Novel Full Chapter 147: Celestial’s Might Pressure, Overwhelming The Souls
Chapter 147: Chapter 147: Celestial’s Might Pressure, Overwhelming The Souls
From the very beginning, Leon could not help but question what this so-called God-Rank assessment was truly meant to accomplish.
An assessment above S-Rank sounded impressive.
But when he thought about it logically, something felt off.
How many players would ever reach the point of even triggering such a trial?
And among those few, how many would actually survive it?
If almost nobody could attempt it, and even fewer could complete it, then what was the point?
It seemed pointless. No, more than that, it seemed absurd.
Yet Leon knew better than to dismiss it as meaningless.
Nothing inside [Eternal Ascension] was created without purpose.
Just because he could not see the logic yet did not mean it was not there.
He slowly scanned his surroundings.
Nine souls stood around him, forming a loose circle.
Each of them held their weapons ready. Their killing intent filled the clearing, pressing down on him from every direction.
They still had not decided who would land the final blow.
Their earlier argument had shifted into something more practical.
At this point, their shared objective was simple: cripple Leon first, then settle the matter afterward.
Leon took a calm breath.
“You know,” he said casually, breaking the tension, “I can kill the [Lord of Souls] for you.”
Technically, he was not offering to help them out of kindness.
If the [Lord of Souls] truly existed and was powerful enough to trap all of them, then defeating it would likely yield incredible rewards.
It would be beneficial for him either way. Two birds with one stone.
For a brief moment, silence followed his words. Then the souls laughed.
The sound echoed strangely in the labyrinth, hollow and sharp.
“Kid,” Belial said mockingly, “you have no idea who the [Lord of Souls] is. Just die quietly.”
“One of us is going back to the [Higher Domain] today,” Virelle added coldly. “You will be our stepping stone.”
Without further warning, Virelle flapped her wings and shot forward, spear aimed straight at Leon’s chest.
Leon moved instantly, stepping aside as the spear pierced through empty air.
At the same time, a blazing fireball burst from Marcus’ floating book, detonating exactly where Leon had stood a fraction of a second earlier.
The attack sequence did not stop there.
Vines shot out from the ground, trying to bind his legs. Twin blades sliced through the air from his left. A dark beam of energy came from his right.
One after another, the nine souls launched their attacks in coordinated waves.
Leon responded with everything he had.
He dodged when he could. He blocked when necessary. He countered with spells whenever there was an opening.
Powerful Fireball! Storm of Lightning! Ice Spikes!
Explosions of magic filled the clearing. Lightning cracked against the stone walls. Steel clashed against spectral weapons.
Even so, the sheer number of enemies made it difficult.
A sword grazed his shoulder. A spell clipped his side. Vines scratched across his arm before he burned them away.
Bruises began to form. His breathing grew heavier.
Still, he continued fighting.
As he twisted away from another incoming strike, a strange thought surfaced in his mind.
’This feels… oddly familiar.’
The sensation of being surrounded. The constant pressure. The endless barrage of attacks slowly wearing him down.
It reminded him of his battle against the servants of the [God of Eternity].
Back then, the battlefield had been far larger. Thousands of enemies had surrounded him. But the feeling was the same.
Leon clenched his teeth.
In his previous life, he had failed because he had not been strong enough.
He had not been able to cut down all his enemies before they overwhelmed him.
If he could not even defeat nine souls here, how could he ever hope to stand against gods in the future?
No… That outcome was unacceptable. He needed to end this quickly.
SLASH!
Virelle lunged again, spear flashing toward his throat.
Leon dodged. But instead of retreating and using spells to create distance like before, he stepped forward.
SLASH!
His sword swept toward Virelle with far greater force than before.
Her eyes widened. She barely managed to raise her spear to block, but the impact forced her backward.
“Getting desperate?” one of the souls sneered.
“Keep attacking,” Lucas growled. “We’re close.”
This time, however, Leon did not flinch.
