Chapter 2: Afterimage
Deep within the elemental ocean, undercurrents surged violently. The power of the Sovereign converged into an endless torrent of flowing water.
"I can see it, but I can't obtain it." Linley couldn't help feeling a bit itchy.
So much Sovereign power! However, anyone who became a god could sense this elemental ocean. Among Highgods, those with stronger souls could generally discover the region of Sovereign power. "The souls of Sovereigns are far stronger than our Highgod souls."
Linley then felt relieved.
What couldn't be obtained was useless to dwell on.
"I wonder if there's an even more powerful energy region beneath this Sovereign power area." This thought abruptly popped into Linley's mind, but after a moment, he shook his head and stopped pondering. "I can't even get Sovereign power, so why think about other things? But it's strange—divine power is divided into Lowgod, Midgod, and Highgod divine power. Yet I've never heard anyone mention that Sovereign power has levels."
Linley had been in the clan for so many years and knew...
The seven elemental laws and four edicts—each law had seven Sovereigns. Among them, one High Sovereign, two Mid Sovereigns, and four Low Sovereigns. Clearly, Sovereigns had rank distinctions.
"But why haven't I heard of any difference in Sovereign power?" Linley was extremely puzzled.
The Four Divine Beasts clan and the eight great clans all possessed Sovereign power. And Linley never felt that any clan's Sovereign power was superior. It all seemed the same.
"Could it be that Sovereigns of different ranks have the same Sovereign power? But then why are they divided into High, Mid, and Low?" Linley couldn't figure it out and stopped thinking about it. After all... each law only had seven Sovereigns.
Any Sovereign was exalted far above. No matter how powerful a Highgod was, they were utterly insignificant before a Sovereign.
Linley then carefully observed the soul-protecting divine artifact. Streams of soul power flowed within it, and a small membrane had formed over the gap. As soul power was continuously infused, this patch covering the breach was slowly transforming.
"Indeed... only by reaching the Highgod level can one truly begin to repair a soul-protecting divine artifact." Linley marveled.
The repair speed was far faster than when he was a Midgod.
It was like a dam bursting and floodwaters surging. If you threw small stones, even in endless numbers, the flood would easily wash them away. But if you threw massive boulders...
With the stones' volume increased tenfold, the effect immediately improved greatly.
Repair worked on the same principle. The gap between Midgod soul power and a soul-protecting divine artifact was too vast, making repair extremely difficult.
Since the Sovereign's descent and the resolution of matters between the Four Divine Beasts clan and the eight great clans, the clan members' lives had returned to peace. Linley's family and BeBe's family lived a tranquil life in the great canyon.
Linley continuously consumed amethysts to strengthen his soul.
Eventually, Linley used up all the amethysts he carried. He had to ask BeBe for many more amethysts to continue refining and absorbing. BeBe generously declared, "Boss, just keep refining. Whatever you need, I'll provide."
Back then, BeBe had spent a full ten years in the Amethyst Mountains, gathering a astronomical number of amethysts.
In the blink of an eye, a hundred years passed.
In the great canyon, a long dining table was set up outside Linley's residence. Linley's family of three and BeBe's family of three gathered together. Delia, Nisse, Cendi, and Yina kept bringing dishes, while Linley and BeBe sat comfortably.
"Boss, can your soul still absorb more?" BeBe asked. "You've already absorbed so many amethysts."
Having reached the Highgod level, Linley's rate of refining amethysts had increased more than tenfold. As his soul improved, the refining speed grew faster. Over a hundred years, he had indeed refined an astonishing amount of amethysts. But clearly... a Highgod's soul had also greatly increased its capacity.
"What, jealous?" Linley teased. "BeBe, I remember you challenged me to see who would reach Highgod first."
BeBe rubbed his nose and could only smile helplessly.
That time they went to Mill City, BeBe got the soul fragment from his grandmother. After fusing it, BeBe was only one step away from reaching Highgod. But BeBe was clearly much slower than Linley.
Linley had an epiphany, but BeBe still hadn't.
"You're amazing, boss, alright?" BeBe said with a wry face. "But my grandfather said that once I reach Highgod, my strength will be close to his. You're strong now, boss, but when I reach Highgod, maybe I'll be even stronger than you."
"It's better if you're stronger than me." Linley smiled.
Linley was well aware of BeBe's talent. His innate divine ability—"God Devouring"—was practically unmatched among those of the same level. Once BeBe reached Highgod and used "God Devouring," how many could withstand it?
Perhaps a Paragon Highgod could.
Moreover, BeBe's body as a Godeater Rat was terrifyingly strong. Just from seeing Beirut dare to catch a divine artifact with his bare hands, one could imagine how astonishing a Highgod Godeater Rat would be. BeBe hadn't even fused any profound mysteries... yet relying on his talent, reaching Highgod would let him catch up to Linley.
But Linley felt no jealousy.
After countless years together, Linley and BeBe were like blood brothers. The stronger the other became, the better.
"I want to break through and have an epiphany too. But why is it so hard?" BeBe sighed deeply.
Just then, Cendi came over carrying dishes. Hearing this, he couldn't help saying, "Uncle BeBe, I want to break through too. I only became a god through the clan's baptism. Just reaching Midgod is hard enough for me."
"Hmph."
