Returning to Old Town, the heart of the Union, didn’t take long.
It seed the Union, which had already heard about the events outside, recognized Yu-hyun from afar and quickly prepared a place for him.
“Phew. Well, I never imagined I’d end up in the Union, where they say it's hard for Divine Spirits to enter.”
Perched on phisto’s back, Michael whistled exaggeratedly as he looked at the scenery of the Union’s Old Town.
The Union was an organization created by beings who couldn’t enter the Divine Army governed by Divine Spirits. Over ti, it grew larger and larger, forming a union with a size even greater than a typical Divine Army, yet their founding principles had never faded.
A nation for humans—or more precisely, a nation for the beings of the Lower Realms.
For them, the presence of Divine Spirits and such beings was nothing but uncomfortable.
For this reason, Divine Spirits were strictly forbidden from entering the Union. Although a welcoming ceremony was held for those who arrived as envoys, even such cases were rare.
“It’s warti now. There’s no need to mindlessly increase the number of enemies.”
“Well, yeah. Besides, even if I cause a ruckus here, I’d be the one in more danger.”
phistopheles had felt it the mont he entered Old Town.
The aura of the strong.
The presence of beings with imnse power that made him doubt they were even human prickled against his skin.
‘At least three of them, and even more beings at comparable levels.’
And just as he had sensed them, they too were aware of his presence. That they could simultaneously detect each other’s presence suggested that at the very least, their ability to sense another’s level was on par.
‘It seems I can’t just dismiss them as re humans. To think the Union, which has been overlooked until now, has a power comparable to the Great Armies.’
phisto glanced sideways at Yu-hyun. If he had to na the strongest being here, it would undoubtedly be this man. He had always been strong, but with Satan’s death, he had inherited all of Satan’s stories.
The choice of Satan, the first-generation Divine Spirit who had lived since the birth of the universe, in his final monts, was a human.
‘Was humanity truly the answer to it all?’
phisto, who had once been human himself, couldn’t easily accept this reality.
Though his mories of those days had faded to barely even a handful of sand, a vague longing still surfaced, making him wonder what might have happened if he had made different choices back then.
“……Ge
“Oh, awake already?”
Before he could sense Michael’s awakening, she got off his back.
Michael, taking in her surroundings, raised her gaze to look at her now only pair of remaining wings.
Of the twelve brilliant wings she once had, only two were left. Dull and ager, their glow nearly gone, she softly stroked them with her fingertips.
‘At least this remained.’
Seeing this, phisto held back the words he had planned to say upon her awakening.
He thought that any words would be useless to her now. Not because her condition was poor, but because she seed surprisingly well, even better than he’d expected. ℞�
“They say a place is prepared for us. Let’s go inside.”
Yu-hyun led Michael and phisto into the conference hall where the eting was to take place.
Recognizing him, the guards cleared a path and saluted.
Inside, the Lords were already gathered, their expressions serious as they discussed matters. They rose upon seeing Yu-hyun and widened their eyes as they noticed the two Divine Spirits following him.
“Sit down without making a fuss.”
There were only four people who didn’t stand or show emotional disturbance.
Choi Do-yoon, Seo Sumin, Kwon Jia, and Yoo Young-min.
Choi Do-yoon, with a cold gaze, quelled the Lords’ actions at once. As the Lords who had risen reluctantly sat down again, Choi Do-yoon’s gaze turned toward Yu-hyun.
“You’re late.”
“I ca as fast as I could.”
Unlike the indifferent Choi Do-yoon, Yu-hyun responded with a half-narrowed, growling gaze.
While there was no longer any reason or need to fight, old grudges didn’t disappear so easily.
Choi Do-yoon, understanding the situation, let it slide naturally. That relaxed attitude further irked Yu-hyun, but in the current circumstances, Choi Do-yoon was not what he needed to be concerned with.
“I assu you’ve all heard the news.”
Everyone nodded heavily at Yu-hyun’s words.
The manifestation Satan used wasn’t only visible to Divine Spirits.
It would be no exaggeration to say that everyone in the Mixed World had seen it. Naturally, the Union was aware of the phenonon and needed to make a decision quickly.
“……Fighting would be madness.”
Soone spoke up. It was a Beastfolk Lord from the Midlands.
“Didn’t we witness the strength of the Foundation? And the Usurpers? Logos, who granted them their roles? How do we fight against a being far greater than even a first-generation Divine Spirit?”
“I agree. A re fraction of the Foundation’s power erased the Salio Empire and Calot. Satan, a first-generation Divine Spirit, exhausted himself just revealing the truth. Honestly, fighting would be a death wish.”
“Agreed.”
Other Lords countered these words.
“So you’re suggesting we submit without a fight? Even if we surrender, you all know it. Only a handful would make it to the next world, and the rest would all die.”
“Abandon any hope that you’ll be one of the rare survivors. The first-generation Divine Spirits, known as Usurpers, will kill us to solidify their own positions. All the more reason to resist and fight.”
“I agree.”
A faction arguing against fighting, and another insisting on resistance.
It wasn’t unreasonable for those calling for surrender to react this way. After all, hadn’t they seen the terrifying power of the Foundation and who was wielding it?
The notion of re creations defying their creators was nearly unthinkable.
Thus, as they struggled to reconcile their opinions, the conference hall quickly descended into chaos.
While no fists flew, raised voices were already a frequent occurrence. The increasingly cold expressions of Seo Sumin and Choi Do-yoon spoke volus.
