Chapter 566

Lightning fell like a torrential downpour.

Amidst the violent lightning, Wukong, who had been battered around, gritted his teeth and raised his half-broken hand.

“Damn it! Do you think lightning belongs solely to you???”

“?!”

Rumble!

Gray clouds converged toward one point, and once again the sound of thunder echoed throughout.

It was not Leo’s lightning—this time, it was Wukong’s lightning.

Wukong, with eyes glowing a fierce blue, let out a scream.

“You try this on for size!!”

‘Thunderbolt (雷電)!’

Kraaaack!!

Blue lightning struck Leo.

Having become one with the lightning, Leo harbored no wariness toward it and allowed all attacks without resistance.

Capitalizing on the momentum, Wukong drained all his energy to unleash a series of lightning strikes.

Just how many strikes did he manage to land?

“Haa… Haa…”

“…”

Yellow currents flowing steadily, Leo floated silently, not retaliating.

Leo hovered eerily in the air, as if paralyzed by an electric shock.

Wukong judged him incapacitated and immediately moved his magical staff to conjure a storm.

The manifestation of power began from a tiny dot.

“Come forth, storm!”

Finally, the very technique Wukong had cultivated for so long unleashed itself against Leo.

Crackkk!

“?!”

And Wukong’s body split into multiple pieces.

A supersonic attack conjured by a single bolt of lightning.

Leo, now possessing Wukong’s ‘blue lightning,’ looked down at Wukong through his newly transformed azure eyes.

‘What just happened?’

Something was off—this was not the same individual from before…

“The Fighting Victory Buddha… We met once in the past.”

“…?!”

Tsk.

“Your strength isn’t bad, but truly insufficient when it comes to lightning.”

“What, what nonsense is that…”

“But it seems like you’ve grown somewhat; let me show you something interesting.”

Rumble…!

Blue currents surged wildly.

Though this lightning originally belonged to Wukong, Leo handled it with unnatural ease.

“The Master of Lightning can harness all the lightning in this universe, from the very top of the tower—truly the father and creator of all lightning.”

“…”

“Know your folly.”

Heavenly Punishment.

The world began unraveling.

—

The world was collapsing.

This place where my body exists is the sacred domain of the Celestial Sphere, a virtual space created by Acuchulbul.

This space, crafted by the highest-ranking Celestial, located at the core of the universe, does not crumble easily unless struck by colossal forces.

“But I am different.”

Zeus, the Lord of Olympus, one of the ‘Celestial Gods’ in the Celestial Sphere, was powerful enough to be counted among the top five strongest beings of the tower. Destroying such a virtual space was as effortless for him as breathing.

Though he was told by the Buddhas to remain uninvolved and simply observe…

‘How can I trust their words? Bonchobul!’

The opponent before him was formidable enough to rattle the entire tower, and he carried not one, but two challengers lethal enough to threaten even a Celestial.

“Moreover, this challenger, Yena, who had her contracts forbidden, has also been acting suspiciously. She has risen too quickly without binding herself to a Celestial contract.”

Perhaps soon, she will have equaled their power.

Continuing this way, the balance of the universe might collapse entirely.

Before such a disaster occurs, decisive action must be taken.

[A compassionate Lawholder asks, what is the problem?]

“I care not.”

The Master of Lightning, Zeus, gripped a stream of lightning with his hands. The moment Leo possessed Zeus’ thunder, he could feel it: an extraordinary body.

“Merely a challenger and yet on par with a top-tier Celestial. Incredible.”

And even though this body was still growing, while its strength and resilience may have been inferior, the ability to handle power was unparalleled.

[A compassionate Lawholder says, mischief is not good.]

[A compassionate Lawholder cautions you to remember Bonchobul’s counsel.]

“Memory? Is that your way of telling me to merely stand idly by and do nothing?”

Hah!

“How arrogant of you Buddhists. Do you truly think these insignificant beings will leave us be once they reach the summit of the tower?”

Crackkk!!

“The Raccoon has already destroyed four celestial spheres! The One Who Denies the Light caused the fall of Eden and Hell. And you sit here, talking idly like nothing is happening.”

—The Holy One observes all. Cease your indulgence in mortal affairs and return.—

“Is your game of saving lives over? Why send messages?”

—…

Among Celestials, messages are unnecessary.

Being already at a high rank, they could perceive and understand each other without issue.

But the Buddhists viewed even the Celestials as unenlightened beings not yet entered into Nirvana, so they often sent messages as reminders.

—…That is not the intention. The intent is for you to see the essence of this situation.—

“Then you enlighten yourself.”

Kuuuuu…

Zeus rose high into the heavens.

A massive current coiled around Leo’s body, and just like that, Leo turned into a bolt of lightning, ready to be launched.

The space, already half-destroyed, would surely crumble with another attack in this situation.

“Heavenly Punishment—.”

—Wait a moment…

“It’s too late.”

The lightning bolt fell.

And a massive palm descended, catching it.

Leo’s body violently surged, and Zeus, now possessing Leo’s body, looked up in awe at the vast presence coming from an unimaginable height above.

“Is that you, Tathagata?”

—Indeed. What are you doing?—

“Indeed, what? I’ve existed far longer than you.”

