Chapter161-Just One Bottle
When Daniel reappeared before Charles, the latter stared at him in stunned disbelief.
Seeing the expression on Charles' face, Daniel gave a faint, amused smile.
"Don't look so surprised. I'm just here to ask for a little help."
At the mention of the word help, Charles's face immediately grew guarded.
As a seasoned merchant, he had a core principle—never do a deal that loses money. And as for helping someone for free? That wasn't even in his vocabulary. Not even his own father would receive such a favor.
"I'm sorry, Daniel," Charles replied with a serious tone. "You know I'm a businessman. Since our last transaction has been completed, I won't be offering any additional assistance. Not for free."
Daniel raised an eyebrow, his smile unfazed.
"What if I pay you?"
The moment the word "pay" left Daniel's mouth, Charles's expression transformed like magic. A flirtatious smile spread across his face, his eyes practically glowing.
It was as if the word "money" had a natural magnetism for him—irresistible and intoxicating.
"Well, if you're looking to purchase something, then that's a whole different matter entirely! Esteemed customer, please tell me, what do you need?"
Daniel didn't beat around the bush. He spoke plainly, his voice calm and direct.
"I need a potion capable of putting a level 200 or higher lifeform into a deep sleep."
"Preferably something that takes effect within thirty seconds. If it can be time-delayed, even better."
"Besides that, I also need another type of sleep-inducing agent—something that can affect a wide area and put weaker, low-level creatures into slumber. This one must have a timed-release function."
Charles's smile faded slightly as he processed the request. He wasn't a fool—in fact, he was exceptionally perceptive. Hearing those specifications, he already had a good idea of what Daniel was planning.
"Daniel, you really are clever," Charles said thoughtfully. "If you manage to put all the Artists to sleep, that would certainly allow you to move through the city safely and without resistance."
In Charles' mind, Daniel was probably trying to figure out how to sneak into the City of the Artists.
After all, the place was heavily guarded by god-forged constructs. There was no way to simply walk in unnoticed... unless he possessed a god-level concealment ability.
But that was divine-level magic. How could someone like Daniel possibly possess that?
Still, without overthinking it, Charles gave his response.
"Esteemed customer, I can fulfill both your requests."
"This is a concoction passed down from the Sleeping Goddess herself. It's called the Sleeping Potion. This potion is potent enough to knock even a level 200+ being into unconsciousness. Best of all, with the right complementary mixture, it can be configured for timed deployment."
"How many bottles would you like to purchase?"
Daniel looked at him, expression steady.
"Just one bottle."
One... bottle?
Charles froze. He stared at Daniel as if he had misheard him.
Surely he was joking, right? There were over a hundred million Artists in the city. What good would one bottle do against such numbers?
"Esteemed customer," Charles began carefully, "I'm afraid a single bottle of sleeping potion might not be sufficient."
"Oh?" Daniel raised an eyebrow, feigning curiosity. "Then how many do you recommend I buy?"
"At the very least, ten thousand bottles. No, scratch that—one million bottles would be ideal!"
Daniel's brow twitched.
Ally was absolutely right—this Charles was a total swindler. A grade-A conman.
Sure, Daniel wasn't short on money. In fact, he had so much wealth that he couldn't spend it fast enough.
But that didn't mean he enjoyed being taken for a fool.
Especially not when it came to devotees of the Luck Goddess.
Given the way the Luck Goddess treated him, he had developed a particular distaste for her followers.
"I said one bottle. Are you selling it or not?"
Faced with Daniel's unwavering tone, Charles hesitated.
He seemed genuinely conflicted.
After a brief silence, he finally replied.
"If you insist on buying only one... it'll cost at least one hundred million gold coins."
"Of course," Charles added quickly, "if you buy in bulk, I can give you a significant discount."
"No need," Daniel responded coolly.
He reached into his inventory and handed Charles a full stack of one hundred million gold coins.
Just like that. No bargaining, no second thought.
Charles was stunned.
Was this guy for real?
One bottle? That's it?
What on earth was he planning? Did he think he could reverse-engineer the Sleeping Goddess's formula from a single sample?
Even if Daniel managed to break it down—and that was a massive "if"—he wouldn't have access to the rare materials needed to recreate it.
Still unwilling to give up, Charles made one last attempt.
"Esteemed customer, if you buy a pack of ten bottles, I can offer a 50% discount."
"Just five hundred million gold coins! A much better deal than paying one hundred million for just one!"
Daniel, however, was already laughing inwardly.
[Gift of the Veiled Goddess] ensured that consumable items wouldn't be depleted.
In theory, that meant as long as he had a single unit of any item—be it a potion, a scroll, or food—it was as if he had an infinite supply.
So why in the world would he pay an extra four hundred million gold coins just to own nine more useless duplicates?
With a shake of his head, Daniel rejected the offer firmly.
"No. Just one bottle."
Charles sighed, throwing up his hands in mock defeat.
This was the first time he'd encountered such a stubborn buyer.
But even if he only sold one, he still made an outrageous profit—ten times what the potion cost to produce.
"Very well then. Let's proceed with the transaction. No returns, no exchanges."
Daniel nodded. He took the Sleeping Potion and stored it safely.
At the same time, he quietly stowed away the Dagger of the God of Thieves.
That dagger had turned out to be an incredible asset—doubling, tripling, even multiplying his wealth tenfold with ease.
It was a gift from the God of Thieves, and Daniel couldn't help but feel a little grateful for it.
On the other side, Charles was practically giddy.
He had hit the jackpot—no question about it.
One single transaction had netted him ninety million gold coins in pure profit.
This Daniel really was something else.
No wonder even the gods had taken interest in him.
Just as Charles was ready to wrap things up and call it a day, Daniel suddenly spoke again.
"By the way, Charles. Aside from the Sleeping Potion, do you have any other rare materials in stock? I'm interested in buying a few."
That single sentence lit up Charles's face like a sunrise.
The sly, seductive smile returned instantly.
He couldn't believe his luck.
He'd just run into the biggest sucker in the world!
This man was practically made of gold!
No wonder the gods were keeping an eye on him.
He was the definition of a golden goose.
"Absolutely! Of course I do!" Charles beamed. "I swear to the gods, my inventory is the most comprehensive in existence. Tell me, what are you looking for?"
Daniel paused for a moment, then began listing off the materials he currently lacked.
He even handed Charles a written list, just to be thorough.
Most of these ingredients were so rare, they couldn't even be found in the human empire's treasure vaults. In fact, some weren't available at all—not even one unit.
Still, Daniel figured it was worth a shot. Maybe Charles would surprise him.
However, as Charles scanned through the list, his cheerful expression slowly gave way to one of grim disbelief.
What in the name of the gods were these ingredients?
The living eyeball of a god?
Was Daniel serious?
How was he supposed to get something like that?
That was divine essence—sacred material. Even if such a thing existed, it would've been long snatched up by the gods themselves.
Where was Charles supposed to find that?
From the divine black market?
Even the idea was absurd.
Chapter162-The Sucker
Charles really wanted to say it out loud—You're giving me way too much credit.
Did Daniel actually expect him to have these materials? Was he doing this on purpose just to mess with him?
Still, Charles restrained the urge to snap back. He forced a charming, deferential smile and didn't even bother looking at the rest of the list in his hand. What kind of joke was this? Many of the materials listed were ones Charles had never even heard of—and he was a seasoned merchant with access to rare goods across multiple planes.
If even he didn't recognize them, where was he supposed to magically find them?
Even for the few materials he had heard of, Charles couldn't help but feel shocked. Because these were the very materials the Luck Goddess herself had ordered him to collect.
Wait...
Could it be that Daniel was also operating under a divine order?
