When the Aquarius had seen Lee Gun for the first time, the Zodiac had this thought.
[That monster bought the wrath of a god.]
There was no other reason for that thought.
Lee Gun had a hideous appearance, and his ability seemed to eat away at his life the more he used it. His body had suffered so much horrific internal damage that even a god had to furrow its brows.
There was no way a god would let Lee Gun become that broken if he were the god’s handiwork. His appearance had no other explanation except that the gods hated him.
That was why the Aquarius had been shocked to receive Lee Gun’s request back then.
[What? She said I’ll heal Lee Gun?]
[Yes. Our Zodiac Saint confidently accepted his request. She boasted there is nothing in the world that you cannot fix.]
The Aquarius had uproariously laughed at the Construct’s words. Its reaction was normal.
[In the first place, healing him is outside the realm of possibility.]
[What?!]
The gods could see it. Lee Gun’s outer appearance was what it was, but the inside of his body was a mess, too.
No one knew where he had gotten his magical energy from all of a sudden, but that energy was devouring his body.
‘He would already be dead if he didn’t have the Masochist attribute.’
His condition could have almost been considered a curse. Therefore, the Zodiac had said,
[Healing him is impossible. The only way he has is to die and be reborn.]
Of course, the Aquarius’s Zodiac Saint had been unaware of that. “Do not worry! My Zodiac can heal anything! Please wait a bit. I’ll go and quickly make some medicine for you with the Chalice. I’m doing it since you are Mr. H-Hugo’s friend.”
Sophie had fallen in love at first sight. Her face turned red as she looked at Hugo. The Constructs sighed as they watched this. They were about to tell the truth to Lee Gun.
[We’ll have to tell him that he has an unfixable disease.]
[That’s right. Let’s tell that poor human before he starts having hope…]
But the Aquarius smirked.
[Leave him be.]
[What?]
[He’ll make me good money]
[!]
With more and more offerings submerged inside it, the Chalice could create something more amazing. That had been the reason the Aquarius had squeezed money and tributes from Lee Gun for several years.
Lee Gun had handed the Zodiac over hundreds of millions of dollars, and that money was converted into the currency of the gods. The Aquarius had converted it to “Talent” to grow its temple.
Had Lee Gun been business-minded like the other Zodiac Saints, he could have had extracted more money from desperate people. But he even did something idiotic as not charging the poor countries.
At times, the Aquarius wasn’t satisfied with how much money Lee Gun was bringing in, but that didn’t matter. Lee Gun’s hunting ability was top-notch, so he could acquire special Chalice ingredients that other Zodiacs and Zodiac Saints were unable to.
Whenever Lee Gun expressed suspicion that his body wasn’t getting better, the Aquarius would make excuses, saying it was Lee Gun’s fault for moving around constantly. Then, it would sometimes create pain relievers through the Chalice to relieve his pain.
That was how the Zodiac had deceived Lee Gun.
In the present!
[Ahhhhhk!!!]
Lee Gun brought down his ax toward the Aquarius.
Kwah-jeek!!
The ax blade ruthlessly dug into the Zodiac’s shoulder.
[Ahhhhk!]
The sharp blade crushed the Aquarius’s collarbone and parted flesh to reach its chest.
Poo-hahk!!
Of course, the Aquarius wasn’t human. It was more of a purple jelly taking on the form of a human.
Despite the weapon cutting it, no blood or organs spilled out of the Zodiac. Nothing happened that would make a disciple throw up.
[Holy water is gushing out of the split skin.]
[It is the holy water for the gods.]
Poo-hahk!!
A purple liquid fountained out of the spirit flesh, and this liquid splashed on Lee Gun…
[Strength is welling up in your body.]
[The Constructs hiding within your shadow have recovered their vitality.]
[The health Constructs have recovered at once.]
Lee Gun was overjoyed. “Oh! This is amazing! You’re like an energy drink.”
Then, he immediately raised and brought down the ax again!
Kwah-jeek!
[Ahhhhhhhk!!!]
[The Serpent Bearer’s Constructs are ecstatic.]
[They say they would like to receive such a shower every day.]
“Alright, my babies. I’ll make sure you get what you wish for.” With a frightening laugh, Lee Gun swung his ax.
Kwah-jeeek!
[Ahhhhhhk! Stop!]
[You have acquired data (Vitality Recovery).]
