pappabearbooks Chapter 18 King of Gods, Tian Hu and Murong, Character Choices
Chapter 18 King of Gods, Tian Hu and Murong, Character Choices
[Ding! The fifth balancer, the king of the gods, Zeus.]
Zeus: Command 96, Martial Prowess Rank 1, Politics 97, Intelligence 98, Charisma 101.
Implanted identity: A member of the Olympus lineage who was forced to integrate into the Holy See five hundred years ago, and was responsible for hunting down the remnants of the Islamic religion after the destruction of the Abbasid Caliphate.
Carried by: Hera, Poseidon, Hades, Hermes, Ares, Demeter, Mnemosyne, Leto, Dionysus, Heracles, Apollo, Artemis, Athena, Persephone, Hebe, Hestia, Hephaestus, Amphitrite, Melinoe, Eletia, Enyo.
Zeus, the third generation of gods in Greek mythology and the chief of the twelve Olympian gods, is hailed as the greatest god in Greek mythology.
He uses lightning as his weapon to maintain order in the world. The bull and the eagle are his symbols, and he is in charge of lightning, the sky, power, and all things.
Zeus was the youngest son of Cronus, the second generation of the Titan kings. Because Cronus feared the curse of his father Uranus, whom he had betrayed, that "he too would be overthrown by his own children," he chose to eat his five children. Only the youngest Zeus was fooled by his mother Rhea by being blindfolded with a stone.
After reaching adulthood, Zeus first married Metis, the first goddess of wisdom. Following her advice, he poisoned his father, causing his five older brothers and sisters to vomit. This led to a complete split among the second generation of the Titans, the twelve Titans, who divided into two factions, supporting Zeus and Cronus respectively. Only Hyperion, Theia, and Phoebe did not participate in the war for various reasons. During this war, Zeus's lustful nature began to emerge; he married Thenes, Eurynome, Demeter, Menemosyne, Leto, and Hera.
The Titanomachy lasted ten years, its scale extending across the entire world, yet neither side achieved a decisive victory. Later, Zeus, heeding the advice of the prophetic god Prometheus, freed the three Cyclopes and three Hecatoncheires imprisoned by Cronus within Gaia. The Hecatoncheires could hurl 100 mountains-sized stones at once, their immense power overwhelming the Titans. The three Cyclopes, in turn, helped Zeus forge thunderbolts, Poseidon for his trident, and Hades for his helmet of invisibility. With the giants' aid, Zeus's forces ultimately triumphed.
But after his victory, Zeus imprisoned Cronus and the defeated Titans in the abyss of Tartarus.
Gaia: Let this world be destroyed, damn it!
Then came the birth of Typhon, the Battle of Guigantes, the philandering of Zeus, the failed attempt by Hera and Poseidon to imprison Zeus, and the various mischiefs caused by the offspring of the gods on earth.
Zeus was utterly inadequate as a father and husband. He swallowed Metis after prophesying that she would give birth to a more powerful son to replace him. He was promiscuous, driven by greed, power, or simply fleeting pleasure, and ignored Hera's subsequent revenge on his lovers. He repeatedly crossed taboos and boundaries, from marrying his own aunt to having affairs with other men's wives, and finally even preying on his own daughter.
But as a god-king, he must be qualified. He punished Prometheus, suppressed Typhon, imprisoned Cronus, and punished those who broke their oaths. He possessed power that all the gods of Mount Olympus combined could not shake, and he had absolute authority and absolute majesty.
The Holy See, well, its influence isn't insignificant. From what Liu Xiao currently understands, the Great Xuan, Great Cang, and Great Xia all grew strong by annexing parts of the Abbasid Caliphate. Currently, the Abbasid Caliphate has been almost entirely divided up by five forces: the Great Xuan, Great Cang, Great Xia, the Holy See, and the Golden Horde. The Holy Empire is currently experiencing constant minor skirmishes with the Golden Horde. If the two sides were to go to war, the Golden Horde would not be able to approach Jibei Road for the next few years, allowing Liu Xiao more time to develop his power.
[Ding! The sixth person in the balance, one of the four great bandits, Tian Hu from Hebei.]
Tian Hu: Command 74, Martial Prowess 82, Politics 68, Intelligence 71, Charisma 75.
Implanted identity: A ruthless bandit who robbed and plundered in the Youzhou area, who has now been subdued by Liu Bi along with his elder brother Tian Long.
