I Reborn as a God Within a Statue, And You Ask Me to Enslave All Gods?-Chapter 88 --Requesting the God’s Protection

Living in this perilous world, life was a constant struggle.

For these villagers, living in fear of death had become the norm—they had always relied on themselves, yet their strength was nothing before the might of the Dark Gods.

If this benevolent god could protect them, the stable life they had always dreamed of might finally become reality.

According to the Flesh-Winged Angel, human gods were gradually returning, but how long would that process take?

No one knew.

And when the human gods did return, there would undoubtedly be a cataclysmic war between them and the Dark Gods.

No one could predict the outcome, but one thing was certain: they were too insignificant to play any role in such a battle.

Even a mere aftershock of divine combat could become an unstoppable tidal wave, obliterating everything in its path.

So whether or not the Flesh-Winged Angel’s words were true, securing the protection of a human god could only be a blessing.

Perhaps with the god’s guidance and aid, they could become stronger at a faster pace.

With this thought, the village chief, Hibrael, straightened his dust-covered clothing and, with deep reverence, bowed toward Owen, who still hovered in the air.

"We thank Deus Initium for saving our village from destruction!"

"If the great Deus Initium does not find us unworthy, we would like to erect a statue in your honor and hold weekly worship, praying for your guidance and blessings!"

As Hibrael bowed, the other villagers, who had long harbored the same thought, followed suit, their faces filled with awe and a touch of desperation.

They had grown weary of this life of constant fear and hiding.

Now that they had encountered such a powerful human god, they would do anything to earn his favor and protection.

If they let this opportunity slip away, they might never get another chance.

"Great Deus Initium, please grant us your divine protection!"

"We humbly offer our prayers to you!"

Their voices trembled with emotion—hopeful yet anxious.

After all, they knew next to nothing about Deus Initium.

Would such a mighty god even consider watching over a small, insignificant village like theirs?

Even the young children, though not fully understanding the gravity of the moment, bowed respectfully.

They had grown up in a world of chaos and loss, where many of their closest friends had been devoured by the Dark Gods.

Compared to the elderly villagers, these young ones craved stability and protection even more.

Their greatest fear was that Deus Initium would leave them behind.

Though they were still young and inexperienced, something deep in their hearts told them—

Missing this chance would be the greatest regret of their lives.

Their voices rose in unison, reverberating through the heavens.

Owen, listening to their sincere devotion, spoke calmly yet with divine authority:

"As long as your faith remains true, I shall always be by your side. My blessings shall never wane."

His words spread like rippling waves of power.

Ordinarily, such declarations would be made by missionaries to spread his faith.

But given the circumstances, there was no time for subtleties—direct and absolute proclamation was the simplest path.

Upon hearing that Deus Initium was willing to grant them his protection, Hibrael and the awakeners immediately dropped to one knee, overwhelmed with gratitude.

"Great Deus Initium, we pledge ourselves to your service!"

"We shall build a grand statue in your name and offer daily prayers!"

To them, offering prayer and devotion was an easy price to pay.

For the protection of a god, what more could they ask for?

Thus, not a single villager hesitated.

In an instant, Owen could feel the surge in his number of devotees—

A meteoric rise.

「Congratulations! You have completed the test ahead of schedule!」

「Congratulations! You have gained 2,225 devotees. These devotees may follow you into Annasi Town!」

As these words flashed across his system interface, Owen’s expression lit up with excitement.

Even though he had anticipated this outcome, securing such a massive number of devotees in such a short time still felt almost unbelievable.

With his test completed ahead of time, the system began evaluating his performance and calculating his reward.

Overall Rating: SSS

Points Awarded: 140

Seeing his reward, Owen was delighted.

Though he had received SSS ranks before, this time, his point reward was significantly higher.

Clearly, the later tests awarded far more points.

However, he did feel one minor regret—

The system seemed to have limited him to just this single village, preventing him from exploring further.

Otherwise, he could have converted even more devotees and brought them all back to Annasi Town.

But his trial had come to an end.

As Owen sighed lightly, the void around him began to distort—

Like a formless mass, it wrapped around him and pulled him away from this special world.

When he opened his eyes again, he was back on the first layer of the celestial clouds.

Looking around, the space was empty—

The other gods were still undergoing their trials.

After all, they weren’t like him—they weren’t 2-Star Ancient Gods.

His gaze turned to the blazing sun above.

It radiated endless waves of heat, dispelling the darkness of the void.

Yet, beyond that single celestial body, no other stars could be seen.

It was as if this one sun was the sole existence in this void.

But since this was the gathering place of all gods, it was undoubtedly extraordinary.

Unfortunately, despite being one of the strongest gods present, Owen was still far from the level of the mysterious entity controlling this place.

But he believed that if he continued growing stronger, one day, he would surpass even that entity.

Then, these secrets would no longer be beyond his reach.

Power.

Godhood rank.

His current rank was still too low.

He needed to advance as soon as possible!

Half an hour later—

Strange spatial distortions appeared around him, signaling the return of other gods.

One by one, gods emerged from the clouds, their expressions ranging from exhaustion to frustration.

An hour had passed, and regardless of their results, all gods had been forcibly transported back.

As they gathered, the once silent atmosphere was instantly filled with chatter.

"Damn it! Can you believe it? I was thrown into a fight against a Tier-5 Dark God—like, what the hell was I supposed to do?! I barely opened my mouth before it swallowed me whole! Thank the heavens I respawned!"

"Waaaah! It was so brutal! That Dark God was an absolute menace! And me? I’m just a soft, delicate maiden! If I hadn’t fought back with all my strength, my purity would have been stolen!"

"You think YOU had it bad? I fought tooth and nail, barely managed to drive the Dark God away... but then the villagers thought I was in league with it! They called me a liar and drove me out!"

"**Same here! Even though I saved them, they refused to worship me! What a bunch of fools! And to top it off, I only got a C rank with a measly 2 points!"

"Hearing all your misfortunes makes me feel better. At least I got three devotees! Sure, they’re all old perverts, but hey, 7 points for a B rank is better than nothing!"

"This test was way too hard! Who the hell designed this?!"

Most of the gods were furious, though a select few wore smug smiles.

"If I had known the test was this difficult, I wouldn’t have signed up! My abilities weren’t even properly tested!"

Listening to the complaints, Owen remained indifferent—

Until he heard that the gods who died had all been resurrected.

That genuinely surprised him.

Whoever orchestrated this trial had considered every detail.

If things had played out normally, most of these gods would have died permanently in that Dark God-infested world.