Death… And Me

Chapter 4414: Collateral

It didn’t even take an hour after the cultivators departed.

*ROAR!*

The silence surrounding the Konvey Ruins was shattered as countless Godly Beasts poured into the abandoned territory. They charged through collapsed entrances and broken walls as though they had been waiting for this exact opportunity. Mixed among the swarms were several Godly Predators, each cautiously advancing while observing the movements of the others.

Since many different races reached the ruins almost simultaneously, violent battles immediately erupted throughout the hundreds of kilometers occupied by the ancient ruins. Godly Creatures fought other Godly Creatures for territory, while Godly Spawns attacked anything they believed they could overwhelm. Roars, explosions, and the sound of collapsing structures echoed everywhere as the various races competed for ownership of the newly available land.

The Godly Predators, however, acted much more cautiously. Their instincts told them exactly how dangerous the other Predators were, so instead of immediately attacking one another, they deliberately kept their distance.

They observed the fighting from afar, only intervening when opportunities presented themselves. By the time the chaos settled down several hours later, three different Godly Beast races had successfully claimed the majority of the ruins. As for the Godly Predators, none of them belonged to those victorious races, and none showed any real interest in challenging them for ownership.

Instead, they gradually turned around and left.

There simply wasn’t enough value here to justify remaining. More importantly, every one of them had already sensed an overwhelming Godly Pressure slowly approaching from the distance, more than one actually.

Although they were still extremely far away, the presences unmistakably belonged to Godly Horrors. Judging from the speed, it would probably require another full day before reaching the ruins, yet their auras alone were enough to convince every Godly Predator to retreat toward its own territory. None of them intended to remain anywhere near a creature that powerful.

Naturally, none of this mattered to the cultivators anymore. Everything worth taking had already been removed from the ruins. The usable runes had been harvested, the damaged facilities dismantled, and whatever resources remained were of little value compared to everything already collected.

Unless another mission specifically targeted this place in the future, cultivators from the Besgol Region would have little reason to return. Eventually, even those Godly Horrors would likely discover there was nothing left of interest and continue wandering elsewhere.

Meanwhile, Arcis led the expedition back toward the Besgol Region. Having returned to his humanoid form, he quietly absorbed Godly Crystals while flying alongside the other groups, recovering the enormous amount of Godly Energy he had consumed during the previous days. His complexion was noticeably paler than before, making it obvious that whatever technique he had used inside the ruins demanded an extraordinary amount of energy.

Seeing Arcis finally relaxing a little, Rean couldn’t suppress his curiosity any longer. ”Senior, what exactly did you do back there? The Godly Creatures suddenly became afraid to approach the ruins.”

Arcis nodded without hesitation. ”It isn’t really a secret. My Arctic Arcurio Race seniors from back then taught me a little trick that allows us to maintain a connection with our own feathers through our Godly Energy. As long as that connection remains active, each feather can project our own presence into its surroundings.”

He lifted one of his wings slightly while explaining.

”To the Godly Creatures, it was as though I personally stood guard at every location where one of those feathers had been placed. They sensed my cultivation everywhere around the ruins.”

Kentucky immediately understood. ”So they thought there were dozens of Law Gods waiting to ambush them?”

”Something like that,” Arcis confirmed with a smile. ”The trick only works because Godly Creatures rely almost entirely on instinct. If they possessed proper intelligence, they would’ve realized it was impossible for so many Law Gods to be scattered throughout the area without actually being seen.”

”Sounds pretty convenient,” Roan commented before turning toward Kentucky. ”Learn it.”

Kentucky almost stumbled out of the air. ”What?! How am I supposed to learn something like that? I can try, sure, but don’t expect much.”

”You have one hour.”

”...One hour?” Kentucky’s eyes widened. ”Fuck you! There is absolutely no way I can learn that in one hour! I don’t even know whether I can learn it at all!”

Roan completely ignored the complaint as though Kentucky hadn’t spoken a single word.

Watching the exchange, Arcis couldn’t help laughing.

”Hahaha! Slow down. It might sound convenient, but this technique comes with tremendous drawbacks.”

”The energy consumption,” Roan immediately answered.

”That’s only part of it,” Arcis replied. ”Did you already forget what happens whenever a large number of cultivators gather together outside the Sacred Relic’s protection?”

Roan narrowed his eyes as realization quickly dawned on him.

”...The Godly Creatures gather as well.”

”Exactly.” Arcis nodded approvingly. ”Those feathers don’t merely imitate my presence. To every Godly Creature nearby, it feels as though multiple Law Gods are gathered around the ruins. Naturally, that attracts stronger Godly Creatures capable of dealing with such a concentration of powerful cultivators.”

