Chapter Thirty-Six: Taking Stock of the Gains

"The Power of the Hero!"

The Lord of Stars and the God of Earth could not help but exclaim in unison.

The Power of the Hero was a special favor granted by the God of Heroes, a gift that allowed its bearer to recruit other neutral warriors regardless of their race. If the rank was high enough, it could even compel weaker enemies to surrender—a truly unique skill.

Anyone endowed with this power automatically fell under the protection of the God of Heroes, gaining a resounding title—Hero.

Heroes could be considered the pillars of every race, for they possessed innate magic that inspired morale across vast swathes, while their mastery of magic produced team-based variants. Sun Licheng, for example, wielded the Shield of Flames. If he cast it now, he could choose to bestow a flame shield upon all his companions, greatly enhancing the team's defenses.

Had Sun Licheng possessed this power before, his mechanical puppet's combat strength would have been significantly enhanced, and breaking through their enemies would have been far easier.

But to become a Hero was a most arduous journey—each Hero had a tale worthy of song and tears, their stories passed from mouth to mouth across these lands.

Sun Licheng—a goblin, an outsider—now possessed the Power of the Hero. This left the two sovereign deities utterly astounded.

"What kind of being is this?" the Lord of Stars wondered, watching Sun Licheng playing with a small rabbit, his heart filled with awe.

He knew every pore of this goblin body, but ever since Sun Licheng had claimed it, the vessel had moved beyond his understanding.

By all rights, as one forsaken by the gods, Sun Licheng should not have received any divine favor. Yet now, he possessed both the Friend of Beasts and the Power of the Hero—the blessings of two different deities. This could not be explained by luck alone. Individuals blessed with both abilities were exceedingly rare, and each bore unshakable faith in the gods. But Sun Licheng’s faith? Reflecting on his attitude toward both himself and the God of Earth, the Lord of Stars was left speechless.

"Perhaps only the great Creator God can unravel this mystery. It seems I was truly wise to choose Sun Licheng as my chosen one," the Lord of Stars mused. Lost in thought, he was suddenly roused by the muttered words of the God of Earth beside him. At that, a realization began to dawn upon him.

...

By the great river, under brilliant sunlight and beside clear waters, Sun Licheng stared in shock at the two exalted deities.

"What? You’re leaving me?" Sun Licheng asked in disbelief.

"Yes. It is time for us to part ways," the Lord of Stars replied with resolute finality.

"But why? Aren’t I your chosen one?" Panic crept into Sun Licheng's voice. Since arriving in this world, he had lived under constant threat, and the two sovereign deities were like powerful, golden fingers guiding and protecting him. Now, as these fingers prepared to withdraw, how could he not feel fear?

"It’s like this," the God of Earth stepped forward to explain.

During their recent time together, the Lord of Stars and the God of Earth had systematically reviewed past events, uncovering a multitude of suspicious points. These discoveries made them extremely uneasy, for the gods of this world shared a fatal weakness: unless fully resurrected, their divinity could be seized by others, causing them to vanish completely.

That was why the Lord of Stars had been in constant hiding, and though the God of Earth had been safe within a barrier, now that he was embarking on the path to resurrection, he too faced this threat.

Of course, seizing another’s divinity was a base, despicable deed, akin to the Star-Absorbing Skill from Jin Yong’s tales—powerful, but universally reviled. Should any god attempt this, word would spread through the divine realm and the perpetrator would become the enemy of all gods. Such incidents were rare. But now, knowing they were caught in a grand conspiracy, it was likely their enemies were plotting just that. The danger was grave. Therefore, they needed to hide themselves—even from their chosen one—until Sun Licheng completed his mission.

And Sun Licheng had to fulfill his promise to the God of Earth if he wished to receive the Wheel of Order’s response in the future. Thus, they all had to go their separate ways.

"Rest assured," said the God of Earth, "your body was forged by divine power and now possesses many new abilities. You will accomplish your mission and eventually return home. One more thing: from now on, claim to be a follower of the God of Magma. Do not mention my true domain or the Lord of Stars, lest you invite unnecessary peril."

He finished speaking and patted Sun Licheng’s armored shoulder, the sound of metal ringing out.

"Very well, but before you leave, I need some parting gifts from you both," Sun Licheng replied, realizing there was no changing their minds and quickly requesting a farewell present.

"I expected as much," the God of Earth chuckled. "I have already imparted some knowledge of magic circles to Master Dexterous—you’ll surely find it useful. Also, don’t blame the Lord of Stars. The Wheel of Fate here is too powerful; if His Majesty intervenes directly, it will hinder your future endeavors. That’s why he doesn’t teach you spells or lore directly, but lets me relay them instead, since you are my true chosen one. Remember: the knowledge given matches your current power. For greater knowledge and magic, you must grow stronger and help me recover divinity shards, or you’ll suffer the backlash of advanced spells."

The God of Earth, well-prepared, had given Sun Licheng a tremendous surprise. Magic was unfamiliar to him, but the engineering of magic circles was far more practical—and with Master Dexterous’s help, Sun Licheng was confident his strength would increase greatly.

As the figures of the two gods faded, Sun Licheng still heard the God of Earth’s final instructions echoing in his mind.

