As I walked through the pitch-black tunnel, the shadows around me were unable to obstruct my senses. Perhaps I didn't have night vision like the long-lived species, but my sharp senses and tremendous combat experience allowed me to construct a 3D model of the environment in my mind even with my eyes closed, which allowed me to easily dodge these mechanical attacks.
I swung my hammer, smashed them, and shattered them. Dozens of magical puppets were simply reduced to scrap metal.
For experienced warriors, it would be more than enough to rely on their instincts against such an opponent. In fact, if it weren't for their combat instincts to dodge attacks, they would be too lazy to even bother dodging with their dragon armor.
Our assault team had already wiped out these puppets once, and the remaining elite soldiers had probably joined in the assault team's encirclement as well. I didn't see any good puppets on my way here.
"This level isn't even enough to warm up …"
I contacted Timlad. Although it was so noisy that I couldn't hear what was going on, I could tell from Timlad's pitiful screams of "Boss Roland, hurry and save me! I can't hold on any longer!" that they could probably hold on for a while longer!
"If they really can't hold on any longer, they won't be able to call for help."
"Yeah, yeah."
"I can tell that they still have some strength left, but I wonder what they're relying on."
Everyone here was experienced. How could they not tell that Timlad's pleas for help lacked the nervousness and fear of a life-threatening situation?
And even if we rushed over to help them, it wouldn't be something that could be done in a short period of time.
The assault team's mechanical elevator had already been destroyed by someone. Even with Timlad's directions, the Sky Tower's defenses wouldn't be worth mentioning. It would still take some time for us to arrive.
"Three hundred sixty-nine, three hundred seventy …"
I had been counting before I collapsed, but now I could just casually count them.
Looking at the large amount of mechanical wreckage behind me, I even suspected that this number would exceed 1000 by the time we reached the lowest level.
Most of the mechanical defense equipment wasn't even military-grade. There were plenty of cleaning, repair, and nursing equipment. It would be so easy to clean up such a defensive system that I wanted to yawn.
How could I tell that it wasn't military-grade? The six-armed robots that rushed over with strange buzzing sounds were holding brooms, dustpans, mops, and rags. A spray gun that suddenly popped out of the ground shot out thin jets of water. There was also strange music playing as it shot, just like a sprinkler telling newbies to take cover.
Some of the strange-looking toys looked strange, but they made me want to laugh.
Did the lullaby with the strange baby logo really come to the right place? The person who was spinning on the wheel was definitely not an acrobat.
That flaming arm is indeed scary, but do you really think I'm a caveman who hasn't seen a welding torch before?
I felt rather helpless against such an opponent. In fact, I even had the urge to shout, "Be more serious! This is a war!"
After using his battle hammer for a while, he put it away again. Now, he was using an ice sword that he had temporarily summoned. Although it couldn't compare to the Calamity Magic Sword that Harloys had transformed into, it was enough to deal with these toys.
Not only was it a waste to use the Divine Warhammer to deal with these things, but it was also a blasphemy against the Divine Warhammer.
"You still know how to cherish weapons? Do you think we've forgotten about the time you used the Roland Sacred Sword to crack walnuts? By the way, why did he waste his mana to freeze those furry bears and cleaning tools? I see that you changed your weapons in order to preserve the integrity of these puppets and mechanical creations. "
"… Let's see if we can commercialize it. Even if we can't sell it, we can give it as a gift."
"Who are you giving it to?"
"Gift who?"
I paused in surprise at the simultaneous question from my companions. I didn't understand their covetous gazes, but I had a clear conscience, so there was nothing I couldn't say.
"Renée and Anne. Little girls like them probably really love stuffed animals. Back in the day, I gave Anne a skeleton doll, and she was so happy for so many days …"
"You're asking for it."
"I give you ten points for asking for it!"
I had already gotten used to ignoring the strange comments behind my back. I simply told them what I wanted to do.
