Chapter 351 – G.o.d of Hope (8)
[Kaak!]
The G.o.d of Hope vomited something.
It was reddish.
It looked like blood.
“Amazing.”
He’s throwing up blood like a real human.
No matter how human he looks, it’s essentially still a subst.i.tute.
He couldn’t vomit blood after being beaten.
The G.o.d of Hope was still in human form.
The limbs are broken.
The skin is burnt.
The hair is burnt out.
He had a human form, but it did not look like a human.
Rather, it seemed like something in the process of becoming a human.
It seemed more disgusting to have the intention to maintain that form.
[Isn’t this too much!]
The G.o.d of Hope cried out.
I was at loss for words.
“So who wants to do it in vain?”
[So did I not apologize?! I have promised to make amends already.]
As soon as the G.o.d of Hope made sure that I would not be affected by the trick, he immediately surrendered.
Of course, I attacked the G.o.d of Hope and he surrendered.
Practical gains were also important, but emotional relief was more important than that.
[It can’t be like this…….]
There’s no way it can’t be.
The skill of the G.o.d of Hope was certainly amazing.
He used the gap in the mind to encourage some emotions and used them as material to create a sense of pressure.
A feeling of pressure created by my own emotions, not by the power of the G.o.d of Hope.
It was a kind of pressure that could not be easily shaken even by a G.o.d.
Rather, it was done more easily because I was a G.o.d.
Because a G.o.d is bound to be trapped by himself all the time.
However, my case was a bit special.
I am very sensitive to sensations such as pressure.
I immediately focus and get excited at the other person who exudes pressure like a dog facing its prey, especially if I feel great pressure.
“Ehhyo.”
I set up the fallen chair and sat down.
That’s good.
As the excitement cooled down, the mood became despondent.
[… If you’re done hitting me, would you do something about this sword?]
The G.o.d of Hope said, pointing to Seregia, which was stuck in his heart.
I thought about it again.
Had I hit the G.o.d of Hope enough?
I decided that it was enough.
“Seregia, good job. You can go back and rest.”
I didn’t even have to pull her out.
Seregia, on her own, was pulled out of the heart of the G.o.d of Hope.
And she flew in the form of a sword, tore the s.p.a.ce, and returned to Earth.
[… What on earth did you do to that sword?]
The G.o.d of Hope, looking at the place where Seregia tore apart s.p.a.ce and disappeared, asked in a desperate voice.
What did I do?
Yeah, of course, I did a lot of things.
I had tried so many things.
[Have you ever been stabbed by that sword? If not, you will be stabbed sooner or later. It must be full of hatred and vengeance, and it must be looking for an opportunity to stab you.]
Said the G.o.d of Hope.
I just laughed.
There is no such thing.
I could affirm.
On the 60th floor, I had tried so many things with Seregia.
Countless experiments that had tried to go further, to get stronger.
They were bizarre and cruel experiments that I tried in order to challenge the limits of my imagination, and now it was disgusting to look back on them.
I was always suffering from shortages there.
The samples were too few.
Only myself and Seregia had no objection to experimenting.
In the end, about half of the experiments were conducted on Seregia.
Most of them were meaningless experiments, but sometimes they had significant results.
What I mainly studied at the time was divine power.
It was because the clash with the G.o.ds seemed inevitable for my goal of getting a Tutorial.
How can I get the power of G.o.d?
How can I amplify it further?
On the contrary, how can I counter the divine power?
I always thought about it and found a solution.
The divine power was, in the end, a power that was supplied from the outside through connection.
That connection was key.
It was the ident.i.ty and divinity of the G.o.d that connected the G.o.d who received strength and the believer who gave strength.
I had heard the explanation of the incarnation from Kirikiri.
The incarnations used by the G.o.ds in their activities were by no means all of them.
There couldn’t be a concept such as ‘the G.o.ds’ true body is damaged when their incarnation is hurt’ for G.o.ds that symbolizes an idea or image.
G.o.d was immortal and perpetuated as long as there was his divinity and the believers who supported him.
In the course of making a body, I experimented with a.s.similating Seregia with a replica.
When I tried to a.s.similate Seregia, who had already been in the ranks of the G.o.ds at that time, with a replica, I discovered a surprising phenomenon.
Seregia and some of the a.s.similated replicas were no longer powered by the G.o.d of Heaven.
It was an amazing phenomenon.
I defined the phenomenon as divine pollution.
The ident.i.ty of one deity is altered just by attaching another deity to it.
Eventually, the incarnations, G.o.ds, and apostles of the G.o.d whose ident.i.ty has been altered due to contamination cannot be supplied with power from the original divinity.
It was a temporary phenomenon.
However, it was also a surprising phenomenon that, even temporarily, could completely prevent the supply of divine power between incarnations or apostles and their original deity.
