Chapter 89

Chapter 89
## Chapter 89

### The Holy Sword’s Trial (2)

The space resembled the sanctuary of a cathedral, complete with an altar and the grand insignia of the Main God Church.

‘The passage of time fluctuates depending on the test.’

In this particular chamber, the flow of time was accelerated, moving roughly three times faster than the world outside.

As he silently assessed his environment, a resonant consciousness reverberated within his mind once more.

Flicker—

Simultaneously, a soft radiance began to pulse from a massive emblem carved into the wall elevated behind the altar. It was the sacred symbol of the Main God Church, designed to represent holy illumination radiating outward to all corners of the world.

‘Right, I recognize this setup.’

It was a scenario that frequently surfaced in the written accounts left by prior contenders. Heinrich stepped toward the elevated platform with an air of certainty, dropping to his knees with practiced ease and interlocking his fingers.

‘The Trial of Faith.’

As a standard challenge in these assessments, the objective here was straightforward. He merely needed to manifest the depth of his devotion.

The moment he initiated his prayer, the illumination streaming from the Church’s insignia grew remarkably vibrant.

Swish—

The light cascaded downward, enveloping Heinrich like a concentrated beam of sunshine piercing through a high window. Accompanying this radiance, a massive torrent of divine energy began to flood into his physical form.

‘To endure and absorb a designated volume of divine power.’

That was the fundamental mechanism for demonstrating one’s devotion within this specific test. He possessed a general understanding of the thresholds expected during the trials of the holy sword. The system seemingly calibrated the intensity based on a contender’s latent potential and future prospects, leading to minor individual discrepancies…

However, the baseline requirement typically hovered somewhere between the capacities of a bishop and an archbishop.

For Heinrich, this should have been a manageable feat. He already commanded divine power on par with a bishop and maintained the ability to expand his internal thresholds whenever the situation demanded it.

‘Which is exactly why I assumed this phase would be a breeze…’

Yet, an anomaly was occurring.

The divine energy showed no signs of tapering off; it poured into him without interruption. Even after surpassing a critically high threshold, the influx remained entirely unabated.

‘Wait, hold on… this is crossing into dangerous territory.’

Sensing the looming crisis, he rapidly accessed the cognitive reserves of his alternate personas, utilizing “Mind Hub” and “Persona” to convert their collective mental strength into active devotion.

There was Hans, who was currently occupied with organizing rogue practitioners of the dark arts to construct an intelligence network.

Heinz the Second, who was entirely engrossed in consolidating his authority after seizing dominion over his entire lineage.

Harley, who remained stationed at the Iron Fortress, hunting down malicious creatures throughout the northern peaks.

Hubert, who had successfully secured a firm foothold within the commercial sectors of Tarak and was systematically broadening his corporate reach.

And Harris, who had successfully captured the admiration of numerous Elves across the Elven Kingdom following the recent celebration.

And yet…

‘This makes no sense. How much further is this going to escalate?’

Despite channeling the psychological stamina of every single one of his avatars, the torrential downpour of divine energy refused to cease. The sheer volume of holy power swelling inside his frame had already rivaled the maximum capacity of an Archbishop.

‘Forcing this much energy to stay contained within a physical vessel is unsustainable… Dammit, I have to try something else.’

Deliberation was no longer a luxury he could afford. Observing the unfolding emergency from Earth, Han Seong-hyeon swiftly shut his eyes, focusing his consciousness to an absolute point. He proceeded to transfer every ounce of his personal mental reserve and the entirety of his accumulated capabilities directly into Heinrich.

Trapped in this critical bottleneck, his physical vessel—which had plunged into an absolute state of emptiness without a moment of relief—shuddered violently under the strain of holding several times the volume of divine energy he was accustomed to managing.

After what felt like an eternity,

The brilliant glow emanating from the sacred insignia began to dim. However, Heinrich remained completely oblivious to the shifting environment around him, entirely consumed by the desperate struggle to restrain the volatile divine energy threatening to tear his physical form apart from the inside out.

Whoosh—

The fading light of the sacred symbol vanished entirely, plunging the sanctuary back into a quiet stillness, as though the tempest had never occurred. The only exception was Heinrich himself, whose entire being vibrated with an intense, visible aura of divine power.

Then, at a precise juncture,

A completely unique manifestation of holy energy began to circulate through his meridians.

《The target has fulfilled the necessary parameters and attained realization. You have unlocked the unique capability “Blessing: Capacity Increase”.》

It was a saving grace granted at the absolute brink of disaster. The volatile energy that had been on the verge of fracturing his body began to settle, gradually aligning itself with his mental commands.

Shortly thereafter…

As the internal voice echoed through his consciousness once more, his deeply submerged awareness slowly drifted back to the surface.

