented consciousness of this world has constantly sought to erase it and reclaim its missing piece. However, due to its incompleteness, it can only slowly erode the world through the negative beliefs, curses, and resentments of all living beings. This is why, during this period, although lacking independent consciousness, the remaining fragmented consciousness of this world is still subconsciously planning to completely destroy this 'rebellious' and treacherous entity.

This explains why a world with extraordinary abilities could suddenly and rapidly transition into a technological age. Only by promoting the development and progress of humanity, which provides the power of faith, can we further eradicate religious superstition.

In response, a resident of this world, who incidentally made it his lair, believed that the world's divine consciousness needed a "Red Book" or a "XXXX Declaration," which would be far easier and more convenient than cultivating a protagonist destined for greatness. After all, creating a protagonist not only required arranging a series of idiots to give him experience points, but also orchestrating his constant adventures, and ultimately having to deal with this "spoiled" guy's "rebellion"—there were precedents for this.

At this very moment, with the deliberate guidance of a certain City God and the help of the reincarnated beings, a passage to the sealed divine kingdom was opened using the gathered power of faith. Like rain after a long drought, even though forced into slumber, the god who had been sealed away for countless years, even in a state of mental confusion, could subconsciously sense the power of faith that rightfully belonged to him breaking through the blockade and flowing towards his realm.

425. Divine Descent

Like rain after a long drought, this surge of faith, flowing along the spatial and temporal coordinates and directly towards his divine kingdom, was undoubtedly a life-saving sustenance for this deity who had been sealed and slumbering for at least a thousand years. His millennia-long slumber, coupled with the fact that the fragmented celestial consciousness of this world was gradually replacing the dominant forces within it, was constantly eroding his divine power and status.

Over such a long period of time, this deity has lost half of its divine power and status. The entire divine kingdom has also entered a semi-collapsed state due to the prolonged lack of access to the power of faith. All the supplicants accumulated in the divine kingdom over the generations have perished, and some of the holy spirits and guards in the divine kingdom have either died or entered a deep slumber from which they will never awaken.

This deity is now in a worse state than his colleagues during the cataclysmic descent of the Saints in the world of Toril! He's not even as good as those who are lying dead in the Astral Plane. At least they had a chance to start over, while this one, barring any unforeseen circumstances, will be completely obliterated by this world itself in a few thousand years, becoming nourishment for the world he tricked.

For a deity, such an ending is absolutely intolerable. Unfortunately, he ultimately fell short, only managing to tear apart half of the Heavenly Heart Mark, suffering irreparable damage in the process. This allowed the other half of the Heavenly Heart Mark to seize the opportunity and seal him away firmly.

But given the chance, he could still escape; this was the source of his confidence as a believer. As long as his name was still spoken of, even without the power of faith, even with the constant burden of the world's malice and the resentment and curses of his faith, he persevered tenaciously.

And now, the opportunity has arrived!

While in slumber, this deity sensed the power of faith breaking through the blockade. A thousand years later, in this divine kingdom, which was sealed by layers of world consciousness, this radiant giant opened his eyes for the first time.

His kingdom has fallen silent, his servants have perished, and both his kingdom and his crown are tormented by resentment and curses day and night. The flames of resentment and curses entwine his body and this once sacred kingdom.

This giant, or rather, this colossus, stirred his body, which had remained motionless for millennia, enduring the flames of resentment and curse that burned within, and turned his gaze toward the outside of the layers of seals. Just beyond the seals, the power of faith was piercing through the barriers, flowing toward where he stood. Although the reason for this was unknown, after enduring for over a thousand years, this deity clearly no longer wished to remain there.

Roar! ! ! !

The roar of this colossus echoed through the sealed divine realm. After a thousand years of sealing, this god had finally spoken his own voice once more. And now, he moved, enduring the resentment and cursed fire on his mangled body, his radiant arm aimed at the layers of barriers.

Extraordinary Divine Power - Divine Power Shockwave

A golden light surged from the giant's arm, directly impacting the blockade. Under the powerful divine force, the layers of blockade erected by the world's consciousness were instantly shattered. It was like the main cannon of a starship firing—no, in this world, even the main cannon of a starship might not be able to match this shockwave. In short, even the blockade imposed by the Heavenly Heart's consciousness was breached in the first instant.

A temporary opening, one that would heal in the blink of an eye, was precisely why this deity had been trapped here for millennia. Now was no exception; the opening blasted open by the divine shockwave was rapidly closing. But faced with such a hard-won chance to escape, how could this giant possibly give it up?!

Extraordinary Divine Power - Energy Storm

The giant waved his hand, drawing upon his remaining divine power, and launched another attack on the seal. In an instant, a violent energy storm swept out from the opening that was about to heal.

Flames, lightning, frost, positive energy… all sorts of energies were mixed together, forming a turbid energy storm that tore open the wound that was about to heal and began to relentlessly grind against the seal, preventing it from healing. However, this was not enough; the power of the seal was far greater than the power of the giant.

At this moment, the giant made a decision. He charged directly into the gap with his Titan-like body, ignoring the raging energy storms and the spatial strangulation caused by the healing of the seal, and stretched out most of his body.

