Book 19, Metamorphosis – Chapter 25, Innate Divine Ability
Over the course of the past sixty one years in the Planar Battlefield, Linley had already gained a deep appreciation for the dangers it contained. If he wanted to simply rely on his own power to both acquire sufficient military merits as well as protect his life, it would be incredibly difficult! Now that Linley had joined Reisgem’s hunting squad, Linley actually felt relieved.
“That’s nice and straightforward! Let’s go. We’re preparing to find a place to rest, first.” Reisgem said with a laugh.
As for that tower-like figure next to Reisgem, he didn’t say a single word, just following behind.
“Reisgem became a Purgatory Commander long ago, and was able to frighten off Benfield!” Linley felt very certain of Reisgem’s strength “In addition, according to the descriptions of Reisgem in Beirut’s book, Reisgem is a supreme expert who ranks in the top five of Purgatory Commanders.”
Reisgem’s reputation was quite extravagant.
Not only was he himself powerful, his mother was the Redbud Sovereign!
“Boss, in the future, things will be much simpler for us. We’ll probably be able to easily acquire military merits.” Bebe began to laugh, and with a flip of his hand, he retrieved another red fruit, biting into it viciously. The nearby Reisgem sniffed the air, then turned to look at Bebe and immediately laughed. “Bebe, right? This fruit seems pretty appetizing. Give me one?”
“Take it.” Bebe, very magnanimously, pulled out another fruit and tossed it to Reisgem.
Reisgem’s eyes lit up. Accepting it, he immediately began to eat, then nodded in praise. “Crispy and flavorful. Eating it is a pleasure. Thanks, bro.” As he spoke, Reisgem stretched his hand out, and a violet fruit appeared. “This is something I like to eat. It only exists in the Life Realm. Have a taste.”
Bebe and Reisgem, two people who both had childlike hearts, quickly began to grow close to each other.
Linley just smiled calmly while following them, as the tower-like big fellow just followed silently.
“Hey, Reisgem, I’m not just boasting. My innate divine ability, hmph, hmph.” Bebe actually started to brag in front of Reisgem.
“Yours is pretty powerful, but mine isn’t weak either.” Reisgem said very confidently. “But Bebe, I have to warn you, no matter what, you can’t use that innate divine ability of yours against me...I heard from my mother that the innate divine ability of you Godeater Rats is absolutely supernatural. Only someone with a soul-protecting Sovereign artifact or who is a Highgod Paragon can resist it; otherwise, there is no way.”
“Don’t worry.” Bebe snickered. “We’re on the same team.”
Hearing this, Linley had a thought; it seemed as though Reisgem was rather afraid of Bebe’s innate divine ability.
Reisgem took a bite of the fruit, then said helplessly, “I, Reisgem, am skilled in soul attacks! I don’t even fear the soul attacks of Highgod Paragons, but that ‘Godeater’ ability of yours, Bebe...there’s nothing I can do against it. That technique of yours is definitely the most powerful soul attack which a Highgod is capable of!”
Linley laughed as well. Reisgem’s words were very reasonable.
Bebe’s technique devoured the divine spark and destroyed the soul. It was indeed the most powerful of soul attacks.
“According to what my mother said, the innate divine abilities of divine beasts, in terms of fearsomeness...Bebe, you Godeater Rats are considered one of the top! As for the departed Azure Dragon, Vermillion Bird, and the rest of the Four Divine Beasts, their innate divine abilities were very terrifying as well! That Tree of Life from the Life Realm is also a monster...and the Abyssal Fruit Tree of the Netherworld, and...well, most of those extremely monstrous divine beasts all ended up becoming Sovereigns.” Reisgem said with a praising sigh.
Divine beasts were divided into tiers of power as well.
Godeater Rats stood at the very peak of divine beasts, but so too did the Abyssal Fruit Tree. These divine beasts and their innate abilities were absolutely unnatural in their power.
“Hey, what is so powerful about those other divine beasts? Tell me about them.” Bebe said excitedly.
Linley was intrigued as well.
Although they were walking on the surface of the battlefield, the four were very much at ease. Linley and the tower-like figure kept a constant watch on their surroundings, but clearly, there weren’t many people who would be so ignorant as to try to attack their group of four.
