Chapter 278: Star, the Revival Plan (3)
Paaah―!
‘What in the world…!’ Director Gwon Hyo-Hae panted hard, but he couldn’t afford to catch his breath due to the shock that jumbled up his thoughts.
Until a moment ago, he was wiping out the Gray Elves with ease, but everything turned into a mess when Chang-Sun suddenly showed up. Who could have thought that he would eliminate all three elders from the Council of Elders in one strike and exterminate the entire Sword Demon Platoon on his own?
The White Tiger Clan members in this place had been exterminated. That word was often vaguely used to describe high casualties or few survivors scattering as a form of a strategic retreat. However, that wasn’t the case right now. The White Tiger Clan got annihilated. The Ghost Soldiers that Director Gwon had brought, the Gildals… All of their secret forces had been killed.
That was why Director Gwon ran in the opposite direction before Chang-Sun’s [Dragon Breath] struck him. The thought of saving his face and honor never crossed his mind, which was currently filled with the desire to survive no matter what. The reason he became a demonic being in the first place was to survive in the world of Players, the main principle of which was the law of the jungle. However…
[An unidentified group has appeared!]
While running, Director Gwon saw a flash of light before him, and a group of about a hundred people appeared. They weren’t Lee Chang-Sun’s mysterious summons, but was there anyone else who was likely to show up here? Director Gwon considered the possibility of them being affiliated with the Jaynix Company, but he had never met any of them before.
‘Whoever they may be… I’ll get them out of my way!’ Director Gwon stopped trying to identify them.
He decided to kill anyone who stood in his way right now. To get as far away from Chang-Sun as possible, Director Gwon didn’t have any time to make complicated judgments.
Schwing―!
Paah!
However, before he could draw his sword, something suddenly flickered in front of him again.
Smack!
Director Gwon dropped to the ground with a hole in his forehead.
‘… A Gray Elf?’ was his last thought. As his train of thought stopped, Kali appeared where he had been running.
“Hmm! It seems something happened while we were away. Now that it has turned out this way, we should save and subjugate them.”
Lie Si and the Ninth Corps—the <Troop>—showed up on Earth.
* * *
Woosh, woosh, woosh…!
The Parasitic Tree—the tree that served as the Gray Elves’ temporary Divine Tree—let out clouds of dust when it collapsed. Nain and the other Gray Elves were half out of their minds.
Chang-Sun watched them for a moment, then quietly hung [Tiamat’s Snaggletooth] on his belt, furtively turning his head to avoid eye contact with them.
[The Celestial ‘World-Encircling Serpent’ quietly chuckles, saying you are also great at feigning innocence.]
[The Celestial ‘Twilight-Piercing Owl’ quietly looks away from you.]
[The Celestial ‘War-Loving Fighting Deity’ laughs heartily, finding this really wild!]
[The Celestial ‘Sky and Earth’s Connecting Wing’ advises you to collect the Parasitic Tree fragments since they are versatile materials.]
…
[The Celestial ‘Abyss-Chasing Great Devil’ becomes lost in thought because your personality reminds him of someone.]
The Celestials watching Chang-Sun through their Channelings were shouting with joy. Although they all made him feel uncomfortable, one particular Celestial made his head ache.
[The Celestial ‘Madness Infuser’ is yelling in delight!]
[The Celestial ‘Madness Infuser’ is yelling in delight!]
[The Celestial ‘Madness Infuser’ is yelling in delight!]
…
‘… What is up with him?’?Chang-Sun wondered.
‘Madness Infuser’ Bacchus, one of the <Olympus> Numen, was popular for his love of madness, euphoria, and alcohol. He and Chang-Sun shared nothing in common, but if Chang-Sun had to think of one, it would be that he was on good terms with Bacchus’ siblings—Minerva, Mars, and Mercury. For some reason, he had a feeling that Bacchus was also not normal.
‘Well, they’re Jupiter’s children, so except for Minerva, it may be more strange for them to be normal.’
[The Celestial ‘Madness Infuser’ is yelling in delight!]
…
Bacchus was practically spamming Chang-Sun, so he pushed Bacchus’ messages out of his sight.
“… We cannot use this place as our hideout anymore, so this might be for the better,” Nain quietly mumbled after sorting out his thoughts. He walked toward the Parasitic Divine Tree.
