Mountain of the Immortals

I’d received rewards from secret quests before while I was growing my levels. I was around level twenty-three when killing a goblin chieftain earned me a reward from a quest I hadn’t bothered taking up from the mortals that lived close to the goblin tribe.

The bonus XP I’d gotten from that secret quest was more than welcome but I never thought there would be secret quests at such high levels, especially ones like these, which looked they’d been generated solely by the Dark Energy. And for such an amazing reward too. Two divinity levels at once.

“What happened?” Aphrodite asked. “You look like something is wrong.”

“Did the artifact curse you?” Artemis asked, echoing Aphrodite’s concern.

“No, no, far from it,” I said with a smile. “As a result of destroying it, I completed two secret quests. The first was probably for getting rid of the last proof of the existence of the deity whose skull we destroyed.”

“It is kind of sad,” Artemis said. “Losing all your followers and eventually being swallowed by time.”

“Yes, it is,” I opted for saying, instead of the “Whatever” that first came to mind. “The second was for destroying the artifact.”

“And what was the reward?” Aphrodite asked pointedly.

“One divinity level per quest,” I replied, and puffed out my chest.

“Damn the crows and their wings!” Aphrodite exploded. “You got two divinity levels at once? That is so unfair. Why couldn’t I have been the one to destroy it?”

“Hey, you should be happy about this,” I said seriously. “And what would you have done anyway? Loved it to destruction?”

I realized immediately that I should have kept that last part to myself.

“You’ll owe us for this one,” she said, stepping closer to me and eventually pressing her finger onto my chest. “We did this together, but only you got the divinity levels.”

“The perks of being the guild leader,” I said and pulled up my divinity interface.

* * *

Divinity Level: 6 (Minimum 2)

Followers: 24,492 / 25,000

Divinity Points: 2/6

* * *

So gaining a level in divinity automatically raised the Divinity Points as well? That was something I’d never had the chance to observe before—I’d never been running for my life prior to this—and it was good to keep in mind.

I wondered what the “Minimum 2” part meant. After I’d completed my ascension quest, my divinity level was zero, which meant that I had what it took for the Dark Energy to recognize me as a god but needed five thousand followers to get to level one. Since losing followers also meant losing divinity levels, it probably meant that it would be possible to lose my status as a deity too.

I wondered whether the fact that I’d gained two divinity levels from those secret quests meant that I would still be a god even if I somehow lost all of my followers. That was an interesting thought, but I wasn’t planning on letting it happen.

* * *

You have unlocked 2 divine skills.

* * *

And that wasn’t all. I’d also unlocked two new divine skills. The skills presented to each god were usually centered around their particular needs, abilities, and aspirations. Given that my needs had changed so drastically, I was curious to see what they were, so I pulled up the new skills immediately.

* * *

Name: Smite Everywhere

Level: 1

Type: Passive - Divine

HP Consumed: 0

MP Consumed: 0

DP Consumed: 0

Power: -

Range: -

Precondition: -

Description: The strength of a god can transcend the limitations of their physical environment and will eventually allow them to manifest their powers even in the void. The Divine Smite skill and all similar thunderbolt skills of divine origin are now available for use without any limitations.

* * *

This was exactly what I needed in the battle we’d just had. Of course I hadn’t had enough Divinity Points to cast it either way, but this would definitely be useful in upcoming battles and I had no doubt there were going to be many of them. Especially now that I was a guild leader with two powerful goddesses fighting with me. It would also mean that the Thunderous Souls guild buff would be something to consider even when fighting underground.

Putting it to the side, I looked at the second divine skill my new level had given me.

* * *

Name: Thunderous Intent

Level: 1

Type: Passive - Divine

HP Consumed: 0

MP Consumed: 0

DP Consumed: 0

Power: -

Range: -

Precondition: -

Description: Thunder and lightning are defining attributes. The very essence of electricity is part of the god named Zeus. Let it be known to all that there is no greater commander of this element in all of the Greek realms. Every weapon can be imbued with lightning for additional damage without the requirement for any additional MP or DP. In addition, lightning damage—except for that generated by this skill—will heal instead of harm you.

* * *

Lightning at will?

This was most probably the most amazing skill I had so far. Just thinking about how easy it would make underwater XPing made me want to find a high-level lake and start fighting right now. If I was buffed to withstand damage and be quick at swimming, I would be able to gather multiple enemies together and kill them all with one lightning-imbued strike of my weapon that travelled through the water.

I could kill hundreds of monsters at once and perhaps even get start gaining levels again. And even better, if I was ever in a situation where I was low on health without Aphrodite close enough to heal me and my special skill in cooldown, I would be able to summon a lightning to hit me and heal me completely.

“What are you smiling about?” Aphrodite asked, apparently still pissed that I’d been the only one to gain divinity levels. “Are your new divine skills that great?”

“They’re fine,” I said, and dismissed all the windows from my view. “Let’s get moving. It’s a long way up.”

“Seriously?” she said, and tilted her head in frustration. “You’re not going to tell us?”

“All in good time,” I said, and helped them both up.