Awakening：The Infinite Evolution of My Talent as a Low-Level Awakener

"A great catastrophe is approaching. This world cannot tolerate any anomalous changes. It must belong to us. Therefore, no matter the cost, Orichalcum must be destroyed!"

A high-level divine authority spoke in anger, its divine might overwhelming. Even though they were all gods, at that moment, they all felt an immense threat.

"Order it. Consolidate all the forces in this world. I will reduce Orichalcum to ashes!"

The high-level gods began discussing how to deal with Orichalcum. Boris, as a key source of intelligence, was spared the wrath of even the high-level divine authorities. In fact, he was given significant authority, even being appointed to take over from Terran and oversee everything.

Of course, this was merely a tactic to gain loyalty. Besides that, two other powerful gods were assigned to assist him and share the responsibility.

Soon, orders began to pour out of the temple, and Ashen's allied forces started aggressively recruiting powerful beings from this world—those above third class, with no upper limit on numbers!

With Ashen and the other divine forces united, their influence and prestige in this world were already immense. In an instant, the number of their legions began to grow rapidly.

Their goal was clear: they would use a human-wave tactic to wear down the divine forces of Orichalcum, even directly gathering the power of countless legends and demigods to forcibly breach Orichalcum's defenses!

After all, this world had always been their home turf. Orichalcum had only just arrived and was still in the process of merging with the world. In terms of both prestige and influence, it was no match for Ashen, which had existed for countless years. Naturally, Ashen's forces vastly outnumbered Orichalcum's.

"So it's a human-wave tactic..."

Sterl, through the followers' mark within Boris, learned of Ashen's strategy and raised an eyebrow. The human-wave tactic, for gods, was the most useless, yet at the same time, the most unstoppable strategy!

If the numbers hadn't reached a critical mass, it would be nothing more than sending the forces to their deaths. But once the numbers reached a certain threshold, even gods could not resist the will of tens of thousands of powerful beings. Moreover, with the formation of such numbers, countless murderous intentions and wills could coalesce into a barrier, known as the

Godslayer Formation

.

Within this formation, a god's faith would be temporarily severed, and their Divine Power would be suppressed.

Without the

Power of Faith

, there is no source for Divine Power, and every blow from a god would be absorbed by the formation, distributed evenly among all those within it. As a result, unless one could eliminate thousands, or even tens of thousands, of legendary beings in an instant, any attack would be futile.

This is also why Orichalcum had been hesitant to engage Ashen in a full-scale battle. Even though their divine-level strength initially outclassed Ashen's [Transcendence] level, this very fact made them hesitant. They feared the repercussions of overstepping, given the situation at hand.Nôv(el)B\\jnn

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However, with the recent loss of half of Ashen's gods, the anger of the higher-ups in the upper realms had been sparked. They were willing to pay any price to launch a divine war.

It could be expected that after this battle, even if Ashen emerged victorious, the world's potential would be shattered. It would take at least several hundred years to recover its strength, and the losses would be monumental.

Yet, compared to the destruction of Orichalcum, even bearing such a price, they were still willing to go to war!

Sterl didn't care. He planned to collect his rewards for completing this task, then find an excuse to disappear, letting the two factions fight it out to the death. Afterward, he would return to

reap the benefits of a fisherman's gain!

By then, they had arrived at the royal city of Orichalcum. But unlike their first arrival, Sterl could clearly sense that the legendary beings living in the city were now looking at him with different eyes.

From the initial awe and respect, their gazes were now filled with fervor and worship. They looked at him as if he were some sort of divine figure—like they were in the midst of a pilgrimage!

This was the benefit of

reputation

. A series of actions had raised Sterl's reputation in Orichalcum to the level of

adoration

. If it rose one level higher, he would reach the pinnacle of

Worshipped One

!

This level of reputation was something he had only encountered once before, in the

Land of the Sacred Mountain

. The benefits were self-evident. However, Orichalcum was a divine-level power, comparable to the

Hall of Valor

. The difficulty in increasing one's reputation there was far greater than becoming a high-level divine authority!

If he could truly achieve the status of

Worshipped One

, it was likely that the minimum requirement would be for his power to reach that of a high-level divine authority. After all, strength was the foundation of everything. Without it, no matter how high your reputation, it would only make you a mere respected figurehead, a vase admired for appearance alone.

Of course, Sterl's current reputation level was already sufficient. He even suspected that with his current reputation, if he were to kill a god in the royal city, he would face no punishment. In fact, the dead god would likely be seen as a traitor sent by the local faction.

