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The battles finally ended, the Barbarian God was slain, and his powers were distributed back into the world. The new Beast God, Typhon, was the new pillar of the world of Elios, similar to how I had designed Leviathan to take care of Eclipse.
Still, it was a pity that the other Divine Beast Spirit Gods couldn't remain here. Their own existences must have weakened tremendously over these three hundred years. Usually, one would imagine such an amount of time as nothing to a god or an Immortal.
However, for special beings such as them, whose powers and roots originate from Myths, once their stories are forgotten by the people, they naturally grow weaker. Because of this, summed up with their sealing and how the Barbarian God stole their divinities over time, this is what happened.
Wounds I couldn't heal, and people I couldn't save...
Even after eleven thousand years of cultivation and growth, there are still many things I cannot do. Saving these beings, whose biology and existence were beyond my understanding at the moment, was one of them.
But that won't last for long; as I grow stronger and understand better all of these abilities and beings, I'll also have the ability to heal them.
I promise I will.
You sacrificed everything to save your world, your people, the world, and the people you loved so much. If anything, you're perhaps the most noble beings I've met in my life.
For you, it is worth giving it my all, so other beings like you can have a second chance too.
You made me learn that not all gods were evil either, that not all of them were corrupt, and that some, like a parent to a child, genuinely loved their creations and took care of them.
You helped them grow, you nurtured them, and you gave them this beautiful world.
"I will make sure to protect your legacy."
I looked into the skies; the night had already arrived, and for the first time in a while, I gave myself the privilege of just sitting down over the grasslands and enjoying the starry night.
There were more stars in the sky than I could ever see back on Earth, all of them so bright and so beautiful.
Were these stars that the Lion came from?
He was most likely a god from another Realm, or World, someone who came alone and made his world, his children, their siblings, and then the people.
I don't know what his reasons were, but after traveling across the stars through his long life...
Maybe he was just lonely.
When he died, he looked happy and fulfilled.
It was as if he had done everything he could have ever wanted and was happy to leave the world as he had made it.
So that's how God truly is, huh?
"The night sky is beautiful today," Mursha said.
We were all sitting over the grasslands, enjoying our own time together, and having a large picnic. The people of the camp were surrounding us, making a huge celebration.
Thousands of people danced, sang, ate, and laughed together. It was a night of celebration, something that would be remembered by the next generation as a legend, perhaps.
"It indeed is!" nodded Urbosa. "This world… I want to bring my Hekita here; I want to show my baby this world she never saw."
"Hekita... wasn't born here?" I wondered.
"No, we ran away from Elios when I was just a child after all," Urbosa smiled, caressing my hand as she rested her head over my shoulder. "I want to bring her here so she can learn about her heritage and about the world her tribe once lived in. And maybe we can finally come back too."
"We have to definitely tell the entire tribe!" nodded Merkite. "I'm sure they're going to be thrilled to come back, especially all the grandpas and grandmas!"
"Yeah, let's do that then." I nodded. "But let's not force them; maybe some would prefer to stay in Eclipse, and that's perfectly understandable. Unlike Eclipse, this place is underdeveloped. There aren't large cities or civilizations anymore. It is pretty much a blank slate, with this camp being the only last place where the few survivors of many tribes gathered together."
"It'll be a hard path from now on to remake everything we lost," sighed Urbosa. "I don't know if I'll be able to help as much as I wish... I'm here with you now; you're my dear mate. And I'm pregnant with our child, so it would be imprudent to spend my time here when I should be at your side."
"Ah, well…" I felt slightly embarrassed; she talked so proudly about that. "If you really want to, I wouldn't mind staying here with you; although I'll keep climbing the tower, I can help you reconstruct this place."
"N-No… I would never ask you such a thing," said Urbosa. "Really, it's fine... I think it's just my own selfish wish; I feel like I belong more with you; we're family after all, right?"
"R-Right…" I nodded, feeling moved.
"Yep~" Merkite agreed. "I mean, look around you; there's still tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, if other refugees come back, right? I'm sure they can manage with Typhon's help."
