The changes in Tifa went far beyond what had just transpired.
Only moments ago, Leilin had directly infused him with Divine Grace, elevating him to the rank of Legendary Priest!
This was an ability exclusive to True
A Demigod could only bestow divine spells from zero to fifth level upon their priests. Only a True God could grant spells from zero to ninth level — or even the legendary divine spell spoken of in rumors: Resurrection!
This was the very foundation of a True Church's influence.
In the past, Leilin could only hold onto his base of followers on Bankts Island, lacking the competitive edge to project power outward.
But now, he had finally reached the same starting line as the other True Gods.
Tifa, who understood these secrets, was naturally overwhelmed with excitement — he was on the verge of tears.
"Go down and calm the believers on Bankts Island. Their lives from now on will be the same as — or even better than — those in the Material World…"
Leilin waved his hand, and spatial ripples flared, transporting Tifa directly back to where he had been.
Truthfully, while the merging of the two divine kingdoms greatly benefited Leilin, it was not necessarily good news for the natives of Bankts Island.
If these had been ordinary mainland residents, being told that the place they'd lived had been cast into Hell itself would likely drive them to die of terror — or even to suicide and madness.
After all, through the propaganda of every True Church, Hell had become synonymous with devils and evil.
Fortunately, the people of Bankts Island were natives with little understanding of what Hell truly meant. They hadn't been subjected to much in the way of propaganda, and the Great Serpent Church was their faith. With the Pope himself going down to reassure them, and once they discovered that life here was the same as in the Material World — or even better — they would surely settle down.
"
Leilin turned his gaze toward his cousin and the other two Archdevils.
"You did well before!"
He first offered a calm word of approval for their previous accomplishments, then moved to the main reason he had summoned them. "How are preparations for the war progressing?"
"All Devil Hunters are ready and awaiting your command!"
Isabel spoke first, bowing formally.
"The Burning Devil Legion and the
Azelok and the Archdevil Buck bowed gracefully, their eyes burning with desire for war and unification.
Devils thrived on order, and order meant unity and law. Clearly, every Lord of Hell was dissatisfied with the current fractured state of the Nine Hells.
And now, Azelok and Buck believed they saw the opportunity for Hell's unification!
"Good. Launch the offensive immediately after you leave!"
Spatial ripples flashed, and the three figures vanished. The entire
The gazes of various higher-planar beings once again turned toward Hell — toward that second-layer plane now radiating the light of a deity. Their divine thoughts were tinged with confusion and disbelief.
In their view, Leilin should have kept a low profile after his successful ascension, quietly accumulating strength. Instead, he had thrown all convention to the wind, launching a massive operation the very moment he had risen!
[Ding! Host has created an avatar. Divine Power consumed: 100!]
[Ding! Host has created an avatar. Divine Power consumed: 100!]
[Ding! Host has created an avatar. Divine Power consumed: 100!]
The Chip's notification lights flickered three times in succession, and then three brilliant golden lights separated from Leilin's body, twisting and stretching in midair to become three identical copies of Leilin.
These were divine avatars — a capability that any True God possessing a divine domain could comprehend. But to instantly master it and produce clones, that was only possible thanks to the Chip.
The three avatars radiated the same sacred glow, their golden pupils carrying the majesty and cold detachment of a deity.
Without needing Leilin's instructions, they already knew their missions.
BOOM!
The three avatars teleported away. When they reappeared, they stood before Isabel and the Devil Hunter legions.
"Divine Decree: Target — Minauros! In the name of our God! ATTACK!!!"
Isabel raised her red dragon longsword high and announced the command.
"In the name of our God!" "The great deity watches over us!"
A massive spatial gate opened, and the long-prepared Devil Hunter army shouted Leilin's true name as they marched onto the battlefield in perfect formation.
Before them lay a foul, putrid marsh of mud and filth. Countless imps and lemures stared in shock at the army that had appeared out of nowhere.
"The Divine War — has begun!"
One of Leilin's avatars walked to the front of the army, and its entire body burst into endless radiance.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The second layer of Hell — Leilin's divine kingdom, the Dis plane — erupted with brilliant light, continuously encroaching upon Minauros and merging with the glow of Leilin's avatar.
