Chapter 440: The Divine Axe Obtained

The knight called by York hesitated in his breathing, his chest rising and falling. He hadn't expected York to remember him, given the vast difference in their statuses now.

Apart from Brother Hashem, the rest, including Father Bonhard, were quite surprised.

"Bishop York, do you remember me?" Brother Hashem took a deep breath, trying to steady his heartbeat.

But York knew the knight's heart rate had just soared above 100. He smiled slightly, "Of course, I remember. After all, we studied together in the past."

Brother Hashem managed a wry smile, remembering those days not so much as studying, but more being thoroughly outclassed by York during their time in the Vatican's knightly order, where most knights were elite.

York saw Brother Hashem's expression but didn't show any reaction, just smiled and turned his attention to the massive stone door ahead.

The door was twenty meters tall and wide, flush with the ground, appearing embedded in place, tightly sealed by the surrounding stone walls except for a visible seam in the middle and three small holes on each side door.

It seemed Brother Hashem and the six knights would need to help open it.

"Open the door, Brother Hashem."

"Yes, Bishop York!"

Brother Hashem, collecting himself, bowed slightly with his colleagues and then each knight pulled out their swords, thrusting them hard into the small holes in the stone door.

Instantly, a vibration rippled across the door, emanating from the six swords.

York knew this was the magic array activating, and he felt its scanning feature sweep over him.

With a loud bang, the door and the entire underground chamber shook, dust billowing out.

Soon after, the door vibrated continuously until the central seam gradually widened, and the side doors retracted inward.

Slowly, a vast space opened up before York and his companions.

However, York raised an eyebrow.

The space was a vast hall that extended deeply, so much so that with the naked eye he could only see the stone door inside.

Another stone door.

York glanced at Father Bonhard and Brother Hashem, who looked uneasy, understanding the situation.

Before such a sacred relic, not everyone is entitled to view it because the awe it inspires is not something ordinary people can withstand.

Just like him—if he were to release his spiritual constraints, these people might collapse on the spot, their mental realms possibly shocked or even damaged severely.

"You guys wait here," York said, his gaze fixed on the stone door a hundred meters away. "I'll go alone from here."

"Yes, Bishop York," Father Bonhard and the others responded.

With a calm demeanor, York stepped into the grand hall. As he crossed the layered magic arrays, holy power surged around him, causing ripples in the void, but he showed no sign of struggle.

York easily passed through the outer layers of the magic array, stepped onto the hall's floor, and the stone door slowly closed behind him.

York didn't mind but focused on sensing the hall's atmosphere.

Here, the experience was different; he could feel a pressing aura coming continuously from inside.

This was not felt outside the stone door.

"Interesting, is this how the relic behaves? No wonder it's sealed by layers of magic arrays. The outer arrays are actually blocking the leakage of this aura."

York narrowed his eyes, staring at the stone door ahead, envisioning a giant axe embedded in the stone wall, the surroundings slightly distorted.

In a blink, the vision vanished.

York walked forward, his footsteps echoing loudly in the silent space.

He stopped before the final stone door deep inside, the oppressive feeling stronger and more intense here, allowing York to roughly gauge Saint Olaf II Harald's strength.

It reminded him of the four-winged angel Dominic's avatar he encountered in the world of corruption.

"Just a weapon and it has such strength; then Saint Olaf II Harald must at least be at the level of a four-winged angel."

York muttered to himself, impressed, "No wonder he slaughtered all those Norse gods."

For a mortal who was considered lower-class among angels to possess the strength of a four-winged angel was indeed impressive.

In some ways, four-winged angels are considered divine, subordinates directly under God.

Though he muttered, it didn't affect York's actions. In fact, the oppressive aura was trivial to him since his current strength was already beyond that of a four-winged angel. As for how much stronger, York didn't know, only that he was very powerful, already meeting the preliminary requirements for creation, just one step away.

His creation would be fundamentally different from Arethusa's; once he met the creation requirements, he could potentially create life.

Of course, that was just his speculation.

So, besides particle physics, he also needed to learn about life sciences.

York pressed his hand against the stone door, applying a slight force, and the door began to bang open under his push.

As the door retracted inward, a stream of holy power flowed out like real gossamer.

This was the manifestation of holy power reaching a very high quality, similar to how earth and rock condense into bricks—when matter reaches a certain threshold, a corresponding change occurs.

York stopped pushing the door, catching the stream of holy power and looking forward.

Just as he had previously seen, a massive axe was embedded in the stone wall, the space around it distorted as if fused with the entire area, emitting a powerful aura, with the air around it seemingly drawn into a unique vortex by this force.

"This is the Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf, really..." York looked at the axe embedded in the wall and instinctively licked his dry lips.

"Cool!"

The axe was enormous, impressively so.

The blade was made of an unknown black metal, its surface shimmering with a faint sheen as if containing endless power.

The edge was exceedingly sharp, gleaming with a chilling light that was daunting to behold.

The handle was made from a hard wooden material, intricately carved with complex patterns, appearing ancient and mysterious.

But what York cared about most was the aura the giant axe emitted.

"It's as if it has a life of its own."

Indeed, the moment he saw the Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf, York felt this.

The closer he got, the stronger the oppressive force felt, as if an invisible power was preventing him from approaching.

"But this can't stop me; not even your master, Saint Olaf II Harald, is necessarily stronger than me!"

