NOVEL NEXT Chapter 505
<505 - The Second is Scary>
As soon as I heard the Revolutionary’s statement, I was startled.
“That’s the second phase of the Revolutionary Assault! Using phases early is cheating!”
“Oh, the Heir of the Foundation and the young apprentice of the Destroyer. Did you already see through my plan?”
“Hmph. From the Academy’s weekly events to various regional events, and large-scale operations against the Three Great Evils, there are very few events I don’t know about!”
Curious about my bold statement, the Revolutionary raised a hand to pause Lilia momentarily.
Buying time, the Professors, who had nothing to lose, didn’t counter but stood in silence.
“I’ve always been curious about the Foundation’s capabilities. If you’re so confident, then allow me to ask: Why do you think the uncontrolled Undead would choose to serve me after dying?”
“It’s obvious! Green Tags! Those were the currency the Undead valued in life, right? There’s no Empire imposing currency in the Netherworld, so it becomes the medium they desire!”
If the Revolutionary could control the Undead’s currency, it would be as if he ruled as the king of Hell.
“However, if you can’t transmit physical matter from the real world to the Netherworld, then it’s a meaningless discussion.”
“And that’s why we’ve been hunting evil-doers, right? To naturally source talents capable of transmitting matter to the Netherworld.”
He breeds the dead who died for him in the Netherworld as if nurturing loyal soldiers, much like nobles dreaming of treason.
“After all, the Revolutionary is neither a brawler, nor a swordsman, nor a magician, nor a thief—nothing at all. To stir a real revolution targeting the Emperor, you’d have no choice but to use the power of others. If you’ve indiscriminately killed those precious resources, you must have had a reason to do so!”
“Hehe. You’re quite amusing. I never thought I’d hear something that connects despair with such delightful irony.”
The Revolutionary didn’t deny it.
“That’s right. I’ve implanted the Dimensional Gate of the Netherworld within myself. I was a youth too weak to seek revenge against the colossal enemy known as the Emperor, and I needed a means to challenge the Empire that has accumulated power over hundreds of years. Then, I carelessly stumbled upon the existence of the common folk, scattered like weeds. Their weak lives, which could perish anywhere without notice, if I could take them, would serve me even in death. Could there be a greater resource?”
“So, I gathered and gathered. If I had opened it after the ‘Day of Revolution,’ it could have assembled an astounding number of Undead capable of toppling the Emperor, but even what I have gathered so far is quite considerable.”
The incidents of the past—a revolution from 12 years ago, the black salt from 10 years past, the demon sword emergence 8 years ago, the Undead drugs from 5 years ago, and the Purple Carnival from 2 years ago.
If you were to count the masses who joined and died in the significant revolutions he caused, it easily exceeds ten million.
Unlike Kanelle City, which has a floating population of a million, incidents occurred in various strongholds across the Empire, with each having events running in the millions.
If precisely estimated, the number of Undead gathered by the Revolutionary is nearing 100 million.
If the Day of Revolution event activates, that number doubles instantly!
Even with just a million, fusing the Undead has resulted in tiered entities popping up. What kind of existence would be born from fusing such a mass of Undead in the hundreds of millions?
By both quantity and fusion, the future turns into an unimaginable catastrophe.
Thus, players mostly devise strategies to ride the wave of this event.
With the Revolutionary initiating the Day of Revolution, the Emperor embarks on a journey perilous. Still, as always, the Emperor emerges victorious, while the Hero is trusted to pave the way for the Emperor’s downfall.
Following the Day of Revolution, the Emperor’s reinforcement is widely known, and the grievances against him peak, leading to a Hero’s uprising to slay the Emperor.
But now that the trajectory of that terrifying force is no longer aimed at the Emperor, the event to ride the wave has vanished.
“I intended to use that mass against you just now. I assume you’ve understood the gravity of the situation.”
“You meant to gather energy to decapitate the Emperor and throw it at me, right?”
