Chapter 602.2: You’re Worthy? (2)
Chapter 602.2: You’re Worthy? (2)
Roel had never heard about the Egg of the Beast God before, but it wasn’t too hard for him to make a deduction based on the contextual clues.
According to Grandar’s intel, Banjol’s Divine Domain granted him the power of ‘Recreation’, which could be more specifically interpreted as a higher order of ‘Modification’.
The reason he was thought to be Grandar’s equal and dubbed a ‘One Man Army’ by the Savior was his ability to steal his enemies’ hearts and enhance the strength of his own soldiers. This was how Banjol bestowed strength upon the two-headed deviant, raising him to the ranks of the Race Sovereigns. He likely tributed Roel’s and Wilhelmina’s hearts to achieve that.
With sufficient tributes, Banjol could create an army of Origin Level 1 transcendents within a short period of time. Admittedly, the soldiers he modified tended to have short lifespans, but their strength was nevertheless terrifying.
However, what reinforced his reputation as Grandar’s equal was his ability to strengthen himself through his Divine Domain.
The ability of ‘Recreation’ was an inconceivable one even in the ancient era, during a time when the gods roamed the world. It was likely the ability that came closest to Sia’s power of ‘Creation’. Banjol could freely alter his physique, even transforming into a beastman giant wielding calamitous strength if he wished so.
Giant Sovereign Grandar and Beastman Sovereign Banjol were the top-tier battle power of the Savior’s faction back in that era. That was also the reason the two of them connected deeply to each other.
“There have been many rumors behind Banjol’s disappearance in the later stages of the war, but none of them sounded too convincing…” Grandar murmured wistfully.
This was one of the greatest mysteries back in the ancient era, but the truth was finally out. Banjol had disappeared from the world to fulfill the Savior’s mission—incubating the Egg of the Beast God. The reason he had to do that had also been explicitly stated by Banjol himself. 𝒃𝒆𝙙𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝙤𝙢
In essence, the Egg of the Beast God was intended to deal with the Mother Goddess’ Six Calamities, with the ultimate goal being to kill the Mother Goddess.
The Six Calamities were great powers Sia had reserved for the Kingmaker in her Succession. After Sia’s demise, they fell under the Mother Goddess’ control and became Her strongest aces. It was also with the power of the Six Calamities that Roel was able to dominate the battlefield in the Witness State and destroy the Savior’s physical body.
The Savior’s faction had been completely helpless against the might of the Six Calamities back then, but it would appear that the Savior had prepared a hand for the future.
Roel had no idea what the Savior had prophesied, but the latter clearly had staked His hopes on the present era. That would explain why Banjol didn’t fall into depravity. The Savior had ordered Banjol to go underground with the Egg of the Beast God, activate his Divine Domain, and go into hibernation before He descended into madness.
Banjol’s awakening was inevitable from the very start. He was a necessary piece in the Savior’s rebirth.
And with both the Mother Goddess and the Savior still in slumber, Banjol and his deviants were currently the strongest force in the world. He would lay the groundwork for the Savior to achieve complete victory over the Mother Goddess once the latter returned.
I knew things couldn’t have been that simple. How could beings of the Savior and the Mother Goddess’ level possibly be oblivious about a future apocalypse that the Tripartite Alliance was able to prophesy?
Roel realized that a battle against Banjol and the deviants was inevitable, even if it was possible for them to communicate.
The Savior was born from the powers Sia had severed with the intention of conferring them on the Kingmaker, just that She hadn’t expected Her own powers to gain sentience and bite Her. From this perspective, the Savior’s very existence was antithetical to the Kingmaker; there was no way for them to coexist, especially not when Roel had gained control over the Six Calamities.
Naturally, the Savior saw the Kingmaker Clan as a threat that had to be eliminated.
Humankind wasn’t in a position to submit to the Savior either. Unlike the Angels and the Dragons, they weren’t legendary races. In the Savior’s ideal world, they would be beneath the deviants on the hierarchy. This was unacceptable to humankind, in terms of both their dignity and their living conditions.
