What is magic?
The Six Great Gods once gave their own answer to that question.
Magic is a technique that uses magical power to bring about changes in the world.
Three key elements are required.
The first is the "magic power" needed to cause the change.
The second is the "spell structure" that gives direction to that change.
The third is the "certainty" that one can cause the change and control it.
That is the essence of magic.
As for gods, that represents an evolution in the very level of existence.
In the eyes of the Six Great Gods, players like themselves were special.
Unlike the magic casters of this world, they did not need to consciously manipulate magic power or construct complicated magic circles.
They only needed to form the idea in their minds.
Once that thought appeared, the magic power within their bodies would begin to move on its own, and the desired spell would be released.
The feeling was very strange.
In some sense, it even matched one of the essential qualities of a god.
If you think it, it happens.
Because of this, the Six Great Gods arrived at a bold hypothesis.
Every player actually had the qualifications to become a god.
What they lacked was merely an opportunity.
An opportunity to break past the level one hundred limit and step into the domain of gods.
"So in the end, you chose the power of faith as the breakthrough?"
Naohara rested his chin on his hand as he spoke, his eyes deep in thought.
The explanation sounded fairly credible and the logic was coherent.
Even he could not find any obvious flaws in it.
"Yes and no."
Facing the question, Surshana nodded, then shook his head.
Under Naohara's slightly puzzled gaze, he continued.
"We tried many different methods back then and eventually narrowed it down to two possibilities."
"The first was the power of faith I just mentioned."
"The second was… World-Class Items."
Hearing this, Naohara's hand stopped mid-motion while he was petting the cat.
"You mean… World-Class Items can turn players into gods?"
Dark golden dragon pupils fixed firmly on the figure before him.
Scales began to grow across his body, and more and more draconic traits appeared.
A terrifying dragon's pressure began spreading uncontrollably.
The small female cat that had been lying on his lap instantly puffed up her fur.
She trembled and curled into a tight ball.
"Calm down, my friend."
Surshana spoke quickly, unable to hide his own surprise.
He had expected some reaction once the truth was revealed.
But it seemed he had underestimated the fellow player standing before him.
Even though he had never seen him fight, the aura just now was enough to tell.
Very strong.
So strong that it almost felt excessive.
And this was supposed to be a player who had only recently arrived in this world.
How could that be?
'It seems the original plan will need a few adjustments.'
While calming Naohara, Surshana thought silently to himself.
"My apologies. I got a little excited."
On the other side, Naohara also forced himself to calm down.
Looking at the Six Great Gods in front of him, he wondered whether his performance had fooled them this time.
It was true that his emotions had fluctuated just now.
But not to that extent.
After all, a little thought made things clear.
Perhaps World-Class Items really could help players become gods.
But there were definitely hidden conditions behind it.
The five phantom figures in front of him were the best proof.
That earlier display had been deliberately staged.
He simply wanted to mislead the Six Great Gods about what kind of person he was.
If there was one thing giving him a headache, it was that he apparently had to start thinking again.
"Don't worry about it."
"If it were me, I'd probably have reacted the same way."
Once things had settled down, Surshana waved his hand and spoke with a faint smile.
"Now then, let's return to the starting point."
"As for the idea I mentioned earlier about becoming a god through a World-Class Item, you can actually see the result in the condition of my companions."
His skeletal finger pointed to the five silent phantoms beside him.
The meaning was obvious.
"The prerequisite for this method is almost impossible to fulfill."
At this point, Surshana let out a sigh.
The process of becoming a god through a World-Class Item was actually quite simple.
The first step was to destroy the outer shell of the World-Class Item.
But that was impossible.
World-Class Items themselves possessed the property of being indestructible.
If a World-Class Item represented the domain of the gods, then they were merely powerful mortals.
How could mortals destroy something created by the gods?
Unless they possessed power on the same level as a World-Class Item.
For example, [Wild Magic].
If they could wield that power, there might be a slim chance.
But since it was magic exclusive to the Dragon Race, they, as Players, couldn't learn it.
Which made the situation rather awkward.
Theoretically possible, yet practically impossible.
