Chapter 464: Ninety-Sixth Floor, Divine Armament (5)

[Find materials. Time remaining: 3 hours 57 minutes.]

The moment I began my descent, the Spirit of Storms enveloped me as a steady current of cool air. The wind flowed around me, soft yet powerful, easing the fall. I could have easily handled the descent on my own, but there was a certain comfort in having the spirit’s support. It almost felt like standing on solid ground.

My surroundings were much the same, and storm energy swirled protectively around me, ready to act should anything unexpected occur.

I still don’t detect anything below.

Even as I plummeted at a tremendous speed, carried by the storm’s current, the bottom remained out of sight. My only sign of progress was the faint, silvery light growing steadily brighter deep beneath me.

Something about it felt strange.

The hole had reminded me so much of a crater at first that my mind had immediately pictured a meteorite creating it.

There was nothing around the sinkhole, and the ground surrounding it sloped inward just like a crater.

However, no ordinary meteor could have created such a clean, vertical shaft. Even a deeply buried impact would have left a massive, uneven crater, not a perfectly carved hole leading downward.

It gave off an oddly artificial feeling.

Perhaps it was the result of a spell, something like a Meteor spell I had read in novels. I had never seen a mage cast something similar in the tower, but theoretically, a mage could enhance their projectile with enough mana that it pierced through the ground until its target was completely annihilated.

Still, I couldn’t be sure.

The storm from before had seemed artificially formed as well, but it had turned out to be more natural than I had assumed. This, too, could simply be another manifestation of an unfamiliar power.

While I mulled it over, the Spirit of Storms stretched its power ahead of my senses and swept through the depths to assess the situation. Previously, such a thing would have been impossible, but the spirit’s ascension to the level of a Spirit King had boosted its abilities significantly.

I could have extended my own perception to match it, but saw no need.

After descending for some time, the Spirit of Storms called out, “Su-Hyeok.”

Before I could respond, it conveyed a diagram of the depths through its will. Based on the flow of the wind it had surveyed, a massive stone rested at the bottom of the sinkhole. My guess was actually correct. A meteor, or something very much like one, had formed the hole. Thankfully, there were no signs of enemies nearby.

I manipulated the wind to accelerate my fall, and soon the faintly glowing meteor came into view.

It looks exactly like the spirit pictured.

Bathed in a silvery, moonlight-like sheen, the meteor resembled metal more than stone. I decided to call it star iron. There was one thing the wind hadn’t been able to relay, however.

The meteor was moving. More precisely, it was slowly sinking into the earth, consuming the ground beneath it as it went. It was so gradual that it was almost imperceptible, noticeable only when observed closely.

I stopped midair and hovered at a safe distance, studying it carefully. Getting too close could be dangerous. After a second, I realized how it was digging.

It is using spatial powers somehow.

I had seen Saboden utilize them during our battle, but this felt different.

Can I touch it from above?

Taking a wooden box out of the mimic, I tossed it onto the star iron. Since the meteorite spanned the sinkhole, there was no chance of it falling to the side. Moments later, the box began to fade from the bottom up. I continued experimenting for a short while. No matter what I threw—metal, water, food—everything that came into contact with it vanished little by little until nothing remained.

Unlike the Spring of Storms, the star iron didn’t emit an aura or pressure, but it undeniably possessed some kind of power

“Is this also the remnant of a primal spirit?”

“No. I’m not certain what it is, but it isn’t a spirit.”

I projected a current of mana forward. As long as it didn’t touch the star iron, nothing happened. The air didn’t distort, nor did it feel unstable. Just in case, though, I cloaked myself in a curtain of wind as I edged closer to the meteor.

Once I got within a certain range, a notification window appeared before my eyes. I should have done this sooner.

[Star Devourer]

- Once a single meteor, it absorbed the death and hatred of the entire world it destroyed, thereby gaining a strange and unfathomable power.

- Anything that comes into contact with the meteor is erased, and through that power, it has annihilated countless worlds.

- Unless shattered into countless fragments, its strength endures, feeding on stars and restoring itself to its original size.

Although it wasn’t noticeable from the outside, it carried the power to erase all that touched it. Judging by the description, this meteor was another relic from the age of the Primordial God. Perhaps, much like the primal spirits, sentient beings had worshipped it—albeit this time out of fear—after seeing it fall.

