40. Religious Gathering (5)

“Hey hey. Try doing that.”

[Ugh… S-stop…]

“Hurry up.”

[Hng… I… I was the leader of the Eternal Hwarang Cult, but now I’m Na Seon-yeok who became a tree.]

“Good.”

Thanks to his high mental resistance, the Divine Tree Cult Leader wasn’t completely broken like Number 2 and could still hold a conversation to some extent.

Since he could even read letters, if I happen to acquire volumes 2 or 3 of the Daesurim Soxin Gongyangseo later, he should be able to read them.

From now on, any Daesurim Soxin Gongyangseo I obtain should just be dumped on this guy. To properly use the skills written in the Soxin Gongyangseo, you ultimately have to become a divine tree, but there’s no need for me to turn into a tree too.

“Then.”

I decided to quickly finish off the remaining survivors in the auditorium while leaving the Divine Tree Cult Leader behind. They were doomed to die anyway if left like this, so it’s better if I efficiently convert them into points.

If I offer them as sacrifices too, I might receive another divine power from the Tentacle God.

*Click*

I drew my loaded pistol and shot the dying cultists in the head. I left all hesitation behind on the day I got possessed. Whether they’re weak or defenseless humans, I can kill indiscriminately.

If you want to blame someone, blame the damn author who made a morally bankrupt person like me get possessed.

*Pfft-!!*

“Gah-“

Excluding those who had already died from having all their vital energy drained, there were 12 cultists twitching around the auditorium.

I put holes in all their heads with my silenced Glock.

“180 points acquired.”

Killing 12 cultists gave me 180 points. On top of that, I completed the “Kill 100” quest for an additional 1,000 points.

This brings my total points to 3,484. Getting close to the target.

‘The random weapon turned out to be an axe.’

The quest reward weapon was an axe. Like Regina’s Blade, it was pitch black.

[Regina’s Steel Axe: Can increase its weight up to 100 times when held.]

“Holy shit.”

An incredible weapon on par with Regina’s Blade appeared.

It can increase its own weight? It already feels quite heavy at around 5 kilograms. If I increase that 100 times…

‘0.5 tons.’

If I swing it while increasing the weight, I can deliver a 500-kilogram bombardment. As long as I can withstand that weight, I can just crush my opponents.

With this, I might be able to chop down the World Tree like firewood. No, if I really use Multi Jump to leap up and come down swinging this 0.5-ton axe, couldn’t I even fell the World Tree? I can’t even imagine how much destructive power that would unleash.

“Nice.”

Anyway, I got my hands on something quite novel. Satisfying. Especially since I got a tasty weapon by using lives that would’ve been wasted anyway, which put me in a pretty good mood.

I immediately accepted the next quest.

[Quest: Hunt prey worth 1,000+ points (0/1)]
[Reward: 500P, Random Engraving]

“Over 1,000 points at once?”

A quest to hunt a single entity worth 1,000 points. What the hell do I need to kill to get 1,000 points at once?

“At minimum, it’s telling me to hunt something like a Lesser Giant.”

Right. Come to think of it, the Lesser Giant gave 1,500 points. The actual hunting might be easier than I thought.

The problem is finding such prey. I’ll have to estimate and find suitable prey that would give around 1,000 points and take them down. For now, I have no choice but to wander around hunting. If I keep searching, I’ll stumble upon something. I didn’t encounter the Lesser Giant because I wanted to either.

Let’s bet the quest’s success on random encounters.

‘Come to think of it, the lower floors are quiet.’

The Blue Cross Group hunters probably massacred the Eternal Hwarang Cult members en masse, calling them heretics.

Still, just in case, I went down to check for survivors, but all that remained were exploded corpses.

I roughly threw all the corpses together in one place and offered them to the Hunting God. Soon the corpses disappeared, and a full 2 divine powers flowed into me.

Probably because I’d accumulated quite a lot from clearing the 4th floor, I got 2 powers at once.

[Acquired Tentacle Projection.]
[Acquired Flesh Wall Creation.]

I got a mid-range physical attack skill and a defense skill.

“Fucking stuffed now.”

Cults are the best. No, dead cults are the best! Since I even sucked up the corpses, there’s nothing left to plunder here.

Ah, one room seemed to be stacked full of bills… but I don’t think I need to bother taking them. With the government collapsed, what good is money? Just worthless scraps of paper. Barely good as kindling, but not even proper firewood.

“Phew, let’s go then.”

[Ugh…]

I picked up the Divine Tree Cult Leader whose limbs had all been torn off and went up to the rooftop.

If I go to ground level, I might run into the Blue Cross Group’s follow-up forces heading here, so I plan to move by jumping across rooftops.

******

*Thud!*

“Haa. Fucking hard to carry.”

[Gah..]

As soon as I arrived at the villa rooftop, I threw down the Divine Tree Cult Leader I’d been carrying at my waist. It wasn’t particularly heavy, but its bulk made it a bitch to carry.

“Phew.”

Anyway, I made it home safely. Just because it’s home doesn’t automatically mean it’s safe, but simply being home gave me some relief.

“Number 1. Number 1, come out.”

