Chapter 157 – Aw, No Way!

===================
Translated by Pratt

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
===================

At Mega Roma, at the European Imperial Royal Crystal Engineering Research Institute.

Director Vincent Moretti was watching the footage being transmitted in real time through a military drone.

“Daniel, zoom in on that part. The human floating in the air right above that undead unit.”

“Yes.”

The footage was enlarged.

What was revealed was a monster with a creepy form.

From afar, it looked human, but from up close, it had the appearance of a demon.

Two horns on its head, black pupils without whites, the bridge of its nose gone so that only two holes remained, and teeth full of sharp fangs like a beast’s.

‘He has turned into a lich.’

And not an ordinary lich, at that.

‘A Deus Lich?’

That was probably highly likely.

Of course, the Emperor was no pushover either.

‘This will be difficult.’

Even if they fought one on one.

In the end, there would be no choice but for him to use the two artifacts Vincent had handed over, the pendant of absolute defense and the totem of complete restraint.

‘Is it time to look at the experiment results?’

His heart pounded.

There, those two absolute beings of each dimension were present.

More precisely, they were the same souls as them.

The tremendous bio-energy possessed by Alex Caesar and Drek Karax.

And the change that would be created by the combination of the magical power of the artifacts he had made.

Different souls from the same world.

There was a fixed law to them.

That the linked souls were, without exception, the strongest in that dimension.

Alex Caesar was the Sword Kaiser, and Drek Karax was the most vicious necromancer.

Vincent Moretti was no different.

He too was linked in soul to an absolute being from another world.

Was there not something odd?

For a mere grand magic engineer of enchantments to be an absolute being.

But the same soul as Vincent was also indeed the strongest.

He had even destroyed the world he lived in through his own power.

A kind of mad scientist.

What he was best at was dimensional engineering and golem engineering.

That was why he had been able to make interspatial bags as well.

The reason such a Vincent Moretti had gone under Alex Caesar was precisely because of secrecy and safety.

The greatest weakness of a grand magic engineer was that, during the early stage of growth, the military foundation was weak.

Before he could even grow, he could be killed or kidnapped and reduced to a slave making magic items for life in a dark back room.

That was why he had taken the hand Alex Caesar offered.

He had obediently followed his orders, and in exchange bought time.

From now on, there was no need for that.

He had laid down enough of a foundation.

And he had arranged the conditions to become independent.

“Daniel.”

“Yes.”

“You remember the materials I organized before, right?”

“Yes.”

“Prepare to release them to the press and internet communities.”

“Yes.”

Now he would smash the board.

He would disclose to the whole world the information that only a very small number of people knew, and make the ones who had been hiding crawl out.

“And bring the core materials we’ve secured so far packed into an interspatial bag.”

“Yes.”

Daniel answered only in short replies.

Naturally.

Because he was not human.

Vincent had already arranged his next base of operations as well.

Africa, the continent where gigantic demonic-beast concentration zones were scattered all over.

‘Before that, I’ll only confirm the experiment results.’

Like a true mad scientist, Vincent did not care at all who won the war, how many died, or how much damage there was.

The only thing that mattered most to him was whether the experiment he had designed succeeded or failed.

However, he could not guarantee success.

‘Tsk, if only I had even one dragon heart…’

But how was he supposed to get that on Earth?

There were no dragons.

Well, even if there were, he would not be able to catch one.

‘Or at least a beyond-elite crystal.’

Of course, that too was a difficult material to obtain.

The thing he had no choice but to choose was using elite demonic-beast crystals.

He ran a particle accelerator, altered the properties of the elite crystals, and compressed them as much as possible to process fake dragon hearts.

An incomplete experiment with a higher chance of failure than success.

Still, if the Emperor performed well?

‘Do your best. Show me the result.’

In truth, to Vincent, Alex Caesar was merely an experiment-material shuttle and target.

That aside,

‘How is the war situation progressing?’

Not on the Emperor’s side, but the undead army that had swung around and marched south.

Vincent picked up his smartphone and launched YouTube.

There was nothing better than this for checking information in real time.

Videos that seemed to have just been uploaded began popping up one after another.

Most had been filmed in Kharkiv, a great city of the Kiev Union.

Vincent opened the one with the highest view count among them.

‘Oh! So they intend to swallow up the Kiev Union.’

It was a large-scale undead force.

It had advanced right up to the front of Kharkiv.

That was expected anyway.

What else would they do after siphoning off troops?

They would attack demonic-beast concentration zones, or raid cities.

At most, it would be content showing people getting killed by the undead…

“Hm?”

In the middle of watching the video, Vincent suddenly opened his eyes wide.

“…What is this?”

A scene he had truly never expected was unfolding on the smartphone screen.

* * *

The great war between undead and humans.

In the early days of the war, information had been controlled, so it had been difficult for ordinary people to access it, but from the moment the Emperor directly entered the war, videos related to it had been overflowing.

Mostly videos of the Imperial Army defeating the undead with carpet bombardment.

