Chapter 703: The Arrogant Cheetah Goddess
Identifying the Goddess
Shazam was a remarkable person. He kept saying he was going to die, yet a month had passed, and he was still alive and well. Of course, the comprehensive medical facilities also played a big role.
He now spent every day with Billy, imparting various forms of knowledge. The nearly ten-thousand-year-old man clearly treated Billy as a personal disciple. The latter was reluctant but, at the insistence of the others, patiently studied.
This knowledge was encyclopedic; almost all magical lore, from ancient times to the present, was recorded in Shazam's mind—he was a living library.
When Barbara's image appeared on the wall, Shazam immediately sensed something was wrong.
Half-human, half-leopard?
Amber eyes?
Claws glinting with silver light?
"Could it be her?"
Diana eagerly asked, "Do you remember something?"
Shazam shook his head slightly. In the age of the Gods, many deities could transform into a cheetah. A video alone wasn't enough to confirm anything.
"Tell me the whole story, from beginning to end."
Diana composed herself and recounted her relationship with Barbara and all the changes that had occurred recently, specifically highlighting the tomb expedition a month earlier.
Barbara had spent a long time on the third floor of the Rock of Eternity and had taken some ancient artifacts when she left. Diana had long suspected those artifacts were the cause of her current state.
The Wizard pondered for a moment before slowly saying,
"That Senator Flick. Have you examined his body?"
Diana manipulated the controller, and Flick's autopsy report appeared on the wall. "His head was crushed by a blow. His body had no other wounds, except for his left shoulder, where there is a very clear bite mark."
"As expected."
The Wizard sighed. "The Cheetah Goddess of the Sihn tribe, the Queen of the African savanna. I never thought she was still alive."
"Are you certain?"
"I was only suspicious before, but the bite mark confirms it. Urzkartaga. The Cheetah God born on the African plains. Due to certain events, she was hunted by almost all the gods. Even in death, she found no peace. Her head became the drinking cup of the Mayan God-King, her flesh was burned to ashes by Mount Olympus, and her skin was used as sky lanterns by the Celestial Court."
Hearing this for the first time, Diana couldn't help but ask,
"What did she do to provoke all the pantheons?"
The Wizard shook his head. "That woman was a lunatic. Compared to other Gods, her power wasn't strong, but she was vicious. Anyone bitten by her would become her servant, and even Gods were no exception. With this ability and a dagger that could slay Gods, she embarked on a journey to conquer the world."
"Her goal was to step on the heads of all the God-Kings and become the King of the Gods."
At this, he couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Diana smiled too. The King of the Gods—even Zeus wouldn't dare claim that title. And this, a mere cheetah.
"After her plot was exposed, the six major pantheons issued a kill order against her. Since then, she disappeared. Her body was destroyed, and her divine soul dissolved into nothingness."
Diana was puzzled. "If she died, why has she reappeared?"
"It could be her personal weapon, the God-Slayer Dagger, or perhaps another artifact. Urzkartaga came from the famous Sihn tribe in Africa and was very skilled in curses and black magic." He paused, then asked, "You want to save her?"
Diana nodded.
"Barbara is a good person. She shouldn't have to suffer this ordeal."
"I'm afraid it will be very difficult. There is almost no hope."
"Is there no way at all?"
"The method to save her doesn't rely on you, but on her. Urzkartaga used a very ancient African resurrection technique. The risk is great, but the cost is small."
Diana frowned. "What do you mean? I don't understand."
High risk! Low cost! Aren't those contradictory?
Shazam explained. "Death is the most terrifying thing in the world, and even Gods can't avoid it. To achieve immortality, some Gods adopted extremely drastic methods, splitting their divine soul and keeping it on an object. When the main body suffers an accident, they resurrect using the fragment. The consequence of this is losing their divine power and becoming mortal."
"This method requires a painful price, but the success rate is high. The other method, which Urzkartaga is using now, is to abandon the soul and choose to preserve her divine power and consciousness."
"She injected all her divine power and consciousness into your friend's body, little by little influencing, warping her personality, and creating a new Cheetah Goddess. This method is time-consuming and prone to accidents, but once successful, the cost to her is almost zero."
"That is what I mean by high risk and low cost."
Diana understood. She said anxiously, "Since you know the cause, you must know the method to save her."
The Wizard waved his hand. "It's too late. A month has passed since the fusion. Her cognition, behavior, and actions have all become Urzkartaga. The two have merged into one. There is no saving her."
Diana wouldn't give up. "Is there truly no way?"
"Unless she wakes up on her own, realizes the severity of the problem, and seeks change. But that is impossible."
The Wizard calmly shook his head. "Among the seven deadly sins, Gluttony and Lust are sins of the flesh. Greed, Sloth, Wrath, Jealousy, and Pride are sins of the mind. Sins of the flesh can be atoned for, but sins of the mind are difficult to cure. Jealousy and Greed are the most intractable. Once caught in them, there is no turning back."
Diana fell silent, staring blankly ahead.
Jealousy!
The root of everything was jealousy. Ultimately, it was her fault.
If she had only perceived the thoughts in her friend's heart sooner, things wouldn't have turned out this way.
The Wizard suddenly asked, "Has Luke Shaw woken up?"
"No."
"And J'onn?"
"No, him either."
"That is a pity. They are a master of the mind and one possesses an extremely powerful soul, respectively. If they could work together, there might have been a slim possibility."
"I'll go find someone right now."
Diana turned to leave. She would not give up, no matter what, even if there was only a sliver of hope.
The Final Hope
Half an hour later, inside the Lakeside Villa in the north of Metropolis.
After the previous explosion, the underground base underwent a complete renovation. Its area doubled, now featuring a factory, a server room, a research center, and the newest medical facilities.
Luke lay in the medical pod, his face serene and his breathing steady. He looked unchanged. To maintain his physical vitality, the equipment periodically emitted biological pulse waves, stimulating various muscles to simulate the effect of exercise.
Linda asked curiously,
"You seem to be in some trouble. Is it that Barbara Minerva?"
"You already know?"
"How could I not, with the ruckus she caused?"
Linda shrugged. "How are you going to handle it? I hear she's killed quite a few people."
"I want to save her."
Diana chose not to hide anything. "She's my friend. I can't just stand by and watch her become like this."
"How do you plan to save her?"
Diana shook her head. "I haven't figured it out yet." She paused, then said with some hesitation, "Do you have any way to wake Luke? I need his help with something."
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