“Kill Munseong and bring back all his cryptical books.”
Chang-Sun had given a very simple order to Jin Prezia, Sinmara, and the Undead Army to kill Munseong. If the White Tiger Clan elders got in their way, they were free to kill those elders. Despite how simple the order was, however, Jin disliked it.
「You look as if you’ve eaten dog poop.」
Sinmara giggled, running next to Jin.
「I’m just annoyed because I’m weak.」
Jin frowned as he replied.
「That was pretty obvious, but did you only realize it now?」
Sinmara’s remark drew a silent glare from Jin.
「You’re sad because you couldn’t help in beating up Celestials, huh?」
Regardless, Sinmara laughed loudly as she continued.
「…Don’t insult me any further.」
「Is it an insult if I call something that’s actually weak weak?」
「How dare you!」
Jin gave Sinmara a death glare with a deep frown.
The tension between the two made Jin’s and Sinmara’s subordinates behind them tense up, their expressions turning serious. An internal conflict could always start at a very unexpected moment. Things were already tense within the army due to the battles in Chang-Sun’s subconscious realm, so the Undead Army soldiers could not help but remain on high alert.
「How dare you? Did you say ‘how dare you’? Fine. Then what about me, when I’m not even half as good as I was in my prime? And I even have to listen to you saying, how ‘dare’ I. How do you think I feel?」
Although the situation was turning critical, like a powder keg on the verge of exploding, Sinmara was still calm. More than that, she actually smirked and mockingly tilted her head as she retorted..
Jin clenched his teeth. He was also well aware of how Sinmara, who was several heads taller than him, had been a Giant and the best warrior of <Muspelheim>. Nevertheless, even though her new master was in the middle of a battle, she had been forced to roam around on the battlefield’s periphery, not even able to directly assist her new master… She no doubt felt even more bitter than Jin. In fact, she had to feel humiliated.
「Be stronger, Jin. I’ll also try to regain my faces as fast as possible. And it’s not just us. Kali, the boy named Baek Gyeo-Ul… Everyone has to be putting in excruciating effort. Twilight, Twilight… They’re trying to be strong enough to have our master’s back, when he has that arrogant Divine Name of being death to Celestials. So, we should just run harder and faster. What else can we do?」
Jin finally realized that Sinmara’s smirk was directed at herself. She was also suffering from the fact that she was not powerful enough.
「Then…!」
「We’ll have to complete the order we received first.」
Sinmara replied, and at the same time…
Paah!
A pool of light spread across the Undead Army soldiers, and they soon exited Sanjiva. Beneath their feet, they could see ‘Doomsday City’ breaking down into a worse state than before, and the mineshaft’s entrance, which yawned wide open like a bottomless pit.
‘It’s there.’ Jin’s gaze sharpened. He instinctively knew that the mineshaft was where Heoju had tried to go, and that Munseong had already entered the place a moment before. On top of that…
「The last cryptical book is open…!」
Jin frowned, noticing the mana in the wind blowing from the mineshaft.
As he had spent a long time locked up in the Changgwi Cave, Jin could detect the distinctive mana scent of the [Seven Cryptical Books of Hsan]. That was the very scent he was smelling. He was unsure how, but it seemed that Munseong had gotten his hands on the last cryptical book.
「Then we should take it!」
Sinmara acted as if it was no a big problem.
Jin nodded in agreement. No matter how great Munseong was, he was merely exceptional among humans, so he could not be compared to Chang-Sun, who was on the verge of reawakening his Divine Class. The last cryptical book? No matter how extraordinary the <Starlight> within was, it would take quite a long time to completely absorb it. In that case, Jin and the others could snatch it away before Munseong finished absorbing it.
Thud…!
With that thought in mind, they darted toward the mineshaft.
[You have accessed R’lyeh!]
* * *
『Azure Dragon…!』
The Vermillion Bird of the South hurriedly yelled, flapping their wings.
The fact that the Azure Dragon had been destroyed could not be taken lightly. They were part of the four guardians that protected <Purple Star Astrology>, so one of them being destroyed could significantly weaken the <Purple Star Astrology> army. As a new large-scale war could break out at any moment, that could become a big problem for <Purple Star Astrology>.
