Trait Hoarder – Chapter 292

Elixir of the Divine Body – Part 3

I began the Elixir synthesis immediately.

[Craftsman] ==[Master Artisan]== [Craftsman]
[Alchemy][Creation][Synthesis][Wish]

In truth, most of the actual labor was handled by the magical spirit.

But my traits still had a tangible impact on the process.

To amplify the Elixir’s potential, I carefully enunciated each syllable with intention.

“Let the Elixir manifest its power to the fullest.”

Whirrrr—

The automatic alchemy machine came to life.

It roasted, baked, simmered, and extracted the essence from the materials.

Then came extraction, distillation, and collection.

Finally, after a round in the centrifuge and a session of electrolysis, it underwent magical incubation — and it was done.

A clear liquid trickled into the glass vial.

An Elixir imbued with four sacred hues.

Even at a glance, it radiated formidable power.

Not quite at the level of the 8th-level Reconstructive Elixir I took before, but still incredible.

Of course, that one had been made from an 8th-level otherworldly mana core and four drops of divine blood as secondary ingredients.

“First…”

I turned to the stack of magical equipment piled in one corner of the training room.

Swords, shields, guns, bows, armor, protective suits, shoes, helmets, belts, necklaces, rings…

I activated World Trait Sync.

Mana circuits embedded in the magical gear lit up all at once.

One by one, they began to fuse into me.

I accepted the influx of new traits with my entire body.

‘That’s the last of them.’

I had now acquired every trait I could from the equipment.

The appetizers were done — it was time for the main course.

Hoo…

I took a deep breath.

This was going to be intense.

Standing in front of a full-length mirror, I stripped off all my gear.

Returned to my most primal form.

Then equipped only a single trait:

[Evolution]

I deliberately refrained from equipping any others.

There was no telling how they might affect the process.

Today, I intended to use only Evolution, Second Evolution, and finally Transcendent Evolution.

I activated the first stage of Evolution.

“Urgh!”

Suddenly, I felt my heart lurch and stop.

My entire circulatory system surged into overdrive.

My body squirmed and began to shift.

Already beyond human, maybe even demi-god tier — and now my senses were growing even sharper.

My muscle fibers thickened and became denser.

My nervous, circulatory, endocrine, and skeletal systems all began undergoing fundamental transformation.

There were no obvious changes visible in the mirror.

Just a grotesque, constant twitching across my whole body.

But inside, I was changing like a storm.

Beads of cold sweat poured down my body as proof.

An unbearable agony. Agonizing. Excruciating.

By the time my sweat started turning into blood, the evolution finally halted.

“This is…”

The transformation of the human species in its purest form.

I had already possessed a body beyond superhuman — almost akin to a demi-god.

Now? Perhaps I had surpassed even that.

In the game, Evolution increased all abilities by 1.5 times.

‘Once more.’

I activated Second Evolution.

“Guh!”

The pain surged — even more intense than before.

It felt as if my entire body was being ripped apart.

My head in particular — it felt like it was splitting open.

Like getting slammed with an axe.

Despite the searing pain, I remained standing, holding proper posture.

The Heavenly Demon Sword was within reach.

World Trait Ascension was right before me.

So how could I give up now just because it hurt?

Just this one time — just this one moment — if I endured it, I could kill the Saintess.

Just a little longer.

Just a little more!

“Haah… Haah… Haah…”

When I came to, I realized I was collapsed in front of the mirror.

Seemed I had blacked out for a moment.

Bloody saliva trickled from my lips.

A puddle of blood had formed on the floor beneath me.

“Insane…”

I checked my reflection.

My eyes were bright red.

Burst blood vessels made them look utterly bloodshot.

But my mind — my mind was shockingly clear.

Even though I hadn’t equipped traits like [Magic Brain] or [Rapture], it felt like I had.

I glanced around.

As I focused, I could see right through the walls.

Then I noticed the dust floating in the air before my eyes.

I zoomed in unconsciously.

Tiny particles.

Even the wriggling clusters of bacteria living on them.

‘Unbelievable.’

It was like becoming a living microscope and X-ray scanner all in one.

And this was with no traits active?

If this was just from Second Evolution, what would happen when I used Transcendent Evolution?

I was already starting to fear my own future power.

Huff… Huff… Huff…

I slowed my breathing, calming my nerves.

