Volume 5 Chapter 0077 Louie: I have a proposal! - I, The Dragon Overlord

The Dawn Goddess and the Earth Goddess exchanged a glance, and ultimately the Earth Goddess Chauntea lowered her head, signaling to the Dawn Goddess that she should be the one to speak. The previous two 'Pantheon' meetings had been presided over by the Dawn Goddess Lorenia. However, as time passed, many gods were catching up to the Dawn Goddess's level, and in terms of divine rank, the Dawn Goddess was no longer the strongest. Normally, it would be appropriate for another god to take over the role. Still, even the most powerful of the gods only reached a divine rank of 18, with no one reaching rank 19, so the gods didn't care much about these superficial titles. Since the Dawn Goddess had led the discussions twice before, they decided to let her continue. As for the gods of other races, they had never been honored with this distinction, which was unsurprising since the human pantheon had always been the strongest. "Ladies and gentlemen, please quiet down a bit." As the Dawn Goddess spoke, the various intersecting exchanges of divine thoughts among the gods in the 'Pantheon' quieted. Numerous divine gazes turned towards the foremost place, waiting for this familiar goddess to speak. "You have all witnessed what just occurred in the Material Plane. As you may have guessed, it was indeed a weapon from an alien civilization that once caused the 'Age of Catastrophes.'" The gods present in the 'Pantheon' were mere avatars of divinity rather than incarnations, so none of them had physical bodies. But even so, when the Dawn Goddess finished speaking, it felt as if this powerful goddess's face showed seriousness and concern. "Thanks to Louie's swift response, no damage was inflicted on the Material Plane." The Dawn Goddess nodded towards where Louie was seated, conveying gratitude from the pantheon to him. "This is my duty. My interests align with yours, and for the safety of the Material Plane, I should stand with you." Louie nodded slightly, his tone peaceful yet brimming with concern, as if worried about the arrival of this alien civilization. This attack had been his doing, so naturally, he reacted the fastest. Moreover, Louie had no intention of actually destroying the world, and would undoubtedly prevent the weapon's power from impacting the Material Plane. "Benshaba, could you explain what happened at that time? As the person involved, you should have a better understanding of the situation." The Dawn Goddess addressed the Goddess of Misfortune at this point, and the attention of the other gods shifted to this troubled goddess. Though the Goddess of Misfortune was chaotic and evil, with a notorious pettiness, she wasn't foolish. With so many gods waiting for her words, she couldn't refuse unless she wanted to become an enemy of the entire pantheon. Furthermore, the alien civilization's attack threatened her very existence. After pausing to consider her response, the Goddess of Misfortune explained in a hoarse voice, detailing the events leading up to and her reasons for visiting the Principality of Iola. The gods were well aware of her personality and habit of cursing, so none believed she was lying. After her explanation, the gods resumed their whispers. This time, even the god of great power joined in the discussion, but no one managed to ascertain why the alien civilization had suddenly attacked the Goddess of Misfortune. 'Perhaps she simply had bad luck.' The gods concluded, resigning themselves to the explanation that the alien civilization meant to obliterate the Material Plane, and the Goddess of Misfortune happened to be in their target location. Yet this conclusion was troublesome, as not understanding the enemy's pattern or motives made predicting the next attack impossible. "My lords, I have a question..." A god voiced his doubts. The speaker was once the leader of Agolon, the Alliance of Seven Nations, and is now the God of Knowledge. Though a new god, he quickly reached the level of a moderate deity, becoming one of the most powerful among the newer gods, second only to Louie. The 'knowledge' domain he held had great potential, and given a few centuries, he might achieve the rank of a powerful deity. Even the gods of great strength took note of his inquiry. "Speak, Lord Oghma!" "Like many of us here, I did not participate in the war from 30,000 years ago. From what we just observed, this alien civilization doesn't seem as formidable as imagined. The energy level of their attack was high, but it was merely 'legendary.' Against divine power, they were weak." The God of Knowledge questioned the recent aggression of the Terran civilization using his repository of knowledge. Many gods nodded in agreement. Though the alien civilization's strike threatened great disaster on the Material Plane, the energy level was not formidable. As the God of Knowledge stated, it only matched 'legendary' power and posed no threat against the gods. Even a minor deity could have easily withstood it, needing only to expend some divine power. Moreover, several gods had collectively acted, nearly instantaneously eradicating the attacking foes, rendering the alien civilization as frail as mortals. The Dawn Goddess sighed in response to the God of Knowledge's doubt and said, "The terrifying aspect of the alien civilization is not the power of their weapons but their evanescent presence and endless numbers. Though we vanquished one wave effortlessly, this loss was nothing to them." "…Their frequent and sudden assaults on the Material Plane, once successful, could result in massive casualties, stripping us of our worship. These alien foes lack the rules we abide by and attack indiscriminately, exploiting our greatest weakness." "Their weapons can emerge anywhere on the vast Material Plane, and we deities can't monitor every corner. Even halting time across the Material Plane, as Louie demonstrated, is unsustainable." Hearing the Dawn Goddess's remarks, Louie nodded, indicating his inability to sustain the Material Plane's time freeze indefinitely. He could manage sporadically, but consistently doing so would deplete even a great deity’s power. "Lorenia is indeed correct. I cannot prophesy anything about that alien civilization." It was at this point that the God of Prophecy spoke. He possessed the esteemed role of 'prophecy,' yet prophecy's effect was minimal against stronger powers and heavily reliant on the user's talent. Consequently, the God of Prophecy attracted few followers, maintaining only a minor divine rank. He had anticipated success in casting his prophecy on a non-divine target, but he found his vision obstructed across a cosmic divide, failing to predict the next assault from the alien civilization. This showcased the Terran civilization's mastery over temporal wormholes, exploiting planar barriers for cross-dimensional attacks. The interceding planar boundaries negated prophecy, and should the Terran forces and weaponry fully enter the world of San Soliel, even the Prophecy God with minor might could foresee every move of the Terran civilization, stripping them of mystery. Terrans were, after all, mortals, and divine insight into mortal affairs posed no difficulty. A hush fell over the 'Pantheon,' as even the gods from 30,000 years ago found it challenging to devise strategies against the invaders. The gods' collective strength had diminished over the millennia. Sensing the moment was ripe, Louie cleared his throat and said, "...My lords, I have a proposal!"