75: Power and ambition

The following afternoon, Ye Chen received some good news.

After several days, the Second Expeditionary Force discovered another world.

The Second Expeditionary Force's luck hadn't been good previously; most of what they brought back from multiple explorations were meteorites or stars, all integrated by Ye Chen into one layer of the Abyss.

According to the Pioneer Team members' investigation, this world is named Sacchi World, a world filled with magic and faith.

Sacchi World originally had gods, but for unknown reasons, the gods collectively vanished a thousand years ago, and various divine arts also lost their original power.

Now, after a thousand years of development, the gods still haven't returned, and some human powerhouses unwilling to remain ordinary want to seize the opportunity to steal faith and claim godhood.

Consequently, various sects rose like bamboo shoots after rain.

The original sects on the continent have been gradually replaced by these emerging sects.

These sects do not coexist peacefully; they frequently wage war to compete for faith.

The common people are often forced to change their beliefs, and their lives are even more miserable.

After hearing this, Ye Chen couldn't help but feel a little apprehensive.

It was actually a world with gods.

Although he didn't know the strength of the gods there, they were at least high-level powerhouses.

After all, none who could achieve godhood were simple.

However, the gods haven't appeared for a thousand years, neglecting even their followers and churches. It seems they might have collectively perished.

With the continent plunged into chaos, it also seemed like an opportunity.

Currently, the Abyss's army is conquering Ailan World and cannot spare forces for now.

Moreover, according to the Abyssal Will's investigation, Sacchi World's World Will is relatively complete, and a large-scale invasion must be preceded by weakening it.

Ye Chen decided to first let the Pioneer Team establish a foothold and try their best to gather information about the gods.

If they could take the opportunity to weaken other sects, that would naturally be even better.

Although the gods haven't appeared for a thousand years, they might be hiding in some dark corner; it's always better to be cautious.

Having made his decision, Ye Chen dispatched some additional personnel to the Second Expeditionary Force for expanding territory.

Considering that the Otherworld is currently undergoing a faith war, the Archbishop seemed like a good candidate.

He had many years of experience with sects, and those who could rise to Archbishop usually had quite cunning minds.

He also transferred the original Church Knights and Monks back from Ailan World to cooperate with the Archbishop's actions.

Additionally, he resurrected a Sky Knight to serve as a high-end combat force supporting the Archbishop.

These people had all undergone the baptism of The Primordial Sea, so there was no need to worry about loyalty.

Then, he dispatched two hundred Shadow Assassins and one thousand Blood Bats to accompany them.

As for other monsters, Ye Chen did not arrange for them.

To avoid arousing the World Will's vigilance and triggering a mass attack by the natives.

Since undergoing the baptism of The Primordial Sea, the Archbishop's faith in Ye Chen had reached a fanatical level.

Upon receiving the mission, he dared not delay and set off with the subordinates Ye Chen assigned him.

Arriving in the Otherworld and feeling the strong religious atmosphere of this realm, the Archbishop had an idea.

Not long after, in an unknown small town, a religion named "Abyss Church" took root here.

The church's miracles were simple and crude: as long as you made sufficient contributions, you could obtain eternal life!

That's right, you could obtain eternal life witnessed by countless people, and also gain powerful strength comparable to professionals.

No matter how you died, or how many times you died, as long as you made sufficient contributions, you could return to the world under the Archbishop's summoning!

This completely ignited the enthusiasm of the people throughout Sacchi World.

Other sects boasted about ascending to the Divine Kingdom after death, receiving the Lord's favor, and becoming the Lord's servants.

But those were just one-sided claims; they had never witnessed them.

This Abyss Church was different; their eternal life was real.

Even demigods among the professionals dared not claim they could live forever.

Now, by joining the Abyss Church and making sufficient contributions, even an ordinary person could gain eternal life and acquire enough strength to change their destiny...

Ye Chen naturally didn't know that his seemingly unintentional arrangement would cause this force named "Abyss Church" to rise in the Otherworld and sweep across the entire continent!

...

On the other side, Cain wasn't idle either; he was leading his army in a sweeping advance.

Apollo didn't catch up to the Sky Knight and the Emperor, and returned dejectedly with the Banshees.

Apollo landed on the Desert Dragon's back, glanced at the gilded throne, then looked at Cain who was sitting beside it, and asked curiously:

"What's the meaning of this? You got a chair but aren't sitting in it yourself? Is it for me?"

Saying this, he walked towards the throne, wanting to try how it felt.

Cain quickly raised his hand to stop him, saying:

"This is a gift I dedicated to the Lord of the Abyss, representing the supreme power of this world, the most precious thing in this world, and a testament to the Lord of the Abyss's conquest of this world!"

Apollo ignored Cain's attempt to stop him and plopped down onto it.

He then leaned against the throne's carved-out backrest, and even placed his left foot directly on the throne.

Hearing Cain's words, Apollo was full of disdain.

"This piece of junk is the most precious thing? Then this world isn't worth having! If you have this much free time, you might as well sacrifice a few more souls; maybe the Lord of the Abyss will give you another look."

Cain didn't pay attention to Apollo's words but looked at the throne with heartache; he himself hadn't dared to sit on it, yet this guy had defiled it.

"You don't understand. Although this thing's inherent value isn't high, the meaning it represents is extraordinary. This is the symbol of the World Lord!"

Apollo scoffed.

"World Lord? Just the native Emperor of a small world, wasn't he beaten so badly he ran away clutching his head? Only you would consider him the World Lord."

"We are destined to conquer countless worlds in the future; this is just a small pebble by the roadside. Look back in a few years, and you'll realize how ridiculous your actions today were."

Hearing Apollo's words, Cain seemed to have some realization. Was he perhaps valuing power too much?

The Abyss's appetite has never been satisfied by just one world; its goal is the entire myriad of worlds.

In the future, the Abyss is destined to be enemies with countless worlds, and there will naturally be more than just one commander.

The Apollo before him seemed carefree, but his vision was also far-reaching; he was bound to be a commander in the future as well.

Being so eager for quick success and showing off like a peacock displaying its feathers might not necessarily be a good thing in the eyes of the Lord of the Abyss.

So be it. The priority should still be completing the Lord of the Abyss's missions; everything else is just extra.

Thinking this, Cain sincerely bowed to Apollo to show his gratitude.

Apollo was a bit puzzled but also felt the atmosphere was strange.

So he suddenly flapped his wings and soared into the sky.

After Apollo left, Cain gently stroked the gilded throne and finally couldn't resist sitting on it.

There was no feeling of power descending upon him, no sense of glory gathered upon his person, and certainly no feeling of his soul being elevated.

It wasn't even as comfortable as an ordinary seat; sitting on it for a long time during the bumpy march even made his backside ache a little...

It seems he'll need to get a "butt cushion" later.

Cain thought to himself.