"He... has come."

The solemn voice echoed in the Divine Hall, authoritative yet seemingly suppressing intense unease and dread.

"He?"

The blood-red Divine Statue shimmered, its majestic voice somewhat puzzled.

Realizing that the other had not understood his meaning, the God of Hatred and Deformation, Adok, took a deep breath and said in a heavy tone,

"Yes, He."

"Kulkan, not long ago, I encountered a strange God whose image was that of a human female with silver hair and red eyes."

"In Her presence, I felt an aura that was familiar, an aura that filled me with fear, that sent shivers down my spine, and amidst the fear, a terrifying sense of kinship."

"That unbelievable feeling, it's almost identical to what I had felt in the distant past, and just recently, on the Day of Divine Destruction..."

No sooner had the words of the God of Hatred and Deformation, Adok, finished than a vast and mighty pressure, no less than His own, suddenly erupted, with the crimson radiance rapidly converging in the Divine Hall.

Soon, a tall figure with the head of a snake and body of a man appeared within the Divine Hall.

He was surrounded by the red glow, his face identical to the Divine Statue in the hall, indeed another deity.

"Fear... and kinship? The Day of Divine Destruction? Adok, do you realize what you are saying?"

The Snake People deity called Kulkan looked at the God of Hatred and Deformation, Adok, with alarm and uncertainty.

"I know very well what I am saying. Firstly, I can affirm that He is not that fool Helios. Although Helios has also been reborn in the East Continent, those Elves have yet to find His reincarnated self, He should still be sleeping in some mortal body... Besides, even though Helios has also merged with that one's power, He could never instill fear in us."

"The only one who can make us feel fear... is that original entity Himself!"

Upon hearing the words of the God of Hatred and Deformation, Adok, Kulkan frowned slightly:

"Do you mean to say, that He has awakened from the calamity of Divine Destruction?"

Adok was silent for a long time, then sighed deeply:

"I'm afraid so."

"I had a brief confrontation with that Mythical being, and during the confrontation, my Divine Power clashed and contended with His..."

"Just as we remember in our memories, in the clash of Divine Powers, my Divine Power... was Devoured by Him."

"He has come, He must have returned! He destroyed the West Continent, grievously wounded the Elf Gods, this time... it's our turn!"

By the end, the God of Hatred and Deformation, Adok, could barely control the tremble in his voice, his amber eyes filled with fear.

It was not until the voice of the Snake People deity, Kulkan, rang out again:

"Calm yourself, Adok! He is dead! He was slain by the Elf Gods together! His residual spirit has been Sealed! He cannot possibly awaken again! His power... has long been scattered to the winds!"

Red Divine Power burst forth in the Divine Hall, carrying with it a force that soothed the soul.

Gradually, the God of Hatred and Deformation, Adok, also calmed down.

He sighed deeply and said:

"My apologies, Kulkan. I was a bit too agitated."

"You're right, His power has long been splintered, and His residual spirit sealed by the Elf Gods. What I encountered... shouldn't be Him returned."

"When I conversed with Her, She even mentioned the 'Creator God,' at that moment I thought it was 'the Mad One,' but now thinking back, She indeed wasn't that one."

"No," I should say that my being able to come back alive probably already explains a lot."

The serpentine deity Kulkan nodded:

"You're wise to understand that, but… the message you've brought certainly needs our attention. The power to 'Devour', I suppose it's yet another 'lucky' individual who, just like those two mortals from the Free City State, has received Its 'gift'."

"As long as the Transcendent power is undying, Its will won't vanish. Even if Its consciousness is shattered, and Its residual spirit sealed, there's still a possibility for Its return."

"Anyway, we ought to thank the Elf Gods. If it weren't for those lofty beings ignoring Its warnings and coveting Its Creation Power, Its maniacal side wouldn't have been awakened, nor would Its rational side have fallen into slumber… The process of It devouring wouldn't have been interrupted, and we wouldn't have gained freedom…"

"However, the emergence of beings He has chosen might not necessarily be a bad thing for us."

Upon hearing the words of the serpentine deity Kulkan, the God of Hatred and Deformation, Adok, was struck with a thought:

"Kulkan, you are the wisest among us. What are you thinking?"

Kulkan nodded:

"Of course."

"Since He possesses the power of 'Devour', then the deity you encountered must indeed be His Deputy. It remains unknown whether the other inherited any of Its other powers."

"His remaining consciousness is sealed, and the concentrated power dispersed; perhaps He appointed a Deputy to assist in restoring His power."

"It seems... the efficiency of those two mortals hasn't been satisfactory to Him."

"But this is, in fact, a great opportunity for us!"

Saying this, Kulkan turned to Adok with a meaningful expression:

"Adok, we were once failures, but being failures… doesn't mean we'll always be failures!"

Moved by these words, the God of Hatred and Deformation, Adok, felt stirred:

"You mean…"

"Take over, of course continue with the original plan – take over! No… I should say, reclaim our power!"

The serpentine deity Kulkan spoke.

"Reclaim our power? You mean to say… we continue with the original plan, attack the Free City State, control those two mortals, and seize His power? Don't we need to inform the other parts?"

Adok asked.

The serpentine deity Kulkan didn't immediately reply but instead asked:

"Adok, you've faced His Deputy, setting aside the suppression from Divine Power, what do you think of the opponent's actual strength?"

Adok hesitated for a moment before replying:

"I can't judge. From what I feel, it's like a Demigod who has just ignited the Divine Fire recently, but the intensity of the Divine Power is unexpectedly strong, even stronger than mine…"

"However, besides 'Devour', He didn't exhibit the ability of 'Divine Destruction'. I've never seen Him before, and now thinking about it… He should just be that Deputy whose strength was forcibly elevated. His true strength is probably not that great."

Kulkan smiled slightly:

"Then there's no problem; we will continue with the original plan."

"Such a deity whose power was forcibly elevated is at best a 'Pseudo God'. With our combined strength, and those Divine Skill Rituals specifically prepared against True Gods, it is more than enough for us to defeat Him."

"Even if we don't win, we can retreat safely with the help of those Divine Skill Rituals. Then it won't be too late to call for reinforcements from the other parts."

"Keep preparing. We move according to the original plan; we must destroy the Free City State and seize His power before the other Mythical beings react!"

...