Chapter 79: Acquired Gods
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"Blessings born from the power of faith?"
Scheherazade was deeply intrigued.
"Every type of energy has its unique function. The power of faith is akin to mental power; it is nearly omnipotent."
Lucian explained, "The statue governs the functions of divine protection, mercy, and miracles... It can bestow effects such as physical health, mental vitality, luck, and happiness. It can even be used directly to enhance one's strength."
"You can also establish a connection with the statue. Once your faith reaches a certain threshold, you can obtain Divine Arts."
The power of faith relied heavily on the devotion of the Divine Court's residents. It was fine if it was just consumed as a crafting material or temporary energy. However, if one used faith as their primary power source, they would suffer a miserable death the moment that faith dried up.
The power of faith within the Divine Court was filtered by the statue, converting it into a unidirectional buff.
Without a filtering mechanism, absorbing faith directly would result in one's personality being polluted and warped by the collective desires of the believers. The deity's core would gradually align with the 'God in the hearts of the people,' ultimately causing them to lose their original persona entirely.
This was known as the 'Poison of Faith.'
"Is this the power of a God?"
Ren Kougyoku asked.
"There are many different types of Gods."
Lucian looked at Ren Kougyoku and said, "The earliest Gods of your world trace back to the alternate dimension of Alma Torran. They later migrated to the new world."
"The original God, Ill Ilah, is the very source of Rukh in your world."
"That is the first type: Innate Gods."
"Eh? Eh!?" Ren Kougyoku stood frozen in place, exclaiming in surprise, "Is this the true history of our world?"
"Yes. Including the various demi-human races, you are all immigrants from Alma Torran." Lucian nodded. "Your Metal Vessels—the so-called Djinn—are actually the transformed leaders of the various races from Alma Torran."
"The so-called Dungeons are simply entrances to Alma Torran. When the spirituality of Alma Torran died out, those underground labyrinths served as safe havens for the surviving races."
"Does that mean... every time someone challenges a Dungeon, they are actually traveling to an alternate world?"
Yamraiha's eyes sparkled brightly, and she couldn't help but look toward Scheherazade.
As a Magi, Scheherazade had the ability to summon Dungeons.
"I apologize, but this is the first I'm hearing of this as well." Scheherazade shook her head, then asked curiously, "How do you know the history of our world?"
"I know the general outline."
Lucian nodded and said, "If you're curious, we can discuss it in more detail later."
"Getting back on topic, the so-called Djinn are equivalent to the second type of Gods: Acquired Gods."
"So the Djinn are actually Gods formed through post-mortem reincarnation?" Yamraiha muttered to herself.
"In some worlds, there exist 'Gods of Faith.' These deities are born without the power of choice, because their very existence is constructed entirely from the power of faith. They are Gods born from the beliefs of living beings."
Lucian paid no mind to Yamraiha's muttering and continued, "Gods of Faith are extremely reliant on the devotion of their followers. Therefore, their existence is highly unstable. If they fail to construct a divine realm completely independent of the mortal world, they will vanish the moment their faith recedes."
"By the way, Gods of Faith are also divided into Innate and Acquired types."
Innate Gods of Faith didn't need to fear being assimilated by their followers' beliefs, because they were born with the inherent ability to filter the power of faith.
Acquired Gods of Faith, however, needed to continuously perfect their internal systems, with filtering faith being a matter of paramount importance. This specific process was known as 'Igniting the Divine Fire.'
If Lucian were an Innate God of Faith, the very first thing he would have to do would be to gather faith to construct an 'Ether Circulation' system.
Then, he would use that filtered faith to weave his Authority and build an independent power source.
Faith was entirely a consumable resource. The energy source came solely from believers, and just how much faith could a believer produce in a single day?
The core of everything was the 'Ether Circulation' function.
Unless one was burning faith purely as a disposable crafting material, any blessings bestowed via faith had to cycle back to the caster. Only by recovering the inevitable expenditure could a deity have enough surplus energy to weave their Authority.
"What type of God are you, exactly?"
Ren Kougyoku asked curiously, but quickly caught herself, hastily adding, "I'm so sorry! If it's a secret, you don't have to answer."
"It's not a secret."
Lucian shook his head and smiled. "I was originally human, so I suppose I count as an Acquired God. However, what specific type I am is a bit hard to define right now."
A God who ascended from humanity... I see. The three women gained a sudden measure of collective enlightenment.
"Next up is the Spring of Life."
Lucian pointed toward the flowing waters. "The Spring of Life was originally a Divine Weapon belonging to an Innate God. I borrowed it. It can absorb ambient Magicules from space and convert them into spring water."
"Are these 'Magicules' the equivalent of Rukh in this world?" Scheherazade asked.
"You can think of it that way, though the properties are slightly different." Lucian nodded. "The Spring of Life possesses an incredibly potent life force, and its nature is very gentle, making it exceptionally beneficial to living organisms."
"I can definitely feel the immense life force."
Yamraiha stared in awe. "Where does this spring water flow to through those waterways?"
"The Spring of Life is the most basic welfare provided to the residents of the Divine Court. It supplies the needs of everyone living here."
Lucian added, "The excess flows out past the edges of the Divine Court, forming a Sea of Life that encompasses the entire realm."
The three women inhaled sharply.
Although they had made some guesses, this setup was simply too extravagant.
Come to think of it, even though there was no Rukh in the Divine Court, the 'Magicules' that existed here possessed an overwhelmingly potent life force.
Setting everything else aside, simply living in this world would naturally extend a person's natural lifespan.
Not to mention Lucian's 'Reversion' magic, which could literally rewind an individual's physical age.
This revelation was incredibly appealing to Yamraiha in particular. In her world, commanding Rukh as a magician required expending one's own life force.
Since she was responsible for maintaining the massive magical barrier protecting the entire Sindria Kingdom, her daily routine was essentially burning her own lifespan away over the long term.
Let alone drinking the waters from the Spring of Life, simply living here would be more than enough to replenish the life force she constantly drained.
And this... was considered a basic welfare benefit for Divine Court residents?
Wasn't this a bit too good?
"The residential area of the Divine Court is over there. If you choose to join, you can pick any room you like."
Lucian pointed toward the distant courtyards, then turned his gaze back to the portal situated next to the holy spring. "This is the final core function of the Divine Court: the World Teleportation Gate."
The statue, the holy spring, and the teleportation gate. These were the three grand functional components of the Divine Court.
"Currently, the Divine Court possesses the coordinates of two separate worlds. One is a world I've named 'Danmachi', and the second is your world, which I've named 'Magi'."
Lucian continued, "Aside from those, there are other worlds I've personally established. Including the Divine Court itself, there are a total of three internal worlds."
Heavens... he's created more than one world?
The three couldn't help but marvel at the revelation.
"Two of these internal worlds act as instances, or 'dungeons.' Simply put, they are designated training grounds for the residents of the Divine Court."
Lucian asked with a playful smile, "Would you like to give them a try?"
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