The gods were stunned.
"What now?"
"One hour?"
The gods of the Olympus faction broke out in cold sweats.
Their lifespan, which had been seven hours, had been cut down in an instant.
And this wasn't simply a matter of the bastard holding the Yellow Springs Register or not.
"He can manipulate time...?!"
"This is insane, that snake god—could he possess the divinity of time?!"
"That's impossible! Just using that register in itself means he must have a divinity of the death line!"
In the first place, divine artifacts—the treasures of gods—could not be used by just anyone.
Only the owner, or at the very least someone with a similar attribute, could make use of them.
In other words, to use the register Lee Gun was wielding right now, he would have to utilize a divinity like Hades', or at least possess the power of a matching underworld god.
'Dammit, just what is he, that there are no records of him at all in the divine world's personnel files...!'
"Could it be that the snake god is a god of time, and in the case of the register, he can use it because he stole Hades' divinity?"
"Are you joking? It hasn't even been a day since Hades died! Do you think you can make a divinity your own in a single day?!"
"Exactly. It should take at least a hundred years just to absorb a divinity!"
But it was right at that moment.
"Tell me the location of the register."
Everyone was startled by the voice that thundered menacingly.
"Lord of the Seas!"
The one who appeared was a male god with a sturdy build and blue hair.
He wore an expression that said this was all absurd.
"Do you think I would endure such deceit? I just need to go and behead him myself."
"Then I shall go as well."
"Oh! If two ruling gods go, there will be no problem."
At the appearance of the male god who possessed Poseidon's divinity and the beautiful goddess of war, the Master of Blazing Heat's face went deathly pale.
'Why are those bastards here!'
They were the supreme executive gods, called the pillars of each faction.
And as those closest to being Great Gods, they were immensely powerful.
'Even for that child, a 2-on-1 against them would be difficult!'
It wasn't simply a matter of power.
Their divinity levels were one thing, but their accumulated history and influence as gods—taking everything into account, they were overwhelming.
'Well, Hades, who stole his father's divinity...'
He was one thing, a teenage chicken(?) who had only recently undergone a generational shift.
That's why he had become so greedy, making deals with gods, stealing Hugo, and focusing on building connections.
But these two were absolutely not the same.
'They're bastards who haven't even had a recent generational succession.'
For gods, time was power. The older they were, the more stable and higher their combat strength.
Moreover, wasn't this a bastard who competed for the highest ranks even in faction wars?
The Master of Blazing Heat couldn't help but be bewildered.
But whether he knew this or not, the Lord of the Seas turned around.
"Anyway, just wait a little. Once we find the hiding bastard, beheading him is no work at all..."
"AAAARGH!!"
"?!"
Startled by the Master of Blazing Heat's scream, the Lord of the Seas and the goddess of war jumped in surprise.
"Luis?"
The Master of Blazing Heat clutched his chest as if his breath would stop.
"Huk...! I'm dying! My heart!"
As the Master of Blazing Heat collapsed, the Lord of the Seas and the goddess of war hurriedly rushed over to him in confusion.
"Luis, what's wrong? Why are you suddenly like this!"
"Huk...! I can't breathe!"
As if judging that his complexion was out of the ordinary, the Lord of the Seas urgently called for someone.
"Luis's condition looks serious! A doctor! Summon a high-ranking god!"
At the word of a high-ranking medical god, the gods exchanged flustered looks.
"Lord Asclepius isn't even present right now, is he...!"
"What do we do?"
The Master of Blazing Heat was one of the precious ruling gods of Olympus. He couldn't be shown to just anyone.
Then, the Lord of the Seas, who was on close terms with the Master of Blazing Heat, raised his voice in anger.
"Summon even the Water-Bearer God of the Twelve Zodiac Palaces! This seems to be the snake god's handiwork, so I shall hurry back after finishing him off!"
At that, the Master of Blazing Heat desperately grabbed onto the Lord of the Seas.
"No! I think I'll get better if you nurse me!"
"What, what?!"
"No! It has to be you!"
"????"
Has this bastard gone mad?
And at that sight, the goddess of war clicked her tongue.
"Then let the Lord of the Seas stay here. I shall go and behead that snake god."
Then, the Master of Blazing Heat urgently grabbed tightly onto her arm as well.
"You need to stay here too."
"...What, what did you say?!"
The Master of Blazing Heat was the face of the Olympus faction.
He was a handsome man who seduced without gender distinction, and he had even seduced the goddess of war (?).
"So please, do not leave for anywhere and guard my side."
At those words, the two gods made dumbfounded expressions, but the Master of Blazing Heat was extremely desperate.
'If I send these two, my nephew will kill me.'
So, I shall not send them to where my nephew is. Even if it costs me my body!
However, the goddess of war actually gave a snort of contempt.
