Chapter 5: Magic Creation, Fusion of Sovereigns!
The eighteenth level of the Necropolis of the Gods. It had become an ocean of earthen-yellow elemental power. Linley simply floated there with his eyes closed. Waves of pressure emanated from his body. Beirut, Bluefire, and Bebe were all not far away, watching intently.
Within Linley’s soul sea.
The four bodies of his original self, water, fire, and earth sat cross-legged on the surface of the soul sea. The positions where the four bodies sat formed a perfect square. Above them floated a crystalline, crystal-like orb that spun rapidly. A strange, invisible, and intangible willpower was surging through Linley’s five souls.
The original self and the four bodies. The souls were originally one.
At this moment, the soul of the earth body was improving the fastest, while the original self and the other three bodies improved at a slightly slower pace.
“It’s just as Lord Beirut said. The power of a Sovereign is nearly endless, but it’s mainly concentrated in the Sovereign’s spark. The soul itself contains very little power.” Linley could sense that although the willpower contained in his five souls had increased, the increase was very limited.
After the Sovereign transformation, the soul of the earth body had increased its willpower to a level equivalent to that of a Paragon Highgod.
As for the original self and the other three bodies, the increase in their soul’s willpower was estimated to be only about eighty percent of a Paragon Highgod’s willpower.
“No wonder. Even if a Sovereign sends their own body into a material plane, they can’t kill a Paragon Highgod.” Linley sighed inwardly, then thought to himself, “But before I became a Sovereign, my willpower already surpassed that of a Paragon! Now, it’s being strengthened again!” At that moment—
A vast, surging golden torrent suddenly flooded into his mind. An endless golden torrent merged into the soul sea and also into the soul itself.
“This—”
Linley felt as if his entire being had become dozens of times more alert in an instant. His soul’s deduction ability had skyrocketed.
“This is… faith energy!” Linley was stunned.
Linley had actually been absorbing faith energy all along, but the small amount of faith energy transmitted from the Yulan Plane was nothing to him now. Yet even that faith energy had significantly increased his cultivation speed.
But now, this ocean-like torrent of faith energy surged in. In just an instant, the amount exceeded his accumulated gains over thousands of years.
The eighteenth level of the Necropolis of the Gods. The earthen-yellow elemental energy dissipated, and the world returned to its azure color.
Linley opened his eyes and looked at Beirut and Bluefire in shock. “Lord Beirut, this faith energy…”
“You are also a Sovereign now, no weaker than me. There’s no need to call me Lord Beirut. Just call me Beirut!” Beirut said with a smile.
Linley felt grateful to Beirut. The Sovereign’s spark was given to him by Beirut, even two of them. And the meticulous care over these thousands of years was something Linley could never forget. “Lord Beirut, if it were a stranger, of course, status would be determined by strength. But the kindness you have shown me… I don’t even know how to repay it…”
After his soul mutation, Linley was already stronger than a Paragon Highgod.
If status were determined by strength, back when Linley didn’t know Beirut was a Sovereign, he should have addressed Beirut casually. But Linley didn’t.
In Linley’s heart…
Beirut was a patient and guiding elder, an elder who cared for him.
“Haha, since you say that, then I’ll shamelessly accept it. How about you call me Grandpa Beirut, just like Bebe?” Beirut said cheerfully. Back when he discovered Bebe’s existence, Beirut had taken notice of Linley. From his youth onward, Beirut had always watched over Linley.
Subconsciously, the care he had for Bebe was naturally partially transferred to Linley.
“Grandpa Beirut.” Linley quickly said.
“Haha…” Beirut laughed heartily. At this moment, Beirut’s mindset had also shifted. Originally, the relationship between Linley and Beirut, because of Bebe’s existence, had a junior-senior dynamic, but it was vague and never explicitly stated.
Beirut chose Linley, which fundamentally elevated Linley’s strength, but it was also a way to use Linley to oppose the Radiant Sovereign.
But now—
Linley, following Bebe, also called Beirut “Grandpa.” Beirut’s mindset naturally changed. He understood… Linley’s strength would far surpass his own. Raising a super-strong expert, and one who was his junior, made Beirut very gratified.
“Good, good.” Beirut laughed. “You were just talking about faith energy…”
“Yes, right after I became a Sovereign, I felt an incredibly dense and terrifying amount of faith energy surging violently into my mind. What’s going on?” Linley was deeply shocked.
Bluefire beside him laughed. “Linley, before, didn’t you ask why every Sovereign can fuse at least five types of profound mysteries?”
“Yes. A Sovereign’s talent isn’t necessarily at its peak, yet they can fuse at least five types of profound mysteries. It’s truly unbelievable.” Linley suddenly realized. “You mean… it’s because of this faith energy?” Linley also recalled the effect of faith energy. It allowed a cultivator to comprehend things better and cultivate faster.
Of course, the enhancement from faith energy wasn’t limitless.
Otherwise, there wouldn’t be so few Paragon Sovereigns.
“How can there be so much faith energy? It’s terrifyingly abundant.” Linley quickly said.
Beirut explained, “Linley, in countless material planes, some worship light-based religions, some worship darkness, some worship earth, some worship lightning, some worship destruction… Various temples are established in countless material planes. The faith energy absorbed is a terrifying number. For example, in countless planes, how many lives worship light? That’s an incalculable number. All that faith energy accumulates. Over ninety-nine percent of it is obtained and possessed by the seven Sovereigns of that element! The faith energy at every moment is a terrifying amount.” Beirut smiled. “It is because of this endless faith energy merging in that Sovereigns cultivate much faster and find it easier to comprehend things. This is why every Sovereign is at least an expert who has fused five types of profound mysteries.”
“So that’s how it is.” Bebe muttered. “It’s basically cheating.”
