Chapter 1: What Kind of Weapon?
At the critical moment of the Sovereign’s descent, Linley actually had an epiphany and broke through, reaching the level of a Highgod. This left Beirut and others both amused and exasperated, but it also shocked many present. The most stunned, however, were the experts of the eight great clans.
“This Linley… has become a Highgod?” Patriarch Bolin looked toward Linley from afar.
“He actually became a Highgod!” Patriarch Eddrick and the others had complex expressions on their faces.
“Even if the Sovereign hadn’t descended this time, we probably would have had to leave anyway,” the Patriarch of the Nether Serpent clan sighed softly.
The reason they had been so frantic over the past thousand years was their fear of Linley. They believed that as a Demigod, Linley had to have fused at least five profound mysteries to be this terrifying. Once he reached the Highgod level, he would likely have fused six, achieving perfection!
A Perfected Highgod was no less terrifying than Beirut!
“Fortunately, he didn’t break through any earlier,” Patriarch Relnas let out a long sigh.
“Mm.” The patriarchs’ hearts were now in turmoil, chaotic and unsettled.
The Sovereign’s command made them unwilling, but Linley’s current attainment of Highgod status filled them with a lingering dread.
If a Perfected Highgod went on a killing spree, the experts of the eight great clans would simply be target practice. Just look at Beirut… even a Sovereign artifact could be caught barehanded. With such monstrous power, who could withstand it?
“The Four Divine Beasts clan is lucky to have produced such a genius,” Patriarch Babari said in a low voice. “We’d better leave quickly.”
“It’s time to go back.”
The patriarchs turned and left one by one. They dared not defy the Sovereign’s command. Moreover, Linley’s existence made them leave willingly. Regardless… the matter between the Four Divine Beasts clan and the eight great clans was now concluded.
The members of the Four Divine Beasts clan were all extremely excited and emotional. Many wept on the spot. From this day forward, their clan no longer had to endure days of crisis and humiliation.
“It’s over!”
“Haha, it’s finally over!”
Voices rose and fell across the sky above the Celestial Sacrifice Mountain Range. Many clan members knelt down in excitement, crying. During this period, the constant insults and mockery from the eight great clans had been a spiritual torment for the Four Divine Beasts clan.
Finally, it was over!
“The people of the eight great clans are starting to leave,” Bebe said.
Linley turned to look. Under the coordinated arrangements of the patriarchs and elders, the members of the eight great clans rose into the air like a swarm of locusts, boarding various metallic lifeforms and quickly departing, leaving behind a vast expanse of empty castle buildings.
“It’s all over.” Galeson’s expression was complex.
The White Tiger Patriarch also sighed. “These ten thousand years, like a nightmare, have finally ended! The clan members no longer have to hide in the Celestial Sacrifice Mountain Range, no longer have to live in fear.”
Every member of the Four Divine Beasts clan now felt a sense of relief.
“Lord Beirut, we will forever remember your great kindness!” Galeson was the first to bow respectfully. Then the other three patriarchs and all the elders also bowed in reverence.
Beirut smiled faintly and said, “If you want to thank someone, thank the Sovereign.”
Galeson and the others understood that the Bloodpeak Sovereign had no connection to their Four Divine Beasts clan. If the Bloodpeak Sovereign wanted to save them, he would have appeared long ago. Yet he only showed up now…
They suspected that Beirut was involved.
“Everyone!”
Galeson suddenly shouted loudly, his voice echoing across the sky above the Celestial Sacrifice Mountain Range. Countless clan members turned their gazes toward him. Galeson declared in a booming voice, “Today is a day of great joy. For over ten thousand years, our Four Divine Beasts clan has been burdened with pressure. One elder after another has died in battle for the clan… Today, the members of our Four Divine Beasts clan can once again fly freely in the skies of the Infernal Realm. To celebrate this great event, we must hold a grand celebration. All clan members, a three-day grand feast!”
“Great!”
“Three-day grand feast!”
