Chapter 1066

"Saying the Lord of Flames only recently broke through to the fourth tier seems plausible—eleven months ago, when the Lord of Flames killed four gods in the Elven Divine Realm, the power he displayed was far from fourth-tier!"

One god said.

"Yes, I happened to witness that battle—one was Seiya, the great god of the Void Lan Divine Realm, a mid-tier third-tier god; the other three were second-tier gods. If the Lord of Flames had already been fourth-tier then, they would never have dared come!"

Another god said.

"Indeed. Back then, the Lord of Flames' divine realm couldn't even be detected on the star chart. His divine realm only revealed itself this time, didn't it?"

A third god said.

"There were only two instances of tremors triggering a breakthrough to the fourth tier. If what you say is true, the Lord of Flames might have broken through to the fourth tier in just thirty seconds!"

A nearby god summed up.

"Stop guessing—I overheard two divine lords speaking. Even the divine lords believe the first tremor was caused by the Lord of Flames!"

A third-tier god spoke up.

After discussion, many gods found this highly plausible.

"Another god saw the Lord of Flames kill a powerful divine lord near the Sun shortly after that tremor!"

Another god passed on this news.

"So the thirty-second disturbance really was caused by the Lord of Flames? But has any god ever achieved such speed before?"

One god said, his voice filled with awe.

"Don't you find it strange? Those four gods dared seek revenge on the Lord of Flames—and their motive was even simpler: the Lord of Flames seized their realms! The Lord of Flames is now fourth-tier; eleven months ago, he was at least peak third-tier!"

"Moreover, according to rumors, before the Flame Empire swallowed the Eternal Night Empire, its core territories were precisely those four gods' realms!"

At this point, a well-informed third-tier god raised this question!

Normally, this third-tier god, as a great god, rarely communicated with first- or second-tier gods.

But this time, because the news was too shocking, he actively reached out to first- and second-tier gods!

In the Heavenly Realm, such a situation was extremely rare!

"Really? Did those gods say when the Lord of Flames seized their realms?"

One god couldn't help asking.

"From their tone, it was probably over two years ago! And Seiya's realm was likely seized by the Lord of Flames just over a year ago!"

The third-tier god said.

His words left the surrounding gods silent.

Because if what this third-tier great god said was true, the Flame Empire might truly have grown to its current power within just a few years!

But…

No matter how much evidence there was, the idea that in just three years a tiny barbarian tribe had become a mighty empire seemed… impossible!

Some second- and third-tier gods had experience swallowing other realms.

Even after defeating an enemy in divine war, absorbing another realm required immense time.

Not to mention that every expansion of the Flame Empire was like a snake swallowing an elephant!

A snake swallowing an elephant—swallowing is easy, digesting is hard; it might even choke itself to death.

Yet the Flame Empire didn't choke—it grew stronger and stronger!

To them, such a thing was obviously impossible!

In fact, even fourth-tier Tianlan Zunzhu found it incredible.

How much more so them!

"Someone is deliberately spreading rumors about Tianlan Zunzhu!"

In Lin Yan's divine realm, Weiweila's face turned solemn.

She had gradually changed her address—from "divine lord" to "Tianlan Zunzhu."

Though Weiweila deeply admired Lin Yan, she knew her place well—even if Lin Yan didn't care, she maintained her respect for him.

And this respect stemmed from her affection—for she respected him because she loved him!

"It seems so. Weiweila, do you think the other side has ill intent?"

Meiweis asked.

Dorothy, Yiwenni, and Kuntina were still absorbing the divine power Lin Yan had given them; Lin Yan was absent, so Weiweila had devoted considerable effort to understanding the Elven Divine Realm.

Weiweila said: "So far, I can't detect any malice in spreading these rumors. Meiweis, do you think these rumors are true?"

Meiweis thought, then nodded her small head: "Weiweila, if it were another god, I'd say it's fake—but if it happened to Tianlan Zunzhu, it's likely true!"

