Chương 69: Incarnation of Faith

[Oneself World]," Ryland incanted. The spell created a bubble of placid atmosphere around him instantly, wiping away the dust and smoke and everything else that would have made his little stay on the mountaintop a little more annoying than it needed to be. A surprising silence reigned over the area. Besides the popping and bubbling of lava and the crackle of over-intensified mana sparking like electricity, there was no other sound really.

Well, besides all the breathing, murmuring, clothes-rustling, and so on from all the people present on Sundermount. But Ryland just needed to re-suppress his Inscribed Glyph of Perception before they went away. His steps made nearly everyone twist their head to stare at him. He ignored the riot of expressions that greeted him.

Hostility from the other clergy who had gathered around their fallen Oracle, unsurprising tension from the Wardens, a wild mixture of awe and wariness from the other Academs, and plain, exhausted exasperation from Alaric. It was an unsurprising result, to Ryland if to no one else. Although, maybe he could count Alaric on his side as well. But the point of the matter was that the Oracle should have heeded his warning. Hmm, there was something strange going on closer to where Vertha had fallen.

The priests and priestesses were ringing the Oracle's crater very carefully, many of whom had their hands and arms raised in supplication. The High Warden had a stricken look on his face too. He had been acting a little oddly throughout the whole little debacle. For someone of such a grand station as the head of security of all of Arcoryx City, he had never really appeared quite that authoritative. Aside from the way the rest of the Warden Mages had treated him with unquestionable respect and deference.

Even now, he looked like he was trying to catch the attention of anyone near him, but Ryland's sudden appearance had unfortunately put a stop to that. Was something going on?

"Come no closer, fiend!" an elderly clergyman said. He had already risen to his feet, and now, he turned to fearlessly place himself before his fallen mistress.

"Really, now." Ryland came to a stop, but only after he was close enough.

"Surely we don't need to sink to name-calling of all things." The other clergy were quickly backing up their first comrade. Divine Glyphs shaded the whole destroyed area with a light cast of sunny gold. If nothing else, Ryland could certainly appreciate their courageous loyalty.

"There are far worse things that a monster such as you deserves to be called," the first priest said. Before Ryland could contradict that statement, the other Academs started stepping up. Thankfully, they didn't join the Church's side in the matter, though Ryland figured he could only call them a neutral party at best. Having witnessed Ryland rebuff the Primordial-ranked Oracle of Androvia with no scratches whatsoever, they were clearly wary of him. Wait, no. They thought he had actively beaten Oracle Vertha.

When in truth, it hadn't really been him. As the Academs converged on the scene, Rother finally got a hold of Alaric. Whatever they talked about in hushed tones, Ryland was too distracted to listen in on it.

"I don't understand." It looked like, of all the Academs, Tyra at least was holding onto her academic priorities.

"What exactly happened? Why did the Oracle target Ryland? And how did she…?" She glanced at the crater where the Oracle's body was still unmoving, surrounded by a compression of molten, golden mana that prevented anyone from getting too close. Some of the clergy were attempting to reach her, but they hadn't made much progress.

"That depraved monster assaulted her!" the first priest cried. He pointed an accusing finger at Ryland.

"He must be brought to justice!"

"Hardly," Ryland said. They were making a valiant effort at disrupting his equanimity. He had to give them that much.

"The Oracle's power comes with great restrictions. You're aware of that far better than I am. I warned her, from the moment she took a true stand against me, that this might happen."

"Right!" Tyra slapped a fist in a palm.

"It's commonly known that the Oracle's might only strikes down evil and malice. Those who deserve the wrath of the Great Gods. Ryland obviously doesn't qualify. So when such power is used against someone who's actually quite righteous, it backfires." Ryland nodded.

"A simplistic explanation, but absolutely correct in essence."

"Oh, sorry. I slipped into teaching mode there. Do you want the more long-winded version?"

"I'd be fascinated to hear it, High Academ." She stared at him. Ryland blinked. Was she being sarcastic? Wait, had he been accidentally patronizing?

"That's ludicrous!" another priestess cried.

"The Oracle's judgment is never false. She reads Fate itself. In the lines of ultimate destiny, it was written unquestionably that this man is—""Does it matter?" Alaric had stepped up, a Glyph of Truth shining bright over his outstretched palm. He appeared a little consternated for some reason, his voice urgent like he wanted to hurry the conversation along.

"Would you deny the very evidence of your eyes? Nothing uttered here has been untrue. Nothing."

"But…" The clergy clearly were having trouble reconciling conflicting truths. Of course, Ryland understood what was going on, which was why he wasn't truly laying blame at anyone's feet. It made sense the Oracle had interpreted Fate to find out that he was a Calamity. Of a sort. It also made sense that she would then lead an inquisition to cull this Calamity she had discovered before it could cause untold devastation across Androvia. He just hadn't expected Vertha to be so deviously upfront about it.