A dissatisfied grunt. Yina also came out with dishes. "Brother Cendi, stop complaining, okay? I haven't even become a god yet." Linley and BeBe couldn't help laughing.
"Father, Uncle." Yina glared, but Linley and BeBe only laughed harder.
"Haha, what's so funny?" A hearty laugh rang out, and two figures descended from the sky in a flash. Linley looked up and saw Beirut in a black robe and Kalorina in a red robe.
As soon as Beirut appeared, Linley's eyes lit up.
Seeing Beirut reminded Linley of his divine artifact weapon. In the past hundred years, Beirut hadn't visited once. Coming now... could it be that the divine artifact weapon was successfully forged?
"Grandfather." BeBe was overjoyed.
But Beirut smiled and turned to Yina. "Nana, come here." Beirut and Kalorina doted on Yina. Yina immediately went over and exchanged pleasantries with them.
"Grandfather, did you come because that divine artifact weapon is done?" BeBe got straight to the point.
Hearing this, Beirut turned to Linley and laughed. "Linley, I spent a full hundred years on your divine artifact weapon. I finally succeeded. Here!" With that, Beirut waved his hand—
A blurry black shadow streaked through the air.
Linley reached out and grabbed the sword. But the shadow of the black sword was too indistinct, and Beirut threw it too fast, deliberately trying to embarrass Linley. When Linley grabbed, he caught the blade.
"So sharp." Linley felt a sting, and a trace of blood seeped from his palm.
Looking down—
The sword was slender, thin as a cicada's wing. This longsword was almost transparent. Staring closely at the blade, one could see black flowing inside it, eerie and strange. Ordinary divine swords had light rippling on their surface, but this sword had black flowing within, astonishing to behold.
Its sharpness was especially chilling.
Although Linley hadn't transformed, he was still a Highgod with considerable physical strength. Yet this sword, before being refined, cut a Highgod's palm with just its raw sharpness.
"This sword..." Linley couldn't believe it.
"Sharp enough?" Beirut laughed.
Linley nodded repeatedly. "Extremely sharp. I've never seen such a sharp weapon."
"Grandfather, how did you forge it? Why isn't my dagger this sharp?" BeBe quickly asked.
Beirut smiled. "Actually, I'm a bit puzzled about how it turned out this way." This statement left Linley, Delia, and BeBe confused. Beirut continued, "I knew you had comprehended the four elemental laws of earth, water, fire, and wind. So... when forging this sword for you, I deliberately only devoured and refined Highgod divine sparks of earth, water, fire, and wind."
Linley felt a surge of gratitude.
In theory, a divine artifact weapon could be made by refining any divine sparks. But Beirut, for Linley's sake, was so meticulous, specifically using those four types.
"I forged it very carefully, but in the later stages," Beirut laughed, "this sword became a seamless whole. The originally distinct essences of the four divine sparks fused perfectly. This divine artifact weapon is the best I've forged in all these years."
Linley felt a thrill of excitement.
"Lord Beirut, thank you." Linley said gratefully. Beirut had indeed put great effort into this weapon.
"BeBe, your dagger was made only from dark divine sparks, since you became a god through darkness," Beirut said calmly. "As for Linley's sword... its great power has deeper reasons I don't fully understand."
Sometimes... creating a perfect work didn't mean understanding why.
A fine work also required opportunity.
Linley carefully stroked the sword. The blood from his cut palm had already merged into the blade. This sword, which had never had a master, easily accepted Linley, becoming his personal weapon.
"Strange. Strange." Only after fully mastering this divine artifact weapon did Linley discover.
With a thought, the black flowing inside the blade could be hidden, making the entire sword transparent. At first glance, it seemed Linley held nothing.
"Linley, give it a name." Beirut smiled.
Linley examined this divine weapon. "When used quickly, even experts can only vaguely sense a shadow... I'll call it 'Afterimage'." Linley's third weapon—
'Afterimage' was born!
After obtaining this divine sword 'Afterimage,' Linley naturally used it often. The more he used it, the more he loved it. When infused with High Sovereign power and combined with the immense strength of his dragon-form body,
A single strike from the sword made even Linley tremble.
When Linley had used his fists to execute 'Void Annihilation,' he could already tear a hole in space. But now... using the tougher, sharper divine sword 'Afterimage' to execute it—one swing—
Space would tremble, and the sword's shadow would leave a crack in its wake.
In the great canyon, on the grass outside Linley's house, Linley held the Afterimage sword, moving freely. His whole body became like the wind, merging into it, while the sword's shadow, barely visible as a blur, drifted unpredictably like the breeze.
"Pfft!"
"Swish!"
Where the sword shadow passed, space sometimes split into cracks. This was without Linley even dragonizing. Of course, this was due to him being a Highgod and possessing a divine artifact weapon, but it still showed how terrifying his material attack had become.
"Great. Uncle is amazing." Yina stood far away, eyes shining as she watched Linley test the sword.
Just then—
"Hummm~"
A wave of natural law fluctuations suddenly descended. Even Linley, in the midst of testing his sword, had to stop. He turned to look at where the fluctuations came from. "Huh? BeBe's place? Did BeBe break through?"
Linley still remembered BeBe's words—"When I reach Highgod, maybe I'll be even stronger than you."