602
Chapter 602
CRUNCH!
In that moment, a black substance gradually spread in the air, obscuring Harvey Draker who was standing behind.
Zeke launched a sword strike towards that substance.
SWOOSH!
Just like with the mind sword, Zeke's new sword strike was also absorbed into that substance and disappeared.
And it spread even faster than before.
Zeke turned his head and spoke to the Leader.
"You said you know what that is?"
A thin vibrating sound emerged from the Leader's broken body and answered Zeke's question.
"Yes."
"Then either stop it yourself or tell me how to stop it."
The Leader responded again with a vibrating sound.
"That cannot be stopped."
At the Leader's words, Zeke furrowed his brows and stepped back.
Then he went beside the Leader's broken body and pointed Leviathan at him.
"What do you mean by that? Explain properly. I'm tempted to destroy you first, you know."
Zeke knew that the Leader was the Great Sage's homunculus, and that he had been hiding the fact that the Book of Death was here.
He fully understood the will to organize the Highlanders to regulate the balance of the phenomenal world.
However, Zeke was also angry about the blindness of arbitrarily interpreting the Great Sage's will to create a savior by making Harvey Draker and other test subjects.
The Leader's will flowed into Zeke's mind strongly enough to make his entire head ring.
-That is a dimensional hole created by distorted causality.
Zeke frowned at the Leader's words.
"I can't understand what you're saying. So if that can't be stopped, what are you saying we should do?"
The Leader's will flowed in again.
-We must let it absorb enough sacrifices to reverse the distorted causality. Then it will naturally disappear.
Zeke's expression changed at the Leader's words.
"What nonsense is that again?"
The Leader's monotone voice echoed in his mind.
-Beings with strong karma. If we offer those of High Table level as sacrifices, it will disappear on its own.
Unable to hold back any longer, Zeke brought down Leviathan onto the broken Leader's chest.
CRUNCH!
The Leader, with his chest struck, continued conveying his thoughts in the same monotone voice.
-That is the only way. There is no other.
"Shut up! I should have known from when you started spouting nonsense about balance, regulation, and the world's fate. You have no real interest in this world at all. You're just a parrot repeating the same words."
Zeke looked down at the Leader with sharp eyes, pondering before suddenly remembering something.
"Let's ask the real Great Sage what he thinks about this mess. You damn puppet."
He took out the Chronos Treasury Key that had been enhanced with the Holy Ark from his inventory.
It was an artifact that could summon spirits related to Chronos using items as mediums.
Zeke took the Great Sage's staff that the Leader was holding.
SCREECH!
The Leader tried to struggle, but couldn't move with Zeke's sword pinning his chest.
Zeke held the Great Sage's staff and activated the Chronos Treasury Key.
SWOOSH!
The sage's staff that served as the medium scattered into light and transformed into karma before seeping into the key.
WHOOSH!
A massive light flickered from the key, then shot up into the air creating a portal made of white light.
WHOOOOSH!
From within the light-scattering portal appeared a spirit over two meters tall wearing a robe with long flowing hair.
Except for the halo shining behind, they had the same appearance and attire as the Great Sage that Zeke had seen before.
The Great Sage, who appeared in the phenomenal world while radiating a bright halo throughout the stone chamber, raised their head and looked at the black substance gradually spreading in the air.
At the same time, the Great Sage's will flowed into Zeke's mind.
[Sir Zeke, it's been a long time.]
Surprisingly, the Great Sage's spirit retained memories of meeting Zeke at the Primordial Temple.
He continued talking.
[I would have liked to have some tea together, but looking at the situation, that won't be possible.]
The Great Sage's spirit raised his staff while watching the spreading black substance.
Radiant light poured out from the staff.
FLASH!
When the black substance met with the light that the sage poured out, it stopped spreading.
Seeing this, Zeke asked the sage.
"Did you stop it?"
The sage shook his head.
[No. Since even my power cannot eliminate that, I've temporarily stopped time here for now.]
At the sage's words, Zeke urgently looked around and saw that as they said, not just the black substance but everything had stopped.
'Magic that stops time.'
Zeke had believed only Chronos had the power over time.
Even Chronos himself had to face powerful restrictions to cross timelines.
Though it was in a limited space, Zeke could feel how powerful the Great Sage's ability was to temporarily stop time even as a spirit.
The Great Sage's spirit looked at Zeke and spoke.
[The situation has become complicated, Sir Zeke.]
Zeke nodded and responded somewhat reproachfully.
"Yes, and it's become even more so because of this puppet you left behind."
The Great Sage let out a shallow sigh while looking at his frozen homunculus.
[I had prepared it as a contingency plan in case something happened after the Demon King's sealing... I didn't expect it would become a problem like this.]
Seeing the Great Sage's regret, Zeke composed himself and spoke.
"I don't want to blame you for what's already happened. I summoned you because there are things I want to know."
He quickly continued.
"Is it true that Arthur Draker plans to summon the Demon King into me and absorb that power, and is this also part of the predetermined arrangement you spoke of? Can this break the wheel of fate set up by the celestial constellations?"
