“You little bastards, I knew you’d pull that.”
It was Yuha.
But the color of those eyes was crimson.
The gods who met that gaze flinched. And no wonder—Yuha’s original eye color had always been brown.
That vivid red, however, was an ominous hue rare even in the divine realm.
And so, they realized Yuha’s true identity in an instant.
“You… the Serpent God!”
“This bastard, could it be… Eul!”
That was the highest technique of a constellation possessing a saint—the very pinnacle of divine descent!
And at this very moment,
as his grip tightened as if to crush the gods’ skulls, Igeon laughed fiercely.
“You think I didn’t know you’d come after Yuha?”
“……!”
“It was pretty obvious from the moment you lured the evil god out.”
He’d known all along that something foul had been embedded in Yuha’s arm.
And though he hadn’t shown it, wasn’t that something Hugo had always worried about?
‘If it’s not removed, her life will be in increasing danger.’
Even now, they were keeping it suppressed, but if it went berserk, it would drain her life force.
Still, unable to find a way to extract it, he’d only been able to seal it.
Since the [Eul] power could quell the rampaging force of the evil god, even normally.
That was one reason he’d deliberately made Yuha the saint of [Eul].
‘Removing it would be the best option right now, but there’s no way.’
But then, what a surprise.
“So, you sons of bitches know a way to extract the evil god, right?”
“……!!”
From the moment he’d heard Yuha’s story from Cheon Seongjae, Igeon had been certain.
If what was planted in Yuha’s arm truly was the leader of those evil gods,
then the gods would pull that out to attack him.
And so, using the moment they tried to extract the evil god as a signal, Igeon had activated the Divine Descent Authority.
“Well, thanks to that, I didn’t even need to ask to figure out how to pull it out.”
“……!”
“You use that thing you’ve got in your chest to extract it, right?”
Startled by Igeon’s gaze, the gods tried to break free of his grip.
But that very instant—
Possessing Yuha’s body, Igeon drove his fist straight into the enemy’s face.
Crack!!
“Urgh!”
That wasn’t all.
Another god nearby launched a ranged attack at Igeon, but he dodged it effortlessly.
Bang!
The strike tore through the armor he’d crafted in the style of a casual dress shirt, but Igeon’s eyes merely flashed.
[Slaying Resistance (SS)]
- Exclusive Skill
He lunged at the enemies immediately.
Though the possession state meant he couldn’t use the [power of Eul], it didn’t matter.
Whoosh!
Without even the Demigod Instinct, he appeared right before their eyes in the blink of an eye. And a flying kick—
Boom!!
“Ughh!!”
As the enemy was sent flying, a scream rang out from nearby.
Glancing that way, Igeon lifted the corner of his lips.
“What’s this? Two more of you hiding? Since it’s not my body, I nearly missed them.”
With her long black hair flowing, the smiling Yuha was stunningly eerie, enough to send chills down one’s spine, but the gods were frozen with terror.
As the hidden ones tried to move, Igeon immediately called out the name of the spear he’d dropped.
“My baby!”
Then, the Crimson Earth’s Judgment, branded with his mark, came flying straight to him.
Swoosh!
The moment he caught it, he plunged it directly into the enemies’ hearts.
Splat!!
While pulling the spear free, some enemies used their comrades as bait to flee, but he didn’t care.
‘[Slashing Resistance]!’
His eyes gleaming, Igeon channeled all the strength of his arm muscles and hurled the spear at them.
Paaang!
A clear, unwavering straight line—
With a thunderous roar that tore even the sky asunder, the spear became a green beam of light and pierced through the fleeing enemies.
Splat!!
A perfect hit, as if witnessing an arrow from a divine bow.
The enemies’ hearts were precisely pierced, and they crashed to the ground.
Igeon inwardly marveled at the sight.
He’d moved on his usual reflexive instincts, but the distance had been considerable.
‘Well, look at that, it hit again.’
Could she be Hugo’s daughter for nothing? The accuracy was far better than his original body.
Of course, if he’d thrown with his original body, he’d never miss his enemies—but at least with his own aim, it would’ve struck elsewhere, like the body or legs, not the heart.
That wasn’t all.
‘Her reflexes are innate, and her flexibility might actually be better than mine.’
