Jake appeared somewhere he had not expected to. A vast wasteland stretched out towards him, and he recognized it instantly.
The Divine Realm of the Malefic Viper?
Why had he been teleported here, of all places? Jake frowned as he considered if perhaps the situation was far more serious than he had first thought, and Villy wanted to protect him by sending him there. But that didn’t quite seem to fit? Because something had definitely been wrong during their dick-measuring contest.
The Viper had shown himself as weaker than the aura Jake had felt before. While Jake couldn’t really distinguish between two extremely powerful gods, he could compare auras. The sheer level of power he had felt that time within the Viper’s realm was far beyond what the god had shown during the ceremony. However, even then, Yip of Yore had been a lot more powerful than Jake had expected him to be.
“You know, I really hoped not having to explain stuff to you,” a voice said from behind as Villy appeared. “But it seems like not saying anything is an even bigger risk.”
Villy looked serious, also making Jake adopt a serious demeanor. “What do you mean?”
“You noticed Eversmile in the crowd before he appeared,” Villy sighed.
“Yeah?” Jake nodded.
“I couldn’t.”
“What?” Jake asked, confused.“You may think I am good at stealth, but Eversmile is number one in the entire multiverse. If he does not want to be recognized, you won’t. Do you know what his race was before he became a god?” the Viper asked as he waved his hand, summoning something to sit on.
“He looks pretty human, but I have no idea,” Jake admitted.
“Eversmile was a Doppelganger. A shapeshifter. When he changes, everything that isn’t the very core of his Truesoul changes with him, making him impossible to spot through any normal means. If he displays none of his power and wants to hide, nobody in the multiverse can find him, period. Even someone like Oras can’t. That is how he can be such a mystery despite having lived so long. He can be anyone at any time,” the Viper explained.
“That’s something. But doesn’t it kind of ruin his disguise that he is always smiling?” Jake asked, surprised that Eversmile had always been a cloak-and-more-cloak kind of guy.
“Perhaps, but I wouldn’t ever want him to stop,” the Viper shook his head.
“Why not?”
“Him smiling is part of his karmic Path… if he released that smile, one of two things will happen. One would be that his Path will break, and as a god, he will be significantly weakened. That or something that has built up for ninety-three eras will be unleashed. I frankly don’t care to find out either way,” Villy shrugged.
“Anyway, this is a sidetrack. The reason why I dragged you here is that a larger game is going on, and you can, annoyingly so, see flaws in what is happening. Your damn intuition may lead to something getting fucked, so rather than risk you saying something dumb or revealing something you shouldn’t, rather just get you up to speed.”
“Alright,” Jake nodded. He had known some stuff was going on behind the scenes and that it was related to Ell’Hakan and his Patron god, Yip of Yore. However, some things really bothered him. “Can I ask some things first?”
“Go right ahead.”
“I remember you said Yip of Yore is from the ninety-second universe, literally the last one before this. Which makes him only an era old at max if he lived during the integration… how the hell is he so strong then? Or is he not actually that strong?” Jake asked.
Villy looked at Jake as he considered his answer. “Hm, this isn’t really common knowledge, so keep it between us, alright?”
“Sure,” Jake nodded.
“I think we had a similar conversation before, but becoming a god now compared to in my time is a lot easier. In fact, with each era, it gets easier. The reason for this is indeed that we now know more, and there are more Paths, but that isn’t the biggest factor. The biggest factor is simply that the multiverse is, well, bigger,” Villy explained, continuing.
“Records are the true limiting factor for all gods to keep progressing. Reaching our level caps is often just a question of time, and as we are all immortal, we got plenty of that. But in order to raise our level caps, we need more Records. There are many ways to get those… but the further you go, the harder it becomes. Your options are simply limited, and you exhaust all opportunities. What is left is but an incredibly slow and arduous grind to try and improve just a tiny bit every few billion years. That is… unless suddenly a huge infusion of new Records appears. Something like the integration of an entirely new universe.”
Jake listened on as he thought he understood as the Viper still continued.
“I think an easy way to imagine it is by thinking about it like an old massively multiplayer online game. Each era is an expansion, and each era brings with it an increased level cap. This level cap is still one you have to achieve, but reaching it is far easier than the task of becoming a god in the first place. All you have to do is stay true to your Path and gain levels while continuing to work on your skills and abilities. The level cap also varies from person to person and is individually applied. What it ultimately just means is that the maximum power level a god can reach is set higher in each era compared to the previous one. And that is where Yip of Yore comes in.”
“He managed to close the gap?” Jake asked.
