Ming Dynasty, New Rome, and Infinite Divine Machine

"What does that middle finger mean! Middle finger!"

"Middle finger?" Elder Mushroom looked outside - the left hand of the god, which was far away, raised its middle finger high, and the other four fingers were clenched into a mysterious posture.

"This is the Spiritual Official Seal!"

"What is the Spiritual Officer Seal?"

"I don't know. This emoji's caption is 'Spiritual Official Seal'. What does Spiritual Official Seal mean? What exactly does Spiritual Official Seal mean?"

Suddenly, the sound of the "Left Hand of God" chanting resounded throughout the world:

"Look up to the divine might of General Huoluo, the great spiritual officer who patrols the heavens! The Great Thunder God of the Three-Five Trains, commanded by the Three Pure Ones to subdue the demons! The Great Thunder God of the Three-Five Trains, commanded by the Three Pure Ones to subdue the demons! He patrols the world with a golden whip in hand, clad in golden armor to display his might! The left wing of the Thunder Army's vanguard battalion!"

"Here!" The divine soldiers in the sky responded in unison.

"The Marshal has ordered that this is no longer just some ordinary fungus. We must strike hard!"

"Order!"

At the command, the heavenly soldiers gathered their five fingers together and formed a "fist" stance. Suddenly, the air was filled with the sound of thousands of people breaking through the air.

The elder's eyes flashed as a flying fist blasted out, twisting the myconid he was talking to and sending him flying backwards from the other side of the Tower of Babel. Countless flying fists descended like a blanket, accurately delivering the "heavy punch" commanded by the marshal to each one, and glancing off every important stone slab.

The scenery in front of him suddenly changed - there was no pain, but he knew he was flying out. Looking back suddenly, he saw that his buttocks were gone, but his buttocks were still in the same place.

"Butt. What's a butt? Should mushrooms have butts?" He spent the last few ticks pondering the meaning of mushrooms' existence—then he and countless other sent flying mushroom-people vanished into the horizon. None of them became stars. After all, their place as stars didn't belong to them.

Chapter 386 It’s getting dark

The iron fists of the heavenly soldiers hit the flesh, twisting the mushrooms into pancakes, and every punch could make the mushrooms burst.

The white pulp that burst out of the mushrooms gathered into a stream, and together with the remaining sea water, it flowed down from the 1st to the 99th floor of the Tower of Babel, forming a curtain outside the tower.

"They're still pretty juicy." Shangluo stroked his chin, "But why bother? Just leave obediently."

Their wisdom doesn't seem to be enough.

Shangluo shook his head. "This is actually proof of their wisdom. Living things instinctively seek benefits and avoid harm, and we displayed overwhelming power. Leaving at this moment is in line with biological instinct. However, these guys... their obsession, acquired from elsewhere, has overwhelmed their biological instincts. This kind of focus isn't what animals should have."

I suspect they lack biological instincts, or perhaps they're quite weak. Their lives, it could be said, are born from 'light'. This may be their species' gift—they live for their ideals. Each of them worries before the world worries, and rejoices after the world rejoices. Each one is a living saint, unmoved by material gain or personal sorrow. Tsk, how pathetic.

"Oh?" Shangluo asked her, "Why do you think this is so sad?"

This fearless spirit only appears magnificent when set against the backdrop of human nature. A hero is one who sacrifices his life for justice, unafraid of death. The key here is 'sacrifice'. The tragedy is the destruction of beautiful things for people to see. If life itself lacked beauty, then death wouldn't be a tragedy.

"Oh, you know a lot. Have you read the book too?"

[I don't even need to read the book, I have an identical one at home!]

"Oh yes. You happen to have one at home."

So what I hate most is these emotionless machines. These mushrooms may have some brains, but their pitiful slime mold brains aren't enough to support their current behavior. Specifically, their current behavior seems to be all based on the same thinking method—they treat their beliefs as external brains. What's the difference between them and ants and bees?

"Hmm," Shangluo thought for a moment, "perhaps they still have some biological nature."

【for example? 】

"It's the biological nature of slime molds—perhaps that's why their belief is so deeply rooted. This belief in light is the only biological instinct left in their slime mold brains. And it was the snake that brought them light."

Did the snake say anything? It seems like it didn't say anything.

"That's the saddest part. They believe in snakes, and this behavior doesn't even have the snakes' permission. Oh, look at those mushroom-like faces of theirs, they're not loved by their grandma or uncle. They just saw that snakes are attracted to light, and they started to believe in them. It seems that the World Serpent has ignited an unquenchable wildfire in their hearts."

