Game World: I Can Share Talents

Then, the last Warrior of the Mortal World rose and walked through the purified ruins of the surface, surrounded by a deathly silence.

Wan Qi didn’t know where she was going. She just kept moving in one direction.

Her wandering continued for an unknown length of time, feeling as long as a century, as she purged all Chaos Creatures and burned away all corruption in her path.

Until a touch of warmth reflected on Wan Qi’s ashen bangs. And then, there was light.

’Light? Why is there light?’

Wan Qi, who had been walking with her head lowered and eyes downcast, suddenly looked up. What met her gaze was a scene of unprecedented magnificence:

The shattered, dim sky was torn asunder by a brilliant radiance. The black mist of Chaos that had shrouded the entire firmament began to disperse as pillars of light, like those from the dawn of creation, descended upon the earth one by one.

All the gloom seemed to be swept away by the warm sun.

Wan Qi reached out and touched the path of light before her.

Then, she felt power.

A power, vast and immense beyond all limits, flowed from her body... ’No, it’s not a power perceived or transmitted by my physical form at all.’

Wan Qi’s perspective transcended, ascended. She could see herself, the earth, the firmament... and even places farther and higher. It was as if her soul had undergone a sublimation, allowing her to take everything in with a complete, all-encompassing vision.

Rising to her tiptoes, her body feeling lighter and more transcendent than ever before, Wan Qi began to float toward the sky.

More and more soft light showered down upon her, and it was as if hymns were being sung in her ears.

Pure soul particles were expelled from her bones and her blood. Yet, these souls could exist within the path of light. They gathered like little Elves, escorting the gray-haired, red-eyed Venerable Lord ever upward.

"A Celestial God’s Sanctuary..."

From the Imaginary Space, Westheid, who had been watching all along, stared with wide eyes, his gaze fixed on the scene.

He had silently watched everything Wan Qi experienced: every battle, every confession, all her pain, and her unstoppable determination.

But only now did Westheid feel compelled to speak.

For this was the very moment an Ascender awakened their exclusive Celestial God Talent! Wan Qi was now performing the final step of the Ascension Ceremony—constructing a Sanctuary.

[Celestial God’s Sanctuary]

[The world and all its myriad things are constructed from disordered souls, and so by an ordered Sanctuary shall they be brought to a halt.]

[I shall build my kingdom upon the apex of my heart. All things with spirit shall be my subjects. Within the Sanctuary, I shall define, I shall permit, I shall create and destroy. Oh, Supreme Heaven, embrace me!]

[The way of the world shall be my way.]

Westheid recited the description of this Talent, which represented the ultimate realm, as if by heart.

Constructing a Sanctuary in the Supreme Heaven and then ascending into it was the final step to godhood.

The Wan Qi in this memory couldn’t comprehend any of this. She was completely intoxicated by the transformative sublimation.

However, Wan Qi felt none of the joy of ascending from Extraordinary to Saint. She only felt a sense of relief.

It was an unprecedented sense of relief, as if her mission was finally complete and she could at last embrace the beautiful future she had yearned for over countless ages.

’Finally... I can finally be with my love again.’

But then Wan Qi saw the souls scattering from her fingertips. Before, she had never dared to count how many had survived. Now, in a single instant, she knew the answer.

Of the souls of her 783,000,000 compatriots, only... 360,000 remained.

!!!

Wan Qi stared blankly at her own arms. They no longer looked human—they were blood-red and covered in cracks.

In that instant, the immense weight of her memories—of all the soul-burning battles—crashed down on her, bringing with it a profound sorrow and self-loathing that drowned her completely.

’I’ve slaughtered so many of my compatriots and broken so many oaths... How could I possibly be worthy... of ascending to the heavens?’

In that moment, all the hymns and the feeling of sublimation ceased. The light, ethereal ascent came to a halt.

In its place came an unbearable weight and agony. Her soul was torn asunder, filled with quicksilver, and then swept into a storm. The radiance at her side cast her out, and she plummeted from the high heavens.

THUD—

Wan Qi landed in ash and black mire. She slowly picked herself up and looked to the sky, her eyes wide.

The sacred light still enveloped the great Ascender, carrying her upward. An endless vortex churned in the sky, opening the way to the Supreme Heaven for her.

A path of light divided heaven and earth. On one side was light; on the other, shadow. The distinction was absolute.

Wan Qi stared blankly at the grand Ascension until the path of light, which had torn open the Barrier between the Mortal World and the Supreme Heaven, finally closed. Darkness once again enveloped the land.

DRIP... DRIP... DROP...

A viscous, rich, crimson liquid fell from the sky, landing on Wan Qi’s face.

One drop, two, then three... The downpour grew heavier.

SPLASH—

Before long, a torrential rain of blood was pouring from the sky.

The blood rain washed over the ruins and the earth, staining Wan Qi’s white robes a stark crimson.

The Demon’s crimson eyes filled with sorrow. Standing in the blood rain, she stretched out her arms.

A trembling voice drifted through the rain:

"Why... did you leave me all alone?"

That day, Wan Qi ascended to become the Venerable Master of the Azure Heaven.

That day, Wan Qi fell and became the Master of Extinction.