Chapter 159: The Foundation is Secure

Chapter 159: The Foundation is Secure

Mackey was born in Camp Port of the Keville Empire, a river port where his family had made a living for generations by hauling boats.

The hardships of hauling boats need no elaboration.

However, he was far luckier than his ancestors.

Not long after he started hauling, an imperial decree led to the widespread adoption of the Internet.

The advent of the Internet opened Mackey’s eyes to a whole new world.

Though he was illiterate, many of the Internet’s features didn’t require literacy to use.

For instance, online classes on the Internet didn’t demand reading—just click and listen.

Originally, he had wanted to learn Magic.

Unfortunately, Magic was too profound. Being illiterate, he struggled to grasp even the basics despite listening to online lectures for over a month.

Disheartened, he switched to Battle Aura—and to his surprise, he made some progress.

Within just three days, he had cultivated his first wisp of Battle Aura.

He still remembered how ecstatic he was when he first succeeded. He outright refused to keep hauling boats, defiantly telling his elders he was done!

He wanted to become a mercenary.

But dreams are plump, while reality is bony.

His meager Battle Aura couldn’t even defeat a young girl in a mercenary group, and no mercenary group would take him in.

Humiliated, he slunk back to his village.

Unsurprisingly, he became the laughingstock of the village for a while.

He kept his head down, saying nothing, and trained even harder in Battle Aura. His perseverance paid off—with Battle Aura enhancing him, his strength grew, and his endurance improved.

Eventually… he even managed to land a job at a newly opened bicycle factory in the city.

Overnight, he became the envy of the entire village.

Everyone knew that ever since Lord Ajef founded the Dragon Factory, all sorts of factories had sprung up like bamboo shoots after rain across the empire.

Not only were the wages high, but the benefits were excellent. Countless people longed for such jobs but couldn’t get their foot in the door.

Back then, Mackey was brimming with pride!

In his first month on the job, he even used his employee discount to buy his very first bicycle.

He would never forget the awe on his villagers’ faces the day he rode that bicycle back home.

Good heavens—the entire village crowded outside his house, gaping at his bicycle as if it were some marvel.

Even Shirley, who used to ignore him, suddenly became shy and chatty, asking him to teach her how to ride. Mackey was so thrilled he barely slept that night.

That said, while Mackey took pride in his factory job, there was also a tinge of bitterness.

While outsiders clamored to get in, some insiders secretly wanted out.

The factory was grueling.

Facing the assembly line, there wasn’t a moment’s rest.

Even hauling boats hadn’t been this exhausting.

Honestly!

Hauling was tough, but at least it came in bursts. When there was no work, everyone would sit by the shore, chatting, joking, catching shrimp or fish.

Of course, saying this might sound like taking blessings for granted.

He had to admit—factory wages were undeniably good.

At least the future earnings were predictable.

Now, he could calculate exactly how much he’d make each month.

Unlike before, when every day was filled with anxiety, fretting over the tides.

High tide meant no business; low tide meant backbreaking labor!

Now, he had only one goal in mind: work hard, train his Battle Aura diligently, learn to read, and strive to advance his Battle Aura cultivation as quickly as possible—so he could finally become a mercenary.

Amid the monotonous days that blurred into one another, the city's Magic Tower suddenly activated on this particular day. A magical shield enveloped the sky above the city, and countless sheets of paper fluttered down from the heavens like snow.

At the time, he was eating lunch when the abrupt activation of the Magic Tower sent him into a panic, thinking war had broken out again. Fortunately, despite the widespread fear, no conflict erupted.

A literate coworker told him that these were prayer leaflets scattered by the God of Death, spreading the Dark Web.

The Dark Web?

Mackey’s curiosity was instantly piqued.

Amid his coworker’s hushed whispers, he logged into the Dark Web for the first time.

Good heavens!

Even though Mackey had experienced the Internet, the Dark Web still left him stunned. The way it manifested directly in the soul was simply too convenient.

That afternoon, he listened to music while working, and time flew by—it couldn’t have been more pleasant.

