From a hot, molten surface to an almost entirely aquatic world, Liam’s planet had continued changing at an astonishing pace. Now, forests had begun spreading across the continents, covering enormous portions of the land with vegetation of countless shapes and colors.
Different regions developed their own distinct biomes, shaped by the climate and geography Liam had previously created. Some forests were covered in strange white trees whose leaves resembled layers of snow, while others grew dangerously close to volcanic craters, their roots adapting to survive in the intense heat and mineral-rich soil surrounding the volcanoes.
Liam watched patiently as the forests expanded.
Unlike Earth’s history, where dinosaurs would have begun dominating many ecosystems around this general stage of development, there were no dinosaurs on his planet.
Their evolutionary paths had never existed here, and instead, the vacant ecological roles were being filled by an enormous variety of creatures. Mammals spread across the growing forests and plains, amphibians occupied the wetlands, insects filled the air and soil, while countless other organisms competed for food and territory.
The sheer diversity kept Liam occupied for weeks from his own perception.
He followed individual species through their lives, watched predators hunt their prey, observed creatures competing over territory, and occasionally witnessed different species interacting in ways he had never expected. Some organisms flourished while others gradually disappeared, leaving behind descendants that adapted to the changing environment.
Liam had stopped trying to predict everything. There were simply too many variables.
Every time he thought he understood how one ecosystem worked, something unexpected would emerge and change the balance.
Eventually, Liam slowed Temporal Acceleration.
The enormous flow of evolutionary history gradually became easier for him to observe as he returned to a more manageable passage of time.
"Multiple things happened, and I got more features and abilities now..."
Liam reviewed the various abilities he had accumulated during his observation.
"Now I can summon meteors, although I honestly have no idea what I’m supposed to do with that."
He paused.
"There’s also Consciousness Override, which allows me to possess an organism."
A faint sense of nostalgia entered his thoughts.
"That one was actually pretty interesting. I got to experience what it felt like to touch soil again."
After being reincarnated as a planet, even something as simple as feeling the ground beneath his feet had become impossible. Being able to temporarily inhabit another organism had given him a tiny connection to the physical world he had lost.
"But there’s something even more useful."
Liam focused on another newly acquired ability.
"Race Maker."
His excitement immediately returned.
"That makes creating intelligent life much easier."
He didn’t have to wait for millions of years of random evolution anymore.
He could simply establish an intelligent race himself.
"Let’s try using it."
Liam opened the Race Maker interface.
"I want to make things as diverse as possible."
He considered the possibilities carefully.
"I don’t want to know exactly what everything is going to become. It would be more interesting if I create the foundation and then let their civilizations develop differently."
He then remembered something important.
"System, do I visualize the race when I create them?"
[Affirmative.]
[The player may visualize the desired appearance of the race and establish its general characteristics.]
[Physical strengths, weaknesses, sensory abilities, environmental adaptations, and other biological characteristics may also be modified.]
[There is currently no established limit to the number of characteristics the player may define.]
Liam’s eyes would have widened if he still possessed physical eyes.
"No limit. Then let’s start with the god race... humans."
Liam closed his eyes out of habit despite having no physical body to close them with.
He visualized the human form he remembered from Earth.
A humanoid body capable of standing upright.
[Race Maker activated.]
[Analyzing player’s visualization.]
[Selecting an organism with the closest compatible biological structure.]
[Modifying selected organism.]
[Race successfully created.]
[Race designation: Human.]
Liam smiled.
"Cool."
He looked at the newly established race before moving toward his next idea.
"Now let’s add Elves."
He visualized another humanoid race.
They possessed slender bodies, elongated pointed ears, snow-white skin, and long blonde hair. Liam imagined them possessing exceptionally sharp eyesight, allowing them to see distant objects much more clearly than ordinary humans.
"Give them superb eyesight as an advantage."
[Race Maker activated.]
[Race successfully created.]
[Race designation: Elf.]
Liam immediately continued.
"And let’s make a variant."
He visualized a similar humanoid race, although this time their appearance was slightly darker.
"Dark Elves."
He gave them the ability to see clearly in darkness, allowing them to navigate environments where ordinary creatures would struggle.
"Give them exceptional nocturnal vision."
[Race successfully created.]
Liam nodded with satisfaction.
"Now let’s add Dwarves."
He imagined a race roughly half the height of an average human, possessing compact bodies, dense muscles, and thick brown beards.
"They should be short, but extremely strong."
He gave them enhanced physical strength and a body adapted to underground environments.
[Race successfully created.]
"Next, Beastmen."
He visualized humanoid creatures with bodies similar to humans but possessing animal-like ears and tails.
Then he realized something.
"Actually, let’s make them much more diverse."
He began creating different variants based on various animals.
"Twenty different variants."
Rabbit-like Beastmen. Fox-like Beastmen. Wolf-like Beastmen. Cat-like Beastmen. And many others.
Liam gave the entire group one general advantage.
"Make them naturally swift."
[Race successfully created.]
Liam wasn’t finished. The ideas continued appearing faster than he could organize them.
"Next, Gnomes."
Another race appeared.
"Golems."
"Yetis."
"Werewolves."
"Red Cyclops."
Liam paused.
"Actually, let’s classify them as Demons."
He continued creating races.
"Lizardmen."
"Fishmen."
"Griffons."
"Spirits."
"And finally..."
Liam thought carefully about the last race.
"Druids."
The system processed the final request.
[Race creation complete.]
Liam stared across the planet.
A world that had previously contained only primitive organisms now possessed the foundations of numerous intelligent races.
Liam looked over the enormous collection of races he had created.
"That took an entire day of brainstorming..."
He felt mentally exhausted despite technically not possessing a brain that could become physically tired.
Liam leaned back within his consciousness.
"System, can I sleep?"
[Affirmative.]
[Please confirm temporary unconsciousness.]
Liam didn’t hesitate.
"Confirm."
[Temporary unconsciousness confirmed.]
The blue interface gradually faded from Liam’s perception.