I Picked up the Demon King - Chapter 151

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 151

 

What human wisdom can never reach, that infinitely high level, is called divinity.

 

Divinity grants power that surpasses any existing magic with just the smallest fragment, so beings who possess it are commonly called gods.

 

A Hero is one who can wield divinity limitedly during the journey to defeat the Demon Lord. Strictly speaking, you could call them a demigod.

 

Then if a demigod obtains new divinity, that could be seen as the birth of a complete god.

 

The battle between god and god, demigod and their companions seemed as if it would bring down the world.

 

And such majesty could be displayed sufficiently with other divinity as well.

 

Just a single gesture.

 

With one small gesture that was even graceful, the World Tree obeyed the command.

 

The roots that had been supplying life force to the people wrapped around their bodies. Small branches extended and burrowed into their flesh. The life force that had been meaninglessly consumed was reclaimed.

 

And so they died. What survived were those who didn’t need to rely on the World Tree’s life force. A mere handful of less than a hundred people.

 

The Demon Lord didn’t stop there, deploying Soul Magic to absorb the souls of the dead once again.

 

A filling sense of fullness. The soul had already reached saturation. Though I had been growing my soul all this time, perhaps it wasn’t enough to absorb the entire subjugation army gathered from various parts of the continent.

 

And I realized.

 

“Haah…”

 

By absorbing souls, the Demon Lord recovered a bit more strength.

 

The Demon Lord who had been watching me for entertainment would now begin taking serious action.

 

“It’s impossible to defeat the Hero directly. This entire world leads him to victory.”

 

Remarkably natural use of divinity.

 

“So…”

 

Deception unfolds as complete Divine Authority rather than magic.

 

It was different from when the meteor was eliminated. Not widespread manipulation. An incredibly small and delicate illusion. In a way, it was the same method I had used before when trying to deceive the Emperor with a small stream of water.

 

But it was different from that too. Back then the Emperor saw through my illusion, but now he seemed completely unaware of the Demon Lord’s trick.

 

“First is gathering the materials for completing the plan in one place.”

 

The Emperor’s movement stops as he belatedly realizes he’s fallen into an illusion. It was only a very brief moment, but the Spirit King didn’t miss that opening.

 

A rapidly fired water stream pierced through the Emperor’s forearm. His hand fell away while still gripping the holy sword. The others rushed to assist the Emperor urgently, but the severed arm couldn’t be reattached.

 

“Albeng…!”

 

Hero Johnny shouted. It must have been to ask his only companion who could use Holy Power to heal the Emperor. But it was too late.

 

The Demon Lord standing before the Emperor’s sword picked up the blade.

 

The Emperor’s sword, who had been the Second Hero, was a holy sword. But that was the old story. After defeating the Fire Giant and absorbing that divinity, the essence of Hellfire, the holy sword could no longer contain the power of a holy sword.

 

Gripping the sword with hands that should have melted away, he stole the divinity contained within it.

 

“That makes five.”

 

The Emperor, robbed of the divinity that sustained his life, collapsed.

 

I wasn’t in good shape either. The fullness I had felt from deep within my soul took a step further and became crushing pressure that felt like it would burst.

 

Five types of divinity in total. Even setting aside the World Tree, I was harboring four types of divinity in one body. Naturally, there was no way I could endure it.

 

“One remains.”

 

However, the Demon Lord paid no heed.

 

Concealing his form with even deeper Divine Authority, he watched the battle between the Hero’s party and the Spirit King.

 

The tense battle situation rapidly tilted.

 

Shtidy, who had been layering magic to defend against attacks, was knocked away. The two assassins who lost their means of defense fell.

 

Only Johnny remained.

 

However, since defeat wasn’t permitted for the Hero, he was somehow barely holding on despite being wounded and suffering.

 

“This, it would be better to help a little.”

 

I extended the hand holding the staff straight forward.

 

The mana core and circles in my heart vibrated and resonated with the staff. Endless mana surged.

 

It wasn’t the incomplete Dragon’s Breath that Kaela Rowan had cast. The true Dragon’s Breath, completed by adding the Demon Lord’s manipulation ability to the Dragon’s divinity. That was…

 

‘No…!’

 

Even in its incomplete state, it was an attack that had extended beyond the horizon. If this were unleashed now, I couldn’t even imagine how powerful an attack it would become.

 

Though most of the soldiers were dead, in this direction were Johnny and Shtidy…

 

But making my desperate cry meaningless, the Demon Lord fired it without hesitation.

 

“Hmm?”

 

The breath of destruction extends forward.

 

It literally annihilates everything in its path, as if it had never existed from the beginning.

 

The view became clear.

 

What remained in that place was Hero Johnny, whose death was not permitted by fate. A small fragment of the Spirit King. And Shtidy.

 

“A mere obsession consumed by divinity.”

 

The Demon Lord said this while brushing off his staff.

 

Then he walked forward as if unconcerned. Passing by the fallen, groaning Hero, he reached a small puddle.

 

The Demon Lord had directly attacked the Hero. Perhaps soon the Hero would recover through fate’s compulsion and gain the power to withstand even the Dragon’s Breath.

 

It was too late.

 

The Demon Lord cupped the puddle’s water with both hands and took it into his mouth.

 

The Spirit’s Tears seeped into his body.

 

‘Ah, aah…!’

 

There was no time to be angry at what the Demon Lord had done. My soul, which already felt like it would explode, writhed terribly.

 

Five types of divinity were contained in one body. I couldn’t handle it. It was impossible. This wasn’t something permitted to humans. I would die. Beyond dying, my soul would be annihilated.

