Those time travelers that year

"Is this thing another part of the Heavenly Consciousness of this world?" Looking at the white soul in his hand, in Xia Er's eyes, it looked very much like a polymer. A collection of consciousness formed by the convergence of the subconsciousness of many lives. It didn't quite resemble Gaia, nor did it quite resemble Alaya. "In other words, the world consciousness of this world is equivalent to a combination of Gaia and Alaya!" Holding this incomplete Heavenly Consciousness in his hand, Xia Er could feel at all times that the entire world was watching this 'thing' in his hand.

However, Charles was not that unfortunate fellow's 'predecessor,' and the Heavenly Consciousness of this world was still in a fragmented state, making it utterly helpless against Charles. All that could be done was to feign pitifulness and plead with Charles.

"I'd be an idiot to just give it back to you like this!" With a chuckle, Xia Er ignored the fluctuations of the world's celestial consciousness around him. This world was currently unable to resist Xia Er's influence; in fact, as long as Xia Er remained here, the world would involuntarily gravitate towards him. Staying here was equivalent to Xia Er being able to activate GM privileges at any time and arbitrarily modify this world.

This is equivalent to having several Infinity Stones in the Marvel universe.

Conversely, if Charles were to truly return this missing part of the Heavenly Mind consciousness to the world... Charles is not unaware of the saying, "When the birds are all gone, the good bow is put away; when the cunning rabbit is dead, the hunting dog is cooked; when the enemy country is destroyed, the strategist is killed."

Given the world consciousness's code of conduct, even if Charles returns this part, it will basically only make the girl happy for a short time. However, after that period, she will definitely try every means to kick Charles out, or create another chosen one as the 'protagonist' to exploit Charles's situation. Although Charles is 100% certain that the 'protagonist' cultivated by this world would be someone he could easily kill, it doesn't mean that Charles has to spend time playing an RPG game with a possible 'protagonist'.

then……

"Want to go back? Sure! Just beg me!" Sensing the impatient consciousness beside him, Charles gripped the aggregate of consciousness tightly. "...Don't worry, don't worry...I'll give it back to you, and I'll even add another buff for you!"

Laughing, Charles cupped the Heavenly Consciousness in his hands, and flames began to burn within them. The flames spread across his palms, enveloping the entire Heavenly Consciousness, and under Charles's deliberate control, they slowly seeped into it without damaging it.

Soon, with Xia Er intentionally channeling energy into it, this part of the Heavenly Heart consciousness, which had previously been listless and dim, regained its brightness. Xia Er wasn't entirely sure how much effort he had put in, but he knew that he had completely 'devoured' Surtr in the Marvel universe. Not long ago, he had also 'devoured' a Primordial Heavenly Demon, and the energy he had accumulated was enough to casually unleash a Planet Destroyer's Slash.

This world isn't one of those cosmic planetary worlds. Basically, in Xia Er's view, apart from this material world, the moon is just a larger meteorite, and the sun is merely a fireball emitting light. The sun and moon combined are only about half the size of this material world. As for the starry sky, it's just a projection of the void and starry sea outside this world—it's just a texture.

It's easy to imagine just how low the level of this world was; it was already incredibly low that it could even support that 'transmigrator' predecessor being deified...

Facing the energy that Xia Er was sincerely transferring, the Heavenly Consciousness of this world, although lacking subjective will, was clearly very pleased with the situation—it probably had never heard of the saying, "A weasel offering New Year's greetings to a chicken is not a good deed."

Under Xia Er's infusion, the portion of Heavenly Heart Consciousness he held quickly lit up like a light bulb. The power Xia Er had poured in had now completely recouped the losses incurred by this world in nurturing the 'transmigrator' predecessor's ascension to godhood. It could be said that Xia Er was using his own resources to cover this world's deficit... and incidentally, he was starting to acquire 'shares'!

Within this newly revitalized consciousness of the Heavenly Heart, a twilight-colored flame is burning with barely concealed light.

Clearly, before returning this part of the Heavenly Mind consciousness to this world, Charles intended to 'add something' to it.

"You can't wait any longer, can you!?" he said, addressing the empty space. Charles sensed the excitement emanating from the Heavenly Heart consciousness, smiled slightly, and then grabbed the 'gift' in his hand, tossing it in a certain direction.

The fragmented consciousness of the Heavenly Heart disappeared into the air after it was released, and then Xia Er could feel that the origin of this world was cheering.

