SSS Awakening: I Can Devour Gods to Evolve My Goddesses

Demon Lord Varkos was dead, but Riftwind Canyon did not fall quiet immediately.

The war fog remained, and the Hellfire Golems and ordinary Demons left from wave forty-five still had to be cleared. The most dangerous part of the wave, however, was already gone.

All twenty Rocketiers pushed their launchers forward again. Stormlance finished the last two Rare targets, and Aegis Fold advanced more than ten meters.

Less than four minutes later, wave forty-five was completely over.

[You have successfully repelled Wave 45.]

[Warden Points from this wave: +900,000]

[Shattered Marches Newcomer Region Ranking]

[Current Region Score: 3,523,540 → 4,423,540]

4.42 million.

Cassian watched the number for two seconds, then looked at the next-wave countdown.

[00:10:00]

Veyra did not ask whether he planned to keep going. She was still checking the first line.

Life-Echo Brand had already been used for the day.

The Fountain had just completed its first true Life Reconstruction, and its current Life Energy was not enough to bring back another Legionnaire of the same specifications.

Six Life Waters remained.

The twenty Rocketiers could still recover.

But wave forty-five had already put a Level 35 Legendary in front of them.

No one knew what came next.

Cassian slid the Ranking aside.

The Regions behind them now knew about War Drums.

They knew about recovery Buildings.

They knew to raise Levels in advance.

They knew the hundredth Rank III slot could be deliberately held back.

They would enter with more complete preparation than this Region had.

Cassian’s eyes paused on the still-empty Region Name field in his Warden Authority.

This place did not even have an official name yet.

So 4.42 million was obviously not safe.

But the next wave would trade something different.

More points on one side.

A genuine Legendary-grade risk on the other.

Veyra finally walked over.

”Still hungry for more?”

Cassian looked at the war fog.

”Yeah.”

”And?”

”We stop for today.”

One of Veyra’s brows rose.

”Actually stopping?”

”Wave forty-five brought Varkos.”

Cassian said, ”I don’t know what comes after it.”

”And the Fountain’s first real safety net for today is already spent.”

”Pushing the whole Domain farther into an unknown just for a Ranking that hasn’t settled yet isn’t worth it.”

Veyra watched him for two breaths.

”Fine.”

She did not praise him for knowing when to stop. She only turned around.

”Then I clear my line first.”

”Before we leave, nothing alive stays in the Defense Sector.”

”Yeah.”

The final Demon fell.

Cassian still did not hit the exit immediately.

His gaze returned to the center of the battlefield.

Varkos’s Legendary corpse was still there, split open by Skyblade Descent.

Farther away, all eight Hellcrown Guards were still lying where they had fallen.

Every one of them was Epic.

Kill rewards did not make physical corpses disappear.

Cassian raised a hand.

”Take the bodies first.”

Veyra glanced at him.

”I thought you were finally leaving cleanly.”

”Rewards are rewards.”

Cassian looked at the corpses.

”Bodies are bodies.”

They took Varkos’s Legendary corpse in full.

All eight Hellcrown Guard corpses came with it.

They did not bother dragging every remaining Demon away. Intact Rares and Elites with obviously valuable high-grade materials came first. Commons that Meteor Hell and the Rocketiers had already blasted apart were abandoned.

The Hill King and a group of Legionnaires quickly pulled the nine high-grade corpses inside the Domain boundary.

Cassian did not stay in the Defense Sector to inventory them piece by piece.

Get the truly expensive things home first.

Then leave.

He did not wait for the next wave.

[End current Defense Sector voluntarily?]

”End it.”

[Confirmed: no living invading foreign-race units remain inside the battle zone.]

[Defense Sector ended.]

[All current Warden Points and normal battle gains have been retained.]

[Shattered Marches Newcomer Region Ranking score retained.]

Golden light spread outward from the Domain Core.

The next instant, the entire Forgotten Shrine vanished from Riftwind Canyon.

---

When the golden light faded, the familiar gray slopes were back.

To the west, the ravine the Rocketiers had once blasted apart was still there.

The two Gold Veins, the Battle Essence Spring, and the external patrol routes all reconnected to communication.

Bram’s message arrived first.

[Bram Alder: Back?]

[Cassian Vale: Yeah.]

[Bram Alder: Mines never stopped.]

[Cassian Vale: Good.]

Cassian closed the message.

Veyra had already put the Eclipse troops to work on what actually needed attention.

Heavy shields.

Armor.

Rocketier launchers.

Several Building walls damaged by Meteor Hell.

The Fountain could restore people. That did not mean Veyra expected it to repair stone and metal too.

