Chapter 126: From Incomplete to Complete (2)

In the past, while on the Gritia Continent, I triggered the Twilight of the Gods.

Although I did not completely destroy them with the Sword of Genesis as I had now, I severed the connection between gods and humans, returning the Gritia Continent to humanity.

Naturally, some gods chose to remain in the human world.

They could not give up the sense of conquest from standing above humans, nor the power known as the Rank of a God.

If they remained in the world of the gods, they would become ordinary beings, little different from humans.

Thus, they stayed in the human world, even if it meant risking eternal extinction.

What did I do then?

Naturally, I went in search of the remnants of those remaining gods.

The reason?

It was simple.

It was obvious that those bastards would try to take revenge on me at any time.

Because of me, the Twilight of the Gods occurred, and they suddenly found themselves unemployed.

It was like a powerful ruler suddenly becoming an ordinary citizen.

In any case, all the gods harbored an intense hatred for me, which served as an omen of revenge that could manifest at any moment.

However, finding gods who had hidden themselves away was no easy task.

Since they were no longer gods, sensing their Rank was impossible.

So, I chose to study the gods.

I had already studied them for a long time to face them, but I delved even deeper.

What I studied intensively were the characteristics of the Rank the gods possessed.

For example, let us assume there is a God of the Forest.

Where would he hide?

Naturally, it would be the forest.

This was because it was the only place where he could exert what little remained of his power and Rank.

Of course, that did not mean he could use the same immense Rank as in the past.

It had been reset.

As the world of the gods was severed, their Ranks were reset to zero.

There was a need to build up that reset Rank once more.

Consequently, they had no choice but to find places that suited their respective Ranks and either receive worship or threaten others to become beings of awe to increase their power.

Some were called gods, just as in the past.

Others were called lowly spirits or vengeful ghosts.

I tracked down all those gods and thoroughly cleaned out the remnants of divinity remaining in the human world.

And among them was Darkness.

He had chosen to remain in the human world, just as he had on the Gritia Continent.

It was inevitable.

Since he had looked down on other gods in the past, the world of the gods was not a place he could go.

He was someone I had caught before.

That would be no different now.

I focused on rumors.

What I aimed for were rumors concerning ghosts—the kind where something crawled out of the darkness and suddenly attacked people.

Through my absolute senses, my ears reached across the entire world, and identifying the source of those rumors was not particularly difficult.

And so.

“You there.”

I was able to catch the God of Darkness, who had now fallen to the level of a lowly spirit.

“How dare a mere human like you force me, this Divine Rank of Darkness!”

The captured fellow was still arrogant.

However…

“It is over.”

“What?”

“The world of the gods you ruled is over. Asgard has been destroyed, and the remaining gods are all being treated as lowly spirits. Well, the others will soon be dragged here just like you.”

“……”

There was no answer.

He knew that was the truth and the reality of the situation.

“At least you have been given a mission.”

Other gods are annihilated the moment they are caught.

However, for Darkness, a mission that had to be fulfilled remained.

“A mission…?”

That was…

“Step”

Someone entered the arena, that closed-off space.

It was Leon.

“You, you are…?”

Seeing him, Darkness began to grow violently agitated.

“The vessel that dared to try and contain Creation!”

As darkness was something separated from Creation, he knew about Creation better than anyone else.

“I see. So this was the goal.”

He seemed quick-witted enough to instantly grasp the purpose and intention behind being brought here.

“You intend to use me as a medium for complete Creation, but give it up.”

Darkness, who had been in the position of the weak until a moment ago, now spoke firmly.

He had no choice.

“Because I have no intention of returning to Creation.”

“Even if you do not want to, I will simply force you.”

“Force me? Ha ha ha ha ha!”

He burst into loud laughter at my words.

It was a laugh of victory, one devoid of urgency or anxiety.

“Do you think I do not know? To become complete Creation, you will need cooperation, not force.”

The reason he could act so relaxed was that he knew our purpose.

He did not just know the objective; he had information about its depths.

What Leon and I wanted was complete Creation.

Leon’s current state was extremely incomplete, having only absorbed the Rank of Light.

To balance that, an additional ingredient called Darkness was needed.

However, to enter the realm of Creation, force was impossible.

Only with his full cooperation could one be reborn as complete Creation.

It was the same as before with the Rank of Light.

‘I do not know what method he used, but Salmora made the Goddess of Light participate voluntarily.’

The Goddess of Light had been voluntarily absorbed into Leon.

Just what method had been used?

“I have no intention of being absorbed into Creation, so do whatever you like.”

I had been worried about this situation.

It was unavoidable, as Darkness was one of the parts separated from Creation.

Naturally, he would know about complete Creation and understand that it had to be done voluntarily.

However, persuasion was impossible.

There was no way he would cooperate with me, the one who had ruined the world of the gods and the era of light and darkness.

Therefore…

‘Think.’

What method did Salmora use to entice Light?