[The foundation of the temple is shaking because of the pain the Aquarius is feeling.]
The Zodiac was in excruciating pain. The Aquarius incredulously looked at the ax as if it wanted to die.
The Zodiac’s reaction was expected since what Lee Gun was holding wasn’t the Leo’s canine, which had killed the Cancer. This had shocked the Aquarius.
[What is going on? How can you cut a god’s body with a normal ax…!]
Of course, it wasn’t a normal ax.
[Ax made by grinding up the head of the Aquarius’s underling.]
– Manufacturer: Lee Gun
– It is sturdy since it is the head of a dragon.
– It is for temporary use, so the quality is low.
The Aquarius screamed when it saw a familiar face on the ax.
[Ahhhhk! Guardian!!!]
Yes, the crude ax Lee Gun had appeared holding was made from the Construct’s head. That guardian had been alive a while ago. That meant Lee Gun had made the ax as soon as he invaded this middle world.
Naturally, the Zodiac had several guardians protecting the temple.
The Aquarius wailed as it looked at Lee Gun, an act unbefitting of a god.
“What? You want me to turn you into an ax too?”
[#$*#$*!]
The Aquarius shouted as if that wasn’t the point.
[What did you do? How dare you even think about turning a Construct into a weapon— Kuhk!]
The Zodiac vomited blood as the Ax pierced him once again.
The nonchalant Lee Gun laughed apologetically. “Is that right? This was a Construct? It couldn’t even tell that I was a guest, and it tried to kill me. That’s why I thought it was a monster.”
[?!!]
Guest, my ass!
Lee Gun let out a cold smile as he raised his weapon.
That smile left the Aquarius trembling. This bastard had probably made a weapon out of its subordinate to elicit this reaction.
Constructs were beings that had received the Zodiac’s power. Since they possessed the same energy as the Zodiacs, they could easily pierce through the defense of the Zodiacs.
In the case of a temple’s defense magic, the guardian had basically been created to stop attacks from other temples. An ally’s attack hadn’t been taken into consideration at all.
“Ah! I forgot my weapon outside. I made this in haste, but it’s very effective.”
This bastard! He made a weapon in haste when facing a Zodiac?
‘Also, what is this power?’
Of course, something like that was possible since the god of calamity’s power was added to it, but still…!
Lee Gun satisfactorily laughed. He didn’t care if his opponent was flustered or not. He had already used the Leo’s canine in Heaven’s Punishment’s framework. The final process needed to upgrade Heaven’s Punishment lay with something the Aquarius possessed.
Flash!
Lee Gun’s eyes changed into those of a snake.
[13th Sense]
Similar to what had happened in the incident with the Cancer, Lee Gun located the Aquarius’s core. He would be able to acquire divine authority with that Core.
At this moment, the trembling Aquarius realized that this place was its space. Its eyes flashed.
‘I don’t know how, but he probably came in here with the help of the other Zodiacs.’
The Aquarius changed its body into liquid. It would lose Temple energy, but right now, survival was a priority for the Zodiac.
‘I have to hurry up and get out of here.’
The middle world was a crack between dimensions. It was a small secret space, akin to a nuclear shelter. This space had an absolute defense, yet the use of a large quantity of power may cause a crack in the dimension. Therefore, one had to be vigilant in controlling one’s power here.
At this point, the Aquarius had tripped itself up using petty tricks.
‘I have to go to a place where I can use the full extent of my power.’
[The Aquarius is trying to leave the “Middle World” to run away to the “Divine World.”]
[The Aquarius is trying to ask for help from the other gods.]
After turning into liquid, the Aquarius melted into the floor. It was about to disappear when…
‘Uh?’
The Aquarius was taken aback.
‘I can’t leave!’
The Aquarius tried to exit this space, but it was unable to. The Zodiac wondered what was going on, but it soon realized the reason.
[The power of the Space-time monarch has been used.]
[You have used the power of Space.]
[Space Domination]
The Aquarius’s heart sank when it looked at Lee Gun.
‘This feels like the power from the other side…!’
It wasn’t a normal power.
‘Monarch!’
The Zodiac didn’t know how, but the power of a monarch was dominating the middle world. That was why it couldn’t run away. Lee Gun had taken the upper hand from the Aquarius.
‘But how…!’
The Zodiac had been wondering what was going on when…
[Ahhhhhk!!!]
