Chapter 256: Recruiting? Easy Peasy

Chapter 256: Recruiting? Easy Peasy

“Alright, you’ll develop here. As long as it’s a power that’s ‘beneficial’ to people, you’ll easily gain followers, right?” Dan Marina said, looking at the ‘Archangel’ before her. She had specifically picked a small town that was easy to start in for this ‘Evil God’.

Even if it engaged in more radical development here, the people from the Sanctuary Church wouldn’t notice immediately. Moreover, Azure Wrath’s attribute was of the holy type, so in a short time, people wouldn’t associate it with an Evil God.

“Thank you very much.” ‘Tyrael’ nodded slightly. It didn’t have a name for now. Since Zheng Yichen had called it that before, it would temporarily use this name. If it really had to have a name, Azure Wrath was actually more suitable. But Tyrael was catchier for now and wouldn’t immediately make people think of anything. It could use its ‘real name’ later. After all, to it, a name was just a label…

As an ‘Evil God’ like it, although it needed ‘followers’ to increase its strength, the power of the Magic Arms had a greater impact on its strength. Moreover, the way it actively enhanced itself wasn’t like regular Evil Gods, who just needed their cultists to perform bloody sacrifices constantly. That method meant nothing to it. If it wanted to enhance itself, it had to fully utilize its own ‘characteristics,’ which were heavily influenced by Zheng Yichen’s impressions.

If Azure Wrath didn’t rely on the strength of the Magic Arms to passively enhance the strength of its ‘divine body,’ it could only use its own method: purifying evil and protecting those harmed by evil beings. This evil didn’t just mean bad people; it also included those who possessed evil power.

If the Demon Sword Sect was a clear stream among cults, then if it also created a ‘sect,’ it would definitely be the clearest stream among clear streams. Who would think that followers performing such actions were actually ‘cultists’?

“Let’s go. You’ve learned all you need to know. Do you still want to dismantle it?” Dan Marina glanced at Irene, who seemed hesitant, and forcefully pulled her away from the small town. The rest could be left for Azure Wrath to develop on its own. It had full intelligence, and its knowledge wasn’t lacking due to Zheng Yichen’s influence. It could handle many things independently.

After all, many of the Evil Gods that were defeated during their rituals had to struggle independently in the early stages, like luring followers, luring followers, and luring followers.

“……” Watching Irene leave completely, Azure Wrath sighed in relief. The pressure it felt facing two Witches was immense, especially that Witch who wanted to dismantle it from the inside out using magic!

Now that they were gone, it could finally relax. As for its future development, Dan Marina had chosen a great starting area for it, which already gave it a developmental advantage. For recruiting followers, it searched through the knowledge ‘bestowed’ upon it based on Zheng Yichen’s Spiritual Power.

As a clear stream among Evil Gods, it definitely couldn’t use a twisted and ugly image. It gained no benefit from doing things like brainwashing and bloody sacrifices. Although that method was the fastest way for regular Evil Gods to enhance themselves, upholding justice and protecting the weak… well, that definitely didn’t… no, no, it had great development potential…

In a landscape filled with cults, many people were dragged into the mire by cults. At the same time, many were badly harmed by cults but survived. If these people could overcome the shadows of their past, they would become a solid force against cultists. Presumably, after shaking off their shadows and gaining power, they would definitely devote themselves to the great cause of promoting ‘justice.’

As for those who couldn’t overcome their psychological shadows? That was fine. Just give them a little ‘guidance,’ right? Even though it was a clear stream, it was still an ‘Evil God’!

Helping those who, without intervention, would likely spend their entire lives under severe shadows to break free—those people would be too grateful… Oh, and about its appearance. Azure Wrath knew what it currently looked like. Look at my face… ahem. Anyway, it was a special ‘energy body.’ That’s why the inside of the hood appeared black from every angle, and even if the hood was removed, there was no head.

But as an Evil God, it could change its appearance. Plus, due to some of Zheng Yichen’s ‘impressions,’ it only had this current form, not just because of insufficient sacrifices… Evil Gods had a certain ‘idol’ component. So, since it was an ‘idol,’ if it didn’t go for ugly, scary, or frightening, then it could only go for beauty.