Maybe it was due to his own habits from when his body had been broken.
Even in battle, his style was less about dodging and more about charging in, smashing attacks head-on.
But Yuha could evade every strike.
And she could pierce through the gods’ encirclement with such agility, even without using the Demigod Instinct.
‘Even I find this really useful.’
And then—
‘You’ve worked hard.’
Mentally noting to praise her later, Igeon retrieved the item from the fallen enemies.
[The Geon Trigram That Can Unseal All (SSS)]
- One of the Eight Trigrams (Treasure of the Divine Realm)
- A treasure capable of unsealing any seal
- Current Owner: Kunlun Grand Constellation (Fuxi)
It seemed they’d planned to use this to break the evil god’s seal.
But just then—
From behind, he felt the presence of a powerful deity.
“!”
As Igeon hurriedly turned his head, a familiar voice rang out.
[Don’t get too cocky, Serpent God.]
“!”
With that voice, a luminous figure emerged.
Apparently, among the gods he’d just struck down, one had a talent for playing dead and pulling scams.
[Master of Radiance (Baldur)]
- Affiliation: Valhalla
Compared to before, the divine power was on an entirely different scale—as if he’d been cloaked in a human shell.
[Your rank might be a bit high, but do you truly think you possess the qualifications of a Grand Constellation?]
Baldur furrowed his brow in displeasure.
If that bastard grew in power, there was a risk they’d lose the affiliated gods of Ophiuchus—the ones currently held in Valhalla’s prisons, thousands of them, serving as valuable nourishment even now.
Perhaps that was why—
[If you renounce your status as a Grand Constellation and submit under Valhalla, I might spare your life.]
At those words, Igeon raised the corner of his lips as if to say, what nonsense is this?
“For a swindler, only a beating’s the answer.”
A direct clash with this opponent meant Yuha could be grievously injured.
At the very least, his plan had been to summon someone of a comparable level—Heracles—to protect Yuha, while crossing over himself.
But then—
[In the name of Valhalla, I shall break your seal.]
“!”
[By the authority of Valhalla, I strip the powers of the Ophiuchus and Leo Constellations.]
With that ominous proclamation, light erupted. Igeon let out a groan.
And in that instant, a black mist surged from Cheon Yuha’s body.
“Tch!”
The evil god’s seal had been undone.
Watching that, the Master of Radiance smiled.
Of course, under normal circumstances, they’d have to use the Kunlun treasure, the [Seal-Breaking Trigram], which they’d specially borrowed, to break the evil god’s seal.
However—
[Master of Radiance has used the (Superior) Pardon.]
[The 1 (Superior) Pardon granted to Valhalla has been deducted, reducing Valhalla’s total Pardons to 2.]
Pardons—or Indulgences—had ranks, and the lowest was the (General) Pardon. That was the personal pardon commonly used by gods to avoid karma, the kind Igeon had been using constantly.
But above that was the (Superior) Pardon.
This was granted not to individuals, but to entire factions.
And such a pardon could erase far heavier karma as if it had never happened. Beyond that, it allowed the wielder to exercise immense privileges with the power of the divine realm—
Like just now, even wiping out the powers of the Serpent and Leo Constellations.
‘Well, using a Superior Pardon for something like this hurts, but…’
Hadn’t even , a Grand Constellation of Valhalla, approved it?
Use the faction’s pardon if necessary, but ensure the Serpent God is dealt with.
And at this very moment,
The Master of Radiance had used the (Superior) Pardon to completely erase the power that had sealed Yuha’s arm—the power of the Leo and Ophiuchus Constellations.
As expected—
Flash!
The moment the powers of the constellations vanished, the evil god embedded in Yuha’s arm surged forth.
The evil god immediately stared at Igeon.
It was a deity with jet-black skin and a grotesque face.
[At last, I am free.]
And under that chilling gaze, Igeon furrowed his brow.
That thing had been obsessed with him ever since his first meeting with Yuha.
He’d barely managed to suppress and pin it down, but now—
Resigned to the situation, Igeon prepared to use the [Power of Eul] while still possessing her body.
But seeing this, Baldur smiled.
Of course, the days when the evil gods roamed were before his own birth.
Thus, he had never witnessed their power with his own eyes.
