Life Encyclopedia

Rosen traversed the outskirts of the Void Wasteland, comparing the Hunting Map as he searched for prey.

However, as he continued, something felt increasingly off.

The number of Ash Creatures he encountered along the way was disturbingly low, and the previously ubiquitous slimes had all but disappeared.

Sensing the gravity of the situation, Rosen immediately decided to turn back and leave the area.

But before he could fully exit the Void Wasteland, a massive spiritual realm vortex opened up deep within the wasteland, pulling every supernatural being within the vicinity—Rosen included—into its interior world.

In the blink of an eye, Rosen found himself standing atop an endless mountain of solid waste, the towering piles of garbage stretching out in every direction.

At the same time, a flood of information appeared in his mind, explaining what had transpired.

The Void Wasteland's spiritual realm had long been stripped of its resources by the Cinder Shadow Dukedom. Normally, such a massive spiritual realm would be carefully managed for sustainable development, but in this case, the dukedom had "drained the pond to catch the fish."

While the Gray Rat Ancestor had died long ago, as a demi-god level entity, its divinity remained intact, allowing it to exist in the spiritual world. A portion of control over this massive spiritual realm had always belonged to the Gray Rat Ancestor. Despite the dukedom's many attempts, they had never managed to wrest full control from it.

Recently, however, the Gray Rat Ancestor made contact with the Blazing Shadow Grand Duke through the spiritual realm. The two had entered into a wager regarding the fate of the Void Wasteland.

The Gray Rat Ancestor would reinvigorate the spiritual realm by infusing it with spiritual energy, allowing the Gray Rat race to be reborn within. Meanwhile, the Cinder Shadow Dukedom was forbidden from sending anyone above Sequence 7 into the realm.

The winner of this brutal contest would be determined by survival—whoever remained standing at the end would win the wager. While the exact nature of the bet wasn't clear, the stakes were undeniably high, with failure meaning certain death.

Rosen shook his head in disbelief. "So, we're nothing but pawns in the games of the powerful…"

He quickly grew suspicious that the situation was even more complex than it seemed. The Gray Rat Ancestor had been weakened for a long time, barely surviving in the spiritual world. Yet, it had not only struck a deal with the Grand Duke but also convinced him to participate in this wager. What was the true nature of the bet? And why had all of this happened right when Rosen arrived at the Void Wasteland?

His instincts told him that the Gray Rat Ancestor might have specifically targeted him.

After all, in the Battle of Spiral Harbor, Rosen had slain the divine avatar of the Gray Rat Ancestor, even managing to steal part of its divinity through the Main God Computer. It seemed likely that the Gray Rat Ancestor sought to recover the Main God Computer.

Without hesitation, Rosen jumped into a pit of garbage and swiftly opened the door to the Mysterious Study Room, disappearing inside.

He had no intention of playing their deadly game. A half-dead demi-god like the Gray Rat Ancestor and a Sequence 4 like the Grand Duke—who only had a demigod ancestor—were both far beyond his current capabilities. Getting involved would be akin to throwing an egg against a rock.

Regardless of what battles were about to erupt within the spiritual realm, Rosen planned to stay safely hidden inside his study until it all blew over.

Moreover, this was a perfect opportunity for him to explore the Mysterious Study Room after his recent advancement to Sequence 8, and see if there were any new developments.

After several hours of research, Rosen was slightly disappointed—aside from the Main God Computer being upgraded, there were no significant changes to the study itself.

However, he stumbled upon a potential way out of the current situation.

Standing atop the alchemical castle's tower, Rosen gazed out into the darkness surrounding the Divine Domain, hesitating to act.

He could use the Divine Domain to exit the spiritual realm and enter the spiritual world, which existed on a higher level than spiritual realms. From there, if he could locate a pathway back to reality, he could escape the Void Wasteland altogether.

But his knowledge of the spiritual world was limited, and leaving the safety of the Divine Domain could prove even more dangerous.

After considering his options, Rosen decided to play it safe. He had no close family ties and no pressing need to rush.

For now, he could focus on his painting, and when he needed a break, he could visit Masadora for a relaxing vacation or take a trip to Yorknew City for sightseeing. Whether the Gray Rat Ancestor was after him or not, it would all be in vain if he simply stayed hidden in the Mysterious Study Room.

Feeling nostalgic, Rosen decided to take a trip to Masadora. Using the Main God Computer, he swiftly entered the Rose Castle.

It was still daytime when he arrived, so he activated one of his Card Communication spells.

Within half an hour, both Nurdin and Hubert nervously arrived in the Rose Castle's garden to meet Rosen.

"I trust there's no bad news," Rosen said with a smile, causing Nurdin to shiver.

Nurdin nervously pulled two cards from his deck. "These are the designated cards I've found…"

He handed Rosen an A-rank card, Spring of Wine, and an S-rank card, Tree of Harvest.

One produced wine, and the other grew a random variety of fruits. While they might seem useful as supernatural items, to Rosen, they had little practical value.

Feeling disappointed, Rosen turned to Hubert, who confidently revealed a B-rank card: Life Encyclopedia.

This was one of the cards Rosen had specifically instructed them to find, one he had been eagerly awaiting.

"Here are your rewards—two healing potions that can save your life in a critical moment," Rosen said, placing two vials of Life Potions on the table.

"And as for you..." He looked at Nurdin, applying some pressure. "Keep trying."

With the Life Encyclopedia in hand, Rosen returned to the Rose Castle.

He activated the Main God Computer, which rapidly injected spiritual energy into the card. It took 50,000 units of spiritual energy for the card to fully transform into a supernatural item.

[Life Encyclopedia: Supernatural Item]

Grade: Sequence 7

Attributes: Records detailed information about every person you've encountered, from birth to the present, including a log of conversations and noteworthy interactions.

As the card transformed, it emitted a puff of smoke and morphed into a book.

Opening the Life Encyclopedia, Rosen was immediately greeted by a directory containing tens of thousands of names.

It seemed that anyone he had spoken to—even briefly—was listed in the book. Whether it was people he had met in the dream realm or those he had interacted with in the virtual spiritual realm, as long as they were human, the Life Encyclopedia automatically created an entry for them.

However, Rosen quickly noticed that many of the entries weren't actual names. For example, the entry for a waiter at the Hunter's Guild didn't have a proper name, as Rosen had never learned it.

Curious, Rosen flipped through the tens of thousands of pages until he found the entry for the waiter. The page contained a log of all their conversations, but there was no "anecdote" or other detailed information.

He then searched for Nurdin in the directory and found his entry, which included a list of anecdotes.

It became clear that to capture someone's personal stories or "anecdotes," the Life Encyclopedia required their name.

Rosen continued searching for more familiar individuals, such as Clement and Madam Fam, and found that while Clement's entry contained anecdotes, Madam Fam's did not. This suggested that the Life Encyclopedia could only capture information for those up to Sequence 8.

Even so, the Life Encyclopedia was incredibly powerful. Rosen suspected it might even be able to gather information from the spiritual world itself.

According to one theory, the spiritual world was built from the thoughts, spirituality, and the very existence of all sentient beings in the material world. This was why the spiritual world allowed for prophecies and omniscience.

Of course, that was just a theory. In practice, it seemed impossible.

Rosen even wondered if this idea had been deliberately spread by the World Government. Perhaps the spiritual world originally lacked such abilities, but because countless people believed it could, the belief itself gave rise to those powers.

Rosen then flipped to the first page of the Life Encyclopedia. The first two names listed were his parents—Little Rosen's mother and father.