1: The Kingdom of God Begins

At six in the morning, Awakening Square in eastern Huaxia was already crowded with people.

In the sky, pillars of light descended from the clouds, each connecting to a young person undergoing awakening.

Runes flickered in the air, revealing the divine classes they had obtained—"Thunder's Wrath," "Frost Queen," and "Dragon Summoner."

Shen Xiaochuan stood in a corner, wearing a faded dark blue work uniform with a copper gear pendant sewn onto his cuff.

He was twenty years old, a recent graduate in mechanical engineering whose parents were steel mill workers. Usually quiet among his classmates, he was often mocked as the "Mechanical Department Trash."

He looked up at those shining names, his palms sweating slightly.

He also longed to possess a combat-type divine class.

When the pillar of light fell upon him, the entire field fell silent for a brief moment.

Half a minute later, the system's voice rang out: "Detection complete. Divine Class Type: No combat talent. Binding Divine Kingdom prototype, basic permissions unlocked."

The crowd instantly erupted into an uproar.

"What? No combat ability?"

"He can't even cast a Fireball Spell; how can he be called a god?"

"Hahaha, Shen Xiaochuan, did the system reject you?"

A few former classmates surrounded him, their faces full of mockery. Someone clapped him hard on the shoulder with enough force that it was clearly an intentional shove.

Shen Xiaochuan didn't move or speak, merely looking down at his hands.

His nails dug deep into his palms, causing some pain, but he didn't care.

He knew that from this moment on, no one would ever look him in the eye again. In this world where the strong were respected, a god without combat power was garbage.

The ceremony ended, and everyone was teleported to the novice zones of their respective Divine Kingdoms.

Shen Xiaochuan opened his eyes and found himself in a wasteland. The ground was cracked and barren, with only three crooked, dilapidated thatched huts in the distance.

A hundred thin and weak natives squatted on the ground, dressed in rags. Seeing his arrival, they slowly stood up to bow.

The system panel popped up automatically:

[Divine Kingdom Name: Unnamed]

[faith points: 10]

[Operable Functions: Believer Summoning, Building Upgrade, Resource Exploration]

[Tip: The first Divine Kingdom operation must be completed within twelve hours, otherwise the initial development bonus will be lost.]

Shen Xiaochuan sat on a rock, staring at the panel for a long time.

He had considered a backup plan, but his family was ordinary, with no background or wealth. His only chance to turn his life around was awakening, and now that path was completely blocked.

He closed his eyes, the sounds of mockery echoing in his ears again, piercing his heart over and over.

After a long time, he opened his eyes and accessed the Faith Mall.

The page was simple, with options on the left and descriptions on the right.

[Basic Believer Warrior: 2 faith points/person, Combat Power 65, high loyalty]

[Junior Artisan: 3 faith points/person, can build simple facilities]

[Scout-type Spiritual Body: 1 faith point/person, moves quickly, cannot fight]

He could only summon five basic warriors at most.

His finger hovered over the confirm button, hesitating to click.

With this few people, it would be difficult to even protect himself.

Just as he was about to exit, a cold voice suddenly rang out:

[Special potential detected... S-rank passive talent "+1 faith point per second" has been activated]

[faith points have begun to grow automatically, current speed: +1 per second]

Shen Xiaochuan suddenly sat bolt upright.

"Holy crap, this is the legendary passive talent! Heaven has finally opened its eyes!"

He stared intently at the numbers on the panel—10 became 11, then jumped to 12... the numbers were indeed rising continuously!

He immediately went back to the mall and found a new option:

[Five hundred Basic Believer Warriors: One-time summon, costs 10 faith points, limited-time exchange]

He Without hesitation, directly clicked confirm.

[Summoning started]

The earth trembled.

Five hundred figures emerged from the void, lining up neatly and filling the entire wasteland.

They were tall and muscular, clad in coarse cloth battle armor and holding stone spears.

A warrior walked up to a rock, roared, and punched down. With a "bang," the boulder shattered into powder.

The system prompt sounded: [Average combat power of newly summoned Believers is 89, far exceeding the elite troops of other gods in the same period.]

Shen Xiaochuan stood up and walked to the front of the group.

The wind ruffled the hem of his clothes.

He looked at this army, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly.

The classmates who had just mocked him—their Divine Kingdoms had only a few dozen Believers, with fewer than a hundred guards.

And he, in one go, possessed five hundred warriors with a combat power of nearly ninety.

Although his faith points had been cleared, they were still continuously growing.

One point per second.

As long as there was enough time, he could summon even more.

He clenched his fists, a flash of ruthlessness in his eyes, and whispered: "So what if I don't have combat talent? My faith points can smash out an invincible divine army!"

The night deepened.

Other novice zones were brightly lit, with gods already beginning to build altars, reclaim wasteland, and train soldiers.

Shen Xiaochuan's Divine Kingdom remained dark, with only the five hundred warriors standing silently.

He sat on the highest rock, gazing at the steadily climbing faith points.

17, 18, 19... He remembered waiting for his parents to finish work at the steel mill entrance when he was a child.

The machines roared, sparks flew, and his father pointed at the steel furnace, saying: "No matter how poor a factory is, as long as it has equipment, it can produce."

Now he understood.

Others relied on talent to compete; he relied on accumulation to turn the tables.

faith points were his equipment.

He didn't need a perfect start; he only needed time.

Given enough time, he could build the strongest Divine Kingdom.

In the distance, a warrior approached cautiously and asked in a low voice: "Lord God, what should we do next?"

Shen Xiaochuan stood up, looked across the entire wasteland, and said solemnly: "First, clear the ground and tear down those thatched huts. Starting tomorrow, we build the first barracks."

The warrior took his orders and left.

He opened the mall again and found that new options had appeared:

[Junior Barracks Blueprint: Consumes 50 faith points]

[Low-level Weapon Forging Table: Consumes 30 faith points]

[Defensive Wall Design Plan: Consumes 40 faith points]

He couldn't afford them yet.

It didn't matter.

The faith points were constantly rising.

He sat still in place, speaking no more.

He seemed to be waiting for the right moment.

Under the starry sky, this wasteland finally showed a hint of vitality.

That night, countless gods were celebrating their powerful talents.

But in his heart, there was only one thought—adding one faith point per second, that was the strongest talent!

Just before dawn, he stood up and walked toward the already marked-out open space.

This would be the location of the barracks.

He said to the air: "From today on, my Divine Kingdom will not rely on miracles or bloodlines, but on accumulation."

"If anyone stands in my way, I will use faith points to crush them to death."

The wind swept past his ears.

He turned and walked back to the high ground, continuing to stare at the panel.

23, 24, 25...