“I understand now,” Roel murmured as he looked at the lofty god in the sky with a disdainful smile. “Let me see if I got it right, Banjol. You already knew that the Savior would descend into depravity and lunacy back when you received His orders tens of thousands of years ago?”
“Yes, my liege has already informed me of the conclusion,” Banjol calmly replied, confused as to what Roel was getting at.
Roel burst into laughter. “I thought so too. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have gone into hibernation here together with this egg. Allow me to ask you one last question, Banjol. Did you cast aside your people for the Savior despite knowing the plight that would befall them?”
“!”
Banjol’s eyes warped in anger, but Roel continued staring at him with brilliant golden eyes glowering with rage. There was a momentary standstill between them as the sand rustled in the surroundings.
“I am the Beastman Sovereign, but above that, I am one of my liege’s High Priests. It is my duty to carry out His orders. The Beastmen’s fate has already been decided and cannot be changed. It’s all according to my liege’s will.”
“Cannot be changed? Are you certain about that?” Roel asked with a mocking smile. “Sia has only requested one thing from Her creations, and that was to live well. No matter how tight the partnership between the Savior and the Beastmen was, it was ultimately just a loyalty contract. You could have easily torn it apart as long as you rallied your people to fight back.”
“How foolish it is to think about opposing my liege. That’s nothing more than an act of suicide.”
“An act of suicide? No, you’re wrong. The Beastmen carry enough weight to not have to worry about extinction. What you’re worried about is your own downfall,” Roel said impassively.
“…”
The Deviant Sovereign’s complexion turned even more awful.
“A Race Sovereign is obliged to protect their people. This is the responsibility entrusted to them. It’s the same set of circumstances, but another Sovereign, despite knowing that it might be futile, stepped forward and protected his people and the world to the very end. He reduced the god you worshiped to dust and sealed him off in the abyss. I reckon that you don’t know who I’m talking about, right? Let me enlighten you—it’s Grandar,” Roel said.
“!” The Deviant Sovereign turned to the towering skeleton giant with widened eyes.
Grandar looked back at Banjol in silence.
“I have to admit I was intimidated when I learned that you were thought to be Grandar’s equal back in the ancient era, but from the looks of it now… you’re nothing more than a coward who sold your clan for your own sake. It’s a shame that Grandar was compared to the likes of you.”
Roel looked at the lofty god in the sky with contemptuous eyes as he uttered word by word, “Beastman Sovereign Banjol? How unworthy.”
“!”
The Deviant Sovereign’s face turned livid. Rage blazed in his heart like never before, inducing deafening rumbles in the sky. The deviants in the desert were buffed once more under the roars, and they slowly regained their ability to move.
The gigantic demonic beasts in the sky let out eerie squawks before spewing out black sludge all over the battlefield. The scattered sludge slowly combined together to form deformed deviant soldiers.
The human soldiers exclaimed in shock, horrified by the appearance of the sludge soldiers and the deviant soldiers regaining their mobility. They couldn’t even put up a defense because they had lost their ability to move.
“You have a sharp mouth, but that doesn’t change anything. You said that I am the sinner of my people, but what about you? Your people entered my Divine Domain for your sake, and they will die here because of that. Their demise will be a huge blow to humankind, bringing them a step closer toward extinction.”
“The ones going extinct here are you and your people, Banjol!”
Roel’s golden eyes lit up.
Crimson lightning gathered around his body, and with a howl, it instantaneously surged outward. War cries echoed as the crimson lightning shook the sky, challenging the absolute authority of the Divine Domain.
Boom!
A loud explosion ensued. The crimson lightning scattered over the battlefield as specks of light and flames, imbuing the human soldiers with a red glow. With furious roars, they tore through the restrictions imposed on their movements.
“This is…”
The Deviant Sovereign was taken aback to see the humans breaking his Divine Domain’s oppression to regain their mobility.
“You aren’t the only one with an army buff, Deviant Sovereign,” Roel sneered from the center of the crimson glow. He raised his head to look at the silent skeleton giant above him as the corner of his lips crept up. “It’s your turn, Grandar.”
Discover the complete story on 𝙗𝒆𝒅𝙣𝙤𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝙢.
“…Mm!”