Chapter 673: Divinity Inspiration, Trial of the Gods
The White Hair Trench.
Beyond the walls of the Ocean Mother Nest.
The hum of the colossal magic and divine script composite formation gradually faded.
The blinding radiance had long since vanished.
Teacher Si Ling knelt half-bent on the ground, feeling extreme exhaustion.
Even as a powerhouse within the saint level, one of the Twelve Saints, and aided by such a super-formation, extracting death divinity remained an arduous task.
“Thankfully, it's finally over.”
“We've gathered four portions of death divinity in total...”
“Sigh, I never imagined condensing and extracting divinity would be so taxing.”
Teacher Si Ling's magic power and mental energy were severely depleted, blurring his vision.
What he didn't know was that he had actually condensed and extracted eight portions of divinity, half of which had been secretly stolen by the fishman youngster.
Throughout this process, Cang Xu and Jian Gui were present, witnessing everything.
Zhou Zhang was no exception.
She had watched anxiously from start to finish.
Under everyone's gaze, Teacher Si Ling slowly rose to his feet, his fingers trembling slightly as he drew the artifact [Truth Slate] from his robe.
Half of the Truth Slate was now corroded with deathly black. This anomaly was strikingly obvious.
Noticing Cang Xu's puzzled gaze, Teacher Si Ling smiled faintly and offered an explanation: “Divinity is difficult to bear. This time, I relied primarily on the [Truth Slate] to contain it.”
“However, though the [Truth Slate] is a divine artifact, it embodies knowledge, logic, and order, qualities incompatible with the death divinity.”
“Therefore, after containing four portions of death divinity, the tablet's power was suppressed by 50%.”
Cang Xu inquired curiously, “Does this mean we transcendents cannot bear divinity?”
“I've heard of some instances.”
“We are necromancers, isn't the death divinity most suited to us?”
Teacher Si Ling nodded. “You are correct.”
“Transcendents can indeed bear divinity.”
“However, this varies from person to person.”
“Generally speaking, the higher the transcendent level and the nobler the bloodline, the greater the potential to bear, contain, or even absorb divinity.”
Jian Gui interjected, “Teacher Si Ling, you are a saint level powerhouse. Could you not bear the death divinity?”
Teacher Si Ling shook his head. “Of course not.”
“Given my strength and bloodline, I could bear up to three portions of divinity.”
“But first, divinity serves other vital purposes.”
"Second, should I bear divinity, I'd immediately and passively absorb it. I'd constantly fall into profound contemplation, unable to extricate myself, jeopardizing my own safety. This is called the divinity inspiration."
“Third, I must guard against the trial of the gods.”
Cang Xu understood the divinity inspiration well. His understanding largely stemmed from the fishman youngster's rapid advancement as a clergyman.
Cang Xu knew: Divinity inspiration occurs when crystallized divinity exerts a powerful influence on compatible transcendents, actively sharing its power. Once a transcendent comprehends it and possesses the capacity to contain it, prolonged exposure allows them to absorb the divinity, ascending into a divine lifeform.
A significant portion of deities had come into being this way.
But Cang Xu remained ignorant about the trial of the gods.
Fortunately, Teacher Si Ling volunteered an explanation: “Deities wield the divine spell [Perceive Divinity], enabling them to conduct searches across vast expanses.”
“Our undead orthodoxy maintains a deep cooperative relationship with the Death God, bound by a contract.”
“The moment I take in death divinity, the Death God will immediately sense it, triggering the Death God's Trial.”
"If I pass the trial, I will develop faith in the Death God. The highest achievement on this path of advancement is becoming a subordinate deity of the Death God."
“If I fail the trial, I will still gain some benefits, but the death divinity within me will be taken by the Death God.”
“Deities always strive to possess divinity that aligns with their nature.”
"Divine trials are one method of acquiring such divinity. Naturally, many deities also employ this method as a crucial means of spreading their faith."
“They actively disseminate their divinity outward, typically diluting it to cast a wide net.”
“Upon encountering a gifted seed, even this diluted, fragmented divinity allows the deity to sense its absorption, thereby triggering the divine trial.”
Jian Gui, who had listened intently throughout, gained profound insight.
“So that's how it is,” Cang Xu murmured. “Even deities have their needs and desires.”
Simultaneously, he understood: this matter touched upon the secrets of the gods and had immense value. Even his own commander didn't know. This showed that, despite the commander being so favored, the gifts bestowed upon him by the Charming Blue Goddess were still withheld.
“Teacher Si Ling revealing these secrets to me directly is still meant to undermine my faith in Charming Blue Goddess, isn't it?”
“Given Teacher Si Ling's attitude, no wonder necromancers are enemies of all gods.”
As Cang Xu pondered this, Teacher Si Ling had already recovered considerably by downing potions in rapid succession.
He stared intently at the super-level magic formation before him, then turned his head to cast a profound gaze at the Ocean Mother Nest.
“Let's go.”
“It's time to leave this place.” He declared to Cang Xu and Jian Gui.
Cang Xu froze in surprise, Teacher Si Ling's departure felt utterly abrupt. He hadn't anticipated this at all.
