Michael was originally inferior to Yu IlHan attribute-wise, even before he became a transcender, he already had enough power to go head-to-head against the leaders of other factions. However, he couldn’t do anything against Yu IlHan, so he had no other option but to retreat the moment he realized that. Moreover, he knew that Yu IlHan had let him go willingly, so how could he not feel insulted!
He gritted his teeth in vexation, and finally became a transcender with the indirect records he received while fighting against Yu IlHan. He substituted all the power he got from God into his own, and pioneered his own path into a higher realm, exiting angelhood, just like how Satan did in the past!
[But, how……!]
Shouted Michael while biting his lips. His spear and mana were all blocked before he could even fully extend them, almost as if it was blocked by a huge wall right in front of him. The cold sweat that formed on his forehead was quite unbecoming of his stature..
[How can I still not overcome you!]
“You think that you sublimed fire into light, but you know?”
Yu IlHan swung his spear of flames to counteract Michael’s movements. The spear of light that Michael wielded held out much better than before, but the spear of flames didn’t just stop at the clash and tried to spread out to attack Michael’s body. Yu IlHan’s fire as the lord of all dragons and flames, could easily damage the body of a transcender. Michael groaned.
“Light, in the end, is a part of fire. Of course, it’s a good thing that you tried to take just one aspect of it and raise it to the extreme. Your method of growing into a whole new, independent transcender was the second most suitable method after Satan’s. But that doesn’t amount to much in front of me.”
[Nonsense…… you minor being!]
Michael was enraged and created magical formations of light everywhere. He was so vile in the sense that a portion of them aimed for not only Yu IlHan, but the others next to him as well.
However, just before the five pairs of wings of light directed mana into the magic formations and before the magic formations could transform it into destructive power that could decimate an entire world, Yu IlHan covered them all with his own flames and activated Counter.
[The skill, Counter, has become level 73.]
[Critical Hit!]
[Khaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahk!]
“How does it feel to be struck by a minor being, Michael? And oh, do you know that ‘minor’ and ‘Michael’ starts with the same two letters?”
Thousands of strands of fire struck through Michael like sharp lasers. Michael’s body was riddled with holes that would bring death to anyone, but he drew on the endless mana in Heaven and recovered.
[I, shall……!]
Michael’s golden eyes were filled with murderous intent. However, unlike his expression, the words he uttered were relatively calm.
[Yes, I shall acknowledge you now……! You are my equal as well as Satan’s. You are Greed’s equal, and Gabriel’s equal.]
“Coming to your senses now are you? After everything that was said and done, you are a transcender after all. You shouldn’t show such an embarrassing side, right? Trying to attack my companions instead of me. Even petty villains don’t do that nowadays.”
Yu IlHan moved with a smile. Michael was forming chakrams in each hand while replying.
[Senses? I really did. That was a brutal wake up call.]
Giving up trying to face him with pure attribute powers or wide-range magic, he decided to compress his magic power eh? This was the wisest choice he could make right now. His uncontrollable rage and embarrassment were washed away with pain, and his reason that befitted his status as a transcender finally came back.
[Yes, you are amazing. You overwhelmed all the techniques that others had piled up in a mere millennium, and ascended to a great realm by greedily devouring all their records. I finally realized my own lack of power after looking at you. I could finally reach the realm of transcenders, the realm of God thanks to you.]
“If you praise me that much, I’ll get……embarrassed!”
Even while praising Yu IlHan, the two chakrams were being swung fast. However, Yu IlHan had long since mastered Physical combat mastery. He could read Michael’s movements without difficulty and block them before he could put his full power into the attacks.
[I shall acknowledge you as my master. As God once was in the past, you too deserve to receive my respect.]
“God ‘once’ was, eh…… So you want to steal my power this time?”
[Kuh!?]
Yu IlHan said his next line! Michael stiffened due to the sudden panic, but still burned his will to fight after seeing Yu IlHan smirking.
[You probably don’t know who made it possible to expropriate God’s power and chase him out. ……Do not only think that only Greed has the power to devour the strengths of others.]
