Chapter 376
Chapter 376
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 376
Chapter Title: Child of the Dragon (4)
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Just a few days ago, the battlefield where a fight for the fate of the world had raged—Beijing.
In the aftermath of that fierce war... especially the devastating breath that had obliterated the city in one go, only wretched ruins remained at the center, where a massive altar now stood.
An enormous structure piled up in stepped tiers like a ziggurat.
Each side spanned hundreds of meters, a scale that seemed impossible to build in just a few days. But for the being now asserting its presence atop the altar, this was hardly a challenge.
'Hmm, this should be sturdy enough. It's only for one use anyway, but leaving it as a symbolic landmark forever isn't a bad idea.'
The golden lifeform, Horus, nodded in satisfaction as it lumbered across the structure, testing its durability with its massive, heavy body.
This altar was the site for the Dragon Heart Restoration Ritual.
Naturally, it would become a historically significant structure across the entire Kanghwan Realm, preserved indefinitely—and that would bring no small amount of karma back to its creator.
'Not much compared to what I've done so far or the points I'll earn in the future, though.'
As sunlight began to rise and clash against Horus's golden form, shattering into fragments, a deep voice echoed in his mind.
⚙ Telepathy ⚙ [Preparations here are all complete.] [Are you sure this will work? I'm not doubting Horus's abilities, but this is our first time with something like this.]
[Well, that guy'll handle it himself. He's already mastered Taoist arts better than most, right? Add in the magic from his original world... Ugh, I couldn't understand a bit of it.]
The voices of the Azure Dragon and Crimson Dragon followed, though only Horus was present here.
What reached him now was a form of telepathy.
The others were preparing a separate ritual in the Dragon God Temple of the Phantom Realm.
[This shouldn't have been so complicated... But since it's come to this, no choice. We've got safeguards in place, so if something goes wrong, we can fall back to the original plan.]
Horus gave a wry smile at the Black Dragon's grumbling voice.
Initially, she had opposed Horus's proposed method.
Why risk an untested approach when a surefire one existed?
The well-being of human Dragon Children wasn't a priority for her.
'Well, convincing her wasn't too hard.'
The Dragon Children were no ordinary humans.
They were apostles directly arranged by the Dragon God and sent into the world.
In a sense, they weren't unrelated to the Five Dragons, who claimed to be the Dragon God's heirs.
Emphasizing that point made the Black Dragon relent easily.
She was generous beyond measure to family under the same banner, even as she antagonized humans.
[We're ready here too. We can start when the sun reaches its zenith in a few hours.]
Horus gauged the sun's position rising over the ridges and turned his gaze elsewhere.
Not far to the southwest.
A group was slowly approaching from there.
'They're here.'
The essential Dragon Children for the ritual, escorted by Kanghwan Realm's martial alliance experts.
And one massive barbarian with a pitch-black, ominous coffin strapped to his back.
All the necessary materials had gathered in one place.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Dazzling sunlight poured down on the ground.
The sun hung directly overhead.
"Hoo..."
While ascending the steps under the sunlight, Zhuge Hye-mi let out a deep sigh.
From the moment she entered the altar, it felt like stepping into another world entirely—the demonic energy's influence vanished, making breathing easier. But even so, her heart trembled at the miracle unfolding before her eyes, one she had never dared imagine.
'I thought there was no chance at all... Who knew things would turn out like this. Maybe, just maybe...'
A future she couldn't even dream of now felt within reach.
She had thought happiness was a luxury for someone like her, doomed to fade from this world soon.
Could she really keep dreaming in this world?
In a peaceful era where Dragon Hearts were restored and conflicts ended, living healthily with loved ones.
'...Even marry like normal people, have kids...'
Her pale face flushed red at the thought.
'No, no! That's too soon! Ah, we're not even there yet...!'
She shook her head vigorously, trying to erase the face that popped into her mind, taking deep breaths.
Her usual cool reason was gone; her thoughts were spiraling out of control.
It was an unusually flustered reaction anyone would notice.
But no one here paid her any mind.
"Khum! Ahem!"
"Haa, haa."
The other Dragon Children were just as overwhelmed by rising tension.
Upon reaching the altar's summit, they looked up with trembling gazes at the massive golden lifeform filling their view—the Golden Dragon from childhood tales.
[No need to be so tense. It won't take long.]
A voice heavy with威壓 flowed into their minds.
A strange tone that felt arrogantly absolute yet innocently childlike.
The words seemed meant to ease their rigid tension, but...
Gulp—
No one could relax just from hearing it.
And for good reason—they were eyewitnesses who had seen exactly what that Golden Dragon was.
The golden beam striking from the heavens like divine punishment, the massive explosion and mushroom cloud that followed.
And now, from atop this high altar, they could clearly see the results.
'Where buildings and walls once stood...'
The barren plain surrounding the altar.
They who had flown into the sky to escape Beijing remembered clearly.
This area had been densely packed with ruins.
Facing such a being atop this altar made them feel like sacrificial offerings to a monster.
Though the reality was the exact opposite.
[Alright, take your seats. I'll handle the rest, so relax.]
At the center, where the black coffin lay on the platform.
Rock chairs encircled it, as if sprouting straight from the ground.
Crude seats showing no thought for comfort, but they couldn't complain.
After hesitantly sitting...
[It's about time. Let's begin.]
With Horus's declaration as he gazed at the sky, the ritual commenced.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ It began in the Dragon God Temple.
Rrooooar—
As the ritual led by the other dragons activated, Beijing's atmosphere churned violently.
A reaction never seen before.
With not all Five Dragons present and no Dragon Children as sacrifices, the phenomenon was terribly unstable.
Left alone, it would worsen soon enough.
