As the eerie crimson moon of the Netherworld rose high in the sky, more than twenty figures from the Rhine Clan, avoiding other members of their clan, carefully crept out among the withered grass and trees of the Netherworld.
They were already more than a thousand meters away from the family's residence, a distance exceeding the range of Midgod's divine sense in the Netherworld. Delisha, being Highgod Refine Divine Spark, possessed a divine sense range not much larger than that of Midgod.
(In the original work, during the section where Linley was taking the Demon test, it was written that: In the Higher Planes, the divine sense of the Highgod covers more than a thousand meters, while Linley's divine sense range at that time was only a few tens of meters. There is no detailed data on the range of the divine sense of the Lowgod.)
Given that Linley had just broken through to the Midgod level and his divine sense was relatively weak, and that the Profound Mysteries did not provide any additional boost to the soul, the range of Deity-level sense for gods who autonomously ascended to godhood in the Higher Planes was set as follows: 1,000 meters for Highgod, 100 meters for Midgod, and 10 meters for Lowgod (those with the support of Profound Mysteries or Divine Artifact are excluded).
"Where do we go next?" someone asked.
Jason replied, "Join a tribe; even the weakest one is safer than the current Rhine Clan."
Landon did not object, which showed that he was conflicted.
"Yes, after all, the Rhine Clan is currently in dire straits." A girl's voice rang out.
Everyone turned around, and standing behind them was a delicate young woman, their clan leader, Delisha.
The group looked at each other, unsure of what to do.
"Jason, you've never been on my side since we were in the Material Plane. I know you're straightforward, and you've always been outspoken. I wasn't angry at all about your betrayal; I was even willing to let you off the hook." Delisha's gaze fell on Landon: "But Landon, we've supported each other through the Abyss, and you're my elder in terms of age. I didn't punish you for forming cliques before, so why are you abandoning me now?"
Delisha's tearful and pitiful appearance made everyone around her feel guilty.
Landon took a deep breath and immediately knelt down. "Chieftain, I will remember your kindness, but I cannot abandon my descendants. Since my wife Naerdai's death, I have had no other ambitions. Now I only ask to lead these people out of here. If you truly resent me, once they are able to protect themselves, I, Landon, will commit suicide to atone for my sins."
Delisha was torn. As Demon, selfishness was in her nature, but as Deity-level, reason had been able to suppress the instincts born of her blood. She knew that Landon, Jason, Edward's choices were right, but—
"Three months ago, Jason contacted a Highgod using his divine sense. Although it was very secretive, he was detected." Delisha looked at Jason.
Those around Jason also looked at him.
"It's that Highgod." Jason was referring to the Highgod who had been controlling the Midgod to attack the Rhine Clan.
"Jason!" "Why?" the people around him questioned.
"To survive," Jason said, "That Highgod said he wanted the Violet-Eyed Bladewing Fiend to establish his own tribe, and he promised to let us join his tribe."
"What's the price?" Delisha seemed to sense something was amiss and took out her Divine Artifact.
A strange voice rang out. "The price is that I've lured you into this trap!"
The soil beneath their feet crumbled, revealing a complex magic array.
Before she could even resist, Delisha crouched down, clutching her head, and began to wail in pain.
"I never expected you to be such a powerful Highgod who Refine Divine Spark. If your people hadn't betrayed you, I really wouldn't have been able to tell." A slender young man with short feathers on his temples appeared behind Delisha.
"Even if Highgod Refine Divine Spark absorbs countless Soul Gold Bead, their soul remains a weakness!" The middle-aged man observed for a while, confirming that Delisha was truly powerless to resist, and laughed loudly, "Once I destroy your Highgod avatar, I'll control you and ravage you in front of your people."
The onlookers looked grim.
With Delisha's strength, she could have easily abandoned her family and left on her own. Although she has faced many dangers over the years, Delisha has always protected the Rhine Clan, and the members of the Rhine Clan still respect their patriarch.
Jason, Edward, and Landon, in particular, only wanted to protect some of the family's descendants and leave; they had no intention of harming Delisha!
The Highgod glanced around at the expressions of those around him and finally believed that Delisha was no longer capable of resisting.
He cautiously stepped into the magic circle— Delisha's previous display of strength was too powerful, already at the level of a high-level Five-Star Fiend, which made him wary.
However, just as she was about to make her move, Delisha suddenly swung her knife and slashed directly at her back.
"Ah!" With a shrill scream, one of the Highgod's avatars was destroyed.
Then came the second strike, and the other Divine Clone was also completely annihilated.
Delisha grabbed the Interspatial Ring and sealed it with her blood.
The blood seeped in without any obstruction.
"Phew." Delisha, Jason, Edward, Landon finally breathed a sigh of relief.
With a single move, Delisha shattered the magic circle beneath her feet, then swept up everyone present. "Run!"
Two Midgod Refine Divine Spark cleared a path underground, allowing the less than one hundred members of the Rhine Clan to traverse the underground.
It has been fifty-three years since we arrived in the Netherworld. With the Rhine Clan's birth rate, the number of members should have exceeded one hundred by now. However, due to the harassment over the past ten years, the family's population has remained stagnant.
"Thanks to Jason this time, otherwise our Rhine Clan would have been harassed and worn down by these repeated attacks," Delisha said to her family members. "And Landon, Edward, and Dante, you did a great job too."
"You flatter us, Chief. It was thanks to your great strength that this operation was successful," Jason and the other two said.
Jason had been secretly contacted by that Highgod before.
Jason's first reaction was to report to Delisha, but after thinking it over, he decided to devise a counter-espionage plan instead.
Jason and Edward had not contacted Theresa, but Edward had an equal pact with Dante, and it was through this pact that he conveyed his caution to Theresa, which led to the previous counterattack.
"Before coming to the Netherworld, I was careless, causing so many of my family members to die," Delisha said remorsefully.
"We also bear responsibility," the four Violet-Eyed Bladewing Fiend from the Abyss said with self-reproach.
He died in battle before Delisha and the Violet-Eyed Bladewing Fiend "Aaron," who had journeyed with her from the Abyss to the present.
Aaron is Lowgod who broke through on the Yulan Continent. He is slightly weaker than Jason now, has a dull personality, and has a very low profile.
However, during an attack, he stood in front of a group of Saint-level and was killed by a Midgod.
Jason admitted to himself that he had been genuinely afraid over the past decade or so.
If Delisha's counterattack fails this time, he might really have a mental breakdown and revert to his former Highgod —he doesn't want to experience that feeling of being able to die at any moment again.
Delisha said, "We'll choose a secluded location, and then select another settlement once our people are strong enough."
The days of traveling underground will likely be long.
Jason recalled that Delisha's soul defense seemed unexpectedly strong.
After Jason proposed the counter-espionage plan, Delisha said she was not afraid of soul attacks.
Jason initially thought Delisha had absorbed a lot of Soul Gold Bead, but the fact that she showed no signs of soul damage under the combined attack of Deity-level skilled in the Edicts of Death and a premeditated magic array raised suspicions.
"That powerful Highgod left behind Soul Defense Sovereign Artifact? That's unlikely; someone with that level of treasure wouldn't go to the Yulan Continent." Jason pondered, "Is it Soul Defense Divine Artifact? Or some kind of unknown treasure?"
After a month of underground exploration, the Rhine Clan finally found a basin nestled in a remote hill.
"Let's do it here," Chief Delisha said to her people, then summoned several Deity-level: "Let's have a meeting."
(I originally intended to write this event as a key plot point, making it ten chapters long, but since it's the beginning of the volume, I was afraid it would be too depressing to read, so I only wrote two chapters and ended it here.)