The Paladin in the Abyss-Chapter 571 - 595 The Strengthening Demi-god

Chapter 571: Chapter 595: The Strengthening Demi-god Chapter 571: Chapter 595: The Strengthening Demi-god Once Lancelot finished speaking, those chunks of ice shattered one by one, revealing hundreds of Frost Giants, three or four hundred in number. These Frost Giants were clearly not coming from the Gate of Stroddet to the Iron Ice Plains; most had already been waiting here for quite some time. They let out roars filled with hatred and hurled boulders and javelins down the slope.

The army at the bottom of the valley was instantly thrown into disarray. Despite the clearer view of the ambushers’ true numbers from high above, the side caught in the surprise attack had no time to make such an assessment. The only silver lining was—perhaps to embolden themselves—the ambushers made a lot of noise before launching their assault, granting Gorgiad’s troops a slight chance to react by lifting their hide-covered shields over their heads just in time.

However, the ambushers had a tremendous geographical advantage, their position being over two hundred feet above the valley floor vertically, and anything they threw was bound to be massively destructive under the force of gravity.

The barrage akin to hailstones soon fell upon the heads of the army in the valley, immediately inflicting numerous casualties. Even the strongest giants couldn’t resist being knocked down by the falling rocks, and the javelins that followed dealt the death blows. Due to the terrain, the ambushed side found it difficult to combat effectively. Even if they could throw javelins and throwing axes up the slope, their power was greatly diminished, causing no substantial damage.

But this was the moment for magic to play its role.

Among Gorgiad’s followers were numerous spellcasters. These Frost Mages created long walls of ice, forming a trench-like temporary barrier on one side of the troop formation. The Frost Giants rushed to take cover under the ramparts, but this was certainly not a long-term solution—the magical creations would be damaged under powerful blows, and although the Frost Mages were continuously repairing and creating more walls, their magical prowess was limited and couldn’t keep up indefinitely.

The only one capable of counterattacking was the demi-god Gorgiad. The disheveled state of his followers infuriated him, and the rage helped activate the power within his blood. A dazzling lightning appeared in the hands of the demi-god and rapidly coalesced into the shape of a javelin, which he furiously hurled at the enemies on the slope.

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The Lightning Spear almost instantly flew over the heads of the ambushers, creating a thunderous noise upon impact and triggering a severe explosion at the moment of landing. The risen flurry of snowflakes was swiftly scattered by the wind in the valley. Upon closer inspection, a massive crater with a radius of ten feet appeared, the nearby ambushers were reduced to barely recognizable charred figures, and at the center of the explosion, the unlucky target was obliterated without leaving a trace.

The demi-god didn’t stop to admire his handiwork. Fury turned him into a ballista at full speed, hurling lightning javelins one after another at the slope, creating a storm-like thunder, almost single-handedly quelling the ambushers’ offensive.

It must be said, Gorgiad’s performance was as if a celestial descended, it greatly shocked and rallied the followers who had just been pinned down. They emerged from behind the ice walls, shouting Gorgiad’s name and charging up the slope against a much reduced enemy attack.

In Lancelot’s astonished gaze, the ambush battle concluded much more quickly than he had anticipated. Gorgiad didn’t start celebrating prematurely this time. He fought until the last ambusher was killed, then threw more than a dozen Lightning Javelins at the spot where the corpses vanished, as if venting his rage, before he could barely calm the fury inside him.

Eventually, the demi-god lost about a hundred followers, while the ambushers’ casualties were three times that number. Undoubtedly, if not for Gorgiad’s game-changing performance, the outcome of the battle would have been entirely different.

“How come I feel like that guy seems to have gotten stronger?” Bruto stroked his beard, a rare gesture indicating he was deep in thought, “I’ve never seen that trick of shooting lightning from his hands before…”

“That is certainly not a common strength.” Alamir spoke up, “Perhaps I am mistaken, but that lightning seemed truly like Divine Power, how strange…”

“Isn’t he a Demi-god?” Lancelot asked with some curiosity, “It should be quite normal for him to use Divine Power, shouldn’t it…”

“Of course not.” The Elf Priest shook his head repeatedly, “The offspring of gods are only Demigods, although they possess divinity, which means immortal bodies and great strength, they do not have Divine Power, nor can they bestow Spells on others.”

“Could it be the power lent to him by Solheim? Just like you can use the Divine Arts granted by Shuni?”

“It doesn’t seem like it. You see, every time before I cast Divine Arts, I have to display the Holy Emblem, recite prayers, but when Geogad threw that Lightning Javelin just now, it was like… like you releasing that green sword light, do you understand what I mean?” The Elf Priest shook his head again, “To wield Divine Power, he must elevate his Divinity, ascend to a True God, and that requires a sufficient number of mortal worshipers…”

As he spoke, Alamir suddenly stopped, his expression becoming extremely vivid, because he realized that he might have just spoken the actual truth.

“I felt earlier that those Frost Giants’ attitude towards Geogad was a bit… fanatic.” Lancelot stroked his chin, “And Geogad’s ability to use Divine Power is the result of such worship?”

“That’s the most likely explanation.” Alamir scratched his head, “I don’t know exactly how many mortal worshipers are needed to obtain Divinity, but it seems that the current number is already enough for him… for Him to undergo these changes.”

“Solheim probably won’t like these changes, though.” Lancelot frowned, “After all, Solheim is the only god of the Frost Giants. If Geogad eventually defeats Kostcheqi, wouldn’t He become another who siphons the Power of Faith from the Frost Giants… just like Kostcheqi?”

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“I don’t know.” Alamir spread his hands, “Some powerful gods are willing to delegate a portion of their Divine Office to their subordinates, maybe Solheim would also agree to form such a relationship with Geogad? After all, the Iron Ice Plains are quite suitable for the Frost Giants to inhabit, and being a True God He probably can’t afford to frequently visit the Abyss to defend this realm…”

Alamir’s voice gradually faded, because he himself understood that this explanation didn’t hold up. If he were Solheim, he would definitely want the Frost Giants of the Iron Ice Plains to worship him, too. Faced with the choice of tolerating another Frost Giant object of worship and giving up a territory in the Abyss, he would certainly choose the latter without hesitation, rather than creating a competitor for himself.

“This makes things interesting.” Lancelot shook his head slightly, “Let’s just hope that at least until Kostcheqi breaks free, Solheim won’t realize the threat his brother poses…”