Chapter 1684: Demigod Artifact
Chapter 1684: Demigod Artifact
At the World Tree, the assembly awakened.
As Orion, the Lifeless Dreadgod, Archbishop Kysar, and Moriphara opened their eyes on their thrones, massive waves of dream laws bled from the World Tree. The eerie sight made Commander Thresh and the others narrow their eyes.
"Just feeling this leaked origin law is enough to tell you the other Ascendant Plane is vastly stronger than the Titanion Realm," Kaidric said. "The enemy infiltrated our World Tree with their laws. What about us? Did the Titanion Realm only lose those four vanished cities?"
Kaidric hooked a finger, drawing a wisp of the dream law into his palm. It dissolved instantly, and his demigod phantom flickered, growing slightly more solid.
"Incredible. The origin power from The Void directly enhances our divine power." Kaidric stared into the emptiness. The reflection of an unknown, vast world shone in his eyes, accompanied by an endless, burning greed.
"Can’t you see? It’s a blatant trap." Abyssal Demon·Decay also gazed into the void. For ancient powerhouses like them, the raw benefits of dream laws were useless. They had reached their physiological limits ages ago. Only the Divine Mantle forged by an Ascendant Plane could elevate them further.
"It is temptation," Commander Thresh agreed, glancing at Kaidric before settling his gaze on Orion. "That void world is baiting every living soul in the Titanion Realm, including experts like you. Even the realm itself is a target."
"Absorb the dream laws, reap the benefits, and watch your greed skyrocket until you willingly enter the dream," the Commander continued. "And once you do, you’re dead. It’s just a matter of time. Like a rigged casino—they don’t care if you win a few hands, as long as you sit at the table."
Sensing the Commander’s gaze, Orion nodded, confirming their plan was in motion.
"For us, grabbing the power upfront is the only tactical choice," Orion said, trying to lift the heavy atmosphere. "Who knows if we’ll even die in the dream? Maybe the Four Gods will descend before we fall in battle, and we’ll just die to them instead."
It was a terrible joke. The gathered heavyweights just stared at Orion in dead silence.
"He’s right. We must maximize our strength before the Four Gods arrive," the Infernal King of the Hell·Twelve-Skulls said smoothly. He was the only one, aside from the Commander, who remained entirely unfazed. Lords of their caliber stood at the pinnacle wherever they went. Another Ascendant Plane? If they weren’t holding back to conserve their trump cards, he and the Commander might have already charged in to slaughter the heavens, the earth, and every living thing in that realm.
"Besides—"
Before Twelve-Skulls could finish, the anomaly struck.
On the thrones of the World Tree branches, Orion, the Lifeless Dreadgod, Archbishop Kysar, and Moriphara dissolved into streaks of light. Transforming into invisible laws, they were pulled down into the World Tree’s root system and whisked away to a place beyond anyone’s perception.
"The Will of the Realm is making its move," Commander Thresh noted, a flash of excitement in his eyes.
Twelve-Skulls, Decay, and the Void Progenitor exchanged glances, visibly stirred. The Will of the Realm acting meant the Titanion Realm was fighting back. A counterattack meant their realm actually had a chance to devour the dream plane. This was exactly what they wanted.
"Wait for it. When those four return, we’ll have our answers."
Nobody replied. They simply waited.
...
Blackstone City. War drums pounded, and desolate horns blared.
Deep in the dark caverns beneath the city, Lorelia’s wide eyes sparkled with sheer excitement. Although she sat in her lair, her consciousness linked to every spider in the swarm. As her brood expanded, a flawless, omniscient map of Blackstone City formed in her mind—an extension of her senses woven from psychic silk.
"Hahaha! Endless materials! Divine power that instantly recharges! Fruit that turns into treasure the second I grab it! Oh yeah, Queen Lorelia is soaring now!"
Seated on a throne woven from World Tree roots, she placed her right hand over her heart and looked down at her swarming children. "I don’t care where we are. Queen Lorelia is going to conquer this whole place and give it to the great Master!"
"I am glory! Glory is me!" she chanted. "Lorelia is the brightest glory of the Stoneheart Horde!"
Mid-chant, she raised a piece of fruit in her left hand and took a massive bite. Sweet juice burst over her tongue, and her eyes curved into happy crescents.
"Children, heed my command!" she squealed. "Charge, charge, charge! Kill everything you see, loot it all, and haul it back!"
Her sickly-sweet, venomous voice echoed from beneath Blackstone City, rippling through the surrounding dreamscape like a demon’s whisper. The command drove the swarming spiders into a bloodthirsty frenzy, drastically boosting their crawling speed.
Simultaneously, shaped by Lorelia’s sheer will, a terrifying spectral spider materialized in the sky above Blackstone City. It hid within the mist blanketing the city, its eight legs shifting in and out of reality like a lurking leviathan.
Sensing an approach, the massive spider parted the mist, revealing a dense cluster of compound eyes on its back. Reflected in those multifaceted eyes was a blazing orb of divine light.
High above, the four-headed, eight-armed Orion descended from the heavens. Gripping his trident, his skin covered in glowing Divine Sigils, he plummeted like a meteor.
"A god?"
"Master!"
"Hehehe... Lorelia’s dream came true!" Her giddy squeal echoed from the subterranean depths. Like an eager child, she scrambled out of her cave.
Boom!
Orion slammed into the city wall. What greeted him was a vastly different Blackstone City. A bizarre, colossal tree crowned the peak; his sleeping subjects filled the streets; an ocean of spiders blanketed everything. And most shocking of all, the city walls were now sturdy enough to withstand the sheer weight of his Divine Vessel.
Blackstone City had evolved.
"Great Master! Your Lorelia has grown up. She’s willing to do anything for you!" she purred. "Anything at all, Master!"
Lorelia rested her chin on Orion’s shoulder, inhaling deeply. It was the familiar, intoxicating scent of her master.
Orion turned and plucked her off his back, inspecting her. She was no longer a "little thing." Lorelia had evolved into a true Spider Queen—a devastatingly beautiful monarch.
"A demigod?" Orion muttered. "And a Demigod Artifact?"
Through his senses, he confirmed Lorelia had reached the demigod tier. What caught him completely off guard, however, was the throne beneath her feet. It was a genuine Demigod Artifact. The artifact remained permanently bound to her; wherever Lorelia went, the throne followed.