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SAINTESS [Chapter 76: Flashing Stars]
🕑 Added 2025-10-27 12:45:01 +0000 UTC“Magic Tool may lack sentience, but at least they won't reject you. In a sense, to those petty thieves, Magic Tool rank weapons are the most valuable, after all, only Magic Tool rank and lower weapons can actually be stolen,” said the elder.
“Ah, so the conditions for using Divine Weapons are this strict? That's unfair! Just look at me, talented, handsome, graceful beyond compare, yet not a single Divine Weapon deigns to acknowledge me??” Winnie, long rejected by Divine Weapons, lamented bitterly.
He used to think his fate was unshakable, that such fortune alone should guarantee at least one Divine Weapon would choose him. But in the end...
Reality proved not everyone was a destined heroine. Many geniuses and prodigies lived their entire lives without ever earning the recognition of a Divine Weapon. Unlike that, who could simply be walking outside when the Hero's Holy Sword suddenly flew to her and pledged allegiance on its own.
“You think this is some kind of dating event? Enough with boasting about your utterly average looks,” the elder scoffed. “If you find the requirements for Divine Weapons too high, but still want to wield one, it's not impossible. But, well...”
“But??”
“But that kind of Divine Weapon, while usable by anyone, demands an extremely steep price from its user,” the elder explained. “If I recall correctly, there's a low-rank Divine Weapon called [Bloodied Debt] that anyone can use. The catch is, the user must pay an enormous price. Once bound to the weapon, the user must offer it a mountain-sized mound of flesh each month, freshly deceased sentient beings' flesh, no less.”
“If the user fails to provide such an offering, the weapon will take its due from the user's own body.”
“[Bloodied Debt]??” Winnie instinctively felt the name sounded familiar, as if he'd heard it somewhere before.
“Correct. It's said that according to its power, [Bloodied Debt] shouldn't rank merely as a low-rank Divine Weapon. Its destructive force rivals mid- or even high-rank Divine Weapons. But due solely to its terrifying side effects and extreme danger to humanity, it's classified as low-rank, a weapon so perilous it's banned outright by every nation.”
"From my earlier description, you should already understand that no matter how noble the user's intentions, their fate is sealed. The moment one grasps this Divine Weapon and awakens it, the weapon compels them to create slaughter and chaos. Ultimately, users descend into madness from endless killing, and, burdened by countless blood debts, are hunted down and destroyed by every nation."
“Just like the weapon's name, [Bloodied Debt], the user accumulates karma until crushed by their own sins, walking inevitably to death,” the elder said somberly.
“Old sir, have you ever seen that Divine Weapon?” Winnie asked.
“Never. But its image appears in many Divine Weapon catalogs. Novice Artificers learn about its dangers in their very first lesson as a cautionary tale. You don't know this?” the elder said flatly.
“So is it me using the weapon, or is the weapon using me??” Winnie complained. “Which one of us is the master here??”
“That's exactly the key point. Normal Divine Weapons have strict requirements, but once they acknowledge someone, that person becomes the true master. Weapons like [Bloodied Debt], with no principles, can be used by anyone, but the master isn't you. It's the weapon. From the moment you grasp it, it becomes your master.”
“[Bloodied Debt]... Wait! The [Bloodied Debt] you're describing, isn't it shaped like a giant sword, with the hilt covered in vein-like structures resembling living flesh, and the blade itself sprouting large, blood-colored, thorn-like protrusions that look like living organisms? Can't those thorns absorb living flesh??” Winnie murmured to himself, then suddenly blurted out.
“What? So you've seen the illustration of [Bloodied Debt] after all? Then why pretend you didn't know??” The elder gave Winnie an amused glance, then suddenly sensed something amiss.
This kid... he's describing it too accurately.
As if he'd seen the real thing.
“Wait, boy, how do you know such precise details??” The elder's expression instantly turned serious.
“No, I…” Winnie rubbed his head, looking rather bewildered.
Right. How did he know?
Well, it wasn't strange in itself.
Because, if he wasn't mistaken, that Divine Weapon named [Bloodied Debt] was exactly the weapon wielded by Winnie in his previous life, that was, in the game.
In the original story, Winnie used this wicked Divine Weapon to slaughter countless foes. Combined with his innate talent and compatible attributes, he was perfectly suited to [Bloodied Debt], to the point where even the fated heroines were defeated by him.
Logically, he shouldn't know about this weapon, he wasn't that familiar with the original work. He only knew that in the original story, Winnie was a villain who grew increasingly deranged and violent, eventually killing the fated heroine. But it was all meaningless.
Foolish, wasn't it? She was the world's chosen protagonist, blessed by fate, capable of reincarnation. After rebirth, she eliminated him, the predestined major antagonist, and used the experience to deepen her bond with his childhood friend, stealing her away right before his eyes. Killing him wasn't enough; she had to crush his heart too.
But why?
Why did he suddenly recall this weapon? He clearly shouldn't even know [Bloodied Debt] existed.
“I... saw it. These are just guesses,” Winnie could only say that. He couldn't very well tell the elder, “In my previous life, I used this weapon,” could he?
Never mind what the elder would think of him, he'd certainly be labeled insane.
“Previous life? Did you eat some hallucinogenic mushrooms or did the Soup of Forgetfulness fail to kill your memories? Haven't woken up yet, spouting nonsense like this??”
Even if the elder believed him, getting involved in such matters could only bring trouble.
“Really??” The elder, hearing this, remains half-convinced. Looking at Winnie's expression, he spoke earnestly, “Child, you're still young. I've heard you've already reached the Warlock realm as a first-year. Frankly, geniuses are rare, but they break easily. I hope you'll remain steadfast.”
