Shepherding Humanity

You’re all nuts!

Xu Zhi was speechless and couldn't help but laugh out loud. For a while, he really didn't know what to say.

The Rose Saviors said:

"Although the Emperor of Alchemy is both benevolent and wise, and the era of alchemy he started has benefited us all… we still have to kill him!"

The Beastmen Kingdom said:

"Although the Emperor of Alchemy has been a very good friend to the Beastmen, treating us very kindly while also creating many policies to promote equality… we still have to kill him!!!"

Look, where’s your conscience?!

Honestly, the Emperor of Alchemy was the most heroic and wise monarch Xu Zhi has ever seen. He wasn't tyrannical, and devoted himself to advancing civilization through the development of science and alchemy. He wasn’t interested in carnal pleasures, and everything he did was for the sake of the country and its people.

(After all, he didn’t have the “equipment”!)

His love was platonic and pure, and his feelings towards the Seven Little Witches were a complex mix of romantic and familial love. To this day, he was working hard to extend their lifespans and wake them from frozen hibernation.

"Back then, Gilgamesh was extremely tyrannical; he established slavery and even killed his own son, but no one dared to plot against him! So why is everyone trying to kill the benevolent and wise Emperor of Alchemy?"

Xu Zhi felt sad for him.

Ironically, this was simple human nature.

—People who think nothing of bowing down before tyranny will suddenly find the courage to raise their swords when serving under a benevolent lord.

"Grantham was too kind. He is a builder by nature, and does not know how to play the game of thrones. Evil opportunists have begun to plot against him, but he doesn’t even know."

At this moment, he was still obsessed with developing stuff and climbing the tech tree. All his attention was on the Potion of Longevity that would extend his lifespan, and he was completely unaware of the assassination plot against him.

This was why most emperors had spies and secret guards serving them. The walls had ears, and any plot against the monarch would be revealed instantly, and the traitors put to the sword.

Should I warn him?

Xu Zhi thought for a moment, then indifferently shook his head.

"But how? I have no way of warning him. Forget it, let's go with the flow. Although it is a pity that the great emperor who had opened up an era would be assassinated like this, this will keep him from acting up before death…

I’ll have fewer things to do if he does not try to defy fate by searching for the gods in his old age. It’s all good! His lifespan is about to end anyway, I should just let him die and log out from the game. 200 years of life in another world is already good enough."

…..

The Kingdom of Babylon, year 527.

The night had just begun. A pale moon hung in the sky, and the Kingdom of Babylon was covered in murky gloom.

In a beautiful arched corridor within the palace, delicate sconces cast a pale yellow glow on stone walls carved with golden wreath patterns.

To the sides of the corridor, pretty girls in witch robes were scattering flower petals from their flower baskets.

In the middle, a court minister holding an ostentatious wooden staff was leading the way for a beautiful woman.

This woman was Ermin; she was the champion of this year’s Inter-Academy Tournament, and has been granted an audience with the legendary Emperor of Alchemy, Grantham.

Back then, in the battle under the waterfall, Ermin had fought bravely but still lost in the end. Led by their instructor, countless students worked as one to defeat Charlotte, but they still lost against her, and she got away with the Book of Seals.

Five years later, after fervently training under one of the Academy’s hidden sages, Ermin developed the spell "Wave Dash" and entered the Inter-Academy Tournament, winning the championship.

Before she left, her instructor taught her this:

"The pulse of the world is the origin of everything. Heaven and earth constantly pulse; life itself pulses, forming waves; thus the power of waves is the power of life!"

"When you observe the microscopic world through the ‘Alchemical Lens' invented by the Emperor of Alchemy, you will find that every single part of the body is constantly pulsing! Waves are the foundation of this world… This is the truth of everything, and our discipline’s Gate of Truth!"

Ermin took this to heart.

She knew well that if she didn’t develop a brand-new school of magic, she would not be able to rival Charlotte.

