Chapter 370: Souls Plunged into the Abyss

"What was discussed at the council of the giant god pantheon?" God Garon inquired, his gaze fixed on Saint Oluhr.

Saint Oluhr shook her head, her voice gentle yet tinged with helplessness, "I only know that Solemn and some other giant deities attended the council. Despite my attempts to gather information indirectly, I haven't obtained anything useful."

After all, the Cold Goddess was not among the giant deities.

Although she is now a spouse to the god of frost giants, it's difficult for her to learn about major decisions within the giant god pantheon from Solemn.

"Did all the giant deities attend?" God Garon asked carefully.

Hearing God Garon's question, Saint Oluhr thought for a moment and shook her head, "No."

"Many gods are aware of the discord within the giant god pantheon."

"But they also don't realize that the internal strife and division within the giant god pantheon are more severe than they imagine."

God Garon was intrigued.

He had known that the giant god pantheon was not monolithic, but according to Oluhr, the situation seemed more severe than he had thought.

"Explain in detail."

Saint Oluhr carefully chose her words, "I met Solemn very early, having been spouses tens of thousands of years ago, so I am more familiar with some internal matters of the giant god pantheon."

Pausing, she continued, "The chief reason Annan, the chief giant god, no longer intervenes in the affairs of the giant god pantheon is that he grew tired of the endless, blatant infighting among his descendants."

"And the giant deities' attitude towards Annan is probably more fearful than respectful."

"Every time Solemn mentions his father, I can see the tension and fear in his eyes."

Annan, also known as the All-Father, is a very contradictory and powerful deity. His strength among powerful deities is also top-notch, second to none.

He is wise, contemplative, and knowledgeable, and also known as the all-knowing god.

Yet, he is also domineering and selfish, never doubting his own decisions.

Once a decision is made, he never changes his stance, even when faced with new variables or further developments, even if it's proven to be a poor decision, he will not tolerate dissent.

Another reason for the severe strife and division within the giant god pantheon:

Annan had many consorts but never a divine queen whose divinity matched his own, resulting in children with various maternal lineages.

After growing disillusioned with the giant god pantheon, which inherited many of his traits, and retiring,

The remaining giant deities breathed a sigh of relief.

The place of retreat for the chief giant god, known only to the god of storm giants, Annan's most favored firstborn, is unknown to the other giant deities.

Even if they knew, they would not seek him out.

Unless absolutely necessary, no giant deity would seek help from Annan.

They fear their own father too much.

"Solemn has two siblings born at the same time, the god of fire giants Surtur and the god of stone giants Reus."

"Due to the opposition between frost and fire, Solemn and Surtur have incessant conflicts, while the god of stone giants Reus focuses solely on stone giant affairs, ignoring all other giant races. Unless it targets stone giants, he probably wouldn't react even if all other giants were annihilated."

Oluhr said softly, "Just what I know, the battles that have erupted between Solemn and Surtur are innumerable."

She continued, "Then there's the Storm Lord, and the conflicts with the god of nature and hunting stem from the initial favoritism of the chief giant god towards the Storm Lord and his disregard for the god of nature and hunting."

Apart from the chief god, there are two powerful deities in the current giant god pantheon:

One is the Storm Lord, the chief giant god's eldest son.

The other is the god of nature and hunting, the protector and destroyer of the giant race, the chief giant god's eldest daughter.

They are Annan's first-generation offspring.

Garon was also aware of the conflicts between these two deities.

This started during the Dragonfall War.

During the Dragonfall War, the dragon gods and giant gods also clashed fiercely.

At that time, the chief giant god had already retired, and the main combatants of the giant god pantheon were the Storm Lord and the god of nature and hunting. But initially, the god of nature and hunting's divine prerogatives did not enhance combat ability, so despite being a powerful deity, they performed poorly.

Thus, the higher-status Storm Lord openly rebuked his sister as a useless god.

After the Dragonfall War, stimulated by this, the god of nature and hunting began to build up their domain

 of power and is now also known as the god of protection and destruction, possessing much stronger combat power than before, and demanded the Storm Lord take back his previous words.

But the Storm Lord, inheriting Annan's stubbornness, still considers the god of nature and hunting useless.

The grievances between them were thus established.

With conflicts between Annan's first-generation offspring and just as much discord among his second-generation offspring, the other relationships were similarly strained.

