Chapter 1283: Demonic Realm (6)

Ice Magic was one of the most unique abilities Lennok had acquired.

Despite learning it relatively early, during his time as a freelancer, he hadn’t used it much as his primary magic.

He had only occasionally employed it in special environments rich in water or against opponents with a weakness to ice-elemental attributes.

Perhaps the victory he achieved against Madrich Onnion, by drawing out the branching point of ice, was the only memorable instance.

This was partly because, having pushed lightning and fire to their extremes, there was no pressing need to dabble in other attributes.

However, this didn’t mean that Ice Magic was useless or lacked sufficient power.

After obtaining the power of the dead Outer God, the Cold Comet, in Kabahim, Lennok had begun to sense new possibilities within Ice Magic.

Wielding ice as Cheonbeon was a new opportunity to confirm these possibilities.

Shhhwaaaaak…!!!

The overflowing cold instantly froze the streams of water falling from above. The moment he exhaled a small breath, even his exhalation froze, lowering the surrounding temperature.

The reason Cheonbeon, a Grand Mage of the fire-heat attribute, could use Ice Magic, a completely opposing attribute, was this:

By pushing one attribute to its absolute limit, leaving only its inverse properties, he could add new possibilities, starting from the art of Decasing.

A miracle that allowed him to wield the power of an Outer God, originally forbidden to Lennok, by utilizing the Decasing of fire-heat magic.

Flames forged and layered with the power of the Solar Apex, and ice imbued with the power of a dead Outer God.

Wielding fire-heat and ice magic beyond their limits simultaneously, maintaining a perfect balance, the new power Lennok had acquired was—

[What absolute nonsense!!!]

BOOM!!

The reactor embedded in the Apostle’s chest spun violently, roaring deafeningly. The Apostle screamed, unleashing collapsing mana in all directions as if to vent the monster’s intense agitation.

[You’re saying you can freely wield opposing attributes just by reaching the peak of one elemental magic?! Are you serious?!!!]

“……”

[Not even an Ascendant could do that. Something created like that couldn’t possibly hold the power of a god!!!!]

The moment the Apostle saw the flow of cold swirling around Lennok, it instinctively understood.

This cold, clutched by the wizard, was an accomplishment in no way inferior to the flames he had wielded.

The fact that Cheonbeon, an 8-level fire-heat wizard, had newly acquired an equally 8-level Ice Magic.

Could such an impossible miracle be achieved simply through the art of Decasing?

[You, who were crushed by Adamant Thunder, found a way to achieve Transcendence by chance…!!!!!]

“Because I’ve used fire-heat magic for so long, I have accumulated causality and potential within me.”

But Lennok, unperturbed by the Apostle’s savage roar, raised his gaze.

“All that’s needed is to reverse the potential that exists within me. If one understands the essence of Decasing, it’s possible to apply it to other spellcrafts.”

[Don’t lie!!! Even if you were an Incarnation Body who received a god’s authority, such a thing is impossible!!!!]

“If I can achieve it, I will eventually reach it. If I know I will reach it someday, I can achieve it even now.”

Lennok said.

“And so, now… I have succeeded.”

[Martinez!!!]

CRACK!!!

Simultaneously with him raising his hand, he seized the Apostle’s fist, which had rushed in at immense speed.

The Apostle’s movement, caught by Lennok’s hand compressed with chilling cold, froze as if time had stopped.

In the instant the Apostle flinched at the state where cold was condensed to forcibly halt an object’s movement.

Simultaneously, a sudden blast of icy cold erupted around Lennok, beginning to freeze the surroundings.

[Th-this is…!!!]

CRACKCRACKCRACK!!!!

The streams of water, cascading like a waterfall through the cracks in the undersea tunnel, froze in reverse.

Cold, frozen chunks of ice blocked the cracks in the tunnel’s outer wall and extended outwards.

In the blink of an eye, the overflowing moisture everywhere was frozen and stopped, sealing the tunnel’s cracks and preventing further expansion, stabilizing it.

An unbelievable feat, forcibly seizing the Apostle’s destructive sabotage and rendering it useless simply by releasing mana.

In the brief moment the Apostle’s attention was stolen by the sight, Lennok moved.

“My turn.”

He extended a hand, compressed with extreme cold, and placed it against the Apostle’s side.

The pipes and wings, heated by the reactor’s power, immediately cooled and froze.

But Lennok didn’t stop there; he imbued his Will-thought, shaping it with mana into a meaningful Alternative Incantation.

Maximizing power by instantly unleashing the compressed force in his hand at point-blank range.

The Decasing of Fire Construction—

[Frost Piercer]

THWUMMM!!!

[…!!!]

A massive wave of ice exploded from Lennok’s hand, sweeping away the Apostle’s form and slamming it backwards.

