Chapter 18: A Joke
Within the great hall, all outsiders had been dismissed.
The Starry Sky Sovereign God sat upon the main throne, her cold purple eyes fixed on Linley. “Linley, from what I know, you obtained the nine spirit pearls, the tokens of the Overgod, as well as the Overgod’s Decree that describes the three tokens. These Overgod tokens and the Overgod’s Decree are useless to you, so just hand them over. Of course, I won’t take them for nothing.”
“Forgive me, Sovereign God,” Linley said, bowing slightly. “I do not possess the Overgod tokens or the Overgod’s Decree.”
*Boom!*
A cold, lightless black aura erupted from the Starry Sky Sovereign God’s body, instantly spreading throughout the entire hall. Linley felt his body tremble, his legs even going weak. It was like when he was a child, first seeing the Black Dragon, a rank nine magical beast.
A god, and a Sovereign God—the gap was immense!
“Sovereign God,” the nearby Beirut quickly interjected, “Don’t you know that the Wind Sovereign God and the Bloodpeak Sovereign God have already approached Linley? Linley swore an oath in the name of the Overgod. Furthermore, the Bloodpeak Sovereign God has proven that this entire matter was a trap to frame Linley.”
“Pash and the others have already come?” The Starry Sky Sovereign God’s gaze fell upon Beirut.
“Yes, Sovereign God,” Beirut explained hurriedly. “This news was spread by Mordo, the master of Tianshan Prefecture. Before this, Linley killed his most powerful divine clone. Unable to take revenge, Mordo likely devised this scheme. How else could it be so coincidental that right after Linley killed his strongest divine clone, he immediately obtained news of the Overgod tokens?”
“Mordo…” The Starry Sky Sovereign God knew that the news had indeed been spread by this Mordo. “Is he seeking death?” Her low voice carried a hint of anger.
“Mordo probably wanted to risk everything to retaliate against Linley,” Beirut continued. “Losing his strongest divine clone, Mordo is nothing. But Linley is a Paragon of the Highgod level. The gap in their status is enormous. It’s normal for Mordo to trade his crippled life for Linley’s.”
“Where is Mordo now?” the Starry Sky Sovereign God asked coldly.
“He has already been executed by the Bloodpeak Sovereign God,” Beirut explained. “The Wind Sovereign God, Lord Trelasia, and the Bloodpeak Sovereign God were both furious. Linley originally wanted to pursue and kill Mordo himself, but since Mordo was the Bloodpeak Sovereign God’s envoy, the Bloodpeak Sovereign God personally dealt with him.”
The Starry Sky Sovereign God fell silent, her gaze sweeping over Linley.
Being stared at by a Sovereign God, Linley felt immense pressure.
Suddenly—
The Starry Sky Sovereign God frowned, looking toward the hall’s entrance. A blurry figure coalesced, then took the form of the Bloodpeak Sovereign God.
“Pash, you’ve come?” the Starry Sky Sovereign God spoke.
The Bloodpeak Sovereign God smiled and bowed slightly, walking over cheerfully. “Of course I came. You’re in my territory—how could I not greet you, Xing Yi? It seems the allure of the Overgod tokens is indeed immense. That Trelasia chased Linley down before, forcing him to produce them. Linley had no choice but to swear an oath in the name of the Overgod.”
With that, the Bloodpeak Sovereign God sat down to one side.
He smiled at Linley and Beirut. “Don’t be nervous. The Starry Sky Sovereign God isn’t a madman like Trelasia.”
“Enough,” the Starry Sky Sovereign God said, glancing at the Bloodpeak Sovereign God. “Since Linley has sworn an oath to the Overgod, and you two have testified, I’ll believe what you’ve said. But Pash… your envoy Mordo dared to fabricate such news. Where there’s smoke, there’s fire. It’s likely the Overgod really did issue a mission.”
The Bloodpeak Sovereign God nodded. “That’s possible. But if a mission was truly issued, at least we should see one of the three tokens. The most important thing is the Overgod’s Decree, which details the mission’s requirements. The message on that paper was clearly altered. Even if a mission were issued, it wouldn’t state that a certain token was in someone’s possession.”
