Chapter 366
The Transcendent’s domain devours the space. Taesan tried to create distance, but the entire world was already engulfed.
[You have activated Essence Identification.]
[You have activated Focused Detection.]
[You have activated Reconnaissance.]
He attempts to analyze what power is being manifested in the world.
But nothing comes out.
Just like when he detected the Divine Blood, only a jumble of characters floods into Taesan’s mind.
The Transcendent’s domain couldn’t be analyzed even with Taesan’s power.
Kuung!
The Emperor leaps.
Taesan blocks the swinging fist with his sword.
Kaaang—
Taesan’s body is pushed back slightly. With the domain deployed, the Emperor had clearly grown stronger than before.
But the increase wasn’t significant.
If he wanted to respond, he could. For something using divine authority, it wasn’t particularly special.
[You have activated Starlight Arrow.]
The arrow of light collides with the Emperor. The divinity surrounding the Emperor devours the light.
Taesan swings his hand.
All kinds of magic manifest. The earth collapses, and cold envelops the world.
The magic Taesan wields is immensely powerful. Even a strong opponent like the Emperor couldn’t break through it easily or get close.
Taesan continued casting magic, pressing the Emperor.
Then the Emperor looked at Taesan with a smug expression.
“How disrespectful. To dare use a profane power like magic on divine ground.”
The Emperor raised a finger.
“I shall establish a new law. In this sacred domain of Horai, every time you use magic, you must bring your hands together in prayer.”
As soon as the Emperor finished speaking, the magic that had been manifesting was abruptly canceled.
“What?”
Taesan frowned immediately.
Magic being canceled mid-cast. It was something that had never happened before. Taesan quickly gathered mana.
[You have activated Starlight Arrow.]
Mana is consumed, and power should be realized.
But it doesn’t manifest. Like trying to ignite fire underwater, the activation itself failed.
The Emperor launched a kick toward Taesan.
Taesan blocked the storm-like attack.
Kaaang!
Taesan clicked his tongue as he was pushed back. He switched to handling Magi instead of mana.
[You have activated Asmodeus’s Chains of Decay.]
A newly acquired Black Magic. Its effect:
The suppression of the opponent.
Cha-cha-cha-jang!
Chains burst out, tearing through space, and bind the Emperor’s entire body. The Emperor thrashed his limbs violently. The chains creaked and began to break.
[You have activated Arrow of the Tempest of Unthought.]
A black arrow is manifested and flies directly toward the Emperor.
The Emperor, having shattered the chains by forcefully twisting his body, swings his fist.
Kuwaaang!
Power explodes. Black and gold clash, reducing the surroundings to ruins.
“You dare to wield Black Magic in this sacred place?”
The Emperor scowled and declared,
“I shall establish a new [Law of Discipline]. Every time you use Black Magic, you must bow your head to the ground in reverence to God.”
The manifesting Black Magic was canceled.
“Ridiculous.”
[What the hell is that?]
Even the ghost murmured in disbelief.
It wasn’t just Taesan who was restricted.
This world itself had placed a restriction on Black Magic.
The Emperor ruthlessly pressed Taesan.
Kagak!
Creating distance from the Emperor, Taesan brought his hands together in prayer and cast magic. Fortunately, respectfully joining his hands was enough to allow the spell to manifest.
Jjeojeojeojeok—
Thus, a world frozen in place was properly manifested.
Taesan’s eyes calmed.
The Emperor hadn’t lied in his declaration. By obeying the law, power could be used. Otherwise, it was impossible.
“Your swordsmanship is crude.”
The Emperor sneered and declared again.
“Before you wield your sword, you must kneel on one knee and pay respect to God.”
As Taesan was about to swing his sword, his movements halted.
The transformed laws of the world prevented him from moving his sword by will. Taesan quickly knelt and slashed upward.
Kaaang!
“Tch.”
Taesan clicked his tongue and summoned Minerva. The summoned Minerva unleashed a blast of wind to pressure the Emperor.
“A mere spirit dares to be summoned on divine ground? This is holy land. A spirit summoned without a proper offering to God is not permitted. Begone.”
“Urgh!”
Minerva’s body vanished with a scream.
While blocking the Emperor’s raging assault, Taesan quickly assessed the situation.
‘Law of Discipline.’
