Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Nine: Child of the World

In the void, a long rainbow shattered space and arrived at the front.

As a powerful surge of energy erupted, the strange, blood-red domain ahead was breached, revealing the tall figure of a knight.

"It is time for this to end."

As the battle progressed, slivers of world power gathered around the area, carrying the fluctuations of the world’s consciousness. With the struggle for the Child of Destiny having reached this stage, the world consciousness had clearly begun to manifest, focusing its attention here. In the void, drops of blood-colored rain gradually appeared, and a sense of sorrow permeated the air, heavy with the weight of the world's fluctuations.

Sensing this, Chen Ming turned back, his golden eyes fixed upon the retreating Chrisia.

His opponent looked wretched. As his domain was shattered by Chen Ming, specks of black resentment began to emerge from his body, carrying the grievances of all living beings and the power of world causality.

"Have you suffered a backlash?" The thought crossed his mind, and he could not help but feel a touch of pity as he looked at Chrisia.

In his eyes, this man was a total tragedy. As a Child of Destiny, had it been ordinary times or another world, he would have undoubtedly been the standard protagonist template; as long as no accidents occurred, he would have been destined to soar, perhaps even ruling the world itself.

But here, he was a complete tragedy. Born during the world's darkest hour, he not only bore the heavy burden of saving the world, but he had also been targeted early on by invading outer-dimensional demon gods, transforming him from a destined protagonist into a cursed lone star. Even if he succeeded in saving the world, he was destined to die in battle, eventually reduced to a Primordial God. And having become a Primordial God, sustained by daily blood sacrifices, even if he had managed to maintain his sanity through his original foundation, how much of his original destiny and merit could have remained after a thousand years?

"Let it end!" He looked at the knight standing like a mountain below and muttered to himself.

In the void, a magnificent star suddenly rose, sweeping forward with overwhelming power. This was a full-strength strike from Chen Ming after his promotion to the sixth level, carrying the divine power accumulated over countless years.

In the distance, feeling the despairing force before him, Chrisia looked up and offered a bitter smile.

The next moment, he was engulfed, leaving behind only a final beam of light that shot out and arrived directly before Chen Ming. It was a gorgeous, pitch-black longsword, upon which specks of crimson killing intent gradually diffused, tinged with the demonic aura of a demon god.

"You didn't want this sword to perish with you, so you sent it out at the final moment?"

Looking at the sword, Chen Ming reached out and took it, sensing the power within responding to the killing energy in his own body.

"Whatever name you bore before, from now on, you shall inherit the name of your former master: the Sword of Slaughter, Chrisia."

As the words fell, the longsword shivered violently before gradually falling silent. Chen Ming paid it no mind; to him, a sword was of little consequence. Besides, he already had an inkling of who might become the future master of this blade.

However, as Chrisia passed away, the blood rain falling in the void grew heavier, as if the world were grieving, sending off its child. In the void, a pillar of heaven collapsed, and fragments of purple source power scattered, no longer able to coalesce. As the pillar crumbled, the destiny hidden within began to emerge, flying rapidly toward Chen Ming under a powerful attraction.

Above Chen Ming's head, an ancient tree silently manifested, carrying a shard of a purple star, continuously radiating source power. As the two vast star shards converged, a miraculous reaction began to occur.

On the ground, the world power boiled suddenly, and vast amounts of world source energy poured down, imbuing Chen Ming. Sensing this power, Chen Ming’s heart stirred; his true spirit emerged, instantly swallowing all the infused source energy. A reaction ensued. Chen Ming felt his true spirit rapidly strengthening under the infusion of this power, evolving at a speed he could perceive. His aura, which had been somewhat unstable after just entering the sixth level, immediately steadied, saving him decades of effort.

As time passed, the frantic influx of source power began to slow, though it remained at an unimaginable rate.

"Indeed, once one reaches this level, one ascends to the level of the world itself. Beyond borrowing the world's power, it is simply difficult to progress on one's own," Chen Ming sighed, reflecting on the changes within him. "In truth, the path of a deity—gathering the faith of living beings to achieve oneself and condensing divine offices—is just another way of borrowing the power of the world."

After a while, he thought quietly, "However, the changes do not seem to end there."

Within his body, with the death of the Primordial God of the Royal Court, the killing energy he had accumulated over a millennium seemed to transfer, strengthening the killing divinity within Chen Ming. Strands of killing divinity glowed madly, absorbing the dense killing power and expanding, while even the previously illusory killing divine office seemed to become more substantial.