With a painful roar, half of the giant god's body was torn apart by countless energies and spatial forces, blood flying everywhere. But now, he had extended half of his body out of the seal.

Just then, the power of faith that was battling the seal from the outside seemed to have found its anchor and surged toward this direction. Something in the outside world was clearly guiding the giant's path with crystal-clear coordinates.

As long as one gains access to the power of faith outside, and with a little effort breaks through the limited number of barriers, all it takes is...

Now was not the time for hesitation or deliberation; for this colossus, this was his only chance. So, in the next instant, enduring the damage from the spatial crushing, the colossus didn't even use defense, continuing to squeeze out its remaining strength. Amidst the blazing holy fire, a giant sword, resembling a cleaver, appeared in the colossus's hand.

This is a divine sword burning fiercely with flames. With the infusion of the giant god's own divine power, this giant sword has displayed unparalleled strength.

Extraordinary Divine Power - Devastating Strike

With the blessing of extraordinary divine power, and the sacred fire inherent in the divine sword itself, a sun appeared here.

"Dust to dust, ashes to ashes—Ashes awaken!" The giant shouted for the first time. With his cry, the greatsword in his hand emitted a sun-like radiance, which spread out and slammed into the seal with unstoppable force.

In the sun-like light, a small portion of the final seal was lifted. But that was enough. Squeezing out the last of its divine power, it created a tiny gap in the seal. At that moment, the power of faith from the outside finally found its target and rushed into the gap.

With clear guidance, these external forces of faith were no longer hindered by the seal, and thus, through this small gap, they poured in.

Roar! As the power of faith surged in and his depleted divine power was replenished, the giant god roared to the sky. He used his greatsword to block the gap in the seal, and with his other hand, he relentlessly pressed the edge of the spatial rift, which was covered by his wounds, to support the gap and absorb the power of faith that was life-saving for him.

426. The City God Taking Action

"It's done!" Just as the giant finally seized the opportunity to open a gap in the seal and greedily absorb the power of faith to replenish his divine strength, the City God, who had been watching all this unfold from afar, let out a hearty laugh in the divine realm where reality and illusion intertwined. "It's done! These beings from beyond the realm are indeed acting as I expected..." Watching the coordinates sealed by the Heavenly Heart being lifted by the giant, the City God laughed as he pressed his hand towards the location of the Imperial Capital! Relying solely on the vanguard of reincarnators, trying to pull down a god with a formation resembling demonic arts? It wasn't that easy! Therefore, this City God decided to exert one more effort and push it forward once more.

Meanwhile, in the capital, as the golden light shot into the sky, the alchemy array that had been plundering life force and souls suddenly changed. The original azure lightning transformed into golden lightning, followed by a massive earthquake. This was an unprecedented earthquake, and in the capital, buildings that had not been destroyed in the war were damaged in the earthquake, mercilessly burying more people. Before long, apart from the area centered around the church, not a single building in the entire capital could be found intact.

However, the destruction of the capital city brought with it even more golden light rising from the earth—not just the power of faith, but also the souls of those who perished in the events. These souls, powerless to resist, ascended directly to heaven along with the pillars of faith. If they knew they were going to heaven to be among the gods, they would be overjoyed. But if they knew what the so-called gods and their kingdom were like, they would surely curse and be enraged.

Without hesitation, the giant swallowed all the souls that came with the power of faith. He was not unaware of the hidden dangers, but faced with the awakening consciousness of the Heavenly Heart exerting its power, the entire seal began to shrink and suppress, and under the relentless suppression and the situation that intended to throw him back into the seal to await his death, the giant had no choice but to bite the bullet and proceed.

As long as we can break the seal, as long as we can regain our full power, as long as...

Suddenly, the giant sensed something amiss. The light of faith was pure, though now it was absorbing the souls of the dead along with it… but why was there a flicker of crimson lotus light within this light? The arrival of this foreign crimson lotus light directly stirred the flames still burning within the divine realm, and also stirred the resentment and curses that clung to the giant's mangled body.

This is a backlash...

The giant immediately understood that the replenishment of faith power and the devouring of souls were actually intended to bring forth all the resentment and curses born of faith. These were not the resentment and curses burning within the divine kingdom; those were suppressed. If he hadn't lacked power and the divine kingdom hadn't been in decline, these resentments and curses would have been completely meaningless.

But now, these meaningless things, having received support from their foreign 'compatriots,' have suddenly ignited into an uncontrollable blaze. If he were to give up now, the giant could naturally free his hands to suppress these resentments and curses, but could he possibly let go? Impossible. If he did, he would face a dire situation. These resentments and curses would cling to him indefinitely, forever, as long as his divine kingdom existed.

Get out of my way!

Seemingly having made a definitive statement, the colossus's massive face revealed a sorrowful expression. Then, he raised his divine sword high and slashed it down towards his own kingdom behind him.

Boom!

The giant sword unleashed a blinding holy light, its massive blade slicing into the divine realm and disappearing like a phantom, seemingly unaffected. However, the radiance emanating from the colossus who had slashed it suddenly dimmed, and he began to gasp for breath. Countless wounds, even larger than those torn apart by spatial manipulation, burst open on his mangled body, from which golden divine blood flowed.