Leveling with the Gods
chapter-457

C457

Tathagata's time came to a halt.

Within that moment, Tathagata had to hear the sound of mocking laughter.

"Did you hear it? Huh? Puff, haha, ha, ha!"

Son OhGong's grandiosity resonated in Tathagata's mind. With a piercing headache, Tathagata wished he could strike Son OhGong's head, hidden in the Golden Headband, with his hands right at that moment.

But that was only momentary.

'First, let's resolve this situation.'

Tathagata refocused on the situation before him.

Tathagata slowly rose, leaning on one knee.

While Tathagata was immersed in that, Son OhGong laughed again in his mind.

"Didn't you hear it before? He says I should have been the one to fight."

"You're noisy, Yokai."

"Anyway, do you think he did that just to provoke you? There's a reason for everything..."

The words that followed went unheard.

It's not that the sound was blocked. It was deliberately ignored to avoid being bothered by Son OhGong's words.

Thus, Tathagata's fingers once again aimed towards YuWon.

"It seems like you're disappointed in me."

"I'm not. I'm not a pervert who enjoys fighting strong guys like the one inside your head."

"Then what is it?"

"I was just a bit disappointed because the tension faded."

"I'm sorry. I couldn't live up to your expectations."

"No need to apologize. In fact, I'd prefer this to go unnoticed."

"Unnoticed? What does that mean?"

"I don't know."

Unnoticed...

What kind of comment is that?

Tathagata wasn't particularly concerned, but he suddenly felt that Son OhGong was holding back his words. It seemed like Son OhGong and YuWon were thinking the same thing.

"....You're hiding something."

"I'm not sure."

The corner of YuWon's mouth lifted slightly.

It was an unpleasant smile. Tathagata's eyebrows twitched slightly, and his hand moved.

"Don't get too arrogant just because one of your tactics worked."

Sssss-.

Sss-.

Arms extended one by one around Tathagata.

More arms than the Three-Headed, Six-Armed Asura. They extended one by one to form a total of one hundred and eight arms.

Hwaaa-.

At the same time, lotus flowers bloomed around him once again.

"You still don't understand."

Firee, firee~

YuWon's eyes burned. With Tathagata, who had many arms, and lotus flowers rising around him, YuWon instantly summoned lightning and darkness.

Psshh, pssh-.

A black discharge engulfed the hall.

Bang-!

YuWon jumped again among the lotus flowers.

Bang, bang-!

The fight between YuWon and Tathagata continued.

The arms that appeared around him were cut one by one by YuWon's sword. With more than half of the arms already cut, there were a little over fifty now.

'One by one, step by step.'

Bum-!

In an instant, the black lightning wrapped around the black sword cut another arm.

Relentlessly, YuWon swung the sword. Tathagata's arms closed sharply.

[Yongjogong (Dragon Claw Art)].

Claws resembling a dragon's claws simultaneously aimed at YuWon's heart, head, and five internal organs.

YuWon raised his sword and adopted a single-cut stance. A purple flame rose behind him and formed a gigantic figure.

[The 'Heavenly Demon Spirit' is imbued with the 'Holy Fire']

The gigantic figure followed the movement of YuWon's sword. The giant sword tip pierced through the hall and broke through the Dragon Claw Art.

Crack-!

Crack, crunch-.

The hall's wall gradually cracked.

Already armless, Tathagata staggered.

'Why...?'

Why was he falling so behind?

Tathagata with a puzzled expression. YuWon approached him and lifted his head towards the ceiling.

Tremble~

The hall slowly trembled.

When what he suspected turned out to be true, YuWon finally gained confidence in this fight.

"You don't have time to worry about what's happening outside, do you?"

Tremble!

The shaking on the hall's ceiling increased. The space, which had already weakened a bit due to the fight between YuWon and Tathagata, was now gradually distorting.

Like YuWon, Tathagata also looked towards that ceiling.

As if he already knew without seeing Tathagata's action, YuWon asked, "Why are you uneasy?"

"What...?"

"I'm afraid this temple will collapse. So I'm worried that everything underneath you might crumble."

Pointing at the ceiling with his fingertip, YuWon asked again, "So, here's the problem. Where do you think the Bull Demon King who came with me is right now?"

The pupils of Tathagata shook.

And right after...

Boom!

Crack!

The seemingly indestructible ceiling of the temple collapsed as the Bull Demon King wielded his weapon and entered the hall.

Thud!

The Bull Demon King's landing made the temple hall tremble. The hall, which already had a hole, opened up more, and the entire hall seemed filled with the sensation that it was breaking from the walls to the floor.

The presence of the solitary Bull Demon King filled the hall.

"Took its time."

Although it finally succeeded, it took longer than expected.

If Tathagata had been a bit more familiar with Son OhGong's body, the opponent would have had some trouble.

"It's more resilient than I thought. Though, anyway, didn't we succeed?"

"Thanks to what you did inside."

YuWon and the Bull Demon King looked at each other and smiled.

-Allow me to ask you a favor.

"A favor?"

"Don't come in. Stay out here."

"What are you saying?"

At first, the Bull Demon King was angered by YuWon's request.

They should enter together, defeat Tathagata, and save Son OhGong, but YuWon asked him to simply stay outside.

"I'm not saying you should do nothing. Please destroy the temple hall."

"The temple hall?"

"Isn't it strange? All other places are destroyed, but why is this place so unscathed?"