A power that interferes with the laws of the world itself.
Similar to partial world alteration, but even higher.
By borrowing a portion of the power of a divine domain and descending it into the world, one could create a unilateral law in their favor.
Horai is the God of Discipline. He had forcibly engraved a law unfavorable to Taesan onto the world.
Taesan realized.
This was the power that only apostles chosen by gods could use.
Jjeoong—
[Your First Absolute Attack Nullification has activated.]
The attack is erased. As his body reverts to a state before the hit, the Emperor frowns and charges in again.
“Such petty tricks.”
Kuuung!
The Emperor clenched his fist and rushed in. His martial art was extremely simple, making it easy for Taesan to respond—under normal circumstances.
But now Taesan was bound by his Law of Discipline.
Magic, Black Magic, spirits, even swordsmanship couldn’t be used properly.
Even attacks he could normally counter with ease were now hard to block.
Kagak!
Taesan swung his sword. But since the move required preparation, his reaction was slow. The Emperor twisted his body and dodged easily, then counterattacked.
Taesan knelt again and slashed upward.
[You have activated Deflection.]
The Emperor’s fist grazed past the sword.
But the Emperor quickly stomped and redirected the force, returning the diverted path to its original trajectory.
The Second Absolute Attack Nullification activated.
Taesan thought quickly.
A power that imposes restrictions on the activation of abilities: [Law of Discipline].
There were a few countermeasures. First was partial world alteration.
Even if it was divine power, the one wielding it was ultimately the Emperor. With partial world alteration, it should be possible to offset it to some extent.
But he had exhausted all materials while defeating the Guides.
The next option was the [Boundary Line].
A gray power where the laws and forces beyond laws are intertwined.
It could ignore the [Law of Discipline] and obliterate the divinity shrouding the Emperor. If it landed, even the current Emperor could likely be taken down in one strike.
However, it wasn’t suitable for immediate use. Taesan looked at the Emperor.
The first properly ordained [Apostle] of a god he had ever faced.
He didn’t know what kind of hidden cards he might have. Having received direct power from a Transcendent, there was also a possibility he could somehow endure the [Boundary Line].
Since Taesan himself couldn’t fully control the [Boundary Line] yet, he had to use it cautiously.
‘If I used both Beyond the Boundary and the Boundary Line together—’
He could probably break through even that.
But the aftermath of mixing two powers he couldn’t properly control was unpredictable, even for Taesan.
Therefore, that method was the last resort.
The opponent before him wasn’t yet at that level.
If he could analyze the potential and figure it out, he could win.
Taesan began to move, slowly analyzing the Emperor’s power.
But at the moment, it meant he had to endure. Allowing the Emperor’s attacks, Taesan’s damage was beginning to accumulate.
His [Absolute Attack Nullifications] had all been used, and his stamina had started to drop.
Kwaang!
The Emperor’s fist slammed against Taesan’s sword. Taesan’s body slid backward.
“You cannot defeat me.”
The Emperor spoke arrogantly.
“The true power of your original self is indeed greater than mine. I won’t deny that.”
If they clashed at full power, the Emperor knew he would lose. He was aware of that.
“But before the greatness of divine power, such strength is meaningless.”
A power that renders all that a mortal has built irrelevant.
That was the power of the gods. An absolute authority no mortal could ever reach.
“Do you understand, lowly tool?”
“…Ah.”
The child watching the battle blankly from afar trembled.
Even though the battle was too fast to follow with their eyes, they could tell that Taesan was being pushed back.
“This feeble one meets death… because of your stubbornness.”
“Ah…”
The child’s face turned pale.
Taesan was going to die.
Because of no one else, but themselves.
“N-No…”
Stammering, the child tried to step forward. Having already seen many die because of them, the child could no longer endure it.
“There’s no need for that.”
But Taesan stopped the child.
“You want the Divine Blood that badly?”
“A worthless tool like you is unfit to wield such a mighty power. Don’t you think it right that one who is worthy should claim it?”
The Emperor laughed. A twisted grin full of greed.
“Yes! I will absorb the Divine Blood and transcend mortality! And become an Apostle who stands at His side!”
With mad laughter, he charged.
“Become a stepping stone for Him! You lowly being!”
Taesan raised his sword.
[You have activated Mental Acceleration.]