“Hehehe. To remain calm amidst threats that could make even the hero faint, your guts are quite lovable. Haah. I’m not a man easily swayed, but you have quite charmed me. So let me propose just this once.”
The Revolutionary extended his hand.
“Take this hand. Then, I shall spare your beloved mentor, the Destroyer. I’ll rescue you, an 11-year-old who has much to do. All you have to do is offer a light assistance to the Revolutionary Army. After all, your parents are off to participate in the Emperor’s downfall, so I’m sure they’ll gladly permit it.”
The way he proposed it was as light as a school trip.
Although the Professors in the back murmured, the Revolutionary’s subordinates had erected barriers that blocked out the external sounds.
At this moment, there was no one who could interrupt our conversation.
Smart! In a critical moment, if no one knows what discussion occurs, there’s a potential for suspicion!
Toying with and manipulating human hearts is indeed characteristic of a great evil.
But you see, there’s one piece of information the Revolutionary missed.
“Try it!”
“Cooperate?”
“The Undead! I want to see it once. Use it on me right now!”
I wasn’t afraid of that at all.
“Are you serious? You’re saying you’ll die?”
If I hadn’t attained the enlightenment of the Buddha, that would’ve been the case.
Buddha’s Three Powers:
– Impermanence (諸行無常)
– No-Self (諸法無我)
– Nirvana’s Tranquility (涅槃寂靜)
Each of the three powers possesses the following effects:
– Every substance in the universe is ever-changing, and with that change, the benefits gained in the [State Lease]
.– The essence of all things and the self do not exist; with the form also being influenced, the effect becomes [Growth Lease].
– By destroying suffering and reaching tranquility, the effect of [Invincibility Lease] secures physical and mental safety.
The conditions for activation, detailed effects, and outcomes are all clear.
Raising the current strike to a higher state and using a future strike at a lower state in return reflects the impermanence lease.
Advancing the current physical state to a future physical state and switching the future physical state back to the current state reflects the no-self growth lease.
Offering current Function Experience Points as a sacrifice to wield the power of that function at its peak in the future, while not attaining that peak in the future, showcases the nirvana’s invincibility lease.
The teachings of the Buddha in this Game World operate on a principle of borrowing and repaying anything.
In short, even if the Undead rush in, if I possess the future state and future body, and future function, I can counter with just one manifestation of power.
Of course, the future of an average person is that of an average person, and the future of a newbie is merely that of a newbie.
Even trying to borrow future power through the Buddha’s teachings as a pathetic underachiever who hasn’t blossomed potential only results in slightly better but still pathetic power.
Yet when the hand of a veteran player holds the teachings of the Buddha, situations change.
The highest realm in each field.
A mature adult’s body decaying for decades in the Academy.
Reaching the peak of one function with Function Experience Points capped at 1000.
If all of that is wholly unlocked, peak efficiency can be demonstrated.
This power is thus optimized for veterans.
*
The Destroyer was aghast.
“What are you trying to do, Oknodie! Don’t fall for his wicked seduction!”
“It’s no use. Until we break through the barriers, our voice and image will not reach Oknodie.”
Enraged, the Destroyer overlooked the fact that they were in a delaying tactic and drew forth all his might.
He summoned even the spirit energy he was using for the control of Dark Mana, sacrificing the remaining time in a further measure.
“Destroyer! You, recklessly wielding such power will jeopardize your already limited lifespan…!”
“Havi has already been lost. I’ve also lost Lilia before my eyes. I cannot lose Oknodie!”
As the Hero revealed his sincerity, an arm of a swordsman, who was trying to buy time, was severed.
Unlocking the Bandit’s lock, the mimicry skill of the sixth-ranked [One Second Thief] amongst the Ten Great Bandits broke instantly, and their head burst.
The sound sphere of the bard, wielding an instrument, couldn’t endure the immense spatial pressure and bounced back, causing blood to pour from his ears as he collapsed.
[Boundary Break>
The boundary magician, who had created isolated space and severed space, coughed up blood from the forced side effects of his boundary breaking and staggered backward.
