Ch 501: Ep. 96 - Demon-like Judge of Fire, I

Jung Heewon was greeted by the swarm of Constellations as soon as finding herself inside the ark.

She couldn't make heads nor tails of what on earth was going on here.

"…Why did it have to be hell, of all places? Did I commit a lot of sin in my past life?"

There was no mistaking the fact that the enemies before her eyes were aiming for her life, though. Jung Heewon discovered the pot-bellied but emaciated 'starving ghosts' tripping over each other and rushing towards her like falling mountains, and urgently shouted out.

"Uriel!!"

There was no reply. But Uriel's blessing was still permeating within her. As white wings grew out from Jung Heewon's back, crimson corona permeated within her entire frame.

The moment she swung her sword, the swarm of starving ghosts before were completely swept away.

Enemies rushed in without an end. The ones found in this ⸢Hot Naraka⸥ seemed to be parasitic creatures of other worldviews.

Fortunately, she wasn't alone in this place.

"Heewon-ssi!"

Lee Hyunsung hurriedly ran up to her location from somewhere and stood back-to-back with her.

"I guess you've committed a lot of wrong yourself, Hyunsung-ssi."

Their magical energy would eventually run out trying to fend off all these starving ghosts. Not only that, hell's Constellations and Demon Kings were waiting for an opening to strike, as well.

"Behind you!"

Before they realized it, a swarm of starving ghosts sneaked closer from her rear and pounced with their large maws wide open. However, a cannon shell aiming at these creatures flew in from somewhere and blew them away.

"Heewon eonni!"

It was from Lee Jihye's battleship. Jung Heewon's complexion brightened as she shouted out.

"Are the kids with you?"

"I think they were dropped somewhere near Sangah and Seolhwa eonni's vicinity! As for Pildu ahjussi-!"

"We don't have the time to worry about him, too!"

Gyaaaaaaahk!

More and more of hell's denizens appeared. The demon counts they fought back in the [Dark Castle], and duke-level demons they encountered back in the [Demon Realm] also began making their appearances, as well.

Every one of them had become a part of this hell, to be used as subjects for the next scenario.

"An Archangel!!"

"Kill them, and we can also acquire the positions of Demon Kings!"

Lee Jihye's bombardment towards them commenced. All the cannons in the [Turtle Dragon] spat out flames, causing the hell's terrain to transform and lava to spew out uncontrollably. Demons struck by the bits and lumps of lava all melted down, but their numbers didn't seem to decrease at all.

Individuals thought to be dead were rising back up again a few minutes later. The spooked Lee Jihye hurriedly shouted out.

"General-nim!! Where are you?! Why aren't any Constellations showing up here??"

Unfortunately, no Constellation replied to her calling. Not even Uriel, Maritime War God, nor the 999th turn's Lee Hyunsung…

They now had to rely only on their own strength to fight.

Tsu-chuchuchuchut!

It was then, sparks began dancing in the air.

A roundish portal opened up and Biyoo popped out from there.

"Biyoo!!"

She used to be no bigger than a soccer ball, but now she had grown so big that it was difficult to wrap one's arms around her.

⸢All Dokkaebis grow up by eating Stories.⸥

Biyoo yelled out 'Baaaaht!' and curled up as powerful sparks exploded out from her figure. Those dancing sparks then tore open a wall of the cabin.

Dududududu!

Shells burst out of the automated turrets emerging from the torn-open wall.

"Are you alright!?"

Gong Pildu's 'moving castle' was there. His [Armed Fortress] now boasted a scale of a complete battle-ready castle after his Stigma had evolved once more. And on top of this fortress were Yoo Sangah, Lee Seolhwa, as well as the two kids.

"Eonni! Ahjussi! Come up this way!"

Jung Heewon and Lee Hyunsung grabbed Lee Seolhwa's offered hands and jumped up towards the top of the fortress.

Meanwhile, Lee Jihye's longsword gleamed dangerously towards the starving ghosts madly chasing after them by climbing up on the fortress's walls.

⸢In a world where no light from the stars could illuminate them, the members of <Kim Dokja's Company> rescued their own by themselves.⸥

"Let's get started."

Through the authority of the [Lotus Pedestal], Yoo Sangah began restricting the enemies' movements; in the meantime, Lee Jihye and Gong Pildu continued to fire away.

The [Chimera Dragon] sat on the far edge of the fortress and fired its Breath at the Constellations approaching from the air. As for the enemies that managed to break through this pandemonium and climb up successfully, they were greeted by Jung Heewon's falling sword strikes.