‘Man… that was incredibly tight.’

It felt as though he had stood at the absolute precipice of destruction and managed to pull back by a hair’s breadth. As his internal state stabilized, the fragmented awareness of the various avatars, which had been tethered tightly to Heinrich, detached and drifted back to their respective bodies.

It didn’t take him long to identify the internal shift.

‘The maximum threshold of divine energy my body can accommodate has expanded.’

This development was the direct result of the fresh capability he had unlocked during the ordeal. “Blessing: Capacity Increase” was an attribute that elevated the ceiling of holy power an individual’s frame could sustain—a divine favor typically bestowed upon high-ranking clergymen. While his overall evolutionary rank remained unchanged due to the lack of a level increase, his current containment capacity was now fully equivalent to that of an Archbishop.

‘Though I haven’t fully mastered it yet.’

Even at this moment, stray remnants of divine power he couldn’t completely tether were seeping outward, casting a bright glow across the stone floor. He lacked familiarity with this newly acquired trait, and his successful regulation of the energy during the test had only been a temporary feat achieved through the combined strength of his avatars.

‘Well, it’s irrelevant now that the test is cleared.’

Because of “Blessing: Capacity Increase”, the baseline volume of energy Heinrich could regulate entirely on his own had effectively doubled, making the grueling experience highly profitable in the grand scheme of things.

‘Even so, the scaling on these tests is absurd.’

He was aware that the trials calibrated their difficulty dynamically—presenting brutal hurdles to individuals who possessed innate power from the start, while offering more lenient paths to those who showed promise but lacked raw strength…

He had circumvented the true difficulty by utilizing his avatar network, but the final volume of divine energy forced upon him was something that would push a standard Archbishop to their absolute limits. The vast majority of Paladins, whose reserves typically fell short of the clergy, would have failed the assessment instantly at this stage.

Furthermore, the initial trial of endurance would have proven nearly insurmountable if not for the unique collection of traits he possessed. Realistically, only individuals operating at a true Paladin tier could expect to clear it.

‘Considering Heinrich is on his maiden attempt and hasn’t reached those upper echelons of power, isn’t this baseline entirely unreasonable?’

His martial capabilities fell short of a true Paladin, and his baseline divine power hadn’t naturally reached the level of an Archbishop. Yet, the sequence of challenges he had faced demanded proficiencies in both areas, which naturally left him feeling aggrieved.

‘No, drawing conclusions this early is foolish. There’s no telling what the subsequent challenge looks like. Perhaps the upcoming phase will be dialed back to maintain structural equilibrium.’

Attempting to cultivate a more optimistic mindset, Heinrich scanned the perimeter to locate the path forward. Before long, his eyes fell upon a dark brown wooden portal that had manifested near the exit of the sanctuary, where nothing had stood previously.

‘The real question is, how many more phases are left?’

The total number of challenges varied wildly from person to person, leaving him entirely in the dark regarding his remaining trajectory. Based on historical accounts, only a duo of challengers had ever successfully penetrated deep enough to stand before the holy sword itself. They had managed to reach the weapon after navigating through three and four distinct trials, respectively.

‘And naturally, both individuals ultimately failed to dislodge the blade or earn its allegiance.’

Pushing open the heavy wooden door, he stepped through the threshold, silently praying that this next challenge would be the final one.

“Ah.”

The moment the blinding transition light receded and his surroundings came into focus…

He found himself standing in the center of a sweeping, desolate wasteland. It was an ash-strewn, rotting terrain of absolute decay, completely stripped of any organic life.

‘I’m in deep trouble.’

The oppressive, malicious aura saturated in the air instantly triggered his survival instincts. There was absolutely no chance this upcoming test would be a lenient one; it was blindingly obvious that another monumental hurdle had been placed in his path.

Right on cue, the guiding voice resonated within his thoughts. He didn’t need to guess to identify the identity of the ‘adversary.’

A figure was suspended silently in the upper reaches of the sky a short distance away, projecting a concentrated, malevolent pressure while staring directly down at him.

‘His aesthetic is remarkably familiar…’

The entire presentation struck a deeply resonant chord within him. The figure wore shredded, midnight-black garments and gripped a staff crafted from dark wood, its crown adorned with several human skulls. Furthermore, the unmistakable miasma of death radiated fiercely from his entire silhouette, accompanied by a bare skull illuminated by eerie, crimson ocular flames.

‘…He bears a striking resemblance to Hans.’

Granted, the sheer gravity of the pressure he exuded could not hope to rival that of the Immortal King.

‘In that case, am I dealing with a Lich?’

At that precise moment, Hans—the sovereign of the restless dead and the definitive Immortal King—rapidly processed the entity’s characteristics, breaking down its composition and underlying energy signature from afar.

