REBORN WITH INFINITY SKILL POINTS, I ENSLAVED ALL UNIVERSES
Chapter191-Corruption
Upon hearing Daniel's inquiry,
a look of confusion appeared on the face of the Emperor of the Abyss, Malkar.
After a brief moment of contemplation, Malkar couldn't help but ask in return:
"My friend, the continent you speak of—is it the land of flesh and blood?"
"I can assure you, no abyssal creature dares to approach that place. It hasn't belonged to us for a long time."
...
City of the Artists.
After completely purging the remnants of the Artists, human scholars began to pour into the city.
A vast number of laboratories remained intact, still retaining their original functions. For the human scholars, this place was nothing short of paradise.
Daniel had not looted everything here; instead, he had preserved as much as possible—he had long foreseen a situation like the one at hand.
Moreover, the authority over this city had already fallen into his hands, so this place could now serve as a base for the human race.
After several hours of cleanup, the City of the Artists had transformed—reborn into a city of scholars.
These researchers busied themselves: some poured over the massive troves of data Daniel had brought back, while others resumed the unfinished research left behind by the Artists.
Only this time, the objective of their research was not the destruction of the world,
but rather the preservation of their species and the resolution of existential problems.
At that moment, a few scholars began to discuss:
"This plan to communicate with Oden Continent—
it's clear that the theory has been validated. All that remains is practical testing."
"But it seems the Artists never intended to establish any communication with Oden Continent.
They were only ever interested in destruction."
Madmen, all of them!
Yet, one had to admit, they were mad geniuses.
In any case, the first step was to find a way to reestablish contact with Oden Continent.
After all, communication between the two sides had been cut off for thousands of years.
No one knew what had become of that distant land.
In truth, the Artists had developed many advanced devices.
For instance, the Tower of Mind, located before them,
was capable of sending psychic signals across vast distances.
After studying its user manual, human scholars had learned how to operate it.
Meanwhile, they had assigned a powerful psychic Awakened individual to the Artist City to carry out the task.
She was a petite girl named Casey, and her mission was to establish contact with Oden Continent as soon as possible,
to gather intelligence about the current state of that land.
For the human race today, any additional ally meant one more sliver of hope against the looming Millennial Apocalypse.
And reestablishing communication could yield critical information.
Following the scholars' instructions, Casey sat at the pinnacle of the Tower of Mind.
As streams of pale violet energy surged around her, the tower lit up with dazzling brilliance.
Casey's mind power was instantly amplified and projected across unimaginable distances.
Even with such a tremendous boost, it still took her a full two seconds to traverse the entirety of the Abyss.
But the moment she passed through the Abyss and reached beyond,
her perception was overwhelmed by the presence of an enormous land of flesh!
Blood and flesh stretched as far as the mind could sense,
radiating a nauseating stench of rot and gore.
As Casey's consciousness delved deeper into the continent,
her mind was bombarded by fragmented obsessions—remnants of powerful, lingering thoughts.
These obsessions differed from ordinary thoughts or intentions.
In some sense, they were fragments of mind power left behind by souls at the moment of death.
They weren't being transmitted now—they had existed for an unknowable amount of time.
Casey's innate talent, Soul Envoy, was an S-rank ability.
Because of it, she could perceive these remnants.
Under normal conditions, obsessions are extremely difficult to generate.
A creature would have to pour its entire soul and mind into a single fixation at the moment of death.
Even then, the chances of leaving behind such obsessions were less than one in a thousand.
But what made Casey's scalp tingle was the sheer quantity of these obsessions.
Within the scope of her psychic vision,
she sensed tens of billions—perhaps hundreds of billions—of them.
A number beyond comprehension.
"Save me! Someone, please save me!"
"I don't want to die—I don't want to be eaten by those disgusting things!"
"It's horrifying! I feel like a million ants are gnawing away at my body!"
"It hurts, it hurts so much!"
"Stay away from me, monster! Don't come any closer!"
"Children, don't be afraid. The God of Flesh will protect us.
Those monsters walking toward you—they're our own. Look, that's your father, your uncle... and over there—AHH!!"
...
Within Casey's perception,
the entire Oden Continent had been completely engulfed by flesh.
The flesh was a deep, fresh red, pulsating rhythmically as though breathing.
Were these tissues... alive?
A bold idea flashed through Casey's mind.
And then, she sensed movement on the surface of this flesh.
Were those people?
They seemed human—but also not.
Their bodies had undergone varying degrees of mutation, becoming twisted fusions of man and monster.
Besides them, other creatures roamed the land.
They bore terrifying forms, yet retained characteristics of insects or wild beasts.
They, too, survived upon this writhing, living ground.
At the very center of the continent,
Casey sensed a massive core of flesh—
not a perfectly round object, but an irregular, pulsating mass resembling a heart.
It was as if this grotesque organ controlled all the flesh across the land.
With every beat, the entire continent seemed to breathe in sync.
The moment Casey's consciousness touched it,
countless eyeballs without pupils snapped open on the heart's surface.
Densely packed, staring blankly in all directions.
[Flesh Corruption]!!
In the next instant, Casey's body—thousands of miles away on another continent—began trembling violently as her own flesh writhed uncontrollably.
Her expression twisted with agony.
"Help me! Someone help me!"
"It hurts so much—this pain is unbearable!"
"I was only sensing it for a moment—why is this happening?!"
Immediately, a group of Awakened personnel stationed nearby, prepared for emergencies, swarmed to her side and began rescue efforts.
"Casey, stay with us. We're right here helping you!"
"What did you see on Oden Continent?
Why is your flesh undergoing mutation?"
In the blink of an eye, a torrent of healing and purification skills were unleashed, as if mana was no object.
[Holy Protection]
[Cleanse the Taint]
[Goddess's Favor]
[Total Purification]
Light and divine radiance enveloped her trembling form,
as those around her fought desperately to pull her back from the edge of corruption...
Chapter192-Fake God
Long before the operation began,
the human scholars had already anticipated the uncertainties and complexities involved.
Naturally, contingency plans had been put in place to deal with dangerous developments.
Now, as a multitude of healing and purification spells poured onto Casey's body,
everyone present was watching her condition closely.
Yet what no one expected was that—despite the vast number of powerful restoration spells—Casey's condition not only failed to improve, but the pulsations of her corrupted flesh grew even more intense and violent.
The terrifying mutation unfolding before their eyes instantly put everyone on edge.
In the blink of an eye, Casey's body had transformed into a grotesque ball of flesh.
[Transcendent Purification]!!
This time, the one who acted was a Level 200 Awakened who had rushed over in haste.
This purification-type Awakened was essentially the pinnacle of humanity's healing capabilities.
But as a blinding white light descended, Casey's condition remained unchanged.
Even this advanced restoration failed to take effect.
Casey, though still conscious, was completely overwhelmed by terror.
What the hell is that thing? It's too horrifying!
Am I going to die? Am I going to turn into a monster?
As she writhed in pain and fear,
many other Awakened individuals with healing abilities began arriving one after another through Anygate, converging at the base of the Tower of Mind.
The incident even caught the attention of other races, who also sent reinforcements to help.
But the result was the same:
Purification, Restoration, Regeneration, Healing—none of it worked on Casey's condition!
The scene left everyone present with chills down their spines.
Because not a single person knew exactly what Casey had seen on the Oden Continent.
Moments passed.
The flesh on Casey's body had already begun to rot.
By now, Casey understood that death was inevitable.
She gave up the hope of survival and focused instead on passing along any valuable intelligence.
"Oden Continent... flesh... blood..."
Due to the intense corruption, her mind was no longer coherent.
