Chapter 334: Star, Heavenly Spirits (4)

「…It’s really tiring.」

Thump―!

Jin Prezia let out a long sigh as he sank down to the ground, taking off his [Lion Demon Face]. He looked noticeably fatigued, but it was not just him. All the Undead Army soldiers who had ridden their Ghost Devil Horses beside him were the same.

After Chang-Sun raised his [Twilight Flag] high, a battle had broken out, and the Changgwi Cave had also opened wide, unleashing the entire Undead Army onto the battlefield. Hooves had clattered across the ground as the Ghost Devil Horse Corps charged, and the battle cries of the Undead Warrior Corps had filled the air. The army had advanced to deal with the forty-one monster Celestials who had been swept up into the ‘Twilight-Setting Battlefield’ upon the activation of the [Execution Sword].

Among them, Jin had played the most brilliant role in subduing the monster Celestials.

「What’s with the frown? You’re clearly the hero of the day, so shouldn’t you be the happiest among us?」

Sinmara patted Jin’s shoulders as she sat down beside him. She also looked noticeably fatigued and was covered with wounds and blood, but she was grinning, indicating how fun the battle had been for her.

It was to be expected, as a battle against Celestials was the moment Sinmara had desperately been waiting for. She could finally announce the revival of , so how could she not be happy? On top of that…

[Your ‘Past-Seeing Face’ is preparing to be awakened.]

…

Among Sinmara’s three faces, the second face was about to awaken, which would be helpful for the revival of in multiple ways. Judging from what she had seen, Jin Prezia was worthy to be called a warrior of —no, he was actually more than that. Although they had quarreled briefly in the past, Sinmara would not even have sat down next to Jin and tried to talk to him unless she recognized Jin’s skills.

Nevertheless, Jin silently watched Sinmara without saying anything else, preoccupied as he was by the chaotic thoughts in his mind.

‘...The [Soul Pill] was real,’ Jin thought.

He was still unable to forget his encounter with Odin. The level of power Odin had shown at the time, his Divine Class, his dignity… Everything about him had surpassed Jin to an unimaginable extent. Jin had believed that the first ancestor of the Prezia Family was the most exceptional person in the world, but he now thought that the first ancestor could not compare to Odin.

Jin had felt down to his bones what a being who had reached the peak in a Worldline was like. Additionally, the [Soul Pill] that Odin had given Jin as a divine favor… had transformed his combat prowess and thinking entirely. The [Soul Pill] was not an ordinary elixir made by compressing Munseong’s soul, as it had also been infused with a dense concentration of Odin’s divine power and Authorities.

Thus, Jin had instantly overcome the limitations of and that had been troubling him for a long time. In the process, he had obtained an uncontrollable amount of power. Thus, he had instantly released it in the battle and raised the [Frozen Realm], playing the biggest role in their forces’ victory. All the monster Celestials in Jin’s Skill range had been instantly frozen before they could respond, quickly being trampled and crushed by the Undead Army.

[Your Class as a ‘Dread Undead’ is stabilizing!]

[Your ice attribute has been reinforced.]

[Your cold attribute has been reinforced.]

…

‘Dread Undead’ was Jin’s upgraded [Race] and [State] after his . He was now at the peak among all the beings who walked the land of the living in defiance of the law of nature, worthy of their respect and fear alike. Just by swallowing the [Soul Pill], Jin had made remarkable progress.

‘But I haven’t absorbed half of the spiritual energy in the [Soul Pill] yet,’ Jin thought bitterly.

The spiritual power had settled in the corner of his heart in the form of a neidan, ready to melt into Jin’s soul. It felt like a ticking time bomb for Jin, but on the other hand, it was also like a secret gift box that could elevate his Class significantly again.

That was the problem. Jin was not an ungrateful thug. In fact, he was the heir of a prestigious family, who had been taught to repay more than the worth of any favor he received as an honorable blue-blooded noble.

In this case, both Chang-Sun and Odin were the people Jin had to pay back. Despite the two sharing the same soul, their identities were different from one another, and it was obvious that they were going to end up in conflict.

