Awakening：The Infinite Evolution of My Talent as a Low-Level Awakener - Chapter 525

Chapter 525: Chapter 525: A Powerful Strike, Total Annihilation!
Without a doubt, he had been completely duped by Boris.

If it hadn’t been for the false information from Boris, he would have activated his divine shield right after the second strike, and the battle would have been over by now.

If it hadn’t been for the “good news” Boris sent, he would have already led everyone to retreat, returned to regroup, and waited for the next opportunity.

What he thought was going to be a great surprise, turned out to be a trap. Had he really been played for a fool by Boris? Could it be that all of this was part of the Orichalcum Kingdom’s plot!?

Impossible! Absolutely impossible!

After all, the losses on Orichalcum’s side weren’t any less than his own. And judging by Eterna and the others’ states, he never suspected that Boris would betray them. How could it be part of a grand scheme?

At that moment, he thought of many things, but no matter how he considered it, he couldn’t figure out what advantage Boris could gain from this. Betraying Orichalcum and alienating the local forces—he knew exactly what kind of fate awaited Boris.

Unless…

Perhaps, in this desperate moment, his mind was racing with possibilities. What if… what if Boris had a powerful backing? Someone pulling the strings behind the scenes, orchestrating everything and waiting for the perfect moment to reap the rewards when the snipe and the clam fight, and the fisherman benefits?

If that were the case, everything would suddenly make sense!

As soon as the thought crossed his mind, a cold chill ran down his spine. He realized, with a sense of horror, that there was an invisible hand manipulating two divine powers. And the most frightening part was that it was all happening silently, without anyone noticing. Everything was perfectly calculated and made sense, with no flaws to be found. The situation was incredibly eerie. Too eerie.

But for all of this to be happening, it was impossible for just Boris to be behind it. Not to mention, Boris would need the power to break through Shielding Power, and more importantly, to have full knowledge of all of Orichalcum’s plans and movements.

“Who… is it?”

In this life-or-death moment, he found himself not thinking about the Sword of Doomsday Judgment hovering above him, but instead desperately trying to figure out who the true mastermind was behind all of this.

At that moment, the sense of danger above him grew even more intense. He couldn’t help but look up. As his eyes met the gaze of Sterl, those eyes glimmering with a faint excitement, yet full of disdain and contempt, everything suddenly clicked.

In an instant, it was as though a thunderclap exploded in his mind. All the doubts and clues fell into place. It was him! It was Sterl! This mysterious, foreign powerhouse was the one pulling the strings behind everything!

Terran’s mind cleared in an instant. This person’s identity was mysterious, and his power was formidable. If he had the ability to bypass Shielding Power, he could indeed craft such a flawless plan to infiltrate Orichalcum’s inner workings. And as for the “letters of allegiance,” recalling Boris’s words earlier, wasn’t that precisely what they used to eliminate those in the three War Preparedness Zones!?

Sterl watched as Terran’s expression shifted to one of sudden realization, seemingly understanding everything. He was slightly surprised. He hadn’t expected Terran to catch on to some of the finer details and uncover a portion of the truth.

Unfortunately, the situation had already been decided. The man was about to die—he should just lie down and rest in peace.

With a vicious grin, Sterl activated the full power of the Sword of Doomsday Judgment and swung it down with all his might. In that instant, the heavens trembled, the earth cracked, and mountains shook!

A terrifying, dazzling sword light erupted from the divine blade, slowly descending toward the Ashen gods below. Though the sword light moved at incredible speed, for some unknown reason, the moment they saw it, a sense of death enveloped them.

It was as if, upon seeing the sword’s light, they had already died. The speed was simply so fast that their awareness hadn’t caught up yet.

Boom!!

With a deafening explosion, the immense Divine Power within the sword surged forth like an unstoppable tidal wave. Everything that did not bear the Orichalcum Kingdom’s insignia was struck indiscriminately by the divine blade.

“No! How could I… die here!?”

“I am a god! I am the mighty God of Ignorance! I possess endless lifespans! I cannot die!!”

“Spare me! I am willing to serve you forever!”

The sword light spread out, transforming the surroundings into a chaotic ocean of Divine Power. Amidst the chaos, one or two anguished, defiant screams could be heard, but as the power of the Sword of Doomsday Judgment finally depleted, everything fell silent once more.

Sterl looked at the scene with some surprise, his fear and respect for the higher-level divine authorities growing just a bit more.

“Impressive,” he mused. “To think that this weapon was forged from the combined power of multiple higher-level divine authorities. Its power is indeed terrifying.”

