Faced with Asura's "threats," Level Two gods like the God of Food, the Nine-Colored Goddess, and the God of War had no chance to resist and could only comply with his arrangements.
If they refused to obey Asura, they might end up being sabotaged, dying mysteriously during some mission, or worse, never being allowed to leave the Divine Realm.
Yet, such a scenario was unrealistic, which was precisely why they followed Asura's orders.
For them, passing down their divine positions early and leaving this hypocritical Divine Realm was also a good thing.
By leaving together, they could at least rely on each other for support.
What they didn't know was that Asura shared the same thought, to pass down his divine position and leave as soon as possible.
And he intended to leave alongside these very gods...
But the God of Fire was different. The gap between him and Asura was only a single rank.
Though this gap was significant, it was enough to shield him from Asura's threats.
If it truly came to a fight, the God of Fire could hold out long enough for the God of Destruction to arrive, ensuring his safety.
Asura and the God of Destruction were at odds.
Whenever Asura targeted a god or pushed for a decision, the God of Destruction would almost always oppose it.
However, the God of Destruction's wife, the Goddess of Life, was more "principled."
Between love and righteousness, she often chose the latter, openly opposing the God of Destruction while privately comforting him.
Though the Goddess of Life had a somewhat duplicitous demeanor, she was a benevolent god. Unfortunately, her fate was not a happy one.
For the God of Fire to pass his divine position to that little fatty, Ma Hongjun?
No way. The God of Fire had his pride!
Ma Hongjun's character was… questionable. If there were no other options, the God of Fire might have reluctantly passed his position to Ma Hongjun, appeasing Asura.
But he did have another choice. He had been observing Du Siji for a long time and was very satisfied with his performance.
If Du Siji inherited the God of Fire's position, he might even ascend to the level of a Supreme God with the help of the Geo Archon.
At that point, wouldn't he be able to smack Asura around as he pleased?
Of course, even if he succeeded in breaking through, as a fellow Supreme God, the God of Fire might still not be a match for Asura, after all, the latter was the one who had slain the Dragon God.
"In the entire Divine Realm, there are no more than ten gods stronger than you?"
Du Siji asked skeptically. If that were the case, did that mean the God of Fire wasn't all that impressive?
If he were truly top-tier, how could there still be so many gods capable of defeating him?
It was only because Du Siji had no idea how many gods existed in the Divine Realm that he thought this way.
The Divine Realm housed countless gods, including those who had ascended at level 100, such as Heavenly Star Hunters and Divine Officials. In total, there were tens of thousands of gods.
Among these tens of thousands, the God of Fire stood at the very peak!
To put it bluntly, those who could ascend to godhood were all prodigies from their own worlds, individuals who might not appear even once in tens of thousands of years.
Yet, after ascending, these so-called geniuses had to bow respectfully before the God of Fire, a peak-level first-rank god!
"Genius is merely the threshold to meet me."
If the God of Fire ever stirred up trouble in the Divine Realm, these "geniuses" would be nothing more than foot soldiers sent to besiege him, utterly insignificant.
The God of Fire twitched his eyebrow, feeling somewhat speechless.
He had been speaking modestly!
In a one-on-one fight against the five Supreme Gods, he stood no chance against any of them.
As for the other first-rank gods, only those at the peak of the first rank could fight him to a standstill, not necessarily defeat him.
"The Divine Realm has five Supreme God Kings. Using the Douluo Continent's standards, I'm only one rank below them," the God of Fire said with a hint of exasperation.
Who did this kid think he was looking down on?
Here he was, the illustrious God of Fire, a prominent figure in the Divine Realm, willing to defy Asura for this kid's sake, and yet, the kid had the nerve to call him weak!
As if Du Siji himself were the strongest in the Body Sect.
Pfft.
The pot calling the kettle black.
Slowly, Du Siji seemed to understand.
This God of Fire might not actually be weak, just not overwhelmingly strong.
There were only a handful of gods above him, but countless below.
Yet, even such a god was afraid of the Sect Master…
It seemed the Sect Master had been hiding many things from them. Just how much pressure had he been enduring?
In the end, it was their own weakness that prevented them from sharing the burden with the Sect Master.
As if struck by a sudden thought, Du Siji glanced around the Hall of Flames once more.
The eternally burning fires did not bring him discomfort but instead radiated a comforting warmth.
"Then why have you brought me here…?"
"To pass my divine position to you!"
Before Du Siji could finish, the God of Fire cut straight to the point.
Divine inheritance?
Du Siji's eyes widened in disbelief. Never had he imagined such an opportunity would land in his lap.
He was no longer an ignorant novice. He knew what divine inheritance meant.
To become a god, one could either inherit a divine position or create one.
Inheriting a divine position was the simpler path, so long as a god was willing to pass it down, ascension was virtually guaranteed, and the process was swift.
Creating a divine position, on the other hand, was far more difficult, with two possible paths:
The first was to "break through with sheer force", accumulate enough soul power to reach godhood, convert it entirely into divine power, and forge both body and soul into a divine physique and divine spirit.
Even without formal recognition, one would still be a god. Upon ascension, such a god would be exceptionally powerful.
The second was to gather faith, ignite a divine spark, forge a divine core, convert divine power, and shape both body and soul into divinity, thereby ascending.
From Du Siji's memories, the Sect Master had likely taken this path.
Unfortunately, for the sake of the Body Sect, the Sect Master had abandoned the readily available faith energy.
If not for deadweights like them, the Sect Master would have long since become a god…
Wait. Something didn't add up.
Glancing at the God of Fire, then recalling Zhongli, even someone as slow as Du Siji could sense the discrepancy.
The Sect Master must have already become a god, and a tremendously powerful one at that. Otherwise, why would the God of Fire fear him?
Only a god could evoke such emotions in another god.
"If you think I'm a bit weak, then after inheriting my divine position, work hard and elevate the God of Fire's status to that of a Supreme God!"
Seeing Du Siji's hesitant expression, the God of Fire grew irritated. He wasn't weak, damn it!
If not for the fact that he had cultivated for far fewer years than these Supreme Gods, he wouldn't be inferior to them at all!
Alas, such was the fate of being "young."
"The current God of Fire position is merely my limit, not its ultimate potential."
Fire was the origin of civilization. It symbolized far more than just heat, it was the very essence of heritage.
Fire itself was one of the universe's most fundamental laws. Without fire, without warmth, the world would plunge into darkness, rendering nearly all life unsustainable.
The God of Fire's words held truth.
Though he was currently a peak first-rank god, the God of Fire position's ceiling was not limited to that, it was merely his limit.