The System

CH- 63: Godly Gains (I).

    [Ever Smile] jumped from Ascendant to Omni level. For this alone, Tetsu considered the scar god to be a tier above Omni for him to jump a whole tier, instead of a rarity. Unless one gets a next-tier epiphany, the skill increases in rarity first, and later develops in level.

The eternal slumber hack and rarity of the skill might also be the reason, but Tetsu placed his bet on that god's power.

The scar god barely used a smidgen of his power and the entire world crumbled, forcing the system to recreate it from scratch. Sure, gods are scary strong, but until you witness the world getting erased and recreated on a whim, the perspective does not set in.

Expecting gods to speak with equality might be a stretch. If they had a bit of compassion, he wouldn't have so many targets on his back. This was one other reason Tetsu hated killing. Once the lines get blurred, everyone justifies their actions instead of correcting them.

Just because the system deemed killing to be the fastest way to level up, doesn't mean there aren't other ways. Always picking the easy route is the first step to abolishing one's own line.

This does not mean you stay weak, either. That's utter stupidity. One should train to protect their values. Life is a journey that tests our values at every turn. Slip or make excuses. Once you divert from your true self, you fail the test.

The casual meeting with the gods opened Tetsu's mind to pride, resolve, and his boundaries. He already planned a fixed path and these encounters only strengthened his resolve.

In fact, the line never shone this bright.

Going in order, Tetsu moved on to the gains of meeting gods. He called them boons as they involved gods. The order helped him keep track of what aspect increased which attribute. This procedure will also help him in the long run, boosting his skills or finding a way to train them to the next level. Procedures have already helped him break into several skills in the past.

The rune god was the most helpful among the bunch. If it wasn't for his or its demeanor, Tetsu would have joined without a second thought. He did not help Tetsu unlock a hack/skill from the system, but his mere presence zapped a million bulbs in his mind.

Long-range attacks always eluded Tetsu. Not all opponents are approachable, and with a limited skill set, all of it revolving around runes, Tetsu had to fight in close quarters.

Tetsu discarded many ideas because heading closer to an opponent would kill him before a rune can be drawn. The title [Rushmore] helped to draw the runes faster, but if his opponent wasn't a dumb, egoistic, and prideful beast, he would've been floating within the realm of the goddess; Dead and in a delusion of peace.

The basic rules of rune he acquired from the notes of the Sage never mentioned the range, so he assumed the Sage either didn't know or didn't share.

"Sharing never was his strong suit." Tetsu lets out a deep sigh, recalling the many near-death scenes where Saint withheld information for him to learn through his mistakes. "Dumb fucking sage. How will I learn if I am dead?"

After scanning every inch of the rune god, mostly his eyes, many puzzles solved themselves.

At first, he assumed a god could create carving on their eyes with relative ease and his inner masochist cannot help him in this aspect. Down the line, he might recover or regrow his eyes, but now it was too much of a risk.

Out of habit, Tetsu mauled over the concept for days, until it finally struck a chord. He imagined the rune inside his head first, and then over the target. After infusing mana into his eyes and following every step toward creating a rune inside his head, the rune flared to life, unlocking another hack, making his life much easier.