They all call me an Outer God.

Clearly, he was asking a serious question.

Claden also found Ria's behavior inexplicable, but having experienced Sofia's torment, he figured that people with high meme counts were probably all like that, acting strangely every day, and it was best to just treat them as unreasonable old people.

"You ask me if there is any need for the world to exist? Of course there is. Plants can't just stop living because they experience storms. Even if the sky falls, there's always something taller holding it up."

“Look at me, I used to be a small-time gambler. I didn’t do anything particularly illegal, and I had a wife and children at home. Did I want to gamble? It was because I was really broke that I had no choice but to rely on gambling to change my fate. I won a lot of money and bought them food, shelter, clothes and other necessities.”

Later, when I contracted a contamination disease, they didn't abandon me. Instead, they tried to find ways to treat me, even avoiding the people from the Order Association.

Do you think I could abandon them? Everyone has people or things they love; these are the pillars of our hearts, and it is with these that we can be called human beings.

I'm a coward, a nobody. I think if the sky falls, someone taller will hold it up. But if that day ever comes, I will unhesitatingly protect them, because to my family, I am the greatest one…”

Claden seemed to be reminiscing as he pulled a pocket watch from his pocket, inside which were photos of his wife and children.

In the scene, an ordinary woman and an ordinary child smile brightly, holding a black and white puppy and making a "V" sign in the direction of the camera. Though ordinary, it is precious.

Ria also looked at little Swarth: "A pillar of support?"

Remembering these things is enough to maintain humanity and be called human, but what if one day...

He will forget.

He will merge with the divine essence to become the Primal One. No, rather, there will be an inevitable battle between him and the Primal One. Either he will die or the Primal One will perish, and both will lead to the same outcome.

How can this deadlock be broken?

Lia didn't like the feeling of being manipulated like a puppet or a pawn. Unconsciously, too many threads had been added to his body, penetrating his bones and soul, deeply entangled with him, impossible to break free from.

The person in charge behind the scenes is neither from the past nor an external god.

It's the script of fate.

Being able to survive among so many souls and become the sole "ruler" is both a misfortune and an unparalleled advantage for Ria.

In the past, he wasn't particularly keen on wondering why it had to be him, but now, he had to carefully examine his own uniqueness.

why me?
Why does it have to be me?
Is it possible for anyone other than me?

What makes me different from others?

Ria turned to look at Little Swarth. This mythical creature was undoubtedly special, and it was able to descend from the stars the moment it sensed his presence.

At that time, it was also shortly after Ria had crawled out of his grave. The red moon was shining brightly in the sky. According to the red moon's later explanation, its appearance was to stop little Swarth from rushing toward the blue planet, which is the new Earth.

After arriving, Shwaal changed his appearance, emerging from the twisted flesh of a supernatural being, and then eagerly clung to Ria.

Ria is related to divinity, and Shwaal was searching for Ria from the beginning. So what connection does Shwaal have with the Primal?

In a daze, a fleeting light seemed to flash through Ria's mind. He felt that he was about to discover something extraordinary, perhaps the Red Moon itself knew the true answer.

But the next second, Little Swarth suddenly reached out and covered his eyes with his paw.

"Goo-"

The real Ria no longer exists; his current body originates from a god, but even so, the mythical creature can still sense what Ria is worried about. Subconsciously, he fears being forgotten; forgetting is the most terrifying thing.

Schwarz wouldn't let Ria forget him. Even if Ria forgot, he would still go and make sure Ria recognized him again. It didn't matter how many times he repeated this process, since Schwarz had lived for a long time and didn't care about time.

It will always be with him.

As for enemies... wherever the Lord of Trade points his sword, that is his enemy.

"Cuckoo!"

Little Swarth fluttered its wings and chirped twice more. Ria reached out and gently patted its head: "Sooner or later, I will know the whole truth, but until then—"

Ria looked at Claden again and said with utmost seriousness, "This world cannot just perish like this."

"Oh..." Claden found Ria's words inexplicable, completely unaware that his words had just influenced the fate of humanity.

In the following period, Rilia seemed to have figured things out and began to squander her savings without caring whether the gains were commensurate with the efforts, and she stopped thinking about how to create greater value for herself.

He was simply consuming, spending money to buy himself happiness, but the price he paid for this happiness was undeniably heavy.

Meme contamination.

Claden watched as countless dense eyes appeared on Ria's skin, those eyes moving wildly and erratically, some even bulging out as if about to fall off as eyeballs.

Lia herself remained calm, raising her glass to the waiter with a smile, as composed as a black fox at ease.

What is this little bit of pollution? If we can't even withstand this most common meme pollution, how can we fight against the apocalypse?

If he can change the effects of the contamination on Claden, then he can change himself.

It's just money, he doesn't care.

Ria struggled to fight against the memetic contamination, while Claden watched helplessly as more and more eyes appeared on Ria's body, their light growing stronger and stronger, a rich golden light gathering in one place, and the dark tentacles in the youth's shadow looking extremely ferocious, making Claden tremble with fear.

"Lord Kercha, please don't force yourself anymore. You can't force these things!"

"Can't you force it?"

Ria struggled to open her eyes, and double pupils appeared in the whites of her eyes.

He gave a slightly nervous smile, but his voice remained as calm as ever: "How could it be forced? The god who governs trade and gold is the master of trade and gold. I control them, not the other way around."

"When it comes to money, no one has the right to bargain with me, not even about money itself."

Yes, even money itself has no right to dictate the course of trade.

The intense emotions he exuded aggravated his own corruption. In that instant, the waiters, as if on the verge of death, frantically demanded wealth from all sides, while ordinary people became incredibly generous, giving away all the money they had.

Because at this moment, everyone understands one thing.

The main course is coming.

(End of this chapter)