With an agitated heart, Lierala dispatched all her avatars in pursuit of the Horned Crown, casting aside any plans for a coordinated counterattack against the Abyss.
As a deity of only minor divine power, Lierala's divine portfolio was not suited for direct confrontation. The Church of Joy, within the allied forces, was relegated to logistical support, playing a limited role, which is why the Goddess of Joy's inactivity did not attract much attention.
Under the cover of Shar and Yeager, Lierala's movements remained unknown to all!
In search of the traces left by demons, Lierala's avatars arrived at the edge of the Underworld. This place was perilously close to both the Abyss and Hell, where demons and devils often formed groups to plunder the souls nailed to the Wall of the Faithless, while the Grim Reaper's duty was to ensure the souls of the dead were appropriately dispatched.
Desperate to seize the Horned Crown, Lierala spared no effort, even at the cost of taxing her true form's strength to fuel her avatars. The fall of these avatars would deal a significant blow to her true form.
After much hesitation, Lierala dared not risk venturing into Hell.
Just as she regretted not bringing Lathander and Chauntea along, danger silently surrounded her.
The Underworld was ultimately Yeager's domain, and the new Grim Reaper, Crannor, was still familiarizing himself with the Reaper's duties, his perception of this place shielded by Yeager.
The anti-Iou alliance pounced, swiftly slaying Lierala's avatars before vanishing. The divine essence and power left behind were acquired by a passing imp, sparking a bloody storm in Hell. In the end, a powerful succubus obtained Lierala's divinity and became a demigod.
Deprived of all her avatars, Lierala's power plummeted, forcing her into a deep slumber to recover her losses.
Graz'zt in the Abyss immediately noticed the weakening attraction of the commerce and wealth portfolios, which were beginning to break free from their keeper's constraints and shift towards their original master, Waukeen.
Unlike Graz'zt's exultation, this turn of events caught the gods, who were still amassing their forces, off guard. Fighting in the Abyss, the gods' powers were already greatly suppressed, not to mention the lords of the various planes of the Abyss were no pushovers; the power of the Big Three was comparable to that of a deity of great power. In their own controlled planes, they could receive enhancements akin to those of a divine kingdom; such a battlefield would be challenging even for deities of moderate power, let alone those of minor or lesser power.
With time pressing, the gods had no choice but to convene another Pantheon meeting.
The moderator of this meeting was the God of Guardianship, Helm. Although he was only a deity of moderate power, his status as Iou's sole confidant was enough to place him on equal footing with the deities of great power.
"What advice do you have, Lord of War, Torm?" Helm inquired.
Torm's avatar, clad in majestic armor, spoke solemnly, "With the forces we have gathered at this stage, we cannot rescue Waukeen! If our enemy were only Graz'zt, the deities of great power could easily defeat him in unison. However, the lords of other planes would not stand idly by; Demogorgon, Orcus, and the Demon Mother, pale Night, are all watching with keen interest. The death of any deity would be rewarded by the consciousness of the Abyss! They would never allow us to safely pass through the Abyss planes they control!"
Yeager seized the opportunity to implicate Hell, "Not long ago, a succubus ascended to demigodhood by virtue of the Joy divinity. I have ample reason to suspect that Lierala's avatars fell at the hands of the Archdevil."
The gods exchanged whispers, their hearts filled with thoughts of retreat.
To put it bluntly, no one wanted to take such a great risk for Waukeen. After a round of questioning, the deities of great power passed the buck back to each other, almost to the point of throwing in the towel.
Amidst the silence, Helm had no choice but to communicate with the slumbering Iou.
Tyche focused intently, monitoring Iou to assess his progress.
Iou paid no attention to the gods in the Pantheon; upon learning that Lierala had also met with an accident and lost control over the portfolios of commerce and wealth, he was furious. Tyche, following the crowd, bowed his head in silence.
After a bout of scolding, Iou's figure disappeared from the Pantheon.
The gods exchanged covert messages through their glances, but Iou's seemingly evasive actions had already revealed much information. Beneath the silence in the Pantheon lay a tumultuous undercurrent; the members of the anti-Iou alliance were closely monitoring Helm's reaction; the God of Guardianship's expression remained unchanged, and with a few words, he concluded the meeting, indicating that Iou had not provided a solution.
The anti-Iou alliance reconvened, and the issues exposed by Iou undoubtedly gave the alliance a preliminary victory, which was of significant importance! At least Iou would have to reconsider the consequences before wielding the Tablet of Fate to cast the gods out of their divine kingdoms again!