Yu-hyun thought it was about ti for him to intervene, but soone else moved before he could.
“Everyone, would you kindly listen to ?”
“Yo
One of the seven Lords of the Great Army of Pandemonium, phisto, the Lord of Pride.
With his appearance, the conference hall instantly fell silent.
“Ah, such eagerness to listen. That’s an excellent attitude. It seems you all are having trouble agreeing, so I thought I might offer a suggestion.”
“Are you also one of the Usurpers that Satan spoke of?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
phisto didn’t bother to hide his identity. His straightforward admission left the Lord who had questioned him stunned.
“And?”
“Yes?”
“Did you think I, as an Usurper, would co here to do sothing reckless in order to enter the next world?”
“T
“Wake up. All of you advocating peace and negotiation, get a grip. Do you think the Union, or us re creations, are in a position to claim peace from our creators?”
No, it was impossible. Logos’ aim, from the start, was to erase this universe for the sake of the next era.
If anyone held a delusional hope of survival, that would be the gravest of errors.
Countless beings inhabit this world, and only a handful—far fewer than a hundred—would survive.
“Of course, I survived by chance and received a new role. But even for us Usurpers, it’s not guaranteed that we’ll make it to the next universe.”
Over the cycles of repeated universes, Usurpers themselves had also been continuously renewed.
He was only able to take on his role after defeating the previous phisto.
“Logos does not accommodate existing Usurpers. In fact, he deliberately grants new powers to others, instigating battles among Usurpers. Naturally, fierce battles ensue over these positions, and only the victors gain the chance to enter the next era.”
In summary:
Even if they were to submit, the first-generation Divine Spirits, holding titles as High Gods, would never look favorably upon them.
In the end, a future filled with conflict was unavoidable, regardless of the path chosen.
“If we end up at the sa destination whether we go forward or backward……then isn’t the direction we must take already decided?”
He warned them against clinging to false hope.
This was a warning from a present-day Usurper.
Those in the anti-war faction looked as if their world was crumbling. And technically, they weren’t wrong, for the world truly was on the brink of collapse.
“Other Great Armies were already reaching out to us.”
Baek Seo-ryeon, who was presiding over the eting, said as much.
Though unintended, the Union had attracted considerable attention from other Great Armies due to its civil strife and Yu-hyun’s exploits.
Then Satan’s broadcast had struck directly.
The first to respond was the Great Army of Mabinogion. Since Calot’s disappearance, they seed to have already made up their minds and contacted the Union imdiately.
Next was the Great Army of Dragonica. Of the Dragon Kings, Sharuriel, the king of the White-scaled tribe, was the first to advocate forming a Union.
Surprisingly, the Great Army of Sukhavati, which had practically shut itself off after Buddha’s death, decided to side with
the Union in this fight.
“One by one, they’re already coming here.”
With Baek Seo-ryeon’s words, everyone recognized the reality they faced.
The Great Armies were coming together on their side.
Not just Mabinogion, Dragonica, and Sukhavati.
“Lords! Look outside, outside!”
A guard burst through the door, shouting. Although interrupting the eting in such a way was disrespectful and enough to bring him to a court-martial, no one there reproached him.
As he said, the sight beyond the great windows of the conference hall was astounding.
A vast army was gathering outside Old Town.
Not to fight the Union, but to propose an alliance to survive together.
“Th-Those figures riding on clouds, is that the Thirty-Six Heavens of the Celestial Realm?”
“Red banners and a golden throne. That must be the Great Army of the Hwanin Empire, no?”
“Eden! Eden is here! The Millennium Kingdom of Eden has co!”
If it were only them, it wouldn’t have been quite so shocking.
No, this was already overwhelming, but the ones that followed erased any remaining disbelief.
Rumble.
A golden light flashed through the sky, then flew toward the conference hall.
It passed through the outer wall of glass as lightly as water and stopped in the center of the hall.
“Oh. So everyone was gathered here chatting.”
“Th-The Great Sage, Equal to Heaven?”
Sun Wukong, once the troublemaker of the Celestial Realm, now an enlightened Buddha.
The other Lords couldn’t hide their astonishnt at his appearance. Even the typically composed Yoo Young-min widened his eyes at the sight of Sun Wukong.
Yu-hyun naturally welcod Sun Wukong.
“You’re here.”
“Yes. I am. And it seems you’ve gotten stronger since we last t. So, have you mastered the Qihua I guided you toward?”
“To so extent.”
“I see.”
Sun Wukong, nodding, glanced at Choi Do-yoon with interest as he sat.
“What’s this? There’s another one? Soone else who has mastered Qihua?”
“……I wasn’t trying to hide it.”
“I know, I know. I just happened to notice. This is getting interesting.”
Sun Wukong, his face beaming, seed genuinely delighted.
“Have you co to fight alongside us as well, Sun Wukong?”
“Do you even need to ask? Of course. Not only I, the Victorious Fighting Buddha Sun Wukong, but my six sworn brothers are also joining the war.”
“All six of the Great Saints?!”
“The Demon Kings’ Alliance is joining the fray!”
phisto spoke up with amusent.
“The sa goes for us. Though we are now six instead of seven, the Great Army of Pandemonium will fight as well.”
The Great Army of Pandemonium had officially declared its participation.
In addition, various Divine Armies and Lords from across the realms were flocking to the Union.
To stand against Logos.
To protect the present world.
Everyone was gathering in one place.
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