Cassian took out the item Varkos had dropped.

[Domain Environment Advancement Seal | A]

[Use Requirement: Environment Foundation reaches B]

[Current Environment Foundation: C]

One grade short.

After Varkos fell, that had become the next gap.

Now they were home.

Fill it.

Cassian opened the Regional Exchange.

This time he did not scan upward from E-grade.

He entered one condition.

[Domain Environment Advancement Seal | B]

There were very few results.

Only three old listings.

Even the cheapest one was noticeably more expensive than the C-grade Seal had been.

[Domain Environment Advancement Seal | B]

[Price: 1,500,000 Aether Crystal]

The seller came from an old Realm that had passed this stage long ago.

The listing note was simple.

[Inventory replacement. Price firm.]

Cassian checked his balance.

[Aether Crystal: 1,858,466]

Enough.

Veyra saw it too.

”That million you just got back.”

”It hasn’t even had time to warm up.”

”You’re not keeping it for half a day?”

Cassian had already confirmed the trade.

[Aether Crystal: 1,858,466 → 358,466]

The B-grade Seal entered storage.

”It isn’t gone.”

He took the Seal back out.

”It changed into the next grade.”

Veyra gave a quiet snort.

”I’ve heard that one before.”

Cassian smiled.

”Still true.”

The B-grade Seal shattered.

No lightning fell.

No new Building suddenly appeared.

Instead, a faint tremor passed beneath Forgotten Shrine.

Aether Mist had previously drifted through the Domain as a thin haze.

Now the silver-white strands began sinking into the ground on their own, then reappearing from another direction.

For the first time, it felt as if something beneath the entire Domain had started circulating.

[Domain Environment Foundation: C → B]

[Acquired: Domain Aether Vein]

[Effect 1: Domain naturally condenses Aether Crystal ×10,000 per day.]

[Effect 2: Newly generated Wild Resource Points within the Domain boundary and nearby controlled territory have an increased chance of higher Quality.]

[Effect 3: Buildings with random Recruit results have an increased chance of higher-Quality candidates. Fixed-Quality / fixed-production lines are unaffected.]

Aurelia descended from above Oath Hall.

The moment her boots touched the ground, she looked down.

”Something’s moving underground.”

”You can feel it?”

”Clearly.”

She looked up at the Aether Mist.

”Before, it was just there.”

”Now it feels like it’s circulating.”

Veyra barely looked at the ten thousand Aether per day.

Her attention went straight to the third effect.

”Fixed production doesn’t change.”

”So the Royal Hall isn’t suddenly going to spit out extra Hill Kings because of this.”

”Right.”

Cassian nodded.

”But new things have a better chance of being worth more.”

Veyra tilted her head.

”You’re already unimpressed by ten thousand Aether a day?”

”No.”

”The second effect is just worth more.”

Cassian did not stop.

The A-grade Seal was already in his hand.

[Use Domain Environment Advancement Seal | A?]

”Use it.”

The deep-gold patterns shattered.

This time, Forgotten Shrine did not tremble.

For one instant, it became unnaturally still.

Even the wind seemed to cut out.

Then Cassian felt another layer form around the Domain Core.

Not expanding outward.

Folding inward.

[Domain Environment Foundation: B → A]

[Acquired: Folded Sanctuary]

[Deep Domain Layer: Create additional layered space within the Domain.]

[Aether Allocation: Adjust Aether concentration between the main layer and Deep Layer.]

[Time Acceleration: Spend Aether Crystal to increase subjective time within a designated Deep Layer area.]

[Fixed Building production, Daily Output, and system cooldowns continue to use Realm Time.]

That was enough.

Production could not be duplicated.

But time spent training, recovering, and working through problems could be bought back.

Veyra understood it too.

”What do you hide first?”

Cassian’s first thought was not the warehouse.

It was the Fountain.

The ten-meter-wide pool of pale-green water was far too conspicuous.

It was also one of the Buildings in Forgotten Shrine he least wanted outsiders seeing casually.

”The Fountain.”

”And the training ground behind Muster Hall.”

Veyra looked at him.

”You’re putting my training ground in there too?”

”The Deep Layer is still part of the Domain.”

”I know.”

The seven Eclipse Chains behind her gave a faint metallic sound.

”That’s why I’m going in first.”

Cassian did not stop her.

The Deep Layer opened for the first time.

The air around the Fountain folded inward like the surface of water.

The white stone ring.

The pale-green pool.

The entire training area behind it.

None of it vanished as an illusion.

It was physically moved from the main layer into another layer of space.

