Chapter 408
by fanqienovelChapter 408: The Ether Mother’s Layered Tactics
“Won… unexpectedly…”
“Two against fifteen!?”
“Taking the Sigh of Ether Assassins — Trinity to the face and not getting hurt at all!?”
“This…”
The Ether Mother kept roaming in the shallow ether universe, close to the Ether Lagoon. She opened her mouth and tasted the currents from the rising tide. Countless bits of information flowed over her tongue, turning into tastes. Her Soul translated them into scenes that appeared in her mind.
“Powers!”
“That Giant God could actually unleash two powers back-to-back!”
“But that wasn’t the scariest part.”
“The Ether Assassins were a special team made to fight ‘power users.’ They didn’t fear powers and could even push them down.”
“But that edge didn’t help in this fight…”
“They lost instead and got wiped out!”
“This shows the power from the Giant God is super strong, even without the powers!”
“It can go head-to-head with the top Tyrants!”
“Unbelievable…”
The Ether Mother slowly shook her head and looked at the three eager blood octopus Outer Gods.
“The Giant God wants to work with me as an equal, which shows he’s got his own confidence.”
The blood octopus Outer Gods waved their tentacles in agreement.
“Yes! Yes!”
“The Giant God is awesome! Super awesome!”
“No bad ideas! No scheming! Scheming is bad!”
“You’ll get hurt! Hurt!”
…
But when the blood octopus Outer Gods gave their advice, a cold glint showed in the Ether Mother’s eyes.
“Hmph…”
“That guy made the body of that Chaos Demon God so much like my avatar.”
“It’s clearly to flatter me and get close; or maybe to show off power.”
To the Ether Mother, Shaks’s Divine Body looked a lot like hers, no doubt the Giant God’s “copy on purpose.”
First, it said “do as the locals do,” showing respect and friendliness, like speaking Sichuan talk to Sichuan folks to win them over. Second, it meant “I can make a body just like yours, and even better,” proving his capability—plainly a power move.
Two clever meanings, polite and smooth, not too forced.
“If I hadn’t fought so many battles, I might’ve fallen for that trick.”
“But… since you’re so crafty, it’s only fair I play a little game with you too.”
“For example, have your Chaos Demon God take the front.”
“This high-quality cannon fodder was hard to find.”
A smile sparkled in the Ether Mother’s eyes.
“Next, I would shift all the blame onto your companions; I would stay hidden, avoiding the Abyss’s hatred and notice.”
“After all, the Abyss had ignored me for so many years, and I had always been careful.”
“It wouldn’t suddenly pay attention to me now, would it?”
“Hiding behind the Giant God, giving some support but not showing myself, felt great!”
“Hehe~”
But the blood octopus Outer Gods waved their tentacles and looked at each other, their big eyes shining with worry.
—-
“Hiss…”
The red serpent swayed its long tail in the Sea of Ether, swimming fast.
“Roar——!”
The demon god Shaks tried to stop it, but the serpent made of divine blood slipped through Shaks’s sharp teeth like it was fading away, and even magic didn’t work against it.
It kept diving deeper.
Soon, Shaks gave up the chase.
Because…
“Roar, roar, roar, roar——!”
An angry roar rose from the depths.
A huge, black will formed into unseen tentacles, reaching out from the sea floor; Shaks cursed quietly as he moved his agile Divine Body, fleeing that scary place.
He also left alone the divine blood of the Ether Assassins.
Quickly, that divine blood sank into the deepest darkness.
The real Ether Abyss was there.
Its Soul was made of countless tiny divine ranks; its Divine Body came from countless shapeless bits of flesh; these twisted, tangled pieces were too strange to describe.
Almost any fragment could drive a mortal mad at the sight; even most gods would feel their divine rank shake a little after seeing it.
All tangled together, they made a thick carpet of divine bodies, lying at the bottom of the Endless Ether.
That dark, sludge-like Divine Body spread endlessly far, like it had no end.
This was the Ether Abyss!
It was as old as the Endless Ether, seeming to have been in this universe since time began.
And because the Abyss was so ancient, it had grown very proud, bossy, and stubborn.
Out of pride, it looked down on the new Ether Mother.
How could such a cricket sit at the same level as Him!?
Because of His arrogance, He swore to hold all Powers in His hands. Only He had the right to issue commands; the will of the Abyss was the will of the Endless Ether.
If the Endless Ether granted Powers to deities outside the Abyss, then the Endless Ether must have been "deceived" by those gods—and the vile liars must be slain!
Because of His stubbornness, He rejected any new changes, believing the Endless Ether would forever remain unchanged; the rising faction led by the Ether Mother would surely drown in the tides!
Moreover, the Sea of Ether was being pushed by an unknown force, slowly expanding toward the Chaos Swamp Realm.
Everything would follow its destined course.
At least, until that red "sea snake" swam before Him.
"Hiss…"
"Just as I thought…"
"A pack of… worthless trash…"
"Roar——!"
The Ether Abyss raged!
Upon seeing the red sea snake, He knew His plan to "reclaim" Powers and punish the "thieves" had utterly failed.
What infuriated the Abyss more was sensing yet another Power slipping through His grasp.
Another deity had seized Power "illegally" without His approval.
"Damn you——!"
"You!"
"Will pay dearly for this!"
Amidst the Ether Abyss’s fury, the red "sea snake" gliding across the Abyssal Carpet dissolved into blood with a whoosh. Carrying the failed scraps of the Ether Assassins’ memories, it merged into the Abyss.
Countless details made the Abyss tremble with rage—though He possessed neither veins nor blood pressure.
For instance…
Another Power-thieving deity bore a body strikingly "similar" to the Ether Mother’s!
Then again…
The "monster" who slew the last four Assassin Gods seemed unrelated to the Endless Ether, yet had meticulously buried a clone of the Ether Mother!
It had even driven a nail infused with Endless Ether into the shallow ether at the burial site!
And every god allied with the Assassin Gods was closely tied to the Ether Mother!
…
These truths made the Ether Abyss grasp the "reality"—and ignited His wrath!
"So this is it!"
"All this monster deity’s doing!?"
"No… impossible…"
"How could some land-bound god steal the Endless Ether’s Powers!"
"The only one capable…"
"Is the Ether Mother!"
The Abyss bitterly recalled that upstart faction.
"No wonder it buried the Ether Mother’s clone killed by ‘Assassins’!"
"Already scheming with that insolent Ether Mother!?"
"Fine! Fine! Fine!"
"Ether Mother! You traitorous wretch!"
The Ether Abyss’s fury knew no bounds.
Truthfully, He’d scarcely noticed the "new" Ether Mother who emerged ten thousand years ago, daring to claim equal footing.
A mere fledgling—unworthy of His regard!
Let her play alone!
So long as the Ether Mother avoided provoking the Abyss and respected His limits—like forbidding underlings from "usurping Powers" or conspiring with Outer Gods—He tolerated her.
Previously, she’d tread carefully: though her actions irked the Abyss, she never crossed the line.
Many petty schemes escaped the Abyss’s notice, and those He noticed, He dismissed.
Thus, old and new forces coexisted strangely peacefully within the Endless Ether!
But now…
Everything was about to change!
"Ether Mother!"
"You seek death!"
"Roar, roar, roar, roar——!"
"Seems… I must… first… purge… my own house!"