[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-how-to-survive-in-the-romance-fantasy-game":3,"chapter-how-to-survive-in-the-romance-fantasy-game-how-to-survive-in-the-romance-fantasy-game-chapter-336":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","How to survive in the Romance Fantasy Game",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},1218728,1604,"Chapter 336: Ascension Interlude","how-to-survive-in-the-romance-fantasy-game-chapter-336",336,"\u003Cp>\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had expected some kind of reaction from the demonic cultists upon activating [Divine Will]. But not like this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not to this extent at least....\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Fooh...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A slow, steady breath escaped my lips. Short yet long. Calm yet unnaturally composed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Recalculating level...]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Temporary Level: 846]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The numbers flashed violently in my vision, the system's notifications blaring incessantly, yet they felt distant-irrelevant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because at that moment, something inside me ignited.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A sensation far beyond mere strength, beyond power, beyond comprehension-divinity itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was so overwhelming, so all-consuming, that for a moment, it felt foreign-as if I were no longer myself, as if something greater had descended into my very being.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Strength: EX]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Agility: EX]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Endurance: EX]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Luck: EX]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Power: EX]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My body was blazing with raw, unchecked power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It surged through every fiber of my being, searing my existence with an overwhelming realization:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every action I took from this moment on would interrupt the natural flow of the world itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It felt like a single step, a single breath, a single movement from me could erase the academy in its entirety.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A force comparable to not just a nuclear bomb-but thousands of them, concentrated, given form, given will.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And yet...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I was calm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My heartbeat was normal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Despite the cataclysmic energy roaring within me, my mind remained eerily serene.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And then-I saw it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The world. Clearer than ever before.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not just mana.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not just magic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the very fabric of reality itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The flows of power, the conflicting streams of mana intertwining in the air, the delicate threads of existence woven together-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dimensional rifts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dozens. Hundreds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They bled through every direction, no longer hidden from my sight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tears in reality itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Each one a gateway-a connection to realms beyond this world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And in that moment, one undeniable truth settled into my mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This divinity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This power was never meant to exist in a mortal plane.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I understood that now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And it made sense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It explained why, in the game, players needed an innate domain or had to rely on Alice's presence just to withstand even a fragment of ascension's power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without it, the weight of divine energy would crush them, unraveling their existence under its sheer magnitude.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet here I was, standing beneath a sky that was no longer just a sky-but a veil, thin and fragile, stretched over the truth of reality itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The dimensional rifts shimmered before me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some were clear, close, almost tangible-others lay further in the distance, faint outlines against the vast expanse of unseen worlds.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A part of me wondered why.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why were only some rifts visible while others remained obscured?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was it a matter of perspective?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Power?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or something beyond my comprehension?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It didn't matter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If my current form-elevated beyond mortal limits, burning with divine clarity-still couldn't discern the absolute truth behind them, then there was no point in lingering on the\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>question.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I shifted my focus.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though the air was littered with countless rifts-dozens, hundreds, possibly thousands-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>three among them stood apart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Brighter. Vaster. More defined.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I recognized one immediately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'The Heavens.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It pulsed with divine radiance, a beacon of sacred light interwoven with the very source of my\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a domain that resonated with me, where my essence naturally aligned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the other two...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first was a deep, searing crimson-dark red, smoldering like embers in a dying fire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Its energy bled through the void like an open wound, radiating malice, hunger, and something deeper-something ancient.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Hell? The Underworld?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It seemed obvious, yet there was a sense of wrongness to it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As if it weren't merely a domain of suffering, but a living, consuming entity in itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And then, there was the third.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A rift of twisting purples and blacks, shifting like a shadow that refused to hold a solid form.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It pulsed with an energy that was neither dead nor alive, neither warm nor cold. It was foreign ―utterly, incomprehensibly foreign.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even with all my newfound clarity, my mind struggled to place it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet if I had to guess-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was probably the polar opposite of the Goddess's domain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Erebil's domain'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While the Heavens thrummed with life, creation, and boundless energy, this place was its\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>antithesis.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not simply darkness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something beyond it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something that shouldn't exist yet did.