At this moment, however, with the death of the Royal Court's Primordial God, a spatial anomaly before Chen Ming began to tremble, showing signs of collapse. Clearly, with its master lost and the Royal Court on the verge of ruin, the space Chrisia had originally carved out was beginning to fall.

"So be it." Chen Ming gazed forward, his golden eyes spanning the vast distance to observe that space. As it gradually collapsed, the spirits dwelling within began to fall into turmoil. The earth crumbled, and without support, the pervasive power of void annihilation eroded the space, exposing the spirits. These spirits had been accumulated by the Royal Court over a thousand years; though they had possessed battle energy in life, in death they were barely stronger than ordinary people. Under the impact of this powerful void energy, they had no resistance, and a mere touch meant the collapse of their soul bodies.

"I am the God of Nature. Those who wish to surrender, recite silently in your hearts, and you shall find salvation." Chen Ming watched the struggling spirits below, his lips moving slightly as his voice descended.

Hearing the voice and feeling the immense divine majesty, many spirits hesitated, but seeing the increasingly rampant void outside, they made their decision. As a pale green radiance swept across the heavens, spirits were rescued one by one and sent by Chen Ming into the divine domain where his true body resided. Yet, many spirits remained unmoved; even as the space outside was torn apart to reveal the deep void, they had no intention of surrendering to Chen Ming. For these, Chen Ming merely shook his head and ignored them. After all, everyone had the right to choose. He had given them a chance; whether they seized it was no concern of his.

When the distant space finally vanished into the void, Chen Ming steadied his mind, his body turning into a beam of light, instantly returning to his physical form on the earth. As his consciousness returned, he opened his golden eyes and looked at the battlefield, momentarily dazed. Upon returning to the world, he felt a sense of intimacy constantly emanating from it, accompanied by a powerful world force reinforcing him. This was one of the benefits of becoming the Child of Destiny—like a beloved child of the world, he received its full support.

"I have a faint feeling that within this world, my power will be greatly amplified. Even a peak sixth-level entity could be met in a head-on battle," he murmured, sensing the mighty power surging through his body. Of course, being able to fight head-on did not mean he could necessarily defeat them, only that he possessed the power to threaten them. After all, at the sixth level, even the slightest progress was incredibly difficult, and the gap in strength was vast.

"However, since I have accepted the favor of this world, my name from my previous life is no longer appropriate."

"From this day forth, I am Adis, the God of Nature."

The thought crossed his mind, and he looked into the distance. Beside him, Bill and the other priests watched him awaken, feeling the familiar power of nature reviving within their monarch.

"Great God of Nature, you have finally awakened." The thought flashed through the minds of the many priests, and they wept, praying in their hearts.

"Bill," Adis said suddenly on the dais, looking at the city wall still standing before them. "How does the battle stand?"

In the envious gazes of the other priests, Bill looked up at Adis's face. "Your Majesty, a few days ago, Lord Nadir led the army to attack the inner city, and it is still a stalemate. However, on the side of the Royal Court, an accident seems to have occurred. The King of the Royal Court held a blood sacrifice, but it received no response, and he is still leading the army in desperate resistance."

Bill knelt down. "Under Your Majesty's command, the Pope and Lord Kuruba are almost here. If Your Majesty wishes, in a few days at most, we can take the Imperial Capital in one stroke!"

"That will not be necessary."

Adis's voice came from the front, carrying a majesty and nobility different from before. Under the gaze of all the priests, Adis silently raised his hand, and a spark of divine power began to emerge.

"Let it end..." He looked at the distant city wall and thought silently.

The next moment, the scene changed. To the shock of all, Adis transformed into a blazing sun, and boundless divine power radiated out, instantly sweeping across the land. The majesty was vast and intense, carrying the laws of natural operation. A mere trace of the aura caused countless people to tremble in horror, their minds going blank as they fell to their knees.

In the next instant, natural elements began to condense, brewing with the power of law, and at Adis's will, they blasted forward.

"The city... it has vanished..." In the front, Nadir looked ahead, muttering to himself in disbelief.

The inner city that had stood before them had simply vanished by half under Adis's strike; the walls were gone, revealing the scene within. It was a terrifying moment. A strike from a sixth-level entity could tear the earth apart, let alone mere walls. In fact, had Chen Ming not held back, this single blow would have erased the city, which had stood for thousands of years, entirely from existence.