"… Actually, I feel rather guilty for leaving for so long without telling them, leaving them to deal with this mess. And since they're both juniors, Glina should also have a gift. But she seems quite mature, so she might not like it. I think it's best to give her a proper mechanical puppet. The technology here is obviously far superior to the gnomes and dwarves' trash toys. She's also an engineer, so she'll probably like it. "
"I'm rather curious to see what expression Glina will have when she receives a normal gift, while Renée receives a stuffed animal."
"Relax, you'll see it very soon. At the very least, it'll be sooner than expected."
We chatted as we went downstairs. I was also gradually getting used to my current physical body through battle. After all, if I wanted to take the next step, it would be incredibly important to have the soul and physical body's compatibility.
"… You're intending to break through to Myth rank? Why don't you experience it more at Saint rank? "
I didn't hide my desire for power and power. In fact, I was already preparing for it.
Everyone here had once reached the peak of Myth rank, so they could tell.
"Yep, I don't have much time. Not to mention, Myth rank is quite special. Comprehending and experiencing it will be meaningless for me to break through to Myth rank."
"Then, how many do you intend to get?"
Amelia's question came out of nowhere, but I instantly understood what she meant.
"Heh heh, guess."
I seemed to be speaking in riddles, but actually, even I didn't know how many "Myth" items I would get this time. After all, I had learned far too many things, and had far too many choices.
The Myth rank is an incredibly glorious and illusory realm for ordinary humans. However, our concept is that it's the transition before reaching SemiGod. There was once a powerful individual who summed up the uniqueness of this rank in a single sentence.
"There's a path before reaching SemiGod. The Myth rank means that you've reached the end of your path. This stage is the conclusion of your and your entire species' path. Once you've reached SemiGod, there will be no more paths."
When mentioning the Myth rank, the most common would probably be Myth-ranked weapons. Indeed, the great majority of Myth-ranked weapons had been left behind by Myth-ranked individuals. The relationship between Myth-ranked and Myth-ranked was incredibly complex. Perhaps this would have to be explained from the extremely unique method of breaking through to the Myth rank.
The various ranks of humans were also the stages in which powerful individuals would discover their own potential. Those at the very front might not necessarily be strong, but they would definitely be the ones who had walked the furthest.
An individual's pure energy level would be the limit at the peak of Legend rank. Powerful mages being able to use forbidden spells at this rank was the best evidence. Meanwhile, the Saint rank was more of an improvement in one's unique abilities. It was an improvement in power level similar to the concept of "Divine Concepts".
Since the Saint rank was known as an existence that surpassed mortals, their physical body's potential would have been completely discovered. The pure energy and will in their physical body would be more than enough to interfere with the world. In fact, they would even have "world privileges" that ordinary people wouldn't be able to control. If they didn't choose to ascend to Godhood, it would be impossible for them to improve any further.
The Myth rank was an inconceivable breakthrough to the Perfect Body.
"Since it's impossible to improve my physical body, I'll have to ask for external help."
I didn't know who came up with such a path of advancement, nor did I know if this was the correct path. However, countless intelligent species had used their own experiences to prove that this path was feasible.
Before reaching the Myth rank, one would have to accumulate strength and slowly improve. As long as one was talented enough and had a long enough lifespan, they would one day reach the Myth rank. But from the Myth rank onward, one would have to fight against the heavens, against others, and against oneself. One would have to forcefully break through to the Myth rank.
The Myth rank had Three Heavy Doors. These were the three stages of breaking through to the Myth rank, as well as the three steps to creating one's own "Myth-ranked weapon."
The first step, which was the Myth rank, was to continue improving one's Concept, transforming it from an ethereal existence into a real "existence." At this stage, one would still need to evolve one's physical body.
For example, Adam himself was at this stage when he purified his "phoenix flames" into an "undying" Concept. From then on, he was no different from the phoenix. As long as the flames didn't die, his physical body would be undying.
