Kanzaki Rei had never stopped thinking about Origin.
Origin evolved all things and all laws…
Flesh and blood could also be altered by magic power. Yet flesh itself was the foundation of the body—the root of strength and physical constitution.
Battle techniques were the combat skills used to push the body to its limits.
But magic and battle techniques—Were they truly incapable of intersecting?
Magic power already existed within the human body.
Magic itself was released through one's own body, controlled and directed outward.
If Origin evolved all things—
Then didn't that also mean:
My body itself is part of magic.
Mind and body aligned as one, comprehending the essence of combat in the midst of battle.
Kai'ga was an extremely troublesome opponent.
His battle techniques had reached a level that could only be called perfect.
To be honest—even though Rei had been killed by him again and again, there was something almost aesthetically pleasing about the way Kai'ga executed those killing techniques.
And from Rei's perspective—possessing the combat insight of "Heart Unvanquished"—
Kai'ga's techniques all became nourishment for his own growth.
Each observation brought deeper understanding.
Because of this, Rei had been able to clash with him more and more evenly with every exchange.
His use of magic was also improving rapidly in battle.
However…
Compared to the Kai'ga of this moment—
Rei was still too slow.
Why was he slower by such a large margin?
Rei didn't simply attribute it to Kai'ga's stronger body or higher stats.
Instead, he thought seriously about why his opponent was so powerful.
Kai'ga caught up.
Rei blocked—his body shattered.
The longer the battle continued, the slower Kai'ga's movements appeared in Rei's eyes.
It wasn't that Kai'ga had slowed down.
Rei's thinking speed had increased.
In fact, it had become almost excessive.
His thoughts were now so fast that even his own mana flow and spellcasting couldn't keep up with them.
Yet the sensation was strange.
His mind raced.
Every single movement of Kai'ga's body was captured clearly within his sight.
Through perfect coordination, Kai'ga unleashed the maximum possible power in every instant of motion.
He can do it…
Why can't I?
Why can't my magic do the same?
Why was his manipulation of mana so slow?
If that mana already existed inside his body—
Then what exactly was causing the delay?
Magic could transform freely.
But what about his body?
Was it simply because Kai'ga was a warrior?
But mana could manipulate flesh as well.
And the myriad laws evolved from Origin should include the body too.
Countless realizations gathered in Rei's mind.
He thought of Shu Zhou.
He thought of the Void.
He thought of Iz's teachings.
He remembered the enlightenment he had gained after drinking from the Spring of Origin.
He remembered the clarity of battle intent.
He remembered the notes left behind by that Origin Mage.
And he thought of the Kai'ga standing before him.
Inspiration intertwined endlessly.
The world seemed to slow to a halt.
Even Kai'ga—whose speed had seemed unparalleled—now appeared almost frozen.
This was the sensation of thought reaching its absolute peak.
Rei felt clarity spread through his mind.
The mana around him surged violently.
That's it…
My body is the spell itself.
Mana was born from the body.
Magic was released through the body.
His body should naturally exist as part of magic itself.
This—
Was his third-tier Origin magic.
「Origin · Body Is Spell (Tier 4)」
Whoosh!
Kai'ga had already closed in again.
His battle-axe rose high, carrying the momentum of a mountain-splitting strike.
And in that very instant—
「Origin Body · Instant White Flash」
Crackle—
Rei's body instantly transformed into a streak of pure white light.
In a flash—
He appeared far in the distance.
BOOM!
The axe descended—
And struck nothing.
This was the first time Rei had ever truly dodged one of Kai'ga's attacks.
Kai'ga turned to look at Rei again.
But what he saw was completely different.
There was now a tranquil clarity about Rei.
The tight furrow between his brows had disappeared.
His eyes were calm—like the surface of a still lake.
When they met Kai'ga's gaze—
There wasn't the slightest ripple.
"Thank you."
In that instant of mental clarity, Rei felt as if his body had come alive.
BOOM!