"That's right! That's more like it. Laugh more, and life will be more beautiful! Hahaha..." Amidst the laughter, Charles disappeared into the distance.

Meanwhile, at the very core of this world, in a spacetime perhaps only Ciel could know, the 'gift' that had been 'added' to the sky directly entered this place. And here, a ball of light, now missing a certain amount, radiated cheers and joy as it directly accepted this 'gift'.

First, the missing part of the orb of light was finally completed. Then, as the orb rejoiced, a large amount of energy began to surge out, filling the core of this world. This extra energy truly made the world's consciousness feel what it meant to be a 'good person'! As a result, the orb of light suddenly grew several sizes larger, and even its brightness increased.

But Ciel's 'gift' wasn't over yet. Following closely behind was a massive influx of souls—souls from the Marvel universe—that poured out and merged into this world. These souls, from a world many levels higher, were an invaluable tonic for this world.

There are a few more concluding chapters.

441. The Sequel (Part 2)

The idea that souls are a form of hard currency applies to many worlds; otherwise, the devils and demons in D&D wouldn't be constantly fighting over souls. Indeed, in Ciel's view, the conflict between devils and demons isn't so much about the inherent opposition between order and chaos, but rather their unequal distribution of the souls that float down from the River Styx. Ciel can easily imagine that the devils demand distribution according to principles, a sense of order. But the demons ignore this, resorting to force, and thus, conflict arises.

Okay! In reality, these high-quality souls from Marvel have indeed greatly replenished the world's fundamental consciousness. It's conceivable that soon, after these souls merge into this world, it will experience a surge in newborns, and many of them will be exceptionally talented. Essentially, Ciel, while expending his own power, has generously contributed a considerable amount to this world's development.

What a kind person!

If this primordial consciousness possessed its own subjective will, it would surely feel the same way. Indeed, judging solely from Ciel's actions, he was an absolutely good person, as good as could be… if it weren't for that final flicker of flame…

Just as the world's primordial consciousness was joyfully receiving the gifts, that spark finally emerged and was immediately and directly accepted by the unsuspecting primordial consciousness of the world.

Then, once this flame came into contact with the primordial consciousness, it began to take root within it.

As it swayed, the tiny flame thrived, drawing strength from the world's origin. Once the souls bestowed by the Char were completely integrated into the origin, the flame flickered. Then, some white light belonging to the origin's consciousness was drawn away by the flame, while the origin's consciousness showed no reaction whatsoever.

The primal energy drawn into the flames quickly began to coalesce, gradually forming a human shape. At this moment, the flames rapidly shrank, disappearing into the human form.

As the flames entered, the humanoid figure rapidly took on color, acquiring a true body and appearance. A long black robe enveloped her entire body, draped with a darker, flowing black shawl, and she had long, silver-gray hair. The only exposed skin was her face, smooth and white. Most strikingly, she wore a silver-white mask that concealed her eyes.

Once she had fully formed, she finally began to move. The first thing she did was to bow slightly in an unknown direction. Then, in the space where the original consciousness of this world resided, a large hall slowly emerged. It was made of rock, filled with candles, and in the center, a bonfire was burning, with a spiral sword stuck in it.

Once the hall was complete, she walked over in a few steps, entered the hall, and stood quietly by the campfire.

All of this could not be hidden from Charles.

Seeing the First Flame he had infused into the Celestial Consciousness eventually evolve into the Fire Keeper, he nodded with satisfaction. Of course, it wasn't the Fire Keeper; it was actually an embodiment of the World Consciousness, one could even call her Gaia or Alaya, evolved from the portion of the Celestial Consciousness that Sharl had returned to this world.

Originally, this part of the Heavenly Mind consciousness would not have its own will.

But alas, the devil is always one step ahead. Since it lacked its own will, Xia Er personally intervened to 'enlighten' it into becoming her. It was still a return to the world's original consciousness, but with its own will, especially since this will was formed under Xia Er's intervention, it was equivalent to the world's original consciousness having its own controller.

At this moment, the world truly fell into Ciel's hands. Even if some chosen one were to be born in the future and intend to oppose Ciel, Ciel could easily strip them of everything with just a thought, and the entire world could witness a "Final Destination" scenario anytime, anywhere.

——————————Divider Line——————————

The rebellion of the Empire has finally come to an end. With almost all the Reincarnators wiped out, no one expects them to come out and cause trouble again. Although some remain in this world, not long ago, a "Death Comes" scenario, specifically targeting the Reincarnators, unfolded, affecting every inch of the world.