Star Devourer.

It was a grand name for a meteor, but given its power, it was well deserved. If it burrowed deep enough into a planet’s core, it wouldn’t just kill the planet’s inhabitants. It would destroy the planet itself.

At this point, I was starting to understand what the ninety-sixth floor truly represented. The Flame of Aspiration existed for a reason. Most intelligent beings of the present era wielded divinity or mana, but that hadn’t always been the case in the past. Just as the Primordial God had commanded causality, countless other mysterious forces—like the primal spirits or this meteor—had existed.

The Flame of Aspiration served as the means to uncover such lost powers.

After all, the trial helps a god craft a divine weapon.

Causality was regulated and distributed by the tower, so perhaps these mysterious forces were meant to create meaningful distinctions between each god’s weapons. That thought solidified my impression of this trial’s nature.

Looking back, my initial tension seemed misplaced. If my goal was to retrieve forces like these, then it was extremely unlikely I would need to fight anyone.

Obtaining the materials is already challenging enough.

If I hadn’t helped World Trees on previous floors, I probably wouldn’t have obtained anything during my first chance. Additionally, if I hadn’t known about storms, I wouldn’t have found the oasis.

This third material is nothing to scoff at, either.

The difficulty would likely come from figuring out how to transport a meteor that erased everything it touched—there was no way to lift it without severely damaging whatever came into contact with it. It didn’t help that it was enormous.

I turned to my mimic. “Mung-chi, can you swallow that?”

“

Mew!

” Mung-chi chirped adorably, as if saying yes.

Its enthusiasm made me wonder if perhaps this task wasn’t as difficult as I thought. It extended its shadowy darkness toward the meteor, attempting to consume it. As soon as the darkness brushed its surface, however, it convulsed violently and recoiled.

“

Meeew!

” Mung-chi let out a sharp cry of pain.

Ah, as expected.

I had hoped it would work, since it had managed to swallow the Spring of Storms, but a meteor that erased all matter was clearly another story. Then again, the spring hadn’t possessed a harmful nature. Its power had merely manifested outward as the storm around it.

Placing a hand on my hip, I quietly chanted a healing spell for Mung-chi. A soft golden glow spread over its small body. I wasn’t sure if it would help, but it was better than doing nothing.

“You okay?”

“

Mew!

” Mung-chi chirped again, reassuring me.

Thankfully, it didn’t seem seriously hurt.

I turned my gaze back to the meteor. The rest depended on me now. Two options seemed viable in this situation: divinity and causality. Since causality came from the Primordial God, it could work, but I had been saving it and was reluctant to spend it.

Crackle!

My divinity sparked violently as it struck out, only to bounce away before reaching the meteor. Mana and wind yielded the same result. I couldn’t quite understand why the wooden box had managed to make contact, but none of my powers could.

𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

Is it because it is a remnant of a time before gods?

Well, that left me with no other choice. If simply lifting it briefly would trigger the Flame of Aspiration, then I just needed to act with haste. I extended causality from my hand, wrapping it around the meteor.

Crackle—!

Something resisted powerfully, but unlike before, it didn’t deflect the energy entirely. Though it was consuming the causality slowly but surely, my grip held firm. The materialized strand of causality lifted the Star Devourer. In that instant, the Flame of Aspiration appeared before me, and I immediately withdrew my causality.

Thud!

The meteor caused a deep tremor to ripple through the ground as it landed. Unsurprisingly, the soil beneath it began to disintegrate.

Fortunately, it progressed slowly.

Hmm. Leaving it may cause problems. I should probably call Vironus.

Instead of stepping into the Flame of Aspiration again, I turned and ran toward the building behind it.

***

Vironus stepped out with a doubtful expression after hearing Kwon Su-Hyeok’s claim that the meteor before them could erase all things from existence. In all honesty, she didn’t believe him.

She had been in the middle of preparing for the forging process, and his words sounded exaggerated. It felt like an inconvenience rather than a concern. However, the moment she laid eyes on the meteor, her disbelief vanished. Her own divinity couldn’t reach it, and yet it was devouring the divine realm itself. Nearly one-third of the meteor had already sunk into the ground.

Without hesitation, she called for Vulcanus.

