Chapter 24: “Incarnation of the Thunder God”

One Hour Ago

Inside the temple, Dera's mind raced in panic. Am I going to die here? Me? After everything I've been through...

"Blasphemy!" he roared, his voice echoing through the temple like a defiant war cry against the heavens.

He refused to accept this fate.

He had fought through hell.

He had clawed his way through death's grip before—

And he would damn well do it again!

{Use the Venomic Recovery, NOW!}

Shadow's voice rang through his mind like an alarm.

"Venomic Recovery!" Dera shouted, desperation clinging to every syllable.

But then—

[Access Denied]

The system's screen flickered before his eyes, and the chilling, merciless message it displayed made his breath hitch.

[30 Seconds Until Usage]

"Shit, shit, shit!" Dera cursed, realization crashing down on him. He had used Venomic Recovery six days ago. The cooldown had thirty seconds left.

But—

Will I even last thirty seconds?

Because at this rate…

He wouldn't even have a body left to heal.

His body was barely holding together. Half of it had already turned to ash, disintegrating under the relentless assault of the lightning. Agony consumed him, every nerve screaming as raw energy coursed through his veins like molten fire.

And then—

The storm suddenly ceased again.

The relentless bolts of destruction that had sought to erase him from existence suddenly vanished, leaving only the crackle of residual energy in the air.

Dera's breathing slowed, ragged and uneven, as though death had taken a step back... but only for now.

'Is… it over?' Dera thought, his breath ragged as he surveyed his surroundings.

Then, he noticed it.

Another statue's eyes were now glowing yellow. His gaze shifted between the two illuminated statues and the five others, still shrouded in darkness.

And that was when the awful realization hit him.

It's not over. Not even close.

If two statues had awakened after two lightning strikes, then five more still remained. Meaning—

Five more lightning strikes.

A sickening dread twisted his stomach as he flicked his gaze toward the system screen hovering in front of him.

[15 Seconds Remaining]

His heartbeat pounded against his ribs like a war drum.

Suddenly—

CRACK!

The sky split apart once more, a harbinger of doom descending.

Damn it!

Dera barely had time to glance up before—

BOOM!

The third strike came down like divine wrath. It was infinitely more powerful than the last two, searing through his very existence.

His body fractured.

The last intact half of him began disintegrating, burned away by the relentless assault.

His consciousness wavered. His vision blurred. He was slipping.

With every ounce of willpower left, he forced an aura shield to form, barely covering the last remnants of his body. He just needed to hold on—

[10 Seconds Remaining]

But the lightning was merciless.

His shield cracked. Then shattered—

And the next instant, the lightning devoured him.

[You can now use Venomic Recovery]

The system's notification rang, but it was already too late.

Dera's consciousness had slipped away. His eyes, barely open, dulled into darkness.

{Oi, Dera! The cooldown has ended—say the goddamn words!}

Shadow's voice roared in his mind, desperate, commanding.

But—

Just Silence.

Dera didn't respond.

His body sat motionless, his consciousness hovering on the edge of oblivion.

{Is this it…?} Shadow's voice hardened, frustration laced with something eerily close to sorrow. 

{What about Eva? The promise you made to her? What about your brother, Chika? Are you really going to abandon them like this?!}

Still—no response.

{I read your memories.}

Shadow's tone shifted—calm, calculating… taunting.

{I saw what those Venoms did to your family. I saw them rip your mother's limbs apart while she screamed for mercy. I saw your brother, clawing at the ground, his entrails spilling from his stomach, trying to reach you. I saw your sister's face, frozen in terror, as they tore her too.}

The words cut deep—like rusted daggers scraping against old wounds.

{And now, you're just going to let those bastards roam free? Unpunished?}

A flicker of life sparked in Dera's half-lidded eyes.

{You're going to let them live, after everything?}

His brow twitched.

{Remember your family, Dera!}

Shadow pushed harder, his voice thundering through Dera's mind.

"…Ve… no… mic…" he rasped.

But the lightning coiled around his throat like a vengeful spirit, choking the words before they could fully escape.

Then—a vision.

For a fleeting moment, Dera saw them—his family.

Their faces, soft and welcoming, bathed in an ethereal glow. Their hands reached out, beckoning him forward. Peace… safety… warmth.

He was ready. Ready to go home.

But then—his mother's lips moved.

"Not yet."

"Your story is not over yet brother" his sister said with a warm smile that made tears roll down his cheeks.

Then, a sudden force shoved him backward, sending him spiraling out of the vision.

His eyes snapped open.

With every ounce of strength left in his battered body, he forced out the words—

"Re…co…very…"

[Access Granted]

A brilliant surge of purple aura erupted around him, flooding through every fiber of his being. 

His flesh began to regenerate at an impossible speed—charred skin peeling away to reveal new, unblemished flesh. 

Burnt tissues knitted back together, and shattered bones reformed as though time itself was reversing.

Venomic Recovery had one fortunate flaw.

As long as the body was in the process of healing, any additional injury sustained would force the technique to continue healing until the body was fully restored—cooldown be damned.

That single loophole was what kept him alive through all seven relentless lightning strikes.

But even as his body repaired itself—

The pain was beyond comprehension.

"Huu… huu… huu…"

Dera panted heavily, his chest rising and falling as the last traces of lightning finally dissipated. His entire body throbbed with pain, his muscles spasming from the relentless torment of the lightning strikes. 

His fingertips trembled as he forced himself upright.

Slowly, he lifted his gaze to the seven statues within the temple, each of their once-lifeless eyes now glowing an eerie, golden yellow—a silent testament to the hellish trial he had just endured.

And then—

CLING!

A system notification flickered into existence before him.

[You have completed the hidden quest: 500 points have been rewarded.]

