054. A Ridiculous Plan, Naive Ideals
Leozi.
Truth be told, he had heard that name more in the few days since arriving in Star Abyss than he had in his previous life.
"What's this guy's background, anyway?"
Li Aozi couldn't help but ask,
"I know he's an old god, but aren't there plenty of those? Not to mention—[Sovereign of the Abyss] and [Soul of Plunder], one keeps buzzing in our heads, and the other is busy answering prayers from capitalists."
"He fought against the Society."
Liuer's reply was short and to the point.
"As if others haven't done that," Li Aozi sneered.
"What if I told you that the [God of Reality] Leoz, the Hero of the Stars, killed the Society itself?"
"Didn't the narrative-level civilizations also kill two? The [Wolfkind Society] Wolf Kid and the [Ghostly Society] Ghost Spirit Mihm." Li Aozi looked perplexed, spreading his hands, "If the Societies didn't have the ability to escape, the narrative-level civilizations wouldn't fear them—they'd hunt them down, two at a time, slowly wiping them out. Societies are finite; they can be killed off eventually."
"Ha, that just shows how shallow your understanding is, kid."
Instead of outright rebutting him, Liuer raised her hand and released a stream of information and data projections.
"These are firsthand records from the Life Commune. See for yourself."
Li Aozi casually selected one, reading it aloud:
"'The 21st Fleet of the [Empire of Heroes], led by Omega-level powerhouse [Nation-Stabilizer] Magnus Bidan, encountered an ambush by the [Machine Realm Society], Mashkagon. Severely injured, Magnus retreated to Star Abyss to recuperate, and the 21st Fleet was completely wiped out, forcing the disbanding of the fleet. Mashkagon was repelled, and Magnus, deemed 'too gravely injured to ever recover his peak strength,' was advised to undergo rebirth under the protection of the Philosopher-King...'"
"'The [Desolate Flame Society], Satanjima, launched four consecutive attacks on the Erland Star Cluster under the dominion of the [Annihilation Sanctuary]. The cluster's civilizations were confirmed as fully devoured, absorbed into Satanjima's desolate flames. Brutal and clandestine skirmishes continue within the Erland Cluster, with the Annihilation Sanctuary suffering seventeen Omega-ranked clerics, sixty divinely blessed, and even a deity-rank pathway god within…'"
"Even the smaller [Dream Medicine Society] Fakorm created the brutal 'Silent Accord of the Tiyar System.' Through spreading illusions and drugs, it turned the entire star system into a dead zone. From the highest officials down to common citizens, even Omega-ranked individuals were hopelessly addicted to Fakorm, enslaved rather than consumed outright—cases like this are hardly rare."
"[Eternal Industry Society] Podolton…"
[You have read valuable historical records and gained the state—'Expanded Perspective']
[Expanded Perspective: You can now learn extraordinary knowledge without expending experience points. Lasts for one natural year.]
These shocking words even left Li Aozi stunned, and the perk that popped up caught him off guard.
[Echoer] couldn't learn new knowledge, so he wasn't sure how useful this buff would be.
After reading these reports, Li Aozi finally understood why the narrative-level civilizations hadn't yet chosen to wage a decisive war with the Societies.
"It's impossible to fight them," Li Aozi said, "The Societies are monstrous; even Omega-level or pathway gods can't defeat them one-on-one."
"Leozi can," Liuer replied calmly, "and this is documented. While Leozi was a god beyond Star Abyss and from a later era, archeological evidence and the testimony of the 'Society Speaker' clearly prove that Leozi personally destroyed the Societies."
"If it's a smaller Society, Omega-levels can take a shot."
"Yes, but guess—how many Societies do you think Leozi killed?"
"Two?" Li Aozi ventured. Seeing that Liuer's expression remained unchanged, he hesitated before daring to guess, "Four? At most, four—it's impossible to go beyond that."
"The answer is—42."
From the ripple in space, Liuer produced a fossilized photograph:
"This was taken by the Life Commune. It shows the skeletal remains of a large [Society], covered in marks from sword slashes and omega energy damage—undeniably Leozi's handiwork. The bones of this savior god! In total, there are 42 fossilized remains, each from a different Society."
"So, technically, the number 42 is not exact."
"It would be more accurate to say—at least 42 Societies."
Liuer's statement left Li Aozi in shock.
He studied the fossil photograph. Despite the passage of time, he could still see remnants of the Societies' unique structure on the fossil—no doubt about its authenticity.
The Society's cross-section was highly recognizable.
