Chapter 135: Enlightenment
A woman with red eyes.
A human revived by Gaetsalgoadal.
No, to be exact, it was probably the power of Taese.
Since the Snake Queen didn’t know about the resurrection ability.
It’s reasonable to assume that it wasn’t Gaetsalgoadal’s own power, but rather borrowed from Taese.
“Grrr…”
She growled lowly.
And that meant, the red-eyed woman in front of me was my enemy.
After breaking the illusion, another illusion appeared.
I would have to destroy this one too if I wanted to escape.
…
But, she was waiting for me.
What could that mean?
And it didn’t seem like she had any hostility toward me.
Her gaze was closer to one of kindness.
Her eyes resembled Baek Yeonyeong’s, but unlike hers, they seemed to hold more emotions.
“I was a bit surprised. To shoot a beam in my face like that!”
The red-eyed woman smiled playfully.
“To fire that vicious thing without a moment’s hesitation? Seriously, I’m at a loss for words.”
Though she spoke like that, she seemed to be in a good mood.
“If that kid had been alone, she’d never have escaped. Well, that’s what a companion is for, to make up for what’s lacking.”
What on earth was the purpose of this illusion?
She showed no hostility toward me and just rambled on.
Could she be stalling for time?
“You’re thinking about escaping this space as fast as you can, aren’t you?”
The red-eyed woman spoke as if she had read my mind.
She quickly closed one of her eyes.
It was as if someone who couldn’t wink was forcing themselves to try.
“A brief conversation won’t hurt. After all, this is but a fleeting moment.”
I didn’t respond.
Communicating with someone I’d just met by hissing and growling was nearly impossible.
Instead, I gave a slight nod.
For some reason, it seemed like this woman before me was free from Gaetsalgoadal’s control.
In other words, she might be able to help me.
“Escaping that illusion by your own power means you intend to face Taese, right?”
Taese.
My opponent wasn’t just Gaetsalgoadal.
“Handling Gaetsalgoadal alone would be tough, but are you really planning to face Taese too?”
Taese, the evil god lurking behind Gaetsalgoadal.
I had to deal with him as well.
“You must have no plan. Even before its evolution, Gaetsalgoadal was more than you could handle. How do you expect to defeat the current Gaetsalgoadal, who has evolved with Taese’s power?”
I couldn’t answer.
Her words hit the mark.
I had no strategy, no plan.
Nothing was prepared.
I had only thought about escaping the illusion and confronting him.
Even if I used every trick I had, I didn’t think I could win.
But retreating wasn’t an option.
If I had to live disgracefully, I would rather die with honor.
“You’ve got a good look in your eyes. Now I understand, just a little, about that ridiculous womanizing reputation of yours.”
Was she joking in this situation?
If she was just going to make pointless remarks, it might be better to ignore her and try to escape this space.
…No, I’m the one who’s desperate.
Right now, I was in a situation where I had to cling to any straw I could find.
And if the being before me wasn’t an illusion but truly the Snake Queen’s mentor, then she would be a great help.
“As long as I don’t interfere directly, it should be fine to give you some information.”
Interference wasn’t allowed.
That statement was a bit odd.
Wasn’t she under the control of Taese’s power?
A being that had lost its free will, merely moving like a puppet.
But given the current situation and her words, it seemed like she could interfere quite freely.
…Had she not been consumed by Taese?
Then what exactly was the entity I attacked?
My thoughts ran in circles, but that wasn’t important right now.
What mattered was that this woman was about to give me a clue on how to defeat Gaetsalgoadal.
“Because you’re that child’s companion.”
I waited patiently for her to speak.
Anything was fine.
“Gaetsalgoadal was a fragile child.”
I had seen it in the Snake Queen’s mind.
A smaller body compared to other snakes.
A timid personality.
That was Gaetsalgoadal.
“That child can’t fully accept Taese’s power.”
I didn’t know much, but I did know that Taese was an evil god.
No matter how mystical Gaetsalgoadal was, there was no way it could handle such power without any side effects.
…But, this wasn’t helpful at all.
In fact, it only made the situation feel more hopeless.
If it’s like this when it hasn’t fully accepted the power, how much stronger will it become with time?
“It’s like walking on a tightrope, in a very precarious state.”
Precarious.
But even in that precarious state, it had shown enough strength to toy with me.
“So, if someone gives it just a little nudge, it’ll topple on its own.”
Could it really be that easy?
“One strike. You just need to land one strike.”
That “one strike” likely referred to a critical hit.
I hadn’t even been able to scratch the Snake Queen’s body, and now I was supposed to land a critical hit on Gaetsalgoadal, who had become many times stronger.
“Now you see, right? I just told you something huge.”
I didn’t get it.
I felt even less confident than before.
At this rate, I wouldn’t be able to defeat him.
…No.
There was one move left.
Thud.
I lay flat on the ground.
It was humiliating, but right now, I couldn’t defeat Gaetsalgoadal.
I couldn’t submit to him either.
So, I had to figure out a way to win, no matter what.
After lying there for a long time, the red-eyed woman finally spoke.
“…What was your name again?”
She didn’t wait for my answer.
“Ah, yes, Hee.”
The red-eyed woman knew my name.
I hadn’t told her.
