Chapter 156
Chapter 156
Chapter 156
Under the leadership of the Reverse Heaven Society, an alliance of eight tribes was formed.
Wolf, Squirrel, Cat, Mouse, Monkey, Pangolin, Hedgehog, and Fox.
Though there had been some friction during the process, the alliance was successfully formed under the common banner of survival.
They temporarily sheathed the spears and swords they had pointed at each other, joining forces to defeat their common enemy.
News had come that the opposing side had also formed a massive alliance.
Eagle, Rabbit, Snake, Elephant, Sheep, Goat, Turtle, and Wild Boar tribes.
Each one was a formidable tribe.
To block their advance, members of the Reverse Heaven Society were dispatched to various strategic underground locations alongside warriors from each tribe.
They might not be able to win against the enemies in battle, but blocking chokepoints and holding out was certainly possible.
Seo-jin's systematically organized map of the underground world played a major role in this.
While the scattered members of the Reverse Heaven Society prepared for the coming battle.
"Let us begin."
Seo-jin observed the 'Revival Ritual' performed by the High Priests of each tribe.
The Revival Ritual was truly the most mysterious miracle occurring on this 38th floor.
Seo-jin had the intuition that this ritual held the key to breaking through this World Quest.
The Revival Ritual was conducted on a ley line where the magical energy was strongest underground.
"...You who have defied Heaven's will, rise above Heaven's wrath and be reborn as a living spirit of the earth once more."
Tseureu-.
After hours of ceremony, as Wolf Tribe Chieftain Remus uttered the final incantation, life began to dwell in the clay doll made from mud.
Pat-.
Soon, light blazed from the clay doll's eyes.
As magic power dwelled in the doll along with that light, the clay doll slowly transformed into human form.
The roughly shaped clay doll developed facial features, and its body gradually adjusted as well.
Before long, hair grew and vitality returned to the skin, until finally even individual hairs sprouted.
"She, she's awakened!"
At the end of this process, as a girl was revived from death, a native who appeared to be her parent rushed over in a single bound to embrace her.
Seo-jin gazed at the native who had escaped death and been revived, lost in thought.
"...So this is how it works."
"What do you think?"
Remus, who had presided over the Revival Ritual, asked Seo-jin with expectant eyes.
Seo-jin looked at the girl and the other Wolf Tribe warriors brought back to life through this ritual before answering.
"Truly a remarkable miracle."
Seo-jin turned his head to ask the other chieftains.
"Your tribes' Revival Rituals aren't much different from the Wolf Tribe's, are they?"
"That is correct."
"The incantations and detailed procedures may differ, but the basic framework is the same."
"I see."
At the Mouse and Fox chieftains' responses, Seo-jin nodded and mentally reviewed the principles of the Revival Ritual.
'First, the Anima Totem.'
This totem symbolizing each tribe was a vessel for souls.
The soul of one who died in this underground world was temporarily stored within the totem.
The overall concept of the Revival Ritual was to summon that soul and awaken it by placing it in a prepared vessel.
Of course, the ritual didn't require only souls and magic power.
Information containing the deceased's genetic data was needed—things like hair, bones, or blood.
The clay doll serving as the vessel wasn't made from ordinary clay either.
It must have used special magical earth that could only be obtained near ley lines.
The magical earth was shaped into a rough form, then the deceased's information was placed inside to add genetic data.
Finally, when the soul temporarily held in the totem was placed into the vessel through the Revival Ritual, the magical earth containing genetic information would reconstruct the person's appearance in life according to the form recorded in the soul.
Truly a remarkable miracle.
Even Seo-jin lacked the confidence to accomplish such a thing with black magic.
The undead he controlled had no memories from life.
Even if the undead possessed bodies identical to their living forms, since memories and souls weren't transmitted, it wasn't true revival in the genuine sense.
'...This is closer to cloning, rather.'
Summoning undead was ultimately no different from using stem cells to clone the appearance of the same animal.
From that perspective, Summon Dead might be black magic, but it wasn't magic that went against the flow of the world—it wasn't Reverse Heaven magic.
However, these natives' Revival Ritual was different.
'This is power that defies Heaven's will.'
It was Reverse Heaven sorcery that rejected death and called the souls of the dead to this land again and again.