Bringing: Tian Bao, Tian Biao, Tian Ding, Tian Shi, Wu Li, Fan Quan, Dong Cheng, Shen Ji, Zhang Li, Zhao Neng, Niu Wenzhong, Fang Qiong, An Shirong, Chu Heng, Yu Yulin, Kou Fu, Chen Kai, Shan Shiqi, Wang Yuan, Chi Fang, Ma Ling, Wu Neng, Xu Jin, Suo Xian, Dang Shilong, Ling Guang, Duan Ren, Miao Cheng, Chen Xuan.
Tian Hu was originally a hunter from Hebei. He was tall and strong, possessed extraordinary strength, was skilled in martial arts, and enjoyed associating with outlaws and fugitives. He was ruthless, cunning, and extremely ambitious. During a year of famine, he incited the people, fabricated rumors, and launched a rebellion. Tian Hu conquered cities and territories along his route, occupying five prefectures and fifty-six counties, declaring himself King of Jin, and dominating Hebei. Finally, he was defeated and severely wounded by Song Jiang's Liangshan army after Song Jiang's surrender to the imperial court. Tian Hu suffered repeated defeats and, in his hasty escape, fell into a trap.
He escaped Zhang Qing and Ye Qing's pursuit by riding a fine horse, but unexpectedly, Qiu Qiongying's mother, Song, appeared in spirit form and used a cold wind to startle Tian Hu's horse, throwing him to the ground. In the end, he was escorted back to the capital and executed.
The fact that King You has given the characters a balance of power twice in a row, even though they are all cannon fodder and there are hardly any top-tier talents to be found, means that even a fly is meat. King You's lower-ranking officers have been greatly enriched, and it seems that King You is about to become restless.
[Ding! The last person to balance the game, one of the Four Great Masters of Tianlong, Murong Bo.]
Murong Bo, fourth rank in martial arts.
Implanted identity: Member of the royal family of the Murong tribe, one of the three Xianbei tribes.
Bringing: Murong Fu, Kumārajīva, Xiao Yuanshan, Qiao Feng, Li Qingluo, Wang Yuyan, A'Zhu, A'Bi, Deng Baichuan, Gongye Qian, Bao Butong, Feng Bo'e, Xuan Ci, Xuan Ku, Xuan Bei, Xuan Cheng, Xuan Ji, Xuan Nan, Xuan Du, Xuan Tong, Wang Jiantong, Master Zhiguang, Zhao Qiansun, and the Hermit of Shenshan.
Murong Bo, a descendant of the royal family of the Yan Kingdom during the Sixteen Kingdoms period, was determined to revive the Yan Kingdom. He was the mastermind behind the Battle of Yanmen Pass, and caused the destruction of Xiao Yuanshan's family by spreading false news that Liao Kingdom masters had attacked Shaolin Temple. After faking his death, he went into seclusion at Shaolin Temple, stole the Seventy-Two Arts, and instigated conflicts between Tibet, Dali, and Shaolin. He killed Xuan Bei and Ke Baisui. Finally, in a battle with Xiao Yuanshan at Shaolin Temple, he was enlightened (by force) by the Sweeper Monk and abandoned his dream of restoring the kingdom, becoming a monk.
The Murong tribe is also nearing its end. Currently, even with the combined forces of the Murong and Yuwen tribes, they are no match for the rising Tuoba tribe. Under the combined might of Tuoba Kaijiang, the military god of the Tuoba tribe, and Tuoba Bahuang, the war god of the Tuoba tribe, they have already encroached on 70% of the Yuwen tribe's pastures. By the time the Murong tribe, who originally planned to sit back and watch the tigers fight, realized what was happening, it was already too late to reverse the situation.
If the balance of power had been provided by a god-level commander like Murong Ke or Murong Chui, the three tribes might have had a sliver of hope in their decisive battle against the Murong tribe. However, the two tribes cannot muster a single god-level commander. Even if Murong Jiuyuan, ranked seventh on the Four Directions Heroes Ranking, manages to hold off Murong Bahuang, ranked eighth, the disparity in the strength of the two commanders makes defeat inevitable.
[Ding, balancing complete. Please designate one person to be drawn. The system will randomly draw three people.]
The group brought along this time included quite a few brilliant strategists. For example, Fan Kuai and Lü Zhi, whom Liu Bang brought, likely possessed god-like abilities in both martial arts and politics. Other examples include Deng Tianwang, who could hold his own against Li Cunxiao, and Ares, the ultimate water god of war; both are potentially god-like talents.
Of course, with such outstanding figures as Athena, Hercules, and Apollo already existing, and even if things aren't perfect, there are still powerful figures like Hera and Poseidon who are guaranteed to be at least second-tier, so Liu Xiao naturally wouldn't bother trying to draw from Deng Tianwang and Ares.
After a moment's consideration, Liu Xiao had already made up his mind.
"System, extract it for me..."