Free Web NovelChapter 345: Chapter 340: The Gods Conspire, a Meticulous Death Trap
"But..." His voice suddenly grew stern.
"If I intentionally stand in your way... you can forget about acquiring the Fog Forest Divine Status!"
His words were sharp and final.
"You..."
The Cyan Rong God was speechless, finding the situation extremely difficult.
’That bastard! He’s doing this just to spite me, isn’t he?!’
But he had to admit that the Eternal Hunting God was speaking the truth.
It’s much easier to destroy than to build!
With his power as a major god of the Northern Territory, if he deliberately obstructed the Cyan Rong God, the difficulty of acquiring the Fog Forest Divine Status would skyrocket.
"You..."
A flicker of killing intent appeared in the Cyan Rong God’s presence.
But after delivering his threat, the Eternal Hunting God softened his stance.
"Everyone, I admit that my proposal is driven by a personal vendetta."
"However, killing the descendant of the old god is a good thing for you, for me, and for all the deities of the Northern Territory."
"Think about it. Ten years ago, he had to flee in disarray when facing my Divine Incarnation, relying on tricks to score a kill... But now, he can brazenly defeat the God of Rock Ridge on his own turf!"
"This means he is powerful enough to slay the Divine Incarnations of most deities!"
"Furthermore, his attack on Giant Stone City and the increasing number of cultivators arriving in the Northern Territory to expand and colonize over the past decade are testaments to his aggression."
"Pardon my frankness, but if I call for an alliance today and you are all unwilling to answer..."
"Then when this descendant of an old god comes to kill you in your own vassal city-states... heh, you will have only yourselves to blame!"
The Eternal Hunting God’s tone was calm as he laid out the stakes.
"The descendant of the old god, and the cultivators... are indeed a threat."
"The First and Second Divine Courts were both annihilated by the old gods... while the Third Divine Court was destroyed by cultivators. For us deities of the divine lands, both are a threat!"
The divine thoughts present agreed with the Eternal Hunting God’s assessment.
The activities of the Yaoguang cultivators in the Northern Territory had already made these deities feel threatened!
However...
"You are right, but that is not enough to convince me."
"For me, acquiring the Fog Forest Divine Status to mitigate the karmic backlash is my top priority..."
The Cyan Rong God said.
One must prioritize.
Threats can be long-term or short-term.
For now, the threat from the Yaoguang colonizers seems distant. It can be appeased.
But the karmic backlash was a sword of Damocles hanging over the heads of the Southern Deities at all times!
"I imagine it’s the same for you," Cyan Rong said.
"After all, now that one of your incarnations has been slain, it must be even harder for you to resist the karmic backlash."
"Or could it be... you’re so fixated on hunting the descendant of the old god because his life or death is connected to your method of mitigating this backlash?"
"Otherwise, you wouldn’t be in such a hurry..."
The Cyan Rong God’s thoughts shifted, his tone carrying a probing undertone.
"Hmm,"
"This is my hunting ritual."
"You don’t hold the [Hunting] divinity. The method would be useless to you."
The Eternal Hunting God admitted it frankly, then added another sentence.
These deities were all thousands of years old. There was little point in playing mind games. Their conversation was more about assessing each other’s resolve and concrete demands.
’How troublesome...’
Hearing this, the Cyan Rong God muttered.
If this were a body of flesh and blood, not a mere Void Divine Thought, he would certainly be ’frowning’ right now.
’Hunting the descendant of the old god is the Eternal Hunting God’s method for dealing with the karmic backlash.’
’In that case, this is his core interest. Just like my desire for the Fog Forest Divine Status, it’s something he absolutely cannot compromise on...’
Cyan Rong fell into deep thought.
...
"The truth is... you need my help as well," the Eternal Hunting God said suddenly.
"The God of Mist Forest was already highly active during the era of the Second Divine Court. Not even the fall of the Second and Third Divine Courts could kill him."
"An ancient god that powerful... just fell from grace like that?"
"And... even his Divine Kingdom fell into the mortal world?"
"Don’t you think it’s too much of a coincidence?"
"You must realize, those fellows in the Southern Territory are in much better shape than we are..."
