"This is the necromancer, Mallister! He is a powerful death wizard who gained fame 1200 years ago, and has already entered the ranks of a high-ranked legend. It's even said that he's on equal grounds with the lich, Ilyo…"
Lilian introduced him to Leylin, looking astonished, "While that was a slight probe, Wizard Leylin being able to take on the attack so easily means he must have quite a number of secrets…"
"Alright! Since everyone's here, let's begin."
Mallister urged, sounding enthusiastic. The great desire in his tone shocked Leylin slightly.
As Leylin was right now, he had become more sensitive to emotional force. From the excitement of this old wizard coupled with the situation in the north, it was evident that they had huge plans.
"The reason we're gathered here is obviously for the eternity that gods have…"
Lilian spoke softly, sounding just as eager.
Even if they were necromancers, Legends like them who did not turn into liches or spirits could only live for at most a few thousand years. This was a stark difference from the mighty gods in the skies.
As legends, they felt that they did not have any less talent or invest less effort than the gods did. The only thing they lost out in was that they were born too late, which meant they had no opportunities by then.
In this situation, which legend would feel content with staring at the gods up high and in eternal glory?
Basically every single one of them had the ambition to ascend and become a god!
While there were agreements between the legends on the continent as well as rules of churches or organisations, private gatherings like these still happened.
After all, godly roles and positions were all accounted for. To successfully become a god, one or perhaps even a few had to be pulled down!
Even if many legends were to gather, they could at most only beat up an avatar. The true forms of gods in their godly realms were practically invincible.
Hence, it was necessary to wait for a battle between gods! Only when they began attacking each other did the legends have a single chance at obtaining divinity, godspark or even a godly role!
The legends all knew of this possibility, which was why they had gathered.
"I'm sure all of you know the situation with the north. The Weave Goddess and God of Justice have made a deal, so the decision to support Queen Alustriel in regaining her kingdom won't change. There'll definitely be a battle against the orc gods. Based on my intel, other human gods aren't going to do much about this…"
Lilian now looked extremely zealous and ready to make a gamble, "The Weave Goddess and God of Justice are greater gods, while the orc god only has a greater god, Gruumsh. However, he's supported by intermediate and lesser gods. The battle with the two greater gods will soon arrive, which will be an opportunity for us…"
Leylin finally knew why the legends had gathered here. They were counting on the gods getting injured in battle, which would give them the opportunity to obtain divinity or a divine spark.
However, even the weakest true god was not something a legend could deal with. This was not much less difficult than pulling chestnuts out of fire.
However, this matched well with Leylin's goal.
Hence, his lips quirked in a smile, "A good choice… Well then, may I know what your targets are?"
"We obviously won't put any hope on the three greater gods. Wizard Mallister is only interested in divinity and divine roles that have to do with death. He's only requesting the divine force amassed from the avatars as well as any divine weapons that might appear…"
Lilian did a brief explanation and then looked at him, "How about Sire Leylin? Do you have any goals?"
"Me?"
Leylin rubbed his nose, "As I am now, I don't think I can ask for much. I'll go along with what you do. All I want is a trace of the divine force from a true god…"
"For ordinary legends, that is a very good choice…"
Mallister gave Leylin a long look.
For most legends that wanted to become gods, they first needed to amass followers and faith, and then attempt at comprehending a law. By combining that with faith, divine force would be formed.
It was a pity that this was the most difficult part!
Even in the Magus World, Morning Star Magi could not get past the hurdle of laws. Only after becoming a rank 6 Breaking Dawn Magus and after a soul became completely positive could one start to comprehend laws.
In the World of Gods, while there was the power of faith as a cheat, actually getting past the hurdle was very difficult.
However, stealing a trace of divine force would be able to solve this problem, allowing one to get past the threshold of laws. This was a huge temptation for legends.
"Then… which god are you aiming for?"
Lilian asked.
"Probably Malar…" Leylin brought up the name of this unlucky person. This was one of the gods that had been mentioned in the discussions before.
"Mm, that matches up with our original plan. There aren't any conflicts either. After I get back, I can use my influence and have you join in the operation to attack Malar's avatar. Of course, you'll have to mention your interest here…"
She nodded.
The God of Hunt, Malar, was a very good choice considering the plan.
There was no other reason than that Malar was but a lesser god and the weakest of all. This was the most important, because the legends were not that confident that they could take down the avatar of a greater god.
Secondly, Malar was not an orc god and merely an ally. He would not have too many reinforcements with him.
Thirdly, and also most importantly, he was an evil god! There were no risks of tarnishing of one's reputation for eliminating him, and might even get a good name of being righteous and all that.
In addition, the faith in him was underwhelming. Besides the werecreatures, there were only a few intellectual beasts. He had few powerful beings he could truly make use of.
With all these factored in, the tragedy that Malar would become was obvious.
Leylin had been eyeing Malar's divine force for a long time.
Initially, with his strength, the scale of the followers and his comprehension of the law of Devour, he should have been able to produce a trace of divinity of gluttony or devour.
Unfortunately, these two were too obvious in that he could easily be associated with Beezlebub.
Beezlebub had only just fallen into a deep sleep, and if Leylin were to suddenly appear, the gods would definitely start making associations. Gods were no fools and, on the contrary, were extremely intelligent. It was just that they were sometimes influenced by their godly roles and the emotions from it.
"Beezlebub and the other archdukes in hell are all targets for me to kill in the future, but not now…"
Leylin stroked his chin as he pondered.
Besides this choice, he had few others. After all, this also had to be compatible with the path as a rank 8 Magus that he would take.
"My path must contain emotional force and the vileness of all living things. With dreamforce being used as the base, I will then contain the law of space and time…"
"With this foundation, the only thing compatible with the might of devils can only be massacre and death…"
"The temptations of devils will definitely give rise to massacre and death. After fusing them, it will form the most basic sin!"
He had a number of things restricting him due to his goal, and he therefore had little choice. The only two paths possible for him were massacre and death.
These two godly duties were very powerful, and it was not advisable to provoke gods who grasped these roles.
The one controlling death was the greater death god Kelemvor, as well as the god who had relations with both massacre and death, the God of Murder, Cyric. They were both greater gods.
If Leylin had plans to go against these two's divinity, Leylin felt he would be better off looking for a better method in death.
Besides these two, there was only Malar, with the role of hunt, that somewhat had relations with the law of massacre.
If it was said that a full godly role meant having 100% comprehension of a law, then there would only be at most 10% of divinity. For the godly role of hunt, this obviously included 'pursue', 'slaughter' and many others that would make up around 80%, as well as other miscellaneous laws.
On this basis, even powerful intermediate gods could easily obtain the divinity of massacre and pursuit from his avatar.
While Leylin's ranking in terms of strength was slightly lacking, he was still a Magus of laws. It wasn't that troublesome to separate and change the power of divinity that he required.
"If I really have to form a trace of divinity for massacre, it'll still take me a decade even with prayers from my followers…"
Leylin sighed.
It would take a decade just to obtain divinity, much less ignite his godflame and obtain a godly role or becoming a true god.
While this speed would otherwise be astonishing, Leylin was still unsatisfied.
Ever since he met Distorted Shadow, he had been feeling very nervous.
Since Distorted Shadow wished to revive himself and had his conscient survive for tens of thousands of years, he definitely had more up his sleeves than just the taboo arcane spell Leylin had. There had to be other pawns.
The moment he did not make a move quick enough, Distorted Shadow would definitely show his trump card.
Distorted Shadow was an ancient peak rank 8 Magus! In comparison, Leylin was like an ant and the passive party.
Hence, it was necessary that he come to the north and obtain a trace of massacre divinity.
After obtaining it, legends could become more sensitive to one's followers' prayers, and the speed at which faith and divine force was amassed would quicken.
"From divinity… and then igniting godflames to become a demigod… And lastly getting a divine role to ascend and become a true god!"
The system of advancement in the World of Gods was clear.
-x-X-x-
Dark forests blocked the sky, hindering all light. All sorts of twisted branches lay on the ground, the dried out old bark black as if they were the arms of devils and demons. It caused the forest to seem sinister and frightening.
This was a famous area in the north, the Moonwood. After the orcish empire was established, the Blackblood Tribe took this place over. All intruders were killed upon entry.
However, a black-robed wizard was now walking indifferently through the forest, and the werecreatures and mutated beasts didn't even seem to see him as they walked straight past him.
"Moonwood, Blackblood Tribe… It's been a long time." Leylin observed the familiar terrain as scenes of his time at Silverymoon appeared vividly in his mind. Still, it was but a tiny section of his long life, and he regained his indifference once more.