This sorcery wasn't a blessing but a curse.
A curse that ensured war would never cease in this underground world.
And perhaps...
"..."
Seo-jin stroked his chin, lost in thought for a long while.
As something occurred to him, Seo-jin commanded the chieftains gathered here.
"From this moment on, I forbid the Revival Ritual."
***
After Seo-jin left.
Wolf Tribe warriors gathered in Remus's hut poured out voices filled with discontent.
"What on earth is he thinking?"
"Is he really our savior?"
"I didn't like allying with the Fox Tribe and Monkey Tribe from the start."
The complaints they had been suppressing burst forth due to Seo-jin's measure prohibiting the Revival Ritual.
They understood he was an otherworldly being with outstanding abilities and the leader of other otherworldly beings who had taken control of each tribe.
They could also understand the banner under which the tribal alliance was formed.
Rather than fighting each other for thousands of years, joining forces to wipe out half the opposing faction would be far more beneficial.
But they had no intention of unconditionally accepting all his actions.
It wasn't enough that he had forced them to reconcile with the Monkey Tribe, who had been bitter enemies—he had also made them join hands with the cunning Fox Tribe.
They had also been made to ally with the Pangolin and Hedgehog tribes, who feared fighting and focused only on defense.
Fine. They could tolerate even that.
But allying with the prey tribes—Mouse and Squirrel—who lacked even the will to fight was an enormous humiliation for the Wolf Tribe.
On top of that, the shameful order to avoid fighting the enemy and only defend strategic points.
No matter how strong the enemy might be, for tribal warriors who had fought without regard for death, this was an enormous insult.
That wasn't all.
To even prohibit the honorable Revival Ritual that brought fallen warriors back to this land!
This was not only a measure that ignored the Wolf Tribe's traditions and honor, but amounted to a great shackle in the war against the opposing alliance.
How could they not harbor suspicions?
Wasn't he not a savior, but a spy someone had sent to corner their tribe?
However,
"Enough."
Remus showed no sympathy for their complaints.
"I will not tolerate any further disrespect toward our Savior."
He even scolded the complaining warriors.
Of course, he wasn't unsympathetic to the warriors' feelings.
'The tribal warriors desire honorable battle and victory, considering the conquest of enemy tribes their life's goal.'
So they couldn't help but be angry about this series of events.
But Remus's goal was neither honorable combat nor the Wolf Tribe's conquest of other tribes.
His only purpose was to break the long vicious cycle of this underground world.
He didn't want his younger brother Romulus to live as a battle-crazed killer in this insane underground world.
He only wanted to see him running with wolves on the endlessly vast earth.
That's why Remus had placed his hopes in Seo-jin and believed there must be some clear intention behind Seo-jin's actions.
"Hoo."
Sighing, Remus recalled the conversation he'd had with Seo-jin just before showing him the Revival Ritual.
'Let me ask something, Remus. What are the conditions for becoming a chieftain or High Priest?'
He had asked about the conditions for becoming the tribe's leader, and Remus had answered honestly.
'There are no great conditions. You just need to be the strongest or born with outstanding shamanic talent.'
'What else?'
'Ah, come to think of it... there's a condition that you must be of bloodline that has never experienced the Revival Ritual.'
'Are you and your brother the same?'
'Yes, our parents and ancestors passed into the embrace of the spirits without undergoing the Revival Ritual. Due to the circumstances here, the Revival Ritual is only permitted for those who help the tribe or possess outstanding strength and abilities.'
Reviving someone who couldn't greatly help the tribe would only waste precious magic power and magical earth.
'Then... your descendants won't be able to become chieftain or High Priest.'
'That's right. I've already experienced death once.'
Remus had once lost his life in battle with the Eagle Tribe and had a history of being revived.
'But my brother's descendants would be qualified.'
Unlike Remus, who had died once, his younger brother Romulus had neither faced death nor undergone the Revival Ritual.
If Romulus's descendants had talent, they might be able to inherit the chieftain's position.
'But why do you ask about such things?'
At Remus's words, Seo-jin, who had been lost in thought for a moment, asked.
'Let me ask one thing. Can you stake your life to stop the war in this underground world?'
'Of course. To stop this struggle of blood washing blood, my life is a very light thing indeed.'