Then gulped down an Elixir and a bottle of Nectar in succession.

Topped it off with a bit of Ambrosia.

That should be enough.

Sitting in meditation over the blood pool, I pulled the final trigger.

Thud!

In an instant, the world went dark.

As if someone had blacked out the screen — my vision vanished.

I rolled my eyes in confusion—

And then the final wall crashed down on me.

“Kghhhh!”

I couldn’t describe it.

How was I supposed to express this?

This wasn’t pain at the physical level.

It was a devastation of the soul — a shattering of my very being.

The sensation of being erased.

Like my existence itself was vanishing.

If I weren’t intimately familiar with pain…

If I hadn’t overcome countless ordeals on the way here…

If I had taken even one less Reconstructive Elixir…

If my soul wasn’t reinforced to the level of an omnipotent being…

This is where it all would have ended.

“Huuh… Haa… Haa…”

Collapsed once again, I gasped for breath.

‘Was… was that reckless?’

The thought crossed my mind for the first time.

It was truly a razor’s edge.

Even with my mind gone and my soul flayed raw, I was barely able to maintain a sense of self — almost by instinct.

I looked down at my hand.

It had become half-transparent.

I raised my head to look in the mirror.

There I was — a being that was half spirit, half flesh — staring back at me.

“Ha… ha…”

Thankfully, the spirit body had begun to dissipate.

My form returned to flesh and bone.

But I realized something else, too.

If I willed it, I could shift back into spirit form — and leave this world behind.

This was basically… ascension into immortality.

I could probably ascend or transcend at will — as long as I performed the proper ritual or knew the exact coordinates.

‘Should I just ascend now?’

I entertained the thought for a moment, then shook my head.

Ascension, transcendence — I could do either whenever I wanted.

So I might as well live a bit longer as a human.

In my original world, poverty stole everything from me.
And in this one, I’d been too busy fighting for survival to enjoy anything.

I brought out the Elixir of the Divine Body.

Now I understood why taking it locked the enhanced body in place.

It must be due to the influence of Transcendent Evolution.

Even now, my body was humming with vibrations, constantly threatening to turn into pure spirit.

The Elixir’s role was to anchor that vibration — to forcibly materialize it.

In other words, it prevented accidental ascension.

If I ever wanted to ascend in the future, I’d probably have to undergo Transcendent Evolution all over again.

Trickle.

I drank the Elixir of the Divine Body.

The transparent liquid, infused with four sacred attributes, rolled smoothly down my throat.

A cool, pure sensation began to spread through my entire body.

There was no pain.

Just a refreshing, tingling feeling tickling its way through me.

Soon, the spiritual vibration locked in place, stabilizing into physical form.

The new body settled in.

There was no visible change.

If anything, I looked more ordinary than ever.

The aura of mana that once radiated from me had completely vanished.

Even the gleam in my eyes — once always shimmering with mana — had dimmed.

Unless I actively summoned my power, even a fellow Level 8 superhuman would probably mistake me for some random guy named Kim walking down the street.

‘This is basically the Reverse Ghost technique.’

And yet, all my capabilities had ascended to a divine level.

Now, even just a glance would trigger [Insight of Fate].

Mana consumption?

Didn’t exist anymore.

My physical strength had grown so immense that I could probably uproot a 100-story skyscraper with my bare hands.

Even without any traits, I could easily break the sound barrier just by running.

Basic psychic powers like telekinesis, telepathy, and short-range teleportation?

I could use them without traits too.

“I’m basically a god now.”

A god’s body.

In other words — a Level 9 physique.

Of course, I lacked divinity, so I couldn’t call myself fully Level 9 yet.

‘If I fought the Saintess now?’

I’d dominate her.

Even in her Episode Boss state.

Of course, it likely wouldn’t play out that simply.

In the game, the Saintess fought head-on without tricks because she relied on the overwhelming power of the Old Father.

But inside the Divine Nation, she had countless other methods at her disposal.

Doesn’t matter.

I’d win anyway.

As long as I didn’t let my guard down.

Thud!

I pulled out the Heavenly Demon Sword from the golf bag.

Still sealed to the skeletal altar it came with.

A flicker of nervousness passed through me.

But I could feel it.

That I was now worthy of this blade.

“Hah.”

I chuckled softly and equipped the following traits:

[Giant’s Strength][Vajra Body][Undying]
[Mana Soul][Master of the Sword][World]

Just the bare essentials as a Warrior.