Whose side was Jin supposed to take when a conflict really did take place? His master had guided him out of a swamp and showed him a new path, but the monarch had helped Jin to overcome his limits. Even if Jin confessed his agony to Sinmara, she would probably call him a traitor, so Jin could not say it aloud.

For the first time in his life, Jin was filled with deep agony.

* * *

Whoosh, woosh, whoosh…!

Kiyaaah―!

As horrible ghostly wails echoed throughout the air, lightning bolts and storms swept across the land.

Thud!

Afterward, Qin Ming the ‘Lightning-Striking Flame’ went down on one knee, wrapping his arms around his pierced abdomen.

『Un… believ… able…!』

Despite Qin Ming’s cloudy eyes, his lips trembled. The entire ‘Twilight-Setting Battlefield’ had fallen to ruin, and nothing was left except for him.

Lu Junyi, Liu Tang, Shi Jin, Xie Zhen, and Qin Ming. The proud Heavenly Spirit demonic Celestials of had put aside their pride and attacked Chang-Sun altogether, but they were unable to even leave a scratch on Chang-Sun.

『[Mountain-Crushing Supremacy], [Sea Change], and [Scarlet Dragon Summon]… How in the world…!』

The ‘Twilight-Setting Battlefield’ looked totally different from the time the demonic Celestials had first arrived. Some of the land had sunk, and some cliffs had formed. Several mountains had been created as the ground soared up… It was an entirely new world. Richardus’ specialty was defeating his enemy by demonstrating power overwhelming enough to change the terrain of a battlefield.

Chang-Sun had done so as well as Richardus—no, Chang-Sun was better than Richardus in some ways. He had not only changed the terrain of his divine ground, but also transformed the weather by creating storms. Due to those storms, Xie Zhen and Shi Jin had been ripped to shreds before they could fight back. The [Scarlet Jiaolong] that had then risen from Chang-Sun’s sleeve sank its teeth into Qin Ming amid the chaos.

Krrrrr….!

The [Scarlet Jiaolong] was still growling as it watched Qin Ming from the sky. From Richardus to the Emperor’s Seat, Chang-Sun had demonstrated all the specialties of those who had been and remained in the position of ‘Tian Shi Yuan’. At this point, it was hard to tell whether Richardus or Chang-Sun was the real ‘Tian Shi Yuan’.

In the end, none of the Heavenly Spirit demonic Celestials who had entered were able to surpass Chang-Sun, and were completely overwhelmed by him. He was already at such a level that those Celestials had no chance against him. The thought that perhaps Chang-Sun was really comparable to ‘Zi Wei Yuan’ crossed Qin Ming’s mind.

However, there was no longer a reason for Qin Ming to care about that, as he was already as good as dead.

Tap, tap…

Qin Ming could hear Chang-Sun walking toward him. Perhaps because silence had arrived after all that mayhem, or because of Qin Ming’s sheer terror, Chang-Sun’s footsteps sounded especially loud in his ears. Nevertheless, Qin Ming tried to hold his head high until the end, trying not show Chang-Sun how scared he was, as he wanted to stay confident and elegant before he died.

“Any last words?” Chang-Sun asked, holding the [Yuchang Sword] against Qin Ming’s neck.

The divine sword, which exuded white ice energy, was a monstrosity for demonic Celestials such as Qin Ming. In fact, it was that sword which had inflicted the wound on his chest.

『Don’t get cocky, Twilight.』

Qin Ming glared at Chang-Sun with a sharp gaze.

『You may have defeated us here, but will cut off your he…!』

Slash―!

Splatter!

Before Qin Ming could finish speaking, his head flew into the air.

“Why do they always say the same thing? Does their teach them to say that as their last words, or is that the only thing they can say due to their lack of intelligence?” Chang-Sun muttered to himself.

Just like the other demonic Celestials, Qin Ming’s corpse had disintegrated and been absorbed into the flag, but Chang-Sun’s sharp gaze was focused elsewhere. The sky covered his divine ground in the form of a sphere, and there was only one constellation shining in the sky. Despite the fact that the demonic Celestials had died one after another, that person had not made an appearance until the end. If that person had also participated in the battle, Chang-Sun would not have been able to seize such an overwhelming victory.

