Chapter 163: The Power of the Deity's Gift
In the capital, inside the Lannisters' confinement room.
Kean knelt in the center of the room, surrounded by nine different oil paintings. Each of these paintings depicted an incomprehensible scene.
"I've made all the preparations. The ritual can begin at any moment." Kean murmured to himself.
With his words, a cold wind swept through the room.
This gust of wind blew one of the oil paintings directly in front of Kean.
Kean buried his face into the painting without hesitation.
Immediately, a violent blue flash erupted throughout the room, distorting everything within it.
The remaining eight paintings around Kean all turned blank simultaneously.
The only painting that remained unchanged was the one firmly adhered to Kean's face.
At that moment, Kean felt waves of information merging into his mind.
As more and more information flooded his brain, he felt it could no longer contain it all. His mind was on the verge of exploding from the overload.
"When will this ritual end? I can't hold on much longer. Even with items that enhance my mental resistance, I can't withstand this terrifying influx of information." he thought.
Although Kean was uncertain about the specifics of the information flooding into his mind, he had previously battled similar creatures.
Kean possessed a certain degree of understanding regarding the insidious nature of information infiltration.
Kean certainly did not wish to experience irreversible information erosion as a result of the ritual before he had obtained the divine power bestowed by the deity.
If a human were to encounter severe information erosion, they would gradually be transformed into a monster.
"Don't worry! I can ensure your safety. You are a very powerful awakened one, so don't be too afraid." an old and raspy voice echoed from the mirror in front of Kean.
"It's not you experiencing the information erosion right now. If you were in my place, you wouldn't have lasted this long." Kean retorted, knowing full well his words wouldn't change the other's decision.
However, Kean was compelled to engage in conversation with the other party, for it was only through this means that he could maintain his own lucidity.
"I will continue to talk to you because ensuring your clarity is crucial for me too. If you can't withstand the power during the process of receiving the deity's gift, you will be killed by it."
"And all my previous arrangements would fail completely. So you must succeed."
The old and raspy voice emanated from the mirror once more.
However, this time, Kean did not offer any response. The excruciating pain he was enduring rendered him incapable of uttering a single word.
Kean felt a slight pang of regret at that moment. stay updated with m,v,l,e,m p _y,r
He thought he shouldn't have agreed to the proposal of that mysterious collaborator. The ritual they provided seemed highly likely to go wrong from the start.
As these thoughts raced through Kean's mind, a strange and divine voice suddenly echoed within his consciousness.
"What blessing do you seek from me? What do you intend to do with the power I bestow upon you?"
The moment Kean heard this voice, the intense pain he had been experiencing vanished entirely.
Not only was he free from any torment now, but he also felt his mind had become significantly clearer than before.
"I wish to receive a blessing from you that will allow me to defeat my adversary! Whatever form the blessing takes, I am willing to accept it, as long as it enables me to triumph over my enemy!"
Kean responded to the divine voice's question without a moment's hesitation.
"Tell me your enemy's name, and I will decide whether to grant you the corresponding blessing." the divine voice neither agreed immediately nor outright refused Kean.
"The name of my nemesis is none other than Jeremy!"
The instant Kean uttered the name Jeremy, he was overwhelmed by an immense fear, as if some immensely powerful entity had fixed its gaze upon him.
"Repeat your enemy's name once more." the divine voice reappeared, but this time with a hint of urgency in its tone.
"The name of my nemesis is none other than Jeremy!"
Naturally, Kean would not lie. He knew that lying at this moment would certainly cause the other party to abort the entire ritual.
Kean once again uttered the name of Jeremy.
The divine voice fell silent for a long while before finally deciding to bestow the corresponding power upon Kean.
"I can grant you immense power, but you must promise me one thing."
The divine voice spoke once more, this time with a tone significantly more solemn than before.
"What do you wish for me to promise you? As long as it is within my power, I will surely do it. Provided, of course, that you bestow upon me a power strong enough."
"The task I require of you is quite simple. You need only travel to the instance within the river on the eastern outskirts of the capital. I need you to take the power I bestow upon you to that location."
Kean agreed without a moment's hesitation.
"I can take your bestowed power to that place!"
Although Kean was unsure of the exact instance mentioned on the eastern outskirts of the capital, he knew that the instances around the capital were generally not very dangerous.
The capital's surrounding difficult and perilous instances had long been cleared out by the federal army.
"Very well, I shall now grant you immense power!"
With the divine voice's declaration, Kean felt his body being reshaped by an overwhelming force. He noticed that all of his physical attributes were significantly enhanced.
More importantly, he suddenly realized he could perceive the entirety of this world's essence.
Everything within Kean's line of sight was transformed into a stream of data comprehensible to him. By mastering this data stream, Kean could swiftly ascertain all information about whatever he observed.
This ability would be immensely useful, whether in battle or in ordinary activities.
In combat, Kean could directly see his opponent's data stream. Consequently, he could identify their weaknesses and possibly even predict their next moves.
In everyday actions, Kean could use the data stream to uncover missed information and locate critical clues that would be difficult to find through normal means.
"You have now been granted immense power, the next step is to fulfill your promise." the divine voice concluded. Immediately after, Kean's consciousness returned to the room.
The room Kean found himself in was now in complete disarray.
The nine oil paintings surrounding Kean had all turned blank.
"Did the ritual succeed? Did you receive the bestowed power? From which great entity did you obtain this power?"
The elderly and raspy voice from the mirror urgently questioned Kean.
Kean stood up slowly and confidently declared, "I have received the bestowed power. All my attributes have been significantly enhanced. More importantly, I have gained the ability to see data streams."
"With this special ability, I can easily defeat Jeremy! I can quickly identify his every weakness."
Kean's response left the person in the mirror utterly astonished.
"You've actually received such immense power? Is that great entity truly willing to bestow so much power upon you?"
Faced with the other's skepticism, Kean felt a tinge of confusion.
For in Kean's view, the ritual had clearly been provided by the person in the mirror. How could they possibly be unaware of what would happen upon its successful completion?
"This ritual was given to me by you. How could you possibly not know what the outcome would be?!"
Confronted by Kean's interrogation, the person in the mirror could only reveal the truth with a sense of helplessness.
"The ritual I provided you wasn't actually known to me. It was given to me by someone else. When I performed the ritual, I didn't receive the legendary bestowed power."
"The reason I passed the ritual on to you is that you had no other options left. I genuinely didn't expect you to complete the ritual so effortlessly and receive such powerful bestowal."
Upon hearing this, Kean was truly furious.
Kean felt that the other person had treated him like a mere lab rat for an experiment.
However, the situation was not entirely dire for Kean. Although the assistance given was somewhat ill-intentioned, the ritual ultimately succeeded beyond his expectations.
Even though he remained unsure of which great entity's divine voice he had heard during the ritual, he had nonetheless obtained the power he desired.
"Since the ritual has succeeded, I won't dwell on your deception. Now, the only thing I hope for is your cooperation in my forthcoming endeavors."
Kean was resolute, he must use his newly bestowed power to eliminate Jeremy. Therefore, he needed as many allies as possible to ensure the success of his mission.
Although Kean was still a young master of the Lannisters, the events that had transpired left him unable to wield the family's power as he once did.
Thus, Kean could not afford to lose any potential allies now.