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What is real and what is fiction?
The phrase "reality is stranger than fiction" sometimes applies even harder these times.
Back then, when I was just a failed author, I never imagined any of these fantastical stories or books could become… just real.
I always thought reality was dull, gray, null... boring.
Everything was ruled by physics and science; there was no place for magic, or skills, or gods and demons, or monsters.
A stagnant society, a stagnant world…
Only the fantasy we created as humans ever gave us the feeling that we were living something new.
That we were discovering new things and feeling thrilled.
Most people can't afford to travel the world and discover new places.
And most people are just afraid of dying in a million ways, so they wouldn't risk their lives doing "thrilling sports" or whatever.
We have a single life after all…
But books, manga, illustrations, anime, series, everything.
All art has given us that feeling of discovery and wonder.
Fiction in specific…
And right now, after having reincarnated into a fictional world and now being inside a simulated fiction within fiction, I felt this even more than before.
How even within this fantastical world, there are things we would want to see but that are simply impossible.
That the mistakes we committed could be fixed, that there could be a happy ending.
This simulation, born from a fragment of the World's Records of Bestia, was such a thing.
Perhaps to make herself happy, the master originally used this fragment to delve into a fantasy.
A world where she was able to save her son…
A world where there was a happy ending.
And right now, I was in front of two fictional characters, the "What Ifs" of the Heavenly Demon and the Heavenly Empress.
Somehow, Song, who was also a recreation of Records, could come out of his Fictional Dimension, and step into this other Dimension.
And I believe this has to do with my Sponsorship, and the power it grants.
Perhaps even… the power of the [Reader] Trait has influenced this more than I imagined.
To turn fictional characters "real"…
Is that my power?
Whatever the case… I guess I don't have time to think so much.
"Anna! Do you know where Song went? Huh? Where are the rest of your friends?" the Heavenly Empress asked.
The two approached me in a hurry after noticing Song was gone.
"We… went to the other world," I said.
"What?"
"The real world… And I need you two to come with us."
The two looked at one another in confusion.
"What do you even mean with the real world?" asked the Heavenly Demon. "This is the damn real world, no?!"
"Anna, are you okay?" asked the Heavenly Empress. "D-Did you bring Song somewhere?"
"No, I didn't; he walked on his own out of this world…" I said. "And I want you two to come with him as well."
"What are you even talking about…" the Heavenly Demon muttered. "You're getting on my nerves already…"
"Just please believe me!" I said. "Would you two come with me?"
"I…" the Heavenly Empress muttered. "Fine, okay… But this better not be a joke or something, okay, Anna? What do we need to do to go to this "real world" you're even talking about?"
"Just stand still," I said. "I'll try something first… and I hope, I hope it's not expensive… ugh."
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[Player Name]: [Hue Xian]
[Title]: [Heavenly Empress Of The White Heavens]
[Sponsor]: [None]
[Potential Innate Skills]: [White Heaven's Domain Of Radiance (SSS)] [Venerable's Authority (SSS)] [White Feathers of Heavenly Judgement (SSS)] [White Crane's Immemorial Divine Beast Bloodline Legacy (SSS)] […]
[Overall Description]: [The Heavenly Empress of the Murim World of Bestia. Belonging to the weak White Crane Tribe, she lived her entire life struggling to survive and become stronger. Yet, through endless perseverance and thousands of years of countless battles, she reached the pinnacle of the World.]
[After having saved Bestia from the invading machines and defeating the Demon King that attempted to possess her son, she feels happy and fulfilled, and she had announced her relationship with the Heavenly Demon to the world.]
[She wants nothing but the world to finally reach peace but knows that such a dream is nothing but a mere fantasy, and where there is peace, there will always be conflict somewhere else.]
[Yet despite this, she still hopes to create a bright future for the younger generations. Now at the side of her beloved and her son.]
[However, because she has suddenly lost her son, she is very worried; noticing his presence had completely disappeared from the entire world, she fears the worst.]
[Skill Copy Conditions]: [To copy one of her Skills, help Hue Xian find her son.]
