Chapter Eighty-Eight: An Encounter
A failed sacrificial ceremony.
Soren finally determined the general location of the God of the Hunt – Mara, and he also realized one thing: the power of the God of the Hunt, who had just fallen from the Divine Kingdom, had suffered significant loss. Otherwise, he would not have killed his own believers over a failed sacrifice. Judging by the last scene he witnessed, the God of the Hunt must have taken the Half-Orc Leader, responsible for conducting the ceremony, as prey, compensating for the divine power he expended when descending in avatar form. With the eruption of the Saint’s Cataclysm, it became exceptionally difficult for many deities to receive faith and divine power. Soren had a Grand Temple as a transfer medium, but Mara could only rely on his avatar to absorb power due to his circumstances.
This was true for nearly all deities nowadays.
If Soren’s believers weren’t praying in the temple or near the city of Modo, then the faith power he could absorb was also very limited.
The Saint’s Cataclysm affected the capabilities of the deities in various aspects.
In the past, if someone mentioned a certain deity’s divine name, within 24 hours, some powerful deities could directly see the person who spoke the name and the surrounding situation if they wished. It was somewhat similar to the saying, “Gods are three feet above your head.” Although deities couldn’t easily appear in the mortal realm, they could still easily know many things happening in the world.
But that was no longer the case.
The power of divinity had been greatly weakened, and many deities could only maintain the most basic abilities. Any divine power that was once very easy to use now required a significant amount of divine power value.
This situation would continue until the end of the Saint’s Cataclysm!
Now, regardless of who it was, all deities needed to adapt to the external world through their saintly forms. Even if believers in Modo called out to Soren, he could not sense or notice everything.
The God of the Hunt – Mara’s true body was deep in the wilderness!
It seemed he was a clever guy, aware that he had many enemies, and the true body of his saintly form dared not get too close to areas of human activity. He probably also feared encountering other deities that had fallen to the mortal realm.
Soren prepared to investigate further.
If he could confirm Mara’s true body was there, then he should consider how to deal with him.
…
Frostleaf City.
This was a city near the Northern Region, not far from the ruins of Silver Moon City, a once very ancient and glorious city.
The Northern Witches were inherited from the wizard organization in Silver Moon City.
Now, this once glorious city had been buried by history, leaving only some ancient ruins deep underground, and the immensely powerful Maze had been moved to the Tower by the Northern Witch Council. Currently, only Frostleaf City in the vicinity was still relatively prosperous.
Under the cold moonlight.
A petite figure sat on the roof, gazing blankly at the moon in the sky.
She had a pair of furry cat ears, and apparently bored, the tail on her small b*tt was swaying back and forth. At this time, there were no pedestrians on the street, but many guards surrounded the mansion she was in, with skilled fighters inside and out, clearly seasoned warriors. The power of Modo had extended to many places. Because Vivian planned to incorporate the Church of Fear, Soren dispatched many of his elite, and now a significant amount of Modo’s resources were focused on Vivian.
The Fear Worshippers were already very weakened.
This was one of their few strongholds, which had now become a hidden strength of Modo.
“Meow!”
Lulu Meow, bored, sharpened her claws and muttered while looking at the moon in the sky: “It’s so boring here! … Modo City is much more fun! … So many fish! … Meow! … I can swim in the sea and catch fish every day! … So carefree! …”
As a Beastman.
Although Lulu Meow held a decent position in Modo City, she had no friends around her. She resisted the approach of others, apart from a few high-ranking individuals in Modo City, such as Soren, Gloria, the Fallen Witch, etc. She was only slightly familiar with the High Priest of the temple. Beastmen tend to be well adapted to solitude. Perhaps over the long years, they had become accustomed to it. Nowadays, the number of Beastmen was dwindling, and cat-type Beastmen like Lulu Meow could probably only be seen in the Eastern Kingdom.
Most of the time, Lulu Meow was a little lackey behind Vivian.
She was a very easily contented, cheerful cat girl, and living a simple life in Modo City was enough to make her happy, likely due to her childhood experiences. The survival of Beastmen had always been challenging. The first time she saw Soren, she was being transported in a cage on a slave ship to the Southern Coast.
Life outside Modo City was very boring.
At least, that’s how Lulu Meow felt, as her master was busy incorporating the Fear Worshippers and had no time to accompany her to catch fish and play around.
