Lord of Prayer

’I have no fucking desire to be a male mom! Besides, what kind of thing would even be born from my Body of Steel Melting state? A block of iron?’

’Star Association, do something! Save me!’

As if in response to the silent screams of countless people, a gentle, healing light bloomed across the battlefield. Wherever it passed, the bulging bellies quickly shrank.

Zhou Chen immediately ended his corrupted state and accepted the baptism of the healing light. His bulging abdomen rapidly returned to normal. He let out a breath, still shaken.

’That healing light seems to be a Secret Technique from the Life Church... To counter the Divine Power emanating from a Demigod, you’d have to be a Demigod yourself, right? Or have the blessing of the Goddess of Life...’

The more Zhou Chen thought about it, the stranger his expression became. ’How did this fight suddenly escalate into a Divine War?’

He didn’t have time to ponder. Suddenly, the ground beneath his feet vanished, and he fell through an Any Door that had appeared below him. He landed on a wide platform where countless Star Association staff were busily at work, opening more and more Any Doors to bring in one dust-covered Ascender after another.

"This is..." Zhou Chen froze for a moment. Then he saw Li Xiye nearby, her face dark and sullen. He deactivated his Body of Steel Melting and walked over. "What’s wrong?"

"The battle is escalating to a level we can’t interfere with, so the Star Association has initiated an emergency evacuation procedure to move everyone out... I haven’t even killed that old bitch yet." Li Xiye clicked her tongue in annoyance, looking at the endless stream of Any Doors appearing.

She said gravely, "A Divine War is about to begin."

A Divine War... Zhou Chen’s breath caught in his throat.

’To be honest, the Star Association’s actions were perfectly justified. Just the radiating aftershocks of Divine Power leaking from the Divine War Ruins had made everyone experience pregnancy. And that was considered one of the less dangerous effects. If a more dangerous type of Divine Power were to leak out, the losses would be catastrophic. Clearing the battlefield directly was the best choice.’

"Mr. Zhou Chen, Ms. Li Xiye, please come to the command room." Just then, a voice called out over the broadcast. The two exchanged a look and walked toward a staff member.

Following the staffer, the two passed through layer after layer of barriers and soon arrived at the heavily guarded command room.

The command room was a flurry of activity, with people constantly coming and going. The two found a corner where they wouldn’t be in the way. Zhou Chen scanned the room. The faces were all unfamiliar, but each person was clearly an important, high-ranking member.

Suddenly, his gaze fixed on the large screen. It was a live broadcast of the battlefield and, through a special Alchemy Exploration Mirror, it was showing the scene inside the Divine War Ruins.

Two figures were locked in a deadly battle at the center of the battlefield.

A man and a woman.

The man was wreathed in towering golden flames. Instruments showed the temperature of his flames reached a staggering five thousand degrees. He was like a dazzling golden sun, melting everything around him.

The woman was entwined with all sorts of plants. She was the culprit who had made everyone "pregnant." With every move, countless Extraordinary Plants grew wildly, obeying her command and lunging to kill her enemy. Even the man’s belly would occasionally swell, or he would sprout extra, misshapen limbs.

On the screen, the analysis instruments displayed their findings: both of them were marked in conspicuous scarlet—Demigod!

But right after, another entry appeared below their information. The instruments had detected a new Demigod!

Looking closely, one could see many imperceptible shadows on the battlefield where the two Demigods were fighting. The fluctuations they emitted were extremely faint, but they were definitely there. Both Demigods were also attacking those shadows, which was enough to prove that another Demigod was hiding on the battlefield.

Three Demigods...

Zhou Chen sucked in a cold breath. ’The scale of these Divine War Ruins isn’t actually that large... Its total area is only a little bigger than the North Carolina Capital, yet it holds three Demigods. And this is just the tip of the iceberg of that world-ending war...’

From this tiny glimpse, he seemed to see the tragic and immense war of ages past.

"Hahahahaha, the abandoned Gods really do exist!"

At that moment, the "Pope’s" voice echoed from the screen. He appeared high above the battlefield, using an unknown Extraordinary Artifact to resist the ripples of Divine Power. At his appearance, the three Demigods on the battlefield simultaneously stopped fighting. They looked up, frowning in confusion.

Invisible Spiritual Power spread out as the woman covered in plants questioned him with hostility, "Who are you?"

"You may call me the ’Pope’," the Pope said with a smile.

"Such arrogance," the man who controlled the golden flames sneered. "Not even the Pope from the Vatican would dare speak to me in that tone."

The Demigod hidden in the shadows said nothing, merely watching in silence.

"That was true in that era. You were Gods who reigned above all. But, you three, times have changed."

The Pope spread his arms, smiling at them. "Welcome to two centuries in the future!"

"Two centuries in the future?" The female Demigod wrapped in plants frowned. Her Spiritual Power spread out, extending to the Abyssalized zone outside the Divine War Ruins. Her expression gradually grew solemn.

"You didn’t notice? You really didn’t notice??!!" The Pope shouted in disbelief, as if he had discovered something incredible. His expression was priceless.

’These three Demigods... they didn’t even realize they had been frozen in time for two whole centuries!!!’

’Such immense power, such a miracle...’

’Who could have done this!’

"You’re too noisy!" The Golden Flame Demi-God glared, and scorching golden flames erupted on the Pope’s body.

But the Pope was unharmed. A halo of Divine Power rippled out, protecting him within it. It was the protection granted to him by the Fallen Paradise Demi-God.

"You three, time is limited, so I’ll be brief."

The Pope dropped his playful demeanor and announced in a solemn voice, "The old era you belong to was destroyed two centuries ago. This is now the vibrant Extraordinary Era. Your existence is a great threat to the people of this world, and the Star Association will never spare you, the culprits who once led the world to ruin. So, if you wish to live, please step through this Gate of Heaven and join Fallen Paradise."

As the Pope’s voice fell, a sacred, joyous hymn rang out. A gate that seemed to lead to Heaven opened, and Holy Light shone upon everything.

"You have only three seconds to consider."

The three Demigods naturally didn’t believe him and let the time pass.

The Pope had already reached the Gate of Heaven. Seeing them unmoved, he could only shake his head and sigh. "You’ve missed your chance to live."

With that said, he abandoned his comrades trapped in the Death Arena and turned to step into the Gate of Heaven—at this point, all of Fallen Paradise’s objectives had been achieved. Although they had suffered heavy losses, they had clarified many important matters.

The joyous hymn faded. The Gate of Heaven quickly closed and vanished, lest the Star Association take the opportunity to attack.

「Meanwhile, in the command room.」

"Begin."

At the front of the room, an ethereal man dressed in loose white clothes watched the screen and calmly gave the command.

And so, a silver, baleful star descended from the gray skies of the Abyss. Like a burning meteor streaking through the Darkness, it plummeted toward the Divine War Ruins at high speed, carrying with it an overwhelming murderous aura.

It was the Godslaying Weapon in its fully armed state!

"We considered many factors, but we never expected something like the Divine War Ruins to exist in the North Carolina Capital. Even as the ’Prophet’, I cannot see through all futures or account for everything. Especially when the future involves the Divine Realm, all its branches are shrouded in a heavy fog. The slightest misstep could lead to the loss of everything."

The "Prophet" spoke gently, seemingly addressing Zhou Chen.

He smiled faintly and took a sip of his tea.

"However, it always pays to be prepared."

"Now, just watch closely as Tang Ling slays a God."

Godslaying... Zhou Chen’s mouth fell open in silence.