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—What utter nonsense!

Philip shouted as soon as he heard this claim. It was most ridiculous to hear this from the Abyss King, someone who had broken the law of causality over and over again until now. Philip turned to Chi-Woo to tell him to not even give the slightest attention to this nonsense, but what he saw made him falter.

—Chi…Woo…?

With his head slightly lowered, Chi-Woo tightly pursed his lips. This wasn’t the response Philip had expected, but Chi-Woo couldn’t find any points to refute in the Abyss King’s logic. There was something that hung in his mind preventing him from simply brushing off the Abyss King’s words as mere nonsense: Flora. Originally, his plan was to defeat the Abyss King as fast as possible and save Flora with Asha’s ability, ‘Deterrence’. That plan was going awry now. The Abyss King was more vicious and persistent than he had expected, and as a result, they used up a lot of time.

—It can’t be helped…the only thing I could’ve trusted at that time…was that girl…

The Abyss King chuckled. He seemed to have noticed Chi-Woo’s reaction. In other words, The Abyss King had succeeded in absorbing Flora with the power he gained by breaking the law of causality multiple times. Flora tried to resist, but she couldn’t endure against the Abyss King’s newly gained power, and when Chi-Woo nullified the Abyss King, her consciousness barely remained. It was a miracle that there was still a small part of her left, and when he saw her condition, Chi-Woo instinctively came to a conclusion:

‘Ah, this would be difficult with Deterrence alone.’ And even if it was possible, he would need an almost impossible amount of Blessed Luck. Thus, he bypassed the backlash of a thousand years worth of laws of causality to save Flora. It was because if he returned without her now, he thought he would never be able to save her. That was where Chi-Woo crossed the line.

There was only one reason Chi-Woo had been able to walk the path Future Yoo-Joo and his future self desperately yearned for: to punish the Abyss King. This power was endowed upon him for only that purpose, and thus, he must not use the power for anything else. And when he defeated the Abyss King, Flora was already part of the Abyss King’s body. Thus, according to the law of causality, Flora couldn’t be separated from the Abyss King, and Chi-Woo needed to defeat both of them, together with the other consciousnesses. However, he used the power for annihilation to save an individual rather than doing that.

“…” Truthfully, Chi-Woo was aware of what had happened. It would be a lie to say that he hadn’t known, but he thought he made a choice that he needed to make. It was because of the characteristic of the Sharing ability.

[Sharing S]—The ability to jointly share an ability between two or more people.

A user could share an ability besides the physical abilities of a chosen star. A shared ability couldn’t be deleted or changed, and it automatically disappeared when the star disappeared. If Flora was extinguished with the other consciousnesses, Heaven’s Vessel would disappear along with her. They still had a long and arduous path ahead of them, but this ability was the qualification that allowed Chi-Woo to stand in front of the starting line.

‘That’s why…’ Chi-Woo had sensed that something was off since before. Before he extinguished the Abyss King and right after he saved Flora, he felt his power-up quickly wear off. And there was the fact that the Abyss King still remained even though he should’ve disappeared a long time ago. Like how Chi-Woo was able to act on behalf of the law of causality, the Abyss King remained to make Chi-Woo bear the consequences of going against the law of causality’s will.

One could argue that the Abyss King had broken the law of causality by swallowing Flora from the beginning, so Chi-Woo was justified in saving her. However, the being he had to appeal to wasn’t human. It was a will that maintained the balance of the universe and was so strong that it couldn’t be compared to any other existence. Even if it were possible to converse with it, the law of causality would simply respond, ‘That is the karma the Abyss King would have to bear and isn’t something that you can involve yourself with’. And Chi-Woo couldn’t deny that he had used the power for something that differed from its original purpose.

—Didn’t…I tell you…?

—The current universe…doesn’t look favorably upon your existence…

The universe wouldn’t miss this chance to punish Chi-Woo. There was only one reason Chi-Woo wasn’t hit by the backlash for what he had done right now. The law of causality was giving him a chance to right his wrongdoing. It was telling him that it wasn’t too late to kill Flora now; or more exactly, it was telling Chi-Woo to turn the possibility of him gaining Heaven’s Vessel to zero by killing her. When Chi-Woo understood this, he realized why he had been feeling a sense of déjà vu for some time.

