The Mastermind
Oliver's gaze followed the umbilical cord, piercing through the dark cellar and stretching forward, and sure enough, its endpoint was the magnificent statue within the church.
Beneath the statue hid a massive, wriggling brain-like organ.
[Divine Race: The Mastermind, Sophia Augustus]
[Status: Juvenile Stage]
[Danger Level: Tier III, Highly Dangerous. Avoid contact unless absolutely necessary.]
A juvenile divine being?
Oliver pondered thoughtfully. This statue had been delivered from the higher church a few months ago, and it was highly likely that the juvenile divine entity beneath it had been placed there at the same time.
Ding!
[Warning: Your observation has been detected by The Mastermind. However, its development is incomplete, and it cannot pinpoint your exact location. It has spawned "Cognitive Placenta" to begin hunting you.]
Oliver clearly saw three basketball-sized juvenile brain-like entities expelled from the massive monstrous brain.
These small things, covered in fuzzy synaptic tendrils, floated in the void, looking bizarre and nauseating.
[Divine Offspring (Unnamed)]
▷ Time of Birth: 33 seconds ago
▷ Danger Level: Juvenile (Consumable)
▷ Trait: Sentinel-like existence. After a brief charge, it can relay perceived visuals back to The Mastermind.
Capture Suggestion: Wield the Blasphemous Codex to sever its transmission line to The Mastermind, then calmly eliminate it. The Blasphemous Codex itself is not a weapon but has a suppressive effect on divine beings, making it the best tool for cutting the threads of such low-tier divine entities.
Capture Reward: Spell: Mental Blade.
I can kill it and get a reward?
Oliver's heart leaped with excitement.
As he contemplated, one of the three creatures began rapidly approaching the cellar's location. It stretched out glowing tendrils like a jellyfish, trailing a spiderweb-thin silver thread that extended through the void toward the pulsating giant brain.
"This is the transmission line?" Oliver gripped the Blasphemous Codex and charged toward it, swinging hard!
Pfft!
With a soft sound, the fuzzy creature's connection to The Mastermind was severed!
Cutting the silver thread was far easier than Oliver had imagined.
But severing it was only the beginning of the fight!
Once the silver thread was cut, the fuzzy surface of the placenta ball exploded outward, revealing countless compound eyes beneath. It unleashed a soul-shaking screech at Oliver.
Accompanying the screech came a spray of acidic mucus that corroded the soul!
Oliver instinctively blocked with the Codex. The cover of the Blasphemous Codex was singed with scorch marks but instantly repaired itself.
After releasing the acidic fluid, the placenta ball paused briefly. Seizing the moment, Oliver rushed forward and slammed the Blasphemous Codex into it.
Sizzle!
Each strike of the Codex produced a strange sound, like a branding iron plunged into water, and the creature let out a pained scream.
Seeing that the strikes were effective, Oliver swung even harder.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Pfft!
Finally, the bizarre soul orb shattered completely, leaving behind a glowing, nutshell-like object.
[Discovered Loot: Soul Husk]
[Soul Husk: The soul remnant of a weak divine being. Consume it, and your soul strength will greatly increase.]
A sudden roar from The Mastermind echoed from afar, shaking Oliver's head and causing him excruciating pain.
Fear gripped Oliver's heart, dampening the joy of his successful hunt.
[Ding, warning: You have provoked The Mastermind's wrath. It will now intensify its efforts to hunt you. Please return to your body immediately to significantly reduce suspicion.]
"Return to my body—yes, I need to get back into my body!"
With this thought, Oliver looked at his fully healed body, guiding his soul toward it. As he drew near, he felt a powerful pull.
The next second, a slight dizziness hit him.
Lying on the ground, Oliver slowly opened his eyes.
[Congratulations, you have completed your first capture. Reward obtained: Mental Blade. You have completed your first act of blasphemy against a divine being, earning corresponding soul points that will enhance your soul.]
It was said that the stronger the soul, the more powerful the divine spells one could cast.
[Blasphemer Level Loading…]
[Blasphemer: Oliver Stark]
[Blasphemer Level: False Believer (1/100) Next Level: Oathbreaker Knight. Completing blasphemous rituals will increase your Blasphemer level, with each level-up granting astonishing rewards.]
[Blasphemer Soul Strength: 100 → 200]
[Number of Completed Blasphemous Rituals: 0]
[Number of Divine Beings Discovered: 1]
[Blasphemer Spells Held: Level 1 Spell - Mental Blade]
[Items Held: Blasphemous Codex, Soul Husk]
Mental Blade…
Oliver could feel a series of mysterious and intricate incantations surfacing in his mind!
The legendary divine magic.
He finally possessed it!
In the Holy Law Continent, wielding divine magic was synonymous with nobility.
Possessing divine magic meant being superior to others.
Of course, the magic Oliver wielded was an illicit spell that couldn't see the light of day.
Though the Blasphemous Codex claimed he could use it without detection by the gods, Oliver still needed to exercise caution.
Without The Divine Circuit, if anyone noticed this, the church would investigate him!
As Oliver mulled this over, Sister Talma detected the sound of his breathing after his revival and turned around warily.
On Marta's beautiful face, her gaze was cold and astonished.
"This is truly astounding. I was certain I'd severed your artery with my staff, yet here you are, little rat, alive and well."
Marta tightened her grip on her silver staff. "What are you? A vampire? A ghoul? Neither seems right… Whatever you are, die again!"
With a furious shout, before her words even finished, her silver staff glowed, The Divine Circuit on her back flashing as a piercing beam of light shot toward Oliver!
In the past, Oliver could only have awaited his fate helplessly.
But now, with his soul strength greatly enhanced, Marta's movements seemed to slow in his eyes.
Oliver twisted his body slightly, effortlessly dodging her attack. The beam grazed past his ear, melting a charred hole in the stone wall. He could smell the singed scent of his hair.
"Mental Blade!"
With a low shout, Oliver launched his counterattack.
The moment he uttered the spell, a sharp, needle-like pain stabbed through his fingertips. Three translucent ripples materialized out of thin air, hurtling toward Marta.
"An illegal spell? You little rat, you truly deserve to die!"
The nun sneered, tapping her silver staff on the ground. The Divine Circuit at her neck glowed with serpentine silver light, instantly weaving a membrane of light before her.
But to her shock, the divine shield she prided herself on crumbled like paper before Oliver's Mental Blade.
Crack!
With a sharp snap, the light membrane shattered, and the whistling Mental Blade pressed forward!
Marta let out a scream, feeling as though her head had been struck by a sledgehammer. The excruciating pain and dizziness left her nearly unable to think.
All that swirled in her mind were the words: Impossible!
"Why is this happening? I may only be a Level 1 divine caster, but divine magic, blessed by the gods, should far outstrip any illegal spell…"
What she witnessed defied all her understanding.
Of course, she didn't know that Oliver's illegal spell wasn't like ordinary illicit magic. Empowered by the Blasphemous Codex, its strength surpassed divine magic of the same level!
Moreover, Oliver's soul strength had surged far beyond normal after consuming the placenta ball. The higher the soul strength, the more powerful the spells he cast!
While Marta was briefly dazed, Oliver wouldn't let this rare opportunity slip by.
He lunged forward, drawing the dagger hanging at Marta's waist.
Pfft!
A flash of silver, a muffled sound, and Oliver's dagger pierced Marta's neck, blood gushing like a fountain.
"No… impossible… I, a dignified divine caster, dying at the hands of a lowly church rat…"
Marta's gaze froze.