Chapter 211: Worldbuilding
Everything seemed to have returned to where it had all begun.
The difference was that in the past, the Old Eighths had been the ones huffing and puffing as they built houses. Now, it was the Old Eighths and residents from other civilizations working together, all huffing and puffing as they built houses.
Back then, when Blue Sea built houses, they had been eager to stack one floor upon another, building higher and higher until their buildings reached the sky. That way, they could accommodate more people.
At the same time, they had to pay attention to natural lighting, lest the residents go too long without sunlight and become gloomy and depressed.
Now, however, Blue Sea’s construction projects had to maintain the distinctive industrial aesthetic of the Underworld from start to finish.
The overall appearance had to be grand, and the city walls had to stand ten thousand zhang tall. Whether outside or inside the walls, the guiding principle of the decor was to make the place feel perpetually haunted by sinister, bone-chilling winds.
The palaces had to retain their ancient architectural style while also ensuring that, once the Yin Officials took up their posts, they could handle their duties at the speed of a modern office.
Fortunately, none of this was something Cheng Qisheng needed to worry about.
She had already instructed Aether to send back all the relevant mythological tales and legends recorded on Blue Star. Within Blue Sea Safe City, there were naturally plenty of structural engineers, architectural designers, materials experts, landscape design specialists, and other professionals to handle the planning.
Blue Sea had even established a dedicated Worldbuilding Department.
A large number of researchers specializing in the myths and legends of Blue Star had joined the project. Many novelists had also been granted the qualifications to participate in the planning.
Quite a few of these novelists had already been registered with the Fallen Heaven Star Dialogue Department. Many of the lines spoken by Blue Sea’s residents to the locals, or by the local gods themselves, had been written by these very authors.
And that was only the departments needed during the so-called hard furnishing phase. The countless departments required for all the little details of the soft furnishing phase were even more numerous.
Those residents who had already descended to the lower world and were still able to move around had all rushed over to lend a hand.
Those who had yet to descend were busy working on the upper level instead.
The great Creator God of Blue Sea watched her people constructing the buildings with great interest.
Well, they did say that if you lived long enough, you’d get to see just about anything.
Who would have thought that one day, she would actually get to witness the Underworld being built?
After Qian Lishi, an ability user with the [Teleportation] ability, joined the workforce, the already rapid construction process sped up another notch.
The main reason was that Fallen Heaven Star really was enormous. And now, all the construction workers were divine beings among gods. They neither needed sleep nor had any trouble floating lightly through the air. As for the materials used to build the Underworld, roughly eighty percent of them had been dug up by Blue Sea’s residents from various locations across Fallen Heaven Star.
Cheng Qisheng watched as her residents buzzed about like little bees, diligently flying around to “gather nectar.”
What a huge stretch of wasteland! Let’s dig up some soil and sand!
Oh? We’ve found an abandoned village! Let’s see if there’s anything useful we can bring back!
Those rocks on the cliff look pretty good! Come on, everyone, let’s work together and carry them away!
Many residents didn’t want to take away the divine power of those who already had enough believers to provide them with faith power. As a result, they had even drawn up remarkably thorough schedules for managing their time.
Qian Lishi was currently floating in midair, working away while listening to a newly acquainted colleague beside him share her very own Divine Work Schedule.
“From ten at night until ten in the morning, those twelve hours are all available for me to come work in the Underworld. I’ll spend an hour traveling back to my temple along the way. Starting at eleven thirty, I’ll eat incense and candles to replenish my energy.
“From midnight until five in the afternoon, I’ll receive prayers from my believers, pick out the wishes I think are appropriate and can actually fulfill, and grant them.
“At six in the evening, I’ll eat another incense stick. Right after that, I’ll patrol the area under my protection and check for any demons or monsters.
“At seven, I’ll go around looking for building materials that might be useful, then carry them back to the Netherworld Palace while traveling.”
Qian Lishi: “…”
He had thought that Blue Sea’s residents, even when they were still alive, were already hardworking enough. He hadn’t expected the Blue Sea residents in their divine forms to give him an even bigger shock.