‘It was you.’ He finally found the existence that had been tormenting him since his youth.

As a young boy, Chi-Woo had had many dreams: he wanted to be a chef, a teacher, and a photographer. But events that could only be described as mere coincidences always obstructed and hindered him from achieving his dreams. It was the same when all that failed and he decided to be a preacher, a monk, or a shaman. Chi-Woo felt hopeless that he couldn’t do anything with the unusual circumstances he was born under. It was as if some unknowable existence was constantly telling him to not attempt anything, but live quietly and die just like that. Chi-Woo thought that existence was the World or fate, or even a god. But that wasn’t the case.

‘It was you.’ It was the will that sought to maintain the universe’s balance: the law of causality. It was this bastard. Whenever Chi-Woo tried to do whatever he wanted to do, it would sabotage Chi-Woo, who possessed the potential to hamper the universe’s balance if he grew. Everything made sense now.

Chi-Woo didn’t know if this had been the Abyss King’s plan all along, or if it was a trap laid by the law of causality after looking for a chance for all this time. If his brother was right, it probably didn’t like the fact that Chi-Woo even came to Liber and grew stronger. It intended to watch how things played out in the beginning, but Chi-Woo gaining Heaven’s Vessel was the last straw. After organizing his thoughts, Chi-Woo felt a stir of emotions boil inside him. It’d been a while since he felt like this.

He had no idea. He had absolutely no intention to distort the balance of the universe since he came to Liber, and it was the same now. The only thing he wanted to do was save Liber and return to Earth with his brother, spending the rest of his life there doing whatever he wanted to do. If the law of causality just let him be, he would’ve lived a quiet, peaceful life till he met his end. But after realizing the situation and understanding everything that had happened until now, Chi-Woo couldn’t do that. That was how humans tended to be; they wanted to resist the more they were forcefully pushed down.

“I’m looking forward to it,” Chi-Woo said. “Why don’t you try?” He looked up at the sky and basically declared that he wouldn’t play into its hands. He wasn’t just bluffing either. First of all, even though he had broken the law of causality, it wasn’t to the level of the Abyss King. Thus, in comparison to that, the backlash he would receive wouldn’t be so strong—at least that would be the case if the universe’s will was really as fair as others claimed. And above all, Chi-Woo was an existence on a different level from the Abyss King. Thus, he might be able to endure it.

—Kufufufufuf…

A burst of dark laughter flowed out.

—That arrogance…that confidence…I envy you…I envy you so much…and the fact that you can…

His voice was full of lingering feelings.

—As you say…with this much…it would only be able to impose slight drawbacks on your end…and will have to stop there…

Chi-Woo’s eyes narrowed. It was clear that the Abyss King knew what was going on.

—Then…what about this…?

The Abyss King’s voice suddenly became a bit livelier.

—I can make you pay the price of it…using whatever means…there’s no need for me to personally pay the price…

It was then Chi-Woo felt that something was going wrong. The anxiety he felt when his brother first opened the passageway to this world resurfaced. Was there still something else remaining after his battle with the Abyss King ended?

—I am very curious…about the girl’s potential…more than any other existence…

It was then Chi-Woo came to a realization. The reason why ordinary people fell ill after spirit possession was because their fate was to accept a god, but they refused that fate. And the rejection of such a fate didn’t end with simple illnesses. Even those around the person would be harmed and tormented so that the person in question couldn’t refuse anymore and had no other choice but to accept said god. In other words, rather than making the choice by themselves, they were forced into making the decision. The Abyss King was aiming for something similar.

—After saving an existence of that much worth…you will have to pay a matching price…

Equal exchange—Chi-Woo had to give up vitality matching Flora’s life with the life of those around him. There was one reason the Abyss King had chosen a method like this, and he went on to explain everything.

—To a great being like you, I will leave a wound so deep that it can’t be erased even a hundred and thousands of years later. And whenever you recall that wound, you will think of me. This is the way I chose to leave myself in memory…!