 

Only now did I realize why the Demon Lord had gathered these divinities to deliberately create a Holy Sword.

 

He wasn’t unaffected either. The Demon Lord raised his trembling hand. He was surely trying to expel the divinity as it was…

 

“Come, here…”

 

The Demon Lord said this.

 

To whom?

 

Thoughts didn’t connect easily. My vision was blurry and my senses were confused, but I could immediately tell.

 

The World Tree’s roots rising from the floor pierced into my body.

 

Each blood vessel, each muscle filled with the World Tree’s roots. Tremendous life force held together my body that felt like it would burst.

 

But it didn’t stop there.

 

‘No, no…!’

 

Along with the life force, divinity rushed in.

 

Because we were connected as one, I could tell. The World Tree that had been growing in the Great Forest, which had somehow grown to over ten meters in height, was rapidly withering. The Elves kneeling before the pillar screamed.

 

It was brief. All senses directed outward were cut off.

 

In the dark space reminiscent of a Great Demon’s domain, I thought. What could the Demon Lord possibly be thinking?

 

“At this rate, even I won’t be safe. Do you think so?”

 

“…”

 

A face that looked exactly like mine said this. That was probably the Demon Lord.

 

Was he trying to apologize for being unable to control the six mixed divinities and dying just like that?

 

“I’m not dead.”

 

“…”

 

“Well, at this rate I might die soon.”

 

With a leisurely attitude, as casually as asking what’s for lunch today. The Demon Lord said this and laughed.

 

“What are you thinking?”

 

I opened my mouth. A voice I didn’t expect to come out emerged.

 

“This place is…”

 

“A very small space I created by gathering my divine authority. You should remember.”

 

When the Demon Lord snapped his fingers, the surrounding scenery changed. The research laboratory where I had been confined. The only difference was that no one could be seen.

 

The scenery quickly disappeared. Even the cold walls that had surrounded us. The Demon Lord probably didn’t have the strength left to maintain this illusion.

 

“My soul was shattered, and my rank fell miserably. Far from defeating the Goddess, I suffered the humiliation of being defeated by a mere Hero.”

 

Despite the content, his face was lost in memories as if recalling something from long ago.

 

“What are you doing now…”

 

“For revenge, I had to gather all the divinity of the Middle Realm.”

 

I realized from his continued words.

 

The Demon Lord was trying to explain his plan to me now. Since he had never once revealed his inner thoughts, I almost felt a strange emotion.

 

“The Goddess is the sole deity ruling one world. The gods of the Middle Realm are already fools who were defeated by her and left only traces. To win, there was no choice but to gather the six divinities and handle them as one.”

 

The Demon Lord said this while slightly frowning.

 

“When you first gave birth to the Ice Spirit. The method I thought was unique disappeared.”

 

It was miserable.

 

“It was an amazing thing. A precious birth. But for me… it was the moment when a plan I had prepared for a thousand years became distorted.”

 

The Demon Lord’s face was distorted in a surprisingly wretched manner.

 

“It was the first time. You showing me unexpected scenes – I was just getting used to it.”

 

Had there ever been a time when the Demon Lord revealed such vivid emotions, other than mockery and contempt?

 

His appearance as he let out a hollow laugh somehow gave the impression that he had reached enlightenment.

 

“But you showed possibility.”

 

The Demon Lord’s gaze turned precisely toward me.

 

“I have made preparations. Now then, try to overcome this crisis.”

 

At the same time, I was expelled from this dark space.

 

* * *

 

The world was racing toward destruction.

 

So wretchedly that there was no one who couldn’t feel it now. Various items in the market were engulfed in light, homes disappeared, and even those who had been sitting nearby scattered.

 

Even in such a situation, there were those who didn’t give up and kept shouting.

 

“The Hero’s real name is not Johnny!”

 

Even though they could no longer maintain the form of a play, even while coughing up blood from their throats, they let out pathetic cries.

 

Throughout various parts of the continent, wherever there were people.

 

“The real Hero who will save the continent is…!”

 

Jude.

 

Even as they were engulfed by clusters of light and disappeared, they shouted this.

 

* * *

 

“Aaaaah…!”

 

It’s painful.

 

No matter how much I tore at my body, the pain wouldn’t disappear. It seemed like my throat was bursting from screaming, but I couldn’t even hear it.

 

The six divine essences were rampaging through my body as they pleased. Even a soul that had grown massive by absorbing hundreds of thousands couldn’t endure it.

 

It’s collapsing. My body is collapsing, my soul is collapsing.

 

The Demon Lord created this terrible situation and irresponsibly ran away. What an absurd thing. If my soul perishes, would the Demon Lord be any different? He attempted a mutual suicide with me.

 

Even while furious, I had to somehow find a way to survive.

 

I had to survive. I had to survive somehow. That was…

 

The cause of this pain was the divinity that had filled my body. To live, I had no choice but to expel it.

 

But what if I carelessly extracted them and they revived again?

 

The Ice Spirit and World Tree aside, the rest of them wouldn’t stay quiet. In my current physical state, it was impossible to face them.

 

I would die. That couldn’t happen. To live, I had to find another method.

 

Suddenly, for reasons I couldn’t understand…

 

I felt it became slightly easier to breathe. I felt my head, which had been filled with pain, clear up for just a moment.

 

I couldn’t miss this opportunity.

 

I had to find a way to expel the six divine essences from my body while controlling them so they wouldn’t rampage freely.

 

My mind, more desperate than ever, quickly derived an answer.

 

I knew one magic that could manipulate external organs as if they were my own.

 

“Six…”

 

The six divine essences extended behind my back like wings.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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