A world polluted by evil gods (7): Si Qi’s face turned crimson.

When evil gods pollute human minds and drive people insane, if they speak in such a soft, coquettish, and cute voice, it completely ruins any sense of intimidation.

And that voice was clearly calling out “Master.”

To have an evil god call you master—just thinking about it feels utterly absurd.

Mocked by Si Qi, Xiu Xiu turned his grief into motivation and spent the whole day diligently absorbing the world’s power. The next day, his voice became even clearer, and he said to Si Qi: [Master, Master! It’s Xiu Xiu! Xiu Xiu has come to find you!]

His heart was full of joy, and he was a little proud, hoping to show off his accomplishment. After all, he had found the captured Si Qi and even sent out a distress signal so the Lord God could locate his master!

See? The moment he woke up, the Lord God was already standing beside his master! That was all thanks to him.

Xiu Xiu chirped and chattered: [Master, Master, while Xiu Xiu was asleep, did you miss me~]

[Even in my dreams, Xiu Xiu never forgot about you!]

[Master, don’t be put off by how small and ugly I look right now. I’ll soon return to my beautiful form! You mustn’t dislike Xiu Xiu~!]

[Master, all of Xiu Xiu’s snacks are gone qaq. You have to make it up to me! Even though I haven’t grown my teeth yet~ I can still save them for later!]

[Master, why aren’t you saying anything~~]

Chu Feng noticed something was off about Si Qi’s expression and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Si Qi: “A bit noisy.”

Xiu Xiu, who had been passionately expressing his love and devotion: [?!!!!!!!]

Chu Feng: “Is it caused by some forbidden object? Can we locate it?”

Si Qi: “Still searching, but I can’t block it out. It’s strange.”

Their tone seemed deliberately restrained and distant, yet it still came across more intimate than ever before.

Xiu Xiu was used to this kind of scene, but what they were saying made him deeply uneasy.

He panicked: [Master, what’s wrong? Don’t you recognize Xiu Xiu? It’s me, Xiu Xiu! Even though I’m a little uglier now, I really am Xiu Xiu!]

On the verge of tears, Xiu Xiu’s pitiful voice tugged at Si Qi’s heart, but only made him feel more irritated.

“He’s starting to fabricate memories of knowing me and is affecting my emotions…”

Xiu Xiu was stunned by Si Qi’s words. Teardrops the size of beans began to fall, and his soft sobbing only made Si Qi more agitated. Behind him, the monster let out a grumbling nasal sound of discomfort.

This forbidden object was unexpectedly powerful—just a few sobs from Xiu Xiu, and Si Qi was already on edge.

He’d encountered much more realistic and over-the-top hallucinations before, but none had ever been this effective.

Could losing a divine essence really make such a huge difference?

Still crying, Xiu Xiu was at a loss. After a while, he reached out his tiny paw, trying to gather information from his surroundings and find a solution.

After going through Si Qi’s memories from this life, he discovered that Si Qi had lost his memory for unknown reasons. It wasn’t that he deliberately forgot Xiu Xiu.

He also learned that the Lord God had become the Child of the World and naturally entered Si Qi’s awareness, leading to a fated entanglement between the two.

Finally, after reviewing the world information sent by the world consciousness, Xiu Xiu was nearly depressed.

What rotten luck to end up in a world polluted by an evil god—not only was it hard to deal with, but the symptoms of corruption were very similar to Xiu Xiu’s own abilities. No wonder Si Qi had been so wary of him just now. For an executor who lived constantly in crisis, a sudden voice in his head speaking of other worlds and Lord Gods was definitely cause for suspicion.

Xiu Xiu had experienced a similar world with Si Qi before. Back then, Si Qi played the role of a god on the verge of falling. Upon entering the world, he worked to restore the faith of his believers, gathering belief power across a vast land, gradually strengthening himself, and eventually repelling the invading evil god.

In this world, the god had already completely perished, but their power still lingered.

The power had been split into five parts:

• One part, [Id], became the Child of the World himself, allowing him to receive the world’s favor and subconsciously avoid danger.
  
