This Lich Requests More Remuneration
Chapter 317 - 295: Such a Big Pot

Chapter 317: Chapter 295: Such a Big Pot

Amberser was shocked by Withered Rose’s choice and hurriedly asked, "Shael? Why would you choose Shael, you should know that we plotted against her together, right?"

At that time, Amberser was the most dedicated, followed by Withered Rose herself. She was the one who directly led the army to slaughter many of the Drow Elves.

Why would she seek out Shael? That would be like walking into a trap.

Withered Rose gave a bitter smile and said, "Only this Goddess is willing to answer my wishes."

Amberser fell silent as well. Withered Rose was not like him; he was only after benefits, and any deity’s blessing could be negotiated.

But Withered Rose wanted to destroy Laine, or at least to be able to help her in destroying Laine, and not many deities would be willing to do that.

The Elf Tribe didn’t want to upset the Lord of the Dawn over the Drow Elves, and the other deities felt the same.

Only a deity like Shael, who once peaked and now had fallen to the lowest, would fear nothing. She had offended many powerful forces and did not care to offend the Lord of the Dawn as well.

"What price did she offer?" Amberser still remembered the last time he did business with Shael, the so-called blessings she offered were so paltry that even a dog wouldn’t want them, so miserly that Amberser thought she must have a Corrupt Divine Position.

Withered Rose shook her head and said, "I still don’t know what kind of divine position I can offer, so I don’t know what rewards I can get. But now that you’re here, I’m not worried anymore."

In the past, Withered Rose’s kindness towards Amberser was based on his abilities, but now her words were truly sincere.

Withered Rose subconsciously wanted to rely on Amberser, to hand over these important matters to him to handle.

In that moment just before, Withered Rose thought she could no longer destroy Laine. It was Amberser who comforted her and helped her regain her spirits. The Undead have no emotions and are absolutely rational, only showing strong emotions when facing their own obsessions, as if coming back to life all over again.

When Withered Rose was at her most vulnerable and most like a living person, Amberser appeared, and their relationship changed.

Withered Rose led Amberser to a huge altar.

Amberser recognized at a glance that this was the summoning altar he had once set up. Just by sacrificing something that Shael favored, one could summon the Dark Goddess to descend.

Amberser had once sacrificed a damaged Divine Artifact, and only then was Shael satisfied.

Withered Rose had no Divine Artifacts to sacrifice, but she had a large number of slaves. Not all the rebellious Drow Elves she had captured were dead yet.

Hundreds of Drow Elves were brought to the altar, soon devoured by a vast darkness, which then coalesced into a huge head—Shael’s head.

For some reason, the Dark Goddess seemed to really enjoy dealing with mortals in this manner, only revealing her head from above, which was quite oppressive.

Withered Rose quickly bent her body in a respectful gesture to the Dark Goddess.

No matter which deity it was, they were beings above mortals, and even the Queen of Gloomyland had to maintain a heart of reverence towards the deities.

But Amberser gently gripped Withered Rose’s arm, making her stand straight.

Amberser reminded, "Don’t do that, we’re here to do business, not to offer selfless devotion. Don’t start off by losing the momentum."

Deities are a very special existence, they have strong control over their followers and can punish them at any time. But against outsiders, they cannot. Amberser didn’t worship the Lord of the Dawn, so He couldn’t punish Amberser.

To show too low of a stance before a deity is a suicidal act. The more you tolerate, the more room deities have to maneuver with you.

Amberser was always polite in speech but equal in status before deities, and so no deity could do anything to him. The Rose Spider Queen, who wasn’t afraid of death, was punished severely by Aeo for her defiance.

Therefore, when Shael saw Amberser, She didn’t hide Her disdainful expression. She would rather meet Her "good sister" Serene than this Lich.

Shael said in Her echoing voice, "It’s you again, this Lich!"

Amberser chuckled and said, "It is my honor to be remembered by you, Goddess."

Shael really wished she could slap this Lich to death, but she had seen the fate of the Rose Spider Queen and dared not to break Aeo’s rules.

Shael decided to ignore the irritating lich Amberser and turned to ask Withered Rose, "Speak then, which divine position do you wish to offer?"

Withered Rose had learned her lesson this time and rather than answering Shael directly, she said, "Respected Dark Goddess, the divine position is his spoil of war—he simply granted me one out of past affection, so, he will decide."

Shael snorted coldly, "Queen of Gloomyland, listening to this lich, what kind of queen are you? You might as well hand over the kingdom to him."

Withered Rose replied with a smile, "That might not be impossible. Once we have destroyed Laine, I will gift him everything here."

Shael stared at Withered Rose, truly not expecting her to say such a thing; Shael realized the relationship between these two Undead was out of the ordinary.