"Yeah, I suppose it can be done." I nodded.
I drank some of the ale they offered to us, made of many fermented wild berries. It had a very sweet flavor for an alcoholic drink, almost addicting.
The roasted meat made out of those sheep-like creatures they raise as cattle was also quite delicious—nicely roasted, tender, and fatty—with a lot of unique spices that gave it a very surprising flavor.
There was also a delicious bread resembling naan bread, with a lot of seeds; it had a rather milky flavor and was slightly sweet. It was made using these cattle's milk plus flour made by mixing and pulverizing several types of seeds gathered around these lands and their forests.
"This is how you eat it, Bing Xue." Mursha taught me how to eat the bread by taking a small piece and then dipping it in several sauces available. "First green sauce, then blue, and yellow. This gives the perfect combination of flavors. Try it!" She took a bite, licking her fingers.
"Hmm~" I did what she told me, in the same order, and then. "Ooh!"
These sauces were incredible—a combination of spices, fruits, vegetables, and aromatic herbs that created a wonderful sensation inside my mouth. Spicy, sweet, slightly savory—umami! All came one after another; it wasn't overwhelming, just enough.
The slight sweetness and the spongy yet crunchy outer layer of the bread made everything even better. When I saw Urbosa place a piece of meat on top.
"Also like this! We don't really use forks, spoons, or knives here; we just eat everything with bread, mostly," she explained. "Nom! Hmm! I missed this flavor from my childhood! Hahahh!"
"Ooh, yes, it's really wonderful," nodded Urbosa. "Thank you for inviting us to eat such a delicious meal, Mursha!"
"Its… Hmm! Really good!" Nodded Peperina; she was right by our side, enjoying the food as well. As a foodie, she couldn't stop taking photos for her vlog using her smartphone. "I hope I can get some likes from this!"
"It's nothing," said Mursha. "After everything you've done, it's only obvious that I would invite you to eat at the very least. You can also stay the night in the camp's most luxurious tents if you desire. Now that all the bad weeds have been eliminated, there's plenty of free space."
"Ah, thank you, Mursha." I nodded. "Then we'll take that offer! Anyway, how do you feel so far? You've gone through a lot, and you've also grown a lot as well."
"I'm doing fine, you don't have to worry, Lady Bing Xue," she said. "My strength has stabilized, and my energies are harmonizing with one another…"
She wasn't wrong; as I glanced at her strong biceps, I sensed her energies condensing in her chest, where her Martial Core had been formed.
This core had crystalized from the combination of her Primal Power, her large pool of Mana, and also the new Ki I had awakened on her just seconds before the war game began.
After that, she also awakened spiritual energies from her tattoos, and the existence of the Bloodfang Wolf was revealed, although he quickly passed away afterwards.
With his help, though, Mursha was able to steal a developing divinity from one of her foes, a half thrall and half orc named Obsidian, a Shadow Divinity she used, but that quickly broke on her battle against Ultimus.
And while fighting Ultimus, the combination and condensation of her energies, with the shattered Shadow Divinities fragments, plus the right time and the right place, created a new Divinity within her, the Divinity of Hope.
"It certainly has," I nodded. "Not only have you developed your Cultivation, but the Primal Power, your Unique Tattoos which seem to be a unique form of Spirit Energy Cultivation, and also your Mana reserves have increased a lot, all coupled with that Divinity."
"R-Right… I've become so strong, I can't believe it," she muttered. "I didn't even believe when the Phoenix said they'd leave me the leftover energies before passing away; they said it was leftover, but it's tremendous!"
Now, the Divinity resided in her soul while her Cultivation continued to progress; she had now reached Rank 5 due to all the boosts, energies, and powers she gained, plus the Phoenix within her, who, although he died, left behind all the leftover divine spiritual energies.
Right now, even as we eat, she and the other girls are constantly absorbing and assimilating this energy, constantly growing stronger. In that little, brief amount of time, I let Mursha awaken to Ki. I had also given her the special Physique Formation, so her cultivation increased based on the increment of her various energies and also her levels.
