Chapter 443 — - Dok-Jas Incarnation (4)

“Ahjussi!”

Powerful rays of light exploding out from Kim Dok-Ja’s entire body, and the waves of magical energy containing ’s Great Fable pouncing on Shin Yu-Seung’s position, happened almost at the same time.

She reflexively embraced his body. The durability of her [Beast King’s Sensitivity] had dropped to a critical level after defending against countless attacks so far. But she had no other methods to defend against this new wave other than this one.

She squeezed her eyes shut and the moment she hunkered down, a storm of blinding light exploded and the waves of Fables blanketing the surroundings disappeared as if they were washed away.

“.....Ah?”

Her body, raised up to the sky, slowly descended back down again.

The spot where Kim Dok-Ja had been standing only until a moment ago was now occupied by a tall man. He was blessed with the blindingly pure platinum-blonde hair, forged steel-like muscles, and [Fiery Golden Eyes] burning in a crimson hue.

’s Constellations freaked out.

[T-this can’t be....!]

The Outer Gods were also shocked by the emission of the stupendous level of Status from him.

Currently possessing the bodies of the Yogoes, these Outer Gods expressed their fluster at the stunning Status of Chaos rising from this tall man.

[WhoWhoWhoWhoWho]

The man grinned brightly. [For them to not recognise me. I guess my retirement has gone on for too long.]

Shin Yu-Seung couldn’t figure out what was going on here. She could definitely sense Kim Dok-Ja’s aura from this man, but he was not ‘him’.

In that case, just who was this man?

“Ahjussi....?”

[So, you’re Sanzang?]

The Great Sage calmly looked down at her before slowly lowering himself. Soon, their gazes were locked on the same eye level.

[Kim Dok-Ja is safe.]

An unfathomable sense of lonesome longing flooded out from his [Fiery Golden Eyes]. Shin Yu-Seung unconsciously reached out. The moment her hand touched that cold golden headband on his head....

[Fable, ‘Demon King of Salvation’, is continuing with its storytelling.]

Her hand trembled.

She could sense it so clearly.

Kim Dok-Ja was living and breathing within this person. Not only did he not transform into a mysterious something, but the figure of Kim Dok-Ja she was familiar with remained as was.

“Yu-Seung-ah!”

Jeong Hui-Won dashed in from the distance and hurriedly shielded Shin Yu-Seung away while shooting the Great Sage a glare. He simply grinned back at her, and shifted his gaze up to the sky.

That was where a portion of ’s Constellations, Great Dokkaebis, as well as the Wenny King could be found.

[Why do you all look like that? Weren’t you yapping on happily among yourselves without the protagonist of ‘Journey to the West’, me, present earlier?]

Indeed, he was the main protagonist of the Journey, the Great Sage Heaven’s Equal.

One of the Great Dokkaebis asked him a question. [Why have you stepped forward? Do you not have an agreement with the ?]

[I didn’t break the deal. Besides, do you even have any idea what that deal is in first place, before asking me that?]

The Great Dokkaebi didn’t have the chance to reply, as the Wenny King’s true voice butted in first.

[Monkey King! Are you insane? The ‘Demon King of Salvation’ is ours. He’s an Outer God now, in other words. That was our agreement!]

[He’s my brother now. And also....] The Great Sage’s [Fiery Golden Eyes] emitted bright light. [I’m also an ‘Outer God’ now, you see.]

Due to Douzhanshengfo’s transformation into an Outer God, the aura of Chaos was billowing out from Sun Wukong’s entire body.

[Shares of ‘Outer God’ in the applicable scenario currently is 35.333%.]

[Hidden Scenario – ‘Verifying Agreement’ has been completed!]

[Power of the Great Fable has begun moving!]

[Scenario, ⸢Journey to the West Remake⸥, is entering its final phase!]

(And then, Sun Wukong looked at his long-time comrades.)

Yogoes that had fallen into confusion were all looking up at him. The majority of them were ‘Outer Gods’ used as expendables in the scenario. Up until only a few moments ago, they had been searching for their king, yet now, they were shaking their heads in a clear sign of fluster.

[KingisKingisKingisKingisKingis]

[WhichoneWhichoneWhichoneWhichoneWhichone]

Yogoes were at a loss, stuck between the Great Sage appearing as a brand-new ‘Outer God’, and the ‘Secretive Plotter’ they had been following originally.

He spoke to them as if he could understand their confusion. [You all suffered greatly until now, my friends.]

(These Yogoes, they had experienced this really lengthy tale together with him.)