The final determination was undeniable…

“An Arch-Lich…”

It was the exact classification of undead that Hans had occupied immediately prior to his ascension into the Immortal King. A fully realized Arch-Lich represented a cataclysmic entity that even elite Paladins preferred to avoid confronting without assistance.

$$A lapdog of the Holy Order? By what means did you gain entry to this domain?$$

A grating sound reminiscent of grinding metal traveled across the distance, striking his ears clearly despite the physical space separating them.

$$Though I suppose the details are entirely irrelevant now.$$

The Arch-Lich, having briefly acknowledged his presence, abandoned any further attempts at dialogue and immediately began to mobilize his reservoir of forbidden sorcery. With a singular, deliberate motion, he cleaved his skull-topped staff through the air, leaving a trail of dark energy in its wake.

‘Seriously, why is every opponent in these things so incredibly impatient!’

Ignoring Heinrich’s internal complaints, the Arch-Lich unleashed the dark energy, which spread outward like a thick, rolling fog before sinking directly into the cracked earth…

Creek—

$$Keheeek!$$

Rattle—! Clatter—!

$$Kiii—!$$

An endless assortment of reanimated corpses began to tear their way out of the barren soil. Hundreds quickly swelled into thousands… and the numbers continued to multiply without an end in sight.

‘Unbelievable… the simulation is capable of generating an army of this scale? The realism in person is terrifying.’

While he was well aware from his prior research that this environment was merely a conceptual space fabricated to test his worthiness, every single element—from the overarching energy signatures to the individual killing intent radiating from each skeleton—felt profoundly genuine.

‘Overcoming an Arch-Lich in a direct duel is already an incredibly tall order for me, and now I’m expected to clear out an entire legion of the undead alongside it?’

The parameters of the test felt completely disproportionate. Unfortunately, he lacked the luxury of time to stand around analyzing the fairness of the situation.

$$Perish, dog of the Church!$$

He was entirely isolated, facing down an army of thousands of reanimated horrors alongside a high-tier Arch-Lich commander, all charging forward with the singular goal of ending his life.

—

“The commencement is upon us.”

“…Ah, is that the case?”

Within the southern territories of the Ion Continent, hidden away inside the clandestine sanctuary of the Oath of Heaven’s Defiance.

The massive, cloaked figure was the first to break the silence, but the elderly man—who typically carried himself with an aura of grim instability and frantic energy—offered an uncharacteristically muted response.

‘Don’t tell me his resolve is wavering at the final hour?’

The impending strategy was fundamentally dependent on his participation; it could not be initiated without him. Such a setback was completely intolerable to the massive man, who had dedicated more than a decade of his life to orchestrating this singular, monumental design.

Knitting his brows in frustration, he shifted his gaze to scrutinize the old man’s demeanor with greater precision. Yet, contrary to his initial suspicion, there was no indication of anxiety or hesitation. The elderly man was simply staring fixedly at a locket pendant resting in his palm, tracing the edge of the lid with an unreadable expression.

Positioned inside the housing was a depiction of a family unit, rendered delicately via specialized fire sorcery.

“We are guaranteed to proceed without complications, correct?”

Unable to relate to or comprehend such displays of sentimentality, the large man chose to address the issue directly. The core concepts of such attachments were entirely foreign to his nature.

“If you are harboring intentions of withdrawing from the agreement…”

“Aah— Eliminate such foolish notions from your mind.”

Before the sentence could even be fully articulated, the old man snapped the locket shut, letting out a fractured laugh that aligned perfectly with his usual demeanor.

“Heh, I have spent a grueling thirty years laying the groundwork for this massive undertaking. Do you honestly believe I would abandon it on the cusp of realization? Hehehe…”

The momentary softness he had shown while gazing at the portrait vanished instantly, replaced once more by a familiar, manic gleam in his eyes.

“My dedication to the cause has only solidified. This landmass has enjoyed an artificial tranquility for far too long. Yes, it must be disrupted.”

Observing the old man as he began to pace and mutter to himself with absolute certainty, the massive figure offered a quiet, approving nod. It appeared the operational framework remained perfectly intact.

“There isn’t a single second to squander! I must personally verify every single variable one final time. This represents the accumulation of thirty years of meticulous labor. I will not permit a single failure.”

Rising smoothly from his seat, the old man exited the chamber to conduct a final inspection of the mechanisms required for the grand spell.

“Hmm… In that case, it is time for me to attend to my own responsibilities as well.”

Given how chaotic the upcoming period would become, it was imperative that he finalize his own arrangements well in advance. Every living soul across the continent would soon find themselves in desperate need of preparation…

Though as far as he was concerned, the actual survival rate of the populace was entirely negligible.