Making his way to a cave, Leylin seemed to walk through some barrier to disappear inside. He then heard an impatient voice ringing by his ear, "You're late."
Two figures showed themselves from within the darkness. These were legendaries he'd seen before, the druid Alegor and Lillian. The Paladin Patrick was around as well. Surprisingly, the four of them had taken on a mission together since they'd met, as if something like fate was pulling the strings.
"My apologies… I needed some time to make preparations…" Leylin answered apologetically, "We're dealing with a true god. While this is only an avatar, we need to be ready…"
The others did not retort, evidently accepting his explanation.
"If your side is done, what's next is Patrick's side…" Lillian continued, as if implying something.
Indeed, this group of legendaries had planned to kill the God of the Hunt, Malar. After their secret meeting, a few of the other legendaries who 'wished for justice' had been called in. They had joined in on this project, which included many faces Leylin had seen in the secret meeting.
Although they knew these legendaries weren't pure of mind, the church of justice and Queen of Silverymoon still accepted them. After all, Alustriel lacked the power to rebuild her kingdom and was in urgent need of help from these powerful beings.
As for their motives? Mystra and Tyr may have known what was going on, but they did not pay much attention. After all, even gods had to reward legendaries if they ordered them around. Most of them kept one eye closed to legendaries coveting divinity or divine spark. After all, these gods were using their power for their own gain as well.
It wasn't as if there were no legendaries with divine force on the continent, but it was only a minor boost to their strength. They wouldn't ascend to godhood even in hundreds or thousands of years.
Divinity was just the first step on the path to becoming a true god. They had to ignite their godfire, obtain a divine domain. All this was even more difficult. Besides, the avatars of gods were not so easily dealt with. Leylin and the rest would have to be amazingly lucky to get even a thread of Malar's divinity.
In general, the two greater gods were more at ease even with Leylin and the other legendaries plotting against them. However, they had no clue about the kind of terrifying thing that had entered this group, definitely becoming a huge variable in their plans.
"Good. Once we set up the greater isolation array, even a god's avatar will lose a part of its strength. The trap has been set, what's next is to wait for the prey to walk in…" Lillian spoke softly.
The gods were very powerful. Even mere demigods were immune to spells, and even Leylin's Timestop spell would be useless against them. The same could be said for lower-ranked spells. What they would face now was just an avatar, but they still held a trace of the might of the gods. They were immune to spells below rank 7, maybe even rank 9. They also possessed all sorts of unimaginable buffs to their bodies and regeneration.
Even with all their traps and plans, Leylin and the rest would be facing a terrifying peak legendary monster!
"Is it alright at Patrick's side? Are you sure Malar would be so enraged as to send his avatar down?" Leylin frowned.
A god's avatar was basically their most powerful body in the prime material plane. Avatars and true bodies were also closely related, and the avatar's elimination would damage the true body itself to a degree. He was honestly rather skeptical of whether the prey could be lured out.
'Come to think of it, Malar is quite unlucky. Legendaries like us are coveting his power, but on top of that even the church of justice won't stand his existence…' As a lesser god allied with the orcish gods, Malar was a huge target. Even without Lillian pushing for it the church of justice had determined that he was to be eliminated.
At the start of time, it was very common to weaken an opposing god through a battle of their avatars. Leylin had his eye on Malar's divinity, so he naturally didn't hesitate to join in on this mission. Rafiniya was rather gratified, thinking that Leylin had separated himself from some sort of vulgar interests and made his mind up to join the mighty project of saving the north.
"There's no problem. The Blackblood Tribe should be holding a legendary hunting ceremony right now to please Malar… Records state that this ritual is very important to him. If it's interrupted, he will immediately become enraged… And if his followers and subordinates fail to find the person who caused this, then there's a large possibility of him sending his avatar down…" Lillian did not hesitate when mentioning Malar's name, not even trying to avoiding it.
They now had two powerful greater gods on their side, which was enough to shield them from Malar's senses. This would allow him to enter the trap without having his guard up.
*Roar!* *Rumble!* Meanwhile, large sounds and violent tremors could be felt through the boundaries. Even with the great distance and layers of weakening, there was still a huge ruckus in the cave. Leylin and the others immediately twitched.
"It's begun." Chaos reigned as the cries of werecreatures closed in. Evidently Patrick had succeeded in stopping the ceremony, and he was now being pursued.
"Get to your spots and make sure the connection is good so you can hear my commands." Lillian's eyes glinted as her body turned into a soil puppet that soon crumbled. Her true body had already left.
"The time to get rid of the disharmony in the dark forest has arrived…" The legendary druid Alegor muttered and left, his large beast body as agile as an elf in the trees.
"What a spectacle! Looks like Patrick really riled up these werecreatures quite a bit…" After opening up the teleportation gate, Leylin narrowed his eyes, watching the werecreatures that filled the grounds. These beings that were very similar to the orcs now had reddened eyes as they pursued a white streak of light.
*Roar!* At the moment, there was a black ape-like creature over five metres tall in front of the werecreature team. Its scales reflected a metallic luster, and claws with rough, long nails ruthlessly pushed apart everything in its way.
*Swish!* It was as if the air was cut and pushed away, creating an intense blast.
"Hah! Holy Light Protection!" The figure amidst the ray of light suddenly turned back, a large sword that seemed to be made of crystal emitting holy light to form a large wall. A large figure seemed to clash against the pursuers.
*Boom!* The trees and soil were shaved off, sending numerous weaker werecreatures flying. Making use of this opportunity, the paladin darted to Leylin's side and took a breath, "Be careful, they're coming…"
"You even lured out a legendary Hunter. What did you do?" Leylin was rather curious about how the paladin had achieved this effect. He instantly recognised that the monster following right behind the paladin in a crazed state was something mutated by Malar, a guard of his divine kingdom. It was a Hunter!
Unlike the previous monsters, though, this one had already become legendary. Even Leylin himself would find it difficult to take this being down.
"Hehe… I just stole all of the legendary blood that the Blackblood Tribe has amassed. There's this too!" The paladin Patrick tossed a large ape head away. This was obviously a legendary hunter as well.
Seeing this, the werecreature soldiers grew more fervent in their pursuit. They roared as they pounced, like they'd seen a mortal enemy. Which was the case anyway. Since the ceremony had been interrupted, Malar was now enraged and had even devoured a few high-ranked priests. Those were people he usually liked a lot….
If they could not capture these sinners and sacrifice them, there was a possibility that Malar would give up on all the werecreatures here. After all, what did anyone have to say to someone who was half a beast?
"If we wipe out all these soldiers, he'd probably send his avatar down, right?" Leylin nodded in approval, and then unhesitatingly cast a spell.
Blazing rings of fire immediately lit up around him, causing the skies in this region to darken. Traces of red emerged from dark clouds, as lava fell like raindrops.
Legendary spell, Skyfire Rain!
-x-X-x-
*Drip! Drip!* Droplets of lava the size of human heads fell from the sky, bringing with them the burning power of fire. Under their glamour and beauty, they hid a terrifying might.
The earth kept rumbling, and each contact between the lava and the ground caused explosions that formed huge pits. The surrounding forest was also set aflame, resulting in a horrifying sea of fire.
The werecreatures seemed tiny in this fire. Even if they'd only been touched by a bit of it, their oily skin lit up like they were torches.
The wails of the werecreatures resounded as an overpowering charred smell permeated the air. Paired with the vast sea of fire, it was as if this was the end of the world.
"The destructive power of a legendary spell really is immense. It's no wonder that the legendary council on the continent made it taboo…" The paladin Patrick was obviously shocked as well. While he could easily kill a legendary Hunter, his area of effect was nowhere as terrifying as this was.
Thousands of werecreatures were burnt to ashes in a single attack, and many more suffered grievous burns. With no priests to heal them, their contaminated wounds would lead to certain death.
"Now isn't the time to watch." Leylin pointed his finger. A few black figures that overcame the flames soon arrived before them.
Leading them was the legendary Hunter, but it was evident that Leylin had focused quite a bit on it. The Skyfire Rain had been aimed at it, and much of its scales and fur had been burnt. Bones were jutting out of some parts of its body, creating a terrifying sight.
Behind the Hunter were a few werecreatures who looked just as pitiful. The fur and beards on their faces were mostly burnt off, and they were now watching Leylin and the paladin with vigilance.
One of them, evidently an older priest, stood out and stared straight at Leylin. Its gaze contained a hatred that was etched into the bones, "Legendary wizard of the outer world, we of the Blackblood Tribe don't seem to have dealt with you. Why do you suddenly hinder our holy sacrifice, and even harm our people?"
Patrick had been ignored. With the difference in their factions, the two groups were natural enemies anyway, so what more was there to be said?
