Brand New Life Online: Rise Of The Goddess Of Harvest

The divine feast began right afterward. Dozens of gods emerged, bringing tables laden with the highest-quality delicacies Elayne had ever seen in her life. Every dish was prepared with divine ingredients harvested from this realm, and the difference was unmistakable. Each one radiated rich, potent divine power—eating them would cause her own strength to surge tremendously. This was a feast she could not afford to miss.

Giant Golden Lobster, Divine Sky Fish, Flood Dragon Steak, Spirit Salad, Celestial Fruits, Holy Rice, and countless other dishes were served in abundance. The gods gathered together, offering thanks to the world and the heavens before digging in. Elayne was surprised to see that this custom was shared among the gods, not just humans.

She sat at Amaterasu’s side. The giantess ate from an enormous plate of her own, served a giant bowl of ramen filled with sky fish cakes and flood dragon meat. The broth was so vast and boiling hot that it resembled lava, and the noodles were equally massive. Yet she ate with graceful elegance, not spilling a single drop.

”Sorry about earlier,” a figure approached her as she ate. ”Nice to meet you. I’m Susanoo-no-Mikoto. Elayne, you’re our divine guest today. I forgot to mind my manners and show proper respect.”

”Ah, Susanoo-sama, thank you for your kind words,” Elayne replied. ”I was wondering, what do you do to pass the time here?”

”Some slumber, others cultivate the essence of heaven,” Susanoo explained. ”As for me, I practice the blade, run my own divine sect, and more. I often visit the mortal world when boredom strikes. Sometimes I also call on gods from other regions. Have you visited the 36 Heavens over Chūgoku, for example?”

”Chūgoku?” Elayne looked confused.

”Ah, they often call it China nowadays, right?” Susanoo asked. ”Their Heavenly Realm is vast, layered across thirty-six different heavens. They also possess a massive netherworld where several evil gods stand ready to beat the crap out of anyone who disturbs them!”

”Uh-huh,” Elayne murmured, surprised, as she sipped divine wine and nodded along.

”I’ll tell you the tale of when I went to the underworld looking for a friend and ended up entering King Yanma’s territory. We fought for ten whole years! Hahahaha!” Susanoo laughed heartily. ”He was the strongest opponent I’ve ever faced! I couldn’t beat him, so I eventually surrendered. By then, he had somehow grown fond of me, and we became friends.”

”King Yanma... the King and Judge of the Underworld?!” Elayne was stunned. ”Amazing.”

”Right?” Susanoo laughed. ”I can tell you any tale you want! Just name a place, and there’s a good chance I’ve visited it...”

”I see! Have you visited Egypt before, Susanoo-sama?” she asked.

”Hmm, ah yes! I have,” he nodded. ”Their realm is something else—just a gigantic, endless desert stretching as far as the eye can see. It’s so vast it tires even gods. They rule over enormous cities filled with gigantic pyramids, each one grander and more powerful than the last. I once sparred with Ra, the Sun God, to see if he was as strong as my sister. Let me tell you, I learned a harsh lesson that day.” He suddenly revealed a scar on his left shoulder. ”His sharp talons were vicious! But I still managed to cut off one of his wings. I kept it and forged this robe from it.”

”W-What?!” Elayne was shocked. ”Susanoo-sama, you’re incredible! To think you could wrestle and triumph against such mighty foes!”

”Hahaha! Yeah, I am pretty amazing, aren’t I?” Susanoo laughed.

At that, his siblings grew irritated once more. Unlike them, Susanoo was a roguish god who wandered the world, fighting anyone he pleased. He followed no rules and, in their eyes, was not a proper god at all—bringing them nothing but shame.

”Susanoo, that’s enough,” Tsukuyomi said. ”You’ve spoken more than enough. Do you truly believe you can impress the vessel of the great and ancient Gaia with your tales of barbarism and violence?” He sighed. ”Excuse me, Elayne-sama. Unlike that brute, I better understand the hearts of women. Is there anything you need right now? Is everything to your liking? How about this wine? Or this dessert? Have you tried the divine phoenix eggs before? They are a true delicacy, especially when cooked with divine primordial fire and made into an omelet.”

”Oohhhh!” Elayne’s eyes sparkled as she tasted the divine omelet. One bite sent her straight to heaven. It was impossibly fluffy and creamy, perfectly balanced between sweet and savory, with rich cheese and fragrant spices inside. ”It’s truly the best!”

”That’s right!” Tsukuyomi said, his eyes sparkling with pride.

”...” Susanoo glared at him with clear annoyance. It was obvious his elder brother had come to steal his spotlight.

”Now,” Amaterasu cleared her throat. ”We shall begin our discussion about the recent incidents and what we, as gods, can do to help mortals.”

”You’re helping mortals?” Elayne asked, surprised. ”I really thought you wouldn’t...”

”Of course we will—though we cannot intervene too heavily,” Amaterasu said with a kind smile. ”We have also been forging alliances between divine realms. This world is in peril, after all. Some realms have already begun to fall to invasions from the other world. Avalon, once a renowned Realm of Spirits, was invaded nearly two years ago. It has since become a breeding ground for dark creatures and undead. Nothing has been heard from it since, but we suspect they are preparing a large-scale invasion.”

”I see...”

Elayne listened attentively to the many discussions, learning about the state of the world from the gods’ perspective. She discovered that the Divine Realms in Europe were struggling against an invasion of demons. Giant demon towers had begun appearing across the land, summoning hordes of demons and even demonic generals.

Meanwhile, across North, Central, and South America, the seas had grown incredibly turbulent. Gates were opening in the middle of the ocean, spawning titanic sea monsters that plagued coastal areas and halted the fishing industry entirely—devastating the economies of many nations that depended on it.

”Although we are Gods of Japan and our primary duty is to protect this country, we cannot simply turn a blind eye to the rest of the world,” Amaterasu said with a solemn nod. ”Many other crises are unfolding globally. We help where we can—by sharing information, materials, resources, and sometimes even manpower.”

”I see... It’s far bigger and more incredible than I imagined,” Elayne nodded.

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