The First Believer to Die in the Gods' Competition

It wasn't that Olivia couldn't dodge Cordelia's attacks.

With the existence of the magic mirror, she could perceive and evade all of Cordelia's strikes in advance.

However, she chose not to do so. Instead, she opted to meet Cordelia's sickle attacks head-on, specifically to gauge her opponent's strength.

After several successive clashes, she gained a general understanding of Cordelia's power.

This person's offensive power was formidable.

Yet, while her offense was powerful, her defense was surprisingly not weak either.

Olivia had found opportunities to launch several attacks, but when they landed on Cordelia, the girl acted as if nothing had happened.

The opponent possessed a continuous, inexhaustible life force, much like the life force provided by Olivia's remnant branch of the divine tree, which ensured Cordelia's resilience.

One could say that among all the transcendents Olivia had encountered at the same level, Cordelia was the strongest.

If the fight continued in a conventional manner, it would take a very long time even for Olivia to defeat her.

Since they couldn't easily wound each other, it would turn into a battle of attrition to see who could hold out longer.

In such a scenario, Olivia clearly held the advantage. After all, the magic mirror would provide her with the optimal combat strategy.

But there was no need for that.

She had no intention of letting the fight drag on for so long.

Thus, after gaining a general understanding of Cordelia's strength, Olivia planned to utilize divine power.

When facing magic power, divine power naturally possessed an overwhelming crushing effect.

Olivia didn't need to use much. she simply drew a tiny wisp and integrated it into her magic power, which then flowed into her palm.

In this state, she swung her hand just as she had before, colliding with Cordelia's attack with a heavy thud.

But the result of this collision was entirely different from the previous ones.

Under the violent impact, the sickle in Cordelia's hand shattered with a resounding boom.

This sight left Cordelia stunned, clearly not having expected such an outcome.

Her pupils contracted involuntarily, and her heart leaped into her throat in an instant.

How is this possible?

This forbidden artifact was integrated into her body, and they had grown together, even receiving a degree of enhancement. How could it be broken so easily?

This turn of events left Cordelia rooted to the spot, completely unable to believe or accept what had happened.

But Olivia did not stop. Extending her arm, she lunged forward with another palm strike aimed at Cordelia.

Pfft!

Accompanied by a tearing sound, Olivia's palm pierced directly through Cordelia's chest, emerging from her back drenched in blood.

Only at this moment did Cordelia snap back to reality.

“You...”

She looked at Olivia, seemingly wanting to say something, but her body was trembling so violently that no words would come out.

She felt an inexplicable power manifesting within her, forcefully suppressing her regenerative abilities.

The undying constitution she took such pride in had completely lost its effect at this moment, causing a flicker of terror to cross her eyes.

Cordelia hurriedly retreated, clutching her chest in an attempt to let her body heal.

However, her condition only continued to worsen, with not a single sign of repair.

“What did you do to me?” Cordelia questioned through gritted teeth.

Olivia didn't speak. She simply let her arm extend further, rapidly closing in on Cordelia.

“Why can a transcendent use divine power? Radiant Light, what did you secretly give her?”

At that moment, a majestic voice drifted in from outside the arena.

Even a tiny wisp of the divine power Olivia used was enough for the gods to notice.

The speaker was, naturally, the Crimson Goddess. Seeing her believer facing imminent death, she could not remain indifferent.

However, just as the Crimson Goddess was about to take action, the Radiant Goddess spoke up: “What? Are you going to break the rules and intervene? The battle between believers is not yet decided. You cannot interfere. Otherwise, I wouldn't mind trading a few blows with you.”

The Crimson Goddess, who had just raised her hand, was forced to lower it. She looked at the Radiant Goddess and said, “You haven't answered my question.”

“What is there to answer?” the Radiant Goddess said dismissively. “Who told you that only gods can master divine power? This world has never lacked geniuses, and some can achieve such things ahead of time. What? Are you envious or jealous?”

Hearing the Radiant Goddess's words, the Crimson Goddess was left speechless.

Since the other gods had not yet voiced their opinions, she couldn't say much more and ultimately lapsed into silence.

As for Cordelia, she was swatted to the ground by Olivia's extended palm, which then clamped firmly around her throat.

In this position, Cordelia couldn't even utter a word.

If she were to speak and surrender, it would be difficult for Olivia to do anything more to her.

Under the gaze of the gods, she couldn't continue to attack someone who had already admitted defeat.

But the problem was that Cordelia hadn't spoken yet, had she?

As for whether her inability to speak was due to Olivia's influence, that was another story entirely.

In short, since Cordelia hadn't spoken, Olivia could strike with peace of mind until the opponent was dead.

Even a small amount of divine power could manifest extremely subtle and potent effects.

Thus, before long, Cordelia, whose wounds could not recover, died completely from her severe injuries.

After confirming Cordelia was dead through the magic mirror, Olivia withdrew her hand.

This scene caused the surrounding believers to erupt in a flurry of hushed discussions.

This was the first believer to die in the War of the Gods, and it couldn't help but send a chill through the hearts of many.

None of the believers brought here by the gods were simple. In their respective worlds, they were all influential figures who stood above others.

Yet, having come here, their survival was not guaranteed.

Olivia had essentially taught everyone a lesson, letting them know just how dangerous participating in the gods' competition truly was.

‘The Crimson Goddess should have seen that Cordelia was going to be killed by me, right? Why didn't she interrupt sooner?’

As Olivia walked back, this thought couldn't help but flash through her mind.

Of course, this wasn't because the Crimson Goddess respected the rules, but rather because she didn't dare to break them.

After all, the rules were established by all the gods together.

She could afford to offend one god, or even two, but she could never afford to offend all of them.

In any case, after Olivia stepped down, the Goddess of Fate appeared once more. “Next. Who else wishes to come forward and settle a grievance?”