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[Starting as a Class 5 Mutant] Chapter 378/379
🕑 Added 2025-01-12 16:00:07 +0000 UTCAs the notification sounded, Syd immediately felt the transformation of his divinity within.
Radiant white light emanated from his divine core. The original seventy-two facets of the divine core shifted and morphed rapidly.
Soon, a dazzling core appeared within him—seemingly with ninety-nine facets, though its shape constantly shifted.
Just sensing it, Syd could feel the immense power emanating from the upgraded divine core.
"Is that all the changes?" he wondered aloud.
Aside from his divinity advancing to Level Five, there seemed to be no other noticeable alterations.
Feeling slightly disappointed, Syd waved his hand and casually cast a portal spell.
Yellow sparks ignited, and he stepped through, greeted by a wave of scorching heat.
His surroundings were filled with golden sand, the searing sunlight distorting the air itself.
A desert.
Syd had chosen the desolate landscape to test his new abilities without causing too much disturbance.
With a simple mental image, either the portal spell or the Space Stone could easily transport him to such a place.
Scanning the vast, empty desert, Syd instinctively began experimenting.
Testing Flight Speed
Using a timing device, he floated a meter above the sand. In the blink of an eye, with a faint whoosh, his figure vanished from his original spot, appearing ten kilometers away almost instantaneously.
A trail of dust and a loud, piercing whistle echoed behind him.
A long trench marked the desert floor, as if a sword had cleaved through it.
Ignoring the chaos left in his wake, Syd glanced at the timer and quickly performed some calculations.
Seventy-six times the speed of sound.
Frowning, Syd muttered, unsatisfied, "Still too slow..."
Although his speed had improved significantly, it fell short of his expectations for a Level Five divine core.
Testing Chaos Magic
Red light flickered in his hands.
[Chaos Magic EXP +1]
The chaotic energy formed into a beam and shot toward the ground.
Boom!
In an instant, a massive crater appeared, its contents evaporated by the chaotic energy.
Syd sighed in mild disappointment. The enhancement of Chaos Magic was proportional to the improvement in his flight—noticeable but not groundbreaking.
Testing Divine Command
Without much thought, Syd decided to test the strength of his Divine Command.
"Light..." he uttered.
Before he could finish, the results stunned him.
In an instant, sunlight within a 1,200-kilometer radius intensified dramatically, flooding the area in a radiant, all-encompassing glow. It was as if the world had been submerged in a sea of light.
Alarmed, Syd quickly halted the effects of his Divine Command.
The phenomenon dissipated in a flash, lasting barely a second—like a fleeting illusion.
Had it continued, the abnormality would have undoubtedly drawn the attention of nations worldwide. After all, a 1,200-kilometer radius was impossible to overlook.
Revelation: A Major Boost to Light-Based Abilities
Though Syd dismissed the incident, his mind raced.
1,200 kilometers?
The range of Divine Command had skyrocketed—an absurd and unprecedented leap compared to the marginal increases seen in other abilities.
To confirm his hypothesis, Syd activated Sunshine.
[Sunshine EXP +1]
Instantly, the sunlight within a 90-kilometer radius became abnormal.
Prepared this time, Syd swiftly canceled the ability.
Even so, he couldn't help but feel astonished.
The range of Sunshine had expanded from 15 kilometers to 90—a sixfold increase. With such power, he could obliterate a small city in an instant.
Gradually, Syd pieced together the truth.
The Level Five divine core wasn't ineffective; its transformation specifically amplified light-based abilities to unprecedented levels.
"That makes sense. Balder was the God of Light. The transformation of the divine core aligns with his nature," Syd mused.
To verify his theory, he summoned the light energy within him.
Bright rays of light materialized in his palm. Syd directed the energy into a beam that struck the ground.
Testing Light Energy
A golden beam pierced the desert floor.
Boom!
A vast area of sand melted instantly before vaporizing completely.
Syd immediately noted the enhancement. Under the influence of the divine core, his light-based energy attacks had grown exponentially stronger.
Subsequent tests revealed that his divine body had similarly improved. Even if a barrage of missiles exploded before him, his skin would remain unscathed—though his clothing might not fare as well.
Conclusion: A New Level of Power
Every ability tied to Balder saw immense amplification. The Level Five divine core represented a significant step forward, granting Syd newfound confidence.
For the first time, he felt an inkling of security.
"Could I take on the Celestial Judge Arishem now?" Syd pondered, his eyes gleaming with anticipation.
The Next Goal: Leveling Sunshine
Excitement swelled as his thoughts turned to Sunshine.
If Sunshine reached Level Five and synergized with the divine core, how powerful would it become? Perhaps that would mark the true breakthrough he sought.
Glancing at Balder's unlock progress, Syd's expectations grew.
[Unlock Progress: 80%]
His gaze shifted to his accumulated energy points.
[Energy Points: 8663]
The numbers didn't surprise him. Despite focusing on his abilities, he had steadily amassed energy points during idle moments.
Wasting no time, Syd funneled the points into Balder's progress.
The unlock bar flickered.
[Unlock Progress: 81%]
Syd's eye twitched in mild frustration.
8,000 points for a mere 1% increase?
Although collecting that many points took just over half a day, the sheer amount needed was daunting.
Even so, anticipation outweighed annoyance.
Every core entity, from the Orochi to the Scarlet Witch, possessed an Omega-level ability at its heart. Balder, the God of Light, would undoubtedly be no exception.
The divine core might rival an Omega-level ability, but Syd was certain that Balder's true power had yet to manifest.