Dera blinked. His brows furrowed.

"Hidden quest? But… I never accepted such a thing," He muttered, too drained to even react properly.

{Yes, you did. You were just too busy trying not to die.}

Shadow's voice echoed in his mind, smug as ever.

"Oh… is that so…" Dera exhaled, still catching his breath.

CLING!

[For completing the Trials of Amadioha: You have become the Incarnation of the God of Thunder and Lightning.]

"Huh… incarnation?"

The words barely registered.

He was already an incarnation—the Incarnation of the Shadow Venom. Now this?

His eyes swept across the temple, and a realization struck him.

This was the same kind of trial he had faced in the Tomb of the Ancient Finned King. The same death-defying ordeal that had transformed him into the Incarnation of the Shadow Venom.

"Tsk."

Dera clicked his tongue.

He really needed to stop becoming incarnations for these damn celestial beings.

CLING!

Another notification appeared.

[Your Aura quality has been changed to the Lightning of the Thunder God.]

[Aura Sense has increased to Lv. 6.]

[Your stats have increased:]

Strength: 120

Agility: 150

Stamina: 120

Perception: 100

Aura: 400/400

[Available Points: 800]

Dera stared at the screen, his lips curving into a small, tired smirk.

"Haa… my Aura doubled."

That was an unexpected bonus.

Taking a deep breath, he pushed himself up from the golden throne, ready to leave—

Only for his legs to give out beneath him.

He crashed to the ground.

"Damn it…"

With gritted teeth, he forced himself back up. Eva must be worried sick. He had to go back.

As he approached the temple's exit, a strange feeling crept over him. Instinctively, he turned back—

And for a split second, it looked as if the seven statues were smiling at him.

Then—

They crumbled.

One by one, the statues disintegrated into dust, vanishing into the winds. Even the golden throne—the very seat of his trial—shattered and faded away, as if it had never existed.

Dera watched, a small, knowing smile tugging at his lips.

Then, without another word, he stepped out of the temple and descended the mountain.

As he neared the old man's manor, the scene before him made his chest tighten.

The old man sat motionless, his head bowed, his expression etched with grief. He looked like a man carrying the weight of yet another lost soul—a weight he had carried too many times before.

But what truly caught Dera's attention was Eva.

She knelt on the ground, her body trembling, hands pressed over her ears as she rocked back and forth. Her lips moved, whispering something over and over in a desperate chant.

"Dera isn't dead… Dera isn't dead… Dera isn't dead…"

Dera's heart clenched.

'Ah… I made her worry too much.'

He let out a soft sigh, then called out, his voice calm and warm—

"Eva."

The instant she heard it, her entire body froze.

The old man's head snapped up, his eyes wide with disbelief.

Eva slowly turned toward the voice, and there—standing under the fading sunlight—was a boy changed by lightning itself.

His clothes were tattered and scorched, barely hanging onto his body. His once-blue eyes had turned a deep, electric purple, and his long black hair now carried a violet hue, shimmering like a storm trapped in strands of silk.

The effects of the lightning trial had branded him, marking him forever.

And yet—he was alive.

"Deraaa!"

Eva let out a strangled scream, her entire body surging forward before her mind could catch up.

She slammed into him, her arms wrapping around his torso in a tight, desperate embrace.

Dera staggered back slightly, but he caught her—his hands instinctively closing around her shoulders, then pulling her closer.

"Kyaaah… I-I thought you were dead!" Eva sobbed into his chest, her body trembling against his.

Dera let out a quiet chuckle, his hand gently resting on her head, smoothing her hair down.

"Come on…" he murmured, his voice steady and reassuring.

"I made you a promise, didn't I?"

"And I did come back to you… little Eva," he teased, a smirk playing on his lips.

Eva's sniffles stopped. She froze for a second.

Then—CHOMP.

"OW, OW, THAT HURTS!" Dera yelped as she bit down on his chest, hard enough to make him flinch.

She pulled away, wiping the last traces of tears from her eyes. "Don't call me little Eva again," she huffed, glaring up at him.

A brief silence hung between them before—

They both burst into laughter.

The lightness of the moment felt surreal, almost as if the past hours of agony and near-death had never happened.

The old man, however, stood frozen.

He couldn't speak. He couldn't move.

He simply stared at Dera, his mind struggling to grasp reality.

Even as the boy stood right in front of him, alive, breathing, changed but standing—he still couldn't bring himself to believe it.

No one could survive that trial.

Not even him.

If he had sat on that throne, if he had endured the same wrath of the Thunder God, he would have been reduced to nothing but ash.

And yet—

Dera did it.

The realization struck him with such force that his lips trembled into a smile. A smile of immense, overwhelming joy.

From this moment forward—

There was no one in this world he cherished more than Dera.

His pride. His joy.

"Ahem."

The old man cleared his throat, forcing his expression back into a composed facade, though his hands—folded behind his back—itched to reach out, to pat the boy on the shoulder, to confirm once more that this wasn't just a dream.

"You did a wonderful job surviving the temple's trial," he said.

A wonderful job?

No—an impossible one.

The old man swallowed his emotions, keeping his voice steady. "Now, it's time for you to continue your—"

His sentence cut off.

Because at that very moment—

Eva twisted her head toward him, her entire expression darkening in an instant.

Her gaze bore into him with the promise of violence.

The old man felt a cold shiver race down his spine.

"Oi, Grandpa… what did you just say?" Eva's voice was dangerously low.

Dera, ever so wisely, took a step back. He had seen this side of Eva before. And he wanted no part of it.

To him, it felt like a demon had just possessed her.

The old man stiffened.

"Umm… I-I mean…" He swallowed, recalibrating his words with lightning speed.

"It's time for you to… rest."

He corrected himself immediately.