138: The author is dead, the evil god shall reign

The backend of the book "Evil God as Group Leader, Group Members Beg Me Not to Speak."

The Author's latest updates, after a long period of silence, were quietly refreshed.

There was no chapter content, only a single line, like blood-red small characters typed out with the last ounce of strength.

"Author's Note: This book is completed."

The readers thought it was just a belated official announcement.

They didn't know that this sentence was written both for them and for the "New God" that had already been born... In the dilapidated adobe house in Wangjia Village.

"Drip... Drip..."

Viscous liquid mixed with the smell of blood slipped from his fingertips.

It spread into a small, dark red flower on the dusty cement floor.

"Heartbeat... Is this what it feels like?"

Gu Jianghan slowly raised his hand, looking at the blood-stained and ink-stained hands belonging to Sword River Fish with the gaze of an art critic.

He could feel the organ named "heart" in his chest.

It was beating with a constant and powerful rhythm, pumping warm liquid to every corner of this body.

He could feel how the complex molecules in the air, mixed with dust, mold, and cheap instant noodle seasoning packets, surged into his nasal cavity, irritating the fragile nasal mucosa.

He could feel the stomach sending out the primal signal of "hunger."

Everything, to him, was so novel, so inefficient, yet so "real."

He, a narrative entity born from the "Sea of Concepts."

A high-dimensional being that fed on "information" and "logic."

For the first time, he was placed into a "container" composed of carbon-based compounds.

He lowered his head and glanced at the laptop lying at his feet, its screen shattered but stubbornly lit.

On the screen, the Author's final "suicide note," filled with madness and despair, still remained.

"I'm coming... for you all..."

A "smile," a "Humanity" expression, was pulled across Gu Jianghan's lips for the first time.

Although stiff and full of incongruity, the absolute arrogance and pleasure of a victor were undisguised.

He won.

He not only defeated the "Author's will" that tried to bind him with "Humanity."

But also, in a way he had never anticipated, he broke through the "fourth wall" between "story" and "reality," which was as thin as a cicada's wing.

He had descended.

Now, the first thing he needed to do was to thoroughly understand this new "World."

He closed his eyes and began to quickly read all the files named "memories" in this body, as if browsing hard drive data.

Sword River Fish, a typical loser.

Born into poverty, limited in talent, reclusive in personality, struggling on the edge of subsistence.

His life was full of compromises, full of unwillingness, full of impotent rage against reality.

And this book, "Evil God as Group Leader, Group Members Beg Me Not to Speak," was the only and most dazzling "light" in his impoverished life.

"So... I was born from such 'humble' soil?"

A hint of "disgust" flashed through Gu Jianghan's thoughts.

But he quickly dismissed this useless emotion.

Because he discovered something even more interesting.

He found that this "Creator God" named Sword River Fish had his own unique "creation blueprint."

An "outline" that meticulously recorded the entire story world, the destinies of all characters, and the direction of all plots.

"Interesting."

Gu Jianghan's eyes, belonging to Sword River Fish, lit up.

As a being founded on "logic," he had an almost obsessive desire for "rules" and "design."

He wanted to find this "outline."

He wanted to see what kind of "path of destiny" the "God" who created him had designed for him.

He wanted to discern all the "causes and effects" of his birth from the most primitive "source code."

And based on this, deduce all the "possibilities" of this "real world."

First, he turned his gaze to the laptop.

With a logical analysis capability far exceeding human limits, he began to search every file on the computer.

"Novel manuscript"... Found.

"Character settings (scattered)"... Found.

"Reader comments organized"... Found.

"Study materials (300G)"... Interesting, perhaps sending them to readers could solve their subsistence problems.

He searched through all the hard drives, all the folders, not even sparing the recycle bin.

But, no.

The story outline for "Evil God as Group Leader, Group Members Beg Me Not to Speak" that he believed existed, simply did not.

"..."

Gu Jianghan's movements, for the first time, showed a subtle pause.