"Buzz off. You're not my type. Die or don't."
"KUHUK!!"
The goddess of war mercilessly trampled the Master of Blazing Heat and turned around.
"Anyway, find the mark. Where is he now?"
"Don't tell me you're thinking of negotiating?!"
"No way."
"Then...!"
"Think rationally. It is a 5-star divine artifact to begin with. By now, his divine status must be plummeting terribly."
"And above all ."
"!"
The Lord of the Seas and the goddess of war raised the corners of their mouths.
"I don't know how a mere fledgling managed to buy up enough permission rights to mess with all of Olympus, but by now, just maintaining it must be close to its limit."
The Yellow Springs Register, being a thing that violates the order of the gods, had great restrictions.
In short, it was a divine artifact that cost an astronomical amount to maintain.
"Even that Hades seldom used the register because of its high maintenance costs. With the lives of this many gods held hostage, there's no way he has any permission rights remaining."
That being the case, they raised the corners of their mouths and immediately petitioned the divine world.
"Olympus pays the price with the authority of the Great God's proxy to request of the divine world."
"Prohibit all selling in the divine world for 1 hour."
They didn't know how the snake god had purchased so many permission rights, but they would block him from buying additional permission rights from the divine world.
Then, the divine world immediately responded.
[The divine world has received the accumulated funds from Olympus]
[As requested, ability exchanges, permission rights exchanges, and all public transactions with the divine world are restricted for 1 hour]
At that voice, sounding like a system announcement, the gods looked bewildered.
"Even if we block the divine world, what about other factions! Hearing our news, they'd be overjoyed and it wouldn't be strange if they tried to sell... no, hand over permission rights to the snake god for free!"
"Yes. If that snake god wins, Olympus would be annihilated in an instant..."
But the God of the Seas laughed as if telling them to stop spouting nonsense.
"The gods of Olympus will not make deals in this situation, and for other factions, simply putting up a barrier is sufficient."
"Then...!"
Simultaneously, the goddess of war drew her sword and struck the ground.
[Domain Declaration (4-Star)]
BOOM!
As Athena activated some kind of authority, the God of the Seas immediately raised his voice.
"The rest of you go to the Great God of the Ennead and conclude the trade for the mark!"
"!"
"Once we receive the remaining payment, negotiation with the divine world is also possible. Then we can deal with that bastard immediately."
At those words, someone approached.
It was Morpheus, who had called Lee Gun, who was in the underworld, Duat.
"I sent my subordinates to the Great God of the Ennead quite some time ago. We will retrieve the remaining payment soon."
"His divine status must be at rock bottom too, so if we just get him to reveal himself, it's our victory."
We'll make him regret daring to touch the nose hairs of one of the Eight Great Factions.
They smiled.
* * *
'What the hell is that bastard doing.'
Anubis could not hide his bewilderment.
'Wasn't that the power of a Monarch!'
Other gods might not know, but he was the one watching Lee Gun's actions with his own eyes.
And the issue was the time data Lee Gun had used.
That thing, in the form of an unknown jewel grain, was definitely something the gods dreaded—a Lost Civilization.
Specifically, it was an object imbued with the power of a Monarch!
'That spear too, what is his relationship with a Monarch!'
No, before that, there was a bigger issue.
'That is a 5-star divine artifact.'
If one used power on a scale that held all of Olympus hostage, one's mental energy shouldn't hold out, so what was that appearance!
But it was right at that moment.
Flash!
With a sudden burst of light, the surrounding gods screamed.
BANG!!
"Kuhuk!"
"Kyaah!"
The gods who had been selling Lee Gun their permission rights were flung away by the sudden light.
Lee Gun narrowed his brow.
'A repulsion skill?'
It was none other than the Yellow Springs Register that had exploded with light.
And that was a cast by the goddess of war, Athena, who had designated coordinates.
Simultaneously, those not belonging to the Olympus faction immediately began to be pushed out.
In the end, all the gods were expelled from the neutral zone, and an unexpected voice was heard.
[All permission rights transactions have been suspended for 1 hour]
[The Yellow Springs Register's energy is at 1% remaining. The register will be sealed in 5 minutes]
[The divine artifact's energy can be replenished with permission rights]
[To continue activating the Yellow Springs Register, a minimum of 100 permission rights are needed. (100 per 1%)]
[Currently remaining permission rights: 2]
[If the Yellow Springs Register is sealed, the authority of the register will be automatically passed on to the Goddesses of Fate]
Lee Gun narrowed his brow, and his subordinate gods in the shadows ground their teeth.
[It seems they've blocked the trading of permission rights so that Master cannot use the register.]
To put it simply, it was like a car with abysmal fuel efficiency running out of gas and needing to refuel, but the Olympus bastards had temporarily shut down the gas stations.
