This Lich Requests More Remuneration
Chapter 284 - 264 Shael’s Threat

Chapter 284: Chapter 264 Shael’s Threat

It was evident that Tristan had now transformed into Shael.

Normally, deities cannot descend at will; they need an anchor point.

For example, a divine idol imbued with the power of faith, previously the Rose Spider Queen had descended through her own idol, and perhaps the other three goddesses were able to descend simultaneously with the consent of Rose.

The second type is a fiercely devout follower; Laine’s Supreme Decree could entreat the Lord of the Dawn to cast his gaze, a might potent enough to destroy half of Alchemy City.

The third type is a special divine artifact, like the gold coin given to Amberser by the God of Alchemy, this artifact enables constant contact with the God of Alchemy, allowing him to descend.

That black dagger must also be a special artifact prepared by Shael, hence her ability to descend into Tristan’s body.

When faced with Shael’s interrogation, Amberser remained incredibly calm.

"Following the Goddess’s command, I drove the dagger into the heart of this Drow, and the task is complete. Whether you’ve profited or lost, Lady of the Night, is no longer my responsibility."

Shael stared at Amberser’s face and chuckled softly.

"Spare me those boring probes, I know you won’t easily give up the benefits you’ve swallowed. But do you truly understand what divine office is? It looks like a delectable bait, but hidden inside is a deadly poison hook. The day you ascend to godhood is the day you fall."

After listening to Shael’s threat, Amberser said calmly, "I am aware that after becoming a deity, the rules are different. The infighting amongst deities becomes even more ruthless and direct, so newly promoted deities often fall easily, is that what you mean?"

Shael didn’t expect Amberser to stay so composed, and said with disdain, "Do you really think the president of the Elegy Poetry Society will help you? Don’t harbor any delusions, it’s impossible. Or perhaps, you’re relying on your teacher? The God of Alchemy is now in dire straits himself; do you think he can protect you?"

Amberser countered, "If it were as dangerous as you say, those weak deities would have been devoured long ago. Are the deities of the evil factions also picky eaters?"

Shael shook her head with a pitiful tone, "It seems you still don’t understand. Those weak deities live in constant fear, always hiding here and there. Only when they have their own divine realms can they hide inside and avoid being consumed by other deities."

Amberser asked, "So you’re saying, as long as I possess my own divine realm, I can solve the problem?"

"Haha, others can, but you can’t. The divine office you obtained was stripped from Rose, and finding you is as easy as it was for me to do so. The moment you ascend to godhood, Rose will sense your location, and you can’t hide no matter what. Even if you hide in the divine realm of the God of Alchemy, in the end, you’ll only drag your teacher down with you.

"Oh, by the way, let me remind you, since you have accepted the knowledge of the magic web from me, my mark is already on you, and I can find you at any time. Right now, I need an artifact to descend, but once you become a god, I’ll locate you immediately."

Shael’s threats were so blunt; it was clear that the goddess was truly enraged, wishing she could kill Amberser on the spot.

The four divine offices, all of which should have belonged to her.

Moreover, Shael’s attributes were highly compatible with those of the Rose Spider Queen, and merging these divine offices would greatly enhance her divine power.

What’s more important is that the four divine offices include the racial divine offices of the Drow Elves.

This was precisely what Shael desired the most and what the Rose Spider Queen absolutely could not afford to lose.

But this key point could not be revealed to Amberser; otherwise, the Lich would surely make outrageous demands. Given the Lich’s greedy nature, he might even demand that she hand over her divine realm to him.

Facing Shael’s threats, Amberser did not fear.

He hadn’t even obtained the divine offices yet and was still a mortal; Shael’s threats had no significance. The fate of the Rose Spider Queen was before him, and unless Shael wished to offer more divine offices to Amberser, she could only talk but not truly take action to kill him.

"Goddess, discussing the wretched plight after ascension to a mere mortal seems too far off, why don’t we talk about something more practical? I trust you wouldn’t expect me to hand over such precious things to you merely on the basis of threats, right?"

Amberser’s composure further infuriated Shael, but she knew she could only negotiate with Amberser.

Deities didn’t have effective means to punish a mortal who doesn’t worship them; to persuade Amberser to relent, a price had to be paid.

"I can grant you a powerful blessing," Shael said.

"What kind of blessing?"

"I can bestow upon you a strong divine art that will make you my Night Judge."

The Night Judge is akin to a role exclusive to Shael, similar to the priests and paladins of the Lord of the Dawn, capable of wielding many deity-specific divine arts. Divine arts are different from a mage’s spells, which are learned through study; divine arts rely on the blessings of a deity.

If one breaks the deal and loses the protection of the deity, the divine art will also become entirely ineffective.

It sounded quite promising, but Amberser replied with little interest in two words.

"That’s it?"

"Do not be too arrogant, mortal!"

Amberser was silent for a moment, then said, "Goddess, in matters of business, there needs to be some sincerity. Do you think your blessing is worth as much as a deity’s position? It’s not even one ten-thousandth of it."

Night Judges were a dime a dozen, and not many of them were known for being formidable. If Shael could make Amberser as powerful as a Silvermoon Knight, able to move unchallenged in the mortal realm, he might consider it.

"Then what do you want?"

"How about we make a trade? Goddess, you could also offer a deity’s position for exchange. It doesn’t matter if it’s a weaker one; a trade from weak to strong. As for the difference in value, once I ascend to godhood, we could team up against the already weakened Rose Spider Queen. Find a way to seize the rest of her deity positions, then split the loot evenly. Wouldn’t that be a win-win?"

Amberser’s proposal was already very fair, and he knew that he would encounter many troubles after becoming a deity, so he did not mind offering benefits to entice allies.

After all, taking shortcuts to godhood, Amberser reckoned he would likely be a deity with weak divine power; the differences in deity positions were not that significant. But if he could make Shael an ally, his life would be much easier after his ascension.

However, Shael instantly refused without a second thought, "Impossible, I will not trade any deity position with you."

Amberser said helplessly, "Then there’s no deal to be made. I can’t afford to engage in a losing business."

If he could, he really didn’t want to fall out with Shael, but the Goddess seemed to be angling for something for nothing, and Amberser couldn’t accept that.

"Heh, I know you’re reluctant now. But soon you will realize you are wrong, very wrong.

"Lich, your biggest problem is that there’s no one who can protect you, and you have to rely on yourself for everything. You cannot join the orderly and good-natured factions, nor receive the protection of the Orderly Gods, yet you have offended so many deities of the evil factions.

"Rose, Goddess Tiamat, Rowetta, and I—we will all be waiting for the day you become a deity. We won’t hesitate to pounce on you and shred your soul to pieces."

Shael’s voice slowly faded, and Tristan’s corpse once again lay lifeless on the ground.

The black dagger that had merged into Tristan’s body reappeared behind the corpse.

Amberser sighed and said, "Why leave so quickly? I was just about to say, Lady Rose is prepared to exchange a deity’s position for the help of a deity. You could negotiate with her."

Shael was not a good trading partner: impatient, temperamental, and stingy.

Amberser looked at the body with the dagger still embedded in it and dismissed the idea of creating undead from the corpse.

The dagger was too strange, and he didn’t know if Shael had tampered with the body. It would be troublesome if he created a high-order undead that betrayed him at a critical moment.

But it seemed wasteful to leave it like that; Amberser had to think about how to wring the remaining value out of this corpse.

After pondering for a long while, Amberser muttered to himself, "I wonder if the Elf Tribe would take an interest in a Drow?"