Ascension Through Skills

Mantra was flustered, like a mortal. As if he were a being with a finite lifespan, living a once-in-a-lifetime existence.

The appearance of Lakiratas here meant it was a significant event.

[You shouldn't be able to descend to this place!] [Did you really believe that?]

Lakiratas mocked Mantra.

[Did you think we couldn't crush you, that we were only watching because we lacked power?]

Lakiratas’ presence overturned the world. The entire expanse of the battlefield became his domain.

[It's not entirely wrong. It has been that way until now. Until now.] [...Divine Expulsion!]

Mantra gritted his teeth.

Taesan had expelled gods from this place. As a result, the number of gods had now been reduced from ten to just two.

Originally, there wouldn’t have been a problem since gods kept coming in, but Taesan resolved it quickly in just two days, creating a gap.

The power of the gods from outside of the Labyrinth had weakened enough for them to intervene.

[But!]

Mantra’s body shone. Simultaneously, his presence extended in all directions.

[This is our domain. Even you, responsible for strife and death, won't win easily!] [Let's stop this uninteresting act.]

Lakiratas laughed. Like an adult placating a child’s tantrum, Mantra’s energy scattered.

[It's obvious what the outcome of a fight among us would be. It's not interesting.] [……]

Lakiratas seemed uninterested in fighting. Mantra’s vigor also gradually diminished.

[What do you propose?] [There is your saint here.]

Like the gods Taesan had dealt with, Mantra must have brought his saint to this place.

[Mortals should deal with mortals' matters. Don't you think it's fitting?] [Are you suggesting a duel between your apostle and my saint?] [He's not my apostle.] [What?]

Mantra’s eyes shook.

[For someone who's not even an apostle, you've come here 'because'?] [Do I look like a god who cares about such things?]

Lakiratas laughed. Mantra remained silent in apparent agreement.

Lakiratas was a remarkably free-spirited god compared to his rank. Even the gods from outside knew that well.

Lakiratas turned his gaze to Taesan.

[Of course, we should also consider your opinion.]

“It doesn’t matter to me.”

Taesan nodded immediately.

To come this far and end it with a fight between gods. There was nothing more anticlimactic.

There was still much to gain. He had no intention of ending it before obtaining it all.

[He agrees.] [...Fine.]

Mantra’s eyes shone ominously.

[I'll make you regret this. I'll use your toy as my plaything.] [He's not a toy, but... think whatever you want.]

Mantra had disappeared at some point. Lakiratas laughed lightly.

[He's quite impatient.]

“He’s more emotional than I thought.”

Taesan murmured. Mantra had easily shown emotions like anger and confusion.

Thinking about it, the gods of the Labyrinth weren’t different. They expressed their emotions directly.

[We were once mortals. We ascended to a great position and became transcendent beings. To us, emotions are very precious. They are special things that alleviate the tedium of eternity.]

Lakiratas spoke calmly.

Thinking about it, that made sense.

The current gods were all once mortals who rose to the rank of immortals, hidden only by their immense power.

The only exceptions were the ancient gods.

[I look forward to it. The time when you, too, will ascend to this position.]

With those words, Lakiratas vanished.

As the encompassing power dissipated, Taesan let out a small breath.

“I’m still far off.”

He never uttered the word impossible. His goal was right there, so there was no need.

The gods were once mortals like Taesan, so he, too, could reach that level one day.

Taesan clenched his fist.

The next day, Taesan headed towards another god.

This time, it was a spirit god born from the Source of Spring. Thus, spirits, not humans, warmly welcomed Taesan.

[Die!] [Enemy of the spirits! Become ash!]

All kinds of nature fiercely attacked Taesan. It was a clear and different kind of enemy than before. Defending against all of them, Taesan murmured.

“I wonder how they’ll react.”

There must be a spirit god in the Labyrinth as well.

It was uncertain whether they would like or dislike Taesan, who had annihilated the spirits.

But he couldn’t just leave them alone. Taesan waved his hand.

[You have activated the Small Ember.] [You have activated the Deer Walking on the Wind Path.]

Wind and flame rose simultaneously. A storm of flames engulfed the spirits.

Despite their desperate resistance, the Small Ember was a fragment of the Spirit King. Ordinary spirits couldn’t withstand it.

In a few minutes, all spirits disappeared.

[You have destroyed the statue of the Spirit God born from the Source of Spring. The Spirit God born from the Source of Spring has been driven out of the battlefield of the gods.] [The Primordial Spirit God remains silent at your actions.]

“It’s scary.”

Neither joy nor anger, just silence.

It was unclear how they would react when they met later. They might not kill Taesan, but their reaction was unpredictable.

Now, it was the last one.

Next to a giant pillar, there was a small building.

Unlike before, there wasn’t much sign of life. Only one person was waiting for Taesan.

As he opened the door and entered, a man in light armor greeted him.

“You’ve come. The representative of the Labyrinth.”

A middle-aged man with a hearty face and a golden double-handed sword slung over his shoulder welcomed Taesan.

‘He’s strong.’

Even his aura alone far surpassed the second-tier Guides of Sin.

It was as expected.

The limit of the battlefield was level 75.

Considering the level of those he had met so far, someone with an ordinary level in the 70s would have been a challenge, but victory was still achievable.

So, it was likely that someone would possess power above level 70.

The man in front of him seemed to be that being.

“I am the splendidly adorned Sword Saint. The saint of Lord Mantra. Cain.”

The man pointed his sword at Taesan.

“I would like to say a fair fight… but you are too strong.”

