Chapter 1075: Thunder and Lightning Divine Office

"Divine Fire!"

Lei En was greatly surprised; no wonder Elder Suo Lim had never been willing to reveal the truth.

Divine Fire is the most precious treasure in the world, bar none! It is the key for mortals to ascend, and also the crucial means for a deity to obtain additional divine offices; any single Divine Fire that appears can drive countless people mad, bring about blood‑soaked storms, and even spark a divine war without question.

Suo Lim is a demigod who has lived nearly four thousand years, has long accumulated enough divinity, and is only one step away from ascension, which is to ignite the Divine Fire.

If not forced to the extreme, he would never have disclosed the secret of the Divine Fire.

Lei En noticed that after the Titan Elder mentioned the Divine Fire, he became extremely tense, watching his reaction and concealing deep vigilance.

"Elder, are you afraid I'll snatch the Divine Fire?" Lei En said with a calm smile.

Suo Lim's expression changed, he was silent for a few seconds, then said, "No one can resist the lure of the Divine Fire, especially a mortal like you who possesses great power and the chance to ascend; such a person would be willing to abandon everything for the Divine Fire, committing the most insane acts in the world."

"If that's the case, why did you tell me?" Lei En retorted.

"Because you forced me!"

Suo Lim was deeply frustrated, a bitter smile appearing, "If I don't speak, this Divine Fire could very likely fall into Manuo's hands, which would be an even worse outcome."

Another sentence Suo Lim did not utter.

He was gambling!

Based on his understanding of Lei En, Lei En would not turn completely hostile over a single Divine Fire; it's not that he doesn't want the Divine Fire, but this emperor is too young, not yet forty, has never felt the ruthlessness of time nor the frustration of stagnant power, and his yearning for immortality and ascension is not yet strong.

Although Lei En showed no discernible expression at that moment, Suo Lim keenly sensed that Lei En's attitude toward the Divine Fire was indeed rather indifferent.

The Titan Elder felt a secret joy; he had won his gamble!

Lei En asked, "Does Manuo know that the Storm Temple contains the Divine Fire?"

"He probably doesn't know; this could be a test by Manuo," Suo Lim said hesitantly, "This Divine Fire originally did not belong to my lord An Heluozi; He acquired it shortly before his fall, had not yet chosen a divine office nor merged it with his divine power, so it is an unclaimed Divine Fire."

Lei En was suddenly enlightened; he had just looked up the information in his mobile library.

The Sky and Thunder God An Heluozi possessed two Divine Fires, each corresponding to the "Sky" and "Thunder" divine offices; losing either would halve his divine power.

An Heluozi was slain on the spot during his battle with the Abyss evil god.

Unless he, like the Sun God An Se, had long foreseen his own death and thus left a Divine Fire as a backup for resurrection.

But that is unlikely.

Leaving a Divine Fire in the Storm Temple while An Heluozi fought the evil god with his power halved would be tantamount to courting death.

If it is an unclaimed Divine Fire, the explanation holds.

Suo Lim said, "My lord obtained this Divine Fire and hid it in the Storm Temple; this secret was whispered to a Titan Elder of the Giant Empire as he lay dying. That elder is the ancestor of our Storm Giants; after the Giant Empire's destruction, he led the surviving clan into the Northern Sanctuary."

"For over ten thousand years, the secret of the Divine Fire's existence has been passed only among the elders; I am the third elder to hold the secret."

"And you are the fourth."

Suo Lim solemnly said, "In the whole world, only you and I know this secret."

Needless to say, the previous two Titan Elders have already passed away.

"I am deeply honored," Lei En smiled, stared at Suo Lim, and asked directly, "Elder, are you preparing to use this Divine Fire for ascension, or do you have other plans?"

Deities can be resurrected.

As long as believers persist in prayer and ignite the Divine Fire with lingering divinity, any deity, no matter how long fallen, can reappear in the world. Even without remaining divinity, the sustained calls of enough believers, offering the power of faith, can reconstitute divinity, though it takes far longer—perhaps tens of thousands of years—to succeed.

The Sun God An Se arranged it this way; he built a tomb in the Dying Sun plane, leaving a lineage of believers, but a slight flaw in the plan prevented successful resurrection.

If Suo Lim intends to resurrect An Heluozi, the chance is not small.

However, Suo Lim did not answer immediately.

Even without the Soul Eye, Lei En guessed the answer.

Suo Lim is not an ordinary Titan Elder; he is a demigod, and among demigods he is preeminent, having accumulated enough divinity. Once he obtains the Divine Fire and ignites it, he will become it, thus joining the ranks of the gods!