I reached out.

Copied the Heavenly Demon Arts.

My hand pierced through the obsidian glow and grasped the Heavenly Demon Sword.

As if it had been waiting for me — a bolt of black lightning struck down.

KRRA-KA-BOOM!

“Guh!”

A chilling impact.

A destructive force that tried to tear my body and soul apart!

But my transcendent body withstood it.

The pain, though — was still real.

Gritting my teeth, I slowly began to draw the sword.

KRRA-KA-BOOM! KRRA-KA-BOOM!

The lightning intensified.

Scorching my body more fiercely than ever.

But compared to the agony of Evolution or the soul-rending torment of Transcendent Evolution?

This was nothing!

At best, it was about as bad as the Saintess’s baptismal lightning.

“Uaaaaargh!”

At last, I pulled the Heavenly Demon Sword free.

Dark light surged.

It shot through my brain, pierced my spinal cord — a shock that seared through my entire nervous system.

The world turned pitch black.

A finishing blow.

My heart actually stopped once before beating again.

Felt like my internal organs had all been roasted alive.

If not for [Vajra Body] and [Undying], if not for a body bordering Level 9, I’d be dead.

“Guh!”

I coughed up blood as black as tar.

My head spun.

The whole world tilted and twisted — but even then, I couldn’t stop smiling.

Because in my hands now was the Heavenly Demon Sword!

“Hahahaha!”

Behold the blade in my grip.

Its obsidian body exuded dignity, and the silver runes etched into it shimmered with mystique.

The form didn’t matter.

What truly mattered was what lay within.

The Heavenly Demon Arts sealed inside the sword.

Gwooooooom…

Even now, the World trait was reacting.

It had grown into its true form during the battle with the Divine Army — a matured leaf phase.

Now the roots and trunk thickened.

From mature leaves, branches sprouted and split — until the tree bore fruit.

It was like watching time itself accelerate.

And at the end, what remained was a tree.

“Whoa…”

And this wasn’t the end.

It was only a sapling for now.

But I could tell instinctively — someday it would grow as large as the World Tree.

For now, though, this alone was enough to leave me full.

Why?

Because heterogeneous fusion had activated.

I recalled an old memory.

The time I helped Janet ascend to Level 7.

I gave her the [Undying] trait and had her combine it with her existing [Vajra Body].

The result was the creation of a new trait: [Invincible One].

[Vajra Body] ]][[ [Undying]

The same thing was happening now.

I connected [Vajra Body] and [Undying] through the World trait.

But this wasn’t homogeneous evolution.

I placed the two traits like roots on either side.

Picture a triangle — the top vertex was the trunk, the bottom two were the roots.

Then came fusion.

] [Invincible One] [

A new trait was born.

And unlike with Evolution, I didn’t need to lock in the ingredient traits.

I could swap them freely later.

The only difference was whether I used the World trait as material or as a complete fusion crucible.

“Incredible…”

It felt vastly superior to homogeneous evolution.

If it was already this powerful now, then what would it become if this sapling grew into a full-fledged World Tree?

My quasi-Level 9 brain quickly reached an answer.

Trait absorption. Homogeneous evolution. Heterogeneous fusion — stacked together.

Theoretically, I could take all my traits, evolve each one, and fuse them into a single ultimate trait.

‘Is that… really possible?’

My pupils wavered in the mirror’s reflection.

My hands were trembling.

Naturally, the Heavenly Demon Sword in my grip shuddered as well, releasing a pulse of black energy.

Heavenly Demon Arts.

A martial art forged by humans — to rival the gods…

‘Where have I heard that before?’

No way…

Both the First Heavenly Demon and the current one were omnipotents like me.

Maybe they went through a similar process.

Maybe the Heavenly Demon Arts were something they forged by stacking traits, just like I did.

Which would explain why the Heavenly Demon Arts could serve as both attack and defense, as mana circulation and movement technique.

‘It’s plausible.’

But questions remained.

If the Heavenly Demon Arts were built from traits, then what was the core that bound them?

Even an oyster needs a grain of sand to make a pearl.

In my case, that grain was the [World] trait.

“Hoo…”

I let out a quiet sigh.

It didn’t matter.

What mattered now was that I had obtained the Heavenly Demon Sword — and that I could wield the Heavenly Demon Arts.

