Apotheosis

If the power of the hammer hadn't been evenly spread throughout Zen's body, it would've probably split him into two.

But this power wasn't meant to take Zen's life.

At this moment, Holy Drew's sole eye narrowed in intense concentration. There was a trace of crazy absorption in his orb.

From his perspective, Zen was no longer a living person — he was a weapon waiting to be forged.

After turning into a Holy Being, Holy Drew's refining skill had already reached its peak.

The skills of weapon refiners naturally varied greatly from each other, depending on the degree of control over their strength.

No ores nor any other substance could withstand the refinement of preternatural flames regardless of their solidity. For instance, the Magic Golden Stone was a good kind of material for divine weapons because of its tenacity. But after being heated by some special types of flames, the ores' properties could change, turning delicate and fragile. Possibly, a whole piece of the Magic Golden Stone could be rendered useless if the refinement was even slightly more powerful.

Therefore, weapon refiners' skills were extremely important here.

The grading standards for a weapon refiner's skill in the divine land were mainly based on half-consummation and full-consummation. Half consummation was when the refiner's power could spread evenly throughout the material — it was relatively easy to grasp. Most practiced weapon refiners in the divine land had already reached this level of skill.

But those who could do full-consummation were rare in the divine land.

The skills of full-consummation required not only a precise control over their strength but also the ability to keep a certain level of strength.

The three strikes Holy Drew had launched with his hammer had almost shaken the entire Divine Refinement Forbidden Land.

If someone else had used the same level of strength, they'd have probably smashed a huge hole, thousands of miles deep. But Holy Drew had the skill.

Because the power of his strike was evenly distributed throughout the entire ground of the Divine Refinement Forbidden Land, Holy Drew's strikes were precise.

The skill he used was excellent enough to be evaluated as full-consummation. Although the strike was truly powerful, Zen's body could easily withstand it when it was evenly spread.

But to Zen, it was like a pot of boiling lava was being poured into his body.

The burning feeling didn't come from the burning of the green flame but from the primordial energy inside his body.

Arms, legs, belly, heart, brain…

Form every pore, every vein, and every crack in his bones, a massive amount of primordial energy surged ceaselessly.

His body was like a dam that had its gates opened. The great amount of primordial energy began rushing within his body at an unprecedented speed.

Sm

r five times — it was just getting started.

After Zen had absorbed the liquid completely, Holy Drew brandished the golden hammer in his hand and struck the ground next to Zen with it. Once again, Zen bounced up from the ground because of the impact.

Thump!

He couldn't help but let out a muffled grunt.

Before he could even react, the primordial energy began flooding within his body like a torrent, flowing wildly through his limbs and bones.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Holy Drew's strikes were consecutive.

And Zen, who had managed to slim down for a short while, grew swollen and fat once again.

The pain he was experiencing was far beyond most people's imagination. But no matter how much he suffered, it still couldn't compare to the pain Zen felt when he had been practicing the Primal Chaos Technique — that was both physical and mental strain. At least his current pains only affected his body.

Splash!

Once again, Holy Drew pulled out the wine jug and poured the mysterious liquid onto Zen's body, triggering the rise of heavy white mist.

As the refining process continued, Holy Drew gradually increased his number of strikes for every set.

At first, it was five consecutive strikes a set. After three of those, he added another, and then another after three more sets.

Time passed slowly for Zen as the refinement continued.

The crowd outside the cave had been waiting for a long while. On the other side, Rocher and Holy Jay stood together in silence as they watched Zen undergo his painful training.

"I think Zen is suffering too much… how long must the torture last?" Rocher asked.

Rather flatly, Holy Jay replied, "Anyone who wants to achieve great things must withstand the pains that ordinary people cannot."

All the Holy Beings in the divine land had experienced such pain and suffering — Holy Jay believed that Zen had to go through the same.