She couldn't even articulate her thoughts clearly.
"What should we do?! Who can save Casey?"
"The Pope is already en route, but he needs ten more seconds! The Elven High Priestess is also on the way..."
Truth be told, both the human and elven high commands had taken the Oden Continent mission extremely seriously.
Even high-level authorities had been standing by.
In fact, the response to Casey's incident had already been impressively swift.
But none of them had anticipated that the Flesh Corruption she contracted would be this terrifying—completely immune to all healing!
And so, in just five short seconds, Casey's condition had reached a critical state.
Another ten seconds, and she would be dead.
Just as everyone was gripped with panic and despair—certain that Casey could not be saved—
a figure suddenly appeared and, without hesitation, raised a hand and struck Casey, reducing her to a pile of blood and flesh.
Blood and torn meat exploded in place.
At the same time, Daniel's figure appeared before everyone.
The abrupt and shocking development left the crowd stunned.
Before anyone could react, Casey had already been obliterated.
"Lord Daniel, what are you doing?"
"Was there something dangerous about Casey that we failed to notice?"
No one had expected that the situation with Casey had drawn Lord Daniel himself.
Of course, they didn't realize that the figure before them wasn't Daniel's main body—it was merely one of his avatars.
But to most people, there was virtually no distinction between Daniel and his avatars.
They couldn't even tell the difference.
In the face of the crowd's confusion and suspicion, Daniel offered no explanation.
Instead, he immediately cast [Grand Resurrection].
With the activation of the skill, Casey's form began to reconstitute before their eyes.
When she opened her eyes again, she immediately realized that it was Daniel who had saved her life.
She dropped to her knees at once.
"Lord Daniel, thank you for saving me!"
Though Casey had no idea how Daniel had resurrected her,
she knew that resurrection-type abilities were extremely rare and precious.
Perhaps it wasn't even a skill—it might've been some sort of miraculous potion.
"Don't worry about that. Tell me everything you sensed—leave nothing out."
Daniel, now using the Eye of Insight, had already detected something was seriously wrong with Casey's condition.
From his unique perspective, he could see that Casey had drawn the attention of the God of Flesh.
As for this "God of Flesh," Daniel had never seen any records of such an entity.
Of course, it was also possible that he simply hadn't looked into the right materials yet.
Even so, the situation demanded his attention.
Whether it was the God of Flesh or the Flesh Corruption, both were threats he had never encountered before.
That was why he had appeared in the City of Artists to personally handle the situation and revive Casey.
Simultaneously, his other avatars were already dispatched to investigate any intel related to the God of Flesh.
...
In the Abyss,
the Emperor of the Abyss, Malkar, spoke in a grim tone:
"That continent is too dangerous. Even us abyssal beings dare not step foot on it."
"True, we abyssals also have the ability to corrupt other life forms and convert them into abyssal creatures.
But that ability has many limitations."
"However, on that continent, there exists an extraordinarily powerful being—a so-called Fake God,
who refers to himself as the God of Flesh.
It is said that he can convert anything into flesh."
As he spoke, a grave look appeared on Malkar's face.
"Think about it, my friend—if such a being truly exists, capable of transforming all matter into flesh,
how could we abyssals possibly invade his domain?"
"Even with my own strength, if I venture too close, I may still be corrupted."
...
After hearing Malkar's explanation,
Daniel finally gained some clarity regarding the true situation on Oden Continent.
The land had been utterly overtaken by flesh.
Its horror exceeded even that of the Abyss!
Most alarming of all, the flesh wasn't mindless—it was alive, controlled by the self-proclaimed God of Flesh.
Daniel also learned from Malkar about the concept of a Fake God.
Before one could become a true god, one must fulfill a mission ordained by the Supreme Will.
Those who possessed divine strength but had not yet completed this mission were referred to as Fake Gods.
Many believed that Fake Gods were inherently weaker than true gods, but that was a misconception.
In truth, because the power of each god varied drastically,
a Fake God could defeat a true god—though it would be extremely difficult.
After all, true gods were not only powerful; they had been acknowledged and empowered by the Supreme Will itself.
Chapter193-Oden Continent
On the other side, the avatar of Daniel had already transmitted back the intel gathered from Casey.
According to her description, at the very center of Oden Continent, there was a massive, pulsating flesh heart.
However, Casey had refrained from establishing a psychic connection with Daniel—out of caution.
She merely gave a rough verbal account of what she had sensed.
Yet Daniel expressed his wish to directly establish a psychic link with her.
He assured her repeatedly that he would be fine.
After all, this was just an avatar, not his main body.
And with so many survival skills and contingency measures at his disposal, Daniel wasn't concerned.
From his perspective, this so-called God of Flesh didn't seem all that terrifying.
If that entity truly possessed overwhelming power, it would have already infiltrated the Abyss or launched an offensive against all races by now.
"Lord Daniel... do you truly want to establish a psychic connection with me?"
"I have a feeling that if we reach out again, we might provoke danger. That entity's attitude toward us doesn't seem very... friendly."
"It's fine. Let's give it a try."
Seeing Daniel's determination, Casey no longer hesitated.
"In that case, I trust you, Lord Daniel."
With that, she gently placed her hand in his.
The two of them established a psychic link in an instant.
At that moment, Daniel too sensed that strange presence from the distant continent.
However, this awareness didn't impact his main body at all.
It was only his avatar that became afflicted with Flesh Corruption.
Still, unlike Casey's uncontrollable mutation, Daniel's transformation was slow.
Only a few flesh buds had begun to grow on the surface of his arm.
Yet even at this early stage, his HP began dropping at a frightening speed.
"So... this is what corruption feels like. A mix of pain and mental distortion."
Daniel didn't immediately cleanse the status effect.
Instead, he wanted to observe the process—to see what the long-term consequences of the corruption would be.
After roughly three minutes, his right arm had completely dissolved into a grotesque mass of rotting flesh.
The surrounding Awakeners, upon witnessing this transformation, widened their eyes in shock.
"Lord Daniel... your body—"
"It's fine. There's no need to worry."
From what he had tested earlier using Casey, Daniel had already confirmed that if he died and was then resurrected, all corruption effects would be removed.
Even if this avatar were to perish, it meant nothing to him. No real loss.
Besides, if things truly went awry, he could always use [Time Stream] to reverse the root cause entirely.
Daniel's gaze then shifted toward Casey again.
Once one had been touched by the Blessing of the Goddess of Life, no further mutations would occur.
So she would be safe from future transformations.
After another three minutes, Daniel's avatar had become an unrecognizable mass of squirming meat.
The Awakeners surrounding him were dumbstruck.
Just moments ago, Daniel had assured them he was fine.
And now... he looked like a creature straight from a nightmare.
But Daniel himself remained completely composed.
Despite becoming a grotesque monster, he calmly observed his own condition.
As the corruption intensified, he noticed that many of his skills had been disabled.
Some were entirely unavailable due to physical incompatibility caused by mutation.
Seeing this, Daniel's expression finally grew serious.
Clearly, this so-called God of Life—or God of Flesh—was not someone to be taken lightly.
If he had to face this entity again, it would be best not to use his main body.
If he were to provoke its attention again, his immediate reaction would have to be to activate [Time Stream]—no hesitation.
He continued evaluating his condition, methodically collecting data, entirely unbothered by the fact that he now resembled a horrifying monster.
His HP kept dropping rapidly—and the pace only accelerated with time.
That should be enough.
Daniel suddenly activated his skill: [Dance of Death].
In an instant, his HP was locked at a fixed point, and he entered a death immunity state.
All abnormal status effects on his body were instantly purged.
