Chapter 00290: Domain
# Domain
Chapter 290
Novel: AFK Game: Portal to Another World
Chapter 290 Domain
Although it felt a bit improper, now was truly the best time for expansion.
It was like a market that originally had hundreds of different brands of the same product, when suddenly you discovered that all your competitors had temporarily closed up shop, inexplicably leaving you with a monopoly.
Audel knew this as well.
She worked through the night, personally typesetting and printing a batch of scriptures to be sent to Sailing Harbor, to be spread to farther places by transport ships and traveling merchants.
However, the biggest obstacle to spreading the faith externally was not other religions, but objective conditions.
It was quite unlikely for someone to become a follower just by reading a scripture.
In a world where gods truly existed, and in considerable numbers, the commoners were not so easily fooled.
Unless they were like that white dragon, who repeatedly read the scripture and prayed twice a day without fail.
But that white dragon had been frightened into submission by a flick to the head from Li Chengxi.
What ordinary person would have the leisure to repeatedly read a scripture they had never even heard of?
Besides, the most fundamental condition for becoming a follower was to believe from the bottom of one's heart.
The best way to expand the faith was still to have priests go out and spread the teachings.
The troublesome part was that the priests of the Demon God Divine Cult were all Viola's Royal Guards.
And since Viola was preparing for a counterattack, it was impossible to send her Royal Guards out to preach.
This was a sign of an insufficient foundation; the theological system had not yet been fully established.
Furthermore, preaching within the Avarus Demon Kingdom was manageable, as all religions besides that of the Demon God were prohibited there, making it something of a protected territory.
But if they went to other demon kingdoms, they would have to compete with the multiple local churches.
Those churches had been established for a long time, and stealing their business would be no easy feat.
All in all, it was best not to aim too high.
Li Chengxi reckoned that the time for the Demon God Divine Cult to truly step out of the Leon Territory would be after Viola’s counterattack.
By then, Li Chengxi would also need to perform more miracles.
As Viola reclaimed her kingdom, the Demon God Divine Cult would establish a firm foothold in the Avarus Demon Kingdom.
Only then could they consider expanding further.
After saying goodbye to Qian Sen, Li Chengxi stuck a note on the door saying the shop was temporarily closed.
He went upstairs and saw Aidas leaning against the radiator, holding out her hands to warm them in the rising heat.
It was certainly a miserable fate for the gods to be shot down and fall to Earth, but Li Chengxi couldn't help but think it would be great if they stayed for a few years.
That would be enough time for the Demon God Divine Cult to spread to every street and alley.
"Are you that afraid of the cold? Or did they not turn on the heat in the Section Nine car?"
Aidas was wearing a thick down jacket, and her goat legs were covered by a pair of thick leather trousers.
Since the proportions of her upper and lower body were different from a normal person's, her lower half looked very short.
She looked rather stout and short.
"Cold is not good. It reminds me of Ouluni."
"Who's Ouluni?"
"The Goddess of Winter, one of the Storm Gods. She's an evil goddess, very cruel."
Li Chengxi, however, figured that Aidas was probably afraid of the cold because springwater could freeze.
As the Springwater Goddess, it was only natural that Aidas would dislike the Winter Goddess, Ouluni.
Divine offices also had their own elemental advantages and disadvantages.
"Want some hot water?"
As Li Chengxi spoke, a layer of golden light wrapped around an electric kettle and a paper cup, which flew over from the kitchen.
After pouring a cup of water for Aidas, they flew back the way they came.
"It seems you've become quite proficient at controlling your divine power."
"Well, I have been practicing a lot during this time."
Controlling divine power, simply put, was all about willpower.
This was a huge help for someone like Li Chengxi, who was too lazy to move during the cold winter.
Tending the shop downstairs during the day was normal, but at night, after closing up, he would lie in bed, set up his little lap desk, and have no desire to leave the warmth of his blankets.
He used his divine power to fetch anything he wanted, and over time, he naturally became skilled at it.
"Speaking of which, are there any other ways to use divine power?"
"There are many, but I don't have enough divine power right now, so I can't show you much more..."