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And for the first time since this surge of power ignited within me...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A feeling I had long forgotten began to stir in my chest.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A quiet, creeping unease.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although I can't directly see her gaze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I instinctively understood-Erebil was looking at me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That much was clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That much was absolute.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A formless weight pressed against my soul, something vast and unfathomable, something\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>that existed outside the natural order of this world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sensation was not merely that of being observed-it was acknowledgment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It felt weird knowing that fact...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was like I had accidentally brushed against something I was never supposed to touch.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I shuddered and shook my head, forcing myself to look away, to break the connection before\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>it dug deeper into my being.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But as my awareness shifted, I felt something else.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something far closer.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something lodged deep inside me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I lowered my gaze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And there, within my chest-entangled with my very existence-was an unsettling mass of\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>darkness and crimson.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It writhed, coiling and unraveling like a living, breathing thing.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No... not quite living.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was different.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was chaos.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was devouring.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It felt nothing like the energy of Hell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was sinister but structured, its power drawn from the suffering of the damned.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was a complete anomaly a thing that simply should not exist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Liyana's curse.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even without the Goddess's warning,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could see it clearly now-especially with my newly enhanced [True Sight].\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This wasn't something I could just cut away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn't some foreign object embedded in my soul, something that could be burned,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>purified, or sealed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No, it was woven into me. Intertwined with my very existence in a way that defied logic and fate itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Goddess had warned me before-the threads of fate were beyond even her direct\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>intervention.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But even knowing that, I couldn't help but feel a flicker of disappointment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Somewhere deep down, I had hoped...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No, I had wanted to believe that I could simply erase it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Especially with my ascension now...'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But reality had never been that kind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was just as I expected.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There was no way I could break free of Liyana's impending grasp so easily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'In the end I'll have to rely on the goddess's blessing in order for my plans to work out\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>huh...'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I exhaled slowly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I needed to end this situation now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And fast.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Any longer... and I had the distinct feeling that I would explode.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sensation of ascension felt eerily familiar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was reminiscent of what I had experienced back in Cheshire's [Wonderland] Skill-an\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>overwhelming detachment from reality, an existence transcending mortal limits.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this time, it was real.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And unlike back then, where the world itself bent to accommodate my power, where there\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>were no real consequences for unleashing it...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Here, the rules were different.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Here, there were stakes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A single mistake could wipe out the entire academy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The weight of that realization pressed against my mind like an iron vice, but before I could\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>even fully process it-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Congratulations! You have unlocked all skill libraries.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Applicable skills under the user's current threshold shall now be unlocked.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[All S-rank skills acquired...]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[All A-rank skills acquired...]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[All B-rank skills acquired...] [All C-rank skills acquired...]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[All D-rank skills acquired...] [All Unique skills acquired...]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Note: All skills are now applicable!]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Do you wish to use them?]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Yes\u002FNo]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For a brief moment, I felt an almost instinctual urge to say yes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To let the knowledge and power flood into me-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But I knew better.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'No.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I immediately rejected the system's suggestion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Had I unknowingly accepted, it wouldn't have been just a question of whether my body could\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>withstand the influx of power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn't just a risk of soul damage.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sheer amalgamation of skills-passive or not-would have been enough to distort the\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>natural order.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And that meant...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The academy wouldn't survive.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Most S-rank and Legendary-tier skills had no built-in limiters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their conditions for activation did not distinguish between allies and enemies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Especially the ones classified under destructive and death-type magic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some of them were meant to be used only in the presence of divine beings or catastrophic\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>threats to reality itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some were forbidden, meant only for theoretical use in the game.