Four of them.
In the mere moment the Destroyer unleashed his true strength, a scene that should never have been unveiled happened right in front of him.
[Eyes Reflecting the Heart]
[Designated Target - Revolutionary]
[Opening of the Gate of the Netherworld]
A massive dark energy, far greater than what unfolded from the surface barrier of Kanelle City, pushed back the Destroyer’s maximum technique, Maximum Wide Eyes.
[World Domain Unfolding]
[Netherworld Invasion Initiated]
Just by opening the door, an entire world transforms into a land of death, and the attributes of the mana puzzle in the atmosphere change to death, cruelty, destruction, and darkness.
It was too late.
Despair strangled the Destroyer’s breath.
Countless Undead poured forth like stars from the night sky.
From their epicenter, a massive high-tier Undead, unfathomable in its power, was attempting to pry through the Revolutionary’s opened eye.
Ignoring the Destroyer, crumbling under the weight of unreachable powers, a wave of malice homed in on one person.
*
All those entities target only Oknodie.
If overwhelmed, not even a corpse will remain.
The soul would be swept away in the sea of the dead, never to find salvation again.
As the boundary of self crumbled, even the existence of the mental entity known as Oknodie would become hard to discern.
If you understand all of this, it would be more than warranted to be terrified by the scene, yet Oknodie remained calm to the point of peculiarity.
As if assured that she would not perish.
“It’s alright, Professors. I won’t die!”
In the direst of situations, Oknodie activated her ability.
[Legacy of the Old Gods]
[Two Powers of the Three-fold Dharma - 2nd No-Self (諸法無我)]
Growth Lease.
The ability to summon her future self.
Imagining her male form, as she unfolded her abilities, this power yielded results slightly divergent from her intentions.
[The gender of the body you are trying to summon differs.]
[You cannot summon yourself as the subject.]
[Your existence as an object is summoned.]
What she intended was an opportunity to transform into her most empowered self.
Yet the actual phenomenon resulted in an appearance resembling a door opened in the Revolutionary’s eye appearing before Oknodie.
Through the door came a giant male, 230cm tall.
Known as The All-In-One Strength Character I Adore.
The Destroyer recognized him not in relation to Oknodie but in another way.
“That man… was he her Master I saw in Oknodie’s nightmarish top-tier battles?!”
In her nightmares, Oknodie borrowed the power of the strongest entity she knew to protect herself during fights.
This being, close to the ground’s ultimate strength able to independently obliterate the cruel results of the Foundation’s ruthless project, at least the Destroyer believed so.
If such a one appeared at the moment of Oknodie’s crisis, the conclusion was inescapable for the Destroyer.
The All-In-One Strength Character = Theory of Oknodie’s Master was indeed real.
He had been observant of Oknodie all along and only now revealed himself at a time when she faced a crisis beyond her capability to handle.
Oknodie’s Master did not do much.
He merely widened his stance and clenched his fist.
With a powerful approach, he channeled all his strength from his legs into his fist, striking the Undead’s mass.
In that honest blow, the mass split in half, and the high-tier Undead attempting to breach through the dimensional gate scattered.
The mana equivalent to a world domain was erased, and the opening gate to the Netherworld was forcefully shut.
The ground shook and the heavens gasped.
It was a staggering blow he delivered, and he slowly withdrew his fist, turning away.
“You’re ruining the proceedings badly. Can you really defeat the Emperor after squandering the Revolutionary like this?”
“That’s for me to handle!”
“Right, whatever you do, I can sort it all out.”
The man wore a cruel smile that made one feel their soul draining away merely by listening.
“Remember this. The cause is inadequate, but this is still a distortion. The time until you and I reach the same position is only once more. Yes, this was the second.”
Next is the third.
The time that will mark your final end.
With that warning, the man disappeared as suddenly as he had appeared.
“The Revolutionary…”
Only the body of the Revolutionary, whose head was severed alongside the eyes that had served as a medium for the opening of the Netherworld, was left there hopelessly.