He certainly achieved voluntary participation.

Reading that move and applying it to Darkness was the most urgent task.

“No matter how much you agonize over it, it is useless. I…”

I tuned out his words and read his moves.

Then, at a certain moment.

‘Ah!’

I was able to realize it.

The arrogance of the gods.

And their greed.

Those were the only moves Salmora could have used to overcome this situation in the past.

“Are you not tempted?” I asked.

“By what?”

“By that amazing vessel.”

I pointed toward Leon.

He was the vessel of Creation that Salmora had completed with all his heart, investing a vast amount of time and effort.

“Asgard is shattered. All the Ranks you have built until now have vanished like bubbles, and there is no telling how much time it will take to recover them.”

That was not meant to threaten him; it was a cold, hard fact.

There was no telling how much time would be needed to regain a Lord Tier Status like in the past.

No, even if time were granted, it was uncertain if it would even be possible.

Past glory was bound to fall into the abyss of forgotten time and history.

However…

“If you take over that vessel, you will not need to pour in such time and effort. The Rank and power that can immediately surpass me will become yours.”

“What kind of nonsense is…”

“You know very well that it is not nonsense, do you not?”

The fellow fell silent.

He knew that what I said was not an impossible, nonsensical fact.

“If you wish, you can seize that vessel. Of course, you will have to fight Leon, who has absorbed the Rank of Light, but surely you are not lacking the confidence to defeat a mere brat like that?”

Darkness looked at Leon.

A brat.

That word suited him perfectly.

Only the vessel was great; no particular karma or weight could be felt from him.

“What are you up to?”

The fellow, who found everything I did suspicious, asked the question.

“It is simple. If you win against Leon, if you can seize that vessel, the subject of the deal simply changes.”

I was cooperating with Leon but what if Darkness fought Leon and seized the vessel?

“As you know, Salmora remains. I do not think I can sleep soundly unless I deal with him.”

“I see… I completely agree with that.”

The fellow, who had been showing nothing but hostility, finally expressed a bit of favor.

He had no choice.

Although Salmora was nothing more than a member of the Demon Clan, he had committed acts that transcended the thoughts of the Darkness.

Of course, it was true that I ended the world of the gods, but it was Salmora who provided the cause.

Knowing this, Darkness showed hatred toward Salmora.

How could he not?

He was a demon created by Darkness, yet he had essentially betrayed Darkness, the source of his Rank, along with the Demon King.

“I have no way of knowing what he might be plotting again. That is why I need an assistant. Speaking strictly from my perspective, I do not care if it is Leon or you.”

There was a slightly suspicious reaction.

“It would be easier for me to have Leon, who cooperates actively. But since what I need is power, I will be satisfied as long as it is a being who can help. Even if that being is you.”

What I needed was power, and an assistant who possessed such power.

In the current situation, only complete Creation could possess enough power to face Salmora.

It would be best if it were Leon, but even if it were not Leon, as long as it was someone who would lend their strength…

“What are you agonizing over? Are you perhaps thinking you cannot take the body of that brat, Leon?”

At that moment.

“Nonsense!”

Gods pretend to be noble, but they are very simple.

They are arrogant and if you prick that pride even a little…

“A mere ego created for the sake of a vessel… It cannot be my opponent. Very well. If that is what you want, then I will no longer refuse.”

In the end, he chose.

In fact, he had chosen, but it was not really a choice.

He never had a choice in the first place.

I had simply created a situation as if he had one and he made a choice where no freedom was given.

“Step” Leon walked forward.

***

Their eyes locked in the air.

That was the end of it.

“I will make that vessel mine, just as you wish!”

There was no longer any need to refuse.

Darkness transformed into a shape like black mist and invaded Leon’s body.

“Foolish bastard!”

Darkness ridiculed his opponent, that insignificant human.

“You probably intended to provoke me into entering the vessel to gain power through complete Creation, but not a chance.”

Kim Si-won’s trick was obvious.

He intended to make him enter the vessel anyway and gain power through complete Creation.

However…

‘That will not happen.’

The human, Kim Si-won, was the being who had crushed all his ambitions.

Helping him in any way was out of the question.

Therefore, he penetrated deep into the inner self and then, he emitted the energy of darkness to turn a certain area into his own space.

“Aha! I will not become complete Creation. I will hide deep within his consciousness like this, and whenever the time comes, I will simply seize this vessel!”

Instead of complete Creation, he would take root deep within the inner self and watch the battle between Kim Si-won and Salmora from here.

This was so he could appear dramatically whenever the time came, in a situation where he was truly needed.

“Aha ha ha ha!” Darkness burst into a laugh of victory.

However…

“What is so good that you are laughing like that?”

A voice that should not have been heard there reached his ears.

“You, you are…?”

In the place where the domain of darkness had been activated, a man was standing.

“You guys all think the same way.” Kim Si-won, he was welcoming Darkness with a twisted smile.