Chapter 398

Chapter 398

Chapter 71: The Final Battle (3)

‘I suppose he knows that continuing this war of attrition would only waste his own corrupted divinity.’

Hence, he kept on releasing higher levels of power and divinity.

Though it wasn’t overwhelming, the corrupted divinity, now running wild like a horse with a lost bridle, wasn’t targeting me.

“What a crazy bastard?!”

Judging by how urgent Gilenios sounded, it seemed like Ombin targeted…

‘Did he attack a twisted rift?’

I didn’t have the authority to tear through space.

So, I had no power to stop what had already begun.

That task fell to Gilenios, not me.

However, since Ombin had the authority of Cacline, there was surely a way.

“Space is collapsing! We have to get out now, or we’ll all be entombed!”

Predictably, Gilenios dashed out with a deathly pale face, urging me on.

“Tsk, retreat.”

Without much thought, I chose to take a step back.

Had the annihilation of this place ensured Ombin’s end, I might have chosen to endure.

I would gladly have faced being buried alive if it meant killing that guy.

But that wasn’t the case.

Even if this isolated section vanished, ombin would survive.

‘In a bind, both he and I can escape beyond causality.’

While we’re detached from Earth, we’re still within causality. Thus, escaping externally is possible.

Although, after entering the causality once, it’s unlikely he’d leave without a fight.

He could leave whenever he wanted if he truly desired.

Ultimately, bearing the collapse only meant the apostles would Die.

Despite deciding to retreat, I harbored no regrets or worries.

Giving up the battlefield I prepared doesn’t equate to defeat.

Whatever Gilenios did, a powerful gust followed.

Click.

The misaligned rift reconnected.

“Prevent him from fleeing by opening another rift.”

I quickly ordered upon returning to the primary dimension.

Now that I abandoned the space restraining Ombin, I couldn’t ignore his potential movement.

“I’m already on it! Just, hurry and get something done!”

When I received Gilenios’s anxious response,

I was already rushing towards Ombin, who was leaping towards the mid-air.

Ombin’s black corrupted divinity and my golden divinity clashed.

The causality of Earth blocked the interference of divinity, and if it indeed intervened, there was a valid reason for paying the price.

A clash of divinity against divinity.

Even though neither side exerted full power, an entire district of Seoul vanished.

I leisurely floated in mid-air, peering down at the gigantic crater formed at the heart of Seoul.

The scale of destruction was so overwhelming that estimating the lost wealth was impossible.

Under normal natural rules, it should be impossible for a single entity to achieve such massive destructive power.

If everyone could unleash destruction of this magnitude, dimensions would never survive.

Realizing this surreal battle, I propelled myself downward with mana.

The thrilling sensation of falling headfirst was no threat to me anymore.

Boom.

As soon as I collided with Ombin, the shockwaves shook the ground, scattering all the debris that covered it.

It was as if shells were fired from a cannon.

The reeling shock from the collision turned the ruins into even greater ruins.

– Grr!

At the end of the subsequent shock, I looked at myself, reflected in Ombin’s red eyes filled with murderous intent, greed, and fury.

I’m sure he saw himself reflected in my eyes too.

Enough to know how distorted his expression was.

So I deliberately lifted the corners of my mouth in a grin.

Seemingly taking the bait, ombin’s force became more aggressive.

Crack!

The grating sound surfaced as his claws collided with the spear shaft.

Ombin and I pushed each other apart, creating a distance.

Though taxing, none of the collisions, holding ground, or the pushing seemed precarious.

Which meant our physical strength was evenly matched.

‘I did well to undergo the 5th awakening.’

It was worth risking my life for the challenge.

Buzz, buzz.

While spinning the spear left and right, keeping an eye on Ombin, I couldn’t help but chuckle.

The spreading flow of divinity resembled the waves seen when his puppets used the power of monstrosity.

“This is a bit degrading.”

I glanced at the pathogen message before instinctively carrying out purification.

“Don’t you already know that it won’t work on me?”

His greatest strength and the most dangerous authority, monstrosity, held no weight against me.

And it wasn’t just the monstrosity authority that was nullified.

Gilenios would handle Cacline’s spatial authority.

Even using the shadow of Senua posed no significant threat to me.

I could now detect any stealthy approach.

In the end, the only authorities Ombin could wield against me were mimicry and puppet creation.

‘More puppets would be annoying and bothersome…’

Barely having finished the thought, ombin tore at his own chest.

Swaaaash!

The scattered chunks of flesh swelled up like balloons.

And then, another slash!

In seconds, the multiplied puppets rushed at me.

But instead of dodging, I extended my left hand slightly to the side.

An instant later, I felt a touch of warmth on my palm.

It was Rice Cake’s snout and jaws that emerged through the rift Gilenios had opened.

There was no need for convoluted verbal communication with this guy.

Thanks to that, I could easily borrow Rice Cake’s eyes.

Having lost its natural traits, the wild and messed-up movement of power and the threads connecting Ombin was visible to me.