“Who’s responsible for giving you such a terrible name?”
She seemed lost in thought, silent.
Time passed as if an eternity had gone by.
If I had sweat glands, I would’ve been drenched by now.
I wanted to stick my tongue out and cool down.
I wasn’t going to move until she opened her mouth.
Yes, this was a kind of threat.
I was the Snake Queen’s companion, and the red-eyed woman still loved the Snake Queen.
Give me more solid information.
Otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to save the Snake Queen.
That was the kind of threat I was making.
More time passed.
“Hee.”
Finally, the red-eyed woman spoke.
“You want to know how to defeat him. How to break through Taese’s defense. That’s what you want to ask, right?”
One attack.
In order to succeed, I had to break through his defense.
No, before even thinking about defense, I couldn’t even reach him in my current state.
Tentacles like shadows with thousands of eyes.
Just one of those tentacles alone was enough to render me helpless.
“Hee, I’ve already told you several times.”
The red-eyed woman spoke in words I couldn’t comprehend.
She whispered into my ear.
…It was the same phrase I had heard countless times before.
Words she had spoken when teaching the Snake Queen.
Something about raising an arm and focusing ki.
It hadn’t made sense the first time I heard it, and it still didn’t make sense now.
What on earth could she mean?
It was like one of Baek Yeonyeong’s cryptic explanations that I could never understand.
Boom!
The space shook violently.
Instinctively, I knew.
It was time to leave.
But I hadn’t yet achieved enlightenment.
All I had heard were incomprehensible riddles.
Screams, shouts.
Somewhere in between, I let out a sound.
Begging for help.
Saying that I couldn’t understand.
“Hee.”
The red-eyed woman simply smiled.
“It’s already inside you.”
The sky was red and dark.
Gaetsalgoadal was far away.
The Snake Queen barely managed to lift her exhausted body, but she didn’t seem to have any strength left.
…I hadn’t achieved enlightenment until the very end.
But retreating wasn’t an option.
“Hoo.”
Gaetsalgoadal’s grotesque face turned toward me.
“You’ve escaped the illusion.”
A flicker of interest crossed his face.
“Or… are you ready to accept my proposal?”
Step.
I took one step forward.
“Judging by your demeanor, it seems you’re still unbroken.”
Boom!
Gaetsalgoadal slowly walked toward me as well.
The difference was that each of his steps left massive craters.
In contrast, my steps were pitiful.
This was the difference between him and me.
“But the fact that you didn’t come out immediately means you liked the sweet future I showed you.”
The corners of the man-faced bird’s mouth curled up.
“Yes. What I showed you wasn’t an illusion but the future. If you submit to me, you can claim that future!”
Bang!
“Be honest with your desires. What beast would refuse to become human? You could live a human life, not a beast’s.”
Step.
I turned my gaze.
The Snake Queen was bleeding heavily.
Her face was etched with an emotion of resentment.
If you’ve come to your senses, you should have fled. Why have you returned here?
Resentment, despair, anger.
And faint affection.
Just as she hadn’t abandoned me, I couldn’t abandon her.
“Now, beast with dragon scales. This is your last chance. Choose.”
This truly was my last chance, as Gaetsalgoadal said.
He realized that I had escaped his illusion and that he couldn’t brainwash me into submission.
So the only option left for him was to kill me in front of the Snake Queen.
Step.
“…Are you really going to drink the poison?”
To say I didn’t desire humanization would be a lie.
To say I wasn’t afraid of death would also be a lie.
There was an easier path.
If I submitted to him, I could live happily.
But I couldn’t do that.
I was the Snake Queen’s companion, who had once lost everything and wailed from the depths.
I was Hee, the disciple of Baek Yeonyeong, who had reached for the heights from the lowest point.
And I was the divine beast of the Gecko Religion, formed by those who had gathered from the lowest places.
“Gaegae (愾喀).”
The lowest being looks up and cries out. That is the Gecko.
“Gaegae (塏揢).”
The lowest being reaches to grasp the heights. That is the Gecko.
“Gaegae (開客).”
The lowest being opens the door for others. That is the Gecko.
Gaegae had been the path I had walked all along.
I could never submit to someone else.
That would be a betrayal of all my ties, a denial of myself.
The dark-red tentacles lunged at me.
…
As if time had stopped, the world began to flow slowly.
Memories flashed before me like a lantern.
As I stood on the path of the Gecko, things that were previously invisible began to appear.
One hand raised to the sky.
The other hand on the ground.
With a firm breath, as someone had instructed.
I gathered my internal energy from deep within my dantian.
Finally, I understood.
What the red-eyed woman had been trying to teach the Snake Queen.
What the Snake Queen had been trying to convey to me.
What the image Soaring Dragon had shown me meant.
As the red-eyed woman had said, everything had already been inside me.
Fwoosh!
A bright beam of light descended from the red sky.
The tentacles lunging toward me writhed in agony.
Gaetsalgoadal, sensing the anomaly, moved urgently.
But I was no longer afraid.
I was the ruler of the world.
I was the most outstanding being in the world.
I was the foremost existence in the world.
41.
In all of heaven and earth, I alone am exalted (天上天下 唯我獨尊).
This would be my final life.
And I had no regrets anymore.