7.7 - Emerging from Obscurity, the Dawn of Lingxiao

Su Fu gazed at the familiar figures before her, a surge of indescribable excitement welling up in her heart.

Countless golden torrents of data poured in from all directions, weaving together before her into a brilliant galaxy. Within that galaxy, four figures stood, manifesting the majesty and glory of the Chinese deities.

These were the Chinese gods!

Who said the Chinese pantheon was weak? Who said there were no representative deities? She had summoned four of them all at once!

What she hadn’t expected was that the Divine Genesis AI would project the announcement of the Chinese deities’ descent directly into the real world—and across the entire Lingxiao Province, no less! This was truly a surprise.

Su Fu suddenly wondered: how many people, whether in the cities or the wilderness, in virtual space or the physical realm, were seeing the images of the Chinese deities at this very moment?

She tapped on the announcement details to read the explanation, golden light blooming before her eyes.

【Deity First Descent Announcement: When a deity from a specific pantheon descends in a region for the first time, a regional announcement is automatically triggered. This marks the establishment of a faith anchor for that pantheon in said region, granting all residents of the area a minor increase in affinity for that divine power.】

In other words... this was telling everyone that the gods of the Chinese pantheon had taken notice of this region! The people here would find it easier to receive responses from these deities.

Su Fu quickly realized that this was essentially like placing a summoning buff on the entire Lingxiao Province. Under this buff, the success rate of summoning Chinese deities would be increased. Furthermore, the subtext behind this announcement was even more significant: the Divine Genesis AI was encouraging believers to spread the faith of these gods to more places. After all, any region where a deity had descended would receive such bonuses.

This was one of the reasons why other pantheons, such as the Greek, were so powerful across the various star systems. Their believers were constantly striving to expand their map of faith, and every expansion brought tangible summoning bonuses to that territory.

Su Fu suddenly realized something: didn't this mean her reputation had now spread across the entire Lingxiao Province? At the thought, the corners of her mouth curled up involuntarily.

*Hehe~* As expected of me! She would definitely spread the faith of the Chinese deities to even more places in the future!

Following the announcement, a prompt from the Divine Genesis AI popped up.

【Prestige System Activated】
【Current Prestige Level: Novice】
【...】

She studied it and realized that the prestige system was a comprehensive index used to measure her influence across the stars. Currently, her influence was in the lowest range of 0–100, with the assessment:

【Novice: You have just embarked on your interstellar journey. Your influence is still low, but your potential is limitless, and the future is bright.】

However, prestige could be increased by unlocking various achievements; the more achievements, the higher the prestige. For instance, the announcement she had just triggered had already earned her 100 prestige points.

【Current Title: Lingxiao Pioneer】
【Title Description: First summoner of the Chinese pantheon in Lingxiao Province】
【Title Effects: Chinese divine power cultivation speed increased by 5%, Chinese pantheon skill effectiveness increased by 5%】
【Special Note: Title of the First Summoner grants extra attention from the deities of the Chinese pantheon】

Su Fu’s eyes lit up. Titles had bonus functions too! It made sense, though; as the first summoner to call upon the Chinese gods, the deities would surely show some favoritism, right?

Beyond that, there was even a title currently in progress:

【Title Name: Seeking the Dao (In Progress)】
【Title Description: Explore the secrets of the Chinese pantheon, successfully locate the ruins of the Chinese Holy Land, and compile a history of Chinese deities recognized by the Divine Genesis AI...】
【Title Effects: Unlock special Holy Land cultivation access, increase the probability of awakening Chinese pantheon skills...】

Su Fu stared at that string of enticing rewards, her eyes widening. They were simply... too tempting! The "special Holy Land cultivation access" alone was something countless people would break their necks trying to obtain. A Holy Land was where the gods once resided; it contained the purest divine power. According to textbooks, cultivation speed in a Holy Land was increased by over a hundredfold, and with the divine power bonuses found there, it was highly likely to awaken supernatural abilities.

Su Fu thought of an apt analogy: if the divine power available for cultivation in the academy or in space was like scattered starlight, then the divine power in the Holy Land was like a continuous, surging river. Even a fool could reach S-rank there. It was essentially the ultimate cheat code.

However... as she looked at the requirements to obtain the title, her mouth twitched. Good grief, she didn't even know where the ruins of the Chinese Holy Land were, let alone how to explore them. As for compiling the history of the gods? That she could do—she had plenty of papers she could write in her mind. But without finding the Holy Land, it was all talk.

Su Fu concluded, "This title is just a pie in the sky!" And a big, delicious-looking pie at that! A pie she absolutely couldn't eat right now. How infuriating!

Ultimately, Su Fu focused back on the "Lingxiao Pioneer" title. Right now, it was just the title for being the first summoner in Lingxiao Province. But what if... she took it a step further? If she could enter a higher-level academy... The entire Polaris cluster lacked the inheritance of the Chinese pantheon!

What did that mean? It meant that if she took even one step forward, she could obtain the "First Summoner" title on a much larger scale! Would there be "Star System Pioneer" or "Galaxy Pioneer"? Every title's bonus would be stronger than the last! Just how terrifying would those effects be? Doubled cultivation speed? Doubled skill effects? Perhaps even the direct unlocking of supernatural abilities?!

She decided: she had to get into a higher-level academy!

Just then, she noticed the data on her personal profile updating:

【Ranking System Updating...】
【Unlock Progress: 80%】

She felt a bit uneasy; surely no student could remain calm about "rankings." Although she had taken first place in this exam, she feared this ranking system was based more on her personal strength. This was fundamentally different from the exam rankings.

The most critical difference between the divine exams and reality was divine support. In the exams, every candidate received divine support from the Divine Genesis AI. When using divine skills, a phantom of the deity would appear behind them, allowing the skill to unleash its full power. But once they left the exam, the phantom vanished, and that support disappeared.

To put it in perspective, in the exam, she was like someone holding a super-capacity power bank. She could use as much "electricity" as she wanted, provided she didn't exceed the limit, all to eliminate the anomalies. But once she left the exam, the power bank was gone, and she had to rely on her own "battery."

Top students like Shen Yunling and Jiang Qingyu had been cultivating for a whole year longer than her; the "battery" stored within them was certainly much higher than hers as a beginner. This gap was most intuitively reflected in their divine power rank.

Su Fu stared at her own level, lost in thought.

【Divine Power Rank: E-rank (Dao Entry Stage)】