The Starry Sky Sovereign God nodded.
Suddenly—
*Rumble…*
The Starry Sky Sovereign God’s terrifying divine sense instantly spread out…
“Xing Yi, why are you covering the entire Infernal Realm with your divine sense?” the Bloodpeak Sovereign God asked in surprise.
Linley’s heart trembled. Covering the entire Infernal Realm? The range was related to the strength of one’s soul power and the power of will. Linley could only cover eight million miles, and that was because his soul power was exceptionally strong. But a Sovereign God? They could cover the entire Infernal Realm.
The power of a Sovereign God was far beyond his own power of will, as one could imagine.
No wonder that once a Sovereign God’s true body arrived, even a Paragon would surely die. Unless the Paragon fled from the start, avoiding the Sovereign God’s true body and escaping to a material plane early on.
“This matter must be discussed with all the Sovereign Gods of the Infernal Realm,” the Starry Sky Sovereign God said coldly. “Otherwise, in a few decades or centuries, they’ll all come one by one. And whether this news is true or false remains uncertain.”
Linley’s heart tightened. “Discuss it with all the Sovereign Gods in the Infernal Realm?”
Far away in the Violet Thorn Continent, the eastern Bifu Continent, the vast Chaotic Sea…
The Sovereign Gods at the top communicated through their divine senses.
“Xing Yi, why are you contacting everyone?” A voice came from the most powerful existence in the distant, vast Chaotic Sea, resounding in the minds of all Sovereign Gods in the Infernal Realm.
“Overlord, I’m contacting everyone because news about the Overgod tokens is spreading through the Infernal Realm. Sooner or later, you’ll all hear about it. So I’m simply informing you now to discuss this matter.” The Starry Sky Sovereign God’s voice also echoed in the minds of the other Sovereign Gods.
Sovereign Gods could all cover an entire plane with their divine senses. They didn’t need to gather to communicate.
“Overgod tokens?” A delighted voice came from a Sovereign God in the Muya Continent.
“Has the Overgod issued another mission?”
“What mission?”
Several majestic voices rang out in succession.
Only Sovereign Gods could hear these voices; even Linley couldn’t.
“Hmph, the source of this news is an envoy under Pash’s command.” This was the voice of the Wind Sovereign God, Trelasia. The four higher planes, including the Infernal Realm, were far stronger and larger than the divine planes. This led many Sovereign Gods to settle here.
The Infernal Realm didn’t just have the Overgod of Destruction here.
Other Sovereign Gods, such as those of wind, earth, and fire, might also have one or two here. The Sovereign Gods currently discussing included those of other elements.
“Everyone,” the Bloodpeak Sovereign God immediately spoke up. “My apologies. The source of this news is indeed my envoy, Mordo. According to my investigation, because a Paragon killed his strongest divine clone, he wanted revenge and fabricated this lie. Trelasia and I have already investigated, and this is indeed nothing but a joke.”
“Who is this Paragon?” A crisp voice echoed in every Sovereign God’s mind.
“His name is Linley, a Paragon of the Four Divine Beasts clan,” Trelasia’s voice rang out.
“Linley?” A gentle, mild voice sounded, coming from the powerful being in the Violet Crystal Mountains of the Violet Thorn Continent. “This Linley has some connection with me. He’s only been cultivating for a few thousand years, yet he’s already a genius who has reached the Paragon level.”
“Paragon?”
“A few thousand years? Paragon? Impossible!!!”
“I know of a Linley who reached Paragon. I watched the final battle of the Planar War. He defeated Magnus. But I never imagined he’d only been cultivating for a few thousand years.”
Voices came from all over the vast Infernal Realm as the Sovereign Gods discussed in astonishment.
After all, even most Sovereign Gods hadn’t reached Paragon. Most who became Sovereign Gods were powerful beings born very early after the formation of the world. Their ascension to Sovereign God status depended on luck and strength, not on whether they had reached Paragon.