The other Gray Elves looked at Nain. Chang-Sun also observed him.
“In nature, lightning bolts occasionally strike jujube trees, making them extremely sturdy.” Nain looked down at the part of the Parasitic Divine Tree that the lightning bolt had scorched. He then smashed it with his wooden staff.
Crash!
“The spot where a lightning bolt has hit it would burst and crack, but the electricity that permeated into the tree would instantly evaporate the water inside it, shrinking the tree. A jujube tree is already sturdy by nature, but it becomes even more durable during the process. In addition, its inside which turned pitch black holds lightning energy, so it’s very effective in defeating evil spirits and keeping away weak monsters.” Nain cut out the burned part and brushed away the dust.
Nain trimmed away a relatively tiny part of the tree. Since the Parasitic Tree was enormous, the part he cut out was still quite big.
“Of course, Parasitic Trees are incomparably better than jujube trees. That’s why I believe turning this into an artifact will be a great help to you in defeating the White Tiger Clan soldiers with ghost energy.” Nain approached Chang-Sun, then politely held out his hands with his palms open. “This is the only thing we can offer you right now. Just like this Divine Tree protected us, it will now protect Twi—!”
“Chang-Sun,” Chang-Sun interrupted.
“…?”
“Call me Chang-Sun.”
Nain was quick-witted enough to immediately understand the meaning behind Chang-Sun’s request. Considering his Divine Name was still censored, Chang-Sun wished to continue hiding his true identity for now. It seemed he required more time to reveal it.
“… We wish for your protection, Sir Chang-Sun.” Nain bowed, going down on one knee like a royal subject rendering a tribute to his king.
After exchanging glances, the other Gray Elves followed Nain’s example. Through their link, they learned who Chang-Sun really was. He was Twilight, the person whom Kali always talked about and earned the Gray Elves’ respect in the past.
The ‘Divine Twilight’ made a strong impression not only on Nain but on all the other Gray Elves in the area. Even though he always lost to Kali in the past, he never failed to stand up and challenge her again. That ignited a flame of inspiration among many of the ascetics.
[The Ninth Branch and other Branches have asked to become your Subordinates!]
A hundred Gray Elves—the guardian ascetics of Himavat—bowed their heads to him, creating a solemn and majestic sight.
[These Branches are poor beings who have lost all their powers and Authorities due to the death of their Guardian.]
[Taking them under your wings will give you a higher reputation in <Heaven>.]
[Caution! Accepting beings who have lost their Guardian as your Subordinates will turn their enemies and allies into yours.]
[Caution! Many people are after the Ninth Branch and other Branches. Accepting their request means having to provide them with protection. Failure to protect them will result in severe penalties.]
This was different from when the Elfin Root became Chang-Sun’s Subordinate. After all, the Elfin was just one Gray Elf, and he killed it first before turning it into his Subordinate. As an Undead, the Elfin then converted its belief.
Chang-Sun would be taking in a group of about a hundred people, which meant that he would have to fill in for Kali in every aspect, including all her relationships and the danger the Branches were in due to their revival campaign.
Nevertheless, Chang-Sun didn’t care. Even though he was a pathetic friend, Kali gave up everything for him, so it was only natural for him to take all her duties. However, just as he was about to nod and allow the Branches to change their beliefs and become his Subordinates…
“I’m right in front of you, my foolish subjects. Why are you trying to stray from the right path?” A voice that Nain and the Gray Elves were too familiar with loudly echoed in the sky. It belonged to someone who could never be here today, so the Gray Elves had buried the memory deep in their minds.
“… No way.” Nain’s eyes grew as wide as saucers when he turned toward it.
“Everyone, get back!” Chang-Sun yelled sharply as he spread his Jigwi’s wings.
Pzzzz!
Made up of Atra Fulmen energy, the wings instantly turned into a protective barrier over the Gray Elves, shielding them from the attacks raining down from the sky.
Boom, boom, boom!
Rumble―!
“What in the world—!” Nain and the others were taken aback.
They were well aware of whose Authority was used for these attacks. It was Kali’s [Destruction Anchor], which spread a strong wave of destruction upon impact!
a
Paah…!
The moment [Destruction Anchor] and the Jigwi’s wings clashed, a gigantic cloud of dust rose, but it soon dissipated due to the ensuing gale. Amid the fight, Chang-Sun activated Fulgurator and unleashed his Atra Fulmen energy to the maximum output.
