Ilúvatar smiled and guided Lin Xiang to the ring closest to the center of the disc, where a radiant throne slowly ascended.
The moment Lin Xiang sat on the throne, she comprehended everything here.
"Welcome to join us, young goddess," the Creation Gods enveloped in radiance said in unison, "Leave your mark here, and we shall guide you on your path!"
A symbol that flickered incessantly lit up on the throne, spreading along the seat like veins. Lin Xiang felt her vision expand like never before! The boundless Chaos Sea seemed to be held in her hands for scrutiny. Just as Lin Xiang was immersed in this marvelous sensation and reluctant to leave, a shadow appeared on the vacant throne beside her.
"Ao!"
Lin Xiang immediately snapped back to reality, turned to meet Ao's gaze, and returned to her body before Ao could speak.
Lin Xiang opened her eyes in the temple, relieved that she had escaped quickly; otherwise, she would have been exposed.
Looking at her renewed watch, the newly appeared mission panel made her heart leap with joy. Now she could seek reinforcements like Ao.
[You have received an exclusive mission: Annihilate the Pursuers
Mission Details: The drow elves who worship Lolth are hunting down their kindred who follow the Dark Maiden. Protect the followers of the Dark Maiden as they escape from underground, and you will be richly rewarded.
Mission Reward: A wisp of pure divinity
Failure Penalty: None]
Before Lin Su could ask what was going on, he was kicked into the portal by Lin Xiang and arrived in the Underdark.
Arvandor, the Elven divine realm.
The Earth Goddess Chauntea and the Elven Queen Angiris joined Corellon and Tyche in their conversation. Talaona, who had fallen at Tyche's hands, had earned Chauntea's favor. Chauntea was an easygoing goddess, but the pride of a greater deity prevented her from extending an olive branch to Tyche like Corellon and Silvanus did. After showing a certain appreciation, Chauntea no longer paid attention to Tyche.
After Corellon agreed to support the followers of Eilistraee, the Dark Maiden and Tyche left Arvandor together.
Eilistraee was busy relocating her followers, and each follower's death shattered her heart. Taking advantage of Lolth's ascension, she poured all her strength into opposing her brother Vhaeraun.
After parting with Eilistraee, Tyche headed to Silvanus's divine realm in the middle of the Wild Plains. The Oak Father was delighted that Tyche had accepted his invitation so quickly and welcomed her arrival with his daughter, the Forest Ranger Goddess Mielikki.
The Nature deity pantheon was different from other human deities; their churches were loose, without a strong enough pontiff to unify all faiths. Therefore, even with many allies in the Good-aligned factions, the Nature deity pantheon could only barely match the Rage deity pantheon.
"Welcome," Silvanus greeted Tyche into the temple, where a table was laden with fresh fruits.
Tyche didn't waste words and immediately asked after Mielikki left, "Have you chosen to join Ao's side?"
"I do not wish to be involved in the game between Ao and the gods."
Silvanus thought Corellon had told Tyche these inside details and shook his head, "In the laws of nature, sprouting and withering are predetermined stages; plants are destined to experience storms. I will follow the arrangements of natural will and calmly accept what is to come."
"For our shared essence, I must warn you," Tyche said seriously, "Danger is approaching you!"
"Do you mean Talos and his Rage deity pantheon?"
"No!" Tyche didn't beat around the bush, "The Storm God is your old rival; I believe you can handle him. But if your allies betray your trust at a critical moment, not only you but also the Nature deities could fall!"
Silvanus became serious as well. Although this was only their second meeting, he trusted Tyche greatly; hearing her speak so earnestly, he couldn't help but feel a sense of crisis.
Tyche continued, "The wars between the Orc deity pantheon and the Pan-human deity pantheon are imminent, and your most trusted allies—the Elven deities—are now preoccupied with Lolth's ascension! It's clear that Corellon's help, if any, will be hindered by Lolth. Therefore, now is the best time to strike at you!"
"I don't understand," Silvanus's confusion deepened, "The Rage deities are also part of the Pan-human deity pantheon; they can't stay out of it. Why would they risk angering all human deities by targeting me?"