A radius of several tens of meters was covered in the ice wave, freezing solidly and coloring the terminal’s main building and undersea tunnel pure white.

The annex parking lot exploded, and hundreds of vehicles stored beneath it were carried by the ice wave, surging out onto the tunnel.

The Apostle was seen being crushed and bounced away by the exploding ice fragments amidst the hundreds of overflowing vehicles.

[Ugh, Aaaaargh!!!!!]

Convulsively rotating the reactor embedded in its chest, the Apostle simultaneously thrashed with all the pipes and wings that had erupted from its body.

With each movement, the Apostle’s form twisted into an inhuman monstrosity, accelerating by hydraulically pushing air.

CRASH!!! CRUNCHCRUNCHCRUNCH!!!

The Apostle, surging vertically from beyond the pouring ice wave, collided with the undersea tunnel’s outer wall, bouncing off it repeatedly.

As if trying to widen the cracks Lennok had sealed, it seemed to ram its head into the wall, unable to control its own speed.

Aileen, watching from behind, finally regained her composure, feeling the tremors shaking all around her.

“…Martinez.”

“…”

“How… are you truly human?”

Aileen, who had been speechless watching Lennok’s back, struggled to grip her blade and asked as she stood up.

“…Where have you been all this ti—”

“We’ll talk about the details later.”

Lennok glanced back, drawing up mana and stepping forward.

“I need to draw out that Apostle’s power and abilities to their limits. I’ll take the lead, so cooperate as you see fit.”

“What? Why aren’t you just killing it…?”

“That Incarnation Body is currently synchronized with this entire undersea terminal through human sacrifice. If I kill it, I’d have to destroy this entire facility, and then we’d likely be buried under the sea too.”

Lennok looked up at the Apostle, who was ramming its head into the tunnel wall.

“But it chose to destroy the terminal itself and let in seawater because it feared my flames. The more it uses its power, the worse the cracks will get, and the synchronization between the terminal and the Apostle will eventually break.”

“…”

The reason the former 9th Apostle hadn’t died instantly when suppressed by Lennok’s fire-heat magic was that it had synchronized with the entire undersea terminal, sharing the damage.

This was possible because the entire undersea terminal was designed with tremendous durability, capable of withstanding the deep sea.

Indeed, despite the significant impacts, the facility hadn’t collapsed until the Apostle began to directly smash the tunnel and let in seawater.

“I’ll lure out its Apostle Spellcraft and authority to their limits, then blow it up in one shot right before the undersea terminal collapses.”

Saying so, Lennok condensed cold in his hand and raised his gaze.

Looking at the dozens of vehicles that had burst out from all sides of the annex underground parking lot, Lennok said.

“To do that, I’ll have to stimulate the cracks it spread throughout the tunnel and forcibly tear them open.”

[Aaaaargh!!!!!]

The Apostle, who had been ramming its head into the tunnel wall, screamed and simultaneously reached Lennok in the blink of an eye.

An incredible acceleration, traversing hundreds of meters in an instant at hypersonic speed.

At the same time, an ice wave exploded beneath Lennok’s feet, and dozens of scattered vehicles began to move simultaneously.

CRASH!!!

Across the endlessly sprawling undersea tunnel, multiple mass bodies accelerated at immense speeds.

The Apostle’s colossal body, scorched black as if plastered with pipes and wings.

Sports cars skidding across the frozen ice, their tires melting at an accelerating pace.

CRUNCHCRUNCHCRUNCHCRUNCH!!!!

Dozens of vehicles, bounced in all directions, collided with the tunnel walls and ceiling, widening the cracks.

Lennok, riding atop a vehicle, and the low-flying Apostle raced across the undersea tunnel in parallel.

An incredibly distant acceleration, where everything visible beyond the window felt like blurred lines.

In the distorted view, only Lennok and the Apostle seemed to be standing still, looking back at each other, and almost simultaneously drawing up mana.

[Eight Trigrams Fragment]

[Eternal Freeze]

[Ten-Shot Flash Art]

BOOMBOOMBOOMBOOMBOOM!!!!

The projectiles scattered from the Apostle’s wing fragments and the cold ice barrage collided dozens of times in a flash.

Shockwaves exploded like ripples spreading across a lake, and the left side of the sports car crumpled like a toy, sliding far to the side.

The laughing Apostle twisted its wings, abruptly changing direction to trample Lennok further.

[Puhahahahat!!! You foolish bastard, trying to compete with me in spee—!!!]

VRROOOOM!!!

Before it could finish speaking, another sports car, as if on cue, burst out from behind at full throttle.

Lennok, his entire body transformed into scattering ice, was riding atop the already max-speed sports car.

[You son of a bitch!!!!]

