Return of the Shattered Constellation

Chapter 329: Star, Teachers and Students (4)

[A Hidden Quest (Golden Sutra) has been created!]

[Golden Sutra]

· Type: Hidden.

· Description: After spending a long time tracking down the main culprit behind the Gate outbreaks on Earth, ‘Teacher of All Sentient Beings’ finally discovered that the culprit is ‘Ill-Tempered Buddha with Golden Eyes.’ Hence, she decided to put a shackle on him again.

Help ‘Teacher of All Sentient Beings’ put [Golden Sutra Headband] on the head of ‘Ill-Tempered Buddha with Golden Eyes.’ Successfully subduing him, known as one of the strongest beings in <Heaven>, will cause your <Myth> to spread even more.

· Requirements: <Purple Star Astrology> enemy. Possession of stronger combat prowess than a Great Celestial.

· Time limit: ―

· Quest Failure Penalty: ―

· Quest Rewards: The location of the remaining verses of ‘Bestla’s Poem,’ Ou Yezi’s Nine Divine Swords,’ ‘Omni-Weapon Chest’...

[You have received ‘Kundika’ as an upfront payment!]

[You have received ‘Liuhunfan Flag’ as an upfront payment!]

“W-wait… It’s not like you have completed the quest already. Handing you rewards now is…” Carl Malone’s hands trembled as he handed the items over to Chang-Sun.

[The Celestial ‘Teacher of All Sentient Beings’ timidly protests, saying that her apostle is right!]

“These are deposits, not rewards, but we can just forget about all this if you’re opposed to it.” Chang-Sun shrugged.

[Will you reject the Hidden Quest?]

“Hahahaha! You’re one quick-tempered fella. You should hear everything I have to say first. It was just a joke, after all. A joke!” Carl said, quickly correcting himself. “What I’m really trying to say is that I hope you succeed in this Quest now that we have given these excellent items as upfront payment,”

[The Celestial ‘Teacher of All Sentient Beings’ hurriedly nods and says that her apostle is right!]

[The Celestial ‘Teacher of All Sentient Beings’ beams, but the corners of her mouth tremble in sorrow.]

[The Celestial ‘Teacher of All Sentient Beings’ nervously watches you, worried that you will really reject the quest.]

Throughout their negotiation, Chang-Sun took the initiative and just kept swaying Avalokitasvara because she had no idea that he had his own reasons for capturing Sun Wukong. In the end, Avalokitasvara handed over her dearest treasures, [Kundika] and [Liuhunfan Flag], as upfront payments.

Chang-Sun took the items as if they belonged to him in the first place, making Cha Ye-Eun chuckle dumbfoundedly as she watched him. Although she was the one who incited this whole transaction, Chang-Sun still looked like a villain even from her perspective.

‘... This doesn’t seem like his first time doing this kind of stuff,’ Ye-Eun thought.

Unaware of what Ye-Eun was thinking, Chang-Sun checked out the [Liuhunfan Flag] after tossing [Kundika] into his [King’s Treasury]. The white flag was soft, and each strand was as long as the flagpole. They were also big, but nothing was drawn on them.

“What are you going to do with that?” Ye-Eun asked.

“Nothing at the moment, but I plan to use it later.”

“…?” Ye-Eun tilted her head in confusion, having no idea how he would use the [Lihunfan Flag]. Chang-Sun soon demonstrated how to wield it, causing her eyes to widen.

Oooong―!

Chang-Sun infused his <Darkness> into the flagpole, slowly turning the six white cloth strands to black. Like galaxies, they emitted a black glow.

Swish―!

The six cloth strands separated from the flagpole and climbed up Chang-Sun’s arm. Some wrapped themselves around his sleeves while others covered the rest of his body, permeating into his coat and turning it pitch-black.

“Ah, you’ll wear it like armor, then.” Ye-Eun nodded, looking quite surprised. She definitely did not expect it to be used that way. “How did you know you can use it like that?”

Chang-Sun silently smiled. Ye-Eun soon let out a bitter sigh, having realized that he came up with it during the countless battles he fought as ‘Divine Twilight.’

