On the empty plains, the colossal mud monster roared as a sliver of divine fire manifested, reaching toward the thunderbolts raining down from the sky.
Pale lightning carrying vast destructive force hammered down like raindrops, annihilating every trace of the surrounding landscape.
"Woooo…"
The outline of the River Styx materialized. Translucent vengeful spirits wreathed in crimson light stretched out their hands, clawing at the mud monster. They crawled over its body almost instantly, dragging it toward the River Styx.
"No…"
The mud monster let out a heaven-shaking roar. The divine fire shuddered violently, but in the end, it was extinguished with nothing more than helplessness.
Once the glory of divinity had faded, the mud monster's enormous divine body was pulled into the River Styx in an instant, vanishing without a trace…
Southern Swamp.
"My Lord Ukukru! Ukukru…"
Under the devout prayers of the many believers, the lion-bodied demigod Ukukru had weathered the backlash of thunder and vengeful spirits. A mass of twisted rule-force was gradually taking shape within his divine fire, on the verge of bursting forth.
"Sinner! You dare profane my Rule of Brutality!"
At that very moment, a titanic figure materialized in midair, radiating the majesty of a True God.
Overwhelming divine pressure descended, instantly silencing every prayer.
A bolt of blood-red lightning struck straight down, piercing the core of the divine fire!
Boom!
The divine fire shuddered violently, irregular spatial ripples spreading along its edges. Rule-force and runes clashed chaotically before it finally exploded.
"Damn you, True God…"
The lion-bodied demigod tilted its head skyward and roared in fury, the light in its eyes gradually dimming.
"My Lord… No!!!"
The priests on the ground howled in rage, only to discover in horror that the divine power inside their bodies was receding like a tide — a pain more excruciating than having every bone ripped out.
"Pfft!"
Under this terrifying assault, every last clergy member vomited blood and collapsed unconscious. The older and weaker among them simply died on the spot.
……
Over Bankes Island.
The
"The two false gods have retreated. They belong to the orc divine system — Grushu!" Mistra gazed into the distant horizon and spoke with certainty.
"By comparison, this feathered-serpent demigod's accumulation is astonishing. He actually withstood the backlash of primal force and vengeful spirits… and from the looks of it, his comprehension of the rules runs deep as well. Obtaining a Divine Portfolio should be no problem…"
Tyr looked toward
How had he failed to notice before that such a massive tumor had been hiding in the material world?
"Currently, the target is protected by primal force. We cannot overstep — this is a rule established by the Supreme God…"
Mistra added calmly: "Unless…"
"Unless a god who governs the same domain of divine rules can trigger rule-based backlash!" Tyr looked toward the ape-like monster that had just appeared in midair.
"Roarrr!"
Mara's avatar bellowed, its massive claws curling as it invoked the law of slaughter within the divine world.
In that instant, the Divine Portfolio within Leylin's divine fire destabilized. A bolt of blood-red lightning crashed down.
"Damn you, monkey. One day, I'll tear you apart!"
Isabelle gritted her teeth.
"Our power is not enough to contend with a True God's avatar…"
Tifa held Isabelle back. "However, dealing with the target's other clergy and servants shouldn't be a problem…"
He gestured meaningfully for Isabelle to look below. Several sneaky figures had already begun creeping toward the Sacred Mountain.
"Filthy wretches!"
Isabelle roared. Her two enormous dragon wings unfurled as she instantly completed her transformation into a legendary dragon-bloodline sorceress, diving down upon the black shadows. A mountain of corpses and a sea of blood followed.
……
Leylin, suspended in midair, sensed it the moment the blood-red lightning struck.
"Mara… I'll remember this!"
He smiled coldly. Having already witnessed this trick from Chesterbert, how could he be unprepared?
"It's time for you to go. Go!"
Leylin threw his arms wide. Surging divine power mixed with fervent faith energy temporarily shielded him from the blood-red lightning.
Then he hurled a crystal sphere. Vast numbers of heroic spirits poured out of it, eyes glazed, and transformed directly into soul force that streamed into the divine fire.
These souls were the hoard from the native empire's demigod, all of which had later fallen into Leylin's hands. Aside from a small portion spent in Hell, every last one was now thrown in.
Boom!
With the infusion of such an enormous soul force, the divine fire's radiance surged violently. A crystalline divine position materialized!
The newly formed divine position was flawless, carrying a faint tint of blood-red at its center — the exclusive power of Slaughter!