“Yes, anybody has that kind of power. I know that!”
Overwhelming magic power, formed into light and fire respectively, clashed against each other and caused blinding sparks to shoot out at every point of contact. Michael, as the ruler of light, even used those as means of attack, but Yu IlHan blocked them without much difficulty. Such petty tricks wouldn’t even leave a dent on the Flamesoul Dragon Body.
[If you utilize your records as weapons, then so have I. I have become the sole ruler of Heaven. All beings worship me. Why don’t you try to snap my light with your oh-so-mighty fire? The moment it no longer gives way is the moment you will lose.]
“Well, let’s see about that? Really?”
Yu IlHan mocked him. His Manifestation was still maintained. Although this region was under Michael’s domain, it was simultaneously under Yu IlHan’s domain. The Fifth and the Brightest-shining Star – Yu IlHan was a star that shone brighter than anyone and from anywhere!
[More…… Not yet! Not yet!]
Michael charged against Yu IlHan with a mass of light. The chakrams that contained his dominating power spun rapidly as if to grind apart Yu IlHan at any moment, but Yu IlHan blocked all of Michael’s attacks without much effort thanks to God Force that strengthened his body beyond the limits within the domain of Manifestation. Not only that.
“I have an interesting artifact I made before, you know?”
[Uh…… kugh!?]
The spear made of flames suddenly rotated. It seemed to be equal in power with the chakram’s rotation, before eventually completely grinding apart the magic power that formed the chakrams!
Michael released light while gritting his teeth to block the attack, and activated Counter to deflect Yu IlHan’s spear while calling out another pair of chakrams. Yu IlHan blocked the counter with Aegis and let out a smile.
“Push yourself a little more. You are over level 700, you shouldn’t be losing out to a level 500 like me, no?”
[I…… I……!]
Spear vs chakram, leg vs leg – once again clashed. The five pairs of wings on Michael’s back shot out feathers in various angles as if they had their own will to attack Yu IlHan.
Yu IlHan deflected them without difficulty with Transcendent Trajectory and left wounds all over Michael’s body. Yu IlHan’s attack techniques as a new transcender was beyond any original transcenders.
[How…… how can this be!]
Michael gritted his teeth. Even after the chakrams multiplied into four, eight, sixteen, thirty-two, and even sixty-four, the one that was overwhelmed was still Michael.
[How could you have reached such a high realm of might in such a short time! How can you have become so strong! How can you stand for so long! How could you have been enlightened by mana and rule over it! How are the flames worshipping you! How could you comprehend the Akashic Record!]
“You know? I think I need to admit to something at this point.”
After a short bout, Yu IlHan kicked Michael and swung his spear. The moment he shouted, a streak of translucent flames appeared in the air, and the next moment, the abilities of all the spears he had made until now started being strengthened in the spear of flames.
“It looks like I’m a genius.”
“Ah, he’s my man but he’s so evil…… still so cool though.”
Even Liera, who was with him for one millennium admitted that. Yu IlHan lightly ignored her and unfolded his arms. His character was still the same as before, wasn’t it? There was no need to hesitate now! The trend nowadays was to act arrogant after all!
“Do you see this? The current me can even do this. [Be reborn into one.]”
[Wha, you…….]
The limitations on the number of options or the conflict in magic power did not exist with him anymore. Everything in Yu IlHan’s records gathered into one and sublimed into the spear. Within the domain of Manifestation, Yu IlHan possessed absolute influence, and had used the Declaration skill to cause Creation with his own mana!
[Creation is activating.]
[A new realm of Creation is pioneered through the combination of records.]
God? Eternal? They were merely existing ranks until now. Right now, the spear that was being created within Yu IlHan’s hands was beyond the realm of having a way of description through language.
[Executing the power of the god of smithing.]
[Executing the power of the god of fire.]
[Creating a miracle.]
Characteristics and form lost their meaning in front of the vast quantity of records, and it could not be called by any name, but to bestow a suitable name to it, it would only be known as the ‘Godspear’.
[Y, you…… that’s……!]
