Chapter 174
Chapter 174
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 174
Chapter Title: Sanctuary's Purge
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Crackkk!
Branches extending from the magic tower began to coil around the temple.
That bizarre fusion made it look as if the temple had become the heart of the magic tower.
And then.
Thump!
As if a heart were beating, the magic tower began to vibrate faintly.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
The vibrations echoed throughout.
Fwoooosh!
The temple started emitting light.
-Activation commencing.
Yggdrasil's voice began to resound across the entire magic tower.
The long-standing research in Travania on the capabilities of the World Tree, Yggdrasil.
As well as what powers it could unleash when fused with a newly constructed magic tower.
And there.
'Temple.'
Intensive studies had also been underway on what might be possible when combined with the temple—a miraculous product representing the culmination of modern magecraft and Travania's arcane arts.
It had yet to unravel all the secrets and possibilities, bound by spatial and temporal limitations.
However.
Fwoooooosh!
They had ascertained what was possible in this current state.
-Output at 3 percent.
Yggdrasil, now equipped with knowledge of mechanical systems, spoke as if it had become a computer itself.
-Output at 6 percent.
The brighter the light emanating from the temple grew, the more the wooden roots gripping it pulsed and throbbed.
The temple itself was a storage vault for mana, divinity, and sins.
While Go Yohan and the Apostles resided there, their excess power accumulated within it in a specific manner.
Moreover, neither Go Yohan nor Rust had ever left the temple for long.
Fwoooosh!
The power contained within the temple was truly beyond imagination.
-Output at 10 percent.
When the temple's output reached 10 percent, it finally ceased spewing light.
All necessary energy sources had been secured, complete with the will embedded within that power.
Now it was the magic tower's turn.
No.
-...Activation commencing.
Yggdrasil's turn.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The entire magic tower began to shake.
Flash!
A hologram appeared above the temple, initially displaying the magic tower's form.
Hummm.
Then it shifted perspective, overlooking the magic tower's skies—no, Seoul's skies—from above, like a satellite view.
Without any actual satellite machinery.
Fwoosh!
The magic tower was fulfilling the satellite's role, rendering all coordinates and visuals.
In the revealed screen, a cluster of black light rose above the magic tower's pinnacle.
-Barrier activation range set.
Flaaaash!
It soon spread out in the form of lines, just like before, enveloping the entirety of South Korea.
-Setting complete.
The black light blanketed all of South Korea.
-Barrier fully activated.
It gradually faded from sight, and people blinked in confusion, none the wiser.
Nothing seemed to have changed.
But that was merely an illusion.
-Gate coordinates designated: South Korea Magic Tower.
-Biological database compiling.
-Mana saturation levels adjusting.
-Air density and atmospheric pressure calibration in progress.
In this moment, with merely 10 percent output from the magic tower and temple, South Korea had been perfectly subjugated.
The magic tower had always possessed the power to draw in gates, but now.
-Black gate occurrence probability adjusted and location fixed.
It could even dictate black gates.
-Sanctuary secured.
The moment Go Yohan's sanctuary was complete.
*
*
*
There was no need to even feel tense.
Yggdrasil, already rooted in South Korea, wielded near-absolute authority here; all that remained was to check for any internal issues.
Now, all of South Korea had become the church's sanctuary.
"This seems to wrap up most of the work."
Cheol Jung-bae spoke from the side, sighing in relief.
He could grasp the magnitude of what had just transpired and the possibilities it unlocked ahead.
"If only we'd had this capability from the start..."
His face was flushed red with excitement.
"But we're not there yet."
At Cheol Jung-bae's words.
"Indeed."
Go Yohan nodded.
"Now that the net is in place, we should see its effects."
Time had seemed to crawl by slowly.
From here on, it was time to ramp up the tempo once more.
"Yggdrasil, can you handle it?"
-No issue at all.
Go Yohan nodded at her response and said.
"Time to exterminate the vermin."
And then.
Boom!
It felt as if vibrations rippled across all of South Korea.
-Commencing elimination of entities deemed hostile within the sanctuary.
Within the sanctuary, Yggdrasil's absolute authority surged even higher.
Her power.
Flash.
Was visible now through that screen.
In the past, monsters that escaped during gate breaks would occasionally survive by hiding deep in mountains or underground.
Those that required little life energy and slumbered in a hibernation-like state.
Even sporadic appearances by them had frequently devastated entire cities.
Crackkkle!