The last Oracle certainly hadn't been so brazen.

"Healing magic won't work," Ryland said.

"Not until the backlash is suppressed." Several of the clergy were trying to send tendrils of healing magic to the fallen Oracle, though the frothing divinity around her wasn't letting any of it through. Ryland didn't believe she was in any real danger, though he understood the clergy's worries. The first priest refused to move from his spot.

"Stay back!"

"I know how to get past the imprisoning mana," Ryland said.

"But—" Alaric's Glyph of Truth shone a brilliant green.

"And I know how to rejuvenate the Oracle," Ryland said. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

"Imp—" The Glyph of Truth continued confirming Ryland's statements.

"And I promise I will do nothing to harm her." This time, as his words were once again proven to be true, no one tried to contradict him. Ryland faced no opposition as he stepped closer to where the Oracle had fallen. If anything, people nearby were distracted by how the bubble of [Oneself World] was repelling the aftereffects of the battle to leave behind a cleaner atmosphere. Alaric sighed, and beside him, Rother appeared to relax. Oh, yes.

There was absolutely something going on, something that Ryland hadn't picked up on just yet. Relief of that nature from two of the most powerful members of this meeting was quite telling.

"Alright, then," Ryland said as he reached the lip of the Oracle's crater.

"I will—" With a sudden jerk, the priests and priestesses all around the depression's lip now leaped back. It didn't matter if they had been praying or not. They halted their quiet chants as tension made all of their faces tight. Then they all retreated like the Oracle was suddenly contagious. Ryland frowned. What in the world was going on? His answer arrived almost immediately after his question was done. A sudden pressure fell upon the entire mountaintop.

At the same time, a column of brilliant sunshine connected the Oracle to the sky. Every Inscribed Glyph Ryland kept as a warning now fired off, breaking the suppression he had kept them under. His heart actually started thudding faster.

"It—it's here!" the priest cried.

"Praise be!" shouted another, prostrating himself. The others took up the cry while the Wardens and the Academs looked on in confused alarm. Ryland ignored it all and stared straight up the column of light, which was now turning into a prismatic pillar. An Incarnation was descending from the heavens. Hmm. This was unexpected. He had expected things might escalate to some degree, especially if he was forced to stop the Oracle himself.

No doubt, taking a direct hand against her would have caused a great deal of outrage in the Churches. But he had significant doubts anyone could have expected the arrival of an Incarnation right into their midst. Well, he was one to talk. Although, he now suspected the Church had at least some inclination of what was about to happen.

The way they had ringed the Oracle, the way they had gathered in prayer, and the way they had all dashed back when it was evident that a new power was landing in their midst—it was all too evident that they had at least prepared for this eventuality, if not planned to make it happen.

"Holy mother of…" Tyra's words faded to nothing. Ryland had cast no magic, of course, yet it felt as though [Mindscape] was coming into play. Time was slowing down, turning sluggish, slowly freezing everything. As such, Ryland did cast magic." [Eternity's Stream]." Like most things, this wasn't an entirely unprecedented experience for Ryland. He was well aware of the kinds of effects that Incarnations could have on the mundane world.

The slowdown of time was one of their rarer influences, something he had harnessed to eventually formalize into his [Mindscape] spell. The proof of this was evident all around him. While their bodies appeared to be responding slower and slower with every passing moment, their eyes confessed that their mental faculties weren't affected at all. The Academs, Wardens, and clergy were all highly aware that they were being slowed down. Or maybe their wide eyes were simply evidence of pure, panicked disbelief.

Ryland ignored it all as the column of aurora began filling up the shape of a humanoid figure over the Oracle. [Eternity's Stream] would keep him safeguarded against the opposing Incarnation's temporal effects, so he could focus on what actually needed to be done here. Hmm. Ryland didn't need too long to deliberate the situation. It was hard to tell whether the Incarnation was summoned to Sundermount on purpose or not.

The real issue was that, in terms of intent judgment, there was a subtle difference between the magic the Oracle had used and this Incarnation taking form before him. For where magic could judge impartially, an Incarnation could still entertain bias. An Incarnation was still a sentient being. Nevertheless, as the aurora continued solidifying over the prone Oracle, Ryland gently thrust his arm forward. His Soul Glyph of Genesis shone over his palm." [Immortal Rejuvenation]."