Vrrr—!
But Horus in Beijing took over, swiftly turning the tide.
Strange runes etched across the altar began glowing, drawing the swirling ambient energy to the center.
'Time to get serious.'
Golden radiance burst from Horus's eyes.
His amassed knowledge intertwined, forming a vast system.
A composite spell fusing mysticism from countless worlds—shamanism, magic, and more.
The massive magic circle in the sky linked with the earthly altar.
Whoooosh—
Rumble—
Storm winds swept everywhere, earthquakes shook the ground.
"Ruler of All Things" controlled the swirling energies, "Seeker of Mysteries" refined and processed them, and "Resistor of Providence" blocked minor variables in advance.
The massive energy flowed through the seated figures' bodies to the Karma Corpse—the Heavenly Demon's body—at the altar's center.
Like a straw, the Heavenly Demon sucked in karma from all directions.
Overwhelmed by the torrent, all Dragon Children except Zhuge Hye-mi fainted at once. Even she barely held on, mind blank.
'Most of the ritual's burden is diverted elsewhere, so no major strain on their bodies. That's what the altar is for.'
Crack!
Fine cracks appeared across the sturdy altar.
Horus grimaced slightly at the pressure on his body and checked the Heavenly Demon, the karma conduit.
Judging the moment right, he blasted all that karma downward through prepared channels.
Toward the sacrifice beneath the altar—the remains of Tan, the Mad Dragon of Greed.
Wriggle, wriggle—
The massive body convulsed repeatedly, absorbing the injected karma.
[Kekeke—As expected of a greed monster; it devours it perfectly. An excellent choice.]
Hans, assisting from underground, nodded in satisfaction.
Tan was a monster specialized in consumption by nature.
Even dead, no better vessel existed for containing energy.
[Perfect. We're basically done now.]
The Mad Dragon of Absolute Destruction 'Tan', having stepped into divinity.
And through the ritual, the Main God's arrangements filled within.
The joint work of a scholarly Gold Dragon and an interworld invasion expert Demon King neared completion.
Fwaaaah—
Tan's colossal body dissolved into light.
A massive pillar of light shot from underground, through the altar, to the heavens.
An overwhelming, majestic sight visible across the continent, regardless of distance.
All stared, entranced.
Zhuge Hye-mi clinging to consciousness, the experts waiting anxiously outside, organizations reorganizing everywhere, even common folk worrying about their next meal amid chaos.
They gaped skyward, tears streaming inexplicably.
After a brief moment.
As the fading light vanished completely.
All Avatars in the Kanghwan Realm instinctively knew.
The fate engulfing this world, the tangled threads of causality, the future racing toward doom—
Had drastically changed in an instant.
[Horus! It worked! The balance...!]
[Wooow! We did it! Right now...!]
[No way this actually worked? I doubted...]
[Good job...]
The dragons' excited voices flooded Horus simultaneously.
They in the Dragon God Temple had grasped the situation instantly too.
'It's done.'
No worries about temporary effects or side effects.
Proof of perfect completion floated before his eyes.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙ Feat Achieved! You have repaired a world on the brink of collapse due to lost balance. As a reward for successfully normalizing a single dimension, the special privilege "Savior" is granted. Ignores all restrictions arising in secondary dimensions. You have achieved a feat with massive world impact. Karma greatly increases. Not just another 'achievement' among many.
This was his first 'feat' transcending dimensions.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Inside the hidden world adjacent to Earth.
Twitch—
A figure seated in lotus position, statue-still, stirred.
Once, twice... the convulsions grew stronger over time.
After prolonged stimulation, his previously lifeless eyelids slowly opened.
"This is..."
The Lord of the Reverse Heaven Society, immersed in refining his divinity, instantly grasped the situation upon awakening.
Such a reaction was no trivial matter.
Pinpointing the cause was simple.
"The Kanghwan Realm again."
The dimension where his apostle, the Heavenly Demon proxying his divinity, had died recently.
The loss of the colonial energy supplier had irked him then, but this was troubling in a different way.
"...How?"
Major changes rippled through the causal flows linked to him.
The dimension he had thoroughly ruined beyond recovery was slowly restoring itself.
This went beyond mere loss of the overseer.
'The Main God intervened? No, even the Main God has limits. And Kanghwan was a hands-off type.'
A dimension's Main God was too vast to fine-tune internal issues.
Smashing and remaking was one thing; normalizing a problem-riddled world was another, unlikely without extraordinary luck...
'I thought I'd destroyed it thoroughly. Seems I missed something.'
The Main God's role was tossing possibilities and waiting for creations to resolve them.
He had accounted for that and prepared accordingly—yet it wasn't enough.
'Felt off since the Heavenly Demon died.'
Evidently, a great hero had emerged somewhere in that dimension.
One with potential to twist even near-certain causality.
"Tch, what's done is done."
Unexpected, but no immediate recourse.
Kanghwan was already stripped bare; forcing another incursion would just be venting, no gains.
Better to pioneer a new dimension than revisit a barren one.
"...Yes, time to move again."
In the silent space severed from the worlds.
The long-dormant giant began to rise once more.
To devour another world and sate his hunger.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ "Good. Very good."
I nodded contentedly, beer in one hand, drumstick in the other.
Hard work deserves fair reward.
Isn't settling accounts the moment all workers eagerly await?
Especially after a massive project like this.
"Let's see..."
Last check was after devouring the Heavenly Demon Cult headquarters, boosting Dimension Barrier Mitigation to 6 million points.
I'd scraped bottom then, barely affording Growth Elixir (7 Days) for a while...
Held Karma: 9,510,657 "...Karma's duplicating..."
My eyes beheld a feast of overflowing numbers, as if the scarcity had never been.