Lee Hyunsung's [Steel Transformation] protected the skins of his companions, while Lee Seolhwa treated him as he got injured instead of them.

⸢This combination had been dreamed up by a certain person a long time ago.⸥

However, there was one boy who didn't appear in the original story.

"Aaaaaaah!"

Tsu-chuchuchu…!

A pitch-black swarm of locusts rushed in and blanketed the skies of hell. These creatures latched onto the Incarnation Bodies of the demons reviving from their deaths and began tearing into them.

Demons cried out in despair as they fell into the eternal cycle of their regenerating flesh painfully getting ripped apart and devoured repeatedly.

Jung Heewon's eyes shone in the light of hope as she observed the strengths of the starving ghosts declining gradually. The one-sidedly disadvantageous battle situation was slowly but surely turning on its head. Although destroying this 'Hot Naraka' would still be asking for too much, at the least, buying enough time seemed quite possible.

The only problem right now had to do with the Constellations that hadn't joined the battle yet.

Tsu-chuchuchu…!

It was then, the stars filling up the skies of this hellish landscape suddenly began moving towards a certain direction. Constellations pounded on the interior wall of the 'Hot Naraka' and destroyed it before streaming outside through there.

Once the lights from the Constellations disappeared, the balance of the worldview also collapsed as well. The starving ghosts could no longer recover and sunk back inside the abyss of hell itself.

The companions finally got to take a breather and stared at each other.

"…What just happened?"

Lee Seolhwa asked that question, but no one answered back.

One thing was for sure, though – an event humongous enough to make those stars lose interest in this place was happening somewhere right now.

Everyone's gaze was fixed on Gong Pildu next. He groaned loudly and began driving his [Armed Fortress].

"Fine, fine. I got it, so stop egging me on."

<Kim Dokja's Company> too followed after those stars and began moving. Constellations flooding out from all corners of the 'Final Ark' were flying towards a certain cabin as if they were being sucked in by a black hole.

⸢This was their first time seeing so many stars move like that.⸥

Even Jung Heewon, Lee Hyunsung, and Yoo Sangah, too… None could tear their eyes away from this overwhelming spectacle of every star in the sky raining down. It was at once beautiful, and rather chill-inducing, too.

⸢And also, sorrowful.⸥

By the time they abruptly woke up, they realized that all these stars were swirling around a single star in the centre. The sight of the room could be seen through the large crack in the wall.

The [Shindansu] had broken past the heavens. And with that tree as their centre, Kim Dokja's stars were engaged in a bitter struggle.

They were the Korean Peninsula's Constellations.

Kim Yoo-Shin, having lost his arm, was shouting out, and Gyebaek was swinging his greatsword towards the Constellations.

The Bald General of Justice exterminated the enemies with his club, while Seo Ae Il Pil strengthened the allied Constellations' Statuses by writing in mid-air with his brush.

Joseon's number one sorcerer morphed into a gigantic tiger to fight against Mithra and its turtle, while the Slumbering Lady of Fine Brocade summoned all of her Hwarangs to defend against the <Emperor>'s forces.

There was an unfamiliar Constellation among them, too – a star with its eyes closed in the centre of this tree. The [Shindansu]'s Story was bubbling up with him as its core.

It seemed that he was one of the Korean Peninsula's 'founding gods'.

His blessing enveloped Kim Dokja and the Korean Peninsula's Constellations, and protected them.

"…General-nim…?"

They could also see Constellations atop the Turtle Ship, as well.

The sight of the rolling ocean, brought to reality through ⸢Stage Transformation⸥; that's where Lee Jihye's Constellation sponsor was.

The blade of menacingly-growling Cheok Jungyeong collided with Thor's hammer. Unfortunately, the <Asgard>'s forces were simply too many for this small group to fight against.

Eventually, even the Constellations coming from the same hell as Jung Heewon began joining in, as well.

No matter how excellent both Cheok Jungyeong and Lee Sun-Shin were as Constellations, it was still impossible for them to stop all of them.

But then, a light flashed from the [Shindansu], and some things began growing on the ends of its branches. The lights then descended like ripened fruits, containing people the companions were intimately familiar with.

"It's our great masters!"

Powerful auras of white lightning, as well as sword-light of Breaking the Sky, dyed the battlefield; then, Jang Hayoung and the Transcendents from ⸢Murim⸥ began roaming the battleground as well.