After a small celebration, Tyche went to the plane of the Slumber of Warriors, where Torm, the God of War, and the Red Knight, the Goddess of Strategy, resided. Invited by the Red Knight, Tyche also sought to probe the intentions of the Lord of War.
Tyche's arrival was met with grand welcoming ceremonies, with Torm himself coming to greet her. Such treatment caused Tyche's heart to skip a beat; something was amiss!
The plane of the Slumber of Warriors was in a constant state of battle, with its terrain changing over time. Today it might be a forest, and tomorrow it could be a wasteland.
Warriors had to be constantly on guard against attacks from any direction. Although they would not truly die as votaries, the defeated would still face the scornful gazes of their comrades. Such humiliation could only be washed away with victory.
The positive energy permeating the entire plane greatly enhanced the warriors' recovery abilities, allowing them to quickly engage in the next battle.
The Red Knight's fortress-like divine kingdom required no protective measures, for this small divine kingdom was located within the divine kingdom of the God of War! It was rare for a subordinate deity to place their divine kingdom within that of a main deity; such trust was uncommon. If the main deity wished to kill the subordinate deity, the latter, without the protection of divine kingdom rules, would be as defenseless as meat on a chopping board!
The Lord of War greeted with a smile, his attempts at luring Tyche into an alliance blatant, "I am willing to swear by the River Styx to regard you as an ally of equal status. Moreover, I will support you in obtaining the defense portfolio, which rightfully belongs to the domain of war. Together, we can easily tear apart Helm's portfolio."
Defense is a passive form of combat, and Torm had no justifiable reason to seek this portfolio; but Tyche immediately realized that Helm was a pawn elevated by Iou to restrain the Lord of War, and Torm was planning to use her as a scapegoat.
Looking at Torm, who had a sincere and earnest expression, Tyche secretly scoffed in her heart; he was trying to fool her!
Without giving him any face, she said, "Pardon my bluntness, but in my view, the domain of war is not your personal fiefdom! The naval warfare portfolio of Admiral Warkul is not weak. With the Goddess of Commerce and Wealth, Waukeen, in trouble, the merchant ships at sea have transferred their faith to Admiral Warkul. His ascension to a deity of moderate power is imminent."
Torm's action of raising his cup paused, then he continued to drink as if he was utterly unconcerned.
"Moreover, your chaotic nature has reached its limit in the domain of war. You spared the life of the Master of Weapons, Karyon Kos, just to make him a pathfinder, didn't you?"
"I do not deny your bravery in battle," Tyche said with a half-smile, looking directly at Torm, "but the order of the army is something you can never make up for. Even if Master of Weapons Kos becomes the god of order, you cannot integrate his essence of order."
"It's not uncommon for a tamed hunting dog to break free from its leash and bite its master. Are you so confident that you can defeat Master of Weapons Kos again?"
Karyon Kos, the Master of Weapons, was once a deity of great power. He was defeated by Torm in battle and lost his former glory. However, Torm did not kill Kos; instead, he allowed him to continue to exist under his control with the status of a deity of minor power.
The stiff face of Torm finally showed an emotional fluctuation as he looked at the leisurely Tyche without speaking.
"Whether it's Kos or Warkul, with my support, they can quickly grow strong enough to threaten your position in the domain of war."
Tyche's smile remained unchanged, "Compared to that, I would gain more benefits by supporting them to replace you, wouldn't I?"
The Red Knight on the side was silent, wanting to step forward to dissuade them but was blocked by the oppressive aura spilling from the two clashing deities.
"Since you are asking for help, don't act so high and mighty as if you are bestowing a favor."
Only then did the smile on Tyche's face fade, and she exchanged blows with Torm's domain of war with an indifferent expression! The power protecting the portfolio transformed into a shield around her master, standing firm in the onslaught of the war.
"You need the defensive portfolio of order to take the final step, and I am the key to it."
The invisible shield trembled slightly, tearing open a safe path in the domain of war; after leaving such a sentence, Tyche stood up and left.
The conflict between the two deities did not affect the church cooperation on the Material Plane. The followers of the God of War still treated the priests of the Goddess of Mercy with courtesy.
The plan to counterattack the Abyss was temporarily put on hold, with all the gods waiting for Iou to act. After all, no one's followers came for free, and high-end combat power was a scarce resource on any side.
