The Era of Gods

3 Chapter 3: The Use of the Golden Finger
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Previously, Lin Xiao thought that he would skyrocket once the Golden Finger was activated, making all these gifts useless, so he kept them with his mother.

Now that the Golden Finger had been activated and he could use it, he naturally wanted to retrieve them. He had to quickly enhance his strength to prepare for the final exams; he didn’t want to actually be assigned to a regular class and then make a comeback—that would be too strenuous.

Jin Yunzhu didn’t question why he had changed his mind, but just nagged like an ordinary mother would, telling him to study hard. She was certainly aware that Lin Xiao’s grades hadn’t been great for the past six months, but she didn’t urge him. It wasn’t that she didn’t care; rather, she had stated long ago that if his grades were poor he should drop out, as she and his father had already prepared enough resources for him to become a Demigod.

This touched Lin Xiao deeply, and many times he wanted to tell them that he was confident he would catch up later, but he could never reveal the secret of the Golden Finger. He had to keep it to himself and let them worry.

Fortunately, now that the Golden Finger was activated, there was no time to wait—he would be able to take off immediately. He believed that the next time they met, he would definitely surprise and delight his mother, who was actually hundreds of years old but still looked like a young woman of twenty-eight.

Demigods could maintain eternal youth, with lifespans calculated in ten thousand years. Maybe this was not so remarkable in the strictly ruled Main World, but in the Different Crystal Wall, each Demigod was a terrifying existence that could call the wind and summon the rain, looked up to by ordinary people.

Having barely managed to send off his youthful-looking mother, Lin Xiao now had a small, exquisitely crafted box emitting a faint golden glow in his hand, which stored all the New Year’s money and red envelopes he had received since he was seventeen.

Feeling somewhat nervous, he rubbed his hands together, opened the box, and a dazzling golden light burst forth, making him instinctively close his eyes.

When the gold light dimmed a little, he could finally see what was lying quietly inside the box… two cards?

“Why only two?”

Just as he was about to ask his mother, his bracelet popped up with a message she had just sent:

“Forgot to tell you, your father took all your things and exchanged them for two cards that are very suitable for you. Have a look and see if you are satisfied.”

Lin Xiao: …

What could he say? Satisfied or not, he had to take a look at the cards first. He took the two cards out and placed them in front of him, each attribute appearing one by one.

Four Star Species Card—Grey Mist Fish People (Ordinary): Obtain 400 adult Grey Mist Fish People at one time.

Note: Halves are male and female.

Five Star Species Reproduction Card (Rare): Species reproduction rate +300%, survival rate +300%, effective for 10 years.

Note: This card cannot be stacked with other cards of the same effect; only one can be used at a time.

“This…”

Lin Xiao stroked his chin, feeling that it wasn’t bad.

He remembered that the cards his parents had given him before usually ranged between one and two stars, with only one three-star card. Seventeen years and seventeen cards in total, he estimated that their value was probably equivalent to these two, but their practicality was far less.

One Species Card granted him four hundred adult Grey Mist Fish People, while the other Reproduction Card accelerated the breeding speed. Considering the time flow ratio between Subspace and the Main World, ten years in the Divine Realm was just ten days in the Main World; the outcome would become visible in ten days.

The most important thing was that all new Divine Beings, from the Opening of the Divine Realm until the college entrance exam, could only use one card to enhance strength for every month of the Main World, which could accumulate.

Speaking of which, Lin Xiao really wanted to complain about this one-card-a-month limit; only twelve cards could be used a year, which was fine for ordinary students but restrictive for those with backgrounds.

However, there was no helping it. Newly opened Divine Realms were weak, and the contents of the cards, being outside of the rules of a Divine Realm, would definitely cause fluctuations when integrated into it. One month’s time was needed to settle the fluctuations of the Divine Realm.

Generally, different cards would cause different levels of fluctuations, also known as impacts. For example, the fluctuations from a Species Card would definitely be greater than summoning some weapons, and the impact of a five-star card would certainly be greater than that of a one or two-star card.

But students usually couldn’t accurately assess the duration of the impact, so to make it uniform, rules were established based on a standard impact period of one month for a five-star card.

As for why the number of cards that can be merged can accumulate, this involves a term called stability. The longer a Divine Realm goes without merging cards, the more stable it becomes and therefore it can merge multiple cards at once until it reaches the limit of stability.

But there is a slight change after the second year of high school. After the second year, the Divine Realms generally develop, merging cards stabilizes even faster, meaning more cards can be merged.

In other words, in the first year of opening a Divine Realm, only one card can be merged per month.

The second year allows for two cards to be merged per month.

By the third year, three cards can be merged per month.

After the third year, if you can become a Demigod, the limit will be even higher; but if you still can’t become a Demigod, the monthly card merging limit stays the same as in the third year and won’t increase anymore.

Due to the special significance of the three years of high school, they are known as the “golden three years,” the time to lay a solid foundation. If one cannot become a Demigod after these three years, the chances of attaining Godhood will decrease year by year, and the possibility of becoming a Demigod dwindles as more time passes.

Of course, this rule applies only to students of formal schools. Those who drop out are not bound by this rule and can use cards to enhance their Divine Realm without restriction.

“`

But the consequence was that the stability of the Divine Realm declined, affecting the foundation, making not only the consolidation of Godhood into Demigod difficult but almost impossible to ignite the Divine Fire and become an immortal True God.

Therefore, any student aspiring to become a True God would strictly adhere to this rule, never daring to act with a mentality of seeking quick success and instant benefits.

