At that moment, within the Joint Council's conference space.
"The Lord of Chaos and the Defiled Evil Eye won't be a match for those powerful deities — we need reinforcements!"
The Twisted Shadow shouted, only to awkwardly discover that no one else stepped forward to echo his call.
After all, Leilin's earlier words had been perfectly logical, and expecting wizards to sacrifice themselves for the benefit of others was simply impossible!
"If you all still harbor doubts, then perhaps I can use this to demonstrate..."
Dots of pitch-black, blood-veined Original Sin power seeped from Leilin's body, carrying with them every sin of the mortal world, drawing the gazes of all present.
Even among the peak eighth-level wizards gathered there, quite a few were startled by the aura Leilin displayed.
"The evil of Original Sin... this kind of power..." the Ancient Tree of Life murmured, seemingly connecting it to something.
Drip. Drip.
Fragments of Original Sin power coalesced in the void, dispersing into forces of slaughter, death, devouring, and greed, before taking on a life of their own. Dense black mist contracted, forming several tall silhouettes.
Leilin's true body, the Lord of Darkness, the Mother of the Earth's Core, and even the Twisted Shadow — each figure was rendered with stunning accuracy, down to the fluctuations of their true spirits!
Original Sin power was inherently the most versatile of all forces, brimming with properties of disguise and deception.
And with the faint emotions that Leilin had gathered from other peak eighth-level existences, he had more than enough material to fully simulate each of them.
"Completely identical soul signatures..."
All the eighth-level wizards expressed their admiration for Leilin's craft, but the most astonished of all was the Mother of the Earth's Core.
"It's grown even stronger... Although it's only an avatar, it still reflects the changes in his true body — evolving at a frightening pace. It's as though once he reached peak eighth level, he encountered no bottlenecks at all..."
The Mother of the Earth's Core collected every scrap of information from the earth below. Suddenly, she seized on a key connection: "Is this the influence of the Great Dark Cataclysm? The emotions of the apocalypse — for the Nightmare Hydra, those would be the finest nourishment."
Yes! The reason Leilin had devoured the sun and triggered the Great Dark Cataclysm — beyond dealing a blow to the gods — was primarily for his own benefit.
In the end times, the emotions of sin had multiplied a thousandfold compared to an era of peace.
Slaughter, death, greed, jealousy... The emotions of Original Sin cycled endlessly through the apocalypse, and both their quantity and quality were extraordinarily high.
The people struggling through those end times — their emotional energy was being siphoned away without their knowledge, steadily fueling Leilin's power!
For Leilin, it was as though he had gained a world's worth of fanatical devotees, continuously supplying him with Original Sin power. How could his strength not skyrocket?
Under Leilin's control, the Original Sin avatars — more realistic than the wizards' own true bodies — radiated powerful fluctuations as they stepped beyond the boundaries of space.
"Hunt down the High God!" "The glory of the wizards shall not be tarnished!" "Rescue the Lord of Chaos and the Defiled Evil Eye!"
Fierce spiritual cries tore through the sky. The Original Sin avatars now bore the fluctuations of peak eighth-level wizards, hurtling like massive meteorites toward the Abyss.
"This evil power — truly worthy of the wizards who will end the gods... More chaotic than demons, more sinister than devils..."
At the edge of the Abyss, Demogorgon and Oggs both shuddered.
"The wizards have appeared! Notify the gods immediately!"
...
"The truth will speak for itself!"
In the Joint Council, all the gathered existences watched the images displayed by the Mother of the Earth's Core.
The Original Sin avatars disguised as the Lord of Darkness and the other wizards had arrived outside the Abyss, poised to step into the churning depths.
And at that very moment, a terrifying transformation erupted!
A layer of emerald radiance, brimming with the aura of life, blazed forth. Green vines spread like an enormous cage, enveloping the Lord of Darkness and all the others within.
All of nature was roaring as a great will slowly awakened — like a primordial beast, carrying with it an air of vast antiquity.
"It's the God of Nature — Silvanus! I didn't expect he still hadn't fallen..."
The Mother of the Earth's Core's expression turned grim in an instant. The God of Nature, Silvanus! He was an invincible deity second only to the Supreme God. In the last Final Battle, more than a few wizards had died at his hands.
"Who would have thought that after destroying his divine true form, we still hadn't fully killed him..."
The Lord of Darkness sighed as well, though the gaze he directed at Leilin was filled with encouragement and approval.
The appearance of the God of Nature had proven that everything Leilin said earlier was undoubtedly true.
"Just a moment longer..."
Leilin's expression grew even more solemn now — and was that a hint of eager anticipation?
Rumble! Rumble! Rumble! Rumble!
