The Greatest Warrior of All Time Returns-Chapter 409

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Chapter 409

Compressed air burst outward like an explosion, sweeping away everything within its radius.

The ground, exposed to extreme heat, was subjected to an unidentified ultra-high temperature and melted away in an instant.

Its size was no more than that of a palm—just a tiny chick.

A pitiful-looking chick wearing a small helmet with a little horn on top.

Yet its power was close to that of a calamity.

Sur, the spirit of heat, charged bravely at the sentries and, in an instant, absorbed all the surrounding heat.

Then, in the next moment, it froze the entire area solid.

Psssssss……

Those who barely managed to block the attack survived by the skin of their teeth, but the fate of those who failed could not be confirmed.

Immediately after Leon Cascadia’s spirit launched its assault, Garlan made a swift judgment and chose to retreat.

There was absolutely nothing to be gained by confronting him head-on right now.

Just a newly born spirit, and yet—!

Enraged, Garlan evaded while simultaneously releasing a barrage of sword energy toward Sur.

It was true that Sur controlled heat, but it wasn’t an invincible existence.

However, his attack was swallowed by a purplish mist that spread through the air, melting away and dispersing as if dissolved.

‘Damn it… the spirit of poison.’

In the darkness, a small otter shimmered into view, its eyes glowing purple.

They had to escape before it was too late.

Garlan immediately issued a retreat order to his subordinates.

Then, he tore apart a piece of paper etched with bizarre patterns.

It would’ve been nice if it were a teleport scroll—but across the continent, there were no known mages above the 7th circle besides Leon Cascadia.

In other words, this was an item given to him by Nyarlathotep, a subordinate of an Outer God.

A method of spatial transfer that ignored conventional laws.

The price wouldn’t be light—but if the other side had noticed faster than expected, there was no time to worry about personal cost.

The chick, roaring valiantly, no longer pursued Garlan.

Instead—

Srrrk—SHAAAK!!

“Ghk?!”

At some point, Isna’s silver sword had closed in, eroding space itself as it severed his arm.

“Ghk… Leader!”

“Do not call me that. Traitor.”

Fortunately, there was no follow-up attack.

Garlan and his subordinates had already left the material plane.

The severed arm would not return, but—

As his surroundings gradually faded, Garlan clutched the stump of his arm and looked at her.

“It’s already too late. You know it as well. Having absorbed the energy contained within the Shoggoth, that one will gradually collapse.”

“I’ve told you repeatedly—this is a complete reversal of host and guest. Your ideology is like inviting a tiger into your home just to chase out a fox.”

“Hmph. We have our own methods as well—”

Isna cut him off coldly.

“You act as if you understand something, armed with nothing but fragments of information.”

The sword in Isna’s hand flashed, tearing apart the space where Garlan had stood.

Yet despite her attack, his face—already beyond the material plane—was filled with ease.

“Do not forget. We lack memories as grand as yours. But there is one thing we remember clearly.”

Hatred—and fury—burned in his eyes.

“The one who took what was precious to me… the one who killed me… was not some monster from another dimension—It was him.”

At those words, Isna bit her lip hard.

“I told you… that it’s not something you can afford to think about so lightly.”

“It’s already too late. I’ve crossed a river from which there is no return. Even if I die and fall into the fires of hell—I will shatter that bastard.”

Looking into those madness-filled eyes, Isna let out a short sigh.

“Do whatever you want. If that’s your choice.”

“You know as well as I do that now is not the time to be relaxed, Leader—”

“When has Leon Cascadia ever moved according to our expectations?”

At that question, Garlan fell silent.

“You made a grave mistake, Garlan. I’ll come for your head soon—so wait.”

“I will.”

* * *

The otherworldly energy contained within Shoggoths is different from that of the Outer God Yog.

It is energy that permeates the other dimension itself—normally not something its native lifeforms contain individually.

But Shoggoths are beings born to accumulate energy.

That’s why it’s possible to hunt them and absorb their power.

Under normal circumstances, this should have begun with discomfort and gradually inflicted severe damage on my mind.

This wasn’t something a simple mental barrier—like that of a Grandmaster—could resolve.

If it were, merely receiving information about the Outer God Yog wouldn’t have caused shock.

But thanks to the effects of the Book of Genesis, my mental barrier had reached near perfection—and now, a new power had taken root within me.

Welcome aboard.

Of course, as always, the moment a new power settles inside my body, the existing energies begin enforcing discipline.

The first to move was the Aura of the Divine Core.

The Aura of the Divine Core, obtained through the Hall of Enhancement, provoked the newcomer as if being pushed back by the power acquired just before it—the Mana of Immortality from the Hall of Bestowal.

That said, since it was the most recently acquired power and thus ranked lowest in seniority, it resided at the outermost layer—hence the quick reaction.

Still, it felt like there was a strange hierarchy at play.

The Aura of the Divine Core poked at the otherworldly energy.

The problem was… this energy was fundamentally different from all the others.

No matter how many times it was stimulated, the otherworldly energy barely reacted.