In the blink of an eye, Daniel's grotesque, mutated form returned to its normal human shape.
Seeing that the skill had successfully triggered and nullified the corruption, Daniel breathed a sigh of relief.
This confirmed it: while corrupted, activating [Dance of Death] placed him in a state immune even to the influence of a Fake God.
If that was the case, then this God of Flesh likely wasn't as powerful as a true god.
Daniel had been conducting an experiment, but the result left all the surrounding Awakeners staring in stunned disbelief.
Some stood frozen in place, their faces pale.
Others were crying openly.
Casey was weeping uncontrollably, her eyes swollen red.
"You don't have to cry. I told you I'd be fine."
"Casey, your intelligence report was extremely valuable. You've made a tremendous contribution."
As he said this, Daniel firmly patted her shoulder.
Then, without another word, he disappeared from view.
He had conducted this public "experiment" precisely to show everyone that he would not die easily.
And by rescuing Casey, he had demonstrated that Flesh Corruption was not invincible—he had the means to counter it.
This, in turn, would greatly enhance the confidence of the many races and ensure loyalty to his leadership.
...
Back in the Abyss,
Daniel turned to face Malkar and asked:
"When did Oden Continent become covered in flesh?"
"Two thousand years ago," Malkar replied solemnly.
"When I was first born, the land was not yet like that.
We abyssals even launched occasional invasions there."
"But after the Millennial Apocalypse two millennia ago, everything changed."
Hearing this, Daniel nodded slightly.
It appeared that the Millennium Apocalypse had affected not only the continents inhabited by the races of the world,
but had also devastated Oden Continent.
Unfortunately, the races of that land had not been so lucky.
They had failed to survive the catastrophe and had been wiped out.
From this angle, Daniel mused, perhaps the races should even thank the Abyss.
If not for the Abyss's existence,
perhaps the blood-and-flesh-based Apocalypse would not have been limited to Oden Continent—it might have spread across the entire world, consuming all life.
Still, one question lingered in Daniel's mind:
Why had the Apocalypses that struck each continent been so different?
Just then, Malkar suddenly waved his vine-like appendages and said:
"My friend, I just sensed something stirring within the Abyss."
"It seems some bronze-rank summons are actively charging into our restricted zones and getting themselves killed.
Do you know anything about this?"
Nothing in the Abyss could escape Malkar's senses.
He had noticed that many summoned entities had charged into the forbidden zones of the Abyss and were quickly obliterated.
This left him both surprised and confused.
"Why would they do such a thing?"
"Don't worry about it," Daniel replied calmly.
"It won't endanger the Abyss."
It was quite clear—these summoned creatures were Daniel's doing.
Chapter194-Journey to Oden Continent
The skill [Blood Transfer]—to put it bluntly—was akin to raising venomous insects in a jar, survival of the fittest.
The more summoned beasts died, the stronger the ones that survived would become.
So Daniel's intention was simple: use wave after wave of summoned beasts to continuously stack their attributes.
"Malkar, can you take me to Oden Continent?"
"I believe with your authority, you should be able to get me close to its border, correct?"
Daniel had reasoned it out clearly:
As the Emperor of the Abyss, Malkar definitely possessed special abyssal privileges, including the ability to bring others to the edge of the abyss near Oden Continent.
Once he reached that boundary, Daniel could simply use [Flashback] to easily step into the region himself.
Malkar hesitated only briefly before nodding.
"My friend, I can bring you to the edge of the abyss—nothing more.
I will not accompany you into that place."
"Let me remind you: that land is highly xenophobic. Even if you want to enter, it likely won't welcome you."
Malkar had made up his mind—under no circumstances would he ever leave the Abyss.
After all, the previous Emperor had died precisely because he left his domain.
Outside the Abyss was simply far too dangerous.
There were starborn monsters, remnants of gods, ancient ones, fallen deities, the God of Flesh, hostile races, and all manner of terrifying forces.
Just the thought of all that made Malkar's core tremble.
He had sworn never to set foot beyond the abyssal borders for the rest of his existence.
A moment later, Malkar's vine-like appendages wrapped around Daniel's arm.
In the blink of an eye, Daniel felt himself transferred to a new spatial realm.
...
In Castle Mington,
Pixis had finally returned to human territory.
Not long ago, he had led the last remnants of the gnome army and successfully exterminated the remaining Artists.
The moment he returned, he contacted Daniel through the Human Emperor's channel.
"Lord Daniel, from this day forward, you are a savior of our gnome race!"
"We truly do not know how to repay this immense debt."
Daniel gave a small nod, accepting the thanks, but immediately got to the point.
"The reason I agreed to meet with you is not to receive your gratitude."
"I want to ask: within your Terra Fortress, are there any remaining gnome body parts?
Horns, bones—anything biological. I want to try and revive them."
Daniel had no intention of hiding his ability to resurrect the dead.
Sooner or later, he would be doing this regularly.
His ultimate goal wasn't out of compassion or sentiment—it was pure strategy.
He needed to rally more forces to prepare for the looming Millennial Apocalypse.
There was also a more practical reason:
gnomes were biologically unique and possessed valuable materials,
but due to the current alliance of the races, Daniel couldn't openly say that.
So instead, he chose to publicly reveal his resurrection ability.
As for whether this would expose his "trump card," Daniel wasn't worried in the slightest.
Because in truth, his only real trump card was [Time Stream].
Pixis, upon hearing this, wore a look of sheer disbelief.
"Lord Daniel, does your resurrection ability have any conditions?
Can it revive a max-level Awakened individual?"
In that moment, Pixis's thoughts turned to his family.
They were irreplaceable to him.
"I still have some bones—collected from fallen comrades."
"This one is the thighbone of our tribe leader. That one is the hand of the high priest. And this..."
"They were among our strongest warriors.
If they can be revived, they will definitely stand alongside humanity in resisting the Millennial Apocalypse."
Daniel nodded calmly.
"Are there any others who can be revived?"
That one simple question left Pixis momentarily speechless.
Based on everything he knew about resurrection magic, the requirements were incredibly strict.
It was rarely possible to resurrect even a single person.
But from what Daniel implied, it sounded like he could bring multiple people back?
"Yes. I'm not limited to just one."
After hearing this direct confirmation, Pixis's face lit up with joy.
"Lord Daniel, you are the eternal benefactor of our gnome race!"
"I... I still have more..."
Though Pixis said "more,"
in reality, he only had bones from seven or eight gnomes.
After all, collecting parts from fellow gnomes wasn't exactly a hobby.
Just like how humans wouldn't typically keep their friends' bones.
But at this moment, Pixis was regretful.
Now that resurrection was within reach, he had very few remains to offer.
"Is this all you have?"
"For now, yes. But I'll find a way to recover more remains."
...
Without further delay, Daniel activated [Grand Resurrection].
In a flash of radiant light, seven gnomes appeared before him.
Meanwhile, another Daniel avatar manifested in the ruins of Terra Fortress.
The place had been completely reduced to rubble.
There were no functioning teleportation arrays or Anygates.
Staring at the massive crater, Daniel knew that it would take the gnomes a long time to reclaim this place.
After scouring the remains, he managed to revive a few more gnomes.
This was just one of the many similar resurrection operations his avatars were constantly performing.
Daniel's priority now was simple:
before the Apocalypse arrived, he would raise his strength by any means necessary.
...
Unknowingly, it was already 11:30 PM.
Another day was coming to an end.
It had been exactly 23.5 hours since the Primordial Core Weapon had annihilated the gnomes' Terra Fortress.
In just half an hour, a new day would begin.
...
