BXBX NOVEL Chapter 27: They Can Only Die
[Your Invisible Providence avatar absorbed all of the explosion's damage, leaving you unharmed.]
[However, the force of the shockwave sent you flying backward. You quickly regained your footing, using the purple-colored tentacles like a spider uses its legs.]
[As for Viktor, he didn't survive the explosion. His body was obliterated, leaving nothing but ashes.]
[You barely gave Viktor's death a second thought; he was just a tool, and he had served his purpose. There was no sense in mourning his loss.]
[After regaining your footing, your body seemed to levitate in the air as your invisible tentacles extended from your body, lifting you above the ground.]
[Gazing down at the Bandana Gang's base from above, you muttered, "The intel was wrong. That explosion bastard who killed me in previous simulations is here."]
["Including him and the other avatar masters in the Bandana Gang, there are four avatar masters in total. Even though I'm confident in my power, it's better to retreat for now and absorb the three avatar crystals I already have."]
[Despite disliking the idea of fleeing from a fight, you knew better than to waste your life in this god simulation.]
[If you died now, even if you inherited your power back to the real world, you would only bring back the Invisible Providence avatar that had absorbed three avatar crystals.]
[Just as you were about to retreat, metal scraps suddenly transformed into sharp blades and shot toward you!]
[You snorted, not even bothering to dodge. Your purple tentacles easily swatted the blades away, sending them hurtling back toward the Bandana Gang's base.]
["Heh, if I want to leave, no one can stop me," you sneered, activating both invisibility and presence concealment.]
[With the combination of invisibility and presence concealment, you became undetectable to anyone unless they had rule-type abilities.]
[Under the shocked gazes of the Bandana Gang's leader and members, your floating figure vanished from sight.]
[No matter how hard they searched, they couldn't find a trace of you.]
[Even the ground where your tentacles had touched left no evidence. Your control over your tentacles was already exceptional, and the power boost from absorbing the avatar crystals had only enhanced that ability.]
[After a minute of fleeing at full speed, you arrived and discreetly checked in at a different hotel.]
[You chose not to return to your previous hotel, opting for a new location to avoid any possible retaliation from the Bandana Gang while you absorbed the avatar crystals.]
[Once in your hotel room, you immediately retrieved the three avatar crystals from your space storage.]
[Without hesitation, you began absorbing the crystals, one by one, taking care not to rush the process.]
[Several minutes later, you had successfully absorbed all three crystals.]
["My power has grown. With six avatar crystals absorbed by Invisible Providence, I can feel that if I absorb just one more, it will likely awaken a new ability."]
[The intoxicating rush of gaining more power was undeniable, but you remained cautious, refusing to let it cloud your judgment.]
[There were powerful avatar masters like the Death Envoy and the Hellhound on the surface of the Avatar World, but it was likely that even more formidable figures were lurking in the shadows.]
[Furthermore, even as your power grew, the looming threat of the Outer God's invasion still hung over the Avatar World.]
[While the Avatar World wasn't as devastated as Terra, and the World God of the Avatar World was actively defending it, there was no telling just how powerful the Outer God might be.]
[The Avatar World could face the same fate as Terra if the Outer God managed to slay the World God.]
[Or even worse, the possibility that the World God could betray the world and join forces with the Outer God. In such a scenario, the world's protective mechanism—the World Will—might not be enough to safeguard the inhabitants if it had to face the World God.]
['No matter what happens, even if I manage to ascend to godhood in the Avatar World, I must not let power corrupt me. I should wield power, not be consumed by it.']
['And now that I think about it, the rebellion of the avatars during the absorption of avatar crystals seemed like some sort of trial. It's a test to see if an avatar master can maintain control over their avatar, no matter how powerful it becomes, and resist the temptation to let power cloud their judgment.']
['Or maybe I'm just overthinking it. Either way, I can't afford to let power corrupt me.' With these thoughts in mind, you left the hotel room.]
[You headed back to the Bandana Gang's base, bolstered by your newfound power. Before, you had only absorbed three avatar crystals, but now you had absorbed six.]
[No matter how powerful that explosion bastard or the Bandana Gang might be, they shouldn't stand a chance against you now that you've absorbed six avatar crystals.]
[As an avatar master who had absorbed six avatar crystals, you understood just how perilous the process was. Even if other avatar masters dared to attempt it, not all would succeed—only a rare few could survive and harness the power.]
[You arrived at the Bandana Gang's base with renewed confidence. However, you didn't let your guard down.]
[Secretly, you released six hundred invisible purple tentacles, spreading them throughout the entire base.]
[The Bandana Gang's base was nearly engulfed by your tentacles, but the gang leader and gangsters remained oblivious to the danger that surrounded them.]
[Once you were certain that the entire Bandana Gang's base was fully covered by your tentacles, you considered your next move. "To be honest, I don't need the Bandana Gang to swear allegiance to me. And I don't need them to be alive to collect the avatar crystal from them. So…"]
["They can only die."]
[With just a single thought, the invisible purple tentacles constricted around the Bandana Gang's base, crushing it along with the gang leader and all the gangsters inside!]