“I haven’t fully researched it yet,” Irene said, slightly displeased as she shook off Dan Marina’s hand after leaving the small town. She had collected a lot of previously unavailable information from Azure Wrath, but she wasn’t satisfied. With more thorough research, she was sure to obtain even more detailed and special information.

“Do you really plan to ignore Little Dragon and dismantle it?” Dan Marina rolled her eyes and retorted.

“I’ll make some compensation afterward.”

“Heh, but what about the rift it would cause?” Dan Marina smirked, unfazed. If someone else had created such a special being, and Irene really wanted to dismantle it for research, Dan Marina wouldn’t have said anything after Irene got the information she wanted. However, Azure Wrath had Zheng Yichen behind it. “Or do you want to create a special Evil God too?”

“…What do you know?” Irene glanced at Dan Marina. “I’m not interested in Evil Gods. I’m interested in the changes in their power!”

“How so?” Dan Marina’s interest was instantly piqued. When it came to understanding magic, the girl before her was the authority. So, it was normal for her to have researched something novel from Azure Wrath that Dan Marina couldn’t see. Even though her power wasn’t magic, her curiosity made her want to understand.

Irene snorted lightly. “Let’s talk somewhere else.”

A Magic Rune Array appeared beneath her feet, connected to Zheng Yichen’s house in Kaja City. As the array activated, Irene and Dan Marina disappeared from the spot. After teleporting back, Irene casually dispelled the lingering magical fluctuations around them. “Although those Magic Weapon Evil Gods are very special, they inherited some characteristics of the Evil God Ritual.”

Dan Marina thought for a moment, then clapped her hands. “You mean that chaotic, unordered extensibility?”

The most tempting aspect of the Evil God Ritual’s rune patterns was that chaotic, unordered extensibility. Even a seemingly complete pattern, when seen by others, was hard not to add a few strokes to, making it perfect in their minds. Then, when someone new saw it, they couldn’t help but remove some parts and add what they wanted.

That was the inclusively chaotic extensibility of the Evil God Ritual.

“Magic Arms have only a few additional effects, but that Magic Weapon Evil God extended many branch variations based on these effects. Just like Apophis’s original Bloodthirst Curse, that magic could no longer be called Bloodthirst Curse now. The magic currently embedded in the Azure Wrath Magic Arms hasn’t changed much, but it will definitely undergo drastic changes later.”

“So you… plan to develop some magic similar to the characteristics of the Evil God Ritual?” Dan Marina asked. She couldn’t deny Irene’s words. The changes in Apophis’s Bloodthirst Curse were real. Although when others used Apophis, the effect was still ‘Bloodthirst Curse,’ if that person understood Bloodthirst Curse well enough, they would definitely realize it was only part of the effect.

With Irene’s research results and Dan Marina’s collected information on the Demon Sword Sect, it was clear that, based on the power of the Magic Weapon Evil God, the Bloodthirst Curse within Apophis had extended into a new power system! The power of Blood Essence.

“It’s just a preliminary idea.” Irene frowned slightly. Stacking different types of magic was already extremely difficult. Wanting to challenge making magic have the chaotic extensibility of an Evil God Ritual? Was that even possible?

If she hadn’t seen an actual example, she wouldn’t have even thought about such a thing before, because it was simply impossible!

“Good luck.” Dan Marina grinned and patted Irene’s shoulder. She could guess some things about Zheng Yichen’s origins. His ability to break the rules was greatly related to his background. As for Irene, even though she was a Witch and had the power to break ‘rules,’ she was ultimately an insider…

“I feel like you’re cursing me.” Irene looked at Dan Marina with dead-fish eyes.

“Ha, isn’t it normal to be jealous of someone more ambitious and excellent than yourself?” Dan Marina smiled. “Alright, I’m going out. I wonder how Little Dragon’s progress is going.”

“You don’t know his current location?”

“I do, but why should I tell you?”

