D.I.O

Chapter 146

*** Awakening ***

Whoosh! Bam!

A small rocky island could be seen in the sea, surrounded by gentle waves. The island looked to be in a precarious situation, as if it might sink at any moment, but a man in his early twenties was lying on it.

Snore.

He was sleeping and snoring softly. It looked like he was taking a break, but in reality, he had been in this same position for half a year. His only job was to sleep, and he spent every hour of the day doing so.

Ugh.

Yet, at that moment, he opened his eyes. It had been almost a month since he last did this.

Those guys finally unlocked the seal on science. Well, theyve already unlocked the seal on martial arts and magic, so I guess it could be seen as just another unlocking.

However, the meaning of this unlocking was completely different. Humans had lived their lives with little exposure to martial arts or magic, so no matter how high their achievements were, they would inevitably think of these fields principles as dream-like existences. It wasnt that these topics didnt affect reality, but they were minor changes and alterations at best.

Science is different, though. Even if the human civilization isnt as advanced, humans are not anchored to a defined level, so its quite possible that theyd steal that places technology.

Of course, some measures had been taken to prevent the spread of Over Technology, but if someone truly wanted to stop anything from being leaked, a gap wouldnt have been created. Since a gap existed, it would only be a matter of time before the tech reached the humans real world.

This clearly goes against the Unions Law. Damn those Noblesse.

Noblesse was one of the pillars of the Union, which was formed by all the forces of the physical world, and they were often called [Noble Blood]. As soon as they came into existence, these beings were promised the status of transcendence, so they essentially developed into gods just by aging. Moreover, some were even born as low-level or above-godly beings. It was only natural that these Noblesse held the greatest influence in the Union, which didnt have many transcendents. The Union Law was created to unite and maintain numerous forces in the universe. It was acclaimed for being strictly adhered to, but the Noblesse could create some gaps.

In the end, theyre making me take action.

Manbos ID description stated [Dreamer], and hed been given the master title of [Sleep Master] after sleeping for an absurd length of time. He slowly lifted his body. Though it was likely that no one would notice, getting up was something he hadnt done for nearly six months.

If possible, I didnt want to do anything.

Alas, it couldnt be helped. To start, he was sent to this place to keep watch of the Noblesses actions, so he couldnt cast his responsibilities aside. Even though he was highly annoyed, he had to move.

There are probably others here and there as well ugh, why does it have to be me?

Whoosh.

The space around him began to distort. And slowly, his figure disappeared.

I have to file a report.

***

Due to the dark clouds, the Tower of Truth illuminated the previously-dim area around the Holy Shrine with its bright light. This luminance wasnt from anywhere specific, as the gigantic tower made of crystal gleamed with an intense white luster. As mana circulated the huge tower, which was easily several kilometers tall, a tremendous resonance of mana occurred within it. It seemed like something was being sent down the tower from the sky.

Is this what Quiet Heaven meant when he mentioned that the atmosphere was a bit weird? It looks kind of cool.

Click! Click!

Merlin called out his camera and took a screenshot of the scene. This view was something that anyone would want to save, even those who didnt like to take screenshots. However, as Merlin was doing this, he suddenly stopped.

Woong.

From the top of the Tower of Truth, something heavy fell.

Shoot, did the Great Will arrive?

Merlin recalled his camera and entered the Tower of Truth. Fortunately, the doors werent closed, so he could go in quickly.

Youre too late, idiot master.

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Whats the matter? Did something happen?

Merlin cast a quizzical look at Quiet Heaven once he saw its stern expression. Merlin looked around and saw that all the other representatives were seated, including Miho. Outside of the light continuously leaking from the ceiling, the hall hadnt changed much since Merlin left for Dynamic Island.

No, wait. Something feels different.

At that moment, Merlin felt a sharp killing intent, as if he was walking atop a knifes blade. When he turned his head to look at the gathered representatives, he could tell that they were looking at each other with vigilant expressions.

Whats going on?

Even Merlin knew that raising his voice in this setting wasnt appropriate, so he spoke to Quiet Heaven in their spiritual channel. Quiet Heaven answered.

I dont know exactly. The atmosphere has been tense ever since that light came down from the ceiling. It seemed as if everyone wanted to fight- no, wanted to kill each other, but nothing actually happened.

Quiet Heaven was stressed because he had been exposed to the overwhelming killing intent for a prolonged period. Furthermore, the light pouring from the ceiling confused Quiet Heaven, regardless of its extensive training in the mental Dao arts. Users were equipped with a default mind protection system, so they wouldnt be affected by the light, but other beings would be in a different situation.

Its fortunate that the representatives here are relatively strong and have built a firm sense of self-discipline.

Yet, at that moment, a loud noise erupted from one corner of the hall.

Bang!

The Great Darkness collided with the light. It was a clash of demonic and heavenly power, coming from a mid-rank demon and a winged Dominion angel. The two had been maintaining a state of elevated tension ever since they stepped foot on Moby Dick. These two members had the most formidable fighting power amongst the representatives, and when they collided, everyone else flinched. However, soon, all the representatives started taking battle stances.