When he returned home that night, he secretly logged into the Followers of the God of Death, witnessing the legendary Underworld for the first time and learning the fate of souls after death.

He was utterly shaken.

He even changed his faith.

The Dark Web claimed that only believers of the God of Death could enter His divine realm after death, enjoying eternal prosperity and wealth. Otherwise, souls would fall into the Underworld, becoming Ghosts, or even hideous zombies and skeleton soldiers.

That night, Mackey spent hours slaughtering undead creatures—it was exhilarating.

The next day, Mackey went to work as usual.

But the atmosphere in the factory was noticeably off.

The arrival of the Dark Web had stirred unrest among the workers. Some even chatted openly on the Dark Web during work hours, cursing the line supervisor for abusing his authority.

Mackey found it thrilling and joined in, hurling insults in the Dark Web’s channels. It felt like a long-overdue release of pent-up frustration.

At noon, a mage lord arrived at the factory to lecture on the dangers of the Dark Web.

When Mackey heard that the Dark Web was merely a scheme by the God of Death and that logging in would cause soul loss, he panicked again, his faith wavering.

The mage lord continued:

"The God of Death has no divine realm—why would He build one for you without any benefit? Just because you worship Him? In truth, you are nothing but lambs deceived by the God of Death. He intends to steal and devour your souls!"

The factory manager added that the Empire had banned the Dark Web, and anyone caught using it would be fired and face legal punishment.

These words terrified Mackey.

That afternoon, a tragic incident occurred in the factory.

A worker, distracted while secretly browsing the Dark Web, was caught in a machine, his body half-crushed into minced meat.

Hearing this story, Mackey felt a chill run down his spine, his fear growing even stronger.

He became convinced that the God of Death was killing them to feast on their souls.

That night, he trembled under his blankets at home.

Unable to bear the terror any longer, he knelt in his room and prayed to the Internet God for forgiveness.

Only after a long while did he finally feel somewhat at ease.

Returning to bed, he logged into the long-neglected Internet.

The moment he connected, he was stunned.

The Internet had rolled out an update—a new feature. After frantically sending voice messages to his friends for answers, he learned that the Internet God had also introduced a soul-projection feature.

Upon learning this news, Mackey switched the Internet to soul-projection mode and froze in place.

He could hardly resist slapping himself across the face!

Damn it, look at how pathetic you were—just because the Dark Web had a soul-projection mode, you got all excited and nearly thought the God of Death was some kind of savior!

If he really were a savior, would he call himself the God of Death?

Just hearing the name made it obvious he was no good—clearly an evil god!

Now, things were better—the Internet had also rolled out soul-projection mode!

Compared to the Dark Web’s experience, it was just as good, if not better.

If his coworkers reported him for secretly logging into the Dark Web and he lost his job, what would he do then?

…

When the Keville Empire began exerting its influence—promoting the Dark Web’s flaws in ideology and enacting administrative bans—the Dark Web’s market share in the empire plummeted instantly!

After the Internet also updated with soul-projection mode, the Dark Web’s market share in Keville dropped to single digits almost overnight.

Especially among intellectuals, mages, and even nobles, the Dark Web had no market left at all.

Because this Internet update didn’t just introduce soul-projection mode—it also included the Privacy Treaty.

Perhaps most commoners wouldn’t pay attention to this detail.

But the intellectuals did!

They cared—deeply!

Because the Privacy Treaty addressed the flaw of "Those who use divine techniques will inevitably be watched by the gods."

Through the power of contract, the Internet God bound himself—vowing never to watch users or spy on their private information!

For the social elite, this detail couldn’t be more crucial.

In short, within the Keville Empire, the Internet’s market share stabilized and maintained absolute dominance!

In other preaching zones, the Internet and the Dark Web split the market evenly.

The stabilization of his core territory allowed Yu Sheng’an to heave a long sigh of relief.

But before he could implement his next strategic move, the God of Death’s sudden strategic retreat made him frown.