‘Kyaaah! Even if it weren’t for that problem, I can’t let those idiotic seven <Stars> get arrested by the <Underworld>! There’s no knowing what they’ll blab about!’ the Vermillion Bird thought in a panic.
Nevertheless, the Vermillion Bird’s biggest concern was whether or not the Seven Mansions of the East would be able to withstand the interrogation in the <Underworld>. Unlike when they operated as one Azure Dragon, they were mere monster Celestials when they were separate.
Of course, asking a monster Celestial to be patient was as difficult as finding a needle in a haystack. As the Azure Dragon, those <Stars> knew a lot of valuable information about <Purple Star Astrology>, so a lot of information that was not supposed to be revealed could be leaked to the <Underworld>.
Whoosh―!
As if responding to the Vermillion Bird’s concern, metal chains quickly traveled through the <Nihil> gaps scattered in the air. The Seven Mansions of the East, whose bodies were half-shattered, turned pale as they looked blankly up at the air.
The Vermillion Bird quickly thought, ‘I should stop it or kill them all! I should do something! Kyaaah!’ Their gaze filled with murderous intent.
“Hahaha! Can you really leave yourself exposed like this in the middle of our fight?”
『Kyaaah! No…!』
The Vermilion Bird belatedly realized that they had been too distracted by the Azure Dragon. However, it was too late. Jingwang turned rapidly and swung his [Northshade Sword], which shook fiercely, down toward the ground.
[The Celestial ‘First Purgatory King’ has activated the Authority ‘Northshade Punishment’!]
Slash!
One of the Vermillion Bird’s wings was cut off, flying into the air. The Vermillion Bird plunged to the ground, shrieking.
『Kyaah! It hurts! It hurts so much!!!! Kyahhh!』
Nevertheless, the Vermillion Bird released their fire, trying to stop Jingwang from approaching them, but he dodged the fire with ease and initiated his next attack.
Rumble, rumble, rumble―!
However extraordinary the Vermillion Bird was, the bird was lacking a wing, so it was impossible to fight at their full power. On top of that, Jingwang was a martial Celestial who had been famous even before he became a Purgatory King. Even Antares the ‘Scorpio’ was vigilant around him. As such a being even had the Authorities of a Purgatory King, there was no way Jingwang would go down easily. On top of that, Chogang soon joined in on their fight. As they had ended up taking on two of the Purgatory Kings at once, the Vermillion Bird felt as if they were going crazy.
『Kyaaaahhh! You damned bastards!』
No matter how frustrated the Vermillion Bird was, nothing really changed. In fact, Sangwon the ‘Tai Wei Yuan’ was the one who became the most anxious, as the <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials were experiencing devastating losses.
“Thanatos, can’t we just stop now?” Sangwon asked.
He had not even begun to fight against Thanatos yet. For beings like them, one exchange of attacks could decide life or death, so it was risky to make a move. Besides, Sangwon was very reluctant to aggravate the situation any further. Perhaps it would have been different if <Purple Star Astrology> was just going up against the <Underworld>, but a strange organization called the ‘United Army’ or something had joined in. Thus, <Purple Star Astrology> would not only fail to acquire anything, but also lose everything they had, if they started a full-scale war against the <Underworld>. Even though Sangwon loved to fight, that was unacceptable.
“Why should I?” Thanatos replied with a shrug, seeming completely calm.
The sight of Thanatos scoffing with his hands clasped behind his back infuriated Sangwon, but he held himself back. His gaze turned sharp as he said, “Otherwise… You guys won’t be able to walk away from this unscathed either.”
“Whoa! Are you going to blackmail me now? The leader of <Purple Star Astrology> is indeed outstanding,” Thanatos replied.
“…It doesn’t look as if the <Saha World> will remain unaffected if we go berserk without considering the consequences,” Sangwon said with meaningful emphasis.
In other words, he planned to wreak all kinds of havoc before his demise. In that case, the Worldline would surely be ruined. Even if they were restricted by the law of causality, they could come up with all sorts of ways to circumvent the law. Besides, the <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials were Aberrations, which meant they could create anomalies as much as they wanted to.
“I see, so you’re basically saying that you people aren’t going to die alone, huh?” Thanatos replied. He noticed the spite in Sangwon’s eyes, forcing him to take the situation seriously and put away his casual smirk.
