Chapter 356
“What superhuman state? Where in the world is there such a lacking 9-Star?”
Heperlman let out a laugh as he listened.
“How dare you! Shut your insolent mouth.”
A spear of ice was shot toward Chris.
A simple magic, but empowered by the authority of the Advent of Creation, its power was more intense than any miracle magic.
But once again, an incomprehensible event unfolded.
Crack!
Just like before, the magic was dismantled again!
“!!”
At the impossible event, everyone’s eyes widened as if they would tear, and Chris looked at the white world that had unfolded around him and sneered.
“This is an Advent of Creation? Something so sloppy? When you can only use basic magic because you don't know when the framework of your world will break?”
He strode forward, and at the same time, an even more shocking event unfolded.
Swoosh.
A white concentric circle spread out around Chris.
It was a Domain of Dominion.
A power like a brilliant radiance began to push back the murky white.
“How can a Domain of Dominion push back an Advent of Creation?!”
The House Heads shouted in surprise.
Originally, it was impossible for a Domain of Dominion to push back an Advent of Creation, an authority of a higher class.
“Did I not say? This is at a level that cannot even be called an Advent of Creation.”
“!!”
“And it’s because my Domain of Dominion is not an ordinary one.”
Paaaaaaah!
In an instant, an explosive radiance encroached on the surroundings, and all sorts of geometric star patterns embroidered the area.
The World of Stellar Radiance.
It was the Domain of Dominion Chris had obtained upon reaching the peak of 8-Star in Stellar Radiance.
A domain in which he had established all the powers of Stellar Radiance within his own world.
“It is a state that cannot even be compared to you, who has only mimicked an Advent of Creation by force through a corrupt path, without even establishing a proper worldview.”
“Shut your mouth!”
Fwoooosh!
Perhaps feeling anxious, Heperlman once again fiercely poured out his magic, but it was useless.
The moment they entered Chris’s domain, they were dismantled into pieces.
‘An Advent of Creation like that, where only its power has been forcibly enhanced, is actually rather simple to deal with.’
Chris let out a sneer.
In truth, it was not something to be so belittled.
As one could see from the fact that Duke Duma, who was at the peak of 8-Star, had been pushed back so pathetically, Heperlman’s power was by no means something to be taken lightly.
Although he had not established a proper worldview, the power he had enhanced through a corrupt path was not something those of a lower state could handle.
But it was a different story if they were at a similar level.
‘Because my World of Stellar Radiance is a Domain of Dominion that has established a worldview that is in no way inferior to a decent Advent of Creation.’
Of course, that did not mean that the size of its power was the same as an Advent of Creation.
If the Advent of Creation before him had been deployed by Nordian or the Lord of the Four Kings' Castle, Chris would not have dared to think of opposing it.
But this whelp was different.
The meaning imbued within Chris’s Domain of Dominion.
To be precise, the depth of his worldview was incomparable to the whelp’s sloppy Advent of Creation.
“What are you all doing with your hands down? Are you just going to leave it to me? All of you, bring that whelp to his knees.”
The House Heads of the Round Table, who had been standing blankly, quickly came to their senses and rushed toward Heperlman.
“How dare you whelps!!”
Heperlman, enraged, faced the House Heads of the Round Table.
As his attacks were repeatedly neutralized by Chris, he withdrew his Advent of Creation and used pure white magic.
Still, he was a 9-Star (entering).
Heperlman’s magic was incomparably threatening even without his Advent of Creation.
In the moment the House Heads of the Round Table were about to be swept away, Chris once again made his move.
Paaaat!
The geometric star shapes embroidered in his Domain of Dominion, the World of Stellar Radiance, began to emit light, and the House Heads’ eyes widened.
“Our power is being amplified?”
“No, it’s not just that!”
A House Head cried out in shock.
“My achievement level has risen?”
An unbelievable story.
The World of Stellar Radiance was different from the Dominion of Seven Colors, the Domain of Dominion he deployed with Dark Demonic Energy.
The Dominion of Seven Colors was to forcibly amplify the power of all attributes by dominating them with Dark Demonic Energy.
On the other hand, the World of Stellar Radiance allowed individuals to exert a power that transcended the limits of their own achievement within the world of Stellar Radiance that Chris had established.
It was enough to tip the scales of victory.
“You whelp…!!”
Heperlman, who was beginning to be cornered, emitted an enraged aura.
“How dare you, to me. I will kill you all.”
Swoooosh.
In an instant, everyone’s face hardened.
An incomparably sinister energy began to stretch out from Heperlman.
“Don’t tell me, this energy is?”
Following that, a shocking sight revealed itself.
Crack.
A pair of white, radiant wings began to stretch out from behind Heperlman’s back.
They were the wings of a Constellation.
“Impossible! How?”
At the sight, as if a Constellation itself had descended, everyone wore expressions of disbelief.
Only one person, Chris, looked at Heperlman’s wings of light with an unperturbed gaze.
‘I already knew that the whelps of the Holy Assembly were the vile minions of the Constellations.’
It wasn't that he had simply made a contract with a Constellation.
There were not a few who had made contracts with Constellations. Even Evan had made contracts with several Constellations and was in a state where he had received their ‘blessings’.
But the members of the Holy Assembly were different.
Going beyond mere blessings, they directly received and used the power of the Constellations.
‘I don't know why the Constellations allowed the whelps of the Holy Assembly to use their power.’
He didn't know if it was to have them stand against the forces of Gehenna during the Apocalypse, or if there was some other hidden intention.
Whatever the Constellations’ true intention was, the whelps of the Holy Assembly did not use that power correctly.
They used it for their own greed.
Thanks to that, the Alliance, which was already sinking, suffered an even more fatal blow.
