"[Killing Domain]? What a powerful domain ability..."
Leilin pondered. "It strips the opponent's life and soul energy during slaughter, rapidly restoring oneself?
The Chip's notifications continued: [Ding! The host has slain a divine being! Killing Domain has been enhanced, converting the target's divinity!]
In that instant, Leilin felt it—that sliver of divinity within the flame giant bird, born from over a century of worship by the native tribes of Chihuahua Island—had been completely seized by him!
Golden light rippled through Leilin's entire body, and under the effect of the Killing Domain, the bird's divine power was also converted, becoming part of Leilin's own killing divinity.
"Just this one plunder has made my killing divinity grow significantly. If I relied on the old method of absorbing faith energy, it would have taken at least two or three years to accumulate this much..."
Leilin's eyes shone with excitement. "This trip to the outer seas was truly worthwhile!"
In truth, plundering divinity and divine power—and even divine domains—through war was also the fastest way for gods to advance.
However, the native empires of the outer seas were not taken seriously. The faith energy, divinity, and divine power of these earthbound spirits were deeply flawed, which was why the gods ignored them.
But Leilin feared no pollution from wizards, and with his Nightmare Energy-Absorbing physique as a foundation, he could naturally absorb the power of these native earth gods without any issue.
"Now that I've absorbed the divine power, this giant bird's divine essence and spirit can also be utilized to the fullest..."
Leilin tapped a finger on the crystal at the top of his Roaring Red Dragon Staff!
"Screech screech!!!"
A blinding light flashed. Inside the crystal, the original red dragon soul had vanished, replaced by a terrifying giant bird wreathed in golden-red flames.
"Using a divine being's soul to replace the original legendary dragon soul... this trade was well worth it..."
Leilin gazed at the flame giant bird's spirit, now tightly bound by chains within the crystal, letting out anguished cries of defiance.
"Although I've captured its soul, it still needs to be reforged before it can be used. Until then, the Red Dragon Staff must be sealed..."
Leilin estimated that after the reforging, the new Red Dragon Staff—no, a staff that deserved an entirely new name—would surely advance further among legendary items.
The very instant Leilin killed the flame giant bird— At the center of the native tribe, the banner atop the altar snapped, and savage flames devoured the original totem.
Among the wailing of the natives gathered there, the former high priest's face contorted and he collapsed in a foaming fit. The surrounding priests and apprentices were not spared either.
These believers bore the power of the original totem spirit, which was how they could communicate with it and perform all manner of miraculous feats. But now that the totem spirit had died, they too were immediately doomed.
Extracting the power that had already fused with the body was equivalent to ripping several bones from a normal person—the pain involved would be enough to kill several outright.
For true gods, the situation would be even more severe.
But even so, this scene caused immense panic among the natives.
"Ah... the Ancestor Spirit... the Ancestor Spirit is dead..."
"The enemy's evil god... those white-skinned demons killed our Ancestor Spirit..."
"Waa... our Great Chieftain is dead, the High Priest and the Ancestor Spirit are dead too..."
This scene immediately plunged the remaining women, children, and elderly into collapse. Their only remaining belief, as the tribe's strongholds fell one after another, was that the Ancestor Spirit would protect them. But now that the Ancestor Spirit had fallen, it dealt a fatal blow to their faith!
And as the flames of war continued to spread, many natives' hearts wavered instantly.
"Anyone who dares resist—old or young—kill them all!"
A horde of pirates, mixed with the devil-worshippers Leilin had subdued, marched toward the tribe's altar.
"My faithful..."
At that moment, every pirate who had already sworn faith to the Feathered Serpent God
"I bless you! You shall gain power through slaughter! The blood of your enemies will grant you courage, and the terrified wailing of their souls will restore your vitality!"
Alongside the divine oracle, the terrifying phantom of a Taglian Winged Serpent appeared in the sky.
"It's a god! The Feathered Serpent God has manifested!"
Compared to ordinary believers, the apprentice-priests raised by Tefa felt it far more deeply.
"[Killing Domain]! Bestow!"
Leilin's figure appeared directly over the battlefield, and at his will, a layer of dark crimson domain light enveloped the faithful below.
