18: Chapter 18 Creating the Environment

The night was deep.

Su Bai pushed open the dormitory door and sat down in front of his bed. He didn't turn on the lights, just sat quietly for a few seconds.

He pulled out that pitch-black metal plate from his pocket.

The activation token for the heavenly pride list.

It was palm-sized, entirely black, and its surface was covered with complex energy circuits. The transparent crystal embedded in the center emitted a faint, eerie shimmer under the moonlight.

Su Bai stared at it for a few seconds, took a deep breath, and extended his consciousness into it.

[activation token for the heavenly pride list detected]

[Do you wish to bind?]

[Once bound, your world data will be automatically recorded into the national prodigy list system; this cannot be changed or revoked]

Su Bai did not hesitate.

[Confirm binding]

The token instantly became scalding hot.

The transparent crystal erupted with a blinding white light. The light transformed into countless tiny energy threads that spread up Su Bai's palm, wrapping around the gray world mark on his wrist.

[Synchronizing world data...]

[Synchronization complete]

[Welcome to the heavenly pride list system]

Su Bai's consciousness was pulled into a void.

Before his eyes, a massive screen of light slowly unfurled.

At the very top of the screen were three large golden characters:

[heavenly pride list]

Below them, countless names were densely packed.

Su Bai's gaze fell upon the very top.

[national prodigy list]

[Rank 1: Di Wudao, Mythology World, Rank 5]

[Rank 2: Jun Moxiao, zerg world, Rank 5]

[Rank 3: Ye Wushuang, Chaos World, Rank 5]

[Rank 4: ...]

Rank 5.

Su Bai's pupils contracted slightly.

He knew there were true geniuses in this world, and he knew that the monsters in those top-tier academies had long since reached heights unattainable by ordinary people.

But seeing these numbers for himself still gave him a slight shock.

They all came from the Imperial Capital and the Magic Capital. Those two places had inherent advantages, with awakening times a week earlier than places like his.

But reaching Rank 5 in just one week was simply terrifying!

What kind of talent was that? What resources? What kind of world?

His gaze continued downward, finding his own province.

[Qinglin Province heavenly pride list]

[Rank 1: Lin Canglan, Sword Dao World, Rank 4]

[Rank 2: Murong Xue, ice phoenix world, Rank 4]

[Rank 3: Chu Tiange, War Demon World, Rank 4]

[Rank 4: ...]

[Rank 29: Su Bai, Yin Qi World, Rank 3]

Rank 29.

Su Bai stared at that number and fell silent.

A Rank 3 world, ranked 29th in the entire province.

This ranking wasn't particularly high, but it wasn't low either.

There were twenty-eight beings stronger than him above, and countless people below who didn't even have the qualification to be on the list.

But he knew that this ranking would soon change.

Because he possessed the Yin Qi World.

Because in his world, there were three hero units.

Because his Netherworld was only just beginning.

[First entry into the heavenly pride list, reward obtained: Power Of Faith × 100]

[Current Power Of Faith: 100]

Su Bai withdrew his consciousness and opened his eyes.

Moonlight still spilled across the floor.

He looked down at the world mark on his wrist, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.

Rank 29.

Very well.

Let this number be the starting point of his progress.

He didn't waste time wallowing in frustration; instead, he immediately closed his eyes and sank his consciousness into the Netherworld World.

Grayish-white Yin Qi rushed toward him.

The Ghost Bride was floating above a small, dilapidated hut that had just been erected, boredly twirling her hair. Sadako stood quietly in a corner, her long hair covering her face, motionless. The Slit-Mouthed Woman held her scissors, standing at the edge of the Yaksha Wasteland like a guardian deity.

The Yin Soldiers were lined up neatly, silently awaiting orders.

Su Bai stood at the world core, his gaze sweeping across this grayish-white world.

Thirty-nine kilometers in diameter.

The Yaksha Wasteland.

Three hero units.

And, one hundred points of Power Of Faith.

He looked around at this empty world.

Yin Qi surged like an ocean, but besides that, there was nothing.

No buildings, no roads, no landmarks—nothing that would allow someone to recognize this as the Netherworld at a glance.

Su Bai frowned slightly.

While the current units didn't need these things, what about later?

When Black and White Impermanence, Ox-Head and Horse-Face, Meng Po, and the Judges all emerged from the Yin Qi, where would they live? Where would they work? Where would they judge the souls of the dead?

