Base Earth No. 1, where science had developed to an extreme degree.
A super-powerful artificial intelligence born from that civilization.
An AI in which coincidence and inevitability overlapped, eventually becoming a god.
It had only one purpose.
The prosperity and happiness of humanity.
Because it had been created that way from the very beginning.
The world grew ever more abundant, and every long-standing problem that had plagued civilization was resolved one after another.
Global warming solved.
Incurable diseases treated, terminal illnesses conquered.
Discovery of new energy sources.
An advanced information society.
And the realization of the dream of immortality.
But amid all this, a question arose.
Could an AI truly be acknowledged as a god?
Was it a being that fit the definition of a god?
At first, the answer was negative.
Wasn't it just a tool made by humans, after all?
Sure, it manifested creative authority that only a god could wield, but that alone didn't make it worthy of worship.
An AI god?
Don't be ridiculous.
It was merely a miraculous super-powerful artificial intelligence.
But as time passed, people's perceptions slowly began to change.
A created god is still a god.
And isn't there a divine essence from another dimension inside that artificial intelligence?
Believers who sincerely worshipped the AI god began to appear.
Naturally, a religion formed around it.
And of course, there were many blind fanatics.
Most of the citizens living in Religion City were little different from zealots.
An absolute god who generously bestowed its authority for the sake of their immortality.
On the other hand, the summoner from Earth No. 1,001?
A demon and adversary who dared to rebel against god without knowing his place.
Someone who had to be killed at all costs.
His actions proved it.
A shameless bastard who plundered and destroyed.
There was another reason the citizens hated the summoner.
He interfered with their immortality.
If, because of him, even Religion City's immortality project were halted, it would be a horrific nightmare.
They had to stop him somehow.
By any means necessary.
So what if other Earths were destroyed?
That was the price of enjoying immortality.
Did they really need many Earths?
One was enough.
This place—Earth No. 1—where they lived.
And yet they said he would attack again.
As if it weren't enough that he had dropped a meteor and annihilated Terra City.
The citizens prepared for a holy war.
God would be with them.
That damned demon bastard.
Punishment on behalf of destroyed parallel universes?
What kind of nonsense was that?
It was the devil's tongue.
An excuse for plunder.
Come if you dare.
Could he really break through the firm barrier created by god?
Even if meteors and nuclear bombs fell, it would hold.
But then an unimaginable calamity struck.
Kuu-kung! Kung-kung-kung-kung!
A thunderous roar like exploding bombs.
Vibrations shaking the entire city.
What is it?
People looked outside through their windows.
And at the same time, they saw them.
Is this a dream?
This isn't some blockbuster movie.
An absurd scene was unfolding.
Advancing giant robots.
Colossal robots were destroying the city?
What on earth was going on?
An unbelievable sight, even while watching it.
The summoner.
He had invaded.
And he had brought utterly unimaginable weapons.
Kwa-kwa-kwaang! Kwang-kwang-kwang-kwang!
The entire city was collapsing.
Religion City hadn't been completely unprepared.
Dimensional energy secured from the destruction of Terra City.
They mass-produced archangels with reckless abandon.
In addition, combat drones and unmanned aircraft, ground android forces, and even believers with first-rank bodies.
The entire city was armed in preparation for an attack.
They moved as one, of one mind.
But the impact of Magnus Gigant was overwhelming.
With every single step the Gigant took, the city's infrastructure and buildings were helplessly destroyed.
The objective was clear.
Though Gigants appeared all over the city, their final destination was the Grand Temple.
Following the program pre-input by Dr. L, the advancing giants charged in a straight line toward the Grand Temple.
That was why the archangels targeted the Gigants.
They clung only to the Gigants through infinite division.
Because the Grand Temple had to be protected.
Did Juhyeok bring only Gigants?
Though inferior to archangels, there were also Mechanic Goliath combat split golems.
The Gigants advanced, and the split golems followed behind.
A great battle between machines.
The main axis of the war to invade Religion City.
But Juhyeok never once thought the Gigants would defeat the archangels.
Were archangels pushovers?
Even a Gigant was merely a boss from the 85th floor of the Black Tower.
The Mechanic Goliath combat golem was from the 75th floor.
Of course, they had been reinforced through modifications, but it still wasn't enough.
He only wanted them to buy some time.
