Chapter 161
Chapter 161
Chapter 161
"H-hey, hyung. This is……."
"……."
Romulus and Remus stared with gaping mouths at the spectacle unfolding before them.
A world they had only heard of through written records.
In the sky hung a luminous sphere—the sun—that poured out light, and beneath it spread a sky so blue it made the eyes sting.
The stories said that on the verdant earth, countless lives grew and formed their own groups, and that great mountains and vast oceans filled with saltwater existed.
But they had also heard that everything was contaminated centuries ago by the fury of heaven.
'It was not.'
The mana contamination was a lie.
The lungs filled with clear air.
A freshness entirely different from the dusty air of the underground world.
And look at that sky.
A luminous sphere shining far brighter than the combined torches they had seen their entire lives.
Beneath that light's grace, verdant vegetation lived and breathed, and animals frolicked in abundance.
This place was truly the world where we originally lived.
A truly free world, different from the underground world where they had to scratch out an existence from the earth.
As the brothers gazed blankly at the spectacle before them.
Growwwl—yip!
A wolf beside Romulus dashed toward a living creature frolicking in the meadow.
A small creature with pure white fur and long ears.
According to the written records, it was certainly what they called a rabbit.
The mask of the Rabbit Tribe surely took the form of that creature.
Pounce—
Whether from predatory instinct or affection toward a new creature.
The wolf charged out from the cave and into the sunlight before anyone could stop it.
And then that wolf.
Flash—!
Crack!
A blue bolt of lightning struck it directly from the sky.
Shriek—!
The wolf, battered by the lightning strike, turned pitch black, convulsed, and then collapsed limply to the ground.
The rabbit in the meadow was startled by the lightning falling from the sky, then timidly approached the fallen wolf and drew near cautiously.
Growwwl—
The wolf, seeing the rabbit, growled for a moment, then bowed its head and died completely.
Whoosh—
As the soul escaped from the dead wolf's body, what had been a perfectly formed wolf suddenly turned to earth, losing its shape.
The wolf became a heap of dirt and seeped into the meadow.
Seeing this, Remus's eyes widened.
"……."
Through this series of events, he had grasped something intuitively.
The reason his ancestors had taken refuge underground below.
And the reason the Savior had forbidden further Revival Rituals.
Remus clenched his trembling fingertips.
'Everything was just as his explanation described.'
Perhaps Remus himself would meet the exact same end as that wolf the moment he left this cave.
Yet he could not help but test it.
Someone had to test it, and if anyone did, it should be him as the tribal chief.
'……I will try.'
He wrapped a protective charm around his hand and gingerly extended his trembling hand outside the cave.
Immediately.
Crack—!
Lightning descended from the sky and struck the cave violently.
He quickly withdrew his hand without serious injury, but the meaning of this situation was unmistakable.
Heaven did not acknowledge those who defied death and were revived to live again.
Remus clenched his trembling hand and looked at his younger brother.
Then.
"Romulus, you try once."
If a pure being who had never undergone a Revival Ritual were to venture outside, would it actually be possible?
"……Yeah."
Romulus gulped and slowly extended his hand outside the cave.
He anxiously withdrew it quickly, expecting lightning to strike just as before.
"……."
But no lightning descended from the sky.
Emboldened, Romulus extended his hand longer, and soon thrust his shoulder and head outside the cave as well.
Confident of his safety, Romulus carefully ventured outside the cave.
Even spreading both arms toward the sky, even gazing directly at the sun, no lightning descended.
Only a peaceful breeze and warm sunlight enveloped him.
Thus it was confirmed.
The Revival Ritual, which seemed to guarantee eternal life, was the cursed shackle that imprisoned these tribe members underground.
***
"D-did that really happen?"
"Not a single lie, I assure you."
Remus explained to all the assembled tribal chiefs the matter of how he and his brother had ventured to the surface.
But the response that came was absurd.
"Who gave you the right to do something so dangerous!"
"By opening the gate, hasn't the contamination already spread to this underground world?"
"Those foreign devils we're forced to deal with are surely the 'contamination' our ancestors warned us about!"
"……."
Looking at the other tribal chiefs bellowing at each other, Remus fell silent.
These people cared nothing for the truth of the world.
If they truly wanted to know the truth, they would do as he and his brother did—venture outside and confirm the truth themselves.
They simply needed someone to blame for this situation.
'Or perhaps they simply refuse to acknowledge it.'
These people had already undergone the Revival Ritual and become entities bound to this land.
Their envy of future generations who would remain in the earth while living beneath the bright sun, their fear that the life gained through revival would vanish, and their anxiety about losing the pitiful handful of power they possessed.
"We, the Mouse Tribe, withdraw from the alliance!"
"We of the Monkey Tribe as well!"
Several tribal chiefs who declared their intention to withdraw from the alliance.
But expressing one's intention to withdraw didn't mean one could actually leave the alliance.
Remus tilted his head slightly and spoke in a chilling tone.
"……By whose authority, I ask?"
Chill—
The tribal chiefs who met Remus's golden eyes gleaming in the darkness trembled with cold.
They had momentarily forgotten, but Remus was the chief of the Wolf Tribe, which boasted formidable power.
If he so chose, he could kill every tribal chief assembled here.
Having subdued the gathering with his gaze, Remus continued speaking.
"No tribe may leave the alliance. If you truly wish to depart, abandon your position as tribal chief representing your people and leave alone. Your successors…… will be chosen well for you."
"……."
The meaning behind Remus's words was crystal clear.
If you wish to preserve your current life, remain quiet.
If you insist on stubbornness, I will remove you and install a new chief.
The tribal chiefs gathered here
Belatedly, they came to understand bone-deep.
Now that they had inserted their heads into the wolf's jaws, there was no way to escape without permission.