It felt like dealing with a useless recruit plugging their ears.

Should I use it independently?

If only there were a good opportunity to test it.

Just as that thought crossed my mind—

I realized the crimson sky had yet to disappear.

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Garlan’s goal may have been mass deployment of Shoggoths, but the Outer God Yog clearly had no intention of stopping there.

The clouds gathered in the sky, and between their gaps, countless grotesque eyes stared down at me.

Normally, merely gazing upon them would have inflicted mental damage.

But I felt no discomfort.

No rejection.

No problem at all.

And one more thing—

As the otherworldly energy began reacting on its own, the grotesque eyes in the sky became far more clearly defined.

The energy itself was undoubtedly dangerous—but depending on how it was used, it might be extremely useful in the current situation.

That thought crossed my mind.

“One test should do.”

I slipped away from the chaos-stricken people of the ducal territory and climbed onto the roof of a tall building.

No one could see the monster in the sky, but the recent attacks had already thrown everything into confusion.

If that unknown entity crossed over now, things would get troublesome.

I stretched out my hand toward the unidentified eyes in the sky.

[7th Circle Lightning Magic]

[Astrape]

The lightning spear I casually launched shot skyward in an instant.

But since it hadn’t yet manifested fully in the material plane, Astrape merely pierced through the cloud-shrouded entity and passed by.

If it emerged, it would be a catastrophe.

Yet stopping it was difficult.

In that case—

Without a word, I mixed the otherworldly power into the massive lightning energy gathering in my hand.

According to Isna’s research from the Closed World, this should work.

The lightning spear forming in my hand began turning violet, releasing tremendous repulsive force.

It wasn’t uncontrollable—but instead of suppressing or harmonizing it, I amplified the repulsion to its maximum.

Otherworldly power grants unique properties in exchange for destabilizing one’s mind.

But if that price doesn’t apply—then confirming its maximum potential is well worth it.

Violet sparks went berserk around the growing lightning spear, raking across the ground and empty air alike.

Rooftops and open space within its influence repeatedly formed black scorch marks, only to have them vanish moments later.

Then, without hesitation, I seized it and hurled it skyward like a javelin.

BOOOOM!! KRAAASH!!

The released lightning spell broke through multiple times the speed of sound in a fleeting instant, generating a massive sonic boom and electrical shockwave.

Like a bolt of lightning descending from the heavens, it zigzagged through the sky, carving residual arcs before slamming downward.

* * *

A high-frequency sound beyond human perception reverberated across the entire firmament.

Unlike before—when attacks passed straight through—the 7th-circle lightning infused with otherworldly power struck true, producing a mysterious phenomenon.

As though the very essence of the being had become vulnerable.

The lightning pierced into its core, burning everything indiscriminately.

The eyes hidden within the clouds burst all at once, then slowly faded away.

Soon, the crimson sky returned to normal.

“…This is better than I expected.”

I let out a dry laugh as I observed the influence of the otherworldly power in my hand.

Even destroying Nyarlathotep, a subordinate of an Outer God, hadn’t dealt direct damage to him.

But this—used properly—could strike his true body no matter where it was.

That realization filled me with certainty.

Being able to attack an enemy that was previously untouchable was an enormous advantage.

It felt like obtaining the perfect key to a tightly locked box.

Of course, in situations like this, it’s easy to become consumed by such power—so caution was necessary.

“Leon! How is it?!”

“Just finished cleaning up. We just need to assess the damage and handle the aftermath.”

Melissa, who had followed my gaze upward, looked at the sky with a stiff expression.

“Uh… was there something up there?”

“There was.”

“There was?”

“Now there isn’t.”

There really was no simpler explanation.

“Leon. How did it feel using it?”

“How did it feel? Well… I think we should find a way to secure Shoggoths periodically.”

“That could be dangerous.”

Luna looked like she wanted to stop me out of concern.

“At this level, it should be fine. And it’s not something we need immediately.”

The energy consumption was minimal.

The issue was that it had no natural recovery method—so it needed to be used carefully.

While standing there, I heard Lucifer’s voice.

—The more I watch you, the less sense you make. From how you handle power to how quickly you adapt to it…You look as if you were born with a purpose.

Since he didn’t seem inclined to explain even if I asked, I casually ignored it.

What truly drew my attention was the strengthening of the Book of Genesis.

“I need to enhance the book.”

What made all of this possible was the existence of the Book of Genesis.

If this much efficiency came from just +1 enhancement… what would happen if it were strengthened further?

After leaving the cleanup to Melissa, I immediately entered the space of the Progenitor Dragon and took out my hammer.

Considering that low-level enhancements don’t fail, there was no downside to strengthening it to a safe threshold.

If each enhancement granted a special ability, then this possessed power beyond mere authority.

However, the world is never that simple—and I realized that the moment I attempted the second enhancement.

[Insufficient enhancement materials.]

[Authority required: Breath of Steel.]

[Enhancement cooldown for the Book of Genesis is active.]

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