Was he, too, gathering these materials on behalf of a god?
While Charles was lost in this spiral of realization, Daniel's expression darkened with impatience.
"Charles," he said curtly, "do you have any of these materials or not?"
"Why aren't you saying anything? Do you think I can't afford them?"
"No, no... that's not it," Charles replied with a forced smile, "It's just... I don't have any of them in stock."
Daniel gave a snort of contempt, his eyes filled with disdain.
"Hmph. And here I thought you were supposed to be some amazing merchant. Turns out you're not that impressive after all. Forget it—won't count on you for this."
Without waiting for a reply, Daniel's figure flickered—and in the blink of an eye, he vanished.
Once Daniel was gone, Charles's face twisted with frustration and embarrassment.
Was this my fault?!
Did that man even look properly at the list he handed over? These weren't materials any sane person would ask for!
A god's eyeball?
And not just any eyeball, but a living one?
What the hell does he want me to do—pluck it out of a god's face myself?!
That was completely out of the question.
Absolutely insane!
But after the brief flash of rage passed, a wicked smile returned to Charles's face.
He looked down at the pile of gold coins Daniel had left him, and his heart was instantly soothed.
Ahhh, what a relief.
It had been years since he'd met a customer as gullible and spend-happy as Daniel.
The potion he sold was nothing special—honestly, it was practically garbage. Something that never sold well.
And yet now?
He had just sold it for a full one hundred million gold coins.
That was an outrageous profit margin. A massive win.
Charles grinned and reached down, scooping up a handful of the coins to inspect them more closely.
But as he sifted through them, he noticed something that made his heart stop.
Stamped clearly on the back of one coin were three terrifying characters: [Replica].
"...What?!"
He nearly dropped the entire pile in panic.
"You... you gave me replica coins?!"
Charles was trembling now.
That bastard had scammed him!
But... wait.
Even if they were replicas, they looked real. The weight, the luster, the metallic feel—it was indistinguishable from actual gold coins.
So... were they fake or not?
Was I scammed... or was I not scammed?
Charles clutched his chest in anguish.
"Daniel, you damned bastard...!"
He was so mad he could barely breathe. But the worst part?
There was nothing he could do about it.
The two of them had made a verbal agreement—no refunds, no exchanges.
And that line had come from his own mouth.
The realization only made him feel worse.
Damn it!
This was the first time in his entire career as a merchant that he'd been ripped off this badly by a customer!
The humiliation was unbearable.
—
The reason Daniel had used replica gold coins in the deal was quite simple.
With [Eye of Insight], he had already discerned the true value of the Sleeping Potion.
Yes, it was rare.
But its actual worth was no more than a few million gold coins at most.
Charles had clearly treated him like an idiot—trying to fleece him for a hundred million.
And Daniel wasn't the kind of person to let that slide.
Using [Flashback], he returned once more to the City of the Artists.
At this point, Daniel had become intimately familiar with the city's layout.
After several excursions and explorations, the entire place now felt like a second home to him.
In addition to his true self, Daniel had also sent multiple clones into the city to carry out operations in parallel.
He checked the Sleeping Potion again using [Eye of Insight].
—
[Sleeping Potion]
Effect 1: Induces a deep sleep in all lifeforms, regardless of level. However, if the subject senses hostility, they will awaken immediately.
Effect 2: When combined with [Silence Potion], a delayed activation effect is triggered. Upon expiration of the Silence Potion, the duration of the Sleeping Potion is doubled.
—
Daniel had already prepared a stockpile of Silence Potions in advance.
So his plan was simple: combine the two agents, deploy the mixture across the city, and ensure a timed release that would lull the entire Artist population into unconsciousness exactly when he needed it.
Once preparations were complete, Daniel didn't act immediately. Instead, he began investigating the Artists' next move.
And soon, he discovered something quite surprising.
Charles had lied to him.
The Artists had no intention of launching a direct attack using the Primordial Core Weapon—at least not against the Demon Clan, as Charles had previously claimed.
In reality, they were planning something entirely different.
Their goal was to wait for the upcoming Millennial Apocalypse—a once-every-thousand-years event.
When the Apocalypse struck and plunged the world into chaos, that's when the Artists planned to strike, delivering the killing blow while all races were weakened and vulnerable.
It would be a massacre. A true doomsday.
But on the bright side, that meant Daniel had time.
The Primordial Core Weapon wouldn't be launched any time soon.
That gave him a window to implement his own plans.
With that in mind, Daniel began covertly planting his mixed potions throughout the City of the Artists, ensuring strategic coverage in every major district.
Meanwhile, his real body made its way to the city's Central Library.
With the time he had, he intended to learn everything he could about the Artist race.
And where better to start than their most concentrated knowledge center?
Under the enhancement of his powerful mind power, Daniel's reading speed soared.
He scanned and absorbed the contents of each book with near-superhuman efficiency.
Ironically, despite calling themselves "Artists," the Artists showed very little interest in the development of actual art.
Instead, they seemed obsessed with one thing: explosions.
At first, Daniel found this baffling. But upon further thought, it all made sense.
To these twisted minds, explosions were art.
Still, Daniel was selective about what he read. He quickly skipped over unimportant or trivial books and focused only on those that offered real value.
After collecting a decent amount of knowledge—and storing all worthwhile books into his backpack—he pressed deeper into the library.
Eventually, he found a hidden entrance that led him to the Restricted Library.
Accessing this secret chamber typically required authorized credentials.
But Daniel had long since overcome that problem.
With [Gift of the Veiled Goddess], he easily bypassed every restriction and slipped into the forbidden archive undetected.
To his surprise, the Restricted Library wasn't empty.
There were several other Artists inside—each one aged, their fur grayed, and their expressions deeply wrinkled with time.
These were clearly elders.
Yet none of them reacted to Daniel's sudden arrival.
They didn't even look up.
Each one remained hunched over their desks, scribbling fervently in ancient tomes and journals.
One of them murmured in a hoarse voice, as though reciting a calculated hypothesis:
"Based on our comprehensive analysis, the human named Daniel... is currently the most dangerous threat to our existence."
Chapter163-The Busy Daniel
"Are you kidding me? They're already studying me now?"
A flicker of amusement passed through Daniel's eyes, though he didn't interrupt.
In truth, he was already one of the most discussed individuals in the entire world.
His rise had been so rapid and disruptive that it was unprecedented—even history had never seen anything quite like him.
It made perfect sense that the Artists would want to analyze him.
After all, they studied everything that had the potential to alter the balance of the world.
As Daniel turned his gaze toward the other Artists around him, he noticed their single-minded obsession with the destruction of the world.
"Perhaps the Primordial Core Weapon isn't the optimal solution. A massive explosion might be better initiated from the inside."
"Regarding artistic explosions, I believe internal implosions offer a feasible alternative."
"Proposal for new weapon research: requires Blood Moon materials. Conditions currently unavailable."
If there was anyone more serious about ending the world, it was undoubtedly the Artists.
They were a terrifying blend of rationality and madness—an entire race of highly intelligent lunatics.
Daniel knew very well that what he had seen so far was only the tip of the iceberg.
He had already snuck into one of their underground research labs earlier, and what he saw there was far more deranged than anything in their public libraries.
In short, the Artists had reached a level of pathological extremism.
They may have looked like frail, harmless gnomes on the surface, but no race in the world dared to underestimate them.
However, Daniel wasn't here to lecture or interfere. He had more pressing matters to attend to.
As he flipped through one forbidden tome after another, knowledge streamed into his mind in an efficient, condensed manner.
Before he realized it, the time he had set for himself had elapsed—but he had yet to finish reading all the forbidden books.
Due to the protective constraints placed on the Restricted Library, not even Daniel could smuggle out the books without triggering alarms.
