Chapter 667
Identity Exposed?
Before Silova could finish speaking, Erebus, the god of darkness, shuddered, as if recalling something, and a visible fear appeared on his face.
It seems that Silova's unfinished conjecture precisely struck a chord with a corner of Erebus's heart, a corner of memories buried with endless terror.
Erebus's outburst of fear was seen by the gods, further confirming Silova's speculation.
Soon, a slightly hoarse chuckle rang out from another direction.
Fjorn, the god of fire and magma, swept his fiery gaze over the distraught Erebus, then glanced at the silent god of prophecy Madora, before finally settling back on Cohen on the throne below:
"Someone who could make our beautiful and noble Lady Dawn so concerned, even going so far as to personally descend and forcefully protect..."
He deliberately dragged out his words, looking mockingly at Erebus's still trembling dark avatar:
"Who else could it be besides 'that one'?"
He paused, his gaze finally settling on Erebus, his tone almost overflowing with sarcasm:
"No wonder he has the courage and confidence to challenge the 'past incarnation' of the God of Darkness."
After all, darkness... originates from shadows!
Silova, the god of the sky and storms, continued:
"This is a good thing, because then..."
Sirova's electric eyes glanced at Cohen, who sat enthroned on the Shadow Throne below, then swept meaningfully over the silent Goddess of Light, Aetheril, before finally settling on the extremely grim-faced God of Darkness, Erebus. The mockery in her voice deepened:
"Not only does the overall strength of our divine realm seem to be greatly enhanced."
Our Lady of Dawn can finally put down the stone that has weighed on her heart for tens of thousands of years and pick up her almost forgotten divine duties of 'beauty' and 'love' again, right?
"It's been a long time since I've seen our Lord of Light, like a true goddess of dawn and beauty, smile from the bottom of his heart."
His words, though seemingly a jab at Aetherial, were in fact a sharp jab at Erebus's deepest fears.
“Silova is right.”
"Indeed, it is something to celebrate."
"Hehe, this is interesting, this is going to be interesting."
"After being silent for tens of thousands of years, it's time for some new changes."
As Sirova made it clear, the other main gods all let out cryptic chuckles or briefly echoed her sentiments.
No deity explicitly identifies "that one" specifically.
No deity voluntarily uttered the taboo name "God of Shadows," which had been sealed away for tens of thousands of years.
But every glance, every tone of voice, every meaningful pause clearly showed that they all knew and understood.
Several powerful gods seemed to have made a pact to watch the drama unfold.
They exchanged meaningful glances, a faint smile playing on their lips, and leisurely adjusted their poses, as if waiting for a sure-fire show to begin.
One of the main characters on the stage is undoubtedly the young legend who has just been crowned below.
Meanwhile, the gazes of the other protagonist... all drifted toward Erebus, the god of darkness.
They can ignore it; they can just watch the show.
But Erebus could not.
He absolutely cannot!
It was like the deepest nightmare suddenly becoming reality, like a long-healed fatal scar being ripped open, or like the Sword of Damocles that had been hanging over our heads for thousands of years finally beginning to fall slowly.
The God of Shadows... that name, that being, that figure that once haunted most of his divine life like a nightmare... is dead!
They have indeed been dead for tens of thousands of years!
The divine fire was extinguished, the divine kingdom collapsed, faith was severed, and even the divine office and its concepts were almost forgotten by the world.
Now, suddenly, without warning, a human has emerged and, at such a "trivial" moment of advancing to the Legendary level, has actually condensed the Shadow Throne, a legendary artifact that points directly to the origin of the Shadow Rules.
It also triggered such a pure and vast shadow phenomenon, especially since it has a close relationship with the Goddess of Light, Aetheril!
Just as the fire elemental and magma god Fjorn Blaze had just "kindly" reminded him—he, Erebus, although a senior chief god, was also a major figure among the many gods.
But ever since that guy, the God of Shadows, appeared out of nowhere and successfully became a god...
He was always the one being suppressed!
Rule suppression!
Desperate rule suppression!
"Darkness" originates from "shadow".
The shadow is a more fundamental, more essential concept that is closer to the original "nothingness" and "back side" of the world.
Darkness is more like a manifestation and branch of shadow in the material world.
Just as a shadow is always attached to an object, many of the powers of darkness are naturally diminished and weakened in the face of the essence of shadow.
When the two rules collide, Erebus could clearly feel the inherent stagnation and powerlessness.
This wasn't even the most frustrating thing for him.
What he found most unbearable was the almost irreconcilable conflict between him and the God of Shadow.
