Chapter 109: Discovering the Truth

Fan Yunshan waved his hand, dismissing all the guards around and ordering them to stand watch near the city lord’s mansion. Yet, he made no move against the skeletal Pegasus mages that Li Ren had brought with him. Those skeletal Pegasi continued their slaughter of the players still inside Yuxiao City, and the guards paid them no mind.

Li Ren glanced over and finally relaxed.

“You’re impressive, but your strength is still somewhat lacking,” Fan Yunshan said slowly as he seated himself. “Originally, I wasn’t supposed to tell you these things, but now that those people have appeared here, it means there are already problems at the front lines, so it no longer matters.”

“What kind of problems?” Li Ren asked cautiously, suspicion mingling with uncertainty, his expression complex as he addressed Fan Yunshan, who was originally an NPC and now the lord of Yuxiao City.

“It concerns the true nature of this world,” Fan Yunshan replied softly, as if recalling a past so deep and painful even he wished to forget it.

Li Ren’s heart pounded wildly. At last, he was about to pierce the veil of mystery surrounding this world. He had long suspected the game was far more than a mere game, having endured countless strange events and encountered many bizarre individuals. Now, hearing these words from Fan Yunshan confirmed that suspicion beyond doubt.

“Before that, let me transfer Yuxiao City to you. Consider it your reward for completing the task,” Fan Yunshan said. Immediately, Li Ren heard the system’s notification sound indicating he had acquired Yuxiao City.

Simultaneously, all the city’s facilities appeared vividly before his eyes, including the remaining guards and detailed data.

But Li Ren paid these no mind. He ignored the system’s multiple global notifications, which would surely cause a great stir. His sole concern was one thing: the truth about this world—the words Fan Yunshan was about to speak.

Fan Yunshan sat silently for a long time, and Li Ren waited patiently beside him. Finally, after enduring the long silence, Fan Yunshan shook his head and began to speak words that stunned Li Ren to his core.

“This game, the one you perceive as a game, is not actually a game at all. It is a real world, and the beings within it are living entities. Even the system is a person.”

“A person? The system is a person? You too?” Li Ren stared at Fan Yunshan in astonishment, speaking as if not quite believing he was being addressed.

“Yes, in essence, I am. But you may also consider me an NPC, which is not incorrect.”

“What do you mean?”

“This entire game is, in fact, a small world. Within this world, there is a supreme controller, and I am merely one who has willingly joined,” Fan Yunshan explained patiently.

Li Ren fell silent, sitting quietly as he listened. From Fan Yunshan’s words, the true nature of the entire “Land of Gods” gradually came into focus.

It turned out that the game “Land of Gods” was not merely a virtual world but a genuine place—what ordinary people might call, simply put, the Underworld.

Who could have imagined that this game connected directly to the realm of the dead, and that their participation was taking place within the Underworld itself?

That enigmatic world of the departed, so mysterious in daily life, had quietly intruded upon their reality, yet no one was aware.

This was somewhat understandable since the game limited the size of the world. The Underworld was not as it appeared now; its present form was the result of several powerful figures collaboratively constructing this realm.

The system was the original ruler.

But this raised another question: why had the Underworld become involved in the game? Or rather, why were so many living humans drawn into the Underworld through this game? What was the purpose?

Through Fan Yunshan’s narration, Li Ren gained a rough understanding—though incomplete, it was close.

The Underworld was in crisis.

Three thousand years ago, an alien force known as the Celestial Evil suddenly invaded the Underworld. This strange entity possessed a peculiar power: it could subtly alter a person’s thoughts—that is, control their mind. Under its influence, one would feel no abnormality, yet their actions would starkly diverge from their usual nature.

The Underworld plunged into chaos.

Meanwhile, the Underworld’s sovereign, the King of the Dead, vanished from all sight at that moment. Since the Celestial Evil’s invasion, no one had seen the King again.

At that time, places like the “Land of Gods” were established within the Underworld, but there were not just one but thirty-six such realms scattered throughout various regions. Initially, no one understood their purpose.

The denizens could only struggle to resist the Celestial Evil’s advance until news emerged that these thirty-six realms might be connected to the King of the Dead. Only then did people begin to regard these mysterious places with interest.

Three thousand years passed. During that long span, the Underworld was nearly overrun by the Celestial Evil, leaving only a few remote passages intact—now the last bastions of resistance.

Of the thirty-six realms, only two—neither truly part of the Underworld—survived; the other thirty-four had been destroyed by the Celestial Evil.

To protect the remnants of the Underworld and preserve its last strength, heroes of old fought desperately, awaiting the King’s return.

What shocked Fan Yunshan greatly was that he had found runes here that only the Celestial Evil could wield.

In other words, their sanctuary had already been infiltrated by the Celestial Evil. As for what was happening beyond, he had no knowledge. The system governing the entire world had ceased all contact. Now they could rely only on their own strength.

As for why so many living humans existed here, Fan Yunshan explained wryly that it was precisely the unknown power generated by these thirty-six secret realms that drew the souls of living people into this world for enhancement. Only after their true death would their souls join the Underworld’s ranks, refreshing its lifeblood and allowing it to endure this long. Without this, the Underworld would have fallen long ago.