He couldn't sneak them into his backpack, not without being noticed.
So there was only one solution: memorize them all.
[Time Stream]
Daniel opened his eyes again.
He was back at the moment of his second entry into the City of the Artists.
This time, he moved far faster than before—heading straight for the Restricted Library.
Having now explored every inch of the city, his clones could use [Flashback] to materialize at any location instantly.
Thanks to this, it took only ten minutes to deploy all the prepared potions throughout the city.
With the potion setup complete, Daniel turned to his next objectives.
One part of him returned to the library to finish memorizing the Restricted Library's contents.
Another part infiltrated the Artists' treasury—stealing rare materials and invaluable research data.
Even if he was caught, it didn't matter.
He could just use [Time Stream] again and reset the entire timeline.
No risks. No consequences.
After numerous repetitions and experiments, Daniel had fully mapped out the entirety of the Artist City and understood its inner workings in detail.
Just as the effects of the mixed potions were about to activate, Daniel used [Time Stream] once more.
This time, however, he didn't go back to loot the treasury.
Instead, he dove into the Restricted Library with total focus.
Thus began a cycle of relentless pursuit—on one hand, reading every single forbidden book; on the other, his real body journeyed across the continent on a mission of diplomacy, combat, and divine intrigue.
He made his way to Winterhold Castle, where he met with the Human Emperor.
There, he obtained a detailed map marking the locations of silver-rank World Bosses.
After securing that information, he traveled to the Elven Kingdom, where, through Alice's arrangement, he had a formal audience with the Elven Queen.
During their meeting, Alice revealed the identity of the god she truly worshipped.
To Daniel's surprise, the Elven Queen didn't bat an eye. She showed no sign of shock or disapproval.
Her stance was clear:
The Elven race would continue to fully support Alice, regardless of her divine allegiance.
Moreover, the Elven Queen reaffirmed her desire to maintain a strong alliance with the Human race.
After a few additional negotiations, Daniel successfully convinced the Elven Queen to grant him a small parcel of land on Elven territory.
There, he established a new kingdom: the Elven Kingdom of Daniel.
With this, Daniel became the first non-elven individual to hold the title of Elven King.
Not long after, the Infinite Divine Temple officially appeared within Elven lands.
—
Daniel even found time to meet with the remaining Gnome survivors.
Thanks to the global accessibility offered by Anygate, traversing the world had become trivial.
Through this convenience, Daniel met with one of the surviving gnome chieftains.
Their conversation was friendly and informative.
He also paid a visit to the Orc Clan, where he reunited with Ally in the capital city.
From there, he traveled to the Divine Temple of the Moon Goddess Luna, seeking deeper understanding of the divine order.
During this time, Ally provided him with basic—but valuable—intel regarding the seven Traditional God Devotees.
Of course, the information was vague and surface-level.
After all, the most crucial trait of any god devotee was secrecy.
Their identities, powers, and intentions were closely guarded mysteries—even from each other.
Despite their occasional cooperation or alignment of goals, they never fully trusted one another.
Even among the seven traditional gods, internal alliances and rivalries ran deep.
Daniel also tricked Charles into revealing additional details about the Luck Goddess, giving him a clearer understanding of her nature and goals.
—
During this same span of time, Daniel undertook some highly unconventional—and often taboo—actions.
Thanks to [Time Stream], he could afford to be reckless, knowing he could always rewind the consequences.
He clashed with the Human Emperor in a full-scale duel.
He battled the Elven Queen in a moment of high tension—nearly killing her before she retaliated with divine power and sealed him away.
He even returned to the Abyss, where he systematically eliminated all the Abyss Kings.
On his way out, he even assassinated Charles.
Naturally, this did not go unnoticed.
Just before the Mist issued its divine warning, Daniel instinctively activated [Time Stream], narrowly avoiding divine retribution.
It became clear to him that every god had left a trace of their awareness in their devotees.
Otherwise, how could the Luck Goddess have pinpointed his location the moment he killed Charles?
—
In short, Daniel had used this stretch of time to traverse the world, explore its deepest secrets, and commit acts that would normally be considered suicidal.
And yet, by the time he returned once more to the precise moment he entered the Restricted Library, he had accomplished all of it.
This time, he had memorized every single forbidden book.
But rather than act immediately, he took a moment to review everything he had learned.
"Alice's identity can be revealed..."
"The Luck Goddess isn't just insane—she's hiding something deeper..."
"Moon Goddess Luna is gentle, but her true motives remain unclear..."
And so, with the knowledge of gods, kings, races, and forbidden arts swirling in his mind, Daniel prepared for what came next.
Because now, he didn't just understand the world—
He was ready to reshape it.
Chapter164-A Hundred Divinations
One thread of insight after another flashed through Daniel's mind.
But what concerned him the most was a disturbing trend: the sovereigns of every major race all seemed to possess hidden trump cards of extraordinary power.
Take the Elven Queen, for instance.
When Daniel had challenged her, he had been on the verge of victory, moments away from killing her.
Yet at that critical instant, she had unleashed divine power—sealing Daniel completely within a god-forged prison.
It was a sobering reminder.
If he ever had to fight any of these racial monarchs again, he'd need to be far more careful.
They weren't just rulers—they were walking disasters waiting to be triggered.
Still, despite the outcome of their duel, the Elven Queen had been quite gracious.
Not only had she agreed to crown Daniel as an honorary king of the Elves, she had also permitted the construction and propagation of the Infinite Divine Temple within Elven lands.
As for the northern border of the Human Empire, the Infinite Divine Temple was flourishing—temples rising like weeds across the frozen plains.
Even the gnome chieftain had approached Daniel with a request:
He begged Daniel to completely annihilate the Artists—to reduce them to ash.
Daniel had already made up his mind on that front.
The destruction of the Artists was no longer a hypothetical.
It was a certainty.
And it wouldn't be long before it happened.
Deep beneath the Artist City lay twelve hidden bunkers, carved into the underground abyss.
The Artists believed that if they hid deep enough, no one would ever find them.
Unfortunately for them, they were dealing with Daniel—wielder of [Eye of Insight].
To Daniel, the entire architectural structure of the Artist City was laid bare.
There were no secrets left.
He made a silent vow:
This time, he would end the Artist threat once and for all.
—
By the time Daniel rose and exited the library, a peculiar fragrance lingered throughout the entire Artist City.
—
Underground Research Facility, Artist City
Almost simultaneously, thousands of Artist researchers slumped over their desks, falling into a deep and sudden slumber.
But for Daniel, this was nothing new.
He had rehearsed this moment dozens of times.
In the beginning, there had been several unforeseen complications.
For example, certain areas of the Artist City had air filtration systems that neutralized foreign agents.
Additionally, some Artists possessed unique immunities or resistances that rendered the sleep-inducing potion ineffective.
But every one of those anomalies had been identified, cataloged, and neutralized in Daniel's master plan.
Each problem had a tailored solution.
And now, after countless simulations and test runs, the real operation had commenced.
And it was flawless.
The entire Artist City fell into unconsciousness—utterly silent, without a single soul aware that anything had even happened.
But even if something had gone wrong, Daniel wouldn't have panicked.
He could simply reset everything with [Time Stream].
Once all the Artists were asleep, Daniel's first action was to return to the library and collect every book he could get his hands on, storing them in his backpack.
Then, he descended into the underground research facility, gathering every piece of data, every scroll, every blueprint.
In one sweep, he had acquired the most valuable secrets that the Artist race had spent millennia accumulating.
By the time he was done, virtually everything of worth in the Artist City now rested in his inventory.
Only after that did he make his way to the Primordial Core Weapon storage chamber.