“So?” Sangwon asked.
“Considering the threat is coming from the <Star> of <Stars>, it’s quite nasty,” Thanatos remarked.
“What wouldn’t I be able to do in this damned situation?” Sangwon asked sarcastically.
“Mmm…!” Thanatos mused.
“What are you going to do?” Sangwon asked. His mood improved, as Thanatos appeared to have been persuaded on some level. He readily offered, “Tell me what you want. I’ll give you anything except for the Life Palace.”
“Hmm! In that case, good. Depending on the conditions, we can leave the possibility of making a deal open,” Thanatos replied.
“Really?” Sangwon asked, his expression visibly brightening.
Thanatos nodded before saying, “Of course, but it will be possible only if my partner agrees with it.”
“What? Partner?” Sangwon asked. He could not understand what Thanatos was saying for a moment.
Thanatos was the sole ruler of the <Underworld>, which was as great as <Heaven>. In fact, his rank was comparable to the Ancient Celestials or Conceptual Celestials, so how could such a being have a partner? Sangwon had never heard of…!
Whoosh!
At that moment, a shiver went down Sangwon’s spine, so he immediately turned in the opposite direction. A greatsword descended on his head; it was the [Zhan Lu Sword].
“Twilight…!” Sangwon exclaimed, retreating backward as far as possible with wide eyes.
Chang-Sun narrowly missed Sangwon, the [Zhan Lu Sword] striking the ground and sending earth flying into the air.
Pzzzz, pzzzzz!
Rumble―!
However, Chang-Sun was not yet done. Dozens of his vermilion lightning bolts struck and swept across the area where Sangwon had been.
[The ‘Chunjun Sword’ has created a ‘wall of vines’!]
Sangwon had to stop retreating backward, because a wall of vines created by the ability of the [Chunjun Sword] in Chang-Sun’s left hand suddenly rose up behind his back. He frowned. Although he could smash the wall of vines with ease, a little issue could turn into serious danger in such a situation. Just as expected…
Rumble―!
A [Fiery Lightning Bolt] that was much larger than the ones that Sangwon had been dealing with previously flew toward him, and he quickly concluded that it was impossible for him to deflect the lightning using his Authority.
Sangwon had no idea what had happened, but the current ‘Divine Twilight’ was totally different from the Twilight he had known. Twilight had grown stronger—no, Chang-Sun had become much sturdier than before. He had to have acquired and inherited abilities and powers in the <Underworld>, but he had certainly also undergone something bigger.
‘Pale Star…! I heard about him being taught by the Outer Celestial who always studied the <Abyss> outside the Worldlines. That must be it!’ Sangwon thought.
He quickly threw his clothes into the air and rolled to the sides. His clothes themselves were a dharma relic containing mystical power, so he believed they would be able to block the attack.
Boom!
Fortunately, Chang-Sun’s [Fiery Lightning Bolt] exploded in the air as soon as it collided with Sangwon’s dharma relic. The storm of heat from the collision spread all across Sanjiva, but Sangwon could not see it, as he had no time to observe the aftermath.
Up until a moment before, his appearance had remained clean and neat, but he was covered in dust as he rolled across the down. On top of that, as soon as he stood up, Chang-Sun showed up and tried to drive his sword into Sangwon’s heart!
Smack!
[The ‘Yuchang Sword’ has struck you!]
“Keough…!” Sangwon coughed up blood, his eyes wide.
“You can’t be surprised yet,” Chang-Sun remarked. He laughed at Sangwon as he continued, “I’m just getting started.”
Pzzzzz!
Red lightning sparks flew into the air.
Rumble―!
With a clap of thunder, a pool of scarlet light filled Sanjiva.
[The eighth chapter of ‘Prelati’s Spellbook’ has been opened!]
[‘Calamitas Naturalis’ has been opened, starting a natural disaster!]
Chang-Sun and Thanatos… Sangwon wanted to scream due to the fact that he had to take on two Celestials at once.
“Y-You backstabbers…!” Sangwon cursed.
At that moment, Chang-Sun and Thanatos exchanged glances; at the same time, smiles spread on their faces, as if they had planned the moment in advance.
“Thank you for the compliment.”
“Hahahaha! There’s no better compliment for us.”
Their smiles were extremely wicked.
