A mage? A spell engineer!

Chapter 529 Obtained through one's own ability

Rorschach has returned to Byrne, where he will brief the other archmages on the events of the past few days.

Many of the prototype starships from outer space have returned to the communication spheres. Cavendish is measuring parameters according to the established experimental plan in preparation for the formal voyage and the observation of the Protosonic Sphere.

Meanwhile, Rorschach, at the border, examined the double-serpent staff.

After mastering [Axiom Creation], the restriction that the physical body cannot go to the boundary area almost disappears. He can call on the matter within the boundary area to reconstruct himself, and can even travel back to the main material world.

He was waiting for a god.

"You've already given up your divinity once, why do you still covet the artifact?" Hercules has come knocking on your door.

"What do you mean by coveting?" Rorschach jumped to his feet. "I worked so hard, I deserve some reward, right? You were the one who gave it to me in the first place."

"It's not a reward. Our deal was fixed from the beginning."

"My estimation was wrong. I thought you would need the Twin Serpent Staffs to pose a threat to Dionysus, but now it seems that was unnecessary."

He paused for a moment: "Why don't we have a contest? If you, wielding the staff of two snakes, can defeat me, then I will give it to you."

Rorschach was somewhat eager to try the suggestion, but quickly abandoned the idea: "Regardless of whether I can beat you, if we fight here, I'll be the one who suffers."

The Tree of Law here is the most precious. It would be a complete loss to fight and destroy this place over a mere staff.

After saying that, he tossed the caduceus to Hercules: "Here you go."

Rorschach's straightforward attitude exceeded God's expectations. He wasn't puzzled, but simply extended an olive branch: "You can have it if you want to become a member of 'Thoth'?"

"I've wanted to know for a long time, what exactly is 'Thoth'? Is it an organization?"

Hercules shook his head: "He is the name of a god, a true god of magic. However, the original Thoth perished in ancient times, and He had a friend who collected all of Thoth's past authority and divine power to resurrect this god."

"Of course, His power and status have been divided among more gods. The resurrected friends of His have taken many measures to make these gods willingly or unwillingly share all authority and power, so that Thoth's will is connected with ours and exists in a unified consciousness."

"At this point, we can all call ourselves Thoth and borrow the power of other Thoths. However, we will not do this unless necessary, because the more power and authority we share, the closer we will get to the original Thoth and eventually be possessed by His will."

"Conversely, if you are willing to connect with divine consciousness, you can share some of Thoth's power and status, and it is not impossible for even a weak mortal to become a god overnight."

"Some mortals cannot bear the power and will only be briefly elevated to a level they cannot imagine. Then, in an instant, their brains will be filled with Thoth's consciousness, followed by collapse and destruction."

"Some archmages and divinely favored individuals, through secret rituals and, most importantly, their own powerful strength, are qualified to maintain a certain degree of independence after being connected. In that case, they can gain Thoth's recognition and ascend to the status of being called a god."

"Is this what Balan is like?"

"Yes and no. He was a prophet of the invisible god from the beginning, and the invisible god is a very powerful and relatively independent one in 'Thoth.' Balan's ascension was also due to His protection. However, by now, that protection has long since ended."

As for who that invincible good friend is who can make so many gods bow down and willingly or unwillingly sacrifice their independence to resurrect Thoth, Rorschach has a guess. No, he's certain.

Rorschach quickly reviewed His glorious deeds and concluded: The Lord of Light and Order is truly a great judge and a great God!

They almost killed me, and it seems like it happened more than once.

As if he could read minds, Hercules immediately continued, "When you were promoted to Archmage, you rejected the divinity bestowed upon you by my Lord and completely destroyed that mirror image."

"It doesn't matter. Becoming 'Thoth' is also a sure and feasible path to godhood. Would you be willing?"

"There is no need to worry that the will of the 'Primordial Thoth' will will take over our bodies and souls. He will only become a part of our subconscious and will only appear briefly when we overuse power that does not belong to us or are unable to take over a personhood."

"I believe you will never end up like this."

Are you desperately short of people and gods? Rorschach sensed a hint of urgency in Hercules' eyes, and the more he saw it, the more resolute Rorschach became: "I—don't—want."

"After listening to all that I've said, are you finally giving up on the second path to godhood?" Hercules's eyes sharpened, like a top salesman turned away, filled with resentment and a competitive spirit that had staked his career.

"I'm just curious, if you had said from the beginning that you weren't interested, would you have gone into so much detail?"

Finally, He shrugged as if giving up: "Alright, since you insist. But there's one more thing."

"Please speak." Seeing that the other party's expression had become serious, Luo Xia also answered seriously.

"Have beverages bearing my name sold well in Valois these past few years? I was still asleep, but the Lord saw my condition improve and chose to wake me up."

He drew a path of light in the air, which was a simplified image of the caduceus: "In that case, shall we use the symbol representing me as our mark?"

"In this way, I can gain a little bit of faith power in the process of buying and selling."

The best-selling drink was, of course, "Hercules Energy Potion," a wildly popular product that has been a staple since the reign of King Hercules and has been enjoyed by everyone in the National Guard.

"Although you mortals would use this title to refer to a valiant demigod, he has been devoured by me, so his faith will only be directed towards me. Consider it a deal between me and the boss; I can give him commercial protection, such as making glass bottles with the holy emblem less likely to break."

Is that even possible? Well, legend has it that this deity was approved by Rorschach, the god of commerce, before Hercules was satisfied and prepared to leave.

Before leaving, He left behind His last words: "The restoration of Mother Earth is inevitable, and you do not have much time left."

After watching Him leave and confirming that He was far from the border, Rorschach extended his right hand in a loose clasp.

The metamorphic dust from the border region gathered in his hand, solidifying into the shape of a second double-serpent staff.

There was another reason why Rorschach readily handed over the artifact: as soon as he arrived at the border, he tried to register the prototype of the Twin Serpent Staff into the Tree of Law and attempted to analyze it, and to his surprise, he succeeded.

Most of the power of the Twin Serpents Staff can be achieved through magic, but its status as a divine artifact lies more importantly in its ability to draw power from Hercules. In other words, this staff is merely a "terminal," and even if Rorschach obtains it, he is still "borrowing" power from Thoth.

After obtaining the prototype, he began to modify it, transforming the double serpent staff into the shape of Rorschach's original old staff.

At the same time, the Tree of Law draws out a path of light and binds it.

Rorschach drew inspiration from the genuine artifacts and constructed a terminal that could better unleash the power of the Tree of Law in the Prime Material Plane, based on principles similar to other artifacts.

Now I can return to the material world. Caroline must be very worried about me. Rorschach felt this way, leaving the avatar of [Axiom Creation] at the boundary, while his spirit returned to itself.

(End of this chapter)