Lin You had never truly believed in gods.
In a world stripped of order and decency, where fresh water was worth more than blood and betrayal could happen over a half-eaten ration, gods were either myths or monsters. He was born in the wastelands, raised among scavengers and smugglers, where survival wasn't a gift—it was a grind. Every day was a gamble, and every ally was a potential thief.
He had stolen. He had lied. He had run.
Not out of cruelty, but because he couldn't afford to die.
And then the sky broke.
It wasn't a metaphor. It wasn't poetic. It was violent.
On that day, all across the fractured world, people stopped in place as the heavens split like torn paper. A crack formed above, revealing a deep void swirling with incomprehensible energy—an abyss that watched back.
All noise vanished.
Then came the voice. Not from any speaker or device, but from inside their heads:
> "Generating human identification numbers…"
> "Evaluating elemental attributes…"
> "World format resetting · Divine integration initializing…"
> "ID: E1127 · Element: Wood · Primary attribute bound"
> "You will now be transferred to the Divine Selection Space."
And just like that, Lin You's consciousness was yanked from his body.
No warning. No farewell. Just white light and the sense that his soul was falling.
**
When he opened his eyes again, he was no longer in the slums of Dustveil City.
He stood in a circular chamber vast beyond comprehension. The walls were made of smooth obsidian, veined with glowing channels of light. Giant statues towered in a ring around him—ten in total—each emanating an aura so overwhelming it was like standing before living storms.
At the center of the chamber hovered a massive, slowly spinning pentagon of stone, pulsing faintly. Around it, five elemental beams soared upward: gold for Metal, green for Wood, blue for Water, red for Fire, and brown for Earth.
Each element had two gods. One bathed in radiant, serene light. The other cloaked in shadows and swirling corruption.
A system prompt appeared in his mind's eye:
> **[You have entered the Five Element Temple · Initial Faith Selection Space]**
> **[Detected Element: Wood]**
> **[You must now choose between the Twin Wood Gods as your patron deity]**
> **[Select your Alignment: Light or Darkness]**
> **[Note: Alignment will remain hidden unless revealed by choice or divine exposure]**
Lin You took a breath. The air here tasted like nothing on Earth—cool, crisp, and heavy with power. His heart beat faster, not out of fear, but recognition.
He was being given a choice.
In front of him, beneath the green pillar of Wood, stood two contrasting figures.
The left statue depicted a noble god with a calm expression, dressed in layered robes of leaves, crowned with spiraling vines. A sapling bloomed in its hands. Its plaque read:
> **Qingshen · Light-Wood God**
To the right loomed a skeletal figure, its frame wrapped in gnarled roots and black vines. Fungus grew from its shoulders, and hollow antlers curled upward like claws. Its plaque read:
> **Fujin · Dark-Wood God**
Beneath each statue, two glowing panels of text materialized.
He stepped toward Qingshen.
**[Qingshen · Light-Wood]**
-**Class 1: Forest Warden**
-*Core Skill: Tree Spirit Summon*
- Summons a sentient tree that periodically heals and shields allies nearby.
- Weak to Metal-element attacks.
-**Class 2: Priest of Life**
-*Core Skill: Breath of Nature*
- Disperses negative effects and gradually restores team vitality.
---
The soft glow from Qingshen's statue felt... warm. Peaceful. As if someone were placing a hand on his shoulder and whispering, *"You can rest now."*
Lin You turned to Fujin.
---
**[Fujin · Dark-Wood]**
-**Class 1: Soulbinder**
-*Core Skill: Spirit-Leech Vines*
- Silences target abilities and drains health over time.
-**Class 2: Toxic Cultivator**
- *Core Skill: Seed of Blight*
- Infects enemies with delayed poison, causing burst true damage upon detonation.
---
Fujin's presence was different.
It didn't invite.
It demanded.
A quiet hunger that promised power, at the cost of something unseen.
Lin You stood between the statues, silent.
"Light... means healing. Protection. A shield for others."
"But healing won't save you from a dagger in the back."
He looked at the dark god again.
"Darkness is strength. Direct. Brutal. Honest."
"But if I fall... there won't be anything left of me."
His fists clenched.
The gods weren't watching him. They didn't care what he chose.
But something in him—the part that remembered hands reaching out to save him when he was a child—the part that regretted those he left behind to survive—spoke louder.
"I want... a second chance."
He turned, stepped toward Qingshen, and pressed the confirmation rune.
> **[Confirm Faith: Forest Warden]**
A rush of power surged through his body.
Glowing vines burst from the platform beneath him, coiling around his arms and torso. A brilliant green sigil shaped like a blooming vine etched itself onto his chest, searing into his skin with divine fire.
It didn't hurt.
It felt like... being remembered.
Final system prompt:
> **[Faith Selected: Qingshen · Light-Wood]**
> **[Class Bound: Forest Warden]**
> **[Core Skill: Tree Spirit Summon]**
> **[Alignment: Light · Hidden]**
> **[Element: Wood · Public]**
> **[ID: E1127]**
> **[Initiating Transfer to Trial Zone · Level-Zero Reincarnation Field]**
White light gathered once more, lifting him from the ground.
As he faded into the portal, Lin You whispered to himself:
"Faith isn't purity."
"It's a decision."
And this was his.