He sighed before continuing. ”I had already calculated my limit beforehand. Three days. If the Array Masters hadn’t finished collecting every useful rune within those three days, I would’ve immediately withdrawn the technique and ordered everyone to retreat.”

”In truth, even those three days were already stretching our luck. Had a Godly Horror happened to be nearby, it would’ve investigated long before the third day simply because of the overwhelming presence my feathers were projecting.”

Only then did everyone understand why Arcis looked so exhausted now.

He continued. ”You consume enormous amounts of Godly Energy while simultaneously attracting stronger and stronger enemies toward yourself. It truly isn’t a technique I’d ever use under normal circumstances. The only reason I resorted to it this time was because the value of those ruins justified the risk. We needed enough time for the Array Masters to finish their work.”

Roan nodded thoughtfully, seemingly satisfied with the explanation. Then he looked at Kentucky once more.

”So?”

Kentucky blinked.

”So... what?”

”Have you learned it yet?” Roan asked again.

Kentucky almost coughed up blood. ”Weren’t you the one who said I had an hour?! It’s barely been a minute!”

Arcis laughed even harder after seeing Kentucky’s desperate expression. ”Hahaha! He probably won’t manage it. My race naturally possesses the constitution required for this technique. It requires maintaining a genuine connection with a separated part of your own body. Even though another Arctic Arcurio personally taught me after I ascended from my Great Void, it still took me hundreds of—”

”Oh!” Kentucky suddenly interrupted him. ”I think I got it!”

One of his feathers detached from his body.

Immediately, everyone present distinctly sensed what felt like a second Kentucky floating several meters away. Even though all they could actually see was a single feather suspended in the air, its aura unmistakably resembled Kentucky’s own... although it also had some differences.

Kentucky himself looked surprised. ”Holy hell... this thing really burns through Godly Energy!”

Arcis froze.

The smile slowly disappeared from his face as he stared at the floating feather. Although Kentucky had clearly reached the result through a somewhat different method, the underlying principle was practically identical.

The feather truly projected a living presence comparable to Kentucky’s own. It wasn’t perfect—Arcis could easily distinguish between the two—but against unintelligent Godly Creatures, the difference would hardly matter.

Roan, however, simply frowned. ”What took you so long?”

Arcis’ mouth twitched.

For some reason, Roan’s criticism toward Kentucky hurt him far more than it appeared to hurt Kentucky himself. ”And the presence still feels different from your real body.”

Kentucky immediately exploded. ”Fuck you! Did you conveniently forget I’m only an Anchor God?! I can’t even send Godly Energy outside my body yet! I had to charge the feather while it was still attached, create the presence first, and only then detach it. Of course it’s different!”

He pointed accusingly at Roan. ”Besides, you gave me an entire hour! Shouldn’t you at least be happy I figured it out this quickly?”

”Hmph.” Roan remained completely unmoved. ”If it had actually taken you an hour, it would’ve only proven you were hopeless.”

Kentucky’s entire body trembled with indignation.

Ignoring him completely, Roan calmly turned back toward Arcis. ”He interrupted you. You were saying it took hundreds of... what?”

”...Uh?”

Arcis blinked before awkwardly clearing his throat.

”Oh... right. Hundreds of... hundreds of...” For the first time in a very long while, the proud Law God found himself struggling to finish his own sentence. ”...Seconds. Yes, hundreds of seconds. It seems Kentucky possesses rather remarkable talent. Quite similar to my own, actually. Perhaps he truly can overcome his colorless aptitude.”

It was actually hundreds of years...

”SEE?!” Kentucky immediately puffed out his chest. ”Even Senior Arcis recognizes my greatness!”

Roan looked at him with complete indifference. ”I recognize that you’d probably have terrible taste even if someone fried you.”

”FUCK YOU!”

As the two resumed their bickering, there was actually a very simple reason Kentucky had mastered the technique so quickly.

The moment Arcis explained its principle, Roan immediately thought of Kentucky’s Yin Yang Sky Feather Blades. Although their purpose was entirely different, they were fundamentally based on maintaining a close connection with feathers separated from Kentucky’s own body. If that connection could be used to manipulate the feathers, there was no reason it couldn’t be adapted to project Kentucky’s own presence instead.

Sure enough, the idea worked almost immediately.

Of course, it carried the same flaws as Arcis’s. It would only deceive unintelligent Godly Creatures, while cultivators—or any intelligent opponent—would instantly recognize the difference. Even so, it was still a surprisingly useful technique to have available for certain situations.

The only real downsides were the enormous amount of Godly Energy required to maintain it... and a little, actually big chunk of Arcis’s pride.