Chapter 212
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Seong Jihan, having ascended to the Brahma Constellation Map, faced a barrage of thunderous walls.
Within that wall, a blue lightning lion suddenly revealed its face.
The lion's eyes greedily fixate on the crimson lightning born from the radiance of Seong Jihan's phoenix flag.
[This is enough to become a completely new 'concept'... Nevertheless, half of the essence is still thunder, so it can be reshaped.]
The crimson thunder, mixed with the fire element in the Crimson Thunder Cannon, felt relatively inferior in strength of fire when compared to those concocted by the Marital God so far, rendering it incapable of a harmonious unison of equal status.
Brahma bestowed upon Seong Jihan the ability called 'Hellfire,' awaiting the completion of the crimson thunder.
However, he had never expected him to bring the results this soon.
[You... truly are a remarkable genius. I never imagined you could complete this in such a short time.]
Seong Jihan felt a mix of embarrassment and pride from the god's lavish praise.
A flame of void, potent maybe even beyond the magnificent Crimson Thunder Cannon.
Had he not discovered this from the 'Extinction Code' of the God Slaughter Script.
The crimson thunder would remain an unfinished chapter, never reaching its conclusion.
In fact, this outcome was akin to an elephant accidentally stepping on a mouse.
[With such talent, you will soon become one of the most formidable constellations in the universe!]
"What's this about constellations? I'm still just a Diamond Player."
[Diamond! Such prowess at the diamond level... will certainly make you an even stronger constellation soon enough! After becoming the Red Lion, let's maintain our friendship!]
"Red Lion?"
[Exactly. I've already thought about the aftermath of leaving the Brahmas.]
Seong Jihan peered beyond the lightning wall.
With suspicious eyes, the 77,700 Brahmas now distant.
Planning to leave them shortly and live on as the Red Lion.
[The wandering Marital God's invasion is imminent... These fools believe their power can overcome anything with the power of the Brahma. But they will soon bitterly realize how wrong their assessment was.]
The blue lion, certain none could stand against the Martial God, was filled only with thoughts of escape.
An act too cowardly for the head of the Brahmas.
'To think Nameless Divine Arts contain Celestial thunder, they've made the right call.'
The Crimson Thunder Cannon, included in the Nameless Divine Arts could have been learned while the wandering Martial God overpowered the Brahmas.
"But how do I switch with this?"
[Can you maximize the crimson thunder? Let's transfer right away.]
"You should fulfill the contract first. EX-grade skill."
[Ah... yes, I was hasty. For powers that will weaken upon switching, better use them now.]
Zzzt...!
A surge of potent lightning emanating from the blue lion struck Seong Jihan directly.
[The 'Leader of the Thunder Gods' fulfills the contract.]
[The skill 'Summon the throne' of an EX-grade is imparted to you.]
"Summon the throne?"
Because the name alone didn't give him an idea of what the skill was, Seong Jihan tried to open the skill window to check, but
[Once the 'complete crimson thunder' concept is fully transferred, the skill can be utilized.]
The principle of reciprocation was clear in dealings with gods.
[Some of the Constellation's power I brought from the Brahma Constellation Map. It was quite a task to adjust it for an EX grade...]
"What does this skill do?"
[You'll know once you transfer the crimson thunder.]
"Okay."
Seong Jihan fanned the flames of crimson thunder even larger for the contract's execution.
The power now displayed was on a whole different level, its color shifting to a deeper red.
[Yes...!]
The blue lion, which had only its head exposed, leaped towards the crimson thunder.
Zzzt...!
His body was slowly covered with red thunder lightning, and the blue thunder lightning constituting his body began to shrink as they turned red.
[This... the power of this fire is... tremendous. How can a mortal contain such a concept?]
The Leader of the Thunder God, who continued to admire alone while receiving the crimson thunder, began to transform. The blue thunder lightning covering his body gradually turned red and started to shrink in size.
And then,
[Player Seong Jihan has fulfilled the contract.]
[The EX-grade skill, 'Summon the throne' has been completely transferred.]
[The contract is concluded.]
As Brahma was still transforming, a message of contract completion popped up in front of Seong Jihan.
'I should check the skill first.'
Since it wasn't time to get an explanation from Brahma who was merging with the crimson thunder.