“No, it isn’t that easy. Yip of Yore is a supreme genius, but one era is still too little time. At least, it would be under usual circumstances. The Path Yip of Yore walks is one of incredible power and, quite frankly, one of the most ambitious ones I have ever seen. He directly claims Records and levels based on his legends, and his way of gaining power is tied directly to his narrative. Every time he proves himself capable of standing before a Primordial, it becomes more true, so imagine what would happen if he killed one?”
“He would genuinely become as powerful as a Primordial,” Jake realized.
“Exactly. It would no longer merely be a legend but simply common knowledge that he had the power of a Primordial. He wants to claim the innate power and Records of a title given to the gods seen as the most powerful in the multiverse. To slay a Primordial has never been done before, and if he does become the first, he will establish himself as one of the most powerful gods in existence. Ambitious, to say the least,” the Viper said with a smile.
“Wait,” Jake frowned. “But in order for his legend to be a thing, people need to think he is as powerful as you, right? Why not just go full power and fight him to prove that isn’t the case, ending his stupid story prematurely? Or, you know, just kill him outright.”
“It won’t work,” Villy shook his head. “Fact is, Yip of Yore is powerful even without his tricks. I don’t think any of us Primordials could kill him even if we wanted to. That is also why he fought Valdemar first. Because if anyone could kill him, it would have been Valdemar, but Yip knew he wouldn’t. So now it is common knowledge Yip of Yore can escape a fight with the Primordial often recognized as the most powerful in pure combat. Something he can borrow to always ensure he can always escape from me.”
“Besides,” the snake god grinned. “I wouldn’t want him to stop. If I did, I would have done things differently already. And, Jake, while I will give you some rough ideas of what is going on, I cannot tell you the full truth. You merely knowing may ruin everything, and let’s not kid ourselves; I can’t fully trust you won’t let anything slip.”
“Ouch,” Jake said, faking hurt.
“If Ell’Hakan, Yip’s Chosen, wasn’t in the mix, things would be easier, but his Bloodline is tricky and annoying,” the Viper shook his head. “I also wouldn’t call you the most careful with what you say. Shit, my level of carefulness should be quite clear just from me wanting to only discuss this in my divine realm.”
“Fair,” Jake nodded. “So, the thing with Valhal?”
“I was aware it would happen way beforehand,” Villy nodded.
“Yip showing up?”
“Planned. Shit, I set up his entrance.”
“Eversmile?”
“I also knew he would appear and break us up. In fact, pretty much everything today was planned. Granted, I believe both Yip and I agree it was planned as we currently want the story to progress in similar veins,” Villy explained.
“How will following his story not end badly for you?” Jake asked. If Yip was truly a threat…
“Maybe it will, maybe it won’t. Time will tell, now won’t it?” the Viper smiled, clearly not going to answer that one.
“What about that entire deal with Valhal? Is it real?”
“That it is,” Villy nodded. “Can’t fool the system, which was why it had such an impact. It had the outcome I wanted. Ultimately, while Yip has his own plans, so do I have mine.”
“Did you have a hand in the deal being signed in the first place?” Jake asked after thinking a bit.
Villy smiled for a second before sighing.
“I have been gone for a long time, and Yip of Yore isn’t wrong when he says the Order is only coasting along on my old reputation. Even the many gods and factions who have shown up and displayed loyalty are still not really dedicated. They are testing the waters, and their levels of belief in my abilities are lacking, to say the least. You saw a lot of factions have already left this ceremony, and the reason why I gave everyone an hour was for them to reconvene and decide their course of action,” the Viper explained.
“So, a test of loyalty?” Jake asked.
“More a test of belief. Do they truly think Yip of Yore will be able to kill me? If they do, then abandoning the Order only makes sense. If they don’t, and they only see the words of Yip as the delusional bullshit of some upstart, then they will stay. Of course, things are a bit more muddled as some factions probably don’t really care much either way but are only here because of you. The United Tribes, Endless Empire, and Automata Legion are prime examples of this.”
“Not gonna lie, I was afraid some automata was going to take advantage of everything that happened and would try to kill Vesperia,” Jake confessed.
“I had Snappy on standby,” Villy dismissed his fears. “Besides, they wouldn’t risk it. Making a move like that wouldn’t be worth it, even if they did manage to kill her. Unless they also decided to kill you so you couldn’t spawn more, that is, which would be an outright declaration of war. Considering their leader is Rigoria, she is smart enough to know that would end badly.”
Jake slowly nodded. He thought for a while as he asked something he had been wondering. “Back when we first met, and you unleashed your aura to try and scare me… did you go full force?”
“Yes.”
“I felt Eversmile unleash his aura before,” Jake said as he looked at the Viper. “Give it to me straight. Yip does have a point, doesn’t he? You have fallen behind the other Primordials.”