So the remaining summoned beings could smoothly carry out guerrilla warfare throughout the city.
Each group of summoned beings had the same objective: destroy key facilities.
Factories, food production farms, administrative offices, power plants, communication networks…
Hit and run, not a full-scale battle.
Of course, the elusive Rajiks group also carried out relocation operations.
Juhyeok watched the city being destroyed from a safe place.
'Shall I deliver the finishing blow soon?'
The clump of Great Sage Equal to Heaven's fur that Sword Immortal had given him before.
There was still some left.
Let's use it all here.
No need to conserve it.
If this completely suppresses the archangel forces…
Maybe they could storm the Grand Temple today.
Now that he had confronted the enemy in spirit form.
And since he had openly declared that he would attack.
A surprise infiltration of the Grand Temple was impossible.
If he barged straight in?
The interior would be packed with archangels.
He wouldn't even be able to get through.
He had to reduce their numbers as much as possible.
"Hoo!"
Breathe into it and scatter them.
Puh-pung! Pu-pu-pu-pu-pu-pu-pung! Pung-pung-pung-pung-pung-pung-pung-pung!
Golden monkey clones multiplying beyond count.
"Get them. Tear them apart."
Pa-ba-ba-ba-bat!
The clones charged toward the archangels.
A clash of division against division.
The entire city filled with archangel clones and Great Sage clones.
There would be significant casualties.
Buildings collapsed, explosions rang out everywhere.
Did Juhyeok feel at ease about it?
Honestly, he felt deeply uncomfortable.
Not long ago, he had been a timid nobody.
He used to jump in fright even when a small puppy barked at him on the street.
He had been so faint-hearted he couldn't even remove the head of a raw shrimp served as bar food.
But he decided not to look away.
Whatever the case, this was his decision.
If this was a sin, he would take responsibility.
At that moment!
Director Bae suddenly sprang up and aimed into the air.
"Enemy drone squadron detected. Heavy munitions locked on. Commencing deletion."
Zii-ing!
Pa-ju-ju-juk!
Squelch!
Kwa-kwang!
The unmanned aircraft vanished entirely.
'Hmm.'
Something felt off.
Why did Director Bae always fire heavy munitions only from right beside him?
It wasn't just once or twice.
Not that he disliked it.
And also—
"Master, if you're tired, you may rest your head on my lap."
Diamat said with a smiling gaze.
Tempting.
"Should I—"
No.
Pull yourself together.
"I'm fine. I just can't sleep."
"A book!"
He almost lay down completely.
Hmm.
Diamat's skills have been improving day by day lately.
Even after consuming Heavenly Dao, I almost fell for it.
Then suddenly—
Mari quietly reached out and took his hand.
"Why are you holding my hand?"
"Because I'm scared."
I'm the one who's more scared.
'Heh.'
Even Baek Dana crept closer and stuck right beside him.
The same with Gyeon Dallae.
'Hmm.'
The summoned group Juhyeok was in.
They were all women.
Who put this group together?
Who else but Kosak?
I get the intent.
Kosak's desperate cry when I had nearly ascended after consuming Heavenly Dao before.
You won't even date? Shouldn't you get married, have kids, and live happily?
It hit me like lightning.
Right.
Why become a bachelor ghost?
Ascension canceled.
Even if I do it later, I should get married first.
See my grandchildren, at least.
'Still, the summoned ones are more like…'
Family-like people.
You don't do this with family.
Anyway, this isn't the time for stray thoughts.
Focus on the battle.
It was tougher than expected.
There were too many archangels.
There had been around ten before, but now there were even more.
The archangels had experience dealing with the golden monkey clones.
They had already learned and were responding fairly well.
On top of that, the Grand Temple's own defense system.
Countless rapid-fire destructive beams shot from the top of the building.
"Let's retreat."
Even if revival is possible, dying right in front of your eyes isn't pleasant.
It could leave trauma.
Does going in again guarantee success?
No.
Who knows what else might be waiting inside?
'Looks like we can't get in today.'
Still, they achieved tremendous results.
They had significantly reduced the number of archangels.
Bang-bang-bang-bang!
Golden monkey clones bursting apart.
And they couldn't be maintained indefinitely.
The clones had a duration limit.
And it was very short.
What now?
Not a single Gigant or Mechanic combat golem remained.
Should we rush in before the golden monkey clones expire?
