Chapter 568
Boom!
Unable to withstand the force, the World Destroyer’s body was shoved backward. The black root was embedded deep in its chest.
However, it had not reached the heart.
The heart lay far deeper inside, befitting that massive body. Simply driving a sword into it was not enough to deal damage.
Rumble…
Having regained its posture, the World Destroyer brought its hands together. As if crushing a tomato for its juice, it tried to crush Taesan.
Whoosh!
The Bottomless Abyss rose.
A massive curtain spread out around Taesan. The World Destroyer could not easily approach a Divine Power that devoured everything and let nothing escape.
Even if it barely pushed through and reached him, Attack Nullification would activate. Originally, Attack Nullification did not work properly against beings on the level of Old Gods or Transcenders. It could nullify attacks, but reflecting them was impossible.
But the current Taesan could reflect even an Old God’s attack, if only a little.
He had now reached that level.
With the time he had bought, he focused his mind on the sword.
The Bottomless Abyss, the Beast of Boundary, Boundary Negation, and the Physical Force amplified by his Skills.
He gathered and compressed all of it. He condensed it all into a single sword and brought it under perfect control.
Then he detonated it.
Boom!
That condensed force turned into a sharp spear and surged forward. The power erupting from the deeply embedded sword pierced deep into the World Destroyer’s interior.
And that advancing force reached the World Destroyer’s heart.
Thud!
The World Destroyer’s body shook.
Taesan pulled out his sword and widened the distance. Until now, the World Destroyer had barely reacted to Taesan’s attacks, but this time was different.
Rumble…
The World Destroyer’s body shook, as if it had taken an irreversible wound.
“Got it.”
The corner of Taesan’s mouth curled up.
He had inflicted a fatal wound. His power had pierced the World Destroyer’s heart.
And that was not the end of it.
“Corrupting, staining, breaking.”
Boom!
The World Destroyer’s body shook once more.
In the process of piercing the heart, he had planted the Beast of Boundary inside the World Destroyer. Like a parasite gnawing through its insides, the beast was rampaging through its body.
Immutable Self only covered the World Destroyer’s outer flesh.
Its interior was completely defenseless.
Since Immutable Self was never meant to be pierced in the first place, it was a weakness no one had ever discovered.
Its heart had been pierced, and something warped inside it was violently tearing through everything.
If it had been an ordinary being, it would have collapsed and died right then.
Boom!
But the World Destroyer did not fall.
Its overwhelming Divine Power and flesh allowed it to move even with a fatal wound.
As expected, Taesan was not surprised. From here on, it was a battle of time and endurance. He readied his sword.
And the battle continued.
The fist it swung tore through the universe and shook everything.
Taesan did not retreat. He blocked the fist, deflected it, and made the Physical Force it generated his own.
Then he hurled it back at the World Destroyer.
Boom!
The World Destroyer’s massive body shook.
A considerable amount of time passed. Taesan’s Divine Power slowly began to run low. He still did not possess enough Divine Power to fight an Old God in a prolonged battle.
But even that was an irrelevant problem.
[You activated Spiritual Rank Usurpation.]
Scrape!
He dodged the incoming fist and scraped across its hand. He usurped the Divine Power of Immutable Self contained within it.
If the World Destroyer had been in perfect condition, perhaps it would have been different. But now that it was wounded and unsteady, Taesan could usurp as much as he pleased.
He replenished his dwindling Divine Power and attacked again.
Astonishment filled the eyes of the Transcenders as they protected the universe with their Divine Power.
Taesan was truly facing the World Destroyer alone.
And more than that, he was steadily advancing toward victory.
[A monster… indeed.]
Someone muttered.
None of the other Transcenders denied it.
Boom!
The battle continued.
The World Destroyer’s movements gradually slowed. Its overwhelming Divine Power and flesh had allowed it to move despite a fatal wound, but even that had its limits.
It was time to end it.
Having made his decision, Taesan clenched his fist.
“Burst.”
As if it had been waiting, the Beast of Boundary opened itself.
A living Domain of Boundary filled the World Destroyer’s interior. The World Destroyer’s movements came to a complete halt.
Taesan seized that instant and drove his sword in once more. He cycled Multiplication, thrust the sword back into the wound, and concentrated his Divine Power into a spear to pierce through it.
Craaack!
And the heart was pierced once again.
Screeeech!
A scream rang out. That howl alone made the vacuum of space tremble and shake.
Boom.
The battle continued.
And then it came to an end.
The World Destroyer barely moved its arm. But it was incredibly slow, and there was no power left in it at all.
Taesan lightly flicked a finger.
Boom!
With that shockwave, the World Destroyer’s body was pushed back. That colossal body began to collapse.
If something that large fell, that alone would affect the universe.
As he drew out his Divine Power, Taesan spoke.
“I request assistance.”
[…Understood.]
The watching Transcenders moved.
They unleashed their Divine Power.
