Omniscient First-Person’s Viewpoint - Chapter 567



The God of Stitched Flesh and Sins – 2

Even the moonlight seemed blinding to him, as the Offering God, with eyes half-opened from the gaze received from the priestess, moved forward with a towering figure over 3 meters tall.

[It is done. What would a mere limb know of my true self striving to become a greater being?]

—

“Ah, O God of Offerings!”

The immortal bowed his head in fear at the sight of their deity awakening from a long slumber. The God of Offerings was a native deity. Everyone had seen him once or twice, but it was unprecedented for him to awaken and make an appearance in person.

“Oh! God of Offerings! You have awakened! What a timely arrival.”

Only Rash greeted the God of Offerings with a wave, as if he were an old friend.

“I heard earlier that you commanded to kill the guest! But is it true that you really ordered the teacher to be killed?”

“Rash, you damned fool! What kind of words are you speaking to the God of Offerings?”

“Isn’t it permissible to ask? Surely the God of Offerings would want to speak as well?”

Rash was certainly more open. He showed no reluctance in facing the deity and speaking directly. Is this what studying abroad does to a person?

The immortals were taken aback by Rash’s audacity, but the God of Offerings was not one to hold his tongue either.

[Indeed. He is the king of humans. A great being who once shattered his true form in the distant past.]

“Oh? Teacher, was he such a great being? But what? The king… of humans?”

[Yet he has lost his power now. This is the only opportunity to devour him. If he regains his strength, the true form will remain forever a trivial insect, subservient to that great being.]

When the opponent is strong, one bows low; when weak, one bites. For the God of Offerings, this was a perfectly natural law of the wild.

Moreover, the God of Offerings was a deity of the jungle who nearly enjoyed immortality through gluttony. He was in a state of frenzy, eager to consume my power.

“O God of Offerings. Does that mean we truly must devour the teacher?”

[Right arm. Will you do it?]

“I will not allow it! The God of Offerings has already bestowed upon us the gift of immortality; must you really go so far as to consume the teacher?”

[You must devour when you can. If left alone, he will soon devour the true form.]

Eliminate the enemy and create with my power. For a long time, gluttony had always been the survival strategy closest to the truth. It is taboo now, but for the God of Offerings, gluttony was as ordinary an act as breathing.

Realizing the God of Offerings’ firm intent, Rash hesitated before responding.

“…Um. O Mother God of Offerings, as a child, I wish to dissuade you?”

[You have revered me as a god, borrowing life and power. And now you wish to reject my will?]

“Yes. Though we live on this land, we must also engage with foreign lands, right? If we were to devour a guest from beyond the plains, our reputation would be utterly ruined.”

[You’ve come from beyond the plains and now speak of such things, stained with ink.]

“No, that’s not—”

[Enough. It is unnecessary.]

The God of Offerings waved his hand.

And suddenly, the immortals staggered, collapsing to the ground in a wave of sudden weakness. Their bodies, once offered to the God, writhed and drained their essence.

[In the end, there is no choice but for me to act directly.]

The body of the God of Offerings swelled. The makeshift form was filled with power. After dying and barely clinging to life by using another’s body, the God of Offerings, Ankra, broke his long slumber after two thousand years and unleashed his strength.

—

Towards me.

The ground splits open. The moment it read my thoughts, the Offering God had already arrived. A colossal hand was trying to grasp me in one swift motion.

I must not be caught. If I’m devoured, it leads to a loss of my very essence. Reacting immediately, I moved my body and escaped from the Offering God’s fist. Fingers of varying sizes brushed past my shoulder.

Huff, that’s fast. Even not in its prime, it’s this quick? Still, its body doesn’t look solid, so I should be able to dismantle it easily.

I turned halfway and shoved a skewer through the stitched scars. For someone like me, who once made a living as a pickpocket, tearing human skin was

[Fingers.]

The moment the Offering God murmured that, its five fingers suddenly bent backward. The joints twisted in reverse, turning its palm into a backhand, and its right arm became the left, curving outward.

Jaw. My skewer was caught on the Offering God’s hand.

“What?”

[It’s true. You’ve weakened.]

Muttering, the Offering God crushed my hand in its grip. Crack, the sound of my hand shattering echoed. I felt my fist being crushed, transforming into liquid.

The fact that the joints were reversed posed no problem at all. The Offering God’s body was stitched together from the start. It didn’t matter how the joints were reattached.

Regaining my senses, I transformed the skewer back into a card and used my reduced size to slip out of the Offering God’s grasp.

[Oh. How did you do that?]

The Offering God, intrigued, swung its arm with the bent joints. A fist flew at an angle forbidden to humans. Before I could react, I was struck directly.

“Ugh!”

It felt as if the world was bouncing me away. My body, floating for a moment, finally slowed down after getting caught in the bushes and breaking branches.

Its arm curves outward? I shouldn’t expect common sense here. Just as I was barely trying to rise, the Offering God leaped right in front of me.

[I’ve caught you.]

Even though it was still ten steps away, its arm stretched out and engulfed the space I occupied. The stitched body had remarkable elasticity as well.

Now it’s not even a human body! Just as I was about to roll on the ground to evade the fist, a shadow suddenly intruded and blocked my path.

“O Offering God!”

Puh!

Rash grabbed the Offering God’s right arm. Even he, towering over 2 meters, couldn’t withstand the Offering God’s strength and was dragged along.

“Gah!”