He sighed, his gaze turning downward. Where several winding mountain ranges had once stood, now there was nothing but a vast plain of yellow earth. All the plants, even the smallest living creatures, had been reduced to ash. In the center of the plain, a deep and bottomless chasm seemed to split the entire land in two…

“Such a shame,” Sterl murmured. “Only one strike. If there had been more, it would have made an excellent trump card.”

He paused for a moment, thinking aloud. “Perhaps next time, I’ll capture a few higher-level divine authorities, just to make more of these weapons.”

A malicious thought rose in Sterl’s mind. Of course, once he gained the power to suppress higher-level divine authorities—or even enslave them—he would no longer regard the Sword of Doomsday Judgment as anything particularly special.

With a sweep of his hand, a divine wind swept through the area, dispersing all the chaotic Divine Power and dust within the reach of the Sword of Doomsday Judgment. “There are survivors?”

Sterl gazed down in surprise. At this moment, Eterna and the other gods also realized what had happened. They looked around at the apocalyptic scene caused by the Sword of Doomsday Judgment, feeling an overwhelming sense of disbelief.

They had all prepared themselves to die, but the reversal came so quickly. From Sterl’s appearance to the swing of the Sword of Doomsday Judgment, only a few seconds had passed.

Staring at the imposing and powerful figure of Hades, they felt a strange, unspoken sensation. It was as if this Hades had saved Orichalcum for the second time. If it hadn’t been for him, the Ashen assault earlier might have seriously crippled them, and they would have been unable to withstand any future attacks.

As for Sterl, he looked at the few remaining survivors with curiosity. He clicked his tongue in admiration. Three Ashen gods—among them, Terran, the leader of Ashen, and two other divine authority holders—had bits of broken equipment and gear falling from their bodies, revealing their battered forms beneath.

“Interesting,” Sterl mused, a slight smile curling on his lips. He replayed the map module’s recordings and discovered that, before the full power of the divine sword had unleashed, these three had actually worked together. In their final moments of desperation, they had pulled the gods who had already collapsed from despair and placed them in front as shields, using every piece of gear and item to block the incoming might of the Sword of Doomsday Judgment. This had allowed them to survive the deadly onslaught, albeit by the thinnest of margins.

But even so, these three were gravely wounded, and now, they had no Divine Power left. Their consciousness was starting to fade. Only Terran, with his indomitable will, glared at Sterl, as though asking him—who was behind this? Who had orchestrated the downfall of two mysterious divine forces? And for what purpose?

Unfortunately, what awaited him was a swift Destructive Light, which engulfed him entirely, cutting off the last shred of hope for all three of them.

“Mission accomplished!” Sterl said, his mood exceptionally pleased. Though there had been a few small hiccups along the way, overall, it had been a near-perfect execution.

On Ashen’s side, including the leader Terran, the entire force had been annihilated—no one had survived. On Orichalcum’s side, only six gods remained, including Eterna.

As for Morette, Diana, and the ten Orichalcum gods, along with the ten lucky survivors from Ashen, they were all a part of his plan. This meant that, through his covert manipulations, he had successfully reduced the fighting forces of both Orichalcum and Ashen to just over ten gods each. In fact, their current strength was no longer even close to his own!

Sterl couldn’t help but feel a deep sense of satisfaction. The feeling of controlling everything from behind the scenes, pulling the strings from a distance, was something he found utterly addictive.

Now, his first step was nearly complete. All that was left was to spend his accumulated contribution points, use the Soul Treasure, and take advantage of the five opportunities for treasure vault selections. Once that was done, he could abandon this false identity, take a brief period to develop his true form, and then reveal his real self—sweeping through everything and creating a legendary story like no other.

He couldn’t help but wonder just how terrifying the legendary power he would gain from such a story would be.

Shaking off the surge of excitement, Sterl calmly turned and looked at Eterna, who was still in a state of shock. He spoke slowly, “If I were you, even if I had the victory in hand, knowing about Shielding Power, I would still tread carefully, step by step.”

Upon hearing this, Eterna’s heart skipped a beat, and he lowered his head in shame. It was true. If he had been more cautious, if he had taken better precautions and kept a constant watch for Ashen’s attacks, avoiding the first wave of assault, then with the two Sword of Doomsday Judgment, he could have wiped them out without a trace.

Looking at the undamaged Hades, who had just wiped out over ten Ashen gods with a single swing of the Sword of Doomsday Judgment, Eterna realized something: when it came to dealing with the traitor Boris and the forces he led, Hades hadn’t even needed to use the Sword of Doomsday Judgment. He had defeated the enemy without losing any of his own strength and completely annihilated the invaders with overwhelming force.

As for Eterna, he had nearly perished in the first wave of the ambush. So, when Sterl mocked and reproached him, he had no complaints. On the contrary, deep inside, he felt nothing but gratitude toward Sterl.