Ghost Notes - Chapter 23: Threads of the City

In a world where everyone is a slave, someone is born who cannot be controlled. At the same time, an unstoppable villain rises on a quest for revenge. But the truth is darker than he ever imagined, and now he must face an unbeatable enemy — including himself.***Bruno was a young man born on Earth, the son of an influential modern Emperor. Despite having everything money could buy and receiving the best and most rigorous training to succeed his father, he chose the opposite path, defying his family’s ruthless rule.The price of his innocence? A merciless death and the complete erasure of his existence by the deity controlling his fate. On Earth, the law of the powerful was absolute; a slave could never rebel.But then, he wakes up again.He’s reborn in a world of cultivation, where freedom was promised to those strong enough to claim it. Now, he could soar like a free bird and carve his own destiny... or so he thought.The harsh reality of this new world soon showed him how insignificant he still was. He realized he had only changed masters.The freedom he sought was an illusion. The heavenly laws treated everyone as servants, and their rules were unbreakable. Bruno learned this bitter truth after losing everything that made him happy due to an unjust rule.But who was he to question?Hopeless, Bruno died... and was reborn as Alm, an unstoppable villain. With a soul poisoned by pain and vengeance, he sowed chaos across the universe. Planets were destroyed, countless lives taken, and his name became synonymous with terror.A hero rose to oppose him, wielding a sacred sword of hope. People from all corners of the universe united against Alm, raising their voices and weapons to stop the villain who defied the heavens.But Alm was no longer just fighting for revenge. He was challenging the heavenly laws that sought to control him, fighting fate and all living beings.And against all odds... the sacred sword shattered. The alliance of the entire universe was defeated.The villain won!Now, Alm found himself alone in the empty void of a dead universe, facing his own inner demons. Who could be more ruthless to him than himself?“What have I done?”At that moment, the doors of truth opened to him.Everyone was a puppet of a supreme figure, an entity that manipulated minds and even the heavenly laws.“I will find you, no matter where you are!”Thus, the last emissary of the true Heaven’s Will awakened. Alm, who once only relied on his sheer will and rage, now had a system to guide him. But his opponent was an immortal existence, above even the heavens.The villain who destroyed an entire universe now faced a new beginning. He discovered that the universe he devastated was just a tiny grain of sand in an infinite cosmos, where countless other universes existed.And so begins the legendary tale of the villain’s rise... and the Sacred Round God? A strange Duality of Shadows existed within one person.But this time, he wouldn’t be alone.***To clear up any potential confusion or frustration, here are some key points about the story. I’ll avoid major spoilers, but a few things will be revealed.You might find this concerning at first, but just check the book cover—it shows the main character and his only partner. She first appears at 10 years old, but rest assured, there’s no inappropriate content or early romance.At around 13, SHE starts developing feelings for the protagonist, but he doesn’t respond until she’s an adult. With her determined personality, she tries to seduce him at 17/18, but it doesn’t work. Their relationship only happens much later.The book has nods to other works, with my own spin on them, and focuses on avoiding elements I find problematic in other stories.Lastly, the beautiful book cover was commissioned and created by HDIArt.

Civilization is destroyed and records lost. Only Dudian survives in a cryogenic sleep. Three hundred years later, Dudian wakes up and must become Dean to survive. Who can he trust in this world overrun by monsters without and within?

- Description from Novelupdates

In a world of magic and monsters, I carved out my own empire. Hellfire Studios - my brainchild, my legacy.It all started with “The Demonfather” - a blatant copy from my past life, sure, but this world had never seen anything like it. Humans, elves, dwarves - they all fell in love with it. Critics raved, audiences cheered, and suddenly, I was on top.But the world thought I was a one-hit wonder. They had no idea what was coming.I unleashed “The Lord of the Rings” upon them. The result? Critics were left speechless, fumbling for words to describe what they'd witnessedBut why stop at movies? This world was stuck in the past, so I dragged it into the future. I created computers, birthed video games, and watched as everyone from imps to elf elders became addicted to pixels and polygons.Still not satisfied, I turned to music. I crafted stars, produced hits, and soon had the entire realm dancing to my tunes.But even that wasn't enough. Comics, manga, cartoons, anime, novels - I introduced them all. I flooded this world with stories and art forms they'd never dreamed of.Before long, people weren't just consuming my creations - they begun worshipping me. They started calling me “The Lord of Entertainment.”

【Your descendants in the Immortal Cultivation World have offered a plate of snacks】【Incense Fire Value +10】【Would you like to reward your descendants?】Yang Genshuo was surprised to discover that offerings in the Immortal Cultivation Family game could actually appear in the modern world, and that modern items could also be bestowed upon descendants in the game.Years later, peculiar rumors about the Yang Family spread throughout the Immortal Cultivation World.“To break through from the Fetal Breathing Stage to the Qi Refinement Realm, one needs to refine a strand of heavenly and earth's spiritual energy. I've heard of Red Flame True Qi, Xuan Water True Qi, and Green Wood Spirit Energy, but Yang Dao-friend, this... Liquefied Natural Gas, what kind of spiritual energy is it? How is it condensed?”“I've heard that the Yang Family's Spiritual Plant Technique is incredibly sophisticated, with each mu of Spirit Rice yielding twice as much as top-tier Spirit Plant Families, all thanks to a strange secret technique the family disciples cultivate called 'hybridization'.”“The Yang Family’s art of elixirs is unrivaled in the world, with new elixirs constantly being created. It is rumored that a spirit of the elixir named 'Artificial Intelligence' tirelessly deduces elixir recipes day and night...”“Nowadays, the Thunder Cultivators of the Yang Family are exceptionally strong, all thanks to the Yang Family's effort in creating a top-tier Thunder Gathering Array. Thunder Cultivators who enter this array can increase their cultivation speed multiple times. It is said that the array eye is known as—the power station.“As the Yang Immortal Cultivation Family grew stronger, Yang Genshuo actually became the only Immortal in the modern world by consuming offerings!Years later, facing an endless stream of people ascending the mountain to seek the Dao, Yang Genshuo calmly said,”There are no immortals in this world; you must believe in science!“Then he soared away on his flying sword.