A sentient planet.
The rarest and most sought-after treasure in the cosmos. The benefits of having one at your command were astronomical.
Bond with one, and you gained abilities beyond imagination—the most impressive of all being a bottomless reservoir of qi, lifeforce, and spiritual energy.
The latter two required special rituals—ones typically known only to demonic cultivators—but near-limitless qi alone was enough to make a person unstoppable.
And that was just for the individual.
A sentient planet could grow without limit, cultivate on its own, allow others to cultivate simply by existing near it, and regenerate endless amounts of exotic metals and materials. All of this required an environmental density of qi far beyond what ordinary worlds could ever produce.
Even so… was that enough reason to entrust one of the most valuable treasures in existence with something so dangerous?
Sev's answer would have been an arrogant, "OF COURSE IT IS!"
"Oscar, every single planet in the cosmos possesses a core. That core is one gigantic supercomputer that observes, analyzes, and reports data to its galaxy. The galaxy reports to its universe, and the universe reports to the First Universe. It's the single most advanced form of artificial intelligence in all reality. In other words, we're not merely fooling the First Universe into believing it's been recombined—we're actually combining an observer's core with a shard of the Observer. This is one of the most ambitious projects I've ever created in my long life!"
And so, a universal-grade artifact fell into the hands of a simple actor who once gambled his life away to a Dairy Queen cashier. Had the Godkings foreseen this outcome, they might've chosen differently.
"Where am I?"
John looked around. He was in a completely white room—empty, plain, endless. He wandered through the void until a voice rang out.
{SYSTEM STATUS… ALL CLEAR.
CONGRATULATIONS ON REINCARNATING AS A 1-STAR GAS GIANT.}
{NOTICE: YOU HAVE ONE UNIVERSAL ARTIFACT AT YOUR DISPOSAL.
SYSTEM WILL BEGIN MERGING IT WITH YOUR CORE NOW.}
{CONGRATULATIONS! YOU NO LONGER REQUIRE SYSTEM AUTHORITY TO ACCESS THE KNOWLEDGE OF THE UNIVERSE.}
{DOES THE HOST HAVE ANY QUESTIONS?}
"What the fuck…"
How did I reincarnate as a planet?! I'm right here! A person!
He frantically looked around, hoping something made sense.
"I knew I shouldn't have stopped watching anime! Isn't this a trope in those things? What the hell even is a system?"
{Note: In Earth terminology, the system's duty is similar to a "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Universe."
As for your location—the system has determined the host would lose sanity over millions of years without perceivable eyes or a physical body. Thus, you have been granted access to your soul-space.}
John stood there, mouth hanging open.
{Note: The host is not required to stand in an empty white room. You may remodel your soul-space at will.}
That helped. Barely.
With a single thought, John reshaped the void. A theater stage appeared beneath him. A bed, a walk-in closet, a functioning kitchen, a shower. A thousand empty seats looked down from the darkness.
It was a replica of the Broadway theater he'd visited as a child—the place that ignited his obsession with acting.
"…Is this creepy? I feel like I'm being watched while I sleep."
Still… it felt like home.
"So what now? System?"
He waited.
{Would you like to begin any quests? Several require the host's attention. You have been asleep for a few million years.}
John imagined himself with a giant Pikachu face.
I've been asleep for millions of years?! Doesn't that make me immortal? Wait… Earth is about four billion years old. So how old am I?
{Your planetary body is approximately 4.3 billion years old. A past incident elevated you to a 1-Star Planet, making you eligible for life despite being a gas giant.}
Ugh, I hate info dumps.
{Would you like to review your past achievements and pending rewards?}
John sighed. "Fine… show me my past rewards."
A board appeared in front of him, exploding with confetti.
Past Achievements
{CONGRATULATIONS! YOU ARE SENTIENT!
REWARD FROM PROGENITOR & FIRST UNIVERSE: ABILITY TO CREATE CHAMPIONS AND VILLAINS. REFER TO FATE SECTION FOR DETAILS.}
{CONGRATULATIONS! AN EARTH-IMMORTAL HAS DIED ON YOUR WORLD.
