I Reborn as a God Within a Statue, And You Ask Me to Enslave All Gods?-Chapter 64 --Balancing Grace and Might

"Excellent! My first B-Class devotee is about to be born—what a day of joyous events!"

Owen was thrilled. After all, B-Class devotees were exceedingly rare.

How many miracles had he displayed? How many times had he shocked the villagers of Annasi?

Yet, even after all that, no B-Class devotee had emerged. This alone proved the sheer value of a B-Class devotee!

It wasn’t simply about devout faith.

If lower-class devotees could steadily ascend as long as they were pious enough, then B-Class devotees required an absolute purity of soul, utterly devoid of doubt. They were the true zealots of a god—a warrior priesthood of unwavering loyalty!

Granting a B-Class devotee the position of Vassal God would even halve the order fragment cost, requiring only a portion of order to help them forge a godmark-like divinity.

This was why B-Class devotees were far more valuable than C-Class and those beneath them.

"This Tommy is quite the character. He prayed outside the temple for days, witnessed the temple’s transformation, and instantly became a C-Class devotee. Now, after returning home for a short time, he is already on the verge of becoming a B-Class devotee? Fascinating!"

Achieving B-Class devotee status was no simple feat. Owen felt it necessary to have Thomas and the others investigate what exactly happened after Tommy left the village.

If he could uncover the mystery behind it, he might be able to intervene, accelerating the process for others to become B-Class devotees!

As he pondered, his attention shifted toward the outskirts of his domain.

Just before sensing Tommy rushing desperately toward the temple, Owen had already detected the activation of Mist Spell—a clear sign that Tommy was in grave danger!

Judging by his frantic pace, there were almost certainly pursuers behind him.

Owen immediately focused his gaze beyond his territory.

While leaving his divine domain would lower his Godhood rank by a tier and make activating god-skills ten times more costly, that didn’t mean he was blind to what lay beyond.

As his sight pierced through the rolling mountains, he spotted a thick black fog rapidly closing in on his land.

Within the swirling darkness, several spellbeasts lurked, exuding a terrifying aura.

"Three spellbeasts together... A Tier-4 fox, accompanied by two quasi-Tier-4 wolves—quite the formidable hunting pack."

In the Black Iron region, a Tier-4 spellbeast was already an apex predator, as quasi-Tier-5 spellbeasts were incredibly rare.

Through Owen’s vision, he saw Tommy desperately traversing the mountains, clutching his wife and son Revan, rushing toward the village.

And the closer he got to the village, the more relief appeared on his face.

He knew only by reaching the village would he and his family have a chance to survive!

The three relentless spellbeasts, however, had no intention of letting him escape. They stormed into Owen’s territory without hesitation, speeding up their pursuit.

They could sense Tommy’s life force weakening—he was running on fumes!

Seeing these spellbeasts recklessly invading his land, Owen’s expression turned cold.

Until now, he had only granted blessings, never once administering punishment.

The people knew him as the bringer of miracles, but they did not yet understand that he was also capable of unleashing divine retribution!

A god must inspire awe as well as gratitude.

Since these three creatures had delivered themselves to his doorstep, he would use them to establish his authority!

His gaze remained fixed on the spellbeasts as they pushed deeper into his domain...

"Spellbeasts?"

"Spellbeasts incoming! Prepare for battle!"

As the spellbeasts drew nearer to the village, John, Thomas, and the others immediately sensed the violent aura they carried. Their expressions hardened.

Each of the three creatures radiated the presence of a Tier-4 spellbeast.

Though the two wolves at the back had somewhat unstable auras—likely only quasi-Tier-4—they were still extremely dangerous.

Spellbeasts were naturally stronger than human awakeners of the same tier.

The rest of the villagers also noticed the dense black smoke rolling toward them.

In the broad daylight, the unnatural dark mist stood out ominously, sending shivers down their spines.

The very sight of it felt oppressive, as though an invisible weight was pressing down on their chests, making breathing difficult.

The villagers smelled death in the air.

A Tier-4 spellbeast was already terrifying. Now, three had appeared together, clearly on the warpath. Many devotees went pale with fear.

After all, many of them had barely escaped from spellbeast captivity in the past.

Now, confronted with something even more terrifying, their trauma resurfaced.

"Do not panic! With Deus Initium here, these spellbeasts are nothing more than dead beasts walking!"

Thomas’ voice rang out, calm and commanding, swiftly dispersing the villagers’ fear.

Hearing his words, the villagers turned toward the divine statue, their previous terror replaced by fervent prayers.

They all knew Deus Initium was omnipotent.

These spellbeasts might be fearsome, but as long as Deus Initium intervened, they would be crushed like insects!

In fact, the sudden crisis had an unexpected effect—those whose faith had wavered instantly became devout.

Previously, in times of peace, their belief had been lukewarm.

But now, with mortal danger looming, they saw the truth.

Without Deus Initium’s protection, they would already be spellbeast food.

With this realization, the entire village’s faith surged to new heights.

Even the number of C-Class devotees increased significantly.

"Tommy, did you really think these people could save you?"

"Hah! Sure, there are a lot of them, but numbers alone won’t be enough!"

The fox spellbeast sneered, while the hunched-back wolf spellbeast, looking even more savage, scoffed in agreement.

To them, Tommy, his family, and the entire village were insignificant.

After all, they were Tier-4 spellbeasts. These humans weren’t even worth acknowledging.

As they spoke, the rolling black smoke surged forward, aiming to engulf the villagers.

Their goal?

To deliver them all as a sacrifice to their master, Dark Troll!

"How dare mere spellbeasts act so arrogantly before the temple of Deus Initium? You court death!"

Seeing the beasts attack the villagers directly, Thomas’ eyes burned with rage. He clenched his fists and roared in defiance.

As for Tommy and his family, Thomas did not blame them.

He had already sensed the divine aura lingering on them—the remnants of Mist Spell!

Clearly, they had managed to escape here with Deus Initium’s intervention.

Since Deus Initium had allowed them to reach safety, Thomas would fulfill his duty.

Perhaps Tommy would even become one of them in the future—after all, Deus Initium only blessed devotees.

As Thomas’ furious shout echoed through the village, the spellbeasts’ attention snapped to him.

Their feral expressions twisted with malice.

"Ignorant whelp. You dare speak to us this way?"

"A mere Tier-4 awakener, and you think you can oppose us?"

The spellbeasts sneered, licking their lips.

For them, consuming human awakeners was the fastest way to evolve.

Now, here stood over a hundred Tier-1 and Tier-2 awakeners, ripe for the taking.

They had stumbled into a feast beyond their wildest dreams!

"We only came for Tommy, but it seems we’ve found a grand banquet instead!"

The wolf spellbeast bared its fangs, saliva dripping from its razor-sharp teeth.

The villagers knew one thing for certain—if they were not strong enough to resist, they would become nothing more than food!