Chapter 73: The Gaegaek Cult
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 73: The Gaegaek Cult
“Th-thank you, O Gomodo….”
The man’s eyes were filled with awe.
To him, I must truly be a divine beast.
A colossal, monstrous bird that could turn you to stone with a single glance.
And I had defeated it alone.
But that wasn't all.
There was the Human-faced Bird that had descended using the monster bird’s body, and the spirit form of the Snake Queen who appeared to oppose it.
It was an event that defied all common sense.
Even if this man was a martial artist, the scene that had just unfolded was the stuff of legends.
The beginning of faith is often simple.
People witnessed the ferocious crack of lightning and the eruption of volcanoes that swallowed the earth.
Faith was born from seeing incomprehensible natural phenomena and believing them to be the power of a god.
What I had shown them was not so different.
I had displayed not only overwhelming physical force but also an ability that no ordinary living creature could be expected to possess.
With my Gaegaek Death Beam, I had felled not only the Cockatrice but also the massive trees around it, one after another.
A lizard that shoots beams from its mouth had vanquished a monstrous bird.
It was inevitable that I would become an object of worship.
Thud.
If I'm going to be worshipped, I might as well do it right.
To etch the image of a spiritually powerful beast into his mind, I looked down at the man with a solemn expression.
“O Gomodo….”
Good.
“My name is Jang Bong. I will repay this grace no matter what….”
He seems to have the basics down.
But repay me?
Could he possibly think that I, the holy and divine beast Gomodo, would desire such a thing?
The Cockatrice was certainly a strong opponent, and there were several dangerous moments even without the Human-faced Bird’s intervention. But it wasn't an unbeatable foe.
In the end, just fighting the Cockatrice was beneficial for me.
In a situation like this, how could a noble divine beast possibly ask for compensation?
Of course, if he insisted on repaying me, I wouldn't stop him.
…You don't happen to have any elixirs, do you?
Ting.
[Your divinity stirs.]
The status window answered for me.
My divinity stirs, huh?
A lizard of my caliber knows what this message means.
Open wide, rewards are coming in.
That must be it.
[A religion that serves you is being created.]
A religion…!
I had a feeling one would be created eventually.
So, it’s finally happening.
A legendary religion that worships me, Gomodo.
[The 【Gaegaek Cult】 has been founded!]
Yep.
I saw that coming.
It started with the Gaegaek Faith, after all.
“Gekek….”
I let out a sad cry.
【The Gaegaek Cult】
A Monitor Lizard-class Religion.
This is a religion for those who follow the Gaegaek Faith as their doctrine and worship Gomodo.
Its members are highly diverse, and their faith is devout.
Members
First Disciple: 【Attercopus LV12】
Second Disciple: 【Anthracomartus LV11】
Third Disciple: 【Tang Soyeong】
Fourth Disciple: 【Ball Python LV18】
So Tus and Pus leveled up.
I’m glad they seem to be doing well.
But wait, why does it stop at the fourth disciple?
Shouldn't this fellow be added to the list?
For a faith evolving into a religion, this feels rather underwhelming.
I stared intently at Jang Bong.
“P-perhaps something is not to your liking….”
Is it because he doesn't know about the Gaegaek Faith?
Tang Soyeong came up with the name after hearing my cry.
There was no way this man would know the name of such a dignified faith.
…No, if that were the case, the Ball Python wouldn't be on the list either.
The Ball Python didn't know about the Gaegaek Faith, yet she became the fourth disciple.
What's the difference?
Is it because this man is human?
But that doesn't make sense because of Tang Soyeong.
…Wait, was Tang Soyeong not human?
No, that can't be right.
Let me think back to Swish-Swish's case.
How did she become my disciple?
Right, the status window sent a message asking if I wanted to invite her.
[Do you wish to invite 【Jang Bong】 to join the Gaegaek Cult?]
Oh.
So that's how it works.
This man, Jang Bong, currently worships me.
Thanks to the faith he sent my way, I was able to obtain the skill Gaegaek Death Beam.
The Gaegaek Faith and the Gaegaek Cult can be believed in without my permission or invitation.
All they have to do is serve me.
On the other hand, to be listed as the Nth Disciple on the status window, it seems I have to appoint them myself.
That makes sense.
If everyone who believed in me automatically became a disciple, it would probably cause all sorts of side effects.
The main problem was that they would share my thoughts to some extent.
Judging by the spiders, they seemed to share quite a lot, and I think they even noticed my… dealings with the snakes.
Occasionally, I would also get messages about my disciples' actions.
It's fine for now.
But if the number of disciples grew, I'd be bombarded with their messages all day long. I wouldn't even be able to think in peace.
I'll gratefully accept the faith you've sent me, Sir Jang Bong, but it's too soon for you to become a disciple.
“Gegegegek.”
I lifted my chin.
Making him a disciple of the Gaegaek Cult would make communication easier, but now was not the time.
The communication I needed to do now could be done well enough with gestures.
“Ah, ah. Yes! He is over….”
Jang Bong scurried away.
After confirming the direction he was heading, I approached the Cockatrice's corpse.
The Snake Queen's petrification is truly something else.
I wanted to have a taste of the meat, but in this state, it's impossible to eat.
Still, I have to take what I can.
CRACK!
I imbued my Dragon's Claws with internal energy and swung. The stone Cockatrice shattered with ease.
The meat was inedible, but the inner core was perfectly intact.
【Supreme-grade Inner Core (Yellow)】
A supreme-grade inner core!