Once again, he assumed the appearance of the Artist leader, activating the transformation granted by [Gift of the Veiled Goddess].
He placed his hand on the control panel.
The first phase of authentication passed without issue.
Then the system initiated phase two:
[Now entering Phase Two: Sending notifications to all council members and gathering their votes.]
[If no objections are raised, the Primordial Core Weapon will be released into your custody.]
Daniel hadn't anticipated what happened next.
A loud, clear broadcast echoed across the entire city.
Fortunately, he had planned for this.
Just moments before the broadcast was triggered, he had activated a Silence Scroll—a low-grade item so common that even level-10 labyrinths dropped them in bulk.
But right now, it was working like a divine miracle.
Silence enveloped the city.
The broadcast played for a full ten minutes, asking for votes and comments.
But no response ever came.
All the council members were asleep.
All their minds silenced.
Daniel's real body stood perfectly still, not making a single move.
But his clones were already busy.
One of them had infiltrated the City Hall, assuming the form of the Mayor.
Using the mayor's clearance, the clone issued a citywide lockdown directive.
Thanks to the technological advancements of the Artist City, most systems were automated.
No Artists needed to physically operate them—just the right commands from the right identity.
With a thunderous rumble, twelve massive city gates slammed shut, sealing off every entrance and exit.
The fortress-like city, a marvel of gnomish engineering, was now an airtight prison.
The Artists had gone to great lengths to fortify their city.
So much so that not even a god could easily break its defenses.
Ironically, their greatest strength had become their tomb.
Now completely sealed off, the entire city was cut off from the world.
All communications, all transport, every escape route—gone.
Of course, these lockdown protocols didn't extend to the underground bunkers.
The Artists hiding below had received a message from the central city:
[The main city is undergoing routine maintenance. Estimated duration: 30 minutes.]
No one found this suspicious.
It wasn't unusual for a city this large to undergo occasional maintenance.
And half an hour? That wasn't long at all.
What could possibly go wrong in thirty minutes?
And so, the final trap was sprung.
With no one the wiser, the Artist City was completely isolated from the outside world.
—
Human Territory — The Royal Society
In the Royal Society's central hall, Head Taris stood with a grim expression, addressing the gathered scholars.
"If we don't locate the Artists soon, the upcoming Millennial Apocalypse could spell the end of the Human race."
He paused.
"According to our estimates, the Artists may possess multiple Primordial Core Weapons."
The room fell silent—until Simar, the society's top diviner, stepped forward.
"Head Taris," Simar said calmly, "I have something to report."
Taris turned to him. "Speak."
Simar nodded. "I've just completed a set of divinations.
The results suggest that the Artists have been completely... destroyed."
A gasp swept through the room.
Simar's divination skills were legendary.
He had a success rate of over 80%—easily the highest among all human scholars.
Even so, Taris remained skeptical.
"Simar... are you certain that what you saw is real?"
Simar hesitated. "No, I can't be completely sure. But... this result came after I repeated the divination one hundred times."
The room fell into stunned silence once again.
If Simar had gone so far as to perform one hundred divinations, and they all pointed to the same outcome... then there could only be one explanation:
The Artists were no more.
Chapter165-One Hundred Divinations
Simar the scholar's divination techniques were widely acknowledged as accurate and reliable. A single divination already carried an astonishing success rate of over 80%. But if one performed the same divination a hundred times and received the same result each time, that would mean the likelihood of the event occurring was nearly absolute—approaching 100%.
At that moment, silence descended upon the entire Royal Society. Not a single person made a sound.
Yet Tarishead, ever the rigorous academic, maintained his cautious skepticism.
"Simar, I would like you to perform the divination once more."
Simar nodded and picked up the crystal ball on the table again, initiating another round of the sacred ritual. This time, however, the results were strikingly different from those before.
In the previous divinations, Simar had only received the final outcome. The process—what occurred in between—remained a mystery. But this time, the crystal ball projected far more information than ever before.
A massive city emerged—grand, yet eerily silent. Its streets lay deserted, and scattered across them were Artists, each one seemingly unconscious or comatose. The strange, unnerving scene played vividly inside the orb.
The human scholars present all widened their eyes in shock.
They had scoured the world for the legendary City of Artists without success, only to now see it so clearly inside a crystal ball.
And judging by the condition of the Artists... something had clearly gone wrong. Or perhaps... had they been robbed?
The Royal Society's scholars erupted into hushed, frantic discussion. Their theories and conjectures overlapped and collided like crashing waves.
What they didn't know was that, in a corner of the Artist City unseen to them, a familiar figure was moving at incredible speed.
...
The entire City of Artists had fallen into complete paralysis.
Daniel had even managed to transfer the city's administrative privileges directly into his own hands.
Following a unanimous abstention by the City Council, Daniel was now officially the mayor—the undisputed leader of the Artist City. Even if the former mayor were to awaken at this point, it would make no difference.
As time ticked on, more and more of the Artists' council members submitted abstention votes.
A system notification flashed before Daniel's eyes:
[Second protocol completed. Congratulations, Mr. Charlotte. You are now the full owner of the Primordial Core Weapon.]
A smug smile curled on Daniel's lips when he saw the message appear on the control console.
Even a place as technologically advanced as the Artist City had not been able to resist his infiltration.
As for the underlying principles of the Primordial Core Weapon, after absorbing a massive amount of knowledge, Daniel had fully understood how it worked.
To put it plainly: as long as he was provided with the right materials, Daniel could now manually assemble a Primordial Core Weapon at any time.
And the very moment he gained full administrative privileges, Daniel immediately deactivated the Primordial Core Weapon.
Once again, the weapon fell into dormancy—and Daniel finally breathed a sigh of relief.
In this state, the weapon was far safer. Even if someone were to touch it, or kick it for that matter, it wouldn't react in the slightest.
After all, a god's corpse was composed of extremely stable material. Under normal circumstances, it wouldn't leak any energy whatsoever. It was only due to the Artist race's use of certain unique techniques that the god's body had been able to emit power.
Once Daniel—still in the form of Charlotte—gained full authority over the Primordial Core Weapon, he promptly transferred that authority back to his true self.
This transfer process had become significantly easier than before. There was no longer a need for endless rounds of verification and security checks.
When the transition was complete, Daniel reverted to his original appearance.
Now, he was the supreme commander of the entire Artist City, holding its highest administrative and technological privileges.
Without any hesitation, Daniel placed both Primordial Core Weapons into his backpack.
Moreover, he didn't leave behind any of the auxiliary materials either. He swept them all into his inventory in one go.
With that task complete, Daniel drew the Dagger of the God of Thieves and began to replicate the Primordial Core Weapon, splitting it into 40 copies.
The only slight disappointment was that the [Gift of the Veiled Goddess] could not render the Primordial Core Weapon into an infinite-use consumable.
Still, even with that limitation, possessing 42 copies of the weapon—along with a mountain of raw materials—made Daniel overwhelmingly powerful.
At long last, Daniel understood why Charles had been so obsessed with the Artists.
This race was simply too absurd.
All one had to do was give them the necessary resources, and they could build weapons on par with the gods.
Charles' logic was simple and brutally efficient: give the Artists materials, wait for them to craft the Primordial Core Weapons, then swoop in and steal them. The return on investment was, without a doubt, heaven-defying.
But this strategy wasn't without risk.
If one failed to snatch the weapon in time, the consequences could be catastrophic—potentially even leading to the annihilation of an entire race.
The gnome race was a prime example of what could go wrong.
High risk often comes with high reward. It seemed that the so-called Luck Goddess truly was mad.
But upon deeper reflection, perhaps everything had been part of her grand design all along.
To such a deity, the lives of ordinary races were like ants—insignificant. The destruction of the entire gnome race was a small price to pay, as long as it led to the recovery of a Primordial Core Weapon.
