The scorpion-man demigod had never imagined, not even in his wildest dreams, that when he looked again toward Charlotte, she would also turn her gaze directly onto him.
The blood clan girl who had only just beco a demigod rank had actually detected his presence!
For an instant, a chill swept through the scorpion-man’s heart. It was as if his blood had turned to ice.
He realized at once that this girl standing before him was no ordinary demigod. She was sothing far beyond the common definition. His instincts scread at him, and the hair along his spine bristled. A suffocating crisis pressed down upon him, one that he had never felt before.
As a demigod, instinct and intuition were often sharper than reason, and his first reaction was to run. His body moved almost on its own, a desperate urge to flee rising within him, because he could sense it: the aura of death itself.
This blood clan girl, delicate and beautiful as she looked, was in truth a terrifying being. She was not soone he could afford to provoke.
"Why are you running?"
Charlotte’s voice was casual, almost lazy, as though she were asking an idle question. Then she snapped her fingers.
In an instant, a towering abyssal monster of gold rank appeared, and its massive claws closed around the scorpion-man demigod, binding him completely.
He struggled, but there was no escape. He was dragged, humiliated, into Charlotte’s presence.
Terror gripped him. Although they were both of the sa rank, he could feel the gulf between them as clearly as if it were a canyon beneath his feet.
"I was wrong!" he stamred, panic surging in his eyes. "Please, don’t kill !"
Charlotte gave him a cold glance.
"A worthless thing," she said softly. "But I must tell you—I really dislike the look in your eyes."
She did not finish her sentence. She did not need to. The abyssal monster obeyed her will and began to squeeze.
The scorpion-man demigod, supposedly a mighty being, suddenly found himself as helpless as a child. His body was crushed within the enormous grip, bones creaking, his flesh feeling as though it might burst at any mont.
"Don’t kill ! Please, don’t kill !" he scread in desperation.
"It wasn’t who wanted to harm you!" he cried out frantically. "It was another demigod! He’s also of the Summoning Domain!"
"Yes, that’s right—it was Krel! Krel is the one! He wants to complete his ascension ritual, and that’s why he targeted you. I only ca along to help!"
"Let go, please! This has nothing to do with !"
His heart pounded wildly with fear. He was terrified of dying. It had taken him so much to rise to this rank; he could not bear to lose it all so suddenly, to perish so absurdly in a trap of soone else’s making.
He had thought of escape, of course. But his agility—his proudest attribute—had already been crippled. The abyssal monster’s grip nullified it completely. Against this gold-rank monster, he had no way to flee.
Horror mounted in him.
"So this... is the power of a gold-rank monster?"
Until this mont, he had never encountered one before. He had believed such creatures did not even exist.
In fact, there were no wild gold-rank monsters in the world. Even Daniel, who had traveled far and wide across countless lands, had never seen one born naturally. For a minor figure like the scorpion-man demigod, his ignorance was even less surprising.
Charlotte, anwhile, wore a sweet smile, her expression almost innocent, as though she were a harmless girl.
"You want to release you?" she asked lightly. "That’s not really a problem. Of course I can do that."
"But since I’ve caught you, shouldn’t you pay a price? After all, you’ve been a demigod for so ti now—you must have accumulated many treasures."
"Oh, and about this Krel you ntioned. When exactly will he arrive?"
As she spoke, the gold-rank abyssal monster squeezed tighter.
The scorpion-man’s face twisted in agony. His strength drained away, and the corrosive energy of the abyss began to eat at his body. The pain was unbearable.
"Please! Please, let go!" he begged, his voice cracking. "Whatever you want, I’ll give it to you!"
But Charlotte did not reply. She simply watched him with calm, unreadable eyes.
His health drained rapidly, his life force flickering like a candle in the wind.
Until he was on the brink of death, he never truly fought back. He couldn’t. To an outside observer, it might seem strange—shouldn’t a demigod resist to the bitter end? But the truth was plain: even a demigod rank warrior could not stand against a gold-rank monster.
One such monster would have been enough to overwhelm him. Yet here stood dozens at Charlotte’s command.
Resistance was aningless. The fact that he was not instantly torn apart was already proof of her rcy.
And beyond that, Charlotte was a summoner of frightening skill. The enhancents she could layer upon her creatures were staggering. With her amplifications, these gold-rank abyssal monsters were at least ten tis stronger than normal.
For the scorpion-man demigod, there was no path but despair.
Just as he thought death had co for him, the abyssal monster’s claws suddenly loosened.
He gasped, wheezing, his mind spinning in disbelief.
Charlotte’s voice ca, soft and almost cheerful.
"Hehehe, don’t misunderstand. I’m not going to kill you. Not yet."
Her smile widened, her crimson eyes glinting with cruel playfulness.
"I’m giving you a chance. Make sure Krel shows himself to ."
Of course she would not kill him so easily. His death might only serve to warn Krel. Better to use him, to lure the other into her grasp.
In truth, Charlotte was also curious. She wanted to test herself, to see how she asured against another summoner demigod. This was as good an opportunity as any.
Far away, Daniel received Charlotte’s transmitted ssage. His expression sharpened as the information flowed into him.
Charlotte had succeeded. She had inherited her demigod seat.
And through her ascension, Daniel too had reaped great rewards.
New abilities surged into his awareness.
[Original Summoning: Creatures you summon will no longer be bound by fixed traits. Instead, they will automatically shift into whatever trait you require.]
[Designated Summoning: You can summon creatures of a specific race at will.]
[Instant Summoning: Your summons will no longer require any cooldown or preparation ti.]
Daniel nodded, satisfaction flickering across his face. Yet already, new considerations rose in his mind.
At present, he had only two devotees bound to his Divine Temple. The slots for devotees were many, yet so many remained empty.
He had intended, before the revival of ancient powers, to recruit only awakeners with SSS-level talents. But after the appearance of the revived ones, the number of SSS-level talents had multiplied—there were now dozens, though still rare.
Yet even so, Daniel had not taken more devotees.
The reason was clear. The Infinite Divine Temple was special. Every devotee he recruited granted him a share of their skills. Already, beyond his own God Rank Skills, he had gained Stellar techniques and summoning-related powers.
His choice of devotees now required careful thought. What he sought was not more of the sa, but those who could fill the gaps in his arsenal.
At the mont, there was nothing he urgently needed.
And so Daniel was patient. He preferred quality over quantity. He would take his ti, searching carefully, filling his temple only with those truly worthy.
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