To bring about the end of the world of gods, I had studied them.
It was only natural to dig deep into Light and Darkness, who could be considered my primary enemies.
Therefore, I had a clear understanding of Darkness.
How would he react if given the chance to occupy the Vessel of Creation?
The answer was surprisingly simple.
He would choose nothing.
Why?
Because he was more petty than one might think.
Sometimes people are mistaken.
They think gods are great.
That a great god possesses the magnanimity and insight to embrace all things.
Not at all.
Humans are the mirrors of gods.
That infinite greed and selfishness — no, gods actually tend to be even worse.
Therefore, what mattered to Darkness was not occupying a perfect Vessel of Creation, but rather the resentment and hatred he harbored toward me.
What he wanted most right now was to achieve his revenge against me.
However, if he occupied the Vessel of Creation, he would be forced to be entangled with me in some way.
In that case, it was obvious what choice he would make.
He would hide deep within and observe the battle between Salmora the Plague Legion Commander and me.
Then, when a conclusion seemed near, he would side with whichever party was at a disadvantage or advantage to inflate his own necessity and worth.
I had predicted that.
So, I planted my ego inside Leon in advance.
It would have been impossible in the past.
But after absorbing several separated egos, it became possible to divide my own.
Thus, I planted one ego in Leon and positioned it at the very edge of his inner self, the place Darkness would like most.
And as if on cue, I could see him crossing over to that spot to unfold his domain of Darkness.
As I have mentioned repeatedly, a divine being — especially Darkness — was nothing more than Sun Wukong playing in the palm of my hand.
“Muhahaha!”
Everything went according to plan.
However, Darkness laughed even in that situation, his laughter and actions were full of confidence.
It made sense.
“You are truly foolish. Where do you think this is?”
Darkness expanded his domain further, creating a space as pitch-black as the abyss.
“This is the inner self, the realm of thought. A world clearly distinct from reality.”
This was the mental realm.
A world of thought.
A third world where the laws of reality did not apply.
And the power here was not Martial Power or Rank.
It was the scale of one’s thoughts.
Although he was a god who was extremely selfish and greedy, there was something that made him different from humans.
It was the time he had lived, spanning nearly an eternity, and the realm of thought that had expanded because of it.
In particular, the thoughts of Darkness, who had been separated from creation, were nearly infinite.
Therefore, a battle in the mental world was bound to be advantageous for Darkness, who had endured for nearly an eternity.
No, it was more than just advantageous.
“I shall absorb your consciousness as well!”
Full of conviction, Darkness dyed Leon’s inner self with the Taecho Darkness.
It was a darkness so thick that one could not distinguish what was an inch ahead.
That domain was a battlefield extremely favorable to him, one where he was destined to win.
“Haha! Do you regret it? But it is too late. You can no longer escape my grasp.”
He looked triumphant, as if he had already won.
Certainly.
“It isn’t an easy task to face you here.”
I am a human.
Of course, I have lived for 1,000 years and attained the Status of Victory through my devotion.
But that alone was not enough to handle the thoughts of Darkness, who had lived for an eternity, or his infinite domain.
That is, if I were alone.
“It seems you’re the one who’s mistaken.”
“What…?”
“It’s exactly as you said. This is a mental world. A realm of thought where the martial arts and Rank of reality do not apply at all.”
Everything he said was correct.
However.
“You are not the master of this place.”
If I had entered Darkness’s consciousness, I would have been defeated without being able to use any tricks.
But the master of this mental world was not Darkness.
“Rumble!”
There was a light that illuminated the surroundings like a clap of thunder.
“No authority or power of thought can be used in my world.” I had told Leon in advance.
The place where we would fight was his mental world.
Therefore, he was the one who could determine the laws.
He was the creator and everything here.
So, I had tipped him off to set a few laws.
Those laws were being carved clearly into the air like letters.
“In this world, combat is only possible with the physical body.”
“A contest of bodies with all authority restricted. The outcome will be decided through this.”
“What is this…?”
Darkness was flustered, not expecting the laws of the world to be set.
And then, the Taecho Darkness he had worked so hard to create receded.
This was because, according to the laws Leon had set, it was impossible to convert power through authority or the realm of thought.
“……”
Darkness was flustered at first.
But soon.
“…Is this the best you could think of?”
He regained his composure.
“It was a good judgment to avoid the realm of thought, but a battle of bodies?”
I couldn’t see it, but I could sense Darkness wearing a fishy smile for a moment.
“Who do you think I am? I am Darkness. The one who has existed since the Taecho. My body is a collection of will more powerful than anything else!”
Darkness was an entity separated from the creation that existed at the Taecho.
It was natural that his original body was a collection of the hardest and most powerful will.
If there was a perfect body in the world, it would be the one maintaining his current form.
Therefore.
“To dare challenge me to a battle of bodies. It is truly pathetic!”
He could show such confidence.
“I suppose it is.”
But all of that was a fact I already knew.
As I’ve said, I knew everything about the gods.
Especially regarding Light and Darkness.
