Chapter 1851 “No, XX what? Wasn’t it over?” It was a very long and fierce battle. The battle of the hell expedition was so brutal that even those sitting comfortably in front of the TV to watch it were exhausted. Could they really win? Baal was so strong that this question was repeated until the last moment. People weren’t at ease for even a moment. In particular, the more they supported Grid, the more they suffered from anxiety. Finally, a number of people complained that their hearts were hurting. It had been a while since then. It was barely finished. Baal’s death marked the victory of the expedition. As usual, it was a victory won by Grid. People cheered in unison. Toasts were heard all over the world. Now let’s take a break. Grid should take a break as well... Just as people were sighing in relief that it was over and feeling a sense of exhaustion, something unexpected happened. An incident occurred. Suddenly, the broadcast was cut off and there was a new world message that said ‘A new Evil God, Asura, has been born.’ Of course, most people were logged out. However, breaking news poured in and spread the contents of the world message. An Evil God. By all accounts, it was the beginning of a new ordeal. All the people who were already exhausted shook their heads. Most of all, they were worried about Grid. A break—Grid must be the one most eager for it. However, he couldn’t get a break and got caught up in a new incident... “It is right after he defeated Baal. It will be tough even if it is Grid.” “I’m worried about the other Overgeared members. Hasn’t everyone been fighting demons the whole time Grid was fighting Baal? They have a different position from Grid, so they would’ve been exhausted from the start.” The timing was so bad. Why was a new Evil God born at this time? There was a sense of blatant malice. It wasn’t through chance but necessity. In other words, there was a high probability that the situation was deliberately designed by someone. Of course, that someone was Baal. “That sick bastard...” The worst enemy was one that grabbed at their ankles, even in death. It was like Grid and the expedition team had stepped on shit. Something went wrong. Maybe they would lose a lot... It was the moment when everyone was worried. [Beriache might just be a soul body, but she has taken on the power of Baal and Amoract. She is currently one of the few beings in hell who can stand up to me, but she has disappeared. Even though she wouldn’t like to see a piece of stone claiming to be the god of hell in her father’s place.] Purple lips that shone as if they had been painted thickly—Asura’s mouth continued to speak and irritated Grid’s nerves. It was an attitude that shook the concentration of the mentally exhausted Grid. ‘It isn’t a situation to care about Beriache right now.’ Come to think of it, why didn’t Beriache come after him? Grid struggled to suppress the questions that naturally rose. First, he considered her position. She said she couldn’t die. The moment her soul body was destroyed, Beriache would be reduced to the same state as Baal and Amoract. She would be sacrificed to Asura. That much had to be stopped. The power of 10,000 beings. In theory, Beriache’s power had the greatest potential. There was a high probability that there would be no answer the moment the being in front of him, who had been reborn as an evil god according to Baal’s wishes, got his hands on Beriache. [You are so wary of me. I am... if I had to make an analogy, I am like a newborn baby. I haven’t harmed anyone, let alone you. What is the point of being hostile to me like this? Why don’t you ignore me and just take a break?] That’s right. Grid was strangely convinced by Asura’s words. [The Sword God Biban that you are worried about is still safe. It was only a collision that happened because he got in my way. I don’t have any ill feelings towards him.] “……” Grid’s tension, which had remained tight since entering hell, loosened for a moment. The words that Asura whispered made it that way. [My purpose is to destroy the red flesh. It is the core that existed since the beginning of time that fulfills the wish of its user and is the culprit behind the distortion of hell created by Baal. The distortion of hell will be lifted the moment I destroy it. That is probably your wish as well. We should form the right relationship and work together.] “......” [Affinity with Asura has risen by 10.] [It took a lot of hard work to knock down Baal. Leave the rest to me and rest well. However, don’t forget to be wary of Beriache.] [Affinity with Asura has risen by 20.] [Affinity with Beriache has decreased by 20.] “......!” Grid came to his senses as he continued to advance through a series of Shunpo. It was because he felt a sense of strangeness through the favorability system that worked arbitrarily even though he was silent. “Is it Amoract’s power?” The power to stir up conflict—coincidentally, it was a power that Grid had never experienced. This old fox hid in Baal’s shadows while looking for an opportunity and was killed by Grid after failing to make a proper move. It was a cause of being too cautious and being