Chapter 457
Boom!
The earth shook. Several pillars, unable to withstand the force, shattered. Zervand’s power, which had been suppressing the giant, weakened.
The giant grew even more rampant.
It twisted its waist and swung its arm violently. A storm arose and shattered the world.
[You have activated [Mana Storm – Negation].]
Craack!
Taesan summoned a storm in response, erasing the shockwave.
He clicked his tongue.
Though he was barely holding on, the situation wasn’t good. Hiding was meaningless. Whether due to a special detection ability or something else, the giant immediately located Taesan’s position even when he used stealth skills.
Aside from the wound on its foot—inflicted by leveraging the giant’s own strength—Taesan had failed to inflict any meaningful damage.
‘I lack power.’
The [Boundary Line] was indeed a transcendental power, but it was still wielded by an immortal—Taesan. With his strength, he couldn’t easily pierce the giant’s body.
If there was any hope, it lay in a single opportunity.
And he knew exactly where to strike.
Taesan looked up at the blood-red eye staring down from above.
The one and only crimson eye—it was highly likely to be the Old god’s weak point.
The problem was, he’d have to ascend to the high sky to strike that eye.
Right now, he had only used up one [Attack Nullification], and the only reason he could hold on was that he was moving beneath the giant, where it couldn’t easily attack.
If he targeted the eye, he would be exposed to its full force.
Still, Taesan gripped his sword tighter and steadied his breath.
The opponent was clearly stronger than him.
Trying to win without any risk would be arrogant and foolish.
As always, he would risk his life and move forward.
Taesan withdrew the [Boundary Line] protecting his body and instead cloaked himself in divinity. He had very little black energy left—he planned to conserve it for one final strike.
He knelt down, gathering all his power in his lower body, and launched off the ground.
[You have activated [Leap].]
[You have activated [Acceleration].]
His body tore through the air, flying toward the giant’s eye.
“Ooooooh!”
Those watching fell to their knees. Their faith seeped into Taesan.
The giant reacted immediately. It raised its foot high and brought it down.
He still had two [Attack Nullifications] left. But since the Old god’s authority nullified all skills, he had to avoid every attack if he wanted to reach the eye.
Taesan kicked the air fiercely.
[You have activated [Aerial Leap].]
Boom!
He narrowly dodged the descending foot.
The divinity surrounding him distorted as the shockwave engulfed him.
[Your second attack has been nullifi@#%!]
The [Attack Nullification] triggered.
But he wasn’t slammed into the ground. The divine energy minimized the shockwave’s impact.
Taesan immediately spread his wings and accelerated toward the eye.
Vwooooom!
The Old god raised its arm high and brought its elbow down.
It felt as though the sky itself were crashing down on him.
There was no way he could break through that with his own strength. But Taesan didn’t stop.
[You have activated [Choice Exclusion].]
Boom!
The world warped in an instant. The authority of a transcendent collided with that of an Old god, sending chaotic aftershocks across reality.
The elbow movement halted—just slightly.
The pressure weakened momentarily. Taesan didn’t miss the chance. He moved swiftly, skimming past the elbow.
[Your third attack has been nullifi@#%!]
The third [Attack Nullification] activated.
Thanks to that, Taesan reached the underside of the giant’s jaw.
Vwooooom!
The giant swung its descending arm upward. This time, Taesan didn’t evade.
[You have activated [Aegis Shield Blessed with Divinity].]
Crack.
The upward punch struck Taesan directly.
Even with the invincible shield, his entire body groaned. Bones were crushed, flesh was torn.
Taesan clenched his teeth and reinforced the divine energy around him.
Boom!
Unable to withstand the force, his body was flung high into the sky. People screamed in despair. Even Lee Taeyeon momentarily thought Taesan had lost.
“Brutal.”
Soaring from the shockwave, Taesan muttered.
The [Aegis Shield] granted damage immunity. But the Old god’s authority pierced through its effect. His body was instantly wrecked.
Taesan used divinity to heal his shattered and broken body.
Once restored, he looked around.
A pitch-black space.
He saw countless stars.
He was in space.
Taesan gripped his sword firmly. He hadn’t failed to dodge—he had deliberately taken the hit.
His own power couldn’t pierce the Old god’s body. The eye might’ve been exposed, but its defense seemed all the more solid.
So he used the Old god’s power to launch himself into space.
[You have activated [Landing].]
His body began falling from space.
Normally, he would’ve returned to Earth in an instant, but being this far up meant the descent would take time.
One of [Landing]’s traits:
The longer it takes to activate, the more it accelerates.
And that acceleration had no limit.
[You have activated [Acceleration].]
[You have activated [Skill Acceleration].]
“Ah?”
The despairing people looked up in surprise.
A meteor was falling from the sky.
Ruuuumble!
Taesan was descending toward Earth.
The giant stomped and twisted its waist, throwing a punch.
Once again, Taesan didn’t evade. As the fist touched him, a skill activated.
[You have activated [Last Opportunity].]
A skill that blocks one fatal blow.
But just like the previous skills, it didn’t activate properly.
Taesan had known this would happen.
He had aimed for it.
If it couldn’t be blocked, then a glancing blow might still be possible.
Taesan twisted his body. The incoming fist grazed his side.