Rash inhaled deeply and clung to the ground with all his might. His feet dug halfway into the earth, bracing against the overwhelming force. Thud, thud, thud. After turning the ground upside down, he succeeded in halting the Offering God’s arm.

The sight of his followers rising against it surprised the Offering God. It wasn’t just because he blocked its path. Unlike other immortals, Rash was still in good health.

The Offering God spoke.

[I surely withdrew my strength, yet your right arm still harbors the essence of my true self. Has your body been away from the plains for too long?]

“I do not know! This must also be the will of the Offering God!”

—

Rash, nonetheless, did not release his grip. The Offering Deity asked.

[If this body’s actions are the will of the true self, why do you obstruct the true self?]

“When I was trapped in the abyss, those who helped me! By chance, I received a gift of the Yang King’s fur! I welcomed them as guests, and to turn a blind eye and let them die would be against tradition!”

[Following the will of the true self is also a tradition.]

“I know! But if two traditions speak differently, shouldn’t I follow the one that resonates with my heart?”

Rash stood apart from the other immortals. He had a personal connection with me and was the one who guided me here. His easygoing nature meant he could not betray his loyalty just because the deity commanded it.

Rash grinned and continued speaking.

“And if possible, I would like to uphold the other tradition as well! Oh, Offering Deity, there’s no reason for you to devour the teacher! How about reconsidering even now?”

[Hah. The limbs of the true self are trying to manipulate the true self.]

“Not manipulate, if you could call it a sincere suggestion….”

[Unnecessary.]

The Offering Deity lightly swung his arm.

In that moment, his arm whipped like a whip. Even with Rash’s massive form hanging from it, his arm extended far away to a boulder. Before he could let go, Rash’s head struck the rock.

[Limbs that do not listen must be severed. Even if it means shedding tears of blood.]

Bang, bang, bang. The Offering Deity slammed Rash’s body into the ground repeatedly, then, seeming annoyed, tossed him aside. Rash’s body soared into the air with a terrifying force and vanished from sight. Having dealt with the bothersome intruder, the Offering Deity turned his head back to find me.

At that moment, I was behind his shoulder.

His right arm. Perhaps because of Rash, the Offering Deity’s right arm moved strangely sluggishly. Moreover, it seemed he was still unaccustomed to the patched-up body and was unaware of its angles.

[Hmm? Where is it?]

“Right here.”

The Offering Deity was unaware as I slipped a card into the gap of his skin. Just before he noticed and moved his arm, I unleashed a bolt of lightning into the card all at once. The card, wrapped in lightning, trembled violently, scorching his skin and causing his muscles to move erratically.

The Offering Deity shouted in shock.

[What have you done to this body!]

“It’s less miraculous than reattaching skin.”

The Offering Deity’s flesh was filled with a strange energy, making it uncontrollable, but he himself was not particularly adept at managing his own body. His arm convulsed, joints bending and twisting as if there were six or more of them.

[You!]

The enraged Offering Deity tried to move his body, but it was difficult. He could not control his wildly thrashing body and merely flailed about.

With a crunch, bang. Trees caught in the Offering Deity’s rampage were uprooted, and the disturbed earth swirled like a cloud. I rolled on the ground to avoid the uncontrollable flesh, grabbing nearby bushes haphazardly.

The first thread was made from the fibers of the tree. I modified the original wood into resilient vines. I scattered them roughly over the rampaging body of the Offering Deity. There was no need to create a snare. The uneven body of the Offering Deity, patched together, became a latch in itself. Entangled in the vines, the Offering Deity stumbled and fell.

I gradually elongated the vines and launched myself toward a nearby giant tree. With a card in one hand, I swung it, grazing the base of the giant tree. Part of the tree transformed into a card, and the thick trunk began to tilt sideways.

[How dare you play tricks!]

In the moment when the enraged deity charged at me with all its might, I concentrated magical power in my fingertips and cast a spell.

“Set, Ri. Bolt!”

[CRACK!]

A surge of electricity erupted from within. The deity’s muscles convulsed and went numb, completely at odds with its will. For a brief moment, while it writhed in agony, the colossal tree continued its descent, falling ever faster toward it.

Thud. At last, the tree crushed the deity’s body. Unable to withstand the weight of nature that had grown for centuries, the deity knelt on one knee. However, the deity was also a god that had amassed power for over a thousand years. With astonishing strength, it bore the weight of the tree.

[This is nothing…!]

Tch. Is merely using the environment insufficient? As I felt the lack of power, I glanced around, and from above, I heard Rash’s shout.

“O Deity! As your child, I should not dare to strike you, but!”

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The voice grew closer rapidly. Rash, with his thick right arm pulled back, gazed at the deity and fell like a shooting star.

“My right arm is the deity! This fist, it’s you striking yourself, so it should be fine!”

[Right arm…!]

“Get a grip! This is a strike of earnest advice!”

Shouting boldly, Rash extended his fist toward the deity.

Until now, the deity had shown little effect from any attack, but this strike was different. Rash’s right arm was the very essence of the deity’s power. The deity’s body crumpled, twisted, and contorted. The deity, crushed by the fist, collided with the ground with tremendous force.

A shock that shook the earth. The deity, buried in the ground and pressed by the tree, spat blood and cried out.

[CRaaaCK! You…!]

“Set, Ri, Selcy! Fahrenheit!”

From somewhere, an incantation echoed, and moments later, a massive curtain of flames descended.

An overwhelming force, beyond my capabilities, engulfed the deity. The flames of magic climbed my vines and scorched the deity’s entire form.