Realizing whom Chang-Sun was fighting, Nain and the Gray Elves couldn’t help gasping in shock.
“Goddess!”
“Our Guardian…! She’s alive!”
They thought Kali died, but she was right in front of them! Although she was not as intimidating or lethal as she was in her prime, her eyes were still as sharp, and she still moved the same.
Nain and the others who were about to follow Chang-Sun as Kali instructed were now having a hard time wrapping their heads around the situation.
Claaang!
Amid the chaos, Chang-Sun stayed calm even though Kali, who was supposed to be at Durga with Baek Gyeo-Ul, appeared and started attacking him. After deflecting Kali’s knife-hand strike with his Nameless Spear, Chang-Sun thrust the spear to push Kali away.
Whirl!
Kali concluded that she couldn’t defeat Chang-Sun in terms of physical strength, so she somersaulted high in the air, quietly landing on the ground. Meanwhile, Nain and the Gray Elves trembled because her artistic movement, techniques, martial arts skills… everything about her was exactly the same.
“Ah…!”
“Our goddess is truly…!”
The Gray Elves exclaimed in awe.
[The Celestial ‘World-Encircling Serpent’ widens his eyes due to the sudden turn of the event!]
[The Celestial ‘Twilight-Piercing Owl’ is confused because she is unsure of what is happening!]
Looking at the Gray Elves, Kali solemnly reproached them, “I, Kali, your siblings’ master and mother, am right here, so how can you choose to follow someone else? I cared and nurtured you with all my heart until my death!”
“Th-that’s—!”
“Ninth Branch. You’re one of the first I created. As my ninth child, you should understand me best. How could you have such a treacherous idea?” Kali asked.
Nain couldn’t bring himself to answer the question. Although he was just following Kali’s last wish to become Chang-Sun’s Subordinate, he still declared that he was changing Guardians while she was right in front of them.
Nain basically betrayed Kali, an act that should never be done within a sect or a religious order. Since it was the same for the other Gray Elves, they bewilderedly looked back and forth between Nain, Kali, and Chang-Sun.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!
Behind Kali, other Gray Elves landed. Nain knew them quite well. After all, he was supposed to meet them tonight, and they were still his siblings even though they were with the <Troop>.
“What are you all doing?! Our Guardian has returned, so why aren’t you all paying your respects?”
Having confirmed that the real Kali was standing before them, Nain and the others hurriedly tried to bow. There was no knowing why Kali joined the <Troop> when she resurrected, but it was their duty as her priests to follow her regardless of her reasons.
However, Nain and the Branches couldn’t bow. An invisible power held them back.
“You don’t have to do that. The one over there is an impostor,” Chang-Sun said.
Navy blue fires lit up in Chang-Sun’s eyes, looking at the Celestials behind Kali and the Gray Elves.
[The ‘Star Counter’ looks at you…]
[The ‘Evil Spirit Executioner’ looks at you…]
[The ‘Mysterious Man Wrapped in Silk-Wrapping Cloth’…]
…
[The Celestial ‘Silk and Jewelry-Wrapped General’ crumples up his face as he looks at you.]
A list of members of the Ninth Corps popped up before Chang-Sun, finding Lie Si, a very familiar Divine Name, at the bottom of it. Lie Si was the divine general of the <Troop> that Chang-Sun ran into in <Star Grave>, and he was glaring at Chang-Sun right now.
“Who are you to say I’m a fake—!” Kali glared at Chang-Sun in anger.
“There are two reasons for my claim,” Chang-Sun interrupted as he smirked. “The first is that you don’t recognize me.”
“… What?”
“And the second reason…” Chang-Sun paused. He exuded another energy.
[Living Tree, your dormant Divinity, is awakening!]
Paah…!
At that moment, Nain and the other Gray Elves saw an image that wasn’t really an illusion. Living Tree was the Attribute of Kali’s Divinity, so they felt as if the real Kali showed up behind Chang-Sun. She had a World Tree around her, and she had her eyes closed.
“The real Kali is with me right now,” Chang-Sun continued.
“…!”
“…!”
“…!”
[The power of the old Celestial ‘Goddess of Massacre and Destruction’ is awakening!]
The image of the real Kali opened her eyes.
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