---
Chapter 138 — The Rise of the True God
The southern region of Earth trembled violently when a colossal Arcane General descended from the sky. Its body was covered in black scales, its six blazing eyes dripping with killing intent. Every step melted the land beneath it.
Lare and Azel stood alone, staring up at the monster towering over them.
The General moved first. It swung a massive claw that tore the atmosphere apart. Azel rushed forward, fists glowing faintly with his developing divine spark. But the General's raw strength overwhelmed everything. One strike sent Azel crashing through stone and dirt.
Lare gritted his teeth.
"AZEL! Get up!"
He dashed forward, blades flashing as he sliced at the General's legs, but the wounds closed instantly. A heavy tail slammed into Lare, sending him skidding across the ground, coughing blood.
Dust swirled around the crater where Azel had fallen. Slowly, he pushed himself upright, trembling, his vision blurry. The ground shook as the General walked toward Lare.
"I'll end you first," the monster growled.
Azel forced himself forward, his breath unstable but burning with determination.
"DON'T TOUCH MY FRIEND!"
Their fists collided. The shockwave ripped the land apart. Lare's eyes widened at Azel's sudden surge of power, but it was still incomplete—wild and unstable.
The Arcane General roared and unleashed cursed flames. Azel braced, Lare shielded, but both were overwhelmed by the impact.
A giant foot pressed down, crushing Azel into the earth.
"You are no god," the monster spat. "Just a mortal."
Azel coughed blood. His bones ached. His heart screamed in pain. But something deep inside him refused to break.
His heartbeat grew louder.
BOOM.
BOOM.
BOOM.
He wasn't remembering old gods.
He wasn't hearing voices.
He wasn't borrowing power.
He was awakening his own hidden divinity.
The strength he had trained for.
The courage he built.
The will he forged through suffering.
His own power answered his struggle.
Light erupted from his body—white-gold, pure, violent. The explosion sent the Arcane General stumbling backward and split the clouds above.
Azel rose from the crater.
His body glowed with divine fire.
His hair shimmered like holy flame.
His eyes shone with blinding white light.
His aura vibrated the air itself.
He had awakened True God Form.
In his hand appeared a radiant symbol—
a manifestation of his will—
the God Key, born from his own divine energy.
Azel looked at the Arcane General calmly.
"Now… let's finish this."
Lare felt the pressure and nearly fell to his knees.
"That aura… Azel… you really became a god."
The General roared and charged. Azel moved once, and the world blurred.
A fist slammed into the General's chest—crushing its armor. A kick sent the monster flying across shattered land. It tried regenerating, but Azel pointed his hand and whispered:
"Divine Erosion."
The General's regeneration stopped instantly, cursed flesh turning pale and cracking.
The monster gathered its greatest darkness blast, enough to wipe out a city. Azel summoned the God Key, shaping it into a long spear of pure divine energy.
He glanced at Lare.
"Come with me."
Lare smirked through the blood on his lips.
"Always."
They dashed forward. Azel leaped, spear glowing like a new sun. Lare followed with a blade strike.
Their combined attack tore through the Arcane General before it could move.
A blinding explosion swallowed the battlefield.
When the light faded, the General had been erased completely.
Azel touched the ground softly, his divine aura slowly fading into a steady glow.
Lare stared at him with awe.
"You're not the old Azel anymore… you're something beyond human."
Azel smiled lightly.
"I'm still Azel.
Just… stronger than before."
His footsteps echoed across the shattered earth, marking the birth of a new god.