"This is a god's power! The Feathered Serpent God protects us!"
Robinhan swung his blade and lopped off a native's head, and in the process of that kill, he felt his heavily depleted stamina recover slightly.
"How terrifying would this ability be if used in battle?"
Robinhan looked around and saw the pirates—who should have been on the verge of exhaustion—injected with new vitality, fighting with even greater ferocity. In warfare, this effect was utterly incomparable. The natives' last scattered resistance crumbled immediately, and the entire camp descended into wailing.
With Leilin—the "god"—appearing in person and demonstrating his protection, the natives' final belief was thoroughly extinguished. Mass surrenders followed.
Dense black flames and fiery light swallowed the skies above the entire native tribe...
By evening, the setting sun's reflection fell upon the sea, crimson as blood.
Leilin had already relocated to the former Great Chieftain's palace, listening to his subordinates' reports.
Since this was only a tribe of tens of thousands, the so-called "palace" was nothing more than a few large mud-brick buildings. The surrounding walls were adorned with colorful wild beast pelts—but compared to the dwellings of ordinary natives, it was indeed quite nice.
"Our attack was a complete victory! We killed over a thousand native fighters, captured more than ten thousand, and lost only a few dozen of our own sailors..."
"Furthermore, since we've sealed off the sea routes, not a single native escaped in a canoe—news of this can be kept absolutely secret..."
It was Tefa who spoke. With him and other elites handling the blockade, escape was impossible for the natives even if they tried.
"Excellent! Next, we'll reorganize the prisoners and search the entire island..."
Due to the chaos and insufficient manpower, many natives had actually escaped, but Leilin didn't care at all.
After all, this was an isolated island. With the sea routes under his control, where could these people possibly flee?
"The most pressing matter now is to subdue the tribe's natives, spread the faith, and establish a native vassal army..."
His experience from his previous life provided Leilin with plenty of ready-made examples of colonial conquest.
The elite pirates in his hands were his core—they could not be lightly deployed and could not suffer major losses. Every deployment must be a resounding victory, creating an impression of invincibility among the natives!
Next came tiered governance of the natives, establishing vassal forces and security troops.
Of course, supporting internal factions among the native aristocracy to create division, and provoking conflicts between native tribes, were also essential steps. Plague assistance would make things even better.
Due to the different nature of this world, battles between gods were also critically important. If Leilin could directly eliminate the totem spirits these natives worshipped, everything would become far easier—treating the entire Bankzi Island like a fattened pig for the slaughter.
But those were matters for later. Leilin turned his attention to how to incorporate the natives of Chihuahua Island.
Night fell, and the cold, dark wind brought a trace of chill.
Countless natives were bound together with ropes, pressed close to one another, hoping their trembling bodies could bring a sliver of warmth.
A massive bonfire blazed in the center of the plaza. The original altar had long been dismantled, replaced by an entirely new idol.
Upon a massive obsidian base sat a ferocious flesh-winged serpent, bearing sharp claws and a hardened single horn. Its scales seemed to gleam with a faint luster, its enormous devil-like wings stretched wide, and its vertical pupils radiated merciless killing intent.
This was the idol Leilin had chosen.
Wary of other gods, he did not dare appear in person just yet—the image of the Taglian Winged Serpent was perfect.
One by one, the natives were brought before the idol and ordered to bow in submission. Before doing so, they had to trample over the banner bearing the fire bird totem.
No matter how ignorant the natives were, they understood this was an act of desecration and submission. Waves of unrest erupted—the influence of the Ancestor Spirit, the flame giant bird, could not dissipate overnight.
But no matter how passionate their resistance, the natives' fervor was cooled by the butcher's blade.
Faced with pirates who raised their weapons without hesitation, the remaining natives chose submission in trembling fear. And once the first one led the way, the rest followed all the faster.
At the same time, Leilin genuinely sensed a massive wave of faith from the natives, carried on a current of fear.
"Awe before the gods—this too is a source of faith? The essence of divine power is indeed killing and majesty..."
Leilin's eyes shifted, and he let out a slow sigh.