Ilúvatar smiled and guided Lin Xiang to the ring closest to the center, where a radiant throne slowly rose.
The moment she sat on the throne, Lin Xiang understood everything about this place.
"Welcome, young goddess."
The creator gods, shrouded in brilliance, spoke in unison, "Leave your mark, and we will guide your path!"
A fluctuating symbol lit up on the throne, spreading along the seat like a vein. Lin Xiang felt her vision broaden to an unprecedented extent! The endless sea of chaos seemed to be held in her hands, examined closely. Just as Lin Xiang was immersed in this wondrous feeling, unwilling to break free, a phantom figure appeared on the vacant throne beside her.
"Ao!"
Lin Xiang immediately sobered up, turned to meet Ao's gaze, and returned to her body before Ao could speak.
In the divine hall, Lin Xiang opened her eyes. Fortunately, she had escaped quickly, or she would have been exposed.
Looking at her refreshed watch, the newly appeared mission panel brought a surge of joy to her heart. Now she could also find reinforcements like Ao. httpδ:/m.kuAisugg.nět
[You have obtained a exclusive mission: Annihilate the Pursuers
Mission Details: Drow elves who worship Lolth are hunting their kin who follow the Dark Maiden. Protect the followers of the Dark Maiden as they escape the Underdark, and you will be richly rewarded.
Mission Reward: A wisp of pure divinity
Failure Penalty: None]
Before Lin Su could ask what was going on, Lin Xiang kicked him into a portal, sending him to the Underdark.
Avandor, the Elven Realm.
Chauntea, the Earth Mother, and Angraddas, the Elven Queen, joined the conversation between Corellon and Tyche. Talona, who had fallen to Tyche, had won Chauntea's favor. Chauntea was a very approachable goddess, but her pride as a deity of great power prevented her from extending an olive branch to Tyche as Corellon and Silvanus had. After showing some appreciation, Chauntea turned her attention away from Tyche.
After Corellon agreed to support Eilistraee's followers, the Dark Maiden and Tyche left Avandor together.
Eilistraee was busy relocating her followers. The death of each follower broke her heart. Taking advantage of Lolth's ascension, she focused all her strength on confronting her brother, Vhaeraun.
After parting ways with Eilistraee, Tyche headed for Silvanus's realm in the Beastlands. The Oak Father was delighted by Tyche's prompt acceptance of his invitation and welcomed her arrival with his daughter, Mielikki, the Ranger Goddess.
Unlike other human deities, the nature deities had very loose churches, lacking a sufficiently powerful pontiff to unify all their worship. Therefore, despite having many allies within the good-aligned pantheons, the nature deities could only barely hold their own against the rage deities.
"Welcome."
Silvanus welcomed Tyche into his divine hall. Fresh fruits were arranged all over the table.
Tyche wasted no time. After Mielikki left, she immediately asked, "Have you chosen to join Ao's side?"
"I have no desire to meddle in the game between Ao and the gods."
Silvanus, assuming Corellon had informed Tyche of these inside matters, shook his head and said, "In the cycles of nature, sprouting and withering are both inevitable stages. The growth of plants is destined to endure storms. I will follow the arrangements of nature's will and calmly accept whatever comes."
"On the grounds of our shared essence, I must warn you."
Tyche's tone was serious. "Danger approaches you!"
"Are you referring to Talos and his rage deities?"
"No!" Tyche didn't keep him in suspense. "The Storm God is your old rival, and I believe you can handle him. However, if your allies betray your trust at a crucial moment, not only you, but all the nature gods could perish!"
Silvanus also became serious. Although this was only their second meeting, his trust in Tyche was not low. Hearing Tyche speak so solemnly, he couldn't help but feel a sense of crisis.
Tyche continued her performance, "The war between the Orc pantheon and the Human pantheon is imminent, and your most trusted allies, the Elven gods, are currently overwhelmed dealing with Lolth's ascension! It can be imagined that any help Corellon might offer will be hindered by Lolth, making this the perfect time to strike against you!"
"I don't understand." Silvanus's eyes held deeper confusion. "The rage deities are also part of the Human pantheon. They cannot remain uninvolved. Why would they risk angering all the human gods to attack me?"
"What if the first to attack you isn't Talos? The Storm God despises you, and it wouldn't be strange for him to take advantage of the situation! In that case, the human gods wouldn't direct their anger towards him."
"If all the nature gods perish, under the pressure of the Orc pantheon, who would dare to oppose a powerful deity capable of killing you for the sake of your fallen brethren?"
Tyche hinted, but Silvanus smiled and shook his head. "As you said, the Orc gods and the Human gods are about to engage in a great war, and Lolth, now a powerful deity, is being contained by the Elven pantheon. If someone were to attack me, it would require at least several powerful deities to act together. However, all the powerful deities have opposing rivals in their factions, and they wouldn't miss such an opportunity to strike at their opponents."
"The relationships between the gods are complex. The fall of any single powerful deity would have a significant impact on their respective factions. Who would dare to take such a risk?"
"That's why I said it would be an ally you trust who makes the move." Tyche picked up a grape and peeled it. "The evil pantheons would be delighted to see infighting among the good. Corellon, while dealing with the Spider Queen, also has to guard against the Orc gods and has no time to rescue you if you fall into crisis."
"Why do you believe I am at a disadvantage?" Silvanus was growing somewhat displeased. "Chauntea, the Earth Mother, shares a border with my realm. She would not stand idly by."
Tyche looked directly into Silvanus's eyes. "Let me finish."
"You remain outside the native deities and Ao, which also means you will be ostracized by them. If someone were to eliminate uncontrollable factors like you before the official war begins, do you think they would break their silence?"
"Someone has already found a way to bypass Ao's restrictions and become an ancient god. The value of neutral parties like you will only diminish. Who can maintain their sanity when tempted by the prospect of becoming an ancient god? Can you?"
Silvanus fell silent. After a long pause, the Oak Father shook his head and said, "I cannot."
"Then you must make a choice."
Tyche lowered her head and sighed. "Either acknowledge Ao's rule or join the ancient gods' resistance organization. Otherwise, your only option is to leave this world and try your luck elsewhere, but you should know that the outcome of doing so would be no better than participating in the war."