Two days later, Santa Monica Bay had returned to its original calm.

Gaa gaa gaa...

A line of black flowing light from the south and a swarm of crows from the north arrived one after another to meet here.

The leading big crow in the flock transformed into a middle-aged Great Shaman wearing a feather crown and face paint, standing with hands down in the air, explaining respectfully to the beautiful lady who arrived earlier:

"Lady, I apologize deeply! The patrols of Sky Knights within the Galliot Duchy have become increasingly strict; it's slightly better on the East Coast,

but to reach the West Coast, we had to traverse the entire continent and then follow the coastline from the north to arrive here..."

Unexpectedly, Lady Crow Ye He'er, who stood gracefully with a floral umbrella, did not blame them for failing in their duties and waved her hand casually:

"Hmm, be mindful next time. The time is almost right, let's act immediately."

In the past, she might have severely punished subordinates who delayed time and been indignant at the increasingly overbearing style of the Galliot Duchy.

But now, her face only held a calm indifference, for she had already seen a broader world and limitless possibilities for the future!

Ye He'er was originally one of the Totem Gods in the New Continent most accepting of foreign cultures. Although her "Mourning Church" was somewhat disorganized, it was still far better than her "stubborn" counterparts.

Especially after teaming up with the "Angel of Disease," she had been conspiring in Camside City with a group of evil factions to overthrow Cabraal's structure, her perspective and knowledge far surpassing the past.

What does it matter if the seemingly thriving Galliot Duchy is proud for a while? Eventually, it will be swept away by rain and wind.

It starts with the "Mother of Water" Melro, who has opposed me for hundreds of years. From now on, among the Totem Gods in the northern continent, there will only be one voice!

A group of Shaman Wizards, relieved, rapidly deployed the [Divine Shield] and rushed into the sea.

Everyone knew this was an easy profit; just reaching out could accomplish a great merit for "Lady Crow" and elevate the "Mourning Church" as the sole high-rank Totem God force in the northern continent, naturally raising their own status as well.

But just a few minutes later, a Great Shaman emerged with a fearful expression:

"Lady, terrible news, the Secret Realm has been breached, and there's nobody inside!"

Ye He'er's face changed drastically, transforming into a flowing light and diving into the water. Shortly, she returned angrily, wildly unleashing her Divine Power, blasting huge pits on the sea surface.

"Well, in the New Continent, aside from Galliot, no one could accomplish this. Always opposing me, just you wait! After the unrest in the south, let's see how long you can continue to be smug!"

The group of Shaman Wizards were now all silent, fearing that Ye He'er's fury would turn upon them.

They knew well that whether Melro's followers were killed or captured was an unforeseen twist with a tremendous impact on the northern continent's structure.

Yet, unbeknownst to them, their every move had already been transmitted back to Long Island through the meticulously detailed [Mind Network], reaching Aiven's ears.

...

Sitting under the increasingly flourishing wisteria tree in the [Witchcraft Garden], Aiven sipped a mouthful of refreshing green tea.

"An uprising, huh? Previously, Bess reported that Ye He'er suddenly headed to the southern continent, feeling suspicious, turns out there was an undisclosed conspiracy. Hilus People? Or Cabraal?

Hmm, since she can now skillfully utilize the power of the 'Angel of Disease,' it's likely she's already aligned with the ancient gods. I need to hurry to perfect the southern [Mind Network] layout, at least to know what they're planning."

Aiven's proposal was straightforward; the southern continent to the Duchy was like the Old Continent to the Tulip Islands. The southern continent is essentially the Duchy's backyard, and a rise of a unified power benefits the Duchy not at all.

A chaotic territory where fragmented forces clashed was most aligned with the Duchy's interests. This wasn't about justice; it was purely a simple stance issue decided by interests.

Though still unclear about what the southern enemies were plotting, the expanding circle of the Evil God's influence indicated an ongoing arms race, which must be mirrored on our side.

"Did you see it, Lady Melro? I'm not harming you. I'm saving you instead.

If you fell into Ye He'er's hands, could you have the treatment you have now? Isn't it wishful thinking? Show some spirit to repay me!"

Sitting opposite him, the "Mother of Water" now had a new look, her long blue hair was tied high at the back, adorned with a gemstone crown. She wore a gold gown, and her mermaid tail had transformed into slender legs in glittering high heels.

Having climbed to the apex of the Totem God pyramid since her consciousness began, she had lived through over a thousand springs and autumns, effortlessly replacing the "Snake Witch" Sarah as the oldest in the Duchy's forces.

But after these two days of interaction, Aiven also found her temperament somewhat impulsive and two-faced, far from the mature demeanor a millennial "elder" should possess.

Perhaps influenced by a power, Melro is gentle and meticulous like a gentle breeze when dealing with children and pregnant women, especially towards the newborn Abel in White Swan Castle; when dealing with fishing boats, however, he becomes unusually irritable, wishing he could plunge all the seaweed-harvesting fishermen into the sea.