In the face of the temptation of ascension, any faith can be abandoned, even if An Heluozi is the deity most revered by Storm Giants.

Suo Lim's voice echoed through the palace, "I intend to ascend myself."

He said it calmly.

Lei En was not surprised; in his place, he would make the same choice. Reviving a deity who has been dead for over ten thousand years, hoping he will protect the clan and restore the giants' brilliance, is not as good as doing it oneself; the god's great power in one's own hands is more reliable than anyone else's.

Suo Lim must have prepared for this day for a long time.

"Elder, which divine office do you desire?"

Lei En suddenly felt curious.

The great Weizelan Library's book *Path to Ascension* detailed the information about divine offices.

The book noted that a single Divine Fire can select only one divine office.

A divine office is the domain a deity governs; it can be an industry, a profession, a race, a thing, or the definition of an abstract concept. Within this domain the deity holds dominion, along with associated power and Divine Technique.

The strength of divine power is not inherently tied to the divine office, but only to the number of believers and the magnitude of faith's force.

However, the divine office determines the scope of the domain one controls.

Divine offices can also be understood as "land grabbing," for example the "Magic" divine office, which holds an important position in the Ai Lun E Si world, being the pinnacle of supernatural power, frequently seen in daily life, influencing and determining the development of civilization.

Therefore, a deity who holds the Magic divine office can evangelize more effectively, and the potential number of believers almost covers all intelligent beings.

Similar offices include "Sky," "Earth," "Sun," "Elf," and so on.

All are very powerful divine offices.

Then, deities, based on their divine office, determine church doctrines, teachings, and canon.

The domains of divine offices have similar and subordinate qualities; one office can be a subcategory of a stronger one, e. g., "Earth Element" is a lower office of "Earth."

A powerful divine office can be divided into multiple lower offices.

Conversely, lower offices can merge into a stronger one, such as "Dawn," "Scorching Sun," and "Dusk" merging into "Sun."

However, the subordination of offices does not necessarily reflect subordination among deities; subservience is merely due to protection and conquest.

The domains of divine offices also give rise to hostile or allied relationships among deities.

Once a Divine Office is chosen, it cannot be changed.

Even if a deity falls and is revived, the Divine Office bound to the original Divine Flame remains the same, unless that Divine Flame is given to another deity and ignited with a different divinity, which can release the bound Divine Office. But doing so means the Divine Flame changes master, and there is no return.

Therefore, the choice of Divine Office is extremely important, as it determines a deity's potential.

The vast majority of powerful Divine Offices in the world already have a master.

Either one must choose a Divine Office with a smaller domain, where no other deity competes; or choose the same Divine Office, such as "Magic," then engage in a divine war with VijesCui and kill him, replacing him as the new God of Magic!

The former is wiser; the latter is tantamount to courting death.

Suolim did not conceal anything and replied, "I choose the Thunder Divine Office."

Lei En nodded.

"Thunder" is a near‑top Divine Office, extremely powerful, and currently there is no "Thunder God."

In fact, the Thunder Divine Office has changed hands many times in history. It originally belonged to a naturally born "Thunder God" who fell during the First Epoch and was replaced by a powerful troll demigod; in the Second Epoch the troll's Thunder God died at the hands of the Giant God An Namu, and the Thunder Divine Office passed to An Heluozi.

After An Heluozi's death, the "Sky" and "Thunder" Divine Offices were both lost.

By the Third Epoch, dwarves and elves rose, giving rise to the dwarf pantheon and the elf pantheon.

The dwarf "God of Craft and Forging" Mola Ding annexed the Thunder Divine Office, but not long after, Mola Ding also fell during an epochal transition.

During the Dark Millennium, the "God of Gale" Talusi obtained the Thunder Divine Office, merged it into "Storm," becoming the "Storm God." However, Talusi's glory was short‑lived; only a few hundred years into the New Epoch, he fell in a baffling divine war.

The "Storm" Divine Office was claimed by the "Lord of Ocean and Storm" Ke Sula.

Ke Sula is currently the deity with the most Divine Offices, exceeding double digits; An Heluozi's "Sky" now belongs to him, along with a series of offices such as "Ocean," "Sea Folk," "Water Element," and "Tide."

But perhaps he lacks sufficient Divine Flame, or for some unknown reasons, he only annexed Talusi's "Gale" and abandoned the Thunder Divine Office.

Thus the Thunder God position has remained vacant to the present.

Among the currently unclaimed Divine Offices, Thunder should be the strongest and the most suitable for Suolim!

Lei En pondered silently.