“I think it’s safe to say that you’ve accepted the job now, so—!” Carl stood up from his seat, about to suggest everyone to head somewhere.

Thud!

At that moment, the door to the patient room swung wide open. The three simultaneously turned their heads toward it, finding Jin Seok-Tae.

“W-we have a big problem!” he shouted. His profuse panting caused Carl’s expression to turn serious.

“What is it?” Carl asked.

“It’s…!” Seok-Tae reported with a pale face.

Hearing the explanation made Chang-Sun and Ye-Eun also turn serious.

* * *

Second Jungbu Expressway of South Korea.

With just four minutes before noon, the expressway would have usually been packed with numerous vehicles. However, it was empty right now since it was closed to traffic. Military vehicles sped through it as several helicopters positioned themselves above. An SUV was also driving way ahead of them.

“… Phew.” Woo Yeong-Geun, who was sitting in the SUV’s passenger seat, let out a very long sigh. However, his eyes remained sharp as he monitored the state of Pohang through his tablet, which was receiving constant updates about the situation.

“I’m going to go nuts.” Yeong-Geun shook his head in disbelief.

[The Celestial ‘Nameless Giant’ nods in agreement.]

Twenty minutes ago, hell broke loose in the Republic of Korea. All military branches were put in a state of emergency, the Korean Branch of the Council issued Code Red, and all Korean Clans were instructed to stand by for contingency. Yeong-Geun read through the report on his tablet.

[Emergency Report] Monster Wave.

Dungeon Name: Den of the Evil Dragon

A monster wave is currently spreading all over Pohang.

‘Out of all the Dungeons in Korea, it had to be the ‘Den of the Evil Dragon’...’

The ‘Den of the Evil Dragon’ was an S-rank Dungeon, which usually meant that it was impossible to be cleared. Korea hated and feared it at the same time.

The Korean government established a special unit made up of high-rankers when it showed up in the world in the form of an Unpredictable Gate. However, their expedition ended in failure and caused a seemingly neverending monster wave that reduced Pohang and the nearby regions to ashes.

At the time, all Korean Clans and Players formed a barricade to stop the damage from spreading. They fought desperately for days. Yeong-Geun could still vividly remember many of his comrades and friends dying or getting gravely injured, which was why thinking about it still made his blood boil.

Fortunately, although they didn’t know why, the monster wave suddenly stopped, allowing the people to catch a break. After coming face-to-face with the threat of apocalypse for the first time in their lives, the Korean government and Council began monitoring and managing the ‘Den of the Evil Dragon,’ which led them to believe that it had become a lot less dangerous…

‘Why did a monster wave suddenly break out of it again?’

Their most recent inspection was conducted only a month ago. According to it, the probability of the Dungeon becoming active again was only 2.7 percent, which was why nobody expected this disaster to come crashing down on them now.

Yeong-Geun momentarily considered the possibility that someone caused it, but he soon shook his head. Apart from Celestials, who else could stage an artificial monster wave?

[The Celestial ‘Nameless Giant’ advises you that you may be onto something.]

[The Celestial ‘Nameless Giant’ warns you that the current monster wave is fishy in too many ways.]

Yeong-Geun’s expression darkened a little. ‘I knew it. If that’s the case, then the reason this monster wave is incomparably stronger than before is also…’

[The Celestial ‘Nameless GIant’ nods, saying that it’s probably connected.]

“Phew…”

Through his tablet, which was connected to a satellite, Yeong-Geun watched a live feed of Pohang.

―Kyaaaah!

―Kie, kieeeee!

Packs of Wyverns took to the skies, and Drakes, Nuckers, Lindworms, and many other monsters rampaged on the ground. The Wyrms indiscriminately destroyed the already cracked asphalt roads, and the Amphipheres flew at a low altitude and unleashed strong gusts of sandy wind. Serpents also slithered down the ground.

Various Dragon-type monsters appeared in bigger numbers than the monster wave that the Players stopped in the past. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call them the Dungeon’s soldiers.