Cheers and howls erupted one after another, resounding across the entire Celestial Sacrifice Mountain Range.
“Lord Beirut, Pussro, you two must join our celebration,” Galeson said, looking at Beirut.
“Certainly.” Beirut nodded with a faint smile.
“Heh heh.” Pussro chuckled, then glanced at Linley and laughed heartily, “Linley, having an epiphany and breaking through while seeing a Sovereign—I’ve lived for so many years and never witnessed such a sight.”
Linley could only smile awkwardly.
“You saw the Sovereign, didn’t you?” Beirut asked with a grin.
“I only caught a glimpse, and then the Sovereign left.” Linley felt a bit regretful. In truth, before the Sovereign’s arrival, watching the battle between the Grand Elder and Patriarch Babari had immersed Linley in enlightenment.
He had no idea when the Sovereign came or what was said.
But from the conversations around him, Linley had gathered that the eight great clans left because they obeyed the Sovereign’s command.
“A Sovereign is a Sovereign. With just one word, the eight great clans had to obediently leave.” In Linley’s mind, he still remembered the enormous black face, dozens of meters high, that appeared in the sky, and those chilling eyes that made one’s heart tremble.
The pressure of a Sovereign—Linley would never forget this experience.
“Let’s go. Your clan is about to have a grand celebration.” Beirut flew up with a smile.
Linley, Bebe, Pussro, Delia, and the others followed Beirut. Meanwhile, Galeson and the other three patriarchs had already gone to arrange the festivities. This celebration would span the entire Celestial Sacrifice Mountain Range.
As they flew, Beirut suddenly let out a self-deprecating laugh.
Linley turned to look at him. Beirut glanced at him helplessly and said, “Linley, I really brought this on myself. I just encouraged you, saying that once you reached Highgod, I’d give you a divine artifact weapon. Who would’ve thought you’d break through right away?”
Indeed…
Linley’s efficiency was a bit too high.
“Grandpa, you have to forge a top-notch divine artifact weapon for Boss,” Bebe quickly said.
“Since I said it, I’ll do it.” Beirut nodded, then looked at Linley. “Linley, tell me. What kind of weapon do you want me to forge for you?”
Pussro laughed heartily. “Linley, Beirut’s divine artifacts may not be as good as Sovereign artifacts, but in terms of hardness, they’re close. In the Infernal Realm, the divine artifacts Beirut forges are priceless and hard to come by.”
“I think…”
Linley thought carefully. He had the Coiling Dragon Ring, and his soul had greatly improved. Once he refined the violet crystal and repaired the Coiling Dragon Ring, his soul defense would reach an extremely high level. What he lacked was material defense and attack power.
“Lord Beirut, could you forge a set of divine artifact armor that can merge with my scales? Just like the Grand Elder’s. That way, my fists and feet would also be very powerful.” Linley said expectantly. With such armor, he could both defend and attack.
Two birds with one stone!
Beirut, who had been smiling, froze.
“Boss, you want a set of armor?” Bebe stared at Linley.
“Linley, that’s too much,” Pussro said, looking at Linley with a mix of amusement and disbelief.
Linley was taken aback and looked at them in confusion. “What? Is my request too high?”
Beirut’s expression was strange, and for a moment, he didn’t know what to say. It was Bebe who explained, “Boss, forging divine artifacts is a unique ability of our Devourer Beasts. It involves refining the essence of devoured divine sparks and condensing them into a weapon.”
“But each divine spark is only that big. After refining, the remaining essence is pitifully small. And digesting a single divine spark takes a long time… Forging a large weapon requires refining countless divine sparks, which takes a huge amount of time and effort. It’s extremely difficult. That’s why divine artifacts are usually very small in size.” Bebe explained.
Linley began to understand.
He recalled that Bebe had a divine artifact—a dagger. Galeson also had one—a single gauntlet. Both were small weapons.
What he was asking for was a full set of armor covering his entire body. In terms of volume, it would be dozens or even hundreds of times larger than Bebe’s dagger.
