Free Web NovelChapter 384 (2): Could You Swallow All?
The Great Sage had entered a vegetative state, his body completely Solsknar’s to use. Since it wasn’t his own body, it felt awkward and restrictive, preventing him from unleashing his full power. To increase his output, he had no choice but to draw more of his thoughts to descend.
He could sense that Wayne had reached his limit. Solsknar could secure victory by pushing himself a little further.
He saw Wayne as his archenemy on his way to godhood. The Goddess of Darkness had arranged for him a rival with greater devouring power. His only advantage was that he had become a demigod earlier than Wayne. If he didn’t utilize his advantage now, the moment Wayne caught up with him was the moment he faced his failure.
Roooar—
The giant of darkness raised his arms and roared, wielding a spear of lightning and a shield of gale in each hand. The magnificent, towering body marched across the black sludge.
Black lightning struck down from the sky, stirring up storms mid-air. Black sludge came to cover the entire land. A complete vitality domain was about to take shape.
Wayne sensed a danger. Solsknar was more powerful than he had anticipated, with seemingly infinite power with no perceivable limit. Though Solsknar was only a demigod, a rank higher than a legendary mage, he made Wayne feel in danger like a god.
Moreover, Solsknar had only descended with his thoughts—not even his full thoughts. Wayne reconsidered his evaluation of gods and adjusted his perception of subordinate gods.
He couldn’t afford to dwell on it during the fight, though. With a growl, he raised Extraordinary Extolment above his head, gathering blinding lightning and unleashing violent gusts, stirring up ripples in space.
Destructive energy gathered in his hand. Powerful wind enveloped lightning tightly, contracting and compressing the plasma into a white glowing orb. Every stray current tore snaking black cracks into space.
Seleucia gulped quietly. Such incredible lightning energy was beyond her even at her peak. This...
Brain, get to work!
She finally came to a realization after her brain went into overdrive. Sophisticated uses of Laws were nothing but parlor tricks. Like a tree with the branches cut off, the ultimate truth could be explained in a couple of sentences. The simple truth might seem rudimentary, but it was the most fundamental interpretation of Laws. The derivative skills were counterproductive. While they seemed like skills based on the understanding of Laws, taking one step further from the fundamentals, they actually twisted the truth.
Thunder was thunder, and storm was storm. Pure violence didn’t need spectacle to dress it up...
Seleucia nodded to herself with the light of Storm and Thunder flickering in her eyes. “I understand now, Boss!”
Below, Solsknar halted, surprised by the powerful energy Wayne controlled. Through the rudimentary appearance, he saw the mountainous accumulation of Laws in its essence. He hadn’t mocked Wayne for his elementary use of Laws, but was instead surprised by Wayne’s learning speed.
So his use of power was elementary, so what? Some people were still in kindergarten[1]!
Solsknar was stuck in the kindergarten himself. It had been a while since he acquired the Laws of Thunder and Storm, and he had studied them diligently. However, he was only able to use a small part of the Laws. While it seemed like he was able to unleash earthshattering power with a wave, it was in essence because of his Darkness.
The surprise struck Solsknar like an epiphany. “Thunder doesn’t suit me. I should devour something else...”
With an impassive face, he watched as the storm carried thunder into the sky. The expanding sphere of lightning hung high like a sun, distorting space wildly with devastating power.
“You repeatedly riled me up and lured me to bring more of my thoughts to the human world... because you have the same goal. You want to wipe out your rival fully.”
Solsknar figured out his plan. He was glad that he had come to the realization before it was too late, or the consequences would be dire.
He took a deep breath and looked at the Divine Domain of Storm and Thunder with yearning. The Divine Domain that he had personally unearthed ended up becoming Wayne’s home turf, giving him the ability to erase Solsknar.
He couldn’t stay!
Solsknar unhesitantly sent his thoughts flooding back to the Divine Realm of Darkness. “You’re a good rival. You have power and a strategic mind. I almost stepped into your trap...”
“Today’s your only chance to defeat me. The next time we meet will be the day of your death!”
His eyes gleamed with shimmering red light, no longer containing Storm and Thunder. Though he was reluctant, he still chose to give up the two divine powers, deciding to look for Laws that were more compatible with him.
Hell!!
He originated from the Abyss, and Hell was the ideal place for the Devourer to reach godhood.
“But I’m not going to just hand the Laws over. Let me give you a little gift. I hope you’ll like it...”
Solsknar’s lips twisted into a smile. He reforged himself into the massive black python once more. Opening his massive maw, he spat out the Darkness-drenched obelisk. Thunder and Storm, locked and restricted by evil chains, became dim and colorless.
Not good enough!
“Hahahaha—”
Mist of Darkness spread from the black python’s head. Within it was a distorted demonic face. Solsknar showed his original appearance. The thousand-meter-long snake rose with the black mist, opening his mouth to swallow the Storm and Thunder in the sky.
Wayne frowned, confused why his opponent was suddenly committing suicide.
“Could you really swallow all of the Laws on your own?” Wayne didn’t understand, but he decided to respect Solsknar’s choice. Raising Extraordinary Extolment, he guided lightning as blindingly bright as the sun toward the ground.
Currents shot out with escalating power, painting an apocalyptic scene. Compared to the sun, Solsknar’s snake body was as insignificant as an earthworm. Even if he could swallow the sun, he couldn’t digest it.
He would explode!
The noises of flesh tearing and bone breaking resounded as the black python disintegrated in the air. Ink-like Darkness wove into a large web, connecting the scattered flesh and increasing the snake’s size to a terrifying magnitude.
