Strange Grief Wants to Retire ~ The Weakest Hunter Dreams of a Hero ~ - Chapter 8: Stew in the Dark

All things are born from the void and all things shall return to the void.

Elias, a large and beautiful world consisting of millions of planes and millions of different races.

And such a wonderful world is run by powerful beings called Gods! Born from the dawn of time their divine might shines on all beings.

Over time It is said that the Gods created everything. But is that really true?

If so, who created the Gods?

Accidentally reincarnated in this strange world due to an unforeseen accident. With a thirst for knowledge and a hunger for power, Elric with the help of his A.I chip seeks a way out for himself whilst under the oppression of the Gods.

Soon under Elric's relentless desire for knowledge, the first group of humans with powers comparable to Gods were born, Wizards!

He dissected a flame slime and learnt to control flames.

He studied a dragon and created dragon-slaying magic.

He tasted a Phoenix and cracked the secret to immortality.

Unexpectedly before he knew it most of the races in Elias had been studied and dissected by him already.

One day when he was bored and there was nothing to do, Elric suddenly turned to the sky with a sly smile on his face.

“I know! Why don't I study the Gods!”

That day the whole Elias shook. with a crazy smile on his face Elric led an army of wizards and stormed the God realm!

Renji was nothing special. No wealth, no fame, no grand ambitions—just a 23-year-old gamer wasting his days in a cluttered apartment, escaping reality through the immersive world of Eternal Realms. In the game, he was powerful, respected, a leader—the elven king, commanding armies and shaping the fate of kingdoms. But outside the screen, he was just another nobody.That all changed the moment his world shattered.What started as a routine gaming session took a terrifying turn when his screen flickered, reality twisted, and an unnatural force yanked him from his chair. When he opened his eyes, he wasn’t in his apartment anymore. He was in a world of towering forests and ancient magic. He was wearing regal robes, a golden crown resting atop his head. And before him stood four elven women, their expressions filled with reverence and concern.They called him King.Memories not his own flooded his mind—battles, alliances, the weight of a kingdom’s future resting on his shoulders. It wasn’t just a game anymore. This was real. And the fate of the elven race now depended on him.But Renji wasn’t a hero. He wasn’t a warrior. He was just a gamer who had no idea how to rule a kingdom, let alone survive in a world teetering on the brink of war.But Just as he was pondering on it a mechanical voice sounded in his mind.

Anton is a great-grandfather. He is living quite a happy life, despite his advanced age and declining health… until a group of cultivator bandits moves into the area. The nearby guardians of the area, the Order of Ninety-Nine Stars, are unable to track them down as they continue to ravage nearby towns. During one desperate winter Anton is out on a hunt when his family- his entire village- is killed or taken as slaves by the bandits. He lacks the strength to fight them, and he wasn’t even present for their arrival to die with his loved ones. At the pit of his despair, he wonders if he ever had any chance to change things. What could he even do? He cannot even pull his best bow, and his eyesight is failing. If he had been a cultivator… perhaps there might have been a chance, but he was decades- perhaps even most of his life- too late.Participant in the Royal Road Writathon challenge (2022)Notes on cultivation levels:There are five general stages of cultivation, though the fifth is extremely rare. Each cultivation style might have their own name for the stages.1. Body Tempering2. Spirit Building/ occasionally System Creation (Ninety-Nine Stars)3. Constellation Formation (Ninety-Nine Stars)4. Life Transformation/Galaxy Construction (Ninety-Nine Stars)5. Ascension

The next morning, Jian Anning asked, “What is happiness?” Yu Xingxing hooked his lips into a smile and suddenly pulled her into a tight embrace. “Happiness,” he said, “is being with the one you love and doing things that make you happy. Let's continue, wife!” Jian Anning kicked him off. “Get lost!”