Chapter 90: Divine Power Nullification
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The exact moment everyone laid eyes on it, a low, guttural roar echoed through the air.
In a blur of motion, the Juggernaut instantly appeared right in front of the Empress.
However, it had picked the absolute worst target.
In a fraction of a second, the Empress ruthlessly blasted the Juggernaut away.
At the exact same time, Alfia tapped her toes against the ground, instantly keeping pace with the monster.
"Vassal Weapon: Voice of Heaven."
A gorgeous weapon, reminiscent of the flute-sword from Genshin Impact, materialized in Alfia's hands. As she swung it, the blade emitted a crisp, melodic chime.
She stepped into an elegant dance, effortlessly matching the Juggernaut's blinding speed as she engaged it in close quarters.
The sharp clash of steel rang out. Alfia's movements were like those of a master dancer—light, graceful, and dazzling. Her combat posture was a genuine feast for the eyes.
"So fast." Zald furrowed his brows. Despite being a vanguard, he completely failed to track the Juggernaut's movements.
Both the Juggernaut and Alfia were specialized in Agility, giving them far higher base speed stats than him.
However, Zald had his own unique advantages: unparalleled reaction speed and a wealth of combat experience. Even against the Juggernaut's notorious, speed-blitzing 'first-sight kill', his reflexes could still keep up.
Therefore, as long as they engaged in a righteous group beatdown, it wasn't as if he was completely useless.
Even against Agility-specialized opponents, dodging or deflecting the trajectory of their attacks wasn't particularly difficult for martial artists who had maxed out their technical skills.
Under the combined might of their righteous beatdown, the fragile, low-Endurance Juggernaut met its end in less than ten minutes.
"A drop item." As the Juggernaut dissipated into ash, leaving behind only a pair of massive claws, Lucian couldn't help but smile.
Picking up the Juggernaut's claws, the sleeve of Lucian's clothing writhed slightly before morphing into a gaping, bloody maw that swallowed the claws whole.
Honed sharper than any weapon and far sturdier than any armor, they were less like claws and more like deadly fangs—the ultimate epitome of offensive specialization.
Most importantly, now that he possessed its data, Lucian could freely replicate them using Annihilation Maker.
Before this, Lucian's Slime Armament had already devoured a massive quantity of Magic Stones, successfully evolving to Level 7.
Once it finished digesting these claws, his Hand Sonic would be able to output that exact same level of lethality.
Hand Sonic didn't require high flexibility; possessing extreme sharpness and sheer durability was more than enough.
"Are you all planning on continuing your exploration of the Dungeon?"
Lucian asked, glancing around the newly hollowed-out 72nd floor.
"The next generation of Familia members still needs a bit more time to gain experience. Probably around ten more days," the Empress replied.
"Once we eradicate the Evils, we'll head straight out to subjugate the Leviathan."
"You'll be coming along too, right?"
The subjugation of the Leviathan was a joint operation executed by the Zeus Familia, Hera Familia, and Poseidon Familia.
As one of the rare maritime factions, the Poseidon Familia was highly adept at naval warfare and would play a crucial role.
"I am somewhat interested."
Lucian nodded. "Notify me once you finish up this expedition, and I'll open a portal for you."
Residents of the Divine Court only possessed personal teleportation privileges; they did not have the administrative authority to construct permanent world gates.
Speaking of the Evils, Lucian suddenly remembered something.
The Evils weren't solely comprised of human members; they were also backed by Evil Gods.
One could argue that these Evil Gods were the true masterminds. They callously toyed with humanity, manipulated mortal minds, and manufactured an entire army of zealots completely unafraid of death.
In fact, the only thing these deities truly wanted to see was the gruesome hellscape painted by human suffering.
For gods like that, Lucian had zero intention of showing mercy.
Should I just wipe them out with Divine Weapons? Lucian thought to himself.
Mortal weaponry couldn't genuinely injure a god; it would only shatter their physical vessel and forcefully repatriate them back to Heaven.
However, wounds inflicted by Divine Weapons could not be easily healed. As long as a fatal blow was struck before the god could voluntarily return to Heaven, they could be permanently slain.