"I’ve received confidential information that the Beastmen Kingdom has stopped the Rose Saviors from breaking the Empress of Death’s seal, and that they will briefly work together to assassinate the Emperor of Alchemy.."

Ermin had an icy expression on her face. "I can't even alert the throne because there are too many of their agents in the Royal Palace of Babylon. It's no longer safe."

"The Emperor of Alchemy is too kind and merciful, and is unable to understand the darkness in the hearts of men. It’s up to me now to protect him… Charlotte, this time, you'll definitely infiltrate the royal palace to assassinate the Emperor of Alchemy, but I will stop you!!"

At this moment, as the tournament champion, Ermin was surrounded by beautiful witches as she slowly approached the throne room.

Stirring music started to play, the impassioned notes surging like waves from within the depths of the palace.

"This is the music of the gods which descended from heaven during the era of the Three Witches—the Symphony of Fate! Such an amazing performance! Which court musician is this?" Ermin couldn't help but remark.

"This is not a court musician, nor is it a human being. It's a music box that his majesty made—an alchemical contraption." Her guide whispered admiringly "Our great emperor is truly the man who opened the age of alchemy. "

An alchemical contraption—a mere object—could play such beautiful notes??

What a great monarch…

Ermin marveled. She has grown up listening to stories about the Great Emperor. He was praised by everyone for the great Wonders of the World he had created; it felt as if he had descended from heaven to illuminate the world with his otherworldly genius and unconventional ideas.

Ermin silently followed behind the group. Lovely witches stood on both sides of the arched corridor, scattering pink flower petals from their baskets. It was a beautiful scene out of a fairy tale.

She finally entered the throne room.

Her guide walked onto the bright red carpet and looked at the majestic monarch sitting high above. She excitedly raised her voice and announced: "The champion of this year’s Inter-Academy Tournament, Ermin, seeks an audience with the great Emperor of Alchemy, the Ruler of Babylon! His Majesty, Grantham!!"

The Emperor of Alchemy tried to speak.

But, bizarrely, his mouth kept opening wider and wider.

Before anyone could react, it had turned into an ugly yawning pit filled with blood. Starting from the mouth, his entire body began to crumble, dissolving into a pool of thick reddish-black blood. His flesh and skin melted away, and all that was left behind was his gigantic snow-white skeleton.

In an instant, the entire throne room has fallen silent. Everyone's mind went blank.

The Great Emperor…

In the next second, a despairing cry shattered this unnatural calm.

"The Great Emperor has been assassinated!!!"

"Help!"

"Royal Guards!!!"

The shrill screams followed one after another.

Clang clang clang clang!

In the Ayr Alchemical Square in the center of Babylon, there was a magnificent European-style clock tower the color of aged bronze. At this moment, its bell was ringing loudly.

"Enemy attack!"

"It’s the highest-level alert!!"

Three Sixth Level Witches rose up into the air, exuding light as they flew to the Royal Palace of Babylon. Soon, they were little more than black dots against the sky.

In the throne room, all was chaos. The sconces on the wall shone bright enough to light up the entire capital. Under their snow-white glare, people raved and screamed.

"Be quiet!"

The three Sixth Level Witches gaped at the gruesome spectacle in the throne room. Their Great Emperor’s body had been mangled by countless horrific forbidden spells. It was a truly shocking scene.

"Damn it! The Eye of Darkness, Toxic Night, Temporal Key… Thirteen forbidden spells must have struck him all at once." One of the witches sniffed the air and snarled: "There is Emery—King of the Beastmen, the Rose Saviors, and two premier schools—the "Waeli Sect" and the "Scarlet Snake". A total of seven Sixth Level Mages attacked his Majesty at the same time!"

"Those mongrel Beastmen, and two of the top schools in our nation, have committed treason!"

"His majesty is dead! There’s no hint of life left in the corpse before us…"

"Impossible!"