‘It was a good thing the Demon King of Shed Blood quickly eliminated the whelps of the Holy Assembly; otherwise, the Alliance might have been ruined because of them.’
For reference, the Demon King of Shed Blood had fought all four members of the Holy Assembly alone and had annihilated them.
Now, the Demon King of Shed Blood would not appear, so Chris was the one who had to eliminate the whelps of the Holy Assembly.
“Duke Duma, how long do you think you can hold out?”
“…Not for long. A few minutes at most.”
A few minutes. And that was an extremely generous estimate.
Because this was no different from fighting a Constellation that had descended upon the mortal plane.
And it was not a low-ranking, common Constellation, either.
At a glance, it looked to be of a mid-to-high 6th-rank. Roughly, a rank higher than a Count-rank devil.
It was a being that even Chris, with his soul-rank, could not stand against, but he nonchalantly said something insane.
“One minute. That's more than enough. If you can just hold out for that long, I will take care of it.”
Everyone wore dumbfounded expressions, but Chris was not making an empty boast.
‘I have a way.’
However, it was difficult to do it alone.
“Evan, Ranya. I need your help. Especially yours, Ranya.”
“…What kind of help are you talking about?”
“To put it simply, Evan and I will join forces to create an opening. At that time, you will put an end to Heperlman.”
Ranya wore a bewildered expression.
For her, who had not yet even properly reached 8-Star, it was an absolutely impossible task.
“Don't you want to avenge your parents?”
“!!”
“You can do it. No, you are the only one who can. Because you are the one here who knows that vile whelp the best.”
Chris thought of a specific method to himself.
‘I can somehow bind the Constellation’s power, even for a moment, with my soul-rank. The problem is what comes next.’
The reason the whelps of the Holy Assembly were difficult to face was because they were 9-Stars who simultaneously used the power of a Constellation as well.
The Demon King of Shed Blood had crushed them with overwhelming power, but for the current Chris, that was impossible.
‘And I can't use Andril in my capacity as the Hero, either.’
There was only one way.
In the fleeting moment he bound the Constellation’s power, he had to eliminate Heperlman as well.
Ranya was the most suitable for the task.
“…I’ll do it.”
Ranya bit her lip hard.
“I will absolutely make him pay for his sins with my own hands.”
Chris nodded his head.
“I will help you.”
Looking to the front, he could see the House Heads of the Round Table struggling to block Heperlman’s Constellation power.
“Evan, you land the first blow.”
Evan aimed his sword.
Celestial Flash.
It was a new miracle technique Evan had created after recently reaching the peak of 7-Star.
A single ray of light that splits the starry sky above.
Perhaps he had had an intuition that a day like today, when he would have to stand against a Constellation, would come.
If Evan’s previous miracle techniques had been optimized for beings of darkness, the Celestial Flash, conversely, possessed an effect that countered beings of the celestial realm.
‘I am Christian’s comrade. I will absolutely be of help to Christian!’
The single strike, unleashed with a firm resolve, flew toward Heperlman.
Heperlman, who was facing the House Heads of the Round Table, could not evade the blow.
[!!]
Heperlman’s form wavered for an instant.
It had not dealt a major blow.
No matter how great Evan was, the difference in their states was far too great.
It had only opened a minute gap, but for Chris, that was more than enough.
Paaaaaaah!
As if ripples were forming on a lake, a transparent wave spread out from around Chris.
A sharp aura, as if it were a treasured sword, swelled up all around.
It was a transformation of the World of Stellar Radiance.
If before it had played a supportive role, raising the achievement of Stellar Radiance, this time, he had given it a direct offensive property.
The numerous powers of Stellar Radiance that Chris had encountered and learned in his past and present lives began to form an order and a shape within a single world.
The Sword of Stellar Radiance.
It was a formless sword that existed only as a concept, without a physical form.
A sword that held a deeper meaning than any other sword in this world.
‘Of course, that doesn't mean it’s invincible.’
A true Sacred One.
That is to say, the ultimate techniques of Stellar Radiance deployed by the likes of the Dark King, Genesis, or the Prophet would be far more powerful in terms of raw power.
But even their ultimate techniques would not be able to contain a deeper meaning than the sword Chris was now deploying.
‘What’s needed in this situation is not just a powerful attack.’
Chris closed his eyes.
He opened his spiritual eye and looked into Heperlman’s inner self.
To be precise, at the spiritual channel connected to the celestial realm.
The fact that the Sword of Stellar Radiance had no form or substance meant that it could cut anything.
Whether that be a soul, a formless power, or a conceptual connection.
Sssss.
Chris’s spiritual power was imbued in the Sword of Stellar Radiance, and it secretly dug in through the gap Evan had opened.
Slice.
In the quiet world of concepts, the sound of something being cut was heard.
No one felt the change, but Chris could tell.
That the celestial terminal connected to Heperlman had been severed.
[Wh-what?!]
Heperlman, who had belatedly realized the change, let out a flustered voice, but it was too late.
The aura of the Constellation that Heperlman had been wielding was severed, and Chris’s gaze sharpened.
Sword of Stellar Radiance Transformation.
Dance of Stars.
As if a firework had exploded, all sorts of powers of Stellar Radiance stormed toward Heperlman.
Still, as expected of a 9-Star (entering).
He deployed white magic and blocked them, but it was only to divert his attention; Chris’s true objective lay elsewhere.
Slice.
Once again, the sound of something being cut was heard.
While Heperlman’s attention had been diverted, he had severed the connection terminal with the Constellation again.
This time, he had severed Heperlman’s soul along with it.
[!!]
Heperlman’s complexion turned white.
‘This is the only chance.’
With his current power, it was impossible to permanently damage the connection terminal with the Constellation.
The Constellation’s side would restore it soon.
He had to eliminate Heperlman before then.