“Sigh, a phoenix that has fallen from grace is nothing compared to a chicken.” The Culinary God gazed at the large painting in front of him and mused.
The Upper Realm was ravaged by destruction and the gods had their hands tied. The ones who could still retain their powers were extremely rare.
No one knew who benefited from this. Was it the saints? Or was it the Heavenly Axiom?
At any rate, from the Culinary God’s viewpoint, he could not see things clearly. There were simply too many changes in the current world. As a god that enjoyed the pleasures of life, he simply did not possess the ambition of Death who wanted to rise from the ashes.
What he wished for was to enjoy the outcome when the whole world returned to a point of stability.
After all, every living being in the world had to eat, so he would not have to worry about the severance of his Dao.
“Are you acquainted with the god in this painting? Do you know anything about him?” Fang Ning was very courteous.
His personality never underwent any major changes. He was seized every day and it was difficult for his character to alter.
If another ordinary person were in his shoes and gained the power of the System which surpassed the gods, how would he still be courteous towards a fallen god?
Most of them would have bossed him around.
A chord was struck with the Culinary God. He responded truthfully, “These are the Gods of Sleep and Dreams whom you were looking for, Venerable One. These two gods are one with two sides. Whenever Sleep slumbered, Dream awakes.”
“Good. I wonder whether you could advise this god to make a deal with me?” Fang Ning felt delighted after confirming his target. Finally, there was a technique for him to cultivate to become a god by lying down.
“What sort of deal would that be?”
“If he passes down his bequeathal to me, I’ll guarantee his safety,” Fang Ning answered in a matter-of-fact manner.
“Erm, I don’t this is an easy matter to negotiate.” The Culinary God hesitated. “The god’s positions are limited. If his bequeathal is passed down to you, Venerable One, how is he going to restore his god status?”
Yes, this was where the conflict between both parties laid. There was no compromise when it came to such points where one’s personal interest was involved.
Initially, Fang Ning decided not to be too violent and wanted to be mild instead. Now, it looked like there was only one way to tackle this issue, that was to let Sir System defeat the other party in a fight.
“In that case, I won’t trouble you further. Have a good rest.”
Fang Ning finished speaking and left the System Hotel.
The Culinary God looked at Fang Ning’s back and sighed disappointedly. Since when had the gods regarded humans as cattle to be slaughtered. Now, the tables had turned and the gods themselves became cattle in the eyes of others, too.
What came around went around.
It was not easy to remain powerful and invincible forever.
One could only be more well-behaved when he was still in power so that he would not lose so much respect when he grew weaker.
As they said, powerful people should always remain humble, or else they would suffer negative consequences once they failed.
When he returned to the System Cyber Cafe, Fang Ning asked Sir System bluntly, “Hey, Sir, do you know how to make the fellow in this painting reveal his cultivation technique?”
“Easy enough. A wise man once said that anyone would yield under torture.” Sir System proclaimed confidently.
Fang Ning felt disheartened.
He gestured and said, “Don’t fool around with me. Those who made such remarks weren’t wise men, but cruel personnel. Don’t go down the wrong path.”
“Desperate times call for desperate measures, isn’t this normal? Let me handle him and I’ll give you the technique tomorrow.” Sir System agreed to the job enthusiastically.
“Hey, you were reluctant to take on this duty earlier. Why are you so eager to do it now?” Fang Ning asked, feeling suspicious.
“Nonsense, you’ll get your technique and I’ll get my artifact. We’ve to work together and I can’t do the work for nothing.”
“…” Fang Ning went speechless. In the end, he cautioned the System. “Be careful, don’t violate the restrictions of the Maxim.”
“I’ve learned everything from you, Mr. Rich Boss. I’m doing all of this for the greater good, thus I must use torture to deal with these gods who milk the people’s money and property for their own benefit. It’s time for them to return a favor to the masses. When it comes to doing great things, you can’t fuss over the minute details.” Sir System announced in a righteous manner.
“Yes, yes, I’ve returned everything to you.”
“I’m bound by the Heavens and I protect the masses. The stronger I become, the more people I need to defend. If not for my System Domain, those ten or so planets would have ended up as wastelands. This is all in accordance with the Chivalry Rules.” Sir System asserted.
“Mm, not bad. Son of a B*tch, you’re getting better and better.” Fang Ning was quite pleased.
“If you don’t insult me, we can still be good friends.”
“I’m reminding you not to be big-headed. No matter how strong you become, there’s always someone who can control you.”
