The Prelude to the Divine War

The secret struggle between the Ancient Gods had begun.

But for one Ancient God, this was still too slow. If they dragged their feet like this, wouldn't the others have a chance to obtain the Chaos Sea? How could destruction be brought down, then?!

The Goddess of Misfortune, Amanises, transformed into a mist and arrived atop a mountain.

The mountain was shrouded in Historical Void, and the moment Amanises set foot there, the presence within the mist opened its eyes.

"Salinger and Kotar have reached their designated locations without arousing anyone's suspicion." Amanises reported expressionlessly.

"Excellent." A terrifying, indescribable Demon Wolf emerged from the Historical Void.

It had all the features of an ordinary Demon Wolf, along with those slick tentacles. A bone mask covered its wolfish face, revealing a pair of blood-red eyes that radiated a desire for destruction so fearsome even Angels quailed before it.

"Destroy everything! End everything! Corrupt everything!"

The Demon Wolf's voice carried a strange rhythm, savage and cold.

"Glory to destruction!" The Goddess of Misfortune lowered her head.

At the same time, God of Death Salinger and God of Wishes Kotar both received the command to destroy, transmitted from the Historical Void.

Along with it came the Authority of Concealment.

"Awoo!" The concealed power Kotar bore erupted in an instant. Lowering his head, he made a wish: "I wish for the people of the Golden Kingdom to fall asleep!"

The next moment, the entire Golden Kingdom fell asleep. Yet protected by the Authority of Concealment, the outside world could not detect anything amiss.

Salinger silently extended both hands and pushed forward, tearing open the barrier between the Spirit World and reality. One wisp after another of black fog crept from the Spirit World into reality, crawling toward the sleeping citizens of the Golden Kingdom.

This was the power of the Annihilation Demonic Wolf.

Their bodies twitched, then returned to normal.

The concealment faded, and the Golden Kingdom rejoined the world it had once belonged to.

But in truth, it had already become a strange city.

The people of the Golden Kingdom opened their eyes all at once. Their eyes had no whites; they were completely black. Then they began to pray to Giant King Aurmir.

"O great King of the Giants..."

The entire Golden Kingdom chanted the Honorific Name of the King of the Giants. These people were Aurmir's most important "anchors" outside the Giant Race. He had even sent his eldest son, God of Dawn, to protect them.

But at this moment, God of Dawn had been driven back and shut himself inside the palace. The Giant King was away, while the Giant Queen remained on guard against the imminent divine war.

For once, this place had been left undefended.

The Annihilation Demonic Wolf had glimpsed an opportunity in fate and decided to destroy the entire Golden Kingdom—and even use all its people to corrupt Aurmir in turn!

The Annihilation Demonic Wolf was a true destroyer, mad enough to destroy the entire world!

At that very moment, Aurmir, locked in a standoff with the other Ancient Gods, heard the prayers of the Golden Kingdom's people.

He tilted his head to listen, then suddenly roared in fury. The Light of Twilight in his single eye trembled violently!

The points of light formed by the prayers manifested, but they were stained black. A corruption emanated from them. For an Ancient God, it was not particularly potent—merely a Beyonder Characteristic of a "Miracle Invoker."

By way of a miracle, it had merged into the people of the Golden Kingdom, then traveled by way of another miracle along the points of light to Aurmir. This was the wish made by the Annihilation Demonic Wolf.

The already-mad Ancient God became even more deranged.

Among the manifested points of light, a slick tentacle shot forth like a spear!

"Get lost!" Aurmir roared, sweeping the Greatsword of Twilight in his hand. The Light of Twilight corroded everything, wiping out every point of light formed by the prayers.

The Annihilation Demonic Wolf's plan had not fully succeeded, but the brief wavering of his anchors had further worsened Aurmir's mental state.

"Awoo!" An excited howl rang across the land. The Annihilation Demonic Wolf watched it all with savage glee.

But at that very moment, a mad bolt of Thunder struck the Annihilation Demonic Wolf!

This was the prelude to the divine war!

In an instant, thunder filled the sky, the Red Moon hung high overhead, and the dusk of twilight descended upon the Annihilation Demonic Wolf.

"Fooling!" The Demon Wolf did not even try to block the attacks. He let the Thunder tear his body apart, then transformed into a roiling mass of mist formed from the Authorities of History and Concealment.

A strange ripple spread outward like a wave, making Aurmir and the two other Ancient Gods freeze in place, as if they had forgotten to attack.

Then came attacks from every corner of the world. Countless Light Doors opened, and space became a sieve. Beyond the doors came the death of the Underworld, Psychic Breath, curses from the Alien Species, and even corruption and filth.

How could the Alien Alliance pass up such an opening from the three Ancient Gods of the Humanoid Alliance?!

They attacked at the same time. The Ancestor of Phoenix, Gregrace, used Door Opening to draw the attacks of the other three Ancient Gods here.

The Dragon of Imagination, the King of Exotic Species, and even the Demon Monarch.

This was exactly what the Annihilation Demonic Wolf wanted. He didn't care how complicated the battle became. He only wanted to bring about the most terrifying destruction!

And what scene of destruction could be more terrifying than all the Ancient Gods fighting one another?

The Ancient God Alliance was already a chain reaction waiting to happen. The Annihilation Demonic Wolf had gone mad and attacked the Twilight Giant, deliberately provoking a divine war and dragging the other Ancient Gods into it as well!

"Damn Demon Wolf!" Giant King Aurmir roared madly. Twilight encroached upon Evernight, and his orange-red Twilight Greatsword struck at the frenzied Demon Wolf.

The other Ancient Gods found their own opponents. Eight Ancient Gods fought fiercely, and the world itself seemed on the brink of destruction.

"This is terrifying!" Truman watched the Ancient God battlefield and drew a soft breath. The gods were even more terrifying than he had imagined, especially the lunatics among the Ancient Gods.

"But those humans can't be allowed to die." Truman wandered to the Golden Kingdom. Everyone there had been corrupted by the Miracle Invoker Characteristic and defiled by Aurmir's Light of Twilight. They were already dying in droves.

After the divine war, the best possible outcome for this place would be to become a dead city. If they were unlucky, these people would all turn into monsters that devoured one another, until one of them had eaten everyone.

"Stop!" Truman pressed down on the Book of Dreams. Endless Dream Phosphor fell upon every person's head.

The Dream Phosphor stopped the people, driven by the gathering Miracle Invoker Characteristic, from slaughtering one another. It separated them and drew out the Miracle Invoker Characteristic. The process went smoothly, and no one came to interfere.

He collected the Miracle Invoker Characteristic. It was of little use to the Annihilation Demonic Wolf, but a wonderful gain for him.

"And you people—become my believers." He opened a Light Door leading to his territory in the Kingdom of the Ancient Sun God.

That might be where he would stay for quite some time.

"I've gained all these believers for free!" Truman was very pleased.