The snake’s all-enveloping mouth opened wide, swallowing the sphere of currents in one gulp under Wayne’s amazed gaze.
“Boom!”
Boom!
The first boom was a sound made by Wayne, and the second was the sound of silver lightning parting air and detonating space, shattering part of the Divine Domain and rendering it into the most basic earth, fire, water, and wind elements.
Shockwaves of powerful, howling air currents hit. Scorching lightning evaporated the land and sea as violent winds swept and shook the world. Trembling land whined under the devastation. In the center of the energy field, a black vortex spun. Four-colored elemental particles leaked out of the cracks on the fringe.
Solsknar, having turned into black mist, stood right at the heart of the vortex, looking down at his masterpiece. A strand of his thoughts forged a way out and carried his voice to Wayne.
“You’re competent and smart enough to be a candidate for subordinate god. The goddess has never misjudged a talent. I admit that you’re a powerful rival whom I must go all in to defeat.”
“Thanks to you, I found my own path. The next time we meet, I’ll crush your thoughts with my own hands as a gesture of the highest respect!”
While he spoke, the last of his thoughts scattered, preventing Wayne from making a final hit at him. Solsknar the Devourer had returned to the Divine Realm.
(一`´一)
Wayne was completely confused. He couldn’t figure out what Solsknar was talking about even with his own brain, let alone with Seleucia’s.
“Path, respect, the goddess judging a talent?”
“You don’t know how lewd your goddess has been. If I hadn’t struggled so hard...”
Wayne huffed, returning to his human form. He easily hurled Extraordinary Extolment toward the sky, which Seleucia rushed over and caught in a flash.
He stroked his chin. She reminded him of Do.
“Boss, what did he mean by subordinate god? Your test for me is a little too complicated,” Seleucia complained. She wanted to skip all the boring cutscenes and get right to the boss fight.
“If you can’t figure it out, you don’t have to try. I’ll help you when the time comes.” Wayne patted her on the shoulder, pointing at the spot where Solsknar had disappeared. “He’ll be your enemy in the next phase. Work hard. The next time he shows up, take his head and give it to me.”
Seleucia nodded vehemently, her eyes following Wayne’s finger. “Boss, the Divine Domain has been destroyed, and he sealed up the Laws.”
After Solsknar spat out the obelisk, he had corrupted it with the Seven Deadly Sins of Hell and used the lightning sphere’s explosion to imbue the Divine Domain with his Darkness, corrupting the Laws of Thunder and Storm a second time.
Laws themselves wouldn’t be corrupted, but it would take a long time to sort out the hodgepodge of Darkness, Hell, Thunder, and Storm.
It was Solsknar’s surprise gift to Wayne right before his departure. He was probably still laughing about it.
“Boss, is that a test for me, too?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll work hard—”
“You don’t have to. I can deal with it.”
Wayne closed his eyes and turned his limbs into dripping white foam. In no more than a few seconds, he conjured a pale ocean to wash over the Divine Domain, plundering the four elements and the information of the four Laws.
The demon had given him two additional gifts right before departing. What a generous demon he was! Angels, on the other hand, always scowled at him and cursed, “bastard,” “scumbag,” and “shameless”...
The Divine Domain’s broken parts in the sky needed to be mended with the four elements. Wayne glanced at the Book of Greed, which looked back at him. The book would never return what it had eaten.
Wayne conjured some white foam to fill the hole with the vitality of an Astral life.
“Boss, are you going to build your own Divine Realm here?” Seleucia looked at the hole filled by the white foam. In a devoted tone, she suggested, “I have a sky palace that can fill the hole.”
“Seleucia, you’re... extraordinary,” Wayne patted her and praised her because he didn’t know what else to say.
Her eyes curved in an innocent smile. She didn’t even intend to hide her joy.
Wayne couldn’t bear to look at her because it made him feel too guilty. Packaging the information on Thunder and Storm that he had collected, he shoved the packet into Seleucia’s body.
“Boss, there’s too much. I can’t take all of it...”
“Don’t underestimate yourself. Your body has already been reshaped by me. You can take as much as you want!” Wayne pulled back and pointed at the Divine Domain. “There’s still a strand of Sett’s thoughts remaining. Go and kill him—come back. I’m not done yet.”
Once Seleucia returned, he continued, “This Divine Domain will be yours. Study the Laws well. I need you to become powerful as quickly as possible.”
Seleucia nodded. If she didn’t improve quickly, it would be difficult for her to keep pace with her faith.
Then she realized what he had just said. “Boss, the Divine Domain will be mine?”
“Yeah. Do you think I’d need it?”
Right.
Seleucia blushed. Her faith was able to manipulate reality with a wave and killed Sett with Sett being none the wiser about his cause of death. Even now, Sett thought that he had been defeated by Heaven. Of course Wayne would have no use for the Divine Domain.
“You’re so kind to me, Boss!” Seleucia’s eyes reddened. She remembered the years she remained in hopeless slumber. If only she had met Wayne earlier.
“You... You’re working for me, of course I’m not going to mistreat...” Wayne couldn’t go on. “Stop. My chest hurts.”
“I’ll rub it for you.”
“Don’t. Just rub yourself.” He waved her away, too weighed down by guilt to take advantage of her.
“Oh, what are you rubbing? Have I interrupted something?”
Ines emerged from a portal with a hint of smile in her voice, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear seductively.
1. The original is a pun between ‘rough (cao)’ and ‘fuck (cao)’. I’ve considered retaining the original innuendo with “So he’s rough, so what? Some people can’t even go rough (fuck)!” But it reads a bit awkward and confusing. ☜
