Episode 636
[What in the world…]
Rumble―
Just as the flames of execution were about to strike Atlas, time came to a halt, freezing everything in place.
Even Raguel, who had lived through countless eons, couldn’t help but be taken aback by this sudden suspension of time. The power to control time was a domain forbidden even to the likes of him and other celestial beings.
Before the bewildered Raguel, a shadow flickered, revealing Zeke.
Sizzle―
Zeke had employed the unique space known as the “Chamber of Time,” a power he had gained by absorbing Siemens Apollyon.
By using the Chamber of Time, Zeke could stop time within a fixed area for a certain duration. As a result, everything within this space was frozen, except for Zeke and Raguel.
Drawing Raguel into this temporal space, Zeke’s eyes gleamed sharply. He pointed his sword, Levatein, at Raguel and spoke.
“So, you called me a mere human, did you?”
In an instant, Zeke consumed a massive amount of karma to activate his overclock function.
Vroooom!
A radiant spectrum of light burst forth from his body, unleashing the divine powers of both the “Transcender of Walls” and the “Impartial Guide of Suffering.”
Rumble!
Raguel, inhabiting the body of an angel, squinted his amber eyes at the extraordinary power Zeke wielded.
[How does a mere human possess the power of a celestial?]
Zeke narrowed his eyes at Raguel’s words.
‘As I suspected, Arthur Draker and the celestials of the Thirteen Constellations aren’t in communication.’
If Arthur Draker had been in close contact with the celestials of the Thirteen Constellations and had devised a plan, Raguel would surely have known about Zeke. Yet, Raguel, possessing an angel’s body, seemed to regard Zeke as nothing more than a trivial human, unaware that he had absorbed the soul of the Arrogant Savior and become a new overlord.
Vroooom!
Without a word, Zeke unleashed his divine power, channeling it into Levatein and Ascalon. The two swords, infused with vibrant energy, whirled around Zeke as if they were alive.
Watching this, Raguel spoke in a low voice.
[You impudent human. No matter how you struggle, your insignificant fate will not change.]
To him, humans were like livestock raised in the pasture of the material world. No matter how powerful they became, they were still livestock. Thus, even upon witnessing Zeke’s divine power, Raguel felt no real threat.
Zeke intended to exploit Raguel’s arrogance.
Whoosh!
The two swords, charged with divine power, flew swiftly toward the angel.
Boom!
Raguel, borrowing the body of his avatar, summoned even greater power.
Fwoosh!
Flaming swords appeared before his avatar.
[Foolish being! Kneel before the great power of the divine!]
With those words, the flaming swords shot forward.
Whoosh!
The fiery swords clashed with the two swords Zeke had launched, creating a massive explosion in the air.
Boom!
The collision of these divine-infused swords sent shockwaves rippling in all directions.
Rumble!
The shockwaves were so intense that they threatened to distort parts of the unique space.
Sizzle―
Even with time frozen, the shockwaves affected the surroundings, shattering the landscape.
Boom!
Raguel’s flaming swords created a massive storm of fire, engulfing the swords Zeke had sent.
Rumble!
Raguel assumed that Zeke’s swords couldn’t withstand his power and had melted away.
Just as he was about to strike Zeke’s main body, a radiant light pierced through the storm of flames.
Vroooom!
Levatein and Ascalon, emitting a brilliant spectrum of light, sliced through the fiery storm and flew toward the angel inhabited by Raguel.
Boom―
The flaming swords dissipated, and the two radiant swords flew straight at the angel.
Startled, Raguel spread his wings.
Fwoosh!
Flames erupted from his wings, pouring toward the incoming swords.
[How dare you aim a blade at a celestial! Insolent!]
His voice, filled with anger, echoed loudly.
Fwoosh!
The flames surged with a ferocity that seemed capable of burning the entire world.
Yet, even within the flames, the swords gleamed, cutting through the fire and revealing themselves.
Whoosh!
In an instant, Ascalon and Levatein pierced through the angel’s wings.
Boom!
The swords left gaping holes in the flaming wings.
[Aaargh!]
Though it was the avatar that was attacked, Raguel, directly possessing the avatar, felt the pain acutely.
Like most celestials, Raguel had rarely been attacked by beings of the material world. Especially for someone as powerful as Raguel, among the Thirteen Constellations, the idea of being attacked by a lower being was unthinkable.
As Raguel hesitated in shock, Zeke spoke.
“For all your talk of divinity, you’re not much. Even your flames are just warm.”
Fwoosh!
With his wings pierced and Zeke’s direct insult, Raguel was consumed by a fierce rage.
[You wretched human!]
Fwoosh!
The flames on the avatar’s wings, now with holes, flared even more intensely.
Having been attacked by a human he considered no more than an insect, his fury was indescribable.
Observing this, Zeke was convinced that Raguel was similar in nature to Ramiel, the celestial of the Scorpion Constellation he had previously sealed.
‘Celestials are vulnerable to provocation compared to humans.’
In battles between humans, strategy and cunning were crucial. However, in the demon realm, except for Mephistopheles, fallen celestials typically settled disputes through direct displays of power.
Zeke realized that the celestial realm, ruled by the Thirteen Constellations, was similar, and planned to exploit Raguel’s ‘human-like’ tendencies to create an opening.
Rumble!
Raguel’s avatar summoned intense flames, recreating the fiery spear he had intended to use against Atlas.