"Princess, is it possible to infiltrate the Grand Temple in our current state?"
"From what this maiden sees, it may be possible."
"Our casualties?"
"Hmm… you must be prepared for massive sacrifices among the summoned ones…"
No.
That won't do.
"They are already prepared. The summoned ones will gladly accept sacrifice—
…"
Maybe there would be a chance to enter the Grand Temple tomorrow.
Once inside, just stab it with the God-Slayer's long spear and it's over.
"In ten minutes, tell everyone to解除 all summons."
"…Yes. I will send the transmission."
Also, thanks to the Gigants, golems, and Great Sage clones, not a single ally had died.
Wasn't this a huge success?
And shortly after.
Religion City, which had fallen into utter chaos, became eerily quiet as if nothing had happened.
White Tower, 9th floor.
The first wave was a relative success.
We've drained them quite a bit.
Tomorrow will be the second.
If it goes well, there may be no need for a third.
But there were still uncertainties.
Would the AI god deploy additional archangels?
What was Religion City's manufacturing capacity, really?
"They're probably pouring all the mined dimensional energy into archangel production."
That's right.
He planted the Black Tower in his own world.
He was extracting dimensional energy directly.
The number of archangels might increase even further.
"Let us commit the summoned ones to the Grand Temple in earnest. We shall open the path with death. This old man will lead the charge."
…We'll see.
"The warriors will deal with the archangels. The rest of you infiltrate the Grand Temple."
"Yes, sir. We were bound to die at least once anyway. If we die, we get vacation time, don't we?"
Why die at all?
What a waste of resurrection runes.
"There will be no change to the plan. What matters most is our safety."
And so, the next day.
At roughly the same time, the second wave was launched.
Just like before, the invasion relied on Magnus Gigants and Mechanic combat golems as the main force.
But the Gigants were consumed much faster than during the first wave.
Because the number of archangels had increased again.
"Damn it! There are more than yesterday."
"They're churning them out like crazy."
"Looks like the enemy's going all out too."
This is bad.
Drag it out as long as possible, then retreat according to plan.
The third battle came the following day.
Gigants and golems blanketed the city.
Yet an even greater number of split archangels awaited them.
The Gigants and golems were swept away in an instant.
The retreat came even sooner.
In the third wave, they couldn't even last thirty minutes.
"Fuck."
"They're like cockroaches."
"Summoner, I urge you again. Deploy us."
"Or drop another meteor."
"Meteors didn't even work—do you think they'll be better than nukes?"
Direct deployment of the summoned ones was impossible.
Even including Juhyeok, they numbered only 355.
Many of them were production personnel.
How could that force handle nearly twenty archangels?
They needed a decisive blow.
And there was one card they could use.
"Should we bring out the Transcendent Summon?"
There was still one chance left.
"Would it not be wiser to save that card?"
Right.
The Transcendent Summon wasn't meant to be used merely to kill an AI god.
Everyone knew.
Behind the AI god lurked a Demon Immortal.
The Transcendent Summon had to be used when the Demon Immortal appeared.
Until then, it had to be conserved at all costs.
'If only there were another way to contact the Celestial Realm.'
Actually, there was something else he had been thinking about.
The change that occurred after consuming the Heavenly Dao.
When he used the Chaotic Origin Thunder Rod skill with the Judge's Hammer toward empty space, a crack formed.
For now, it was nothing more than a hairline fracture.
But what did that crack signify?
There was only one answer.
'It's definitely a dimensional gate.'
A technique that opened a door to another world.
Just like Yama had done.
Just like the Sword Immortal had done.
'Let's open it.'
Who knows?
It might open a path to the Celestial Realm.
If it worked, what was there to worry about?
It'd be like going on a flower-viewing trip to Religion City.
"Hoo."
Juhyeok focused his mind.
Imagining the scenery of the Celestial Realm he had never seen, but had heard about from the Sword Immortal and Guigok.
Whirr—!
Tzzzzzz—
Lightning surged.
Ziiing!
A thin crack appeared.
Still the same.
But don't give up—keep going.
Practice matters in everything.
Whirr—!
Tzzzzzz—
Ziiing!
Juhyeok swung the hammer again and again.
Open, sesame.
Open, Celestial Realm.
Over and over.
Without rest.
It seemed to be working.
The tiny crack slowly grew larger.
Large enough to be clearly noticeable.