• One part, [Perception], was corrupted into a forbidden object. Upon obtaining it, one could perceive the true world, with altered sight and hearing—half a step into godhood at the level of consciousness.
  
• One part, [Divine essence], appeared like transparent, formless blood. Acquiring it significantly enhanced the physical body, increasing defense, strength, speed, and providing a natural suppression of forbidden objects.
  
• One part, [Divine Power], became a treasured artifact of a certain organization. With it, one could manipulate weather and rewrite the laws of the world without even moving—power already close to godhood.
  
• The last part, [Soul], was the soul of the god nearly devoured by the evil god. It had to be reclaimed through a direct battle with the evil god.

According to the world line data Xiu Xiu received, the original antagonist should have nearly destroyed the world by now, and the Child of the World should have been trying to stop him. But restoring the world was slower than destroying it, and in the end, not only did the Child of the World fail to save it, he also died at the hands of the evil god. The whole world was swallowed.

But now, Si Qi and Chu Feng had arrived.

Not only did Si Qi replace the antagonist, he had become humanity’s greatest hope—spending over a decade containing forbidden objects and preventing their slaughter, maintaining order and peace in a world that should have become apocalyptic.

Chu Feng had taken the place of the Child of the World and had already recovered three parts of the god’s power. With just [Divine Power] left, they would be ready to confront the evil god directly.

Previously, Xiu Xiu had suddenly sensed a huge surge of world power in Si Qi’s body, which had awakened him from his sleep. That surge was because Si Qi had fed the [Divine essence] to Chu Feng. The power increase in Chu Feng also reflected back on Si Qi, giving him a boost of world power as well…

Huh? Something’s not right.

Xiu Xiu snapped back to his senses.

Back when Si Qi traveled to other worlds, it was always his consciousness entering them. His willpower was stronger than any god’s. So how could he be so thoroughly suppressed by a mere evil god in this world?

And the fact that Si Qi actually lost his memory after arriving here—wasn’t that just unbelievable?

Xiu Xiu carefully recalled the details of how he had followed Si Qi and repeatedly reviewed the data inside his body. He discovered that, based on the amount of world power he had consumed back then, the space-time he had crossed must have been incredibly vast, even beyond the Lord God’s domain, reaching some wild or entirely new world.

But that still didn’t explain why Si Qi’s power had been reduced so drastically…

Whenever he didn’t understand something, Xiu Xiu had always asked his master—he’d developed that habit a long time ago. Even if his master suddenly forgot him and might never remember him again… Xiu Xiu wiped away a tear and told himself it didn’t matter. He would never give up on his master!

Xiu Xiu carefully spoke to Si Qi: [Master…]

Si Qi ignored him and continued dealing with his work.

Xiu Xiu felt a bit aggrieved at being ignored but still tried hard to speak: [Master, I’m not a forbidden object. Do you still remember that you traveled to this world from another one?]

Si Qi: […]

This forbidden object could actually access his memories? Or—was it just that everything it said was a hallucination generated from his own mind, which was why it could mention things only he would know?

Xiu Xiu: [Xiu Xiu isn’t very smart and doesn’t know how to convince you, but you’re very clever, Master. If you ask Xiu Xiu some questions, you might be able to get some useful information?]

Si Qi: […]

Knowing that Si Qi usually responded to situations like this by completely ignoring the hallucinations to prevent them from developing further, Xiu Xiu wasn’t discouraged and kept talking: [Then Xiu Xiu will just say a few things for you to analyze. Please don’t find me noisy, Master.]

[…]

Xiu Xiu: [Outside of this world, there are many, many others. You are a transmigrator who, under the Lord God’s rule, travels across different worlds to promote the advancement of civilizations and prevent their destruction.]

Si Qi frowned slightly and shook his head, trying to drive the voice out of his mind.

The lies spun by this corruption were getting more and more ridiculous.

Xiu Xiu: [The Lord God is your lover. In the small worlds, his name is Chu Feng. Xiu Xiu is your system and has accompanied you through 227 worlds. I’m your best partner!]