Finally, Zeke pointed at the frozen black substance and said.
"And tell me what the hell that damned thing is, what's the true nature of the Outer Beings' power!"
After venting his emotions that had gradually intensified, Zeke caught his breath and glared at the Great Sage.
The Great Sage then nodded.
[I understand your anger, Sir Zeke. However, I hope you understand that everything was done with good intent.]
"I don't want to hear such nonsense. Good intent? For whose sake exactly?!"
Zeke pointed at the broken homunculus of the Great Sage and said.
"If you speak like that, you're no different from that puppet. Have you never thought that your hypocritical righteousness, claiming everything you do under the name of noble purpose is good intent, is actually distorting the balance of the phenomenal world?"
The Great Sage couldn't answer Zeke's words.
Angered by the sage's attitude, Zeke continued.
"So now, drop that nonsensical talk and properly answer my questions."
The sage pressed his lips together before nodding and speaking again.
[Your words are all correct. I was trapped in the arrogance of believing only I could save this world.]
Having readily admitted their mistake, the Great Sage looked at Zeke and said.
[However, Sir Zeke, all I can answer is what that thing is.]
He looked at the frozen black substance and spoke.
[A hole of distorted causality and traces of reversed karma.]
CRACKLE!
Causal aftershocks began occurring around the black substance.
The time that the sage had forcibly held was trying to flow again.
The sage quickly continued.
[The only way to eliminate that is, as my homunculus said, to offset it with karma corresponding to the distorted causality.]
Zeke frowned at the sage's words.
"Are you telling me to sacrifice my comrades…?"
The sage shook his head.
[No. Across all dimensions, only you, Sir Zeke, can restore that distorted causality to its original state.]
Zeke showed a surprised expression at the Great Sage's words.
"Only I can? What do you mean..."
Then something crossed Zeke's mind.
‘Could it be... Karma Points?’
Karma Points were the numerical expression of the karma Zeke possessed.
All the monsters and magical beasts that he and his subordinates had caught in battle had been calculated as Karma Points and recorded in the system.
The Great Sage nodded at Zeke's words.
[As the administrator of the Kabbalah System, you are the only being who can freely use both the Akashic Code and Karma Points.]
CRACKLE!
As the Great Sage finished speaking, time began flowing and the black substance started moving again.
RUMBLE!
The black substance gradually spread outward, absorbing everything it touched.
It seemed as if even the space that existed there was being sucked into it.
Looking at that black substance, Zeke recalled something.
'The picture Carus drew while thinking of me.'
That picture with unfathomable darkness drawn across the entire canvas felt very similar to the black substance floating in the air.
[Sir Zeke.]
At the Great Sage's voice, Zeke, who had been captivated by the black substance, suddenly came to his senses.
This wasn't the time to leisurely recall Carus's picture.
Stretching his hand toward the black substance, Zeke spoke to the system.
'System, can you offset that with Karma Points?'
The system began analyzing the black substance at Zeke's words.
Then a message appeared before his eyes.
[Detected traces of distorted causality.]
[Calculating required Karma Points for offset.]
[Approximately 1,166,284 points will be required.]
[Would you like to proceed?]
Even though it didn't look like much, it required over a million Karma Points to offset that amount of substance.
'I thought I wouldn't have to struggle with Karma Points anymore...'
Trying to maintain his composure, Zeke spoke to the system.
'Offset it.'
[Consuming Karma Points to offset traces of distorted causality.]
WHOOSH!
As Zeke felt something leaving his body, the black substance began to change.
SCREECH!
Amazingly, as if time was being reversed, the black substance stopped spreading and instead began gathering toward its center point.
SWOOSH!
Like ink in water returning to its original state after spreading, the black substance that had dispersed everywhere quickly gathered to the center and disappeared without a trace.
Zeke was rather bewildered by how quickly the stone chamber space normalized, almost anticlimactically.
"Is it over?"
The Great Sage's spirit nodded.
[Excellent, Sir Zeke. Without the Kabbalah System, offsetting such distorted causality would have been impossible.]
From Zeke's perspective, he had lost a massive amount of Karma Points, but if it weren't for the Kabbalah System and instead required sacrifices, the inefficiency would have necessitated tremendous casualties.
Though he felt some regret about the sudden loss of so many Karma Points, Zeke was satisfied that the black substance was completely gone and searched for Harvey Draker who had transformed into a dragon.
However, he couldn't find any trace of him where the black substance had obscured.
'Did he escape again?.'
Zeke had a feeling he knew where Harvey Draker had gone.
Where the Book of Death was hidden.
From the start, he must have been trying to buy time by keeping Zeke tied up here while Arthur Draker searched for the hidden Book of Death.
'Master and the Hermit will be blocking that side. I need to hurry there too...'
At that moment, the Great Sage slowly approached Zeke and spoke.
[Sir Zeke, I have a request for you.]
He looked into Zeke's eyes and slowly opened his mouth.
[Please make me your shadow guardian.]