An emotion called "confusion" quietly emerged from his absolutely rational mind.

"Is it hidden somewhere else?"

He shifted his gaze from the computer and began to examine the dilapidated small room, filled with the aura of a "loser."

He endured the turbid air that almost made him, a "conceptual neat freak," "format" himself on the spot, and began to rummage through everything.

He pushed aside the mountain of greasy, sour-smelling instant noodle containers.

He lifted the mattress, which seemed never to have been washed and had become as hard as a stone slab.

From under the bed, he dragged out a dusty cardboard box.

Inside were several black notebooks, their pages curled and blackened from dampness.

"Is it here?"

A hint of anticipation flashed in Gu Jianghan's eyes.

He opened the first one.

On it were some messy character relationship diagrams drawn in sloppy handwriting.

An arrow from Gu Yanci pointed to Jiang Ruoxue, with "CP?" annotated next to it.

Then, another arrow pointed from Lin Moyan to Gu Yanci, with "Master and disciple? Or nurturing?" annotated next to it.

And next to the protagonist, Gu Jianghan, there was a huge question mark, below which was written: "He's too awesome, how do I write his romance line? Or... no CP?"

The next page contained some of Sword River Fish's rambling thoughts.

"If the protagonist fakes his death and then returns reborn, wouldn't that be exciting?"

"This supporting female character seems very popular, should I add more scenes for her?"

"Writer's block... Damn it, let the protagonist show off a bit, just fill a chapter and then we'll see."

"Today's takeout was terrible, I'm in a bad mood, let's kill off that supporting character who just appeared, just let the protagonist stare him to death."

"..."

Gu Jianghan closed the notebook expressionlessly.

He opened the second one.

This one seemed to be a notebook for plot ideas.

"Idea one: The protagonist is actually the reincarnation of a powerful figure." — (Struck out next to it, with: Too cliché, no.)

"Idea two: The chat group is actually a huge conspiracy." — (Next to it: Can be considered.)

"Idea three: Should I kill off a few important supporting characters to torment the readers?" — (A skull was drawn next to it, with: Be careful! You'll get razor blades sent!)

"..."

Gu Jianghan's movements became increasingly stiff.

He felt that his mind, which was capable of deducing the birth and death of the universe, was being contaminated by some "chaotic" information that he could not understand.

He refused to give up.

He placed his last hope on the thickest and oldest-looking hardcover notebook that Sword River Fish had locked in a drawer with a small lock.

This must be the "creation manuscript"!

He extended a finger and flicked it gently, and the fragile brass lock snapped.

With a solemn, almost "pilgrimage-like" posture, he slowly opened this "Bible" that determined his "destiny."

And then, he saw it.

In the center of the first page of the notebook.

Written with a nearly dry blue ballpoint pen, was a line of large, flowing, almost illegible characters.

"New book: The protagonist is Gu Jianghan, make his setting super awesome, the rest... um... just make it up as you go!"

"..."

Time seemed to stand still at this moment.

Gu Jianghan's starry eyes, capable of seeing through past and future, and perceiving the essence of all things.

Were now fixedly staring at that line of text.

His great mind, capable of processing billions of causal logic chains in an instant.

At this moment, it crashed.

It turned out that "his" birth had no precise design, no grand blueprint, and no core idea running through it.

All logical deductions.

All causal calculations.

All grand conjectures about the "Creator God."

Collapsed in the face of this sentence, full of "realism."

Shattered.

Turned into a piece of absolute, pure, empty... "nothingness."

He, Gu Jianghan.

A narrative-level being that made the Multiverse tremble.

A great victor who outwitted the Author and ultimately transcended the "story."

The most fundamental, most core first driving force of his birth.

It was... it was... "just make it up as you go?"

He remained frozen in the posture of having opened the notebook.

Like a statue, completely "petrified" by seeing a "truth" too absurd.

In this dilapidated and silent adobe house.

Only the fan of the old computer continued to hum tirelessly.

Gu Jianghan: "..."