[Hmm, it seems like they're quite effective. This kind of strong obsession isn't something Doudou possesses, right?]

"Indeed. Doudou are completely the opposite. They seek benefits and avoid harm. They won't do anything unless there's something to gain. Given this nature, Doudou can become bad. But all the Doudou we've met are good. Like us, they've found an appropriate balance between biological instincts and sociality. Well, they might be a little greedy sometimes, but that's not a big deal. They can clearly become bad, so how did they become so lovable?"

Because Doudou has been to school. The Doudou you see has been studying since they were inside their pods. Their school seems to be in the caves of the Quanzhen Sect. Just like people, everyone has the freedom to be good or bad, but everyone does. They are wandering lights between heaven and earth, reborn as immortal beans through immortal roots, becoming incredibly powerful immortal bean people.

Shangluo nodded. "Although these mushroom people are quite useful and seem quite talented, they might be of great use in the future, just like Doudou. But if they remain hostile, then they will be useless. But if they don't even know fear, then there's probably nothing to be afraid of. The only thing left is that they're delicious."

He made a joke.

[Wait, speaking of delicious food, a message arrived from the front. The former general said it was very bitter.]

"Bitter? What do you mean by bitter? They feel they've worked too hard today and want a snack? Sure. I'll have as many steamed buns as you want. I'll have Miss Phaethon, who's in charge of the rations, steam them for them."

[No, they said it turned bitter. Those mushroom people turned it really bitter. The juice they squeezed out wasn't sweet at all like kombucha. They turned it bitter.]

"And the smell?"

The smell is still the same as before. It's just bitter. They say it's so bitter, so bitter, and they need to eat more to get better.

"More, more, more. I'm hungry too. Let's eat together after work."

Although the doudou had voracious appetites, they couldn't actually eat much. That day, when they gathered for dinner, a pot of curry was enough to feed all the doudou. The dinner provided for the tens of thousands of doudou in the vanguard battalion of the left-wing Lei Zhen Army consisted of just a basket of steamed bread.

The news of the extra meal had already been passed to the front, and the former young player immediately reported back the battle situation:

"Go home for dinner before eight o'clock!"

The god's left hand held the Spiritual Official Seal, one finger reaching heavenward. A massive, ninety-nine-story tower rose above the sea, a legion of angels swirling around him, forming a battle formation. Billowing clouds swirled, supporting the array of heavenly soldiers.

A cloud of gas gathered in front of the general, formed a square formation, and waited for orders!

"I order you to wait in ambush in front of the tower!"

"Order!"

Clouds come and go, and another wave of soldiers has assembled:

"I order you to wait behind the tower and ambush!"

"Order!"

The mysterious divine words echoed between heaven and earth. Most mushroom people could not understand them, but they could also see that the situation was changing.

After the vanguard charged with an iron fist, the angelic legions gathered one by one and began to form their battle array. The formation circled around the Tower of Babel, circling and circling. Not only did the words of God echo in the sky, but also drums and horns delivered military orders.

A net of eighty-nine seventy-two layers of heaven and earth gradually formed in the sky above, and the gathering clouds also accumulated into black clouds.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaa!!!"

For the first time, screams rang out within the Tower of Babel. The mushroom people, who had previously been sent flying without a murmur, erupted in unprecedented panic.

"I see." Looking at the images coming from the front, Shangluo nodded, "So they are afraid of the dark. They are not afraid of death, but they are afraid of the dark."

"Hmph, I'm awesome, huh? Blocking out the sunlight triggers their primal instincts. Even slime molds are naturally attracted to light. Blocking out the sun should terrify them."

"Their fear seemed to be fully expressed at once and was not excessive at all."

[Because we only have so many instincts, triggering them all at once will instantly max them out.]

"Oh? They seem to be reacting?"

A mushroom-man, draped in green, stood on the 98th floor and spoke. A waterfall of white mycelium cascaded down the canopy, swaying in the high-altitude wind like a long beard mopping the ground. The obscured sunlight didn't trigger the mushroom-man's slime-mold instincts.

"Who the hell are you? Tell me your name!" He stood on the 98th floor and shouted to the "Left Hand of God" on the 99th floor.

Chapter 387 Appearance

"Who the hell are you? Tell me your name!"

"Hahahahaha!" The former general, ninety-nine stories tall, let out an earth-shattering laugh. "You, a tiny little fungus, dare to imitate the language of the upper realm and even ask your grandfather's name. How can you, a tiny little fungus, withstand a single blow from me?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he felt something was wrong.