“Kill Munseong and bring back all his cryptical books.”
Chang-Sun had given a very simple order to Jin Prezia, Sinmara, and the Undead Army to kill Munseong. If the White Tiger Clan elders got in their way, they were free to kill those elders. Despite how simple the order was, however, Jin disliked it.
「You look as if you’ve eaten dog poop.」
Sinmara giggled, running next to Jin.
「I’m just annoyed because I’m weak.」
Jin frowned as he replied.
「That was pretty obvious, but did you only realize it now?」
Sinmara’s remark drew a silent glare from Jin.
「You’re sad because you couldn’t help in beating up Celestials, huh?」
Regardless, Sinmara laughed loudly as she continued.
「…Don’t insult me any further.」
「Is it an insult if I call something that’s actually weak weak?」
「How dare you!」
Jin gave Sinmara a death glare with a deep frown.
The tension between the two made Jin’s and Sinmara’s subordinates behind them tense up, their expressions turning serious. An internal conflict could always start at a very unexpected moment. Things were already tense within the army due to the battles in Chang-Sun’s subconscious realm, so the Undead Army soldiers could not help but remain on high alert.
「How dare you? Did you say ‘how dare you’? Fine. Then what about me, when I’m not even half as good as I was in my prime? And I even have to listen to you saying, how ‘dare’ I. How do you think I feel?」
Although the situation was turning critical, like a powder keg on the verge of exploding, Sinmara was still calm. More than that, she actually smirked and mockingly tilted her head as she retorted..
Jin clenched his teeth. He was also well aware of how Sinmara, who was several heads taller than him, had been a Giant and the best warrior of <Muspelheim>. Nevertheless, even though her new master was in the middle of a battle, she had been forced to roam around on the battlefield’s periphery, not even able to directly assist her new master… She no doubt felt even more bitter than Jin. In fact, she had to feel humiliated.
「Be stronger, Jin. I’ll also try to regain my faces as fast as possible. And it’s not just us. Kali, the boy named Baek Gyeo-Ul… Everyone has to be putting in excruciating effort. Twilight, Twilight… They’re trying to be strong enough to have our master’s back, when he has that arrogant Divine Name of being death to Celestials. So, we should just run harder and faster. What else can we do?」
Jin finally realized that Sinmara’s smirk was directed at herself. She was also suffering from the fact that she was not powerful enough.
「Then…!」
「We’ll have to complete the order we received first.」
Sinmara replied, and at the same time…
Paah!
A pool of light spread across the Undead Army soldiers, and they soon exited Sanjiva. Beneath their feet, they could see ‘Doomsday City’ breaking down into a worse state than before, and the mineshaft’s entrance, which yawned wide open like a bottomless pit.
‘It’s there.’ Jin’s gaze sharpened. He instinctively knew that the mineshaft was where Heoju had tried to go, and that Munseong had already entered the place a moment before. On top of that…
「The last cryptical book is open…!」
Jin frowned, noticing the mana in the wind blowing from the mineshaft.
As he had spent a long time locked up in the Changgwi Cave, Jin could detect the distinctive mana scent of the [Seven Cryptical Books of Hsan]. That was the very scent he was smelling. He was unsure how, but it seemed that Munseong had gotten his hands on the last cryptical book.
「Then we should take it!」
Sinmara acted as if it was no a big problem.
Jin nodded in agreement. No matter how great Munseong was, he was merely exceptional among humans, so he could not be compared to Chang-Sun, who was on the verge of reawakening his Divine Class. The last cryptical book? No matter how extraordinary the <Starlight> within was, it would take quite a long time to completely absorb it. In that case, Jin and the others could snatch it away before Munseong finished absorbing it.
Thud…!
With that thought in mind, they darted toward the mineshaft.
[You have accessed R’lyeh!]
* * *
『Azure Dragon…!』
The Vermillion Bird of the South hurriedly yelled, flapping their wings.
The fact that the Azure Dragon had been destroyed could not be taken lightly. They were part of the four guardians that protected <Purple Star Astrology>, so one of them being destroyed could significantly weaken the <Purple Star Astrology> army. As a new large-scale war could break out at any moment, that could become a big problem for <Purple Star Astrology>.
