NOVEL NEXT chapter 4
Chapter 4. World Clash – First –
World clashes occur through a gradual process.
First is the dimensional gate. Gates that allow travel between worlds open, sending attack and defense units ‘unilaterally’.
Although it’s described as attack and defense… You can send envoys for exchange, scouts, or whatever. Once there’s an exchange, the frequency of dimensional gate occurrences increases.
Second is the dimensional passage. A permanent, bidirectional passage that allows travel between worlds is created. These passages increase in number and widen.
Third is the dimensional rift. The surfaces of the two worlds graft together, allowing travel across entire regions.
Fourth is dimensional fusion. At this stage, you have no choice but to achieve complete coexistence or eternal war with the opposing world. If the total score of one world is more than double the total score of the other world, it automatically wins.
During the ‘dimensional gate’ stage, I just modified a few mud jellies and threw them into the enemy world. These mud jellies were altered with a level 3 trait to consume not just nectar but other ordinary organic matter.
My creations in the other world will be interesting, but I’m more curious about the reaction of the ones attacking my ecosystem.
What will they think when they enter my ecosystem?
∞
In hindsight, he was incredibly lucky. Oswald, the player from Earth, thought so.
Could it be that the game he used to indulge in like a recluse was pulling him into its world, promising that he could become a god? He had no lingering attachments to the present world, and the temptation of truly becoming a god lured him in.
It might sound a bit odd to say, but he was quite good at [The Fantasy World Creator]. He could easily clear the highest difficulty levels, and he could achieve victory even in the most perverse playstyles, strategies, and disadvantageous environments.
And he was even luckier with the initial environment of the world he received. A clean and vast oasis occupying about half of the map, along with suitable plains. Although the lack of terrain like mountains or hills made defense difficult, it was the perfect space for a strategy of farming, fishing, and increasing the population to build a civilization.
Oswald first created human-like creatures similar to himself, then provided them with plants, trees, and livestock so they could farm and sustain themselves.
As their population increased, they formed a society, mined resources, developed technology, created culture, and discovered mysteries to create magic.
Oswald’s world was roughly in this state:
「Life LV.0: 56
Military LV.1: 114
Industry LV.0: 35
Technology LV.0: 50
Culture LV.0: 28
Politics LV.0: 64
Mystery LV.0: 18
Faith LV.0: 25
World Total Score LV.0: 390」
According to the angel, a score of 390 was above average. Since it was a game to determine gods, there wouldn’t be any terribly incompetent players, and although there might not be a huge difference… it was worth trying against any faction.
Especially since he had leveled up his military power to over 100. In the early stages, everyone focused on internal development. His army, with one military trait, would be enough to crush the enemy army. Then, he could enslave the opposing race to supplement the rest of the internal development.
Thinking this way, Oswald selected the best warriors among his believers and dispatched them to the opposing world.
Before attacking, it was basic to first 〈scout〉 the opposing world. Since the rule was that only similar worlds would be matched, it was fine to send a lot of scouts.
“What?”
And when Oswald saw the opposing world through his warriors, he couldn’t help but be shocked.
“What is this?”
There was no civilization in the world.
Everywhere he looked, there were sticky jellies and grotesque creatures that seemed to have transformed from them. And only sand and broken stones.
Nothing else. Nothing at all.
No people, no animals, no plants.
In the desolate world where there was nothing, only inedible jellies were crawling around, and the sun was blazing down to a terrifying degree.
“No, this can’t be! What is this world?! How can anyone live here?! I heard all the lands were balanced, so what kind of land did the opposing player receive?”
Unable to believe it, he advanced his shocked warriors to survey the environment.
And soon, he discovered a huge lake. It was also covered with maddening jellies. Again, there was no civilization, only jellies.
“Level 3 Nectar Spring. Wait a minute, crazy. Level 3 Nectar Spring? How on earth did they raise the Nectar Spring to level 3 without a single world collision? No, wait. That’s not the problem. That…”
The warrior approached the lake, scooped up some of its ‘water’, tasted it, and spat out the slimy liquid, praying to the sky in terror.
‘Oh God… This doesn’t seem like the nectar you mentioned…’
In his hand, the jelly-like substances squirmed and then fell back into the lake.
There is no nectar in this world.
No… To be precise, the spring that absorbs magic and produces nectar is still endlessly producing nectar at the bottom of the lake, but there is no actual nectar.
All the nectar produced is being consumed. All the countless jellies in this world are consuming it.
There is indeed a trace amount of nectar in the lake, but at the same time, it is mostly filled with inedible jellies made of minerals.
‘Oh God. What am I supposed to fight and how am I supposed to win here…? Oh God! Please respond!’
Oswald’s vision went dark.
∞
The warriors who invaded my ecosystem all starved to death without consuming any jelly. Weaklings. They should have at least prepared by raising their ‘life’ level to strengthen their intestines.
And the opponent player’s ecosystem. Although it was a desert, it had a large oasis where they could farm and develop civilization. The mud jellies I threw into that land turned all the fertile soil around the oasis into nutrient-less sand, and their lake was filled with jellies.
They will not survive the next harvest season and will starve to death.
“Opponent player ‘Oswald’ requests ‘surrender’.”
“Surrender? Was there such a system?”
“A newly added feature. It prevents the destruction of the soul by becoming a servant of the opposing god.”
