Man on the ark, forced to become king

But when that non-existent glimmer of hope finally appeared before her eyes, she realized that her supposed nonchalance and letting go were nothing but self-deception. Her so-called numbness and her so-called hedonistic lifestyle were all fake!

She wanted to live, more than anyone else!

At this moment, Xi suddenly understood the deeper meaning of the bet made over the years. Her sister had traveled for a thousand years and had finally grasped a glimmer of hope. Of course, she was unwilling to let go. She was gambling with her life!

She may not have even thought about winning. She was gambling, gambling that Lin Lu had more trump cards, gambling that the man possessed the power to restrain gods, so that the Year Beast could naturally be defeated!

The power to kill gods is certainly terrifying, but isn't that exactly what they seek?

To live, you must first seek death!

As long as the goal can be achieved, everything else can be put aside. It's just a promise to someone else, how can it be compared to life?

"Mr. Lin, how about I give you this painting?"

Upon hearing this, not only Lin Lu looked astonished, but Nian's expression was even more exaggerated; he was practically dumbfounded.

Giving away a painting? This guy would actually give away a painting he was so engrossed in? For a moment, she even wondered if Xi had lost her mind, especially when she saw the stiff smile forced onto that usually expressionless face, she felt like the sky had fallen.

Good heavens! Xi actually laughed! She can laugh!

"Then I'll take it. You two, come with me."

Lin Lu felt a chill run down her spine from Xi's strange expression. She took the painting and led the two towards the door of the Great Blessing, with Nian and Xi quickly following behind.

Stepping through the fog gate, the somewhat dilapidated hall came into view, and Nian couldn't help but shiver, feeling a strange chill.

Weapons, so many weapons, and I've never seen them before!

There were hundreds of different kinds of weapons hanging on the wall and placed in the shelves. Without even looking closely, she could tell from her sense of authority that the forging techniques and materials of these weapons were completely different from those she knew and possessed!

But how could this be? She is the goddess in charge of forging; how could forging methods and materials unknown even to her suddenly appear out of thin air in this world?!

Moreover, while most of those weapons were nothing special, some of them exuded a power that would terrify even the gods!

It wasn't the power to kill gods, but it still possessed incredible might, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a divine artifact. Just what is the origin of this Golden Tree that it can possess so many powerful weapons? In terms of weapons alone, even the treasury of the Yan Kingdom's royal family would pale in comparison!

She blinked, tilted her head, and looked closely. She saw a large black bow with gold patterns hanging not far away, emanating a terrifying aura that made her feel somewhat afraid. She wondered if it was just her imagination, but she seemed to sense a divine power emanating from that bow...

"These weapons were all collected from the Golden Tree?"

The God of Forging asked in a daze, thinking that the origin of the Golden Tree might be even more ancient and complicated than she had imagined.

"That's it."

Lin Lu turned around and smiled, a smile that held a profound meaning.

"Some of the weapons hanging here were acquired by chance, but most of them came from my former opponents."

From former adversaries? Does that mean the owners of these weapons were all his enemies, killed, and their weapons are now displayed here as spoils of war?!

These words were like a thunderclap to Nian's ears. Those weapons made even a god like her feel afraid, which shows how powerful their owners must have been. Even if they weren't gods, they were top-notch experts in the mortal world. And yet, they all died at Lin Lu's hands.

How strong is Lin Lu?

Yes, yes... He's even killed several gods, so it makes sense...

"Nian, you'd better watch carefully."

As Lin Lu walked along the red carpet into the hall lined with chairs on both sides, his smile widened. He went to the throne at the top, reached out and picked up the longsword leaning against him. A shimmering light emanated from the sword, and an inexplicable aura spread outwards.

That was... a power unique to the gods, and a divine power far stronger than that of these fragments... No! Stronger than the Sui Beast in its prime!

When the longsword imprinted with the texture of her skin came into view, Nian's body trembled, and she almost couldn't suppress her shudder. In her eyes, it was not a sword, but a true ancient god!

His power during his lifetime already surpassed that of the ancient gods in our memories, and he must have possessed a power that reached the heavens and the earth!

Such an existence should be eternal and immortal, standing at the pinnacle of the world. Who could possibly kill it?

But He died!

Not only that, but his remains were forged into a sword after his death and held in someone's hand!

What is this all about...?

"I...I lost..."

She lowered her head, her arms trembling slightly, and readily admitted defeat, but the fervor in her eyes only grew stronger.

We lost, but it's a good loss!

Only with such power can they truly be freed!

She lost the bet, but won the future. This time, she made the right bet!

Chapter 117 The Blessing of the Golden Tree

With the divine sword within reach, Nian immediately conceded defeat.

There's no suspense now. The essence of the gods is like a beacon in the darkness to their kind—extremely clear. Some things cannot be faked, no matter how sophisticated the methods.