The enraged Apostle shattered the car by exploding its wings, but dozens of vehicles simultaneously surged out from all sides of the tunnel, accelerating.

The ability of Ice Transformation, which naturally became controllable after awakening Lightning Transformation, allowed him to change his body into another property.

Using the cold of Frost Piercer, which he had scattered throughout the area, as a medium, he instantly reshaped his body and transferred himself.

CRUNCHCRUNCHCRUNCHCRUNCH!!!!

Dozens of vehicles across the endlessly sprawling tunnel shifted gears and raced at full throttle.

Vehicles, avoiding the torn tunnel, collectively pursued the speed battle between Lennok and the Apostle.

“There are still hundreds of movable vehicles left in the terminal.”

CRASH!!!

Lennok, who had maneuvered his car to ram the Apostle from the side, laughed.

“I have plenty of spares, so keep going. How long can you run?”

[Shut up!!! I’ll kill you!!!]

SCREEEEEEECH!!!!

The Apostle’s colossal body and the sports car collided, accelerating relentlessly.

Even as it was crushed under the weight of the Incarnation Body, it smoothly altered the Apostle’s direction, accelerating while scraping against the ground.

CRASH!! CRASH! CRICKLE! CRACK! CRUNCH!

The car, pushed back by the Apostle’s convulsive struggle, skidded sideways and spun.

Lennok, having fixed himself to the wildly shaking car by freezing the ground beneath his feet, drew up mana.

He narrowly accelerated forward, avoiding the Apostle’s winged grasp that tried to smash and throw off the rear of the car.

Pushing cold into the Apostle’s face, he accelerated further onto the tunnel.

VRROOOOM!!!!

[Aaaaargh!! You loser!!!!]

The enraged Apostle ignored him and accelerated, relentlessly chasing from behind.

The dizzying acceleration blurred everything reflected beyond the window.

But the scenery around the undersea tunnel, no matter how much he accelerated, didn’t change, rather emphasizing its immense breadth.

[Die! Die!!! Die!!!!]

The Apostle’s grotesquely distorted body vibrated frantically, as if accelerating by gearing up its hateful grudge.

It compressed air to hydraulically generate thrust and new wings sprouted, reducing resistance.

The Apostle’s colossal body, pursuing Lennok, finally reached its maximum speed, and its entire form became stained black.

RIIIIIIP—!!!

The withered wings of an Outer God.

In this moment, the Incarnation Body of the demise that swallowed the sun and fell, became closer to a god than ever before.

Like a salmon returning to its past as the ninth Apostle of the cult, it regained its original power.

The Apostle’s skin, approaching maximum speed beyond the sound barrier, peeled off as if molting, revealing new flesh beneath.

Metamorphosing into a winged demon-like form, its Will-thought and Mind Imprint were inverted, and its very origin was reborn, endlessly closer to Demise.

[Khehe, khehehehet!!!!]

The demon, having lost even human speech, laughed frantically as it raced, reaching out its hand towards Lennok.

As if the previous chase had been a lie, it caught up to and snatched the vehicle Lennok was on, simultaneously reaching maximum speed.

And just as the demon was about to unleash the miracle it had gained through its new metamorphosis into reality.

Sanc-

tuary

Declara-

tion

▼

!!!

A woman driving a sports car appeared beside him, ramming the demon’s colossal body from the side at full speed.

CRACKKKKKKKK!!!!

A collision where the woman, who had relentlessly pursued their ongoing battle, had chased and rammed at the decisive moment.

Simultaneously, the sports car’s chassis shattered into countless pieces, scattering its components.

Aileen, bleeding, was flung upwards amidst the broken car fragments.

Holding her Gunblade in a reverse grip, she plunged it into the demon’s shoulder, in the skin where the most pipes protruded.

STAB!!

A dry, brittle sensation, as if stabbing a withered branch, not a living creature.

[Foolish woman!!!]

Looking up at the woman whose arm was covered in blood, the Apostle grinned with a demonic face.

[You’re in tatters, unable to withstand the recoil of your own impact. Are you that stupid…!!!]

“Would you call me clever?”

CLICK!

Aileen smiled and pulled the Gunblade’s trigger.

“If I’m going to shed blood anyway, I just intended to use it to screw you over.”

[What?]

DRIP, DRIP—

What flowed into the barrel of the firing mechanism was not the woman’s mana, burst from a flesh egg.

The dripping blood flowed down Aileen’s wrist and smoothly seeped into the Gunblade’s blade.

The True Blood of a Central Noble furiously spun down the barrel and exploded with immense light within the demon’s body.

Ultima Sword Art Zero Form

True Blood Awakening Blood Magic Bullet Field

[Sacred Disintegration Cannon]

KABOOOOOM!!!!!