“My earlier words were mostly jokes, but if you have seen [Bloodied Debt], run as far away as you can, then report it to the academy authorities and let them handle it. Don't do anything foolish, understand??”
“I understand,” Winnie nodded. “Don't worry, old sir. I value my life, I fear death. All I desire is a peaceful, wealthy life. I won't do anything that stupid.”
“I hope so.”
“Then, old sir, if this Divine Weapon is so dangerous, why don't the nations, after eliminating its users, simply seal it away??” Winnie asked.
“Do you think the human kingdoms haven't tried? [Bloodied Debt] is far more cunning than its users. It possesses high intelligence. The moment it senses danger, or when its user nears death and loses value, it flees on its own.”
“Whoa, it's that slick??” Winnie couldn't help exclaiming.
“Otherwise, why do you think it's called one of the most dangerous evil Divine Weapons??”
“You mean there are others equally dangerous??”
“Hard to say, but there certainly are. Whether anyone has seen them, or if they even exist in records, that's unknown.”
“Alright, so basically, I have no hope of obtaining a Divine Weapon, right?” Winnie looked toward the floating golden paintings, gold indicating weapons of [Magic Tool] rank and above.
“How naive. Go ask the seniors at Carillian Academy, how many of them possess Divine Weapons? You'd be lucky to count them on one hand,” the elder sneered at Winnie's presumptuous thinking. “Most don't even have a [Magic Tool] weapon. Just consider, how many Divine Weapons exist in the world today? If every genius could just get one, Divine Weapons would be worthless.”
True. If Winnie remembered correctly, Hero Holy Sword was a Divine Weapon, but it was special, it wasn't an ordinary Divine Weapon. It was an upgradeable Divine Weapon. By slaying demons, monsters, and creatures from the Demon God realm, it could continuously evolve, eventually reaching the pinnacle Legendary rank.
At that thought, Winnie realized something.
“Old sir, by the way, does this [Gallary Tower] house any Legendary-rank weapons?” Winnie asked.
“Why suddenly ask that?” The elder's expression turned odd. “That kind of thing is beyond your reach. Don't even dream about it.”
“Just curious. Can't you indulge my curiosity?”
“If you insist on knowing whether one exists, then yes, there is exactly one.”
“Ah? Only one?” Winnie sounded disappointed. “They say this place gathers treasures from the ancient Carillian Empire era, and yet only one Legendary weapon??”
“You think Legendary weapons are common street rats? These are divine artifacts one is fortunate to see even once in three lifetimes, they exist only in legends. Otherwise, why call them 'Legendary'?” The elder said. “Legendary weapons can distort certain laws of reality. In recorded history, the number of known Legendary weapons can be counted on two hands.”
“Unfortunately, most exist only in ancient records. Many Legendary weapons are now lost, their whereabouts unknown.”
Not necessarily unknown.
Winnie knew that, for certain reasons, many Legendary weapons had changed their forms. For example, the Hero Holy Sword was a degraded version of the ancient Legendary weapon [Sword of the Sage's Perfection], completely transformed so no one recognized it anymore.
After trying over a dozen more, Winnie found nothing. Not a single Divine Weapon acknowledged him.
This left him feeling rather insecure. He now carried a distinct sense of defeat.
“Old sir, what's that key? Is that also a Divine Weapon??” Winnie pointed at a painting depicting a gem-encrusted golden key.
“That's also a Divine Weapon, but a strange one. It's said to be a key capable of opening any door. Whether that's true, however, no one knows.”
"Kid, you've nearly examined all the Divine Weapons here. Not a single one has chosen you as its master. I doubt it'll happen at this point. Be practical, just pick a high-rank [Magic Tool] and leave. It's still enchanted, and getting a high-rank [Magic Tool] isn't bad. It'll greatly boost your combat power," the elder said.
“Do I not know that??” Winnie rolled his eyes.
High-rank [Magic Tool]s were indeed powerful and offered significant improvement. Nothing else needed to be said, the [Frost Fang] in his hand had given him tremendous help, summoning ice dragons to save him multiple times during both the Entrance Trial and the Mars dungeon.
But now, high-rank [Magic Tool] no longer satisfied him.
Winnie looked around restlessly, suddenly wearing a strange expression. He rubbed his eyes. “Old sir, do you have light bulbs installed in this tower??”
“What are you talking about? With this much light, why would we need magic lamps??” The elder followed Winnie's gaze, seeing only a few floating paintings. “Where's the light? There are only paintings there, nothing else. You must be mistaken.”
“Ah? You don't see it?” Winnie pointed directly ahead. “But there's a shining object right there! It's so obvious.”
“There's nothing there, no shining object. What are you talking about, kid??” The elder wore a baffled expression.
“Move closer to that spot, I think I'm seeing it!” Winnie urged quickly.
The elder said nothing, unsure what Winnie meant, but complied.
Then, as he approached, Winnie suddenly felt the star-like object rapidly enlarging in his vision.
What's happening?!
Winnie froze, only realizing too late, not the object had grown, but it had flew toward him at incredible speed and struck his forehead.
Winnie's vision went black, perfectly demonstrating the vitality of youth, immediately collapsing into unconsciousness.
Before he blacked out, the elder was calling his name, but he didn't hear it. The sounds around his ears were instead drowned out by a distinctly childish female voice, like that of a little girl.
"Strange? Why is it a boy? But I clearly sensed the aura of the heir. What's going on??"
Comments
Caterpillar
One theory I have for why Winnie recognizes [Bloodied Debt] is that before Winnie's life on earth, he was Winnie from the original timeline. This might also explain Saint Selena's remark that Vanessa "even spent some time in another dimension."
Vesle Triumphant
Dang winnie. Even the rewards are hard. Beating you up mentally and physically.
