manynovel Chapter 80: Solving Stephen's Problem
Chapter 80: Solving Stephen's Problem
The atmosphere on the Hammando Bridge was frozen solid.
"You're saying I'm not qualified to know?" Stephen's voice held a hint of anger. "Then what is your purpose in coming here? To destroy this timeline? Or to rule it?"
The Holy Lord did not answer. He slowly raised his right hand, and golden light appeared in his palm. Two regular octagonal stones could be faintly seen in his hand, but they were just phantoms and had no real substance.
The mages on the bridge instinctively took a step back. They felt a sense of oppression, a feeling that didn't descend upon their bodies but rather penetrated their very souls.
"Do you know what the marks on your heads are?" The Holy Lord's voice was unhurried: "The marks that grant you infinite power and ultimate speed, the marks you call the gifts of God."
Stephen's expression shifted slightly, as if he'd heard a joke: "You know about divine grace? Someone who can't receive divine grace and has been rejected by God actually wants to comment on it?"
The Holy Lord's lips curled slightly upward: "As expected, you rely heavily on my power."
The Holy Lord took a step forward, and the mages marked with horse charms on the bridge stiffened, their forehead marks beginning to burn.
"Ah!" Someone couldn't help but groan in pain, covering their forehead with their hands and kneeling on the ground.
Stephen's expression changed drastically, and the Vishanti Seal in his hand instantly expanded: "What did you do to them?!"
The Holy Lord continued forward, each step landing on the hearts of the sorcerers: "I am awakening them, awakening their true belonging."
Mordo followed behind the Holy Lord, dark magic swirling in his hands as he warily watched for any potential attacks.
Wang looked at all this with a complicated expression. From the moment he entered this timeline, it seemed that everything happening now was within the Holy Lord's calculations.
"Stop!" Wang opened his mouth, but found that he couldn't say anything under the pressure of the Holy Lord. He could only roar helplessly in his heart. The horse brand on his forehead began to appear and disappear again, and an irresistible call arose from the bottom of his heart.
"Little King," the Holy Lord called out without turning his head.
The king's body trembled slightly: "...I'm here."
"The mark on your forehead is becoming more and more obvious." The Holy Lord's tone was very calm: "Instead of resisting, you should submit to it to avoid suffering later."
Wang gritted his teeth, his voice escaping from between them, one word at a time: "I will not become anyone's slave, not even the god Stephen speaks of."
The Holy Lord stopped and turned to look at the King. There was no anger or mockery in his golden eyes, only a despairing pity—the pity of the strong for the weak.
"Slaves?" The Holy Lord repeated the word. "You misunderstood. I have no interest in creating any slaves right now. I am giving them power."
The Holy Lord raised his hand and pointed at the kneeling mages: "Do you think their so-called divine power is just a coincidence? My power is never forced upon anyone; it only happens when they are willing."
The king's heart sank: "What are you trying to say?"
The Holy Lord did not answer, but turned back to look at Stephen.
Stephen's face was so dark it was almost dripping with water; he could feel his connection with the marked mages being severed by some force.
Those mages who had previously obeyed his orders now knelt on the ground one by one, and the marks on their foreheads began to turn black.
"What did you do to them!" Stephen roared, conjuring two orange-red magical blades in his hands and rushing towards the Holy Lord.
The Holy Lord watched Stephen's figure disappear without even blinking.
Just as Stephen's magical blade was about to strike Shendu, a scarlet light struck from the side, knocking Stephen away.
Wanda stepped out of the portal, her entire body enveloped in the aura of chaotic magic.
"My master ordered me to stay and guard the Sanctuary, but I don't think anything unexpected will happen there." Wanda walked to the Holy Lord's side and looked at him with an almost obsessive gaze. "So I wanted to come to my master's side, and I hope my master won't blame me."
The Holy Lord patted Wanda's head: "Since you're already here, why don't you stay?"
Wanda gave a satisfied smile, then looked at Stephen, who had been knocked away, her gentleness instantly replaced by coldness: "Anyone who dares to offend their master must die!"
Stephen freed himself from a protruding piece of railing on the bridge, a trickle of blood running from the corner of his mouth. He looked at Wanda, his eyes filled with shock: "You are... Wanda! How is this possible? How could Wanda from the main universe possess such power now?!"
"Impossible?" Wanda scoffed. "My master bestowed upon me power far beyond what you can imagine."
Chaos magic erupted from Wanda's hands, transforming into tentacles that rushed towards Stephen. Stephen hurriedly summoned a magical shield to defend himself, but as soon as the tentacles touched the shield, they began to frantically erode Vishanti's magical power.
"This is impossible!" Stephen struggled to maintain the shield's existence, sweat beading on his forehead. "Vishanti's magic is the purest magical energy; how could it possibly be corrupted!"
As soon as he finished speaking, cracks began to appear on the shield.
At the same time, the magicians who were still kneeling on the bridge stood up one by one, their eyes turned golden, and the marks on their foreheads shone brightly.
They stood in two neat rows, facing the Holy Lord, their voices without the slightest hesitation: "Master!"
As Wang watched this scene, the last glimmer of hope in his mind vanished completely. He understood that the Holy Lord had never intended to conquer this timeline by force from the beginning. He only needed to come here, and these marked people would automatically become his power.
Those powers that are revered as divine grace are, in essence, the power of the Holy Lord.
The Holy Lord turned to look at the pale-faced King: "I remember you said that this timeline was being eroded, right? Well then, this timeline will now welcome its true master."
Stephen's shield shattered completely, and chaotic magic wrapped around his limbs, pinning him in mid-air. He struggled to break free, but the tentacles tightened their grip, and the chaotic magic mixed with dark power began to corrode his body.
"Ancient One..." Stephen called out the name with his last bit of strength. He suddenly understood what the pitying look in his teacher's eyes before he died meant.
The Ancient One knew the truth about this timeline long ago. She knew where those powers, which were revered as divine grace, came from, and she knew that the true owner of these powers would return to reclaim them.
She chose death not because she was unable to fight Stephen, but because she knew that it was better to die at the hands of her disciple than to become a servant of the Holy Lord, thus preserving her final dignity.
Shendu approached Stephen and looked down at him: "It seems you've figured it out. The Ancient One is indeed smarter than you. It's a pity she succeeded and died at the hands of her own disciple."
Shendu withdrew his divine sleeve and tapped Stephen's forehead with his finger: "The moment you killed the Ancient One, you essentially destroyed the only person in this timeline who could possibly stand against me."