As of now, it could be considered that Mursha was already a goddess, though her body was still that of a mortal. But a strange goddess, one not tied to any world, I suppose she's similar to me in that regard.
"Haha, well, it's the same for us…" Urbosa laughed a bit, but then realized that it was better not to. "Ahem… Well, I'm still rather sad that they passed away. I'm just a bit shocked by the power we've attained."
"I can hardly believe it myself…" Merkite drank some ale, licking her lips. "I hope you can help us control and cultivate these powers, honey…" She looked at me.
"Of course, dear, that's only nature." I nodded, caressing her hair and giving her a kiss. "Let's slowly learn about your new abilities, one step at a time."
Then there are Urbosa and Merkite; both of them received the divine spiritual powers of the wolves, but they had yet to absorb this power or completely make it into a proper divinity. Anyway, they had already reached Rank 6, so they were now in the realm of Immortals.
Its changes occurred as they fought against the Barbarian God; thanks to the possession of the divine beast spirit gods, this process was immediately done. However, I'm afraid they have yet to awaken their inner Realms, which should appear after their Aura and Souls fused.
However, in terms of body, although they had not realized, perhaps due to the stat boosts of levels dulling the sensation of their body being reinforced, they have become "immortal," meaning that they won't die from aging. For example, they have become tough enough to be considered goddesses or beyond, and they can now unleash Immortal Techniques.
"And well, I don't know if you haven't realized yet, but the two of you have already ascended into immortals." I said. "Your bodies became super tough, and you won't age anymore. Rank 6 does that."
"E-Eh?! Already!"
"No way!"
The two were surprised, as I expected. Mursha should get to that level eventually as well; she just needs to spend more time meditating, or perhaps fighting, while using her abilities and many energies.
"Hahaha, you two are amazingly strong!" I giggled, hugging my two cute wives. "Be proud! You're stronger than most of the gods I've fought already. Pretty amazing, right?"
"T-That' much?!" Urbosa gasped.
"That's crazy…" Merkite muttered.
Well, their humbleness was also part of their charm. Instead of letting such power get into their heads, they're mostly just worried they won't be able to use it properly.
People like this are perhaps the best candidates to actually wield power, in my opinion. Those who remain humble, even at the pinnacle, are the true inheritors of heaven and earth.
As I left them celebrating and drinking, talking between friends, I moved to another part of the camp, where Mr. Lonely was sitting around, drinking on his own.
"Hey."
"Hm? Bing Xue…"
Seth was sitting there, looking at the sky as he reminisced about something.
"You don't need to come look for me; I'm fine," he said. "Were you worried? Don't worry. Go spend time with your lovers and friends."
"Well, aren't you my friend?" I asked.
"A-Am I?" He felt slightly flustered. "I didn't know you considered me one already."
"Hahaha! Well, more like my dear disciple!" I patted his head. "But yes, there's a bond of friendship too, of family. To become my disciple is to become my family and friend."
"Hah… Alright then," he said, drinking some more. "What did you want to talk about?"
"Seth…"
I stood in front of him, looking into his eyes.
"From the future, you came from... This world ended, didn't it?"
His eyes widened for a moment as I confronted him about something he hadn't told me about before.
"Hah… Nothing can escape you, huh? Indeed. The world of Elios, from the future I came from, was destroyed."
Then he sighed, sitting down more comfortably.
"And it wasn't the Barbarian God who did it."
"Does it have to do with the people behind his conception? Not the cult, the others."
He laughed.
"Yes, you guessed right."
The real culprits of Elios' tragedy and countless other worlds.
The enemies hiding in the shadows.
-----
Can't wait to see what's next? You can join my Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/pancakeswitch
And gain access to all these Advanced Chapters:
63 Advanced Chapters of
The Protagonist's Sister Is Actually The Strongest
41 Advanced Chapters of
The Heavenly Martial Empress Returns
17 Advanced Chapters of
Fantasy Story Online: The Crippled Vampire Prince Walks The Heavenly Demon Path