[Kuaaaaaah?!!!!!]

For a moment, the demon roared madly, writhing in pain as if all its senses were running wild.

Forgetting even the situation where it had been accelerating and awakening, it threw Aileen aside and rammed its body into the tunnel wall.

[Aargh?! Aaaaargh!! Huaaaaaargh?!!!!]

CRASH!! CRASH!! CRUNCHCRUNCHCRUNCH!!!!

Every time it instinctively drew up mana to accelerate, the True Blood exploding within its body reacted, corroding its entire being.

A bizarre sensation, as if the Apostle’s latent power and will were forcibly awakened and running wild uncontrollably.

Writhed in this uncontrollable sensation, it unconsciously drew up more mana, and its mind was further corroded by the pain.

“Looks like I’ve done most of what I can…”

Aileen, flung back by the Apostle’s convulsive struggles, smiled bitterly, still gripping her Gunblade.

“It’s your turn.”

WHOOSH!!

At that moment, a blue flash that grazed past Aileen’s head slammed into the Apostle’s temple at incredible speed.

Its entire body solidified and froze upon contact with the cold flash, losing all speed and plummeting.

The demon, unable to withstand the force, slammed its head into the ground and continued to accelerate, sliding along the tunnel.

“I have prepared, worked hard, and researched for a long time to understand everything.”

CRASH!! CRUMBLE! CRACK!

Lennok, trampling the Apostle’s head, wrapped in blue cold, said.

Clasping his hands over the Apostle’s head, he drew up mana and concentrated his Will-thought.

“No matter how long it takes, I will not waste any of the potential I have gained.”

[Let go!!!!]

“The Outer God’s power to forcibly stop all movement and properties of matter. If I’ve acquired a spellcraft that can directly interfere with entropy…”

Lennok whispered.

“From now on, I can just crush everything and move forward.”

Fire-Heat Attribute Unique Magic

Property Reversal Decasing Manifestation

Ice Stasis Function

White River Firm Envoy

Final Decree

[Azure Moon]

THWUMMMMMMMMM!!!!

A blue moon rose, and everything froze in place.

Drawing a spell into reality without using moisture, cold, chill, or even elemental magic.

The new extreme of ice-elemental spellcraft, manifesting without any preamble.

[Gr… Arghrghrghrghrghrgh!!!!]

RUMBLEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!

In front of the collapsed terminal’s main building, a colossal blue moon descended.

The ice moon, which had smashed through the hollow ceiling where the undersea terminal was located, immediately enveloped the main building.

The Sea of Understanding, forcibly levitating condensed mana, responded to Lennok’s will, causing the entire terminal main building to rise above the surface of the water.

With an enormous roar, it lifted the undersea terminal and the surrounding tunnel area entirely above sea level, crossing the waters of the Sea of Understanding.

WHOOOOOOSHAAAAAAAAM!!!!!!

The colossal ice moon floated on the sea, freezing the entire area coldly and unfurling an ice land that had not originally existed.

The Apostle’s colossal body, screaming madly, was trapped within the moon, appearing as if time itself had stopped.

Lennok’s new potential, having resolved the rampage of lightning magic and simultaneously regained control.

An extreme art that wields Decasing, achieved by reaching the peak of Property Transformation, as Ice Magic imbued with the power of an Outer God.

A new point of attainment for ice magic, gained from the potential of the Cold Comet, which had been stagnant for a long time since the battle with Onnion.

Tap!!

Lennok, who had descended before the frozen Apostle, slowly clenched and unclenched his hand, lost in thought, when footsteps sounded from behind him.

The woman, pushing back her blood-soaked hair, was walking towards him, holstering her Gunblade at her waist.

Despite having just engaged in a fierce battle with the Apostle, she didn’t appear to have any major injuries.

Could her unusually low susceptibility to injury, evident since the train, be related to her abilities?

“Hoo…”

Aileen, stopping beside Lennok, let out a quiet sigh.

Standing silently, looking out at the frozen sea, Aileen said softly.

“I’ll have to revise my scouting report on you from beginning to end.”

“…”

“This wasn’t the time to worry about analyzing injuries or rumors of you getting weaker. How did you become even more of a monster in the meantime…”

The woman, a wry smile on her lips, looked up at Lennok and said.

“Evan Martinez. We still have things to talk about, don’t we?”

Lennok didn’t answer.

Instead, he simply pulled out another cigar with an expressionless face.

“Fine, let’s just go inside and talk. We need to clean up what happened here.”

Aileen, watching Lennok with narrowed eyes, shook her head and turned towards the terminal’s main building.

She walked towards the terminal, which was infused with pure white frost and frozen solid as if time had stopped.

“With the ability you’ve shown, there’s a way to get to the Four Archangel Demonic Mirrors by today.”