The root of this discord is so simple it's laughable, yet so profound it's unsolvable—
Darkness and light are opposites.
This is a fundamental setting imprinted in the underlying rules of the world.
He is Erebus, the god of darkness.
And Aether, the goddess of light, is the ruler of light.
They were born to be mortal enemies, sworn adversaries whose entanglement will last until the ends of the earth.
However, the God of Shadows, that damned fellow, is not only the ruler of shadows, but also the well-known lover of the Goddess of Light, Aetheril.
It was the only object for which the cold, hardened heart of the Dawn Lady had ever softened and shone!
And so, things became extremely disgusting.
As the lover of the goddess of light, the god of shadow naturally disliked Erebus and was extremely happy to cause him trouble whenever possible.
Unfortunately, due to the constraints of the rules, Erebus usually doesn't gain much advantage in direct conflicts.
That feeling of frustration, that anger, that feeling of being suppressed by someone using methods that naturally restrain him, permeated his long years of coexisting with the God of Shadow, becoming one of the most unbearable nightmares of his divine life.
Therefore, Erebus was secretly quite happy when news of the fall of the God of Shadows arrived.
The mountain that had been pressing down on us is finally gone.
Tens of thousands of years of "good days" had almost made him forget that feeling of frustration.
But now...
Erebus stared intently at Cohen, who sat on the throne below, and at the towering Shadow Throne behind him.
Fear is growing.
Anger is burning.
The killing intent was boiling.
Erebus needed to determine whether this person was indeed the reincarnation of the God of Shadow, given that so much time had passed.
He had never heard of any powerful deity who, after nearly ten thousand years of divine fire being extinguished, divine kingdom collapsing, and the chain of faith being completely severed, could rise from the dead and return to the stage in a mortal body.
Even among the oldest and first generation of gods whose divine power had reached its limit and whose divine duties had been abandoned by the times, none of them were able to "reincarnate" again after ten thousand years of extinction.
Erebus looked toward Madora, the goddess of prophecy:
"Your Majesty the Prophet, is that human king below... is he... is he the reincarnation of the former God of Shadows?"
It took nearly 10,000 years for him to successfully reincarnate?
Is such a possibility truly possible in this world?
Madora shook her head:
"At least, from the tributaries and fragments of the river of fate that I can access, I cannot discern his true identity."
Besides, I wasn't very familiar with that God of Shadows.
His existence, his trajectory, even back then, was often shrouded in the 'shadow' he himself represented, making it difficult for fate to clearly discern his true nature.
Madora was right; before his fall, the God of Shadows was a renowned loner and mystic among the gods.
He was elusive and reclusive, and apart from his well-known and sensational love affair with the goddess of light, Aetheril, he had almost no deep friendships with any other deities.
His power, "shadow," inherently possesses the characteristics of concealment, hiding, and unconventional observation.
The power of prophecy and fate often becomes obscure when it comes to him.
Madora turned her head slightly to look at Aetheril, the Goddess of Light, who was intently gazing at Cohen below, and added:
"If you want a definite answer, I'm afraid you'll have to ask Ms. Chenxi yourself."
She was the only one among the gods who truly understood the God of Shadow.
At this moment, the Goddess of Light seemed to be completely immersed in her own world.
She did not respond to Madora's pointed words, ignored Erebus's piercing gaze, or even heed the teasing remarks of the other gods.
Sometimes, silence is the best answer.
The last glimmer of hope in Erebus's heart was extinguished.
Aetherel's almost instinctive protective instincts were practically a blatant admission!
It's him!
It must be him!
That ever-present, haunting god of shadows, he's back! He's really back!
Erebus exuded undisguised fear and rage; at this moment, even Vilekis no longer mattered to him.
Seeing this, Etherel, who was not far away, instantly locked onto the agitated Erebus, wary of him resorting to desperate measures.
The God of Law and Justice, Risen Xian, spoke slowly:
"Your Majesty, Eternal Night, whoever he was in the past, whatever greatness he may have been..."
His gaze swept over Cohen below, and he calmly analyzed:
"Right now, at this very moment, he is just a mortal, a human superhuman who has just stepped into the realm of legend."
There was no concentrated divinity, no accumulated divine power, no well-managed divine kingdom, and even... no complete memories and power to be revived.
We all know that even a powerful god, after falling from grace, can be reincarnated in some incredible way. To regain their former power and ascend their former throne... the difficulty and the insurmountable barriers they need to overcome are no less than, and perhaps even far greater than, retracing the path to godhood.
otherwise……"
Ryson Xian's voice carried a hint of cold mockery, not directed at Erebus, but pointing to a harsh reality:
"Couldn't those first-generation gods who, in the long river of time, were forced to their end due to the exhaustion of their divine power, the depletion of their faith, and the replacement of their divine duties, all easily make a comeback and regain their power through the method of 'reincarnation'?"