The remaining reincarnators almost all died in various accidents. For example, some choked to death while drinking water, some were crushed to death by falling objects at the dock, and some fell to their deaths when a sinkhole suddenly appeared beneath their feet...

In short, the annihilation of the Reincarnators was only a matter of a few days.

Even now, it was impossible for them to forcibly leave this world using the items. Because right after Xia Er resolved all the troublesome matters, the reincarnation bracers on the wrists of all the surviving reincarnators suddenly went out at that moment.

Well, the main god has gone offline... As for what happened, opinions will vary.

While it's impossible to be certain that the supreme god, a super scourge, is completely finished, it is facing a top-notch prankster team. In any case, the worlds that the supreme god could control are probably all destroyed by now.

Whether the main god can escape from that bunch of unspeakable creatures depends on the blessings of heaven... Oh, I forgot, heaven won't bless the main god, because this guy not only doesn't pay taxes (offerings), but also maliciously evades taxes...

In any case, the fact that the reincarnators are doomed will not affect the development of this world.

First of all, this incident caused a huge uproar. In particular, the fact that supernatural forces intervened in the battlefield for the first time in a long time and displayed an almost overwhelming advantage terrified everyone who knew about it.

Then, a heavenly kingdom that should only exist in mythology appeared, and a giant god was struck down to earth by a golden hand! Following this, night fell over the entire world, followed by the sole black sun. On the battlefield of the imperial capital, the war between giants made everyone feel as if they had returned to a mythological tale.

After all that was over, trouble struck the Sanctuary and the Church again. They had lost their supernatural powers—all of them—plunging them from the pinnacle of supernatural society into the depths of despair. Unfortunately, before the demons and monsters could even begin their rampage, the former Templar Commander, Iris Galgwin, returned with a new faith—the Faith of the First Flame… and new supernatural powers.

Faced with this crisis, the higher-ups of the Sanctuary had no choice but to fully commit their new supernatural powers. And this was definitely not because an entire street dance crew was watching them intently—absolutely not!

Having regained their supernatural powers, the Sanctuary immediately slaughtered all the demons and monsters who dared to emerge from human society, throwing them into the blazing bonfire to purify their souls.

442. Long time no see, penguins

The faith of the First Flame quickly replaced the original faith within the sanctuary. Of course, it wasn't a complete replacement; in fact, the "salesmanship" principles devised by that 'predecessor' were modeled after the teachings of a certain Yahweh. Essentially, it proclaimed itself to be light and fire, and indeed, holy flames appeared in the skills of his paladin system.

Now, it's simply a matter of replacing the Holy Flame with the Primordial Flame. In fact, the replaced flame is far more powerful than the original. Or rather, by changing its backer, the entire Holy Temple has experienced a leap in strength.

Basically, as long as one believes in the First Flame, one will be directly promoted to the fourth rank upon receiving the gift. Moreover, the previously rare fifth-rank Templar Knights are now commonplace. In fact, many former fifth-rank Templar Knights have gained power beyond the fifth rank after changing their faith.

Look at this, the job benefits are simply unbelievable!

Think back to the past, the Holy Temple was constantly weakening, and it was always being dragged down by the Church, which was practically a liability. But now?! After switching sides, everyone directly received 'benefits (restoring all their power and giving them buffs)', and their 'salaries (increasing significantly on top of their existing strength)' increased dramatically, plus 'five social insurances and one housing fund (Ciel: I said you won't die, so you won't die—among them, the stronger ones were directly transformed into heroic spirits after dying)'.

The more pragmatic approach of the church is to simply follow this leader. What's that saying again? Whoever sits on top is a god, and whoever gets beaten down to the ground is a devil.

The old notions of believing in my eternal life are nothing compared to the heroic spirit bodies that Ciel created. Moreover, now that Ciel has the world's fundamental consciousness under his control, those transformed into heroic spirit bodies can move freely anywhere in the world.

Of course, the sanctuary switched sides, but the church remained steadfast.

Actually, changing the leader wouldn't be a big deal for these bishops who don't really have much integrity. However, the conditions need to be negotiated... Just as the bishops and archbishops of the church were having this thought, Iris directly dragged the entire sanctuary into the Papal States and forced the abdication of the papacy.

Either convert or be executed as a heretic—'Let the fire purify everything!'