[The Constellation ‘Black Tortoise’ smiles.]

[The Constellation ‘Black Tortoise’ answers your call!]

Rumble!

At that moment, a black lightning bolt struck the ground, and a several-kilometer-tall tortoise appeared. Although the tortoise was black, it was murky in contrast to Chang-Sun’s . In truth, it was no ordinary tortoise, as the part that was supposed to be its tail had a snake’s head. A turtle and a snake… Although the two had different personalities and origins, they had merged at one point and started to share the same destiny. The Black Tortoise of the North’s two heads spoke at the same time.

『Twi… light…』

The tortoise head spoke as slowly as it walked, and the snake head wickedly flicked its tongue.

『Long time no see, huh? Let me just say something first, because you seem to be misunderstanding something, but we never taught them to do that. It’s just because they’re stupid. Look at us. We’re such eloquent speakers because we’re smart.』

Stab!

Piercing the [Twilight Flag] into the ground, Chang-Sun pulled out the [White Magpie Bow] and nocked [Nothung], aiming it at the Black Tortoise. Using the god-slayer sword as an arrow basically meant that Chang-Sun was prepared to attack immediately if needed.

『Do… not… do… that…』

『Hey, hey! Get that hideous thing out of our faces! If you’re angry, let’s talk it out like civilized people. Talk it out, alright? We’re here to talk, not fight!』

The Black Tortoise hurriedly stumbled backward as they drew forth their divine power. It looked as if they had no intention to go up against Chang-Sun.

Chang-Sun asked with a smirk, “Why? Do you have a message from Richardus or something?”

『How… did… you… know…』

『What? How did you know? Did you plant a spy in our ?』

“You guys aren’t exactly unpredictable,” Chang-Sun replied.

『Speechless…』

『Well, you were in before… Argghhh!』

Swish―!

At that moment, Chang-Sun let loose [Nothung] from the [White Magpie Bow] and narrowly missed the snake head, sweeping past it. Blood dripped from the snake head’s ruined scales. If the snake head had not quickly lowered itself, it would have been crushed.

『Dan… gerous…』

『Hey! We said we came here to talk! What kind of a person treats an envoy like this?!』

“If you continue with your nonsense, I’ll feed you an arrow right in your mouth,” Chang-Sun said, nocking [Balmung] this time. His threat was meant to keep them from reminding him of the past he did not want to remember.

『Understood…』

『Alright, alright! So get that thing away from us! We’re scared to death right now! We’ve been holding it in with great difficulty, but we soiled ourselves a little just now! Shit!』

In contrast to the tortoise head, who took a long time to talk and think, the snake head had zero intention to fight against Chang-Sun in the first place. They had seen how the Azure Dragon of the East and the Vermillion Bird of the South had died, and the Black Tortoise had no intention to end up like them.

That was why the Black Tortoise had not stepped into the battle, even as the Heavenly Spirit demonic Celestials had been sealed one after another. Even though the Black Tortoise was Richardus’ envoy, they loathed fights they had no chance against, believing themselves to be the only pacifist in .

𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

“Stop your nonsense and tell me what Richardus’ message is,” Chang-Sun said, preparing to release the bowstring if the message turned out to be insignificant.

The snake head swallowed down saliva anxiously and smiled, the corners of its mouth trembling in fear.

『Look, I’m just delivering Grain Star’s exact message, so don’t get the wrong idea…!』

“Didn’t I tell you to get to the point already?” Chang-Sun remarked.

『…Ah, fuck.』

The snake head spoke with great difficulty, feeling dismal.

『In any case, Grain Star’s message is ‘Twilight, my old friend and comrade, I’m delighted by the fact that I’ll soon be able to reunite with you, so I want to offer you a present. Do you want it?’』

Chang-Sun’s gaze turned sharp upon hearing the word ‘gift’. The snake head nervously swallowed saliva once again as its lips smacked. Trying desperately to not make its voice quiver, it continued.

『‘Do you know the whereabouts of our lovely and gentle eldest sister, Crom Cruach...?’ Argh, urgh, ahhhh! D-Don’t shoot! Don’t shoot!』