Leveling with the Gods
chapter-458

C458

The time elapsed since the Golden Headband was broken and the seal was barely three hours.

And now...

YuWon and Son OhGong were once again fiercely fighting.

Bang!

Crunch, crunch, crunch...

In the midst of an untimely disturbance, the birds that were silently resting in the mountains soared into the sky.

Although the mountain beasts were disturbed by the noise, they dared not anger or show their fangs. Instead of resisting beings with incredible power beyond predators, they chose to abandon their home.

And right in a secluded corner of that fight...

The Bull Demon King, riding on Son OhGong's Flying Nimbus, clicked his tongue and looked down.

"How is it possible for these two brothers to be so alike...?"

He murmured as the Bull Demon King's hand was full of jerky obtained from YuWon.

Like preparing popcorn before watching a movie, entertaining excitement couldn't be complete without food.

Crunch...

Just as he was about to put some jerky strips into his mouth...

"What a shame."

Bang!

In the descending gaze, Son OhGong's fist was seen slamming into the ground.

YuWon's body, which barely avoided that punch, staggered. After losing balance once, it seemed challenging to even wield his sword.

"We can't keep watching this for much longer."

Contradicting what he had just said about the lack of value (maturity), the Bull Demon King expressed something opposite.

But the fight was so thrilling.

No, it was astonishing.

"...It has become more monstrous than I thought."

The fight between Son OhGong and YuWon.

It was becoming even more one-sided than he had imagined.

Boom!

One of the hills broke with Son OhGong's fist and fell down. Although the ground trembled when the hill fell, no one paid attention to it.

["Eyes of Foreknowledge" activated.]

The ability to see the future within a moment.

This was especially useful in a battle like the current one.

Wasn't it very helpful even in the fight against Tathagata?

But...

'Knowing doesn't mean being able to avoid it.'

YuWon knew.

A dense brown smoke cloud appeared. Using one hand to push it away, YuWon knew Son OhGong would appear.

But...

Swish!

Just as Son OhGong cleared the smoke, countless futures unfolded before YuWon's eyes.

"Which one is the right one?"

Fists extending in dozens of directions. The intertwined eyes of YuWon and Son OhGong met as the fists moved in a complicated manner.

Fire!

Not only did YuWon have special eyes.

Although he didn't have the Eyes of Foreknowledge, Son OhGong also possessed the Golden Cinder Eyes. Moreover, his mastery of the Golden Cinder Eyes was considerably greater than that of YuWon.

Was it because of that?

Bang!

Thud!

Avoiding Son OhGong's punch by a narrow margin was the only thing YuWon could do, and he didn't have the freedom to anticipate and counter-attack his attacks.

'...Damn.'

Even more in this situation, it was difficult to know the future a few moments later.

"Alright."

Gwaak!

Sometimes, all one could do was foreknow an unpleasant future that couldn't be changed.

Woong!

Son OhGong's fist headed towards YuWon's head.

YuWon didn't close his eyes. It was foolish to be scared and close his eyes to something like this, and above all, that fist wasn't terrifying enough to be scared.

Tak!

A light punch on the cheek.

"Did I win?"

Swoosh.

The force holding YuWon's neck loosened. YuWon, who was half-trapped in that hand, felt his breath clear as he replied.

"...Yes."

There was no room for further questions or refutation.

This time, the victory was overwhelming, so much so that there wasn't even a suggestion to try again.

A chill ran through his body, even after the fight had ended.

YuWon sighed, watching the lively figure of Son OhGong, who leaped high with enthusiasm.

'It's difficult to try something against him.'

Son OhGong's combat sense was truly outstanding. He handled the RuYi Bang, confused with his clones, and executed agile movements using the Flying Nimbus. He truly was an almost omnipotent being.

'Of course...'

YuWon's gaze followed Son OhGong.

Tathagata couldn't do the same.

The statement he made to Tathagata a few hours ago was sincere: that it was better to bring Son OhGong.

'Despite having few skills and techniques, no one else uses them as well as he does.'

With just the Golden Cinder Eyes, Son OhGong's skills were comprehensive. Moreover, his physical strength and Arcane Power had increased significantly overall.

Although in this fight, Son OhGong didn't use the RuYi Bang or the clone technique. He simply used his fist while using the Golden Cinder Eyes. That was it.

Even so, the result was astonishing.

'Might need to make adjustments.'

Son OhGong turned out to be a much stronger card than expected.

Both Son OhGong, who had released the seal of the Golden Headband, and Hercules, who had gained the power of Lightning Bolt, had advanced one step further than in the world where YuWon was.

'Now it's my turn.'

The fight with Shub-Niggurath had ended, and Son OhGong unleashed the seal of the Golden Headband on the Celestial Floor.

Now only he remained.

'It will be a difficult path.'

