“That fool is a dim-witted leader who follows the Radius Sect! Kill him!”
“The light of deceit will vanish beneath the true darkness!”
“Why must you call him a dim-witted leader? Just say he is our enemy!”
Jared shook his head as he watched the members of the Umbra Sect relentlessly charge at him, no fear in their eyes. Even as their comrades fell to fiery spells or were torn apart right before them, they continued to advance without hesitation.
Initially, Jared used Transcendence Magic to assert his dominance in battle. When he unleashed the Sextuple Transcendence Magic Missile, it turned the battlefield into chaos. Consuming six thousand mana, the enhanced magic missiles rained down like blades of wind from the sky.
Jared understood how fleeting life was as he unleashed this magic. While a regular magic missile could create five wind orbs, the sextuple version produced three hundred and twenty! Everyone’s eyes widened in disbelief. What Jared had displayed was a form of magic never before seen in this world.
“A rootless magic!” one dying member of the Umbra Sect screamed, his voice echoing in Jared’s ears. It was true; this was magic that only one person in this world could perform. The missiles fell like rain, sharp and nearly impossible to track with the eye.
The Double Transcendence Lightning Arrow unleashed a torrent of electric arrows from all directions. The unfortunate truth was that the ordinary magic defenses of the Umbra Sect members couldn’t withstand Jared’s overwhelming wisdom and power.
“If I fall back, Cleus will surely kill me.”
“Better to perish instantly at Jared’s hands than to die cruelly at the hands of Lord Cleus.”
“What tremendous power! Is Cleus really sane for targeting a territory with such a wizard?”
One by one, the members of the Umbra Sect succumbed to despair, surprise, and resentment as they fell before Jared.
The battle itself was an unbalanced one. They could only hope to throw a few daggers at Jared, but those were easily blocked by his shield. It was lucky if they managed even that. As Jared altered his trajectory with the Dimension Door spell, sometimes the daggers he threw would come right back to him; in those cases, it was clearly a suicidal action.
“Just let me live…” echoed the empty cries of the members as they vanished into nothingness amidst the screams from all around them.
“Good.”
Right before the battle began, with a swift motion, I sprinkled some glitter dust magic upon Cleus. This was one of my favorite tricks from Paradiso to counter Cleus’ ability to create clones. Though his duplications were dazzling, they lacked detail.
Especially, he had a significant weakness: changes in his body that he wasn’t aware of would not reflect in his clones. To leave a mark, one typically needed to use something to smear, tear, or cut… Few users could manage this task with ease.
However, after years of effort, I mastered using the glitter dust in minimal amounts, allowing me to lightly coat just a few grains.
“I can see it.”
Though there weren’t many, the glimmering golden dots were certainly noticeable. Since the dust clung to the epaulettes of my clothing, it was hidden from his view even when he looked down.
Just before clashing with Cleus, I confirmed his stats with my discerning gaze.
[Cleus – Lv. 235]
[Strength: 526]
[Health: 209]
[Mana: 179]
[Wisdom: 51]
[Agility: 443]
[Charm: 31]
[Physical Defense: 139]
[Magical Defense: 149]
[Special Traits: Transcendence Clone Technique SS / Extreme Healing A / Residual Shadow A]
[General Traits: Evangelism, Terrorism, Murder]
[Holds Artifact ‘Dagger of Annihilation’.]
[Holds Artifact ‘Ring of Absolute Weakness’.]
“A dagger that maximizes the power of critical hits, and a ring that shreds physical and magical defenses without regard for buffs. A dream combination—at least for the enemy.”
A bitter smile crept across my face. The Ring of Absolute Weakness ignored all buffs, applying debuffs first. That meant Cleus’s physical and magical defenses would be severely lowered before any buffs could take effect.
“Do you have time to just watch, Jared?”
Swish! Swish!
Cleus closed the distance in the blink of an eye, summoning twenty clones in a flourish. Cleus’ clone technique was almost a unique ability rather than mere magic, so dispelling it would be futile.
“Killing him would be best, but if that isn’t possible, I must at least take that ring.”
I licked my lips at the thought of his ring. With an option that reduced area defenses, it would give me considerable strength in multi-enemy skirmishes. Besides, it was a seven-star artifact, worth ten thousand gold coins in physical value—a tempting prize indeed.
At that moment, Cleus, who had been circling to find an opening, shouted, “What are you staring at foolishly!”
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Twenty clones wielding daggers effectively clouded my vision.
“Teleport.”
But I was certain of which figure was the real Cleus. Staying calm, I teleported behind him, undistracted by the dazzling movements of the clones.