‘Kyaaah! Even if it weren’t for that problem, I can’t let those idiotic seven <Stars> get arrested by the <Underworld>! There’s no knowing what they’ll blab about!’ the Vermillion Bird thought in a panic.
Nevertheless, the Vermillion Bird’s biggest concern was whether or not the Seven Mansions of the East would be able to withstand the interrogation in the <Underworld>. Unlike when they operated as one Azure Dragon, they were mere monster Celestials when they were separate.
Of course, asking a monster Celestial to be patient was as difficult as finding a needle in a haystack. As the Azure Dragon, those <Stars> knew a lot of valuable information about <Purple Star Astrology>, so a lot of information that was not supposed to be revealed could be leaked to the <Underworld>.
Whoosh―!
As if responding to the Vermillion Bird’s concern, metal chains quickly traveled through the <Nihil> gaps scattered in the air. The Seven Mansions of the East, whose bodies were half-shattered, turned pale as they looked blankly up at the air.
The Vermillion Bird quickly thought, ‘I should stop it or kill them all! I should do something! Kyaaah!’ Their gaze filled with murderous intent.
“Hahaha! Can you really leave yourself exposed like this in the middle of our fight?”
『Kyaaah! No…!』
The Vermilion Bird belatedly realized that they had been too distracted by the Azure Dragon. However, it was too late. Jingwang turned rapidly and swung his [Northshade Sword], which shook fiercely, down toward the ground.
[The Celestial ‘First Purgatory King’ has activated the Authority ‘Northshade Punishment’!]
Slash!
One of the Vermillion Bird’s wings was cut off, flying into the air. The Vermillion Bird plunged to the ground, shrieking.
『Kyaah! It hurts! It hurts so much!!!! Kyahhh!』
Nevertheless, the Vermillion Bird released their fire, trying to stop Jingwang from approaching them, but he dodged the fire with ease and initiated his next attack.
Rumble, rumble, rumble―!
However extraordinary the Vermillion Bird was, the bird was lacking a wing, so it was impossible to fight at their full power. On top of that, Jingwang was a martial Celestial who had been famous even before he became a Purgatory King. Even Antares the ‘Scorpio’ was vigilant around him. As such a being even had the Authorities of a Purgatory King, there was no way Jingwang would go down easily. On top of that, Chogang soon joined in on their fight. As they had ended up taking on two of the Purgatory Kings at once, the Vermillion Bird felt as if they were going crazy.
『Kyaaaahhh! You damned bastards!』
No matter how frustrated the Vermillion Bird was, nothing really changed. In fact, Sangwon the ‘Tai Wei Yuan’ was the one who became the most anxious, as the <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials were experiencing devastating losses.
“Thanatos, can’t we just stop now?” Sangwon asked.
He had not even begun to fight against Thanatos yet. For beings like them, one exchange of attacks could decide life or death, so it was risky to make a move. Besides, Sangwon was very reluctant to aggravate the situation any further. Perhaps it would have been different if <Purple Star Astrology> was just going up against the <Underworld>, but a strange organization called the ‘United Army’ or something had joined in. Thus, <Purple Star Astrology> would not only fail to acquire anything, but also lose everything they had, if they started a full-scale war against the <Underworld>. Even though Sangwon loved to fight, that was unacceptable.
“Why should I?” Thanatos replied with a shrug, seeming completely calm.
The sight of Thanatos scoffing with his hands clasped behind his back infuriated Sangwon, but he held himself back. His gaze turned sharp as he said, “Otherwise… You guys won’t be able to walk away from this unscathed either.”
“Whoa! Are you going to blackmail me now? The leader of <Purple Star Astrology> is indeed outstanding,” Thanatos replied.
“…It doesn’t look as if the <Saha World> will remain unaffected if we go berserk without considering the consequences,” Sangwon said with meaningful emphasis.
In other words, he planned to wreak all kinds of havoc before his demise. In that case, the Worldline would surely be ruined. Even if they were restricted by the law of causality, they could come up with all sorts of ways to circumvent the law. Besides, the <Purple Star Astrology> Celestials were Aberrations, which meant they could create anomalies as much as they wanted to.
“I see, so you’re basically saying that you people aren’t going to die alone, huh?” Thanatos replied. He noticed the spite in Sangwon’s eyes, forcing him to take the situation seriously and put away his casual smirk.
