Deadmeat Saga

Chapter 113 – Stage 3 Ascension. There you are.

In a small town-

Scarlet and Princess Lydia overheard certain news.

"My father, King Antoine, died, and Hugh inherited the throne? Everyone anonymously selected him?" Princess Lydia blinked in confusion.

"Well... I guess you won't need to worry about civil war now?" Scarlet's expression was also weird.

Both women were almost sure that the Youvamore Kingdom would plunge into an era of civil war if Antoine died. Half of Princess Lydia's reasoning for going to the Nehan Kingdom was to recruit Saintess Himeko's aid to heal her father. Now, her father was dead, but everyone selected Hugh, someone previously seen as a courtier at most. Now THAT was weird.

So, although Princess Lydia was slightly saddened, she was also relieved. But it also raised her curiosity.

"How did it happen? Did someone suddenly see reason and support a neutral party and end this farce?" Princess Lydia wondered.

"You are probably not too far from the truth. At least, I fail to see how someone can become a king, royal blood or not, without support. He likely had the support of an S-rank group or something to make those strong-headed successors give up." Scarlet guessed.

"Most likely. I don't see how else my siblings would give up the throne." Princess Lydia nodded.

"Either way, I am still going to join the Heroic Group. Now that you have no burden, I suppose you would also come, right?" Scarlet smiled.

"Yes. I will try joining the Heroic Group with you." Princess Lydia smiled back.

While saddened by the loss of her father, it wasn't much of a blow. She already had much time to accept her father's mortality, and she didn't have much interaction with him. That was why she could move on quickly.

And so, the two women continued their journey, feeling less burdened.

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In the three following days-

Gerhart and his group made a round trip, stopping at the three other cities and converting the elites, becoming Agents and Envoys to spread the Good Word.

Of the three cities, one had a tier 5 Dungeon, and the other a tier 6 Dungeon. With the hardworking converts and new converts, Gerhart already had enough Thralls and energy to achieve Stage 3 Ascension on the first day, but he waited until he returned to Crester again.

Gerhart also made another 20 peak S-rank Agents with some talent and 200 mass-produced Noble Humans, 20 S-rank horses, and 200 A-rank horses. They would be his missionaries in the Osora Kingdom. There were also important people in the cities he also turned into Agents, a total of eight plus Tsusaki.

When Laverne, the 300-year-old Veteran Echo, saw this instant army, her scalp turned numb!

"Who is more dangerous to this world? Us Echos? Or Master?" She asked herself with a shiver, not sharing her thoughts.

Naturally, with two dungeons conquered, Gerhart also received feedback.

Overall, Gerhart had quite the harvest.

Energy: 11,476m

Ancient Earth Dragon Power(32.82 -> 54.82%)

Agents: 79

Envoys: 1,928

Thralls: 173,643

Returning to the Farrington mansion, Gerhart stayed in the master bedroom, guarded by Havre and Deadmeat Junior, and underwent Stage 3 Ascension.

Stage 3 Ascension Requirements. Cost: 1,000,000,000.

Proceed?

"Do it." After confirming it, Gerhart sank into himself, finding himself in the black space. The familiar voice rang again.

Greetings, Aspiring Conqueror. If it took long, it might have been months or years. If short, perhaps less than a day.
Regardless, you have proven yourself worthy of the next step. You have taken the first steps to becoming powerful.

However, do not be complacent. While powerful, you are unlikely to be a match for the top experts in this world yet. Whether they are the lofty Chosen of the gods, the old Demigods that sealed themselves in forgotten corners of this world, or the Truly Ancient Echos of the entity leeching on your planet, you are no match for them unless you reach the Divine Rank.

As the voice said that, Gerhart saw images of groups of powerful entities. Some had the shape of humans and demihumans with a divine air, and others had an ancient evil feeling about them that sent chills down Gerhart's spine. Some creatures sealed themselves, preserving the remainder of their power and lifespans as if waiting for something.

To thrive, you must continue your Conquest, acquiring the only resource left, the Dungeons. You may gain the energy to contest and triumph over these creatures through them. And, of course, stop the entity from leeching on more energy. For that, Conquer dungeons and create even more forces to conquer these dungeons.

Once you are confident enough, you may challenge the Echos, the archenemies of this world. But know that they share a psychic link between them. If one dies under your blade, they shall relentlessly hunt you using any means. Avoid killing them until you have self-assurance. Of course, if you can subdue them and their dark servants, that would be better for you.

"Eh... Yeah, way ahead of you. Perhaps you should have said that before." Gerhart warily thought but didn't blame the relic. An Echo attacking him was purely a stroke of luck, for better or worse.

Now, I shall give you your subsequent goals:

Continue Honing Yourself to the Divine Rank.

Continue building your forces for future world conquest.

Conquer dungeons to fuel yourself and your growing forces, including one tier 10 dungeon.

Kill and Absorb or Subdue an Echo.

You shall receive abilities to help you conquer this world more efficiently. Speak to your Bannerholder for details.

Good luck, young conqueror. May the winds of victory be with you.

"Thank you for being considerate! But I wish you made your power more user-friendly..." Gerhart bitterly thought as a potent Silver Fire manifested before fusing with him.

"I FUCKING HATE THIS PART!" Gerhart cried out as he felt himself reforged again.

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After some time passed, Gerhart finally woke up, mentally exhausted.