The public-relations department of the European Imperial government edited footage shot by drones and sent it out through YouTube or TV.

But other videos existed as well.

Mostly content uploaded by individual streamers.

In truth, these were even more popular.

Because they showed the horrific aspect of the war without any filtering.

The sight of Imperial soldiers who had entered the war instead being turned into undead.

And the large-scale undead army rampaging through Eastern Europe after leaving Moscow.

But then, suddenly, dozens of new videos were uploaded to YouTube.

Most of the uploaders were Kharkiv citizens.

People who watched the videos were horrified.

Was this really real?

Could it perhaps be manipulation, or staged?

But there were dozens of videos all filmed from different angles.

└ A troop of monkeys annihilated the undead, and it isn’t even fake? This is insane. Can you believe that?

└ Undead and monkeys, it’s a sign the world is ending.

└ Ending, my ass! The monkeys are on our side, aren’t they?

└ That’s true. Monkeys ruthless toward undead and demon-humans, but warm toward humans.

People liked the monkeys.

They did not harm humans in any way.

They even danced and played in front of them, showing off personal tricks.

└ But why did they suddenly disappear?

└ Seriously. Like soap bubbles popping,

└ Isn’t it neat? A monkey army that saves humans in danger and then vanishes coolly.

└ Those monkeys are way better than Emperor Alex Caesar.

└ Shouldn’t the Emperor prostrate himself and bow to them?

└ In any case, it has been proven that he’s worse than monkeys.

One user in one community presented an interesting hypothesis.

└ Could it be that?

└ Be what?

└ The monkeys’ fur was golden, right?

└ A deep golden color.

└ And they all looked exactly alike. Also look at the numbers. Hundreds of thousands moved all at once, and there’s no proper monkey habitat around the Kiev Union.

That was right.

They had appeared out of nowhere.

Without anyone even knowing whether they had fallen from the sky or risen from the ground.

└ So what are you trying to say?

└ What if the monkeys that appeared were clones?

└ Clones? Why are clones suddenly coming up?

└ At this point, doesn’t something come to mind? Clones and monkeys.

└ Huh?

No way…,

everyone thought of a single target.

Golden monkeys, overwhelming power that even devoured undead, and identical appearances like clones.

A fictional character loved by people through countless works of content from a very long time ago until now.

└ …Sun Wukong? Great Sage Equal to Heaven?

└ Bingo!

└ What nonsense.

└ No. It’s plausible. Every circumstance matches exactly.

└ Then is Great Sage Equal to Heaven really on Earth? Are you saying he called out clones to save humans?

└ Oooo! Prajna-paramita!

Communities all over the world began to blaze.

* * *

Even in the Republic of America, the troop of golden monkeys was a daily topic.

At the White House, President Billy Pittman said,

“What do you all think? Has a being from an actual novel really appeared in reality?”

The national-security adviser shrugged his shoulders and answered the question.

“Well, if you think about it, necromancers and undead are creations of Western culture too, aren’t they? So even if a character from an Eastern novel appeared in this situation…, honestly, ever since mana invaded three hundred years ago, existing scientific common sense has pretty much collapsed.”

Billy Pittman also acknowledged that.

Because it was not wrong.

“Anyway, I’m curious what that bastard Alex’s expression looks like. The spotlight he should have received all by himself has been stolen by the monkeys.”

“Serves him right.”

Even at the Imperial Palace of the Samhan Empire, Emperor Ryu Tae-hyeon said,

“It’s an absurd world. Great Sage Equal to Heaven, of all things.”

“The world has always been that way. More importantly, this war has made many things clear.”

“What?”

“Information gathering is failing us far too badly. The Black Mafia, for one, the undead overflow, and even the newly appeared enchanted magical new weapons that suddenly showed up in the war are suspicious.”

The Emperor agreed.

“Hmm, true enough. We were far too complacent.”

“We have to reorganize the Imperial Intelligence Bureau. I’ll strengthen the overseas section more than now.”

“Call the director and study the measures together.”

There was no guarantee that there was only one organization like the Black Mafia in the world.

“Right! Chairman Kim, though? He should still be on Samhan soil, shouldn’t he?”

“Well, for the moment, we still can’t make contact with him.”

Emperor Ryu Tae-hyeon paused for a moment and then continued.

“…It’s just my thought, but those monkey troops that appeared this time, could they perhaps be related to Chairman Kim?”

“Tsk tsk, are you saying Chairman Kim Tae-ju is Great Sage Equal to Heaven or something? He doesn’t have a tightening band on his head, he doesn’t carry the Ruyi Staff, and the cloud somersault…, huh?”

Geum Su-ho tilted his head.

“Cloud somersault.”

The uncanny movements Kim Tae-ju had shown until now.

Killing a beyond-elite demonic beast in China, then appearing on Samhan soil before anyone knew it, or a person who had been in New Seoul suddenly turning up in Gurye.

“And those peaches too…”

“Ah!”

The peach episode of Great Sage Equal to Heaven was far too famous.