Aidas was a deity of low-tier divine power to begin with, and she had been knocked down so suddenly that most of her power was left behind in her divine domain.
She didn't have much left herself.
"Didn't Section Nine try to help you recover your strength?"
"They did take me to nearby springs and forests, but the quality of the springwater on Earth is too poor. I can even feel the earth groaning under the squeeze of rampant civilization. The weak underground water veins aren't enough to restore my power."
That reminded him that Aidas was one of the Gods of Nature.
The druids who served the Gods of Nature placed great importance on the relationship between civilization and nature.
Some radical factions even believed civilization was a malignant tumor, the main culprit behind nature's destruction.
The fact that many large forests were still preserved was in no small part due to them.
Compared to those environmentalists who spout ideals while thinking only of profit, these druids were the real deal.
Their methods were just a bit extreme.
For example, if you dared to cut down a tree, they would cut you down and use you as fertilizer...
"So, I might have to trouble you more in the future. I can only rely on the divine power radiating from you to recover my own."
"I don't mind."
Besides, Section Nine was compensating him for the lost revenue, so Li Chengxi just treated it as a paid vacation.
"Speaking of which, we can grant divine arts to our followers, but can we use them ourselves?"
"Of course. Have you never used them?"
Seeing Li Chengxi shrug, Aidas added:
"Using them is similar to controlling divine power. It should be something you can do instinctively."
"But that's a bit too vague..."
"It would be more intuitive if I could give you a demonstration, but I really don't have enough divine power... Oh, right, haven't you seen your followers use divine arts? That could serve as a reference."
Li Chengxi had indeed seen it, but it was all in pixel style through a computer screen, a far cry from reality.
Suddenly, Li Chengxi remembered the Amulet of Vitality around his neck.
He pulled it out from under his collar and asked:
"I've used the healing art on this amulet. Does that count as a divine art?"
"Of course it does. That amulet looks like a magical artifact made by one of my druids."
And it really was made by the Springwater Goddess's druids.
It was a tribute from the Springlight Woodland.
"Take off the amulet, and try to recall the feeling of using the healing art."
"The feeling..."
Li Chengxi took off the amulet and frowned, trying to remember.
There didn't seem to be any special feeling, but he did remember the sound and light effects when he used the spell.
"Erm... like this?"
He raised his hand to show Aidas.
A warm, healing radiance began to glow in his palm.
"Yes, yes, that's it! You've got it. But this power is a bit too strong. That's not just for serious wounds, it's for fatal ones."
Li Chengxi had only ever seen this one divine art.
As for the others, it was hard to imagine what they were like just from their names.
"There is one thing you should note. The list of divine arts you can use isn't completely identical to mine. I am one of the Gods of Nature, so there are some divine arts only we can use."
Aidas reached out and tapped the small cactus on Li Chengxi's windowsill.
At a speed visible to the naked eye, it sprouted a bud and blossomed.
This was perhaps the difference between a priest and a druid.
"The divine arts a god can use are related to their divine office. Different divine offices grant access to divine arts from different domains. By the same token, the divine arts you can grant to your followers must also be within the domains you possess."
"What are they specifically? What kind of domains are there?"
"There are far too many. For example, you hold the divine office of Kingship, which likely means you have the 'Law,' 'Community,' or 'Nobility' domains. These three domains are further divided into many subdomains. For instance, the Nobility domain has the 'Leadership' and 'Martyr' subdomains. The Law domain has subdomains like 'Inevitable,' 'Devil,' 'Retribution,' 'Law,' 'Judgment,' 'Loyalty,' 'Slavery,' and 'Tyranny.' As for which specific ones you have, an outsider can't say. You'll have to figure that out for yourself."
The type of domain is related to one's divine office, but the subdomains depend on the god's personality and conduct.
Li Chengxi had the divine office of Kingship, but he wasn't a tyrant, so naturally he wouldn't have the 'Slavery' and 'Tyranny' subdomains.
By the same logic, his actions hadn't brought him close to the Inevitables or devils, so he naturally wouldn't have the 'Inevitable' or 'Devil' subdomains.
It was because of this complexity that he would have to discover his specific domains for himself.
(End of Chapter)