***
**
Seong Jihan frowned upon receiving a message from Pythia.
“What’s this? It’s over already?”
Even if defeat by the Martial God was inevitable, wasn’t the end too swift?
“There’s still so much to gain.”
After being summoned to the Brahma’s control space, he now has 120 in the Seal of Thunder stat.
This was a significant reward, but it seemed there was much more to gain from the thunder god, Brahma, so it was disappointing to end here.
However,
[Ah! Were you the one supplying the red lightning to the barrier? No wonder the Brahma’s barrier wasn’t easily breached.]
As Pythia’s message popped up, Seong Jihan felt relieved.
His efforts in continuously infusing the Crimson Thunder weren’t in vain.
It seemed the barrier protecting Brahma’s Throne was still intact.
‘Well, it’s said that Brahma is among the strongest gods.’
Meanwhile,
As Seong Jihan didn’t respond, Pythia’s messages began to transform peculiarly.
[Is it difficult to respond? Then, try sending it through this.]
Swoosh…
Then, a translucent keyboard appeared below the message window.
‘They really have everything here.’
Seong Jihan, keeping his hands still, typed using the power of the Martial Soul.
[Yes. I came to watch you guys fight.]
[…You need to be careful. Despite the predictions, the barrier isn’t breaking, so he isn’t in a good mood.]
[Predictions? Did you make them?]
[No. The master did. He has his own foresight.]
The Wandering Martial God possesses all abilities of his disciples.
Seong Jihan continued the conversation with Pythia while adding the Foresight ability to the wandering Martial God’s inventory.
[The master’s foresight is more potent than mine and hardly ever wrong… but this time it was off, so he asked me to find out what happened.]
[So, you’re a scout.]
[That’s my role during conquest. Anyway, you. If the Martial God catches you, it won’t end well, so it’s better to run away quickly. He might have figured out some connection due to the red lightnings, but still.]
[I’ll just logout.]
[Hmm… If the Martial God catches you, it might not work. If the barrier breaks, run away immediately.]
Seong Jihan thought of the battle with Dongbang Sak, where the Black Hand intervened directly in the BattleNet map.
The power of the Martial God could indeed break the rules of BattleNet.
‘I should log out immediately if anything happens.’
With that thought, Seong Jihan continued typing.
[Aren’t you a disciple of the Martial God? You seem quite concerned about me.]
[You’re the only one who can determine if the Martial God is Gilgamesh or not.]
[Hmm. But is that so important?]
[Yes. From my standpoint.]
[Why?]
[That… I cannot tell you now. Let’s talk after awakening Gilgamesh.]
[You’re full of secrets.]
[…I have my reasons. Anyway, I’ll report to the Martial God that I haven’t discovered anything yet. Then…]
Beep!
Pythia’s message window disappeared.
Seong Jihan thought to himself,
‘Anyway, if it’s not yet breached, there’s more to gain from the Brahma.’
In that case, he had to act quickly.
Thud!
Seong Jihan put down the strands of electric current he was holding and said,
“Logout.”
And he logged out immediately.
* * *
Click!
“Uncle! Where were you? Sophia was about to go home.”
“Ah. I was summoned by The Thunder God.”
“Wow, you were summoned by The Thunder God?”
As Seong Jihan emerged from his room, the two women approached him.
“Yes, Sophia. Were you about to go home?”
“Yeah… Jihan. Could I stay a bit longer now that you’re back?”
As Seong Jihan returned, Sophia seemed inclined to stay longer, but,
[The Thunder God ‘Brahma’ asks why you logged out so suddenly.]
[You were channeling energy to the Barrier, and he wonders why you left in such a hurry.]
Right after Seong Jihan logged out,
Messages from Brahma’s side flooded in.
“Ah. But I have to go back again. The log out was just to discipline him a bit.”
“…Discipline? who? The Thunder God?”
“Uncle. How do you discipline a constellation? Isn’t it the other way around?”
Yoon Seah and Sophia,
Both being players supported by a constellation, knew how absurd the idea of disciplining constellation was, but,
“There are cases like this. The one who needs more ends up losing.”
[The Thunder God ‘Brahma’ laments that the barrier is about to break and urgently asks you to come back.]
[It promises to set up the screen this time and prepare items for life force recovery, pleading for another chance.]
[It despairs at the thought of being left to die by you.]
With Seong Jihan gone, Brahma became more desperate than when he first called him.
He chuckled and nodded.
“Really? I was planning to rest at home, but if you’ve prepared like that… then, call me back. Okay.”
Zzzzt…
As if waiting for his words, a red lion emerged from thin air.
“Wow~ A small lion.”
“It’s so cute~”
The two admired the Brahma’s reduced form, but,
[Cute? Ha. Insolent beings… How dare you!]
Zap! Zap!
Angered by their words, the red lion discharged electric currents in all directions.
Seong Jihan blocked it from spreading further and said,
“Hey. Don’t take your anger out on innocent people.”
[…Ugh. Cracks are already forming in the barrier! The Crimson Thunder is rapidly disappearing! This is too much!]
“Too much? What is? Don’t tell me it’s my fault?”
[Krhm… No. Let’s go back. Everything is ready!]
“Screen set up and items for life force recovery prepared?”
“life force recovery? Uncle, you look totally fine…”
“No. I’m a bit tired. I need rest.”
Seong Jihan shook his head and touched his forehead.
[It is…ready.]
The red lion, gritting its teeth, struggled to respond.
“So you should behave when you have the chance.”
[…]
“Set up the screen. Put the logout option in, like before.”
[I… got it…]
Flash!
