Divine Power

'Gaon of Light Main Temple' consisted of a total of 99 floors, with a massive cradle-shaped structure installed at the very top.

That cradle was called the Saintess's Cradle, home to Saintess Jeong I-seo, whose divine power stat reached an astonishing 90,000, perfectly supporting Iron-Blood Pope Cheon Myeong-jin's [Iron-Blood Citadel] skill.

Since becoming the saintess at the age of 12, she had never set foot outside the 99th-floor cradle.

Now just 19 years old, her hair was as white as snow—likely due to her overwhelming divine power—and her skin was pale and translucent from years in a place shielded from outside light.

A retinue of high-level female holy knights always stood guard around her, rigorously blocking any outsiders or suspicious groups from approaching the saintess.

Lately, visitors had been coming to her every day: Iron-Blood Pope Cheon Myeong-jin, Knight Order Captain Kang Dae-jin, and First Knight Order Commander Jeong Hyeon-seop.

"Has another oracle come down today?"

"...Yes."

"And it's just the same warning to prepare for doom?"

"Yes, that's correct."

Cheon Myeong-jin stroked his thick beard, pausing for a moment before turning to Kang Dae-jin and Jeong Hyeon-seop.

"That's what it says. Even if I wanted to issue a hero summons decree to Captain Kang here, I don't have a convincing reason, do I?"

"That's true, but the Sword Church's movements are too suspicious to keep delaying the hero summons any longer."

"Agreed. According to the holy knight we infiltrated as a spy, they're already buzzing about the descent of the Black Sheep."

"We can't predict when the Demon King—called the Black Sheep—might appear in the mortal world. It's a precarious situation!"

"Ahem... true, but."

Frustrated by Cheon Myeong-jin's lukewarm response, Kang Dae-jin raised his voice a notch.

"Are you really planning to sit idly by until the era of doom filled with dark energy arrives? We need countermeasures—countermeasures!"

Cheon Myeong-jin's eyes narrowed as he rebuked Kang Dae-jin in a hardened tone.

"Lower your voice, Captain. This is the Saintess's Cradle."

"...Yes, my apologies. But."

"I've heard enough of Captain Kang's words. But if you want to become the hero so badly, why not just pull the holy sword?"

"That sword isn't meant to be pulled! It's an artifact used to awaken divine power by grasping the hilt."

"Yet when that sword appeared alongside the saintess seven years ago, didn't we receive the oracle that whoever draws it becomes the hero?"

"And the saintess who received that oracle has been repeating the same thing ever since! It's time for us to take action ourselves!"

"Taking action is fine, but why insist on designating yourself as the hero?"

"What? Am I doing this for my own gain? It's all to faithfully follow the oracle to prepare for doom..."

Rumble—

"?!?"

"!"

"An earthquake?!"

The entire temple building shook violently, plunging the people ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠at the top of the 99th floor into chaos.

This building was designed with rigorous earthquake and gate-proofing reinforcements—it never shook even in emergencies. Yet this vibration!

At that moment, a system message echoed throughout the temple.

"The Bell Tower's bell ringing? What does this mean?"

"Could someone have drawn the holy sword?"

"Don't talk nonsense! I told you, that sword isn't meant to be drawn."

"But the Bell Tower has never reacted like this before."

"No, surely not... No, it can't be."

As Cheon Myeong-jin listened to the exchange between the knight order captain and the first knight order commander, he suddenly turned his head. There, the saintess hovered in the air, radiating golden light as she gazed down at everyone.

"Ah, the Saintess...!"

"The Saintess has opened her eyes! Oh God."

The holy knights knelt in unison, drawing holy symbols, awestruck by Saintess Jeong I-seo—who had never once opened her eyes since awakening—now emitting dazzling radiance with her eyes wide open.

'Someone has drawn the holy sword Giantus.'

Gazing indifferently at the bickering men before her, the saintess felt her body tremble with deep-seated anticipation welling in her chest.

'The day he completes the quest, I can finally leave this suffocating place!'