Lin Xiao had not yet used a single card, but he had already accumulated eight opportunities to use them. Now, by utilizing the Golden Finger, he was strengthening low-level cards into high-star level cards, maximizing his strength within the limited usage conditions.

Having collected these two cards with the previous three, he reclined back into the Divine Realm Login Cabin. As the cabin door closed, a pale blue mist emanated from it; this was a unique energy from the gaming cabin that could calm the mind and spirit while also providing nutrition needed to sustain the body.

Taking the crystal ring from the card slot and placing it on his head, Lin Xiao closed his eyes and with a thought, felt his consciousness sink into an endless darkness, without anything to rely on, save for the countless distant twinkles of starlight.

This was Subspace, the space between the Main World and the Chaotic Void Sea. All the Divine Realms of human civilization, from lowly Divine Beings like himself to Demigods, True Gods, and even a few of the Supreme Divine Powers, were all located within this Subspace, and those countless specks of light were the different Divine Realms.

Through the connection between the Divine Realm Login Device and the Divine Realm, Lin Xiao descended again into his own Divine Realm. A golden silhouette appeared above a modest expanse of space.

Lin Xiao’s Divine Realm was five kilometers long, three and a half kilometers wide, and one kilometer high, including both the depth of soil underneath and the space above ground. Of this, 78% was shallow marine areas, 15% was peninsula, and 7% was island.

Looking down from above, the whole world was a painting, with length on the left and right and width up and down. The majority of the right side was the sea, and along the west coast of the world, there was a coastal hill chain with sparse lichen plants, a few coconut trees, and a long beach that extended from the top to the very bottom, where the Misty Fishman Tribe was located at the bottom left corner of the Divine Realm.

Within the ocean, there were a few small islands each spanning dozens or hundreds of square meters, mostly bare rock with a little moss in the center, devoid of any resources.

Besides the primary species of the Grey Mist Fish People, the entire Divine Realm only had a few species such as sturgeons, sardine swarms, Blue Shrimp Swarms, and Mud Crabs. These were initially set when the Divine Realm was first opened, primarily as prey for the Grey Mist Fish People’s food.

Overall, this Divine Realm was incredibly barren. Under normal circumstances, with mere reliance on these resources for development, it was almost impossible to qualify for even the poorest colleges.

In other words, he might never be able to consolidate Godhood and become a Demigod in this lifetime.

The reason Lin Xiao had the patience to endure for so long, besides having the Golden Finger, was mainly due to his fairly good birth in this life. His parents were both Demigods, not the best but better than many, and as their only son, he would not lack resources to become a Demigod in the future.

It had been less than an hour since Lin Xiao last left the Divine Realm, but according to the time flow between the Main World and the Divine Realm, more than half a month had already passed within the Divine Realm. By this time, the Misty Fishman Tribe had long forgotten the battle half a month ago and had returned to its original state. A large group of Grey Mist Fish People were hunting fish in the shallow sea area under the leadership of the Fishman Leader, who was N times stronger than his kinfolk and wielding sharpened sticks, stone awls, or Bone Forks.

This Fishman Leader usually served as the leader of the Misty Fishman Tribe, but could be occupied by Lin Xiao’s incarnation at any time when needed, acting as his dedicated Incarnation Body.

Besides, all Divine Realm Masters actually have True Bodies, but very few show their True Forms, generally using a common incarnation body like him.

Although it’s called the Divine Enthronement game, it isn’t truly a game with infinite respawns. If the True Body died, that would be the end.

Lin Xiao did not disturb these Clansmen. After looking left and right, he transformed into a golden light and flew to the rightmost part of the map, a deep-sea area for the Grey Mist Fish People. There was an island where the Fish People never ventured, which he used as a temporary base.

Five Cards were laid out in a row.

First, he put away the Four Star Species Card, which could summon four hundred Grey Mist Fish People at once, as well as the Five Star Species Reproduction Card. Then, his gaze fell on the remaining three cards.

Three Star Resource Card – Fertile Black Soil (Rare).

Three Star Skill Card – Piercing Attack (Common).

Two Star Skill Card – Severe Pain (Common).

Lin Xiao stroked his chin, pondering, and decided that the two skill cards could be combined.

He had been entertaining various ideas for using the Golden Finger for quite some time, his Magic Cube wasn’t like other Golden Fingers that required exploration; he understood its functions clearly upon acquisition, and had simulated them in his mind many times before.

In his mind, he actually had two vague ideas, one of which involved other cards at his mother’s. Now that the cards had been exchanged for these two high-star level cards, that idea was definitely out of the picture, leaving him only one option.

That was…

With an outstretched hand, a point of white light emerged, revealing a Magic Cube after a dizzying array of changes.

As soon as his mind willed it, the Magic Cube quickly enlarged to the size of a soccer ball and hovered in front of him.

He pulled out the Three Star Resource Card ‘Fertile Black Soil’ from in front of him; it would probably be a long time before he could use it, making it perfect for disintegration.

He pressed the card against the Magic Cube, and it sank into it. A second later, the Cube began to spin, emitting a faint glow.

Accompanied by a slight ‘click’, the spinning Cube stopped. Then in his perception, the Resource Card that had been inside the Cube vanished, and in its place was a peculiar energy stored within.

“Creation Rubik’s Cube, let’s call that Creation Energy!”

Lin Xiao pinched his fingers, then took out the second Two Star Skill Card ‘Piercing Attack’ and placed it into the Cube, which began to spin again.

“`

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