Battles were also quite dull.
As Vivian’s personal maid, Lulu Meow had only fought once or twice. Although she wished to tell others she was much stronger than them, at least capable of taking on five at a time, in reality, she still had very few opportunities to fight.
Her master was getting stronger and stronger.
Many powerful individuals from Modo City had been sent here, and the outside world was quite different from what she had imagined; what she saw was not exciting but a difficult life.
The longer she stayed away from Modo City, the more she missed that place.
In the dark alleyway in the distance, a group of refugees huddled together. It was said that lizardmen were attacking humans over there, and many families were now fleeing towards this side.
War, chaos, hunger.
In Lulu Meow’s simple understanding, the outside world seemed to be filled with these things.
A gentle breeze blew.
Just when Lulu Meow turned her head in boredom, she suddenly saw a beautiful woman walking in the moonlight.
The moonlight cast down upon her, creating an illusion; Lulu Meow actually saw a slight silvery glow around her.
She was a beautiful woman.
Words could hardly describe her; she exuded an aura that made Lulu Meow feel close, even giving her a sense of motherly warmth.
“Child.”
The beautiful woman walking under the moonlight suddenly appeared next to Lulu Meow. The skilled elites of Modo City around them seemed to have no awareness whatsoever as she materialized by Lulu Meow’s side. Then, very naturally, she gently stroked the cat girl’s forehead, as if casually talking to her own child: “What are you doing here?”
An exceptionally intimate aura.
The gentle touch made Lulu Meow instinctively curl up, as if she wanted to get closer.
No one had ever made her feel this close; she had always been very resistant towards humans, and the few people she could get close to were limited. The beautiful woman before her emanated a more welcoming and peaceful aura than Gloria, who had previously cast the Enlightenment Spell on her, even making Lulu Meow lower her guard completely.
She raised her little head to look at the woman and obediently said, “I’m watching the moon.”
A faint smile appeared on the beautiful woman’s face, seeming to hold a hint of joy as she asked, “Do you like the moon?”
Lulu Meow nodded, saying, “I do.”
“Very much.”
“Meow! … Whenever it’s a full moon, I feel so comfortable under the moonlight! …”
She was a Beastman.
Basically all Beastmen had some mysterious connection with the moon, and the talent of Lulu Meow was awakening. The moonlight at certain times would awaken her potential.
The beautiful woman smiled, seeming as gentle as a mother. She gently stroked Lulu Meow’s forehead and said, “Child, would you like to come with me?”
“I want to leave here.”
“If you wish, you can accompany me.”
Ah?!
Upon hearing this, Lulu Meow suddenly woke up and stared blankly at the beautiful woman before her, her cute little face revealing a trace of hesitation and struggle.
For some reason, the woman made her feel exceptionally close, and she could feel that the woman would absolutely not harm her.
But when the woman proposed to leave with her, Lulu Meow couldn’t help but hesitate.
“Meow! …”
The little cat girl thought for a long time before raising her head seriously and saying, “Meow! … I’m afraid I can’t! … Although I really like you! … But Lulu Meow already has a master! … I can’t leave my master and go with you! …”
“My master is in trouble.”
“She has a very powerful enemy! … Although my master’s brother is also very powerful! … But that enemy is just too strong! …”
“Meow! … I want to stay by her side! … Help her defeat the enemy! …”
“Mm.”
“After I help my master defeat the enemy! … Can I come find you to play, alright? … Lulu Meow really likes you! …”
The beautiful woman before her paused for a moment.
Then, a gentle smile emerged on her face as she reached out and gently stroked Lulu Meow’s long hair, smiling, “Alright.”
“You are truly a good child.”
“Since you are unwilling to leave with me, then I will leave you with a gift.”
“My name is Soren.”
“I am your protector! If you encounter danger, you can call my name! …”
The beautiful woman gently tapped Lulu Meow’s forehead with her delicate, fair finger, and soon a silvery, sacred light appeared, a certain power beyond the mortal realm in the form of a blessing remained with the little cat girl.
When Lulu Meow came back to herself, the beautiful woman had already left.
Everything felt like a dream!
…
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(PS: I’ve been ill recently. Sorry. I hope everyone understands. After all, the author is also human, and sometimes illness is out of one’s control.) (To be continued ~^~)