“……” Irene quickly rolled her eyes at Dan Marina, indicating she didn’t want to talk to this infuriating woman for now. Although she hadn’t collected more detailed information, what she gathered from Azure Wrath was enough for her to research for a while. For things with completely unseen results, researching required enduring great pressure. But with an actual example, even if it might be off by several eras, researching wouldn’t feel like bearing such great unknown pressure, because she knew that as long as she kept researching, she would eventually get such results…

Maybe her situation was a bit different, but she had more examples… She also had the Magic Weapon Contract and could easily perform an Evil God Ritual to obtain a Magic Weapon Evil God. She didn’t do it because she knew such actions were meaningless!

The Magic Arms themselves were with Zheng Yichen. Magic Weapon Evil Gods existed based on the Magic Arms. As long as the Magic Arms weren’t destroyed, even if one of their bodies was destroyed, their roots remained in the Magic Arms themselves, causing no substantial damage.

“Aww, so unlucky. How did we end up getting involved in such an event?” Partner One squinted, staring at a group of people in the distance. His expression was conflicted but also eager. Over ten days ago, they accidentally obtained a very special Magic Artifact. They got it from a half-dead person who was being chased.

That person was on the verge of death at the time. Perhaps because they helped him, he wanted to repay them before dying, so he actively gave them the item. The Magic Artifact was a ‘key.’ When mana was injected following a certain pattern, it projected a map. Such a thing immediately made them think of treasures, ruins, and such places.

At the time, he excitedly said they had hit the jackpot this time, good deeds get rewarded, and all that. However, they didn’t expect a tracking mark had been placed on the Magic Artifact. Not long after, they were exposed and even attracted big trouble, being chased by an organization. With such trouble, handling it themselves was difficult enough. If Dan Marina came back, they definitely couldn’t fully protect her safety.

So, Oss took the opportunity, under his partners’ cover, to contact Dan Marina specifically, telling her not to come back for a while. As for what happened, Oss was worried that if she knew, she would actively come looking. So he made up an excuse to fool her, planning to explain after they resolved this trouble…

He didn’t not think about everyone sitting down to talk things out. After all, no one had it easy. But those people showed up and tried to kill them from the start. Partner Three even got seriously injured because of it. Hatred had already formed. Peace talks? Not happening! He said his Blood Qi Blade hadn’t cut anyone in a long time.

In the back-and-forth battles, they gradually figured out some information. Fortunately, this organization wasn’t very large. Because they wanted the treasure for themselves, information about this Magic Artifact had been kept secret so far. As long as they could completely deal with the leaders and higher-ups of this organization, they could resolve this matter entirely, and then go treasure hunting!

This had been going on for over ten days…

“Alright, getting a treasure and attracting attention is normal, right?” Partner Three rolled his eyes. He was the one with the biggest grudge! That attack nearly killed him! Fortunately, they kept an eye on that group, so there would be a chance for revenge later.

Oss gripped his weapon without a word. The upcoming battle wouldn’t be easy. Using only surface strength might not be enough. They might have to use the power of Blood Essence… He hoped his partners wouldn’t develop any rift because of it…

“Hmm? There are already changes.” Sitting on a ‘dragon chair,’ Zheng Yichen leisurely swung his tail, holding a bucket of drink in his left hand and gently waving Azure Wrath in his right. Just like with Holy Spirit Hammer and Apophis, the Magic Rune Array embedded in this Magic Arms also began showing new changes. As for Apophis, Zheng Yichen now looked at it and didn’t know how to describe it. Was that really a Magic Rune Array? Anyway, he couldn’t understand it now.

Putting away Azure Wrath, Zheng Yichen picked up the Blueprint on the table nearby. The final product blueprint was ready. Today, he would rest well, recover his state, and start working in the best mental condition to create an unprecedented Alchemical Avatar.

“Hold back, I must hold back!”

A Ghost Maid watched Zheng Yichen’s crazy reaction of pressing his constantly twitching right claw, rolled her eyes slightly, pretended not to see anything, and floated away slowly.