Chapter 199

"I bless you, may light always be with you..."

As Syd watched the sunlight gather around Venom after saying this, he was astonished and surprised.

Just a single sentence had caused such an effect?

Moreover, the process happened completely without his control. The sunlight, the photons, actively converged around Venom, becoming a phenomenon on their own.

It was as if Venom was born to attract sunlight—it seemed almost absurd!

"I wonder how long it will last..."

Syd had a feeling that with "God Speech" only at level 3, the effect wouldn't be perfect just yet.

Aside from the fact that the sunlight gathered was less than ideal, the duration might also be limited...

As he was thinking this, the amount of sunlight around Venom indeed began to gradually decrease.

A moment later, the phenomenon of sunlight gathering around Venom had completely disappeared.

Venom, visibly confused, asked, "Syd, what did you do to me? Were you controlling the sunlight just now?"

Venom knew that Syd had the ability to control light, and what had just happened seemed very much like that.

However, Venom instinctively felt that something else was going on, especially with how the sunlight effect gradually faded, which deepened his suspicion.

Could it be...

Venom remembered the sentence Syd had spoken earlier.

With that in mind, his eyes widened in astonishment.

Syd, however, wasn't paying attention to Venom's reaction. Instead, he was lost in thought.

Clearly, if he continued to level up "God Speech," the phenomenon that had just occurred would likely last longer. In fact, Syd speculated that by the time it reached level 5, the effect could become permanent!

It could turn into a permanent blessing—or even a curse...

Thinking about curses, Syd glanced at Venom but had no intention of trying it out.

Though he hadn't tested it, he could roughly guess the result.

"I wonder what it would be like to grant power, though?"

This thought led Syd to think of a certain character from the neighboring DC universe—Shazam.

That character possessed the powers of six gods: the wisdom of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Atlas, the power of Zeus to control lightning, the courage of Achilles, and the speed of Hermes.

Blessed by the Greek gods, Shazam was essentially a knock-off Superman.

His nemesis, Black Adam, had similar blessings from the Egyptian gods: the stamina of Shu, the swiftness of Horus, the strength of Amon, the wisdom of Thoth, the power of Aten, and the courage of Mehen.

Basically, another knock-off Superman...

"If I were to bless someone, would the effect be similar?" Syd's curiosity deepened.

What kind of blessing? Control over light, stamina, speed—or could he grant any power he possessed to the one he blessed?

Since there was no one to test on, this question remained a mystery for him. Testing on Venom was an option, but he thought better of it.

Syd believed that this kind of blessing wouldn't be given lightly and might come with a cost.

It was likely that the one receiving the blessing would be linked to him, and when they used the power, it would actually drain from Syd himself...

After all, power couldn't come from nothing.

Having tested the effects of "God Speech," Syd looked at the ability now at level 3 and hesitated, unsure whether to continue leveling it up or focus on unlocking new abilities.

After some thought, he turned his attention to the 17,000 energy points he had left.

The effects of "God Speech" had already started to show, and as long as he kept speaking, the ability would automatically level up—it didn't require much of his attention.

Compared to "God Speech," Syd was far more curious about what Balder's next unlocked ability would be.

(Unlock Progress: 60%)

Glancing at the progress bar, Syd thought, "Will a new ability awaken at 65% or 70%?"

"What happens at 100%?"

"And how much progress will the remaining 17,000 energy points provide?"

Curious, Syd focused and began investing his energy points into Balder's unlocking progress.

62%... 65%...

68%...

70%...

[Energy Points: 3005]

When his energy points dwindled to just over 3,000, the unlocking progress finally hit 70%.

At that moment, Syd's heart skipped a beat, and a notification rang out.

[Ability: Divinity (Unlocked)]

[Ability: Divinity (0/100) Level 1]

"Divinity?"

Syd blinked in surprise, both shocked and confused.

He knew a little about divinity, but he wasn't entirely clear on its exact function.

He understood that divinity, like dominion, had a special significance for gods.

Just as he was thinking this, Syd felt a change within him.

A mysterious power began to stir inside his body...

His flesh, blood, light energy, and even his spirit—all of it became infused with this power.

Syd, with his keen senses, immediately noticed that his strength had increased.

"This feels somewhat like my divine light energy..."

"Is it another amplification ability?"

Syd's eyes widened in surprise, and he was in an exceptionally good mood.

This kind of comprehensive amplification ability was one of his favorites—overall, it was a great boost.

As he was thinking this, believing the ability to be fully understood, he suddenly noticed something else. With his newly awakened divinity, his soul and spirit sensed a special type of energy.

This energy was very unique, and it felt as though it was gathering around him like birds returning to their nest.

Before Syd could figure out what it was, he began to hear whispers—like someone praying with deep reverence and respect.

"O gods, please bless me..."

"Lord Balder, god of light, grant me the ability to see the light again..."

Hearing these whispered prayers, Syd was stunned.

This situation felt somewhat familiar. When Kaecilius had contacted him previously, the feeling had been similar, though there were some differences.

In an instant, Syd guessed what was happening, and he had a pretty good idea of what that strange energy was.

"These prayers... are from believers?"

"And this unique energy... is it faith energy?"

Syd was genuinely surprised.

In modern times, were there still people who worshipped the Norse gods?

After all, the predominant religion in Scandinavia was Christianity, and there were very few people left who worshipped the Norse pantheon.

Syd had thought that the belief in the Norse gods had practically died out, but now...

After some thought, it became clear.

While belief in the Asgardian gods had diminished, with a population as large as Earth's, there would always be some who still believed. Even a shallow faith could generate some amount of so-called faith energy.

It was likely that the faith energy surrounding him now had come from these residual believers.

(End of Chapter)