Four massive Elemental Planes roared — red flames, cerulean seas, azure hurricanes, and golden-brown earth.
The four Elemental Planes opened, releasing terrifying waves of power.
An unceasing torrent of elemental forces converged upon the four Primordial High
Earth, Fire, Wind, Water! The combined might of these four fundamental forces of the world was enough to render even the Lord of Darkness speechless.
The four elements merged into a colossal Primal Storm that instantly shredded the Original Sin avatars trapped within the vine cage into powder, not sparing even a single particle.
"Something's wrong... Those weren't the wizards' true bodies — just a few avatars..."
After the storm subsided, the figures of the four Elemental Gods materialized. A goddess frowned.
"The power of their true spirits was enough to deceive even us... These wizards have become even more dangerous than in the ancient era..."
"But even so, we must protect the Supreme God's legacy. Maintaining the peace and stable operation of the entire world has always been the destiny of us four Elemental Gods," the Fire Elemental God declared gravely.
"At the very least... we can confirm that his power is not as vast or terrifying as it was during the last Final Battle. That is good news."
A colossal flower bloomed, and a natural will descended.
This was the powerful deity, the God of Nature — Silvanus. Though he had lost his true form in the last great war against the wizards, his will had merged with the natural domain of the entire world, growing even stronger.
"As long as we stand here, not one more step shall the wizards take!"
Green natural power guided the forces of Earth, Fire, Wind, and Water, forming an impenetrable seal that blocked the entrance to the Abyss — and simultaneously prevented the two wizards inside from escaping.
The four Elemental Planes rumbled as tremendous Primal Force poured downward, the sheer pressure of it enough to make even the wizards' hearts tremble.
"The Wind Elemental Goddess Arcadi, the Earth Elemental God Gulamba, the Water Elemental God Stitia, the Fire Elemental God Kasus, and the God of Nature Silvanus... These ancient relics are still alive!"
Several of the peak eighth-level wizards cried out in astonishment.
"Heh heh heh... Excellent! Excellent! The grudge from the last great war — this time, we can settle it all at once..."
At the wizard council, several avatars that had been lurking in the shadows now let out cold laughter.
Like the Twisted Shadow, they were remnants of ancient wills that had been sealed by the gods. Even after managing to escape, they were severely weakened and had been devotedly working to restore their power.
"All five of them are at the apex among the powerful deities... With our current strength, unless we mobilize everyone, it will be very difficult to break through the seal of their Elemental Planes..."
the Mother of the Earth's Core said.
"And if we leave, the Two-World Plan and the defenses of the wizard faction would seem rather thin..."
"That's not all..."
Leilin stepped forward and spoke slowly.
But at this point, no wizard dared to look down on him or treat him as a newcomer who had just reached peak level.
After all, being able to deceive the avatars of powerful deities was no simple feat. With their keen eyesight, not a single one of them had detected any flaw in Leilin's Original Sin avatars. Didn't that mean Leilin could ambush any one of them at will? All guarantees were hollow — only the prerequisite of true strength was real.
"Beside those five ancient gods, I also discovered another presence..."
Leilin waved his hand, and dark Original Sin power emanated outward, the dense black smoke forming an image.
It showed a level of the Abyss — a blood-soaked battlefield on a vast plain, where a speck of golden light lurked in the shadows.
The being possessed a deep, all-encompassing power of the earth, so profound that even the Mother of the Earth's Core's earlier probe had failed to detect it.
"The Earth Mother Goddess — Shantia! She is mine!"
Upon seeing this deity's true form, the Mother of the Earth's Core was the first to become agitated.
"Oh?"
Leilin's brow furrowed, then quickly smoothed: "Indeed... The Mother of the Earth's Core has already reached her own limit, but due to the restrictions of her path, she cannot draw upon the power of time and space to glimpse the ninth-level realm. The Earth Mother Goddess Shantia also walks the Path of the Earth — if she could fully devour her and supplement her foundation, there might still be a sliver of chance for advancement to the ninth level..."
For peak eighth-level wizards like them, what could possibly compare to the desire of ascending to the ninth level?
The path they had long yearned for had suddenly appeared before her eyes, and Leilin could understand the Mother of the Earth's Core's excitement.
"The God of Nature — Silvanus! He is my target!"
After the Mother of the Earth's Core spoke, the Ancient Tree
He had comprehended the Path of Life, which harmonized perfectly with Silvanus's Path of Nature — enough to establish a solid foundation for advancement in a single stroke.
"Haha... Excellent! That's the kind of spirit we need! Even the mightiest gods are bound by the chains of faith — they deserve nothing less than to be our prey..."
The Lord of Darkness, seeing the mood shift, laughed with excitement.