And now, Daniel was essentially helping the Luck Goddess retrieve those very weapons.
Only... she had made one miscalculation.
Daniel had never become her devotee.
Nor did he have any intention of handing the Primordial Core Weapon over to Charles.
What kind of joke was that?
This was a god-slaying weapon—one of the few capable of resisting the millennium-old Apocalypse. There was no way Daniel would let it go.
It had already become one of the most crucial trump cards in his arsenal.
Its value surpassed even that of many God Rank Skills.
At the same moment Daniel's main body stored away the weapons, his clones began looting the entire city.
They took everything that could be carried. As for what they couldn't take... well, there was little he could do about that.
Once the entire operation was complete, Daniel appeared once again before the massive water tank in the city's depths.
Inside was the Godmaking Project's masterpiece: [New Life].
Daniel looked at the creature with a mixture of disgust and disdain.
He no longer saw any need to hide his identity and decisively deactivated his God Rank Skill, [Mist].
The moment he did, the massive eyeball of [New Life] immediately locked onto him.
"Target identified: Human," it intoned coldly.
"Unauthorized biological entity detected within city boundaries. Initiating full-system purge."
As the mechanical voice rang out, the liquid inside the gigantic tank began to boil violently.
Yet just before the creature could launch its attack, Daniel calmly retrieved a single Primordial Core Weapon from his backpack.
"It's time to say goodbye," he said softly.
"Setting detonation timer: 0.1 seconds."
With everything set, Daniel's figure blurred—and he instantly returned to the human northern frontier.
And within the City of Artists?
A spectacular, apocalyptic explosion unfolded—one that would be remembered as a masterpiece of divine destruction.
Chapter166-The Power of the Primordial Core Weapon
Boom—!
Daniel hovered silently in midair, gazing out over the horizon as the earth trembled violently beneath him.
At the same time, panic spread like wildfire through the communication networks of every major race.
"What the hell just happened?! This quake—it's exactly the same as the last one!"
"Don't tell me... another entire race got wiped out?"
"Can anyone tell me where this explosion occurred?"
While the various species scrambled for answers, Daniel's communicator lit up with dozens—no, hundreds—of voice call requests from the Human Emperor.
When he realized Daniel wasn't going to answer, the emperor resorted to frantic voice messages:
"Daniel, what the hell is going on? Does this have anything to do with you?"
"Daniel, respond when you see this."
"Daniel... are you there?"
Daniel ignored them all.
It wasn't that he didn't want to answer—it was that there was no point. He would soon use [Time Stream] anyway, reversing the state of events. Anything he said now would become meaningless.
He simply stood quietly in the air, patiently waiting for the aftermath of the explosion to settle.
After all, this wasn't his first time witnessing the might of a Primordial Core Weapon.
Having experienced it once already, he now had a clearer understanding of just how terrifying this weapon truly was. That's why this time, he didn't stay near the explosion. Instead, he had returned to the safety of Winterhold Castle.
Soon after, both Alice and the Elven Queen sent him messages as well.
"Daniel, the Elven race has suffered a devastating blow from a Primordial Core Weapon. We are nearly annihilated..."
One could clearly feel the grief and weight in the Elven Queen's words as she delivered this report.
Almost simultaneously, a message arrived from Charles.
"So, in the end, you failed. But what I really want to know is... why didn't you become Her Grace the Luck Goddess's devotee?"
Daniel also received another signal—this one a desperate prayer from Alice.
"O great Lord Crossbridge... the Elves have been struck down. Please, tell me what I must do next!"
Technically, the area where the City of Artists had once stood did not belong to any specific race. But the sheer blast radius of the Primordial Core Weapon was massive. Naturally, even the Elves were caught in the aftermath.
Daniel had already foreseen this outcome, which was exactly why he anticipated needing to use [Time Stream].
For now, he ignored Alice's prayer. He would be returning shortly anyway, so responding was pointless.
Once the shockwaves from the explosion fully dissipated, Daniel activated his God Rank Skill—[Flashback].
When he opened his eyes again, he was once more standing in the heart of the ruined Artist City.
Or rather... what remained of it.
The cityscape had vanished. In its place lay a colossal crater, stretching for miles. The devastation was absolute.
Yet strangely, at the center of the pit, the massive cylindrical water tank remained completely intact, as though untouched by the blast.
And within it, the creature known as [New Life] still floated—its health bar reduced by only 30%.
"...Even the Primordial Core Weapon couldn't one-shot this thing?" Daniel frowned, activating his [Eye of Insight].
[New Life]
[Current Status: Invincible. Remaining Time: 30 seconds.]
[Currently in Divine Guard mode. Cannot move. Cannot attack.]
So even a god created by the Artists was this difficult to kill.
Not even a Primordial Core Weapon could destroy it outright.
"Well then..." Daniel's expression turned cold. "What if I used multiple weapons at once? Can you still endure it?"
Without hesitation, Daniel pulled ten more Primordial Core Weapons from his backpack.
He carefully set their timers—scheduled to detonate 31 seconds later, just after the creature's invincibility ended.
Now that things had escalated to this point, Daniel had no intention of holding back. This was the perfect opportunity to fully test the true destructive potential of the Primordial Core Weapon.
But ten weapons weren't enough.
Daniel retrieved ten more and set them to explode at 1 minute and 1 second.
Then another ten—for 1 minute and 31 seconds.
And finally, ten more—scheduled for a cataclysmic detonation at exactly 5 minutes and 1 second.
This time, he had committed nearly all his stockpile of weapons to the effort.
After setting all the timers, Daniel quietly returned to Winterhold Castle.
There, he strolled into a local tavern, casually ordered a glass of red wine, and floated in midair as he sipped its rich flavor.
And then...
BOOM!
The first explosion ripped through the earth, followed by another, and then another—each one more deafening than the last.
The ground convulsed as though Judgment Day had come. Before the tremors even ceased, the next wave of detonation struck, unleashing another apocalyptic shockwave across the continent.
On the communication networks, messages flooded in like a tsunami:
"The vampire clans have been annihilated!"
"Half of the Orc territory has been turned to dust!"
"Has the Millennium Apocalypse really begun?!"
Across the entire system, nearly every race had come to the same conclusion:
The Apocalypse had arrived.
But they couldn't have been more wrong.
Not a single one of them realized that this entire chain of destruction had been orchestrated by Daniel alone.
The Primordial Core Weapon's sheer power had thrust the world into panic. Even in the farthest reaches of the continent, people could feel the tremors beneath their feet. Those who survived were left trembling with fear, haunted by a single question:
"Am I next?"
In the Divine Temple, Ally knelt reverently, praying with all her heart to the gods above.
Even with all her strength, she was powerless.
Stopping a force of this magnitude was like trying to block a tidal wave with a twig.
A profound sense of helplessness took root in her heart.
Meanwhile, deep within the demon territories, even Charles was shaken to his core by the scale of the devastation.
He had sensed that Daniel was up to something.
But no matter how hard he racked his brain, he couldn't figure out why the Primordial Core Weapon had exploded... not once, not twice, but over and over again!
And even more confusing—Daniel still had not become the Luck Goddess's devotee.
Just what kind of transformation had this man undergone?
...
Panic gripped the world.
But Daniel—the very one who caused it all—remained utterly calm.
Once the world had finally fallen silent again, his figure reappeared in the City of Artists.
At the center of the deep crater, the once-indestructible [New Life] now had only 8% of its HP remaining.
"Well, I'll be damned," Daniel murmured, narrowing his eyes. "You're pretty bomb-resistant, huh?"
"No wonder—the body of a god truly is durable."