Feeling the divine power packed tightly within her rapidly depleting, the saintess silently cheered on the unknown challenger from the depths of her heart.

Bwoooo—

Bwooooooo—

Accompanied by massive horn blasts, dazzling white holy knights gathered in droves.

'Looks like a good ten thousand knights.'

If the holy knights all die or the divine power runs out, the quest fails—or maybe both. Either way, I had to push through while preserving as much as possible to clear it smoothly.

'But... can I even receive divine power?'

Having lived a life steeped in dark energy, even if my contamination was now near zero, divine power felt like a fatal error I couldn't dare imagine.

Since I'd steeled myself the moment I gripped the holy sword's hilt, I didn't hesitate long before selecting 'Y'.

Before I could wonder who the Bell Tower's master was, the battle began.

Waaaaah!

Rawr!

The ten thousand knights arrayed on the steep hill roared in unison, and monsters spawned from all directions in response.

'Ten thousand holy knights against a hundred thousand foes...'

The monster horde filling the distant horizon numbered at least 100,000. With so many enemies swarming, even the valiant holy knights were struggling.

I was no different.

The divine power—something I'd never felt before—surged in at 10,000 units, clashing head-on with the darkness inside me, unleashing excruciating pain. It felt like flesh tearing from bone, skin peeling away, something vital ripping out.

"Grrgh... Aaaargh!!!"

Cold sweat poured down as unbearable agony left me unable to stand. I curled into a ball on the ground, reduced to groaning.

At this rate, the holy knights would deplete before I could even absorb the divine power, dooming the quest. The tenfold enemy horde was devouring the struggling knights like moles burrowing in the dark.

'Do I really ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠need to absorb this divine power? It's useless anyway.'

I used the infiltrating divine power to resurrect holy knights as it came in. The pain halved, and the rate of knight depletion slowed somewhat.

Once the pain became tolerable, I switched to conserving the rapidly dwindling divine power by tapping into my dark energy.

My infinite dark energy was far more abundant and familiar than the pittance of divine power from this stingy quest giver.

'And... nothing said I couldn't use it, so it should be fine.'

"Death Terraforming."

I granted instant death to myself, extended my hand toward the monsters, and activated the skill.

Whoosh—

With one hand channeling ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠divine power to protect the holy knights, I unleashed Death Terraforming across its maximum 10km radius.

Rawr!

Kieek!

Gyaaaah!!

The massive black mana spreading from me bypassed the battling holy knights, engulfing and devouring the monsters.

Excited to unleash dark energy after so long, perhaps? The contamination message popped up relentlessly, as if scolding my excessive use.

'Whoa! That's a big jump. Tch.'

My displeased grimace turned to shock in the next instant.

…

…

Thanks to my 999 Luck dropping the contamination from Death Terraforming, I'd been using it sparingly once every ten minutes, thrilled even then.

But this divine power didn't just infiltrate and torment me—it instantly purified the contamination from dark energy use. A truly miraculous force.

I'd come to 'Gaon of Light' on my brother's suggestion, reluctant all the way. Now, completing this quest to claim divine power felt absolutely essential.

Looking around the now-quiet battlefield, only bewildered holy knights remained after Death Terraforming wiped the monsters in one go.

Though we'd felled 100,000 monsters, even stronger ones would respawn soon.

'Before that, I'll fully integrate this divine power and seal it inside me.'

I gritted my teeth and pulled the seeping divine power harder.

……

……

"Grraaagh!!!"

Blood trickled from my clenched teeth. Yes, the pain was immense. But during 998 regressions, I'd endured far worse and overcome it.

Compared to the soul-shattering ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠agony of my flesh being torn apart, this was almost ecstatic pleasure.

I'd lost my loved ones 998 times over.

The helpless torment of my soul, ripped apart time and again, loomed largest within me. If enduring this could end those nightmares, I'd gladly bear it.

As I filled my mind with random thoughts to fend off the near-fainting pain, the system message finally appeared.