Chapter 169
Chapter 169
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 169
Chapter Title: The Descent of the Magic Tower
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Within the black thunderclouds, a thread unlike anything from this world in appearance or shape.
It was a slender thread that seemed like it would snap with the slightest touch.
Swoosh.
He reached out his hand.
Whoosh.
Go Yohan seized it.
At that moment, the trembling thread began to writhe, suddenly swelling in size.
Rumble!
A storm poured out from Go Yohan's body.
An indescribably massive surge of mana began flowing into the thread.
It was.
"Cough!"
-Captain!
A thread connecting world to world.
The task required expanding that fragile point of connection.
Rumble!
Go Yohan alone was supplying the power needed to pull the worlds together.
"...I'm... fine."
His already pale complexion grew even whiter.
A first in both his past and present lives.
He had steeled himself for it.
'Not to this extent.'
At the same time.
Heh.
A hollow laugh escaped him.
'Balor, are you watching?'
Right now, with mana draining from him endlessly like an ocean, this was the moment Go Yohan was weaker than ever.
'Now's the time.'
A process that couldn't be stopped midway.
If he halted and the thread snapped, who knew when they could reconnect the worlds.
"If you want to kill me, this is your only chance."
He taunted.
"Once this moment passes, you'll never get another shot at me."
The most intense temptation offered to all demons.
A bait extended to every one of Go Yohan's enemies.
'Come on.'
Anyone, strike now.
But if they didn't.
Rumble!
They would have no chance left.
And.
A smirk crept across Go Yohan's lips, different from before.
"As expected."
Just moments ago, Go Yohan had truly exposed his weakness.
If attacked then, he would have suffered fatal damage—no doubt about it.
But.
Rumble!
Pale light began seeping through the gathered thunderclouds.
The mana flowing out through the thread splintered and fractured, transforming into divine power.
"Hoo."
It meant stabilization.
It also meant no more chances for them.
"You all..."
Go Yohan looked up at the sky and said.
"...were in the middle of a war too, huh."
He no longer worried that the demons he feared most and those claiming to be angels might be in league.
Meanwhile.
Rustle.
Fluttering threads began emerging from the faint light.
The groundwork was complete.
-Now I can see you again.
Another new voice echoed in his mind.
-Michael.
Warm and endlessly comforting.
"Yggdrasil."
The World Tree's voice.
-My betrothed, it is an honor to belong to your world once more.
Flash!
Brilliant light scattered the black thunderclouds, illuminating the area—no, Seoul itself.
Flash!
It enveloped the entire Republic of Korea in an instant.
Tomorrow, everyone would buzz about this phenomenon, but it didn't matter.
What they should truly clamor about was something else.
Boom!
A shockwave hit, shaking the ground like an earthquake.
"Focus!"
Go Yohan shouted to Yun Seungha, and he too began controlling all his energy.
He splintered his already depleted mana as finely as possible, making it move with maximum efficiency.
Opening the gate between worlds had required long groundwork.
Rumble!
What they were doing now was akin to manipulating the physical realm itself.
An eternity in an instant.
When it passed.
Drip, drip.
Sweat poured from Go Yohan's body like rain, soaking the ground.
"Haa."
It was done.
In the heart of Seoul, midway between the Association, the Sanctuary, and the Church.
On the pre-cleared vacant lot.
Thud!
A tower appeared.
*
*
*
Stagger.
As Go Yohan swayed.
"Are you alright?"
Lee Jae-kyung appeared like a flash and supported him.
"...Since when have you been here?"
Summoning the World Tree and constructing the tower.
It demanded near-limitless focus, allowing only Yun Seungha near him.
No one else.
"It must've really been dangerous. I've been here since the clouds cleared."
"I told you... not to come."
"If you collapse and break that high nose of yours, how could I face your parents?"
Go Yohan steadied himself at Lee Jae-kyung's words and chuckled.
"No way it'd be that bad."
"The nose-breaking part? Or them chewing me out?"
"The nose."
"You didn't even notice me nearby, and you say that?"
Seeing Lee Jae-kyung as usual eased Go Yohan's tension.
This man was always like this.
Just being there casually.
'Who knew it'd help this much.'
Unlike Michael, who had always been alone.
"Success?"
