Arata looked at the first volume of the Bible, the grimoire known as Genesis, in his hand. Merely gazing at the three words on its cover caused his consciousness to ache, as if both body and soul were being dragged into the domain of the highest class being, where he would be eternally scorched by holy fire upon a cross.
"Aiwass, if you weren't here, just looking at those three words alone would already be beyond what I could endure." Arata said, letting out a breath of relief.
The knowledge contained within any magic book is inherently poisonous to those who have not reached the level of a Magic God. If not for the suppression provided by Void Star: Tai suu and the proper guidance of Aiwass, it would have been impossible for him to learn it on his own.
"The Bible, from its first book Genesis to its final book Revelation, consists of sixty-six volumes. It records the entirety of Christian knowledge and miracles, as well as the most complete path toward godhood. If your goal is to enter Heaven and seize the supreme throne..."
Aiwass spoke in a voice that alternated between hoarse static and piercing clarity, like a malfunctioning radio, instructing Arata on how to step into the celestial phase and begin the path toward becoming a god.
The language was extremely obscure, incomprehensible unless one existed within the spiritual realm itself.
This posed a significant challenge for Arata. Aiwass had intended to communicate more directly through possession, but Arata's unique existence made such direct synchronization impossible.
...
"Genesis 3:28: 'He placed mankind within the Garden of Eden and declared, within this garden stands the Tree of Life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit. Before its gates stands the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, granting its blessings unto humanity.'"
"Genesis 3:29 states that four rivers, symbolizing mankind, flow through Eden, nourishing both the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge."
...
"Genesis chapter 4, verse 1: 'Within the life of man, through the completion of existence...'"
As Arata absorbed the cascading knowledge like a parched sponge, his consciousness began to blur. His breathing became irregular, and his heartbeat slowed to an unnatural rhythm.
Everything fell silent.
His consciousness detached completely from his physical body, arriving in an unknown dimension.
No ordinary language could accurately describe what he saw.
If one insisted on describing it, it would be like standing within the current of a vast river. Looking outward, four additional rivers descended from above, merging into the flow.
This was a phase, its scale impossible to measure. It did not follow the physical laws familiar to humanity. Instead, it operated under an entirely different system. Only spiritual existence was present here, with no material form.
"This is the phase... incredible." Arata observed his surroundings.
Countless lights drifted within the river around him. Each light represented a human being. The number of lights within the four tributaries corresponded to the number of humans in the world.
He himself was merely one among them.
At present, he existed only as pure consciousness. Void Star: Tai suu could not be activated within this place, creating the unsettling sensation that he had lost all of his power.
"This is the phase known as the Celestial Realm. You are currently within the river that flows into the world." Aiwass explained.
"The rules here are completely different. Let alone moving against the current toward Eden, I can't even control my gaze beyond simple awareness."
Only by gaining a deeper understanding of biblical systems could one move upstream toward the Garden of Eden.
As his consciousness drifted along the current, he caught sight of a seven-colored card at the distant source of the river, slowly radiating a prismatic glow.
"A unique special card."
After experiencing the celestial phase firsthand, Arata's consciousness gradually withdrew.
When he regained awareness, the hues of dusk had already spread across Academy City.
"Hoo..." Arata exhaled slowly. Subtle changes had taken place within his body. A faint stream of magical power now circulated through his blood vessels and nerves.
This time, not only had he successfully entered the celestial phase, he had also extracted a trace of magic power from it.
Magic, at its core, is simply the refined product of life force and energy, much like crude oil processed into fuel.
"Obtaining that position won't be easy." Arata recalled everything he had witnessed and began carefully formulating his plan.
Once he ascended that throne, he would become the God of this world, commanding thirty-three angels, two billion followers, and the entirety of Christian power.
...
After returning home, Arata had dinner with Index. Afterwards, he took out his phone and opened his contacts, scrolling until he found Saten Ruiko's information.
Tomorrow, he would invite Saten Ruiko to participate in the development of a new type of esper ability.
...
"Uiharu, you look so gloomy lately. Let me cheer you up."
Saten Ruiko, who was having dinner with her friend Uiharu Kazari at a buffet restaurant, spoke in a bright and lively tone.
"Did you discover another urban legend?" Uiharu Kazari blinked as she asked, though her brows remained slightly furrowed, followed by a soft sigh.
"I'm really not in the mood right now."
Recently, for reasons unknown, a large number of espers had begun violating regulations, engaging in fights and violent incidents. Judgment Branch 177 was overwhelmed with work, and there had even been cases such as bank robberies.
Shirai Kuroko had been injured multiple times during enforcement duties and was currently hospitalized. What exactly had happened?
"Don't worry too much about Shirai-san. The doctor said her injuries are not serious." Saten Ruiko scratched her head as she tried to comfort her, though she was clearly worried as well.
"Hey, maybe I actually know why there have been so many crimes involving espers recently." Saten Ruiko said in a mysterious tone.
"Huh? You have a lead?" Uiharu Kazari asked in surprise.
...
"You've been too busy lately to check the Academy City forums. There are tons of posts like this." Saten Ruiko said, opening the forum on her phone and showing a specific thread.
"'Level Upper'? A tool that enhances esper abilities?" Uiharu leaned in to read, then shook her head with a sigh.
"That can't be real. There shouldn't be any tool capable of increasing ability levels. It has to be an urban legend. If something like that really existed, schools wouldn't need so many development courses."
"Hehe, even if you say that, what if it's true? Otherwise, how do you explain the recent surge in crimes? Didn't you mention that many of those offenders were originally low-level espers?" Saten Ruiko said with a complicated smile, her eyes carrying both hope and quiet sadness.
Even if she knew such rumors were unreliable, she still wished it were real. Maybe then she could finally become an esper.
"That's probably just people getting arrogant after gaining power." Uiharu replied. Cases like that had happened many times before.
"Well, I wouldn't really know anyway. I'm just a Level 0." Saten Ruiko said lightly, scratching her hair.
But deep inside, she felt a strong sense of disappointment and inferiority.
In the end, those with abilities and those without live in entirely different worlds, never truly intersecting.
They had come to Academy City filled with hope for their abilities, only to have those hopes gradually crushed by reality.
...
Re@d adv@nce ch@pters on p@t
guilt_free_daoist
Jo!n d!sc0rd I!nk in synops!s.
GIVE ME YOU POWER STONES.