At the edge of the Abyss,
Daniel stood at the abyssal exit, staring into the distance at the continent shrouded in flesh.
The once-proud land known as Oden Continent was now blanketed in a pulsating, grotesque sea of meat.
At its outer edges, a semi-transparent membrane surrounded the entire landmass.
It was this membrane that completely isolated the Abyss from Oden Continent.
"My friend, this is as far as I go. I will not take another step forward."
The Emperor of the Abyss made his stance very clear.
He had no intention of dying here.
Daniel didn't press him.
Instead, he simply launched himself toward the flesh-wrapped land in the distance.
As soon as he left the Abyss's territory, Daniel found himself face-to-face with a massive ball of meat.
The entire continent was wrapped in layers upon layers of blood and sinew,
and around the outer membrane, a second thin film pulsed gently like a breathing lung.
So this is it... Who would have thought such a sight actually existed?
Chapter195-Malkar's Fear
So this is it... Who would have thought such a sight actually existed?
The scene before him shook Daniel to his core.
He attempted to touch the translucent membrane that encased the outer layer of the fleshy continent,
but was met with a powerful rejection.
To err on the side of caution, he decided to let his avatar handle it instead.
With that thought, Daniel switched places between his main body and an avatar,
then summoned the Spirit of Skills, directing it to launch an attack on the membrane.
[Meteor Arrow Rain]!
In an instant, countless radiant arrows descended,
raining down upon the membrane with thunderous force.
At first glance, the attack seemed overwhelming—blinding flashes lit up the air, explosions echoed across the abyssal sky.
But when viewed in the context of the entire continent, the attack was barely a scratch.
After the first wave of bombardment, Daniel stopped.
He had clearly sensed that the membrane was connected to the entire network of flesh that covered the land.
His damage, no matter how fierce it seemed, was spread thinly across this massive structure.
To this mountain of meat, his attacks were little more than a tickle.
Time to try something else.
After a brief moment of thought, Daniel drew the Dagger of the God of Thieves and sliced at the membrane.
A translucent fragment instantly materialized in front of his eyes—a copied shard.
[Flesh-Guard Membrane]
[Origin: Skin of the God of Flesh | Extraordinary tenacity | Linked to the continental flesh network]
[Effect: Extremely powerful at isolating external lifeforms; blocks entrance into internal flesh territory]
Reading the description, Daniel's lips curled into a faint smile.
Looks like it's time to demonstrate the beauty of art.
Not long ago, Daniel had discovered a bug in the God-rank skill [Gift of the Veiled Goddess].
The Primordial Core Weapon was essentially composed of several high-threshold volatile materials
that exploded when combined.
Although [Gift of the Veiled Goddess] couldn't replicate the Primordial Core Weapon directly in infinite quantities,
it could endlessly duplicate the individual components used to create one.
Which meant—Daniel could assemble as many Primordial Core Weapons as he wanted.
While he couldn't materialize an infinite arsenal instantly,
he effectively held an unlimited stockpile as long as he had time to assemble them.
In a way, Daniel had achieved a form of infinite Primordial Core Weapon manufacturing.
And that gave him confidence.
If this barrier was truly that durable,
then it was the perfect time to test the power of the Primordial Core Weapon.
Without hesitation, Daniel activated the synthesis function.
Within seconds, his inventory filled with over a thousand Primordial Core Weapons.
Wanting to test the waters, he tossed 50 of them at the same location as his previous strike.
After setting a two-second timer, Daniel blinked out of the blast radius.
The next instant—
A radiant inferno erupted across the sky above the flesh continent!
Light swallowed the world—so bright that day and night reversed, and all shadows vanished.
...
Back at the edge of the Abyss,
the Emperor of the Abyss, Malkar, had not yet left.
He remained in place, quietly sensing the changes occurring on the other side.
That's when he felt it:
a subtle tremor running through the ground.
The sheer power of the Primordial Core Weapon had affected even the interior of the Abyss.
That overwhelming aura—the scent of something divine—
sent shivers down Malkar's spine.
Without hesitation, Malkar activated a spatial shift and fled to the other end of the Abyss.
Even as the Emperor of the Abyss—with near-limitless HP in his domain—
he dared not test the effects of the Primordial Core Weapon.
Who could say if it had secondary effects beyond its raw damage?
What if it carried a lingering HP-drain buff?
As Malkar retreated and continued to feel the monstrous tremors emanating from the land,
he remained filled with lingering dread.
That's... horrifying!
That Daniel... he's insane! He launched an attack from so close—wasn't he afraid of getting caught in the blast?
And just how powerful is the human race?
They can launch attacks this terrifying... and so casually??
Such destructive weaponry should, by all rights, be constructed from rare and expensive materials.
But it seemed the human race had them in abundance.
The more Malkar thought about it, the more terrified he became of humanity.
There must be a god hidden among them!
...
Following the first round of destruction,
Daniel reappeared beside the membrane.
Surprisingly, the membrane showed no signs of damage.
But this didn't mean the Primordial Core Weapons had failed.
Far from it—directly beneath the membrane, on the surface of the flesh continent,
a deep, bottomless crater had been blown into the grotesque terrain.
However, what truly made Daniel's scalp tingle
was that this crater was already regenerating.
New flesh buds were growing at incredible speed,
quickly restoring the damage caused by the explosion.
This horrific regeneration rate made Daniel frown.
His Eye of Insight had been correct.
The membrane didn't block energy—only lifeforms.
Which explained why a relatively minor attack like Meteor Arrow Rain was completely ineffective,
while Primordial Core Weapons still inflicted physical destruction... just not to the membrane.
Staring at the continent—so close, yet unreachable—Daniel fell into contemplation.
Perhaps I should check the God Rank Skill Compendium for something that can bypass this barrier.
[Blink]
A God Rank Skill capable of teleporting across any space,
unrestricted by barriers or restrictions.
Looks like that would be his next step:
gathering the components to unlock [Blink].
While Daniel was lost in thought,
midnight struck—00:00.
And with the new day's arrival,
all of Daniel's avatars and main body, scattered across the world, suddenly felt a powerful presence overhead.
Multiple powerful beings had appeared—
and they had descended without any warning.
The Millennial Apocalypse had now fully arrived.
Across the entire continent,
Awakeners of all races instinctively looked toward the sky.
Above them, monstrous bosses, each radiating overwhelming power, floated silently.
Their mere presence twisted the air and bent reality.
The Millennial Apocalypse was here—
and this time...
Could they survive it?
Chapter196-Seed of Chaos
[Millennium Apocalypse — Seed of Chaos]
[Rank: Apocalypse Class (Special)]
[Level: 300]
Effect 1: Germination – The seed takes root above the sky, anchoring itself within the void and drawing immense amounts of energy. This disrupts the flow of energy in the entire surrounding space, plunging it into chaos.
Effect 2: Chaotic Strike – Damage caused by the Seed of Chaos targets both HP and MP simultaneously. Should either of these values reach zero, the afflicted being will instantly perish.
Effect 3: Chaos Domain – Within the domain range of the Seed of Chaos, MP is forcibly reduced to 1% of its original value.
...
As Daniel read the ability panel of the Seed of Chaos, his brows knit into a deep frown.
A monster that begins its assault with a domain effect? No wonder it bore the title of a Millennium Apocalypse. It was indeed terrifying.
Among many high-level Awakeners, they could already feel the oppressive energy radiating from the sky. The Seed of Chaos had begun projecting its domain across the atmosphere.
However, for most mid- and low-level Awakeners, they were left confused and disoriented. They couldn't sense the origin of the chaos, only noticing abrupt and strange changes in their own status attributes.