“In terms of pure attack power, the ‘White Tiger’ of the Four Divine Beasts had an innate divine ability that was even more powerful than your ‘Godeater’ ability.” Reisgem said with a sigh. “My mother said that when the Four Divine Beasts joined forces and combined their four innate divine abilities, it was utterly monstrous! They were an extremely powerful force amongst the Sovereigns, but unfortunately, they have now all fallen. What a pity.”
Linley was stunned.
The innate divine ability of the ‘White Tiger’ of the Four Divine Beasts was even more powerful than the ‘Godeater’ ability? Unfortunately, he would never have the chance to see it. After all, not a single one of the successors to the Four Divine Beasts was an actual divine beast; they just carried the bloodlines of the divine beasts. Their innate divine abilities were only unleashed after undergoing Ancestral Baptisms, and despite that, were incomparable to those of their original ancestors.
“Even more powerful than we Godeater Rats?” Bebe muttered, clearly not willing to accept it.
Reisgem chortled. “There are 77 Sovereigns, and a number of them are divine beasts! In addition, these divine beasts are almost all unique ones. You’ll never see them fight, but even if you do, there is no need for them to use their innate divine abilities. Of course you have no idea as to how terrifyingly powerful their innate divine abilities are. But of course...the combination of the four great innate divine abilities of the Four Divine Beasts is the most powerful divine ability of all. There is no question at all regarding this.”
While chatting casually, they arrived at a squat dwarf mountain.
“Hey, Hom, make a cave for us.” Reisgem said.
“Yes.” The big fellow finally spoke.
Linley couldn’t help but look over. He watched as the big, taciturn giant walked forward to the face of that small mountain, hundreds of meters high. The big fellow placed his giant, fan-sized hands atop the surface of the mountain, and instantly, the stone of the mountain seemed to turn to liquid, slowly flowing outwards.
In the blink of an eye...
A square cave had appeared, and the walls of the cave even had some patterned carvings.
“What sort of technique is this?” Linley and Bebe were stupefied.
“Don’t be so shocked.” Reisgem laughed delightedly, then strode inwards, with the big fellow following Reisgem into the cave.
“This big fellow is both mysterious and powerful.” Linley sighed mentally in praise. In addition, Linley had never seen anything in Beirut’s book regarding this big fellow.
“Whoosh!
Shortly after they entered the cave, a stone board actually slammed down at the entrance, completely sealing it off from the outside world.
The insides of the cave had actually been divided into several rooms, as well as a large living room.
“What do you think? Stunned by the technique of Hom, eh?” Reisgem laughed as he sat down on a stone bench within the living room. “Let me make the formal introductions. Hom’s full name is Reihom Stonebreaker [Lei’hong]. He’s my good friend, and a trusted Emissary of my mother. Don’t be fooled by his silence; he’s quite clear-minded about things.”
A rare hint of a smile appeared on the face of the big, tower-like fellow.
Reihom Stonebreaker?
Linley glanced at him, then laughed and said, “Linley Baruch.”
“Hello, Linley.” Reihom’s voice thundered out, seeming to thrum and reverberate in that giant chest.
“Haha, from today forward, the power of our hunting squad will have increased dramatically.” Reisgem excitedly slapped the table. “Bebe, your innate divine ability, ‘Godeater’, is definitely the sharpest attack our squad possesses! Linley, how about your own innate divine ability? What percentage of the power of the Azure Dragon’s original innate divine ability does it possess?”
Linley said with a calm laugh, “I can’t give you percentages. All my innate divine ability can do is to make time move tens of times slower for the enemy.”
“Good. Haha, wonderful!” Reisgem excitedly rose to his feet, his eyes glowing with violet light.
“Formidable.” The big, towering fellow rumbled in praise as well.
“Linley, with this technique of yours, our hunting squad is going to be much more powerful.” Reisgem was very excited.
Reisgem then grumbled unhappily, “This really pisses me off, actually. Over the years, Reihom and I encountered quite a few commanders, but they weren’t able to beat us and so they immediately ran away. Even when I use my Amethyst Space, if they wholeheartedly focus on fleeing, I’m unable to stop them. But if, at the critical moment, you were to use your innate divine ability on them, and then Reihom attacks, then we’ll definitely be able to kill the target.”