Weiweila nodded: "Meiweis, you know Tianlan Zunzhu's wonders, and I know some of his deeds. These events are certainly true. The other side has done thorough research—they've likely dispatched many agents across the Divine Continent. As for their purpose in spreading these rumors…"

Weiweila paused, then said: "I suspect they themselves aren't sure of the truth—it's too astonishing—so they released the rumors to spark discussion among the gods of the Heavenly Realm. After all, even a fourth-tier god's power and wisdom are limited."

Meiweis sighed in relief: "As long as there's no serious malice, that's good!"

Weiweila said: "But we should still prepare. If Tianlan Zunzhu had enemies before, they were likely extremely powerful. Meiweis, our divine sect now has five elven goddesses—can we persuade five more to join? Then Tianlan Zunzhu's divine sect will have ten elven goddesses!"

Meiweis's eyes lit up: "Are you referring to the ancient promise of the Life Goddess? If more than ten elven goddesses jointly call for aid in crisis, the Life Goddess will cast her gaze—even lend her aid!"

Weiweila nodded: "Yes. Though Tianlan Zunzhu is already immensely powerful, it's still a safety net. Of course, I'll seek Tianlan Zunzhu's opinion—this is his divine sect, after all. Everything depends on his decision."

Meiweis nodded: "Mm!"

The two goddesses discussed further, then Weiweila quietly dispatched some small fairies to eavesdrop near the gods.

These gods had discussed openly, without hiding anything.

After these rumors spread widely, the shock they caused in the Heavenly Realm rivaled that of the war which led to the downfall of the fourth-tier gods.

In the following days, gods throughout the Heavenly Realm were everywhere discussing these rumors.

Some gods, initially utterly disbelieving, gradually began to think that, upon closer examination, some of the rumors might be true.

False rumors cannot withstand scrutiny.

And after scrutinizing these rumors about Lin Yan, they instead felt that only such a thing could be reasonable!

Yet, once the scrutiny ended and these rumors were isolated, they again felt…

Too unbelievable!

Thanks to these rumors, half of the Heavenly Realm had erupted.

Never before had news in the Heavenly Realm spread so swiftly!

Of course, the main reason was that many gods had converged upon the Elven Divine Realm.

Moreover, some gods were deliberately spreading these rumors, to observe the reactions of the Heavenly Realm's deities.

"Even if all these rumors are true, how did the Lord of Flame accomplish this?"

In the Elven Divine Realm, over a dozen gods gathered to discuss.

"I believe that if the Lord of Flame truly accomplished all this, there is only one possibility."

One god suddenly spoke.

"Are you suggesting the Lord of Flame is a powerful deity from ancient times, wounded and asleep, with a damaged divine core?"

Another god beside him replied.

"That's exactly what I think!"

At this moment, another god spoke.

"It is said that in ancient times, wars in the Heavenly Realm were far more frequent than now; threats to the Heavenly Realm were not merely from the Abyss—everywhere were strange and bizarre enemies. Wars among gods then were equally fierce. Back then, there was no concept of the Fourth Tier—the Fourth Tier corresponds to High Gods, and every High God was terrifyingly powerful."

A Third Tier god suddenly spoke of ancient times.

Both the Divine Continent and the Heavenly Realm had extraordinarily long histories.

The reason there are countless stars in the Star Map is precisely because so many gods have fallen.

"Great God Nore, were there more positions in ancient times? Was it easier to become a High God then?"

One god asked.

"Not necessarily. Back then, war raged everywhere; the Divine Continent had far fewer people than now, and numerous evil gods stirred chaos. Heavenly Realm deities, if careless, would be tainted by evil power and fall into becoming Demon Gods. When a god sought to ascend to High God, they faced not only attacks from other Heavenly Realm deities, but also ambushes from Demon Gods and Demon Lords."

That Third Tier Great God said.

He was a Great God who had lived a long time and knew many secrets.

In the Heavenly Realm, there were many such gods—having lived countless years, yet still stuck at the Third Tier.

"Therefore, the Lord of Flame was likely an extraordinarily powerful High God in the past, possibly having touched the ceiling of High Godhood, and perhaps even a powerful Ancient God."

That Third Tier god said.

Ancient God!

These two words caused many gods to freeze!

Not every deity from ancient times could be called an Ancient God.