Even in Lee Jae-kyung's voice, unmistakable tension lingered.
Step.
Go Yohan straightened and walked forward.
Step.
Lee Jae-kyung followed.
"See for yourself."
A full view of Seoul lay before them.
And below, a structure never seen before had taken root.
Too beautiful to call grotesque, yet too alien to blend in—utterly unique.
The sky.
Rumble.
A tower piercing the massive thunderclouds with its body.
"...You're insane."
It was the Magic Tower.
"Connecting world to world."
Lee Jae-kyung seemed to mull over his own words.
Impossible, even in words alone.
That was.
'Like connecting Korea and America.'
Literally moving continents to join the land—what else could describe it?
If there was one word.
'Miracle.'
Nothing else could explain it.
And what Go Yohan had just done wasn't continents, but worlds.
Even shattered remnants of a world, bridging dimensions to join two.
Easier than physically attaching Korea and America?
'Not a chance.'
Despite long preparations, Go Yohan had pulled it off just now.
And.
"......"
There were words he couldn't voice.
"I know what you're thinking, so go ahead and say it."
Lee Jae-kyung flinched involuntarily at Go Yohan's words.
"Was it that obvious?"
"We've spent enough time together."
"......"
Lee Jae-kyung's lips twitched before he continued.
"If this is possible."
It could feel like an invasion.
The demon world and reality, the world of those called angels, and Earth.
"We should..."
"Yeah."
Go Yohan cut in and answered.
"We have to counterattack too, right? This Magic Tower is just one step in the preparations."
A preparatory stage for eventually striking back at the demon world.
*
*
*
Uproar was already brewing.
No surprise—a 200-story structure had appeared in central Seoul.
Demons this, gate breaks that.
Apocalypse whatever.
They spoke of such things out of fear.
That was why the prepared announcement went out.
-The structure in Seoul is the Magic Tower, a great edifice that will make the Republic of Korea the safest place on Earth.
Doubts lingered.
All roads were controlled; no foreign media allowed.
'Not yet.'
It wasn't over.
"Get some rest?"
"I'm good now."
Lee Jae-kyung extended a hand to Go Yohan, who had been sitting.
Grip.
Go Yohan took it and rose.
"No need to worry. This time, Seungha's the one who'll have it rough."
"Who said otherwise."
"Worry about Seungha."
Go Yohan turned to gaze at the Magic Tower.
"If Seungha's in danger, the Captain won't just sit by. In the end, all risks fall on the Captain—how could I not worry?"
-Uncle's right.
Seungha's voice followed.
"Alright, enough. Ready?"
-All set.
And another.
-I'm ready too.
Yggdrasil's voice—stiff yet comforting—rang out.
Heh.
This brief rest had replenished Go Yohan and Yun Seungha's mana, but also allowed Yggdrasil, the axis of that massive structure, to fully take root.
"You sure?"
-Michael, it's thanks to you and the great witch. Your preparations let my roots sink deep into this world without issue.
Go Yohan nodded.
"Alright then."
If it ended here, they wouldn't call it a counterattack.
While they fumbled without proper response.
"Let's begin."
The true counterattack preparations were complete.
Whoosh!
The thunderclouds pierced by the Magic Tower spread once more.
This time, they tore into thin strands, forming a cage that blanketed Seoul and the Republic of Korea.
Flash!
He activated Divine Sight.
A Authority only Go Yohan could see.
"Ready."
His assistance was essential.
Pour!
Thin black threads rained down like a storm.
Crunch!
The moment they pierced gates across the Republic of Korea.
Thud!
It felt like a massive strain on his heart and body.
It was Yun Seungha's role originally, but Go Yohan trusted himself to endure more.
-Hurry.
Yun Seungha's mana extended through the threads linked to the gates.
Fine adjustments, powerful pull.
And.
Flash!
Gates began vanishing, starting from the farthest ones.
The media must be screaming about this phenomenon by now.
Flash!
Gates had always required players to enter, fight through monsters, and defeat the boss to clear.
Only then would the gate undergo dissipation and be fully destroyed.
Free from any further break risk.
An unchanging truth since gates and players appeared.
What they were doing now declared that truth false.
"Dungeonize them. Begin."
A declaration heralding a new era.