If warriors could comprehend the essence of combat, then why couldn't spellcasting reach the same clarity?
Thick mist erupted across the battlefield.
Kai'ga instantly expanded his senses, spreading all five senses outward to detect changes within the fog.
But this time—
It was completely different from before.
His sharp senses detected dozens of Rei's presences within the mist.
「Mirror Illusion Water Dream Shadow (Tier 3)」
Sharp senses could detect subtle differences.
But they relied on those differences to distinguish real from fake.
If all differences were erased—
Then there would be nothing left to distinguish.
Rei felt that his understanding of magic had become incredibly transparent.
However—
Kai'ga only spent a single instant identifying his target.
Then he charged toward one of the bodies.
He recognized the real one?
Or was there still a difference?
Rei sighed internally.
Hey… don't shatter my confidence like that.
I thought I controlled it perfectly…
Whoosh!
Kai'ga arrived instantly again.
This time his axe struck Rei's shield.
「Thousand-Wave Resilient Water Barrier (Tier 3) (LV301)」
BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG—
Layer after layer of shields shattered.
The strike felt like slicing through a thousand layers of steel.
One shield broke—another appeared.
This time it wasn't merely fifty-six layers.
Each layer regenerated instantly after shattering.
That single strike destroyed hundreds of layers.
The enormous force was finally exhausted.
While Kai'ga pursued with another swing, Rei retreated with the wind.
The slight distance between them widened.
That distance gave the shields more space to regenerate.
This strike—
Did not truly hit Rei.
It was blocked by the shields.
"Heh… looks like I'm indeed a bit stronger than you."
Now his spellcasting speed was far faster than before.
A thought—
And the spell was already formed.
Previously, casting spells had been like a river of mana flowing along a path.
Now—
It was like lightning flashing along that path.
Instantly complete.
Mana filled every corner of his body at all times.
However…
The cost was obvious.
At such high-frequency casting, his mana consumption had become absurdly fast.
Rei seemed to have grasped the same state of mind that Iz once described.
If only one spell could be cast at a time—
Then simply make the casting speed so fast that it resembled casting multiple spells simultaneously.
Thinking this, Rei couldn't help but smile slightly.
Haha…
It can't really be that simple, right?
With a single thought—
Mana flowed naturally.
A spell formed instantly.
Whoosh—
Elements howled like a raging storm.
Flames wrapped around Kai'ga's body like a blazing inferno.
As they chased and maneuvered across the battlefield—
A long trail of elemental storms stretched behind them.
Kai'ga's body was now covered in wounds.
Rei's robe, however, remained intact.
Rei raised his staff with one hand and pointed it forward.
"If you're going to blame anyone…"
"Blame yourself for choosing this battlefield."
Sorry about that.
But when someone has four combat-type God-tier talents, doing whatever they want is just how it works.
And that knowledge-type talent had helped a lot as well.
Without deciphering the spell "Flesh Reshaping,"
Rei might never have understood the relationship between mana and the body.
Without interpreting the War God's combat state, he would never have grasped the essence of combat.
And of course—
Without "Peering Into Secrets," he never would have discovered this hidden boss.
「Origin · Inner-Piercing Void Crystal」
The void crystal stabbed into the War God's body again.
BOOM!
Kai'ga's body shook violently.
He attempted to expel Rei's Origin from within his body.
His body should have been immune to all magic.
But in the next instant—
That flowing Origin slipped directly into his body.
My body is magic.
Your body… isn't it the same?
"Kai'ga."
"You're about to lose."
Rei stood extremely close to Kai'ga.
Kai'ga's axe had already cleaved toward Rei's neck—
Rei's body flickered as he switched with another corpse.
At the same time—
A speck of colored Origin flowed through Kai'ga's limbs and bones.
Finally—
It gathered inside his brain.
Rei believed a warrior's heart must have been tempered countless times.
But—
Had his brain been forged like steel as well?
「Origin · Convergent Explosion — Soul Sacrifice: 1,000,000」
Rei stood behind Kai'ga.