"That's..."

"And why is that guy still here?"

Bull Demon King's eyes blinked.

Only then did he realize what YuWon was thinking.

-If this hall is related to the Golden Headband...

-There's a good chance. Seeing that he's protecting this hall and can't leave it.

-But why you and not me?

-Your destructiveness is much better, right? Destroy the hall as much as you want. Wouldn't you hit with all your might?

The Bull Demon King's strength rivaled that of Hercules.

If he, determined, were to destroy it, there probably wouldn't be anything in the world he couldn't break.

-... I understand. If that's the case.

So, the Bull Demon King stayed outside and destroyed the temple hall.

Although it was tougher than he thought and took quite some time, the result was as expected.

Tink~

Tathagata grabbed his head.

It was a gesture similar to Son OhGong, who used to wrap his head to prevent Tathagata from taking over his body.

"From the beginning... Was the target the temple hall?"

It hurt as if his head was about to break. Son OhGong's voice grew louder, and YuWon walked towards him.

The sword's tip aimed at Tathagata's head, or more precisely, at Son OhGong's "Golden Headband" atop Tathagata's head.

"If you had already made Son OhGong's mind yours, you wouldn't have a reason to stay here. Nor would you have a reason to split your Arcane Power to protect the temple."

In a way, it was a simple prediction.

But simple often turns out to be effective.

"In these cases, in nine out of ten, or even ninety-nine out of a hundred, if you first destroy what you're protecting, things become easier. And now it's the same."

YuWon's gaze, pointing the sword at the Golden Headband, scrutinized the fractured interior of the temple.

"It seems like you haven't completely sealed Son OhGong yet, right? That was why you had to stay in this place."

"They say you're a very intelligent guy... and it seems to be true."

Inappropriately for the situation, Tathagata smiled.

He thought he would have a strong will to live, but he was surprisingly calm.

"So, what? Did you think I would beg for my life in the end?"

"A bit."

"This was just an arrangement for my reincarnation. If I really feared death, I wouldn't have been able to reach Nirvana..."

Thump...

Tathagata's words couldn't continue.

The headache gradually intensified, and the suffering from the migraine began to spread throughout his body.

Kwaaaah...

And at the same time...

-Hey! What are you doing?! Hurry up and get rid of this guy, man!

Even the unexpected voice of Son OhGong, whom he hadn't been aware of, infiltrated his mind.

Tathagata's consciousness, lying dormant in the Golden Headband, took over Son OhGong's body, and Son OhGong's consciousness got trapped inside the Golden Headband.

If he had had a bit more time, he might have sealed Son OhGong's consciousness completely.

Now, he had to face not only YuWon and the Bull Demon King but also Son OhGong, who was beginning to run rampant in his head.

"Anyway-."

Shwack...

Was it Son OhGong's voice shouting from inside the Golden Headband that reached?

Crack...

YuWon's sword, pointing at the Golden Headband, accurately cut the Golden Headband covering Tathagata's head.

"...That was my intention."

Chirp, chirp...

The pleasant singing of birds tickled his ears. Opening his blurry eyes, the sunlight stung his eyes.

Son OhGong regained consciousness and stood up. In front of him were YuWon, and behind, the Bull Demon King.

As if they were protecting him.

Screech...

YuWon, standing with the unsheathed sword, sheathed it again.

Son OhGong looked at him with questioning eyes.

"I can see that your eyes are cloudy and stupid; it seems like you really came back."

"Do you want to fight?"

"Looking at the way you talk to the one who saved you, it seems more true."

Snap, a muscle tensed on Son OhGong's forehead. The corner of YuWon's mouth lifted slightly at Son OhGong's reaction.

Behind, the Bull Demon King, who was about to wield his weapon, sheathed it again and turned to Son OhGong.

"Are you okay?"

"It seems he's back fine, judging by how he was sleeping. It's safe to say he's okay."

The Bull Demon King's question was answered by YuWon.

Then, Son OhGong looked at YuWon with a questioning expression. It was the look of someone who had just woken up and didn't understand what was going on.

"I passed out."

"It looked like you were sleeping."

"I was unconscious."

"Even your nose was making noise."

"Do you really want to fight me?"

"In that case, I already won against you. Don't you know?"

"Aaaargh! How frustrating!"

It was impossible to win with words. Although he always won in fights, he never won in a verbal argument.

But this time, YuWon won, so he couldn't help but feel even more frustrated.

Moreover, thanks to YuWon, Son OhGong had regained his body.

"Still, fortunately, everything worked out fine."

Son OhGong looked at YuWon, who was watching as he writhed on the ground.

"Thanks for coming before that guy could completely control my body."

Gulp...

Why, even writhing on the ground, did the mere sight of that scene give him chills?

-At that moment, he might have been weaker than me, but if he had lived to be a hundred years old, he probably would have been stronger than me. As a Yokai, his talents were that impressive.

Now he was curious.

What is the extent of Son OhGong, released from the seal of the Golden Headband, who was suppressing the Yokai Power that the Bull Demon King saw?

'I'll have to find out in advance.'

He had to understand Son OhGong's full strength to plan for the future.

"Are you really upset?"

At YuWon's question, Son OhGong's writhing on the ground abruptly stopped.

As someone who had known him for a long time, he was already anticipating YuWon's next question.

"Then, shall we fight after such a long time?"

KO-FI