***
"How are things progressing?"
Nam-gung Rin approached Seo-jin, who had been researching whether transmission magic could work on the totems, and asked.
Seo-jin frowned and set the totems down on the ground.
"Things are not proceeding smoothly."
No matter how much he tried, spatial transmission of the totems was systemically impossible.
Normally, he could just use Blink to penetrate the corresponding coordinates and return.
Even without going directly, he could open a transmission gate through spatial coordinates and quietly steal them.
But,
'Spatial transmission is completely blocked.'
Being an essential item for World Quests, it seemed every type of spatial transmission had been blocked.
He couldn't place it in any sub-space or inventory either.
While he could move the totems physically, it seemed impossible to transport or store them in other dimensions or spaces.
In the end, there was no choice but to go directly and steal them as before.
"You mean we can invade through spatial transmission via coordinates, but we have to physically carry them out when we leave?"
"Right. But there will be security personnel stationed, so it won't be easy."
They wouldn't leave such precious quest items unguarded with no security.
But according to the information Ha-yeon provided, there was only one security officer stationed there currently: Fist King Choi Gang-hyeon.
Seo-jin alone was sufficient to evade him and escape safely through the alternate route.
If he had to fight and defeat him, it would be difficult in various ways, but fleeing was manageable.
"We've confirmed the positions of all the other strategy team members. Right now, the Fist King should be alone."
Thanks to the battles happening throughout the underground cave, the positions of the strategy team were completely grasped.
"Then now is the opportune moment."
"Yes, and the curse placed on the broken totem should dissolve soon."
Once Nam-gung Rin's illusion curse wore off, the opponent would inevitably discover something wrong with the totem they thought was destroyed.
If that happened, they didn't know what measures would be taken with the remaining totems, so all totems had to be stolen before then.
'I move right now.'
Seo-jin nodded and spoke to Nam-gung Rin.
"I'm counting on you to set the curse barriers."
"……I'll do my best."
"Hoo."
Seo-jin closed his eyes and recited the coordinates Baduki had taught him over and over in his mind.
Snap—
First, spatial transmission—Blink to invade the strategy team's main quarters where the totems were stored.
After stealing the totems, escape here through the tunnel Baduki had burrowed through—this was the crux of the plan.
A primitive but certain method.
Seo-jin utilized his mana while reciting the spatial transmission coordinates Ha-yeon had provided.
But,
Lurching—
Perhaps due to the obstruction curse Rei had placed, the transmission coordinates were not forming properly.
Seo-jin looked toward her.
[急急如律令(Quick as heaven's command)!]
Nam-gung Rin used the incantation to temporarily nullify Rei's obstruction curse.
Through the temporarily created gap in space, the spatial coordinates became clear.
[Blink]
Whoooosh—
Seo-jin briefly dissolved into the darkness dimension where demons existed, then returned to the reality dimension.
Blink is normally a short-distance teleportation spell, but with slight modifications, it can transmit across far distances like this.
Seo-jin looked around to confirm he had arrived properly and smiled seeing the objects before him.
"I arrived properly."
Before Seo-jin's eyes were five animal totems.
Snake, Monkey, Turtle, Sheep, and Goat totems respectively were carefully stored.
Given that one was missing, it seemed the Elephant Totem was being carried by Ju Won-jae himself.
With the Eagle Tribe and Rabbit Tribe totems destroyed, the Elephant Tribe was currently the most powerful faction.
"Who goes there!"
"Intruder!"
Simultaneously with Seo-jin's appearance, tribe members guarding the area cried out.
Even if Seo-jin hadn't been discovered by them, the base had already detected his intrusion.
Rei, who was protecting the strategy team's base, must have felt the disturbance in the obstruction curse.
'Grab them first.'
Seo-jin quickly reached out to seize the five totems gathered in one place.
Thump—
An elastic barrier blocked Seo-jin's hand.
They had layered protection magic and barriers twice over to prevent invaders from destroying the totems.
Seo-jin's eyes narrowed as he observed the semi-transparent protective barrier enveloping the totems.
'I can't easily dispel this.'
The dual barrier created by Rei, skilled in curses, and Grand Mage Tsuchimikado Gu-ren with their utmost effort.
When each tribe's totem was stored separately in their own caves, this level of protective barrier didn't exist.
Now that the totems were being kept together, such powerful barriers could be maintained.
Even for Seo-jin, analyzing and dispelling the barrier's structure in reverse during such urgent circumstances would be difficult.
Dispel Magic alone couldn't dispel it either, with curses interwoven.
Then.
[Transcending Heaven True Scripture (越天眞經). Severance (破律).]
Blazing—
A brilliant light burst forth from Seo-jin's hand alongside the incantation.
A supplementary spell of Transcending Heaven True Scripture. The most powerful dispelling magic that breaks all laws.
There was no need for the trouble of analyzing the principle of seals or barriers in reverse.
Simply infuse higher-dimensional concepts to break the seal—high-level magic.
Crack—!
The intense light bursting from Seo-jin's hand shook the protective barrier.
Crack—crackle—
The barrier gradually cracked and began to shatter.
But it seemed they had connected the nearby ley line to the protective barrier, as it didn't break as easily as expected.
The ley line continued supplying mana, adding strength to the protective barrier.
'How persistent.'
He wished to drop Heavenly Thunder or use Severance to break the seal, but if he did, the totems inside might be damaged, so Seo-jin quietly raised his power level.
As Seo-jin continued destroying the protective barrier.
Thud—
"Stop."
A muscular giant appeared and stood confidently before him.
Fist King Choi Gang-hyeon.
He raised his firmly clenched fist toward Seo-jin.
"I've always wanted to fight you at least once, and this works out well."