Deep down, many Sovereign Gods admired those who could reach Paragon.
After all, reaching Paragon relied on absolute strength. Becoming a Sovereign God relied most on luck and opportunity.
“Linley just returned from the Planar War not long ago. He probably had a conflict with this Mordo and killed Mordo’s strongest divine clone. Unable to take revenge, Mordo came up with this scheme,” the Violet Thorn Sovereign God judged. “Linley reached Paragon in just a few thousand years. The Overgod tokens are useless to him. I don’t think he’d be foolish enough to hide them.”
“That’s right,” the Bloodpeak Sovereign God’s voice also rang out. “Linley has already sworn an oath before Trelasia. Isn’t that so, Trelasia?”
Trelasia’s voice didn’t sound immediately. After a moment, he replied, “Yes. Linley swore in the name of the Overgod that before I told him, he knew nothing about the Overgod tokens.”
“I also need to point out one thing,” the Bloodpeak Sovereign God continued. “The message was written on an ordinary piece of paper, not the Overgod’s Decree.”
“Without the Overgod’s Decree, there’s nothing to discuss.”
“Without the Overgod’s Decree, even if the Overgod tokens were right in front of us, we couldn’t confirm they were real. Some peculiar items can arise naturally in the world.”
Many Sovereign Gods discussed, clearly believing this was just a joke.
Trelasia’s voice rang out again. “But that paper did describe the three tokens.”
“Only the descriptions on the Overgod’s Decree can be truly trusted. Trelasia… what, with your strength, you want to get involved? Even if the Overgod really issued a mission, with your meager power, you’d probably fall if you meddled.” A deep voice came from the powerful being in the distant Kalosha Continent.
Trelasia fell silent.
Because the Sovereign God who spoke was far stronger than him.
“That Mordo was bold,” a voice came from the Chaotic Sea. “But for him to say such a thing, he might have been willing to die to take revenge on this Linley. However, it’s also possible he got some information and saw the Overgod’s Decree. Forget it, everyone, don’t pay it any mind for now. When the Overgod’s Decree appears, that will truly mean the Overgod has issued a mission.”
The Overlord of Destruction’s words carried the most weight. As soon as he spoke, the other Sovereign Gods stopped discussing.
In the great hall of Linley’s estate, Linley could only stand silently to one side. He knew the Sovereign Gods were communicating through their divine senses.
“Scattered across the Infernal Realm, yet they can talk instantly through divine sense. Truly terrifying,” Linley sighed inwardly.
Suddenly—
The Starry Sky Sovereign God stood up. Linley quickly focused his attention. The Starry Sky Sovereign God glanced at Linley, a rare smile appearing on her face. “A few thousand years, and you’ve reached Paragon? Linley… this is an incredible feat. Very good, very good.” With that, her figure vanished.
Linley finally breathed a sigh of relief.
“A few thousand years to reach Paragon—how did she know?” Linley was puzzled.
Even within the Four Divine Beasts clan, few knew how long he had been cultivating. Only those with close ties, like Resijing, knew.
“Haha, a few thousand years to reach Paragon.” The Bloodpeak Sovereign God smiled at Linley. “This news came from the Violet Thorn Sovereign God. Linley, I believe this news will spread to all Sovereign Gods across every plane in no time. Well, your matter is settled. Don’t worry about any Sovereign God coming to trouble you.”
“Thank you, Sovereign God,” Linley said, bowing respectfully.
Linley understood that the Bloodpeak Sovereign God was clearly favoring him. He had likely helped him during the discussion among the Sovereign Gods. Without a Sovereign God’s assistance, others would have come to coerce him long ago.
“You may leave. I still have matters to discuss with Beirut,” the Bloodpeak Sovereign God said.
“Yes.” Linley withdrew, leaving only Beirut and the Bloodpeak Sovereign God in the hall.
PS: Two chapters done. Tonight, Tomato was in a mess and wrote the novel late. But at least it’s finished.