Chapter 367: About the Sins (5)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 367: About the Sins (5)
It began when The Burdened One swung his greatsword in a wide arc.
From left to right.
A very simple motion.
And yet—
Kwahhhhhhh—!!!
Just once.
A strike so terrifyingly powerful that it seemed impossible to have originated from such a simple movement.
A thin line appeared in the air as if the world itself were being traced, and the following shockwave reduced everything in its path to nothingness.
However—
Crackle!
Yutia’s barrier, though strained to its limit, managed to withstand the blow.
She had bought him time.
"Hardening."
The moment the word escaped Alon’s lips as he channeled the Art of Defying Heaven, the Sins began to move in unison.
"Decision."
At that same moment, he saw it.
The Burdened One was descending from the air, retrieving the greatsword he had just swung. Even as the situation turned frantic, he moved with an eerie composure, and Alon focused his entire being on him.
He knew instinctively.
The moment those feet, currently hovering in the air, touched the ground, he would never be able to catch him.
Therefore—
"Flower of Spiritual Change—"
Alon uttered the final phrase before the enemy could land.
And the moment The Burdened One’s feet were about to touch the earth—
Crack!
A hemispherical barrier manifested around The Burdened One.
Sensing the trap, The Burdened One swung his sword once more.
But.
Kagagagak!
His attack could not pierce the hemispherical dome.
"Whew."
Alon let out a long breath as he looked at the magic he had deployed.
The spell he had just cast was his own interpretation of the 2nd Tier magic 'Shield' that he had recently received from Heinkel.
Its effect was to completely isolate the interior of the hemisphere from the exterior.
As long as one was inside the Shield, no magic could escape to the outside.
And as long as one was outside, no method could influence the entity within.
In other words, from the moment he was trapped within that magic, The Burdened One could no longer exert any influence on the world outside.
The only problem was—
‘I can’t maintain this for long.’
—The fact that the spell itself could not be sustained for an extended period.
Alon frowned, breaking into a cold sweat.
Looking up at the sky, the number of stars that had been continuously forming was slowly beginning to dwindle.
Even with Alon’s mana, which usually overflowed regardless of what magic he used, gaps were appearing in every fleeting second.
Even though his mana was clearly regenerating infinitely, it would vanish and refill repeatedly every time The Burdened One rampaged, as if it were a lie.
The resulting calculation errors were taking a physical toll on Alon.
This meant he couldn't keep the spell active for long, nor could he cast any new magic.
No matter how well he had trapped The Burdened One to make him a target, it was meaningless if he couldn't actually fire a spell at him.
Nevertheless, there was only one reason Alon had trapped him without hesitation.
"Silli."
[Yes! I’ve been preparing since you gave the signal—!]
Because there was someone else to take over the attack.
Using Silli’s energetic response as a signal, deep blue currents of electricity began to spark in every direction within the dark abyss.
[Preparations are complete—!]
Behind Silli, who stood in the distance, a massive pillar resembling a lightning rod revealed itself, as if deep blue lightning had been waiting for this very moment.
It was an artifact Silli had constructed back when she built the temple near Calliban.
Pazzzzzzzzt—!!!
At this moment, it was a divine weapon fueled by the faith of those in the Divine Land.
Divine Punishment.
It expanded, devouring the abyss where the Milky Way had been formed.
Peeeeeeee—!!!
The moment the energy converged on the needle of the lightning rod with an eerie sound, Alon shouted.
"Now—!"
Instead of answering, Silli activated the Divine Punishment.
■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■—!!!
A pure white light devoured the Milky Way of the abyss.
. . .
. . .
The tinnitus eating away at his hearing faded.
As the light that had consumed everything subsided, Alon thought to himself.
‘The timing was perfect.’
He wasn't wrong. The timing had been flawless.
Catching the composed Burdened One off guard and trapping him.
And then striking him with the Divine Punishment, which had been prepared as the ultimate contingency.
Everything had been perfect.
If only The Burdened One hadn't blocked it.
"…Ha."
Alon let out a hollow laugh as he looked at The Burdened One.
Ridiculously enough, the strike that had gathered all the external divine power failed to inflict significant damage on him.
Instead, the ones who had absorbed the blow were—
Thud, thud!
The created Sins.
The moment the Divine Punishment fell, they had shielded The Burdened One with their own bodies without a moment's hesitation.
"…."
The Sins that had blocked the attack were in a wretched state.