“You knew? And yet you made such a foolish choice? Hahahaha! I didn’t know there were humans who made a hobby out of suicide.”
And the next moment.
-Sizzle!
The darkness, which had been shaped like a clump of black mist, gradually took form.
What finally appeared was a man with black hair, a black uniform, and a massive two-handed greatsword.
-Vroooom!
The entity, which exuded an overwhelming pressure just by looking at it, was the physical body of Darkness.
It was a body known as the most perfect one.
In contrast, mine was a human body.
It was made of blood, flesh, and bone, exactly as the gods had fashioned it from clay.
The difference was stark. If a god’s body was made of all kinds of beautiful and hard metals, a human’s body was merely something molded out of clay.
However.
“Step, step.”
I took my steps.
In the center, Darkness and I stood facing each other.
Like knights before a sacred duel.
And in the next moment.
-Flash!
He moved first.
‘He’s fast.’
It was an incredible speed that surpassed the realm of perception.
It had to be.
No authority could be used here.
The only thing that could be used was the pure Martial Power of the body.
His movement was clearly beyond the realm I could perceive.
However.
-Whoosh!
I swung my sword following my instincts and then.
“Clang!”
Sparks flew, and I felt a shock as if my palms were going to tear.
“Oh?”
To my right blind spot. Darkness was swinging his massive greatsword there.
He looked quite surprised, perhaps not expecting me to block it but that was only for a moment.
“Let’s see how much you can struggle.”
His onslaught began.
-Swish!
He disappeared from my sight in an instant.
I couldn’t keep up with that rapid movement.
Therefore, what I needed was ‘a prediction like foresight.’
I analyzed the enemy’s path of movement through predictions honed over a long time.
-Slash!
I swung the sword in my hand.
“Clang!”
It unfailingly blocked the trajectory of the greatsword.
However.
-Drip….
My palms tore, and blood flowed.
“Is that all? A human body is truly nothing but weak.”
A deep smile formed on Darkness’s lips as he sensed victory.
But did he know?
Even though my palms were torn, I was blocking all of his attacks.
Despite the significant difference in our physical bodies, he had not actually succeeded in landing a fatal blow and after a while.
“Clang!”
After another attack was blocked, Darkness stopped his assault.
“Why…?”
Only then did he realize.
His attacks were not landing.
He wasn’t utilizing his superior body or the significant difference at all.
“It’s simple.”
And I informed him of the reality.
“Lack of experience.”
Physical body?
It was true that his body, made from divine will, was overwhelming.
But would a god ever have a reason to use that body?
Not at all.
A god’s power, his Rank, comes from authority.
He can annihilate any being he wishes just by flicking a finger.
There is no reason to use the power of the body when such authority and ability are available.
Therefore, those beings have no experience.
They have no form or technique for how to properly use a body.
But I am different.
I endured for 1,000 years with this weak body.
Of course, I obtained divine aura, Magical Power, and divine Rank.
But the foundation of all those things was, in the end, the physical body.
There is one immutable law: if the foundation is not properly established, it will not last long.
Knowing that, I never skipped my training under any circumstances.
Like iron that becomes stronger as it is hammered.
“Even something that is a mere piece of iron becomes steel if it is hammered and hammered again.”
Although it wasn’t hammered by a master smith, it was a body that had undergone repeated refinement for 1,000 years.
It would not succumb to something like the body of Darkness, which had no experience and not even a speck of weight in its martial arts.
“How dare you!”
Did he not want to admit it?
Or was he trying not to admit it?
I didn’t know the reason.
In a state of extreme excitement, he rushed in at a speed even faster than before.
-Whooooosh!
-Swish, swish!
Movements that left afterimages.
A distortion of countless afterimages where I couldn’t tell which was real and which was fake.
It was simply the power of the body.
They were phantom images created by ultra-high-speed movement.
They moved so fast that all of them looked real — a combination of hundreds, thousands of them.
“Die!”
Darkness was certain of my death.
Indeed, it was impossible to identify the real one among so many afterimages and receive that attack with this weak body.
Certainly, his choice was excellent.
Except for one thing.
“Did you not even know the basics, that excessive excitement is forbidden during battle?”
That excitement is forbidden during battle is like a law that must be followed.
But why?
It’s because excitement makes one’s movements larger and reveals one’s emotions as they are.
Pupils.
The direction of the arms.
The position of the feet.
The trembling of the muscles.
And even the path created by the runaway emotions.
Through all of that, I read his next move.
What is needed after clearly reading the trajectory of the attack?
A counter.
His thrust…
-Slice!
It grazed my side as it passed.
Was the prediction wrong?
No, the prediction was accurate but his body was significantly and overwhelmingly superior to mine.
Therefore, to create a gap for an attack, I had to move minimally.
No, even minimal evasion was not enough.
I purposefully gave up my skin.
I sacrificed my side to create that gap of 1 centimeter, that thread-like opening.
Since I gave up the skin, all that remained was to take the opponent’s bone.
-Stab!