"Shin? Shin? Is that you?" Saint Geom's voice trembled as he called out that black-haired man's name. Although his exterior was that of Shin Iofiel… The power that was radiating out of him was completely different! It was as if he was staring into an abyss that had no end, not a thirty-something-year-old man.
"Saint Geom, are you going senile already? Can't you recognise my face?" Shin returned a playful smirk.
"But… But..." Saint Geom's pointed his finger at the man, afraid to make any wild guesses. The last time he saw Shin, he was still a newly promoted Spirit Venerate with less than a thousandth of the mana that he currently possessed. It wasn't an exaggeration to think that the Shin that stood before them wasn't the same Shin that they all knew and loved.
Fortunately for the eight Spirit Saints that didn't witness Shin's transformation, there was one who did. Saint Longyu Tian, the guard that escorted Guardian Sword into the Blue Payirci, levitated between Shin and the eight Spirit Saints, her face ashen and blue. Just like the other Spirit Saints, Longyu Tian didn't know what to feel when Shin suddenly advanced that quickly and jumped into the realm of the divine. What shocked her even more, was Shin's new ability to move all Guardian Sword members and teleport them into safety without her noticing.
"I understand your anxiety, Saint Geom. But that's really Shin." Saint Longyu Tian scratched her old wrinkles while she answered the Sword Saint. "I personally saw him breakthrough and attain that godly power… Also… As incredulous as it sounds... With that power, he killed the World Serpent with a single touch."
"A single touch, you say..." The Himmel Ancestor raised his brow. Among all of the Spirit Saints, he was the most powerful and experienced. However, even he was afraid of the unknown power that Shin boasted. The other Spirit Saints were also wary of Shin's intense presence, many of them were even in their combative stances, ready to pounce if Shin should attack them.
Who could blame them? They were already on edge with the Allfather trying to open Heaven's Gate right before their eyes. Now, there was a new unknown factor that came out of Shin? It wasn't unusual for them to think that it was another one of the Allfather's elaborate schemes.
Knowing that, Shin simply dropped his shoulders and sighed: "Trust me, when all of this is over, I'll explain everything to all of you, but for now..."
Shin looked at the thousand-odd members of the Alliance with a distinct frown. Many of them were injured, some of them mortally so. It wasn't like the cuts and bruises that one would encounter in any training ground. Instead, there were many with severed tendons, torn limbs and pale complexions due to an excessive loss of blood. That wasn't all…
Fighting against the Black Masks had taken a considerable toll, both physically and mentally. Most of their mana had been depleted with several of them facing a huge mental toll from all the tension that they've been facing.
Now that the Allfather was preparing his final ascent, the Alliance should be in tip-top form, not the broken down as they were. So…
Why not tip the scales in their favour?
Shin peered deep down into his consciousness and entered into his spiritual body. Once again, he was presented with the glorious ocean that laid deep within his soul. However, this time, it wasn't just an ocean… It was a super water body that went down millions of kilometres and spanned billions. There was no ocean on the planet, or on any other planet that could possibly be this big.
However, Shin's motive for entering his spiritual body wasn't to admire his newly formed mana pool. What he was looking for… were the ten crystal obelisks that stood firmly at the centre of his entire world.
The ability to create water. The ability to heal anyone that Shin loved. The ability to enhance his body to protect the weakest ones. The power to call upon the Shard, the destructive ability to wreak havoc upon all who threatened him. The Domain of Dreams, the power to tower over any opponent and to grant them mercy. The greatest healing ability known to man, Restoration. The power to call upon the Dragon's Tear, a power that held the remorse of its wielder and the one ability that targetted only the caster's enemies. The Celestial Dragon Avatar, the power to raise one's power to protect those that he held dear. The power to call the Old Titans, the power of the Primordial World and to find the roots of his heritage. And finally… The most powerful ability of them all… Shin's tenth and brightest obelisk. The power to become One with Water.
These were the ten abilities that Shin had created throughout his cultivation journey. His path to immortality. And they were now all… unleashed.
"Come out!!!"
No longer feeling the need to hold back, Shin willed all of the obelisks to shine. Pillars of light arose from his astral form, and they took shape outside, in the material realm. The Celestial Dragon, which had been watching Shin advance from afar, let out a ferocious roar. It wasn't one of anger, but one of pure jubilation. Who wouldn't want to use all of the power that it had gotten?
The familiar Cosmic Wings of the Cosmic Butterfly were the first to appear on Shin's body. The flapped sporadically, sending waves of Space-Elements glistening down from its otherworldly existence. Shin used the Cosmic Wings to teleport to the highest point, where he could spot every single member of the Alliance, whether they were injured or not. Next, it was the Divine Halo, the Titan of Light, who made its appearance. Shining right above Shin's head, the halo gleamed with a holy light, one that even blinded Lady Seph. The Divine Healer who boasted the Iofiel Angel.
But the blinding light wasn't something that pierced every fibre of her being. Instead, it brought a soothing effect, one that rejuvenated any who came into contact with it.
"Heal!" Shin said resolutely.
The rays created by the Divine Halo gently touched every member of the Alliance. It didn't matter if they were lightly injured or on the verge of death. A mere Spirit Spectre or a mighty Spirit Saint. They were all touched by the healing light and within moments…
"Ah… So comfortable..." The Alliance members all felt power surging through their veins. The lacerations that they'd sustained were closing rapidly, and the pale complexion started to become pinkish. Those that lost a limb or two felt a new limb growing from their stubs. Men and women who lost gallons of blood were no longer feeling light-headed but clear-minded. The mana that they'd all lost were now surging through their veins, giving them a newfound strength to fight in yet another battle.
"Mass heal at this scale?" Saint Althea gasped in shock. Normally, this would be her job. She was the only Spirit Saint Healer among them after all. However, even with her Immortal-Grade Spirit Armament, Saint Althea would be hard-pressed to actually heal that many in such a short amount of time. And even if she succeeded, her mana would be sucked dry within seconds.
Alas, that was just the beginning of Shin's showcase. Once the Alliance members were fully healed up, his other Titan abilities came to the forefront of the show.
The Mind Titan, the Mystic Cloud, was stored inside of Shin's left eye, giving him the ability to see through all the illusions that the Allfather had placed on the Tree of Darkness to protect himself and his advance into Heaven's Gate.
At the same time, Shin swung his hand, allowing an adorable little fish to escape through his fingers as if it were made out of sword light. The fish continued to grow in size until it became as large as the Tree of Darkness itself. However, since it didn't have a physical form, the fish couldn't harm the countless Alliance members that it engulfed. Instead, it bestowed upon them an array of Time-Elements as a marker was placed on every single one of them.
"This is..."
"I've attached restoration points to every single member of the Alliance. That way, if any of them are injured later on, I can restore them back to their original state." Shin stated his actions straight. He then looked at his silver-haired friend, who was still in shock. "And that includes mana… Use your Immortal Army to its fullest."
"Shin, you..."
Isadore's and the Himmel Ancestor's only had one spiritual ability, and it was renowned all over as the most overpowered ability a cultivator could get. However, it had one fatal flaw… It was heavily mana dependent.
So, Shin's restoration ability, the power to bring Isadore's mana pool back to its original state, was a lethal combination, to say the least.
"Just go crazy," Shin replied with a smile. He knew how powerful Isadore was and how much he wished to let loose, particularly with that potent ability of his. Now that Shin has an infinite mana pool, the man could now grant his best friend's wish.