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Chapter 427: Star, Taurus (2)
Chapter 427: Star, Taurus (2)
Chapter 427: Star, Taurus (2)
Thuuud!
[The eastern gate of the Divine Ground ‘Babylonia’ has opened.]
[The Subordinate ‘Intruder-Loathed Gate’ has descended!]
With the sound of pulleys turning, the sky city’s eastern gate opened up. A new pillar of light shone down and transported a monster over ten meters tall to the ground. With the head of an eagle and a warrior’s robust physique, he resembled multiple creatures, including Beastfolks, Giants, and Chimeras. Judging from his enormous set of wings, he seemed capable of flight as well.
Roaaaaaar?!
The monster, known as Zababa[1], looked up and roared. He used to be an exceptional Monster Celestial so powerful that he was ranked second strongest. However, he lost his rationality when he joined Bel-Marduk, leaving him with nothing but his instincts.
[The western gate of the Divine Ground ‘Babylonia’ has opened.]
[The Subordinate ‘Soldier-Protecting Gate’ has descended!]
Pzzz, pzzzz!
The protector who stepped out of the western gate looked like a yellow lightning bull that resembled Bel-Marduk. Huffing and puffing, lightning sparks flew up every time the bull pounded the ground with its hooves.
Huff, huff!
The bull was known as Adad, a Lightning Celestial who brought storms wherever he went. Releasing a stream of heat with each snort, he looked ready to pounce at Crom Cruach and the others.
Oooong!
“Oh, no. Our jokes must’ve made them quite angry,” Crom monotonously murmured as she made her crystal ball float, her mischievous expression now gone.
Her crystal ball shone brightly.
[The Celestial ‘Thousand-Year Slumbering Dragon’ has activated her Archive!]
[Reading the data stored in her Archive.]
[Searching for an apt magic formula for the current situation.]
[Searching...]
Crom’s crystal ball showed her footage of the magic spells that she had theorized in her dreams. Working with an astronomical amount of materials made it difficult to memorize all of them. Hence, she turned to actively using her Archive, the storage of knowledge that Dragons passed down from generation to generation.
[Magic formula formation has been completed! Activating the Authority ‘Dream Realm Materialization’ with the magic formula as foundation!]
A gust of black wind blew into the area, and Crom vanished. Like a curtain draping over a stage at the end of a play, extraordinary darkness shrouded ‘Babylonia’ and all its protectors. Something about it dulled everyone’s senses, much like the darkness that awaited everyone when they closed their eyes to sleep. Spatial distortion also erupted all over the divine ground.
“Gyeo-Ul,” Xerxes said.
“Yes, Father.” Baek Gyeo-Ul leaped into the sky.
Paah!
[The Celestial ‘Wandering Shadow’ has activated the Authority ‘Shadow Play’!]
Xerxes, who was following Gyeo-Ul, transformed into his shadow form and blended into Gyeo-ul’s shadow. The two shadows mixed into one and circled Gyeo-Ul several times until it turned into armor. A storm of Class raged over the area.
Ooooong?!
With Xerxes assisting him, Gyeo-Ul took the lead much like Chang-Sun usually did. He could feel his power infinitely surging and his perception endlessly expanding.
‘This is... a Celestial’s view. This is how Father and Chang-Sun hyung see the world.’ Gyeo-Ul recalled many of Durga’s techniques that he failed to perform due to his inadequate skill. ‘...It’s more than possible to use them right now.’
For the first time, Gyeo-Ul was confident that he could put Chang-Sun’s shadow to good use and be of help to him. He always worried that he would slow him down no matter how hard he tried... but not anymore.
He had his father with him now. His firm belief that his father would have his back if he made a mistake made all his anxiety vanish. His heart felt full.
?Gyeo-Ul.?
‘Hm...?’ Gyeo-Ul wondered.
?I’m enjoying this moment so much.?Xerxes laughed quietly.
Gyeo-Ul chuckled in response. ‘Me too, Father.’
