"I'm so nervous. I'm finally starting my graduation project. I really hope I can pass this time."
"Yeah, I just want to design a Transcendent-level world for my domain this year. If I pull it off, I'll be set."
"Come on, be serious. Hardly anyone manages that each year."
"I know, but if I just build an average world, I'll end up working some regular job after graduation. I want more than that, so I'm going all in."
"Damn, your standards are way too high. I just want to graduate without failing."
"Haha, you've delayed your graduation for like five years, right? Honestly, I think you stayed just for the cafeteria food."
"Shut up!"
On the training field at Grimstone University, a group of seniors in their twenties were chatting as they waited to begin the most important project of their lives.
Among them, one person stood out,Cillian Carter.
Unlike the others, he didn't look nervous. He wasn't fidgeting or anxious. He just stood there, calm and quiet, like a spectator watching from the sidelines.
"Hard to believe it's already been four years since I came to this world," Cillian thought to himself.
Four years ago, for reasons he still didn't fully understand, Cillian had been transported to this strange new world. In that time, he worked hard to understand how things here functioned.
The biggest thing he'd learned?
This world was built around becoming gods.
Everyone, no matter who they were, had the potential to ignite their Divine Fire and build their own Domain of Divinity, a unique world designed entirely by them.
Strength, status, and future success all depended on the kind of divine world you built.
If you created a Transcendent world, you were practically guaranteed a place among the elites. But if your world was just average? Well… so was your life.
And that's what the graduation project was all about.
Everyone had to design and create their own divine world,this was the final requirement to graduate.
While everyone was still talking, a powerful voice suddenly echoed across the field.
"Students, quiet down!"
Everyone fell silent and looked toward the front stage.
Standing there was a middle-aged man with sharp eyes and a commanding presence. His name was Vice Principal Warren, one of the highest-ranking god-kings at the university.
He scanned the crowd with a slight frown. "After four years of study,and for some of you, more than four…" he said with a sharp glance at a group of repeat students, "you're finally here."
The students chuckled nervously, some looking down in embarrassment.
"You've learned the theories. You've practiced the techniques. And now, all your effort will be put to the test."
The crowd perked up. Eyes lit up with excitement.
"The time has come," Warren continued, "for you to ignite your divine fire. To leave behind the ordinary world and take your first step toward godhood."
"From this moment on, you'll each receive a fragment of World Origin, and with it, you must design a unique world,your Domain of Divinity."
"You'll have one month. I expect great things."
He raised one hand toward the sky, and a wave of golden energy washed over the entire field.
"Focus your will," he said. "Prepare to ignite your fire!"
In an instant, blinding power surged through the air. The ground shook as energy flooded every corner of the field.
Cillian closed his eyes.
Then, deep inside his mind, a golden spark appeared. Just a single, glowing light… but it pushed back the darkness inside his spiritual sea. Bit by bit, it began to shine brighter, illuminating a small corner of his consciousness.
The divine fire had been lit.
Cillian took a long, slow breath. "It's finally started."
Once your fire was ignited, you were no longer part of the regular world. From that point on, you were something more, something stronger.
But fire alone wasn't enough.
To grow his power, Cillian had to build something worthy, a full-blown divine world. The more detailed, dangerous, and complete it was, the stronger his fire would burn.
The two things, fire and world, were tied together. The better your world, the stronger your divine path.
Warren's voice rang out again. "Now, all students who have ignited their fire, report to the registration office. There, you'll receive your World Origin Fragment."
"But before you receive it, you must declare what kind of world you plan to build."
"Dismissed!"
With that, Warren turned and left the stage, leaving behind hundreds of fired-up seniors still basking in the feeling of their newly lit fire.
"Wow, I really did it… the fire's real!"
"Next up is picking the world type. I think I'm going for a low-magic fantasy realm, maybe I'll even push it into Transcendent status."
Low-magic worlds were one of the easier ways to aim for a Transcendent world. If you could channel the World Origin properly and let your creatures naturally evolve magic, it could evolve into something more powerful.
Others had different plans.
"I don't care about going Transcendent. I still haven't decided between a tech-based world or one full of mutated monsters."
Tech civilizations and alien beast worlds were more common but easier to build. As long as you used your World Origin well—whether to fuel scientific progress or beast evolution—it usually passed the graduation requirements.
As the group chatted excitedly, someone turned to Cillian.
"What about you, Carter? Any idea what world you're gonna make?"
Cillian smiled.
He'd already made up his mind long ago.
"I'm not doing magic. Or tech. Or anything like that"
"I'm going to design something completely different."
"A brand-new type of divine world. I'll call it the Endless Abyss"
"The Endless Abyss? Sounds… intense," one student muttered.
Cillian nodded. "I wanna make it harsh, where anyone and everyone can be dinner."
The others stared for a second, unsure whether he was serious.
But Cillian didn't elaborate.
He just turned and walked toward the registration office, time to ascend to godhood.