"What if Talos isn't the first to strike? The Storm God hates you; taking advantage of your misfortune wouldn't be surprising! In that case, the human deities wouldn't point their fingers at him."
"As long as all the Nature deities fall, who would risk opposing a powerful deity capable of killing you under the pressure of the Orc deities for those of you who have already fallen?"
Tyche hinted, but Silvanus smiled and shook his head, "You said the Orc deities and human deities will start a war, with the powerful deity Lolth also occupied by the Elven deities. If someone wants to strike at me, at least several powerful deities would have to act together to kill me, and all powerful deities have factional rivals; they wouldn't miss this opportunity to strike at their opponents."
"Relationships among gods are complex; the fall of any powerful deity would significantly impact their faction. Who would take such a risk?"
"That's why I said it's your trusted ally," Tyche picked up a grape and peeled it, "The Evil-aligned deities would be delighted to see infighting within the Good-aligned factions. Corellon is busy dealing with the Spider Queen and has no time to save you if you fall into crisis."
"Why do you think I'm in a weak position?" Silvanus was somewhat displeased, "The Earth Goddess Chauntea's divine realm is adjacent to mine; she wouldn't stand by and watch."
Tyche looked straight into Silvanus's eyes, "Let me finish."
"You are detached from both the native deities and Ao, which means you will be ostracized by them. If someone eliminates an uncontrollable factor like you before they officially go to war, do you think they would break their silence?"
"Someone has already found a way to bypass Ao's restrictions and become an Old God; the value of neutrals like you will only diminish. Who can remain rational in the face of the temptation to become an Old God? Can you?"
Silvanus fell silent, and after a long while, the Oak Father shook his head, "I cannot."
"So you must make a choice," Tyche sighed and lowered her head, "Either recognize Ao's rule or join the ancient deities' resistance organization. Otherwise, your only option is to leave this world and take your chances, but you should be clear that the outcome won't be any better than joining the war."
"Your Grace, Tyche," Silvanus said in a vague tone, "After saying so much, you still haven't told me who will strike at me?"
"Do you really not know?" Tyche didn't answer directly; she looked at Silvanus with an inquiring gaze, "Or... do you have the same intentions as that lord?"
The Oak Father's expression froze, then returned to normal the next moment.
"The lord who betrayed your trust has considerable influence, but if he strikes first, your counterattack will be justified."
The corners of Tyche's mouth curled higher, "After all, it would be self-defense; even Týr, the God of Justice, would acknowledge the justice of your revenge. What could the lords say then?"
"What do you want?" Silvanus no longer pretended and laid his cards on the table, "Even if you tell that lord everything, the entire operation won't stop!"
"I have no intention of profiting from this," Tyche put away her smile and spoke seriously, "Corellon has already set a trap for them; my dear friend, there should still be room at this well-prepared feast, right?"
The two deities exchanged smiles and tacitly ceased discussing these matters.
The moment Tyche saw Corellon shed his disguise, she understood; the old dog's layout was an open secret! As long as that lord wasn't tempted, there would be no counterattack; but if he wavered, the old dog wouldn't miss the opportunity.
The other members of the Anti-Ao Alliance had either actively or passively focused their attention on the Abyss, neglecting the Hell and Mount Celestia.
Since the Abyss could bypass Ao's blockade of the ancient god path, why couldn't Hell and Mount Celestia? When shaping the Reincarnation divine role, Tyche clearly perceived that there wasn't much difference between the Abyss, Hell, and Mount Celestia; why should everyone focus their energy on the Abyss?
Everyone was vying for the same thing, wasn't this forcing the alliance members into conflict?
Although the addition of Nuitari, the Mother of Demons, made focusing on the Abyss seem logical, as Nuitari, the guide, could save everyone effort.
However, Yeager's untimely probing made Tyche suspicious; upon careful consideration, this unnecessary probing had indeed made her overlook Mount Celestia! Under the tense atmosphere, she hadn't even inquired about the results of Sarenrae's trip to Mount Celestia!
If there was a faction on Mount Celestia that had found a way to ascend, it would make sense.
Among the Good-aligned deities of Mount Celestia, only two were most likely to be favored by the broken will of the laws! The Lord of Dawn, Lathander, and the God of Justice, Týr!