Linley couldn’t help but laugh.
He and Bebe both had extremely powerful innate divine abilities. Their only weakness was...their own, personal level of strength was rather lacking. Their attack power and defense power was insufficient. But after joining this squad, each made up for what the other lacked.
“Haha...with the two of you! Our hunting squad will be able to dominate this Planar Battlefield! If anyone dares gets close to us, into the range of that innate divine ability of yours, Linley, they will be finished.” Reisgem was very happy. Actually, originally, he cared more about Bebe’s innate divine ability; it was that, combined with the fact that he had a pre-existing relationship with Linley, that made him extend the invitation.
But now, he discovered that Linley’s innate divine ability was definitely the most superlative of supreme support abilities here on the Planar Battlefield.
The Planar War would go on for nearly a thousand years. Linley’s group was in no rush. They stayed in the cave for three days before heading out, and during these three days, Linley also learned from Reisgem a few things regarding the commanders of the Planar Battlefield.
“How many commanders would possibly dare to roam about the Planar Battlefield as they please? Only those with enough power would dare do a thing; otherwise, it would be lunacy.”
“As for the weaker commanders, all of them are incredibly crafty. Many of them hide, not daring to reveal themselves, and rely on Deathgod Golems to scout. Upon encountering weak opponents, they’ll fight; upon encountering strong ones, they won’t come out.”
“But of course, most form small squads of perhaps two, three, or even four or five. The most important thing in a squad is...mutual trust. Otherwise, if the squadmates begins to fight amongst themselves, that would be disastrous.”
“Linley, Bebe, our target here in the Planar Battlefield is other squads! As for lone travelers? Heh heh. We won’t be able to kill the powerful ones, while the weak ones will be hiding and not dare reveal themselves. It will be very hard to kill one of them. It is best we engage in group battles against other squads. That will be more exciting, and also make it easier for us to gain badges.”
Reisgem and Linley discussed quite a few things, and Linley now understood that their earlier strategy of hiding and ambushing was a very low efficiency strategy. This was because virtually everyone who dared to travel about alone was exceedingly powerful. Fortunately, Bebe had been able to use his innate divine ability to kill Lancelot! Otherwise, Linley wouldn’t have even a single badge.
Linley, Bebe, Reisgem, and the silent Reihom continued to move forward.
“Haha, there are very few people who know what the four of us look like. This will make it easier for us to catch some big fish.” Reisgem chortled. “Linley, once the enemy reaches a certain distance from us, your sole mission...will be to use your innate divine ability and make it impossible for him to flee for a period of time. The killing part? Leave that to us.”
“Understood.” Linley let out a calm laugh.
Linley had to admit, his soul attack, amongst commander-level experts, could only be considered ordinary. When Linley was fighting alongside Bebe, they used a similar strategy.
“It’s hard to find people though.” Bebe stared at the surroundings and muttered.
The Planar Battlefield was always so dark and cold. Raising his head, Linley looked at the multicolored spatial tears in the sky. That cold, howling wind swept through the battlefield as the four of them stealthily advanced. They didn’t hide, nor did they use Deathgod Golems; they just walked straight across.
Linley frowned.
“Reisgem, I think we’d best split up and maintain some distance from each other. Otherwise, if the four of us are always together, most likely the other commanders will not dare approach us and stay far away.” Linley said.
“Split up? Then how would we coordinate?” Reisgem asked.
Linley laughed. “How about this. The two of us will divide into two squads. Bebe and I will separate, but the two of us have connected souls and will be able to sense each other’s presences. Even if we can’t see each other, we will still be able to find each other.”
“Good idea.” Reisgem nodded repeatedly.
“Then...right, Linley, you follow me. Reihom, you go with Bebe. Our two squads will maintain a distance of three kilometers. If battle begins, we’ll be able to quickly cross this short distance.” Reisgem made the arrangements, and Linley and Bebe had no objections. They immediately split up.
Linley and Bebe were able to sense each other’s locations, and thus, they were both able to sense the direction the other was headed.
Less than half a day after they separated...
“Boss, we found a target.” Bebe’s surprised, delighted voice rang out in Linley’s mind.