Amberser was not pleased, feeling that Withered Rose was smarter than the other women he knew, skillfully parrying all of Shael’s words.

As for the entirety of Gloomyland... one would only need to think about it to know it was impossible, merely a joke to mock Shael with.

"Lady of the Night, save the futile probes. I believe your time is also precious; let’s talk business. I have one Corrupt and one Dark divine position on hand—you may choose one. However, I would like to hear your offer."

Shael, too indifferent to mind the lich’s impudence, openly stated, "You already know the offer—I can elevate the power of her dark magic."

Amberser said in surprise, "You can’t be serious, can’t be serious, do you really think this blessing can compare to any divine position? Goddess, I thought you were just against me, which is why you quoted a lower price last time. Now, it seems you did not undervalue intentionally, but that is all you have to offer."

Amberser’s insinuation was clear to everyone—Shael was broke.

Withered Rose herself was startled by Amberser’s words, to openly mock a deity wasn’t he afraid of death?

But then, considering he had just played the Rose Spider Queen half to death, mocking Shael didn’t seem so extreme.

Amberser was effective because Shael could not let this statement spread.

What if everyone starts saying she’s a deity in dire straits? Even if it was true, that couldn’t become common knowledge.

Unable to silence him by force, Shael could only snort coldly, "Foolish mortal, don’t measure deities with your narrow perspective. I can grant many things, but these two divine positions, Corrupt and Dark, are not worth that much."

Amberser quickly said, "How could that be, they are divine positions seized from the Rose Spider Queen."

Shael chuckled, "Heh, I am the Dark Goddess, the Dark divine position is of no use to me, just like a finely cut gem is to its discarded scraps. The Corrupt divine position is also dispensable to the Rose Spider Queen, and even if a mortal assimilated it, it would be but weak divine power, hardly useful. If you brought forth the divine position of the Drow Race, I might consider trading it for something else."

Amberser replied with regret, "That’s too bad, truly a pity. I have already exchanged the Drow Race with the Elf Tribe, Goddess, now I am under the protection of the Elven Gods. Praise be to King A’fando, may His radiance spread across the world."

Shael showed a look of surprise, asking incredulously, "You traded the divine position of the Drow Race to the Elf Tribe?!"

Amberser shook his head, "How can you say ’traded’? It was an exchange for the Elven Gods’ protection over me. Goddess, after I become a deity, if you wish to trouble me, you will be facing the entire pantheon of Elf Gods."

Unexpectedly, Shael let out a piercing laugh, saying with scorn, "So that’s how it is, that’s the case. Fate has made itself clear, all of this, because of you. Damn lich, do you know, you have just provoked a war among the gods."

Amberser, puzzled, said, "Goddess, I am not your follower, cryptic oracles are better left with your followers. If there’s something to be said, speak plainly."

Shael, seeming in much better spirits, did not keep Amberser in suspense, revealing outright, "The Drow Elf is Rose’s most important divine position. Had I acquired it, I would have only gained a small advantage, and it would have been best to reaffirm my alliance with Rose. But you have given this divine position to the Elves, and the Elven Gods have accepted your offering, which implies they intend to reclaim the Drow Elves."

It made sense, the Elven Gods surely aimed to reclaim the Drow Elves thus they had Amberser assist them.

"But what does this have to do with a war among the deities?" asked Amberser.

"The biggest problem in reclaiming the Drow Elves isn’t mortals but Rose. Corellon’s acceptance of this divine position means he’s ready to settle past grievances with Rose. And Rose, being the foremost deity of the Dark Sidereon Gods, despite all the manipulations and power struggles amongst her and her allies, will unify them when the time comes. The Elf Gods will go to war, and this conflict will indeed spread to many deities, including myself.

"Lich, you truly are a favorite pawn of fate. Because of you, Rose’s divine position was scattered, and it was you who personally delivered it into the hands of the Elf Tribe. The war among the gods has started because of you, and countless deities will fall. The question is, can you bear the consequences?"

Withered Rose couldn’t help but grip Amberser’s hand tightly—the news was too frightening. How could a mortal bear the responsibility of inciting a war among deities?

Yet Amberser patted her hand, comforting her, "Don’t worry about it. No matter how fiercely the gods fight, what does it have to do with us mortals?"

Having said this, Amberser raised his head to Shael and said, "Goddess, spare me your framing and entrapment, the warring of the Elf divine sphere is because of their longstanding grievances. The keg was filled with the explosives named ’betrayal,’ ignited by the Rose Spider Queen herself—I’m not even the fuse, at best, a mere spark during combustion. There’s an old saying in my homeland, ’Every debt has its debtor, every crime its culprit.’ There’s no way you can pin this on me."