[I know very well of the ordeals you were subjected to. I was born as a Yogoe, but got influenced by men’s ways, and ended up accepting their ideals and customs. I carried out what they deemed to be true righteousness, and walked on their path of Dao.]

(Sometimes, they were his enemies. At other times, they were his allies.)

[And the result of that, is this. Yogoes were sacrificed. And the meaningless epiphany repeated itself. Now, ⸢Journey to the West⸥ has become a tool to strengthen the Nebula’s influence by spreading around the tired, obvious truths.]

(However, all of that was nothing more than a Fable, a play performed on a stage.)

[I’m sure it’ll be impossible to atone for the past. Even then, if you are willing to forgive me.....]

(The ancient king of the Yogoes. Their king, who used to fight against the heavenly worlds once upon a time, was now speaking to them.)

[Then I shall fight for you from now on.]

One by one, Yogoes raised their heads.

[ReallyReallyReallyReallyReally]

The Great Sage replied to them. [I shall put my true name on the line and swear to you.]

Yogoes began moving towards him. One and two soon became ten, grew to a hundred, and before long, went past a thousand. Yogoes hiding under the river’s water, ones hiding within the clouds in the sky, they all revealed themselves. They gathered like swarms and began forming a horde. As if they were trying to worship the king they had served a long time ago.

[Ancient ‘Great Fable’ is waking up.]

[Halt! Cease what you’re doing!]

[You’re a judge! A judge cannot interfere with a Fable in progre.....!]

Great Dokkaebis urgently stepped forward to stop this situation, but it was useless, at least this time around.

[ has acknowledged the Probability of the 95th Main Scenario.]

[Main theme of the ⸢Journey to the West Remake⸥ is changing drastically!]

Even the Great Dokkaebis couldn’t go against the gigantic flow of the . As for the Wenny King, it stepped back without resistance as if it wished to observe the unfolding situation first.

Its original aim was to send ‘Outer Gods’ into a scenario anyway, so technically, that goal had pretty much already been accomplished. The only problem was....

....Who was the one leading all these ‘Outer Gods’?

Ku-gugugugu!

Thunderbolts crashed down from the [Great Hole] in the sky, and soon, something broke past the abyss to make their descent.

[H-he is....!]

Status emitted by him was so powerful that the Outer Gods appearing so far couldn’t even compare to him. The Great Sage, the Wenny King, even the Great Dokkaebis – they all witnessed that person’s incarnation into the world.

The Great Sage smirked. [So, he finally showed up.]

[Constellation, ‘Secretive Plotter’, has incarnated into the scenario’s location!]

[Someone has joined the scenario in the role of ‘Demon King of Confusion’!]

The ‘Secretive Plotter’, currently in the form of a jet-black lump of shadow wavering around in the wind, took on the role of a Yogoe to participate in the scenario. Perhaps due to him not going through a proper entry procedure, blindingly bright sparks were enveloping his entire body.

The Great Sage asked him. [Are you here to hinder this great Master Sun?]

[[That depends on your choice.]]

[As expected, you have a rather insidious-sounding voice, ‘Secretive Plotter’.]

This would be the first time that these two came face-to-face. A confrontation was brewing between two Constellations who had been watching Kim Dok-Ja for a long time through Bihyung’s, and later, Biyu’s channel.

The Great Sage growled and spoke up. [You pretended to be all slick and sophisticated in your indirect messages, but today, you finally reveal your true colours.]

The ‘Secretive Plotter’ quietly studied the Great Sage. [[Meanwhile, you are just as thoughtless as your indirect messages suggest.]]

Sun Wukong emitted a stupendous amount of Status and roared out triumphantly while gripping his Ruyi Jingu Bang. [Enough talk. Since you’re here, let’s fight. This situation won’t get resolved unless I kick your ass first, anyway.]

The Plotter’s entrance caused agitation and unrest to spread among the surrounding Yogoes. It seemed as if they were hesitating on who to follow among these two absolute beings.

Submit to the king of all Yogoes, the Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal?

If not, submit to the king of Outer Gods, the ‘Secretive Plotter’?

The possibility of a sudden confrontation between two Constellations brought about a palpable sense of tension to the Great Dokkaebis, Wenny King, and to other Constellations floating in the air.

On one side, an Outer God who dreamed of the ’s destruction, while the other, the strongest Constellation within itself.

A battlefield that had never been created before was about to commence.

Sun Wukong, burning with the will to fight, was about to raise his Ruyi Bang high up into the sky, but then....