"But that’s really his majesty’s body…"

"Grantham is not his majesty's real body, but only we know this! We can't tell others!" The three Sixth Level Witches solemnly glanced at one another. Apart from the three of them, who knows how many Sixth Level Mages have defected.

"First, we must capture the traitors who assassinated his majesty! They could not have run far! They must pay a terrible price for assassinating our lord!"

The three of them headed to the glowing violet crystal in the center of "The Hanging Gardens of Babylon" and gravely waved their staves.

"Magic Scan."

The world was dyed in white light. Powerful electrical sparks flashed, surging in a mighty torrent towards the sky.

An impenetrable net of electricity covered Babylon’s night sky in an instant, scanning every hidden corner within Babylon.

At this moment, a harpy, a couple of women in rose-ornamented robes, and the leaders of two premier magic schools were gathered inside a hidden chamber. All of them were heavily wounded.

"As expected of one of the Wonders of the World, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. We've been discovered!"

"But, it won’t be that strong without the Great Emperor personally controlling it, let’s fight our way out!"

There was an immense and intricate blood-colored magic circle drawn on the ground. As the seven of them waved their staves, it emitted a blood-red light that quickly turned eerie black. Dense black mist rose up and converged in the sky above Babylon, forming enormous black clouds that covered heaven and earth.

Boom!

The black clouds eventually coalesced into a massive black giant. His muscular upper half was the size of a huge city, and his lower half was insubstantial mist—like the genie of the lamp from the Arabian Nights. He fiercely swung his fist at the electrical net in the sky.

"Break the seal, my giant, Waeli!"

The giant fist made of condensed black mist shattered the electrical net.

….

Meanwhile…

Ermin was leaving the royal palace with her three-man team, her face full of grief. They stopped at the palace gates and looked up at the battle taking place in the sky. Above them, countless Legendary Mages were locked in a titanic battle.

"What a terrifying battle."

"The Emperor of Alchemy still got assassinated in the end. Charlotte has grown far too strong; she is already one of the strongest Legendary Beings in the world."

"We have failed, our emperor is dead!"

The girls were sobbing. "Those bastards! The Emperor of Alchemy was such a great man! Without him opening a new era, we would still be in Medusa’s era of evil witches. How dare they try to murder him in his old age!"

"No, the Emperor of Alchemy should still be alive, I believe that… the great emperor will not die so easily!" Ermin miserably bowed her head, then suddenly looked up into the depths of the distant alleyway. There, a cute little Slime was collapsed in a pool of clear, gel-like blood.

She walked over and picked up the unconscious little Slime with one hand:

"Oh, what’s this?"

……

In the "Spore Evolution" game forum.

The afk "Future Skywhale" suddenly reappeared in the forum, and his startling post once again caused an uproar.

"Help! Help! Are there any bigwigs here who could help me?"

"The kingdoms and magic sects under me have suddenly rebelled! But why? I just want to build stuff, whatever did I do to you? I’m utterly speechless! All these super powerful monsters shamelessly ambushed me in my old age, and I barely managed to escape with my real body after a big battle. I fainted by the roadside halfway through, and who knows what’s happening to me now. I’m just an unconscious Slime! (?)

"This game is too realistic! Not only do you have to sleep, you could also faint! Can you f*cking believe this!!?

Anyway, I’m really pissed off right now, and the game interface is all black, I have no idea when I’ll wake up. I fainted by the roadside in the Kingdom of Babylon, I won't be killed when I’m still unconscious, right? (? ?)"

"Guys, I'm in a coma, and can only log out to ask for help!"

Grantham went online and frantically begged for help by playing the sympathy card.

Next, he posted on a forum that was famous for its knowledgeable user base, hoping that some bigwig would be able to help him. He was really at the end of his rope.

The title of his thread was:

"Question: I, the Emperor of Alchemy who rules over the Magic World and dominated an era, have suddenly been assassinated. What should I do? Urgently waiting online!"