Chapter 117: Ch 117 : The scent of Lies
In the grand cosmic game between gods, a demigod is like a queen on a chessboard. It’s powerful, and its presence can change the entire board, but its every move is watched. Sometimes, a god doesn’t need a queen. Sometimes, what they need is a pawn, hidden in the chaos, with the potential to cross the board and become a queen on its own.
This was the core idea behind Thea’s most ambitious secret project: the Interdimensional Heroes program. Scattered across the multiverse were countless worlds, each with millions of lifeforms. Among them were individuals with great potential who were overlooked, oppressed, or simply unlucky. These were Thea’s targets. She would find them and gift them a unique, personalized "system", a tool to guide their growth and give them a fighting chance.
These chosen lifeforms were not aware they were serving a greater purpose. They simply saw a miraculous chance to escape their grim reality. They were given missions, and with each completed task, they grew stronger, earning rewards that seemed like divine gifts. They became legends in their own worlds, champions of the downtrodden. But in reality, they were Sunny’s scalpels, subtle, silent agents who could be guided to perform tasks in places where a demigod’s presence would be too loud, too obvious. Kael, a boy once starving in a refugee camp, was the 1,423rd such hero. And he wouldn’t be the last.
Sunny sat on his throne, a rare moment of peace settling over him. His new universe of subordinate gods was stabilizing, his demigods were handling their duties, and Veridia was flourishing. For a moment, it felt like everything was under control.
But peace is a fragile thing. As a sudden jolt from his divine intuition shattered the calm.
It wasn’t a loud alarm or a vision of impending doom, but a quieter, more unsettling feeling—a subtle wrongness that made the hairs on his divine form stand on end. His focus immediately narrowed, and the feeling latched onto one thing: the treasure map that had sent the entire multiverse into a frenzy.
An old saying from his life on Endor echoed in his mind: ’If you’re getting something for free, you are the product.’
The new Gods, blinded by their greed for SSS-Grade power, had forgotten that simple, human truth. They saw a free gift and sprinted towards it without a single question. Even he had been focused on the consequences of their greed, not the source of the information itself. He knew not all the Gods were foolish, because even he, a cautious God, had fallen for this greed...
"No, it isn’t greed. It’s something else..." he thought, as his mind raced back to Adam’s description of the seven Demon Lords, their personalities, and their domains of power. One name clicked into place with horrifying clarity.
"Belial... the Demon Lord of Lies."
He finally understood. This wasn’t just a trap. Belial’s power wasn’t about telling simple lies; it was about rewriting reality in the minds of his victims. He could hold up a rock, call it the sun, and billions would feel its warmth on their skin. The treasure map wasn’t just bait; it was a mass hallucination, a lie so perfect that it felt more real than the truth. The whisper of doubt from his intuition was the only reason he could see through it.
"Thea," he commanded, his voice sharp. "Replicate. Send particles to every treasure location on that map. I want to know if they are truly there or not." He didn’t hesitate, pushing ten billion faith points into her replication talent. Instantly, a torrent of new energy particles burst forth, shooting out into the cosmos on their verification mission.
He heaved a sigh of relief as he awaited Thea’s analysis of the situation, but instead of the report a new notification poped in.
[Master, a century has passed in Veridia,]
"Already?" Sunny exclaimed. He was so consumed by the recent events that he hadn’t even noticed the time. Eight hours had vanished in a flash, and with them, the ninth day of his godhood. The tenth day had begun.
He began thinking of the next talent to copy, his thoughts wandering to the current situation. "If Nova goes to the Realm of Advancement, it will be difficult for her to maintain focus on both places," Sunny said to himself. Nova’s focus was always on maintaining the time flow for Veridia, but he didn’t want her to spend all her energy on that single task. It was a burden he should carry himself.
With this thought in mind, he focused his will and used his Skill-Resonance talent to copy the Time Affinity from Nova.
A familiar, exhilarating rush surged through him as the new power settled into his being. It was the feeling of cosmic clockwork, the silent, immutable rhythm of time, flowing into and becoming a part of his very soul. He checked his status with his God’s Eye.
[Talent Name: Time Affinity]
[Grade: SS]
[Description: You can now perceive and manipulate the Law of Time to create and use time-based magic. The chance of lifeforms in your territory being born with time-based talents is increased.]
He immediately informed his subordinate Gods and demigods of this new passive benefit, then turned his attention back to Nova. ’You are relieved of your duty to maintain Veridia’s time flow,’ he commanded her through their mental connection. ’Your place is in the Realm of Advancement. Unearth these treasures, and kill any demon demigods you find waiting in ambush.’
Nova acknowledged the command and immediately let go of her time acceleration magic on Veridia.
Sunny then turned his own gaze to Veridia. He took over the time acceleration spell himself, feeling the drain on his faith. "Only twenty faith points for a full planetary year?" he mused. "What a steal." It was a cheap price, and a far more flexible solution than using his Divine Command to permanently alter the world’s laws, which was much more costly.
A new sense of purpose settled over him. He had a new power, a new understanding of the enemy’s insidious strategy, and a plan to strengthen his demigods for the battles to come. The tenth day was going to be a long one for Sunny and all the Gods.