Seong Jihan brought up the skill description from the system.
[Summon the throne]
Grade: EX
-Summons the throne of the Constellation, including some of its powers.
-When the player sits on the throne, it restores the body to an optimal state and facilitates growth beyond the limits of the species.
-Can be summoned once a month for three hours.
'It's a bit ambiguous.'
Seong Jihan tilted his head while looking at the skill description.
The part about restoring the body and promoting growth seemed appealing.
But the fact that it could only be summoned for three hours once a month made its usability quite limited.
'Still, if they're giving it an EX grade... does it dramatically increase growth potential?'
Compared to the EX-grade item 'Fragment of a Dead Star' that had reduced the difficulty level of earth, Summon the throne seemed lacking.
Was the growth effect extraordinarily superior, Seong Jihan wondered.
[Has the contract been fulfilled...? What do you think? Isn't the skill useful?]
The lion, having absorbed half the crimson thunder, boasted to Seong Jihan.
"Not sure, what makes it an EX grade skill?"
[Ah, maybe because you're not a constellation yet, the meaning of transcending the limits of the species doesn't quite resonate with you.]
"Does it significantly increase the stats?"
[No, it increases the growth limit more than that.]
Rumble, rumble...
In front of the lion, a 777 made of red currants appeared.
[To become the owner of the star, you need to achieve level 777. But that's not the end. Even among Constellations, there is a hierarchy. To continue growing from here, you must transcend the limits of the species.]
"Species limit."
[Yes. Your race, its abilities seem terribly inadequate... Even if you became a constellation, it would be hard to go beyond level 777. That's when the Constellation's power becomes necessary.]
"Don't other methods exist to transcend the species limit?"
[Not necessarily. However, sitting on the Throne is the simplest and most effective way. Although you may find it puzzling why this is an EX-grade right now, someday you will be greatly thankful to me.]
The Leader of the Thunder Gods spoke proudly. However, Seong Jihan didn't feel the greatness as much.
'Constellation... That's a far-off future.'
Who knows when he'll have to fight with the Martial God. Having reached level 777 and evolving one step further, the item might be useful. Although the grade was high, its practicality was questionable at the moment.
At that moment,
[But... this power of fire. It doesn't seem to absorb perfectly. Can you tell me where this power originates from?]
Only 70% of the lion's body was dyed red. When the remaining 30% didn't seem to progress at all, the leader of the thunder gods asked Seong Jihan.
"It's probably because of the void"
[What, what? Void?]
The lion jumped at the mention of the void.
Sharp currants sparked in his eyes.
[Void... Why's that power in the crimson thunder!]
"Seems there was no greater fire force."
[This...!]
Greatly flustered, the Leader of the Thunder God burst into a rage at Seong Jihan.
[You, you've deceived me!]
"What deception?"
"If the Void seeps in, you can't exist as a god!"
"Really?"
[It means...]
That reminded Seong Jihan of the exchange he had with the Constellation Of Dead Star.
He hadn't been able to confirm if that being was telling the truth.
'Seems like it might be true.'
The lifespan restriction of the Void. It applied even to the gods.
"I didn't know man, I focused solely on completion."
[Darn it...! This disrupts my plans...!]
The Leader of Thunder Gods was left reeling, and then.
[But still, there's still hope. If I return to the Brahma Constellation Map.. Ha, you, just get out of here for now!]
Seong Jihan was forcibly recalled from the Brahma Constellation Map.
[The special dungeon 'Brahma Constellation Map - God of Thundet' opened to player Seong Jihan is now closed.]
Thus, Brahma prohibited access to the Constellation Map, going even further.
Moving on from there,
[The God of Thunder harshly admonishes that this is unacceptable.]
[It threatens to revoke its sponsorship.]
Hearing the threat to withdraw its support, Seong Jihan retorted,
"Ah, is that so? Do as you please."
Now that he had gotten his EX-grade skill, the revocation of Brahma's support no longer mattered to him.
[The God of Thunder roars with anger, claiming to begin the withdrawal process.]
"Oh, do it then. Since I got the EX-grade skill, I don't need anything from you."
[The God of Thunder is unable to contain its anger.]
[The God of Thunder proceeds with the withdrawal of the Constellation sponsorship...]
So there will be an empty constellation slot.