But—
[The baselines of the [Power of Eul], life or death, were originally powers wielded even by the Primordial Gods. And those bastards are the ones who killed even the Primordial Gods.]
The [Power of Eul] could never work against the evil gods.
[Consider it well—your receiving the 6-Star Achievement for handling Olympus.]
With this, Valhalla becoming the #1 faction was only a matter of time!
Baldur moved to steal Igeon’s accomplishments.
But right then—
Splat!!!
[……!!!]
The unsealed evil god unexpectedly stabbed Baldur.
[Ugh, ughh?]
Baldur stared at the evil god, as if demanding to know what this meant.
[…Why!]
Weren’t the evil gods criminals mad after the Creator?
[Could it be you resent us even more?]
But the evil god within Yuha’s body cackled maliciously.
[No? I hold no grudge against you at all.]
[!]
[But do not lay a hand on this one.]
Along with that menacing power, Baldur was annihilated in an instant—
Leaving behind only his divine essence.
* * *
Valhalla’s high-ranking deity, Baldur, had been obliterated in a single moment.
And by an evil god, at that.
At that utterly unexpected sight, Igeon’s eyes widened.
But before he could react further, the evil god who had looked at Igeon raised the corner of its lips.
[At last, I lay eyes on you.]
The evil god approached Igeon savagely. Fitting of one said to have slain Primordial Gods, its divine might was formidable.
‘At least Grand Constellation level.’
Its grotesque appearance—proof of its corruption—and its monstrous divine aura wildly devoured everything around it.
Yet it seemed the thing had words for him.
[I have something to say to you…]
But at that very instant—
Boom!!!
As if deeming it not worth listening to, Igeon immediately unfurled a pit and imprisoned the evil god within.
[#$(*((#$(!!]
From inside the pit came the sound of the evil god throwing a fit, but Igeon ignored it.
Sure, the thing seemed to have something to say to him, but what did he care?
‘If you’re not gonna attack, I’ll just take the initiative and strike first.’
With this, he’d rid himself of the evil god that had been Hugo’s worry, and the kidnapping had succeeded too.
Of course, there was something odd.
‘Strange.’
Not only was that obsession with him weird—he’d been sure it would try to kill him the moment it was unsealed.
‘Is he just some abyss-like freak?’
Or could there be another reason?
Well, that wasn’t important.
‘I’ve been possessing too long.’
The Divine Descent skill was useful, but it placed heavy strain on a saint’s physical body.
In the past, Seongjae had summoned him, but that was closer to a summoning than full-body possession—this was effectively his first time.
So Igeon quickly called out to Yuha’s consciousness.
“Yuha, are you okay? Should I cancel the Divine Descent right away?”
But just then—
[The Saint likes it hehe]
[The Saint likes it hehehe]
[The Saint says to stay a little longer]
[She says watching her uncle fight is just so awesome]
[She asks where her little brother is in all this. She says to film the fighting for her]
Igeon raised an eyebrow.
‘This little…’
Well, anyway, it was a relief she seemed fine.
Igeon immediately summoned his own physical body. The principle was to inscribe a seal onto it and call it forth.
And as soon as Igeon released the Divine Descent, Yuha collapsed and despaired.
“Why… why…! You could’ve stayed just a little longer…!!!”
“Shut it, you brat.”
Just as Igeon, holding the captured evil god, was about to head back to the Scorpio Sanctuary—
[Master!! It’s terrible!]
The voices of his affiliated gods that he hadn’t been able to hear during the possession reached him.
They were the ones inside the Scorpio Sanctuary.
[Master!]
“What’s going on? What happened?”
[Ah! The connection’s finally restored! The evil gods are searching for you here!!]
“What?”
[The leaders of the evil gods, the Five Great Calamities, are frantically looking for you, Master! Our powers won’t work on them!]
Startled, Igeon spoke.
“Got it. I’ll come right away.”
[No! If you come!!! They’re targeting you, Master!]
[You won’t be able to use your power, just like back then…!]
At that, Igeon furrowed his brow.
Could it be that the one who could immobilize him was there too?
[Anyway, we’ll handle this place along with the Scorpio Saint…]
“No.”
Igeon looked at the evil god he’d trapped in the pit.
“There is a way.”
That smile was terribly vicious.
(To be continued in the next chapter)