【 THE WORLD TREE’S NEW ABILITY 】
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After chatting with Evé for a while longer, Reinhardt finally took his leave.
Accompanying him were the dragons who had come to the Elven Forest as allied reinforcements.
As it stands, the most difficult part of the war was over. So as far as the demon invasion of the world of Seigües was concerned, all that remained now was the post cleanup work.
And for the remaining less important matters, the dragons would no longer take part in it.
At the same time as the dragons departed, the leaders of the Undead Heroic Spirit Legion, the four envoys of Death, also came before Evé.
“Your Grace, Evé, now that the war within the world of Seigües has concluded, we shall also return to the Netherworld.”
The four envoys spoke with equal reverence.
Evé gave them a slight nod in acknowledgment and gratitude.
Her gaze swept across the Undead Legion behind them. After hesitating briefly, she ultimately chose not to reveal the information she had extracted from the divine souls of several Abyssal myths she had destroyed.
Instead, she decided that after returning to her Divine Kingdom, she would directly inform Hela of those discoveries through use of the Casket of Death.
“The Lord of Darkness and Shadows…”
As she recalled certain scenes she had witnessed while reading the memories of some Abyssal Myths, Eve’s eyes gradually deepened with thought.
One after another, the armies of the various allied factions also bid their farewells, leaving the task of cleaning up the battlefield to the players and the armies of Maple Moon State.
Of course, even if it was merely called a “cleanup,” it was still far from something that could be completed in a short period of time.
Although the mythical-rank forces of the Demon Army had already been completely routed and the Dimensional Gate to the Abyss was destroyed by Evé, after more than half a year of invasion had still allowed an overwhelming number of demons to flood into Seigües, thereby corrupting vast stretches of the land.
In particular, the southern region of the Maple Moon Territory alone had already been transformed into a living hell.
Not to mention that the demons stationed along the southern border territories of the Holy Maniya Empire had even established strongholds and created Abyssal Brood Nests capable of continuously breeding new demons.
Thus, to completely eradicate all these remaining Demon forces and purify the lands corrupted by the Abyss, it would more or less still take quite a considerable amount of time.
It was foreseeable that while large-scale battles lasting several months like the previous ones involving millions of soldiers were unlikely to occur, high-intensity battles would continue for quite some time.
Naturally, Evé had no intention of personally intervening in those matters any further. Even if handling everything herself would undoubtedly be far more efficient.
True Gods were not babysitters.
After resolving the disasters that the mortals themselves were incapable of overcoming, the remaining enemies should be left for mortals to confront and grow through.
As for the details of the ongiong war, with her demigod subordinates such as Aurora present, entrusting the matter to them would be sufficient enough.
Evé herself, meanwhile, once again returned to the world within the ruins in the Realm of Mindel, wherein her true body resided.
After returning to the Garden of Eden and taking seat upon her divine throne, she withdrew her divine incarnation, which had already reached its limits, and allowed it to recover in her Divine Kingdom. Only then did she finally have the opportunity to carefully examine the current condition of her true body.
She had already reviewed the changes to her divine power, believers, and players.
Now, what she wished to inspect was her newly evolved true form.
After advancing to the rank of Higher Divine Power, Eve’s true body had finally evolved from its Initial stage into the Intermediate stage.
Within the knowledge she inherited from the World Tree, the Intermediate Stage possessed another title:
“The Growth Stage.”
At the same time, Evé had also obtained a brand-new ability:
[Fusion]
As the name implied, “Fusion” was the ability to merge different existences into one.
Yet according to Eve’s perception, the intended target of this ability was something rather unique.
What she was meant to fuse with was not just anything, but actual entire realms.
Evé had gained the ability to [Fuse] with worlds themselves!
And as the World Tree, she instinctively sensed something deep within her being:
If she wished to advance even further, she would have to fuse herself within a world whose divine laws were complete and balanced, using it as a kind of foundation. She would then take root within its core origin and merge with it completely.
And naturally, the higher the level of the world being fused with, the better.
Once such a fusion began, it would become irreversible unless she died.
In other words, after Evé selected the realm in which to root herself, she would permanently lose the ability to transfer her true body elsewhere.
That limitation would remain until her divine power reached the pinnacle of Higher Divine Power and she fulfilled the conditions required for her next advancement.
And once she successfully [Fused] with a world, Evé would gain the power of the entire realm itself.
As for the conditions required for the next stage of advancement, Evé still did not fully understand them.
She only has a vague sense of them.
But she had a feeling that it would gradually become clearer as her strength continued to increase.
It seemed to be a certain instinct deeply rooted within the bloodline of the World Tree itself.
Only at this moment did Evé finally become completely certain that although World Trees were classified as True Gods, the level of existence possessed by a World Tree was unquestionably far higher than that of ordinary True Gods, perhaps even surpassing the Ancient Gods.
The World Tree, a being that originated from beyond the deeper cosmos, had merely reached the Intermediate Stage even after attaining the rank of Higher Divine Power.
Strictly speaking, she had a feeling that her current form was still far from her fully matured state.
Which begs the question…
If her current form was still considered immature, then what kind of existence would a fully matured World Tree become?