The scene that the former young player had attended school with felt somewhat familiar to him.

A celestial soldier flew to an unknown place and asked, "Boss, you seem to be impersonating the giant spirit. You're going to be beaten by the monkey."

"."

"Hey, the next one is the Marshal of the Central Altar!"

[Go to hell! Remember you big black bean! ]

"Marshal! Marshal, I was wrong!"

【Who are you? 】

"I'm the Deputy General of the Left Assistant Staff of the Left Wing Lei Zhen Army's Vanguard Battalion. I'm the General's deputy."

[You, go beat him up. Beat the one with the beard.]

"But I'm a staff officer."

【If I ask you to hit me, then hit me! 】

"Understood! If I don't beat you up, I won't feed you! Beat you up right now!"

He turned his fist and said, "Hey! You bastard, take my punch!"

Even though he was a staff officer, he was a real heavenly soldier and had learned all the eight or nine profound skills.

A flying fist flew straight towards the white-bearded mushroom man on the 98th floor——

With a crisp sound, the white-bearded mushroom man was knocked back. Deputy General Zuo Fubi, the chief of staff, knew when to stop and said he would just throw a punch, then return to his original position.

"Huh?" The former general was a bit surprised. He thought the other side would send out a general like Sun Wukong, and he was planning to leave the battle himself. Unexpectedly, he had a long beard and his fighting ability was no different from other fungi.

Then why did he come out and speak?

"I assume you understand what I'm saying." Curious, the former young general moved closer. "What do you mean by that?"

The white-bearded mushroom man crawled back and stood in the same position as before, seemingly accepting the blow without fighting back:

"I speak on behalf of all living beings in this world. I wish to speak with God. We know that there are higher beings above you. We wish to speak with the true God, and so we quote His words, hoping He will understand. My grief has rendered my words incoherent... but please consider my request."

"Impossible." The former general rejected his request. Shangluo had already issued an order, not intending to negotiate - or rather, the premise of negotiation was that they should not cause trouble and evacuate the tower.

"Then I will speak to you."

"Before you guys start talking, I have a question," the former young player asked on behalf of Shangluo. "Where did the posts you swallowed go? Spit them out first."

"That's what I was going to say. We haven't devoured any of the tablets—knowledge is as precious to us as the sun. We read, we study, we try to comprehend the realm of the gods, just as we long for the light. We, will never devour any of the tablets. Therefore, I have no power."

“So, where did all those posts go?”

"It was the Beast that ate them."

"Beast? What beast?"

"When the Serpent Lord descended upon the world and was slain by the gods, his eyes gave us a purpose, making us yearn for light. However, some fungi in this world were born after the Serpent Lord departed. They were not given meaning by the Serpent Lord. Unlike us myconids, they are myconidians."

"Fungus beasts? Are those mushroom beasts in the tower?"

"Yes. So we are guilty—we didn't eat it, but our guilt lies in commanding the mushroom beast to devour the language of the gods. Because we need the mushroom beast to grow bigger and taller, to become our ladder so that we can ascend to the next level."

[Wait, have you seen those mushroom beasts?]

Apollonia, who was monitoring from behind, asked Shangluo.

"Yes, it's that one!" The mushroom beast that was on all fours and had lost more than a dozen lives to those two guys.

"Former young general, ask him what he is going to do."

The former young general was silent for a while, waiting for Shangluo's question.

"What do you want to do?"

He conveyed Shangluo's words.

"We want to talk to the gods. We hope to sign a contract with them. We can take care of this Tower of Babel for them, as long as they allow us to read the knowledge here."

"if not?"

"Otherwise, we will harness the beast—harness its power. We know this is the realm of the gods, and we have no right to occupy it. But we choose hope."

"You chose the Iron Fist!"

Before he could finish his words, a wave of heavenly soldiers broke the sound barrier and rained down their punches from the clouds like meteors. However, the white-bearded mushroom man remained motionless and did not dodge.

hiss--

The snake lying in the tower opened its huge mouth. Before the heavenly soldiers arrived, the snake head jumped out and swallowed the white-bearded mushroom man into its belly.

The snake's eyes lit up, and its head shot across the sky, breaking through the waterfall surrounding the Tower of Babel. It circled the Tower of Babel, using the force to cling to it, and opened its huge mouth towards the heavenly soldiers:

From the outside in, a violent wind sucked everything around the tower in. Fungus-people, water currents, and heavenly soldiers were all swallowed up. Several streaks of white light shot out from the cracks in the snake's mouth and ascended to the "switchboard" high in the sky.