Based on his calculations, he'd need at least one more full barrage to completely destroy it.
But there was a problem.
[New Life] possessed several powerful invincibility-type traits.
If any one of those were to activate during the next detonation, it would render all the explosions meaningless.
He would have to wait patiently for its invincibility state to expire before unleashing the final blow.
As for [New Life] itself, it continued performing its programmed duties without hesitation or doubt.
Even though there were no longer any living Artists left in the city, it still clung stubbornly to its task.
"Intruder detected. Target classified as enemy."
Chapter167-The Control Console
A flash of light streaked across the void.
Daniel's figure reappeared, moving through the depths of the Time River.
When he opened his eyes again, he found himself standing in the storage vault—at the exact moment he had just obtained administrative access to the Primordial Core Weapon.
But now was not the time to use the weapon.
Even though the area was remote and far from the lands of most races, detonating a Primordial Core Weapon here would almost certainly cause collateral damage to allied forces.
With that thought in mind, Daniel decisively activated [Flashback], and in the next instant, he appeared inside a highly classified chamber.
The security level here was no less stringent than that of the Primordial Core Weapon vault.
However, now that Daniel had full mayoral privileges, he had unrestricted access to this room.
Inside it, he found what he was searching for—the control console for [New Life].
Yes, that's right. The god-like being produced by the Godmaking Project was not just a wild, uncontrollable force.
It could, in fact, be commanded.
These Artists were madmen. They had even dared to dream of stealing the power of the gods in order to destroy the world.
As he lamented their insanity, Daniel began interacting with the control console in front of him.
In truth, defeating [New Life] didn't necessarily require brute force.
Now that he had administrative control, he could simply change the creature's parameters directly from the console. Why bother fighting when reprogramming could solve the problem?
With that thought, Daniel began to alter [New Life]'s internal data.
"Artists? How could they possibly be friendly units? Change them all to enemy status."
"As for friendly units—well, that would be the myriad races."
Once all the settings were in place, Daniel exhaled in relief. Still, just to be cautious, he didn't designate the Abyss faction as a friendly race. Nor did he set them as enemies. Instead, he labeled them neutral.
If the Abyss behaved themselves, [New Life] would leave them alone.
But if they insisted on opposing him—if the demon clans, for example, decided to cause trouble—then they would be marked as enemies as well.
As for whether this control console would be destroyed alongside the Artist City, Daniel wasn't worried in the slightest.
He had already obtained the blueprint for building such a console and fully understood how it functioned.
Recreating it was only a matter of time.
And from his earlier experiments, Daniel had also determined that even if the entire Artist City were annihilated, [New Life] itself would not perish.
All he needed to do was build a new control console, and everything would fall neatly back into place.
[New Life] would still be under his control.
As he finalized the parameter adjustments, [New Life]'s massive central eye began to display a look of confusion.
Then, a prompt appeared before Daniel's eyes:
[Parameter modification successful.]
Daniel blinked and instantly teleported back to [New Life]'s location.
But now, with its internal settings altered, the once-hostile [New Life] no longer perceived Daniel as a threat.
In fact, it had begun to develop hostility toward the sleeping Artists scattered nearby.
Daniel quickly used his mind power to soothe the creature's agitation, issuing a direct mental command: "Stand down. Enter standby mode."
[New Life] obeyed without resistance.
Daniel's eyelid twitched. Just as he suspected.
He could manipulate [New Life] directly using mind power, issuing orders and modifying parameters even without the console.
That confirmed it—control was absolute.
With everything now under control, Daniel smirked and pulled out the God of Thieves' dagger.
With a flick of his wrist, he cloned [New Life]—again and again.
Eventually, twenty identical copies of the massive entity floated above the ruins of the Artist City.
Their colossal forms nearly blanketed the entire city.
Daniel stroked his chin with pride.
As despicable as the Artists were, he had to admit—they were a veritable treasure trove of experience.
Without them, how else could he have grown so powerful so quickly?
He had to give credit where it was due: these madmen had dedicated thousands of years to their research, and now, Daniel was reaping the rewards.
After completing the cloning process, Daniel moved on to his next phase.
With the help of his clones, he established a vast network of Anygates across the entire Artist City.
Thanks to his preparation and the assistance of his duplicates, the installation process was completed in record time.
All the Anygates had been calibrated to connect to the northern frontier of the human territories.
However, given the sheer size of [New Life], standard portals would not suffice. Daniel had to build a series of supersized Anygates to accommodate their transfer.
Despite the Artists' technological advancement, they had never developed a long-distance teleportation method akin to Anygates.
Thus, [New Life] had always served them as a stationary defense weapon.
But to Daniel, using such a powerful being for defense alone would be a massive waste.
He intended to take them to the frontlines.
Hence the dozens of massive portals—built for the express purpose of relocating his new army.
...
Winterhold Castle.
The Human Emperor was currently overwhelmed, scrambling to respond to the new crisis brought on by the reappearance of the Artists.
He had just received word from the Royal Society.
The moment the Artist forces showed signs of resurgence, the Human Emperor issued the highest-level security alert.
All human experts and military divisions were ordered to enter a state of total readiness.
They were preparing for a battle that would determine the future of their race.
The truth was, the humans had long since anticipated the arrival of the Millennium Apocalypse.
Every elite warrior was already on standby.
The moment the order was given, they would launch into action without hesitation.
The Human Emperor knew how dangerous the Artists could be.
Even if he personally led the charge, there was no guarantee they could completely wipe them out.
Especially if the Artists had access to the Primordial Core Weapon—against such power, not even he was sure he could return alive.
But regardless, he had no choice but to march forward.
In the face of the Millennium Apocalypse, sacrifice was a given.
Without sacrifice, the entire human race could be wiped out—just like the gnomes, who had been eradicated without even managing to resist.
If humanity wanted to survive this calamity, they would have to strike first—launch a full-scale assault on the Artists.
But against such powerful foes, only the finest troops could hope to win.
What puzzled the Human Emperor now was the state of the Artist City.
It looked as though it had already been looted.
So many Artists... yet not a single one was active.
Could this be a rare opportunity?
Could it be that something had already gone wrong for the Artists?
Regardless of what had happened, the Human Emperor saw this as a chance.
A chance to destroy them once and for all—with minimal losses.
He felt no sympathy for the enemy.
All he wanted was to eradicate these maniacs at the lowest possible cost.
But just as he was about to give the command to mobilize...
A massive shadow fell over Winterhold Castle.
A strange and inexplicable terror gripped the Human Emperor.
His scalp tingled.
His breath caught.
Something terrible had arrived.
Chapter168-The Fall of Humanity?
"What the hell is going on?!"
A look of sheer terror washed over the Human Emperor's face.
Instinctively, he looked up—and what he saw made his blood run cold.
From the skies above, monstrous giants were descending slowly. Not one, not two—but a full twenty-one of them!
He gasped in disbelief.
What was this madness?
And more terrifying still—he could faintly sense divine energy radiating from their immense bodies.
That aura... it was suffocating!
The Human Emperor's heart tightened as an overwhelming sense of helplessness gripped him.
Could it be... a god?
Had a true god descended to the mortal realm?
The Artist threat hadn't even been resolved yet—was a god now personally intervening to exterminate humanity?
So this was it... the long-prophesied Millennium Apocalypse. No matter what, it seemed humanity would not escape this time.
Despair crept across his face.
And yet—as the ruler of mankind, and its strongest warrior—he could not allow himself to falter, even in the face of annihilation.
He took a deep breath, calming his pounding heart, then ascended into the sky to meet the invaders head-on.
As he studied the terrifying creatures more closely, he noticed something strange.
Though each of these monsters radiated an overwhelming and savage aura, their energy signatures were inconsistent.