Crackle―
The celestial power concentrated in the spear was so immense that it visibly distorted the surrounding dimension. If not careful, Zeke’s “Chamber of Time” could shatter.
Raguel raised the flaming spear and shouted at Zeke.
[I will obliterate your primitive soul in an instant!]
With a roar of fury, the flaming spear shot toward Zeke.
Boom!
Unlike before, when it soared into the sky and fell, this time the spear flew directly at Zeke.
Zeke stared at the blazing spear, which seemed capable of incinerating his very soul. He needed to dodge or counterattack, yet he remained still.
Then, astonishingly, he calmly reached out toward the spear that was nearly upon him.
Fwoosh!
Zeke grasped the flaming spear of execution with his bare hand.
Vroooom!
A radiant spectrum of divine power emanated from Zeke’s entire body as he held the spear. Despite this, the flames continued to envelop him, attempting to burn him.
Raguel was bewildered to see Zeke catch the spear with his bare hand. In all his eons, he had never seen anyone seize his power like this.
Raguel’s face twisted with newfound anger and humiliation.
[Burn! Burn that insolent, arrogant soul to ashes!]
With Raguel’s cry, the flames in Zeke’s grasp flared even more fiercely.
Fwoosh!
Holding the surging flames, Zeke invoked the power of the Elemental Sword’s Fire Domain.
Vroooom!
He opened the Fire Domain, intending to absorb the flames trying to consume him.
At that moment, a third eye appeared on his forehead, activating his unique powers of Absolute Dominion and Infinite Breakthrough simultaneously.
Rumble!
Zeke infused his power into the raging flames in his hand.
Fwoosh!
The flames resisted, flaring a deeper crimson in defiance of Zeke’s power.
Then, Zeke gripped the spear with both hands and shouted.
“Raven!”
In response to his call, Raven emerged from his shoulder.
Roar!
Affected by Zeke’s divine power, Raven, shimmering with a radiant spectrum, let out a phoenix cry, spread its wings, and soared, wrapping around Zeke and devouring the surging flames.
Sizzle―
As Raven consumed the flames, the spear in Zeke’s grasp struggled more violently.
Zeke used his power to suppress the spear, attempting to seize its source while his third eye delved into the flames’ origin.
Sizzle―
Gradually, the flames that had sought to consume Zeke began to subside.
The spear of crimson flame, once firmly gripped in Zeke’s hand, began to shimmer and transform.
Whoosh!
In an instant, the spear vanished, replaced by a sword forged from pure fire, now held tightly in Zeke’s grasp.
[The power of Raguel, ‘Crimson Flame,’ has been subjugated by the unique powers ‘Absolute Dominion’ and ‘Infinite Breakthrough.’]
[The subjugated power ‘Crimson Flame’ has been restructured with the power ‘Recreation.’]
[You have acquired the power ‘Crimson Flame.’]
[The power ‘Flame Transformation’ evolves into ‘Crimson Flame.’]
Zeke nodded as he read the messages that appeared before him. He had successfully subjugated the power of Raguel, the celestial of the Libra constellation, and claimed it as his own.
Raguel, witnessing the fierce blaze of the crimson sword in Zeke’s hand, stammered in disbelief.
[H-How is this possible…?]
The executioner’s flame was a unique power bestowed upon Raguel by the primordial light. The thought of a mere human mimicking such a power was intolerable to him.
Determined to obliterate Zeke, Raguel fully possessed his angelic avatar with his own soul.
Crackle!
Ordinarily, Raguel’s divine nature would prevent him from intervening in the physical realm. However, as an angel of the apocalypse, enhanced by the twisted causality, he could now descend directly into the world.
Crackle!
Dark energy crackled from the angel’s body, and the avatar began to change. It grew larger, and the once statue-like surface burst with radiant light, forming a halo above its head.
Vroooom!
Raguel’s divine presence, now manifest in the physical realm, emitted a blinding light. The power was so immense that the surrounding dimensions began to warp, threatening to tear apart the very fabric of reality.
Zeke sensed the presence of dark matter, the source of the twisted causality, within the angelic avatar possessed by Raguel’s soul.
‘Arthur Draker must have planted that within the angel’s body… But how did he create such a thing, and how did he learn to do it?’
The mystery of Arthur Draker’s methods remained unsolved, but the crucial fact was that he could use this power to summon all the celestials of the thirteen constellations into the physical realm.
Vroooom!
Raguel, now fully descended into the avatar, glared at Zeke, his halo shining brilliantly. The avatar no longer resembled a statue but had transformed into a being akin to a Nephilim.
Raguel unfurled massive wings of light, a radiant halo hovering behind his head, and flames of light blazed fiercely from his arms.
【The sin of mocking a god is unforgivable.】
Raguel’s divine voice, resonating through the physical realm, reached Zeke directly. For an ordinary human, the sheer disparity in power would have been overwhelming, causing their mind to shatter and collapse in a bloody heap.
Yet Zeke remained unfazed by Raguel’s divine words. He raised the crimson sword high and spoke defiantly.
“Unforgivable, you say, for mocking a god.”
The executioner’s flame surged powerfully from the sword he held.
Whoosh!
Amidst the roaring flames, Zeke fixed his gaze on Raguel and declared, “Then perhaps it’s better to kill a god. If forgiveness is out of reach, after all.”