"What a pity… Mara is only a Lesser God after all. If
Mistra's face held a trace of puzzlement. "What possible reason could lead Cyric to stand by and watch other gods carve up his divine power?"
"Speculation is pointless at this point!"
Tyr stepped up beside Mistra, his greatsword letting out a powerful hum. "All we can do now is wait… Once the target ascends to True Godhood, he will lose the protection of the rules, and the material plane will expel him. Facing our true forms, a Lesser God will have nowhere to hide…"
As a god of Great Power, Tyr had every reason for such confidence.
"That's all we can do, then…" Mistra sighed, a faint unease stirring in her heart, though she had no other recourse.
……
Leylin had no attention to spare for the outside world.
The moment the divine position crystal appeared, it consumed his entire focus.
Hum!
The divine position crystal shimmered with the light of law, trembled once, and merged with the divine fire into Leylin's divine body. The two fused instantly, inseparable — as if they had been tailor-made for him.
At the same time, Leylin caught a flash of vision: in a realm of shadow and darkness, a god of great power clutched his head and screamed. A portion of power was torn away in an instant, leaving a crack across his Throne of Slaughter.
The vision quickly faded, replaced by a notification from the Chip: [Ding! Host has obtained the Divine Position of Slaughter!!!]
[Host's comprehension of the Law of Slaughter: 100%! All conditions met! Ascending to True God!!!]
[Ding! Host has automatically gained Legendary Cleric level! All Divine Spells unlocked!!!]
In that very instant, every last faithful felt something and burst into tears of joy, beginning their prayers in unison: "Our Lord
"Our Lord Kukulkan! You who wield the authority of Slaughter! The deaths of our enemies shall grant You power! You who are the end of all!"
"Our Lord Kukulkan! Your will shall walk upon the earth. May You raise Your throne high and become a star in the heavens!"
……
Devout prayers rang out across the entire material world — reaching into Hell, the Abyss, the Celestial Plane, and the whole of the multiverse.
In that moment, every legend on the continent, every devil and demon beyond it, and countless beings dwelling in the unseen spaces turned their gaze here.
For a True God had been born here — a True God acknowledged by the multiverse, standing at the apex of the divine world!
Once divinity was achieved, even if one fell the very next instant, one's name would be indelibly etched into the history of the multiverse.
And more of those beings, sensing what appeared to be opportunity, began to stir.
Leylin, meanwhile, was undergoing even more violent changes within his body.
The Law of Slaughter was terrifyingly potent — powerful enough to sustain a god of great power. And this particular law had not been comprehended step by step but forcibly injected through faith and the power of the world, instantly giving him the sensation of being completely full.
Cataclysmic streams of energy and information surged wildly through Leylin's body. Had he not already obtained his Divine Form, he would have been ripped apart by the sheer magnitude of power!
Under this terrifying energy, the divine fire, divine position, divine force, and everything else within him began a strange process of fusion, ultimately transforming into the physical form of a True God.
In that very instant, Leylin Farell had fully entered the seventh tier — he had become a True God!
Hummm!
The world itself began to roar. The space around Leylin cracked and shattered, fragment by fragment.
This was the world's push and its rejection — the material plane could not house a True God's physical form. The entire world was driving him out, demanding that he depart and establish his Divine Kingdom in the infinite void!
"Establish a Divine Kingdom? I'm not that foolish!"
Leylin felt his own body. He now understood the process of founding a Divine Kingdom instinctively, as though it were divine nature itself.
Moreover, with the favor of the primal force, his progress in building a Kingdom would far outstrip that of an ordinary deity — he could even save a tremendous amount of divine power.
But the moment he stepped outside the material world, he would inevitably face the combined assault of two gods of great power. Especially with his Divine Kingdom not yet established, he would be utterly defenseless. Only a fool would make such a choice.
"Hahahaha… Mistra, Tyr! My apologies — I'm afraid I'll have to disappoint you…"
Leylin laughed wildly. At this moment, the true scope of his plan was finally showing its first edge!
"My Divine Kingdom? I choose it to be HERE!"
Leylin's figure soared high into the sky. He thrust a single finger downward, pointing at all of Bankes Island!
Golden divine power surged down, enveloping the entire Bankes Island in an instant, rewriting the laws of space and time within.
The sea of primal force drawn by his ascension had not yet dispersed, furnishing him with a vast reservoir of power as he set about transforming Bankes Island on a grand scale.
Rumble!
Earthquakes and tsunamis ravaged Bankes Island, yet every faithful soul was shielded by the golden divine power. This awe-inspiring miracle drove the natives to their knees in frenzied worship…