Chapter 359

Apocalypse was praising her own genius for what she had just come up with.

Perhaps someone else would have tried everything to stop Jacob from using his greatest asset, the Grimoire. And she suspected that he could even have a way to activate the Grimoire while she tried to suppress it. As long as it was outside of her body, there could always be a way for the Grimoire to be activated without her being able to do anything about it.

But now, the true genius rested in the fact that — knowing that Jacob might have this — she might as well give him the Grimoire back, and make it so that the Grimoire itself would become his greatest weakness. Because of the Grimoire, Jacob Cloud would see infinite flaws inside the multipotent Mana nodes. And with that being the case, he was just going to die the moment one of them would inevitably crumble to dust.

It was truly a devious plan. But finally, Apocalypse would have her own revenge.

And then she looked at her side and saw that the flesh and soul she had knitted together was finally taking shape.

“Your Majesty,” a word came bubbling, and a woman was slowly formed from the liquid. She was at Peak Imperium Rank.

Apocalypse had just shed a part of her being in order to create the crystallized form of an Original Primordial Dungeon.

“Your name is Revenge,” Apocalypse says.

“I thank you, Your Majesty.” Revenge spoke in a guttural voice after being created. She was a silvery woman, tall and skinny. And her arm was a large glaive made of the same substance as the rest of her body. “What can I do for you, Your Majesty?”

“Nothing for now. I just called you to witness my genius.”

And then Apocalypse transmitted all the information about what’s happening directly into Revenge’s mind.

“I see,” Revenge says, unsure.

It is the first time that Apocalypse has created an Original Primordial Dungeon’s core already in its crystallized form, instead of letting it feed upon enemies. And from Revenge’s point of view, it makes not much sense. Why would Apocalypse shed a piece of her own power at this crucial moment, when the goddess was trying to crystallize her own form so that she could go on a rampage and kill all of Zamorye?

“Your Majesty, why are you summoning me? What can I help you with?”

“Nothing,” Apocalypse says with a smile. “But how about I transfer this Dungeon’s ownership to you? I don’t really need it at the moment.”

Revenge looks at Apocalypse with a frown. Why would her goddess, her creator, transfer the Dungeon to her at this juncture? Apocalypse didn’t need the Dungeon in order to absorb the souls and flesh of the people entering this place. But as Karma dictated, if by any chance Jacob Cloud and the girl managed to overcome the trial of the Mana nodes, Apocalypse would have been exposed to them.

But that couldn’t be the reasoning behind their goddess’s plan, could it? Revenge thinks. This is a Primordial Goddess we’re talking about. Surely she couldn’t be afraid that a common peasant would be able to outsmart her.

But Revenge doesn’t comment on this. Instead, she just closes her eyes and watches as Jacob Cloud and the girl with him enter the next room — the last one before the boss’s room.

Jacob has quickly sketched a diagram of a Primordial Spell that Taya learned in the blink of an eye, and now they’re communicating telepathically.

If a pirate site's search results led you here, you should know the author uploads this story to NovelPhoenix themselves.

Taya looks at the Mana nodes and says, So you see too many flaws in them, right?

Jacob sighs and replies, still telepathically, Yeah.

So wait a moment.

She gets close to a Mana node, and the shrill voice of Apocalypse laughs.

“Yes, little girl, touch the node and die like a dog.”

But Taya didn’t want to touch the node. She just uses her newfound power to analyze it.

The only time I managed to do this, as I told you, is when I used the Lullaby Skill. But now I don’t really have a Skill core that—

How about you do as I say? Taya turns and smiles at him.

From the outside, it looks like they’re just exchanging weird expressions, and Apocalypse thinks they are losing their minds, knowing that soon they’re going to die.

And that’s when she sees Jacob starting to sing. And it’s a very, very basic song, if it can even be called a song.

Blade of flame, blade of flame.

Flame of blade is a blade of flame.

Jacob approaches the Mana node while Apocalypse wonders if he’s lost his mind. She’s wondering if, brought to the brink of despair, Jacob Cloud has actually gone insane.

But Jacob Cloud doesn’t look fazed. He looks a little embarrassed about what he’s saying, and she sees that this is a Lullaby Skill that’s quelling the power inside the Mana node — meaning that even if he is approaching, the Mana node is not crumbling to dust.

What is he doing? Apocalypse widens her eyes.

She has given Jacob the most powerful Mana nodes she could find, because the more potency in them, the easier it would be for them to shatter into a million pieces, even just the moment he got closer. Jacob doesn’t know it, actually, but these Mana nodes are even purer than the ones that King Blade himself had reserved for him to craft Wrath of Blade into Skill Crystals.

But Apocalypse knows that he’s still going to fail. Oh, he’s trying with a lullaby to slightly attune the Mana nodes so they would result in a Skill. But the real problem is that Mana nodes need a shocking amount of power to approach them. It’s usually generated by the reaction with reality. They’re shaped by Karma. And so unless Jacob Cloud finds a way to—

Apocalypse’s words die in her mouth as Jacob’s sword suddenly goes up in flames, and he stabs the core of the Mana node.

“What?”

The goddess is slack-jawed at that, as the Skill Crystal prints out for her to see.

[Mana node has been converted into Skill: Molten Blade of the Blazing King (Adamantite).]

“Finally, an offensive Skill,” Jacob says.

“What?” Apocalypse shouts. “How is that possible?”

But before she can object, Jacob Cloud has pocketed the Skill Crystal and used it, absorbing an Adamantite Rank Skill made perfectly for him.

Apocalypse has just gifted Jacob a perfect Skill, crafted through Karma itself specifically for him. But she doesn’t understand. How could that insane move of stabbing the crystal be the right thing to turn the Mana node into a Skill Crystal?

She’s a Primordial Goddess, so she knows the actual theory behind why something like that would even work. But the number of rituals that could result in such a thing is basically nonexistent. The right number of actions to get such a very specific outcome is essentially one. And there is only one person in this Dungeon who could have told Jacob Cloud, with much effort, what to do in order to get such a Skill — and it is Apocalypse herself. Only a Primordial Goddess would have been able to guide him in order to obtain such a powerful Skill.

That Molten Blade of the Blazing King is an incredibly powerful Skill, despite its ridiculous name.

And then she sees Jacob Cloud approaching the second Mana node, and she thinks that there’s perhaps a one-in-a-billion chance that Jacob Cloud would randomly be able to create another Skill Crystal this way. It should have already been impossible in the first place, but perhaps it was a wild stroke of luck.

And now he’s singing another stupid lullaby.

Fire under my feet, fire under my feet.

Feet on the fire, fire on my feet.

And then she sees Jacob removing one of his boots and just stomping the Mana node into the ground, jumping on it with one leg. And suddenly, it turns into Molten Step of the Blazing King.

Before Apocalypse can do anything, Jacob is singing the next lullaby.

Shield of fire, shield of fire.

Fire in the shield, shield in the fire.

This time, Jacob takes the Mana node and slams it several times against the wall.

[Mana node has been converted into Skill: Molten Shield of the Blazing King (Adamantite).]

And he immediately moves on to the next, singing another stupid song.

Body of fire, body of fire.

Fire in the body, body in the fire.

This time, he gets down to his underwear and just hugs the large Mana node with his arms and legs, until Apocalypse sees printed:

[Mana node has been converted into Skill: Molten Body of the Blazing King (Adamantite).]