If the things before his eyes were truly the original Sins, they would have been annihilated by that attack.
But—
Crack.
Cr-crack!
Regrettably, these created Sins began to nonchalantly regenerate damage that bordered on total annihilation.
As if nothing had happened in the first place.
And then.
As if it were the most natural thing in the world, the battle resumed.
* * *
The battle continued.
To put it another way, a futile war of attrition was underway.
The Sins and those facing them simply traded blows endlessly.
Alon and Yutia struck The Burdened One several times.
They had managed it five times already.
But unfortunately, during those five attacks, they had never managed to land a meaningful blow on The Burdened One.
In fact, Alon was beginning to doubt if it was even possible to inflict significant damage on him.
Crunch!
"Teacher!"
"…!"
Alon, having blocked another of The Burdened One’s strikes aimed at his heart, clutched his dizzy head.
He desperately racked his brain to assess the situation.
The status?
To put it mildly, it wasn't good.
To put it bluntly, it was desperate.
Deus and the others were successfully holding back the Sins.
Yutia was also barely managing to block The Burdened One’s attacks.
Thus, the situation still seemed to be at a stalemate.
Or rather, it appeared to be at a stalemate.
"…."
Alon quickly scanned his surroundings.
The faces of those fighting the Sins were all etched with exhaustion.
In contrast, the Sins showed no signs of fatigue or trouble.
In other words, as time passed, the situation would only grow more desperate.
Unlike those things, which seemed to possess no concept of stamina, his side was tiring rapidly.
‘The moment even one person on this battlefield runs out of strength, what’s guaranteed is—’
Defeat—no, total annihilation.
"Huu—"
Alon panted heavily, his mind racing.
Alon himself was far from normal.
His head felt like it was burning from using the Art of Defying Heaven more than five times already, and he had long since exceeded the limit for his awakening using Blackie.
Despite this, he prepared for another attack, but his mind failed to come up with an ideal solution.
Through five attempts, Alon had already tried every method at his disposal.
But no matter how he attacked, his strikes were ultimately blocked by the Sins.
They would throw themselves in front of The Burdened One whenever significant damage was expected, no matter the circumstances.
This meant he had to kill the Sins to damage The Burdened One, but the Sins he had created simply would not die.
It was a situation without an answer.
But even if there was no answer, he couldn't stop thinking.
Alon didn't want to die.
…Alon didn't want to lose anyone.
And so.
The moment he pushed his body to the limit and thought again and again.
"!"
Alon found the answer.
No, he didn't know if it was the right answer.
But one thing was certain.
"Yutia—"
"Yes, Teacher."
He couldn't think of any other way.
"Can you hold that guy back as much as possible?"
"I understand."
Leaving Yutia behind as she signaled her agreement, Alon kicked off the ground and—
"Array of Thunder."
He activated the Thunder God Form.
Zap!
Transforming into a bolt of deep blue lightning, Alon soared into the sky and looked down at the ground for a fleeting moment.
The first thing he saw were the troops trapped in the black abyss, unable to escape, centered around the thorn-like terrain.
Every single one of them bore a fear that had spread like a plague, sensing their end.
Looking down at them, Alon spoke.
"Manifestation."
Alon drew upon Kalanon's Divinity.
Pazzzzzzzzt—!!!
With a bone-chilling sound, lightning erupted in all directions, covering the world of the abyss.
At the same time, he reached his hand toward the sky.
And then—
Pazzzzzzzzzzt—!
Deep blue lightning connected the earth and the sky, converging into his left hand.
The Burdened One turned his gaze toward the sky and tried to move, but his path was blocked—
Vroom—!
—by dozens of layers of walls created by Yutia.
However.
Crackle!
Regrettably, the dozens of defensive walls she created crumbled with futile speed every time he swung his greatsword.
The Burdened One destroyed the barriers even faster than they could be formed.
As soon as he shattered the final defensive wall, he prepared to leap, but—
"Not so fast—!"
An entity blocked his attempt to jump toward the sky.
It was Ryanga, wearing a fierce smile.
Kbooooom—!!
Floating in the air, Ryanga delivered a powerful kick to The Burdened One’s shoulder.
The impact shattered the ground beneath them.
"Macallian First Style—"
The moment the shattered ground was bound by purple threads and wrapped around The Burdened One, black hands emerged from the massive sphere, stacking layer upon layer as if to seal it.