Anticipating the farewell with Brahma, Seong Jihan casually observed the system messages.
[The God of Thunder cancels the procedure to withdraw sponsorship.]
The God of Thunder, bursting with rage, suddenly withdrew the cancellation.
"Why? You said you wouldn't sponsor anymore."
[The God of Thunder rages, asking if you will leave Crimson Thunder as it is.He condemns it as a violation of the contract.]
"Violation of the contract? How would I know if the void is related to the lifespan or not? You should have paid attention when receiving the item."
[The God of Thunder expresses great anger.]
As Brahma continued to rage without rescinding its support,
Seong Jihan, grasping the situation, realized who really had the upper hand.
"Hey, stop getting angry and cancel the sponsorship quickly. I need to free up the constellation slot."
[The God of Thunder is livid, accusing you of taking everything and turning away.]
"Yes. Since I received everything, that's exactly what I'm doing."
Seong Jihan calmly responded.
In the current situation, the losing party was entirely the other side.
Whether the god raged or not, he saw no need to confer further.
[The God of Thunder is at a loss for words to your response.]
From that divine message, Seong Jihan received no further tales of the Brahma's anger.
The god seems to have realized its tantrum would only be a loss.
'After all, I have my complaints too.'
The EX-grade skill, 'Summon the throne,' was too far-sighted for his immediate needs.
In the current situation, it was a skill that seemed to waste its grade.
Still, since it can be used once a month.
For testing purposes, Seong Jihan summoned it in the training room of the penthouse.
"Summon the throne."
As he did, a bright light flashed before his eyes.
A white silhouette appeared.
In the dazzling light.
"Uncle, did you finally finish training? I haven't seen you in two weeks."
Yoon Seah, who was outside the training room, came in and, seeing the summoned Throne, squinted her eyes.
"...What is this? Is it a massage chair?"
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The summoned Throne of a constellation.
Despite shimmering with light,
its appearance, as Yoon Seah said, resembled that of a massage chair.
"This... is a 'Constellation Throne'?"
"Yes."
"It really looks like a massage chair though?"
"The appearance is somewhat similar."
It claims to restore the body to an optimal state.
Does it have a relaxation function?
Seong Jihan approached the throne and sat down.
And Then,
Twinkle! Twinkle!
As the chair sparkled, Seong Jihan's entire body instantly relaxed.
His tired body felt even more rejuvenated.
'...It's nice, no doubt.'
Even though it outperformed any massage chair he had used before, considering it's an EX-grade skill, this couldn't be the end, right?
The body was more comfortable than ever, but the situation in his mind was becoming increasingly uncomfortable.
At that moment,
Ssssss...
A system message appeared before Seong Jihan's eyes.
[You have seated on the Constellation throne officially recognized by the BattleNet System.]
[The Level limit has been increased by 30]
[The limit for accepting Void Stat increases. Void Stat starting from 105 is now affiliated with the will of the Void.]
While he expected the level limit to increase, the information about the Void Stat was unexpected.
'Does this mean I can invest further into the void?'
Seong Jihan recalled the scene of Brahma hasting back to the Constellation map.
He said he would be alright if he returned to the Brahma Constellation Map.
Was this the meaning behind it?
'I have to sit here every month, no matter what.'
The throne was more than just a massage chair.
While Seong Jihan found usefulness in the Constellation throne and was relieved,
[Two more players may also benefit from the Throne's effects.]
Another message suggesting two more people than Seong Jihan could benefit from the throne's effects popped up.
'That means......'
Reading the message, Seong Jihan asked Yoon Seah.
"Seah, is your father at home?"
"Yeah. He just got here."
"Tell him to come here, quick."
"Why, because of the massage chair?"
As Yoon Seah grinned and pointed to the chair,
Seong Jihan nodded.
"Alright. I'll bring him."
Watching Yoon Seah saunter off lightly, he pondered quietly.
'The ability to restore the body to its optimal state... it might even work for the eyes.'
The EX-grade item claimed to restore the body to its prime.
Beyond the relaxation function, there might also be a chance for healing.
"A massage chair, huh... not bad."
"Don't be silly, Dad! You wouldn't believe how great it works; even uncle was all thawed out. Try it yourself!"
Soon, Yoon Seah brought Yoon Sejin, and he sat upon the Constellation throne.
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