Chapter 150: Outside. Battlefield of the Gods (6)
Mantra was flustered, almost like a mortal, like a being living a finite life. Rakiratas’ appearance here signaled something significant.
[You shouldn’t be able to descend here!]
[Did you really believe that?]
Rakiratas mocked Mantra.
[Did you believe we couldn’t crush you, that we were too weak to do anything but watch?]
Rakiratas’ presence overwhelmed the world, making the entire endless battlefield his domain.
[You’re not wrong. Until now, that was true. Until now, that is.]
[…God’s Exile!]
Mantra gritted his teeth.
Taesan had exiled the gods from this place. As a result, the number of gods, which had been around ten, was now reduced to just two.
Normally, there would be no issue as gods would steadily descend, but thanks to Taesan’s swift actions over two days, there was a vacuum.
The labyrinth’s gods were in a weakened state, enough for other gods to interfere significantly.
[However!]
Mantra’s body glowed, and his presence spread out in all directions.
[This is our domain. Even if you handle strife and death, it won’t be easy to win here!]
[Let’s stop the boring games.]
Rakiratas laughed, dispersing Mantra’s energy as if soothing a child’s tantrum.
[The result is obvious if we fight among ourselves. That’s no fun.]
[…]
Rakiratas didn’t seem interested in fighting. Mantra’s momentum slowly waned as well.
[What do you propose?]
[Your saint is here.]
Like the other gods Taesan had dealt with, Mantra would have brought his saint here as well.
[Leave the matters of mortals to mortals. Don’t you think that’s fair?]
[You’re suggesting a duel between my saint and your apostle?]
[Not my apostle.]
[What?]
Mantra’s eyes wavered.
[You brought someone here who isn’t even your apostle?]
[Do I seem like a god who cares about such things?]
Rakiratas laughed, and Mantra fell silent, seeming to accept this.
Rakiratas was a remarkably free-spirited god for his stature. Even the outer gods knew this well.
Rakiratas turned his gaze to Taesan.
[Of course, I should also consider your opinion.]
“I don’t mind.”
Taesan nodded immediately.
To come this far and have it end in a gods’ fight would be quite anticlimactic. There was still much to gain, and he didn’t intend to end it until he had obtained everything.
[He agrees.]
[…Fine.]
Mantra’s eyes gleamed ominously.
[I will make you regret this. I will use your toy as my plaything.]
[It’s not even a toy… but think as you will.]
Mantra had vanished at some point. Rakiratas laughed lightly.
[He’s an impatient one.]
“He’s more emotional than I thought.”
Taesan muttered. Mantra was easily showing emotions like anger and bewilderment.
When he thought about it, the labyrinth gods weren’t much different. They expressed their emotions directly.
[We were once mortals. We ascended to the position of transcendents. Emotions are very precious to us. They are something special to relieve the monotony of eternity.]
Rakiratas spoke calmly.
Come to think of it, that was true.
They were originally mortals who had ascended to the level of immortals, just hidden behind their great power.
Only the ancient gods were different.
[I look forward to seeing you reach this position someday.]
With those words, Rakiratas vanished.
When the power that had filled the space disappeared, Taesan let out a small sigh.
“I’m still far from it.”
He didn’t speak of the impossible. His goal was to reach that place, so there was no need to.
Since they were once like Taesan, a mortal, he too could reach that level someday.
Taesan clenched his fist.
The next day, Taesan headed towards another god.
This time, it was a spirit god born from the Source Spring. Perhaps because of this, the spirits welcomed Taesan enthusiastically.
[Die!]
[Enemy of spirits! Turn to ashes!]
All sorts of nature harshly assailed Taesan. It was clear hostility, unlike before. Defending against all of it, Taesan muttered.
“I wonder how they will react.”
There would be a spirit god in the labyrinth as well.
It was uncertain whether they would like or dislike Taesan for annihilating the spirits.
But he couldn’t just stand by and do nothing. Taesan waved his hand.
[You have activated Small Ember.]
[You have activated Wind-Walking Deer.]
Wind and fire arose simultaneously. A storm of flames engulfed the spirits.
Despite their desperate resistance, the Small Ember was a fragment of the Spirit King. Ordinary spirits couldn’t withstand it.
Within minutes, all the spirits had vanished.
[You have destroyed the statue of the Spirit God born from the Source Spring. The Spirit God born from the Source Spring has been exiled from the battlefield of the gods.]
[The primordial spirit god is silent about your actions.]
“Scary.”
It was silence, neither joyful nor angry.
When they met later, it was unlikely the spirit god would kill him, but it was hard to predict how they would react.
Now only the last one remained.
Near a huge pillar was a small building.
Unlike before, there were not many signs of people. Only one person was waiting for Taesan.
When he opened the door and entered, a man in light armor greeted him.
“You have come, agent of the labyrinth.”
A middle-aged man with a hearty face and a golden double-edged sword resting on his shoulder greeted Taesan.
‘He is strong.’
Even the presence he exuded far surpassed that of the second-tier Guides of Sin.
It was something he had expected.
The battlefield’s limit was level 75.
Judging by the levels of those he had encountered so far, an ordinary level 70 adventurer would struggle considerably, but victory itself was possible.
Therefore, someone with power above level 70 was likely.
The man in front of him seemed to be that being.
“I am Cain, the saint of Mantra, the god of ornate swords.”
The man pointed his sword at Taesan.
“I would say let’s have a fair fight… but you are too strong.”