York's face was full of confidence. In an era when firearms were becoming useless, he was in dire need of a new medium for attack.

And this Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf, appearing before him in the records, just happened to be in Norway, just happened to be near a world rift, had already sparked his desire to possess such a weapon.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have specifically come to see it; he had deliberately come looking for a weapon.

To him, keeping a sacred relic that no one else could use seemed a waste; better that he should carry it forward.

But it must be said, treasures do incite a desire to possess.

The moment he saw it, York knew he liked the temperament of the Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf.

"This is the weapon a man should wield."

York grinned as if speaking to the Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf.

"And I am a real man, worthy of you, and capable of wielding you."

With that, he faced the intense pressure and walked forward.

An inaudible roar exploded in the void, ripples visible to the naked eye.

"You cannot block my path."

York shook his head, his steps firm, advancing towards the Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf.

Even as the void around him vibrated visibly, and the entire basement shook continuously.

His steps still took him right up to the Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf.

"Although it's almost as big as me, that doesn't affect its use."

York ignored the activity in the void, his eyes filled with appreciation as he envisioned the day he would wield an axe as large as himself to cleave through evil.

Before reaching out to grab the Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf, York suddenly remembered something and paused.

He recalled the time he expelled Valak and first met Sister Erin, storming into Saint Cata's Monastery.

At that time, he seemed to have absorbed the diluted Holy Blood of Jesus, which is a pseudo-relic, the Blood of Jesus.

Thinking this, York's mind raced.

The levels of relics and sacred artifacts were actually similar, although the Holy Blood of Jesus was very special and not directly comparable, but if a pseudo-relic could trigger a system alert, then the sacred artifact, the Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf, should also qualify to trigger some mechanism in the system.

"It seemed like it was only when I touched the diluted Holy Blood of Jesus that it triggered."

With this thought, York's hesitation vanished, and he forcefully grasped the handle of the Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf embedded in the wall.

A cool sensation spread from his palm.

York suddenly realized his right hand fit perfectly with the handle, as if they were made to be one.

Moreover, the wooden material of the handle was finely polished, smooth yet textured, perfectly conforming to the curves of his palm.

York looked down to see his hand tightly wrapped around the handle, his fingers naturally fitting into the grooves.

"Nice!"

York couldn't help but exhale softly, already determined to take the Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf with him.

Unfortunately, it seemed that the level of the Divine Axe was even lower than the diluted pseudo-relic, the Blood of Jesus, as it hadn't qualified to trigger the system's mechanism.

This was undoubtedly disappointing to York as he looked at the Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf embedded in

 the wall.

"So you're just a small fry after all? No matter, I don't mind."

Ignoring the sudden fluctuations around the axe, York radiated a strong white holy light, preparing to pull the Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf from the wall with his own strength.

But before he could act, something surprising happened—just then, a familiar mechanical voice sounded in his ear.

[Sacred Artifact: Saint Olaf II Harald's weapon, the Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf]

[Effects]

1. Holy Purification: Wrath of Olaf possesses powerful holy power, able to dispel darkness and evil auras, inflicting extra damage on evil beings.

2. Evil-Slaying Strike: Each swing of the axe carries the holy power of judgment, able to break through defenses and strike directly at the soul. This effect is particularly pronounced against demons, undead, and other evil beings.

3. Strength Enhancement: The wielder's strength, speed, and endurance are greatly enhanced while wielding Wrath of Olaf.

4. Healing Light: During breaks in combat, Wrath of Olaf can emit a warm, holy light, healing wounds and restoring vitality for the wielder and allies.

5. Holy Protection: When the wielder faces a mortal threat, Wrath of Olaf can generate a holy aura that envelops the wielder, blocking all attacks for a short duration.

[...]

A series of effects transmitted in a mechanical voice resonated in York's ears.

"Sorry, my mistake, you are a big deal."

Seeing the words appear angry on the panel, York smiled and looked at the [Ownership?] virtual window that appeared above the Divine Axe, then mentally affirmed.

"Yes."

He believed that with the system's rule-like capability, it could definitely help him skip many steps of claiming ownership. Even if the Divine Axe didn't want a master, it was futile before the system, because strictly speaking, the system was like a rule ability he inherently possessed.

[Initiating Transformation]

The mechanical voice sounded again.

[Ownership Confirmed]

Under this phrase, the continuously vibrating space instantly returned to calm.

York's smile grew even brighter as a strong sense of comfort spread from his hand and the handle.

His hand felt as if it was being drawn by an invisible force, perfectly merging with the handle. At this moment, hand and handle seemed to become one, together bearing the might of the Divine Axe.

York felt the stirring emotions coming from the Divine Axe and smiled slightly.

"It seems you too have felt loneliness, felt confined here. Well then, I'll grant you freedom. From now on, you'll hang with me. I'll take you to cleave disobedient demons and many more enemies."

With that, York lifted his hand and effortlessly pulled the Divine Axe—Wrath of Olaf from the wall.

With a loud boom.

All the walls violently shattered, showing signs of collapse.

Outside, Father Bonhard and the others were already extremely anxious, because even with the protection of the layered magic arrays, they could feel the previous disturbances.

And now they were even more frantic, anxiously pacing on the spot like ants on a hot pan, yet not daring to come in.

[Particle Form]

York instantly switched to particle form, his eyes slightly narrowing.

Above and all around, including the outside earth and rock, were controlled by an invisible force, then instantly reattached together, everything returning to its original state.

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