Faced with a knife to their throats, only a few fools, still clinging to their own greed, continued their reckless actions. The others immediately declared their intention to convert to the true Lord. Those who did not choose to convert immediately were dragged away for proper proselytizing (physical), making them deeply realize their mistakes, and then, amidst tears of remorse (physical), joyfully converting to the Lord.

Of course, for those who remain stubbornly defiant, the only option is to try and save their souls. Whether or not they are forgiven is no longer the Sanctuary's concern, but Ciel's, and Ciel's solution is simply to set it aside…

It's worth noting that the rebellion and subsequent changes plunged the empire into chaos. Fortunately, although the emperor was killed in the suppression of the rebellion, the royal family was not immediately wiped out. Furthermore, the actions of the conservatives, who were then relegated to the role of petty enemies, meant that even after the war ended, the empire remained steeped in bloodshed.

These nobles still excel at things like large-scale purges.

Especially at this time when the conservatives had completely lost power, the emerging nobles, with the resources at their disposal and their influence over the army, directly supported a royal heir to the throne, followed by a brutal massacre of the traditional noble class.

In any other time, with internal strife within the empire, other powers would have already come to take advantage. But after the upheaval, every nation was mired in all sorts of rumors, their own internal problems in disarray, leaving them with no time to seek advantage.

After a lively six months, the empire's internal strife finally came to a satisfactory end.

However, this has nothing to do with Ciel.

——————————Divider Line——————————

Because of the disturbance caused by the reincarnators, Xia Er acquired the coordinates of a distant world. Of course, the world where these coordinates were located was probably not a good place. Xia Er, who estimated that he would likely perish there if he went, planned to resell it.

As for who to sell it to...!

It all depends on which guy is willing to take it on!

So one day, Ciel took out a black diamond and drew it across the air, and a door appeared directly in front of him. After pushing the door open, Ciel heard a cute, adorable voice.

"welcome!"

As soon as the door was pushed open, a chibi-style penguin, black and white with a red tie around its neck, hopped over excitedly.

"Oh, oh! It's that newcomer! Long time no see!" The penguin, hopping over, brightened up and waved its short wings at Ciel. "Are you here to recharge?"

"No!" Upon hearing the penguin's words, Charles's face darkened immediately. He hadn't forgotten how this guy had emptied his pockets of all his money. Although, money alone didn't mean much to him.

"Huh..." Upon hearing Xia Er's answer, the penguin's excited expression vanished. Instead, it plopped down on a computer desk and looked at Xia Er with a look of utter disdain. "A poor wretch... How can you get stronger without spending money! These young people these days!!!" it said, letting out a sigh that sounded like an old man.

"Honestly, I really want to kill you!" If he didn't know he was most likely no match for this penguin, he would have actually chopped it down. Charles added mentally, then continued, "But I'm here to do business!"

"Oh! What kind of business!?" The penguin rolled over, its white, fluffy belly facing up, and looked at Ciel with a sidelong glance.

"The coordinates of the world!"

"(⊙o⊙) Oh! The coordinates of a world? Then why didn't you go there and instead handed them over?"

"See for yourself!" Charles replied, then tossed a token-like object to the penguin.

"...Wow, how did you find this?" The penguin took the token (Charlene was quite curious about how this penguin managed to pick things up with those short wings), glanced at the item in its hand, and then widened its eyes as if it had seen something new and interesting.

"It was 'sacrificed' by those reincarnators who stayed in my world before!"

"What?! These middlemen even have this kind of stuff? They're really courting death!?" The penguin shook its head, finding it incredibly unbelievable. "I don't believe that a mass-produced item made from a ball of light could survive in that kind of world."

443. The long-lost finance department

"A middleman?!"

"Oh! Right, you're a newbie, so you don't know!" The penguin flapped its short wings and explained, "...Don't those gods always like to pirate? Pirated biological genes, pirated power systems, pirated all kinds of technological civilizations, etc. There's nothing these guys wouldn't dare to pirate—over time, everyone started calling these gods middlemen."

"...No, I think you're more suited to that title!"

"Tch! Have you ever seen a middleman as adorable as me?" The penguin looked at Ciel with a disdainful gaze, patting its belly and acting cute. "...And another thing! I'm not a middleman. How could I possibly use such low-level tactics! Problems that can be solved with money are never problems...Young man, you know what? I bought the copyright directly..."

"...Fine! You're really something, aren't you!"