“…”
…
The next day, Fang Ning observed the large painting again. The hill giant in the painting was disfigured and full of battle scars. The hills had turned into plains, proving the severity of the battle.
“Alright, this is the bequeathal that you want, “The Neuroanatomy of Sleep and Dreams”. It is split into nine stages and each stage has nine ranks, making a total of eighty-one levels. Go cultivate properly then.” Sir System tossed a particularly thick, dark gold book towards Fang Ning.
“What a horrendous name. You didn’t make it up on your own, did you? Why is it so heavy?” Fang Ning heaved the large book and spoke simultaneously.
“Eh, how did you guess that? His bequeathal is too complex and it isn’t something which can be summarized within one book. As a result, I compiled everything for you for your reading convenience, so of course, it’s very heavy. This is the bequeathal of a god. Don’t underestimate any kind of god. There are tens of thousands of gods but we only managed to defeat a few of them. This is all thanks to the help of the outside world and I’m not that incredible.”
“The way I look at it, someday, I’m gonna have a nervous breakdown because of you.” Fang Ning threw his arms up in exasperation.
“No, you’ll most likely have a mental illness. It’s impossible for something to go wrong with your nerves. I use them every day and they’re very tough and healthy.” Sir System justified.
Fang Ning refused to converse with a fool, so he shifted his attention towards the large book and turned the pages.
At the same time, the Maxim Notification appeared.
[The System is thinking…]
[The System has decided to look for an artifact.]
“Damnit, every time this happens, you’re the swiftest.” Fang Ning nagged. Very soon, he was absorbed by the contents of the book.
Meanwhile, there was no longer a sound from Sir System. Obviously, it had already been attracted to the so-called artifact.
Fang Ning stared at the pages and slowly sank into a trance.
“In sleep and dreams, consumption will be reduced regardless of humans or gods. The critical point of reaching illumination lies here. All living beings require sleep and the same applies to the Heavens and Earth. The ones who are as powerful as the True Dragon sleep for ten thousand years each time and the rate of Vitality consumed by them is extremely low.”
When he read this section, Fang Ning realized something. The God of Sleep and Dreams also possess the method of reducing world consumption.
As for the Devil Saint Zhi Nan’s method of extinguishing the stars, ultimately, was it not to make the stars undergo hibernation?
Just like a bear in the harsh winter cold, it had the trait of hibernating in order to endure winter where there was a lack of prey. This gave it a chance to survive, which also gave the ecosystem a breather.
Judging from this, not all Upper Realm gods were degenerates. There were a number of wise ones as well who were searching for various types of methods to slow down the decline of the Heavens and Earth.
Fang Ning continued to read.
“Beginners must adjust their mental state and focus their thoughts until they descend into a state of nihility. Thus, their minds will be light, floating and detached from any matter, resulting in a point where they can fall asleep at will…”
Fang Ning decided to give it a try and laid down on his bed.
He began to cultivate according to the instructions on the book.
Less than three minutes had passed and he descended into slumber.
Before the massive changes that took place in the world and when he was still a regular Joe, he was unable to fall asleep that quickly. He was often worried about whether there would be phone calls or whether he would get scolded on the next day. Every time, he spent half an hour and sometimes a whole hour before he could actually fall asleep.
Once he got seized by Sir System, he did not have to worry about so many things and his quality of sleep improved.
Most of the time, he slumbered as soon as his head hit the pillow.
However, this brought about a major problem, too. How was he going to cultivate this technique?
Some time passed before Sir System spoke.
“Aren’t you supposed to cultivate your technique? I’ve retrieved three of these artifacts and you’ve slept for three days straight?”
“Eh.” Fang Ning rubbed his eyes and replied feeling slightly embarrassed, “This technique is excellent, indeed. Once again, my quality of sleep has improved a lot and I didn’t even notice this.”
“Hmph, I think you’re doomed. I reckon this method will make you a worthless person. This time, it’s three days, and next time, it’ll be three hundred years, three thousand years or even thirty thousand years. When you finally wake up, you’ll be dead.” Sir System sniggered.
“Impossible. I think it’s because I’ve just encountered this technique and I lack self-control. Once I have familiarized myself with the technique, I’ll have a way to go about this.” Fang Ning refused to admit this aspect.
After that, he got out of bed and proceeded to study “The Neuroanatomy of Sleep and Dreams.”
True enough, it was profound and insightful knowledge that encapsulated the philosophies of the Heavens and Earth which allowed an ordinary person to see the bigger picture and to become a god. It was no wonder that the hill giant in the painting could become a god by relying on this technique.
