Ascension Through Skills-Chapter 493: 92nd Floor. Faith (4)
“What... What’s happening?!”
Upon hearing the commotion, the guards rushed over. When they saw Taesan, transformed into Remidaos, they froze in shock.
“Wh... W-what?!”
“I am Remidaos.”
A quiet voice echoed throughout the entire city. Dwarves, who had been hiding with their heads under blankets, slowly started to raise their heads.
“I have come to liberate you.”
“Don’t make me laugh!”
Slink!
The guards drew their swords. They had been tools of oppression for Remidaos' faith, so it seemed they hadn’t recognized Taesan’s appearance, as they had never seen Remidaos in their dreams.
“What kind of strange costume is this? Shut up and die!”
The guards rushed at him.
Taesan lightly flicked his fingers.
Crack!
An intangible wave of energy crushed them. In an instant, more than ten guards were slammed to the ground, unable to scream as they fell unconscious.
“Wooooo!”
“Remidaos-sama!”
The dwarf family cried out. Their voices reverberated throughout the city.
Clank.
Doors slowly began to open as dwarves emerged from their homes.
They approached Taesan as if hypnotized.
“Ah... Aah...”
“Remidaos-sama?”
Seeing Taesan’s appearance with their own eyes, they collapsed to the ground.
With blank, disbelieving stares, they looked at Taesan.
Golden hair and golden eyes, a radiant robe made entirely of gold.
It was exactly the appearance of Remidaos that they had seen in their dreams.
[You have activated Complete Reconnaissance.]
[These people...]
...
Hundreds, thousands of system windows appeared, blocking Taesan's view for a moment.
The vast amount of information about the many dwarves appeared before him.
Taesan quickly filtered through the data and spoke.
“I am Remidaos.”
“Aaaah...”
“I foretold to you. When your emotions and true faith reach me, I will descend, shining brightly, to lead you and save this world.”
“Ooooh!”
The dwarves responded passionately. The reason was simple. It was the very words Remidaos had spoken to them in their dreams.
Kiiiiing!
Divine energy covered the city. The golden aura that enveloped them made the people’s eyes grow heavy with awe.
“Follow me.”
Taesan began to move forward. The dwarves, as if in a trance, followed behind him.
Taesan headed towards the largest building in the center of the city.
Made of iron, this building took up about a third of the city.
“Everyone, prepare!”
Inside the building, dwarves scrambled to arm themselves. These weapons had all been made to oppress others.
Taesan flicked his fingers.
The divine energy manifested and struck the building.
Koooom!
“Uaaaah!”
“Save us!”
The building collapsed. Those who had been hastily preparing for battle fled in panic, their faces a picture of terror. In an instant, the building that had taken up a third of the city’s area crumbled into rubble.
“O-oooooh...”
Those who had followed Taesan couldn’t contain their astonishment.
Despite the massive building collapsing, they felt no repercussions. Taesan was untouched, not even a speck of dust on him.
It had been an ordinary building with no magical defenses. Simply applying force was enough to destroy it. Even if someone else, like a guide leader, had done it, they could have achieved the same result.
But to these people, it was nothing short of a divine miracle.
“I will punish those who oppress you and bring you freedom.”
The crowd erupted in excitement. The faith they had once placed in Remidaos was now directed toward Taesan.
[Your mastery of divine energy has increased by 1%.]
***
“Follow me. Witness with your own eyes how those who oppress you and force faith upon you receive the punishment they deserve.”
Taesan led the people out of the city. Not a single one of them was left behind; they all followed him.
The Immortal's residence was located on the exact opposite side of the planet. Taesan didn’t head straight there but instead moved toward other nearby villages.
There, he dealt with the tools of oppression and led the people.
At first, some were skeptical, but after seeing Taesan’s appearance and his power, they had no doubt he was Remidaos.
In an instant, a massive procession was formed. As Taesan led them, he thought to himself:
‘I never expected to use this like this.’
The Sphere of Transformation.
It was an item he had received a long time ago from Barija on the 51st floor.
He hadn’t really needed to change his appearance, so he had stored it in his inventory. He never thought he would need it again, but now, here it was.
‘Guess that’s true. You never know when you’ll use something you have.’
If he hadn’t taken the form of Remidaos, it would have taken quite a while for them to believe in him. But with the Sphere of Transformation, as soon as he assumed Remidaos’ form, that problem was solved.
The Sphere of Transformation’s effect was short-lived, but Taesan could extend it forcibly. At least until the end of this quest, there wouldn’t be a problem.
Taesan looked at the people.
As his gaze fell upon them, they bowed deeply.
Their deep and profound faith was pouring into Taesan.
The faith they had held for Remidaos for so long, perhaps since their birth.
True, heartfelt faith was now nesting inside Taesan.
[Your mastery of divine energy has increased by 1%.]
‘Very good.’
Taesan moved forward. He went from city to city, village to village, liberating them. A few minor issues arose, but nothing that posed any real problem.
[You have activated Complete Reconnaissance.]
[Karatuoi harbors a slight doubt about your curly hair.]