"What's going on?! Why is my MP suddenly down to 1%?"
"Don't joke around! I've just chugged ten MP potions and didn't recover a single point!"
"Damn it! With only 1% MP, how am I supposed to use any of my skills?!"
"What the hell is happening? Why does it feel like space is sealed off?"
Some Awakeners fell unconscious the moment the Seed of Chaos descended.
These particular individuals, due to the nature of their awakened talents, did not possess MP. Instead, they used alternative energy gauges. However, this made them even more vulnerable.
For them, the Seed of Chaos's MP-reducing domain instantly brought their MP value to zero.
And reaching zero MP meant falling into a comatose, near-death state. As long as the Seed of Chaos's domain remained active, they would never awaken.
Worse yet, due to the violent interference in the energy fields, the Gnome Communicators everyone relied on had turned into useless bricks. Contact with the outside world was completely severed.
In just a blink, all communication among the myriad races was cut off entirely.
Through one of his many clones, Daniel discovered something interesting.
The descent of the Seed of Chaos wasn't a global event.
For example, several of his clones stationed elsewhere were completely unaffected by it.
Meanwhile, the skies above were now covered in the Seed of Chaos's domain, spreading far and wide.
Was the Millennium Apocalypse finally upon them?
Daniel slowly looked up toward the heavens.
The sky at this moment resembled a shattered mirror, riddled with silvery-white cracks that glowed ominously.
What terrifying monsters would descend once the sky completely shattered?
Clearly, the Seeds of Chaos currently emerging were nothing more than appetizers.
The true terror of the Millennium Apocalypse was still brewing.
In truth, based on ancient texts and the accounts provided by the Human Emperor, Daniel already had a considerable understanding of what the Millennium Apocalypse entailed.
It wasn't a single catastrophic event. Rather, it resembled waves upon waves of devastation, each stronger than the last.
Unlike a tidal wave that crashes all at once, the Millennium Apocalypse unfolded gradually—wave after wave, each more intense.
There was no fixed duration. Sometimes it lasted a year, other times it stretched to a decade.
But one thing remained constant: no recorded Millennium Apocalypse had ever lasted more than ten years.
Even so, just this first wave—the emergence of the Seed of Chaos—was enough to throw the world's races into turmoil.
What surprised Daniel the most was that each Seed of Chaos possessed a different domain effect.
The one hovering above Daniel's true body reduced MP.
Elsewhere, other Seeds caused domains that drained HP, stamina bars... some even outright disabled specific weapons or skill usage!
In short, the domains were diverse, unpredictable—and absolutely disgusting.
...
Now that Daniel had confirmed the onset of the Millennium Apocalypse, he lost all interest in further exploring the fleshy continent he had been investigating.
What truly mattered now was finding a way to confront this world-ending crisis.
The next moment, his figure shimmered and vanished from the continent.
Simultaneously, within the lands of the Elven race, a graceful figure knelt slightly upon seeing his arrival.
"Your Highness Daniel, what brings you here?" asked Alice, bowing with reverence.
Her expression was grim. She was already aware of the descent of the Seed of Chaos and the beginnings of the Millennium Apocalypse.
The Elven race had also been affected.
The Seed that hovered over their land came with a domain that drained stamina from everyone within range.
This was particularly crippling for elves, many of whom were archers by nature—Alice included.
With her stamina heavily suppressed, Alice couldn't even draw a single arrow, let alone fire one.
To think that an SSS-tier Awakened individual, and a god's devotee no less, had now been reduced to the strength of an ordinary civilian—such was the power of the Seed of Chaos.
Daniel narrowed his eyes and glanced up at the floating Seed of Chaos.
"If this thing is what's limiting you... then I'll take it out first."
In truth, a single Seed of Chaos wasn't all that powerful by itself. At best, it was only silver-rank in strength.
It was the domain that made them so troublesome.
But if it was just a domain, Daniel didn't think it would be too hard to deal with.
From what he had read and been told, in the previous Millennium Apocalypses, the monsters that appeared in the later stages—whether in raw power or domain effects—were on a completely different level.
In comparison, the Seeds of Chaos were nothing.
This was just the beginning.
Yet even this beginning was already enough to overwhelm weaker races.
Even powerful groups like the Elves had to go all out to confront a single Seed—and they might still suffer devastating losses.
After pondering for a moment, Daniel looked toward Alice and asked,
"Alice, if I recall correctly, you're one step away from completing your Star Upgrade Quest, aren't you?"
"Yes, Your Highness. I only need to complete the final phase, and I'll be promoted to a 3-star Awakener."
Hearing her response, Daniel sighed lightly.
As expected, the SSS-rank Star Upgrade Quest was ridiculously easy compared to his own.
His EX-rank Star Upgrade Quest was so difficult, it might as well be trying to ascend to the heavens.
"I'll take care of the Seed of Chaos troubling the Elves. You focus on completing your Star Upgrade Quest."
As his words fell, Daniel immediately summoned the Spirit of Skills.
In the same instant, a cascade of starlight erupted across the sky, wrapping the Seed of Chaos in a brilliant celestial glow.
"You specialize in limiting stamina? Fine. I'll fight you with skills alone. Let's see how you deal with that."
Daniel narrowed his eyes and raised his gaze toward the sky.
Chapter197-Slaying the Seed of Chaos
A violent explosion erupted around the Seed of Chaos in an instant.
The Seed hovering above Daniel's head began to rapidly lose HP, its health bar visibly shrinking with each passing second.
...
In the territory of the blood clan, Charlotte flew out from her ancient castle and looked up at the sky.
"A mere silver-ranked boss dares to stir trouble on my land?"
"Believe it or not, I could kill you right now!"
Despite her arrogant declaration, Charlotte activated a probing ability. While she was proud, she never underestimated her enemies when facing real battles.
Yet the moment she finished probing, her expression changed dramatically.
[Your summoning success rate is reduced to 1%. All summoned creatures' attributes are reduced to 1% as well.]
What did that mean?
It meant that even if she cast her summoning spell 100 times, only one summon would succeed!
And even if she somehow managed to summon something, its attribute values would only be 1% of their original strength.
How was she supposed to fight like that?
This wasn't just difficult—it was completely unplayable!
Feeling the terrifying suppression of the domain, Charlotte stood frozen on the spot.
She had thought her power would be enough to handle anything.
But reality proved that, against this Seed of Chaos, she stood no chance.
The overwhelming sense of helplessness made Charlotte doubt herself for the first time.
So even someone as strong as her could be shackled by such terrifying restrictions...
If that was the case, she had only one option—call for help.
"Oh great Crossbridge, your devoted servant Charlotte prays to you..."
A moment later, Charlotte's eyes lit up with joy.
The great Crossbridge had bestowed upon her a new God Rank Skill!
But before she could act, Daniel suddenly appeared in front of her, his figure manifesting without warning.
"I know you could probably handle this Seed of Chaos eventually, but I'm in a bit of a hurry," he said calmly.
As he spoke, he began to cast a combination of spells: [Abyssal Summoning Spell], along with [Blood Transfer], and several other complex abilities.
In the blink of an eye, a monstrous creature appeared before the Seed of Chaos—one whose attribute values rivaled those of a gold-ranked beast!
Charlotte stood stunned.
A gold-ranked summoned creature? Summoned that easily?
And under the suppression of a domain that reduced summoning success to 1%?
How on earth did Daniel manage that?
Charlotte wracked her brain but couldn't begin to comprehend the mechanics.
Daniel, however, gave her no time to think. He immediately commanded the summoned beast to eliminate the Seed of Chaos.