The Thunder God would also suit me!

I possess a Divine Flame and have even prepared a deification plan, but not for myself; Saint Jiles first goes ahead to scout. Saint Jiles treads the path of deification, feeding back experience and insights to me, perhaps uncovering a unique route.

If the exploration fails, I will have no choice but to deify myself in the future.

But that future is far off—at least several hundred years later, perhaps at the end of a several‑thousand‑year lifespan; with an immortal battle soul, I can outlive a demigod.

In short, deification is my backup plan; it may never be needed.

Even if it is never used, it must not be lost.

Before Lei En could speak, Suolim sensed something and asked, "Your Majesty, do you have any suggestion?"

"Elder, could you change to a different Divine Office?" Lei En asked softly.

Suolim was momentarily stunned.

Then he understood: Lei En also coveted the Thunder Divine Office!

"This…"

The Titan Elder instantly grew displeased; the matter of deification cannot tolerate outsiders meddling, and even if he does not choose the Thunder Divine Office, would other deities not take it? Deification requires a Divine Flame, and keeping the Thunder Divine Office is not your concern…

Suolim was about to refuse when he saw Lei En's expression, as if his mind had been struck by lightning!

"You also have a Divine Flame?" he blurted.

Lei En gave no answer.

But Suolim was now 100% certain that Lei En possessed a Divine Flame! At the same time, he realized why Lei En seemed so calm upon learning of the Divine Flame's existence.

The Titan Elder inhaled deeply and began to think rapidly.

Lei En's attitude was obvious.

He does not permit himself to choose the Thunder Divine Office; if he rejects the suggestion, he must face the Wind Element Lord and the enemy's massive army alone, let alone obtain the Divine Flame— the Northern Storm Sanctuary could not be defended, and the Storm Giants might be wiped out.

"If I cannot choose the Thunder Divine Office, my options are few," Suolim said with a wry smile.

Lei En said softly, "Then, how about the Giant?"

The Giant Divine Office!

Suolim's expression froze, then shifted unpredictably as he said gravely, "The Father of Heaven is merely sleeping, not fallen."

The "Father of Heaven" he referred to is the Giant God An Namu.

This once immensely powerful deity, in myth, created the race of giants and once held many Divine Offices. Most giant gods are his offspring, including the "Sky and Thunder God" An Heluozi, the "Cloud Giant God" Man Nuo, the "Flame God" Surte, the "Agriculture God" Xi Yati, the "God of Love and Mercy" Ilannis, and so on.

However, aside from Man Nuo, the giant pantheon suffered a devastating blow at the end of the Second Epoch and never recovered.

An Namu did not fall, but fell into slumber.

For over ten thousand years, he never answered the prayers of giant believers; Lei En observed the giants' faith flame, like a candle in the wind, ready to extinguish at any moment.

Now giants are scarce, and other races no longer worship An Namu; he has almost no hope of resurrection.

The many Divine Offices An Namu once held have been stripped away.

Only the "Giant" Divine Office remains; because the Giant Empire's destruction and the reduction of giant numbers have shrunk its scope and potential, no deity finds it worthwhile, so it has persisted.

"Eternal slumber and falling are no different," Lei En said calmly. "Rather than leaving it vacant, let the Giant Divine Office serve a greater purpose. Elder Suolim, do you only wish to guard the Storm Giants while ignoring the plight of other giants?"

Suolim shook his head, "I cannot seize the Father's Divine Office; my people would not permit it."

"Heh…"

Lei En smiled, "When does the choice of a deity ever fall to mortals?"

The Titan Elder gave him a strange look, "Aren't you already interfering with my deification affairs? Aren't you a mortal?"

Lei En, unaware of the other's thoughts, continued, "If the Elder becomes the Giant God, it benefits all giant races without harm. Relying solely on the Storm Giants cannot revive the giants' glory; all giants must unite, which requires guidance from a Giant God."

Suolim remained silent, but his Soul Eye saw that his stance wavered.

Lei En waited patiently for a moment.

Then he said, "If the Father knows, I trust he will understand your actions. Elder, you must shoulder responsibility for all giants."

Suo Limu's eyes flickered.

After a long while, he finally let out a sigh: "Alas... for the sake of the giant race, I can only follow Your Majesty's advice."

Lei En showed a smile, "Elder, wise."

"I will help the Elder eliminate the enemies, restart the Storm Divine Hall, and I have no interest in that divine fire, but I have one request." He looked at the Titan Elder and said solemnly, "In the future, when the Storm Sacred Hall is rebuilt, it must be under my control of the Storm Plane."

(End of chapter)