"The Goddess... won't let you off!"
The bishop struggled to speak, his face still bearing the fanaticism exclusive to martyrs.
But Leilin paid no heed to any of this. "Hmm! The flesh conversion efficiency is quite good, and the divine power is acceptable too. Next... comes the most important part — the soul!"
However, when the broken sword began making contact with the bishop's soul, the situation suddenly changed drastically!
"You... you dare desecrate a soul?" The intense pain from deep within the soul cleared the bishop's mind, and then an expression of despair and resolve surfaced on his face.
"Great Goddess! Your faithful servant sincerely offers his own life, yearning for your descent! Divine Descent!!"
The powerful backlash forced Tifa to stagger back several steps.
The previously interrupted summoning ritual began operating at breakneck speed. After all, compared to what the bishop and his group had attempted last time, this time it was the Goddess herself who was initiating the descent.
"As expected! The souls of divine followers are indeed a forbidden zone!"
Leilin smiled bitterly, then immediately issued a command in Tifa's mind, telling him to retreat far away, while the iron sword housing the Soul Seed remained behind.
"It had already exhausted its power. Leaving now wouldn't make any difference — better to make the most of its remaining use!"
The broken sword suddenly turned crimson, streams of molten iron flowing down, ultimately outlining the shape of a massive devil.
The incomplete devil's wings, the enormous compound eyes, the devilish hand with six fingers — even the power of the
"After all, I've also mastered the same Gluttony power. Impersonating Beilusebabu couldn't be simpler..."
Leilin controlled the devil's body, watching the bishop before him.
But by now, the bishop had completely lost all signs of life, yet his body was eerily floating in mid-air.
A powerful will was continuously pouring into the body, filling it with a certain sacred aura.
Then, Leilin saw a pair of golden eyes.
"Now!!!"
Leilin didn't dare actually meet the entity face to face — otherwise he would certainly be seen through. The very moment the Spring Goddess Ruisi descended, he violently triggered the devil body's terrifying self-destruction!
BOOM!!! Scorching flames, carrying numerous rule forces, completely erased the small village from the map.
The residents of nearby cities could even see the orange sky in the distance.
The entire Kain Village — apart from Tifa — not a single life survived.
This incident was classified as a devil invasion, and under the promotion of the Spring Goddess's church, a new wave of heresy purges swept across the entire continent.
Of course, none of this had anything to do with Leilin anymore.
CRACK! The massive Astral Gate disintegrated inch by inch, while Leilin sat down on the ground, his face somewhat pale.
A sense of weakness emanated from every part of his body. Since his transformation into a Body of Rules, such a sensation had become extremely rare.
"The world of gods is indeed incredibly powerful. Supporting the Soul Seed's activity for less than a single day nearly caused me excessive loss, endangering my very foundation!"
A bitter smile appeared on Leilin's face.
"Furthermore, this experiment has proven that any foreign power is extraordinarily conspicuous in the world of gods. It's simply impossible to conceal, and the consumption far exceeds what's justified... the cost-benefit ratio doesn't hold."
Leilin's gaze deepened.
"The suppression and hostility of the entire world of gods is also something I cannot resist in my current state... In that case, the best approach for now is still to walk the old path..."
After this experiment, Leilin had made his decision.
Unlike his previous explorations of other worlds, in the world of gods he would need to adopt an entirely new approach.
"Acting as an independent individual, unable to accept even a shred of power from my main body, growing entirely according to the world of gods' rules?"
Leilin stroked his chin.
"And once the entity grows to a certain level — at minimum seventh rank — it can coordinate with me from within, and together we can shatter the shackles of the Crystalline Plane..."
"If I'm going to do this, then the True Spirit Bisection Technique that
A flood of thoughts surged through Leilin's mind, which he then arranged in order of priority.
Only after completing these tasks and recording all the experimental data did Leilin step out into the open world.
"Mm!" Leilin closed his eyes and, using the innate perception of his bloodline, immediately learned of Xirui's breakthrough.
"Already advanced to sixth rank? The Ouroboros power of infinity and eternity seems to be an excellent match for Xirui!"
Though his speed was still a bit slower compared to his eldest son Daniel, Leilin was already extremely satisfied.
Both of his bloodline branches were growing in excellent condition, even forming a crushing advantage over other sorcerer families in the
Unfortunately, these two bloodlines could only see such rapid growth before the sixth rank. Upon reaching the stage of comprehending Rules, they would inevitably encounter far more difficult bottlenecks.
