The Rise of the Titan

"How dare you steal a god's power!" The Frost Wolf God, sensing its faith being siphoned, descended immediately with a roar of fury, not even bothering to assess its surroundings.

Muria watched as the once crudely carved wolf statue under his hand became lifelike. It transformed from stone to flesh, with its frosty white eyes gaining a divine spark and a sense of majesty. Each translucent, icy hair that appeared gave Muria's hand a cool, silky feeling.

"Feels pretty nice!" Muria murmured softly, squatting and gazing levelly at the now-alive Frost Wolf God's avatar. He couldn't resist rubbing the wolf god's fur, appreciating its texture.

"You will incur the wrath of the gods, bringing..." The wolf god began reciting its prepared speech but abruptly fell silent upon seeing Muria. Realizing who stood before it, the rest of its words were swallowed, as it feared provoking the Titan.

"What were you planning for my tribe?" Muria asked curiously, stroking the wolf's fur down its back. "Don't hold back. Go on."

"Was it you who dared to touch my faith power, Titan?" The Frost Wolf God, visibly unsettled, stared at Muria, who, even while squatting, towered over its avatar. If it had uttered its full threat earlier, it might now be contemplating how to survive a retaliatory strike.

"No," Muria immediately denied. "I don't need faith. I just touched your faith power to get your attention."

Although Muria could see the power of faith due to his divine essence, without divine fire to convert that power into divine strength or a divine core to store it, he couldn't utilize the faith power even if he did manage to take it.

"What do you want from me?" The Frost Wolf God, sensing something amiss, began to survey its surroundings. It saw the silent Frost Giants observing it and their leader lying on the ground like a defeated fish.

"Just a small favor," Muria said with a smile, continuing to pet the wolf god's fur. He pointed to the Frost Giant leader. "How about letting your loyal follower join me?"

"Frostfang!" The wolf god looked around at the devastated battlefield and called out the leader's name, noting the giant's battered state. Frostfang, a rather ordinary name for such a powerful being.

"You want him to follow you? Why?" The wolf god couldn't comprehend why a Titan would be interested in a mere Frost Giant, even one who was a legend.

"I have my reasons." Muria didn't bother to explain his plan to become a sage.

"What are you planning?" The Frost Wolf God, feeling Muria's hand on its back, was growing increasingly uncomfortable. At first, it tolerated the touch because Muria was a Titan. But as Muria continued to pet it like a common animal, the wolf god couldn't bear it. It swatted away Muria's hand with its paw, not appreciating being treated like a pet. Despite its minor divine status, it was still a god and deserved respect.

"I'm planning to form a Frost Giant army," Muria explained. Seeing the wolf god swat his hand, he noticed its tail wagging slightly. He then quietly returned his hand to its back, enjoying the soft fur. "Their fur feels good," he thought.

"You've just become a legend. Why rush to form an army?" The wolf god, knowing a bit about epic-level beings, studied Muria with curiosity. "Besides, Frost Giants aren't exactly suitable for your purposes."

"I'm not planning to use the Frost Giants for void conquests," Muria clarified. "Have you heard about what happened twenty-six years ago?"

"The Titan Godslayer incident?" At the mention of that event, the wolf god's fur bristled, making it look even fluffier, resembling a Samoyed.

"Good, you know about it." Muria smoothed the wolf god's bristling fur. "Do you know where I was back then?"

"The Abode of the Evil Gods?" The wolf god recalled. The Deprosen subcontinent, where they were now, bordered the Senapsus subcontinent, known as the Abode of the Evil Gods.

"Smart," Muria praised. "Yes, that was me, the hybrid Titan who was besieged by thirteen gods."

"Am I that famous now?" Muria stroked his chin, feeling a bit proud that the wolf god recognized him so quickly.

"Except for the most ancient gods, every deity knows about you now," the wolf god responded. For weaker deities like itself, it was essential to know which beings to avoid, and the Titan who was petting it definitely fell into that category. The thought of facing a solar orbital cannon was too terrifying.

"In that case, you shouldn't have any objections to Frostfang following me, right?" Muria asked with a warm smile.

"This legend cost me a lot of divine power to cultivate," the wolf god cautiously replied. It was willing to negotiate but needed to see what benefits were in store. Titans were powerful, but compelling a god to give up a loyal follower without compensation wasn't fair. However, cooperation was always an option if terms were favorable.

"Let's be reasonable," Muria pondered. The wolf god's form was pleasing to him, and its fur felt amazing. He wondered how the real wolf would feel, probably even better. He made a mental note to try it if he ever got the chance.

"The Frost Wolf tribe will fight for me, but I won't interfere with their faith as long as they don't worship evil gods. How's that? This way, your faith won't suffer much loss."

"Are all Titans like you?" The wolf god eyed Muria skeptically. It knew that if Frost Giants served a Titan, its influence would diminish. Despite Muria's assurances, the presence of a Titan would overshadow any deity. Giants would rather revere the Titan than worship a god.

"Is there a problem?" Muria felt quite generous. He never interfered with his followers' beliefs as long as they didn't worship evil gods. However, none of his followers actually worshipped any gods. Among the giants, many revered him.

"None." The wolf god bared its sharp teeth. It knew that with Muria's plan to form a Frost Giant army, it would inevitably lose their faith. Even as a deity, it couldn't compete with a Titan. But being the Frost Wolf God, not the Frost Giant God, the loss of Frost Giant worshippers wasn't devastating. Its primary followers were the Frost Wolves, and losing the giants was manageable.

"Great! Let's seal the deal." Muria grabbed the wolf god's paw and shook it firmly. "I look forward to our cooperation."

"Cooperation? My fur!" The wolf god felt extremely uncomfortable and tried to pull its paw back, but Muria held on tightly.

"You're the first god to cooperate with me, so I won't treat you unfairly. I'll allow your priests to spread your faith within my territory," Muria offered generously, showcasing his Titan magnanimity. Then, he added a condition, "But I need to review your doctrines. If there's anything unreasonable, you must make some adjustments."

The wolf god stared blankly at Muria, thinking, "How can a Titan be so shameless?" Revising its teachings? That was outrageous. And allowing its priests to spread the faith? As a species deity, its followers were mainly wolves. How could it spread its faith through wolves, especially after losing a Frost Giant tribe to Muria?

"Not happy with that? Let's try another term," Muria suggested. He believed cooperation should benefit both parties. If one side gained while the other suffered, it wouldn't last. "You make a request."

"Remove your hand first," the wolf god said coldly. It felt increasingly frustrated with Muria's antics.

"Haha," Muria laughed awkwardly and reluctantly withdrew his hand from the wolf god's back. "I thought you enjoyed it, so I..."

"I am the Frost Wolf God. Show some respect."

"A wolf god is still a wolf. Petting you is a form of respect."

"I am not your pet."

"Why not consider it? Be my pet!"

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