And within moments, the Seed hovering over the blood clan's territory was slain.
Daniel snapped his fingers, as if brushing off a trivial task.
"Charlotte," he said with a smirk, "it looks like you're still a little ways off from surpassing me."
"Rather than worrying about surpassing me, I suggest you focus on growing stronger."
"You can't even deal with a mere silver-ranked Seed of Chaos. How can you possibly hope to become a god?"
Of course, Daniel said this deliberately to provoke and motivate her. In truth, he was just looking for an excuse to take advantage of the skill she had just received.
Naturally, he wasn't about to admit that out loud.
After all, from the outside world's perspective, Daniel was the god's heir—he had a reputation to maintain.
Charlotte, on the other hand, wanted to argue. Her lips parted instinctively...
But no words came out.
The more she interacted with Daniel, the more she realized just how vast the gap between them truly was.
Even under the domain's suppression, which reduced all attribute values to 1%, Daniel's summoned creature was stronger than her entire arsenal combined.
And...
Charlotte had to admit—she really didn't have the power to deal with the Seed of Chaos.
For the first time in her life, she felt truly weak.
She wasn't as powerful as she had thought.
She had simply been sheltered too well and had underestimated the world.
Charlotte fell into deep self-doubt.
If any other Awakeners had witnessed this scene, they would've probably cursed Daniel's name.
She was just 13 years old—a level 100 Awakener—and he expected her to solo a level 300 Seed of Chaos?
And when she failed, he blamed it on her lack of strength?
Was the world this competitive now?
After a moment of silence, Charlotte lowered her head and spoke with a hint of dejection:
"I understand... I'll do my best to grow stronger. Just a Seed of Chaos, right? I'll defeat them with ease someday!"
...
The emergence of the Seeds of Chaos had thrown the world into a state of widespread panic.
For most Awakeners, the Seeds were already beyond their ability to resist.
Even ignoring their overpowered domains, a silver-ranked boss alone was already too much for most to handle.
Despair began to spread across the various races like wildfire.
And just as the world was beginning to drown in hopelessness, a system notification appeared in the sky for all to see:
[Human Daniel has slain — Seed of Chaos x1]
[Remaining Seeds of Chaos: 12]
...
Even though the Seeds had isolated entire regions and rendered communication nearly impossible, this system-wide announcement was visible to all.
And to everyone's shock—Daniel had not only been able to move freely under the influence of the Seed's domain, but had actually killed one!
This announcement was nothing short of inspirational.
In the elven territory, Daniel was already standing beside the corpse of the defeated Seed of Chaos.
To his surprise, there was no traditional treasure chest like usual. Instead, a neat row of loot was displayed on the ground:
[Field Nullification Scroll][Fragment of the Seed of Chaos's Power]
...
So even these domains weren't entirely invincible...
Daniel took the [Field Nullification Scroll] and tucked it into his dimensional backpack.
Aside from that, there were quite a few pieces of gear—but most of them were of no use to him.
He also obtained a large number of skill books, though most of them were related to stamina.
For Daniel, whose combat relied almost entirely on high-output skills, such stamina-based books had limited value.
Still, he figured some of the books might prove useful to Alice.
Among the loot, there were also a large number of crafting materials—some rare enough to be used for synthesizing divine-level mechanical skills.
But what truly caught Daniel's eye was a particularly special item:
[Stamina Enhancement Keystone]
Effect: Increases stamina for the holder's race or group by Current Level ×10.
This was a treasure beyond compare.
If installed in the Infinite Divine Temple, the stamina of all associated races would skyrocket—an incredible boost to the collective strength of every allied faction.
Chapter198-Blood Moon
Putting aside Daniel's unique case for a moment, under normal circumstances, every time an ordinary Awakener leveled up, they would only gain a single attribute point.
Of course, before undergoing a racial promotion, the concept of "level" didn't really exist for most basic Awakeners—only a vague notion of "tier."
But after completing their advancement quests, humanity had gained a clearer understanding of their own strength, and the system of levels became more established.
For the average Awakener, stamina increased by 1 point per level.
Some might possess talents leaning heavily toward stamina specialization, and these individuals might gain 2 or even 3 points per level.
That was already considered a huge advantage.
However, the existence of the [Stamina Enhancement Keystone] brought about an astronomical leap for most stamina-based Awakeners.
Their combat power could increase several-fold!
After quietly collecting his thoughts, Daniel suddenly realized another important detail.
Although the Millennium Apocalypse was brutal and deadly, the loot it dropped was of exceptional value.
Take today's harvest for example—it far surpassed anything he had gained from exploring underground labyrinths or even slaying world bosses.
It proved once again that high risk came with high reward.
For others, the Millennium Apocalypse was a terrifying disaster.
But for Daniel, it might be the best opportunity to grow stronger.
In fact, it was exactly these kinds of reward drops from past Millennium Apocalypses that had allowed the various races to develop to their current levels.
So in a sense, the Millennium Apocalypse was a double-edged sword.
After a brief moment of silence, Daniel retrieved the [Field Nullification Scroll] from his inventory. Then, he summoned the dagger inherited from the God of Thieves and carefully cut the scroll into 21 equal pieces.
However...
From a technical standpoint, the [Field Nullification Scroll] was still a consumable item, wasn't it?
With this thought in mind, Daniel decided to try something on a whim—he activated [Gift of the Veiled Goddess].
To his delight, the gamble paid off.
The Veiled Goddess's gift took effect!
With that, he had nothing more to worry about.
[Field Nullification Scroll] — Activate!
The next moment, across different regions of the world, the oppressive domains of the Seeds of Chaos were all nullified in an instant!
As communication networks were restored, the global information channels instantly exploded with activity.
"Holy crap, what just happened? The domains are gone?!"
"The monsters are still hovering up there, so why did their domains suddenly disappear?"
"Hey... is it possible that His Highness Daniel is the one behind this?"
"The network's back! Quick, send out a distress call!"
"Anyone got any strategies to kill the Seed of Chaos in the sky above us?"
...
In the territories of other races, elite warriors had already begun launching attacks against their local Seeds of Chaos.
But due to the overpowering domain suppression, most Awakeners had been forced to stand by as helpless spectators.
Until now.
Without warning, the domains that had been shackling them simply vanished.
"What's going on? The domain is gone?!"
"It has to be His Highness Daniel—it must be him!"
"My fellow warriors, seize this chance! Take down the Seed of Chaos!"
The same scene repeated itself across various corners of the world.
In truth, once the domains were lifted, the Seeds of Chaos weren't as threatening as everyone had feared.
Back in the elven territory, both Charlotte and Alice had shifted their attention entirely to their Star Upgrade Quests.
They understood clearly that only by completing those quests could they continue to grow stronger.
After experiencing such a vast disparity in strength, Charlotte had clearly become much more level-headed.
She even found herself laughing bitterly at her past arrogance.
How ridiculous she'd been, trying to boast in front of a god's heir when she couldn't even measure up to him.
The great Crossbridge hadn't even punished her for it.
Apparently, His Holiness Crossbridge was far more magnanimous than she had thought.
...
With Daniel's action, all domains were effortlessly dispelled.
And once they were lifted, Awakeners from all races felt a surge of morale.
His Highness Daniel is incredible!
Only someone like him could have pulled off such a feat.
With Daniel on their side, even the threat of the Millennium Apocalypse didn't seem so despair-inducing anymore.
Everyone regained their fighting spirit.
As long as His Highness Daniel is with us, we'll get through this!
...
Within just a few minutes,
The world's communication networks were flooded with shared strategies for taking down Seeds of Chaos.