Leilin was well aware of this.
"However, although Daniel and Xirui currently have no accomplishments in Rule comprehension — equivalent to newly advanced sixth-rank Wizards — with the added power of their bloodlines, their true combat strength should be no less than that bunch of Wizards at the Flame Throne... I can proceed with my plan without worry..."
With Daniel and Xirui, two sixth-rank sorcerers, standing guard, the Ouroboros Ring no longer feared conflicts at the conventional level.
As for those remaining Rule-level beings, they naturally wouldn't come looking for trouble out of respect for Leilin.
After all, even the current Ouroboros Ring was nothing more than a child's toy in their eyes.
With these guarantees in place, Leilin could finally let go of the Ouroboros Ring entirely and focus on his own affairs.
"Chip! Pull up my current data!" Leilin commanded.
Leilin Farell — Sorcerer, Sixth Rank. Bloodline: Targalian Winged Serpent (Sixth Rank). Strength: 185.64. Agility: 133.21. Constitution: 263.11. Spirit: 469.77. Soul State: Dawn Peak. Rule Comprehension: Devour — 99%! Main body has reached saturation with the Wizard World's Origin Force. Unable to increase further!
The Chip displayed Leilin's latest data.
"As expected! The Wizard World's Origin Force has become ineffective for me at my current level, unless I advance again?"
Leilin's gaze flickered slightly.
Over the course of these three hundred-plus years, he had three opportunities to enter the underground and absorb the world's Origin Force while comprehending Rules. Unfortunately, no matter how formidable his combat power — even on par with ordinary Rule-level beings — he could not change the fact that his own rank was still sixth.
Compared to true Rule-level beings, his current capacity was like a small cup, already filled to the brim with the world's Origin Force.
If he wished to absorb more Origin Force, the only viable path would be to advance his rank to seventh.
"The seventh rank... it's already fully displayed before my eyes. All I need to do is eliminate Beilusebabu and seize the last trace of his Rule power!"
A certain flame seemed to burn within Leilin's eyes.
Multiple instances of Origin Force absorption and Rule comprehension had given him a deeper understanding of the Wizard's path and even a degree of planning for his future direction.
And all of this had to be realized within the world of gods!
"Hm? Xirui has another communication request — something about the Secret Serpent Cavern? Let him handle everything; no need to report to me..."
In the time that followed, Leilin casually dealt with some accumulated affairs.
The Secret Serpent Cavern was actually a secret realm Leilin had built on his own, modeled after the Mother of Ten Thousand Serpents' approach on the Plain of Ten Thousand Serpents, where he had also released a large number of high-energy serpent species.
Among them, the Komoin serpent descendants formed the mainstream, along with devil white phosphorus serpents, three-headed pythons, and the like — there was even a trace of Targalian Winged Serpent bloodline circulating among them.
Through prolonged breeding, the Secret Serpent Cavern had become a veritable paradise for high-energy serpents, and some mutated specimens had begun to emerge.
Of course, this still fell far short of Leilin's desired standards.
But that was fine. With his current lifespan, he had more than enough patience to continue waiting.
"Although the probability of success for these mutation experiments is less than one in ten thousand, it's still a glimmer of hope. And I have sufficient financial and material resources to carry on this experiment without regard to cost..."
Leilin's left hand supported his chin when his brow suddenly arched.
"The Dream's Call? This sensation?"
The familiar bloodline resonance brought a somewhat strange smile to Leilin's lips.
After obtaining the devil white phosphorus serpent bloodline, his understanding of the Dream World had deepened enormously, to the point where he had acquired the ability to traverse it directly.
His advancement to half-seventh rank, along with his comprehension of Rule power, had greatly enhanced this ability.
It could be said that while the Dream World was no longer Leilin's personal garden, it was still an extremely familiar home ground.
And just now, Leilin had sensed a call emanating from within the Dream World — and the source of that call was none other than the Mother of Ten Thousand Serpents!
Ever since suffering a great loss at Leilin's hands during her last advancement attempt, she had not appeared again, leaving Leilin feeling somewhat regretful.
He had actually been eager to face her in combat within the Wizard World, where its immense suppressive force would surely ensure she never returned. But obviously, she was no fool, and Leilin's wish had not been granted.
And Leilin had been prudent enough to remain cooped up inside the Wizard World, never giving any Infernal Supreme an opportunity, leaving them nothing but gnashing teeth.
"The Dream World? Interesting!"