Chapter 45: The God of Fire
As the Water God's divine consciousness receded like a tide, the system's notification chime sounded with timely precision, breaking the quiet of the room.
[Congratulations! You have accepted the Water God's Three Trials and formally set foot upon the path of the Water God. According to system calculations, you have an exceedingly high probability of becoming the fastest individual to achieve godhood in the entire history of the Douluo Continent.]
[Special rewards: Statue of the Seven, Water God x1. 100,000 points. The system shop has now unlocked a dedicated section for tier-6 and below soul tools. Additionally, a new Blue Star Technology section has been added, containing various firearms, vehicles, and their design blueprints. These technical documents may be used for research and to promote the development of this plane's soul tool technology.]
"Now this is an unexpected delight!" A gleam of excitement flashed through Furina's eyes. She had long been dissatisfied with the technological development of this world. Despite possessing a miraculous technological foundation like soul tools, both civilian and military applications were grotesquely and disproportionately skewed. Now, with mature technology and complete design blueprints from Blue Star, she had every ability to steer this twisted tech tree onto the right track. At the very least, she could ensure that ordinary people gained an extra measure of self-defense against soul masters.
However, when she eagerly opened the system shop, the prices nearly made her recoil. A single ordinary pistol, along with its design blueprints and compatible ammunition, actually cost a staggering five thousand points.
"These prices really are..." Furina shook her head in exasperation. But on second thought, the power and accuracy of such weapons far outstripped even the hidden weapons of the Tang Sect or low-grade soul tools. The value was, admittedly, worth the cost.
The greatest problem before her eyes right now was a severe shortage of talent. The soul engineers under her command were pitifully few, and the highest-ranked among them was only tier four. She didn't even have a single tier-five soul engineer. This was well within her expectations—aside from the Sun Moon Empire, the three great empires of Star Luo, Heavenly Soul, and Dou Ling paid scant serious attention to the development of soul tools. High-ranked soul engineers were already rare to begin with, and most were specially cultivated by the imperial houses. Those who circulated outside were almost all low-ranked soul engineers of limited talent.
"Unless I expand the branch churches into the Sun Moon Empire..." Furina murmured softly to herself, then immediately dismissed the thought. "It's still too early for that."
Her current power base was simply too small. She couldn't stretch her reach that far. Moreover, the Sun Moon Empire was the very stronghold of the evil soul masters. Getting anything done there would be near impossible.
But she did hold one trump card—Huo Yuhao. This youth, gifted beyond measure in the field of soul tools, would one day come into contact with the most cutting-edge soul tool technology whether he entered Shrek Academy or the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy. When that time came, she would hand over the firearms design blueprints for him to study. With his talent, he was certain to achieve great things.
"For now, the most pressing task is helping him reach rank twenty and obtain his second martial soul—the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion." Furina walked to the window, gazing down at the training grounds where the blue-haired youth was diligently immersed in his cultivation. A faint, warm smile curved her lips.
The Divine Realm. The Water God's Temple.
Within the crystalline palace, the gentle sound of flowing water echoed everywhere. The Water God sat upon her divine throne, carved from ten-thousand-year dark ice, a barely concealed smile playing at her lips.
"What made you so happy?" A low, magnetic voice drifted in from outside the hall. The God of Fire strode into the temple with steady, measured steps. A warm, radiant aura surrounded him, striking a delicate balance with the cool, refreshing atmosphere of the Water God's hall.
The Water God lifted her head, a triumphant gleam shining in her eyes. "I've found an absolutely perfect inheritor. Her talent surpasses even that Phoenix God you chose back then. And she's diligent and hardworking—not at all like some people's inheritors, lazing about without a care."
The God of Fire raised an eyebrow and seated himself upon the throne of flame opposite the Water God. "The Phoenix God was, after all, a friend of the Sea God. It's a pity he could never break through the shackles of a Second-Class Deity and bring his beloved to the Divine Realm."
"Isn't that precisely your responsibility?" The Water God pursed her lips. "If you'd been willing to guide him more back then, or if the Sea God had spoken a few good words on his behalf, perhaps the outcome would have been different. Even if he couldn't inherit your divine seat, you could have at least allowed him to remain in the lower realm and spend the rest of his days with his beloved—rather than summoning him back to the Divine Realm the very moment you granted him his godhood."
The God of Fire shook his head gently, his expression calm. "It was not heartlessness on my part. At the time, the Sea God and the others had long since ascended to the Divine Realm. He was the only one left on the Douluo Continent with the qualifications to become a god. Furthermore, he was far too arrogant—he assumed that obtaining my divine trial meant he could rest at ease. Nothing in this world comes so cheaply. And besides..."
He stopped abruptly, a complicated, unreadable look flickering through his eyes.
"Besides what?" The Water God pressed curiously, unconsciously leaning forward.
"Nothing." The God of Fire averted his gaze, clearly unwilling to continue down this line of conversation.
He had indeed promised that person he would never reveal the truth of those years to anyone—not even his own wife. After all, once it was spoken, it would have a profound and devastating impact on her.
"Hmph. How dull." The Water God leaned back against her throne in dissatisfaction. "Anyway—just wait and see. The inheritor I've chosen will open your eyes wide. Who knows, after she ascends, her strength might even surpass my own! And when that happens, if you ever try to bully me again, I'll have her teach you a lesson."
The God of Fire couldn't help a laugh at this. "Are you certain your inheritor will be a match for me?"
There was an unspoken rule throughout the Divine Realm's long history: those who inherited a divine seat were often somewhat weaker than the original deity. Take the Sea God Tang San, for example. Though he held two divine seats, due to the augmentation of his God King seat, the Sea God seat was stronger than it had been originally—but the Asura God seat was far, far inferior to that of his predecessor. As things currently stood, even Tang San might not be able to defeat the God of Destruction in his prime.
So he found it hard to believe that the Water God's inheritor could defeat him in single combat. Unless, of course, she possessed a super-divine artifact.
The power amplification provided by a super-divine artifact was staggering—but such artifacts were not something an ordinary god could possess. Super-divine artifacts belonged solely to God Kings. The Sea God's Sea God Trident was an exception to this rule. At least, in those years before he passed on his divine seat, the Sea God Trident had been merely a pseudo-super-divine artifact. But after the Sea God Tang San ascended to the Divine Realm, the trident in his grasp had somehow become a true super-divine artifact, brimming with the power of the sacred attribute... How very peculiar indeed!
The Water God let out a cold huff, a sly glint flashing in her eyes. "If she can't beat you alone—then she and I will just team up and deal with you together."
"..." The God of Fire shook his head in resignation. "Enough. I won't argue with you. Since you've already chosen your inheritor, I imagine it won't be long before she ascends to the Divine Realm."
A single day in the Divine Realm was a full year in the mortal world. If the Water God's judgment was sound, then in ten years at most, that young woman would achieve godhood.
"Hmph, we'll just see about that." The Water God lifted her chin in smug satisfaction, her eyes brimming with anticipation for the future.
At the far end of the temple, the God of Fire watched the Water God's buoyant, spirited silhouette, and a warm, almost imperceptible tenderness flickered through his gaze. Though they quarreled endlessly, he had never once doubted the Water God's eye for talent. Perhaps, this time, she truly had found an inheritor capable of reshaping the very balance of the Divine Realm.