[You were always so, so good to me. Xiu Xiu loves you the most, wuwuwu…]

His words accidentally slipped into something a bit too personal. Maybe because he had been cherished by Si Qi for so long, suddenly being forgotten was just too much for Xiu Xiu. He secretly wiped away another tear and went on: [Master, you can ask me about any detail from those worlds—Xiu Xiu can answer, really! Though I might be a bit slow, since I had some issues recently and can only use a small portion of my abilities.]

He gestured with his claw, fine as a strand of hair, showing a gap smaller than a sesame seed, and hung his head, discouraged.

Si Qi’s voice came, sounding especially impatient: [If… you really did go through so many worlds…]

Xiu Xiu lit up with excitement the moment he realized Si Qi was finally responding. A gleam of joy flickered across his single eye as he quickly said: [Yes, yes!]

Si Qi: [Then, do you know how to destroy an evil god?]

His tone was clearly mocking. After all, no forbidden object would ever want to destroy an evil god—not only would that violate their most fundamental “rules,” it also went against their species’ very instincts.

Even when Si Qi consulted the Mirror of Truth, the question he asked was how to save the world, not how to defeat the evil god.

To his surprise, Xiu Xiu answered without hesitation: [Let the Lord God—no wait, in this world it’s more appropriate to call him the Child of the World! Let the Child of the World collect the divine powers left behind by the fallen god, and he’ll be able to stand against the evil god!]

Si Qi raised his eyebrows slightly.

Xiu Xiu (in his own mind) was thrilled that, for once, he could actually help Si Qi. He eagerly repeated the information he’d received from the world consciousness, enthusiastically saying: [Only the last piece—Divine Power—hasn’t been found yet. Once we find it, the Lord God will become unimaginably powerful!]

Si Qi fell silent for a moment.

He knew that talking to forbidden objects—and accepting, understanding, or believing what they said—was extremely dangerous. Many forbidden objects could weave entire false worldviews for their victims, making them believe the world they saw was fake, that humans were monsters. They’d believe the kind therapist trying to help them was actually a devil keeping them trapped in hell. To truly “wake up” from the nightmare, they’d be convinced they needed to jump off a building and “die” in this world…

Si Qi had seen far too many such cases.

Yet for some reason, when he heard this ugly little bug talking, a faint emotion of tenderness rose in his heart.

When he heard Xiu Xiu crying, he even felt a sudden urge to wipe the other’s tears.

He had seen too many cunning forbidden objects manipulating human emotions—tricking people into thinking they were beloved family, turning loved ones into hated enemies, inciting mutual slaughter and heartbreaking farewells… forbidden objects were masters at exploiting feelings. Si Qi told himself he shouldn’t believe a word this creature said.

Coldly, he asked: [If you’re really so obedient to me, then what if I told you to die—would you do it?]

Xiu Xiu froze instantly, completely bewildered.

As his mind slowly returned from the blank shock it had suffered, Xiu Xiu’s body began to tremble uncontrollably. His single eye welled with tears and began to drip, and his young, quivering voice sounded pitiful beyond words: [Xiu… Xiu Xiu will do whatever the Master says… wuwuwu… Master, do you not want Xiu Xiu anymore…?]

That same tender, heart-wrenching emotion surged again, like a pain tearing through the heart.

Si Qi was irritated, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t bring himself to say anything more threatening or mocking. It was as if something deep in his soul was warning him—Don’t say that. You’ll regret it.

In the past, forbidden objects had taken the form of his parents to deceive him, and he had hesitated for a moment. But this one seemed unusually powerful, shaking his resolve again and again. If this happened in a life-or-death moment, Si Qi couldn’t guarantee he’d be able to make the right choice without hesitation.

Chu Feng pushed the door open and stepped in, seeing Si Qi sitting at his desk expressionless, while the monster behind him paced back and forth with an unhappy growl.

This one seemed to be a particularly troublesome forbidden object.