The races of the world were not as weak as they might have appeared—after all, if they had been, they wouldn't have survived this long.
It was just that the Seeds' powerful domains had severely hindered their combat capabilities.
Now that the suppression had been lifted, many high-level Awakeners who'd been sidelined were able to rejoin the fight.
As a result, although the battles remained fierce, many Seeds of Chaos began to fall.
...
Northern Frontier of the Human Race.
Daniel charged forward with blade in hand, slashing toward the Seed of Chaos using [Phantom].
Behind him surged a wave of human Awakeners, also launching their attacks on the monster.
Mejir — [Chaotic Blade Dance]!
[Sky-Cleaving Tremor]
[Frostfang Ninefold Slash]!!
A barrage of attacks landed on the Seed of Chaos.
However, even with everyone going all-out, they only managed to shave off 5% of its HP.
The remaining 95%?
All from Daniel's single use of [Phantom].
Seeing Daniel defeat a Seed of Chaos with just one skill, the gathered human Awakeners couldn't help but twitch at the corners of their mouths.
Mejir in particular lowered his head in shame, afraid Daniel might single him out.
They were supposed to be classmates...
But now, their strength was worlds apart.
Mejir even had the nagging suspicion that Daniel might have already surpassed the Human Emperor himself.
Just then, a new command flashed across everyone's communicator:
"Eliminate the berserk Abyss creatures."
Only now did the Awakeners realize that a riot had broken out in the Abyss—massive waves of Abyssal monsters were flooding toward the surface.
While the Primordial Core Weapon had already wiped out many of them, these creatures were highly unusual.
Even after being slain, they would respawn inside the Abyss after a short time.
And with the onset of the Millennium Apocalypse, these monsters were now more restless than ever.
In the face of this new threat, Daniel chose not to use the Primordial Core Weapon.
After all, that would only provide a temporary solution, and it might also cause immense collateral damage to the human territory.
But it wasn't just the Abyssal monsters.
Even the wild bosses that roamed the world had started going berserk!
A crimson glow spread through the night sky—
The Blood Moon... had risen!
Chapter199-Abyss Potion
High above in the sky, the blood moon radiated an eerie, otherworldly light.
That light carried with it a strange, indescribable agitation.
Even Daniel, as he stood bathed in its glow, could feel his emotions spiraling out of control. A violent impulse swelled within him—a sudden, primal desire to destroy everything in sight.
Was this... the influence of the starborn creatures?
Daniel furrowed his brow, his expression darkening. For a moment, he felt as though the entire situation had become unsolvable.
After all, the starborn monsters didn't attack physically—they warped the mind power of living beings. Their mere existence could twist perception and corrupt thought.
And this kind of influence was something almost no awakener had any means of resisting.
Still, there was one slight consolation: this wasn't the first time the blood moon had descended.
Long ago—thousands of years prior—each Millennial Apocalypse had also been accompanied by the rise of the blood moon, and each time, it had infected and distorted the mind power of all who dwelled beneath its glow.
Over time, the myriad intelligent races that survived had gradually developed a certain degree of resistance to the blood moon's corruption.
But among all these races, the ones most affected by the blood moon... were the Artists.
They had originally been nothing more than an offshoot of the gnome race—small, creative, and intelligent.
Yet it was under the prolonged exposure to the blood moon that they began to mutate, their identities shifting until they eventually separated from their kin and evolved into a new race entirely.
A race that would one day plunge the world into chaos and bring calamity to all others.
It wasn't until Daniel appeared that the Artists were truly and thoroughly purged from existence.
That said, resistance to the blood moon's corruption only applied to intelligent beings.
The beasts of the underground labyrinth, and even the monsters that roamed the wildlands and served as powerful field bosses, had no such luxury.
The moment they came into contact with the moonlight, they immediately lost all sense of reason and fell into pure, unrelenting madness.
All across the world, beasts were now howling and raging in frenzied uproar.
Their violent behavior... bore an uncanny resemblance to the berserk state of monsters in the Abyss.
Could it be... that somewhere deep within the Abyss, there was also a force capable of affecting a monster's consciousness?
Maybe it was the same starborn influence—or maybe it was something even worse.
Daniel couldn't help but wonder. But deep down, he also knew now wasn't the time to explore that question.
There was a much more urgent crisis at hand—the onslaught of the Millennial Apocalypse and all it entailed.
Within his vast sensory field, Daniel could already detect a massive horde of monsters gathering at the northern borders of human territory.
These creatures were far from weak. In fact, quite a few of them had reached World Rank, and their crimson eyes gleamed with feral bloodlust.
They trembled with manic energy, howling and snarling as they charged toward human settlements.
The fortresses of humanity now faced a terrifying siege.
It was as if the monsters had only one goal: to utterly tear apart every last human in existence.
And this was just the beginning.
With the arrival of the Millennial Apocalypse, three catastrophes had broken loose in unison: the corruption of the blood moon, the outbreak of Abyssal monsters, and the total collapse of order.
Together, they bore down upon all living races with unimaginable pressure.
Yet surprisingly, the awakeners stationed at the northern frontier of human territory... weren't afraid.
In fact, their expressions were filled with excitement, their spirits rising instead of falling.
From the looks in their eyes, it seemed as though these berserk monsters weren't a sign of doom, but rather... the herald of golden opportunity?
"My mission in the Void Tower is to slay one thousand frenzied monsters. As long as I reach the quota, my talent will evolve!"
"Damn, you're lucky. I need to kill ten thousand before I can finish my trial!"
"Why do I feel more eager to fight now? There's not even a hint of fear..."
"Don't overthink it, brother! Hurry up! If we're too slow, we won't even get a share of the kills!"
...
Suddenly, a broadcast came through their communicators, interrupting the chatter with a bright chime.
[Infinite Divine Temple: Complimentary Abyss Potions have been distributed. Please collect yours as soon as possible. After taking the potion, you will be immune to Abyss corruption for six hours.]
As soon as they saw the message, awakeners all across the northern front erupted into cheers!
Everyone knew that the Abyss was littered with priceless treasures.
The only reason humanity had struggled to explore it was because of the overwhelming, constant sense of corruption.
That invisible erosion broke down the mind, twisted instincts, and destroyed sanity. Few had the strength to endure it.
But now?
Now, the Infinite Divine Temple was distributing Abyss Potions—for free!
That meant awakeners could enter the Abyss at full strength, without fear of being mentally broken or physically corrupted.
And if they were lucky, they might even collect rare materials from within while completing their missions.
The excitement became electric.
"This is amazing! I've heard legends that the Abyss is made of pure gold. I've always wanted to dive deeper, but I didn't dare risk it. Now, I finally have nothing to fear!"
"Hahaha! I've already received my potions. They're giving out 20 per person! Infinite Divine Temple is insane!"
"Wait, 20 bottles?! Each one costs at least 100,000 gold coins... That's 2 million in total! Has the Divine Temple lost its mind?!"
"What the hell are we waiting for?! LET'S GOOOO!"
"Wasn't Infinite Divine Temple founded by Lord Daniel himself? Could this be another one of his master plans?"
"I knew it! Lord Daniel has never let us down!"
"I was skeptical of the Divine Temple at first, thought they were up to something shady. But once I found out it was Daniel behind it, I switched faiths on the spot. Now I'm a Level 3 believer!"
"Level 3? That means... you've unlocked three Divine Temple skills?!"
"Hahaha! Keep it down, keep it down..."
...
Every communication channel was ablaze with excitement.
Some awakeners even left their hometowns, traveling through Anygate portals to reach Winterhold Castle, where the Infinite Divine Temple's headquarters were based.
