Chapter 144: Hidden

Chumen, wearing the Duke robe prepared by Solomon, arrived at the Balam Imperial Palace once again.

Today, the Balam nation is unusually "lively."

"What the hell," Chumen remarked, watching the ghosts and spirits walking upon the earth, unable to help but exclaim, "As expected of the 'Death God'!"

These were all formed from the souls of those who had once believed in the Death God and were sufficiently devout.

They had long since died, but today, the "Death God" truly revealed His "Death" Authority, pulling these ghosts—the remains of the dead—back into Reality to meet and reunite with their loved ones.

Of course, in Chumen's eyes, these souls all carried the aura of the Underworld; in all likelihood, they had been pulled into the Underworld upon death and were now returning to Reality.

Correspondingly, Chumen also sensed the aura of the Underworld; the Underworld deep within the Spirit World seemed to have extended countless tentacles, connecting to Balam.

Such ghosts could be seen everywhere, walking in every corner of the Balam capital; while reuniting with their families, they were also waiting for the arrival of the founding ceremony.

"This kind of scene can only be seen here," Amon remarked with a click of his tongue.

"This is a true miracle!"

Back when the Solomon Empire was founded, it was merely Solomon manifesting in the hearts of his citizens; the invisible rules were distorted, but it was not as soul-stirring as the scene before them.

"Blurring the boundary between life and death, shaping the authority of the Underworld—this is a sermon conducted by a True God in person," Pallez concluded after conversing with a ghost that passed by.

After these ghosts appeared, the Balam nation fell into a certain degree of chaos, but very quickly, the entire empire's faith in the "Death God" grew explosively.

Once it was proven that one could truly go to the God's Kingdom after death, these Balam citizens would have much less fear of death, and their faith would become even firmer.

"Dream Duke." The Death Consul appeared in full regalia to welcome Chumen and his party at the Balam Imperial Palace.

"The ceremony is about to begin; please take your seats, everyone."

Chumen and the others did not wait long; at the moment when day and night alternated and the Sun first rose, a gloomy and faint aura drifted over from the Underworld.

These gloomy and faint auras seeped out from every corner of the world, gradually forming a torrent that obscured the rising Sun, plunging the entire world back into a silent gloom!

The rising Sun could not pierce the gloom; the "Death God" had created a world most suitable for the existence of ghosts.

In such a world, the living and the dead danced together, as if they had obtained temporary peace and joy.

The "Death God," also known as the "Eternal Sleeper," possessed unique abilities in this regard.

It was also at this moment that the "Death God" Salinger manifested with the Underworld high above the sky; all humans and ghosts were shocked beyond measure.

This was also the first time the Underworld had appeared in the world of the living in this manner.

"Balam shall be my God's Kingdom on earth; all my devout citizens may enter the Underworld, where life and death are eternal."

"Death is above!" Salinger bestowed a miracle; pure radiance floated out from the top of every believer's head, gradually converging into a vast galaxy.

An invisible force spread out like ripples on water; the power of the "Eternal Sleeper" fell into the heart of every believer.

All believers obtained a brief peace, their bodies and minds tranquil, no longer stained by the slightest dust.

But this process did not last long; many believers who broke free from that state of peace developed a fanatical pursuit of that state.

The "Death God" Salinger walked out from the Underworld and headed toward the throne on the Ascension Steps; his magnificent divine robe was dotted with wisps of deathly aura, mysterious and awe-inspiring.

This was a scene filled with an epic sense.

"Eh? I've picked up a 'Wisdom Angel' Characteristic." A slight sound of surprise broke the solemnity.

Everyone looked toward the source of the sound; it was the Dream Duke from the Solomon Empire.

Many Popes and Angels of various Churches watching the ceremony felt a tremor in their hearts, as if they had seen something terrifying.

Among them, the Pope of the Church of the "God of Knowledge and Wisdom" had a drastic change in expression.

The "Wisdom Angel" Characteristics were almost all held in the hands of the Church!

Chumen ignored all the gazes; his spirit was touched, and he looked toward the Northern Continent, seeing Hermes through the Dream Light, and seeing the "Knowledge Angel."

In just an instant, Chumen understood what the "Knowledge Angel" was doing.

"Analyzing the Dream Path? Mimicking my abilities?"

Chumen laughed in spite of himself; in fact, this was feasible. The power he bestowed was real and could be copied, recorded, and mimicked.

However, the volume of the "Dream" Pathway was completely different from other single pathways.

If the power of other pathways were compared to a single thread, then the "Dream" Pathway was a ball of yarn tangled from four types of threads; for a recorder or mimic, the pressure was too great.

And a Sequence 2 "Wisdom Angel" wanted to mimic a "Child of Fantasy"?

Impossible!

The four sequences of the "Dream" Pathway after becoming a Demigod were all sufficiently special and powerful, costing Chumen quite a bit of energy; how could it be so easily mimicked?

"Overestimating oneself." Chumen slowly shook his head, waved his hand, and turned the "Knowledge Angel" into a palm-sized doll, then bent down to pick it up.

"What you don't want is mine!" Chumen tucked the doll into his pocket and looked toward the camp of the Church of the "God of Knowledge and Wisdom."

The Pope, whom Chumen had met once, had an ugly expression; he saw the substance of the doll in Chumen's hand but dared not speak.

"Dream Duke, would you be willing to exchange that doll with me?" The "Death God" Salinger's gaze fell here; his voice was gentle yet majestic, very fitting for the position of Emperor.

"No." Chumen refused directly.

This act of sweeping away the "Death God's" majesty to his face caused the scene to fall silent once again; many Angels felt a strong sense of crisis.

The two True Gods looked at each other, each with their own confidence, but at one moment, the center of Chumen's brow twitched slightly, as if he had a premonition.

But before that, the "Death God" had already made a move.

The "Death God's" eyes flashed, and a certain power was channeled by Him; Chumen was slightly startled, "So it was a pledge of allegiance..."

Chumen did not resist, and his figure was erased by the power of Hidden.

The "Hidden" Authority of the "Evernight Goddess"!

At the same time, Hermes suddenly lost his connection to the dream; the next instant, he looked up abruptly and saw a brass-colored eye.

This eye was countless times more terrifying than the "All-Knowing Eye" of the "Knowledge Angel" from before; every secret on Hermes was seen by this eye!

Within it, a faint light flickered, frantically analyzing the knowledge contained therein.

"God of Knowledge and Wisdom..." Hermes faced the God directly, filled with unspeakable panic.

This was a strike based on a time difference, analyzing the "Dream" Pathway before "Dream" could step out from "Hidden."

This could not only allow them to understand "Dream" more deeply, but even cause a rift to grow between "Evernight" and "Dream."

The gods still harbored doubts about the relationship between "Dream" and "Evernight," which is why they joined forces to pressure "Evernight" into taking action against "Dream"!