If that's the case, why bother caring so much about his past identity at this moment?
Whether he can return to his divine throne in the future remains to be seen.
Now, he is simply Cohen Corleone, a newly crowned legend.
Ryson Hines pointed out the key point—Cohen is currently too weak for him to regain his divine status, making it an extremely difficult task.
Dwelling on the past is pointless.
That's the logic.
However, fear is often irrational.
Hatred, especially hatred born from the pent-up resentment and fear accumulated over tens of thousands of years, cannot be persuaded by simple rational analysis.
The whispers among the gods, the pointed probing, the cold rational analysis, and the surging killing intent had no effect on the center of the plain, nor on the figure sitting atop the throne of shadow.
For Cohen, everything outside—whether it was the attention of the gods in the sky, the awe of countless powerful figures on the plains, or the confrontational and turbulent dialogue between the gods—became insignificant at this moment.
His entire being was immersed in the surging new power he had gained after his transformation.
The threshold of legend has already been crossed.
The essence of life, the level of the soul, the source of power—everything has undergone a radical transformation.
He could clearly feel the legendary power flowing within him.
They are no longer the scattered magic or other forms of energy of the past, but a completely new power imprinted with the rules he understands and controls.
This power supported the Shadow Throne beneath him, nurtured the scepter of ten thousand weapons in his hand, and echoed the dragon crown above his head.
The three legendary objects, like extensions and symbols of his power and path, are closely connected to his soul, breathing and sharing its breath.
Just as he was carefully experiencing and adapting to this new level of power, a familiar mechanical voice resounded deep within his consciousness:
Advance to Legendary status to gain the opportunity to draw enhanced runes.
The advancement in the sequence gave Cohen another opportunity to extract runes.
A three-tiered, multicolored rune frame appeared before my eyes:
The first rune, with its earthy weight and rocky gray-white color, has patterns resembling a combination of muscles and mountains, exuding a pure and savage sense of power and presence.
[Goliath (Prismatic Quality): Increases size and all attributes by 20%.]
The second rune was crystal clear, as if carved from the purest crystal, with iridescent light refracting within it.
【Pearl Gauntlets (Prismatic Quality): Skills can crit, increasing damage by 145%.】
The third rune, with its dark metallic luster and patterns resembling intertwined scepters and chains, is topped with a scarlet gem:
[Baron's Hand (Prismatic Quality): Strengthens nearby soldiers, granting them 33% Adaptive Force.]
Three prismatic runes, three completely different directions of powerful enhancement.
Cohen's gaze swept quickly over the three runes.
The Goliath Giant offers a simple and direct boost to attributes and size, directly enhancing his base stats. This is useful in any situation, especially for a character like him whose core strength lies in melee combat.
The Jeweled Gauntlets maximize burst damage and unpredictability (critical hits), resulting in terrifying damage once triggered.
The Baron's Hand strengthens legions and factions, greatly enhancing the overall combat power of their subordinate forces.
Almost without hesitation, Cohen's consciousness locked onto the [Goliath] rune that exuded a powerful aura.
Increased size means a comprehensive improvement in strength, defense, vitality, and even attack range.
A 20% all-around attribute bonus is an extremely significant improvement at the Legendary tier.
This can directly make up for the shortcoming that he has just broken through and his attributes have not yet been fully settled and stabilized, making his foundation more solid.
Cohen chose Goliath, and then spent a huge amount of gold to buy the other two runes from the rune library.
With the complete fusion of the three prismatic runes, Cohen felt that his control over his own power had improved even further.
With a slight thought, the familiar attribute panel unfolded in his mind.
The style and content of the panel are completely different from before the breakthrough:
Name: Cohen Corleone
Race: Human
Age: 24
[Talent: Child of the Mist]
[Exceptional Profession: Mystic, Dragon Seal Weapon Master.]
[Job Rank: Legendary (Lower Tier)]
[Passive Skill: Weapon Mastery]
Legendary Realm:
1. Unlimited Blade Works.
Summoning of All Weapons: With a thought, any weapon you know or desire within your domain, regardless of its form, material, or legend, can be summoned at will. You can even briefly communicate with the river of time to summon "projections" of legendary weapons with true names from myths and epics, allowing them to unleash a portion of their original power.
All weapons confiscated: When an enemy enters this area, all their weapons, magical equipment, and even armor formed from energy will be confiscated.
