"That, I won't allow."
"!"
A familiar voice rang out.
It came from within Pishu's belly.
And upon hearing the owner of that voice, Yigeon felt as if he'd been struck.
It was no wonder...
"Hailey?!"
Why in the world was her voice coming from here?
From inside Pishu's belly, no less?!
"No, why are you here?!"
Even Yigeon, who was holding fast, looked uncharacteristically flustered.
But the absurdity didn't end there.
"Daughter-in-law...! Didn't we agree to stay hidden! You mustn't make a sound!"
"?!"
The voice that followed belonged to none other than Asran!
Though his face was unseen, just hearing his voice made Yigeon's blood boil.
No, you lot!
"Why are you two here?! Hiding in the belly of a piggy bank, of all things!"
"Why? I came because I knew you'd pull something like this!"
"What?"
Hailey answered. She continued speaking.
"With only two indulgence slips left at that point, how could I possibly not realize what choice you would make, Geon?"
"......!"
A flustered Yigeon tried to drive them both out immediately, but Asran gave a derisive snort.
"Even if you try, it's useless! Go ahead and try to throw us out! It won't work anyway since we're not your bound gods."
That damn...
In the end, an enraged Yigeon glared fiercely at the distant piggy bank.
"Spit them out! Spit them out before I split your belly open!"
Terrified, Pishu whimpered and backed away.
Well, whatever the case, it was fine.
Hearing his father's voice, Yigeon spoke as if it was a good thing.
"Since you're here, good. You keep a close watch on Yeonu and Junu. And take good care of the Ancient God's power too."
Yigeon immediately activated the book and used [Indulgence].
He had used one of the two.
And now only one remained.
Yigeon looked at the space of [the Wheel] spread out beneath [the Wheel of Fire].
And that place was a space where everything was ground away before passing through [the Heavenly Bin].
The [Undulating Starlight] within was like a galaxy, different from the brilliant outside.
But that light was so dazzling it was rather chilling.
And in the midst of that, Yigeon's body, holding onto [the Undulating Starlight], was gradually collapsing as well.
"Keuk...!"
One of his arms was shattered.
Seeing that sight, [the Wheel of Fire], reduced to nothing but lingering resentment, laughed ferociously.
[What do you hope to do with a body like that! Yes, it was strange! Did you think from the start that a hatchling not even a hundred years old could wield such power!]
Yigeon was still a young fledgling, so much so that the universe couldn't remember him.
[But for such a whelp to handle that much power is, frankly, an incredible feat indeed! I'm saying this now, but I'll offer you praise!]
Yigeon held onto him as if to tell him to get lost.
Did he think Yigeon wouldn't know that he was trying to take not just him, but the entire Earth as a companion in death?
Because of that, Yigeon, suppressing his power, cried out.
At this rate, his body would collapse before he could use the indulgence slip.
It was better to use them all before that and jump into death with this bastard in tow.
He immediately activated the indulgence slip.
'Last... one...'
This was Hailey's share.
But it was exactly at that moment.
"Wait, daughter-in-law? No!"
"!"
Asran's urgent voice came from within Pishu's mouth.
And as he turned his head, there was Hailey emerging from Pishu's mouth, and Asran trying to stop her.
"Didn't we agree to stay quiet. I shall handle this here..."
But Asran couldn't finish his sentence.
Flash!
"!!!"
The moment Hailey touched him, Asran's form transformed into a slime.
Asran was clearly taken aback.
He couldn't even move.
And Yigeon gave a command to that Pishu. It meant to swallow Hailey.
At the same moment, just as he was about to send Pishu outside with Hailey swallowed...
Flash!
"......!"
Yigeon's view changed in an instant.
The position of Yigeon, who had been holding onto [the Wheel of Fire], had been swapped.
And holding onto [the Wheel of Fire] in Yigeon's stead was none other than a powerful fiery force!
Yigeon was taken by surprise.
'That's the Crimson Lord's...'
Why had Hailey's mother's power appeared here? He was wondering that exact moment.
Gentle fingers grasped Yigeon's face and turned it.
It was Hailey.
And the moment their eyes met, Yigeon was taken aback.
"Hail... mmph!"
The moment he turned his head, Hailey pressed her lips to his.
It was quite a deep kiss.
But Yigeon realized. It wasn't a simple kiss.
Some kind of power was being transferred from Hailey's body into his.
And Yigeon immediately realized what that power was.
'The Crimson Lord's power.'
