Keshav's POV
After explaining tomorrow's life-creation task and the wonders of the Creation Network, the teacher checked the time and clapped his hands.
> "That's all for today!
Review the templates, start brainstorming your intelligent species... and get some rest.
Tomorrow, your real journey begins."
With that, he left the classroom, his long coat fluttering behind him.
The students slowly started getting up, whispering excitedly among themselves.
Some were already bragging about the races they would create.
> "I'm thinking of making dragonfolk!"
"Nah, humanoid tech-geniuses are better."
"I'll create a warrior race that lives for battle!"
Keshav chuckled softly, feeling the buzz in the air.
He packed his things and was about to leave when a voice called out behind him.
> "Hey! You're Keshav, right?"
Keshav turned around.
Standing there was a boy his age, with sharp silver hair, golden eyes, and a confident grin.
He wore the same school uniform but somehow made it look twice as cool.
> "Name's Arjun Singla.
Star-class world creator, just like you."
He extended a hand casually.
Keshav shook it, surprised by the strength in Reinhardt's grip.
> "You did well today," Arjun said, smirking. "Not everyone manages to awaken a Star-class world.
We're basically... the top 1%."
He winked.
> "That means we're rivals now. Friendly ones, of course."
Keshav blinked — a rival?
He hadn't even thought about competition yet.
But seeing Arjun's easygoing confidence lit a spark inside him.
> "Yeah," Keshav said, smiling back. "Rivals."
They laughed, a mutual understanding forming.
In this journey toward becoming true Gods —
having someone to race against might not be a bad thing.
---
System's POV
Deep inside Keshav's soul, the System observed the interaction quietly.
> "Hmph. Rival? Useful.
Competition breeds growth."
The System mentally filed away Reinhardt's data, planning future countermeasures just in case.
But for now...
It allowed itself a rare moment of satisfaction.
Everything was progressing perfectly.
---
Keshav walked through the high-tech, glass-like corridors of the dormitory.
Dim blue lights guided the way, while transparent walls shimmered with faint patterns that shifted as he passed.
He soon reached his room — 117-A.
The door softly parted after scanning his soul-bound terminal, allowing him inside.
The room was simple yet futuristic:
A self-regulating bed, a study table that could project 3D interfaces, and a hovering assistant bot tucked in the corner.
Keshav finally allowed himself to relax.
Just as he put down his terminal on the table, a soft ding echoed in his mind.
--------
Rewind a bit
[System POV]
It had experimented quietly — creating a small sample of land earlier.
Result:
1 EP could create enough landmass for an entire continent — complete with basic minerals and soil, but barren and lifeless.
Satisfied with this, it added the "Land" option to the Shop — without informing Keshav of the full scale or hidden efficiencies.
And unknown to Keshav, the System had already scanned not just his world, but also the chaotic titan-class world formed by the unconscious soul.
It was keeping this a tightly guarded secret.
-------
A ding sounded in Keshav's mind
[System Notification!]
> "Energy Points accumulated: 14 EP.
Shop Feature: Unlocked.
Status Panel: Updated."
---
Eagerly, Keshav pulled up his system interface:
---
[Status Panel]
Host Name: Keshav Garg
Energy Reserves: 14 (Unlimited Energy Storage Capacity)
Energy Creation Rate: 1 Energy / 2 Hours
World: Opened
System Abilities:
[Energy Creation]
[Scan]
[Transfer]
[Storage] (NEW!)
[Shop] (Unlocked)
---
And now there was a new section: [Shop].
Keshav quickly opened it.
---
[Shop]
---
Keshav blinked.
"Air? Land? I can just... buy them?"
He almost laughed — this was like unlocking a cheat code.
At the bottom of the Shop was another category:
---
[Ability Upgrades]
> "Each upgrade doubles the ability's effectiveness.
Cost for next upgrade increases by 10x."
---
Keshav whistled in amazement.
"So it's exponential... I have to be smart about this."
He made a mental note to save up some EP before rushing into upgrades.
---
[System POV]
While Keshav explored the Shop, the System was busy operating on another level altogether.
It also used 10 out of 14.8 (0.2 used for all the scans he had done) Energy points it had accumulated to grant Energy Creation ability to unconscious soul.
"Energy Creation rate: 1 Energy/1 Hour (Full control over energy flow established.)"
---
Unlike Keshav's world, where the System split the energy generation equally between Keshav and itself, here the System took all the Energy Creation generated by the unconscious soul. The Energy Creation rate for the unconscious soul's world was 1 EP / Hour, but for now, all of that 1 EP flowed into the System's reserves.
"For now, I'll take all the energy for myself," the System thought, "There's no need to share with the unconscious soul. It's not like it can do anything with it anyway. This should be a simple task of accumulating enough energy for further upgrades."
---
System kept it a secret as well.
> "There's no need to burden Keshav with unnecessary knowledge,"
the System mused.
"And keshav will pay for upgrade of my abilities. Hahaha "
It didn't mention that some of the new items in the Shop were reverse-engineered from its scans of the chaotic world.
Even the soil and forests of that strange world offered countless templates.
And so, while Keshav thought he was just progressing normally, the System was quietly laying the groundwork for exploitation on a multiversal scale.
---