—A dense collection of citizens, soil, stardust, factories, industry chains, oceans, cultural centers.
Looking at it, it was like gazing at a cityscape compressed into a single bone.
This was the essence of the [Societies]…a civilization brought to life.
Turning civilization from an abstract concept, an organization, into a personified creature.
"A Society is an unstoppable monster. It uses its citizens as cells, agriculture as blood, industry as fuel, culture and ethnicity as nerves, faith and religion to transmit signals. The land is its flesh, its borders the frame, its army the claws and teeth. A Society is a horrifying compound of life and production, a living civilization with self-awareness. From its inception, it stands opposed to nature."
Liuer spoke with a mix of awe and reverence:
"Some say the gods represent nature and tradition, born from Star Abyss itself to resist foreign destroyers. But the [Society] represents pure 'anti-nature.' The gods' struggle against the destroyers is merely resistance against invasion—but the conflict between [Society] and [Gods] is a battle of anti-nature versus nature."
"An outsider is far worse than a foreigner. A foreigner comes to invade your land, to take your people. At worst, you end up as a conquered nation—but an outsider aims to erase your existence entirely, replacing you. Whether you fight or surrender, an outsider will betray you, obliterate you."
"In past battles, the anti-nature Societies have always held the upper hand—only Leozi washed away that disgrace with their blood, using their corpses to preserve the peace of Star Abyss. Which other god can compare to Leozi? Probably not even worthy to bring him a basin of water."
Liuer looked at Li Aozi:
"Now, do you understand?"
"I think I get it." Li Aozi chose his words carefully. "So, you want to recreate a new Leoz?"
"No, we don't need another Leoz. The era of gods is over."
Liuer shook her head:
"The [Domination]-type god, Morpheedria, wasn't particularly strong, yet strangely—Leoz, as a surrogate, surpassed him, slaughtering so many Societies."
"—There must be a reason for such incredible power," Li Aozi added, "but that's ancient history. Are you sure you can trust it?"
"Absolutely. You can't imagine the sheer influence the Life Commune wielded at its height. Before the Calamity God incident, nearly every academic organization across the universe supported us..."
Liuer's previously excited tone suddenly faltered, her expression turning somber:
"We obtained a massive amount of compelling evidence... For this, the Life Commune gathered a wealth of documents and meticulously cross-referenced them, even risking the wrath of narrative-level civilizations. Comparing the data, we found one key difference between Leoz and other gods."
"Let me guess," Li Aozi looked at her, "Leoz possessed the ultimate omega energy?"
"Smart—too bad you were born seventy years too late; I might've considered taking you on as an apprentice. With your intelligence, you'd make a decent research assistant."
Liuer teased Li Aozi, then continued:
"Leoz wielded the highest form of creator's authority. If we had that power, we could eradicate and suppress the Societies."
"All with just one omega energy? If you could create it, then the narrative-level—"
"—Stop worshipping the narrative-level civilizations!" Liuer snapped, exasperated, "I don't get it; you're some no-name civilization member, yet you keep praising the narrative-level civilizations to a narrative-level citizen like me—as if I don't understand them better than you?"
Li Aozi was taken aback.
"You kept your citizenship… Didn't the Life Commune clash with the narrative-level militaries?"
"Of course, but where else would I get the benefits of narrative-level welfare for my research? Am I supposed to get a job? My time is too valuable for that—who would advance my research if I wasted time working?"
Within the void above her head, an expression of contempt seemed to form as Liuer spoke with a tone of disdain:
"Narrative-level civilizations aren't as almighty as you think… Your mindset is more like one of those high-ranking Omega (O, the fifteenth Greek letter, approximately level 300) officers, too blindly confident in them."
"Sure, consider me that way." Li Aozi dismissed it. "So, are you saying the narrative-level civilizations never thought of this?"
"They have their short-sightedness too."
"Is that so? Why do I feel that it's something else?"
Li Aozi scratched his chin thoughtfully but only grasped a handful of space ripples. He waved it off and said:
"Professor Liuer, have you considered one possibility?"
Liuer raised an eyebrow, "What are you getting at?"
"Is it possible that Leoz, even with the supreme omega energy, couldn't withstand the Societies' endless onslaught—he died?"
Before Li Aozi could finish, he felt himself pressed firmly against the ground.
The gravitational force dissipated.
Li Aozi seized the moment to add:
"Maybe Leoz did kill many Societies…but is it possible that the narrative-level civilizations have already withstood countless epochs from ancient times until now?"