At that mont, the black spot was still small.
However, the fact that its size was subtly increasing was troubling.
“Ari.”
[Yes, Master.]
“How long will it take for that to reach Earth?”
[Please wait a mont. All caras are currently focused on Earth, so there is insufficient data on the target.]
It didn’t take long for Ari to finish the calculations.
[Observation of the target completed.]
[Data analysis in progress.]
The data analysis was not just based on real-ti observations but also included past accumulated data.
Images captured by the robots conducting the World Tree suppression operation, shots accidentally caught by drones or observation caras, monts when people ntioned the black spot, and data from neglected celestial observation caras, among others.
By analyzing the data that had accumulated over ti, Ari was able to quickly draw conclusions.
[Analysis complete.]
And the reason Ari hadn’t reported this phenonon until now was clear.
[Error. Error.]
[The target is moving at a speed of approximately 189C.]
[This appears to be a data error.]
Amidst the World Tree’s upheaval on Earth, Ari had been quite busy, but it seed that it had judged the existence of the black energy itself to be impossible.
“189C? What does that an?”
[It ans 189 tis the speed of light.]
[The target is currently expanding at a speed faster than the speed of light. This is an impossible figure. There seems to be a critical error in the data.]
A substance moving faster than the speed of light couldn’t exist.
[The likelihood of that actually existing is much smaller than the consistent errors found in the data observed so far. The phenonon seems to be occurring in human species as well... a light distortion effect…]
Ari, despite being an AI, lacked imagination.
Because it operated strictly on rational thinking based on data, even though it had the data about the anomaly and the black energy, it couldn’t connect the two.
After all, the possibility of a substance moving 189 tis faster than the speed of light was 0%.
That’s why it hadn’t reported it to .
It was simply an error, sothing unimportant.
There were far too many things of higher priority.
On the other hand, Kim Da-bin imdiately noticed the anomaly and reported it to .
Imagination, intuition.
Even the perfect AI seed to have its flaws.
“So, assuming that’s real, how long would it take for it to reach Earth?”
What was great about Ari was that it gave accurate answers to the questions I asked.
[Currently, there are 3 days, 6 hours, 10 minutes, and 58 seconds remaining.]
It was shocking.
‘I thought it would take ten years for it to reach Earth.’
I was sure that’s what I knew.
What went wrong?
Suddenly, I rembered sothing Ice Dragon had said two years ago.
(It's you. The foolish being hastening the demise.)
Hastening the demise.
Could it be...
‘Is this what it ant?’
Considering the timing when Ice Dragon appeared, it wasn’t hard to guess what the action hastening the demise ant.
‘Occupying the World Tree of another dinsion.’
I thought Ice Dragon was referring to the World Tree invading Earth.
In reality, Earth was now heading toward destruction by the World Tree.
But...
“How much longer until the World Tree destroys Earth?”
[Assuming the World Tree’s heart reaches here at the sa rate, it is estimated to take about 3 years and 7 months.]
The destruction by the World Tree was still far off.
In contrast, the ti it would take for the black energy to engulf Earth was only...
‘Three days and six hours.’
It was a full 10 years earlier than expected.
Now I understood.
‘It really did say it was “hastening” the destruction.’
I could now see that Ice Dragon’s words referred to this.
I spoke to Ari.
“...Set a tir. And keep monitoring. If there are any changes, report to imdiately. Make this the highest priority, even above anything related to the World Tree.”
[Understood, Master.]
I then sent a telepathic ssage to Kim Da-bin.
[Please gather an ergency eting imdiately.]
What should I do?
It was an impossible situation with no answers.
Currently, all forces were invested in the mission to tackle the World Tree’s heart in another dinsion.
There was no other viable option.
Leveling up?
For now, taking down the Ice Dragon’s nest was the fastest way to level up.
In dinsions where the World Tree existed, the highest level was only around early 80s.
Nowhere near the 87-level Ice Dragon.
However, there was a limit to the number of tis I could attempt the instant dungeon.
‘Still, I barely reached level 75.’
Thanks to the experience gained from attacking countless World Trees in other dinsions, I had managed to reach the level required for one more skill point.
But now, the limit had been reached.
‘The remaining ti is only a little over a day.’
To be exact, 1 day, 5 hours, 38 minutes, and 11 seconds.
Even if I devoted myself to hunting, I couldn’t level up anymore.
The territory had greatly expanded.
To the west, it now included Egypt, Europe, Russia, the whole of Australia, and even California in the United States.
This was just the base centered around Korea.
Including the annex, it was essentially most of Europe and Africa, except for so severely damaged regions.
Roughly a 10,000 km radius.
It was a bit disappointing.
‘If I had reached level 80, I could have surrounded the whole Earth.’
But there was no way to level up any further.
Naturally, I had to find another thod.
Taking the real heart of the World Tree?
If that were possible, I might find a way to fight back against the black energy.
At the very least, if I used the thod the World Tree employed to protect its heart, I could surely protect Earth.
The heart of the World Tree alone was estimated to be at least as large as the Sun.
Of course, it could be even more enormous.
Either way, with that power, it would be no problem to protect Earth.
But...
‘How can I devour sothing that massive?’
It was impossible to even imagine devouring the heart of a World Tree so enormous.
It would be far more efficient to take the heart of a normal World Tree from another dinsion.
So, that option was ruled out.
Skill points?
I had already maxed out every skill I could.
Thanks to the skill points earned from the avatar, I now had more than enough to last.