Yu IlHan threw his spear without hesitation or the slightest shred of mercy to Michael who was at a loss. Michael retreated as he knew that he wouldn’t be able to do anything to it, and the world of Heaven, which was his domain, rejected the spear, his mana, and his breath.
[Critical Hit!]
Yu IlHan’s spear didn’t reach Michael, but with just that single strike, he weakened the entire world. Every time the spear moved, the world itself was wounded and shrank back as a result. Accordingly, Yu IlHan’s magic power was being drained rapidly, but he would be able to kill Michael with leisure before it was completely drained.
[That is…… the new transcender.]
[The, brightest, shining, star, you say……?]
[God, my LORD!]
[Lord Michael has declared to be God. That God is absent…… Then do we need to serve him as the new God?]
[There is only one God that we serve. However, Lady Uriel has…….]
Michael wouldn’t have earned sufficient trust even had he overwhelmed Yu IlHan in battle, but with him being forced back repeatedly and mercilessly, seeds of hesitation and distrust began to sprout in the hearts of all the angels.
Their reactions were mostly split into three groups, and they were those that rejected reality saying that there’s no way God had abandoned them; those that followed Michael; and finally those that were shaken by Uriel’s heartfelt persuasion and Yu IlHan’s overwhelming power.
[Well, here’s one last advert.]
Yu IlHan didn’t follow Michael, but instead winked towards the surrounding angels.
[Don’t lose this last chance! You can enter Dragon’s Nest smoothly without any trouble. Don’t miss this opportunity! Magic stones of higher existences? Higher metals? Well, don’t be surprised. Right now, you can come and join us even if you’re empty handed!]
“Why do you keep saying it like it’s some home shopping advert!”
[I.]
At that time, a heavy voice covered the field.
[If I surrender myself to you…… Will you accept me?]
Yu IlHan chuckled. The voice was of someone he knew.
“Of course, Raciel. You gave us the perfect artifacts once before. Right now, you can even earn some bonus points!”
His identity was the Archangel Raciel that guarded the treasury of the Heaven’s Army.
Although it was only according to the contract, he gave Kang MiRae and Yu IlHan the artifacts they needed. Of course, the Heart of Fire was tampered with by Michael and Raphael, but he had no role to play in that fiasco.
Thanks to that, Yu IlHan could ascend to the realm above higher existences, so he could be considered an indirect contributor to Yu IlHan’s strengthening. There was no way Yu IlHan would reject him.
[Will you…… really accept me? No, would you please accept me?]
[Raciel, you dare!]
“Welcome! Here’s our first customer!”
Yu IlHan’s spear once again blocked Michael’s attacks, and the Cradle of Miracles appeared when Raciel joined the group successfully. Everyone fell back in fear after seeing that it was surrounded by a dominating mana, and the Cradle of Miracles greedily opened its mouth to swallow Raciel whole!
[H, he died.]
[An Archangel died so easily……?]
[No, he didn’t die. Lord Raciel right now.]
[‘Lord’ Raciel? No, he’s a traitor! A defector that abandoned Heaven to choose mere reptiles!]
Raciel’s change didn’t take that long. Yu IlHan already specialized in maintaining the power and records of other factions from the time he revived Helièna, so now that he became the Lord of Dragon’s Nest, that ability had been amplified even further.
The Cradle of Miracles cracked, and Raciel, who appeared from the inside, had become a complete dragon with three pairs of wings, and in fact, possessed a stronger power than before.
“I can tell the truth now that I’ve been liberated from the shackles of Heaven.”
Raciel glared at Michael with frightening eyes and shouted.
“He is false! He is a false God that only chased out God who was in the wrong and vied to take his place, and a coward that fulfilled his greed for power under the ‘greater good’ and delusion that it was all for Heaven! I now found the truth, and now discovered true freedom! Angels, open your eyes! Look at the eyes of the self-proclaimed God, the rotten wings that is hidden behind the light!”
The world froze. Yu IlHan added with a smile on his face.
[It’s today’s popular product. Telephone inquiries are flooding! Hurry up if you want your order fulfilled!]