Gods and Prophecy

In a dim, filthy sewer, an evil lich interrogated an ugly, twisted hag for information about becoming a god.

The scene looked every bit like the prelude to some evil mastermind's scheme.

In reality, though, Amber Xiu hadn't gotten anything useful out of the hag.

She had heard the prophecy from other hags.

"The blasphemous experiment finally succeeded, but its result was hidden in the sewers of Alchemy City. It's a treasure that gives physical form to divine power. Whoever obtains it can become a true god."

The hag spoke with great conviction, but after hearing her out, Amber Xiu could only think that people were truly foolish.

If Alchemy City had really created a treasure that could make someone a god, would they have waited until now? And would they have hidden it in the sewers?

They could've just given it to that mysterious Chairman, and Alchemy City would've solved its financial crisis on the spot. Why would they be struggling so much otherwise?

Besides, becoming a god wasn't that easy. It was nothing but a mortal's delusion.

If anyone on this continent came closest to godhood, it was the legends.

A legend was someone who had surpassed the mortal realm but failed to become a god. That was why legends were also called demigods. They had already acquired Quasi-Deity power, allowing them to disregard mortal rules to a certain extent.

Amber Xiu's Legendary Boon was the ability to break the rules and directly create blank souls. That was a power over the rules that only gods could wield.

But even a legend was still a very long way from becoming a true god.

This was a bit like civil service rankings: there was only one position for each title, and being powerful didn't mean you could claim it.

Generally speaking, mortals had only two ways to become gods.

The first was to get lucky and earn the favor of the one who had created the world at its dawn. This God above Gods could appoint any living being as a god—even an inanimate object could be granted divinity. There were no prerequisites or side effects. All it took was his approval, and you'd ascend in a single bound.

Amber Xiu had never heard of anyone lucky enough to receive that honor.

The second path was to become a legend first. That was like passing the first round of the godhood entrance exam. After that, all you had to do was wait. If you were lucky, a god might help you become a new god—by sacrificing himself and handing over his divinity, for example.

That was right. Under normal circumstances, these were the only two ways to become a god.

Unless an older god stepped down, a new god couldn't take their place.

Otherwise, why were there hundreds of legends on the continent? Wouldn't they all have ascended to godhood long ago?

Of course, there was another possibility, the most outrageous one of all, according to legend: to forge a new path and create another position among the gods, where previously there had been only one place for each.

It was said that the Alchemy God had truly been a new god. He had pioneered a new divine portfolio, then won the approval of the God of Creation, who had made him a god.

See the pattern? Even if you were powerful enough to forge a new path yourself, you still needed the Primordial God's approval to become a god.

If he didn't approve, it didn't matter how powerful you were. You'd remain a legend.

Mortals had all sorts of unrealistic ideas about gods. That was why they believed the rumor that obtaining some treasure could make them gods.

But on second thought, Amber Xiu felt that something didn't add up.

It was one thing for a small tribe's Druid or a hag not to know any better, but the Lyne Empire had plenty of legendary champions. They shouldn't believe such a rumor. Yet the Lyne Empire's Paladin had indeed appeared in Alchemy City and was preparing to explore the sewers. There had to be something down there.

Seeing Amber Xiu fall silent, the hag thought he was also interested in the prophecy. She hurriedly said, "There are many more details to the prophecy, such as the time, the location, and various omens. Swear in the name of the gods that you'll let me go, and I'll tell you all of them."

Amber Xiu replied coldly, "A prophecy? Prophecies are bullshit."

The hag stared at Amber Xiu in disbelief, unable to understand why he would say such a thing. He was a Mage of the School of Prophecy! If Amber Xiu himself didn't believe in the power of prophecy, how was that any different from blaspheming against the god he worshipped?

Amber Xiu truly didn't believe in prophecy—or, to be precise, he had given up on the path of the School of Prophecy.

The reason was simple: his soul wasn't noble enough. He couldn't practice what he preached.

Once you mastered prophecy, you had to believe everything it revealed. You couldn't cry, "It must be destiny!" when a prophecy benefited you, then say, "I decide my own fate!" when it didn't.

The laws of the world wouldn't indulge a hypocrite like that.

And if you couldn't accept the dictates of fate completely, then learning that misfortune was coming would make you restless and anxious. You'd become consumed with worry, trying every possible way to avoid the unhappy future. In the end, you'd bring about your own doom and die even sooner.

The fear of waiting for death to come was worse than death itself. That kind of torment could drive anyone mad.

Amber Xiu had never been the type to calmly accept his fate. Otherwise, he wouldn't have insisted on seeking immortality. Perhaps it was because of this hypocrisy within him that, when he advanced to legend, the Legendary Boon he received had nothing to do with the School of Prophecy.

For that reason, Amber Xiu had come to accept his own weakness and resolved to take another path.

Becoming a lich had caused financial strain, but it had also been motivated by this. After all, it had taken centuries of effort, and the power of the School of Prophecy hadn't vanished completely. It had simply remained forever frozen on the verge of legendary status, never to advance again.

That was also the main reason Amber Xiu was a second-rate legend. He had personally abandoned what he was best at, and to get on the same starting line as other legends, he'd have to make up for it with a great deal of time.

But there was no need to explain all of this to the hag. Amber Xiu slowly raised his hand, a small skinning knife appearing between his fingers, then said to the hag, "Looks like you've outlived your usefulness."

"No, wait!"

At the sight of the skinning knife in Amber Xiu's hand, the hag turned pale with terror and hurriedly begged for mercy.

But Amber Xiu didn't care what the hag said. He brought the knife down, and Amber Xiu brought it down again, peeling away the hag's scalp, which bore only a few wisps of hair.

Foul-smelling blood sprayed out. The skin covering the hag's head was entirely stripped away, exposing her pale skull.

The hag's scalp in Amber Xiu's hand twitched as if it were alive. Its densely packed patterns writhed like countless worms.

It was a disgusting thing, but the most valuable part of the hag's body.

When the hag's scalp was peeled off while she was still alive, most of her power would gather in it. With just a few extra ingredients, it could be brewed into an Alchemical Potion that permanently increased an attribute. It might enhance strength, sharpen the mind, or make someone more agile, depending on which ingredients were added.

Although the potion only worked on those below legendary status, it could still sell for tens of thousands of gold coins. With the prices of all kinds of goods soaring in Alchemy City, Amber Xiu was confident he could sell this potion for forty or fifty thousand gold coins.

When the hag had offered him only twenty thousand gold coins, Amber Xiu had already sentenced her to death. If she couldn't offer more than the value of her scalp, how could he possibly agree to let her go?

The hag collapsed to the ground, drained of all strength. Now she was more fragile than an ordinary person. Amber Xiu didn't even need to lift a finger. The poisonous stench in the air quickly invaded her body, and she died in convulsions.

Without the protection of her magic, the sewers were lethal.

Amber Xiu carefully extracted the hag's soul, turned her corpse into a Skeleton Puppet, and then headed in the opposite direction through the sewers.

Although he'd made a great haul on this trip, Amber Xiu hadn't forgotten his real purpose.

He was here to catch slimes. He could only hope there wasn't anything wrong with the location Naomi had marked.