Deep inside, he felt it. It was coming.
The pressure building around him had reached its peak. The danger was no longer subtle. It was overwhelming.
And then—
Ding!
[Celestial’s Might has activated.]
Leon’s pupils turned silver-white.
A terrifying pressure erupted from his body, spreading across the entire clearing.
The stone beneath their feet trembled. The air grew heavy, suffocating.
Every soul froze mid-motion. Their bodies shuddered.
“What is this?”
“How…?”
They were already dead. Fear was not something they experienced easily anymore.
The [Lord of Souls] had shown them terror beyond anything they had known in life.
And yet, at this moment, the aura radiating from Leon felt even more oppressive.
One by one, they sensed it. Their strength was dropping.
Leon calmly opened their status panels.
—
[Dead Soul, Virelle]
[Combat Power: 406,000]
—
[Dead Soul, Lucas]
[Combat Power: 414,000]
—
[Dead Soul, Marcus]
[Combat Power: 399,000]
—
Every single one of them had lost thirty percent of their Combat Power.
They were no longer overwhelming him. Now, they were equal.
And equality in a situation like this favored Leon.
If they had not managed to kill him while holding a massive advantage, then fighting on even ground would be far more difficult for them.
Leon’s confidence returned instantly.
’So that’s how it works’, he thought, ’It didn’t activate when I fought them individually, but when in a group… it did.’
That meant [Celestial’s Might] also responded to lethal threats.
For the first time since the battle began, Leon attacked first.
Fwoosh!
He dashed straight toward Virelle.
She raised her spear instinctively, but her movements were slower now.
BAM!
Leon’s sword struck her with brutal force. The impact shattered her guard and snapped one of her arms backward unnaturally.
She staggered. At the same time, Leon spun his staff with his free hand.
Powerful Fireball! Storm of Lightning!
This time, the spells were no longer minor annoyances.
With their reduced power, the other souls were forced to defend properly.
Lightning struck Elliot directly, sending him stumbling. A fireball exploded against Belial’s side.
“YOU FOOLS!” Virelle shouted as she retreated. “THIS IS—”
SLASH!
Leon’s blade cut through her neck before she could finish.
Her body dissolved into blue particles that streamed toward the [Altar of Life].
Ding!
[Celestial has defeated “Virelle.”]
[8 Souls remain.]
The remaining souls visibly tensed.
“The God-Rank candidate cannot be underestimated,” Marcus said grimly. “We attack together. Even if only one of us survives, we must finish this.”
“Yes!” the others agreed.
They surged forward again. The battle intensified. But the difference was clear.
Without their previous advantage, their coordination faltered.
Their long imprisonment had dulled their instincts.
Some of them mistimed their abilities. Others hesitated for a fraction too long.
Leon noticed it. They had been here for a very long time.
One by one, he exploited their mistakes.
Slash! BOOM!
Lucas fell. Belial dissolved. Elliot followed.
The clearing filled with flashes of blue light as each defeated soul was absorbed into the altar.
Within minutes, only one remained: Marcus.
The robed man knelt on the ground, his book slipping from his grasp.
He laughed softly.
“I suppose… this was unwinnable from the start,” he admitted. “You were chosen for this God-Rank assessment for a reason.”
Leon approached calmly, sword in hand.
“I’ll try to kill the [Lord of Souls],” he said. “Until then… wait.”
Marcus looked up at him, surprise flickering across his fading expression.
A small smile appeared.
“We would appreciate that.”
SLASH!
Leon ended him.
Marcus’ body dissolved like the others, his particles flowing into the [Altar of Life].
The altar’s glow surged to its peak.
Ding!
[Celestial has defeated “Marcus.”]
[None of the souls remain.]
[The “Altar of Life” has been fully fueled by the power of the “Dead Souls.”]
[Massive rewards will now be granted to Celestial.]
Leon stared at the blazing altar.
A slow grin spread across his face.
“Here we go.”