Welcome to Rewind World Game

The seventh day of replica activation.

At 2:00 AM, Mizushima Kawa Sora publicly disclosed her identity as a "Disciple."

She registered a social media account online and uploaded a video. In the video, she wore a crystal crown on her head, a dazzling golden ring hanging from her neck, and sat on a throne in a grand hall. Her hair was styled up, revealing a red tattoo on her earlobe.

"The instant death rule I possess is not highly versatile, but it is very targeted," Mizushima Kawa Sora said. "Everyone, if you believe that I can win, please join the Holy Alliance Army."

At 3:00 AM, the second "Disciple" publicly acknowledged his identity — Player Xue Qixia. Xue Qixia was ranked ninety-sixth among players, proficient in spirit-related skills.

He also released a video. In the video, he wore a gold and white sacrificial robe, smiling and waving at the camera, revealing a red tattoo on his left arm: "I am one of the nine disciples, and I am confident in winning the final victory in the Disciples' Battle. I hope insightful individuals will come to support me. Of course..."

He blinked, his smile radiating sunlight: "If the Number One Player is also a disciple, I hope you will show mercy."

At 3:20 AM, the third "Disciple" publicly acknowledged his identity — Prince Bivis of the Lailuo Empire. In the video, he sat on a gilded throne, displaying a red tattoo on his clavicle.

"If any of you are interested in betting, as the prince of the Lailuo Empire, I can offer you generous rewards," Bivis marketed himself.

Since these three disciples disclosed their identities, the other disciples have remained silent.

At 3:30 AM, an unexpected Oracle descended — [Completely prohibit tracing history, destroy all records related to history, and kill anyone who attempts to trace history].

More than seven million shrines around the world received this Oracle, and it quickly spread to everyone via the internet.

The Deity finally responded mercilessly and firmly to the First Dream Patrol Family's storytelling on the high platform — since you made it public, I will use an Oracle to publicly stop you, to see whether humanity stands on your side or continues to faithfully believe in their omnipotent deities.

At 3:40 AM, the Holy Alliance Army was dispatched, breaking into people's homes and confiscating any books containing past literature, art, and history.

In just twenty minutes, over a million Holy Alliance Army troops were deployed from fifty-eight independent entities. Hundreds of thousands of homes were left in ruins. From the heights of the city, even in the middle of the night, the streets and alleys remained bright as day, with trucks carrying books lined up one after another.

"Stop! These are treasures of knowledge! They are the fruits of decades of research by my students and me, they cannot be thrown away! You—" At North Qing University, Professor Xiao Lanping's tears fell, fogging up her glasses.

"Professor Xiao! Don't go!" The assistants quickly stopped her: "Don't be impulsive, that's the Holy Alliance Army!"

The Holy Alliance Army's player, Miao Bu, tossed the file in her hand, sneering: "The Oracle has been issued, don't think there's any room for negotiation. In the past, you could hide in the shadows to study history, but now it's impossible. I say— you should wake up and obey your most revered deities."

She paid no mind to these people's suffering; completing the task was her duty as a player. As for the years of hard work contained in those files, it was irrelevant to her.

With a "tear," she ripped the file in half, paper flying like snowflakes in the sky, the data people had written day and night, the drawings they had painstakingly crafted... vanished just like that.

"Ah... ah... ah—!" Xiao Lanping fell to the ground, her eyes reddened with anger.

The dust kicked up by the trucks choked their throats, the dazzling sword light flashed before their eyes, preventing them from making a sound.

Tonight, the world lay sleepless.

No one expected the Oracle to be issued so decisively.

Miao Bu finished tearing up the files and spat on the ground:

"Pah, these papers should've been burned long ago. Back in Zhai Xing, I had to stay up all night writing papers at the end of every semester, and now it's finally my turn to tear them up."

She glanced at the grief-stricken students and left without a trace of mercy.

Xiao Lanping trembled as she picked up the shattered papers, tears slowly falling.

...

At 3:50 AM, Su Ming'an logged onto the internet and saw the discussions about the Oracle.