Xerxes wasn’t the only one talking to him either.
?Their shadows.?
?Their shadows.?
Bardiya, Cambyses, Perdiccas, Cyrus... Xerxes’ many personalities were shouting in unison.
?Devour them all.?
?Devour them all.?
Although the personalities always fought to be the main personality, even they had common enemies. ’Taurus’ and <Horoscope>. With what they had to go through because of them still clear in their mind, they decided to provide Gyeo-Ul genuine help instead of hindering him.
‘I will.’ With dozens of his fathers rooting for him, Gyeo-Ul gained even more confidence. Soon, his Black Dragon Fang howled.
Oooong!
?That’s the spirit.?
?That’s the spirit.?
?He’s extremely different from that loser Xerxes.?
?He’s extremely different from that loser Xerxes.?
Contented, the personalities smiled. They liked Gyeo-Ul’s spirit.
?... Can you please at least make me look like a cool father in front of my son??Xerxes grumbled, loathing his personalities’ reaction.
Roaaaaar!
As they argued, Gyeo-Ul fell on Zababa, who roared and swung his ax at him in turn.
Slaaaash?!
* * *
[‘Hyades’ has begun their attack!]
...
[‘Valhalla’ has shown up!]
Pzzzz!
A gust blew in as the gates of ‘Babylonia’ opened up and Bel-Marduk’s subordinates made their descent. The warriors of <Valhalla> had arrived.
Looking at Gyeo-Ul, Xerxes, and Crom, Qi Gong clicked his tongue in disapproval. “Tsk. I see a lot of new members.”
The three were already locked in fierce battles in Crom’s [Dream Realm]
“What’s wrong?” Shi Lou cautiously asked as he stood beside Qi Gong.
“We should be snapping the Grain Star’s neck by now. We’re wasting time.”
“I see your point, but giving <Horoscope> the beatdown has boosted our morale by quite a lot. Besides, isn’t it quite remarkable that Twilight went looking for his comrades—people who tried to rescue him instead of forgetting about him? As his brothers, we can help him resolve this problem, so why don’t you calm your anger?” Shi Lou smiled gently. When Qi Gong silently looked at him, Shi Lou flinched. “... Did I cross a line?”
“You used to be one of the people who hated Twilight the most, but you’re sticking up for him now.”
“Th-that’s...”
“You don’t have to explain yourself. I wasn’t trying to scold you anyway. Helping a brother rescue his friends, huh? That doesn’t sound so bad.” Qi Gong extended his hand in the air and conjured a Divine Class storm so powerful that it made his sleeves fly. “I was just complaining out of frustration. We aren’t exactly on good terms with them.”
Shi Lou nodded in agreement. <Purple Star Astrology> played a huge part in Xerxes and Crom Cruach’s deaths. Although they sustained a great deal of damage and were now under Chang-Sun’s command as well, it would take a very long, difficult time to reconcile with them.
“So...” Smirking, Qi Gong continued, “... isn’t it about time we kill every last one of them? I’m dying to vent my annoyance out.”
Realizing that Qi Gong was trying not to reveal what he actually wanted, Shi Lou sighed in relief and smiled crookedly. They, too found Hyades an eyesore. After all, even when <Valhalla> had been with <Purple Star Astrology>, ‘Taurus’ had always stood in their way.
“Let’s show them who we are,” Qi Gong declared.
[‘Valhalla’ has joined the battle!]
The children of the Emperor’s Seat sprang forward.
* * *
[An intense war has broken out!]
[The law of the Celestial ‘Divine Twilight’ and the force of the Celestial ‘Taurus’ are clashing.]
[The two Supreme Celestials’ collision is heavily affecting the law of causality.]
[The <Management Bureau> has declared a state of emergency to repair the system.]
...
[System error.]
[System error.]
...
[Repairing a part of the broken administrative system.]
...
[System error.]
...
[<Deus Ex Machina> quietly observes Worldline #802.]
...