Veyra stepped through.

Her figure faded instantly.

Cassian could still sense her position through the Domain Core.

The Temporary Covenant did not break.

None of the seven Chains changed.

A few breaths later, Veyra stepped back out.

She looked behind her first, then at Cassian.

”There’s another door now.”

”But this one didn’t shut me out.”

Cassian paused.

”Then it stays.”

The corner of Veyra’s mouth lifted.

”I like that answer.”

---

Cassian did not stop at reading the Time Acceleration description.

He had Aurelia run the first test.

She had already used Life-Echo Brand today, which made her the perfect way to check whether Daily restrictions would accelerate with her.

Cassian marked off a single training room inside Muster Hall.

[Time Acceleration: 10×]

[Test Duration: Deep Layer 10 hours]

[Estimated Realm Time: approximately 1 hour]

[Aether Crystal Cost: 60,000]

The balance dropped again.

[Aether Crystal: 358,466 → 298,466]

Aurelia looked at the ten-times figure.

”I train for ten hours in there.”

”You spend one hour out here?”

”About that.”

”And my Brand?”

”That’s part of the test.”

Aurelia nodded.

”Fine.”

She went in.

Cassian did not stand around for an hour.

Varkos’s other rewards were still waiting.

The first was easy.

[Advanced Attribute Tome ×1 | Bound]

Same item the Ghost Leviathan had dropped.

No trade value.

And an equally direct effect.

[Use: Free Attribute +20]

”Use it.”

The light entered his body.

[Free Attribute: 70 → 90]

Ninety.

Still unassigned.

Veyra saw the number.

”You’ve saved ninety now.”

”Yeah.”

”Still not spending them?”

”When I hit a gap.”

”You have a lot of gaps.”

”Which is why I’m not wasting them.”

An hour later, the Deep Layer opened.

Aurelia stepped out.

Her hair was slightly messy.

Her breathing was steady, but she very clearly looked like someone who had actually trained for hours.

Her first action was not to announce that ten hours had passed.

She opened her status.

[Deep Layer Subjective Time: 10:00:00]

[Realm Time: 01:02:11]

Ten hours.

Sixty-two minutes outside.

Veyra read the numbers twice.

”This is going to make training troublesome.”

Cassian looked at her.

”How?”

”Because I’m going to want everyone inside it.”

Aurelia had already opened Life-Echo Brand.

The next line was equally clear.

[Daily Fatal-State Restoration: 0 / 1]

It had not refreshed.

Aurelia nodded.

”You didn’t trick system time.”

”Good.”

Cassian said, ”I don’t want to wake up tomorrow with ten Life Essences and have the whole Realm rewrite the rules the day after.”

Veyra laughed.

”So you do know fear.”

”I do.”

Only then did Cassian take out the second reward.

[Skill Book: Meteor Hell]

Varkos had demonstrated it right in front of them.

Long range.

Massive area.

Enough coverage to hit an entire Domain.

And the impacts left Hellfire Golems behind.

As a siege skill, it was obviously powerful.

Cassian handed the Skill Book to Aurelia.

She did not learn it.

She only let the system run a compatibility check.

[Recommended Combat Profile: Area Spellcasting / Siege]

[Aurelia Dawnwing: Partial Compatibility]

[Celia Morcant: Low Compatibility]

Aurelia read the result.

”I can learn it.”

”But?”

”My fighting style doesn’t revolve around sustained large-area spellcasting.”

She handed the Skill Book back.

”The same Aether feels better spent on Thunder Crown, Folded Sky Ward, and Skyblade Descent.”

Cassian stored it again.

”Then it waits for someone who actually fits.”

Meteor Hell returned to the warehouse.

It was not useless.

Forcing a Legendary skill onto the wrong person would simply turn it into something that was only barely usable.

No point.

Cassian looked toward the Fountain and training grounds now hidden inside the Deep Layer.

An A-grade Environment.

Its real value was not the letter.

From today onward, Forgotten Shrine had another layer outsiders could not see.

Another way to control where its Aether concentration went.

And a real block of training time that could be bought back.

Black Banner was directly southeast.

If someone eventually connected a Waygate toward them, what they saw first when they looked into Forgotten Shrine would now be something Cassian could control.

---

That night, the first relocation notification appeared.

[Domain Relocation detected within the current Newcomer Region.]

[Outbound Domain Relocation: Permitted]

Then a second.

A third.

Cassian watched the notices.

For now, he left the setting unchanged.

The Black Banner-dominated Region directly southeast had finally stopped being something people only discussed on maps.

Someone had already left.