New Eden: Live to Play, Play to Live

Astaroth explained the current situation to the now fully formed frog deity. It was a slender Grippli, with water flowing all around him in a gentle stream.

He knew Violette would die of jealousy if he told her he had met a minor water deity, but he refrained from saying so. After giving his full explanation, the Grippli formed a water bubble that he sat on.

"Hmm. Your friends and you have most certainly altered that version of the timeline. Unfortunately, it cannot affect the present, and it will not bring my people back. But I should be able to help you, if only temporarily."

"It would most honour me to receive your help, kind sir."

"I'll help you under one condition."

"What condition is that?"

Astaroth was becoming perplexed. What if the minor god asked for his eternal servitude?

"It is nothing of the sort, you silly mortal." the frog god chuckled.

"I simply want you to bring the bead you are holding back to my people. This is an artifact of great power, and could help the Grippli nation to rise back up from the mud."

"I would gladly do that, if you help me get out of this situation alive."

"Then it is settled. I will lend you a part of my power for two minutes. That is all I can do with what little Aether you gave me. It will send me back into dormancy soon after."

"That should be plenty, sir. I thank you."

"Good luck, young pointy-ears."

Astaroth opened his eyes after his conversation, and the situation was quite critical around him. The Lizardman was still rampaging around, and both the Grippli fighting him were on their last leg.

His party members were also contributing what little they could to help, but they already used most of their big skills in the previous altercations.

As he took in the situation, he felt the gush of power coming from the orb. The power crept up his arm, soon reaching his soul, and fusing with it.

He felt his skin crawl as it morphed into a leathery texture. His hands changed, going from the normal five-fingered hand to a four-fingered hand with sticky pods at the fingertips.

His vision also changed, as the colours faded, but every movement in his rapidly expanding field of vision caught his attention. He glanced at his status window.

Status:

Name: Astaroth (Fused to Quon)

Race: Ash Elf

Level: 37 (8'170/2'939'950)

Stats:

HP: 68'440/68'440

MP: 86'198/86'198

Aether: 861/861

Stamina: 100

Mana Regen: 5/second in combat, 25/second out of combat

Strength: 455 (521) (+20 armor) (+46 passive)

Agility: 1'187 (1'308) (+119 passive)

Constitution: 454 (519) (+20 armor) (+45 passive)

Intelligence: 1'187 (1'308) (+119 passive)

Wisdom: 1'187 (1'308) (+119 passive)

Attack Power Str: 2'655

Attack Power Agi: 6'540

Magic Attack Power: 6'540

Healing Power: 6'540

Natural Defense: 25 %

Armor Defense: 14 %

Luck: 0 (Stat unaffected by Level up and free points)

Available stat points: 0

Available skill points: 0

Physical Condition: Normal

Mental Condition: Normal

Skill Gained: Absolute Water Control

The stats he gained floored Astaroth. This was the power of a minor deity.

A weakened one at that. He couldn't fathom how strong Quon had been at his peak.

The skill he gained caught his eye.

'Absolute Water Control? What could that mean?'

He opened up his skill window and read the description.

Absolute Water Control: Water obeys your every command. Only your imagination is your limit now.

The brief description said nothing, but it said everything at the same time. He immediately tried out his new power.

The timer was ticking down already, after all.

He looked at the Lizardman and moved forward. His one step brought him into the Warrior-King's face, almost like he teleported.

In the same motion, he threw out his fist, punching the lizard in the face. Everything was moving so slowly for him, yet that wasn't the case for everyone else.

To them, they just saw a weird-looking Astaroth teleport in front of the boss monster, and punch him so hard and fast, the boss flew into the wall instantly.

*-1'374'757*

The entire group's jaws dropped instantly. With a single punch, Astaroth had just taken away over ten percent of the monster's health, which was close to half of what it had remaining.

The damage number almost caused Phoenix to faint. The Grippli that were previously fighting the Lizardman suddenly dropped to their knees.

"Oh, great lord Quon! You honour us with your presence!" They chanted together.

Astaroth ignored them, looking to where the boss had flown. He was more interested in killing that beast and being done with it than talking to subjects of a forlorn deity.

He took another step forward, bringing him to the collapsed wall, where he picked up the half-unconscious Lizardman. He then shoved his hand into its maw, before conjuring a never-ending stream of water into its head.

Then he watched the monster's eyes go wide as it slowly drowned and died. There was nothing it could do.

Try as it may, each hit it made on Astaroth was like hitting a steel wall. He barely felt the impact.

After a few seconds, the Lizardman Warrior-King finally drowned, and a notification popped for the party members.

*Ding*

*You have killed a Lizardman Warrior-King (Legendary Boss) Lvl 50. 166'666 Exp awarded.(+100% for kill 1 tier higher)*

*Ding*

*You have completed the hidden quest Save The Kingdom. Completed the hidden task: Wake the Grippli Deity. All rewards were obtained.

Rewards:

Bonus Exp: 1 million/player

One piece of equipment from the royal armory/player (maximum elite grade)

5000 gold pieces/player

Bonus Exp: 10 million, Bonus Gold: 10'000, One additional item from the royal armory (maximum rare grade) /player

With all these extra rewards, the entire party would skyrocket to being the richest and strongest players in the game! They couldn't believe it!

They wondered what Astaroth did to find this hidden task. But then, seeing him destroy the boss monster like it was a trash mob, answered their silent questions.

"Seems like coming here with him was the right choice," Phoenix said to the rest of the party.