There, a massive crowd of awakeners had gathered around the temple, waiting eagerly for their share of the potions.
Of course, with such a huge market, scalpers tried to take advantage.
But the Infinite Divine Temple had zero tolerance for such behavior.
In fact, one high-ranking level 180 awakener had his faith credentials revoked for attempting to resell the potions.
Since then, not a single scalper had dared try again.
Everything was strictly regulated. Potions were distributed fairly and directly, no middlemen involved.
And once the awakeners received their Abyss Potions, they wasted no time.
Masses of warriors—human and otherwise—charged toward the nearest Abyssal rift.
"Let's go, boys! One roll of the dice might change our lives!"
"Tell my mom... I'm not a worthless crybaby anymore!!"
"Hey there, Abyss monsters, your queen has arrived~!"
"Mission first—no matter what!!"
...
With eyes burning red and hearts pounding, awakeners hurled themselves into the darkness of the Abyss.
And with them, the next great battle had already begun.
Chapter200-New Life Makes Its Move
No one could have predicted it—
The awakeners of all the races had actually invaded the Abyss, and what's more, they were slaughtering the Abyssal monsters by the thousands!
And amidst the fierce and chaotic battle, many awakeners began to notice something strange.
It was as if... they simply couldn't feel tired at all!
Wave after wave of attacks, endless use of skills, nonstop combat—
Yet despite the heavy toll it should have taken, their HP and MP didn't decrease in the slightest.
What was going on here?
It was then that some of the awakeners noticed something else.
At some point during the chaos, a colossal being had appeared above them in the sky.
[New Life]
[Support Status: Within this domain, restores 100,000 HP/MP per second to allied units. Additionally, removes one abnormal status effect per second and provides targeted support strikes when necessary.]
"Look! It's another one of the reinforcements brought by Lord Daniel!!"
"Holy crap, why is its stat profile so insane? My Identify Skill can't see anything—just a wall of question marks!"
"Same here. But I can tell one thing for sure—whatever it's doing, the support it's giving us is absolutely overwhelming!"
As they spoke, [New Life] initiated its first offensive strike.
Atop its massive head, a glowing energy sphere began to form, gradually growing in size and radiating a terrifying pressure that rippled across the battlefield.
"Whoa, is that thing really about to launch an attack?"
"I've always been curious—just how terrifying is the power of a Diamond-Rank entity?"
"Shit, do you think it might accidentally hit us too? I'm backing up just in case!"
Just as they were talking, the translucent energy sphere atop [New Life] suddenly began to shift.
What had once been a semi-transparent glow now transformed into a solid black orb, radiating suffocating pressure.
A wave of shock swept through the awakeners.
"What the hell... it's solid now?! That aura—this thing is no joke!"
All the awakeners on the battlefield instinctively backed away.
No one wanted to be caught in the crossfire of whatever was coming next.
The black orb hovered for a moment... then, without warning, launched toward the entrance of the Abyss.
Despite its massive size, the sphere moved in such a strange manner that it seemed to be both slow and fast at the same time.
Awakeners could clearly see its every detail as it floated—yet within a blink, it was already at its destination.
And then, it shattered.
Like a bubble popping, the black orb disintegrated at the Abyss's threshold.
At first, nothing seemed to happen.
"What the—? That's it? That's the damage from a Diamond-Rank Boss?"
"Seriously? Couldn't it at least kill one Abyss monster or something? What kind of anticlimactic move was that?!"
"Wait... something's off. Look closely!"
Even without further prompting, everyone could sense that something was definitely wrong.
The Abyssal monsters guarding the entrance—those vicious, bloodthirsty beasts—were all suddenly... frozen in place.
Their snarls stopped mid-growl, their bodies went rigid, and their claws halted in mid-swipe.
And this paralysis didn't stop with just one or two.
Like a plague spreading through the ranks, more and more Abyss creatures were infected by this strange stillness.
In mere seconds, a large swath of Abyss monsters had stopped moving entirely.
They stood there—immobile, unresponsive, and eerily quiet.
This bizarre sight left all the awakeners stunned.
Could it be that this Diamond-Rank Boss had just used some sort of wide-range control skill?
If that were the case... it didn't seem all that impressive on the surface.
But before they could finish that thought, something even stranger happened.
The paralyzed Abyss monsters suddenly turned away from the surface.
As if receiving a command from deep within their minds, they began retreating—rushing back into the Abyss's depths!
At the same time, those that hadn't been affected by [New Life]'s black orb tried to push upward, surging toward the surface.
And then—
An unspeakable scene unfolded before everyone's eyes.
The two factions of monsters—those influenced by [New Life] and those still under the chaotic madness of the blood moon—suddenly turned on each other.
The corrupted monsters, robbed of their ability to use skills, were forced to rely solely on brute strength.
Meanwhile, their berserk counterparts still retained full access to their abilities.
What happened next was one-sided carnage.
Because the affected monsters had been positioned so close to their allies, many of them didn't even get a chance to fight back.
They were torn apart before they could react.
It was a massacre.
Blood and gore filled the battlefield, dyeing the Abyss entrance in crimson and black.
Before their very eyes, the awakeners watched as nearly one-third of the entire Abyss monster force was annihilated by its own kind.
But Abyssal monsters were born of the Abyss.
For every one that died, another would eventually be spawned in its place.
That was part of what made the Millennial Apocalypse so terrifying—
There was no end to it. You couldn't simply "kill all the monsters." You could only endure.
But now, thanks to [New Life], the tide had begun to shift.
And more than that—there wasn't just one [New Life] present.
There were three.
Three Diamond-Rank entities guarding the Abyss entrance.
And when all three launched their black orb attacks simultaneously, the combined pressure proved too much even for the endless horde of monsters.
For the moment, the area around the Abyss entrance was quiet.
Unusually so.
The Abyss monsters couldn't even reach the surface.
Every time a new wave was born, it was slaughtered before it could make it through the barrier.
And with each successive wave, more black orbs fell from the skies, reducing fresh monsters to mindless puppets or outright corpses.
A wall of bodies began to form at the Abyss's entrance.
Still, every now and then, a few survivors managed to slip through the net—monsters that evaded the attacks and emerged into the overworld.
But to the countless awakeners present, that number was far too small.
They needed targets.
After all, many of their quests required monster kills.
Just then, a system message popped up in front of Daniel's eyes.
[Congratulations! Your number of followers has exceeded 10 trillion.]
[Congratulations! You have received a reward!]
[You have been granted higher-level permissions within the Infinite Divine Temple and the Void Tower.]
...
Ever since the start of the Millennial Apocalypse, the number of people choosing to place their faith in the Infinite Divine Temple had surged.
At last, the number of followers had broken past the 10-trillion mark.
But what many didn't know was that Daniel had never actively tried to promote the Temple.
He simply didn't have the time.
His schedule was already packed to the brim.
And yet, despite his lack of effort, more and more beings were choosing to convert.
Because the power that the Infinite Divine Temple granted was undeniable—
A hundred, no, a thousand times more potent than what any other so-called gods had to offer.
Especially within the Abyss, the Temple's value had skyrocketed.
Its support and buffs were game-changing.
So much so, that even the powerful monsters of the Abyss had begun turning to Daniel's Temple in droves.
Many of them even chose to settle permanently in his territories.
Without realizing it, Daniel's Kingdom had already become the most powerful force within the entire Abyss.
Even the empire founded by Malkar, the Emperor of the Abyss, couldn't compare.
In terms of influence, prestige, and raw power—
Daniel's position in the Abyss had already risen to a level... nearly equal to that of the Emperor himself.