With a sickening squelch, the God of the Prairiefroze. A dark crack, formed of shadow power, spread from her chest, widening rapidly as the God of Shadows'' Divine Power relentlessly eroded her own. Her beautiful, holy eyes dulled, losing all their luster.


    Had she been given enough time to react, to call upon her


    divine authority


    and


    Divine Power


    , and activate her Iridescent-Level abilities, her life force would surely have been stronger than that of most low Divine Power deities.


    After all, the prairie is tied to the essence of life. But the God of Shadows hadn''t given her that time. With one strike from Shadow Annihtion, he crushed all her hopes, bypassing her defenses and wiping out the majority of her life force in an instant.


    Her life force dropped below even 0%, triggering the second trait of Shadow Annihtion—the forced execution by the power of the Shadow Realm!


    "N-no… it''s… impossible…" she stammered, her voice filled with the despair of final moments. Then, her body dissolved into countless points of light, her divine form shattering, her soul obliterated by the Shadow Realm''s annihting power.


    "Hahaha! Invaders, this is your fate! Even gods will fall to our might!" the God of Shadowsughed, triumphant. The n had seeded wlessly. With the God of the Prairie dead, how could the remaining four deities possibly withstand thebined assault of the five gods from Ashen?


    The only disappointment was that, upon her fall, no Divine Power remained, and her


    divine authority


    had shattered into nothing. The God of Shadows couldn''t help but feel some regret.


    But there was no helping it; to ensure his n''s sess, he had unleashed his full strength, making the Shadow Realm''s destructive power so intense that it had obliterated everyst trace of the God of the Prairie.


    Not that it mattered. The loss of one deity''s yield was insignificantpared to the victory now assured. Once Orichalcum was crushed, the rewards would far exceed the value of a single god!


    "Such a waste, though…"


    Watching all this unfold through his map module, Sterl shook his head, a hint of regret in his eyes.


    Such a waste indeed! The God of the Prairie''s beauty, grace, and youthful vitality matched that of Gloria. She had a unique aura of freshness and life, like a sulent de of green grass—luscious, radiant, and full of vitality.


    As a deity, the God of the Prairiepossessed formidable power. Her Healing and Blessing Powerwould have been invaluable if refined as a deputy star or controlled through the Blood of the Ancient One. Sterl found himself almost regretting not intervening directly against Ashen.


    Of course, it was merely a fleeting sense of regret; his actions, as always, were governed by the bigger picture.


    He also took note of the Shadow Annihtionability of the God of Shadows. Observing it through his map module and activating Star Insight, he had witnessed its raw power firsthand. Against deities of low Divine Power, it was a perfect hunting technique.


    If he could acquire this ability himself, enhanced with Stardustand his own power multipliers, any deity he targeted would be doomed.


    Thankfully, this ability held little threat against him. Once he activated ascend to godhoodand relied on his Law of Timeand Law of Space, he could prevent the God of Shadows from ever having a chance tounch an attack. And even if caught off guard, his 99% damage reduction from Millennial Rebirthwould keep him firmly out of harm''s way.


    Reassured that the God of Shadows posed no significant threat, Sterl rxed and continued monitoring the battle.


    Following the God of Shadows'' sessful kill in the Eastern War Preparedness Zone, the northern and southern staging grounds also erupted into attacks. The God of Ghostsexecuted his target in a single blow, much like the God of Shadows. Only the God of Thievesencountered a minor setback, failing to kill his target outright but leaving them gravely injured and out ofbat.


    Ashen''s ambush seemed wless so far, barring unforeseen events, and it was certain to seed. However, Sterl had no intention of letting Ashen gain such an easy victory.


    He wanted a sh between titans, a dogfight, not a one-sided triumph. Yet, it still wasn''t time to act.


    By now, Sterl had arrived just outside the Eastern War Preparedness Zone. Even without the map module, he could observe the situation inside. Nevertheless, using the map module made things far more precise.


    "When I finish this legendary story, maybe I can find a way to unlock more **[Transcendence] code power…"


    He mused to himself. Each code he had acquired had given him incredible surprises, and he suspected that the more codes he obtained, the greater his hidden permissions within [Transcendence]would be!


    Just as with this rmended legendary story, it had far exceeded the limits of the legendary tier, with even the reward level reaching the ultimate [Transcendence]grade, elevated several levels higher.