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If those were to be unleashed here and now-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The academy wouldn't just be damaged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It would be torn apart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A terrifying thought flashed through my mind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I took a slow, controlled breath, suppressing the absurd divine pressure flowing through me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the game, there were three proper ways to use ascension.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first was through Cheshire's domain via Alice.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A conceptual world woven by the fabric of her imagination, where reality bent to her will,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>where logic itself became a mere suggestion. Within that space, she was absolute. The second was through unlocking one's innate domain-a terrifying technique that forced opponents to fight within a subconscious world shaped from the very essence of one's soul. A battlefield where history, emotions, and the deepest aspects of one's existence manifested\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>into tangible reality, crushing enemies under the weight of one's own truth, no foreign power must be involved when using an innate domain...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Though it was possible for me to learn an innate domain... it would mean I have to abandon\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>my divine powers in order for it to work, which is something I can't afford.'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And the third...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Was simply being born divine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A natural-blooded entity of higher existence, one whose very being was an extension of the\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>divine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gods, demi-gods, half-angels-beings who ascended not through skill or struggle but by the\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>undeniable fate of their birth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unfortunately... I wasn't like that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if I was currently blessed beyond reason, even if my body pulsed with an unfathomable\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>level of power, I did not have the privilege of being born a celestial entity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I wasn't like Lucas, who had inherited divinity from the moment of his birth.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No matter how much power I had now, I wasn't someone who was meant to wield it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And I could feel it-the weight of something that was never meant for a mortal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It pressed against my very existence like a foreign parasite, not harming me yet demanding to\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>be acknowledged.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even with my mind eerily calm, my heightened senses continued to assault me with an overwhelming flood of information.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could feel the air shifting around me, as though I had become one with the atmosphere\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could hear the subtlest of sounds-the faintest trembling of particles, the beating of a\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>thousand different hearts, the echoes of breaths taken miles away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could smell the raw scent of mana, thick and intertwined in the air like threads of fate\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>binding the world together.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could feel like I could see everything and nothing at the same time.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every fracture in reality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every dimension lurking beyond the veil of what should be visible.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And yet, I was still me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'It was simply a miracle my brain was working right now...'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Though the goddess's blessing was probably helping... Forcefully I directed my senses away from the infinite and narrowing them down-to the\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>woman in front of me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The demonic cultist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She trembled violently, her entire body shaking like a marionette with its strings cut.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her breath came in short, erratic gasps, her hands twitching as though her body had long lost\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the ability to function under normal human control.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her face...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her deranged, hollow face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The madness in her gaze had completely shattered, replaced with something more primal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Terror.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A fear so deep, so absolute, that her mind could no longer comprehend it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The woman's lips parted, but no words came out-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just a faint, choking whimper-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A warm, damp sensation spread beneath her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had lost control of her bladder. Peeing to herself she suddenly spoke... \"P-Please forgive me... I only wanted...t-to....\" Her once-arrogant presence was nothing more than an annoying eyesore now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And before I could even process my own thoughts about her-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>-POOF!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She exploded.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A sudden, violent detonation-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not of magic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not of some external force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her body simply ruptured.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A mist of crimson sprayed into the air, splattering against the ground in thick, uneven\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>splashes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had been crushed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not by an attack.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not by any spell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not even by my intentional will.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But simply by the fact that, for a single moment, I had thought about it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Skill: [God Hand] has been activated.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tsk...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dammit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had momentarily forgotten.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At this level of power, I didn't need to activate skills manually.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The mere act of willing something to happen-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even just thinking about it- Would automatically force reality to comply.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Since I have access to all skills in the skill library...'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was getting dangerous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Any intrusive thought, any stray impulse- Could manifest into destruction.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I exhaled slowly, a deep sigh escaping my lips as I closed my eyes, willing my breath to\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>steady.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My mind was still reeling from the overwhelming flood of information-the heightened\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>senses, the crushing realization of my own power, the lingering weight of what I had just\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>done.