Chapter 162: Strategic Blackmail

Chapter 162: Strategic Blackmail

"Are you fucking insane?"

"What does the God of Death attacking you have to do with us?"

This thought almost instinctively flashed through the minds of the four major righteous gods.

Prophecy God Phoebus widened his eyes in disbelief—had fear driven him mad? If they couldn’t even withstand the God of Death, how could they possibly challenge the four major righteous gods?

"Hahahaha—"

The God of War suddenly threw his head back and laughed, his voice brimming with madness… and even a hint of admiration!

"Arrogant! Do you really think you can take us on?" Mother Earth’s delicate face flushed red with fury as she snapped.

"Of course I can’t beat you!"

Yu Sheng’an shrugged, openly admitting it.

"But turning your preaching zones in the Azarea Continent into ruins? That, I can do. From then on, the God of Death will have no rivals left in Azarea. Unifying the Azarea Main Domain would just be a matter of time. And once the God of Death controls two main domains, I’m curious—who could possibly stop his advance then?"

Yu Sheng’an wore an expression of utter recklessness.

Know what nuclear blackmail is?

This is it.

As his words landed, even the slower-witted gods present finally understood.

Their gazes toward Yu Sheng’an shifted—as if staring at a madman!

"You won’t get away unscathed either! At worst, we lose the Azarea Continent, but you’ll be utterly destroyed!"

"Is this supposed to be blackmail?"

Mother Earth and the God of the Sea roared in unison.

Yu Sheng’an grinned, raising a finger and wagging it side to side.

"No, no, no. You’ve got it wrong. I’m not blackmailing you—I’m just giving you a heads-up. If this scenario really happens, I’ll live comfortably ever after, while you’ll be plunged into endless war. Because unlike you, I don’t need preaching zones, churches, or even believers!"

"When the God of Death turns against the world, they’ll need the Internet to counter the Dark Web! Even if they don’t, the Internet’s nature ensures that as long as my godhood remains intact, I’ll never lack Source Essence. But you? You rely entirely on preaching zones. Without them, you’re nothing!"

This was the essence of nuclear blackmail.

Mutual destruction was too insane—no one would dare make that call. It wasn’t about how crazily you acted to intimidate the enemy.

Only with enough strategic depth could you afford to play this game.

Because the worst outcome was just a massive upheaval—a reset. But for minor powers, it meant being wiped off the map entirely, losing even a seat at the table.

Likewise, the worst Yu Sheng’an would suffer was losing his preaching zones.

Even then, he could still rely on the Internet’s nature to keep his place at the table.

Though his hand might be weak, as long as he remained seated, he could wait for the tides to turn.

But the four major righteous gods—and other deities?

Many of them would lose their seats forever.

Losing preaching zones meant losing their Source Essence springs.

Without believers, they would eventually spiral into madness… or death.

For a moment, the confession room fell into dead silence after Yu Sheng’an’s speech.

Prophecy God Phoebus watched as Yu Sheng’an’s manic expression smoothed into calm. His pupils dilated, and the unease, doubt, and fear in his heart vanished.

All that remained was awe.

Deep, profound awe.

In this seemingly hopeless situation, the Internet God not only found a way out but also shattered the enemy's psychological defenses from an unimaginable angle!

This cunning stratagem was enough to send shivers of fear down one's spine!

The God of War stepped forward, his face twisted with fury: "I want a hundred firearm production lines!"

Yu Sheng'an stood up, his expression dripping with disdain: "Then you can wait and see if you can even salvage scrap metal after the Dragon Factory blows up!"

With that, Yu Sheng'an turned and strode away.

"Whoosh!"

A sharp whistling sound abruptly pierced the air from behind his head.

"Boom!"

An ear-splitting sonic boom erupted behind Yu Sheng'an, boiling the air and instantly reducing the confession room's tables and chairs to powder.

It was the God of War, launching a sudden sneak attack—his fist hurtling toward Yu Sheng'an.

Yet, just as his punch was about to land, an invisible wave barrier materialized in the air—a shockwave formed by overlapping sound waves.

The God of War's fist collided with it like a supersonic airplane slamming into a sound barrier.

Amid the deafening explosion, the barrier erupted in a misty white haze, resembling bullets piercing through a water balloon, sending droplets scattering in all directions!

The tremendous impact tore through the sound barrier, triggering a violent whirlwind of air—a death vortex—determined to shred the God of War's arm, if not his entire body.

Yu Sheng'an suddenly turned his head, his gaze as sharp as an eagle's and as fierce as a wolf's.

The sonic boom couldn't obstruct his vision. He saw the God of War's face contorted with rage as he unleashed boundless Battle Aura, madly driving his fist forward!

The Battle Aura burned, determined to smash through everything!

Yet, the harder he pushed, the more terrifying the death vortex became!

"Bang!"

Amid the abrupt explosion, Yu Sheng'an swiftly tilted his head to evade.

Before him, the white mist of air suddenly turned crimson!

A streak of blood shot through the sound barrier, slicing a deep, bone-exposing wound across Yu Sheng'an's cheek.

—The God of War would rather sacrifice an arm than fail to breach Yu Sheng'an's defenses!

"Seeking death!"

Yu Sheng'an erupted in fury.

A light sphere materialized above his head, and a barrage of lasers shot toward the God of War!

Instead of retreating, the God of War charged forward!

He reached into the Void and summoned a dragon spear, thrusting it forward.

Another sonic boom detonated!

Yet, just as the dragon spear—far harder than flesh—clashed with the death vortex, the lasers also struck the God of War.

In an instant, his divine shield rippled violently.

The God of War, mere inches from impaling Yu Sheng'an, had no choice but to pull back!

Because the lasers weren't a single beam but a spread—if he struck Yu Sheng'an, his divine projection would undoubtedly perish in that instant!

But as the God of War retreated, the lasers clung to him like a persistent curse, refusing to let go!

—Because this confession room was entirely bathed in Yu Sheng'an's light.

Within it, the God of War moved like a target under a saturated motion detector. Unless he could surpass the speed of light or cloak himself in invisibility, he could never escape Yu Sheng'an's tracking.

Where light shines, all things are revealed.

"Scram!"

The God of War roared, his Battle Aura surging from his body like seawater flooding the confession room, threatening to drown everything.

The divine war between the two escalated in an instant!

"Enough!"

The God of Life roared in anger as an illusory World Tree root materialized beneath the dome of the confession room, its countless tendrils writhing like the appendages of Cthulhu.

Yu Sheng'an sneered and withdrew his beam of light.

The God of War narrowed his eyes, torn between unbridled fury and cold rationality, before finally retreating with a face full of unwillingness, taking the Battle Aura that filled the room with him.

By now, his severed arm had fully regenerated, just as Yu Sheng'an's unscathed cheek had healed.

With a meaningful glance at the God of War—utterly devoid of further threats—Yu Sheng'an turned and left without another word.

This time, none of the four righteous gods dared to stop him.

Only after his departure did the suffocating tension in the confession room ease slightly.

The four deities exchanged glances, each seeing profound dread reflected in the others' eyes.

The combat prowess displayed by the Internet God had completely surpassed their expectations.

The sound barrier shield and light-based attacks alone involved authorities spanning such a vast range that it defied their anticipations.

Add to that the annihilation strike Yu Sheng'an had unleashed during their siege on the Keville Empire.

These three abilities represented godhoods numbering at least two or more!

This meant that while he might not be able to defend the Keville preaching zones, he undoubtedly possessed the power to retaliate against them.

At this realization, the four righteous gods looked as if they had swallowed fly droppings—their expressions twisted in utter revulsion.