Bel-Marduk and Chang-Sun’s armies were now engaged in melee combat. The Hyades flew down as the Undead Army soldiers soared up. The battle was so intense that it looked as if its outcome would determine the fate of the world.
[Giant warriors of the Society <Muspelheim> are roaring!]
Sinmara and her Giant warriors played the most active role in the war.
Roaaar?!
She let out a battle cry and stomped on the ground, her subordinates chiming in.
?Defeat and death to our enemies!?
?Death to our enemies!?
?Death to our enemies!?
Thump!
Thump!
?Victory and glory to our master!?
?Glory to our master!?
?Glory to our master!?
Thump!
Thump!
The Giant warriors exuded extreme heat, melting the very ground they stood on and filling the sky with clouds of steam. As their spirits skyrocketed, their spirits only grew hotter.
Due to their immense size advantage against the Hyades soldiers, they blasted away three to four soldiers with each swing of their weapons. They left behind piles of corpses and a trail of destruction in their wake, over which lava flowed like a river.
Leading her subordinates, Sinmara cleared up a path. Even back when Surtur was still the Giant King of <Muspelheim>, she would always lead the charge with no regard for her life. After all, she could see her enemies’ past, present, and future. Their past taught her every technique they had learned, which in turn gave her an understanding of their plans, and their future allowed her to foresee every move they would make. With those abilities, she could respond to any unexpected variables in the middle of combat, making her a powerful vanguard.
It was no different now. Sinmara still hadn’t regained the face that she could use to see the future yet, but she still had the face that allowed her to understand her enemies’ past. Quickly assessing Hyades, the battlefield’s heat enraptured Sinmara as her enemies’ blood covered her.
?Toast with our enemies’ blood! Use your vigor to grab hold of this victory! Show your worth as the great warriors of <Muspelheim>!?Sinmara shouted.
?For <Muspelheim>!?
?For <Muspelheim>!?
Rooooar!
The Hyades soldiers fell one after another.
?... We don’t really have anything to worry about on the ground.?
Jin Prezia chuckled. Riding his Undead Wyvern in the sky, he looked down to the ground. He had a bird’s-eye view of the entire battlefield.
Chang-Sun and Bel-Marduk were in its center. The closest subordinates of ‘Taurus’ fought Gyeo-Ul, Xerxes, and Crom in the east, <Valhalla> clashed against Hyades’ vanguard in the west, and the <Muspelheim> Giants were leaving a trail of ruins in the south as they pierced through Hyades’ main battalion.
Meanwhile, Jin and the Undead Army acted as a special unit, distancing themselves from the battlefield.
?We can’t drop behind them.?
Jin observed the sky city, which was endlessly pouring down soldiers through the opened gates. It was an impenetrable fortress even among impenetrable fortresses.
Having originated from Arcadia, Jin was taught at a very young age to fear the Star Order and Star Signs. Even now that he was an adult who had completed his <Exuviation>, that fear remained an invisible shackle that weighed him down.
However, now that ‘Taurus’ had destroyed his home and family, Jin had to somehow overcome his fear, and he could think of no better way to do that than attacking ‘Taurus’ in the heart. They could cause serious damage to Bel-Marduk if he could take over his divine ground.
‘He’s definitely hiding something,’ he thought, finding the meticulous ‘Taurus’ revealing himself at the price of ruining the Arcadian civilization quite suspicious.
Too many things didn’t add up for ‘Taurus’ to do all of this just to capture Chang-Sun. There had to be a good reason he ruined his scout base and took the risk of leaving the battleline against the <Anti-Star> Alliance to come here.
‘Master and ‘Taurus’ are the same people, just from different Worldlines. It might have something to do with that.’
?... Yeah, we can’t drop behind.?
Jin made his Undead Wyvern fly to the sky city using the reins, the Undead Army following right behind him.
?Hahaha.
Odin’s laughter quietly echoed and faded out from where Jin and his Undead Army flew away from.
1. A warrior god and protector of Kish. Not much is known about him, but there is a story where he is Baba and Istar’s consort. ?