All Gods: Starting with Two Families

Chapter 171 The Authority of EvolutionZhou Zheng hadn’t even had time to savor the wonders of the divine order tokens when his heart suddenly skipped a beat.

The embryonic authority that had just quieted down began to stir again.

It wasn’t the dizziness from before; it was more direct—a riot. It was like a wild beast that had been caged for too long, having caught the scent of something that made it go crazy, desperately trying to break out.

Zhou Zheng looked down at the divine order tokens in his hand.

The runes on the tokens were trembling slightly.

He understood.

As expected, this thing also had a hidden trap.

The temple provided permissions, functions, and conveniences—but it also provided a backdoor.

What the embryonic authority could perceive was more direct than what Zhou Zheng himself could perceive.

It wanted to eat.

Zhou Zheng did not hesitate.

He released his suppression.

The embryonic authority rushed out from the depths of his Divine Thought like a wild horse slipping its bridle, slamming headlong into the two divine order tokens—the one from the believer of the [God of Jealousy] and the one previously seized from that [Little Person] believer.

The devouring began.

The two tokens were enveloped by an invisible force, their surface runes flashing violently as if struggling and resisting. But the embryonic authority didn’t care; it gnawed bite by bite, swallowing mouthful by mouthful.

Deep within Zhou Zheng’s Divine Thought, the Power Of Faith, divine authority fragments, and divine order tokens—everything mixed together like a blob of mottled paint, being stirred, kneaded, and reshaped by the embryonic authority.

He didn’t know how much time had passed.

The blob of paint finally split into two.

The first part was the embryonic authority itself.

It had finally taken shape.

It was no longer the chaotic, constantly changing thing it had been before. It had a shape, an outline, and a quality that one could recognize at a glance.

[Authority of Evolution].

Although it was still just an embryo, and although it still needed to be completed, the moment it appeared, Zhou Zheng immediately felt the difference.

In the past, deities harvested faith through believers. If they were not believers, they could not obtain faith—this was an iron rule, common sense, and the default rule for all deities.

But now—

He felt it.

Across the vast land and oceans of the God-Forsaken Land, among those creatures he had never touched, a new kind of power was gathering within him.

Regardless of whether they believed in Zhou Zheng.

Regardless of whether they knew of Zhou Zheng’s existence.

As long as they were evolving, as long as they were performing actions ”consistent with the authority,” they were providing power to the owner of the authority.

Zhou Zheng closed his eyes, feeling that nascent power.

Although it was still weak, its source was incredibly vast. The entire God-Forsaken Land, all the creatures currently evolving, were his potential ”believers.”

He opened his eyes.

This was the power of authority.

And once the authority was completely fulfilled—

As long as the act of evolution existed in the world, the owner of the authority would not face Death!

...

He looked at the second blob of paint.

That blob of paint had also taken shape.

It was a token. It was very similar to the two previous divine order tokens, but different. The runes on it were different, the aura was different, and the feeling that emanated from its very core was different.

Four characters appeared on the token: evolution god token.

Based on the divine order tokens, it inherited all the original abilities—identity recognition, faction division, Law reconciliation, and fragment trading.

But under the transformation of the Authority of Evolution, it was completely bound to Zhou Zheng.

This was his natal Divine Artifact... or rather, its embryo!

It needed to constantly develop, constantly devour Law, and constantly grow.

Zhou Zheng could feel that something was gestating deep within this god token. It was its ability, a unique ability that would ”evolve” in the direction he needed most.

Zhou Zheng moved his mind.

The evolution god token trembled slightly, splitting into two smaller tokens.

This was the function of the master divine order token. Their original divine order tokens had come from this.

The master token could split into sub-tokens, which could be granted to others, and they would maintain a connection with each other.

Now, what Zhou Zheng held was the master token.

He looked at the first sub-token.

The small mirror of the God of Ascension floated over, and the sub-token merged into it. Information appeared on the mirror’s surface:

[God of Ascension. Lawful Good.]

He looked at the second sub-token.