All the skills that had available upgrades were fully leveled up.
‘Even if the skill levels go up, it won’t solve anything.’
An invisible hand.
With the skill that has already reached maximum level, it is highly effective across the entire area and works well for monster clearing or destroying the World Tree.
However, using it to block the black energy is like trying to point at the sky with both hands.
The Absolute Being's shop.
It was a skill that was useful in many ways, but it couldn’t block the black energy.
The Absolute Being’s warehouse, eyes, health, ho restoration, door, and so on.
All of them were the sa.
Each one was an incredible skill, but increasing the level here didn’t seem like it would provide a way to block the black energy.
“The only thing that might work is the Housekeeper Absolute Being’s Dignity Maintenance Skill.”
The Housekeeper Absolute Being’s Dignity Maintenance Skill, which had created the most variables among all the skills I possessed.
Retainers, summoning beasts, divine artifacts, incarnation, avatars, and so on.
It was the skill with the greatest influence.
However.
【Housekeeper Absolute Being’s Dignity Maintenance (Passive) Lv. 9】
“This skill hasn’t had a level-up button since it reached level 9.”
I didn’t even know what the leveling conditions were.
In addition, none of the various awakening abilities I had, like ti reversal, the strengthened nuclear bombs piled up in the warehouse, iron ball teors, or the special abilities obtained by absorbing other deities, held any answers.
That’s why I’m still proceeding with the World Tree strategy.
It was a desperate attempt, grabbing at straws.
I looked up at the sky.
“......”
The small black dot next to the sun had already grown so large that it was no longer coverable by the palm of my hand.
It looked as if there was a black hole in the sky.
Then, it happened.
[3,000,000,000 won is consud.]
[3,000,000,000 won is consud.]
[3,000,000,000 won is consud.]
The notifications that the avatar had spent money echoed consecutively, and then the power of the World Tree flowed in.
Another dinsion was conquered.
I opened the Dongdaemun in front of the one who had finished the conquest.
Even after a battle, the avatar returned looking completely fine.
The avatar, with a casual expression, asked.
“What’s up? Why did you call ? Shouldn’t we be moving to the next dinsion?”
I quietly asked it.
“You knew from the beginning, didn’t you?”
The avatar, with a mischievous expression, responded.
“What do you an?”
“That the black energy would co faster if we devoured the heart of the World Tree in another dinsion.”
The avatar’s smile grew wider.
“I guess it finally ca.”
As expected.
“What’s your real intention?”
“My intention?”
The avatar raised both hands and continued.
“I just wanted revenge on the World Tree. I had a feeling sothing like this would happen, but I didn’t expect it to co so quickly.”
“Why didn’t you tell earlier?”
“Huh? Was there any need? It wouldn’t have made a difference anyway.”
The avatar exaggeratedly spread his arms.
“What could you have done?”
The avatar’s words were correct.
Even if I had known earlier, it wouldn’t have changed anything.
I had done my best up until now, running without rest to get here.
I had tried many tis to choose the best option, turning ti back again and again, and struggled to handle everything perfectly.
This was the result.
‘Did I make the wrong choice?’
I couldn’t know.
Even if I went back and tried again with the knowledge of this future, I couldn’t guarantee I would make a better outco.
I had tried my hardest.
I had given it my all.
So.
“Show your mory.”
I made the gamble.
The avatar, who had been grinning, suddenly paused and then smiled even more deeply.
“Okay. If I can look into the mories of the suffering I went through with that thing, maybe I’ll find a way. But, are you sure about this?”
Madness filled his gaze.
His eyes glead with desire.
He spoke.
“Are you sure?”
To share mories.
That ant our minds would be connected.
For the avatar to devour my mind and take over my body, this was an essential process.
It was the sa reason why he had shown his mories before.
In fact, a part of his plan had worked.
After I looked into his mories, his actions had beco far freer.
Hatred for the World Tree was one of those things.
The mont I saw those mories, I had partially assimilated with him.
But.
‘If I let all those hundreds of years of unrefined information flood into my mind...’
At that ti, my mind had been tightly closed.
The small crack created when I entered the spiritual world to settle things with Orochi allowed the mories to be inserted.
That’s why I saw unrefined, unclear mories.
But this ti was different.
‘To find the way to counter the black energy, I have to fully accept it.’
The vivid mories of the man before , who had fought alone for hundreds of years.
Moreover, this ti, I was the one opening the gates of my mind.
All the mories would co in without filtration.
A self made up of decades of mories and a self made up of at least hundreds of years of mories.
Which one would be consud was already clear.
But.
“It’s not until you try that you know whether it’s long or short, right?”
Still, I had to do it.
‘In the worst case.’
My self would disappear, and he would take over my body.
But even then.
‘This is a world where my family is still alive.’
I wouldn’t repeat the sa thing as before, devouring everything and doing the sa things.
Though a little off, the one in front of was still ‘.’
I believe in myself.
‘At least my family will be protected.’
With the overwhelming strength I had gained now, compared to the previous world, I might even show a better result.
‘In other words, whether I win or lose, I can protect this world.’
If this doesn’t work, everyone, including myself, will be annihilated.
In a way, this was a gamble with many guaranteed outcos.
The only fatal risk was that my life was the wager.
The avatar couldn’t hide his joy and laughed.
“Well then, shall we start?”
“Yeah.”
I thought it was all over.
But it won’t go as easily as you think.
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