Discernment
The Final War had returned to the astral plane, this time occurring in a desolate land where the two large worlds converged. The dusk of the gods had returned, and legions of Magi and gods from various worlds fought with vigour. Morning Stars, Radiant Moons, Breaking Dawns, everyone died like great batches of ants.
Terrifying energy waves rocked the void practically every day, signifying the fall of beings of law. Numerous Magi were lucky enough to obtain the godfires of different gods, becoming beings of laws. The same went the other way, where those who killed beings of law turned into gods or advanced in rank.
The merciless war crushed all the laws of the world. Personal power was the only standard here, one that could determine everything.
……
Leylin’s zone had become a land of marshes, the A.I. Chip clone and a large number of Lords of Calamity protecting it. They were joined by Shar’s shadow wizards and the Snake Dowager’s legion of serpents.
Numerous intermediate gods had fallen at their hands, setting a terrifying reputation for the Lord of Original Sin. He was praised and feared by Magi and gods alike.
Leylin himself was stood within the Targaryen Castle. The Nightmare Hydra was thundering, absorbing the near-solid power of sin surging in from everywhere.
“War really is the best time to absorb the power of sin…” Leylin sighed. The Nightmare Hydra behind him seemed to have traversed some sort of boundary of the world, encountering a more abstruse and terrifying domain. The essence of the entire astral plane was gathered here, the weakest fighters being in the Morning Star realm. The negative energy gathered here was frightening, only boosted by the darkness in the hearts of the weaker Magi and legendary fighters.
‘What does even this much strength mean in front of the power of spacetime?’ Leylin’s expression darkened at this thought, memories of the two World Wills replaying in his mind.
[Beep! Simulation of the law of space is currently at 1.97%, insufficient data. Cannot simulate the law of time.]
The highest priority bracket had two incredibly eye-catching prompts.
“I need to acquire the power of spacetime to analyse it and grasp its laws…” Leylin stroked his chin, “The path of original sin was built upon the power of nightmares, and contain the strength of spacetime. However, how do I get some? Perhaps…”
He suddenly recalled that the World Wills, despite their earth-shattering might, weren’t truly omniscient and omnipotent like the rank 9 Magi of legend were. He felt like something was off.
“Perhaps the Overgod and the Magus Will aren’t actually at rank 9, only grasping a portion of the powers of spacetime like I had with rank 7…” All sorts of possibilities arose in Leylin’s mind, causing him to brighten up slightly, “In that case…”
“Lord of Original Sin!” The power of the earth sent a message of invitation to Leylin’s ears at this moment.
“Mother Core!” Leylin took a step forward, arriving underground in almost an instant. Mother Core’s lava-like main body was lying there in wait, Ignox standing nearby.
His guide to the subterranean world finally seemed to have gained some benefits from the war, and advanced to rank 8.
“Congratulations, Ignox!” Leylin smiled as he greeted the being.
“It was just dumb luck. Mother Core helped me kill the elvish God of Hate, Piflas, and I obtained his divinity…” Ignox answered modestly.
Leylin gave him a long look. Whatever be the case, it took some decisiveness to choose a path of evil like the law of hatred. Still, the Magus World had its fair share of Magi like Ignox. The sigh of admiration didn’t last long before Leylin shifted his attention elsewhere.
“Mother Core, is it the appointed time yet?”
“Yes, and I hope to get your help!” Mother Core’s tone was very humble.
Leylin was her equal in strength, and he had the Lords of Calamity, Shar, the Snake Dowager, and others under him. He also had an intermediate god for a clone, alongside the outreach of a huge organisation that exceeded hers. He played an important role to the Magi, occupying a position of power. His suggestions were taken very seriously by the entire alliance.
“Please speak…” Since she’d been helping him all this while, Leylin didn’t mind giving her some help to bind their alliance further.
“I wish for your help in killing the Earthmother, Chauntea.” Mother Core spoke in a low voice ,but Leylin didn’t look the least bit surprised.
Mother Core was already at the peak of rank 8, but her path was limiting her advance. It couldn’t hold the power of spacetime.