At the same time, Evé also finally understood why her predecessor’s roots had intertwined with the Origin Core of Seigües, and why, even after the gods attacked and launched their holy war, her predecessor had still never considered fleeing.
It turned out it was because it simply could not flee in the first place…
It was obvious that the realm chosen by her predecessor to fuse with had been none other than the world of Seigües itself.
So from this perspective, Hela’s words had indeed been correct.
The concerns the Heavenly Gods held toward Eve’s predecessor were not without reason, because the previous World Tree truly had been attempting to achieve complete fusion with the very core origin of Seigües itself.
That was a form of fusion surpassing the concept of merely becoming the ‘Master of the Realm’ something almost akin to ‘devouring.’
And yet, it was fundamentally different from true “devouring.”
According to Eve’s perception, the process of [Fusion] would not harm the world in the slightest. On the contrary, it might even bring certain benefits to it.
As for what the final result would actually become, Evé herself still did not know.
However, she had some vague guesses…
Feeling the chaotic spaces emerging within every leaf and deep within the roots of her true body, Evé fell into thought.
“A World Tree fusing with worlds? Transforming oneself and fusing into… countless realms?”
If the future truly unfolded as she suspected, then the power she would ultimately possess would be utterly extraordinary.
And if she hadn’t reincarnated as the World Tree and had been one of the Heavenly Gods instead, then under such circumstances, she likely would have stood against herself as well.
As such, in life, one’s interests determined their position.
And now, the time had come for Evé to make her choice.
As a World Tree, the direction of her path had already been predetermined.
Letting out a soft breath, Evé turned her gaze toward the Realm of Mindel.
In the vast cosmos, there were many possible choices for worlds in which she could fuse with.
But the simplest option was obvious.
As the current master of the Realm of Mindel, she could immediately choose to take root within this world and begin using it as the foundation to fuse with.
However, after carefully examining Mindel, Evé found herself hesitating.
Although the world within the ruins inside Mindel possessed an extraordinarily high concentration of mana, Evé could clearly perceive that the overall magical energy level of this realm was still inferior to that of the World of Seigües. Even the completeness of its divine laws lagged somewhat behind.
This oceanic world had merely relied upon the power of its seal to gather the entirety of its magical power into the mysterious ruins, while the cost was the depletion of magical power throughout the rest of the world.
Therefore, without deliberate intervention from Evé as the Master of the Realm, the actual magical energy in which the Realm of Mindel could naturally accommodate was only at the demigod rank.
Furthermore, the water element within this world was clearly stronger than all the other elements.
Although the various elements still maintained an overall balance, theoretically speaking, it was not an especially suitable foundation for fusion.
Evé was the kind of person who, once she decided to do something, insisted on doing it perfectly.
Hence, using such a realm as the foundation for her fusion was something she found difficult to accept, as it would inevitably limit the upper bound of her future development.
Not to mention, Evé had a premonition that the better the realm she chose as a foundation, the smoother and more stable her path toward Greater Divine Power would become.
Conversely, the weaker the world’s foundation she selected, the more resistance she would encounter in that progression, making each step toward that realm significantly more arduous and uncertain.
If she was going to do it, then she intended to achieve the very best possible result.
And when considered from that perspective, Eve’s choice was reduced to only one world.
Her gaze shifted toward the direction of Seigües.
“Sigh, so after going around in circles and severing myself from it… I’ve ultimately returned to the beginning once again?”
She shook her head in exasperation.
Within the entire universe, no realm could compare to the world of Seigües in terms of the completeness of its laws and the height of its energy level.
For Evé, the ideal choice was naturally to fuse with the world of Seigües itself.
And if advancing further truly required fusing with the very core origin of Seigües itself, then regardless of her true identity and how sensitive it is, conflict with the gods of the Heavenly Realm seemed all but inevitable.
Just like her predecessor.
Not only the gods of the Heavenly Realm, but perhaps even the Dragons in Dragon Island and certain Ancient Gods would eventually come into conflict with her as well.
However, Urinos, the Ancestral Dragon had still shown goodwill after learning her true identity. This suggested that perhaps there was no fundamental conflict of interest between them in this matter.
From this perspective, Evé truly needed to visit Dragon Island and determine the other party’s true attitude.
At the same time, Evé also finally understood why the Eternal Lord had placed the Pantheon directly above the core origin of Seigües:
“So… the Pantheon was placed above the core origin of Seigües not merely for protection, but also for suppression, in order to prevent a fusion similar to what the previous World Tree had attempted…”
“I have been so active within Seigües, yet the Eternal Lord has never sent any of his envoys to investigate the World Tree within the Elven Forest. Aside from the divine throne within the Pantheon, perhaps the reason why he didn’t act is that the core origin of Seigües itself is already suppressed beneath the Pantheon, leaving him not worried at all.”
At that moment, many lingering questions within Eve’s mind were finally resolved.
In a certain sense, to some True Gods, her very existence was equivalent to that of a great final boss.
“In that case, I might as well take the gamble. After all… we’re destined to clash eventually.”
Eve’s gaze gradually became resolute.