At this point, it would be more accurate to call this monster wave a tsunami, not a mere wave. Moreover, something caught Yeong-Geun’s attention in this monster wave. Beyond the army of monsters, their leader stood, wearing a black robe. It was five meters tall, had the head of a dragon, and was holding a book that was longer than its upper torso. Anyone could easily tell that its Class was way higher than the other lower-ranking Dragon-type monsters.

‘Dragon Monarch.’

The boss monster of the ‘Den of the Evil Dragon,’ a being who had instilled fear of death into numerous Players and Clans, had appeared on Earth!

Yeong-Geun gulped. His level was now incomparably higher compared to during the previous Dungeon Break, but the Dragon Monarch of ‘Den of the Evil Dragon’ couldn’t even be classified in terms of levels.

It was incomparable and immeasurable. The Council even assessed that the monster was impossible to kill. They also publicly announced that Players ranked lower than Marquess-Class should run if the Dragon Monarch ever reappeared. That was whom Yeong-Geun was trying to fight against right now.

[The Celestial ‘Nameless Giant’ says that the Dragon Monarch is a Celestial.]

[The Celestial 'Nameless Giant’ says that descending into the <Saha World> was a breach in the law of causality, so she is not sure how the Dragon Monarch is here right now.]

[The Celestial 'Nameless Giant’ explains that someone must be helping the Dragon Monarch right now.]

The word ‘Celestial’ weighed down on Yeong-Geun’s heart.

‘Who could have thought that I’d fight a Celestial.’ Yeong-Geun let out a long sigh. ‘Maybe it’s a blessing that Hye-Bin is still overseas.’

[The Celestial ‘Nameless Giant’ shakes her head in disbelief, saying that you really are a hopeless fool for your niece.]

Unable to say no, Yeong-Geun smiled bitterly.

Not long after, a shiver ran down his spine. When he quickly looked up, he saw something falling in his direction.

“Be care—!”

Before Yeong-Geun could warn the driver, a powerful shockwave struck the SUV that they were in.

Booom!

The explosion sent Yeong-Geun flying out of the car and rolling on the asphalt road. He felt as if he had a few broken ribs. If he hadn’t reflexively activated his defense skill, the explosion would have killed him.

[The Celestial ‘Nameless Giant’ asks you in shock if you are okay!]

“I’m fine, but…” Yeong-Geun looked up, fighting through the dizziness.

The impact had blown away his driver’s upper body. A huge man now stood where the SUV had been.

“I thought that would immediately kill you. You’re quite good,” the stranger casually said.

Yeong-Geun’s head blanked out the moment he met the man’s eyes. He couldn’t think about the surprise attack or feel angry about his driver being killed. He couldn’t even feel fear. His Divine Class and dignity were so great that it voided Yeong-Geun of all thoughts and emotions.

[The Celestial ‘Nameless Giant’ screams, unable to understand how that man descended on the <Saha World>!]

The man had a tousled mane-like hair and ferociously shining eyes that were hard to miss. His clothes—a roomy black shibijangbok[1] and a myeonryugwan[2] with strands of various jewels—resembled a royal robe that rulers of the eastern region wore in ancient legends.

The combination of his unrefined wild nature and elegance as a ruler revealed a powerful dignity that made it hard for Yeong-Geun to look him in the eyes.

[The Celestial ‘New Tian Shi Yuan’ has descended!]

“Maybe it’s because it’s Twilight’s home planet, but it seems I have found a man of fine talent as soon as I arrived.” Richardus, the ruler of the <Purple Star Astrology>, smirked as he looked at Yeong-Geun. “How would you like to be my subject?”

1. The raw is 십이장복(Twelve symbol clothes), which is a kind of myeonbok(royal ceremonial clothes) that eastern kings wore in the past. Twelve symbols of a ruler’s virtues are either drawn or embroidered on the clothes to show kings’ dignity. ☜

2. The name differs in each country, and this is the Korean version. It’s a mianguan in China, and it’s called a benkan in Japan. For those of you who want to see what Richardus looks like right now. here ☜