Vulcanus rushed over and froze in shock just as she had. “What in the world—” He stared at the meteor, dumbfounded. “To think something like this could appear from the Flame of Aspiration.”

“Wait, this isn’t normal?” Kwon Su-Hyeok asked, oblivious to the deeper astonishment written across Vulcanus’s face.

To Kwon Su-Hyeok, the flame would naturally lead to such an object. He had already surmised that the materials were imbued with powers from a pre-Primordial God era. Therefore, he couldn’t understand why Vulcanus looked so taken aback.

Vulcanus slowly shook his head. “Normally, gods will bring back rare and precious materials, but nothing like this. Nothing that carries such unnatural power. Wait a moment.”

His eyes narrowed sharply as he looked at Kwon Su-Hyeok. “From the way you’re talking... don’t tell me...”

“

Ah

, yes. A Primordial World Tree gifted me its last breath, and I collected some water imbued with the power of a primal spirit.”

“My word... by the Primordial God...” Vulcanus raised his gaze toward the heavens.

Kwon Su-Hyeok found the sight oddly amusing.

It was strange to see a first-class god, one of the most powerful gods, pray to the Primordial God in the same way that mortals sought their own deities in times of uncertainty.

While Kwon Su-Hyeok silently observed, Vulcanus murmured under his breath, “If it is truly Your will... then I shall devote my full strength to this task.”

It wasn’t really a murmur, though. It was a vow, a divine oath offered to both himself and the long-vanished Primordial God.

Because of that, Kwon Su-Hyeok didn’t quite catch what he had said. “Pardon?”

“It’s nothing,” Vulcanus replied quickly while shaking his head.

He had always stayed far from the power struggles between the gods. Even when Omniscient Thunder Axe had offered him extra compensation to take sides, he had refused. He wanted no part in such rivalries. With the Primordial God gone, what was the point in fighting over authority?

Still, he couldn’t deny that it felt good to have work again. After all, it wasn’t every day one had the chance to handle materials so rare that even the gods could scarcely obtain them—and receive payment for it, no less.

That was all it had been. Nothing more.

I never imagined it would come to this.

The Flame of Aspiration had been a gift to him from the Primordial God.

Now, as that same flame began drawing forth relics of ancient power, Vulcanus couldn’t help but see Kwon Su-Hyeok as an extension of the Primordial God’s will. He had no choice but to respond accordingly.

However, he couldn’t handle causality. If he could simply place the meteor within his hottest flame, perhaps it would be forgeable. Unfortunately, in its current state, he couldn’t even touch it.

Vulcanus cleared his throat awkwardly and turned to Kwon Su-Hyeok. “Could you,

um

, perhaps split it in half for me?”

“

Huh?

Me?”

“Regardless of my strength, I can’t meddle with this kind of power.” Vulcanus coughed again to mask his embarrassment.

His tone had grown subtly more polite, but Kwon Su-Hyeok was too distracted by the situation to notice. The fact that even a first-class god couldn’t handle the meteor startled him.

“If you can separate about half of it and move it into the hottest flame, I’ll be able to forge it from there.”

“

Ah

, sure.”

Kwon Su-Hyeok wasn’t sure whether to feel proud or alarmed. It wasn’t that his own divinity was insufficient to affect the Star Devourer, but even a first-class god couldn't.

None of the other gods had retrieved anything like what he had brought back.

Still, since he had already handled it with causality, splitting it shouldn’t be a problem. Even if it cost him some of that power, it would ultimately serve as material for his growth, so there was no reason to hesitate.

That left him wondering what to do with the other half, though. He didn’t even bother asking. If a first-class god couldn’t touch it, he certainly couldn’t leave it lying around on this planet.

If I wrap it in causality and store it in Mung-chi.

He considered the idea, but dismissed it almost immediately. That would be too much of a constant drain on his reserves of causality. Sending it through a portal to another world was out of the question, too, as the Star Devourer would consume that world. There could be life there.

That left only one option: to shatter it into tiny fragments and erase it completely. Although its description had mentioned it, it felt wasteful to destroy something so extraordinary.

As Kwon Su-Hyeok stood there pondering, a thought crossed his mind.

The battlefield.

The world he had obtained as a reward on the ninety-third floor.