Though Seo-jin didn't mention it, this meant true death in the genuine sense—death that couldn't be overcome through revival.
But Remus was prepared for even that death.
To this, Seo-jin replied.
'I hope the others have the same resolve as you.'
***
Somewhere deep in the tunnels.
Pabak- pak-.
A man was digging earth with regular movements.
The man was none other than Nam-gung Cheon.
'Damn it...'
He cursed under his breath while flinging the dirt he'd dug between his legs.
Instead of running across rooftops under the night sky, here he was digging like it was his destiny.
'I'll repay this grudge someday.'
Making the century's hero work like a petty thief mole. Someday he'd make them beat the ground in regret.
Pak- pabak-.
Though being blessed by the earth spirit Gnome made it much faster than using a shovel, his fingernails ached and his whole body was getting sore.
'But I've almost finished digging.'
Nam-gung Cheon checked his position while confirming the holographic map Seo-jin had created.
By now, he should surely be near the cavern where the Eagle Tribe resided.
Nam-gung Cheon had decided to target the Eagle Tribe first, said to be the strongest among the attacking tribes.
It was better to take the first hit from a hawk—better to tackle the most difficult side first.
Also, since security would become tight after destroying the totem, it made sense to target the most powerful Eagle Tribe first.
In any case, since he'd come close to the Eagle Tribe's cavern, he decided to kill his presence and dig down carefully.
There might be boundary sorcery set up by tribe members nearby, so he didn't forget to check the talisman his younger sister had given him while maintaining thorough caution.
How much more time had passed?
Hududuk-.
The dirt at his fingertips fell downward, and Nam-gung Cheon saw a small hole.
After the long tunnel digging, he had reached the Eagle Tribe's cavern.
Since he'd been careful while digging, there was no danger of the tunnel collapsing.
'Now, where might the totem be?'
Seureu-.
Nam-gung Cheon melted into the shadows and entered the cavern through the small hole.
"...What's this?"
An Eagle Tribe member guarding nearby looked up at the small pile of dirt that had fallen from overhead.
But all he could see was the darkness of the cavern.
He sensed no signs of intrusion.
It was true that the 38th floor natives possessed considerable combat power. But this was limited to senses honed through battle.
Their ability to detect thief-types who moved stealthily like Nam-gung Cheon was greatly lacking.
Shasak-.
Nam-gung Cheon easily passed the guards and, following the flow of magic power, finally found the totem's location.
Even among the natives, those with shamanic talent at the priest level had particularly distinctive auras.
Tracking their auras made finding the totem's location effortless.
'Found it.'
The deepest part of the Eagle cavern.
Nam-gung Cheon easily reached the innermost cave after passing several guard-protected entrances.
An eagle-shaped totem carefully enshrined there came into his view.
Shwirik-.
Nam-gung Cheon manipulated his own shadow to easily obtain the totem from the altar.
Chak-.
Then Nam-gung Cheon attached the talisman his younger sister had given him to the totem.
This talisman had sorcery to prevent tracking or reverse detection.
Then.
Kwajik-.
He broke the replica totem Seo-jin had given him and casually threw it in that spot.
'Done.'
With this, the mission was complete.
Unless the Eagle Tribe's priest came here to fetch the totem for a Revival Ritual, it wouldn't be discovered in the meantime.
During that time, he'd carefully escape.
Then at an appropriate moment, Seo-jin would disrupt the ley lines to manipulate the magic flow to make it seem like the totem had been destroyed.
If he could escape safely without being discovered until then, it would be a very successful conclusion.
Pabat-.
Nam-gung Cheon smiled as he took the totem and exited the cavern through the hole he'd infiltrated.
"Huu, huu."
Nam-gung Cheon came back out through the tunnel he'd dug earlier.
Though he was breathing heavily, he stretched with a happy expression.
"I did it!"
Nam-gung Cheon had accomplished the most difficult mission in this plan.
With this, he could humble that thief cat's pride too.
'Let's go quickly.'
Though he'd gotten quite far from the cavern, he was still near Eagle Tribe territory.
He should flee before something happened.
It was then, as Nam-gung Cheon was about to quickly return to base.
Jeobeok-.
"Where are you going in such a hurry, Nam-gung Cheon?"
The person he least wanted to meet appeared before him.