Domain Suppression: Within "Unlimited Blade Works", adversaries will suffer from the terrifying killing intent and rule suppression of countless weapons.
Domain: Dragon Kingdom.
Dragon Power: Gain the blessing of pure dragon power originating from the source of your bloodline, greatly enhancing strength, physique, mana regeneration, and elemental resistance. Partial dragonification is possible, granting you dragon characteristics.
Dragon's Might: Unleashing its domain, the dragon's might is like a prison. Enemies will suffer pressure from the soul level, originating from a higher life form, significantly reducing their strength, speed, and reaction time. This effect is particularly pronounced against dragonborn and sub-dragons.
Ancestral Dragon's Blessing: When facing a deadly threat or under certain conditions, one can consume a large amount of power to summon the phantom of the progenitor dragon, gaining a brief state of invincibility and immunity to all forms of damage and negative effects.
Domain: Shadow Descends.
Lord of Shadows: You are the embodiment of shadow. All shadow creatures, energies, and even concepts must bow before you. You can easily command, control, and devour them.
End of All Things: Unleashes the power of the Shadow Planes into the mortal realm, filling the area with pure annihilation and destruction. It inflicts a persistent and difficult-to-dispel shadow erosion on enemies, weakening their existence until they are reduced to nothingness.
[Runes: Add Fuel to the Fire, Might, Dexterity, Scope, Frozen Foundation, Banner of Command, Blade Waltz, War Symphony, Shrink Ray, Goliath, Jeweled Gauntlets, Baron's Hand]
[Equipment: Ghostcrab, Power Drink, Guardian Dagger]
On the panel, the six basic attribute columns—Strength, Agility, Constitution, Spirit, Willpower, and Charisma—have completely disappeared.
At the legendary rank, the numerical values of basic attributes are no longer sufficient to accurately measure the true combat strength of an entity.
Instead, what matters is the strength, characteristics, and depth of control over the rules of the legendary realm.
This is the core standard for measuring the strength of legendary powerhouses.
The rule skills that were originally at the ninth rank of the sequence, such as control of shadows and divine protection, have now been integrated into the three major domains, and can be released more freely.
Cohen slowly opened his eyes and calmly scanned the various expressions on the faces of the people on the plain—Roosevelt Harper, who was speechless with shock; Gnus Tang, whose eyes still held horror; Drummond Quinn, whose expression was solemn; and "The Grave," whose emotions were unreadable.
Then he slowly began to speak:
"Okay, I'm ready."
He tilted his head slightly, his gaze seemingly passing over Roosevelt and the others, landing further away where the god of darkness, Erebus, resided, and then said:
"You guys, are you going to... who's going first?"
The calm words, however, struck like thunder in the hearts of Roosevelt Harper, Gnus Don, Drummond Quinn, and others, jolting them back from the extreme shock and bewilderment of witnessing Cohen's incredible breakthrough and the condensation of three legendary artifacts.
Back off?
It's impossible.
Just now, witnessed by the gods and watched by representatives of countless forces, they personally agreed to the bet.
Whether it was Roosevelt's promise of vast mineral resources from the Imperial House of Nobles, Drummond's promise of endless sea island resources, or Grenus Tang's promise not to interfere in the struggle for the Eastern Region throne.
They all left them with no way out but to give up.
Not to mention the Black Tomb crew, if Cohen were to defeat them, under the witness of the gods, none of them would be able to escape!
If that were the case, Black Tomb's millennia-old foundation on the Demon Tide Continent would be completely destroyed.
With their own worries, the group exchanged glances and saw the resolute look in each other's eyes.
They must fight to the death.
Fortunately, the ones they found were not ordinary legendary figures at the peak of their careers.
Rather, it is the small group of people who truly stand at the pinnacle of the legendary tier. They are the elite of combat, the best in their respective paths, and powerful individuals with illustrious reputations or uncanny methods.
Of course, each of them was also a former champion of the Legendary Division of the All Nations Nobles Martial Arts Festival, and was the strongest among their generation.
Therefore, no matter how "heaven-defying" Cohen seems now, no matter how terrifying the legendary artifacts he has condensed are, and no matter how astonishing the gods' discussions are, they are still very confident.
No matter how monstrous Cohen Corleone is, he has only just broken through to the legendary level, and his realm is not yet fully stable, so his use of power is bound to be rusty.
Legendary-level battles primarily rely on each player's understanding of the rules of their respective domains. The four warriors they dispatched, having immersed themselves in the peak of the legendary realm for many years, are experienced, ruthless, and more than capable of compensating for Cohen's extraordinary talent! (End of Chapter)