    This likely wasn''t simply because his power was approaching the divine level; after all, under [Transcendence]rules, his rank was still technically just third ss.


    At that moment…


    Inside the Eastern War Preparedness Zone, the remaining four Orichalcum deities, furious and enraged, burst forward, instantly dispelling the Shadow Heavenly Curtaincast by the God of Shadows. They finally saw the scene within.


    Their faces, however, turned dark with fury and horror—because they were already toote.


    The God of the Prairie was gone. Only faint traces of her presence lingered in the area, remnants of her divine essence fading into nothingness.


    "You vile natives! How dare you assassinate a god of Orichalcum! You will face endless divine retribution and be hunted until your very souls are obliterated!"


    The lead deity, an elder with a dignified aura, radiated divine authority and Divine Power. He was a double-divine authority god—the God of Thunder and Courage, wielding the Thunder Lawand Courage Law.


    The other three deities, while not dual-divine authority, were equally filled with wrath, theirbined aura shaking the staging ground itself. The God of Shadows, locked onto by these four powerful deities, felt an overwhelming pressure of impending death.


    But instead of panicking or retreating, the God of Shadows threw back his head andughed defiantly.


    "Arrogant fools! You invaders dare to im you''ll establish yourselves on our sacrednds? You deserve to perish! Divine retribution? A hunt? Heh… worry about yourselves first!"


    As his words faded, the sky suddenly darkened.


    Outside the staging ground, the remaining four gods from Ashen''s coalition unleashed their Divine Power without restraint.


    At their lead was another double-divine authority deity—the God of Painting and Swordsmanship!


    With these four gods joining forces with the God of Shadows, a total of five deities now concentrated their power, unleashing a massive force toward the God of Thunder and Courage, reversing the entire situation.


    And not only that: behind these five gods, a vast army of demigods, legends, and powerful third-ss warriors advanced in a tightly formed battle array. United in formation, they marched forward with overwhelming force, pressing down upon the Orichalcum forces.


    "This… how can this be possible?!"


    "How did five deities manage to infiltrate? And such a vast army of demigods and legendary warriors? How did they avoid detection by the capital''s formation? And how did they conceal their Divine Power?!"


    The God of Thunder and Couragewas stunned.


    This was Orichalcum''s staging ground, practically its core territory. Just beyondy the royal capital itself! And now, somehow, the enemy had managed to infiltrate this deep without anyone noticing. An ominous feeling gripped his heart.


    If he put himself in their ce, with such a power to shield divine senses, he would certainly not limit himself to attacking only the Eastern War Preparedness Zone. Surely, the other staging grounds would also be under siege, and if those attacks seeded, they couldunch a massive offensive and overrun the capital in one decisive strike!


    The realization hit him like a blow—could it be that Orichalcum had already lost this battle?


    "Hahaha! Foolish invaders, you will be nothing more than dust in history! With your capital and people, you will sink forever into the abyss, consigned to oblivion!"


    The God of Painting and Swordsmanshiughed, his gaze turning icy and fierce.


    "Kneel before me! Submit, ept the mark of servitude, and surrender a fragment of your Fire of the Divine Soul, and I might grant you a chance to survive!"


    The four Orichalcum deities wore expressions of utter horror and disbelief.


    On Ashen''s side, each god felt a thrill of satisfaction. They had endured three years of war, three years of humiliation and frustration under Orichalcum''s superior strength. Now, atst, they could unleash their pent-up anger!n/?/vel/b//jn dot c//om


    Their n was to enve Orichalcum''s gods and demigods, to subjugate these invaderspletely. They would force the goddesses of Orichalcum to kneel, to lick their feet, to face utter degradation. They would take pleasure in breaking everyst vestige of pride from these divine beings.


    As a world''s fusionpleted, the gods had found that their divinity diminished while their human emotions resurfaced with heightened intensity. Even as deities, primal desires surged within them, and the basest of impulses—greed, wrath, lust—multiplied, dark and unchecked.


    "No! Never! Orichalcum will never be defeated!"


    "Submit to you? Impossible!"


    The God of Thunder and Courageroared in fury. His Courage Lawerupted, spreading a wave of pure bravery and wrath across Orichalcum''s forces, dispelling all fear and doubt in an instant.


    Their hearts surged with courage, burning with anger.


    They would fight to thest breath to protect their homnd, to defend the ce they called their own.


    …