ruined. [Hmm...? I was just being considerate of you.] Asura’s mouth grinned. The body that was facing Biban must be scratching his chin calmly right now. “He is worse than Baal, at least. Squeak squeak.” The mouse perched on Grid’s shoulder spoke. Evil Dragon Bunhelier—immediately after Baal’s defeat, he polymorphed again when he sensed the signs of Amoract opening the warp gate. Now the guy hiding in Grid’s cloak finally appeared. “The worst evil has produced the worst evil. Indeed, it is troublesome in many ways if you are the strongest. Squeak.” “...How long are you going to stay like this?” “Baal might be dead, but the pressures of hell that bind me still persist. Squeak. There is no need to go out and attract anger in my vulnerable state, right? Squeak squeak...” “......” From Amoract to Beriache and then Asura. From Bunhelier’s point of view, they were all threatening existences. As he said, it was better if he stayed quiet than to attract attention. ‘The problem is that he looks like he is enjoying it.’ “By the way, he is a real monster. Even though his body is divided into pieces, his senses are shared and he seems able to use Shunpo freely. Even an Old Dragon can’t do such a thing. Squeak squeak.” It was just a mouth, but it used Shunpo. Considering that the condition to use Shunpo was just to ‘secure vision,’ it was originally an impossible thing. As Bunhelier guessed, all of Asura’s body parts seemed to share a single sense. “But I’m not convinced. Even if their senses are shared, their eyes are in a completely different place. In a situation where the eyes are looking at a completely different place from here, how can the mouth freely use Shunpo?” “Maybe he has something like Barbatos’ Vision like you. Squeak. No, it must have a much wider field of view than Barbatos’ Vision.” In the end, it all boiled down to one thing: Asura’s ability was extraordinary. It was an Evil God made by the offering of Baal, a child of one of the Gods of the Beginning, and the main culprit of distorting hell. It would’ve made no sense if he was ordinary, but this level was too high. “You had better be determined.” Bunhelier warned despite watching from the sidelines in real time how strong Grid had become. ‘It is a real plague.’ Grid frowned as he realized the seriousness of the situation thanks to this. It was right after defeating the biggest enemy. The desire to rest was weighing on him. No, in the first place. Should he be given time to recover after a big incident? That was a cliche. No matter whether it was novels, a cartoon, a game, or a movie—it was a basic virtue that every story should uphold. Grid even knocked down the source of all evil. He had just liberated souls and saved the twisted fate of the surface. What type of nonsense was it to be subjected to new trials one after another without being given time to rejoice? The thing that worried him the most was that even at this moment, the apostles and his colleagues were fighting throughout hell. How flustered must they be to hear that a new Evil God was born as soon as Baal died, while the enemy in front of them was unharmed? His colleagues had been fighting with one mind and that was to hold on until they knocked down Baal. He was worried that they would suffer a state of collapse and experience a crisis. “Those eyes... You are still worried about other people at this moment,” Bunhelier said with a sigh. “Pat... Squeak.” It was pathetic. Bunhelier was about to criticize Grid only to suddenly shut his mouth. It was the aftermath of remembering his battle with Baal. A being he never would’ve taken down if he hadn’t cooperated with Grid—throughout the fight against him, Bunhelier had thought that Grid was strong. He had relied on Grid. Looking back on his feelings at that time, it wasn’t bad... Doing things for others—if the result was ‘cooperation’ and his ‘purpose’ could be achieved as a result of the cooperation— In the end, wasn’t it all good? “...Can I also get a companion?” Real companions who cared for each other and relied on each other. It was at a time when Bunhelier had a question he never imagined before. “If you don’t betray me.” Grid had been ignoring the mutterings of Bunhelier, who was on his shoulder, as he kept heading toward his destination. Now he suddenly opened his mouth. “I will continue to be your colleague.” Today, they were colleagues. They relied on each other so much that he thought it was a shame to end it as a one-off. “...Kukuk.” Bunhelier didn’t bother to answer. He just laughed like it was ridiculous and hid back inside Grid’s cloak. Immediately afterward, Grid landed on the ground. It was with his back to the angels. “Grid!” “You’re here...!” Ibellin and Coke were enthusiastic. Asuka seemed to be secretly pleased. The expressions of the masked angels couldn’t be read. What they had in common was that they were blocking the entrance of the underground. They formed a barrier using their own bodies. Asura’s mouth murmured after arriving just after him. [Are we going to fight after all?] Step. Then the sound of footsteps was heard. The mouth, which had been floating alone, regained his body. Evil God Asura—his complete appearance gave the impression of being ‘smooth.’ It felt like seeing a work of art with a purple sheen flowing over his sleek, muscular body. He was dragging something in his hand. It was BIban. A giant person who was two meters tall—the Absolute, who had obtained the title of god in a human body, had been completely subdued. [I didn’t mean to kill him from the beginning. I want to use this as an opportunity to erase the animosity you harbor toward me.] Asura said while listening to the breathing of Biban, who was still alive. Then he released his grip on Biban’s hair and shrugged. [Once again, my purpose is the culprit that is distorting hell. Your purpose is the same, right?] The mass of red flesh—Asura insisted that he intended on destroying it. Grid’s thoughts were different. “You aren’t trying to destroy it, you want to eat it. That is who you are.” By ingesting the source, he would become perfect... Grid’s insight pinpointed Asura’s true intentions. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞 At this point, Asura couldn’t deny it. [You saw it precisely, but... ian’t it also true that it will be destroyed if I ingest it? You will get the result you want. The distortion of hell will be lifted and the surface will have perfect peace.] “That is until you cause a new crisis.” Grid pulled out Defying the Natural Order and squeezed it. He wanted some rest. For Grid, this was his only thought. He didn’t want to waste time having a meaningless conversation. Then his face suddenly stiffened. It was because he felt something strange. Sword God Biban—Grid had experienced his abilities directly and indirectly. Biban was a valuable presence that increased the power of the sword just by being by his side. But now it was silent. The sword energy of Defying the Natural Order wasn’t strengthened. ‘Is he dead?’ It happened the moment when Grid turned his attention to Biban, who was still lying on the ground... Before he knew it, Asura was right in front of him and reached out. Dozens of hands rose like illusions behind his back, crushing and smashing the metal sun made by the God Hands and pulling Grid out of the sun. Asura—he made dozens of movements with one hand gesture. The angels witnessed this ridiculous ability in real time and were appalled. “You are trapped.” Unlike them, Grid’s expression didn’t change at all. He ignored Asura, who had grabbed him by the collar, and stared at the barrier that had been raised in the wilderness. The identity of the barrier—it was Biban’s sword. The sword, which was broken in a ‘huge manner,’ formed a two-layered barrier on the battlefield. Defying the Natural Order reacted to the feeling that was felt inside the barrier. It shook lightly and the sword energy was sharply amplified. Biban’s figure, which had been lying dead, changed into a sword. An ordinary long sword—it was one of the countless swords that floated in Biban’s mental world. “The groundwork is almost done.” The person who appeared above the barrier—it was Sword God Biban. He was holding Broken Sword in his hand. It wasn’t the ‘illusion’ of the broken dragon weapon that had grown huge. It was the real dragon weapon created in his mental world with Grid. It could never be broken. “You can rest assured. Leave this place to me and do your work.” A battlefield with huge swords forming a barrier. The hint was the sword in the background. This place was already a world of swords. It was Biban’s mental world. Without anyone noticing, Biban had taken over the space. “I understand.” Additionally, Grid didn’t doubt Biban’s skills. He immediately turned around and went underground. His goal was to destroy the red flesh. It was only then that the distortion of hell would be resolved and Asura, who lost his origin, would rapidly weaken. [What is going on?] Asura clicked his tongue and immediately chased after Grid. The angels blocked his way. However, it only bought him a split second of time. To be precise, they consumed a few movements. That was all. It was enough. Biban arrived. The sword energy, honed beyond the barrier built by the illusion of the sword, was contained in his sword. Asura and the angels felt it was the accumulation of power using the gap that had been created for a very short moment, but the truth was different. Biban was the master of this world. He applied the flow of time differently only to himself and accumulated decades of sword energy. He only allowed himself to accumulate it. There wasn’t even a single speck of sword energy that was lost over the course of decades. It was because he was the Sword God. "Thank you. Thanks to you, I learned the power of my sword, learned what I still lack, and was able to devote myself to learning.” There was a small but eerie cutting sound as Asura’s smooth body was cut in two. The blood that gushed out like a fountain was blocked by the sword curtain. Biban’s figure looked like a gentleman holding a transparent umbrella on a day of blood rain. “Grid, rest in peace.” “...No... you are treating me like I am... dead....” Asura stared blankly at the unrealistic scene unfolding before his eyes and scolded with a frown.