Ack! What the hell is going on?

Watch out, master!

Suddenly, Red Blood, the lion with bright red fur, rushed toward Merlin with a crimson aura enveloping him. Although he was from the Senior Remote Islands, where its inhabitants were renowned for their well-honed mental Dao prowess, his eyes were full of madness and absent of any consciousness.

Bam!

Merlin couldnt just sit around and watch, so he amplified ten years of internal energy into 80 years and met Red Bloods attack straight on. Merlins powerful attack instantly broke Red Bloods arm and made it sink lifelessly down to his ribs. In terms of the strength and power behind a single blow, no one present could match Merlin.

Miho!

Merlin hurriedly backed away and looked over at Miho. She, too, had lost her mind and was clashing with the Avian species representatives. Mihos fox fire and the latters signature wind attacks clashed violently against each other.

A little monster bitch!

Shut up, bird head!

Miho shouted fiercely and confronted the opposing representative head-on, but she was pushed back due to her lower overall power level. The average level of the representatives was Level 8, so Miho was at a disadvantage, having started this expedition at Level 7. Of course, she entered the Tower of Truth and attained Level 8, but the other representatives had also improved.

Ting!

Soon, her eyes flashed red.

Whoosh!

Ugh?!

In an instant, a scathing flame erupted from the Avians neck and set its head on fire. It was a surprise attack that wasnt based on fire magic or monster qi, so the Avian representative was essentially defenseless.

Ignite ability?

Merlin was startled by Mihos ability, which he had never seen before, but he soon realized that it was the effect of Mihos newly attained Extreme Vision. It seemed that this ability allowed her to create super-hot flames on a visible target; however, at this moment, this wasnt an important detail to mull over, so Merlin quickly moved and grabbed Mihos arm.

Its dangerous here, so lets go out. This place is a mess.

Kyak!

Miho ferociously screamed and scratched Merlins arm. Shining, which possessed an auto-defense order from Merlin, took on the brunt of Mihos attack, but since it contained a considerable amount of monster qi, Merlin couldnt entirely escape injury, and blood spattered everywhere.

Miho!

Since his attacker wasnt an enemy, Merlin suffered quite a deep wound, as he failed to put up a proper defense. If it werent for Shining, his arm would have been cut clean off. If he had sustained such an injury in real life, Merlin would have lost consciousness from the considerable pain that followed. However, since this was DIO, Merlin transformed Younghwi into a thin gauze to wrap around his injured arm before grabbing Mihos two hands tightly and pulling her back. Miho writhed and resisted, but it was impossible for her to overcome Merlins superior physical ability.

Get yourself together, you idiot! Are you going to die like this?

Ah!

Fortunately, at that moment, Mihos eyes regained focus. In a stroke of luck, Miho hadnt fallen into total madness and lost her consciousness entirely, so Merlin didnt have to subdue her forcefully.

Are you alright?

M-Merlin! Youre bleeding!

Its fine, so just stay still. Something weird has happened to all these representatives.

Master, leave this place as soon as possible! Its dangerous here!

Quiet Heaven reinforced his mental Dao faculties to try and understand the representatives situation, as they were on the verge of completely losing their minds. However, Quiet Heaven couldnt make any sense of it.

Whats the purpose? What conclusion or result is this leading towards?

When Quiet Heaven had thought this, the light shining down from the ceiling became stronger.

Woong!

With a loud and deep resounding sound, a vast pillar of light came down onto the center of the hall. It was a dimensional door that connected this dimension with another! Immediately, every representative stopped moving and looked toward the entrance.

Oh, our Great Will!

Great Will!

Soon, the representatives started getting on their knees. As he had done before, Merlin didnt get on his knees. Previously, Miho had pinched his side and forced him to kneel, but this time was different. As if mesmerized, Miho stared at the light while kneeling.

Ugh.

Merlin was the only individual standing, and he started teetering. A tremendous spiritual force started pressing down on his body. Merlin could overcome most forms of spiritual qi by reading their flow and adjusting his body accordingly, but he couldnt resist this brute force spiritual qi.

Whoosh!

Then, it appeared. It was a colossal, shining, golden dragon.

A Gold Dragon.

The dragon looked like a traditional Asian dragon. It didnt possess wings, yet it was able to slither across the air easily. It soon looked down at the kneeling representatives and Merlin as it continued to project its absurdly powerful oppressive aura.

Something seems off.

However, at that moment, Merlin was thinking about something else entirely. He sensed something peculiar about the dragons aura. If it were his first time coming across a dragon, Merlin would have thought that this was a dragons typical aura, but Merlin had already experienced Seadragon Zygmunts aura in a dungeon located 1,000 meters below the oceans surface. Merlin had also experienced Red Dragon Ignizs aura during the end of the beta test when she attacked, as well as the White Divine Celestial Dragon Thousand Scents aura, a dragon that was approachable for all users.

Among those three, the Red Dragons aura was the weakest, but all three were transcendent beings that possessed incredible strength and transcended the worlds rules and laws. Though Merlins vision was discerning and developed, he didnt compare to the aforementioned dragons, which were not only powerful but also had true comprehension and intelligence to match. When Merlin stood before those beings, he felt an utter sense of loss and weakness.