The second step was to take this "Concept" out of one's body and transform it into a real "object."
Creating something from nothing was incredibly difficult. In the process of "creating a sword," one would often need to prepare "raw materials" and use these raw materials to create a finished product.
The raw materials could be a certain weapon, a modified organ, or even the surrounding environment, a certain magic spell, or a certain Soul World. The finished product would also be quite difficult to categorize.
Let's use Adam as an example. At this stage, he completed the phoenix's inheritance, obtained the phoenix's blood and heart, and obtained the phoenix's divine swords "Phoenix's Favor" and "Phoenix's Heart".
The third and final step would actually be the resonance between the physical body and the Myth-ranked weapon.
These weapons would be infused with your soul and Concept to begin with. As long as these weapons became a part of your physical body, the expanded body would open up a stage for you to continue improving yourself. You would then completely break away from the mortal world and be able to see everything in front of you with no obstacles or boundaries.
It didn't seem like you needed to do anything at all? Actually, this was the stage with the highest mortality rate.
This seemingly easiest stage was actually the most difficult. It was also the most difficult stage which was why there were so few SemiGods in the Eich Plane.
The physical body would be incomplete, and the soul would be incomplete. It would be impossible to resonate with your soul and be stuck … And the undead who didn't have a living physical body or a complete soul would be in so much pain at this stage that they would want to die. It was entirely possible to use their blood and tears to sue the Creator Goddesses for "racism" against the undead.
If the "Concept" was too weak, and the "materials" weren't strong enough, the Myth-ranked weapon created would either directly shatter, or barely be usable. However, the Myth-ranked weapon wouldn't be able to contain the undead's soul or future path and would be stuck … This was more than 70% of the reasons for failure. However, there was no need to be discouraged. It was still possible to start all over again. It was just that you would have to search for the Concept from the very beginning … There was still a chance to make another breakthrough within thirty years.
If the "Concept" was too strong, and the "materials" were too strong, the weapon created would be ridiculously powerful. It would be completely stuck, or even possible to directly die … Why? If the physical body couldn't handle the power of the weapon, the person would be controlled by the weapon. The person would either become the weapon's soul, or their physical body would shatter, or they would become an idiot.
The Triple Door. Each door was more difficult than the last. Countless Myth-ranked individuals cursed the heavens for being unfair to the final door. However, if one managed to break through, not only would they be able to become a SemiGod, they would even be able to obtain a personal divine weapon that was customized for themselves. In the original owner's hands, this divine weapon could even surpass God Equipment in some aspects, and their combat strength would increase exponentially.
Marguerite had two Myth-ranked weapons. One of them was the "Ten Thousand Spell Tome", which allowed her to copy other people's spells. The other was the "Philosopher's Stone", which had a nearly limitless mana reserve.
One of them would be easy to deal with, but two of them together would be like a bug.
Marguerite was capable of casually casting multiple forbidden spells. She would be able to cast double spells at any time in a direct confrontation. She had limitless mana, and when it came to long-range combat, she would be the archmage of an entire team by herself. She was truly shameless.
Rather than calling them weapons, Myth-ranked weapons were more like extensions of a Myth-ranked individual's physical body. If a Myth-ranked individual died, their "Myth-ranked weapon" would be more like their remains than their belongings.
Without the support of their soul and physical body, their power would naturally be greatly reduced. However, they would still be excellent weapons with many wondrous uses. In fact, there were even records of SemiGod level individuals leaving behind God Equipment after they died.
I knew that at this stage, I couldn't have too much or too little. It had to be just right … Rushing at everything at this stage would be suicidal. Caution, experience, and repeated attempts were the only way to pass this stage. At the very least, that was what most people thought.
As for me, I had already broken through to the Myth rank before, and I had long since prepared my path of breaking through. In fact, I had already prepared more than ten "Concepts" capable of carrying the power of Myth. It was just that this step wouldn't be so easy to take.
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