Teacher Si Ling stated, “My mission here is complete.”
“You two will accompany me.”
Jian Gui's face lit up with excitement.
Though he belonged to the undead orthodoxy, such an opportunity to follow the Twelve Saints was rare indeed.
Jian Gui glanced at Cang Xu, understanding clearly: “I'm riding his coattails.”
“His bloodline mutation continues to progress. He possesses the potential to reach the saint level.”
“No faction would ever willingly abandon a saint level seed.”
“Teacher Si Ling naturally intends to keep him close, personally observing and witnessing the outcome of his bloodline mutation.”
Even if Cang Xu ultimately only reached gold level potential, Teacher Si Ling would still gain a gold level necromancer.
Thoughts raced through Cang Xu's mind. The next moment, he wore an expression of profound honor, declaring his willingness to actively follow Teacher Si Ling and expressing gratitude for this opportunity to learn.
Cang Xu knew Jian Gui wouldn't let him go. After all, there was the possibility of reaching the saint level!
Truthfully, Cang Xu also desired to follow Teacher Si Ling.
Don't forget, his original goal was to get close to Jian Gui, using him as a bridge to connect with the undead orthodoxy.
Now, serving Teacher Si Ling would prove far more efficient than courting Jian Gui. Teacher Si Ling was one of the Twelve Saints, a veritable decision-maker within the undead orthodoxy!
Yet Cang Xu hadn't anticipated Teacher Si Ling departing so abruptly.
“No time to bid farewell to the Lord Commander.”
“But he'll learn of what transpired here.”
“As for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps... sigh.”
Cang Xu naturally harbored concerns, yet he was powerless. Now under Teacher Si Ling's watch, even contacting the fishman youngster carried significant risk.
Teacher Si Ling far surpassed Zhou Zhang in strength.
Aboard the Deep Sea Monster Fish, the fishman youngster watched helplessly as Teacher Si Ling led Cang Xu and Jian Gui out of sight.
He had hoped to bring Cang Xu back with him, but reality was unforgiving.
“From now on, I must keep a close watch on Cang Xu.”
“Though he's temporarily gained Teacher Si Ling's favor, the risks of exposure and the consequences have multiplied many times over.”
“Fortunately, he possesses the Charming Blue faith. I can use divine spells to monitor his situation while also casting spells to aid him remotely.”
The fishman youngster examined the divine artifact in his hand: [Mermaid Fairy Tale].
Similar to Teacher Si Ling's True Slate, his Charming Blue divine artifact had also been corroded by death divinity, consuming one-quarter of its power due to bearing the divinity.
Divine artifact - Artifact Mastery.
The fishman youngster expended divine power to deepen his grasp over [Mermaid Fairy Tale].
In an instant, he realized that his Charming Blue divine artifact, burdened by death divinity, could not unleash a quarter of its true power.
“Teacher Si Ling's artifact [Truth Slate] is half-corroded, while [Mermaid Fairy Tale] is only a quarter.”
“This alone reveals which is stronger.”
“But considering the [Truth Slate] is merely a fragment of the [Book of Truth], the [Mermaid Fairy Tale] likely ranks low among all divine artifacts.”
Supporting the fishman youngster's conjecture was another theory.
Namely, the power of a divine artifact often correlates directly with the strength of the deity who forged it.
“A total of four portions of death divinity...”
Without a doubt, this was an immense gain.
The fishman youngster was certain: the value of these four portions of death divinity far exceeded War Merchant's inheritance from Mystifying Monster Island!
“But how to utilize them?”
Having heard the words of Teacher Si Ling earlier, the fishman youngster understood what divinity inspiration and the divine trials were.
“Though I'm only a gold level, I possess a god level bloodline—my divine blood concentration now approaches 100%!”
“How much death divinity can I withstand?”
"Logically, the divinity suited for me should lean toward water elements or fishman-related powers. Death divinity doesn't suit me; it's like trying to contain it with the [Truth Slate] or [Mermaid Fairy Tale]."
“So, to be safe, I must ascend to the saint level first!”
“Before leaving, I'll pray to Charming Blue Goddess one last time and attempt to break through to the saint level.”
The fishman youngster made this decision swiftly.
But this had been his original plan all along.
He planned to leave the Ocean Mother Nest and meet up with the big guy partway. It was only because stealing the death divinity had delayed him a bit.
“Let's see where Xiao Guai is first.”
“After delaying for a few days, he must be worried, right?”
The fishman youngster decided to reassure the big guy first, then make his final prayer.
Moments later, the fishman youngster's eyes widened in shock.
He contacted the big guy and discovered, to his astonishment, that he had been captured and taken to Snow Bird Harbor.
He also learned that Dao Hen had arrived at Snow Bird Harbor.
This much, the fishman youngster already knew. After all, Dao Hen had long since uncovered Tan Mo's schemes and even seized the opportunity to rescue Hun Tong.
What shocked the fishman youngster wasn't this revelation, but something else—Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was the ultimate mastermind behind it all? The first gold level assassin who attacked them? He had sent that person.
Snow Bird Harbor City Lord was actually one of the Empire's secret agents?