Villy smiled and leaned back in his chair. “Remember when you asked how strong I was, and I said there wasn’t anyone in the multiverse I believed could truly beat me?”
“Yeah,” Jake nodded, having asked something like that a long time ago.
“That hasn’t changed. Yip’s biggest weakness is his lack of actual knowledge of what happened in the past. Actual knowledge other older gods are aware of. He is running on assumptions, which, granted, are good enough for him. He doesn’t need to actually operate based on the truth or facts, he simply needs to convince enough people of his bullshit and have a strong enough delusion, and his abilities will work.”
“How is his lack of knowledge then a weakness?” Jake asked. Yip just seemed more and more overpowered the more Jake learned about him.
“What he doesn’t know will ruin his story,” Villy smiled mysteriously. “That is all I will say on that. Either way, I want to make it clear that a lot of suspicious and not entirely logical things will happen, and I want you to just focus on your role. My opponent is Yip of Yore, while yours is Ell’Hakan. I am not gonna lie; out of the two of us, you are in the most trouble.”
“Any idea what that fucker is planning?” Jake asked, a bit worried. “Do you think he will go after my family or something?”
That was the thing Jake feared the most happening. That Yip of Yore would try to make Jake lose his cool by going after his parents, sister-in-law, and nephew back on Earth. Because that would definitely work.
“No, he won’t do that,” Villy shook his head. “But not because of you. Doing that would be attacking members of the Court of Shadows, including a Judge. It will include Umbra in a conflict Yip does not want her to participate in and give her an excuse to mobilize. So don’t worry about them, they are safe. No, the next place they will target you is at Nevermore.”
Jake frowned. “Can he attack me there?”
“He won’t attack you. He will compete with you. He will attempt to show the world he is superior to you by performing better than you, and from what I have gathered, Ell’Hakan gathered quite the party with the help of his Patron and the gods who work with him,” Villy said.
“He can fucking try,” Jake scoffed.
“Jake, remember that Nevermore is not solely about combat power. There are other ways to progress in the mega-dungeon and rake in points for the scoreboards. I do have confidence you will win, but your competition isn’t to be taken lightly,” the Viper said in a severe tone.
Jake nodded. “I got it. But… what happens if he cheeses out a win? Will that negatively impact you or risk your plans?”
“Probably not,” the Viper shook his head. “But I cannot be sure. Ultimately, I am taking a risk by playing along with Yip of Yore and allowing him to power up more and more. After today he will be even stronger than before, and I am sure he will keep accumulating Records as his plot progresses until he reaches his maximum capacity. Exactly what his peak will look like is the biggest uncertainty, as it is entirely possible he will surpass my expectations. You are right when you said I haven’t truly been able to keep up in all aspects, but this is a chance for me to also catch up. I have told you this many times before, but to truly progress, one must take risks. This is a calculated risk, and quite frankly, I think I have him firmly beaten when it comes to math.”
“Why does it have to be so complicated?” Jake questioned with a sigh. “Can’t we just pick a time and date and get this shit over with?”
Villy grinned and shook his head. “Because those two know they would lose. They need to resort to these kinds of strategies to try and eke out a victory, and while I said I was taking a risk, Yip is taking a far larger one. He may seem like it, but he isn’t stupid. He knows that this entire thing will more than likely end either in embarrassing defeat or death, but he also knows what he will get if he wins. Say what you want, but someone willing to put it all on the line like that at least deserves some level of respect.”
“I would respect him more if he didn’t have to resort to bullshit,” Jake scoffed.
“There we have the heretic in you coming out again,” the Viper said with a relaxed smile. He looked to the sky of the divine realm for a few seconds before he spoke.
“You know, the second part of the ceremony begins in around forty minutes.”
“Yeah?” Jake said.
“I don’t know if it is just you, but I could use a beer after dealing with that guy,” Villy said, looking at Jake with a raised eyebrow.
“Gotta give the factions who want to evacuate some time, too, right?” Jake smiled in agreement.
“For sure, for sure,” the snake god nodded as a table filled with the golden liquid appeared in front of them.
“Say, does Snappy know about all these plans and shit? Dude seemed genuinely scared you were gonna fight,” Jake asked as he took a bottle and flicked off the cap.
“Nah, as I said, I want to limit information as much as possible,” Villy said as he picked up a bottle, the cap simply disappearing as if it had never been there. “You only know because not telling you would probably lead to more trouble.”
“Alright,” Jake said as he took a chug from the bottle. He did wonder how the next part of the ceremony would go after their interruption. Hopefully, things wouldn’t be too awkward.
Oh well, I will see how things are in a bit.
For now, it was drinking time as Villy finally got to give Jake an in-depth interview about his night in a hotel room with a certain succubus.