Crackkk!

Lightning surged again, shooting straight into the sky.

Though Tathagata had temporarily blocked the attack, it was the will of the Celestial God.

Even though it wasn’t Zeus in his purest form, Leo’s body was extraordinary, and Tathagata was not a Celestial God. The outcome was uncertain.

—Step down. It is not your place to wreak havoc here.—

“I’ve already heard rumors. That the strength of Tathagata rivals that of Bonchobul. Is it true?”

—…Foolishness—

The palm and the thunder clashed.

—

—

The chaotic situation made me mutter:

“Complete chaos.”

What is going on here?

—

[??Kkkkkk]

[What is this ㅅㅂ]

[Leo’s body was taken away!!]

[Whaaaat?]

[What is this? ㅅㅂ]

[The second coming of Sword Saint?]

[Ts… Zeus, lol]

[Out of nowhere, Zeus vs Tathagata, huh? lol]

[Is this even real?]

[Leo, focus!]

“Confusing. I’m so confused.”

Throwing a spanner into the works, the Demon King of the Thread’s eating scene, and now replacing Pharaoh with Leo caused Zeus to appear instead.

Should I have anticipated that I would appear as Monku from the start?

“Originally, I thought I’d gather the Monku party and confront Lady Tathagata properly.”

My original plan was to have Wukong grow stronger, then form the thread with That Guy Uncle, and allow Wukong to gain enlightenment after the confrontation.

But with Leo suddenly turning into Zeus, the situation changed drastically.

Somehow, Wukong’s tumultuous adventure of trials and tribulations may have to end here.

[?]

[You mean Tathagata vs Zeus? lol]

[…?]

[Isn’t this just fine?]

[Let’s go with Tathagata!]

[Leo’s situation sounds similar to Sword Saint and the World Tree taking over the demon’s body, right?]

[It’s getting messy.]

“Taken over…”

Though my plans were disrupted, I always prepare for worst-case scenarios.

If anything goes wrong, I have a last line of defense ready to resolve the situation.

But the idea of Leo willingly giving up his body didn’t cross my mind.

“Leo is no Sword Saint and wouldn’t foolishly give up his body.”

Nymph transformation may make the user regress in maturity but does not affect intelligence.

Moreover…

“This is strange. Zeus doesn’t have such power to take over bodies.”

Born and raised within the system of the Tower of Growth, Zeus became a Celestial through great power. Though he reached the level of a Middle Angel or Demon Lord, his power source still originated from a lower system.

Compared to something far superior, like the ‘Deoen System,’ it was almost impossible for him to forcibly take over Leo’s body, which was protected by that system.

Sword Saint’s body being taken over was possible only due to the special circumstances involving a dungeon system, a long exposure to sword magic, and the demonic race’s peculiar abilities.

The idea of Zeus, on his own, taking over Leo’s body is simply absurd unless…

“Unless he willingly gave it up…”

[?]

[Huh?]

[Hm?]

“Excuse me for a moment.”

I placed the thread temporarily inside a subspace and closed my eyes.

My goal was Leo’s spiritual world. Though Zeus had dominion over it now, he was busy fighting, and I could slip in through the connection point with Leo.

If it were Leo, he wouldn’t reject me…

—

Tok.

Tong.

Swish-swish-swish!

Haha-ha-ha~

“…”

A garden filled with animals, spirits, and nymphs wandering around.

From afar, it seemed like a fairy tale, but up close, it appeared to be quite chaotic.

At the center of the garden stood Leo, staring at a yellow screen while stretching his hands forwards.

“Aww… Seriously, can’t do it?”

“Lord Leo?”

“Whoa? Lady Lily, how did you get here?”

“What are you doing?”

After asking, Leo emitted a soft whine and shook his head.

“I was just observing because repeated 2nd-grade spirit possessions weren’t working. I wanted to see if viewing my body from a third-person perspective would change anything.”

“Did you gain any insights?”

“Nah… But I feel like I’m getting somewhere…”

Leo sighed deeply.

I grabbed his cheeks.

“Eeeh?”

“If you’re doing such things, you should let me know. It disrupts the plan.”

“Bueh… I’m sorry…”

Leo bowed his head in apology.

While somewhat irritating, I decided to let it slide since it wasn’t a big issue.

“Rather, it may speed things up.”

I had intended to significantly increase the cognitive duration and attempt the challenge once all members of the group were ready anyway.

Squish-squish.

While continuously messing with Leo’s cheeks, I gazed beyond to Zeus.

Zeus was fiercely battling using Leo’s body.

Though Tathagata confronted him with a compassionate expression, the wounds on his body were growing.

“Should we go back? I think I need some time alone to reflect…”

“No. Please take more time to think.”

“Huh? Isn’t there a problem that brought you here?”

“If help is offered, there’s no point in rejecting it.”

Perfect timing since Pharaoh was missing, we’d have a strength advantage now.

Roooom…

A distant holy energy seeped into Leo, and the bonds between Leo and the Celestial contract grew even stronger.

Now Zeus couldn’t exit the body without the permission of either me or Leo.

“Ah, a Celestial contract.”

“You shouldn’t enter someone’s body without consent.”

It was time to seal this long period of training.

—

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