"I used to work for Silverymoon," Leylin answered. He was smiling slightly, but felt a twinge of pity inside him. Even with the bonus of being an arcanist and his other skills, large-scale legendary magic still didn't cause much damage to the truly powerful.
Blue light shone in Leylin's eyes, 'This is just a ranged attack after all. A single target spell would've taken one of them down forever…'
"So you're one of Alustriel's people!" the old werecreature exclaimed. The Blackblood Tribe had stood on the side of the orcish empire, so they were now the arch nemeses with Silverymoon. The werecreatures had all heard that the Queen of Silverymoon was preparing to reclaim her lands, so there was no need for discussion anymore.
"So that's why you're against us. Indeed, that conflict can't be settled…" the old priest muttered, his eyes turning bloodthirsty, "But while you did interrupt our holy ritual, you've provided us with even better sacrifices. The lives of two legendaries should be enough to appease our master. Get them!"
The priest roared, and the legendary Hunter finally had an outlet for its impatience. It leapt out, leaving a large pit on the ground. Cracks spread like spider webs in all directions as the creature barrelled towards Patrick like a cannonball, its terrifying poisonous claws striking down on the paladin's head.
"We need to show overpowering might. If not, it'll just be more powerful werecreatures…" At this moment, Lillian's voice sounded by Leylin's ear. It seemed like she and the druid were still concealed, as if the most patient of predators waiting for their prey.
"That's what I like!" Lowering his eyes, Leylin exuded a murderous aura.
Banshee's Wail! A piercing shriek that seemed to emerge from the very soul burst forth, the sound spreading in all directions to freeze everyone's thoughts for a moment.
"Now's the time. Greater Binding!" Leylin's hands moved like he was a professional bard, constantly pulling at the strings that were the elements in the Weave. Dazzling spell rays emanated from his body.
*Roar!* The legendary Hunter seemed to be bound by some invisible force in mid-air, and it was left stuck in that position.
"All evil shall be persecuted, Divine Trial!" The paladin had finally gotten his chance. He'd arrived in front of the Hunter with his crystal sword enveloped in holy white light. His eyes burned with platinum flames.
Clean Break! The legendary Hunter's scales and energy defences were split apart by the paladin's sword like it was a hot knife slicing through butter. Blood spurted in all directions as a giant head fell to the ground.
Their proficient techniques and teamwork allowed Leylin and Patrick to instantly take care of the legendary creature. This amount of strength evidently surpassed the imaginations of the higher-ups amongst the werecreatures, and the legendary priest resolutely placed his hands in his bosom, as if about to pick out something.
[Beep! Based on energy undulations and judgment of shape, chances of opponent taking out sacrificial dagger are 99.99%. Divine force sacrifice will begin in 0.27s.] The A.I. Chip's robotic voice sounded, and the prediction caused Leylin to move quickly.
A mysterious light swept forth from his hand, disregarding all defence in an attempt to strike the old priest head on.
The priest stared at his hand blankly. The gorgeous dagger that had once been there had cracked apart, to the point that there wasn't even a handle left.
Legendary arcane spell, Great Disjunction! Even a divine weapon would suffer the wrath of this arcane spell, much less normal items of the mortal world. That was not all. The old priest's necklace, his staff filled with divine force, his beast teeth, and all sorts of magic artifacts that were brushed with exemplary strength were all broken apart.
'As expected of an arcanist legacy. Even just Great Disjunction and Timestop can allow me to do whatever I wish amongst legendaries…'
Although Leylin had a few standard legendary spells, they couldn't compare to the arcanist legacy he held. He had even gotten himself a floating city! He had all the arcanist secrets and spell models he wanted.
"This strength…" It wasn't just the werecreatures that were surprised by Leylin's strength. Even his allies in Patrick, Lillian, and Alegor were shocked in secret.
'How can he have so many high-ranked and legendary spell slots? Could he be a lover of the Goddess of the Weave? No, that's not it. There's another possibility… Arcane spells!' Lilian's eyes burnt with fervour, 'His attainments in arcane spells far exceeds my expectations. It's already at an inconceivable level…'
As a legendary wizard, she too had performed research on arcane spells and obtained a few low-ranked arcane spell models. She definitely knew that this would allow her to cast more spells.
It was a pity that there were few she had seen who had obtained and could use legendary arcane spells easily. They were all old freaks who had lived for thousands of years, none as young as Leylin!
'No wonder he advanced so quickly. So he's already grasped some secrets of the ancient arcanists?' Lillian pondered inside, thinking she'd unraveled Leylin's secrets.
Leylin had expected this, though. He paid little mind to it, for the leak of information was intentional. After all, it wasn't taboo for legendary wizards to perform research on arcane arts, and he was just skirting the line slightly. The more strength he revealed, the more he could do.
"Why are you still standing there? Go!" Like now, for instance. The dazed paladin listened to Leylin's commands subconsciously, charging towards the few remaining powerful werecreatures, who were at a loss.
Meteor Explosion! Bigby's Crushing Hand! With the paladin attacking, Leylin used his terrifying control over spells and took care of the situation in an instant.
By the end, Patrick's mind seemed to crash as he saw Leylin rendering the last of the werecreatures to dust. 'Such a violent yet refined method of battle, as well as that last fight, is even more crazy than a berserker… Is he really a wizard?'
"Be prepared. Now's the true test!" Leylin reminded him with a serious expression.
The paladin turned grim as he glanced at the Blackblood Tribe. A terrifying roar resounded in the area, containing great amounts of fury. Seeing so many of his subordinates dead, Malar could no longer take it. He sent his avatar to take the stage!
-x-X-x-
Howls and roars echoed in the area. Many high-ranked werecreatures had gathered around a central altar in the Blackblood Tribe's lands, chanting hymns of praise to Malar. Group after group of high-ranked captives were slaughtered before the altar, their fresh blood dripping into the pool of blood at the center.
Prior experience told these priests that a large-scale blood sacrifice would soothe the God of the Hunt. He would even bestow great divine grace on them.
Now, however, Malar's fury did not cease. He only grew more violent with every blood sacrifice, like a distant cloud of volcanic ash brewing to its peak.
A terrifying roar rang out, and an avatar rose abruptly from the altar. A powerful suppressive pressure originated from its soul, which made the priests prostrate themselves on the ground. They prayed for Malar's fury to swiftly be quelled.
It was a great pity that the God of the Hunt did not listen to the prayers of his worshippers. More roars reverberated through the altar, and the blood pool rippled violently as if in a storm. It immediately engulfed the trembling captives and priests.
"It's our Lord! Our Lord's avatar is about to descend…" The other priests who had fortunately been spared from the wave fell to their knees in succession. They began to chant prayers to their god.
A foot stepped out of the central altar at this moment, clad in golden fur. The atmosphere seemed to freeze in that moment, and the air was charged with a stifling and oppressive feeling.
The golden figure slowly walked out into the full view of the worshippers. It was an enormous and powerful monster that stood over ten metres tall, looking like a cross of man and ape. Its body was covered in swathes of scales and hair, and fierce claws grew from its hands.
Its body glowed with a faint golden aura, making the enormous ape creature look like the darling of the entire world. It seemed to be an existence at the core of the world!
This was an avatar of the Lesser God of the Hunt, the protector of hunters and werecreatures. It was an avatar of Malar the Blackblood Beast, completing its descent into the prime material plane.
It possessed divine grace as boundless as the sea, divine might as stifling as a prison cell. All the werecreatures' minds froze, and their bodies acted mechanical in their loud chants of Malar's name.
Malar's avatar did not pay the worshippers the slightest attention. After all, they were all like ants to him. With a divine domain in hunting, he easily obtained news of his prey from the undulations in the atmosphere.
*Whoosh!* Malar's figure disappeared in a flash, chasing after those hateful and lowborn thieves who had disturbed the legendary blood sacrifice.
He had already decided to tear out the souls of these blasphemers, and have them wail in terror for a thousand years within his divine kingdom.
...
'It's coming! Even from such a great distance I can feel its might. As expected of a true god,' Leylin was inwardly apprehensive about Malar's power, but this was only an avatar after all.
'However, Malar's true body is equal to a rank 7 Magus, I can still take this on. I wonder what power he could show if we fought within his divine kingdom,' Leylin's eyes were filled with expectation.
"I discovered Malar's avatar. It's heading our way right now… The epic isolation matrix is working well, it won't be a problem no matter how much energy it has to contain!" Lillian's voice floated over to him. He could sense the anxiety in her voice, they were about to battle a god after all.
Only legendary mortals could accomplish such a magnificent feat as slaying a god!
