57: Chapter 57 Rejecting the Bait of the True God and the Huge Resource Deal
The genetic blueprint of the Silverwing Zerg Cavalry slowly rotated within Su Chen's will, every detail shimmering with the luster of perfection and violence—a masterpiece that belonged to him alone.
Within the Overlord's Hall, the echoes of maniacal laughter that had just subsided seemed to cling to every inch of the cold metal walls. The entire Iron Hive trembled faintly under the Overlord's will.
This extreme joy born of creation was fermenting within Su Chen's spiritual core, brewing into an even greater ambition.
Right at that moment,
On his deity-exclusive interface, a circle of pale golden light suddenly expanded without warning, like a stone dropped into calm water.
A line of text, constructed from divine power and carrying a certain lofty, mysterious aura, slowly manifested.
[You are invited to join the 'Hunting True Gods' group (Anonymous/High-End)...]
[Group Announcement: This group gathers elite Demigods to share intelligence on hunting True Gods and facilitate mutual exchange. Record of successful hunts against lower-tier True Gods: 3.]
Each word seemed to contain a fatal temptation, enough to make the heart of any being struggling at the Demigod rank race.
But the moment Su Chen's will touched this line of text, it shifted from a boil to a deep freeze.
The corner of his mouth lifted in a soundless sneer.
'Hunting True Gods?'
'A bunch of Demigods?'
'If something that good really existed, they'd have already hoarded it in the shadows. Why would they recruit people all over the place?'
A vague, chilling image was instantly extracted from the memory fragments of the God of Shadows he had devoured.
It was a figure seated upon a throne of white bones, surrounded by billions of wailing souls. Its favorite game was to use 'cooperation' as bait, casting such golden, shimmering hooks.
Fishing those exceptionally talented, ambitious Demigods one by one into its pond.
Called 'teaming up,' but in reality, it was 'fattening pigs.'
Once these 'teammates' had grown to their plumpest moment through so-called joint operations, it would cast off its disguise, devouring them skin, bones, and all, transforming everything they were into yet another foundation stone beneath its immortal god throne.
The Lich King.
'A clumsy bait.'
Su Chen's will transformed into an icy command. Without the slightest hesitation, it precisely tapped on the virtual interface.
[Reject]
[Block]
Done in one smooth motion.
For the current Zerg Swarm, so-called allies and connections were nothing but meaningless noise on the path forward.
The Zerg Swarm needed no friends.
The Zerg Swarm needed only nourishment.
'Only resources swallowed into the belly are the eternal truth.'
Thoughts flashed like lightning.
Su Chen's figure within the Overlord's Hall abruptly faded, transforming into an intangible stream of data that instantly traversed the endless void and vanished within the divine realm.
...
A moment later.
City of Deities, Multiverse Trading Hall.
A figure silently appeared at the entrance of the Trading Hall.
His entire body was shrouded in a thick, impenetrable black mist. The mist seemed alive, slowly writhing, devouring all surrounding light and prying divine senses.
This was the perfect disguise of the [Thousand-Faced Zerg Gene], obscuring all of Su Chen's aura into an obscure, abyssal unknown.
He ignored the clamorous common vendor area where deities bustled like a marketplace and strode directly toward the depths.
There lay an area only those qualified for truly large-scale transactions were permitted to enter.
'Bulk Resource Trading Zone.'
The air here seemed heavier. The deities coming and going were few, but each exuded a deep, restrained aura, their divine light held within.
Su Chen walked up to an appraisal counter crafted from obsidian.
*Thud!*
A dull, crisp sound shattered the tranquility of the place.
A storage bracelet of an ancient style was casually tossed onto the counter. The motion was as if he were discarding not something precious, but a roadside pebble.
'Twelve hundred kilograms of high-purity mithril, sold as a lot.'
Su Chen's voice, muffled beneath the black mist, was low and hoarse, devoid of any emotion.
'Only Power Of Faith. Non-negotiable.'
Behind the counter, an old goblin with wrinkled skin and pointed ears, who had been dozing off, jolted awake at the sound.
He lifted his eyelids impatiently, carelessly grabbing the bracelet and probing it with his divine sense.
The next second.
The old goblin's originally murky eyes abruptly contracted to pinpricks!
His withered body trembled violently. The chair beneath him groaned under the strain, nearly sending him tumbling to the floor.
'Th-this... this... this purity?!'