Tyche also did not want to participate in this Abyss expedition, making various excuses during the troop assembly. Fortunately, her deification was not long ago, and it was normal not to have a foundation; the other gods would not find fault with this.
The ambulance priest group sent by the Church of Mercy was now completely stalled at the assembly point, waiting in vain for the deities of great power to take action. The priests were unwilling to waste time; they provided free medical treatment to civilians, leaving a good reputation wherever they went.
One day, Tyche suddenly received a summons from Yeager; he had important news to tell the allies.
"What!"
The faces of the four goddesses were full of shock, and Tyche couldn't help but ask, "Did you see Waukeen being rescued with your own eyes?"
"I saw it with my own eyes!" Yeager's shock was no less than that of his allies, "A group of adventurers we've never seen before rescued Waukeen, and they are about to leave the Underworld and return to the Material Plane."
"Adventurers? Your Grace Yeager, are you sure they are not deities!"
Facing the question from Mystryl, Yeager said with an unquestionable tone, "Not to mention the other deities of great power, even your presence could not escape my eyes! I saw very clearly, those adventurers are definitely not any lords of this world!"
The five members of the anti-Iou alliance looked at each other in astonishment; this was truly unexpected. The Dark Lord Graz'zt had power not weaker than that of a deity of great power; who could guarantee that he would be defeated by this Prince of the Abyss in his own domain?
The deities present were undoubtedly in the first tier of deities, but apart from Tyche, no one had the confidence to return unscathed from the siege of the lords of the Abyss. This impossible task was accomplished by a group of unknown adventurers! This was beyond the gods' understanding!
"Your Grace Yeager would not be mistaken; these suddenly emerged adventurers do not belong to this world!"
Solinari frowned and said, "The only possibility is that they come from the world where Iou was born; otherwise, it cannot be explained. To be able to fight against the Dark Lord Graz'zt in the Abyss and return safely, these unknown entities are definitely not nobodies!"
"So, Iou has sought help!" Shar made a conclusive statement; she murmured, "And this also shows that the hidden forces behind Iou far exceed our imagination."
The gods were speechless for a moment; the hope that had just emerged was shattered, and the goal of overthrowing Iou seemed so distant, which was undoubtedly a heavy blow to the alliance.
"Do not be disappointed," Tyche immediately boosted the morale of her allies, "Your Graces are just one step away; as long as you regain the authority of the laws, you all have the possibility to take a step further!"
"Iou's request for help undoubtedly shows that he is temporarily unable to use the Tablet of Fate; we are not without gains!"
Tyche's speech stopped the decline in morale in time; all the gods looked at Tyche, listening to her words seriously.
"As long as you take the final step, you can all make Iou take you into consideration with the identity of the Old Gods! If any of you are lost, the Material Plane will suffer irreparable losses! This is undoubtedly something Iou, as the incumbent beneficiary, does not want to see!"
"Even in the worst-case scenario, you who are free from the shackles of faith still have a way out; no material world would refuse the addition of an Old God; you still have the chance to counterattack Iou!"
Old Gods and primordial deities are equivalent, both capable of acting independently of the world. After becoming an Old God, even if they cannot contend with Iou, they will not be powerless; the anti-Iou alliance also has the confidence to make a desperate fight!
"But we are stuck at this step, unable to completely break free from faith."
Solinari pondered, "Your Grace Tyche, have you discovered a way to bypass the constraints of the Tablet of Fate?"
The eyes of several deities immediately became fervent; one of the reasons for the establishment of the anti-Iou alliance was that Iou had blocked the possibility of taking a step further. The bait thrown out by Tyche immediately hooked the allies who wanted to back out.
"Have you forgotten? The Abyss and Hell are also part of the laws. Although it cannot be fully confirmed, the fact that the Prince of the Abyss and the Archdevil can contend with deities is indisputable! I even think that there are traces of the origin of similar laws on Mount Celestia!"
The news mentioned by Tyche was ninety percent true, with only one point! If they ascended to Old Gods by virtue of the fragmented laws, it would not be as easy to break free as they thought; the laws that caught the life-saving straw would absolutely not allow them to escape.
The allies would not be so naive and gullible to fully believe Tyche, but the temptation to become an Old God was something they could not resist.
"You can verify the accuracy of this news yourselves; in fact, I am not completely sure either, but this conjecture has a certain feasibility, doesn't it?"
Tyche's strategic retreat was just right; with the wisdom and experience of tens of thousands of years of gods like Yeager, they had plenty of ways to test whether this path could bypass Iou and lead to the Old Gods.