“Ah, Master..!”

When I called, Number 1 hurried up from downstairs. I entrusted the discarded Divine Tree Cult Leader to him.

“Plant him in a basin filled with soil…?”

“Yeah. Don’t forget to poke holes in the bottom for drainage. I’m too tired, so I’m going. Organize these weapons and that blue armor in the attic. And this.”

“Oh. A corpse?”

“Yeah. Eat it all, gain any firearm knowledge, then dispose of it safely.”

“Aah. Yes sir..”

I dumped not just the Divine Tree Cult Leader but all the looted items haphazardly on the rooftop. Among them were firearms, corpses of Pax Company members, and suits stripped from the Blue Cross bastards.

‘The suits might be usable if repaired.’

There’s no proper way to fix them, but they were too valuable to just leave behind.

Note that Number 1 can gain appearances and partial memories by eating corpses, so I had him eat the Pax Company corpses to naturally acquire firearm knowledge.

And if he keeps eating corpses, his capacity will increase, allowing him to mimic more forms. Only 3 for now, but if I keep growing him, he might be able to mimic up to 10.

Anyway, watching Numbers 1 and 2 carry the luggage and organize things, I entered Room 401.

“Fucking exhausted.”

My magic is almost depleted, which makes me feel even more tired.

Ah, probably because I was with the Divine Tree Cult Leader for so long. Due to my traits, staying close to others for long periods worsens my luck and increases fatigue.

“First…”

I opened the general store to buy items.

I currently have 3,484 points, so I can immediately buy the Frozen Seal Stone and Purification Pendant. That would leave me with 484 points. If I meditate for a few hours, the “Survive 7 Days” quest will complete, giving me another 700 points.

‘Just need 216 more points.’

I’ll cover this by selling monster materials I’ve been saving. I kept them thinking they might be useful, but selling them should easily give over 1,000 points.

“Purchase first.”

I bought the Frozen Seal Stone.

2,000 points disappeared at once, and a roughly 1-meter tall, extremely cold stone monument dropped before my eyes.

It’s a monument sealing some unknown entity, emitting cold air that can turn enclosed spaces into freezers. Perfect for storing fresh ingredients or monster materials.

‘Where should I put it…’

I pondered briefly.

I currently live in Room 401. Room 402 is occupied by Numbers 1 and 2.

The attic is being used as a storage room for miscellaneous items, tools, and weapons.

That leaves the 3rd, 2nd, and 1st floors, plus the semi-basement.

“Not the 3rd floor.”

The Frozen Seal Stone continuously emits cold air. Placing it near where I live in 401 would definitely let the chill seep into my living space. With no heating, I could freeze to death. Maybe in summer, but not now.

So it should go on the 2nd or 1st floor at minimum.

“Maybe just put it in the basement.”

The semi-basement is uninhabited.

According to Elena’s fragmented memories, after heavy rains caused flooding last year, people stopped using it.

It should be half-empty now.

“Should I go down?”

I equipped Stun Fist and carefully lifted the Frozen Seal Stone to store it in my inventory.

An intensely hot coldness, like gripping dry ice bare-handed, made my hands sting painfully.

Fucking freezing.

“Hmm.”

I arrived at the semi-basement entrance. There’s only one semi-basement room, with just a single padlock on the door.

The digital lock must have broken from flooding, as it was completely replaced with an old analog one.

*Clank. Clank. Crack!!*

“Done.”

A few swings of Regina’s axe shattered the padlock.

Opening the door, pitch-black darkness greeted me.

“Oh fuck.”

Along with a jet-black Gate and the monsters emerging from it.

No wonder monsters kept crawling out. There was a Gate connected to the Other World in the semi-basement.

*Bang!*

I immediately closed the door.

*Thud!! Thud!!*

“Uwaaaa.”

“Hieeee…”

Monsters banging on the door. Soon they’ll break through the wall and attack me.

Right now they’re just low-level spirits without even names, but if higher-level monsters attracted by the commotion crawl out from beyond the Gate, they’ll be troublesome to deal with.

“This is insane.”

Encountering one or two monsters is completely different from discovering a Gate connected to the Other World.

The padlock must have served as a seal of sorts, but since I broke it, I need another solution now.

I went looking for a place to put the Frozen Seal Stone and ended up in deep shit.

“What to do.”

Destroying it is actually much simpler than you’d think.

I have the protagonist-exclusive skill Light Sword, so I can just mindlessly spam that at the Gate. Other attacks might not work, but light and dark attributes will.

‘But…’

If I can enter the Other World, it’s like getting a free farming spot. Should I really destroy the entrance to my personal dungeon? Wouldn’t that be abandoning my mission to gather points?

Right, if I can handle the monsters stably, I can get points for free? And give that up?

Monsters sometimes even drop strange artifacts or interesting items.

“Ah!”

Suddenly, I remembered the Fragment of the Other Realm.

[Fragment of the Other Realm: When embedded in the body, turns that body part into a monster. The monsterized body part exists between reality and the Other World.]

With this, I can directly attack the monsters.

Let’s try it.

I pulled out the wooden box covered in talismans from my inventory.