Cain gave a wry smile. He was at a level where it was hard to determine victory against a level 70 adventurer.
But in other words, that was his limit. He was not a match for Taesan.
“I apologize, but I must borrow the power bestowed by the god himself.”
“Go ahead. Try it.”
Mantra wouldn’t just stand by. He would have prepared something to win against Taesan.
Cain raised his sword to the sky.
“O God! Your servant prays to you!”
Power descended from the rift in the sky.
It was a presence. A great presence that mortals could not reach descended upon Cain.
Taesan frowned.
Cain shouted with wide eyes.
“Please grant me the power to serve you!”
A golden energy enveloped Cain’s entire body.
Cain took a deep breath.
“Is this… the power of a god?”
He looked at his hands with astonishment. A power of a completely different dimension had been imbued into his body.
“Good. This should make for a decent fight.”
Cain smiled as he lifted his sword. Taesan looked at him with a perplexed expression.
He could understand the power Cain had received because he had used something similar before.
The ghost spoke.
[He’s an apostle.]
[There’s no loss of power, and the user’s presence doesn’t diminish… a true apostle. Is this your first time seeing a real apostle?]
“Probably.”
Proof of the God. Malessten, the apostle of the God of Proof. He was the first apostle Taesan had encountered.
But his power wasn’t that impressive.
Since he descended by borrowing Taesan’s body, he did not possess the full presence of an apostle and couldn’t use his own swordsmanship.
Therefore, Taesan could win without much trouble.
But Cain in front of him was different.
The position that the labyrinth gods had continually offered him.
Cain possessed the presence of an apostle.
“This is the worst-case scenario I expected.”
[Your opponent is a difficult enemy to defeat.]
The judgment came down quickly.
[The Desire for Battle has been activated.]
Simultaneously, the stat-boosting skills were also activated in succession.
“Come! Agent of the labyrinth!”
Cain charged with his golden sword. Taesan quickly drew his two swords.
Clang!
Sparks flew. Taesan clicked his tongue at the force felt beyond the swords.
“Hup!”
Cain gave a short shout as he put strength into his sword-wielding hand. At the sudden surge of force, Taesan quickly moved his hands to deflect it and stabbed Cain’s shoulder.
Crack!
But the sword didn’t penetrate.
Even with aura imbued, it couldn’t pierce the light armor and slid off.
Just as in the spirit realm, the presence of an apostle prevented the attack from landing properly.
Clang!
Taesan swung his sword to create distance.
Cain attacked fiercely.
The god he believed in, the god of ornate swords.
Contrary to that name, Cain’s swordsmanship was rough and aggressive, with no trace of ornateness.
Clang!
Taesan struggled to block.
Using the force pushing him back, Taesan created distance and swung his sword.
It stung, but it didn’t hinder his swordsmanship.
“This level, huh.”
“Let’s keep going!”
“Sure. Let’s do it.”
Clang!
Taesan was just barely managing to block Cain’s attacks. While his swordsmanship was superior, he was overpowered, and the apostle’s presence prevented his attacks from landing properly.
Clang!
Taesan’s body flew far away. He adjusted his stance as he landed.
“It seems you haven’t received the god’s grace. You can’t defeat me then. It’s unfortunate,”
Cain said, confident of his victory. He wasn’t considering the possibility of his own defeat.
Taesan stood up.
“I don’t believe in gods.”
“That’s unfortunate. Devoting yourself entirely to a god is such a joy.”
“I don’t like it.”
He had come here by his own will.
He hadn’t come because he believed in someone or devoted himself to someone.
Cain smirked.
“Then you will be buried, trusting only yourself.”
“We’ll see.”
Taesan muttered, gripping his sword tightly.
The previous fight had revealed it.
“That isn’t a proper apostle.”
[They forced power into him to kill you, despite not having a proper presence.]
The ghost sneered. From what he had seen of apostles while descending the labyrinth, Cain’s level was quite insignificant.
[If that’s an apostle, then the Guides of Sin could all be apostles too.]
“This should be enough.”
[You have activated Apostleization (Rakiratas).]
Power descended into Taesan’s body.
A red light swirled in Taesan’s pupils as everything was enhanced. His strength, speed, even his presence.
Cain hesitated.
“…What?”
“I’ve got it now.”
Taesan kicked off. Just like before, he swung his sword. Cain hurriedly blocked.
Clang!
“Ugh!”
Cain’s arm was pushed back. Shock filled his eyes.
“You said you didn’t believe in gods!”
“I don’t. This is just something I received.”
“What nonsense!”
Cain shouted in denial. He quickly swung his sword. The sword rose to pierce the sky and descended towards Taesan’s head.
Taesan swung his left arm. The moment it collided with Cain’s sword, he twisted his arm to deflect it.
“Hup!”
Cain didn’t just stand there. He twisted the arm holding his sword and stabbed. Taesan dodged by tilting his head and thrust his sword.
Crunch.
“Guh!”
[202 damage to Cain.]
Cain groaned in pain.
“Guh!”
This time, Cain created distance.
Taesan immediately charged.
The duration of Apostleization was ten minutes. He had to finish it within that time.
So, he had deliberately dragged out the time to gauge Cain’s movements.
The confirmation was done.
Now, only victory remained.
And Taesan didn’t intend to end his plan yet.
He had crushed the God of Proof with proof and dealt with the God of Mystery with magic.
He had annihilated the spirits using spirit magic.
The opponent was the apostle of the God of Swords.
So, the method to use was obvious.
[You have activated Counter.]