Chapter 55 - Stumped by a Single Divine Essence

Upon his return to the Divine Civilization, Han Wu’s interface reverted to its standard display.

[Name: Han Wu]

[Rank: Divine Being]

[Divine Talent: Chosen One (Exclusive), Defiance]

[Divine Powers: Increased Growth, Sacrifice (Exclusive)]

[Skills: Mighty Cleave, Enchant Darkness, Dragon Slash, Dark Dragonification, ...]

[Divine Essence: 3 (100 million Accumulated Personal Divine Points transformed into 1 Personal Divine Essence)]

𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎

[Divine Points: 200,000 (Personal) / 500,000 (Foreign)]

[Faith Points: 24.03 million]

[Core Level: 10 (Rank 3 Sacred Object, Law of Gluttony (Incomplete); Rank 2 Sacred Object, Revelation Stone; Rank 2 Sacred Object, Shadow Nail; Rank 1 Sacred Object, Poison Gland; Rank 1 Sacred Object, Earth Core; Rank 1 Sacred Object, Elf Shortbow)]

[Core Race: ...]

The data displayed on his interface had undergone only minor changes. After carefully examining the discrepancies, Han Wu concluded that his altered eyes were most likely a consequence of acquiring the new talent, Defiance.

When he attempted to tap on Defiance to examine its effects, the system informed him that he needed to be a Demigod to access that information. Consequently, Han Wu had to abandon his inquiry.

While the exact nature and effects of Han Wu’s strange eyes remained a mystery to Tian Wen and the recruiter, they believed it was a positive development. However, the true extent of these effects would only be revealed once Han Wu became a Demigod.

“Han Wu, you have successfully passed the Imperial College test with exceptional results and earned a place on the reserved list. However, to fully enroll, you must still meet one additional requirement.”

Han Wu was confused. “What condition?”

“The college’s reserved list requires talent and the fulfillment of two of these four conditions: being born an Elite life form, having a Heroic life form, possessing four Divine Essence, or having a Saint unit. You have already fulfilled the Heroic life form condition, meaning you need to meet just one more to enroll.”

“Isn’t that way too difficult?”

Regarding the evaluation of his core race’s potential, Han Wu’s locusts, being Common life forms from birth, did not meet the requirement, despite his belief in their potential.

The third condition, measuring student wealth, while seemingly straightforward, proved challenging. Divine Essence, valued at 145 million Divine Points each, was highly sought after but scarce. Even Han Wu, under typical circumstances, found it impossible to accumulate any.

Among the four conditions, the Saint requirement was the most difficult. A Saint, the highest-ranking believer, was typically a god’s most devoted subject. This condition demanded not only absolute faith but also exceptional intelligence. Despite having numerous Zealots, Han Wu had none who qualified as Saints.

The recruiter encouraged Han Wu, “Then it’s best if you work hard for it, Han Wu. The doors to Imperial College will remain open for you.” He then provided Han Wu with his contact information before departing.

With a frown, Han Wu turned to Tian Wen. “Sir, do you have any idea how I can acquire a Divine Essence as quickly as possible?”

After a moment of thought, Tian Wen stated, “The school will award a Divine Essence to the student who achieves first place in the upcoming test. However, the test is still 28 days away.”

“Could you lend me one in the meantime?”

Tian Wen shrugged. “Unfortunately, it’s too late. If you had asked me a day earlier, I would have been able to help, but I used it up yesterday. Han Wu, please stop giving me that suspicious look. I swear on my honor that I’m telling you the truth.”

Han Wu sighed. “In that case, I will have to find a solution on my own.”

He went back to his divine realm and started to examine his accumulated spoils.

The black dragon was the most significant treasure he had obtained. Even though the dragon was not yet a believer, Han Wu was confident it would become one in time, provided he kept it in his divine realm. In the meantime, his lack of Faith Point generation was a waste.

His second most valuable treasure was the stable gate that connected to Doron City. This gate provided him with a new location to gather resources and develop his units, making it a valuable long-term investment.

The third treasure he obtained was the mysterious Defiance talent. Although its effects remained unknown, he was confident that a title the black dragon held with such pride wouldn’t be weak.

The fourth category of treasures consisted of the equipment and valuables looted from Doron City. Though valuable, they weren’t exceptionally so. Han Wu ordered the Scorching Dwarves to choose the superior pieces, and then arranged for the rest to be sold on the online Divine Market.

He successfully earned 23 million Divine Points, which was a significant sum for a Divine Being. However, he was still far from acquiring a Divine Essence. Looking at his account balance, he began to feel a headache coming on.

Knowing the Imperial College possessed far superior resources than his present school, Han Wu realized how much even one day of early enrollment would help him. He would, at the very least, not be experiencing the current desperate lack of resources.

With a sigh, Han Wu shifted his focus to nurturing his core race. He employed the Increased Growth skill to accelerate the reproduction of his locusts, and after a realm year, the locust population reached 8 billion. He attempted Sacrificing 7 billion of them, hoping for a favorable result.

Three options appeared, but none included a Divine Essence, so he selected the blueprint for a Steel Demon Idol, which had the highest value. On the subsequent day, he tried once more, but Divine Essence was still not among the choices. Han Wu then chose the Rank 2 Sacred Object, Strong Poison Gland.

...

For several real-world days, Han Wu consistently used Sacrifice, yet he failed to obtain even one Divine Essence as a reward.

Han Wu felt a wave of frustration and regretted selling the Divine Essence to Qin Shuang for 150 million Divine Points. Given another chance, he would have undoubtedly kept it instead of selling it.

While Han Wu was lamenting his past choice, a message arrived from Yuan Zhong, who was inquiring about the daily delivery of the Source of Sacred Objects, which he needed for his God weapon’s repair.

A sudden idea struck Han Wu: perhaps Yuan Zhong, being a God, wouldn’t mind lending him a Divine Essence. If that wasn’t possible, Han Wu would even settle for 120 million Divine Points. He messaged Yuan Zhong, only to receive a string of question marks in response. They had never met in person, and Yuan Zhong mistakenly assumed Han Wu was a God like himself.

Yuan Zhong assumed that Han Wu was, at the very least, an experienced Demigod, if not a God. He would have been willing to lend Han Wu a larger sum, such as five Divine Essence or a billion Divine Points, but he was concerned that Han Wu might not repay a smaller loan, like a single Divine Essence or 120 million Divine Points.

Although the sum was relatively minor to Yuan Zhong, he still valued it as his property and declined to give it without expecting something in return. Instead of lending money, he offered Han Wu a ticket.

Upon receiving the ticket, Han Wu read the inscription. “Divine River Ruins...”

His brow furrowed. He had no idea what it referred to.