Free Web NovelChapter 664: Chapter 663 Lousy Chess Basket_1
"Even if the opponent you created is a ruler you yourself would find troublesome?" Aiden frowned slightly.
"I admit there was an element of gambling in it. If the avatar I created had not refused to regain its memories, I would have gained an authority. You should know that some promotion ceremonies of certain authorities are very difficult for me, and creating an avatar to do it is actually simpler. I also like this kind of randomness in dice rolling; if I hit the jackpot, it would be an unsurpassable surprise. It’s a pity... the numbers I rolled this time weren’t very good either," Melissa said with a sigh of regret. "This is the second time. My avatar has refused to awaken and has chosen to continue playing the role it had been. You all take your roles too seriously."
"You can only blame yourself for choosing candidates that are too stubborn. At least for now, I don’t want to become you; I just want to be ’myself,’" Aiden stated earnestly.
"Then I’ll have to try to recover it myself," Melissa said with a helpless smile.
"Good luck with that," Aiden said. "I won’t let you manipulate the game at will... Imprisonment!"
The divine word had already taken effect, and the domain belonging to a ruler had long covered the prison.
Melissa became slightly alert, only to find that Aiden hadn’t banished her but instead opened a space portal behind Melifilia and locked her inside.
After ascending as a ruler, the punishments of exile and imprisonment had merged to a certain extent. Aiden discovered that the punishment of imprisonment could create a small space similar to exile and then lock the punishment target inside, with effects similar to permanent banishment.
In that space, the punishment target would not die but could do nothing because the interior was completely empty.
"Are you that afraid of me lifting the ’Wisdom’ authority?" Melissa smirked.
"I don’t want to take unnecessary risks," Aiden said, pointing at Melissa, preparing to continue the exercise of his punitive powers.
"Just kill her directly, kid. Destroy her physical body," the goddess of vengeance plotted inside his head. "I can sense her true form now. Even though her spirit is immortal, a pure spirit form is very fragile, and then my ’Betrayal’ authority could crush her sanity!"
Aiden hesitated for a moment and ultimately did not choose "Death Penalty" but instead tried the "Corporal Punishment" as a probe.
Both he and the goddess of vengeance only had a rudimentary understanding of the powers of the "Desire" and "Wisdom" authorities. Unlike when he was combating Mr. Bloodmantle, where he had perfectly grasped the opponent’s hand through the goddess of vengeance before strategizing, this time against Melissa, he had to play it by ear, much like when he played chess with the goddess of schemes in the past, unable to predict her next move.
Thorn patterns started to grow on Melissa’s neck, but she remained unfazed, surprising Aiden. The essence of corporal punishment was pain that transcended the tolerance of the spirit, and Aiden had hoped this ability would cause a flaw in Melissa’s spirit, creating an opportunity for the vengeance goddess to launch a mental attack.
Before Aiden could understand how Melissa managed to endure such pain entirely, he suddenly felt a sharp pain in his own neck as if it was tearing his consciousness apart.
Similar thorn patterns began growing on his neck, and Aiden looked in surprise at Melissa, who had a mysterious smile on her face, suddenly realizing what was happening.
It was "Vengeance"! Melissa possessed the authority of "Vengeance"!!
After becoming a ruler, having divinity allowed one to surpass the limits of mortals, and the authorities one wielded were no longer limited to three. However, any additional authorities one could wield were still only adjacent to the initial ones.
If Melissa’s initial authority was "Desire," then the authorities she could access were not limited to "Wisdom" and other mid-tier authorities, there should also be the lower-tier authority "Hatred" from the same throne!
If the promotion of the goddess of vengeance was supported by the goddess of conspiracy from behind, then the divine words of "Hatred" were very likely given to the goddess of vengeance by the goddess of conspiracy, who herself might have interacted with these divine words as well.
As long as she had enough divinity, she could master all these divine words together.
The ruler of "Desire," Melissa, might not just be a saint of "Wisdom," but also a saint of "Hatred"!
Aiden quickly retracted "Punishment," and at the same time, the thorny patterns faded from both of their necks.
At this moment, Melissa’s voice exploded in Aiden’s mind, "Love me!"
The pain he had just experienced created a flaw in his spirit, which Melissa seized upon to launch a Mental Attack. His fighting spirit suddenly vanished from his heart, and inexplicably, he developed a bit of "fondness" for Melissa.
This "fondness" was quite peculiar, unlike the love for a partner, familial affection, or friendship. This "fondness" was very pure, yet there was no discernible source, as if it were a whim or as though a divine revelation had suddenly descended.
The effect of the power of "Influence" is essentially to create desire, it can make the target suddenly feel fondness for someone or something, or it can completely duplicate one’s own "desire" onto someone else, syncing the other person’s thought with one’s own.
After being "influenced" by Melissa, she then proceeded to use the power of "Longing," which could freely manipulate the size and nature of desires, magnifying this spark-like "fondness" to the level of worship.
In that moment, Aiden felt he could offer everything to the goddess before him, and he believed that his past self, who wanted to resist her, was utterly foolish.
"Return," which Aiden had preemptively applied to himself, immediately took effect, forcibly twisting his controlled spirit back to the state before the interference. As it was the power of a ruler against another, the confrontation between the two forces meant "Return" did not instantly restore Aiden.
However, Melissa did not miss this opportunity. With a smile on her face that carried a hint of pity, she commanded Aiden, "Good boy, release the alter ego you just locked away."
While still under mental control, Aiden was about to comply when the goddess of vengeance timely used "Betrayal" on him, reversing his will.
Aiden instantly became alert—he was about to do something so terrible!
"Ah, what a pity."
"Thank me, kid, without me you would have been finished," said the goddess of vengeance, laughing as she sought credit from Aiden, "You can also choose to worship me!" frёewebnoѵel.ƈo๓
"Cut it out, if I’d listened to your advice just now, I probably would have been done for even quicker," Aiden mentally replied.
If Aiden had directly used "Death Sentence" on Melissa just before, "Revenge" would have rebounded the execution of equal magnitude back onto Aiden himself. It could be said that, to some extent, the goddess of vengeance, who acts unconventionally, was completely inept at directing others.
