GREED: ALL FOR WHAT?

These Malekites are not round like the others. They are vertical and cylindrical like trees. They walk on roots made of clumped-up hypha. They also have numerous whip-like appendages made of hypha. They look weird but they are very strong. Gholu saw them use their appendages to tear many ghouls apart.

Gholu's eyes widened in disbelief. Then he laughed.

He said in understanding, "No wonder she allowed me to destroy her army. No wonder why she wanted me to invade her territory. She wanted to surround me."

He exclaimed as he put together her diabolical scheme. "She wanted to surround me and bury me in one fell swoop. What a plan!."

"I didn't know that Malekite was such a schemer. But I am better. I expected the trap long before it happened. If she thinks she can trap me then she must be delusional," He said confidently.

And so he turned around to run. It is as he said, he may not be ancient but he is wise. He is wise enough to realize that his life is in danger and that he has to escape even if he will lose his kingdom.

Fortunately, he is a landed god. He is not limited to a divine kingdom and can escape to anywhere in the plane. He will lose his precious kingdom but it is better than losing his life.

Unfortunately for him, Legion-7 had already surrounded him. There are 10 transcendent Malekites behind him and another 10 in front of him. There is also one Malekite that appears to be a vessel among them.

This Malekite is levitating like the others. But there is also a glow of divine power around it. This divine power is Malekite's and it is a low divine power similar to the god of plagues and diseases.

The Malekite said to him, "Don't run now Gholu. You are on the menu."

Gholu looked around warily. His green and hairy muscular body is tensed for battle. He is scared for his life but he still has the honor of a god. He can't allow another low god to look down on him even if they have the advantage over him.

So he said, "You have hidden yourself well. I must admit that I have underestimated you. But don't look down on me too much. Don't become so full of yourself that you think that you can take me down with a vessel. If you are so strong, why don't you come and fight me yourself?"

The Malekite chuckled. "Look at this rat. You are caught in a barrel but you're still boosting."

It moved closer to Gholu just like the others. They formed a barricade around the trapped low god. He can't escape unless he goes through them.

Gholu panicked. "How about this? I will give up my domain of diseases and plagues. Take it and leave me a way out or else I will make sure to take down this vessel of yours at all costs."

He has only one domain so if he gives it up, he will regress to the level of a demigod if he doesn't die in the attempt. But that risk is better than death. He believes that Malekite will be interested in the deal since the most valuable thing about him is his domain.

Unfortunately, he is wrong. The most valuable thing in him is his divinity. Legion-7 can spend some time to create divinity with the godhood he grafted onto himself, but why should he spend time when he can take down Gholu at the cost of some divine energy?

Legion-9 can also make divinity but Legion-7 isn't willing to wait for the long period of time it will take. He would rather dine on Gholu now. So the transcendents attacked when they got close enough to Gholu.

Gholu roared, "You will regret this."

All the transcendents whipped at him with their appendages. The air howled with the passage of their appendages. The power of their attacks is evident to Gholu even before they made contact with him. But he didn't back down. He rushed bravely into battle.

He selected the vessel and roused all his divine power for an attack. He gave up on defense because he knew that he would die. But he intends to take down Malekite's precious vessel with him. Most times, 10 transcendents are not equal to a vessel that can bear the power of their god.

An arrow formed of greenish-black energy shot out of him towards the vessel. It tore the vessel apart on contact and killed it. Meanwhile, the whips finally made contact with his body. They landed on him like hammers. His body was crushed and shredded.

He isn't dead yet. He still has divine energy so he tried to create another divine body around his godhood but the whips wrapped around him and something spiritual smashed into him.

Legion-7 passed through the tentacles of his spawns into the trapped god to claim another godhood for himself. This time the grafting process was easier since Gholu had to resist him while also resisting the physical assault of the transcendents surrounding him. His divine energy was exhausted in less than 10 minutes.

Legion-7 devoured the godhood and the divinity within it.

He said in appreciation, "This is nice. I could get used to this."

A pleasant feeling sprung up from within his soul. It nourished and made his soul feel refreshed. It is the complete opposite of the nether waters touching his soul. He can feel that his soul will evolve soon if he continues to devour divinity so there is no way he will stop now.

But first, he went through his other spoils. Divinity is not the only thing present within the godhood of a god.

"This domain of diseases and plagues isn't bad either. I can do great things with it."

The domain is the leftover from the godhood. It isn't useful to anyone without a godhood. Fortunately, he has a godhood, and even more fortunate is that he can combine the power of the domain of spores and the domain of diseases.