Titan King: Ascension of the Giant Chapter 1444 Mint and Fish

"Don't stare at me in that manner. It's turning things awkward," Leonidas huffed, lifting his chin with an air of haughty expertise. "Refining Faith Energy counts as merely one among my various abilities."

That much held true. The power bestowed upon Orion represented unprocessed Faith they had purified yet failed to integrate.

They understood the stakes fully. Orion served as the key stabilizer. His manifestation required swift reinforcement to secure the Ever-Burning Volcano. Even more crucially, Orion's formidable battle prowess had lifted a tremendous burden from their group.

They had driven back a Third-Stage Demigod. Once news of such a feat spread, would-be invaders would hesitate before approaching the Ashenheart Domain.

Divine Kingdom. The Firmament.

As the abyssal whirlpool pulled the Mirror of Theras into his domain, Orion's actual form stood ready.

He seized the item mid-descent. The object resembled a basic round pane, utterly dark and glossy, akin to a segment broken from enormous shades.

Orion infused it with his Divine Power. No reaction occurred. It remained lifeless.

"Could there be an unknown activation mechanism?" he grumbled, his brow furrowing. "Surely I'm not perched atop a treasure I can't extract."

Mystical bindings posed his weakness. Yet if this proved a genuine Demigod Artifact—or part thereof—another figure possessed the necessary insight.

Orion clutched the pane and disappeared.

Valkorath Realm. Blade's Edge Peak.

This spot marked the continent's center, the world's loftiest summit. Typically, Caelus trained his swordsmanship here against raging gusts. However, since the Champions Alliance initiated the Platinum Authority, the Commander had conscripted him for bureaucratic duties.

The summit lay silent now.

Upon Orion's arrival, the Commander—Thresh—dozed within his modest shelter.

Orion refrained from disturbing him. He collected arid branches and kindled a modest blaze. From his inventory, he retrieved a pair of freshly caught deep-sea fish and set them to cook over the flames.

As the fragrance of searing flesh and ocean brine wafted through the sparse atmosphere, Thresh stirred awake on his own. He emerged from the shelter, extended his limbs, and settled across from Orion.

"You don't learn the important stuff from those idiots, just their bad habits. Trying to bribe me with food now?" Thresh muttered, his gaze fixed intently on the fish. "Your technique is sloppy. You lack seasoning. How can you eat fish without mint?"

He grabbed the partially grilled fish from Orion's grasp and assumed control. From his waist pouch, he drew a container of herbs, sprinkling out bits of dried mint. With his fingertips, he ground them into powder and scattered the verdant dust over the fish.

The scent transformed at once, gaining a crisp, invigorating edge.

"Everyone says you love fish," Orion remarked. "I need a favor. I can't promise you strength or wealth, but I can at least provide a meal."

"I'll grant the favor, but quit speaking to me as if I'm your elder," Thresh replied, sinking his teeth in. "Do I appear aged? Do I sport a snowy beard like Edward's?"

Thresh devoured with alarming speed. He inserted the fish via the left side of his mouth, and moments later, a spotless frame emerged from the right. It resembled mechanical disassembly more than mere consumption.

Watching Thresh conclude, Orion hastily crammed his fish into his mouth, gulping it down intact without mastication.

"You're just like Leonidas," Thresh sighed, shaking his head. "Swallowing it whole disrespects the dish. You possess no refinement."

Orion brushed aside the remark and revealed the Mirror of Theras.

"In the Minor Hell, I claimed this from a foe. He named it the Mirror of Theras," Orion explained, displaying the ebony pane. "The Deputy Commander mentioned it produces a magnetic field. He suspects it could be a Demigod Artifact, or a fragment from one tied to a Demon King..."

Before Orion could complete his thought, a horn for drinking was thrust into his palm, while the mirror was whisked away.

"Theras," Thresh pondered, flipping the pane in his grasp. "Overlord of the Abyss's 199th level. I encountered that sly serpent several millennia past. He had already attained the Demigod Artifact realm then."

In Orion's hold, the mirror lay dormant like stone. Within Thresh's fingers, it burst forth with shadowy radiance. A globular magnetic aura surged out, warping the atmosphere encircling the summit.

"This," Thresh declared, flipping it airborne and recapturing it, "is merely a shard. It falls short by roughly a hundred thousand miles of qualifying as a full Demigod Artifact."

"Yet it can produce a partial aura, suggesting intentional severance from its core. That ancient reptile Theras must prize it greatly."

Thresh returned the mirror to Orion and retrieved his horn.

"I've erased the spiritual mark for you. You can command it now."

He gulped down some ale. "Theras earns renown for his plots. Possessing this, you're likely under his surveillance."

Orion stiffened. The mirror, moments before a prize, now evoked a primed explosive.

"What? Afraid?" Thresh grinned. "You're a pinnacle Sixth-Stage expert. Should old Theras appear, invoke your Divine Body. It'll send him fleeing."

It served as a wry jest. Orion offered a faint smile.

"Commander, please spare the feeble your jests."

"Ease up," Thresh advised, reclining. "From what I recall, Demon King Theras suffered a knockout blow millennia ago. He's in slumber. Employ the mirror. It surpasses an ordinary Relic regardless."

Orion exhaled a breath he hadn't realized he held. Should Theras rouse and pursue his possession, Orion resolved to draw him toward the Valkorath Realm and leave Thresh to handle the trouble.

"Commander, one more matter," Orion stated, his face growing grave.

Thresh motioned with his horn. Out with it.

"In the Silverwood Realm, the Sea Folk invoked a Dead Sea. It's a Divine Kingdom governed by unique laws. Might there exist a method for me to absorb it?"

The notion had embedded itself since his escape from the Silverwood Realm. Devouring that Dead Sea would vastly enlarge his own Divine Kingdom, allowing the Champions Alliance to dominate the seas at last.

"If I intervened, I could consume it," Thresh stated plainly.

"But you?" He denied with a headshake. "Unlikely."

Orion's posture sagged a bit.

"A Divine Kingdom forms the essence of a Fourth-Stage Demigod's might. It enforces its own principles," Thresh elaborated, adopting a tutorial tone. "In rare instances, as a Demigod nears dissolution or demise, they merge their essence into the kingdom. This prepares for revival or safeguards their lineage."

"No matter the motive, such a Divine Kingdom stands as the most resilient entity to dismantle or ingest."