“Aw, no way!”

“…I went too far, didn’t I?”

“You did. That can’t be. Chairman Kim is a human being. Hahaha.”

“R-right. It was too wild a conjecture. Hahaha.”

Meanwhile, on the western front in Moscow, Europe, Emperor Alex Caesar, who was commanding the Imperial Army, also watched the video of the troop of golden monkeys.

“And now what is this?”

The large undead army threatening the Kiev Union had been completely wiped out by the monkey troop, but Emperor Caesar was displeased.

Because it was not something the Imperial Army had done.

The ones who had suddenly appeared and taken the leading role were those out-of-nowhere golden monkeys.

It was absurd.

Even though he, the Emperor, had directly entered the war and fought the undead, the world’s attention was focused on monkeys of all things.

And all sorts of mockery aimed at him was being poured out as well.

Before he knew it, he had become an Emperor not even equal to monkeys.

“Damn it!”

This was no time to dawdle.

“August.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

“Pour in all firepower. I’ll settle it within today.”

“Understood, Your Majesty.”

He had to dispose of that bastard Drek Karax even if he had to force it.

* * *

Swaeaeaeak!

The Ten-Thousand-Li Flying Sword flew.

Tae-ju set his course toward Moscow.

The number of undead demonic beasts he had taken care of so far alone had exceeded two million.

If left alone, they would multiply countless times like cockroaches.

He had no intention of going back until he cut off the sprout at the root.

Only when his mind was at ease could his hair-growth research produce results.

At that moment!

‘Hm?’

Undead demonic beasts.

There were an enormous number of them.

And the human woman in the center of the group, commanding them while heading north.

‘That’s a familiar face.’

The Black Mafia elder whose name had been Carmen.

The woman who had let him meet Sword Immortal in his dream.

Perhaps because she had been revived as undead, the bones of her arms and legs were exposed outside, parts of the flesh on her face had fallen away, and almost all of her hair had fallen out, leaving her basically bald.

Still, she had been pretty when she was human.

‘This is why inventing hair-growth medicine is important.’

Swaeaeak!

Tae-ju passed them,

shuuuut!

and landed on the ground.

At the same time, he started walking toward the undead demonic-beast army.

It seemed they had discovered him as well.

He could feel the ghastly killing intent of the undead.

‘My strength has fully recovered too.’

The Poison Spirit was full.

After emptying it once, it seemed to have filled up even more.

Uuuuuuuung!

Poison qi bursting from Tae-ju’s body like aura.

Poison Qi Emission performed through the Poison Spirit.

‘Let’s play.’

One undead that had broken away from the group charged in fearlessly, but

chijijijijik!

it melted and rotted away before it could even touch Tae-ju.

* * *

In the Immortal Realm.

The Supreme Elder Lord was living like a shut-in in his room.

He did not even come out of his residence.

After the Immortal Realm intranet had been completed, it had become even worse.

He had bought a beam projector, a screen, and sound-blasting Bluetooth speakers from the shopping mall and connected them to a dedicated Immortal Realm smartphone.

Lying on a comfortable bed in simple clothes, scratching his crotch hard, the Supreme Elder Lord spent all day watching movies and dramas.

Whenever he needed something, he logged into the shopping mall and ordered it.

And since a monkey delivered it immediately, was there any need to go outside?

That was when it happened.

Flutter, flutter.

A pure-white butterfly flew into the room of the Supreme Elder Lord.

“What is it?”

Then it went pop! and vanished in front of him,

turning into a single letter that floated down.

“Tsk tsk, they’re still using such premodern methods…”

If they had something to say, they could just send a K-Talk or a text message.

The letter had come from the Purple Tenuity Palace.

It said that a meeting of upper-realm representatives was scheduled and that he should attend.

“Aw, how bothersome.”

The Supreme Elder Lord picked up his smartphone and sent someone a message.

[Old Lord]: It’s me.

K-Talk!

[Poison Immortal]: What have you been doing lately? I haven’t seen your face at all.

Tang Gun-ak replied.

K-Talk!

[Old Lord]: I’ve had many busy matters, in any case an upper-realm representatives meeting is going to be held.

[Poison Immortal]: Ah! Is that so? But why are you telling me?

[Old Lord]: Poison Immortal should attend the meeting.

[Poison Immortal]: Why me? Aren’t you our representative?

[Old Lord]: I’m just an old man in the back room, and honestly, aren’t you the acknowledged representative of the Immortal Realm?

He had intended to dump it on him because it was bothersome, but well, it was not wrong.

The immortals all thought so too.

[Poison Immortal]: No, if you suddenly do this.

[Old Lord]: When you go, drive some stylish car there. Make the officials of the Purple Tenuity Palace in the Celestial Realm faint in shock.

[Poison Immortal]: …

Ending the message conversation,

the Supreme Elder Lord stuck his hand back into his trunk underwear and scratched his backside hard again.

A representatives meeting, my ass.

There was not even enough time to watch movies.