This feels different, though. The dragon before me just seems like an overinflated balloon.

While the Gold Dragon exuded an incredible and overwhelming sense of power, Merlin couldnt sense a type of class or exceptionalism from it. It felt as though the aura was just a combination of various strong auras hurriedly slapped together; the overall power of the aura was significant, but it was only that, large.

Raise your heads.

The Gold Dragons words rang in everyones minds. The tone of the dragons voice was firm and oppressive.

Oh, Great Will.

Great Will.

They were fighting like headless chickens just moments ago, but now theyre bowing their heads in unison Even if that dragon is the god they serve, this type of behavior is odd.

Merlin was the only one standing among the representatives, who were now all bowing their heads. As a user, Merlin didnt care about his opponents position or standing. Whether it be a noble, a king, an emperor, or a god, there was no reason for Merlin to bow his head to anyone. Even as he stood before this Gold Dragon, Sungmuk, or Zygmunt, Merlin didnt feel that any of these beings were real. For whatever reason, the Gold Dragon continued talking without showing any reaction to the still-standing Merlin. It seemed as though it had no intention of interfering with him.

The day of judgment is coming. This has been planned since the creation of this world and has been progressing until now.

A tremendous amount of spiritual power emanated outward. Furthermore, this spiritual power was only from the Gold Dragons words, and as he saw this, Merlin understood something.

If someone puts this much spiritual power into their words, it will definitely have an effect. Either the power of the word will do something directly or all living things within a thousand kilometers will hear it.'

And, as Merlin guessed, the Gold Dragon was aiming for the latter effect. It was likely that its voice would reach even the most distant of the six massive islands. It probably wouldnt get as far as the much-further Dynamic Island; however, exerting so much power into ones words and disseminating it to such an extent without any magic proved the greatness of the spiritual power contained within words.

Anyway, the Gold Dragon continued speaking. It radiated a noble gold color and a mysterious aura, but its eyes glistened with a blood-red light. It was obviously a strange look, but none of the representatives pointed this discrepancy out. Although, they didnt seem to be of sound mind in the first place.

The Sea of Chaos has been opened. Across the Sea of Chaos, there are those who call themselves passengers, and these passengers do not align with our providence. These passengers are gathering to invade our land.

Oh, Great Will, what shall we do?

Do not fret. They are evil, but you will open a path for them to the Peach Blossom Spring.

As he heard the Gold Dragons gentle voice, Merlin felt anxious and nervous. Despite the Gold Dragons divine aura, the smell of blood wafted from it. And, as if to justify Merlins troubled feelings, the Gold Dragon started saying some unusual, nonsensical words.

Fight.

The dragons eyes twinkled. As the representatives looked at it with entranced gazes, the Gold Dragon spoke to them and everyone else on the continent,

When the blood of the last passenger spills onto the ground, only the species that killed the most passengers will feel the joy of eternity by my side.

Flash!

Then, with a flash of dazzling light, the Gold Dragons figure disappeared.

With this, the surroundings became quiet. The silence was so suffocating that even the sound of a single hair falling would probably resonate, but soon, the representatives all looked toward one place.

Passenger.

Ah, I see. Thats a passenger. Is this a sense given to us by the Great Will?

Ha haha?

Merlin broke out into a cold sweat. The representatives killing intent, which had been scattered all over the place, was now focusing on him.

W-wait!

However, at that moment, Miho stood and spoke to the other representatives.

What is it, fox monster?

Wait a minute. I think theres been a misunderstanding. Merlin is my accompanying traveler. He doesnt have any intent in hurting any of us.

Miho tried to calm the crowd down, but it wasnt working in the slightest.

Shes already gone to the other side! Traitor!

The Avian species representative shouted, being the one who sustained critical damage from Mihos fox fire. Afterward, killing intent started focusing on Merlin and Miho.

Stand back!

Bam!

As Merlin retreated and pulled Miho away, black darkness struck the floor like a whip where they were previously standing. If they were even a little late, Mihos body would have been destroyed. The attacker was the mid-rank demon who had been fighting the Celestial moments ago.

Master, the atmosphere is not good.

I see that.

Merlin let go of Miho and looked around. In the blink of an eye, he was surrounded by the representatives. It would have been better if he had run away from the beginning, but Merlin had dashed forward to rescue Miho, so they were now surrounded.

Hehehe! Peach Blossom Spring I dont prefer it, but I dont hate fighting, either. Youll have to die here, passenger.

Merlin shuddered after feeling the overwhelming killing intent focused on him. Of course, if push came to shove, Merlin could deal with a mid-rank demon, as hed already defeated one in the events assessment test. Yet, as Quiet Heaven mentioned, the atmosphere was not good. The enemy wasnt a single mid-rank demon. Moreover, even a mid-rank demon wasnt an enemy that Merlin could treat with ease.

Zip.

However, at that moment, a four-winged Celestial angel blocked the mid-rank demon. Of course, this wasnt done to protect Merlin.