“So?” Sangwon asked.
“Considering the threat is coming from the <Star> of <Stars>, it’s quite nasty,” Thanatos remarked.
“What wouldn’t I be able to do in this damned situation?” Sangwon asked sarcastically.
“Mmm…!” Thanatos mused.
“What are you going to do?” Sangwon asked. His mood improved, as Thanatos appeared to have been persuaded on some level. He readily offered, “Tell me what you want. I’ll give you anything except for the Life Palace.”
“Hmm! In that case, good. Depending on the conditions, we can leave the possibility of making a deal open,” Thanatos replied.
“Really?” Sangwon asked, his expression visibly brightening.
Thanatos nodded before saying, “Of course, but it will be possible only if my partner agrees with it.”
“What? Partner?” Sangwon asked. He could not understand what Thanatos was saying for a moment.
Thanatos was the sole ruler of the <Underworld>, which was as great as <Heaven>. In fact, his rank was comparable to the Ancient Celestials or Conceptual Celestials, so how could such a being have a partner? Sangwon had never heard of…!
Whoosh!
At that moment, a shiver went down Sangwon’s spine, so he immediately turned in the opposite direction. A greatsword descended on his head; it was the [Zhan Lu Sword].
“Twilight…!” Sangwon exclaimed, retreating backward as far as possible with wide eyes.
Chang-Sun narrowly missed Sangwon, the [Zhan Lu Sword] striking the ground and sending earth flying into the air.
Pzzzz, pzzzzz!
Rumble―!
However, Chang-Sun was not yet done. Dozens of his vermilion lightning bolts struck and swept across the area where Sangwon had been.
[The ‘Chunjun Sword’ has created a ‘wall of vines’!]
Sangwon had to stop retreating backward, because a wall of vines created by the ability of the [Chunjun Sword] in Chang-Sun’s left hand suddenly rose up behind his back. He frowned. Although he could smash the wall of vines with ease, a little issue could turn into serious danger in such a situation. Just as expected…
Rumble―!
A [Fiery Lightning Bolt] that was much larger than the ones that Sangwon had been dealing with previously flew toward him, and he quickly concluded that it was impossible for him to deflect the lightning using his Authority.
Sangwon had no idea what had happened, but the current ‘Divine Twilight’ was totally different from the Twilight he had known. Twilight had grown stronger—no, Chang-Sun had become much sturdier than before. He had to have acquired and inherited abilities and powers in the <Underworld>, but he had certainly also undergone something bigger.
‘Pale Star…! I heard about him being taught by the Outer Celestial who always studied the <Abyss> outside the Worldlines. That must be it!’ Sangwon thought.
He quickly threw his clothes into the air and rolled to the sides. His clothes themselves were a dharma relic containing mystical power, so he believed they would be able to block the attack.
Boom!
Fortunately, Chang-Sun’s [Fiery Lightning Bolt] exploded in the air as soon as it collided with Sangwon’s dharma relic. The storm of heat from the collision spread all across Sanjiva, but Sangwon could not see it, as he had no time to observe the aftermath.
Up until a moment before, his appearance had remained clean and neat, but he was covered in dust as he rolled across the down. On top of that, as soon as he stood up, Chang-Sun showed up and tried to drive his sword into Sangwon’s heart!
Smack!
[The ‘Yuchang Sword’ has struck you!]
“Keough…!” Sangwon coughed up blood, his eyes wide.
“You can’t be surprised yet,” Chang-Sun remarked. He laughed at Sangwon as he continued, “I’m just getting started.”
Pzzzzz!
Red lightning sparks flew into the air.
Rumble―!
With a clap of thunder, a pool of scarlet light filled Sanjiva.
[The eighth chapter of ‘Prelati’s Spellbook’ has been opened!]
[‘Calamitas Naturalis’ has been opened, starting a natural disaster!]
Chang-Sun and Thanatos… Sangwon wanted to scream due to the fact that he had to take on two Celestials at once.
“Y-You backstabbers…!” Sangwon cursed.
At that moment, Chang-Sun and Thanatos exchanged glances; at the same time, smiles spread on their faces, as if they had planned the moment in advance.
“Thank you for the compliment.”
“Hahahaha! There’s no better compliment for us.”
Their smiles were extremely wicked.