The old goblin's voice suddenly shot up, sharp and distorted, a strange gurgling sound escaping his throat.
'Ninety-nine point nine percent?! And... a whole ton?!'
This shriek exploded like thunder, instantly drawing the attention of every deity in the trading zone.
Divine senses filled with shock, greed, and disbelief instantly focused on this small appraisal counter.
Mithril!
A strategic-grade divine metal!
An ordinary Demigod, spending a century of effort to mine a few kilograms, would carefully hide it in the deepest part of their divine kingdom, daring to chip off only a tiny piece when forging the core component of their life-bound divine artifact.
But this... using 'tons' as the unit, selling it off like cabbage...
This wasn't just unheard of; it was practically overturning their understanding of wealth!
'Is some Mining Deity clearing out their inventory?'
'Madness! Mithril of this purity needs almost no refinement; it can be used directly to forge the embryo of a primary divine artifact!'
'Over a ton... By my god, that's enough to arm an entire elite divine guard legion!'
Just as the surrounding murmurs grew louder and the scorching gazes almost seemed to pierce through the black mist,
A gentle, yet irresistibly authoritative divine light descended from the zone's entrance.
The temperature of the entire trading zone seemed to rise. Ethereal hymns of praise sounded faintly in the air.
A goddess clad in pristine divine robes, surrounded by holy light and hymns of praise, approached with elegant steps.
Her features were flawless, her expression solemn and sacred.
The Goddess of Light, Venus.
Her gaze passed over everyone, landing precisely on the unremarkable bracelet on the appraisal counter. Deep within her sacred eyes, a flash of determined light flickered and vanished.
'Esteemed sir.'
Venus's voice was like a heavenly melody, yet carried a natural air of superiority.
'I will take this entire batch of mithril. My angelic legion is in need of a new set of equipment.'
Su Chen's face, hidden beneath the black mist, showed no reaction to the arrival of this powerful primary deity. His will remained as still as an ancient well.
'Your offer.'
'One billion, four hundred sixty-four million Power Of Faith.'
Venus directly quoted an astronomical figure that would suffocate ninety-nine percent of the Demigods present on the spot.
'That is one hundred and twenty percent of the market premium. We can settle immediately.'
'Deal.'
Su Chen's reply was a single word.
The transaction was unbelievably fast.
Under the notarization of the Trading Hall's rules, a massive torrent of Power Of Faith instantly flooded into Su Chen's anonymous deity account.
Watching the string of zeros on his account skyrocket in an instant, Su Chen did not linger. He retrieved the now-empty bracelet, turned, and left.
Clean and decisive, without the slightest hesitation.
He did not leave the Trading Hall. Instead, he turned and walked in another direction.
That led to an even more desolate, almost neglected area—the Biological Resources Zone.
The air here was permeated with a mix of earth, pheromones, and a faint scent of blood. The sellers were mostly deities with obscure divine portfolios like Beast Gods or Gods of Proliferation. The place was deserted.
When Su Chen's figure appeared before a counter, the lizard-headed shopkeeper behind it was still dozing off.
'Bring out all your highest-tier Proliferation Divine Cards.'
Su Chen's low, hoarse voice startled the shopkeeper, jolting him wide awake.
'Huh? Oh, oh! Honored customer, please look, these are the best in our shop...'
'Less chatter.'
Su Chen directly cut off his pointless sales pitch.
His will swept precisely across the shelves.
'Third-tier [Raptor/Dinosaur Proliferation Divine Card], I want five.'
'Second-tier [Orc Proliferation Divine Card], I want twenty.'
'And these... these... and these. Pack them all up.'
'Total: seven hundred million Power Of Faith.'
Without even blinking, the numbers in Su Chen's deity account jumped violently once more.
The lizard-headed shopkeeper's hands trembled violently as he held the large stack of divine cards.
He had run this shop for centuries and had never seen such aCrazy buyer!
This wasn't buying proliferation cards!
This was using Power Of Faith to purchase the blueprint for ahuge army on the spot!
Su Chen stored the stack of divine cards brimming with immense life information. His form merged back into the black mist. Without a moment's pause, he turned and vanished into a corner of the Trading Hall.
Squandering money like dirt?
No.
This was called strategic investment.
These seven hundred million Power Of Faith, once invested, would bring about a geometric explosion in the numbers of the Zerg Swarm's combat strains.
What it would buy was the future steel tide that would sweep across the Demigod realm and crush all enemies!