He had seen it firsthand, so he was certain. Hailey's mother, captured by the gods and being bled for her ancient blood.
That Lord's power was entering his body.
And although they had rescued Hailey's mother, her condition hadn't looked good back then.
In fact, since he heard she vanished afterward, he had vaguely thought she probably passed her power to her daughter before dying, but still.
'Why this?'
But it was right at that moment.
The shadow of [the Wheel of Fire] lunged fiercely, trying to snatch up Hailey and Yigeon.
Puhaak!!!
'Keuk!'
A shadow like a hooked tentacle mercilessly pierced Yigeon's back.
And since it was a strike aimed at a vital point, Yigeon, who had momentarily wrapped himself around Hailey as if to shield her, was in agony, but only for a moment.
"!"
'It doesn't hurt.'
He wasn't pierced.
The strike that should have sufficiently pierced through skin and flesh into his innards couldn't even penetrate the skin and was bounced off!
And just as he was wondering how this had happened...
Flash!
[The power of a 1st generation Lord has entered, making the body robust.]
[The body has been strengthened by the powerful force of life will.]
[Nothing can pierce the body.]
Like the [Harmonious Creation] that sparks life, a powerful force was strengthening his body.
At first glance, it seemed similar to the regeneration of [The One Who Became the Foundation], but it was clearly different.
[You become able to withstand even the powerful force of a Great Divinity.]
That was it.
The Lords possessed such powerful bodies that they didn't succumb easily even when fighting gods.
No, rather, their physical strength was far greater than that of the gods.
And among them, the ones with the most durable bodies were the 1st generation Lords.
In other words, as his body, which had been like that of a newborn, was strengthened by the Lord's power, it became capable of withstanding even the powerful force of a Great Divinity.
And that was a part that his [Harmonious Creation] had been unable to do, a different kind of protection.
The power of [Life Will] that burst forth a life force as tenacious as a flame that could endure any situation.
Yigeon's body had become as durable as a Lord's.
Sure enough.
[The collapse has stopped.]
"......!"
At that sight, [the Wheel of Fire] seemed flustered.
[......That damn woman!!]
Soon, Hailey looked at Yigeon and spoke.
"This is the power my mother left for me at the very end."
"!"
It seemed the Lord of [Life Will], who was vanishing, had left her power to her daughter.
As a tool to extend the life of the daughter who was destined to disappear under karma.
And just as the nature of [Life Will] was mimicry, and the nature of [The One Who Became the Foundation] was movement, the nature of [The One Who Became the Foundation] was a life force that absolutely could not die.
Wasn't that precisely why even the gods had utilized its power?
"With this, your body should be able to withstand its own power. There will be no problem."
So, he didn't need to think about sacrificing himself because his body was going to collapse anyway.
As long as he used the [Indulgence] that Daol had made, Yigeon could continue to live happily ever after.
That wasn't all.
Cough.
Hailey coughed up blood. Yigeon immediately realized.
It was because her body had weakened after passing her power to him.
And her body was being destroyed because it couldn't withstand the power of [the Heavenly Bin].
Because of that, Yigeon immediately tried to reconstruct her body with the power of the Creator, but that was the moment.
"Hailey!"
Even the power of creation couldn't regenerate her body.
Her body was rapidly disappearing.
Having realized something, Yigeon flusteredly tried to pull something out from inside her chest.
"Just what were you thinking!"
She had used the Ancient God's power [The Heavenly Bin] on herself.
But originally, the Ancient God's power could not be used by just anyone.
There was a reason even those greedy Great Divinities had divided and used it.
So how could someone who wasn't even a Divinity...
No, that wasn't what was important right now.
Yigeon tried to remove the power of [the Heavenly Bin], but perhaps Hailey had intended this from the start, as she grabbed his arm.
"Don't save me. Use the indulgence slip for yourself. And live happily with Hyugo and Yeonu."
"What?"
Yigeon couldn't accept it.
"I was trying to save you, why are you trying to disappear."
At that, Hailey smiled as if she was the one refusing that notion.
"A world without you has no meaning."
"!"
"You might not know the heart of those left behind, but I don't want to feel that feeling again."
"......!"
Twenty years ago.
Life after Yigeon vanished from the Demon's Tower had been lonely.
Guilt and loneliness, the thought that Yigeon no longer existed, had been painful.
"...Geon-a. If even one person is missing, I don't think it has any meaning."
Yigeon watched Hailey, her breathing growing weaker, and lamented.
The day Yeonu died.