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now wasn't the time to get lost in thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I forced my thoughts blank-clearing away the unnecessary noise-before activating the\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>spell embedded within my earrings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The world stopped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Everything froze in place, like reality itself had been put on pause.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The overwhelming, eerie sound that had been grating against my senses suddenly vanished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Silence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>True, absolute silence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A familiar sense of detachment washed over me, as if I had stepped outside the flow of\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>existence itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Skill: Time Stop - Limit Increase!]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Stopped Time Limit: 5:00:00]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A noticeable increase. The original five-second cap had expanded, allowing me five full hours\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>within this frozen world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I took a step forward, the soft tap of my foot muted against the stillness.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The world, devoid of motion, felt fragile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every single frozen detail-the suspended dust particles in the air, the way the flickering\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>mana in the surroundings remained trapped mid-flow, the lingering echoes of movement\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>that should have long disappeared-was laid bare before me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was unnatural.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And yet, it was power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I cast my gaze toward the storage unit, where a handful of men stood like statues-trapped in\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the exact positions they had been in before time had stopped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their faces, though frozen, bore signs of distress-the subtle wrinkles of tension, the\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>lingering traces of confusion in their unmoving eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were too well-dressed to be regular captives.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Good-looking, well-groomed, well-kept. A stark contrast to the usual victims of demonic cults, who were often left battered, broken,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>or worse.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now that I had time to properly observe, I realized what felt off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...So that's it.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had initially thought it was strange that some of the staff in this facility didn't carry the\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>usual aura of demonic cultists.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unlike the others, these men seemed normal-even restrained, in a way.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now I understood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They weren't cultists.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or rather, they hadn't been cultists to begin with.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Above each of their heads, I could see the thin, dark threads of demonic influence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Marionette strings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mind control.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"That explains why they were so eager to die in the game.... Even goblins weren't that much\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>of a mob characters compared to these guys, it also explains why they had a huge number of\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>followers inside the academy.... Most of them were puppets huh...'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I narrowed my eyes, tracking the corrupted threads back to their source-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or at least, to where they had been.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The woman I killed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She had been the one controlling them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her death had severed the threads, leaving these men momentarily adrift, their minds still\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>trapped in the aftereffects of her influence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They would likely regain their senses soon, but just in case- I extended my hand, allowing the faintest pulse of divine energy to trickle into the room.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A gentle golden glow radiated outward, invisible to normal eyes but spreading through the\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>air like a cleansing mist.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The moment my power touched them, the remaining traces of demonic influence began to\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>unravel—like ink being wiped from a pristine surface.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their bodies didn't move.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their expressions didn't change.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But I could feel it-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The corruption was fading.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even though I had only used a fraction of my divine energy, it was more than enough to purge\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>the remnants of the woman's spell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tomorrow, when time resumed and they woke up, they'd likely feel refreshed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Any lingering wounds-physical or mental-would be mended from the inside out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was the nature of divine energy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a simple flick of my fingers, I cast Greater Teleportation on the unconscious men.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A soft, shimmering light enveloped their bodies before they vanished in an instant, relocated\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>to a medical ward within the academy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sudden appearance of multiple injured men in the middle of the ward would definitely\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>cause a stir.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Doctors and medical staff would rush to their side, confused and bewildered, wondering where they had come from, what had happened, and who had sent them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that didn't matter.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not right now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I had more pressing concerns.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Turning my gaze eastward, I focused on Blue Café-a small, unassuming establishment\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>nestled within the city streets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On the surface, it appeared no different from any other cozy gathering spot-warm lighting,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>neatly arranged tables, a façade that gave off an air of normalcy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But beneath that thin veil of deception, it was infested. Through my enhanced perception, I could see them-the twisted presences lurking within.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Demonic worshippers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huddled together, hiding within the walls, disguised as ordinary citizens.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Their disguises wouldn't fool me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could clear them out in one go.