[Sweetheart Bunny: Is there really no problem with this? In the past, there was some leniency, but now even the books hidden at home are being brought out and burned...]

[Egg Flower Soup: Is it really okay for humanity to lose its history? The First Dream Patrol Family's live broadcast speech, the stories he told of the fifty Fire Transmitters... It's hard not to be moved...]

[Su Ming'an is perfect: Shh... The deities must be right!]

[Hardworking Worker: The First Dream Patrol Family is ultimately just human. No matter how strong he is, he can't shake millions of Holy Alliance soldiers, let alone the omnipotent deities.]

[Powder Blue: But, if we forget the past, how are we any different from newly born androids?]

[Spade Prussia: If the world's really ending, hurry it up, I've been tired of it, humanity should've been destroyed ages ago, let my crappy bosses die already.]

...

At 3:55 AM, Su Ming'an received a call from Lu.

"I know your situation, is it convenient to talk now?" Lu's voice remained gentle, even though the situation was deteriorating rapidly.

Su Ming'an glanced at Chao Yan curled up in the fridge and said, "Go ahead."

Lu said, "Are the deities so eager to erase history to prevent you from becoming a god?"

Su Ming'an said, "Yes. To ensure the Old Gods are permanently powerless, all faith foundations related to them must be obliterated. When humanity forgets past poetry, painting, and literature, they will no longer cling to past gods."

Lu said, "Understood. Yamada Machiichi and I plan to stay near The First Tower, we feel something is wrong, with recent exotic species riots, the Exotic Species King is awakening. We suspect they might emerge near The First Tower."

Su Ming'an said, "Okay, what about the others?"

Lu said, "Mo Yan is going to the Ubang Nation to investigate, he believes the 'girl needing escort' might be there. Noel is heading to the Human Self-Rescue Alliance, intending to form a line of battle under the alias 'Tang' and 'Su Shize' for you to take over later. Isabella is going to the Central Research Institute to protect the last historical records. Mizushima Kawa Sora is meeting leaders of various forces in the temple, seemingly eager to defeat other disciples. As for the player named 'Xue Qixia,' he's leading the Holy Alliance Army to search everywhere, looking for the three elements of becoming a god."

Su Ming'an paused thoughtfully, then said, "Understood."

Lu said, "With this Oracle's release, the world has become a massive net... Under this net, everyone is quickly finding their place. And you are the one who can pull the strings of this net— so, what do you plan to do?"

Su Ming'an gazed at the Eye of the Old Days in his hand, its pupil moving vividly.

"...Our path is very challenging," Su Ming'an said. "Humans cannot resist deities."

"Yes, very challenging, one might even call it hell," Lu said. "Honestly, I don't think we can take the 'defy the deities' route, it's too difficult. The vast majority will obey the deities, I see no light."

"So, I can only place myself on the same level as God." Su Ming'an said.

"You mean…" Lu's breathing was heavy, he had already realized Su Ming'an's thoughts.

"Since humanity cannot oppose the deities…" Su Ming'an said lightly, "I suppose I can only walk Acto's old path—'self-proclaim as a god.'"

Lu's breath hitched.

A moment later, Lu said: "...I understand, then, Su Ming'an... no, Old God. Henceforth, we shall call you this way."

...

At four in the morning, Su Ming'an revealed his identity.

Just like Mizushima Kawa Sora, Xue Qixia, Bivis, and Zou Yuqing, Su Ming'an became the fifth person to disclose his identity as a disciple. At the same time, he also revealed his identity as the "Fifty-first Fire Transmitter."

His video backdrop was not as solemn as Mizushima Kawa Sora nor as magnificent as Bivis. He simply sat in a chair, with a snow-white wall behind him.

Chao Yan adjusted the camera for him, and Su Ming'an took a deep breath.

When the red light of the camera began to flash, Su Ming'an raised his head.

"It has been a long time since I last gave a formal speech. I remember, the last time I summoned everyone to fight was on the city wall." Su Ming'an said:

"I imagine you must be curious about what happened after the fiftieth Fire Transmitter, whom the Special Medicine ultimately went to, and who became the Savior."