Sarenrae had repeatedly claimed Lathander was unreliable, using this to veto the proposal to bring Chauntea into the alliance, but it might have been to cover for him!
The reason Tyche thought Lathander was more likely, rather than Týr; besides Chauntea, who stood by Lathander, the name Týr was also significant.
Since an avatar of Odin could appear, it wasn't impossible for Týr, the God of War and son of Odin, to appear in the guise of the God of Justice!
As the leader of the Three Gods of Justice, records about Týr were not uncommon; he descended to the Material Plane as an avatar of a foreign deity. At that time, Týr was only a demigod; after killing a lesser god of politics and taking his place, he smoothly ascended to the position of a greater deity.
A ready-made free ride; Tyche didn't want to miss it.
Corellon had no objections to Tyche's inclusion; after Tyche expressed her willingness to block Lolth, allowing the Elven deities to have a breather, she received her share of the benefits.
The contest for the spokesperson of Mount Celestia was still ongoing, with the two candidates locked in a tug-of-war.
And now, the first thing Tyche needed to do was to put pressure on the Morning Lord Lathander, forcing him to act prematurely.
On the Material Plane, priests who worshipped the Goddess of Mercy all felt an immense joy; lilies had grown from the cracks in the stone slabs beneath the altar! The fluctuation of primal forces caught the attention of all deities, and the gods discussed it, frequently mentioning the soon-to-be-ascended Spider Queen Lolth.
Unlike Lolth's arduous journey, Tyche struck while the iron was hot, ascending to greater deity status before Lolth!
The emergence of the divine roles of Education and Enlightenment led to a unified transition in the education system from its previously uneven state; its impact was undeniable. It seemed reasonable for Tyche to become a greater deity through this.
The sudden appearance of two greater goddesses was unprecedented. All deities were eager to know what impact these two greater goddesses would have on the current situation.
Tyche of the Absolute Neutral faction and Lolth of the Lawful Evil faction didn't have direct conflicts, but Tyche's support for Eilistraee and her sheltering of the drow elves escaping the Underdark undoubtedly displeased the Spider Queen. When the news of Lolth's impending ascension spread, Worgin and Mystryl both advised Tyche to stop helping the Dark Maiden.
However, Tyche not only didn't back down but also gifted the Underdark divine role to Eilistraee to show her support!
The Church of Mercy set up extensive defensive works at the northern entrance of the Underdark and even gave a resource-rich dense forest to the kind drow elves as a private plot, demonstrating Tyche's determination not to betray.
The Spider Queen was furious and ordered the Great Mothers to send the priests of the Goddess of Mercy and the surface elves to the altar together.
In their bid to win the Spider Queen's favor, the drow elves slowed their pursuit of Eilistraee's followers, turning their targets to Gwendolyn, the pontiff who was rescuing the kind drow on the surface.
The enmity between the two sides grew, and Tyche was probably second only to Corellon on Lolth's list of enemies.
After becoming a greater deity, Tyche went to Mount Celestia to seek help from her old friend, the God of Suffering, Ilmater.
The friendship between the Goddess of Mercy and the God of Suffering was well-known; the two joining forces to brutally kill the Torture Goddess Loviatar and the Plague Goddess Talona was still fresh in the gods' memories. It was only natural for Tyche to invite Ilmater to confront Lolth.
Ilmater's willingness to strike at Lolth wasn't surprising, but what shocked the gods was that Týr, the Lord of Justice, and Torm, the God of Loyalty, also mobilized their forces.
Suddenly, all the paladins of the Material Plane gathered in the North; the churches of the four deities united under Eilistraee's leadership to counterattack the Underdark, even driving Lolth's followers from the first layer to the second layer.
The Underdark was rich in various precious minerals; even Worgin was willing to get involved and do business with Eilistraee, stabilizing her shaken divine role.
The campaign against Lolth had a natural justification; no one could criticize Tyche for being too harsh on Lolth.
The situation was one-sided; many Good-aligned deities wanted a share of the spoils, and the influence of the Three Gods of Justice soared unprecedentedly. With Tyche's intentional concessions, the role of another greater deity, Týr, became particularly prominent, which made Lathander restless.