The Human Emperor even detected traces of abyssal and demonic energies.
But how could that be?
How could a single creature bear the auras of multiple different races?
Unless...
Unless these creatures were artificially assembled—stitched together by force.
That thought struck him like a bolt of lightning. His heart instantly tensed.
Yet within moments, he confirmed his suspicion—he was absolutely certain now.
These monstrous entities had been created by someone—deliberately.
Activating his detection skill, he probed deeper—and what he saw left him speechless.
T30.
These creatures were at Tier 30—an unfathomably high rank!
A mix of horror and curiosity swirled in his chest.
Who on earth could have crafted such fearsome beasts?
Don't tell me... these are the work of the Artists?
If that's true, then there's no point in resisting. Humanity might as well kneel down and accept its execution.
Twenty-one of these monsters... It was enough to plunge even the Human Emperor into total despair.
He knew, deep down, that humanity had no chance of survival this time.
Summoning his treasured sword, he made his decision.
Even if there was no hope—he would charge.
If he must die, then let him die standing. Let him fall in battle, not cowering in fear.
At the same time, he pulled out his communicator and issued what could be his final command to his people.
"All citizens of humanity, hear this: the hour of life and death has arrived."
"Terrifying creatures have descended upon the northern frontier. The Millennium Apocalypse has begun. We have no retreat. Only battle remains!"
Once the message was sent, he activated the shared visual feed.
Across every communicator in the human realm, an image flickered into view—the oppressive, terrifying visage of [New Life].
Across the continent, hearts skipped a beat.
This... This was the raw dominance of a diamond-rank being. This was the suffocating pressure of divine power.
How could humanity possibly hope to defeat such a force?
What kind of cruel joke was this?
There was no doubt—humanity was finished.
A deep, bitter grief spread through the hearts of all.
Had a civilization that lasted over 5,000 years really come to its end?
Why?
Why was this iteration of the Millennium Apocalypse so terrifying?
Survive. Don't throw your lives away meaninglessly.
As long as the spark of humanity endured, there would be hope.
"To all human brethren—I, the Human Emperor, order you to flee. At all costs, survive."
"If you live, there is still hope. The legacy of our people depends on you."
"And to all warriors—follow me in our final charge. For a true warrior, the battlefield is the only proper resting place!"
Before the absolute power of the enemy, even the Human Emperor—and the brilliant minds of the Royal Society—understood one thing clearly:
Humanity was doomed.
Whether through brute force or cunning strategy, the result would be the same.
It was like ten ants trying to fight a fully grown man—no matter what tactics they employed, it was meaningless.
The difference in power was simply too vast.
As the Human Emperor steeled himself for a suicidal final charge, a sudden communication came through.
It was from Daniel.
"Human Emperor, I think you're misunderstanding something. Those creatures I sent over—they're on our side."
...What?
Did he just say those monsters are allies?
Even with all his intellect and composure, the Human Emperor's mind temporarily shut down.
What was Daniel talking about?!
Was he insane?
Was he seriously claiming that those terrifying things were friendlies?
On the other end of the communicator, Daniel seemed to anticipate the disbelief and explained further:
"Those beings floating over the northern frontier are called [New Life]. They're Tier 30—diamond-rank lifeforms."
"I want you to know: they're on our side. I sent them."
For a moment, the Human Emperor looked as though he had seen a ghost.
Even the corners of his mouth began to twitch involuntarily.
He immediately halted his attack orders and turned his full attention to examining the creatures again.
Soon, he noticed something he had missed before—traces of Anygate energy lingering around them.
So... these monsters really were teleported here?
By Daniel?
What in the gods' names had Daniel been up to?
These were diamond-rank entities!
In all of human history—over a thousand years—there had never been a single confirmed diamond-rank lifeform.
Even in myths and legends, there were no mentions of such beings. The most powerful creatures on record had only been platinum rank.
Diamond-rank had always been a mere theoretical possibility.
And now Daniel was claiming to have summoned over twenty of them?
The Human Emperor felt like he was on the verge of a breakdown.
His chest tightened painfully.
He had always thought of himself as someone with a strong psychological constitution.
But since meeting Daniel, he couldn't help but wonder if he'd end up dying from cardiac arrest one day.
"Daniel, for the love of god, can you please explain—how did you pull this off?"
"Odin, that's... kind of a long story," Daniel replied coolly. "I'll explain everything later. For now, I need you to gather a group of mechanically skilled workers—I need their help."
"Also, bring in some scholars. Anyone with practical life skills. Just send over every useful person you've got."
Chapter169-Enemy or Ally?
After receiving the coordinates Daniel had just sent, the Human Emperor stood frozen in disbelief.
And when Daniel casually told him that he was currently inside the Artist City, the Human Emperor felt his entire body go numb.
No wonder the Artist City had seemed strange earlier, as though it had been ransacked...
And now you're telling me—you were there the whole time?
In other words, you're the one who robbed the place?!
Good heavens... you've actually robbed the entire Artist City!
Though the Human Emperor grumbled inwardly, full of complaints and speechless awe, he quickly regained his composure and issued orders.
According to the intelligence Daniel had just transmitted, the Artists themselves weren't particularly powerful in combat.
Their overall strength was only around Tier 15.
Moreover, the coordinates Daniel provided marked the locations of various Artist hideouts.
What Daniel hoped for was that the Human Emperor would command human experts to root out and eliminate the scattered Artists.
As the newly appointed mayor of Artist City, Daniel now had full access to all its classified documents and secrets.
No refuge, no contingency, no safehouse could remain hidden from his eyes.
Meanwhile, upon receiving the intelligence, the Human Emperor acted without delay and issued an imperial order.
The strongest warriors of the human race mobilized with precision and efficiency, swiftly setting out to complete their objectives.
But even as he orchestrated the operation, the Human Emperor couldn't shake a strange feeling creeping over him:
It was as if... he were just an executor. And the one truly in control... was Daniel.
Wait a minute—let's be clear about something here.
Who exactly is the Human Emperor?!
...
"All citizens of the human race, hear this—cease all evacuation efforts immediately."
"We have received new information confirming that the diamond-rank entities are friendly units."
"They have come to aid humanity in battle."
The moment this announcement was broadcast, those who had been desperately fleeing froze in place, dumbfounded.
What was going on?
We were just told to flee for our lives—now the narrative has flipped again?
And this... this was way too ridiculous!
Diamond-rank creatures—on humanity's side? Really?
Wait a minute...
There's only one explanation.
It must be the gods.
Only divine beings could summon forces of such terrifying power.
Human chatter exploded across the communication network. Wild speculation ensued.
But the general consensus was clear: this was divine intervention.
Then, suddenly, a post surfaced that sent shockwaves across the net:
"What if... just maybe... these were reinforcements summoned by His Highness Daniel?"
The post hit the network like a thunderbolt. It was as if someone had tossed more firewood into an already boiling cauldron.
The forums erupted.
"If that's true—if this really was His Highness Daniel's doing—then it wouldn't be too surprising, considering how long he's been quiet."
"Exactly. I've always believed in him. Daniel has pulled off the impossible so many times already!"
"But don't you think this is too much? Diamond-rank reinforcements? Are you telling me Daniel summoned those?! That's insane!"
"Yeah, I agree. There's no way. That kind of power is beyond human capacity. Not even Daniel could possibly manage this!"
But before anyone could escalate the debate further, the Human Emperor himself issued a public statement confirming the truth:
"Those diamond-rank entities were indeed summoned by Daniel."
For a moment, all of humanity went completely silent.
Wait... are you serious?
You're telling us... this is real?
Daniel—His Highness Daniel—actually did this?
He summoned monsters that even legends dared not whisper about?
Daniel, you legend!!