As time passed, Oluhr detailed everything she knew.

God Garon gradually gained a clear understanding of the internal strife and conflicts within the giant god pantheon.

Of course, if it came to a full-scale war with the dragon god pantheon, these giant gods would likely unite to face the enemy, as despite internal discord, they are from the same pantheon. Just like the undying dragon queen and the metallic dragon god, though they constantly clash, they wouldn't hesitate to ally when necessary.

However, the strife within the giant god pantheon is far more complex than that within the dragon god pantheon.

The dragon god pantheon mainly involves conflicts between the undying dragon queen and the metallic dragon god, which have already settled down a lot after the Dragonfall War. Although they still don't see eye to eye, there are no records of them fighting openly anymore.

The intricate and complex disputes among those giant deities, God Garon felt, could be well utilized.

After Oluhr finished speaking, God Garon nodded lightly, "I understand."

Pausing, God Garon added, "You've done well, continue to monitor the giant god pantheon and inform me of any developments immediately."

Oluhr left a saint here, who shared a mind with the deity's true form, so Garon could be informed quickly of any news.

Saint Oluhr nodded, her voice soft, "I understand."

Looking up at God Garon's thoughtful expression, Saint Oluhr tactfully did not disturb his contemplations and transformed into fine snowflakes, heading to her own quarters in the temple.

Next, God Garon began to organize the intelligence information he had obtained from Saint Oluhr.

God Garon felt that a confrontation between the dragon god pantheon and the giant god pantheon was inevitable, sooner or later.

The giant god pantheon was equally aware of this.

Their council was most likely aimed at the current dragon god pantheon.

Instead of waiting for them to strike first, it would be better to act earlier, using some tactics against the giant god pantheon in secret.

However, when it came to schemes and tricks, God Garon admitted he was not skilled.

But that didn't matter. God Garon might not excel at it, but there were gods within the dragon god pantheon who did, and they loved it.

To be safe, God Garon went directly to the Five-Color Divine Realm to meet the undying dragon queen. He didn't use extraordinary divine power to transmit the information because it could potentially be detected by other deities.

The first layer of the Nine Hells, Avernus.

The Five-Color Divine Realm.

This wasn't God Garon's first visit here; the gates of the divine realm were open to him, and he easily found the crystal palace where the undying dragon queen resided.

In the grand palace, when God Garon arrived, he saw not only the dragon queen.

Before the dragon queen lay a black iron dragon, a hundred meters long and shimmering with an indestructible metallic texture, quietly lying on the ground. Its scales were battered and not yet fully healed.

It was the first-generation Aetherium Dragon King.

Red, green, blue, black, white. Rich colors like mist were exhaled from the five heads of the undying dragon queen, enveloping the first-generation Aetherium Dragon King, continuously merging into every inch of his scales.

After God Garon's arrival at the Five-Color Divine Realm.

The undying dragon queen then stopped exhaling the colorful breaths, and then the first-generation Aetherium Dragon King vanished from the palace in a flash.

"Oh? Isn't this the time dragon god who placed his divine realm on Celestial Mountain?"

"Why have you come to descend into the Nine Hells?"

Hearing the dragon queen's somewhat sarcastic words, a look of embarrassment appeared on God Garon's dragon face.

Clearly, the dragon queen was somewhat displeased that God Garon had ultimately decided to establish his divine realm on Celestial Mountain, becoming neighbors with the metallic dragon god, rather than in the Nine Hells.

"Dragon queen, you know, the Nine Hells aren't suitable for me," Garon explained.

"As a fellow dragon god, you can call me Tiamat," the dragon queen wasn't trying to make things difficult for Garon.

All five heads looked at God Garon, and after a snort, she said in a languid and admonishing tone, "What brings you here?"

"You, this

 fellow, must want something when you come here."

"If it's about those elven demigods, wait a bit longer. I haven't finished taming them yet."

God Garon shook his head, seriously saying, "No, no, no, I have some intelligence that I think you'll find interesting, so I came specifically to tell you."

Under the intrigued gaze of the dragon queen, God Garon shared the internal situation of the giant god pantheon with her.

After listening, the undying dragon queen's eyes sparkled, "I knew the giant god pantheon was also discordant, but I didn't realize their conflicts were so severe."

The undying dragon queen's body rose.

All five heads grinned widely, revealing sharp fangs.