Bathed in divine light, Minauros was rapidly neutralized. The foul marsh began to dry and solidify, transforming into firm ground.
"Charge!"
The Devil Hunters rushed forward, and a great battle was moments from erupting!
"Our mission is simply to hold the line here. With two of my avatars present, bolstered by the divine kingdom's power, maintaining the stalemate for a time should be no problem!"
In the center of the army, Leilin's two clones spoke calmly to Isabel.
"When the time comes, simply sacrifice these two avatars of mine. That will be enough to hold
The Leilin avatar, his entire body suffused with golden light, said with a faint smile.
"So you mean… a feint and a delay? Then what is your true target?" Isabel widened her eyes.
"This is one of the targets as well, but before that—"
Leilin smiled.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Fluctuations even greater than before surged forth. Golden divine light instantly flooded the first layer of Hell — Avernus. The rules of the divine kingdom merged with the original rules of Hell, beginning to reshape everything there.
If one were to observe from the Multiverse, a fascinating scene would unfold.
In the original
But now, the Dis plane at the center had begun radiating light, encroaching upon both layers of Hell.
On Minauros's side, the corruption was merely a light tainting, but against Avernus, it was an outright invasion.
Massive legions of devils, led by Azelok and the ancient devil Buck, smashed through the original Hellish passages and descended upon Avernus.
In an instant, numerous powerful wills descended upon the scene, carrying furious questions and terrifying roars.
The situation changed in the blink of an eye!
And at the center of this storm, Leilin remained utterly composed.
"So what if they're True Gods? So what if they're Lords of Hell? If I don't seize this chance now, there will never be a better opportunity!"
Leilin's gaze was resolute. He paid no heed to the divine messages of inquiry from the two True Gods on the first layer.
What he had decided could not be altered.
"There are three reasons for immediately conquering these two layers of Hell!"
Among the Devil Hunter army, Leilin's avatar spoke to Isabel at length.
"First, and most importantly — my divine kingdom occupies only one layer of Hell. If I don't conquer and secure an advantage now, I will inevitably face the joint resistance and siege of the other eight layers in the future. I don't fear them, but it would mean losing any chance to develop. However, if I can connect the first three layers, I will instantly accumulate enough power to attack or defend as I please. The remaining Lords of Hell are not of one mind — more than enough for me to divide, win over, and crush…"
"Now is the perfect opportunity. Because
Isabel caught on with dawning understanding.
"Exactly. I'm leveraging the momentum of my newly ascended godhood to crush them all at once. I absolutely cannot give them time to react and form an alliance. The deeper they understand me in the future, the harder it will be to earn their recognition and submission. Once I've taken these two layers, I'll be strong and they'll be weak — and I won't need to worry about the remaining devils turning the world upside down!"
Leilin's eyes gleamed with sharp intelligence.
"Second — this is a show for the gods to see!"
"The gods?" Isabel asked in surprise.
"I am already one of the gods, of course. But right now they are certainly hostile toward me and trying to suppress me. So I need a justification — a righteous cause. Attacking devils, conquering Hell… isn't that the perfect pretext? I imagine I can even win the support of some good-aligned gods. More importantly… even the gods who despise me the most will be happy to see me expend my strength fighting devils, which will lower their guard…"
"Buying time, reducing hostility…"
By now, Isabel was beginning to grasp the full scope of Leilin's grand strategy, and she was deeply impressed by his scheming.
"But…"
She bit her lip, worry evident in her brow.
"Two layers of Hell — even if we caught them off guard and their reinforcements can't arrive in time, there are still two True Gods and a Lord of Hell… Can we really take them?"
"That brings me to the third reason!"
Leilin raised an eyebrow, his expression carrying both determination and pride.
"This time, we must not only win — we must win decisively and spectacularly! Only then can we truly intimidate all those with designs against us!"
This was the show of force.
Even Isabel, after careful consideration, had to admit that if Leilin's strategy succeeded, he would truly have secured his place among the gods, no longer fearing any storm.
"Do you have confidence in this battle?"
After understanding all of this, Isabel still looked at Leilin with concern.
"A hundred percent!"
Leilin replied with a smile, infinite confidence written across his features.
His True God main body took a single step forward and arrived instantaneously within a concealed demiplane.
"Master!"
Above the