He blocked the oncoming flurry of attacks and slowly gathered his thoughts.
‘The [Law of Discipline]’ compulsion.’
A completely one-sided [Law of Discipline] that only favored the Emperor.
But the opponent wasn’t a god.
He was only an Apostle borrowing that power.
There had to be limits to that law.
It was clear from the fact that it didn’t completely seal off magic or Black Magic, but merely forced specific poses before activation.
‘He can impose conditions, but not seal the abilities themselves.’
[You have activated Stealth.]
As the Emperor’s attack shattered the ground, Taesan’s figure became obscured. For a moment, his presence vanished.
Moving behind the Emperor, Taesan knelt.
Kagak—
The Emperor twisted his body in haste and blocked Taesan’s attack.
“You possess many unpleasant powers.”
He only remarked, but did not impose a [Law of Discipline] on Stealth.
‘He didn’t impose a law on [Absolute Attack Nullification] either.’
He got annoyed and flustered, but didn’t block it. The same went for [Deflection], which Taesan had activated mid-battle.
Taesan sheathed his sword. His fist clashed with the Emperor’s.
Kuuung!
Taesan had never trained in martial arts. But since swordsmanship was restricted by [Law of Discipline], it was easier to fight with his fists instead.
Since his offensive power was integrated through [Airach Martial Technique], the damage itself wasn’t a problem.
Fist clashed with fist. Taesan blocked the Emperor’s attack.
In the first place, the Emperor’s martial art wasn’t that impressive. In contrast, Taesan had fought countless enemies in the labyrinth, including those who fought with their fists.
Knowing how to counter meant knowing how to move.
Though it was clearly inferior to his swordsmanship, it wasn’t so bad that he couldn’t hold his own.
Due to that difference in experience, the Emperor couldn’t easily break through Taesan’s defense.
“You lowly creature knows no shame. You should just quietly accept death.”
The Emperor mocked him.
But did not act beyond that.
Even though he could impose a [Law of Discipline] on martial arts and break through immediately, he didn’t activate it.
Taesan was convinced. There were limitations to his [Law of Discipline].
Then what were those limitations?
‘If the [Law of Discipline] isn’t one-sided, and also applies to the user—’
Every [Law of Discipline] the Emperor had invoked so far involved magic, Black Magic, spirits, and swordsmanship—all unrelated to the Emperor. In contrast, martial arts were his own field. If the [Law of Discipline] also applied to the caster, he might not be able to invoke it.
‘Or perhaps, there’s a limit to the number of [Law of Disciplines] that can be active.’
If there’s a restriction on how many [Law of Disciplines] can be set simultaneously, then that could be why he couldn’t impose one on martial arts.
Confirming it wouldn’t be difficult.
[You have activated Embers of Calamity.]
The fierce flame of destruction revealed itself to the world.
The power contained within was stronger and deeper than any Taesan had wielded until now. After defeating the Guide leadership, he had finally learned to properly command the power of destruction.
“This is—”
The Emperor scowled and widened the distance. Taesan focused his mind.
The [Embers of Calamity] that incinerate all things in existence. If the user lacked sufficient class or qualification, it was uncontrollable.
That was why he hadn’t been able to wield it properly until now.
But now, Taesan possessed both.
The flames swept outward.
Flames that truly burned the world surged through the Transcendent’s domain.
Because the power of destruction inherently carried such a high class, even the Emperor couldn’t easily withstand it. Taesan seized the opening and brought his hands together in prayer.
[You have activated Starlight Arrow.]
Kiiing!
Magic and Black Magic were activated. The [Law of Discipline] did not block their activation entirely. As long as the conditions were met, they could be used freely.
Power surged toward the Emperor. The Emperor wanted to counterattack, but the world-burning flames chasing him gave him little room to act.
Clicking his tongue, the Emperor spoke.
“To wield such a lowly power in Lord Horai’s domain… Flames that burn the world cannot exert their power outside their original world.”
A new [Law of Discipline] was applied to the world.
At the same time, Taesan realized—the [Law of Discipline] that had initially restricted magic had disappeared.
There was a limit to how many [Law of Discipline] could be applied at once.
And the total limit was four.
The confirmation was complete. He had also formulated his countermeasures.
From this point on, it was his turn. Taesan gathered his strength.