[[I’m sorry, but your opponent today isn’t going to be me.]]

Accompanying those words, the heavens split open wide and a great amount of sparks exploded out.

[Nebula, ’s, Constellations are descending to the scenario!]

The number flooding in was in another realm altogether compared to ’s forces that had entered so far. Half-destroyed stars of the 28 Mansions, the few remaining Lords of the Nine Stars, Dragon Kings of the Four Seas, and after that, a countless number of immortals and wargods from the Taoist pantheon were incarnating into the scenario.

[Constellation, ‘Master of the Immortal Peach Garden’, is incarnating into the scenario!]

[Constellation, ‘Heaven’s Wise Man’, is incarnating into the scenario!]

[A great number of Constellations hiding their Modifiers are incarnating into the scenario!]

That wasn’t all. Spirits that ruled the plains, the mountains, and the rivers, and even the great cosmic army that guarded the heavenly palaces – an army consisting of over 100 thousand in total blanketed the scenario’s sky.

[The Pagoda-Bearing Heavenly King Li Jing, Prince Nezha, and Erlang Shen. Now that is a nostalgic combination. And not only that, the heavenly palace’s lazy-arsed geezers are here too....]

(The enemies from the heavenly palace he used to fight against a long time ago were now standing before him.)

[Great Sage, what’s the meaning of this?]

Prince Nezha, the very one who tried to suppress Jeong Hui-Won along with Fei Hu earlier, was now brimming full with the power of a Fable incomparably mightier than before. That was because he was no longer playing a role from the Fable chamber, but making an appearance as himself.

[What do you mean, what? I’m here to end this scenario.]

The Great Sage’s curt reply prompted an immediate opposition from ’s Constellations to rise up.

[You can’t arbitrarily decide on the conclusion like this!]

[Don’t you realise that the ⸢Journey to the West⸥ will end up in the hands of a weakling Nebula if you do this?!]

[Hurry and give up on the ‘sacred texts’!]

The Great Sage looked at the ‘sacred texts’ held in his hand, and then, took a glance at Shin Yu-Seung next to him. Then, a smirk formed on his lips.

[Argh, it’s fine if it ends up with them. What’s the problem? I mean, it’s good that its fame is spreading out even further, am I wrong?]

[This is against our agreement!]

[Nope, it isn’t. Us helping you out was until ‘The four Sun Wukongs choose the same Fable’, wasn’t it? And that day has arrived, that’s all.]

Having realised what the Great Sage was thinking of, the ’s Constellations began exchanging glances with each other.

[Nebula, , is greatly enraged at the ‘Prisoner of the Golden Headband’!]

Erlang Shen stepped forward to represent his Nebula. [Great Sage. Do you understand what your actions mean? Could you be possibly planning to start the ‘Great War against the Heavenly Worlds’ in this place?]

[Hmm? No, I didn’t think of that, but well, if you wish to fight, then....]

Ku-gugugu!!

The incredible aura flooding out from the Great Sage’s Incarnation Body forced Constellations of to falter and retreat. His Fable that swept across the heavenly worlds in the past was being unshackled in this scenario.

However, Erlang Shen’s voice remained composed. [I acknowledge your strength. No one from can even dream of besting you in one on one combat. However, you can’t win in this fight. Because, the Fable will simply repeat itself.]

Tsu-chuchuchuchut....!

Signs of ⸢Stage Transformation⸥ could be spied now. Fables collided, and the event from a long time ago was about to be recreated once more.

A great war between the king of Yogoes, the Great Sage Heaven’s Equal, and .

The Great Sage spoke up. [For sure, I did lose back then. However, that was when I was just the ‘Great Sage, Heaven’s Equal’.]

The sensed something was off and made their move first.

[He’s about to use his magic! Subdue him, now!]

[Lord Daode Tianzun! Your Jingangzhuo....!]

[Come, Six Brothers from the Mae Mountain!]

The Great Sage summoned his Somersault Cloud while watching the army of the heavenly worlds pounce on him. Dark clouds dyeing the sky black heeded Sun Wukong’s Fable and began gathering into one place.

[Great Fable, ‘Journey to the West’, has begun its storytelling!]

And then, he opened his mouth. [My true name is Sun Wukong.]

⸢The Great Sage Heaven’s Equal.⸥

⸢Meihouwang.⸥

⸢Bimawen.⸥

⸢Douzhanshengfo.⸥

And, finally....