“If it weren’t for this, why would the Sovereigns have spread religions in various planes back then? Why would they have created various magics?” Beirut laughed.
“Magic creation?” Linley was startled.
“What, surprised?” Beirut said with a faint smile. “Linley, think about it. What do magic incantations equate to?”
Casting a spell involves using mental energy, through a magic incantation, to use magical power to draw upon elemental energy and form a spell. Some powerful mages can even cast spells instantly without relying on incantations, simply by using their powerful mental energy! For example, an eighth-rank mage can cast an eighth-rank spell using an incantation. But if casting instantly, they can only cast lower-level spells.
“Magic incantations lower the conditions for casting spells! A mage who, relying on themselves, can only cast low-level spells, can use a magic incantation to cast a much more powerful spell!” Linley understood instantly. “By relying on magic incantations, attack power is greatly increased, just like how profound mysteries of the laws can amplify attack power!”
“Correct.” Beirut said with a slight smile. “Magic incantations are simplified versions of the profound mysteries of the laws. Although they aren’t as powerful as the profound mysteries themselves, their amplifying effect is still considerable.”
“Right, right.” Linley suddenly saw clearly. “Haha… For example, the wind-type forbidden spell Dimensional Edge is simply a basic application of the wind-type profound mystery of Dimensional Space. And the wind-type ninth-rank spell Vacuum Absolute Kill is also the simplest application of the wind-type profound mystery of Wind Space!”
Bebe beside him also nodded repeatedly, saying excitedly, “Right, the earth-type spell Gravity Spell is the simplest application of Gravity Space. And many ordinary spells are related to the profound mystery of Earth Element.”
Upon careful comparison, Linley and Bebe fully discovered this.
Many spells were simply the most superficial and basic applications of the profound mysteries of the laws!
Although mages were completely ignorant of the profound mysteries of the laws, by memorizing those magic incantations by rote, they could cast powerful spells! As their understanding of the profound mysteries of the laws deepened and their strength continuously increased, mages would naturally abandon magic incantations and embark on the true path of studying the profound mysteries of the laws!
“These magic incantations can actually possess the most superficial power of the profound mysteries of the laws.” Linley exclaimed in admiration. “Creating these magic incantations also requires a profound understanding of elemental energy and the profound mysteries of the laws. If I were to create a spell, I estimate it would take a long time to research.”
The principle behind magic incantations is actually self-hypnosis, adjusting mental energy to better integrate with elemental energy. But creating magic incantations is extremely difficult.
Beirut laughed. “The Sovereigns, in order to better propagate faith, spending some time creating magic incantations is understandable.”
“But the Sovereigns have almost reached their limits, so their control over material planes has weakened.” Beirut said with a faint smile. “Naturally, some religions have appeared in material planes that simply believe in a single person. If someone believes solely in a certain person, that person can fully enjoy that faith energy. This is considered heresy and must be absolutely eradicated. Sometimes, Sovereigns even send projections of themselves to destroy heresies. However, the Sovereigns’ attention to this has waned, unlike in the past when they would completely eliminate and kill them.”
Linley nodded slightly.
The Yulan Plane has a very small population. For example, the O’Brien Plane has a population of eight hundred billion. How much faith energy is that? Accumulated across countless planes, the number is even more terrifying.
“If, for example, in the O’Brien Plane, humans believe in the Radiant Goddess, who does that faith energy belong to?” Linley inquired.
“The Radiant Goddess?” Beirut laughed. “If it’s not a specific person, but a vague Radiant Goddess, over ninety-nine percent of the faith energy will be obtained by the seven Sovereigns. Only a very small portion will be obtained by the light-type gods residing in the O’Brien Plane, I suppose.”
Linley sighed inwardly. These Sovereigns were indeed domineering.
But this wasn’t something the Sovereigns had decreed; it was the rule of the universe.
“No wonder Sovereigns are so strong. Enjoying so much Sovereign power, my cultivation speed will also advance by leaps and bounds.” Linley thought to himself, then looked at the second Sovereign’s spark placed in the stone box—the water-type Sovereign’s spark!
“Drip!”
A drop of blood fell onto the water-type Sovereign’s spark and was absorbed by this crystal-diamond-like spark. A dazzling blue-green light flared up.
“Rumble—” The world was once again filled with dense water-type elemental energy. The liquefied water-type Sovereign power, like flowing water, coiled around Linley and began to merge into his body. The same process as before, Linley’s five souls were once again elevated.
“Beirut, what level will Linley reach?” Bluefire inquired.
“Uncertain.” Beirut said solemnly. “But I know that by refining two Sovereign’s sparks, the willpower contained in his soul will be significantly higher than that of us normal Sovereigns. Also, he himself is a soul mutation with four bodies, which also grants him willpower. Even without considering anything else, just his willpower should be comparable to that of a mid-level Sovereign.”
Bebe quickly added, “And the fused Sovereign power.”
“Right. The fusion of two different types of Sovereign power is also unprecedented. His strength will increase further.” Beirut nodded with a smile. “Combined with fused Sovereign power, he should be stronger than an ordinary mid-level Sovereign. If you add the Overgod artifact…”
“Adding the Overgod artifact, he should be comparable to those Sovereigns who don’t have Overgod artifacts.” Bluefire said excitedly.
“Right. Of course… whether any special circumstances will arise from fusing Sovereigns is still unclear for now.” Beirut said.
At that moment, the floating Linley opened his eyes.
Ahem… Asking for Leave…
I’ve been sitting in front of the computer since early morning, but I can’t write a single word. Looking at the time, I don’t think I can write anything today. I’ll have to ask for leave…
I’m sorry for making everyone wait in vain. Tomato is guilty.
Feel free to hit Tomato as much as you want. Even if you smash Tomato into tomato paste, Tomato won’t complain…