It was on par with the one from the Hydra.
Right. It's about time I started eating things like this.
It emitted a brilliant yellow light, almost brown.
After picking it up with extreme care, I tucked it into a gap between my scales.
If it were up to me, I'd store it safely in my stomach, but the Queen told me to bring it to her as is.
Alright.
Now that I've secured the inner core, let's go see the disciple candidate.
“Sir Baek Woon. Get a grip. The enemy is already dead.”
Jang Bong was shaking the man called Baek Woon.
It seemed he had only just been released from petrification, as Baek Woon hadn't yet grasped the situation.
Behind Baek Woon lay the shattered remains of a bear-like creature.
So it was also taken down by the Cockatrice.
If his luck had been just a little worse, Baek Woon could have ended up the same way.
“…The enemy is dead?”
I slowly walked over, observing the man named Baek Woon.
This one is quite impressive.
He was on a completely different level from someone like Jang Bong.
If Jang Bong was a Third-Rate martial artist, Baek Woon was probably First-Rate.
In terms of pure strength, he wouldn't have lost to the Cockatrice.
If he hadn't been petrified, he might have put up a good fight.
“Yes…. Its eyes flashed, and I turned to stone….”
Thunk!
Baek Woon stabbed the sword in his hand into the ground.
Ah, I have lost.
That's probably what he meant.
To express it like that.
Truly a martial artist.
He sure knows how to strike a pose.
“The enemy that did this to me is dead? …Jang Bong, were you hiding your strength?”
“Me, hiding my strength? Do you still not know me? The legendary divine beast, Gomodo, saved us!”
“Gomodo?”
Baek Woon muttered the name Gomodo.
It seemed he wasn't familiar with it.
This is what happens when you only train in martial arts and neglect basic common sense.
To not know of a divine beast as famous as Gomodo.
…Actually, is it stranger that he doesn't know the name Gomodo?
“Ah, there he comes now.”
At those words, Baek Woon immediately turned his head.
A dignified face is good, but now is the time for a friendly smile.
For someone who just regained consciousness, it's important to make them think I'm safe.
Grin.
“Hyaaak! N-no, it’s nothing. S-Sir Baek Woon! Relax your hand! He may look a little scary, but he's the divine beast who saved our lives.”
Seriously, what is it with you people?
“You’re saying that beast defeated the monster bird?”
“Is that all? Something like a tale of strange powers and deities occurred! He summoned a celestial maiden from the heavens to subdue a ghost!”
So he saw the Snake Queen as a celestial maiden.
Well, based on her face, I can see why.
A celestial maiden and a divine beast. It paints quite a picture.
Jang Bong.
You are to spread this story far and wide.
“……Right. A beast would have to be of that caliber to defeat that creature.”
“Indeed. Although his appearance is as wicked as the Four Fiends, he is a very intelligent divine beast.”
You are permanently banned from becoming a disciple.
Things wrapped up in a reasonably satisfactory way.
Jang Bong, while not a disciple, was now a believer in the Gaegaek Cult.
Baek Woon wasn't exactly a believer, but he felt a certain degree of gratitude toward me.
Honestly, I was worried he might just see me as a big lizard and attack, but he seemed to consider me a divine beast, thanks in large part to me saving his life.
I even managed to have something of a conversation with Baek Woon.
Though, since it was a conversation conducted in "ge"s and "gek"s, I'm not sure if we understood each other well.
Jang Bong and Baek Woon decided to leave the 100,000 Great Mountains.
Baek Woon had a troubled look on his face, but even as a divine beast, I couldn't solve those kinds of problems for him.
The most I could do was show them the way out of the jungle.
I thought about calling Baek Yeon-yeong, but Baek Woon belonged to the Mount Zhongnan Sect, one of the Nine Factions. If Baek Yeon-yeong found out, he'd likely be split right down the middle.
Unlike Tang Soyeong's case, I wasn't worried about them getting out.
Baek Woon was strong.
When I tapped his sword, mimicking martial arts, he demonstrated a sword art that I presumed was from the Mount Zhongnan Sect.
If we were to fight, I would definitely win because of my Dragon Scales, but his skill was nothing to scoff at.
As long as he didn't have a foolish goal like hunting divine beasts, escaping the 100,000 Great Mountains itself wouldn't be too difficult.
“Geeeeeeek….”
I let out a long yawn.
Now that I've sent Baek Woon and Jang Bong on their way, it's time to take stock of what I've gained on this journey.
First, Jang Bong and Baek Woon now know of my existence.
Not a bad harvest.
I deliberately put on a dignified act, so believers in Gomodo might start popping up here and there. If so, I'll gain free divinity without any of the responsibility.
As the religion grows, I might even get new skills.
That alone is a decent haul.
But that's not all.
I gained levels from defeating the Cockatrice.
I actually hit level 30.
Which means I can evolve right now.
This could be considered a massive jackpot.
My level had been rising so slowly since I became a Gomodo, so to reach the evolution level this quickly…
I guess doing good deeds really does bring good fortune.
The scary part is, it doesn't even end there.
I won't even bother mentioning the supreme-grade inner core.
The reward the Snake Queen boasted about.
That was waiting for me.
I don't know what it is, but Swish-Swish is also preparing something, so that's a double reward!
What in the world could it be?
I hope it's an elixir.
“Gegegegek!”
Letting out a happy cry, I headed for the Snake Queen's temple.
I was already excited just thinking about chugging elixirs and evolving.
….
…But why do I suddenly feel a chill?
Nah, what could possibly go wrong?