⸢The Demon King of Salvation.⸥

A storm began raging on top of the Tongtian River. Thunder and lightning crashed down. And in the centre of this storm, the Great Sage was slowly clenching his fists.

*

As the blinding lightning bolts pounded down on the battlefield, Yu Jung-Hyeok finally arrived at his destination.

The godly figure of the Great Sage bringing down numerous Constellations in the middle of the Tongtian was truly something to behold.

‘....Kim Dok-Ja is inside that guy, huh.’

Thanks to his golden-coloured [Eye of Sage], Yu Jung-Hyeok got to quickly confirm Kim Dok-Ja’s current situation. It seemed that the fool was still alive. And for some strange reason, that powerful ‘Great Sage’ personally incarnated to grant the man his own powers.

Jeong Hui-Won and Shin Yu-Seung could be seen some distance away. They were basically hiding among the great battles taking place between the Yogoes and the Constellations, which was a wise decision on their part, really.

As for Yi Gil-Yeong, Yi Ji-Hye, or even Jan Ha-Yeong, it seemed that they hadn’t arrived in this location as of yet.

‘We need to finish this scenario soon.’

Their Fable chamber had already reached the top of the rankings, and the ‘sacred texts’ were in the hands of Shin Yu-Seung, currently playing the role of Tang Sanzang.

[The ⸢I’ve become the retired SSSSS-grade Sun Wukong⸥ Fable chamber is currently holding the ‘sacred texts’.]

[Guarding the ‘sacred texts’ for one hour will automatically conclude the scenario.]

[54 minutes remaining until the conclusion of the scenario.]

Even the final phase of the scenario had been activated, as well. Just by holding on, the Great Fable of the ‘Journey to the West’ would be ’s.

However, there was one thing that concerned him. And that would be....

Ku-gugugu.....

It was that ‘person’ currently spectating on the battlefield from the middle of the sky.

The ‘Secretive Plotter.’

He was simply watching on at the fight between the Great Sage and without getting involved. Yu Jung-Hyeok could guess what he was planning here. He was probably planning to wait until the Great Sage ran out of strength and launch a sneak attack on his opponent afterwards.

However, the incarnated Plotter’s aura wasn’t the same as before.

– He seems to have wasted a lot of Probability. He indeed has far too much riding on this regression turn.

Those words were spoken by Yu Jung-Hyeok [999]. From some time ago, this damn dumpling was making himself home on the full-sized Yu Jung-Hyeok’s shoulder.

He glanced at [999] with disinterested eyes before silently unsheathing the [Dark Heavenly Demon Sword].

“Meaning, this is my chance to kill him.”

That was when the Secretive Plotter accurately locked eyes with him. Just from meeting that being’s gaze caused Yu Jung-Hyeok to freeze up on the spot.

[Fable, ‘One who Opposes Miracles’, is shrinking away.]

[Fable, ‘One who Hunted the King of Disasters’, is refusing to fight.]

His Fables were shivering in fear. So, becoming weak meant falling into such a state? The memories of defeat brushing past him now ruled over him.

Perhaps, the [Dark Heavenly Demon Sword] wasn’t the only thing that broke on that day.

[999] addressed him again.

– Looks like you’re afraid.

Yu Jung-Hyeok didn’t want to acknowledge it, but it was the truth.

– Indeed, the current you will never defeat the ‘Great Plotter’.

It was the ‘despair’ that couldn’t be overcome no matter which history he was willing to bet away. Yu Jung-Hyeok stared at that overwhelming wall of time. That wasn’t something mere ‘effort’ could overcome.

– However, it’s not as if there are no other avenues left for you.

“What?”

[999] leapt off from Yu Jung-Hyeok’s shoulder, and his outer appearance began transforming. A Murim dumpling was changing to that of Yu Jung-Hyeok.

[999]’s height grew back up in an instant, and regained the exact same appearance as Yu Jung-Hyeok’s.

The distinctive Status of a Transcender oozed out from the back of another him currently facing away. Yu Jung-Hyeok became keenly aware of who this was in this moment.

Yu Jung-Hyeok from the 999th turn.

As his black coat danced in the air, [999] addressed his counterpart. “Remember. Remember who you really are. Remember what you wished to achieve by coming this far.”

[999] then slowly pulled out a sword from his inner pocket. Surprisingly, it was not the [Heaven Shaking Sword].

No, it was the [Dark Heavenly Demon Sword], the exact same weapon that the 3rd turn Yu Jung-Hyeok possessed.

[999] spoke up once more.

“Let me show you the battle from the 999th turn.”

Fin.