Although it cannot completely annihilate the existence of a G.o.d, it was excellent at subduing the incarnations of the other G.o.ds.
The supply of divine power can be prevented by injecting Seregia into the incarnation of the opponent’s deity.
It is possible to invade the realm of other G.o.ds by tearing the barriers created by the divine power like paper sheets.
I could have destroyed an attack with divine power.
It was something we could do because it was Seregia.
Seregia herself acted as a catalyst for pollution.
It was possible because she was maintaining her character as a G.o.d.
If Seregia was a G.o.d who achieved the deity through faith gained from other believers.
Immediately after attempting to a.s.similate with another G.o.d, both the G.o.d and Seregia would have been neutralized.
However, Seregia, who does not possess the faith of others in the first place, is not neutralized by the contamination of the divine.
Her connection with others does not exist.
It was something I couldn’t even try.
Even if I risk being neutralized and try to a.s.similate with other G.o.ds, there is a high possibility that I and the other G.o.d will be destroyed instead of being neutralized.
Right now, for example, look at the G.o.d of Hope wriggling like a worm.
To be arbitrarily a.s.similated like that, his divinity collapses in on itself.
Divinity cannot mix harmoniously with other divinities.
No matter how harmonious the concept of divinity, it is impossible.
I could be sure.
Quite meaningful experimental results existed.
In any case, the presence of Seregia is a great force in the battle against the G.o.ds.
I use all kinds of miracles.
In the end, since the essence of G.o.ds can not mix, the significance of Seregia in the battle between the G.o.ds in a simple firepower battle was enormous.
I felt like I was the only one holding a weapon in the middle of the battlefield.
It can block the opponent’s attack or break through their defense.
A powerful weapon that through just swinging it at them, would leave them breathless.
It was one of the reasons for my confidence in victory.
The reason was the G.o.d of Hope, murmuring in front of me.
[It was an elaborate avatar…….]
The G.o.d of Hope took out a hand mirror from somewhere and looked at himself.
His hair was all burnt up, but his hair regrew when he touched his bare head. The features that had melted down were reborn when he touched his crushed and stuck face.
The appearance of restoring the incarnate body that had become rags seemed pitiful.
It was a battle that occurred because of the manipulation of the G.o.d of Hope.
However, thanks to that, meaningful experimental results were obtained.
First of all, even to the G.o.d of Hope, Seregia’s powers worked without any doubts.
The G.o.d of Hope also recognized Seregia as a weapon of extraordinary power.
It was very valuable information.
* * *
“Okay, let’s work together.”
There was enough information.
The value of the G.o.d of Hope was sufficient.
Cooperation itself didn’t look bad either.
In the meantime, there was a possibility that the G.o.d of Hope would aim for the back of my head.
That was also something I had to bear and overcome.
For fear of the consequences of failure, the means of cooperation could not be ignored.
Instead.
[Then I’ll go back now.]
“Where?”
[Huh?]
The G.o.d of Hope asked again.
“There’s no holy ground anyway. Why don’t you stay here?”
[… That’s a bit difficult. I wouldn’t be able to live forever in a s.p.a.ce made like an asteroid.]
It was a lame excuse.
It didn’t matter.
Anyway, I had no intention of letting the G.o.d of Hope continue on this asteroid.
“I have prepared a place for you to stay.”
[What……?]
I took out what I had prepared in the subs.p.a.ce.
[What is that ugly barrier?]
Yong-yong was a special collector.
Again, if you don’t want to get hit in the back, this method is the best.
I should hit him first.
“What is it? This is where you will be staying for the time being.”
[That’s impossible!]
Where is the impossibility in this?
The G.o.d of Hope was not in a position to reject my words.
The terms of the transaction were cooperation and exchange of information.
But I had already received enough information.
It’s cooperation, or whatever you can get out of this.
Besides, if there is no condition for future cooperation, I can attack the G.o.d of Hope again at any time.
In the petty name of rejecting my offer.
[How can confining a partner be called cooperation!]
It could be.
If you are a partner who is likely to cause a fall out by hitting the back of my head, it was the right decision for each other’s cooperation.
[Forced!]
“Yes, it’s forced, correct. So, do you want to go in nicely or go in roughly?”
[I’ll go in nicely!]
It was a quick judgment, a good judgment.
The G.o.d of Hope went into the collection bin on his own.
The s.p.a.ce readjusted the size by itself.
Soon, the collection bin was reduced to the size of a table tennis ball.
As the collection bin narrowed, the G.o.d of Hope, which had maintained the form of a human girl, finally returned to the form of a flying insect.
It was like a firefly, a flying bug that gave off a small light from its body, but it looked really good when it was trapped in a small collection bin.