But even if they were 'killed,' they would simply resurrect in Heaven after ten thousand years.
For these Evil Gods, death was hardly something to be feared.
Rather than letting them resurrect in ten thousand years and leaving behind future enemies, I might as well just absorb and dismantle them entirely.
He could obliterate their Divine Bodies and Divine Souls, leaving behind only their divine power and Authorities, artificially forging new sub-species divine power.
Once an Innate God of Rules was ripped out of their home world, they would lose all their world privileges, rendering resurrection entirely impossible.
The only thing making Lucian hesitate was how Hephaestus and the others would view this.
I'll just ask them.
Lucian returned to the Divine Court and called over Hephaestus, Bheara, and Prometheus.
He voiced his internal dilemma. Hephaestus pondered for a brief moment before replying, "I think it's a great idea. Rather than letting that trash repeatedly jump around causing trouble, it's better to just kill them off early and turn them into fertilizer for the Sea of Illusions."
Bheara also made her stance clear. "I've been sick of those guys for a long time. Those obnoxious bastards totally deserve to be wiped out of existence."
Despite technically being part of the same divine race, both Hephaestus and Bheara genuinely believed the world would be better off with those gods dead.
"I understand your concerns," Prometheus said thoughtfully. "Honestly, you don't need to worry about our opinions. Putting aside the fact that we're firmly on your side, there's a core distinction here: you aren't targeting the pantheon of gods as a whole, just the parasites within the group."
Under normal circumstances, setting a precedent like this was extremely dangerous.
The moment someone branded a "God Slayer" emerged—whether they simply forcefully repatriated a deity or truly killed one using a Divine Weapon—they would be universally hunted by all the gods.
Ignoring such an anomaly would lead to catastrophic consequences.
One such consequence was the total collapse of divine majesty, meaning the gods would no longer be able to peacefully enjoy their eternal vacation in the Lower World.
The only exception to this rule was Artemis's situation, as Artemis had willingly embraced death, and Bell was a hero chosen by the gods, granting him a special pardon.
In any normal situation, having just a small handful of gods backing Lucian wouldn't be enough to protect him from the pantheon's wrath.
But Lucian's circumstances were incredibly complex. First, as the Sea of Illusions gradually perfected itself, his cosmic status had equaled that of Heaven itself. The gods were merely extensions of Heaven's rules.
Therefore, his actions couldn't be classified as 'God Slaying' (a mortal rebelling against the divine), but rather 'Divine Execution' (a higher power passing judgment on a lower one).
It wasn't an act of insubordination from below, but a rightful execution from above. Thus, there was no issue.
The second reason was that Lucian's gaze encompassed the infinite multiverse. The local gods of a single world held absolutely no influence over him.
A lack of influence also meant Lucian had no overarching reason to target their collective group.
As long as the collective wasn't threatened, systematically exterminating a few specific individuals wasn't a major deal.
"Since you all put it that way, I can put my mind at ease." Lucian finalized his decision.
"You still need to be careful, though."
Bheara cautioned, "You should know just how powerful gods are. Even if they suffer a fatal wound, the moment they unseal their divine power, the resulting explosive backlash might actually hurt you."
This was especially true for Evil Gods, the vast majority of whom possessed extremely vicious Authorities.
Even though the Divine Avatar had integrated the Flame of Heaven, Hephaestus's 'Fire,' Bheara's 'Winter,' and Prometheus's 'Wisdom and Knowledge,' surpassing the raw power of standard gods...
...If a dying god unleashed an overwhelmingly powerful burst of energy, there was still a tangible risk.
Regarding this, Lucian actually had an idea.
"Speaking of which, do you guys know about the Assassin of the Gods?"
Lucian asked, rubbing his chin.
As for the Assassin of the Gods, Antares—because there had never been a precedent, it was highly likely that the gods were completely unaware that Antares actually possessed the ability to devour deities.
Antares could even fuse with the devoured gods and wield their Authorities!
It wasn't just highly resistant to gods; it had a terrifyingly effective 'anti-god' attack capability. To the gods of this world, it represented the truest form of divine power nullification.
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