Right at that moment, the A.I. Chip flashed a prompt in a blood-red window, mapping out several exit routes. [Beep! Powerful energy undulations are approaching this location at high speed, danger level is extremely high. Suggestion: Leave the vicinity immediately!]
'He's fast!' Leylin's eyes narrowed as he caught a glimpse of the monstrous golden figure. 'No! When did it get here?' Fortunately, he had heeded the A.I. Chip's prompt and dodged into safety. In the end, he had only escaped the beast's claws by a hair's breadth.
While he'd dodged, the layers of Mage Armour on Leylin's body immediately collapsed. It was clear that the beast's claws had also launched a wind attack, and even Mage Armour II could not withstand the beast's power!
'Terrifying! Is this the power of a god's avatar? At the very least, it has the strength of a peak Breaking Dawn…' After Leylin regained his senses, he found out that he had already retreated by several hundred metres. Patrick himself stood a distance away from him, miserable with his face incomparably white. The paladin had lost an arm, and fresh blood poured out of the injury.
Evidently, this paladin was unable to escape Malar's sneak attack and lost an arm in the process. His prowess was reduced considerably.
*Swish!* "AAHH!" Only now did the angered cries of Patrick travelled through the air, which was in an extreme disorder to the senses.
'I was able to see him injured before hearing his cries. Does this mean that the speed has already exceeded the speed of sound?'
Leylin sweated nervously. 'An agility like this, it's most likely over 40!'
As a wizard, he could understand Malar's attack. The god had used some method to exceed the speed of sound, and put in a vivid manner if Patrick had been killed Leylin would still only have seen the corpse before the sound of the battle.
'Only death awaits if you're reflexes cannot keep up with this…' Leylin sighed inwardly as he looked at the golden ape the size of a mountain. "This is the avatar of a god? And for a lesser one at that?"
"What happened just now?" Lillian's enraged voice sounded beside Leylin's and Patrick's ear.
"Patrick is injured. We need to move our plans forward, execute them right away. Malar's strength had greatly exceeded our expectations!" Leylin rubbed his temples. His voice was incomparably calm, and he seemed not the slightest bit frightened.
"No… No problem! Before that evil is vanquished, I will not fall!" Patrick snorted, and milky white light glowed on his injury. His stem cells began to regrow his flesh, and the bleeding soon stopped.
Malar's avatar merely watched the process mockingly, as if savouring the fear of his prey.
'Playing mind games and only striking when the enemy suffers a mental breakdown? Fool, this is just a good chance for me!' Faint blue light flashed in Leylin's eyes. 'A.I. Chip, scan target!'
[Beep! Mission established, beginning scan…] The A.I. Chip duly carried out Leylin's commands. Soon after, a 3-D hologram was projected in front of Leylin's eyes, with a large amount of data on the side.
[God of the Hunt - Malar (Avatar). Estimated Stats: Strength: 30 - 45, Agility: 40 - 42, Vitality: 30 - 31, Spirit: 24 -27. Feats: 1. Epic Damage Reduction: All physical damage below the legendary rank is negated. 2. Epic Magic Resistance: With divine protection and divine force, an avatar has great magic resistance. All magical damage below the legendary realm is negated. Note: Legendary arcane spells such as Timestop will not work on the target. Divine Strength: Lesser God. Alignment: Chaotic Evil. Domains: Murder, Hunting, Pursuit. Weapons Owned: Beast Claw. This legendary weapon has great attacking power, being fashioned after Malar's original.]
'Epic damage reduction and magic resistance. This means that without legendaries, the battle cannot be won with mere numbers…' Leylin inhaled a deep breath upon seeing the stats of the avatar.
"If we cannot get rid of the domain, our chances of winning today are extremely low…" Leylin questioned himself. If it was a one versus one battle with him and Malar's avatar, he would definitely perish if he did not summon the floating city.
Even with the added support and some traps prepared, he was not more confident.
'I need to use the floating city at the end and get rid of Malar…' A glint of ruthlessness flashed in Leylin's eyes.
Back then, he had used the appearance of Kukulkan to steal the floating city. While this had alerted the powerful factions that there was a rising powerhouse and even fooled the gods, they did not know his identity. If he were to use it now, he would be admitting his identity.
However, if he was forced to the edge, what other choice did he have?
"Wait for me, I'll activate the array and support you again immediately!" Lillian too, wanted to seize this rare opportunity. She placed her bets like a gambler.
[Beep! Sealed formation activating! Beginning in….] the A.I. Chip's voice intoned, but Leylin could not longer pay any heed to it.
Just as Lillian activated the formation, Malar's senses told him the situation had become dangerous. He immediately charged towards Leylin. Although he was no longer faster than sound, he could still deal Leylin a fatal blow.
"Roar!"
At this moment, Leylin was forced to reveal one of his smallest trump cards. The dazzling wizard robes were shredded into pieces, revealing a legendary dragon armour. A draconic staff found its way into his hands.
Legendary Dragon Breath! Soulburn!
-x-X-x-
A phantom dragon appeared, roaring out with legendary might. Leylin had ignited the red dragon's soul without a single thought to the consequences, conferring unimaginable power to the dragon. A mighty draconic aura almost fully materialised, and dazzling crimson light dyed the skies red.
*Boom!* A river of magma flowed into Leylin's position, with Malar's towering avatar at the centre. Having borne the brunt of a legendary attack, his skin was now charred. It was the first injury he'd sustained today.
Leylin's figure appeared beside a tree across him. The dragonscale armour had three long gashes in its breastplate, inflicted by Malar's attack.
"Damn it, isn't it ready yet?" Just as Leylin began to curse, the pleasant voice of the A.I. Chip finally rang out. [Beep! All preparations have been completed, epic spell formation activated.]
Golden threads began to float in the air, engulfing their surroundings. Malar felt the imminent danger, and bellowed in rage. Many of the golden threads began to converge into chains as they coiled around the avatar.
At this moment, Leylin could see Malar's feats of epic damage reduction and magic resistance weaken, and finally disappeared. He heaved a sigh of relief.
The ambient temperature fell drastically, and hexagonal snowflakes sparkled as they drifted down from the sky.
Summon— Giant Frost Sprite! The snow converged into an icy white giant. Each of the giant's movements added a layer of frost to its surroundings.
"Apologies for the delay!" Lillian said as she sat on the shoulder of the frost sprite, "Malar's resistance was too high, but it's been negated by the spell formation…"
The several legendaries present heaved a sigh of relief as they looked on. They weren't about to give the avatar any breathing room.
"Roar!" A legendary roar sounded once more, but this time much stronger than that of Leylin's phantom dragon. A black shadow covered Malar.
Accompanying the deafening roar was a red-scaled dragon that dived to attack the avatar. Its razor sharp claws met his, causing blood to spurt out.
'A legendary dragon? No! There seem to be a trace of ancient dragons…' Ahead of Leylin was a legendary dragon. An ancient aura radiated from its body, and its dazzling crimson scales glowed like mesmerising rubies.
"Well done, Alegor!" Lillian's eyes widened as she charged forward with her frost sprite.
'Alegor? The druid… So this is legendary Transfiguration.' The crimson dragon seemed incomparably authentic to Leylin's eyes. Nobody would have been able to tell that it was a druid.
Malar's speed had been reduced by the frost sprite, and he'd suffered from the melee against the dragon. The avatar was now in bad shape. Drops of dazzling golden ichor spurted from it, rising off the ground as steam.
"Die!" Patrick seized the opportunity, and radiant light shone from behind his body. A holy figure appeared, restoring him to full strength immediately and wreathing his crystal sword in flames.
*Shlick!* The holy sword stabbed into the avatar's thigh, almost breaking the bone.
Malar who had suffered some injuries howled loudly, "AH… TYR, you deformed thing! I'll never let you get away with this…"
'Tyr struck as well?' Leylin turned to the holy figure behind Patrick with some apprehension. It was obvious that a hand was missing from his body, and legend had it that the God of Justice had been injured while trying to seal Cerberus.
'Avatars are indeed the best counter to their kind… I should be more cautious of them in the future…' Leylin lowered his head slightly as he gripped tightly onto an ancient purple-gold coin.
"Argh…!" The injury to the thigh caused a lasting effect on Malar's body. His damage resistance had dropped, and even his hair charred. It made him look miserable.
Having been pushed to the edge, Malar finally decided to use his other powers. All this while he'd only engaged in melee, but how could a god not have any spells at hand? After one last roar, the avatar disappeared into the void. Neither the dragon, the frost sprite, or the paladin could detect any traces of him.
'Is this Absolute Stealth? It's rumoured to be the most powerful stealth technique for rogues…' Leylin turned serious. This skill allowed his opponent to completely conceal himself, and rendered him immune to all attacks. However, the body was still in the prime material plane, and he could launch a sneak attack at any time. It was worthy of being called the ultimate rogue skill.