His staff pointed forward.
"Brain Burst."
BOOM!
A muffled explosion echoed from within Kai'ga's body.
His body trembled violently.
The explosion—normally one of massive area—
Did not leak even the slightest trace outside his body.
Soul-light surged toward the heavens.
Countless souls sang in resonance.
Kai'ga's eyes instantly lost their focus.
Souls rose from his seven orifices.
"…Dead… right?"
Rei inhaled sharply.
Just how terrifying was this body?
It endured a one-million-soul Convergent Explosion inside itself—
Without even allowing the aftershock to escape.
Wasn't that a little ridiculous?
Just how was such a body even trained?
Still uneasy, Rei immediately gathered another Origin into Kai'ga's heart.
「Origin · Convergent Explosion — Soul Sacrifice: 1,000,000」
BOOM!
This time—
Kai'ga's body could no longer withstand the destructive force.
Flesh exploded outward.
Chunks scattered in every direction.
Yet if one looked closely—
The corpse was still relatively intact.
It had merely been blown into six or seven pieces.
If a Tier-4 nation-destroying monster had taken a four-layer Origin Convergent Explosion inside its body—
Being reduced to powder would have been the mild outcome.
…
Rei launched several more follow-up attacks.
Only after confirming Kai'ga was completely dead did he store the corpse pieces in his storage ring.
Within the War God Tower, monster corpses couldn't be taken outside.
Anything placed in a storage ring would disappear upon leaving.
Rei wasn't sure whether the War God's corpse could be taken out.
But by placing the body parts in separate storage spaces, resurrection would likely be far more difficult.
Rather than an opponent—
Kai'ga had felt more like a teacher.
Rei had learned a great deal from him.
And…
Looking at the endless field of corpses around him—
If the battlefield hadn't been like this, the outcome would have been hard to predict.
Before comprehending third-tier Origin, Rei might already have been killed.
Especially during the moment when Kai'ga's speed suddenly increased.
If Rei had been forced to throw out stored corpses himself, he likely wouldn't have been able to throw them beyond Kai'ga's attack range.
Unless Kai'ga had allowed him time to set up corpse markers and prepare the battlefield.
But because the battlefield already looked like this—
It had become nearly impossible for Rei to truly die.
This place was recorded in The Secret History of Battles.
It seemed to be somewhere Kai'ga had once fought.
Then again…
Wherever he had been, the ground was probably always covered with corpses.
His entire life had been battle.
"Kai'ga… huh."
He was certainly unforgettable.
And defeating him—
Probably meant Rei's strength had surpassed even the gods of that era.
Rei replayed the battle in his mind.
Even after the fight had ended—
Kai'ga's performance contained countless details worth revisiting.
Rei sat atop the pile of corpses.
Ignoring the rot and foul smell.
Replaying everything that had happened.
As the battle ended—
The intense mental state gradually faded.
His sharp thinking and heightened awareness returned to normal.
This was likely the combined effect of Spirituality and the Essence of Combat.
Battle truly had tremendous benefits.
Experiencing more battles would help his thinking.
If combat could lead to comprehending Origin—
Then Rei wouldn't mind fighting a few more.
Of course—
Only if the opponent was meaningful.
An opponent who could truly excite him.
Compared to that—
The so-called strong people in City Within the Circle…
Being completely one-sided victories made it hard to feel motivated.
Rei wondered whether there were still opponents in this world who could fight him evenly.
Of course—
It was also possible that he had already become completely invincible.
After all—
He had defeated a War God of the same level.
Even if the battlefield advantage was counted…
He hadn't used his staff, and he still had room to grow at Level 3.
Even if it wasn't a crushing victory—
It was at least a 50–50 fight.
Rei continued reviewing the battle and evaluating his place in the world's power scale.
But suddenly—
A crushing pressure descended.
PUFF!
Before Rei could react—
All the corpses instantly turned into blood mist.