I flicked my wrist.

Flash!

A sweep of black light carved through the air.

A thick concrete wall vanished completely.

A purer and more refined disintegration ray than anything used by the Divine Army — the Heavenly Demon Void Severance.

This wasn’t copied with the [World] trait.

This was the sword’s original ability.

Astonishingly, the Heavenly Demon Sword granted the user the trait: [Heavenly Demon Arts].

It could only be used while held, sure — but still.

Shing!

Even the swordlight flashing from the tip of the blade was no ordinary glow.

It didn’t just slash through the wall — it erased it.

And not just one.

It tore through several walls, several floors, and extended all the way into the sky.

“Huh?”

A cool breeze hit my face as I let out a hollow laugh.

My mansion was built to survive a bunker buster.

I didn’t think I’d split it open with just a flick of my hand.

But that wasn’t the end.

Boom!

This time, I focused my power and slammed the ground with my sword.

The earth rippled like water, and the entire mansion was reduced to dust.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!”

How could it be this strong?

Even combining the Heavenly Demon Breathing and the Heavenly Demon Sovereign Step wouldn’t have produced this much force.

All that expensive equipment — the supercomputer, the training room, the security systems, the automated alchemy setup — all gone.

Even the magic spirit was obliterated.

Thankfully, no one lived here, and I’d already moved all the important items to the Celestial River.

Still, I hadn’t expected this level of power.

‘I could probably slice a mountain in half.’

That would be with both Heavenly Demon Breathing and Heavenly Demon Void Severance activated.

‘I really have gotten stronger…’

If we’re talking raw combat strength, I’m nearly on par with a Level 9.

But I also had a weakness.

The Heavenly Demon Sword.

If I lost it, my combat power would plummet.

I had to wield it — but not rely on it.

If I were the Saintess, I’d use disarming and sealing miracles to get that sword away from me no matter what.

‘Time to move out.’

Luckily, the garage had survived.

So had the Red Cougar.

As I climbed into the driver’s seat, the magic spirit Red greeted me.

[Congratulations on your ascension, Master! You’ve clearly surpassed the realm of a standard Level 8!]

“I suppose I have.”

[Even my previous master couldn’t compare to you, sir!]

“Probably not. Your core body’s gone — are you okay with that?”

[I’m fine! Master’s growth is the greatest joy in my existence!]

“Thanks.”

Whoosh!

The Red Cougar transformed into a lightning dragon and soared into the sky.

Practically on the verge of spatial leap.

In just minutes, we arrived in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province.

A massive black dome, ten kilometers in radius.

Surrounding it were countless forces.

[You’ve come?]

[It’s been too long!]

Four dragons approached, acting all familiar.

“Waaaaaah!”

“Waaaaah!”

On the ground, Nord warriors shouted with excitement.

Beside them were otherworlder troops, hunters firing bursts of gunfire, gladiators from the Colosseum, and goblins gripping their spiked bats.

[You arrived exactly as expected.]

A thoughtstream echoed across the sky.

Sage-God Phoca sat on a mobile palace at the Gwangju outskirts, exuding authority.

Fwoosh fwoosh fwoosh!

Martial artists dashed through the air with fluttering long robes.

“Wait… is that really the Heavenly Demon Sword?”

The Divine Army Commander and the Blood King looked shocked, their eyes locked onto my waist.

“The Heavenly Demon Sword?”

A following Legion Commander widened his eyes.

I merely smiled.

Others came into view — and into range of my senses.

The Western Army’s Division Commander. The Sun Mage Tower Master. Seong Huiyeong.

At the Celestial River: Choi Sunsoo, Kim Chulkwon, Kim Mabeob, Kim Saje.

Among the Demon Cult ranks: Baek Sorin, Janet, Kali, Seo Woojin.

Even the mutant sailors and fishmen crew were here.

Every connection I had ever made — all gathered.

I drew the Heavenly Demon Sword.

A black blade aura flared to life.

Gwoooooooom.

The black dome began to tremble in response.

“Ohhh!”

“It’s working!”

“Not even the Divine Army could pierce that!”

“Hmph!”

Someone’s excited outburst made the Divine Commander cough awkwardly.

I pretended not to notice and pointed the Heavenly Demon Sword at the dome.

“Let’s end this.”

Full circle.

Now, it was finally time to finish it.

–TL Notes–
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