Chapter 1291 - 1039: Panicking and Frustrated

At that moment, within Dragon Star, the Pseudo-God suddenly opened her eyes. She had always been suppressing her rage because she had inexplicably lost the faith of over twenty thousand Black Dragons. The loss was not due to their deaths; rather, their faith had inexplicably vanished. Could they have collectively ceased to believe in her? But that was impossible! Even if it were the Giant’s conspiracy, the disenchantment should not have been so tidy. After all, she had employed the Dragon Clan’s most cherished curse. Unless something more enticing had drawn them, those foolish, devoted Black Dragons would never betray her.

Could it be that a Pseudo-God, like herself, had emerged in the middle plane?

The Pseudo-God was eager to know what exactly had happened. Just then, Elder Slite’s faith suddenly appeared. He seemed extremely panicked, endlessly praying for the divine power to save him and return him to Dragon Star.

Yes, I will certainly save you, for only then can I clarify what exactly has transpired!

"Awake, my little pet!" the Pseudo-God shouted, and the Golden Dragon below her slowly opened its eyes.

"I need a plane teleportation magic, I will personally guide the return of Black Dragon Elder Slite, and I want to hear from him directly about this matter," said the Pseudo-God.

Upon hearing this, the Golden Dragon slowly opened its mouth and emitted a deep, prolonged roar. Immediately, a large group of Giant Dragons awoke. These Giant Dragons, having been partially released from the curse, knew exactly what to do upon awakening. They raised their heads, and a powerful surge of mana gathered together, as the Pseudo-God personally guided the teleportation magic.

No sooner had the magic taken shape than another divine power burst forth from within the Teleportation Array, and an old man flew out from it. He was covered in blood, his face filled with terror.

"Slite!"

The Pseudo-God shouted loudly, sending a calming magic toward him, and the previously panicked Slite immediately calmed down.

"My god, I have finally seen you again!" Tears burst from Slite’s eyes.

"What in the world is going on!" the Pseudo-God demanded from atop the Golden Dragon’s head, maintaining her divine dignity.

"Great God, we were commanded to go to the Lower Plane to annihilate the Giants. Under our overpowering suppression, the Giant known as Long Yi had already been retreating step by step. But I don’t know what happened, suddenly a being known as an Ascender appeared! She forcibly stripped us of our faith in you, returning us to our cursed state. Powerless, we were no match for Long Yi, who captured us all and imprisoned us on a desolate star. All the while, I silently prayed to you within my heart, hoping to gain your response. Eventually, a flaw appeared in the Ascender’s power, allowing me to rediscover my faith in you! But that was when the Ascender suddenly attacked me... Thankfully, you saved me in time!"

This narrative was a fabrication based on excuses provided by Long Yi, not rich in detail, but enough to convince the Pseudo-God. For at that moment, the Pseudo-God was also monitoring every move within Slite’s heart through his faith, and she would have immediately identified any lie. And the information transmitted through the faith confirmed to the Pseudo-God that Slite was not lying; everything he said was true.

"Long Yi, he’s in collusion with that Ascender?" the Pseudo-God asked.

"I don’t know, I truly don’t know," Slite said, shaking his head, his face still showing his deep alarm.

"You may step down." The Pseudo-God determined that she could get no useful information from Slite, as he was clearly terrified by the Ascender. But that was unavoidable, as the Ascender must also be a fragment of a god, so it would make sense that if Slite feared her, he would fear the other as well.

Just as Slite was about to leave, the Pseudo-God suddenly caught a fleeting figure in Slite’s faith, and that figure was speaking!

"Hold on a second! What just flashed through your mind!" the Pseudo-God suddenly shouted loudly, her sudden divine authority causing even the Golden Dragon beneath her to prostrate heavily on the ground, with Slite doing likewise, collapsing heavily to the ground.

"It was, it was something the Ascender said," Slite nervously said.

"What did she say?" the weight in the Pseudo-God’s voice grew heavier.

"What she said was extremely disrespectful to you, I dare not speak it!" Slite struggled to say.

"I absolve you of any guilt. Speak!" the Pseudo-God, sensing an ominous premonition, was eager to know what was lingering in Slite’s mind.