As Seong Jihan disappeared back into the Brahma’s control space,
Yoon Seah and Sophia looked at each other.
“Does… that seem like a constellation?”
“Yeah. Jihan even bullies the constellation.”
“Sophia, when did you learn the word ‘bully’?”
“It’s one of the most common words used for Jihan.”
“People are too much. Calling Uncle a bully…”
Yoon Seah briefly flared up at Sophia’s words,
‘…But isn’t it somewhat accurate?’
Considering the status of Seong Jihan and the Daegi Guild as the top of the hierarchy, influencing the global BattleNet industry, It made sense why the talk of Seong Jihan being a bully came up.
“Then, Seah. I’m going home!”
“Okay~ Get home safe.”
As Sophia headed back home,
Seong Jihan, re-summoned to the Brahma’s control space, sparked with interest.
‘Things have definitely changed since earlier.’
Just a moment ago, the place was buzzing with electricity.
Now, giant screens were displayed everywhere, with a table and appetizing fruits laid out.
The currents still flowed strongly, but the control space had transformed into a livable area.
Zzzzt…
Seeing his arrival, two strands of Crimson Thunder surged up, and Seong Jihan pointed at the fruits with one hand.
“What’s this?”
[Didn’t you say you were lacking force? This is the fruit of life.]
“Ah. I’ll enjoy it, then.”
Dong! Dong!
The fruits floated in the air and entered Seong Jihan’s mouth.
Initially, he thought the fruits might increase his life force by 1 or 2 points,
‘Oh. This is…’
Unexpectedly, the fruits contained life force similar to that of the World Tree.
While not as potent as the life seeds he had eaten before, Eating the fruits replenished the life force that had permanently vanished when he used Heavenly Tree Descending Spirit.
“Is this fruit related to the World Tree alliance?”
[Uh, um… Yes. How did you know?]
“I’ve eaten a life seed before.”
[Is…Is that so? I thought you were lacking life force. I only brought something suitable for mortals.]
Faced with Seong Jihan’s question, Brahma rambled on.
Truthfully, these fruits, maliciously produced by the cunning World Tree Alliance, had been stored in a warehouse for a long time without being consumed.
Seong Jihan, having demanded more rewards, was given these fruits as a sort of challenge.
‘He… has even consumed a Seed of Life? He’s done everything.’
However, the recipient of the fruits happily devoured them. It made sense; he lacked a source of life force, so it was a welcome replenishment.
For Seong Jihan, finding an unexpected source of life force was a boon.
He emptied the table of fruits into his mouth and shook the empty bowl.
“Hey. Bring more if there are any left.”
[Alright, alright. But can we start working again…?]
“Ah, right. After receiving so much, I should do my part.”
Having satisfied his hunger and replenished a substantial amount of life force, Seong Jihan began to infuse his own Crimson Thunder into the pale barrier.
‘I should reinforce it more to make him appreciate the fruits I gave him.’
Zzzzt…!
The barrier glowed more intensely than before.
The Red Lion, seeing this, relaxed its expression.
[It’s even stronger than before… Thank you! Let’s go back to defense. Put in a bit more effort!]
“Sure. Bring more fruits, and I’ll put in more effort.”
[If you can use more power, use it now. Don’t hold back!]
“No, it’s all thanks to the fruits.”
[…Understood.]
Zzzzt…
The Red Lion sighed deeply and disappeared.
‘Now, what should I explore?’
Seong Jihan looked at the screens floating around.
Among the ten or so screens, the largest displayed the wandering Martial God.
His face shrouded in darkness, he stood still, arms crossed.
[Martial God… is this all you’ve got? Die!]
And before him, A circular hole began to form in the massive wall of electric currents.
Revealing a space filled with blinding white light.
[Astrape!]
Fzzzt…!
A gigantic spear of light appeared from within, Aiming straight at the Martial God.
Zeus’s power, the divine lightning Astrape, Was much more formidable than when it had been directed at Seong Jihan.
Especially,
‘Unlike when it was used on me, Crimson Thunder is mixed in. Did the supply to the wall go there?’
Zeus’s Astrape, mixed with Crimson Thunder, was far more powerful than its original form.
However,
Swoosh!
With a simple flick of his finger, the Martial God shattered the spear of light in midair, Splitting it into hundreds of pieces.
[What…!?]
And then,
[That’s useful.]
The Martial God spread his palm,
Flash! Flash!
Dozens, then hundreds of circular holes, Began to form around him.
[Could it be… my Astrape…!?]
[Go.]
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The spears of lightning, far larger than Zeus’s lightning, Violently struck the barrier.
‘Hmm. So that’s how Celestial Judgment came to be…’
The Celestial Judgment used by Seong Jihan resembled the Martial God’s technique, But the scale was entirely different, given the Martial God as the user.
A spear of the Brahma that seemed to envelop the entire vast world.
However,
‘Hmm… Something’s odd.’
Seong Jihan furrowed his brow, watching the Martial God’s lightning spears strike the barrier.
‘Clearly, Zeus’s Astrape had Crimson Thunder mixed in, but the technique stolen by the Martial God lacked it.’
If he deemed it useful enough to steal the technique, shouldn’t he have taken the Crimson Thunder as well?
Yet, the Martial God displayed a power identical to the Celestial Judgment Seong Jihan learned in his previous life, Despite Zeus’s Astrape not looking like that.
“Hmm…”
Why didn’t he replicate the Crimson Thunder?
As Seong Jihan pondered this,
“…”,
Dongbang Sak, the disciple of the Martial God, silently watched from afar.
***
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