The Era of Gods

The Church also sensed something unusual amidst the chaos. They dared not withdraw their local military forces, causing the situation on the plane to reach a deadlock.

For Lin Xiao, this was good news. The more chaotic the world, the longer the delay, the more beneficial it was for him, providing ample time to prepare more thoroughly.

That day, Lin Xiao once again saw a familiar face in the Temple of Wisdom.

Xinhua, along with several companions, placed their right fists over their hearts and bowed slightly towards the figure seated upon the throne above the hall, and spoke in a deep voice,

“It has been many years, Brother Rore. You have grown even more powerful.”

Lin Xiao’s gaze swept over Xinhua, then fell upon the beautiful figure standing gracefully beside him. Seeing the tear mole on her brow, he smiled and nodded,

“Miss Lisha, it has been a long time.”

This beauty was indeed Lisha, whom he had encountered at the Advent Base. Her expression was complex as she said,

“A goldfish in the pond transforms into a dragon amidst stormy winds. I did not expect Brother Rore to have such fortune upon descending to this world. Now, you are the strongest in the entire plane.”

Lin Xiao laughed and said,

“Of course, when the Power of Faith from an entire kingdom is devoted to me, I am bound to become more powerful.”

Everyone showed an envious expression. Xinhua asked,

“Brother Rore, are you preparing to walk the path of Divine Enthronement through faith?”

Lin Xiao pretended to smile bitterly, raised his hands, and the Life Force manifested, saying,

“In this plane, there is nothing, and only the Power of Faith can replace the Deity Indwelling Power, but I lack everything else to ignite my Talent. How can I enhance my Strength except through the path of Divine Enthronement?”

Xinhua nodded in understanding and said,

“Indeed, it’s a pity. If there were no Holy God, one could still collect the Power of Faith and use it upon leaving the plane, what a pity.”

Lin Xiao shook his head and said,

“There are no ‘what ifs’ in this world. If there were, I wouldn’t be standing here.”

Changing the topic, he asked,

“By the way, Brother Xinhua, what brings you here this time?”

Xinhua smiled and said,

“I am here to request military support from Brother Rore.”

Before Lin Xiao could respond, Xinhua raised his hand and said,

“Brother Rore, please hear me out before you decide whether to send troops.”

He stopped for a moment, then sat down to listen.

“You may have guessed already. We played a part in the internal strife of the Saernos Empire, and our supporter is the seventh Prince. Now, with the Saernos Empire in a tripartite stand-off, we need an external force to break the deadlock, so I am here on behalf of Brother Sal to ask for Brother Rore’s help…”

“Wait a moment.”

Lin Xiao interrupted him directly,

“Get to the point. What benefits can I gain? You know how far my territory is from the Saernos Empire, requiring us to cross another country to launch an expedition. If the benefits are insufficient, I must decline.”

Actually, he had no intention of agreeing at all, as he had said, crossing another country for an expedition was jokingly absurd.

But he could not refuse outright, so he decided to voice the ugly part up front.

Yet Xinhua seemed confident to the point of certainty about convincing him, which made Lin Xiao somewhat puzzled.

Xinhua said,

“Before stating the conditions, let me tell Brother Rore a secret. When a Plane Will awakens and the Element Tides surge, if one has enough strength to force the Element Tides, expanding their scale, there will come a point where one can briefly shake the cosmic foundational laws. At that time, the Crystal Wall of the universe will fluctuate slightly, creating minute fissures. During this moment, it becomes briefly possible to communicate with what lies beyond our universe.”

At this point, Xinhua looked at Lin Xiao and said with a tempting tone,

“Brother Rore may not realize what this means. It implies that we could momentarily break through the blockade of the Totem Universe and communicate with the Gaia Will, establishing a Gaia Node.”

“Once a Gaia Node is successfully established, the feedback from the Gaia Will will enormously increase our True Body’s strength and grant unimaginable benefits. If your True Body is a Demigod and if you wish to ascend to godhood, regardless of your level, even if you’re just an ordinary Son of the Divine Realm, the feedback from the Gaia Will is enough to make up for all your past deficiencies and instantly enthrone you as a god, with potential not inferior to those elites from higher Colleges.”

Xinhua spoke confidently and with an alluring tone, honestly enough to mislead others easily.

But Lin Xiao did not listen to his spiel and waited for the substance of the offer before asking a question that went straight to the heart of the matter:

“If I send troops, what do I get?”

Xinhua hesitated for a moment, then said,

“If you send troops, upon successful conclusion, you alone will get half of all our gains in this plane, and we can help you unite the surrounding countries, expanding your range of faith. How does that sound?”

“And?”

Lin Xiao’s mouth was slightly ajar, his patience wearing thin.

But Xinhua too seemed slightly taken aback, then said,

“Isn’t that enough?”

“No!”

He expressed negation without a flicker of emotion on his face.

“`

What a joke, is that supposed to be a benefit? They’re clearly treating him like an idiot.