“What are the benefits of accepting the surrender?”
“You get a perfectly obedient slave. When the world expands, you can have them manage the details. You can also peacefully absorb everything from the opponent’s world.”
“What happens if I refuse?”
“Well… The opponent’s soul just gets destroyed.”
“Are there any other benefits or disadvantages?”
“No. The system is basically designed to accept surrender.”
I see. Then I refuse.
The fewer intelligent beings in this universe, the better.
My jellies continued to destroy the ecosystem.
“Opponent player ‘Oswald’ requests ‘dialogue’.”
“Opponent player ‘Oswald’ requests ‘dialogue’.”
“Opponent player ‘Oswald’ requests ‘surrender’.”
“Opponent player ‘Oswald’ requests ‘surrender’.”
“The opposing player ‘Oswald’ requests a surrender…”
Persistent, aren’t you? I’m not accepting the surrender.
“Can’t we block messages?”
“We can.”
“Then do it.”
“You have blocked the player ‘Oswald’.”
Eventually, a year later in the world’s timeline. Annoyingly, the race of the opposing player, who resembled humans, had all starved to death, and their deserts and lakes were filled with freshwater jellies that didn’t consume nectar.
“You have won the world collision against the player ‘Oswald’.”
“Your world expands.”
The two worlds were connected, and my desert doubled in size. One was a dessert desert filled with melted rocks and jellies with a nectar spring, and the other was Oswald’s desert, centered around a freshwater oasis with wetlands and remnants of a destroyed civilization. The areas were similar in size.
“We won. With these jellies.”
“We couldn’t lose.”
Literally, we couldn’t lose. For me to lose, the enemies would have to annihilate the nectar oasis, the foundation of the ecosystem. They would have to completely exterminate the nectar jellies, the primary producers.
How could they do that? With continuous expansion, the diameter of the nectar spring exceeds 1 km. It’s packed with nectar jellies from the surface to a depth of 15 meters.
Well, maybe if the enemies used some kind of wide-area magic or created a toxic substance and spread it around. Or if fishermen worked for years with nets to control it. There are many ways.
But with the capabilities of a world with a civilization level of at most 1, it’s ‘absolutely’ impossible. They lack the manpower and technology.
And the enemy’s lake became an excellent habitat for my jellies. Usually, at this stage, other players would create aquatic plants or fish in the lake, but not powerful predators that can consume any organic matter.
“So, what will you do from now on? Usually, players conquer the opposing civilization and enslave the opposing race, but your strategy is so unique that I can’t guess what you’ll do.”
“Right now, my starting point is the desert, so the opponent was also in a desert terrain, but after two or three times, the opponent’s terrain will be something other than a desert. In preparation for that, I will evolve jellies that inhabit freshwater and aquatic plants instead of nectar. I will also turn the puddings into carnivores and evolve them into extreme invasive species that completely infiltrate and destroy the opponent’s ecosystem.”
“What about the plants and animals in Oswald’s desert?”
“I will exterminate the plants. I will modify the animals that eat plants to eat the jellies. I will destroy anything that the civilization can use and make sure my dessert army overwhelms all other ecosystems.”
“I see. So, you won’t create a civilization until the end?”
No. I won’t. There’s no reason to. I will put everything into the development of ‘life’ and destroy civilizations that have learned crude technology or magic with a perfect ecosystem.
“As a victory reward, you gain a new world trait. The world trait is provided to all creations you have created and all creations introduced from outside.”
“Then, I suggest the following traits for your world, Mr. Bean.”
The angel displayed three trait cards in front of me.
‘Construction Expert: Creations become proficient in civil engineering. Favorable for the development of ‘industry’.’
‘Technological Inspiration: Creations are imbued with strong technological inspiration. Favorable for the development of ‘technology’.’
‘High Intelligence: The intelligence of creations increases significantly. High intelligence species are favorable for the development of ‘politics’ and ‘technology’.’
Is this angel picking a fight with me?
“No, I just chose the option that would be most beneficial to your ‘civilization’.”
I told you I wouldn’t raise such things. Why are you trying to introduce impure intelligent beings into my perfect ecosystem?
I looked at the options for a while and then asked a question out of curiosity.
“To what extent does construction apply?”
“Of course, construction refers to the act of using external materials to create structures, or altering, removing, or creating natural features according to the purposes of intelligent beings.”
After hearing that definition, I asked again.
“Does the construction of a beaver dam count as construction?”
“Yes? Uh… Yes. Although their intelligence is low, it is clearly civil engineering.”
“Then, does the formation of a massive coral reef by non-intelligent corals count as construction? They use external nutrients as materials to develop their bodies into new natural features where other life forms can reside.”
“……”
“……”
“Let me contact the higher-ups for a moment.”
The angel who disappeared from my sight reappeared shortly after and answered in a slightly tearful voice.
“Yes… Although it is a completely biological mechanism, we received a response that it counts as civil engineering.”
“Then I will choose the ‘Construction Expert’ trait.”
Having acquired the trait, I created a new life form to actively utilize this trait.
“[Sponge Pudding] has evolved into [Coral Gummy].”
The Nectar Oasis is too barren. The goal is the Nectar Sea.
Thinking about the countless jellies and puddings, and the beautiful and grand Gummy Great Barrier Reef that will exist in the Nectar Sea, I can’t help but get excited.