I worship you, Your Highness!!
In an instant, humanity's collective emotion flipped.
The fear and despair of earlier were swept away by wild celebration and admiration.
Everyone understood one thing now:
With twenty-one diamond-rank allies at their side, the human race had become a force to be reckoned with.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that humanity could now wipe out every other race on the continent if they so desired.
With such overwhelming strength, even the terrifying Millennium Apocalypse could no longer guarantee their destruction.
They now had a real chance at survival.
And for that, Daniel had performed a deed of immeasurable merit.
...
Artist City.
At that moment, Daniel was occupied with a rather simple task:
Eliminating the Artists.
As the Spirits of Skills and Daniel's clones launched a coordinated strike, the sky above Artist City became a cascading torrent of streaking light.
It looked like a rain of falling stars.
Only... this "meteor shower" brought not beauty, but death.
Many of the recently awakened Artists hadn't even figured out what was happening before they were instantly slaughtered.
Their belongings fell from their bodies in a clatter of loot.
Daniel didn't bother sorting through it—he simply activated a rarely-used skill, [Forceful Convergence], to absorb it all at once.
It would have been too much of a hassle to pick them up manually, after all.
Of course, Daniel had no intention of destroying the Artist City entirely.
Was he kidding?
This city was the culmination of millennia of Artist research and sacrifice.
To erase it all would be the very definition of waste.
Besides, he was now the city's official mayor, with full administrative authority.
It would be foolish not to utilize the city's facilities.
Still, Daniel didn't wipe out every single Artist without discretion.
The low-level ones—weak and of no value—were killed on sight.
But the higher-tier researchers... Daniel spared them, for now.
Not because he intended to let them live, but because he wanted to extract everything useful from their minds before they died.
These researchers had blood on their hands—countless lives lost to their experiments.
Daniel had no illusions about that.
But the knowledge they held was invaluable. It was something the human race desperately needed.
His plan was simple: drain every ounce of worth from them, and then dispose of them. No waste, no mercy.
Daniel's thinking was crystal clear.
To survive the coming Millennium Apocalypse, humanity would need to level up at any cost.
He had a vague but growing premonition:
This cycle's Millennium Apocalypse would be unlike any that came before.
According to historical records, in previous Apocalypses, the gods might descend—but they never interfered directly in mortal affairs.
This time, however, the gods had already begun their maneuvering before the Apocalypse had even officially begun.
Daniel didn't know what had changed.
But he was certain of one thing:
The gods knew something he didn't.
Chapter170-The Vanguard
Even Charles hadn't anticipated the extent of Daniel's methods.
Charles had originally planned to merely steal the Primordial Core Weapons from the Artists, hitting them hard with a surprise loss.
But now, even Charles—the man known as the most ruthless merchant alive—was stunned. Daniel's approach wasn't just about making the Artists bleed.
He had swallowed them whole.
Saying he had stripped them to the bone wouldn't even begin to describe it.
If Charles were on the scene right now, he would probably be roaring at Daniel in disbelief:
"Tell me the truth—who's the real black-hearted merchant here?!"
Above the heads of countless Artists, streaks of glowing "meteors" rained down from the skies.
Within seconds, they were all dead.
Some had died peacefully in their sleep—never even knowing what had hit them.
Others were less fortunate. They awoke just in time to see their bodies smashed into pulp—an image so horrifying, they couldn't even die with dignity.
Once everything was in place, Daniel left the clean-up to his clones and his Spirits of Skills. He, himself, vanished from the city.
...
Twenty minutes later—
The elite advance units dispatched by the Human Emperor began arriving one after another.
These were the best of the best—battle-hardened veterans, known for their decisiveness and mobility.
But when they stepped into the Artist City, they were met with a sight that completely shattered their expectations.
They had prepared for a fierce, drawn-out battle. What they got instead... was a field of corpses.
What... what was going on here?
Why were there nothing but dead Artists sprawled across the city?
Could it really be that Daniel alone was responsible for this massacre?
The soldiers were visibly shaken. None of them had expected such a one-sided bloodbath.
Artist City was drenched in blood.
Occasionally, a few lucky stragglers tried to flee—but they quickly realized escape was impossible.
Before leaving, Daniel had locked down the entire city using his authority as mayor.
There was no way out.
For the Artists, there was only despair... or the release of death.
To be fair, Artist City truly was the pinnacle of their civilization's intellect and innovation.
Though [Meteor Arrow Rain] had caused massive destruction during the assault, the city possessed a self-repairing system.
Within minutes, even the most devastated structures began rebuilding themselves.
"Alright, enough gawking. Let's move out and head to the location His Highness Daniel specified."
"I can't believe it... His Highness Daniel took care of the Artists all by himself."
"I heard the Human Emperor has already issued new orders—other squads are being deployed to eliminate any remaining Artists."
"Hey, didn't the Artists supposedly have a terrifying weapon? Something called the Primordial Core Weapon?"
"I'm guessing His Highness Daniel took care of that too. Wouldn't be surprised if he has them now."
"Unreal... Daniel is too incredible. If I remember correctly, hasn't he only been awakened for, like, two days?!"
"At this point, I don't even think we're the same species."
"This world really doesn't play fair. I used to think I was a genius, but next to Daniel, I'm garbage."
"Alright, enough chatter. Whatever happened, the Human Emperor will surely make an announcement soon."
"Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if Daniel ends up replacing the Human Emperor altogether."
"Replace? Come on, you don't need to be a prophet to see that coming."
...
Soon, one of the advance units reached Daniel's clone.
In this location, a small group of Artists had awakened—but they were all completely immobilized.
Their powers had been stripped away, leaving them with just enough strength to speak.
They couldn't move. They couldn't resist. They couldn't even kill themselves.
As soon as the vanguard team arrived, Daniel's clone vanished instantly.
The squad leader stepped forward and used his communicator to scan each of the prisoners, then sent a report to HQ.
"We've reached the designated location and secured the target Artists."
"Proceeding to Phase Two: memory extraction."
...
Human Northern Frontier
The largest library in the entire northern region was located within Winterhold Castle.
And right now, that library was overwhelmed with activity.
Crates upon crates of books were being shipped in by the minute.
The strange scene drew the attention of many curious residents, and speculation began to swirl.
"What's with all the books? Why are they bringing in so many at once?"
"I'm not entirely sure... but I heard they're from the Artist libraries."
"The Artists' books?"
The moment that phrase was uttered, several nearby awakeners perked up instantly.
For most awakeners, leveling up wasn't just about fighting. Knowledge was just as important—sometimes more so.
And for scholars in particular, knowledge was their lifeblood.
As soon as they rushed into the library and laid eyes on the shelves filled with Artist books, they lit up like children in a candy store.
"Oh my god... so this is how you're supposed to mix that potion?!"
"What?! This... this is a mechanical principle I've never even seen before!"
In that moment, it was as if the world had opened up before them.
Familiar theories had evolved. Principles they had long taken for granted now had new applications.
And even more astonishing—there were completely new disciplines they had never encountered, not even in passing.
It was undeniable: the Artist theories were a treasure trove for the human race.
Many of their fields of study far surpassed anything humanity had achieved.
Before long, even the scholars from the Royal Society arrived—rushing madly to the northern frontier just to gain access to this once-in-a-lifetime resource.
The moment they laid eyes on those first-hand materials, they were hooked.
At that moment, in the eyes of the human race—
Winterhold Castle was no longer just a stronghold.
It had become the new capital of humanity.
And thanks to the Artist books, its importance had grown exponentially.
Even a fool could see it now:
The future of the human race would be born from this city, standing tall amid the snow and wind.
Before all of this, Winterhold Castle had never been considered a major stronghold within human territory.