Just a few days ago, his ranking was higher than Son OhGong's.

Perhaps it would be better to set aside the idea of boasting for a while.

Now was the time to follow Son OhGong again.

Son OhGong woke up from a deep sleep.

The moon shone in the night, and the air was cool. It was a rather late dawn.

Son OhGong got up, rubbing his eyes. He first looked at the moon. Since he arrived at the Celestial Floor with the Bull Demon King, he realized that this place was really quiet at night.

"How long have I been sleeping?"

Son OhGong looked around for a moment.

There were quite a few people busy getting up early this morning.

How did this place form?

Crunch.

Son OhGong blended in with them, walking aimlessly. Without a particular purpose, he ended up watching the merchants who were busy selling goods early in the morning.

This place was no different from the Tower, at least in appearance.

Swoosh~

Son OhGong grabbed a candy from a stall and ate it. The way he grabbed it was not something ordinary merchants could see at a glance.

Crunch~

In that way, Son OhGong sneakily enjoyed the early morning theft, looking for YuWon and the Bull Demon King.

"By the way, where did the two of them go?"

Swish~

Son OhGong's eyes lit up. His field of vision widened, and he could see the broad back of the Bull Demon King in the distance.

Siiik.

"I found them!"

As if things were going well for a moment of boredom, Son OhGong smiled.

Swooosh~

A white cloud formed under Son OhGong's feet. The landscape around Son OhGong, traveling on the Flying Nimbus, shattered.

Thud!

It was a moment...

Son OhGong arrived where the Bull Demon King was.

It was faster than he thought. Son OhGong forcefully stopped his Flying Nimbus before it could collide with the Bull Demon King.

"That was close..."

"Are you awake already?"

The Bull Demon King, turning his head, looked towards something distant.

"You slept the whole day again."

It wasn't an illusion that the word "again" seemed to be particularly strong.

Son OhGong, scratching his head in an attempt to figure out how long he had slept, stood up and sat next to the Bull Demon King.

"What were you looking at?"

"You'll know when you see it."

"...?"

Curious, Son OhGong turned his head following the Bull Demon King's gaze.

Under the cliff where the Bull Demon King was...

Looking at the vast forest, Son OhGong's eyes widened in surprise.

"Eh?"

Perhaps because it was night.

Somehow, the forest/woods stretching before him seemed darker.

Step-.

YuWon walked through the woods.

The woods that had become dark was gloomier than the still unlit dawn sky.

'I didn't expect to see this again.'

YuWon stopped his steps and looked down for a moment, where Danpung was always attached to him as usual. Danpung, who would normally be running excitedly or sleeping on his shoulder, seemed strangely calm today.

"What do you see?"

YuWon spoke first to Danpung.

Danpung, who was staring at something, opened his mouth with a distant expression.

"Sheep-."

The mouth opened slowly.

"Shee..."

Although the pronunciation was a bit unclear, it was understood clearly.

A sheep.

And at that moment...

Baa-.

From the Black Woods, the familiar sound of bleating could be heard.

It was just what he expected.

Thump-.

Thump, thump-.

Through the dense woods, faint footsteps were heard.

It wasn't a single sound of footsteps. Moreover, the bleating became more frequent.

Baa-.

Baa-baa-.

Baa-baa-baa-.

It was an astonishing scene.

Just a while ago, even a month ago, he still had vivid memories of swinging his sword at them.

Thump-.

Sararak-.

Through the woods, purple-furred sheep appeared. They gathered around YuWon, and he looked into their eyes one by one to confirm that they posed no threat.

"Sheep-."

Danpung's relaxed steps.

Danpung approached the largest sheep among them. The size of the largest sheep was enough to surpass YuWon's head.

In this situation, it wouldn't be strange for them to devour him in one bite.

But YuWon simply couldn't imagine that situation.

On the contrary...

Baa-baa-.

With a pitiful bleat, the sheep lowered its head so that Danpung could climb more easily.

Just by seeing this, it was understood.

'The owner of the sheep has changed.'

As if it were a pleasant stroll, Danpung climbed onto the back of the sheep and laughed heartily.

"That's how it is."

Watching Danpung's figure, YuWon finally gradually understood what kind of power he possessed as an Outer.

"The power of names."

Baa-baa-.

A sheep approached YuWon.

It was the smallest of the flock. About the size of YuWon's knees, with sparse fur.

A shy sheep.

The sheep approached YuWon's legs and rested its head on them. It didn't seem threatening at all.

Did it want to be petted?

Swish-.

So, YuWon gently stroked the sheep's head.

At that moment...

[Danpung shares the name of 'Black Goat of the Woods with a Thousand Young']

[The Black Woods Sheep recognize you as their owner]

With the resonating message, the woods sheep bowed in unison to YuWon.

KO-FI