"Be careful, he's still inside the array!" These legendaries weren't less experienced than Leylin himself. After all, they'd reached this peak from a mountain of bloody corpses. Once Malar's avatar disappeared, the other legendaries immediately began to attack as a defensive measure.
It was a pity though. It was all a child's game against the God of the Hunt. Just as Patrick had sheathed his sword, the enormous figure of Malar's avatar appeared before him. A shadow sprung forth from his terrifyingly omnipotent body, engulfing the paladin completely.
"Help! Save me!" The other three legendaries all understood the importance of working together, and even Leylin began to act.
It was a shame that Leylin suddenly perceived a tremendous evil intent in the atmosphere at this moment. He immediately activated all the defences of his dragonscale armour, and the Red Dragon Staff thundered as it launched a Dragon Breath in the danger's direction.
"Aah…" A momentary hiss sounded, and an illusory shadow seemed to disappear in a blazing tower of flames.
"This must be… When did they prepare a Phantasmal Killer?" Leylin began to think at lightning speed. This was the advantage of being a god— even such a high-ranked skill could be used as long as one had sufficient divine force.
"Get lost, you abomination!" Lillian and Alegor had also been blocked by Phantasmal Killers, and were both delayed from acting.
In this short span of time, Patrick's fate had been sealed.
"Aah! Chaotic evil, why can't you disappear from this world?" Before death had its grasp on him, Patrick displayed his peak legendary strength. The burning crystal sword widened in a flash, immediately becoming a broadsword that was over five metres long. It clashed fiercely with the bestial claws of Malar's avatar, who radiated divine force even more fiercely. Malar seemed to be on the verge of possessing the paladin.
*Snap! Crack!* Faint shattering sounded from the points where the claws clashed with the sword. The special ability of the claws was Shatter!
Patrick could only watch with a dumbstruck expression as Malar's avatar snapped his longsword with its claws. The giant claws covered in golden fur snatched the knight up immediately.
"Ah…" Powerful divine force imprisoned Patrick, and he could only frantically howl in response. Nothing he did managed to harm a single hair on his opponent. His surging qi began to wane.
In the end, all Patrick saw was an enormous smelly mouth clustered with sharp teeth that stood straight like pikes.
Leylin and the others saw Malar's avatar toss the legendary paladin directly into his maw and chew him up. Patrick's defences were useless against Malar's teeth, and a crunching sound made everyone's hair stand on end as a great amount of blood and bones fell from the corner of Malar's mouth, trickling down his fur.
Four great legendaries had surrounded Malar's avatar. Of them, the paladin Patrick had now fallen.
"Damn, should we retreat?" For the first time, Lillian felt that she was not prepared. Even just the avatar of a god possessed unimaginable strength. She hesitantly glanced at the legendary druid beside her, who was still in his red dragon form.
"It's just an avatar, and its divine force reserves should be running low… It used up a lot against the paladin earlier, now is our best chance!"
'A.I. Chip! Calculate the avatar's trajectory!'
[Beep! Mission established! Avatar's coordinates have been input… Simulation established!] The A.I. Chip loyally executed Leylin's task.
Afterwards, Leylin's eyes glowed as he cast a legendary spell that he had long prepared— Greater Disjunction!
*Snap! Crack!* Malar's bestial claws were still only a high-ranked legendary weapon in the end, and not a divine weapon. They had sustained some damage fighting the paladin, and Leylin's Greater Disjunction caused them to finally crack.
"Now's our chance!" Lillian and Alegor's eyes lit up with hope as they advanced, revealing their own greatest trump cards.
"Legendary spell— Ice Age!" Lillian chanted in a high voice, and the surrounding air seemed to turn into a blizzard. The trees, and even rocks around them all turned into sparkling ice, as if the entire world had returned to the Ice Age.
-x-X-x-
"So what if you're a god's avatar? You shall fall!" On the shoulder of the giant frost sprite, Lillian was like a goddess of snow. A layer of ice covered Malar's feet, planting him firmly on the ground as an icy meteorite hundreds of tons in weight broke through the skies to land on the avatar.
"What the hell. Is this woman crazy? This attack will also affect us…" In the face of such earth-shattering strength, Leylin was forced backwards. Even Alegor in his dragon form flapped his wings with as much strength as he could muster to keep a distance.
"You mortals profane gods…" Malar's avatar transmitted spiritual undulations in the face of the meteorite. Yet, it crashed down before he could finish speaking, and his words were drowned out.
*Rumble!* A magnitude ten earthquake erupted abruptly, shaking the land and causing dust to form a terrifying mushroom cloud in the sky. Everyone with strength in the north felt the earth shaking in that instant!
"Hah… this mad woman…" Leylin had grown himself a pair of powerful wings of air, and he looked down at the huge pit from the meteorite. The terrifying hole was tens of kilometres deep, and the middle was pitch-black with a base that could not even be seen. "Has the avatar died yet? I doubt it, but he's sure to be heavily injured…"
"Alegor, quick!" Lillian seemed to be on the verge of collapse after casting this legendary spell. She couldn't even maintain the giant frost sprite under her, only able to let it explode back into ice and snow in the air.
*Roar!* The legendary dragon threw himself into the depths of the pit, and what followed were furious snarls and yells. A large black figure was flung out, like a small mountain being tossed away.
Leylin's astonishing eyesight had allowed him to see what happened clearly. The legendary druid Alegor in his dragon form had been caught by the tail, and Malar's avatar had thrown him out like he was tossing a hammer.
Leylin's pupils shrank, and he muttered to himself, "Such tenaciousness… So this is the avatar of a god."
"You who profane the gods! I will extract all of your souls and place them in my divine kingdom, burning them in holy fire for a hundred thousand years!"
The gigantic ape monster walked out of the pit, clearly agitated. However, he clearly wasn't doing well either. Golden liquid flowed out of his wounds, glowing with the light of divine force. Still, it was hindered by an invisible force.
'Seems like he really is gravely injured,' Leylin thought as he nodded to himself. Still, Malar's body was just a convergence of divine force held together by a god's conscient. It was this divine force that allowed him to maintain physical form. Even the blood spurting out of his wounds was the same, slight injury unable to harm the god's origins.
And yet things were different now. His wounds were making it difficult for him to maintain his form in the material plane, and his divine force was already beginning to dissipate.
"Mortal woman, how dare you harm my divine body…" The golden ape monster appeared in front of Lillian in the next instant, its giant claws slashing forward.
"Ah…" In spite of crystal armour and tens of layers of frost shields, Lillian's defences were broken apart. The legendary wizard's body shot out like a cannonball, and smoke filled the skies.
The red dragon was nowhere to be found in the deep pit. Instead, Alegor's original form lay there unconscious.
"Damn it… So I'm the only one left at the end?" Leylin rubbed his nose, wondering with a wry smile.
'There's a few dogs beside this monkey, it'll be a little troublesome…'
"Keke… there's one left? Are you trying to flee? Come, let me enjoy this hunt!" Malar's eyes were fixed straight on Leylin, emitting a crazed bloodthirst.
However, in the next moment, a large palm pushed the head of the avatar into the ground. This was Crushing Palm!
"Are you crazy? I finally got my prey here after much effort. Why would I leave?"
Leylin's eyes were cold and wise, "A god letting me leave? The divine force forming your avatar is now lacking, and you urgently need to replenish it."
How could Malar's thoughts escape Leylin? The four legendaries had made preparations for a long time and given so much. While the avatar had persisted up till this point, the grievous injuries he had sustained were serious enough!
"ROAR! I will kill you… Kill you!" The large monster ape pulled up from the soil and shook his head in fury.
"You won't be able to kill anyone!" Leylin's voice was cold as he pointed to the avatar's head with his right hand.
Legendary Spell— Meteor Blast!
Four large fireballs fell from the sky, exploding on top of Malar's head. The exemplary flames immediately caused Malar to snarl in anger, "Legendary spells again! Why? How do you have so many spell slots?"
"You can ask again in death." Leylin looked apathetic as legendary spell was cast after legendary spell.
Legendary Absorption. Legendary Detonation!
"Im...possible…" The avatar blustered. Much of his negative energy and defences had been neutralised by the absorption spell, leaving him open to the detonation that struck his neck.
Malar's large head disintegrated.
Having become a legendary arcanist, Leylin had integrated his research as a Magus with the analytic abilities of the A.I. Chip to cause a terrifying qualitative change. He could now cast legendary spells near-instantly. Having been drowned in them, it was no wonder that Malar's avatar died.
"Still… We haven't even started the true battle yet…" Leylin stared at Malar's avatar's corpse unblinkingly.