They were followed by Japanese Youkai Constellations rushing in; 'Tengus' grasping feathered fans, and 'Kappas' rose up from beneath the water – even the subordinates of 'Yamata no Orochi' could be seen, as well.

Fruits endlessly fell from the [Shindansu].

Among the spreading white lightning dyeing the battlefield bright, the beings from the 6th scenario began appearing next.

"For Kim Dogeza!"

They were 'small people' from [Peace Land]. Those that fought together with them against the calamity were descending to this battlefield to help them out.

Every time Constellations' swords moved, the small people died in their droves.

"Ah, ah… Ahhhh…!"

None of the companions could speak at the horrifying spectacle of the cabin. And at the centre of this battlefield, the brightest star on the middle of the mountain made out of dead stars also didn't speak a word, either.

⸢Kim Dokja on top of the destroyed 'Absolute Throne' maintained his silence.⸥

Yoo Joonghyuk, Han Sooyoung, and Anna Croft were all fighting there. They were giving their all to fight against Constellations while vomiting out blood, scraping every Story they could, and squeezing out every ounce of willpower they possessed.

⸢The sky was rapidly changing from the collision of worldviews.⸥

<Asgard>'s Odin, <Papyrus>'s Osiris, <Vedas>'s Shiva, <Emperor>'s Nuwa… Not just them, but Constellations from Nebulas with unfamiliar names all joined in, causing the sky to brighten up in the deluge of blinding light show.

⸢What blocked light wasn't darkness, but another light.⸥

The companions subjected to this chokingly bright world felt as if their very existences were being denied. The starlights from the Constellations were telling them this – that the history they had compiled so far was nothing.

Jung Heewon also knew. She knew that those beings couldn't be defeated even if all of her companions jumped in right now.

She needed an even stronger Story, one that could strike down all those blinding stars. The kind of power that could destroy all those constellations.

However, Jung Heewon didn't possess such powers. Even with [God Slaying] or [Hellfire], it was still impossible.

Jung Heewon looked up at the sky. Her sponsor that had been keeping silent until then was there. She really liked her sponsor. And because of that, there were certain things she felt scared of asking for the Archangel's help.

"Kim Dokja…"

Even then, Jung Heewon had to say it.

"…Please, rescue him, Uriel."

Right away, her sponsor replied back to her.

Hotly-burning flames blanketed the surroundings. She sensed Uriel standing right behind her. Without a doubt, the Archangel must've been using her uniquely noble eyes to look at the same world Jung Heewon was looking at.

Suddenly, Jung Heewon was overcome with fear.

⸢What if Uriel dies in this place?⸥

Uriel was just a 'Narrative-grade Constellation'; even if she was very powerful, she still couldn't fight and win against a Myth-grade Constellation. But then, a soft hand touched her shoulder.

*

The back of Uriel walking past was smaller than Jung Heewon's. The latter just couldn't tear her eyes away from that small back.

The white wings spread out from that small back and enveloped the whole world as Uriel's true voice resounded out.

Jung Heewon felt something shake noticeably inside her.

Something similar to a fragment was wriggling inside; it was a weighty fragment that began sleeping within her ever since the conclusion of the 'Great War of Saints and Demons'.

Tsu-chuchuchut!

Right away, angels began appearing one by one. Lower- and mid-tier angels, their number swelling from ten, then to a hundred, then shooting past a thousand in an instant.

Among them were familiar faces, such as Archangel Gabriel. Not only that, the spirits of the Archangels who died during the 'Great War of Saints and Demons' could be seen among them, as well.

The 'Guardian of Youths and Travel', Raphael called out to her. The angel who always looked at the world with sleepy eyes was slowly kneeling down before her along with all the other Archangels.

Uriel didn't reply, but looked back at her Incarnation, instead. A certain faint smile seeped into the noble expression of this Archangel. Jung Heewon called out, but her voice couldn't reach its intended target.

The moment Uriel nodded her head, Raphael loudly proclaimed.

Tsu-chuchuchuchu…!

The vast corona completely enveloped Uriel's figure.

Then, the stunningly-brilliant platinum-hued armour settled on her. All of Uriel's Status was now manifesting itself, just like back on that day she reigned as the terror of all demons after cutting off countless demon kings' heads.

The strongest star in <Eden>.

The moment the 'Demon-like Judge of Fire' grasped her sword, every kneeling angel stood right back up.