[Paparachia finds it odd that your manner of speech is slightly different from how Remidaos appeared in their dreams.]
...
Complete Reconnaissance reveals everything.
And that isn’t a small thing. It tells you how to design the structure of a building to withstand earthquakes. It teaches you how to manipulate fire to burn entire mountains. Even if Taesan himself didn’t know, Complete Reconnaissance would provide that information.
If he wanted, he could perfectly win over strangers with ease. In his previous life, he couldn’t fully tap into his power due to a lack of mana, but now, he could use it without issue.
Using Complete Reconnaissance, Taesan gained the perfect faith of the people.
And as he moved around the planet, gathering more faith from its people.
It was much easier than before, as he had done this several times. Taesan quickly traveled across half the planet.
And by then, the opposition had begun to move as well.
[What are you doing, O great one?]
A voice, filled with confusion, broke through the crowd and reached Taesan’s ears.
Taesan raised his gaze.
From a distance, a strong figure was speaking directly to him.
It was probably the Immortal who ruled this place. Karak.
[This is the domain of Remidaos-sama. No matter how much of a transcendent you may be, you cannot just trespass.]
“I know.”
Taesan looked up at the sky. Far beyond, a small white star gleamed.
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“It seems they know as well.”
Karak, thinking Taesan understood, began speaking more forcefully.
[Not to mention that you are stealing Remidaos-sama’s faith. He will not stay silent. Leave here immediately. I can still look the other way.]
“Shut up.”
[...What did you say?]
“You’ll meet him soon enough. We’ll talk then.”
Crack.
Taesan forcibly turned his gaze. The horrified look in Karak’s eyes slowly faded away.
“Is... Is that... Remidaos-sama?”
The dwarves around him, sensing something, looked at Taesan with uneasy expressions.
Taesan shook his head, as if nothing was wrong, and then asked them:
“Do you remember your king?”
“King... you mean?”
“Are you talking about Karak?”
“I’m talking about your true king.”
The dwarves looked confused. They didn’t even know that the shopkeeper had existed. Considering the time he had spent in the labyrinth, it made sense. Remidaos wouldn’t have allowed traces of anyone who interfered with his faith.
‘What a shame.’
But that was of little concern to Taesan.
Taesan continued to gather the faith of all the people.
When he felt that nearly everyone, aside from a few, worshiped him, Taesan decided it was time to finish what he started.
“I’m going to deliver the punishment.”
“Ooooooh!”
“Remidaos-sama! Please, punish him severely!”
He headed toward the Immortal’s location. The Immortal had seen Taesan’s movement but did not act.
Step.
Taesan led the people to where the Immortal resided.
It was a place of great splendor. A palace made of gold. Inside the enormous structure, which could have housed thousands of people, the only presence was the Immortal.
“Collapse.”
[You have activated the Declaration of Collapse.]
With a brief declaration, the palace crumbled.
Though the Immortal resisted, sending out waves of power, everything was crushed and obliterated by Taesan’s command.
Koooom!
In an instant, the palace turned to rubble.
“Ooooooh!”
The crowd cheered as they watched the destruction. Taesan gave them a brief command.
“Wait here.”
Taesan entered the collapsed palace.
Clearing away the obstructing debris, he made his way inside. The Immortal was waiting for him.
“You...”
It was a muscular dwarf. With a thick, lush beard, he stared at Taesan with trembling eyes.
He gritted his teeth.
“This is Remidaos-sama’s domain!”
“I know.”
“He is an incredibly powerful being! No matter how great you are, you can’t defeat him!”
“I’m not so sure about that.”
“Leave now!”
The Immortal swung his arm forcefully. A strong wave of energy swept through the area.
“I’ve already informed Remidaos-sama! How dare an outsider trespass in his domain!”
“You don’t need to inform him. He already knows.”
Taesan responded casually, but Karak shouted harshly as if he hadn’t heard.
“You’re certainly strong, but he has truly reached transcendence! He has the faith of many worlds! You cannot defeat him!”
He gasped for air. Taesan opened his mouth without reacting.
“I know that too.”
“...What?”
“That’s exactly what I’m aiming for.”
Karak’s pupils widened. His face twisted as he realized Taesan’s goal.
“...You!”
Karak clenched his fist. All of his power concentrated in a single strike aimed at Taesan.
Taesan gently took a step forward. With that single motion, all of Karak’s strength shattered and crumbled. Karak fell to the ground, coughing up blood.
Karak gritted his teeth as he got up.
“You... filthy plunderer!”
“Are you really going to say that?”
Taesan sneered and unleashed his power. Divine energy surged, scattering debris. The crowd outside watching saw Karak lying defeated and Taesan standing tall.
“Ooooooh!”
The people cheered. Deep, profound faith now directed at Taesan.
“You need to be overwhelmingly defeated. And they need to see it.”
Karak’s face twisted in anguish.
“Are you going to make a spectacle out of me?!”
“You were already playing with these people, weren’t you? I think this is just karma.”
Taesan hummed as he drew his sword.
“I’ve got plenty of places to go, so let’s wrap this up quickly.”