The shockwave engulfed him.
[You have taken 3,252,478 damage.]
[You have activated [Endurance].]
It wasn’t a direct hit. And it wasn’t a complete Old god—just a fragment. Plus, Zervand’s pillars had greatly suppressed its power.
Even so, the damage exceeded three million.
There were no more defensive skills remaining.
But thanks to it, Taesan didn’t slow down and successfully dodged the attack.
He raised his sword. He honed the [Boundary Line] to its sharpest.
The giant’s response was simple. It quickly raised its arm to shield its eye. With just that, it became impossible for Taesan to break through.
But Taesan released all the power he had stored.
[You have activated [Fall of All Things].]
[You have activated [Memorize].]
[You have activated [Ring of the Twisted Distortion of the Regretful One].]
KRAAAAAASH!
Power exploded.
Magic, black magic, divine authority, and all the skills he had—all of it unleashed at once toward the giant’s hand.
The giant’s body shuddered violently. Even an Old god couldn’t withstand such a powerful, direct hit at this range without being shaken.
But the giant didn’t retreat. Though it trembled, it firmly kept its hand over its eye.
At that moment, Taesan’s ring shone.
[You have activated [Ring of Resounding Vengeance].]
It released damage equal to what Taesan had suffered.
The Old god was struck by its own power. Its foot slid backward, and finally, its arm lifted.
The blood-red eye was exposed.
Taesan sharpened the [Boundary Line] on his sword. He activated [Addition], [Conversion], [Blade of Fighting Spirit], and drove the blade forward. The giant shut its eye too late. The [Boundary Line] pierced it.
Craack.
[Seventh Fragment of the Black Giant @#%$%$]
[!!!!!!]
A voiceless scream echoed.
A violent howl engulfed Taesan. Overwhelmed after using all his power, he tumbled across the ground.
[Are you alright?]
“No. I think I’m dying.”
Taesan staggered to his feet. The giant clutched its eye.
Blood dripped from between its fingers.
Taesan laughed in delight.
He had successfully left a scar that could never be erased on the Old god’s body.
But the situation couldn’t be called good.
He had exhausted all his power. He could no longer use the [Boundary Line] due to exceeding its limits. All his lifesaving trump cards had been used.
The Old god had lost its eye, but its sensing ability alone was enough to crush Taesan.
The chances of victory were slim.
But those who had witnessed the battle felt differently.
Taesan was fighting against an overwhelming enemy. He hadn’t backed down. He fought for them.
And in the end, he stabbed his sword into that crimson eye.
The scene was like something out of myth.
Emotion erupted among the people.
“Ah…”
Even Amelia couldn’t hold back her voice.
She had always thought Taesan was amazing, but she hadn’t worshipped him. She believed she could catch up one day. No matter how powerful he seemed, that belief remained.
But now, that belief shattered.
And in its place, new faith began to grow.
Faith surged like a wave. Even the disbelievers and the doubters emptied their hearts. They all sent forth a single emotion.
Every person on Earth sent their worship toward Taesan.
And that worship soon became a single power that descended upon him.
[Your proficiency in [Divine Power] has increased by 1%.]
[Your proficiency in [Divine Power] has reached 100%. Divine Power has evolved into [Divinity].]
[You have become the [God of Earth].]
—
In an instant, everything was restored.
His body surpassed its previous peak and reached a place it had never known.
Something changed in his senses. He couldn’t describe it, but he had gained something.
It was something of a higher dimension.
He turned his gaze. Wherever he looked, Earth was there.
He felt the wind as his breath, the trembling earth as his limbs.
The giant didn’t just watch silently.
It lifted its foot and kicked.
Now that all his defensive skills had been used, he had to dodge.
But he wasn’t afraid anymore.
He wrapped his body in faith-embodied [Divinity].
BOOOOOOM!
Taesan’s sword collided with the giant’s foot.
His body slid backward, but he took no damage.
He had successfully blocked the giant’s attack.
[This is…]
Akasha let out a groan.
Even she, who was directly synchronized with Taesan, couldn’t understand the level he had reached.
[Master… what realm have you reached?]
Taesan didn’t answer. Instead, he looked at the [Divinity] surrounding his body.
Brilliant, golden light.
Both its rank and quality were on a completely different level from before.
Looking at the giant, Taesan activated [Great Collapse]. The black sphere instantly became imbued with [Divinity].
The ashen sphere flew toward the giant.
The giant extended its hand to grab the [Great Collapse].
BOOOOM!
It exploded in its hand. The giant’s grip shook violently.
Red blood dripped from its opened hand.
[Seventh Fragment of the Black Giant @’%$#%]
“Ha.”
Taesan exhaled deeply.
An overwhelming sense of omnipotence filled his body.
He felt like he could truly do anything.
And he did not hold back his power.
[You have activated [Sanctuary Creation].]
Brilliant golden light engulfed the world.
It was so bright that those watching had to shield their eyes.
Taesan added black energy to it.
Though he had once used up all of it, such limitations no longer existed.
The sanctuary he created was instantly dyed black.
Zervand, who had been watching, revealed a glimmer of intrigue.
A massive domain of ashen color appeared in the world.
It was a domain only Taesan could create—no one else.
[You have obtained [Domain of Chaos].]