Now, however, as long as she devoured the greater goddess Chauntea, she would be able to make up for the defects in her own path with the power of the earth. This would make her foundations perfect, and create a better basis upon which she could grow in strength.
The chance to compensate for the issues in one’s path was incredibly rare for peak rank 8 Magi, something that couldn’t be given up on. Any price was worth praying for it.
“Have you found traces of her yet?” Chauntea was a goddess on the same level as Silvanus. Divine rank held no meaning to them, because they already stood at the peak of the gods. They were only second to the Overgod himself. If he needed to deal with an existence like that, even Leylin had to be cautious.
“Of course. She’s an important asset, so she needs to be at the most intense battlefields…” Mother Core waved a giant screen into existence, countless hills forming a general map of the battlefield.
“The green regions have the least intense battles, while red is places both sides are vying for. The darker the colour, the more intense the battle…”
Mother Core pointed at three areas that were almost purple on the map, “Gale Gorge, the Dark Cage, and your own swamp in the Blade Hills are the areas with the greatest amount of activity. My information says Chauntea is at Gale Gorge, and I’ve already applied to be stationed there…”
“Is that so…” Leylin stroked his chin, muttering to himself while looking at the map.
“I defend Blade Hills alongside another peak rank 8. We just taught the gods there a good lesson, so there shouldn’t be any large battles in the near future. However, I have few troops I can assign… How about this? I’ll give you a portion of my runes of sin. Call for me, and my true body will head for Gale Gorge immediately…”
Making a deal with Mother Core and discussing a few other issues of cooperation, Leylin’s figure disappeared from the underground, leaving Ignox and Mother Core behind alone.
“You should make some preparations too…” Ignox respectfully bowed and left as he heard those words, the black ring on his body glistening even more intensely.
……
The divine kingdoms at the side of the gods were filled with greenery, birdsong, and the fragrance of flowers.
“I hope you understand your role, Chauntea…” Flowers bloomed into the face of Silvanus. Without his true body, he naturally had a better understanding of the path of nature, becoming the goddess’ guide.
“Of course, tempting Mother Core and killing the Lord of Original Sin at the same time would be good…” Chauntea spoke up, radiating earthen divine force, “I’m interested in the core of her path as well…”
“Keep in mind that both of them are peak rank 8s from the Magus World… If we kill them, it’ll be a huge blow…” Silvanus looked grim, “This mission is very important, so there will be other gods aiding you…”
“I understand…” Chauntea sounded serious as her true form melded into the earth.
It was not just the Magi that wanted to hunt the gods. The gods, too, were coveting the Magi’s forces of laws, and battles filled with schemes and traps began to spread across the Gale Gorge.
……
The Nightmare Hydra hissed from atop the Targaryen Castle, absorbing the power of emotions from the astral plane and more importantly the nirvana battlefield. It was like a black fog, spreading across the battlefield to monitor everything.
“Hmm? A power of envy and greed is aimed at me…” The heads of greed and envy suddenly opened their eyes, the ice-cold pupils concealing threads of emotional force as they soon entered the heart of a certain someone.
“Hehe… so it’s you…” Leylin snickered, and circled above the battlefield. The Nightmare Hydra that fed on the power of emotional force was like a spider queen in a large spider cave, not even the slightest of movements missing his attention… Even as an existence of laws, as long as there was a gap in one’s soul, they would also be affected by the power of sins.
However, Leylin had always kept this secret well, using it as a final trump card that could turn the tables. Now was the time that he could make use of it.
“The Earth Goddess Chauntea, God of Nature, Silvanus, and…” Leylin stroked his chin, “How should I make use of this ambush? Or… perhaps I should do this. If this plan succeeds, there’s hope for the Final War to end within a century!” An intricate plan began to form in Leylin’s mind.
This was not all. He continued to manipulate the web of emotions and send certain complex feelings out. It began to affect the judgement of some beings of law.
With Leylin’s current strength, even another God of Prophecy would only see a haze in his future.