The group didn't hesitate and directly entered the temple. At this moment, more than a dozen gods stationed in the royal city had evidently been waiting for quite some time. Upon seeing Sterl and the others return, each one's gaze was a mixture of complexity and respect.

They already knew what had happened. Boris had betrayed them and nearly been completely wiped out by Ashen's faction. If it hadn't been for Hades' immense strength, which allowed him to narrowly avoid the fatal blow, then reverse the situation and immediately provide support to Eterna, Orichalcum would have truly fallen into despair.

Although, overall, they hadn't suffered terribly, losing twenty gods was an unprecedented blow. It far exceeded the nine casualties from Ashen's previous ambush, as well as the six casualties from the mysterious attack three years ago. The losses were staggering!

So, even though they had won, there was no joy in their eyes.

At the center of the temple, another figure was quietly waiting. It was the same high-level divine authority who had descended last time!

He turned around and looked at Eterna and the other five heavily wounded gods. A deep, simmering anger appeared on his face. He then waved his hand, and several glowing items with a soft green hue flew into their bodies. Soon, the injuries of these six gods began to heal rapidly.

What would normally take several days or even years to fully recover from had now been completely restored to peak condition.

"Thank you, Lord High Divine Authority, for your healing," Eterna and the others immediately bowed and expressed their gratitude. While they could recover on their own, doing so would deplete their hard-earned contribution points and various resources, which was painful to think about. Now, it was clear that this was either an acknowledgment from the higher-ups in the royal city or, in a way, a form of reward. After all, they had fought for the nation of Orichalcum.

The high-level divine authority ignored their thanks and turned his gaze toward Sterl. The latter calmly met his gaze, a hint of scrutiny in his eyes.

"Seems like… I could actually defeat this high-level divine authority?"

A thought rose in Sterl's mind. He activated his

Ascend to Godhood

state, using the Temporal-Spatial Law and his other powerful abilities. His strength already surpassed that of a weak Divine Power. Though there was still a gap between him and a high-level divine authority, the difference was not so vast that he couldn't put up a fight. With the added support of the

Godslayer

title, his chances of victory would be even higher.

This title's enhancement for battles against gods was incredibly potent. Whether he could defeat this divine authority remained to be seen, but he'd test it when the opportunity arose.

At this moment, the high-level divine authority spoke first.

"Mr. Hades, regarding Boris' betrayal, on behalf of the Kingdom of Orichalcum, I would like to offer my sincere apologies."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone instinctively turned their gaze towards him. A sense of unease swept over them. After all, the betrayal came from their own side, yet it almost resulted in the death of their ally. It was undeniably hard to justify.

Sterl calmly watched the high-level divine authority, waiting for him to continue. However, seconds ticked by, and the divine authority still didn't seem to intend to say anything further. This instantly caused Sterl's temper to flare.

Although Boris was still under his control, his man, although everything was under his command, and although he was the true mastermind behind this war, on the surface, nobody knew that. And now, in less than a moment, they expected him to accept a mere apology? Where were the compensations? The resources? What, was the apology supposed to be worth something? Was their mouth made of gold?

"So, this is how you, Orichalcum, express your apology?"

On the surface, Sterl furrowed his brows slightly, a dangerous aura rising around him, almost like he was about to express his displeasure openly.

This remark immediately caused Eterna to feel a jolt of anxiety. She feared that Hades would fall out with the royal city. If that happened, how would they continue the battle? Could they really send him into the fray?

The other gods also began to feel uneasy. Normally, a personal apology from a high-level divine authority, even using respectful titles, would be more than enough. But this was Hades! The arrogant and domineering Hades! He wasn't one to be swayed by such formalities; he demanded real, tangible rewards!

Upon hearing this, the high-level divine authority revealed a knowing smile, as if he had anticipated this reaction. He gave a slight smile and spoke again, "Of course, it's not just an apology. To properly show our remorse, the previous terms can now be put into effect. Moreover, should you assist us in completely eliminating these local forces, you may choose ten items from the royal treasury of the city."

Sterl couldn't help but feel a bit speechless. This old fox had set him up. The overly respectful attitude earlier? If it were anyone else, they might have accepted it, but in this case, if he were to accept such a verbal apology, he wouldn't receive any tangible benefits at all.

"Old bastard, you're truly devious!"

Sterl inwardly cursed, frustrated by the subtle trap being laid out before him.