Cain let out a wry smile. He was at a level where deciding the odds against an adventurer in the 70s would be difficult.

But that also meant he was just at that level. Definitely not enough to stop Taesan.

“Sorry, but I need to borrow the power bestowed upon me by the god.”

“Go ahead. Just once.”

Mantra wouldn’t just watch silently. He must have done something, something to help Cain defeat Taesan.

Cain raised his sword to the sky.

“O God! Your servant prays to you!”

Power descended from the rift in the sky.

It was a matter of rank. A rank unreachable for mortals descended upon Cain.

Taesan grimaced.

Cain shouted with wide-open eyes.

“Please bestow upon me the power to serve you!”

A golden aura enveloped Cain’s entire body.

Cain took a deep breath.

“Is this… the power of a god?”

He looked at his hand in awe. A power of a completely different dimension had taken hold of his body.

“Good. This should make for a decent fight.”

Cain smiled, lifting his sword. Taesan looked at him ambiguously.

Cain had received a power that Taesan could recognize. Because he had experienced something similar.

The ghost spoke.

[It's an apostle. That one.] [No loss of power, no degradation of the user's rank... A real apostle. Is this your first time seeing a proper one?]

“Probably.”

The Apostle of the God of Proof. Pavsha’s Apostle. Malesten. He was the first apostle Taesan had seen.

But his power wasn’t that great.

Because he descended using Taesan’s body, he didn’t possess the rank of an apostle and couldn’t use his own swordsmanship.

That’s why Taesan could win without much trouble.

But Cain in front of him was different.

The position that the gods of the Labyrinth continually offered him.

Cain possessed that apostolic rank.

“The worst-case scenario I anticipated.”

[The opponent is a formidable enemy.]

Judgments appeared in a series.

[The Desire for Battle is activated.]

At the same time, stat-boosting skills were also continuously activated.

“Come! Onward! The representative of the Labyrinth!”

Cain, wielding a golden sword, charged. Taesan quickly drew two swords.

Clang!

Sparks flew. Taesan clicked his tongue at the force felt through the swords.

“Ha!”

With a short yell, Cain put strength into his sword-wielding hand. Taesan quickly moved his hand to deflect the force and aimed his sword at Cain’s shoulder.

Crack!

However, the sword did not penetrate.

Even with aura infused, the sword couldn’t penetrate the light armor and glanced off.

Just as in the realm of spirits, the rank of the apostle prevented Taesan’s attacks from landing effectively.

Crack!

Taesan swung his sword to create distance.

Cain attacked fiercely.

The god he believed in, the splendidly adorned Sword God, didn’t match Cain’s swordsmanship, which was rough and aggressive rather than flashy.

Clang!

Taesan was busy defending.

Using the force of the pushback, Taesan created distance and swung his sword.

His arm throbbed, but it didn’t hinder his swordplay.

“Is this your level?”

“Let’s continue!”

“Alright. Let’s see.”

Crack!

Taesan was preoccupied with blocking Cain’s sword. Although his swordsmanship was superior, his attacks couldn’t reach Cain due to the disparity in strength and the rank of the apostle.

Clang!

Taesan was sent flying back. He regained his stance upon landing.

“It seems you haven’t received the grace of a god. Then you cannot defeat me. What a pity,”

Cain confidently declared this, not considering his own defeat.

Taesan got up.

“I don’t believe in gods.”

“That’s unfortunate. To devote oneself completely to a god. There’s no greater joy.”

“I hate that.”

He had come here on his own will.

Not because he believed in someone or devoted himself to someone.

Cain smirked.

“Then you’ll be buried in the ground believing in yourself.”

“We’ll see.”

Taesan muttered, putting strength into his sword hand.

The recent fight had shown him something.

“He’s not a proper apostle.”

[They forcibly infused him with power to kill you, despite him not having the proper rank.]

The ghost scoffed. To him, who had seen apostles in the Labyrinth, Cain’s level was quite insignificant.

[If he's an apostle, then all those Guides are apostles too.]

“This should be enough.”

[You have activated Apostle Transformation[Lakiratas].]

Power descended upon Taesan’s body.

Red light swirled in his eyes, enhancing everything. Strength, speed, and even his rank.

Cain hesitated.

“…What?”

“I got the gist of it.”

Taesan stamped his foot. He swung his sword as before. Cain hurriedly blocked.

Clang!

“Ugh!”

Cain’s arm was pushed back, astonishment in his eyes.

“You said you don’t believe in gods!”

“I don’t believe in them. This is just something I received.”

“What nonsensical talk!”

Cain exclaimed in denial. He swung his sword hastily. The sword, soaring high as if to pierce the sky, then plummeted towards Taesan’s head.

Taesan swung his left arm. The moment it collided with Cain’s sword, he twisted his arm to deflect it.

“Hup!”

Not to be outdone, Cain twisted the arm holding the sword and thrust it straight at Taesan. Taesan tilted his head to dodge and thrust his sword forward.

Crack.

“Argh!”

[You inflicted 202 damage on Cain.]

Cain groaned in pain.

“Kuh!”

Unlike before, Cain created distance.

Taesan immediately charged in.

The duration of Apostle Transformation was 10 minutes. He had to finish within that time.

That’s why he had deliberately taken time to understand Cain’s movements.

The assessment was complete.

All that was left was victory.

And Taesan still had no intention of ending his plan.

The God of Self-Proof was trampled with proof, and the God of Mystery was dealt with using magic.

Even the spirits were annihilated using spirit magic.

The opponent was an apostle of the Sword God.

So, the choice of what to use was clear.

[You have activated Counter.]