At the same time as he cast his magic, so did the Incarnation of… what was it, Faith? Pinpricks of auric pressure bloomed to life all over the mountaintop. Despite the slowdown of time, Ryland noted the growing alarm in every eyeball around him. The pressure intensified, like a thousand needles were hanging over every bit of skin and clothes. In response to his healing magic, the Incarnation was threatening pure annihilation. Oh yes, he had been right to assume bias."

[Eternal Bastion]," Ryland incanted before his first spell had finished taking effect. Then he piled on the pressure. More Soul Glyphs came into being one after the other, Ryland's manasoul getting the kind of workout it hadn't experienced since that last Living Mana Incursion." [Endless Evolution]. [Ascension's Trace]. [Concentric Time]." The spells came into effect one after another. As ever, [Eternal Bastion] was Ryland's trusty go-to, but it wouldn't be enough. Not by itself.

Not against an Incarnation of all things. Which was why he had replaced his spinal column using [Endless Evolution] with one from a different body, that had a Tier [25] Inscribed Glyph of Ascension.

[Ascension's Trace] used that Inscription to raise the potency of his barrier spell which then got a boost from [Concentric Time] to create multiple layers of the empowered barrier. On not just Ryland, but every single other person present on Sundermount. Besides the Oracle, of course. He had a different spell ready for her. One that was just about to take effect. Light birthed anew in their midst like the Incarnation of Faith was calling on the sun itself. A jolt of alarm shot up Ryland's new-old spine. This was…

not good. His Inscription would undoubtedly save him against that searing brightness. But with how time was slowed, the others wouldn't be able to close their eyelids against the burning light. Ryland sighed. His Soul Glyph of Genesis was hard to make out in the unstoppable glare, but he felt its magic surge out of his manasoul like a dam breaking." [Soul Extension]." There. Now every protection armouring him against the Incarnation's frightful wrath would be extended to everyone safeguarded by his barriers.

The timing wasn't exactly ideal, going by the time-warped screams and scrambling noises that made it to Ryland's ears through the riotous mana of the divine. But none of them sounded pained or hurt. Good enough to be going on with. For Ryland had far more pressing concerns to deal with at the moment. The Incarnation manifested, and so did their spell.

The light turned sharp, an avalanche of crystalline blades slashing through the mountaintop. It was probably aimed specifically at Ryland, but the area of effect was enormous. Sundermount was receiving a very stark reminder of what it had gone through during the Realmbreaker Wars. Ryland survived. He hadn't even blinked. Several rings of his barriers had cracked, splinters fading in the air, but he was fine. Nothing had reached him. The same couldn't be said for the rest of the world.

Debris had been flung high, held in mid-air thanks to frozen time. Magic writhed like every bit of energy it possessed was being wrung out of it. The brightness made it hard to tell what had happened to the others, but Ryland was confident his spells had done their best to keep everyone safe. And then the Incarnation was right before him, rippling with prismatic colours, one arm outstretched to stab a finger straight through Ryland. Then the Incarnation froze, fingertip a fingerbreadth from Ryland's chest.

Ryland's first spell was taking effect. The Oracle stirred. Right. Whether the Incarnation of Faith had appeared because Ryland was getting closer or because they had been summoned, the point was the same—the Incarnation was here to protect the Oracle. But with [Immortal Rejuvenation] taking effect, that intention fell apart. Why would the Incarnation protect the Oracle from Ryland when he was healing her? It was a good thing that mana could ignore the time-stopping effect of the Incarnation's presence.

Green and gold power seeped out of Ryland's manasoul to alight on the fallen Oracle, whose wounds started knitting themselves together. The temporal effect of [Immortal Rejuvenation], thanks to his Soul Glyph of Time as a Subglyph, was fixing her dress too. Time began winding back to its normal stream. Ryland faced the Incarnation. Their auroral figure glimmered, boundless magic compressed and held tightly within a forcefully limited form. Ryland couldn't quite decipher what the Incarnation was thinking just then.

This wasn't his best meeting with an Incarnation. This wasn't his worst meeting with one either. In the end, though, he offered a tentative smile. A mighty pulse rippled through the air, making the whole broken mountain shiver. The Incarnation of Faith shimmered, then disappeared. [Achievement Recognized: Incarnation Handler You have survived a meeting with an Incarnation. Incarnation recognized: Incarnation of Faith. Rank up from Adamantine [44] to Adamantine [50]. Reward: Glyph of Manasoul evolved to Glyph of Incarnation.] Ryland read over the achievement. That was an unexpectedly strange evolution.

"…the Great Gods," Tyra finally finished as time resumed. Murmurs resumed, people fell and stumbled and cried out. Ryland merely glanced down into the pit his adversary had carved open with her own power. He smiled. Said adversary was awake again, looking up with a very strange expression. One that could almost be interpreted as contrition.