At that moment, another thought suddenly flashed through her mind:
If that was the case, then what was the point of her severing her connection with the core origin of Seigües in the first place?
However, she quickly dismissed the thought herself.
Had she not severed that connection, she would never have been able to safely advance to the rank of Higher Divine Power.
Having fully understood the path that lay before her, Evé finally decided to abandon the idea of taking root within the Realm of Mindel altogether.
She chose instead to return to the Elven Forest and, while the World of Seigües remained sealed, search for a way to break through the impasse and complete her fusion with it before it was fully unsealed.
This was not something that could be accomplished overnight. It would be another arduous journey, one destined to be long and difficult.
“Let me examine the gains from this war first.”
With that thought, Evé let out a soft sigh and waved her hand, causing all the spoils she obtained from the war to appear within the hall.
Although the war itself had not lasted particularly long, Eve’s harvest had been exceedingly abundant.
Aside from the Abyssal Myths she had captured alive, she had also obtained the two divine authorities namely: the Divinity of Ocean and Divinity of Storms. She also acquired the renowned Divine Artifact, the Trident of the Sea God, and seized a large collection of corrupted divine artifacts and demonic weapons stripped from the Abyssal myths, including those belonging to Demon Lord, Samael himself.
Evé first began examining the least valuable gains.
After looking through the confiscated corrupted divine artifacts and demonic weapons, she discovered that aside from Samael’s demonic spear, the others were all rather ordinary.
Currently, Evé had no shortage of divine artifacts.
The several True Divine Artifacts she possessed were already among the finest even within the category of divine artifacts themselves.
Thus her standards and expectations had long since become exceedingly high.
After pondering the matter briefly, Evé decided to simply extract and devour all the corrupted divine power contained within these weapons, purify them, and later use them as rewards for the players.
After advancing to Higher Divine Power, Eve’s ability to purify Abyssal power had grown even stronger.
So purifying the abyssal corruption within these artifacts was now a trivial matter for her.
As for Samael’s demonic spear, which possessed the attributes of [Absolute Accuracy] and [Curse], it was comparatively unnecessary for Evé, who already wielded the Sword of Damocles.
After some consideration, she decided to purify it as well and gift it to Aurora instead.
The Frost Demigod’s divine artifact had reportedly been destroyed thousands of years ago during the battle against the Abyssal Serpent Apophis, and Aurora was indeed in desperate need of a suitable divine weapon.
Ever since the war began, Aurora had spent nearly the entire time being overwhelmed by one Abyssal myth after another.
Her circumstances had truly been rather miserable.
Hopefully, Aurora would like it.
Beyond the corrupted divine artifacts, what remained were the two divinities and the True Divine Artifact, the Trident of the Sea God.
Without question, the Trident of the Sea God could only display its greatest power when paired together with the Divinity of the Ocean.
Before entering her slumber, Evé had already decided that once Leviathan was dealt with, she would devour the Ocean Divinity and reclaim the divine authority of the seas into the divine authority of Nature.
However, after becoming a Higher God and clarifying the path she would walk in the future, her thoughts had changed once more.
In theory, the Divinity of Nature truly could devour the Divinity of Ocean, allowing Evé to obtain dominion over the seas.
But in the end, that would merely amount to gaining one additional divine authority.
Currently, she already possessed more than enough Divinities. In fact both Life and Nature were supreme-level divinities in which could naturally suppressed corresponding divinities.
Thus, gaining one more divine authority would not significantly increase her strength, and at most would only make her more powerful within the oceans.
And although the Trident of the Sea God was undoubtedly a powerful artifact, it was no longer an indispensable weapon to Eve after obtaining the Sword of Damocles.
Moreover, if Evé truly managed to advance even further, then divine authorities themselves might very well lose all meaning to her.
So she considered the matter from another perspective.
Rather than devouring these divine authorities herself, perhaps supporting her subordinate gods would bring her greater benefits.
The previous World Tree had fallen because her predecessor had been too kind, but her own aloofness and the lack of allies had also been important factors in her predecessor’s demise.
The fluctuations from Eve’s recent battle had been enormous. By now, the entire universe likely already knew that she had advanced to the rank of Higher Divine Power.
Such astonishing speed, even when explained through the corruption and absorption of faith-based divine power, would still be difficult to justify convincingly, especially to those familiar with the natural limits of divine progression.
Sooner or later, her true identity would likely begin drawing suspicion from her predecessor’s past enemies.
Furthermore, Leviathan, who managed to escape, was now extremely well aware of the situation in the Realm of Mindel.
As a result, it was only a matter of time before Eve’s true identity was exposed.
After concealing it for so long, continuing to hide it would become increasingly difficult.
Fortunately, she had now already advanced to Higher Divine Power.
Even if she still could not defeat her enemies directly, combined with the allies she had gathered over the years, she at least possessed several more layers of confidence in protecting herself.
Though it was only several more layers, nothing beyond that.
Battles between mythical beings were never fought alone.
Aside from continuously strengthening herself, nurturing subordinate gods was also one possible path.
As that thought arose, one familiar figure after another surfaced within Eve’s mind.
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