“D-Don’t you… don’t you ever rest?”
“Rest?”
The Blue Sea resident replied quite naturally,
“Am I not resting right now? Look, I’ve only moved a little over a hundred bricks, and I can still chat with you!”
Qian Lishi, who worked with his physical body just like everyone else, still needed four hours of rest every day and could still feel exhausted: “…”
Although they were all part of human civilization, there were times when he genuinely felt that he and the people of Blue Sea weren’t even the same species.
His new colleague didn’t just work without getting tired. She could even chatter away nonstop while working.
If you asked her why, the answer was simple: We’re carrying out our great God’s orders! Of course we’re in an amazing mood!
“By the way, I’ve recently discovered that patrolling at fixed times isn’t very reliable. The demons and monsters on Fallen Heaven Star are surprisingly clever. If they figure out my patrol route and sneak into my territory while I’m away, that would be bad.”
His new colleague shared one of her little divine tricks.
“So I discussed it with the local god of the neighboring village and asked them to look after my believers whenever they went on patrol.”
Qian Lishi was astonished. “They agreed to that? Aren’t the gods on Fallen Heaven Star, apart from those officially appointed by the imperial court, all accustomed to working alone?”
His new colleague explained matter-of-factly, “They didn’t agree at first. Which is understandable. We weren’t familiar with each other, so why would they help me? So I used my supernatural ability to kill the rat demon that was causing trouble in their village, right in front of them. I solved a huge headache for them, and then they agreed.”
She even seemed rather pleased with herself.
“The books really were right! With our great God watching over us, when we do good deeds with a tolerant heart and a desire to help others, we can move people and inspire them to change, too.”
Qian Lishi imagined the scene: after this Blue Sea resident had her request rejected, she marched straight into someone else’s divine territory and brutally crushed a rat demon that was clearly no match for her, right in front of its helpless local god…
Are you sure that was helping them, rather than killing a chicken to scare the monkeys?
Just what on earth were they teaching in Blue Sea’s textbooks?
And yet, despite everything, when he thought about how his younger sister might one day learn this kind of “knowledge” and adopt this sort of approach to solving problems, Qian Lishi silently decided to keep his mouth shut.
At the very least, judging from how cheerful her new colleague was, children raised with this kind of education would grow up feeling confident in themselves and, above all, happy.
Thinking of the two children back home, Qian Lishi instantly felt his strength return, just like his new colleague. Suddenly, he was brimming with energy from head to toe.
And so, the group once again buried themselves in work, huffing and puffing as they continued their labor.
Qian Lishi really enjoyed this kind of immersive work experience. He wasn’t the one responsible for planning. All he had to do was follow the foreman’s instructions. Whatever he was told to do, he simply went and did it.
When it was time to eat, a pile of incense sticks and candles would already be waiting at the construction site.
There was something truly wonderful about not having to think at all and simply putting his abilities and physical strength to use.
Qian Lishi was so caught up in the hustle and bustle that he often lost track of time. Sometimes, he would casually look up and discover that, at some point, a huge crowd of people had appeared at the construction site.
He suspected that more than half of Blue Sea’s population had come.
At other times, he would look up again, only to realize that, without him even noticing, so many grand halls had already been completed.
Supernatural abilities, divine power, and several hundred million people working tirelessly without sleep…
The sheer scale of it was terrifying.
Layer upon layer of buildings spread inward, while one magnificent palace hall after another seemed to rise straight out of the ground.
No one knew how long they had been working like this. Then, one day, the foreman suddenly announced that everyone should stop and take a break.
Only then, as Qian Lishi stood before the towering buildings rising in layer upon layer, did he finally realize that they had actually built this entire place themselves.
The Luofeng Netherworld Palace was complete—
Cheng Qisheng, who had spent the past several months watching her believers build houses, also slowly let out a breath of relief.
“Al~right~!”
“Let’s~find~a~lo~cal~ghost~”
“And~give~it~a~try~!”