In short, he is a complex character with a distinctive personality.

At this moment, Melro's ears suddenly twitched, hearing a group of footsteps ascending to the top level from the second level of Poseidya City, his upper body immediately leaned closer to Aiven, biting his pink lower lip and uttering suggestive words that can't help but make one indulge in imagination:

"How do you want me to repay you, my master? Maybe... I could gift you a son? Heeheehee..."

Hmm, his personality is obviously still quite mischievous, clearly seeking revenge for being frightened to tears by Aiven's "mitosis" earlier on. Moreover, judging by his current mood to joke around, it's evident his illness has completely cleared.

Previously, after subduing him using the Oath Prison Lock in the presence of "World Consciousness", Aiven sent countless Genetic Hounds strengthened by

Creator's Blood into Melro's body.

No matter how high the level of extraordinary pathogens, if they want to act on organisms in the Material World, they need to rely on the high-dimensional informational state projected in the lower dimension—the Golden Chain.

As long as the key hidden within the introns of DNA remains unchanged, Genetic Hounds can take effect on them. No medication is needed; directly reaching the disease source, cutting the origin into useless DNA fragments.

Also, "medicine, although beneficial, still carries some toxicity," but Genetic Hounds with precise targeting are different, only slicing away particular pathogens, presenting a dreamy, ultimate treatment method.

Within minutes, he was cleanly and swiftly healed, and the vast number of Totem Gods, Shaman Wizards, and Mermaid Beloved under his command were naturally not an issue.

Aiven, who had discovered the approaching individuals earlier, kept a straight face and stood up directly, encouragingly patting Melro's shoulder:

"You don't need to do that; your current task is just to use your fertility power to protect the common folk within the Duchy.

Since you're so energetic, let's raise the target for net population growth this year from the initial 4% to 5%. If the performance assessment is incomplete... Well, best of luck, I have faith in you!"

Melro's expression suddenly froze.

Feeling inexplicably grief-stricken, he feels like crying but the tears won't come out. Isn't a tool person's life life?

And a performance assessment? For someone like me who's already 1135 years old? This... Is this a twist in human nature or a decline in morality?!

Aiven had already calculated that while ensuring Melro's necessary resources for growth, the balance of Power of Faith's income and expenditure can perfectly achieve

a territory's population growth rate of 4.9%, doubling the population in fifteen years.

Although it's a bit tiring, without goals, how is a person different from a salted fish? Especially a millennium-old salted fish...

As for the extra 0.1%? Aiven believes human potential is limitless, and a performance assessment target should be set to where one can reach with a slight leap. Absolutely no problem.

I indeed am a boss dedicated to employee growth! Hmm, applause is surely deserved here.

"Teacher! We've arrived."

At this moment, under Angie's lead, Serra, along with Clareesa and Leonara sisters, has already ascended to the third level of Poseidya City, and Aiven hurriedly went forward to meet them.

Aiven, like an old farmer, had tilled the soil diligently for many years, finally about to usher in a period of concentrated harvest.

The promotion ceremony for Olivia and Angie was scheduled for a week later, but right now, Aiven plans to first use the modified Chimera Secret Rite to hold a path migration ceremony for Serra and her two disciples!

If, on a large tree, each Wizard is gradually maturing into a fruit, the fruits on different branches, except sharing the same trunk, are virtually unrelated.

But there's certainly a possibility of transferring from the branch to the trunk, as the trunk incorporates all the branch's knowledge.

The Truth Gate can unify all Witches, the Chimera Secret Rite can forcefully "graft", and of course, the Life Tree can also integrate Witches on similar paths.

Including Serra among them, the affinity of the three disciples with the Life Tree School is quite high; Aiven, utilizing his standing as the School Chief,

has already communicated with the Life Tree for their testing, and the issues shouldn't be significant, even in failure, it will be harmless.

Moreover, given the all-encompassing, yet featureless nature of the Truth Gate School, Aiven regards it mainly as a tool for uniting myriad Witches, less reliable than the Life Tree which hasn't been embodied even after an Era of consumption.

Paired with the Chimera Secret Rite·Modified, it's sufficient to alter the fundamental roots of Witches, granting them the ability to freely migrate along akin paths, becoming a branch on the Life Tree and also sharing in the School's growing dividends.

After absorbing these three key figures, the Life Tree School's power will inevitably undergo a transformative leap in advancement.

Although he has not yet ascended to Tier 4, Aiven is already preparing for the Truth Embodiment of the secondary ultimate creation, Crown of Miracles.

A significant prerequisite within is having nine other individuals of at least Tier 3 or equivalent paths to serve as "Angels" guarding the

Ten Great Essences of the Life Tree, elevating him to pluck the most radiant First Essence among the Ten Great Essences—the Crown!

"Lady Serra, Lisa, Nara, are you ready?"

"No problem!"