[Sponsorship Cost]: [100.000 Plot Points]
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[Player Name]: [Han Zhenye]
[Title]: [Heavenly Demon Of Black Heavens]
[Sponsor]: [None]
[Potential Innate Skills]: [Black Heaven's Domain Of Purgatory (SSS)] [Venerable's Authority (SSS)] [Black Feathers of Demonic Judgement (SSS)] [Demonic Black Crow's Immemorial Divine Beast Bloodline Legacy (SSS)] […]
[Overall Description]: [The Heavenly Demon of the Murim World of Bestia. Belonging to the now extinct Tribe of Red-Eyed Black Crows, he had lived a life full of struggles, suffering, and battles to the death, constantly and selfishly walking the path of a true demon between heaven and earth. After thousands of years of bloodshed, cunning schemes, betrayals, and destruction, he reached the pinnacle of this World.]
[Unlike the Heavenly Empress, the Heavenly Demon is not a benevolent leader, nor does he work to improve the lives of his subordinates. They serve him, and they work to improve his life instead. He's selfish, lacks manners, has forbidden most of his emotions, and only sees almost everything and everyone as objects he can use to become stronger. Yet… After several events in his life, such as his clash against the Heavenly Empress, such as his romance with her and the birth of their son, he has changed a lot from before.]
[After having finally slain the machines and the Demon King, he was looking to a life of luxury and retire to live with his beautiful wife and his beloved son, teaching the boy everything he knows to make him grow up as a cunning little villain…]
[However, out of nowhere, Song has disappeared, and despite his often-cold demeanor, he fears the worst, as he had realized his son's presence had completely disappeared from the world, as if he had never existed.]
[Skill Copy Conditions]: [To copy one of his Skills, help Han Zhenye find his son.]
[Sponsorship Cost]: [100.000 Plot Points]
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The description changed, and the Skill Copy Conditions are different too? But that's—wait, no!
"Aaaggh! It is too costly! I can only afford one of you!" I cried. "Dammit, what do I even do?!"
"Eh?"
"What?"
Do I have to choose now? Between one or the other?
This was the thing I feared the most…
Well, at least I can afford one, but.
I don't want to choose; this is too cruel!
"What do you mean you can't afford it?" asked the Heavenly Empress.
"Explain…" the Heavenly Demon said.
"I require points to let you come outside. I currently have 150k points, and each of you requires 100k points… I can't afford both, only one," I explained.
"Points…?" The Heavenly Empress was confused. "But that's… Hmm…"
"So you can't go with the two; you have to choose?!" asked the Heavenly Demon. "That's… then choose her. She should go see our son first, as his mother."
"Han?!" cried the Heavenly Empress. "But you're the father!"
"…We both know that you're obviously the right choice," he said. "Don't try to hide it, Hue Xian."
"I am not hiding anything, you idiot!" she said. "I… I love you! I don't want you to be left here… if this is truly a fake world, then…"
The crow simply smiled, hugging her.
"Go."
"No… I don't want to leave you behind…"
She hugged him tightly, as she suddenly started crying.
"Master…"
The Heavenly Demon cleansed her tears with his hands as he looked her in the eyes.
"Maybe this world is fake… Perhaps the real world is beyond the horizon… If that's the case, there will be another version of me, right?" he asked. "Maybe he's different, but… don't be harsh with him."
"You're… the only version of yourself I want!" She kept crying. "I won't let you… I will… Ah! That's right…"
"Huh?" I wondered.
"I have… I have developed this power," she muttered. "Maybe if we use the same technique we used before Han. When we combined our powers together… but we apply it to our bodies."
"What? You mean… fusing our physiques?!" the Heavenly Demon asked. "That's ridiculous! Why would we ever…"
"Like this… maybe the cost of bringing us out would be reduced?" She wondered.
"I… don't know; I have never tried that! But… we could try?" I asked.
She nodded instantly.
"Let's become one, briefly."
"But that's… I had never thought that…"
She caressed her husband's feathered face.
"Do you love me?"
"I…"
He looked into her golden eyes.
"I do… I love you."
"I love you too…"
They hugged tightly, as her Heart of Hope flared with all her Hope Essence.
FLUOSH!
An enormous cocoon of Flames of Hope surged, encompassing the two of them.
And then, demonic ki emerged, as the demonic seals activated too.
The flames of Hope with the Demonic Ki merged.
Rapidly creating a chaotic combination, a strange black and gold cocoon that distorted space itself.
Until…
Crack, crack…!
CRASH!
The cocoon broke into pieces, and a tremendously powerful presence emerged.