[Will you release me someday? You will right?]
“Well, I’m not sure either. Someday, if I feel good, I can release you, so wait with hope.”
[…….]
I got this good faith battery.
[… I have one more thing to tell you.]
“What.”
Is there any way to escape?
The G.o.d of Hope paused for a while and said.
[Some time ago, the Hundred G.o.ds Temple defined you as a G.o.d, one not affiliated with them.]
It was information I knew.
I heard it from Kirikiri.
After hearing the information, I was somewhat embarra.s.sed because I lost contact with Kirikiri.
I was anxious about whether the Tutorial transfer and the quest would happen.
If so, I really had to fight the Hundred G.o.ds Temple G.o.ds and get consent.
[That means the name of the Hundred G.o.ds Temple no longer protects you. For the time being, you will have to pay more attention to the Pantheon than the Hundred G.o.ds Temple. The time left until the clash is not long.]
The G.o.d of Hope said calmly.
He was thinking that a dispute would come from the Pantheon.
The problem was why the G.o.d of Hope told me this at this point.
The G.o.d of Hope will not get along with the G.o.ds of the Pantheon.
They will also covet the power and information of the G.o.d of Hope.
Now, the G.o.d of Hope is telling me to pay attention to the Pantheon.
He was worried that I would pa.s.s him over to the Pantheon.
In other words, it also meant that when I and the Pantheon collided, my win rate was not high.
“Hey, but why tell me that now. You should have told me earlier.”
[Ah… I was going to tell you soon!]
Bulls.h.i.t.
You were planning to show up and try again when I faced a crisis.
After a few encounters, the behavior patterns of the G.o.d of Hope were clearly visible.
I thought I shouldn’t release him anymore.
* * *
[Hey, come down slowly! Slowly!]
As soon as I exited the s.p.a.ce of the G.o.d of Hope that had been formed inside the asteroid, the telepathy from Hochi rang in my head.
As Hochi said, I slowly descended.
Very slow, slowly.
Slowly descending from the asteroid to the surface, looking around, I noticed several changes.
First, it was the number of people who gathered near the temple in Seoul.
I remember that there was a crowd of over ten million people
But the number of humans I could see right now was a number that couldn’t be called only ten million.
It was tens of millions.
A crowd that could exceed even the current population of South Korea gathered in Seoul.
Humans were filling downtown Seoul centering on the temple.
The situation of the religious window was also very different.
Newly constructed temples were exceeding the existing wanted list, and the number of renewed members was to the extent that made me wonder if this was correct.
It was a level of change that couldn’t happen in just a few hours when I had a conversation with the G.o.d of Hope.
[The inside of the asteroid was a s.p.a.ce with a slightly twisted time axis.]
Said the G.o.d of Hope.
Why did you only say that now…….
[It was a policy prepared in case our conversation leaked to other G.o.ds. It didn’t twist much. At best, it would be about three days here.]
I slowly descended toward the temple balcony.
As if it was ready, there was a broadcast helicopter floating nearby and taking pictures of me descending.
The humans who gathered on the street and found me were screaming without hesitation.
It was such a thoughtless roar that I couldn’t even understand what they were saying.
And I could feel a great deal of faith being absorbed into me.
It was certainly a fair amount.
It was a level of faith that was different from what had been obtained from Earth before.
During the three days wasted because of the G.o.d of Hope, I couldn’t know what had happened to Earth.
When I got off the balcony, Hochi, Kim Min-hyuk, and the others came out to meet me.
After being conscious of the helicopter filming us from a distance, Hochi and Kim Min-hyuk put their hands together and prayed.
“Homen.”
“Homen~”
… Are these things crazy in pairs?
* * *
“Please explain to me.”
I told Hochi as I entered the temple building so that we could not be seen from outside.
I don’t understand this situation right now.
Over three days, the size of the denomination expanded by hundreds of times beyond dozens of times.
What about Homen? People are thrilled and crying and praying.
Of course, the approach of the meteorite and the manifestation of the miracle that prevented it was a good event to raise faith.
But I didn’t think it would show this level of gain.
Even though I was absent for 3 days.
“I’ve been studying some indigenous religions here.”
Hochi said.
Did you study? You? I managed to endure what I wanted to ask.
“All of these religions were completed by death.”
“Death?”
I don’t know what you’re talking about.
I was not very familiar with Earth’s religions.
I wasn’t majoring in theology and I wasn’t interested.
I wasn’t even a religious person.
“Yes, death.”
“… So?”
Something felt chilly.
I had a feeling that this guy might have had an absurd accident.
“So I told people you were dead. In exchange for using excessive force while blocking meteorites.”
“… I am still alive and well.”
“No, you were dead and then resurrected.”
Oh my G.o.d.
Have you ever seen this crazy idiot?