YOU HAVE BEEN ELEVATED TO A 1-STAR WORLD.}
{OVERRIDE: SYSTEM FUNCTION — YOU HAVE BEEN GRANTED PURIFICATION ABILITY. YOU MAY PURIFY QI UP TO 30%.}
{CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE GAINED A UNIVERSAL ARTIFACT.
THE ARTIFACT WILL NOW MERGE WITH YOUR PLANETARY CORE.}
{NOTE: A UNIVERSAL ARTIFACT IS ONE OF THE MOST VALUABLE ITEMS IN THE COSMOS. SHARE THIS KNOWLEDGE WITH NO ONE.}
{CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE LEARNED THE ABILITY [GOD'S EYE].
THIS ALLOWS YOU TO APPRAISE ANYTHING IN FINE DETAIL.}
{CONGRATULATIONS! YOUR PLANET NOW HOSTS LIFE!}
{REWARD: NONE. OVERRIDE — PURIFICATION ABILITY INCREASED TO 40%.}
{CONGRATULATIONS! YOU HAVE BEEN RECOGNIZED BY OTHER WORLDS.
YOU HAVE BEEN NAMED: 6F99HD-28OHDE-4MDI2K.}
{REWARD: NONE. OVERRIDE — HOST HAS BEEN GRANTED A PROJECTION.}
{REMARK: IT'S BASICALLY A CHEAP HOLOGRAM.}
John rubbed his temples.
Aliens, treasures, progenitors… what the hell is going on?
After thinking it over, he found one comforting conclusion:
"I'm insane. My body is lying in a hospital somewhere and I'm in a coma. That's the only explanation."
Honestly, that made him feel better. Reborn as a planet? Given a dumb serial number by aliens? No way that was real.
John was an actor and screenwriting enthusiast—spinning ridiculous stories was his specialty.
Once in acting class I played a river god threatening a mortal queen. When she threatened me back, I was genuinely offended. It was supposed to be improv.
"So this is my Wizard of Oz moment. When I wake up, my whole family will be at my bedside… God, I hope I don't wake up wearing heels…"
The mental image of a 6-foot-tall muscled man in stilettos was not pleasant.
If everything was just a dream, then what next?
Okay… Wizard of Oz logic. To wake up, I need to do something nobody would expect.
The only way to test his "theory" was simple: check the quests—Glinda the Good—and do the opposite.
"System! What are my current quests?"
{As a B-Rank Planetary System, you must fulfill all requirements to become the most powerful planet in the universe and beyond.}
{Warning: A sentient planet is extremely valuable. Remain hidden until strong enough to defend yourself.}
"Aha! There it is! I knew it, Glinda the Good. More like Glinda the Foul!
I'll become the most famous planet in the universe! Shrines everywhere! Temples in my name! HA!"
Now that he had a goal, he checked the quests.
Quest 1:
Develop a sentient race on your planet. The stronger the better.
Reward: Varies by species.
(Ongoing and repeatable)
"Hmmm… so… what if I cause a mass extinction event a few times? Is that morbid? Nah. They're just NPCs."
Unless this was real.
Not that he'd admit that.
Quest 2:
A true planet has moons, but not all can benefit from them.
Use the Yin energy contaminating your soul to give life to your surrounding moons.
Reward: Varies by number of moons that gain souls.
"I hate that I don't recognize any of this. How do I even know giving life to a bunch of moons helps?"
A new notification chimed.
{The more moons you awaken, the more loyal servants you gain. Each moon will be infused with your Yang energy, tying them to you regardless of distance. They may use the system and receive rewards you can keep or distribute.
Your moons may also study the laws of nature, contributing to your own understanding and creating new biomes and ecosystems. This increases your chances of cultivating powerful races and earning divine rewards.}
"…Neat."
For most beings, this would be groundbreaking news. For a delusional Earth kid convinced he was in a coma?
As expected of my imagination.