"How long was asleep?" Gerhart asked while staring at the ceiling.

"Two hours and forty-seven minutes, my lord," Havre responded on the side.

"No wonder it felt so much worse than last time," Gerhart grumbled.

It was over a dozen times longer than the last time.

"Thank you for guarding me, Havre, but I am fine from here. Deadmeat Junior, I leave the rest to you." Gerhart tiredly said before falling asleep.

"Yes, master." Deadmeat Junior nodded before turning to Havre. "I will be acting on the master's behalf."

"Aren't you technically still my lord?" Havre curiously asked.

Deadmeat Junior and Gerhart were essentially the same person, yet Deadmeat Junior kept calling Gerhart his master. It was weird.

"Technically, yes. In actuality, no. Unlike Primo, this body and soul are disposable, and I am dependent on the main body, unlike Primo. Calling Gerhart my master is just an ingrained instinct for this personality." Deadmeat Junior explained.

"Still weird." Havre pursed her lips.

"Deal with it." Deadmeat Junior shrugged and walked out of the room with Havre following him.

Soon, they arrived at the study, where Hope and Laverne waited, having summoned them through

"Deadmeat Junior, I see Gerhart completed the Ascension." Hope smiled.

"Yes, it is done." Deadmeat Junior nodded and turned to look at Laverne. "Laverne, come and accept the gift."

While he could continuously influence her, it was a problem if it continued, so it was better to convert her first.

"Thank you, Master." Laverne smiled with joy and knelt before him.

Deadmeat Junior didn't waste time and converted her, showing almost no resistance. There were a series of prompts as Laverne soon became a Thrall, and then Envoy, and then Agent, and finally, a Bannerholder, the 4th stage of the converted.

He also elevated Hope to Bannerholder while the process took place.

Converting- Warning: Detected Malicious Energy.
Hacking Malicious Energy- Success.
Laverne has Successfully Converted.
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Envoy- Laverne elevated to a Bannerholder.

Envoy- Hope Farrington elevated to a Bannerholder.

Deadmeat Junior also gave each of them a billion and 999 million points and then checked his energy.

Energy: 11,476m -> 7,476m

"A so-called Bannerholder costs a billion points. It is two billion if I include investing energy in them. I hope it is worth it." Deadmeat Jr. thought.

"Master," Laverne said, her eyes shining with silver light.

"Gerhart," Hope smiled, the silver light in her eyes even brighter.

"How do you feel?" Gerhart asked.

"I feel good, master. Thank you for converting me at last." Laverne smiled.

"We have gained new abilities. Would you like to hear them?" Hope asked.

"Yes, brief me." Gerhart nodded.

He then received the information about the new abilities.

In summary:

Gerhart's improvements:

• Conquest Affinity Improvement.
• Can elevate Agents to Bannerholders.
• You and Bannerholders can now use the ability- Banner of Conquest. Banner of Conquest effects: Use energy to form a Banner of Conquest, channeling energy to nearby allies, boosting their overall strength and recovery rate. Enemies who enter the area of influence will weaken and their recovery reduced. Allies are more resistant to weakening effects. Enemies are more vulnerable to weakening effects. All who die under the banner shall be absorbed.
• Can revive the souls of those who were absorbed.
• Can now undo previous evolutions, partially recovering some of the expended energy. It allows the integration of new bloodlines and achieves higher evolution.

Bannerholders's improvements:

• Conquest Affinity Improvement.
• Can elevate Envoys to Agents.
• They can now reverse the evolution process of others, recycling part of the energy.
• The energy limit is 1,000,000,000
• They can use the Banner of Conquest.
• Can create Tier 3 Statues of Conquest. The Max Range, Max Storage, Max Power, and Max Size improved by 1,000 times. Can tether to other Statues of Conquest, creating a network. Gains the ability to teleport converted to tethered tier 3 statues. Controlled tier 3 statues act as large-scale Banners of Conquest if activated.

After Deadmeat Jr. viewed the changes, he could only summarize it with a word- Strong.

Thralls were commoners without powers.

Envoys had smallish power, being more like village leaders.

Agents are infiltrators who spread the influence of Conquest in secret, creating cults behind the scenes and crumbling the enemy defenses from within.

And Bannerholders are above that. They were the generals who led the troops into battle, able to conquer in a frontal assault, waving the Banners of Conquest wherever they went.

Besides this new ability, Deadmeat Jr. was also satisfied with the ability to regress evolution. It gave him more options. Perhaps the relic gave it since it thought Gerhart could have evolved into a regular Noble Human, although unlikely.

"Although it would hurt the main body like a bitch." Deadmeat Jr. thought.

He then looked over the last ability.

"Revive." Deadmeat Jr. commanded in his mind.

The next moment, Deadmeat Jr. felt his mind enter a strange state. He saw a sea of thousands of souls aimlessly floating around. He intuitively knew which soul belonged to which and could command relevant souls to come forth.

Some of these souls were primal, belonging to Giant Rats, Giant Cockroaches, Horned Rabbits, Giant Wolves, the Chimera, and more.

Other souls were more complex, belonging to Humans and Goblins.

Among the complex souls, Deadmeat Jr. called forth certain souls, including the Goblin Lord Crird, the Otherworlder Ma Yang, the Echo Ianuarius, and-

"Mylo, Hazel, there you are." Deadmeat Jr. kindly looked at a pair of gentle souls.