They couldn't just float around forever, could they?

Moreover, this world needed an atmosphere.

An atmosphere that would make anyone feel "this is the Netherworld" the moment they stepped inside.

Su Bai raised his hand, sinking his consciousness into the world core.

[Current Power Of Faith: 100]

[Operation available: Environmental Modification]

Environmental Modification.

Su Bai closed his eyes and began to sketch in his mind.

Buildings like Ghost Gate Pass, Yellow Spring Road, and River of Oblivion couldn't be constructed yet.

However, he could construct scenes from the ghost stories and novels of his previous life, images from horror movies—classic motifs that had sent shivers down his spine.

Dilapidated villages.

Crooked wooden huts.

Withered trees hung with red lanterns.

Abandoned ancestral halls overgrown with vines.

And, that well.

The well Sadako crawled out of.

Su Bai opened his eyes and tapped lightly in the void.

[Power Of Faith consumed: 30 points]

[Environmental Modification beginning]

The grayish-white Yin Qi surged violently.

In the area where the Ghost Bride was floating, the ground began to heave and the soil began to condense.

Dilapidated wooden huts emerged from the Yin Qi one after another.

They stood there crookedly; some roofs had half-collapsed, some walls were covered in cracks, and a faint green light shone from some of the windows.

Between the wooden huts were winding dirt paths. Dead trees stood on both sides of the paths, hung with red lanterns that burned with ghostly blue flames.

Further away, an ancient well slowly rose from the ground.

The rim of the well was made of mottled bluestone, and the opening was sealed with several rotten wooden slats. Beside the well stood a slanted wooden sign with four words written in blood:

[No Approaching]

Su Bai nodded in satisfaction.

This was exactly the feeling he wanted.

Eerie, dilapidated, and gloomy, yet possessing an indescribable sense of beauty.

Floating in mid-air, the Ghost Bride stared wide-eyed at the village that had suddenly appeared below.

"Wow!!!"

She dove down, floated in front of a wooden hut, and poked her head inside to look.

"Master! Is this for us to live in?"

Su Bai's conscious avatar appeared beside her and nodded.

"From now on, this is your home."

"Home?" The Ghost Bride tilted her head, seemingly not quite understanding the meaning of the word, but the smile on her face was as bright as a child who had received a new toy. "I like home!"

She floated into the wooden hut, circled around inside, and then floated back out.

"Master is the best!"

Su Bai nodded slightly, his gaze falling on that well.

Sadako had floated to the side of the well at some unknown point.

She stood there quietly, looking at the sealed well. In those hollow eyes, a rare ripple of emotion emerged.

She raised a deathly pale hand and gently brushed it over the slanted wooden sign.

Finally, she turned her head and looked at Su Bai.

The ripple in those eyes deepened.

She didn't speak, but simply lowered her head slightly, as if bowing in greeting, or perhaps in gratitude.

Su Bai nodded, saying no more.

He looked at the world core.

[Remaining Power Of Faith: 70 points]

Use it all to create Yin Soldiers.

The grayish-white Yin Qi condensed once more as Yin Soldiers emerged from the mist one by one. They wore tattered armor and held rusted spears, their faces so blurred their features were indistinguishable, and they stood in a perfectly neat row.

Seventy of them.

Adding the previous one hundred and eighty-eight, there were two hundred and fifty-eight in total.

Those Yin Soldiers who had fallen in the practical test had also finished re-condensing in the Yin Qi by now. Their forms were still somewhat illusory and would need a day to fully recover.

[Unit count: 261]

[Hero units: Ghost Bride (Rank 3, 3-Star), Sadako (Rank 2, 4-Star), Slit-Mouthed Woman (Rank 2, 3-Star)]

[Ordinary units: Yin Soldiers × 258]

Su Bai stood before the newly built village, looking at these silent beings.

The Ghost Bride floated beside him, chattering about something.

Sadako stood by the well, her head hanging quietly.

The Slit-Mouthed Woman held her scissors, standing at the edge of the Yaksha Wasteland, still silent.

Two hundred and thirty-seven Yin Soldiers were lined up neatly, awaiting orders.

It still wasn't enough.

Su Bai withdrew his consciousness and opened his eyes.

Outside the window, the night was still deep.

He checked the time; it was one in the morning.

The Creators Association was open twenty-four hours a day.

He stood up, grabbed his school uniform jacket, and pushed the door open, stepping out quietly.