But now, on the screen, those slumbering creatures suddenly crumpled and burst apart, dying.
Goblins, orcs, lizardmen.
On an individual basis, they could be easily suppressed, but they were the sort capable of inflicting civilian casualties even in small numbers.
Ruuuuumble!
Up to ogres or trolls—the kind that could raze an entire village single-handedly.
"Huh, even a worm was hiding out. We dodged a catastrophe there."
As Cheol Jung-bae said, a massive worm was visible on the screen, crumpling in its sleep.
Given its size exceeding several kilometers, it seemed to be a specimen that had naturally fallen dormant after a gate break underground.
But even that.
Craaaack!
Just as if Go Yohan were crushing space itself, it crumpled and exploded in an instant.
-1084 monster entities within South Korea. Elimination complete.
This was the power of the sanctuary.
And while purging the monsters.
-37 demon entities confirmed.
-6 angel entities confirmed.
Yggdrasil scanned every corner of South Korea, acquiring biological data.
Successfully identifying those presumed to be demons and angels.
Flash flash!
The screens shifted, displaying them all.
Demons living ordinary lives amid everyday routines, or those dining with influential figures in the country.
Even gatherings where they conspired together—all captured at a glance.
"......"
Cheol Jung-bae swallowed hard.
What if someone not from Travania had been here?
What if the Apostles had been present?
Nothing would change.
- Go Yohan's forces are solidifying. South Korea is now the most dangerous demonic realm on Earth.
But for outsiders—say, those with holy sites or sanctuaries.
The Association...
People like Kim Dayeon?
- It's changed too much. We need to make a decision.
- We might need to escape first.
- But how?
They wouldn't have been able to stay silent at this sight.
The greatness of the magic tower? Of Yggdrasil?
No.
- The demon contractors entrenched in China...
It would have been a shock.
This was the dystopia everyone feared.
Like Big Brother incarnate.
Monitoring the entire nation from one's seat, seizing their conversations at will.
Invading privacy, stripping away freedom.
But what could be done?
"This was the best way to prolong their lives."
"Let's kill the vermin."
Some might see this sight and say.
Ruuuuumble!
Perhaps this was the very image of the god they'd so longed for.
Go Yohan.
-Wh-what...!
-Boom!
-Thud thud thud!
-Huff, huff...
In this moment, he had become akin to a god over South Korea for the year.
"Goddess."
Under her name, all dissenters would be eradicated.
-Fuck! Go Yohan, you bastard! -Mikael!
Even amid Yggdrasil's space-crushing power, some maintained their forms without shattering.
The likes of third-rank demons revealing their true appearances to withstand the pressure.
"It seems 10 percent output can't crush even third-ranks all at once."
He had gauged Yggdrasil's limits.
-Shall I increase output?
As Yggdrasil suggested, boosting output would make it possible.
But.
"No need."
Go Yohan said.
"You can trap and lure them, right?"
Before his words even finished.
Rooooar!
Surging wooden roots ensnared the thrashing demons, binding them.
The surviving angels met the same fate.
"I, too..."
Go Yohan moved as he spoke.
"Need to vent some frustration."
A small magic circle, with Go Yohan standing atop it.
"Teleport me."
In that instant.
-Understood.
Flash!
Go Yohan's figure vanished.
Within the sanctuary, backed by Yggdrasil's support, Go Yohan could exist anywhere.
*
*
*
Demons cautious to a fault.
Angels utterly vile.
They had hidden away without revealing themselves even during the previous assault.
Their schemes and nature shone through—preferring to bide their time for a sure victory over committing full force.
Thus, those that had survived and conspired.
"Huff, huff... Where are we?"
"Wh-what's happening..."
"Go Yohan! It's him!"
Were suddenly ensnared by wooden roots, unable to mount proper resistance, and transported to another space.
It was a wasteland.
All land barren, nothing left alive.
"What's that?"
"Robier and Fiesta!"
Two moons floating in the sky.
At that sight, a word flashed in the demons' minds.
"Tr-Travania?"
The world where they had once waged a great war.
The moons symbolizing Travania—Robier and Fiesta.
"......!"
It made no sense.
And then.
Fwoosh.
Figures with wings unfurled from their backs.
Boom boom boom!
Were slammed into the ground as if thrown.
Gulp.
They were the angels who had recently shown themselves.
As those who barely regained their footing amid the impact faced off against the demons.
"You're all gathered here."
Silver-white hair, sky-blue eyes—Go Yohan appeared.