It screamed. The ground instantly split, then the sky and ground started spinning.
The scene looked like a rotating Rubik’s cube; the sky, ground, and buildings started to spin in different directions.
[Wait a moment. What is this…!]
The Zodiac soon realized its mistake. The buildings weren’t spinning.
‘I’m the one that is spinning!’
The Aquarius’s neck was bent. Its arms and body were ruthlessly contracted as they got bent.
As the world around it spun, the Aquarius clearly saw something.
[You have used the power of space.]
[You can dominate a space of a certain scope.]
Lee Gun had his hand extended as he used this strange power. When he clenched his fist, the Aquarius’s spine folded too.
Lee Gun had targeted the space where the Aquarius was standing. That space got designated as the space the Serpent Bearer dominated.
Then, he had reduced the space to the size of a cube. Trapped in this space, the Aquarius got reduced until it was the same size as the contracted space.
This was the power of “Space” that the Space-time monarch had left behind. The power of space had upgraded the existing skills of the “Serpent Bearer” and also created a new skill.
[You have gained another private skill.]
[Ruler of Space (SSS)]
– You have influence over any space your body touches.
– You can rule over everything within certain confines.
[It is the divine authority of Death.]
[If you use the applicable power, you will get closer to the divine state of Death.]
[You can use it only in the divine state of Death.]
Emanating black light, Lee Gun fully clenched his fist.
[Huh, huh-uhk!]
The Aquarius changed into the shape of a sphere.
Lee Gun grabbed the Aquarius, which was the size of a baseball, and headed somewhere else. His target was none other than the room with the numerous Chalices. At a glance, the golden chalices seemed to number in the thousands!
Lee Gun smirked when he saw them.
“Which one is the God’s Tear?”
[!]
The problem of the Purify skill could be solved by taking the Aquarius’s Core. On the other hand, the Tears of a God was a catalyst needed when dealing with divine rank ingredients.
That was one of the reasons Lee Gun had come here.
The Aquarius remained silent. Was that a final act of defiance?
Lee Gun laughed. “I just have to ask your Zodiac Saint. I don’t care if you choose that route, but you and your Zodiac Saint will suffer a terrible fate.”
Unexpectedly, the Aquarius scoffed.
[Hmph! I don’t care if you interrogate that human bitch.]
The words made Lee Gun blink. Of course, the Zodiac had thrown away Sophie earlier, but Lee Gun had thought it had done that only to escape his grasp.
He found this a bit odd. The Zodiacs treasured their Zodiac Saints. “My affiliates do seem to treasure their Zodiac Saints.”
Lee Gun was talking about the Sagittarius and the Virgo.
The Aquarius laughed in derision.
[Do not treat me the same as those that smell like a human.]
Smell like a human?
The Aquarius changed the topic as if it didn’t find that important.
[T-That doesn’t matter. Y-You want to use the Chalice, right? You especially want the Tears of a God?]
Was the Zodiac in a state of shock because of Lee Gun? Or did it realize that it was in a terrible spot? A god stuttering was uncharacteristic.
Quick to pick up on what Lee Gun wanted, the Aquarius laughed.
[You are better off leaving me alone. If you kill me as you killed the Cancer, you won’t be able to use the Chalices.]
“Is that so?”
[That’s right. If you kill me, you might be able to use my power, but you’ll be incapable of using those Chalices. Our temple is known as the seat of the Holy Chalice for a reason. The Chalices are synonymous with the temple. Without the Zodiac, there is no temple. They’ll cease working. That is why it isn’t too late to negotiate— Uh? W-What are you holding in your hand?]
Lee Gun grinned. His finger held a black power, which was moving closer to the sphere encasing the Aquarius.
The Aquarius was shocked. This black light was “Death.” It was a déjà vu of what had happened to the Cancer.
The Aquarius yelled out in desperation.
[H-Hey! Tears of a God can only be made with the Chalice! Are you ok with not being able to make a divine rank weapon? If you kill me, you can’t use those Chalices. If there is no Zodiac—]
Lee Gun let out a menacing laugh. “Yes! But there is no reason you have to be the Zodiac of the Aquarius temple, right?”
[What? W-What are you saying…!!]
Lee Gun smashed the spherical space that contained the Aquarius.
Kwahng!!!
Then, the sound of the second star disappearing rang out.