Losing is losing, there's nothing shameful about it, especially since this is the result we really wanted.

The Year Beast is an ancient god who participated in the War of the Gods. It is incredibly powerful and unpredictable. To completely defeat it and prevent it from awakening, words alone are not enough; one must possess formidable strength and resources!

With the divinely forged sword in hand and the power known as 'Destined Death,' the Golden Tree already possessed one of the conditions to slay Sui.

"Does this sword have a name?"

"It does have a name, I suppose. I call it Divine Body Transformed into Sword."

Lin Lu held the sword, which had been transformed from her divine body, horizontally in her hand. She didn't intend to come up with a domineering name for it. The sword was already meaningful enough just by being placed here. There was no need to add anything more, as that would only make it less beautiful.

"The divine body transformed into a sword, truly deserving of the name."

Nian closed his eyes, then opened them again, a glint of light flashing in them, and his trembling arms gradually calmed down.

"Lin Lu, I'd like to have a spar with you, what do you say?"

"Discussion?"

He looked terrified, so why did he suddenly think of sparring?

Lin Lu was a little confused, but she quickly understood and realized what Nian meant.

Although it was said lightly, everyone knew in reality that it was no small matter for a deity to receive the blessing of the Golden Tree, both for the Golden Tree and for Himself.

The power to kill gods, combined with the intimidating effect of a divine body transformed into a sword, is indeed formidable enough to make gods tremble, but for a god with a clear purpose, it is not enough!

She needs to see more!

Doing this was obviously suspicious of going back on one's word. After all, the bet had been agreed upon beforehand, and it would be hard not to suspect if someone suddenly proposed a sparring match. Nian also thought of this and quickly added, "This has nothing to do with our bet. I just had an itch to spar."

"No need to explain, I can roughly guess what you're thinking."

A friendly spar? A friendly spar is out of the question.

If Lin Lu were in her prime, she wouldn't be afraid, but in her current state, she's far from it. It would be too difficult for her to defeat a genuine deity. In a sparring match, she wouldn't be able to use many of her techniques, making her chances of winning even smaller. If she lost, she would inevitably be looked down upon.

However, although I don't want to take action now, I must fulfill Nian's wishes.

These gods are extremely arrogant and difficult to deal with, if not unruly. We must teach them a lesson to make future interactions easier.

"It's really boring when two people are sparring, as they're too restrained."

As she said this, Lin Lu casually put down her divine body transformed into a sword, stretched out her palm, and a bright yellow light bloomed from her fingertips.

"That is--!"

The tiny bright yellow flame was no bigger than an egg, but upon seeing it, Nian almost instinctively fled the place.

That wasn't fire; it was madness itself!

Its existence is the embodiment of madness!

Just one glance was enough to shake Nian's resolve. The flaws and fears in her heart were magnified infinitely, almost shattering her composure after so many years.

Even more unbearable was Xi's condition. Her body trembled, she let out a muffled groan, the veins on her forehead bulged, and a trace of bright red blood spilled from the corner of her mouth.

Fortunately, Lin Lu noticed something was wrong and extinguished the flames in time, preventing the situation from worsening.

Even so, Nian and Xi were so stiff that they couldn't speak for a moment.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, it's my fault."

Lin Lu apologized softly, and seeing that Xi hadn't recovered yet, she couldn't help but smile bitterly.

This was indeed a miscalculation. He took out the Mad Fire to let Nian see the Golden Tree's power and willingly accept the blessing. However, he did not expect that the two gods would react so strongly to the Mad Fire, several times more intensely than when facing their destined death and the God-Slaying Black Flame!

Perhaps madness is their nemesis.

The destructive power of this flame is actually quite limited; the direct damage is not very strong. Its terrifying aspect lies mainly in its ability to affect thinking—it can evoke repressed negative emotions, drive people mad, magnify the flaws in their minds, and drastically change their temperament.

Although Nian and Xi are members of the gods and possess formidable power comparable to natural disasters, their mental state is far from worthy of this power. Simply looking directly at the mad fire almost caused them to collapse instantly.

"How do you feel?"

Seeing that the two women were pale, especially Xi, who looked particularly bad, Lin Lu quickly pulled over two chairs for them to sit down, while waving her hand to summon the golden tree's radiance to shine down.

The power of the Golden Tree is warm and gentle, which can counteract the madness and chaos brought by the Mad Fire to a certain extent. With a calm mind and under the faint golden glow, Nian and Xi's complexions improved a lot, and they gradually recovered from their stiffness.

"What is that thing? It's even more terrifying than the phantom of the monster in my nightmares..."

As he spoke, Nian couldn't help but shudder, looking as if he was still shaken.

She did want to see if the Golden Tree had any other hidden power, because the stronger the Golden Tree was, the greater the chance they would achieve their goals in the future.