“A full set of armor… forging that would probably take me several thousand years without rest.” Beirut felt the pressure.
But he had already made the promise.
“Lord Beirut, I’m sorry. I don’t know much about forging divine artifacts.” Linley quickly said, not wanting to cause too much trouble. “Could you forge a longsword for me? About the same length as the Bloodviolet flexible sword.”
What Linley lacked most now was attack power. A razor-sharp divine artifact would greatly enhance his offensive capabilities.
“About the same length as the Bloodviolet flexible sword?” Beirut breathed a sigh of relief.
A longsword would consume more divine spark essence than a dagger or gauntlet, but… what Linley needed was clearly a thin, sharp blade. The essence required would only be a few times that of a dagger.
“Lord Beirut, what I lack most right now is attack power. The sharper this divine artifact is, the better,” Linley said.
Beirut said confidently, “A divine artifact as hard as a divine spark—making it sharp is child’s play. But forging such a weapon will take me about a hundred years. You’ll have to wait.”
“No rush. I’m not in a hurry.” Linley smiled.
Now that the Four Divine Beasts clan was at peace and he had reached the Highgod level, Linley felt he had nothing pressing to do. If there was anything, it would be spending time with his family and pursuing the pinnacle of cultivation.
The members of the Four Divine Beasts clan were all ecstatic, celebrating with abandon. Whether at the patriarch’s residence or in remote places like the Grand Canyon, tables were laden with food and drink. From the patriarchs down to Saint-level clan members born not long ago, everyone joined in the revelry.
As an elder, Linley was naturally urged to drink by many.
After three days…
The Grand Canyon.
“The clan members have gone wild with joy.” Linley smiled as he looked out the window. Three days of frenzied celebration had filled the entire Celestial Sacrifice Mountain Range with a festive atmosphere. After so many years, the gloomy mood had been swept away.
Everyone was extremely happy.
“These three days, I’ve only seen you smiling,” Delia couldn’t help but laugh.
Linley nodded with a smile. “Oh, Delia, the day I became a Highgod, I didn’t have time to carefully examine my new state. These three days have been too busy. You go ahead and take care of things. I should take a good look now.” With that, Linley sat cross-legged on the bed.
Seeing this, Delia smiled and left the room.
Reaching the Highgod level was just a baptism by the laws of the world. Linley’s soul as an Earth Highgod had strengthened nearly tenfold. Although his other avatars hadn’t improved much, since his five souls were originally one, under the influence of his Earth divine avatar’s soul, the other four souls would slowly progress.
In fact, as long as Linley merged his Earth divine avatar with his main body, the soul power of the Earth divine avatar would become the soul power of the main body. After all, they were originally one.
“Later, I’ll refine some violet crystal.” Linley then focused his mind and connected to the Elemental Sea plane.
The Elemental Sea plane.
It was a vast, boundless ocean radiating a faint earthy yellow light. The deeper one went, the higher the energy level of the “water” became. Now that Linley had reached the Highgod level, he could probe to the deepest parts of the ocean. At the very bottom flowed liquefied Highgod-level earth divine power.
“Such dense Highgod-level earth divine power. When I first reached Highgod, I was worried about the clan’s affairs and didn’t look carefully. What’s at the very bottom?” Linley tried to extend his divine sense deeper into the Elemental Sea.
A thick, overwhelmingly powerful aura spread out, and streams of earthy yellow liquid flowed.
This earthy yellow liquid was clearly distinct from ordinary divine power liquid.
“Could this be…” Linley’s divine sense could no longer probe further, but he vaguely sensed the aura. “The aura of Sovereign power? Yes, it’s the aura of Sovereign power!” After careful discernment, he confirmed it.
After all, the distance he could probe was still far from the deepest part.
“The Elemental Sea… at its very bottom, is it all Sovereign power?” Linley was stunned.
The bottom of the Elemental Sea was boundless. Such an immense amount of Sovereign power was certainly tempting. But a Highgod’s divine sense could only reach so deep. Sovereign power was simply impossible to obtain!