Chu Feng said, “I looked through the archive of previously sealed objects and found a few that could help with auditory hallucinations. Want to try them?”

Si Qi: “This forbidden object is ranked even higher than the Mirror of Truth. Ordinary sealed objects won’t work on it.”

Xiu Xiu muttered quietly: [That’s because Xiu Xiu isn’t a forbidden object… I was made by the Lord God with the world’s power…]

What was even scarier was that Si Qi was incredibly skilled at using world power. If he truly wanted to kill Xiu Xiu… he probably could.

Xiu Xiu worried that if he died now and Si Qi later regained his memories, Si Qi would be overwhelmed with guilt. So he decided to be more careful and try to preserve his little life—he didn’t want his master to be sad when he remembered everything.

Thus, clever little Xiu Xiu used his secret weapon—flattering (strikethrough)—no, presenting to Si Qi the grand Compendium of Love Between Master and Lord God, compiled over the years. He projected scenes of their happiest moments from various worlds into Si Qi’s mind.

He was sure Si Qi would like this.

Si Qi: […]

Chu Feng noticed that the monster behind Si Qi had suddenly stopped moving, its body rigid as it stared with full attention at some invisible point in the air. Surprised, he asked, “What’s wrong?”

Just as Si Qi opened his mouth to respond, the scene in his mind shifted—two people collapsed together beneath red curtains, their clothes undone, bodies tangled…

Si Qi’s face instantly flushed red. Furious, he snapped, “This is… this is utterly shameless!”

Xiu Xiu: [what?]

Chu Feng: “…?”

But the soul behind you doesn’t seem to agree.

Its tail was swaying, it looked excited and curious, and its eyes kept glancing toward that certain spot—as if it found the scene quite interesting.

Chu Feng, increasingly worried, said, “Looks like this forbidden object is extremely dangerous.”

Not only auditory hallucinations—it could even create illusions capable of shaking Si Qi’s rational mind.

Si Qi bit his lip, trying hard to look away. But the visions were playing directly in his mind; even with his eyes closed, he could still see them—this was a common symptom of cognitive contamination.

And the scenes kept piling up—more and more vivid images of him and Chu Feng in all sorts of situations, all kinds of locations, engaging in intimate acts. In most of them, he was the one seducing Chu Feng, lying beneath him and passively accepting…

Enraged and humiliated, Si Qi shouted, “Enough!”

Absolutely ridiculous!

Chu Feng, alarmed, asked, “What’s going on? What are you seeing? It’s all fake! These are illusions created by the forbidden object—fabrications meant to tempt you, deceive you—”

“I know that!” Si Qi snapped. But hearing it bluntly from Chu Feng’s own mouth still made him blush with shame and frustration. “Just leave. Get out of here!”

Looking at the absurd scenes in his mind, and then at the real face that perfectly matched them in front of him, Si Qi couldn’t handle continuing this conversation while “thinking” such things. It was too much. It violated every last boundary of his pride and shame.

Seeing that Si Qi seemed angry, Xiu Xiu panicked and immediately turned off the imagery. He then hid behind a floating leaf of the World Tree, hoping the master hadn’t noticed it was him.

But Xiu Xiu was confused—he clearly saw Master and Lord God kissing last night. Master should like those kinds of scenes… they were supposed to make him feel happy…

In the past, even though Xiu Xiu knew he wasn’t very smart, he always felt confident. It didn’t matter—he had Master. Master would love him, so why bother worrying about anything else? But now, with his master in trouble, and himself unable to help, failing again and again—he felt a kind of frustration and sadness he had never experienced before. He hated how lazy and aimless he’d been. Now, he couldn’t even offer the slightest bit of help.

Xiu Xiu’s emotions affected Si Qi as well. And despite himself, Si Qi couldn’t help feeling a surge of tenderness for that dumb little thing hiding behind the leaf, pretending he couldn’t be seen.

He ground his teeth in frustration.

But at least this much confirmed one thing: that little guy was definitely lying. After all, there was no way in hell he would be the one on the bottom. That contradiction was just way too obvious.

Xiu Xiu: […]