For tens of thousands of years since becoming a god, Nien had never sensed a third Law Mystery.
In other words, barring any surprises, his life as a god would be the peak of his existence.
But now, with Locke as an ally, Nien knew that in the future, whether Locke ascended to become a Highgod or not, he could still leverage Locke's connections to reach the Highgod behind him.
With his hundreds of thousands of years of accumulated wealth, requesting an upper godly rank that matched his attributes from Locke's senior wouldn't be impossible.
"Locke, in Hell, there are two ways to obtain Amethyst."
"The first way is to purchase it in the Violet Bramble Castle."
"The Violet Bramble Castle is established by the Violet Bramble Sovereign on the Violet Continent. Each major city has one."
"Within the castle, as long as you have enough ink stones, you can buy many things—Amethyst included."
"The second way is to venture into the Violet Mountains."
"From time to time, certain caves in the Violet Mountains will spew varying amounts of Amethyst. However, without sufficient strength, it is extremely difficult to acquire any."
"Locke, if you want Amethyst, once the squad escorting other beings returns, I can notify them to deliver you directly to the city, so you can purchase Amethyst from the Violet Bramble Castle yourself."
From Nien's perspective, even if Locke's senior intended to give him a lesson, they would surely have provided enough resources for Locke to buy some Amethyst.
Thus, Nien thought it would be easiest to use a favor to escort Locke directly to the destination.
Unfortunately…
Locke shook his head. If he had sufficient ink stones, Nien's suggestion would indeed have been the best option.
But Locke knew his own situation.
He truly had an Highgod behind him, yes—but he had no other material wealth.
In fact, Locke suspected the most valuable thing he possessed now was his own godly rank.
With his current assets, how could he afford Amethyst?
Rather, he didn't even have the qualifications to live in a Hell city.
If the Violet Bramble soldiers did escort him into a city, without enough ink stones to pay for lodging by nightfall, the city guards would forcibly expel him.
So, faced with Nien's kindness, Locke declined directly.
"Thank you, Captain Nien."
"But since you said this is a lesson from my senior, I assume they wouldn't want me to simply purchase Amethyst from the Violet Bramble Castle."
"If it's convenient, Captain Nien, please allow the escorting squad to drop me off at the point along the route closest to the Violet Mountains."
"This…"
Nien was momentarily speechless.
He hadn't expected that, even after he'd revealed the senior's plan, Locke would still choose to go to the Violet Mountains.
"Very well. I'll inform the escort squad," Nien said.
"But I can't guarantee how far they'll be able to drop you off."
This time, Nien did not take full responsibility.
After all, the escort squads ultimately delivered beings to major cities. The decision of where to place them within tribes or cities was in the hands of the main godly army.
Nien only needed to notify his colleagues, and they would likely oblige and drop Locke at a large city to save face.
But the Violet Mountains… that was beyond Nien's power.
The Violet Mountains lay in the southern part of the Violet Continent.
Even using the fastest Metallic Lifeforms from Mirror Moon Cliff, it would take years to reach them.
The Violet Bramble escort squad's Metallic Lifeforms were standard, capable of flying at most a million li per day. Without decades, they couldn't reach the Violet Mountains.
Moreover, the squad had other duties—delivering beings to other cities and tribes. There was simply no way they could take Locke far enough.
"Understood. Thank you, Captain Nien."
…
Back at his previous location, the surrounding beings looked at Locke with strange expressions.
They had all seen Locke display his identity token. Immediately, the attitude of the haughty soldiers of the godly army shifted dramatically.
Even the god level squad leader smiled cheerfully at Locke.
Clearly, unlike the others, Locke—though new to Hell—was someone with "connections above." They, on the other hand, were pure grassroots.
Such a dynamic was something they often witnessed in the material plane when looking at those around powerful descendants and heirs.
But now, in the Supreme Plane of Hell, the roles were reversed—they were the ones looking at someone with envy.
It was a mix of admiration, jealousy, and the sourness of thinking, "Why isn't that me?"
Locke had to temporarily shut off his soul vision.
He feared that if he continued observing these beings, the envy and jealousy would feel almost physically corrosive.
Three days later, a golden dragon hundreds of meters long approached Mirror Moon Cliff at over five thousand meters per second, startling the beings who had come from the material plane.
No matter how strong they had been in the material plane, in the Supreme Plane of Hell, it was already insignificant.
So, while waiting for the godly army to assign them, these beings had secretly tested their own strength and speed in Hell.
In terms of power, the results were humbling.
In the Sacred Realm of the material plane, they could churn seas and overturn rivers. In Hell, they could barely make a ten-centimeter pit in the ground.
Speed was similarly reduced to mere hundreds of meters per second.
Under such conditions, a being flying at over five thousand meters per second was a truly overwhelming sight.
Knowing oneself as an ant was one thing. Experiencing the gap between an ant and a dragon was another.
The first inspired self-reflection and caution.
The second inspired boundless fear.
Before coming to Hell, they had all been high-ranking figures in their domains. How many years had it been since they'd felt so helpless?
Fortunately, the golden dragon did not attack. It hovered above them.
Then, under everyone's gaze, its belly opened like a mechanical chamber, and several soldiers in Violet Bramble armor flew out.
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