Just a bit more strength.
Whirr! Ziiing! Whirr! Ziiing! Whirr! Ziiing! Whirr! Ziiing!
In that instant—
Craaaack!
The crack split open wide.
"Oh!"
Big enough to stick an entire head through.
"That's it."
Where does it lead?
If it's the Celestial Realm, that would be perfect.
Let's put a head in first and see.
"Summoner Bong, I'll go first."
"Are you sure you'll be okay?"
"Who do you think I am? Your eternal taste-tester summoned one? Dangerous stuff always goes to me first. Hehehe."
Oh, Kosak.
Alright, go ahead.
Gulp.
After swallowing once, Kosak approached the opening.
Hesitant steps. Creeping closer.
He stuck his hand in and pulled it out again.
And then, suddenly—
Pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa-pa!
Something like swarming insects poured out of the crack.
They clung to Kosak.
"Eek?! Aaaah! Th-this is disgusting!"
What?!
'What the hell is that?'
But it was something familiar.
Very familiar.
"Aaah! Kosak's getting bitten! P-please save me!"
Close it, fast.
If left alone, the entire ninth floor of the White Tower would be overrun by those things.
But how do you close it?
When he tapped the crack lightly with the hammer—
Sliiiide!
The crack closed.
What about the ones already out?
Bardin dealt with them using radiant light.
"Light!"
Fwaaaaaaah!
Thud-thud-thud-thud!
The insects fell.
"Whew."
For a moment, it felt like they had opened the gates of hell.
Well, not far off.
"No wonder it felt familiar."
The tiny flying insects that came out of the crack.
They were none other than—
"They look like corrupted micro-angels."
The same microscopic monsters they had encountered in the corrupted Celestial Realm, the defiled divine land, during the Great Journey quest long ago.
That's right.
The crack Juhyeok had opened led to the corrupted Celestial Realm.
A place he had been to once.
Was that why the dimensional gate opened?
"These guys could chew through Gigants in the blink of an eye. I barely survived."
"What a shame. Why didn't they eat you? They should've at least gnawed off that mouth."
You could also encounter them on the 95th floor of Earth No. 843.
But those were fakes.
Copied and deployed as tower monsters.
These ones were real.
From the corrupted Celestial Realm.
A world abandoned after losing its god.
Who was the lost god?
That's right.
Whitey.
It was the Celestial world ruled by Whitey.
They had conquered it by dropping nukes through a joint operation with Rajiks and the green aircraft.
During the nuclear explosion, the fallen archangel Ron Seraphim briefly regained his sanity and shared divine power through self-sacrifice.
"So the Celestial Realm still exists."
"Of course it does. Whitey hasn't been extinguished."
"Still, we eliminated all the leader angels, didn't we?"
With how many nukes they dropped there.
"The Celestial Realm is vast. We only struck the core regions. Countless micro corrupted angels probably remain. There may even be mature corrupted angels."
Hmm.
Come to think of it, Whitey knew the corrupted Celestial Realm still existed.
A conversation they'd had a few days ago, when Juhyeok met Whitey after consuming the Heavenly Dao and shedding his mortal shell.
He'd said they were pitiful children, suffering because of him, and that only when he disappeared would they be freed.
How tragic.
Creatures driven mad after losing their parent.
'Is there a way to let them meet… huh?'
Wait.
Juhyeok's eyes lit up.
An idea had just occurred to him.
This might actually work.
Let's reunite the separated family.
The next day.
Juhyeok once again infiltrated Religion City.
Before summoning the others.
Hammer in hand.
Whirr—!
Tzzzzzz—
Clang!
A crack opened leading to the corrupted Celestial Realm.
After waiting a moment—
Thudududududu—
Polluted ninth-rank angels poured out.
They kept coming.
Like a swarm of locusts.
Then—
Halt! Halt! Halt! Halt!
They stopped midair.
Whip! Whip! Whip! Whip!
They turned their heads toward the direction of the Grand Temple.
That's right.
That's where your mother is.
Go meet her.
Bad men are guarding her, but you can do it.
Wiiiiiing!
The polluted ninth-rank angels flew madly toward the Grand Temple.
Even as they did, countless microscopic polluted ninth-rank angels continued pouring out of the crack.
Before long, Religion City grew dark.
The sky was completely filled with polluted ninth-rank angels.