He didn't know if it was because the [Harmony] that [The One Who Became the Foundation] had brought had eaten away at various emotions, but his chest, which was always indifferent, ached for some reason.
And when he realized her death, he finally understood something.
He had always been the one to leave first, so he hadn't recognized it, but he realized that those left behind felt differently.
He realized that he hadn't cared at all about the feelings of the ones he left behind.
When he thought about it, hadn't he been about to do the same thing again to the two people who had grieved and suffered over his death for 20 years?
No, it would probably be the same for everyone else.
In other words.
'If everyone doesn't survive, it's meaningless.'
And Yigeon, realizing that, nodded as he held Hailey.
He would find a way for all three of them to live. As he thought that and tried to rise, that was the moment.
Kugugung!!
"!"
The floor heaved, and a black shadow of unknown identity appeared.
And that shadow was trying to take Hailey away.
An enraged Yigeon tried to grab the black shadow, but it simply slipped through his hand.
"!"
Even the divine powers didn't work on it.
But that wasn't because Yigeon's power was weak.
[Can only be touched by residents of the Void Realm.]
[It is the power of another world that cannot be interfered with.]
"......!!"
In the end, the shadow vanished somewhere, taking Hailey with it.
And as Yigeon tried to pursue it, the lingering resentment of the dying Lord of the Wheel of Fire laughed.
[You cannot go there. Because what just left was from the Void Realm.]
"What?"
[A child of taboo, I see. You tried to save that woman using the [Harmonious Creation]. But in the first place, she couldn't be saved with that.]
"What are you saying?"
[Do you think the King of the Void Realm would forgive the child of a taboo?]
The Void Realm.
A world of death deeper than [the Wheel], where even gods are made to suffer eternal pain and labor.
A world for sinners, ranging from evil gods to monsters, those bearing karma go there, a place different from the divine realm in the Yang world or colonies like Earth.
A world of eternal labor without light.
[Who do you think created the rule that gods and Lords must not be joined?]
It wasn't a rule made by the Ancient God.
The one who made that rule was the King of the Void Realm.
[Anyway, there is no way for a god to go to the Void Realm.]
Normally, the Void Realm was a place only those bearing karma could go.
And because all beings who entered there would simply be crushed under their own karma and become slaves of the King of the Void Realm.
[Therefore, you are usele... Keoheok!!]
At that moment, [the Wheel of Fire] was mercilessly torn apart.
And the one who tore him apart while appearing was none other than Asran.
Asran, who had barely regained his form from the slime state, furrowed his brow.
"In the end, it comes to this. This is why I tried to shoulder the karma."
"What?"
It seemed Asran intended to use Garan's power.
"If you used the indulgence slip on Hailey, I was going to take on your karma."
He had intended to bear Yigeon's karma himself.
Then, even if he himself died as an evil god, all three of them could live.
That was his plan.
"I didn't know that child would use the Ancient God's power."
The reason he had momentarily been suppressed by Hailey and had his power sealed was because of that.
It was probably possible because she was a child of taboo.
'It's not for nothing that the rule against Cruder and gods interbreeding came to be.'
But Yigeon furrowed his brow.
That didn't matter right now.
"What do you mean, it's useless even if I use the indulgence slip on Hailey? Is what that bastard said true?"
"Half is true, half is false. If you use the indulgence slip, the karma accumulated so far will disappear... but unless the rule itself is abolished, it will just repeat."
In short, the karma for Hailey being born as a child of taboo and becoming close to Yigeon would be cleanly cleared.
"But after that, the moment she just holds your hand, karma will arise again. Because you are a god and a Cruder."
"......!"
The one who created that rule was the King of [the Void Realm].
In other words, it meant she would be cursed again unless the rule itself was completely abolished.
And she must have known that herself. But even if absolved, could she erase her feelings of liking Yigeon?
"It is an instinct of nature to want to touch and be by the side of the one you love more and more."
Soon, Yigeon raised an eyebrow as if displeased.
"Just who is this King of the Void Realm? Is he different from the Ancient God?"
"It's someone you know too."
"What?"
"The Universe."
"!"
The being that remembers the existence of the gods.
That is the King of the Void Realm. The Universe.
That's why the gods loathed going to that place.
Because that being was one who transcended even them.
However, Yigeon himself laughed as if it was detestable.
The Universe, it said.
"Ah, that moron, dimwit bastard who can't even remember me properly no matter what trouble I cause?"
"Uh... y-yeah."
Yigeon raised the corners of his mouth as if he had recalled something.
(Continues in the next episode)