"Stay away from that tunnel unless it’s absolutely necessary. And even if you go, do not provoke the apex beast there. But in dire moments—when your life is threatened—you must go, for you are a goblin, descended from the Goblin Empire, and only there can you find ultimate protection. Remember this, always..."

...

With a mode of transportation, Sun Licheng moved much faster and returned to camp before dusk.

At the mouth of the valley, he saw a herd of mammoths grazing before his stone wall—at a glance, not fewer than ten.

Some were large, some small; the leading bull stood nearly five meters tall, with massive, sharp tusks that occasionally sparked with electricity—a clear sign it was a magical beast.

Sun Licheng surveyed his own party: a cargo mech, a repair puppet, a mechanical dog fitted with a depleted crystal cannon, and three wolf-rabbit cubs.

"Looks like we’re outmatched. Time for negotiations," he sighed, stepping before the bull mammoth under the wary gaze of the herd.

"Hello, I’m Sun Licheng, master of this place. May I pass through to my home?" he asked, looking up from his mech.

"Your territory? We come here every migration to feed in this valley, but now we can’t get in. My Big Tusk Clan is not pleased."

So, the valley was a migration waystation for the mammoths, now blocked by Sun Licheng’s wall—no wonder they were upset. Clearly, they had come to seek redress.

Outnumbered and in the wrong, Sun Licheng wisely had Master Dexterous open a wide gap in the wall, letting the mammoths enter the valley.

Once the herd had passed, he led his small party quietly back home.

With the powerful mammoths now in the valley, safety was assured for the time being.

After feeding the three wolf-rabbit cubs with his stored snow rat meat, Sun Licheng began to take stock of his gains from the goblin airbase.

Despite the loss of his main transport mech and most equipment, the expedition had been fruitful.

Personnel had grown: Master Dexterous, Dogmeat, and three wolf-rabbit cubs—though the cubs were not yet battle-ready, their potential was immense.

As for weapons, Dogmeat had retrieved a small cannon, Sun Licheng had brought back ten puppet-warrior sabers, Master Dexterous carried four goblin crossbows, and Sun Licheng himself had acquired a battle axe and a war hammer. All were standard-issue from the Goblin Empire—ancient but still formidable, at least as tools. He had also recovered his own mountain cleaver, Jade Sunder, and homemade bolts, all intact.

Defensively, he wore goblin battle gear and had returned with a cargo mech. Though the battle suit, aged ten thousand years, had lost most of its protection and was now just clothing, it was still far superior to his crude furs. He regretted not bringing back more suits—he had no desire to look primitive again.

The cargo mech had survived the escape, but due to age and monster attacks, it required repairs. Until then, it must be used sparingly.

In terms of magic, the two gods had gifted him much knowledge of magic circles before departing. Master Dexterous’s mind also held many goblin technologies, often derived from or related to magic, making this the greatest gain of all.

Other spoils included twenty-three goblin CPUs, two reels of purple-gold wire, an energy converter, fifty-six depleted goblin crystals, and three small magic crystals.

Lastly, Sun Licheng had learned Ancient Goblin, gained the Power of the Hero, and deepened his understanding of this world’s magic.

"I’ve struck it rich—returning home is now within reach!"

After taking inventory, Sun Licheng was so delighted he shouted for joy in his cave, startling the three wolf-rabbit cubs into hiding behind Dogmeat, their little round tails peeking out.

...

Deep in the meadow, beside the sinkhole, the smoke of battle had cleared. Corpses stretched as far as the eye could see; the monsters had withdrawn behind the walls.

The battered wolf-rabbits returned in defeat. Among them was the big grey rabbit, miraculously alive but limping, with a deep claw mark across its head. Only eleven remained of its tribe, all wounded, trailing at the rear.

...

In the divine realm, within the Temple of the Wind God, the God of Schemes sat upon a stone throne, beaming with delight.

The commotion in the forbidden zone had prompted the gods to send an investigator, and the God of Schemes had volunteered.

The Wind God was disgruntled—it was clear the elders no longer trusted him, hence sending another.

"Your Majesty Wind God, once my divine envoy descends, I hope he will have your support," the God of Schemes said earnestly, though the Wind God saw only hypocrisy.

"There are no issues here; your investigation will have my support. But you should explain things to the former Spring Goddess—she’s tricky and greedy."

With a plan already in mind, the Wind God readily agreed, taking the chance to make things awkward for his rival.

With his business concluded, the God of Schemes took his leave.

Once alone, the Wind God sneered.

"Go ahead and investigate, you old fools think too highly of yourselves. As long as the Goblin Empire doesn’t rise again, doesn’t activate their strategic weapons, those without divine protection are nothing to worry about. Let others handle the forbidden zone mess; I can focus on building faith and increasing my divine power. Now then, how can I quietly seize a divinity shard?"

He pondered.

Back in his own temple, the God of Schemes laughed aloud.

"Just as I thought, every god in the realm is playing their own game—otherwise, this opportunity wouldn’t have fallen to me. That fool Wind God, there were cannons firing below and he still thinks it’s a trifling matter. All the better—it makes it easier for me to fish in troubled waters and complete that exalted one’s task."

After a while, his expression darkened.

A chill settled over the entire hall.