Taesan’s Divine Power and the Transcenders’ Divine Power joined together, forcibly holding up the World Destroyer’s collapsing body.
[You have truly won.]
Ehilliye muttered in a strange tone.
The World Destroyer’s interior was completely ruined, and it no longer had the strength to move its body. It was practically half a corpse.
Taesan had now defeated the World Destroyer.
[You… defeated an Old God. Just how…]
The God of Restraint spoke in a stunned voice.
His eyes held disbelief, admiration,
and fear.
A Transcender who ruled a complete concept was now afraid of Taesan.
[The method does not matter. What matters is that he is on our side.]
Ehilliye settled the mood. At his words, the agitated Transcenders forced down their emotions.
[Right. That’s correct.]
[Thank you, Taesan. You handled what we should have dealt with.]
“Those things are hostile toward me too anyway. It doesn’t matter.”
[Then now… the issue is what to do with this massive body.]
The Transcenders groaned.
They were holding it up with their Divine Power to keep it from falling, but they could not keep that up forever. The Immutable Self still covering the World Destroyer remained. There was no way to crush and dispose of that body.
They had won, but the aftermath still remained.
The Transcenders fell into thought.
And Taesan could not understand that concern.
“It doesn’t matter. I’ll take care of it.”
[You’ll take care of it… Ah.]
As he spoke, Ehilliye realized.
What Divine Power Taesan possessed.
Taesan placed his hand on the World Destroyer’s chest. The Beast of Boundary was still wreaking havoc inside it.
The World Destroyer was now half a corpse.
Its consciousness was gone. It had ruined itself from within. It was practically no different from dead.
If so, he could usurp it.
“Hand it over.”
Thud.
The World Destroyer’s body shook for a moment.
The Divine Power enveloping its flesh.
Immutable Self began changing into something that belonged to Taesan. He usurped all of it and devoured it.
[Ah.]
[Ugh.]
The watching Transcenders flinched for a moment.
The vast and immense Divine Power of an Old God
was being devoured into Taesan’s small body.
It was an extremely alien and distorted sight. The Transcenders felt a powerful sense of incongruity. It was like witnessing a single, colossal miracle.
Before long, Taesan had taken in the World Destroyer’s Divine Power.
“Hoo.”
Taesan exhaled. That immense Divine Power settled inside him.
[You activated Spiritual Rank Usurpation. You usurped Transcendence [Immutable Self].]
[Transcendence [Immutable Self] has been integrated into Transcendence [Boundary Negation].]
“It’s done.”
The Immutable Self that had enveloped the World Destroyer’s body had completely become Taesan’s.
“Now I can handle it without any problem.”
Now the World Destroyer was practically no different from an empty shell.
It was merely enormous, and once that was all it was, getting rid of it was not difficult.
[…Then do it.]
After a moment of silence, the Transcenders moved. Their Divine Power devoured the World Destroyer.
The World Destroyer’s body gradually crumbled into dust and disappeared.
Given its size, it took quite a long time, but eventually it vanished without leaving behind even a trace.
[…It’s gone.]
Ehilliye muttered.
An Old God that had killed countless Transcenders since the ancient war, ruined the universe, and even now had inflicted immense damage upon it.
A being that could never truly be killed, only barely suppressed and driven outside the universe.
The World Destroyer.
That being had now met a perfect death.
The Transcenders rested.
They wanted to immediately go deal with the other Old Gods, but their condition was too poor.
So they rested, and Taesan watched over them.
“I don’t know if this is necessary, but I’ll stand guard.”
[That is appreciated.]
Ehilliye quietly recovered his Divine Power.
He needed sufficient rest, since he had suffered more damage than the others.
As he slowly replenished his Divine Power, Ehilliye muttered as if something had just come to mind.
[You have defeated two Old Gods.]
Taesan silently nodded.
Ehilliye let out a bitter smile.
[Two Old Gods.]
The number of Old Gods was not large.
Compared to the Transcenders, they were clearly fewer.
But each one was powerful enough to face several Transcenders alone, immortal, and unchanged, with no depletion of power. That was why the war had remained evenly matched.
The Bottomless Abyss, which devoured and swallowed all things, capable of containing even the universe itself if given enough time.
The World Destroyer, with the largest body of all, tearing and shattering the universe itself.
Two Old Gods that had killed countless Transcenders and shaken the universe had now met permanent death.
[Thanks to you, we can definitely take the upper hand.]
The Demon God had been freed. The Gods of Sword, Restraint, Compression, and Control could now assist the other Transcenders.
With two Old Gods gone, even more room had opened up.
The Transcenders of the universe could now decisively pressure the Old Gods.
[And… you are here as well.]
Someone who could face an Old God alone and overcome it.
And someone who could grant them permanent death.
[The war will truly end.]
Whichever way it went.
After guarding them for a while, Taesan returned to the Labyrinth.
Because he too needed to check the Divine Power he had obtained.
And the next day,
the Old Gods disappeared from the universe without a trace.