The Eternal Hunting God’s voice was low and rhythmic.
His words struck at the Cyan Rong God’s hidden worries!
After all, the fall of the God of Mist Forest was too coincidental, reeking of conspiracy.
With the Cyan Rong God’s insight, he could naturally see it.
However, the allure of the Fog Forest Divine Status was too great. Cyan Rong was unwilling to relinquish this opportunity, no matter the cost.
What he had done was to strengthen his own side as much as possible to face the unknown threats that very likely lurked within the Mist Forest Divine Kingdom.
But even so, he still lacked confidence.
He remained hesitant, having yet to launch an exploration of the Divine Kingdom.
"So... you’re willing to help me?"
The Cyan Rong God’s thoughts stirred slightly.
’The Eternal Hunting God presides over the [Death] divinity, which would be effective against the God of Mist Forest!’
"Mutual benefit."
"You help me kill the descendant of the old god, and I’ll help you get the Fog Forest Divine Status!"
The Eternal Hunting God’s words were decisive.
At the same time, he made a promise to the other deities.
"As for the rest of you, there will be rewards as well."
"After killing the descendant of the old god and completing the hunting ritual, my condition will be alleviated."
"At that time, I am willing to provide you all with some Divine Power Crystals."
Divine Power Crystals.
Divine Power Crystals were formed by using one’s own divine status to purify and condense Divine Power.
Of course, this process came at a cost.
However, the resulting Divine Power Crystals were attributeless.
Any deity could refine them and convert them into their own Divine Power. It was precisely this characteristic that made Divine Power Crystals the universal currency among the Southern Deities.
And in this era of fading gods and divine decline, the value of Divine Power Crystals had soared.
"Divine Power Crystals?"
"How many?!"
"You must pay in advance, and swear on your divinity!"
Hearing this, several divine thoughts said urgently. It was clear they desperately needed Divine Power Crystals.
However, they didn’t let down their guard, demanding that the Eternal Hunting God swear on his divinity.
A divinity was tied to a god’s very existence.
Swearing on it was equivalent to a cultivator’s Heart Demon Oath; it was extremely binding!
This demand was rather harsh.
However, instead of being alarmed, the Eternal Hunting God was pleased.
’Making harsh demands means they are interested in the proposal. If they weren’t interested, they would have simply withdrawn their divine thoughts without a word!’
’Since they’ve made demands, what follows is just negotiation and mutual compromise.’
’In the end... every deity here is one who refuses to quietly fade away as the world declines. They’re all here for one last desperate gamble to change their fate!’
’That’s why they were willing to accept Cyan Rong’s invitation.’
’So, accepting my proposal is also to be expected...’
’Beggars can’t be choosers!’
Of course, due to his terrible reputation, the price of Eternal Hunt’s negotiations would be higher.
In other words: ’I’ll have to pay more!’
...
Soon, the divine thoughts interacted, and a negotiation began.
Ultimately, they reached an agreement.
The Eternal Hunting God would provide an advance payment of 65 units of Divine Power Crystals. This deposit would be delivered to two deities, [Jade Phoenix] and [Thunder Axe].
Both of these deities were renowned for their exceptional combat prowess.
The former, before becoming a god, was a divinely born sacred beast: the Bishui Primordial Phoenix!
They presided over the [Jade Water] divinity.
The latter was a rarity among the gods: a human who had ascended to divinity.
A mortal hero who could match a Divine Incarnation in battle. His strength was beyond question!
Upon receiving the Divine Power Crystals, these two deities, along with the Cyan Rong God, would be required to descend as Divine Incarnations and assist the Eternal Hunting God in ambushing and killing Su Ye.
After their objective was met, the Eternal Hunting God would have to pay a further 218 units of Divine Power Crystals to the three deities as their reward.
Furthermore, he must swear on his divinity to dispatch a Divine Incarnation to participate in the exploration of the Mist Forest Divine Kingdom and promise to do his utmost to help the Cyan Rong God acquire the Fog Forest Divine Status.
...
「Boundless Celestial Realm.」
The deities reached an agreement.
Under the leadership of the Eternal Hunting God, a meticulous plot to kill Su Ye was set in motion.