The collapsed body was undergoing a huge transformation. The pieces of the corpse melted to form a thick golden liquid, much of which fused to form a large golden sphere. Malar's cries could still be heard from its core.
"The avatar isn't made of flesh and blood after all. Even if the head is cut off, it can still move. Then again, a form made of just divine force is extremely fragile…"
Leylin understood the various forms gods could take on. Malar's avatar wasn't completely dead yet, and as long as he could flee to his divine kingdom and fuse back into the main body he would suffer no real losses.
"This unique ability of divine force, the ability to vary its form, is what makes it difficult for people to capture it. It is also the key to murdering a god…" Leylin glanced in the direction of the unconscious Lillian. She was currently gravely injured, rendered immobile.
The original plan was for her to capture the avatar. She would use extremely cold ice to dull the life of the divine force, then use a special container to capture or directly absorb it. Of course, Leylin had not expected too much of her. He had a better method.
"Don't you leave!" he yelled, numerous thin green threads forming a large web that shot forth from his fingertips.
"Did you think a mortal object like that… could…" As he saw what Leylin was doing, the bundle of light that was the avatar scorned him. However, Malar was then left unable to laugh.
*Swish!* The large green web stopped most of the golden ball. The liquid divine force could not break through its seal!
"How's this possible? What kind of web is this?" Malar roared, but was unable to do anything about the tightening of the web. He soon reached Leylin's palm.
"As expected, a web formed of origin force works very well at detaining the divine force of a god. The A.I. Chip's predictions were right." Leylin saw the struggle within the web, where Malar was like a large fish that had accidentally fallen inside. He could not help but snicker as he grabbed the web tightly.
World Origin Force! This was the origin power of everything, what arcanists called origin energy.
A web formed of origin energy was the bane of all godly beings. It was no wonder that the ancient gods and arcanists were arch enemies, and the arcanists had been wiped out.
Leylin was probably now the only Great Arcanist on the continent. He had no problems with turning origin energy into a web, and this was the insurance he'd prepared for this operation. As the large web tightened up, Malar's avatar's cries grew soft until he completely stopped moving.
*Rumble!* Tremendous undulations filled the skies in the direction that the other small part of Malar's avatar had escaped, and his worshippers' prayers formed a golden light
"So we weren't the only ones coveting the avatar after all. I managed to lure them out by letting that small part go…" Leylin had no plans of stopping. While the smaller avatar still had most of the firepower focused on it, he opened a teleportation gate next to him.
"Please wait, Lord Leylin!" Numerous figures shot over at this moment, all with powerful divine force on their bodies.
This was a group of legendary priests. They were led by Benedict, the bishop of the church of justice.
-x-X-x-
"That belonging to mortals shall go to mortals. That belonging to gods shall go to them. Please do not delude yourself." Benedict's tone was almost pitiful of the fate of mankind.
"Tsk, I hate mediums like you. You've even brainwashed yourself…" Leylin looked behind him, unsurprised to see the legendary priest of Mystra as well, "Isn't this all for this avatar I have? Even the Goddess of the Weave is joining forces with you…"
"You should know not to slight the wills of two greater gods. As long as you hand over the source of evil in your hands, our church will definitely compensate you satisfyingly…" Benedict now had a merciful look in his eyes, as if he was saving the world.
What a joke that was! Would Mystra or Tyr hand over a portion of divinity in exchange for the avatar? Even if they were willing to, Leylin himself wouldn't want it. Leylin was used to getting what he wanted, and did not accept charity. This situation caused anger to rise from the depths of his eyes. "Sorry, not interested."
The clear rejection immediately stunned Benedict. He then grew indignant, "You're so stubborn!
"Go!" Five high-ranked legendary priests moved forward at his command, forming into a pentagram as they circled Leylin. It exhibited great prohibitive strength.
"So… now that we've shed all pretense of cordiality, it's time to do it by force?" A dangerous smile rose by Leylin's lips, "Luckily, I'm not entirely unprepared…"
Watching Leylin surrounded by the pentagram, a kind smile arose on Benedict's face, "This spell formation is boosted by our gods, and it is impossible to destroy it from within. Do you still not repent?"
Leylin took at the sparkling array, seemingly deep in thought. 'These are pretty good sealing runes. I'll need some effort to break out from within…'
After hearing the man speak, however, he snickered, "It wouldn't do good for you to dispose of the legendaries you invited yourselves."
"You think too highly of yourself. Our church can bear the consequences of losing a mere legendary…" Benedict sighed, "Looks like Leylin has been corroded by greed. Go!"
"Exactly what I was thinking. Do it!" Leylin nodded.
"We're already at this point, and you still…" The fury in Benedict's heart grew, and in that moment he made up his mind. He would suffer the loss of reputation in exchange for Leylin's death.
However, his expression quickly changed.
*Woo! Woo!* A deathly aura, as dark as ink, had filled their surroundings. Numerous bony hands dug their way out of the ground, some with rotting flesh remaining on them as they roared with ire.
"This profaning of souls, it's a necromancer!" The priests' bodies immediately flashed with divine spells.
"Keke…" The bones started to laugh with a strange sound as they formed a gigantic horned skull. The skull struck the pentagram.
*Rumble!* Although divine spells were the bane of necromancy, the opposite was true as well. The pentagram trembled under the deathly aura, reacting like hot oil would to cold water.
*Ka-cha! Ka-cha!* Many black cracks crawled along the spell formation, seeming like human veins. The formation then shattered loudly.
"This strength… It's a high-ranked legendary necromancer!" Benedict exclaimed in his shock as a mouthful of fresh blood dyed his snow-white collar red.
"You got it in one. I'm sorry you don't get a prize…" Leylin's figure flashed, and in an instant he'd disappeared from the formation. By the time the black light flashed again, he was already outside the encirclement.
"Chase him!" Benedict yelled, no time left to care for his injuries.
The supporting soldiers he'd brought had terrifying might. There were many legendary priests from the Goddess of the Weave, and there was even an entire regiment of paladins.
*Crack!* *Crack!* However, all these people were drowned out by the army of the undead. The skeletons enveloped them like an endless tsunami, and few spells could fight off this army of cannon fodder. Benedict's eyes widened further.
"Stay here!" he shouted, activating quite a few high-ranked divine items. Still, even he was met by a wall of skeletons. A strange skull watched him coldly, a dead expression in its empty eye sockets.
'Legendary spell, Skeletal Wall. It's said to be so powerful even legendary paladins need to hack at it hundreds of times to deal with it…' Benedict recognised the origins of this wall. Unable to suppress his injuries any longer, he spat out a few large mouthfuls of blood.
He rejected attempts to help him along, now looking like a ravenous wolf in winter. "A high-ranked legendary necromancer. Use this to identify and trace him!"
Although he said that, Benedict knew full well that powerful necromancer had very long lives. Some even just turned into liches, and it was unclear how many of them were hiding in the corners of the world. It would be a mere fantasy if one wanted to determine the identity of this one.
Besides, with how things were, what was the point even if they did find out?
"Damn it! DAMN IT!" At the end, the bishop could only let out an angry growl like that of an injured animal, unable to do anything more.
...
In a different location.
The little bit of Malar's avatar that Leylin had deliberately let off streaked through the skies like a shooting star, breaking through a few seals to reach the outer planes.
However, just as it was about to return to his true body in his divine kingdom the Beast Wasteland, he was suddenly grasped by a palm. It continued to snarl, evidently frantic as if in peril. Divine force rippled forth, but dissipated like a cool breeze in front of the hand.
"Quiet!" A discontent voice sounded, seeming to carry with it the power of laws. Every single movement of the hand seemed to be paired with a vast divine force, causing Malar's avatar to immediately cease all movement.
"I never thought there would be someone in the prime material plane able to intercept Malar's avatar..." The Weave rippled, and a goddess with starlike eyes descended to look at the person who'd grasped the avatar in his hands.
"Although there were surprises in our plan, it's still under our control…" The god that rendered Malar's avatar unable to fight back looked rather strange. He wore ordinary warrior clothing, and looked incomparably haggard. His eyes were lined with blood, and he was missing his right hand. He looked like an old veteran whose will was still strong.
However, he'd still managed to grab Malar's slime-like avatar with his remaining one. The avatar was completely unable to move. This was Tyr, the Greater God of Justice and the protector of all paladins!
"Alright, Mistress Weave. Let us see to Malar…" Tyr spoke slowly, following Mystra to the outer regions of Malar's divine kingdom.
Once they arrived at this place, the golden sphere that was Malar's avatar seemed to grow more emotional. Loud howls echoed from within the divine kingdom.