That sub-token floated toward the Gluttonous One. The foodie Gluttonous One subconsciously opened its mouth. The sub-token turned into a beam of light and flew into its mouth.

”Swim to the southeast,” he said. ”There is a small island there. Hand it over to the being on the island.”

The Gluttonous One nodded and dove headfirst into the sea.

The light blue figure quickly disappeared into the deep blue seawater.

That was the direction of the second Subordinate God.

...

During the few days Zhou Zheng was in seclusion, his believers were not idle.

Leon Us assembled his army and marched toward Iron Shield Mountain.

He was prepared for a hard fight.

That mountain was easy to defend and difficult to attack, and the Iron Shield Family had guarded it for two hundred years; it was not so easy to take. He had even prepared supplies for a siege, intending to fight a protracted war.

Then, he arrived at the foot of the mountain.

The mountain was quiet.

There were no patrolling soldiers, no sentries on guard, no signs of any defense. Only a few wisps of cooking smoke rose from the mountainside, appearing exceptionally eerie.

Leon Us sent men up the mountain to scout.

An hour later, the scouts returned with strange expressions on their faces.

”My Lord... there aren’t many people left on the mountain.”

Leon Us was stunned.

He personally led his men up the mountain.

The further they went, the more shocking the sights became.

There were bloodstains everywhere on the mountain path; some had already dried and turned black, while others were still fresh. Corpses lay by the roadside—soldiers in armor, civilians in cloth clothes, old people, and children.

When they reached the mountainside, they began to see burnt houses. Those wooden buildings had been burned into charred frames, lying scattered on the ground. The air was filled with a charred stench mixed with the smell of blood, making one want to retch.

As they neared the summit, they encountered living people.

A few people were squatting on the side of the road, ragged and dull-eyed. Seeing Leon Us’s army, they didn’t run, didn’t resist; they just looked up with a numb gaze.

Leon Us walked over and asked what had happened.

An old man raised his head, his voice as hoarse as a broken bellows:

”The Young Master... killed the old Clan Chief...”

He spoke intermittently.

It turned out that the Young Master, who had fanatically shouted ”The God of Jealousy returns,” had been instigated by the God of Jealousy. Taking a group of followers, he had charged into the old Clan Chief’s room under the cover of night.

The old Clan Chief had no defenses against his own son.

When he died, his eyes were still wide open in disbelief.

But after the Young Master killed him, he hadn’t been able to secure the position himself. The old Clan Chief’s brothers each had their own factions, and no one would submit to anyone else. A melee broke out on the summit, lasting for three days and three nights.

The Young Master died. His uncles died. The soldiers who followed them died. The innocent civilians died as well.

Those who survived were all like the old man before them, hiding in corners and shivering.

Leon Us fell silent.

He continued to walk upward.

The Iron Shield Castle at the summit had already become a ruin. Half of the city walls had collapsed, the gates lay on the ground, and the courtyard was piled with corpses. The flags of the Iron Shield Family were trampled into the mud, stained with blood and filth.

The most impregnable Iron Shield Family.

Had disintegrated from within.

Leon Us stood there, looking at everything before him, his mood complex.

He remembered the old man who used to sit in the blacksmith shop forging iron, and the Clan Chief who stubbornly guarded this mountain and refused to come down. He had thought it was an unbreakable fortress.

He hadn’t expected the fortress to be broken from the inside.

The survivors were taken down the mountain and arranged to be resettled elsewhere. They didn’t resist, didn’t run away, just obediently followed. That numb gaze made Leon Us unable to bear looking for long.

...

Three days later.

Uss Castle.

Leon Us stood at the highest point of the castle, overlooking the land below.

Starting from this castle, to the south was the territory of the Sea Serpent Family, and to the north was the territory of the Iron Shield Family. Now, both territories flew the flags of the Uss Family.

The entire island.

Entirely held in his hands.

Leon Us took a deep breath.

This was just the first step.

He looked up at the vast ocean in the distance.

There, an even bigger world awaited.