"Will it emerge at 85%? Or 90%? Perhaps 95%... or even 100%?"
(End of Chapter)
Syd was brimming with anticipation.
As he reveled in his thoughts, the light energy flowing from his transformed divinity received an inexplicable boost, becoming significantly stronger.
Kamar-Taj
Doctor Strange's eyes widened in shock.
Draped in his newly acquired crimson Cloak of Levitation, he hovered in a meditative pose, his hands weaving through magical gestures as he practiced his spells.
But moments ago, something felt off. The power from his dimensional patron seemed to have undergone a change.
Instinctively, Stephen Strange cast a spell.
Bolts of Balthakk!
Instantly, golden lightning—infused with dimensional power—manifested before him.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
With flashes of gold, chunks of the ground shattered beneath him, leaving a crater several meters deep.
Staring at the destruction, Strange froze in disbelief.
The Bolts of Balthakk had grown significantly more powerful.
"No... It's the power granted by that unknown dimensional entity—it's become much stronger!" he murmured in astonishment.
Strange had assumed the power he'd been granted previously was already a glimpse into the entity's true strength. But now it seemed even that wasn't its limit.
He wondered if even this level of power was just what the entity had chosen to bestow for now, with its true potential lying far beyond comprehension.
Taking a deep breath, Strange marveled at the thought of what he could accomplish if he wielded the entity's full power.
Elsewhere
Strange wasn't the only one noticing the change.
Kaecilius, along with other followers of the entity, experienced similar revelations.
Some, caught in life-threatening situations, found themselves saved by the sudden surge of power.
One by one, the believers became more awestruck and devout.
In the Desert
Several hundred kilometers from Syd's location, a caravan of camels and travelers braving the sandstorms began to stir with commotion.
"Was it just me, or did the surroundings seem brighter for a moment?"
"A sudden flash of light?"
"Could it have been a mirage?"
Giovanni, a burly man with fair skin and a thick beard, hesitated as he spoke.
"Uh..."
Hearing his words, the other nineteen members of the caravan exchanged uncertain glances.
"You noticed it too?" Lisa, a slender woman dressed in brown, asked hesitantly.
She'd dismissed the flash as a hallucination brought on by their long journey.
If Giovanni hadn't mentioned it, Lisa might have brushed it off entirely.
Hearing her, the rest of the group began chiming in.
"Yes, I saw it too!"
"What could it mean?"
Amid the chatter, Najido, an elderly man in the group, began gesturing and muttering prayers.
Seeing this, Giovanni and the others frowned.
"What are you doing?" a young man named Rainer asked irritably.
Najido ignored him, continuing his prayers in the local dialect. Though the others couldn't fully understand, they caught words like "god" and "forgiveness."
As their patience wore thin, Najido finally finished praying and began packing his belongings, seemingly intent on leaving.
"What are you doing?" Giovanni demanded.
Under the group's questioning gaze, Najido stroked his white beard and replied gruffly, "Your search for that pyramid must have angered the Egyptian gods. The vision we saw was a divine warning."
"If I continue to guide you, I'll surely face their wrath. If you insist on going, you'll have to do it without me."
His explanation left the group dumbfounded. Then, as realization dawned, they burst into laughter, their expressions a mix of amusement and exasperation.
"What century are you living in? Egyptian gods?" Giovanni scoffed.
Admittedly, their expedition was to uncover a mysterious pyramid rumored to hold treasures linked to the Egyptian pantheon.
But that didn't mean the gods actually existed.
If they did, would the world still be in its current state?
Giovanni and the others were the first to dismiss the idea.
Najido retorted, "Didn't Thor, the god of thunder from Asgard, show up not long ago? Why can't Egypt have gods?"
His argument gave Giovanni pause, reminding him of Thor's appearance a while back.
Lisa waved it off. "Asgard is Asgard. Egypt doesn't have gods, period. At least, we've never seen any."
"And as for Thor... call him a god if you want, but to me, he's more like an alien. Doesn't seem godly at all."
Her words found unanimous agreement among the group.
To them, Thor was more akin to an alien visitor than a deity. And as for the Egyptian gods, the myths were far too exaggerated to be real.
Najido frowned but didn't argue further, quietly contemplating Lisa's points.
However, he countered with, "What about the White-Clad Hero? Isn't he rumored to be an Asgardian god?"
"Doesn't he seem like a god to you?"
The mention of the White-Clad Hero left Giovanni and the others momentarily speechless.
Lisa was quick to respond, "The White-Clad Hero is just that—a hero. Isn't he supposed to be an Omega-level mutant?"
"Rumors say he's an Asgardian god, but there's no concrete proof. Besides, he doesn't seem like a real god to me."
What Lisa left unsaid was that while the White-Clad Hero was undeniably powerful, he hadn't yet shown anything that convinced her he was truly divine.
She changed the subject. "Enough talk. Are you coming or not?"
Najido stroked his beard, then shook his head firmly. "I'm not going."
"Two hundred thousand dollars," Lisa offered coldly.
"No..." Najido began.
"One million dollars!" Lisa snapped.
"Uh..." Najido froze, then mumbled, "Fine..."
He added weakly, "But you must pay three hundred thousand up front."
A million dollars was more than enough for a lifetime of comfort. If it meant taking a risk, so be it, Najido thought, clenching his teeth.
Lisa's eyes gleamed with a mix of satisfaction and disdain.
Money could solve anything.
With their guide placated, the group resumed their journey toward the mysterious pyramid.
(End of Chapter)
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