That was Surshana's conclusion.
"So we abandoned the idea of using World-Class Items and instead chose to pursue godhood through the Power of Faith."
"A sufficiently concentrated Power of Faith can produce effects comparable to a World-Class Item, but…"
"But you still failed."
Naohara picked up the thread.
"…Yes."
Surshana nodded.
He raised his skeletal hand, and two clusters of energy appeared in his palm.
One was magic power.
The other was the Power of Faith.
"If you only fuse with the Power of Faith temporarily, it grants a short-term enhancement, essentially a powerful buff."
"In that state, the Power of Faith can strengthen attack and defense, while also increasing the range of Martial Arts attacks and perception."
"But if you choose complete fusion, the two will merge into an entirely new form of magic."
"This special magic created by combining the Power of Faith with one's own magic can dramatically enhance the power of spells, attributes, and resistances."
"And that is the path toward becoming a god."
With a thought from Surshana, the two clusters of energy in his palm began to approach each other, gradually merging into one.
"Very unusual, and very powerful."
After sensing it carefully, Naohara could not help but remark.
This fused magic power was no weaker than the Catastrophe Power inside his own body.
The Six Great Gods had not lied.
This power truly could rival a World-Class Item.
"After discovering this, one of my companions conducted an experiment. The results were perfect. There were no negative side effects at all."
"After observing the results for several years and confirming everything was stable, combined with the gradual aging of our bodies, my companions began fusing with the Power of Faith one after another."
Surshana slowly recounted what had happened back then.
In order to achieve godhood, the Six Great Gods aggressively spread their faith.
Humans across the entire continent sang praises of their names.
Except for the God of Death, the other five all staged their deaths and disappeared into the shadows, focusing entirely on fusing with the Power of Faith.
But as time passed, the ratio of magic power to the Power of Faith within them began to change.
From [5:5] to [4:6], then to [3:7].
The balance was broken.
The Power of Faith gradually took the dominant position and began influencing their wills.
By the time they noticed, it was already too late.
To their horror, they discovered they were slowly losing themselves.
The perceptions of their believers were gradually reshaping how they understood their own identities.
The entire process happened silently.
If it had not been for a coincidence where one of them touched a World-Class Item and triggered the passive skill [World's Blessing], they might have fallen completely without realizing it, losing themselves and becoming the image their believers envisioned.
After learning this, the Six Great Gods fell into unprecedented panic.
Even the God of Death's desperate attempts to stop them proved useless.
Among the five who were nearly driven mad, someone even suggested killing all the believers to cut off the source of faith.
But that would mean destroying the Theocracy they had painstakingly built with their own hands.
It would mean wiping out every human who believed in them.
Even their own descendants.
Was that really possible?
The Six Great Gods hesitated.
Their descendants were the strongest chains.
Even as Players, they were no exception.
But before they could reach a decision, more terrible news arrived.
While wearing World-Class Items, under the passive effect of [World's Blessing], the Power of Faith could not be absorbed. It was completely rejected.
[Explanation: The influence of the Power of Faith on the Six Great Gods' will is a continuous effect, so it is blocked by World-Class Items.]
But when they stopped absorbing the Power of Faith for an extended period, their bodies began to collapse and dissipate.
Only then did they realize the truth.
Everything had already become irreversible.
They had been completely assimilated by the Power of Faith.
They could not escape it.
They could only continue existing by relying on it.
Otherwise, they would die.
[World's Blessing] was a passive skill and could not be controlled.
If they wanted to absorb the Power of Faith, they would have to remove the World-Class Item.
But doing so would once again allow the Power of Faith to erode their minds.
The situation had reached a complete deadlock.
In the end, the God of Death stepped forward and proposed a harsh solution.
Coincidentally, the Eight Greed Kings had descended upon the New World.
The God of Death deliberately staged his own death at the hands of the Eight Greed Kings in order to carry out his plan.
Using himself as the central pivot, he successfully neutralized the crisis faced by the other five.
After that, the six of them remained hidden in the shadows.
While protecting the Slane Theocracy and maintaining the supply of faith, they silently watched the changes unfolding in the world.