Chapter 2096: Trouble To The West

The informant bowed and left, while Karl shook his head in dismay.

"So, it’s come to this. The civil war on the continent is about to start, and we haven’t even gotten to our first tournament yet. Worse, we haven’t gotten a chance to make a proper profit off the Elves yet, and it takes time for weapons to circulate when the auctions are shut down.

The last part was given in a teasing tone that made Eryman smile.

Karl might be perfectly comfortable being known as a war profiteer, but he was also realistic about the dangers both to his business and to the region once the fighting started. At least, to Eryman’s mind he was.

The actual battles were not going to be the worst part of it.

Once the fighting started, opportunistic groups from further out would start to make their move, aiming to claim disciples for their Clans, even slaves or sacrifices. Many Clans kept the bunnies as slaves, but few mistreated them to any extreme extent.

However, when they took Immortals from fallen Clans as slaves, they would normally work them to death, or the Dark Gods’ followers would sacrifice them and steal their essence for their own growth.

That was something that Karl could also do, an innate ability of the Haint Claw. But he never actively used it to drain strangers dry for his own benefit.

Only the ones that he was fighting already.

"It appears that you and I are in an awkward position, young Branch Leader. We have more Supreme Ranked powerhouses than any other factions on this side of the continent, and we are likely the only two who can field Legendary might on the battlefield.

If the battles spread as far as your territory, I would like to have an arrangement in place beforehand," Eryman began.

Karl nodded. "That would be good. While we are capable of bringing members from other branches to fight, it is preferable that we do not. It causes disturbances within the Guild, especially the branches that are on the Divine Battlefield worlds.

We don’t want them thinking that this world is also about to break into the fight for Divinity, or they’ll start sending members here to ensure that we don’t lose."

Eryman sighed. "That’s exactly what I’m afraid of. I’m far enough through the progression of a Legend that there is a good chance that I could push for Demigod status. You see, clergy have it the easiest when it comes to becoming a Demigod, but the hardest when it comes to becoming a True God.

You will have the same obstacle at some point, as an Avatar of the World Dragon.

But that’s a concern for later. The issue is that when others sense that I’ve joined the battle, they will think that I’m taking over the Church, and looking to Deify myself. Once that rumour starts, Legends from other worlds will be called here to stop me.

You see, even though we’re not actively part of the Divinity Wars, that doesn’t mean that a reclusive Legend gets a free pass to become a Demigod.

You have to do it subtly.

Now, there is a massive civil war about to kick off on both of our doorsteps, and it seems that we share a mutual choice. Either we can allow our closest allies to shield us from the fallout, or we join in and things get really spicy.

I have seen what your craftsmen can do, and it’s probably enough to turn the tide of a battle.

However, I’m also old enough to know what an Avatar of the World Dragon can do when they’re pushed. Once when I was young, I watched a Demigod Level Avatar of the Laughing God shut down an entire planet’s System Access.

Not the mana, the System.

He was annoyed by the noise of an active rebellion while he was napping and just shut it off entirely, leaving everyone who relied upon skills to prove their might absolutely helpless. Everyone thought that was the worst thing that could happen to them, as the humans reverted to basic Common Rank mortality, didn’t even gain the natural adaptation that growing up in the Immortal Realm gives them.

Apparently, that’s System Linked.

Then, the World Dragon Avatar showed up alone and simply snapped his fingers to turn every single member of his faction into Legendary Demons, who proceeded to slaughter everyone who was part of the rebellion.

We still don’t even know what spell it was.

Some suggest that it was a form of evolution, or a transformation spell. But he was unaffected by the System shutdown, probably due to his status as the Avatar of a System granting Deity, and he didn’t even deplete his mana to make a hundred thousand mortal warriors Legendary.

To call it a massacre doesn’t even do justice to the events that followed.

Needless to say, they won, and after a heated argument, the World Dragon Avatar gave the Laughing God’s Avatar some sort of bribe or gift, and he relented. The System returned to the survivors, and both factions were banned from ever returning to that world."

Karl chuckled. "How did that work out for them? I mean, you can’t just ban the God who granted your System."

Eryman smiled. "The system on that world is Laughing God created, and his followers are still there. They operate in the shadows, posing as clerics of other gods, or as wandering bards. But the World Dragon’s followers are very much persona non grata there.

They haven’t forgotten a hundred million dead in under an hour."

Karl frowned as he realized that he really needed to work on his skills. He had no idea what level he would have to improve [Evolution] to in order to do that, or if it really was just a transformation skill used on a massive scale.

But with that many Legends, he suspected that it was a form of [Evolution]. Even a Legendary Grade Constitution on a common rank human would be laughably weak to an Immortal.

"You look like you took a strange lesson from that story," Eryman noted.

"Just wondering what level I have to improve Evolution to in order to do that. I can do a lot of cool things when I put my mind to it, but I can’t simply bump a bunch of mortals up to Legendary Status, no matter what transformation I use on them.

Unless it’s a combination of the two, and the spell makes them Legends temporarily. Or, pseudo Legends, capable of using Legendary Rank skills while transformed. I do know some skills along those lines, though clearly not nearly as cool."

Eryman shook his head. Of course the World Dragon Avatar didn’t get the message about a hundred million dead and two gods shunned. Instead, he had focused on the part about the Legendary Demon Army.