The Sins rushed in to help The Burdened One, who had been naturally removed from the immediate battlefield to prevent his leap.
However.
"Swaying Spear—"
"Second Form—"
A golden sword strike and an invisible sword strike blocked the Sins, who charged forward even at the cost of their own bodies being annihilated.
Grind—!
And then, the golden tube, moving in dozens of overlapping layers, surged forward.
The moment that suffocating coordination ended—
Boom—!
As if such coordination were useless, The Burdened One instantly shattered all restraints and leaped into the sky—
"!"
—appearing beneath Alon in an instant.
He was incredibly fast.
"No—!"
"Mentor—!!"
Ryanga and Seolrang cried out toward the sky, their eyes wide with shock.
The soldiers, who had been filled with a plague-like fear and a sense of impending doom, but had briefly held onto hope at the sight of the blue lightning, now wore expressions of lamentation and resignation.
At the same time, as if delivering the final blow, The Burdened One thrust his greatsword toward Alon’s heart—
"Block him—!"
"Brother—!!"
Mocking the screams from below, the greatsword—
Thud!
—failed to pierce him.
It was stopped by a small Flower of Spiritual Change formed near Alon’s heart.
In that brief moment.
Alon’s indifferent gaze and The Burdened One’s void met.
And then.
The lightning fell.
─────────────────—!!!!
Deep blue currents erupted in all directions, striking down upon The Burdened One.
A blue sun rose within the dark Milky Way of the abyss.
Everyone’s eyes turned toward Alon, who was striking down with the lightning, and The Burdened One, who was being impaled by the spear.
Resignation turned into doubt.
Zap!
Doubt turned into faith.
Pazzzzt!
Faith turned into praise.
────────—!!!
Praise turned into hope.
However.
Alon, the one who had thrust the spear, felt it instinctively.
‘This isn't enough.’
Alon looked down at The Burdened One.
Despite being hit by the attack, his greatsword was somehow moving, passing through the spot where the Flower of Spiritual Change had vanished and reaching toward Alon's heart.
Even if the greatsword didn't reach him at this moment, this attack alone could not finish The Burdened One.
He had to do something.
He needed a single move that could finish him right now.
In that split second, countless thoughts raced through Alon’s mind.
But at this point, there was nothing more Alon could do.
He had already poured all his divine power into this single strike and could no longer use it.
If he used the Art of Defying Heaven again, he could certainly finish The Burdened One, but his physical condition was so dire that doing so would lead to certain death.
As he thought desperately, a memory surfaced.
‘Do you know the most important virtue when becoming a god?’
‘Suddenly?’
‘Shall I tell you?’
‘What is it?’
‘It’s the Engraving.’
‘…Engraving?’
‘It’s about how you are perceived by others.’
At the sound of Elivan’s voice, which flashed through his mind like a final vision, Alon suddenly gained an epiphany.
It was as if Elivan had prepared those words knowing this situation would come.
A method that only Alon could perform.
He didn't harbor any doubts.
And his execution was swift.
"Defying… Heaven—"
Alon’s head burned once more.
Bloody tears flowed from his eyes, nose, and mouth. His train of thought began to break intermittently, and his vision flickered between darkness and light.
Alon realized.
The moment he took just one more step forward, he would have no choice but to cross a river from which he could never return.
But even knowing this—
Grit!
Alon moved forward.
Alon’s starlight began to fill the dark Milky Way.
Mana, erupting from calculation errors, surged from Alon’s body.
In that fleeting moment, Penia’s words flowed past like a revolving lantern.
‘Hmm—if we go this far, the technique we first wanted to implement will be perfectly realized… but I’ll tell you again, you must not use it.’
‘…Because the mana consumption is too high?’
‘Yes. I don't think even the Art of Defying Heaven can keep up with the mana required. Marquis, if you don't control your mana above a certain level, you’ll die the moment you use it.’
‘That much?’
‘Right? Because this magic is a formula that weaves together interpreted spells to manifest them all at once.’
A black, mist-like substance began to flow from the gauntlets Alon was wearing.
‘…But why did you choose this as the activation word?’
The stars that had been maintained until a moment ago began to transform all at once.
‘Well, because it was on the first page?’
‘For that reason?’
‘Yes. It’s cool. So let’s make this the activation word—’
As Alon’s right hand formed a seal.
"—Let there be light."
In the abyss-like Milky Way.
Suns were born.
Hundreds of suns.
And then.
Awe blossomed.