It shook the entire world of the simulation.
The heavens split open; the earth below trembled with dozens of earthquakes.
A divinity that surpassed it all and went even beyond surged.
Even I was left in awe…
A divine being that embodied the good and the bad of this world.
The tragedies and the hope, the hatred and the happiness.
Unlawfulness and orthodoxy.
Demonic and heavenly…
A four-armed, four-winged, angelic and demonic bird god emerged before me.
The Immortals that were far away gasped, incapable of believing what they were seeing.
One half of their body was made of black and red feathers, the other half of white and golden feathers.
Their wings intermixed in colors of white, gold, black, and dark red.
There was a halo of bright light above their head and demonic horns at the side of their head.
Their four arms held different divine weapons; armaments materialized from their power.
And in their chest, there was a big black and white jewel in the shape of Yin and Yang.
Oh my goodness, this is fucking epic!
"Now try, Anna… We cannot keep this up for too long…"
They spoke with combined voices.
I quickly tried to sponsor the fusion.
And…
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[Player Name]: [Avatar of Balance and Chaos]
[Title]: [The Supreme One Above Heaven and Earth]
[Sponsor]: [None]
[Potential Innate Skills]: [Black & White Heaven's Domain Of Balance and Chaos (???)] [Supreme Venerable Authority (???)] [Divine Chaotic Seven-Bladed Sword of Purgatory: Yanma (???)] [Divine Heavenly Five-Pointed Spear of Balance: Nirvana (???)] […]
[Overall Description]: [A hypothetical being born from the fusion between the fusion of the Heavenly Demon and the Heavenly Empress. They have no name other than "Avatar of Balance and Chaos" but carry their wills and memories, emotions and experiences.]
[After having combined the experiences and memories of two complete opposites, they have gained supreme enlightenment becoming a being that surpasses even Venerables, reaching the pinnacle as a Supreme.]
[The Power of Balance and Chaos is within their palms, and they can subdue anything and anyone within their world.]
[However, their existence is brief, and they have only unified for a single purpose.]
[To find their son.]
[Skill Copy Conditions]: [To copy one of their Skills, help them find their son.]
[Sponsorship Cost]: [??? Plot Points]
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[Calculating…]
[Calculation Complete.]
[Sponsorship Cost]: [150.000 Plot Points]
[Do you wish to sponsor [Player Name]: [Avatar of Balance and Chaos]?]
[YES] [NO]
"No way… barely?!"
There's no point in hesitating anymore!
I clicked the [YES] option as fast as I possibly could.
And then…
FLUOSH!
I felt my last Plot Points fly off my body, reaching them.
RUMBLE!
And then strengthening them even further beyond.
Their supreme power made the world tremble, and giant cracks above the world's ceiling emerged.
The heavens trembled and panicked; countless thunderbolts reached us.
The Heaven Will wanted to eliminate them out of self-defense because their very existence surprised the world's own limits?!
"We have to get out of here quickly! Will! Where are you? Can you help?!"
"I can!"
She quickly appeared above me, the little white crane spirit.
"Hey you, punch the air!"
"Punch it?" the fusion asked.
"Just do it! I'll take care of the rest!" she said.
"Very well."
The Supreme One swung his fists forward.
RUMBLE!
BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM!
And the entire world began to tremble and fall to pieces.
Four massive holes were broken through space and time as we could see stars and an endless cosmos.
"It's done! Go!"
She kept the portal open as we flew outside.
However, I noticed how there were hundreds of thunderbolts coming from her.
"Spirit! Come with us! You'll die!"
"What? It doesn't matter if I die; I am merely a will!"
"I know you want to go outside and how lonely you are… Come with us!"
"But…"
"Just come!"
I materialized my Myriad Self Aura, stretching a huge arm made of countless egos, and grabbing her, dragging her towards us as we passed through the portal.
"Uwaaah! What are you doing?!"
FLAAASH!
We passed through the bright light, landing right in front of the trio.
TRUUUM!
The portal broke and disappeared as they panicked, running towards us.
"Where... are we?"
The fusion stood up, looking around in confusion.
I could already notice their fusion was beginning to become unstable…
I don't know if they'll be sent back once they unfuse or something; it's better for them to quickly fuse with their real selves and find Song.
And of course, for me to copy one of their damn Skills because I'm definitely making my 150k Plot Points worth!
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