"I want to tell you—the young man who held the glass bottle back then traveled very, very far, and never gave up on the ideal of salvation. He contacted major forces day and night and eventually sank to the lake's bottom. Yet he did not die, that young man, he has... come before you now."

He exerted all his strength to move his arm, slowly pressing his chest:

"Here."

"He lives here, he hasn't died. He has... come here now."

More and more people entered the livestream, and Su Ming'an started the broadcast as the Number One Dream Patrol Family, causing nearly everyone to pour in.

The comment section was closed, people could only silently gaze at the young man in the camera through the thin lens.

—Does he know to whom he is declaring war?

—His future is promising and bright, why does he choose to self-immolate?

Su Ming'an stared straight into the lens, his golden pupils as calm as lake waters:

"I once reviewed records, decades ago, there existed a beautiful bird in this world. Its name is no longer traceable, but its appearance and temperament resemble the 'Nightingale' I know, so let's call them 'Nightingales.'"

"The Nightingale's singing is exceptionally outstanding. In a world where humans dared not sing, they were braver than humans."

"The land beneath our feet, before it turned into concrete and steel, was once a flourishing forest where Nightingales built nests. Their ancestors lived here for thousands of years, reproducing generation after generation. They sang and voiced the weight of their souls, undeterred by hunters, continuing with their hoarse throats—until they were persecuted to the brink, and the last songbird died, turning the forest into a cold city."

"In this era, I have become the last 'Nightingale.'"

His hands spread open, revealing the Alliance Hierarch's mask and the Deputy Minister's badge, along with Su Wensheng's rusty pencil box:

"When all Nightingales can no longer voice, my throat still sings."

"I want to tell people—we were not born into 'concrete and steel,' we once belonged to the 'forest,' where we could boldly sing, celebrate, even paint, write, carve... and not forget everything of our homeland, becoming wanderers of civilization."

"I want to tell people—even if the 'forest' is no longer, and we lose the last inch of memory of it, I still imagine—imagining myself amid a forest dappled with sunlight, leaves hanging down, flowers blooming, I tread between mountains and rivers, lifting my head as spring peach blossoms land on my shoulders."

"I want to tell people—winter is not eternal, cracks in walls will be patched, flowers will bloom in gardens. People will love amidst flames and shouts."

"Let the pioneers' laden bones be buried in a noisy spring."

"They shouldn't be buried in a civilization's foreign land, unable to find their way home upon return."

"So that I carry their return path, becoming the endpoint and miracle of civilization."

"Everyone."

Su Ming'an slowly raised the Eye of the Old Days in his hand:

"I am the Old God from a thousand years ago; today's deities took hold of my divinity, turning you into forgotten history's walking dead."

"Their goal is armageddon, whereas mine is the opposite; I hope to lead you back to an era full of freedom's pipe music."

"I am the Number One Dream Patrol Family, also the Old God."

"To those still awake, those who find their way back, those unwilling to kneel—follow me, I shall grant you love and forgiveness."

His speech lasted a long time.

He said above is Heavenly Valley, below is Nine Serenities. Good people, after death, will go to Heavenly Valley, enjoying endless bliss; evil ones, after death, will go to Nine Serenities, their souls suffering greatly.

He said there are sevenfold sins in the Mortal World, forgetting one's roots is a great sin, needing to endure the Sevenfold Purgatory's torment.

He said humans' posthumous virtue and vice are judged by angels. In the past, people would write their life's achievements on papyrus for angelic review. Once history is forgotten, achievements vanish.

He said today's catechism has been altered. Order Angel is not Light, but Li Mingyue. Slaughter Angel is not Umbra, but Xiao Ying. Judgment Angel is not Sapphire, but Chao Yan.

He said those who worship the Old God will have a bright life in the next realm, peace and health, eternally and forever.

His storytelling lasted a while, everyone could only silently listen.

Until he softly nodded, signaling Chao Yan to end the livestream, Chao Yan then closed the livestream.

The room was silent, Su Ming'an slowly stood from the chair, his legs slightly numb. He gazed out the window at the night sky, city lights glowing red, wind noise filled his ears.