It was difficult to describe the reason for the Abyss King’s actions as bad intentions or pure greed. But the Abyss King had told the universe’s will that this was a chance for Chi-Woo to be marked with a scar he would never be able to forget, and the will of the universe accepted it. Since it couldn’t personally bother Chi-Woo, and Chi-Woo wouldn’t listen to it even when given the opportunity, it needed to make Chi-Woo succumb to it by force. Intervening so personally and deeply would’ve normally broken the rule of equity, but it was possible at this point in time as long as the countless consciousnesses that made up the Abyss King acted as the medium.

The wind blew. This was the backlash of the law of causality. The Abyss King’s remains blasted off and scattered across the air, and simultaneously, the world began to quickly change.

***

At the same time, Chi-Hyun’s face paled. “What…!” Chi-Hyun was maintaining both the passageway that Chi-Woo had taken and Basilisk\'s World. Then, a surge of energy that he couldn’t push back rushed forward. It scattered the energy Chi-Hyun had been maintaining Basilisk’s world with. He tried to hold on, but it was useless. It was a level of power he had never felt before, and it felt so definite it seemed like it was carrying out the answer it had already chosen. Shalyh’s expeditionary force responded similarly. They had been waiting patiently when the sudden turn of events left them astounded. The world that had been slowly disappearing at the pace of a snail was quickly crumbling.

“What happened!”

“What’s going on? What in the world!”

There was a great commotion. The Seven Stars members responded similarly. It was then Alice quickly got onto her knees.

“Return…” She gathered her hands and prayed desperately. “Return… Return… Return…” For a very short moment, the world stopped crumbling, but like a gear stuck with a foreign substance, it wiggled some more and eventually broke free and began to turn again.

“Ah…!” The world started disappearing again, and Alice’s face filled with despair. It was then the world’s flow suddenly stopped. It crumbled like a sand castle on beach and suddenly stopped like a freshly taken picture. What in the world was happening? No one had any idea, and they exchanged looks with a dazed expression.

***

—It’s usually hard to make an intervention of this level…

—Even someone like you, who has accumulated so much karma, was able to forcefully establish a connection with Chi-Woo. This was possible because of your firm determination and desire.

In the middle of this strongly fluctuating flow, Philip flicked his finger.

—Unless this exact sequence of events occurs again, it’s not something you can replicate.

—Then, we just need to overcome this ordeal somehow and make you disappear.

In the fluctuating flow, the Abyss King’s voice came. He asked Philip who in the world he thought he was and why he was suddenly intervening.

—What do you mean?

Philip picked his ear and said carefreely.

—If you really think about it, I’m also a consciousness inside Chi-Woo.

He blew his pinky and continued.

—You can take out another consciousness and make them bear the consequences of your actions. With that, you can earn temporary postponement.

Philip smiled brightly at the flustered flow of energy around him.

—I saw somebody doing that, and it looked quite fun.

—So, I want to have a try at it too.

The Abyss King’s will asked Philip if he truly thought someone like him was equal to that girl, and if he could bear the weight of it all.

—Me? Of course not.

Philip shrugged.

—But didn’t I tell you? It’s enough to earn temporary postponement until your desperate attempts to leave an impact turn into nothingness. I think I am capable of that much.

—After all, I am a spirit who once sacrificed myself for a country.

Philip chuckled, and the flowing energy around him wavered. The Abyss King’s will told him that there was no way he could do it, and that he should stop sputtering nonsense.

—Why can’t I?

Philip opened his eyes wide and retorted.

—Didn’t you do just that? You’re trying to replicate what we’ve done to you, and now we’re simply doing the same. That would only be fair.

The fluctuating energy around Philip stopped as if the Abyss King was rendered speechless.

—Isn’t that right?

Philip smirked and asked while looking up.

—I am asking you, the damn fair universe’s will!

Soon afterward, the flow of energy that had been rushing toward Basilisk’s world changed directions and began to gather toward one spirit. From a very deep pit came a voice, shouting, ‘No way, this can’t happen.’ But in the midst of it, Philip’s excited laughter rang.