"The Ascender said, ’Sooner or later, I will go to Dragon Star and crush that worm under my foot...’"

Boom!

Slite had not yet finished speaking when a terrifying shockwave flung him high into the air. Then he landed far off among a group of dragons. A Red Dragon spread its wings and caught Slite with its soft membranes. But at that point, Slite was still dizzy, his breathing was no longer smooth, and suddenly, his skin cracked, and blood uncontrollably flowed from the fissures.

At that moment, all the freshly awakened Giant Dragons watched Slite, while the Pseudo-God was seized with immense fury and shock!

Could that Ascender not be a Divine Worm like me?

Yes, this so-called god was none other than the Divine Worm. By leveraging its powerful infective ability, it forcibly controlled a small fragment of the Divine Souls and Divine Status and acquired a bit of divine consciousness. Although it could not achieve the Trinity as a true god would, it cunningly found another way to enhance its power.

That was faith.

Centuries ago, it arrived here, disguised as a god, awakened several dragons, and then used Divine Power to partially lift the curse on the Golden Dragon in exchange for their faith. Over the centuries, it continuously exchanged faith for Divine Power and then used the Divine Power to lift more of the curse in exchange for even more faith. In fact, it never had the ability to truly lift the curse; it was merely an illusion maintained by Divine Power, which is why the lifting of the curse would also disappear once the faith waned. But this still brought it substantial returns, as the Dragon Clan, fearing the curse, held steadfast in their faith. Also, the large number of dragons on the Dragon Star meant that even those in slumber maintained their belief, bringing it immense returns and even deluding it into believing it was a true god for a time.

And now, that Ascender had shattered all its illusions.

Worm.

This word terrified it beyond measure as it implied that the so-called Ascender had a deep understanding of it. How did she know? From her tone, she clearly didn’t sound like one of its kind, as she used the word ’worm’ with a demeaning undertone. Could it be that the true god had awakened? That shouldn’t be the case either, as the true god had split its essence into countless parts, but the Divine Souls had been completely overtaken by the worms. Without the Divine Souls, it definitely wouldn’t be able to achieve the Trinity, nor would it have the power to forcibly lift its own faith.

What was going on?

The false god was filled with doubts, and then, it suddenly felt that the faith coming from the Dragon Clan seemed a bit off, a creeping anger and resistance spreading. It then realized that it had released a massive surge of Divine Power in its rage, which was now continuously destroying Slite’s body!

At that moment, Slite was weakly leaning against the Red Dragon’s wing, covered in blood. He had returned by relying on his faith in the god, but coming back here, instead of being cared for by the source of his faith, he was severely injured! The surrounding dragons could not accept this.

The worm realized this too.

The so-called relationship between a god and its believers was more like a transactional relationship. Faith was exchanged for divine care, and when the god ceased to take care of its believers, that was when faith collapsed.

And sometimes, the collapse of faith could be contagious.

The worm immediately used its Divine Power, not only instantly healing Slite’s injuries but also granting him a surge of Divine Power.

"You did well, Slite. This Divine Power is your reward!" the worm said with its commanding tone, as it would not apologize to a Black Dragon.

"Thank you, great god!"

Having recovered from his agonizing ordeal, Slite quickly rolled off the Red Dragon’s wing and bowed.

"You may rest now. You have done well in this matter, and I can feel your steadfast faith. Continue on, and I will grant you more rewards," the worm said.

"Yes! Great god!"

Slite backed away and then took flight, leaving the area to return to the habitat of the Black Dragon clan. He had been truly terrified, thinking he might die right there, but in the end, he was rescued.

Indeed, everything was as Long Yi and the others had anticipated. The false god was indeed the Divine Worm; otherwise, it would never have been so out of character!

Slite had made up his mind.

If at first he had harbored a slight doubt, now he harbored none whatsoever.

I am no longer the person I once was, and the Dragon Clan will definitely no longer be as it once was.

Meanwhile, a smile appeared on the worm’s face.

"It seems it’s time to awaken all my brothers and sisters."

Hovering in midair, towering above, its Divine Power spread out and awakened each dragon.

"Awake, reptiles, and offer me your energy so that I may awaken all my kin! Then, that Giant Dragon Long Yi, let those worms keep you busy for a while." (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it at qidian.com, your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)