“Huh?”
In an instant, Cleus seemed to realize something was amiss, his voice reflecting a mix of confusion and alarm.
“Ugh!”
Grabbing Cleus by the nape, I employed Transcendence Telekinesis to hurl him away with all my might. This was brutal magic that used five thousand mana, instilling tremendous gravitational force upon him.
According to a report from a user who experimented with the Transcendence level of Telekinesis back in Paradiso, a single Transcendence would impose a gravity acceleration of up to 8G. Despite significant training, this might easily lead to a brief blackout or fainting.
Just then!
As I pulled Cleus away, I seized his right middle finger. The Ring of Absolute Weakness was securely fastened there!
With a determined grip, I pulled!
“Argh!”
As magic force propelled Cleus away, fingers would inevitably break and tear within my fierce grasp.
Blood sprayed in red lines from the tips of Cleus’s fingers as he was thrown far away.
“Thanks for the gift.”
Waving my hand generously at the distant Cleus, I smoothly slipped the ring onto my left hand.
[Ring of Absolute Weakness]
[Category Rating: 7-Star]
[Option 1: Reduce physical defense of all individuals within a 10m radius by 50%]
[Option 2: Reduce magical defense of all individuals within a 10m radius by 50%]
[Option 3: Temporarily adds one-tenth of the reduced enemy defense stats from Options 1 and 2 to physical and magical defense.]
[Option 4: Increases physical defense by 100]
[Option 5: Increases magical defense by 100]
[Option 6: Absolute Dispel – Temporarily sets all defense values of the designated enemy to 0 for 10 seconds. Cooldown: 24 hours]
[Option 7: Heart Tracker - Can upgrade this ring to 9-star with the heart of the fallen angel Gaznela.]
“Ongoing debuffs are always useful!”
I cheered internally. In fact, I was more surprised at how easily I had managed to snatch the ring from Cleus.
“…”
Before long, Cleus returned with a look of utter shock on his face, trying hard to suppress his anger, yet failing miserably at it!
I asked, “Do you have anything to say?”
“I’ve experienced Telekinesis many times before, but I’ve never faced such nonsensical strength!”
Indeed, Cleus’s bloodshot eyes betrayed his fury. Due to the unexpected gravity, though his mind held firm, his body couldn’t cope.
“So?”
“Where in the world does your power come from? Is there a being in the Radius Sect who shares power or makes contracts?”
“Just because you think it’s cowardly to gain power doesn’t mean others do too.”
“What?”
“The battle isn’t over yet. If you kill me, all those offerings will be yours. Don’t you think that should motivate you to fight harder?”
With that, I openly provoked Cleus. Nine years later, when the Holy Demon War broke out in Paradiso, Cleus would indeed be the embodiment of terror. But right now, he felt blunt, like a poorly honed blade.
‘Should I target that guy as well?’
I glanced at Cleus’s tightly gripped Dagger of Annihilation. A dagger that turned every attack into a guaranteed critical hit, amplifying maximum damage by fifteen times. It was the perfect frightening artifact to realize the phrase, “You’re already dead,” at the moment of impact.
“I didn’t want to reveal my hidden power…”
But the sound of “that flag” definitely resonated, whether he was aware of it or not.
“In the last dozen years, no one who has witnessed my body transformation has lived to tell the tale.”
The flags had been planted; it was only unfortunate that I knew exactly what power Cleus intended to unleash and how he would transform.
Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.
Before his words finished, changes erupted across Cleus’s entire body. Like witnessing the Hulk, Cleus’s slender figure quickly expanded, transforming into a muscular monster.
“Transcendence Dimension Door.”
I too prepared to respond immediately. I had a strategy mapped in my mind, refined in the seas of experience gained over countless battles in Paradiso.
Consuming four thousand mana, I summoned ten dimension doors simultaneously with instinctive precision. I knew where each door connected, where they would exit, and that understanding filled my mind.
‘With two thousand mana left, a Prayer to Mudidus will allow me to refill completely. Assuming I keep some mana in reserve, I can instantly access eight thousand for Transcendence use.’
I swiftly calculated. Allowing Cleus any leeway would not end well. I could certainly distinguish the genuine clone, but if his movement speed increased, I might just lose track of his real position.
‘Then…’
I resolved to strike Cleus with a deadly blow and quell the fervor and passion of the dark sect that was rampaging like a runaway train.
And in the next moment!
With a whoosh, I created twenty fire arrows, forming a semicircle around my form.
Double Flame Arrow.
This was the surest means to send Cleus directly to the inferno.
Chapter 93