"Now, Malar. Swear to the Styx that you won't take part in our battle with the orcish gods, and you will have your avatar back. Silverymoon will also acknowledge the current boundaries in land and let the Blackblood Tribe remain in the Moonwood…" The Weave trembled, sending the goddess' words into the divine kingdom.
Malar's roars quietened down for a while, but he did not walk outside. Being a beast did not mean he was a fool. The God of Justice was right outside! If he dared walk out, Tyr would definitely annihilate him. Mystra would probably be happy to see this happen.
Hence, Malar resolutely hid in his divine kingdom, occasionally releasing a few animalistic howls that were hard to understand. Of course, for the gods, understanding each other's thoughts was very simple.
...
A long while later, Tyr nodded and sent Malar's avatar into his realm, and then left the realm with the Goddess of the Weave.
"Alright… Malar side is taken care of. Thank you for your help…" Mystra told Tyr.
"With our divine force, it would be a simple task to break into Malar's realm, kill him, and send his truesoul to the astral plane…" Tyr began to speak.
"He's still a true god after all. Now that a war between the gods can erupt at any time, we shouldn't waste too much divine force. Besides, while Malar is someone who works alone, I know that he has dealings with the gods of fury…"
The explanation rendered him quiet. Even the God of Justice had to learn to compromise. Had he not, he would long since have fallen.
"The preparations in the mortal world are almost done. While those legendaries have their own plans, I have it under control…"
All sorts of images flashed in front of Mystra, revealing recent events.
"Now that the attack on the avatar is done, the battle between legendaries should start soon. When the time comes, I'll send my divine weapon down. It will challenge the possessor of the Thunder God's Hammer, Saladin…" Tyr reiterated their previous agreement.
"Justice will definitely triumph over evil. The mighty wills of the various universes came to this decision, and I now say this representing the suffering commoners of the north." The god's eyes seemed to pass through time and space, seeing everything...
-x-X-x-
Quiet spatial turbulence was stirred as a crack opened up between planes. Fierce elemental energy surged through it, annihilating everything in its way.
A floating city stood tall in this region, as if a powerful fortress that was indestructible and eternal. Only after entering the ghost city did Leylin heave a sigh of relief.
"Welcome home, Master!" Shaylin, the fairy who was like a housekeeper, appeared to greet Leylin. Only this place had arcane spell formations that rendered him immune to the spying of the gods, as well as other divination spells.
Once he tossed his coat to an attending golem, Leylin turned to the skeleton lich Ilyo, "You did well."
"It is my honour to serve Master!" Ilyo pressed his right fist to his chest as he spoke. He was in his crystal skeleton formed, but he was wearing something akin to a black suit. The clothing formed a vile harmony with the skeleton.
Although he knew Ilyo wasn't speaking from the bottom of his heart, Leylin felt it was enough for the lich to act upon his commands. Sensing the immense power of the God of the Hunt, he'd contacted the necromancer through his phylactery, commanding him to stay concealed and ready to act at any time.
It seemed like the lich truly was experienced. His grasp of time and usage of skills was split-second perfect. If not for the coincidental suppression of the ghost city and the phylactery, Leylin definitely wouldn't have been able to deal with him.
"You won't be recognised by others, will you?" Leylin asked without choice. Skeleton Lich Ilyo, was a name synonymous with trouble and death in the prime material plane, and in recent times his name had even been connected with the ghost city.
"Please don't worry, Master. What I used were common death-type spells, and I even left behind little details that might point to other liches…" Ilyo's skeleton snickered, "If they really did try to pursue me using the clues I left behind, I'm sure it would make for an extremely interesting situation…"
Seeing his expression, Leylin could not help but mourn for the paladins. He sent him away, and turned to the fairy. Shaylin immediately flew to his shoulder, beginning an incessant report.
"I've been working hard to help manage the ghost city ever since you left, Master. That lich has been diligent as well, and the city is now restored..."
Shaylin was once the intellectual core of the ghost city. Once its owner had died, she'd managed it independently for tens of thousands of years, and she was obviously very practiced in matters like this. Leylin nodded along as she spoke.
Time was now on his side. With the restoration of the ghost city complete, it finally began resuming is usual operations. The Mise energy core was stockpiling energy, and soon enough it would regain the powerful ability to match up to the gods.
"Good. Bring me to the core restriction room, and prepare 20% of the Mise energy core reserves for use. Additionally, get me the arcane energy powder and golem rainbow crystal from the storehouse."
Leylin looked at the large green web in his hands, it was now time to deal with Malar's avatar. Still, this was the avatar of a god and could have some hidden abilities. It was best to be on the safe side and absorb him in the floating city.
"Even if I let some of it get away, the divine force and divine will here, as well as the information on domains should be enough for me to refine a trace of divinity in massacres…" He brought Malar's avatar to the core restriction room, and once all defences were operated he revealed the avatar's true form within the web.
It was currently a large pool of golden gelatinous matter, an unmoving huge slime that seemed dead.
"While I did give him some rough treatment, it shouldn't be to this extent…" Leylin shook his head, "Perhaps the most fundamental divine will and conscient is still waiting in there, ready to devour me…"
Compared to the gods' inconceivable strength, even a high-ranked legendary's soul seemed fragile. Many people had been deluded into thinking they could absorb divinity in the prime material plane, but they were instead absorbed by the gods and turned into avatars. Some were indeed lucky enough to succeed, but they experienced a great change in their temperaments and turned into lunatics.
"What a pity… Your plans will not come to fruition!" Leylin touched the semi-solid divine force on the ground with his finger, "Is the origin conscient of a mere beast trying to swallow me?"
In the instant that Leylin's mind and the avatar's conscient made contact, the image of a terrifying giant serpent flashed in Leylin's eyes. Having absorbed the power of the Nightmare Absorbing Physique, the Targaryen seemed to have reached a more inconceivable level. It even seemed to echo within the World of Gods, and its strength continued to grow.
Sensing this conscient, the pile of slime quickly shrunk back. Yet, Shaylin was prepared and restrained it, leaving it with nowhere to go. Leylin took hold of it, and powerful devouring strength exploded forth from his body.
"It has begun…" Leylin closed his eyes, beginning the contest between their conscients and the transformation of divinity.
...
There was little to say about the battle between conscients. Malar's avatar couldn't even begin to resist the Targaryen before it was devoured, and he even leaked some information about divine domains. When Leylin opened his eyes again, a trace of dark gold divine force twined around his arm.
"Is this the power of the divinity of massacres?" Leylin looked at the divinity of massacres, which seemed as thin as a hair on one's head. Sounds of slaughter filled his senses the moment his thoughts made contact with it, causing his eyes to redden slightly.
"This thread of the divinity of massacres contains about 10% of the law of massacres. There's a great amount of divinity, as well as the power of faith from Malar's followers…" Leylin identified the components of the thread.
Divinity was very important to gods, and even true gods would take some time to recover after a portion of their divinity was cut off. Malar had lost most of his avatar, so he would likely be in a terrible state right now.
"Stepping into the realm of the gods using the power of massacres? I like it!" Leylin laughed slightly. A thread of the divinity pounced forward, fusing with his body seamlessly. The process was simple; he'd long since tamed this thing.
Bits of comprehension of the law of massacres emerged in Leylin's mind. An intense, qualitative change occurred inside his body at the same time.
[Beep. Host body beginning to absorb divinity. A.I. Chip upgrading…] The A.I. Chip's robotic voice sounded, and what followed was silence.
After an unknown period of time, the A.I. Chip's voice sounded once more. [Beep! Auxiliary system successfully upgraded. Detected large changes to host body's stats. Recalculating…]
Afterwards, numerous prompts shot out.
[Beep! Host has successfully absorbed the divinity of massacres. Has been changed as a life form, transitioning into a divine being.]
[Beep! Host has absorbed divinity. All stats +1.]
[Beep! Host's spirit has advanced, arcanist ranking increased. Currently rank 22.]
[Beep! Analysis of level 7 Weave at 100%. Host has unlocked all rank 7 spell models, and will no longer forget spells. No materials needed to cast rank 7 spells.]
[Beep! Host has obtained divine body feat: Epic Adaptability.]
[Epic Adaptability. Divine beings have a great tolerance for various extreme environments. All divine beings can survive in lava and frost, be suffocated, or starve. Note: This feat overlaps with Intermediate Perfect Body, and is now encompassed under it.]
Leylin also found that his stats were refreshed again.
[Leylin Faulen. Race: Human (Divine Being), Rank 22 Arcanist (Legendary). Strength: 16. Agility: 16. Vitality: 16. Spirit: 22. Arcane Energy: 220 Status: Healthy. Feats: Legendary Sturdiness, Scholarly, Intermediate Perfect Body, Dreamscape Vision. Specialties: Origin Force Detection, Origin Force Amplification, Illusions.]