From the distant horizon beneath the setting sun—
A man with overwhelmingly exaggerated muscles walked toward him with invincible strides.
One step—
And he arrived in front of Rei.
Rei couldn't clearly see his face.
But he could feel his aura.
War God.
Not some Level 3 War God.
But a being radiating divine authority—
The War God.
A god needed no proof.
The moment mortals saw a god—
They simply knew.
Ah.
This is a god.
Rei was just about to stand—
When the man suddenly sat beside him.
"HAHAHAHA!!! WHAT A SATISFYING BATTLE!!!"
Satisfying?
If Rei had to fight an enemy he could never kill, he'd probably feel disgusted.
War Gods really did think differently from normal people.
Rei wasn't sure whether this War God was the real body or just a projection.
But he decided to remain modest—like a child speaking to an elder.
The War God slapped Rei on the shoulder.
"You!!"
"You're the kid with the strongest spirituality I've ever seen!!!"
"Even stronger than those Innate Awakened!!!"
"HAHAHA! Don't worry! I never bully the weak!!!"
Strongest spirituality?
That was quite a compliment.
Innate Awakened?
Another new piece of knowledge.
As expected—gods possessed many secrets.
"War God senior, what are Innate Awakened?"
Rei deliberately didn't ask about rewards.
Asking directly would seem too greedy.
Following the god's conversation naturally was better—and knowledge itself was valuable.
"HAHA! I'm an Innate Awakened!!!"
"I was born a warrior!!!"
Oh…
So that was how it worked.
Rei had just read The Beginning of Spirituality and learned about spiritual power.
He had wondered if someone who changed classes at birth would have terrifying spirituality.
Turns out—
Such beings actually existed.
"But YOUR spirituality!!!"
"It's even stronger than an Innate Awakened!!!"
"At least twice!! No—three times stronger!!!"
That high?
Rei wasn't sure.
Maybe it was because he had accumulated extra spirituality during his class transitions.
"So!!"
"Interested in inheriting my legacy?!"
The War God now sat cross-legged in front of Rei, hands resting on his knees.
His expression was serious and excited.
"If I accept your inheritance, War God senior… will I need to do something for you?"
Rei remained cautious.
Who knew whether this inheritance had hidden traps?
"HAHA!! Nothing special!"
"If any other inheritor of my legacy challenges you—"
"Just beat them flat!!!"
Oh…
So he wasn't the only one.
That meant others had also defeated this… War God?
Sigh.
So much for being invincible.
He had thought defeating Kai'ga meant he was truly unmatched at his level.
"Of course!!!"
"If you could take a warrior class as well—that would be even better!!!"
Oh…
Rei had actually considered becoming a warrior class.
So that wasn't impossible.
"War God senior—"
"Don't call me senior!!"
"Just call me Kai'ga!!!"
Oh…
"Kai'ga."
"How many people besides me have received your inheritance?"
Rei changed his tone.
It seemed the War God didn't like honorifics.
"Three!"
"HAHA!! But if I had been born in your era!!!"
"None of you would have had even the slightest chance to defeat me!!!"
So he blamed the loss on the era difference.
To be fair, Kai'ga's era did seem far more primitive.
"I hope you reach my realm soon!"
"Then we'll fight a proper battle!!!"
Rei nodded.
"If that day comes, I will."
At the very least, he had confirmed something important.
Gods could indeed rise from mortals.
He had suspected this before.
But hearing it directly from a god—
Was entirely different from speculation.
"Kai'ga… so the inheritance is…?"
"HAHA!! The War God's inheritance is obviously meant for warriors!!!"
"But don't worry!! I won't cheat you!!"
"This complete set of Demon-Tempering Combat Techniques—"
"I created it myself while figuring out how to fight you damn mages back in the day!!!"
"I'll pass it on to you!!!"
Huh?
Battle techniques?
Rei didn't even have a warrior class yet.
Kai'ga placed both hands on Rei's shoulders.
A bold grin spread across his face.
..
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