Chapter 552 - 508: Title: Hero in the Stone
"My child needs his mother."
"He was just born. He can’t be away from his mother for too long again."
Huang Ji held her child, who was less than ten days old. She covered him with clothes woven from nebula clouds, having just finished feeding him. She patted his back gently, and he let out a satisfied burp.
The child was just an excuse.
Of course, she couldn’t possibly reveal her true thoughts to the other new gods. Although the five of them had been colleagues 120,000 years ago, the passage of a long time didn’t mean their interests and goals would always align.
It wasn’t uncommon for their interests to become diametrically opposed. Take her and Uncle Tian, for example. Their previous collaboration was only to probe the will of the new life. Now that it was complete, [Life] and [Stillness] had returned to their opposing states. It was impossible to maintain their "friendship" for long.
To Huang Ji, [Life] was the most sublime thing in the Star Sea.
What could be more important or more exciting than two top-tier sets of genes combining to nurture an even more perfect being?
Absolutely nothing!
Just thinking of the scene of sowing the seed brought to mind the joy of the harvest. Without a doubt, it would be a gift—a gift to this world.
"That’s only natural for a god."
The gods expressed their understanding.
"But the aura of annihilation is about to dissipate. The Tomb Star Realm might be hiding an opportunity for us to advance further. If we’re a step too late, that opportunity will vanish completely."
Uncle Tian stated his opinion.
He was the creator of inanimate objects.
Even if the other gods didn’t join him, he would still go back in to explore and search for any potential opportunities. It wouldn’t be a great loss, anyway. At most, it would just take some effort to find a few sturdy bodies among the native tribes of New God Star to use as materials... Those natives were mediocre, having only just been enlightened from their ignorance. He was sure Mr. Bertutan wouldn’t mind.
"Amonif, what about you?"
The focus returned to Amonif.
"My apologies."
"To remain inactive and hidden is the code of a hermit. I have already broken my code many times."
...
...
...
Like a drop of Purifying Marrow in a pool of sewage, the deathly aura in the Tomb Star Realm vanished from the inside out, spreading from Primordial Star like melting snow.
A nascent power was dispelling the stillness of death that had pervaded the realm for 120,000 years with overwhelming force. This Tomb Star Realm, withered for countless ages, had finally given birth to new hope. In less than a day, the deathly aura on Primordial Star had completely dissipated.
It would take 130 days to dispel the deathly aura from the entire Tomb Star Realm.
A very short time.
Shi Ming, wearing the title [Heir of the Gods], was walking across the Ten Thousand People Square, from which the deathly aura had completely vanished, when he suddenly sneezed.
’Hm?’
’Who’s plotting against me?’
After ascending to the Nirvana stage, he hadn’t had a physical reaction like this in a long time. Perhaps it was because the environment on Primordial Star was now undergoing a drastic change, becoming clear and bright. Or perhaps some false god was coveting his achievements, and his destiny was giving him a warning.
Both were possible.
"Ahem."
’Now that the resonance between the will of the newborn Cosmic Country and my own has reached 100%, I should be able to complete the [Hero of the Stone] commission. It’s time to pull out this sword and finish this "simplest" A-rank commission.’
The Sword in the Stone stood in the Ten Thousand People Square, just as it always had.
Shi Ming stood in the square for a few seconds, then suddenly leaped up beside the Sword in the Stone. As he landed, his hands naturally gripped the hilt. He felt a deep thrumming from within the sword, pulsing at nearly the same frequency as his own heart. Then, power erupted from his palms!
SHIING—
In that instant, the Stone Sword let out a clear, ringing cry, like that of a dragon.
It was the prelude to a greatsword being unsheathed.
The Stone Sword, now pure and radiant after the deathly aura was dispelled, suddenly brightened several times over. A brilliant light flowed from his left hand onto his skin, climbing up the blood vessels of his arm and merging into his flesh.
Up!
The ruins of the square around the great rock holding the Sword in the Stone completely collapsed.
Shattered stones and a strange resonance floated and spun, forming a rapidly expanding halo. With a low roar, a torrent of energy spread out from the point where Shi Ming’s hands met the hilt. The Sword in the Stone completely broke free from its crumbling stone base. After being sealed for eons, it was finally released.
Shi Ming raised it before his eyes.
The pure blade reflected Shi Ming’s face, his eyes as clear as the sword itself.
The blade was like a mirror.
Outside the sword, the title [Heir of the Gods] hovered above Shi Ming’s head.
In the reflection within the blade, beneath the title [Heir of the Gods], a new title slowly coalesced: [Hero of the Stone]. The new title was not as dazzlingly brilliant as [Heir of the Gods], but it possessed an innate purity and a weightiness like stone. It was sharp and just, like the sword itself.
It was like a unique award ceremony.
[Title: Hero of the Stone]
[Effect: The hero who possesses this title can deeply resonate with the Stone Sword, which represents the new will of the Cosmic Country, allowing them to perceive each other. The Stone Sword will serve as the hero’s most compatible exclusive weapon, reflecting the hero’s five-dimensional attributes and manifesting a weapon form that best matches their current stats. The hero will serve as the Stone Sword’s most reliable companion, working together to shape a new will.]
Within the blade, Shi Ming’s own power was also fully reflected.
Five points of light lit up one by one, representing [Attack Power], [Stamina], [Endurance], [Defense Power], and [Spiritual Power]. They were not displayed as specific numbers, but as motes of light of varying sizes.
The red motes of light represented Attack Power, combining to form a cluster the size of a fist.
Attack Power: 5,481 points.
The orange motes of light represented Stamina. They were a good deal smaller than the red ones.
Stamina: 4,102 points.
Next were the yellow motes of light, which were about the same size as the red ones.
This was Endurance: 5,512 points.
Then came the brown motes of light, representing Defense Power: 3,699 points. They were the smallest of the four clusters. Defense, once Shi Ming’s greatest strength, had now become his weak point.
Finally, there were the purple motes of light.
They represented Spiritual Power, a value that even his not-yet-fully-evolved Eye of Destiny had difficulty perceiving. But the Sword in the Stone, linked to the will of the First Civilization Cosmic Country’s new life, could reflect its true magnitude.
The cluster of purple light expanded from the size of a grain of rice to the size of a fist.
Then it continued to expand, swelling from the size of a fist to the size of a head in the blink of an eye.
This was already as wide as the Stone Sword itself, and more than ten times the size of the other red or orange clusters.
But its expansion hadn’t stopped. The light actually spilled over the wide blade, continuing to grow in the air. The purple radiance completely overwhelmed the light of the other colors. Shi Ming, holding the Stone Sword, looked as if he were grasping an ever-expanding purple orb.
BOOM—
The purple orb expanded once more, completely enveloping Shi Ming and the Stone Sword he held. Only then did its expansion slowly cease, stabilizing.