Sending puppets to fight individually meant falling for Ombin’s intentions.

‘I need to teach him that those wonderful puppets are no longer a threat to me.’

I focused on the scene unfolding through Rice Cake’s eyes.

All those puppets were linked to Ombin.

Though I had no idea about the principle, what mattered was the divinity devoured by the puppets transferred to Ombin.

‘If so, couldn’t I attack the main body through those puppets?’

After all, a puppet was a manifestation created from authority.

It was a good opportunity to test the thought that had lingered in my mind after discovering the remnants of what the puppets devoured.

Zap!

Dozens of rampaging threads of divinity struck the multitude of puppets.

And then, it went beyond.

I thought there was a possibility of failure, but the divine threads continued moving smoothly.

With the path well-marked, there was no need to hesitate.

The advancing movement through the cleared way was almost exhilarating.

Dozens of puppets became a means to choke Ombin himself.

– Gyaaa!

The reaction was immediate.

Before, all I could do was guess that Ombin had taken a hit by ordinary sight.

Through Rice Cake’s eyes, the difference was clear.

The weighty clump of power crumbled weakly.

“His status is being destroyed…!”

I couldn’t hide the joy as I murmured.

It was more fitting to say it approached annihilation rather than mere destruction.

I couldn’t help but smile brightly even amidst battle.

The moment when I gained perfect confidence that I could kill him this round.

In response to my intentions, the divinity surged more fiercely and sharply.

Ultimately, ombin resorted to severing and discarding his own puppets.

With the obstacle gone, I immediately leaped and thrust my spear.

However, ombin gracefully twisted, closing the distance while gliding along the spear shaft.

Was it to make up for the previous disadvantage?

His red eyes gleamed with tenacity and exhilaration.

‘Does he intend to mimic my authority?’

Even in this situation, unable to forsake greed seemed a bit amusing.

I stared him down as he lunged into my embrace.

Crack, snap.

Finally, ombin’s grimacing face twisted nastily as he grabbed my neck.

Conversely, a vibrant smile bloomed on my face as I gazed at him.

Did he think I kept charging at him with no preparation?

I couldn’t keep fleeing and insisting on long-range combat against him indefinitely.

I devised a way to block it, and as you see, it was successful.

I used crystallized divinity as a shield against him.

Initially, implementing it in real combat was impossible.

I had such poor skills that I ended up hurting myself.

‘Only after becoming more adept at handling divinity did I see results.’

Consistent practice turned the impossible into the possible.

I was able to protect my authority with my own strength.

Now, I no longer needed to fear close combat with Ombin.

I parried Ombin’s arm away and swung my spear, simultaneously unleashing divine threads.

The crystallized divinity pierced through Ombin’s skin, causing his condensed divinity to explode from within.

– Whoa!

Even without Rice Cake’s eyes, I knew.

That his status was crumbling.

Both monster transformation and spatial authority were blocked, as was the bothersome replication authority.

Now, ombin’s choice was evident.

– Victory belongs to me!

He unshackled another seal on himself.

– Survival is my destiny!

He seemed unconcerned with the additional cost paid to causality.

He must have concluded that I was indomitable.

Fighting within the material world was overwhelmingly advantageous to me.

I fully exploited this advantage and began to gather divine threads.

“We’ll see about that.”

Boom!

Was it due to the unnatural clash of powers?

The sky exhibited a bizarre spectacle.

Sunlight filtered through clear patches, illuminating the ruined cityscape.

Dark clouds converged ominously as if ready to burst at any moment, roaring thunderously.

Within that upheaval, the clash between Ombin and I continued.

And each time, it was Ombin who crumbled, not me.

I thought I briefly heard Gilenios’s desperate nagging.

But it barely registered before fading away.

Boom, boom!

As I advanced toward the city, devastated civilization markers lay strewn innumerably.

But I was utterly focused on attacking Ombin, disregarding whether the city was collapsing.

Including the seal broken a moment ago, it happened five times.

Ombin was expending an enormous amount of authority.

The repeated collisions, successive destruction of his status.

The conditions were enough for Ombin to realize he was cornered.

If he continued playing by my rules, he risked being pathetically annihilated.

– Graaah!

Realizing that, ombin’s momentum intensified with a fierce roar.

Squish!

Soon, my lunging spear pierced Ombin’s abdomen.

This time, he didn’t let the attack pass but accepted it.

As if he meant to lose some flesh but carve into my bone.

Just as expected, through the spear that burrowed into Ombin’s flesh, black liquid flowed out.

It spread wide like a web, swallowing me.

Even if it meant abandoning the spear, I tried to escape.

But this time, ombin was a step ahead.

I ended up trapped in the black abyss.

Damned System.

—

New Elements and Characters:

– 길레니오스, Gilenios (he)

– 옴빈, ombin (he)

– 카클라인, cacline (na)

– 세노아, senua (na)

– 백설기, Rice Cake (it)