[Analysis of Weave: Level 0 100%, Level 1 100%, Level 2 100%, Level 3 100%, Level 4 100%, Level 5 100%, Level 6 100%, Level 7 100%, Level 8 87.56%, Level 9 57.72%.]
[Spell Slots: Rank 9 (4), Rank 8 (6), Rank 7 (???), Rank 6 (???), Rank 5(???), Rank 4 (???), Rank 3 (???), Rank 2 (???), Rank 1 (???), Rank 0 (???)]
"Divine being? A change to my state?" Leylin looked at his hands. Golden veins appeared under them, and then died down.
"The progress of analysis has increased as well. With the analysis of level 7 complete, I've met the minimum requirements to cast the legendary rank 12 arcane spell, Karsus' Avatar…" Leylin recalled the powerful model that Distorted Shadow had given to him. It was a terrifying arcane spell that would release all the conscients of the ancient Magi, and could steal all of Mystra's strength in an instant and cause her to fall.
"If this was in the past, Distorted Shadow would definitely have appeared and used all sorts of methods to distort my senses, forcing me to become arch enemies with the Goddess of the Weave and then make his move."
A smirk rose about Leylin's lips. He was now no longer a pawn to be used as others pleased. While the Weave Goddess' church was slightly hostile to him, they weren't mortal enemies and their differences weren't irreconcilable. Naturally, there was also no need to make any moves yet.
-x-X-x-
What Leylin prized the most was free will. For its sake, he wouldn't even mind falling out with Distorted Shadow.
'Besides, now that I've grasped a thread of divinity and become a divine being, I'm formally on my way to godhood. I can now sense the prayers of my followers and respond to them, although I can't bestow divine spells. Still, this is quite good…'
Leylin closed his eyes. He could now sense the countless threads of faith in the air even without his Nightmare Absorbing Physique. It was easy to trace them back to their sources…
The territory of Viscount Tiff, in the northern lands. The Viscount was performing his daily prayers in a secret room, when he suddenly heard a voice within his mind. "Dear follower, I am here. I exist within you!"
Through his spiritual force senses, Tiff felt his prayers connect with a very familiar existence. That feeling immediately caused him to kneel, with tears streaming down his face, "Master, Winged Serpent God Kukulkan, you are finally awake…"
The same incident occurred with many of Kukulkan's worshippers. They all began to pray, the power of their faith constantly transmitted to Leylin through the Weave and absorbed by his divinity of massacres.
'The next step is to spread my faith and nurture the divinity, before I attempt to ignite my godfire…' A fire seemed to blaze in Leylin's eyes, 'The power of faith is similar to that of a domain… Is this the massacre domain?'
"A.I. Chip," Leylin commanded.
[Beep! Mission established. Host has obtained partial information on the massacre domain. Beginning simulations.]
'The domain of the divinity of massacres awakened when I acquired it, but I need a lot of power of faith to operate it, using my own comprehension of the law…' Leylin pondered, his eyes flashing as he stroked his chin.
Domains were the true assets of the gods. They used them to connect with the faith of their worshippers, and transform it into their own strength.
Leylin had only made superficial contact with the massacre domain, and the A.I. Chip couldn't numerise it yet. After all, this divinity of massacres was not his own. Only with a better understanding of the law of massacres could he truly grasp the domain. The A.I. Chip would be able to numerise the information about the domain then.
Leylin stood up slowly, his breathing blowing a gust of wind across the secret room. The wind struck a steel plate, which began to buzz.
'How strong am I, now that I've absorbed divinity?' Leylin raised his arm, and a mirror made of water appeared. He was still strong and with a good physique, his golden curls matching well with his deep blue eyes to create the most standard image of a noble youth.
However, Leylin noticed a very hazy golden lustre being emitted from his body. It was very weak, and could even be overlooked if one wasn't paying attention.
"Also…" Leylin stared at his eyes. Traces of gold flickered within the depths of the deep blue.
'Is this what happens after absorbing divinity?' Leylin stroked his chin, 'I'll be able to conceal it in its entirety once I adapt to its power in a few years. However, I don't have that much time…'
"Shaylin, move the floating city towards the outer seas of Dambrath," he ordered. He wore a purplish-gold robe with starlike patterns on it.
The entire ghost city began to rumble with his will. Elemental turbulence rocked the outer planes as it charged towards the space surrounding Dambrath. Anything obstructing its path was ground to powder.
Sitting at the control area, Leylin sneered. "Gods? The north? Hmph! What use are your plots if I just leave?"
He'd come to the north to obtain Malar's divinity in the first place. His goal was now met, and he'd sensed the situation in the north. What better time to leave than now?
Such unhesitant decision-making was one of the reasons for Leylin's survival to this day. Although there were immense benefits to be had in the north, he had offended the churches of two greater gods. How would he dare continue staying there?
'Right now, the churches of the God of Justice and the Goddess of the Weave are preoccupied with helping Alustriel get her kingdom back; most of their forces will be concentrated in the north. There's little chance of them making trouble for me…'
'Tiff will be in trouble though…' Leylin's eyes flashed. 'It's only something I did in my leisure anyway. There's little to hang on to there.'
At this thought, Leylin sent a prophecy down Tiff's thread of faith. "Immense danger will arrive soon. Take all your forces and acolytes out of the north, and head to the outer seas of the Dambrath Kingdom…"
"Immense danger? Is it the church?" Tiff looked solemn as he began to pray, "My Lord, you are the master of everything. I shall carry out your will…"
"What's wrong, darling?" Tiff's mistress looked over from beside him, evidently worried. Although they'd shared a bed for many years, she still felt like this person was a stranger.
"It's nothing much… I'm leaving…" Tiff ruthlessly got up and put on his clothes, "You can either come with me or stay behind to manage our lands…"
While she was still stunned, Tiff had already left the room. What came next was a huge ruckus.
Leylin could give up on the land and wealth in the north. Still, his acolytes had been nurtured painstakingly and were too important to be abandoned.
Tiff understood Leylin. He had the loyal acolytes leave as quickly as possible from the north, keeping them safe. With their quick and resolute departure, all the two churches found was what he'd abandoned. They had no clue of what they'd let escape.
...
Leylin had left without a sound and returned the same way. Besides Ernest, Baron Jonas and a few others, the people of the land did not even know that the legendary wizard who was their young master had left and returned in secret. The ordinary people found it normal for a wizard to hole up in their tower for a year and a half.
Once he greeted his parents and mentor, Leylin had no plans to care for the land. Instead, he stayed within the wizard tower, having his men settle these tasks.
His primary purpose now was to amass the power of faith and train his divinity, preparing to ignite his godfire and become a demigod…
A distorted layer of the massacre domain spread within the wizard tower. Leylin was currently wearing loose wizard robes as he felt the threads of faith in his territory.
It may have been because he was within his lands with many people protecting him, but the threads of faith were even more distinct than before. The massacre domain expanded, allowing him to have a better understanding of this great domain's power.
'The massacre domain should grow through constant battles, nurtured with lives. This ominous feeling. it's like it can even steal life energy, which means the more I kill the more powerful my main body will get…'
Leylin saw the A.I. Chip make another prompt, [Obtained information regarding the massacre domain.] In his opinion, he would be able to control and analyze the domain quickly.
'Tiff and the rest should arrive soon. I need to find a place to massacre, and nurture the divinity in my body…' Leylin pondered as he stroked his chin.
He could sense that his divinity had grown by about 10% after absorbing so much power of faith.
'The divinity of massacres I obtained was only an introduction, a medium. After I cross the threshold, I can transform the power of faith and boost my own divine force…'
Leylin seemed to understand something. Whether his divinity had another power was another matter altogether. Before becoming a divine being, it would have been impossible for him to communicate with his followers and absorb their faith without help from the Nightmare Absorbing Physique. Now, he could even transform the power of faith in preparation to ignite his godfire.
'It's best to comprehend the domain of massacre while spreading the source of faith… Is this… conquering?' Leylin sank into deep thought, 'Where can I find a large unconquered land and not attract the attention of the gods?'
The gods had basically divided up the prime material plane already, and there wasn't much land left to take over. Even if Leylin wished to head to Karen's home in the Underdark, he would still need to seize the faith of Lolth and a large number of other underground gods. Most importantly, they were all true gods, and it was impossible for him to go against them.
'I'll need to make my choice carefully… Tiff and the rest are going to arrive soon, so I should settle them down first and have them mix with the commoners of the land. I'll make up my mind after fully unearthing the potential of this territory…' With the current circumstances, Leylin could only plan things this way.