"Interesting, interesting."

"If the giant god pantheon completely falls apart, I wonder what Annan would think."

"Will he continue hiding in his nook, or will he appear and exercise his duties as chief god?"

The dragon queen showed an excited expression, murmuring to herself, her breathing growing heavier.

With the intelligence brought by God Garon, knowing the various oppositions and conflicts within the giant god pantheon, the wicked dragon god, who excels at manipulating minds and loves schemes and tricks, was already impatient.

Listening to the dragon queen's excited whispers and seeing her expression, God Garon felt a chill inside.

Fortunately, she was a deity of his own faction and they had a good relationship.

If it were an enemy faction, this kind of unscrupulous deity who constantly thought about how to trap other gods would indeed be a big problem.

God Garon could guess that in the mind of the undying dragon queen, there were definitely numerous malicious and dangerous plans brewing.

A moment later, the undying dragon queen looked at God Garon, in a good mood, "I like the news you brought. It makes me think of many interesting little games, games targeting the giants."

God Garon smiled slightly, "That's good."

Having achieved his purpose in the Five-Color Divine Realm, God Garon bid farewell to the undying dragon queen, planning to leave.

But just as he was about to leave, the undying dragon queen suddenly said, "Wait a moment, those two souls you asked me to find, I located them using the true name of the dragon."

God Garon's gaze sharpened.

The two souls mentioned by the undying dragon queen were two red dragons who had followed him since his weaker days, dying from the aftermath of an ambush in the magma half-plane.

Loar and Gerasha.

Just two mature red dragons, their strength was negligible compared to the current Garon; any extraplanar divine envoy could easily crush them.

But loyalty from humble beginnings, compared to followers from times of glory, is completely different.

Garon had not forgotten them.

"Like many red dragons, their souls fell into the Abyss after death."

Born from the main material world, souls upon death gravitate towards a corresponding outer plane based on their life's alignment, then get infused by the plane's energies, becoming petitioners of the plane, and even have the chance to become demons or divine envoys.

As red dragons naturally tend a bit towards evil, their souls mostly enter the lower planes.

The Howling Abyss, the Bottomless Pit, the Nine Hells, and so on are all possibilities.

"The souls of true dragons have always been in high demand in the Abyss."

"They fell into the hands of a demon lord, transformed by Abyssal energies into Abyssal dragon fiends."

"They are now in the first layer of the Bottomless Pit, Pazunia."

Pausing, the undying dragon queen continued, "Located in the first layer, the Plains of Infinite Portals is the main battlefield of the bloody war between demons of the Abyss and devils of Hell."

"The demon lord of the first layer is also a general of the blood war. Your two kin are now caught up in the blood war."

"As a dragon god residing in Hell, unless I formally declare enmity against demons or devils, I shouldn't interfere in the blood war."

Looking at God Garon, the undying dragon queen casually said, "They are just two unremarkable mature red dragons, now transformed into Abyssal dragon fiends. Forget about them, you know the situation in the Abyss."

Hearing this, God Garon's expression grew heavier.

The Bottomless Pit is also a battlefield of the blood war.

At the time of his ascension, God Garon had already made enemies with the prince of demons, and if he were to go to the Abyss, he would likely be met with an onslaught from a host of demon lords.

Even powerful deities dare not tread lightly into the Abyss.

If his true form went there, even with the capabilities of the Time Reversal Dragon, the Abyss would still be a very dangerous place.

Garon thought for a moment and said earnestly, "If it's not feasible,

 I won't insist."

"But if there is a chance, I won't give up on them so easily."

Using the words often spoken in the celestial pantheon, if Garon had the ability but chose not to save them, his thoughts would be unenlightened.

"What about making a deal with the demon lord of the first layer?"

Garon asked.

The undying dragon queen shook her head, "Demosogon bears a grudge against you. Unless Pazuzu no longer plans to survive in the Abyss, he wouldn't agree. The prince of demons is much stronger than ordinary demon lords."

Pazuzu, the name of the demon lord of the first layer.

"And given the nature of demons, proposing a deal would definitely lead to exorbitant demands."

The undying dragon queen suggested, "Instead of thinking about making deals with demons, why not disguise yourself, recruit a mercenary troop to participate in the blood war on behalf of Hell? This way, you might have a chance to take your kin from the battlefield and also earn rewards from the archdukes of Hell."

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