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One command.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One thought, and God's Hand would wipe them from existence like they had never even been\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>there in the first place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that wasn't what I wanted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No, if I intended to send a message-**not just to them, but to their leader... no, their\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>demonic lord-**then a mere extermination wasn't enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I needed something bigger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A clear display of power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A warning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My mind raced through the catalog of spells at my disposal, assessing each one for its impact,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>effectiveness, and sheer destructive potential.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With the sheer number of buffs and passive enhancements automatically active on me, I could\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>have chosen something far more devastating-a catastrophic-tier spell that would reduce the\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>entire block to ash in an instant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But that wasn't the approach I wanted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No, I needed something simple.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Something that would burn.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not just the worshippers, but the restaurant itself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A cleansing flame that would turn their sanctuary into a pile of smoldering ruins.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Considering all the buffs I have right now I didn't need to use any high-ranked spells.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Skill: Low-rank Flame Magic]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Flame Orb]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A small, unassuming fireball began to form in my hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At first, it flickered with the usual orange hue of normal flames-ordinary, unimpressive,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>nothing to fear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But then-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It changed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The fire twisted, shifting as my very presence imbued it with something beyond mortal\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>comprehension.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The orange glow melted away, replaced by a blinding, golden light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could feel the deep energy swirling within the orb-radiant, overwhelming, yet restrained\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>by the limitations of a low-rank spell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But in the end, it was just that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Low-rank flame magic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not something that warranted any careful consideration.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without a second thought, I hurled it toward the building.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was my mistake....\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>-BOOOOOOMMMMMMM!!!!!!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The instant the golden flame made contact, the entire structure detonated.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A massive explosion of divine fire erupted forth, consuming everything in its path.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A heatwave of searing, golden radiance tore through the night sky, expanding outward with\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>unstoppable force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The brilliance was blinding-so intense, so godly, that for a brief moment, it felt as if the\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>entire night had been forcibly turned into day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every shadow vanished.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every street, every rooftop, every corner of the city was bathed in pure, holy light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then, just as suddenly, the shockwave from the explosion slammed into me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sheer force of it shattered my concentration-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Note: [Skill: Time Stop] has been interrupted.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The frozen world shattered like delicate glass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Time resumed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I stood there, staring at the destruction before me.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A massive crater where the café once stood, and a beam of light stood never seeming to stop\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>for a few moments...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nothing but scorched ruins and smoldering embers laud across where the building once were.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The streets were dead silent, the air thick with the lingering traces of divine fire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I gulped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'Did I overdo it?'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before I could process the thought, a familiar series of system messages flickered before my\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>eyes:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Note: You have defeated an entity aligned with Evil and Darkness.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Congratulations! Bonus points have been awarded!]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Bonus Status Points: +20]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Note: Your soul is slightly shaking... Fixing problem... Solution success!]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Your soul was not damaged.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Congratulations! A portion of your divinity has significantly Increased!] [Note: The Goddess's Blessing inside you has returned to its slumber.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Note: Blessing shall reawaken every time user enters Ascension.] [Warning: It is advised to only reawaken and use the effects of the blessing while under\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ascension. Using the blessing under a mortal soul will lead to permanent soul damage.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Note: Detected Evil Presence has now diminished. Stats will return to normal levels after 10\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>seconds.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I needed to get out of here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Immediately.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I could already sense celestial magic gathering in the sky.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was faint at first—a ripple in the atmosphere, a distortion in the mana flow-but then it\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>intensified, forming into multiple magic circles. And these weren't ordinary spells.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They were being cast by the academy's highest-ranking staff.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mages powerful enough to wield celestial magic-\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>'I can't let the principal see me...'\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>My mind rattled with urgency.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gritting my teeth I instantly teleported out of the area.\u003C\u002Fp>",3660,"2026-06-03T14:40:38.925Z",1,"novelbin.me","7d7672771a81c06edc2cce505b9fc37b0a8ffd10b3f42e282fdd7d79342701db","how-to-survive-in-the-romance-fantasy-game-chapter-337","how-to-survive-in-the-romance-fantasy-game-chapter-335",727,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fhow-to-survive-in-the-romance-fantasy-game-cover.jpg"]