CHAPTER 160: CHAPTER160-PRIMORDIAL CORE WEAPON

After stepping through the mithril gate,

Daniel was instantly startled by the scene that unfolded before him.

Before him lay an enormous pool, its vast basin filled with a dark emerald-green liquid.

Though the liquid’s hue was deep and ominous, its surface shimmered with an unnatural clarity—so pure it seemed to glow. From the pool drifted an unusual aroma, a strange scent that lingered in the air and tickled the senses in a way that defied explanation.

Daniel furrowed his brow, instinctively leaning forward to peer deeper into the pool.

What he saw made his skin crawl.

Inside the pool floated a grotesque assortment of severed limbs—massive and deformed appendages, haphazardly discarded like unwanted waste. They bobbed slightly in the viscous fluid, some half-submerged, others fully immersed.

Dozens of pipes extended from the pool, connected at varying points along its perimeter, as though the entire system was some kind of horrific circulatory network designed to process or preserve what lay within.

After a few moments of cautious observation, Daniel tore his gaze away and began surveying the chamber around him.

Yet even as he looked away, the disturbing image of the mutilated godly remains in the pool lingered in his mind.

The surrounding walls were lined with shelves, packed densely with glass containers. Each transparent vessel housed exotic materials, many of which Daniel could not even begin to identify.

According to the blueprints Daniel had previously acquired, these were the essential components required to create the so-called Primordial Core Weapon.

Among them, the most valuable were undoubtedly those godly remnants soaking in the green pool—fragments of divine entities, desecrated and repurposed.

After carefully inspecting every corner of the warehouse, Daniel’s eyes fell upon a large, circular steam-powered contraption near the entrance.

Without hesitation, he activated his skill: [Eye of Insight].

—

[Primordial Core Weapon]

[Creation of the Artist]

[Required Materials: Extracts A, B, C, D, E...]

[Current Status: Active]

[Trigger Conditions]:

If touched without authorization, it will detonate immediately.

If the City of the Artists comes under external attack and is deemed unable to resist, it will automatically detonate.

If the leader of the Artists sustains a fatal injury, detonation will occur.

[Effects]:

Upon detonation, the weapon unleashes catastrophic damage. It usurps the divine authority of a god, channeling that power through the remnants of a divine corpse, unleashing an attack akin to a god’s mightiest strike.

Detonation timing can be configured manually.

—

So this terrifying creation... was the Primordial Core Weapon?

Daniel’s expression darkened with severity.

These Artists were truly mad. To keep such a devastating weapon in a constantly armed state?

They clearly had no regard for consequence—or sanity.

If Daniel wanted to take this weapon with him, it wasn’t going to be easy.

But perhaps... not impossible either.

A plan began to form in his mind.

With steely resolve, Daniel activated his newly obtained God Rank Skill: [Gift of the Veiled Goddess].

The transformation was instantaneous.

His tall and striking appearance melted away, replaced by a stubby, gnome-like physique—grotesque, even pitiful in stature.

But this was no mere illusion.

Daniel didn’t just look like the leader of the Artists—he had become him in every conceivable way.

From his genetics, to his blood composition, even down to his soul signature—every detail was perfectly mimicked.

If the real Artist leader stood face-to-face with him right now, no one—not even the closest council members—would be able to distinguish between the two.

Of course, Daniel knew he couldn’t answer every question perfectly if interrogated too deeply.

Still, the transformation’s effectiveness was nothing short of godlike.

Taking a deep breath, Daniel placed his hand on the control console.

A clear, high-pitched beep rang out.

The console screen blinked.

Authorization: Verified.

Seeing that he now had full clearance, Daniel immediately initiated a command to extract the Primordial Core Weapon.

But just as he issued the command, something unexpected happened.

The console began initiating a full diagnostic on him.

—

[Genetic Analysis in Progress]

[Blood Composition Analysis in Progress]

[Biological Behavior Evaluation in Progress]

[Mind Power and Soul-State Analysis in Progress]

[Anatomical and Organ Distribution Scan in Progress]

—

Daniel froze. His heart sank.

What kind of lunatic builds such a strict verification system?

Whoever claimed the Artists were nothing but reckless maniacs... was dead wrong.

These weren’t lunatics—they were meticulous, paranoid masterminds.

In fact, Daniel now believed these creatures—the Artists—shouldn’t even exist in this world.

They were too dangerous.

Too thorough.

As his panic escalated, the final results appeared on the console.

—

[Congratulations, honorable Mr. Charlotte! All diagnostics successfully passed!]

[Proceeding to Phase Two: Notifying all members of the Council and requesting their approval.]

[If no objections are raised by any council member, you will be granted retrieval access to the Primordial Core Weapon.]

—

Daniel’s face twisted with displeasure.

This was going to be a problem.

Without wasting another second, he activated [Time Stream], another God Rank Skill.

Reality blurred.

The chamber shimmered, time folding around him.

When Daniel opened his eyes again, he had returned to the moment before he ever attempted the extraction.

Though the attempt had failed, it had yielded critical information.

First, he confirmed that so long as he used [Gift of the Veiled Goddess], he could bypass the initial authentication and access the control system freely—no need for passwords or external keys.

But the second phase—the council approval process—was a much larger obstacle.

Still, Daniel wasn’t discouraged.

He believed there were still paths forward.

He sat down and began sorting through his options.

Currently, he had a few possible strategies to resolve the situation:

Option One: Obtain the God Rank Skill [Thief’s Glove], ranked 86th on the God Rank Skill Compendium.

This skill would allow Daniel to alter the ownership permissions of any object, no matter how secure.

Even the Primordial Core Weapon wouldn’t be immune.

The problem?

Daniel didn’t have the necessary materials yet to synthesize the skill.

Option Two: Convince the council members of the Artist race to approve his request.

Admittedly, this sounded absurd.

But with the right setup—decoys, manipulation, and the unparalleled disguise of [Gift of the Veiled Goddess]—it wasn’t entirely out of the question.

It would be difficult, time-consuming, and risky... but not impossible.

Option Three: A far more radical approach: destroy the City of the Artists entirely.

If there were no council members left alive to object, then no objections could be filed.

But even Daniel knew this was mostly a fantasy.

He was powerful, yes—but not so powerful that he could eliminate every Artist in the city without anyone noticing.

Not unless... he used poison.

That thought struck him like a lightning bolt.

Yes. Poison.

A slow-acting toxin, distributed subtly across the city’s food, water, or air systems.

It might just be possible to eliminate every last council member in one silent, coordinated move.

Then, and only then, would the Primordial Core Weapon be his for the taking.

His mind made up, Daniel began preparing for the next stage.

He activated [Flashback], reappearing beside Charles.

"Daniel?" Charles blinked in surprise.

"You’re back again already?"

Daniel’s eyes gleamed with cold determination.

"Yes," he replied. "And this time, I’ve got a plan."