And they had also blown away those who had come to sell gas separately, preventing them from approaching.
'Anyway, this means that if things keep up, the ownership passes to the Goddesses of Fate, right?'
Was this their way of saying "pay up" if he didn't want to lose what he had?
"Well, I just have to kill them all before that happens."
For some reason, Anubis was horrified at those words.
"Not that! Do you really intend to kill them all?!"
"Why? It's a shame I can't find Taeksoo, but I can just kill them all and search the empty house at my leisure, you know?"
"You can't! Holding them hostage is one thing, but if you kill that many gods, do you have any idea how much karma you will accumulate!"
But Lee Gun stared Anubis down as if telling him to shut up and trampled him. His flashing eyes were a bonus.
"Karma, what about it. More than that, shouldn't you be happy if I drop dead? Why are you trying to stop me so desperately?"
"Like hell!! If you become a slave due to karma, your subordinate gods will become slaves in the exact same way... Uhp!"
As if he had spilled important information, Anubis covered his own mouth.
But Lee Gun curved his eyes into a smile.
"Is that so? That's how the system works, you say?"
Then, Osiris, who was listening, quickly changed the subject.
It would be better to thwart this bastard's plan entirely and drag him to the gods of Olympus.
"Snake god. I will help you. You cannot use the register now, so give up this hostage play here..."
But it was then.
"Ah, so you were here! Are you the Great God of the Ennead?"
"!"
Anubis's eyes shot wide open.
There, the gods of Olympus, heavily laden with bundles, were approaching Lee Gun.
"With Lord Anubis and Lord Osiris handling the mark, there's no doubt you are the Great God!"
"!!"
Though he had hidden his face, Anubis and Osiris were the ruling gods of the Ennead. They were extremely famous beings even among the pantheons.
And who else but a Great God could trample them like that!
"I couldn't contact you personally, and since I thought you might be with Lord Osiris due to the deal, I looked for him. It was the correct answer, as expected."
It seemed they were the gods of Olympus who had come to continue the transaction from Duat.
Indeed, that information appeared.
[Affiliation: Lord of Dreams (Morpheus)]
"We are the ones taking over the transaction following Hades. We've come to receive the remaining payment."
Lee Gun raised the corner of his mouth.
"Is that so? Remaining payment?"
"Yes. We are deeply regretful about the matter with Hades. You've already received the mark, I'm sure... but to apologize for causing trouble to the Ennead as well, we've brought various additional items to offer you."
"!"
They held out their bundles.
Seeing that, Lee Gun raised the corner of his mouth.
There were items there that were traded as valuables in the divine world.
Of course, since he didn't know their exact uses, pass. But among them, one item caught his eye.
"We also have permission rights here. Lord Anubis demanded a great deal of them. The divine artifacts of the Ennead also require many permission rights, right?"
Anubis, who had been demanding precious items without thinking, screamed internally.
'Dammit! Our plan!!'
But it was then.
"But, Great God of the Ennead... why are you disguised in such a youthful form?"
"What?"
Those who had come for the transaction sent subtle glances.
"No, it's just... we were aware that the Great God of the Ennead detests snakes..."
Why does the smell of a snake emanate from him?
That wasn't all.
Red was a symbol of inauspiciousness in the divine world.
"There's no way the Great God would disguise himself with red eyes..."
Soon, they trembled, flinching at the energy surging from Lee Gun's body.
As he raised his divine status, Lee Gun's black eyes began to glow red.
Terrified, they reflexively drew their weapons.
"You bastard! Who are you!"
"Who are you, to the ruling gods...!"
But Lee Gun smiled chillingly.
"Thanks for the stuff you brought."
Screams echoed out.
* * *
Around that time, Olympus.
The palace of the Great God where the Great God was in seclusion.
"What?! The Yellow Springs Register still hasn't stopped?!"
Those who had come to secretly search for other parts of Hugo couldn't believe their ears.
"It still hasn't stopped—what's going on?"
"Could he possibly have so many permission rights that he can endure even if deals are blocked?"
"Does that even make sense! He's a bastard who entered the divine world only a day ago! That he would...!"
But it was then.
"That's the thing! It seems Morpheus's subordinates, who went to carry out the transaction, were robbed by that snake god!"
"What?! Why would they go there when they should be heading to the Ennead!"
The gods clutched the back of their necks.
"Can't be helped. Find the mark quickly and create a clone or something."
"If we put that out there, the bastard will reveal himself. His divine status must be bottomed out, so we'll strike then."
But it was right at that moment.
"Is that so? So our Taeksoo was here?"
"...!!!"
A chilling voice suddenly dropping right next to them.
At the voice heard right beside them, the gods froze solid.
But regardless, the snake god's eyes flashed.
"For the guide, thank you?"
(Continued in the next chapter)