Need them to unify the surroundings? He could do it himself; it would just take some time.

Half of the gains after success? After it’s done, the territory and profits he’s seized will already be more than theirs combined. If he develops better by then, is he expected to give back a part to them?

And, most importantly, he hasn’t mentioned the core interest at all. Who gets the credit for establishing the Gaia Node? The core interest hasn’t even been brought up, obviously showing no sincerity.

Lin Xiao suppressed the urge to curse in his heart and said,

“Sorry, I’m not interested in this.”

Following his words, the room fell silent, with not a single person speaking.

Xinhua’s face looked somewhat displeased, but for the moment, he had nothing to say. After a long pause, he tried to laugh it off,

“Brother Rore, are you really not considering it? If you think the offer is too low, we can negotiate further.”

At this moment, one of his companions behind him spoke up with some discontent,

“Fifty percent of the profits isn’t enough for you? Aren’t you being too greedy? Do you want to take it all?”

Lin Xiao glanced at the one who had spoken, unsure if he was aware of the importance of the Gaia Node. If he was unaware, his thoughts were reasonable; if he knew, then he is just as bad.

Ignoring their comments, Lin Xiao firmly shook his head in refusal,

“Every man for himself, and the Devil takes the hindmost. I’ve just managed to secure my current territory; if you were nearby and needed help, I might lend a hand. But asking me to pay a huge price to help you across nations? That’s impossible.”

After a pause, without waiting for them to speak, Lin Xiao continued,

“Just like the rules of the Adventurer Organization, mutual aid is premised on not impacting the interests of others and within one’s own capacity. Your request exceeds my capacity and would greatly impact my interests, so my refusal is completely reasonable.”

With that, the others had nothing to reply. Another female Descender and the beautiful Lisha had been silent all along, not joining Xinhua in his persuasion, apparently not on the same page as him.

Having said his piece, Xinhua naturally had no response, merely shrugging with a forced smile,

“If that’s the case, then it’s regrettable. Let’s move on to discuss other matters.”

After a few words, Xinhua quickly returned to a normal expression, as if the previous displeasure hadn’t occurred, and said,

“Since Brother Rore is unable to send troops, would you be willing to sell us some supplies? We are willing to pay for them.”

Lin Xiao did not immediately agree, but instead asked,

“May I ask which supplies you want to buy?”

“One thousand doses of Beast Potion, five hundred doses of Enhanced Beast Potion, two hundred Giant Compounds…”

“Hold on a second.”

Lin Xiao cut him off,

“Five hundred doses of Beast Potion, fifty doses of Enhanced Beast Potion. There are no more Giant Compounds, and as for the Advanced Giant Compound, don’t even mention it; I used up those good things a long time ago.”

What kind of joke was this, asking for one thousand doses of Beast Potion and five hundred Enhanced ones right off the bat? These were his trump cards for crushing the Natives’ Kingdoms. How could he possibly give away so many? That would only cause trouble for himself.

“Five hundred is a bit too low. How about nine hundred?”

“Only five hundred, no more.”

Lin Xiao patiently explained,

“To even have that many of these good things is quite impressive. I still need to keep some for my own use. If I give them all to you, what will I do?”

“But five hundred is really too little. I’ll go down a little, how about eight hundred?”

“Five hundred.”

“Then seven hundred?”

“Five hundred.”

“Brother Rore, I’ve come down from nine hundred. Can’t you meet me halfway? How about six hundred?”

“Five hundred.”

Xinhua….

“Alright, five hundred it is then. You sure know how to do business.”

“No, I’m not business-minded; it’s just that this is all I really have. I can’t offer more even if I wanted to.”

Two days later, watching Xinhua and another Descender leave with a chest, Lin Xiao turned to Lisha and the other female Descender,

“Let’s go; I’ll take you to my grand church to have a look.”

These two had not left with Xinhua. They had come together with him originally to seek refuge with Lin Xiao.

It wasn’t about working under him; rather, their followers and territories had been wiped out in the continuous wars. Now they were commanders without an army, and being women, they were less interested in war than men. Thus, after discussing, they decided to come here to seek a parcel of land for proselytizing.

They were only interested in the right to proselytize, not in owning land or forming an army. They planned to disregard the affairs of the plane, focusing solely on spreading their faith to gather the Power of Faith to replace the Deity Indwelling Power. Upon leaving this plane, as long as they had collected enough materials to unlock their Talents, they could quickly enhance their strength and become Official Totem Masters.

As long as they had no other intentions, Lin Xiao was welcoming and not stingy with a piece of land.

He allocated the last conquered province of the Kingdom, withdrew the Priests he had sent there, and divided the land into two parts to give to the women as their proselytizing region.

These were merely proselytizing areas; the governmental structure of the province remained unchanged.

He was not afraid of them harboring any ulterior motives. In any case, as long as he held the military power, any plots they might have would not stir trouble.

“`