Leveling with the Gods

Boom!

Ru Yi Bang soared into the sky.

It was the moment the battle between the Great Sage, Heaven's Equal, and the God of War began.

The soldiers were dumbfounded as they saw the size of the staff.

"Is that Ru Yi Bang?"

"How big is it?"

"We can't see it because it's above the clouds."

The Ru Yi rose above the clouds.

Its size was incomparable to the alter egos of Son OhGong that spread across the battlefield.

"And the God of War? What happened to him?"

"Did Ru Yi Bang take him away?"

The soldiers were confused to see the God of War, who had disappeared as soon as the battle started.

Their trusted fighter had vanished in a single swing of the Ru Yi Bang from the Great Sage, Heaven's Equal.

It was incredible, but seeing the Ru Yi Bang in front of them, they couldn't help but believe it.

But...

Woah!

Kiying-.

A resounding roar echoed from the sky above where the staff extended.

The staff swung upward.

And below the clouds...

Fuhak!

A massive mace pierced through the white clouds and descended beneath them.

A earth-colored hammer, the size of a small mountain.

One of Ne Zha's six weapons.

It was the Demon Subduing Mallet (降妖杵).

"He still has all those rare weapons."

Chuck-.

In the blink of an eye.

The giant staff connecting the heavens and the earth instantly fell into OhGong's hands.

Boom-.

OhGong's body flew upward.

Prince Ne Zha, holding the Demon Subduing Mallet in his hand, swung it as hard as he could toward the flying Son OhGong.

At that moment...

Woop!

Zhiyiying-.

The echo of the mallet striking the staff was heard, this time from OhGong's Ru Yi Bang.

Gagak, gagak, gagak-.

The slim and feeble staff overcame the weight of the Demon Subduing Mallet. Ne Zha rolled his eyes as he saw OhGong surpassing the weight.

"Now you're really getting carried away..."

"Grow-."

"......?"

A question mark loomed over Ne Zha's expression.

Being so close to each other, suddenly trying to activate Ru Yi Bang.

"What the hell are you thinking...?"

Ne Zha's gaze traveled to the tip of the staff, where it had collided with the mallet.

And at that moment...

Gagak, gagak, gagak-.

Ne Zha's eyes saw the tip of Ru Yi Bang embedded in the surface of the Demon Subduing Mallet.

"What?

And that doubt quickly turned into certainty.

"Ru Yi-."

Bam, Bam, Bam!

Bam, Bam, Bam!

Ru Yi Bang rose into the sky.

And around the staff, fragments of the Demon Subduing Mallet fell.

"Demon Subduing Mallet......."

The staff that had been embedded in the Demon Subduing Mallet grew larger and shattered the Demon Subduing Mallet.

"Where are you looking?"

While being distracted by the fragments.

Boom-boom-.

Tak, tak, tak!

OhGong's fist crashed into the back of Ne Zha's neck.

Boom

Bam!

Ne Zha's body flew downward, and the True Sword pierced into the Five Elements Mountain to reduce the impact.

Crunch, crunch.

The Five Elements Mountain collapsed one after another under the impact of Ne Zha's flight. Then, landing on the ground, OhGong pointed his staff towards the Five Elements Mountain.

Chuck-.

"Grow, Ru Yi."

Pak-!

BANG-!

The impact of Ne Zha's strike opened a hole the size of Ru Yi Bang in the center of the landslide. Ne Zha, who had been dragged down by the landslide, was then hit by the staff and sent flying to the other side of the mountain.

"Kugh..."

Ne Zha, who was dazed by the shock, quickly protected himself with his Embroidered Beads. (Note: Hortensia changed to Embroidered Beads)

The pain in his chest was intense, as if several ribs had been broken. The sensation of broken bones piercing his lungs made his eyes roll back as he hastily halted his steps in mid-air.

"Kuk!"

He spat out a mouthful of dead blood.

It was then that Ne Zha was forced to admit that his judgment had been wrong.

'There is no chance of winning like this.'

Everything had happened so quickly that he was stunned, but Son OhGong, looking over the huge hole in the Five Elements Mountain, seemed too composed for someone who had just been released from the seal.

After being sealed for over a thousand years, he is stronger than before.

Why?

Obviously, he thought that now, after being released from the seal, was the right time to subdue him because he would be slightly weakened.

"But since things aren't going well..."

Creack-.

Gritting his teeth, Ne Zha shouted.

"Retreat!"

This fight was his defeat.

Now was the time to somehow get out of here, to preserve the Celestial Army.

If they lost their entire Celestial Army and their Generals here.

The next Great Celestial War would be too disadvantageous for the Celestial Realm.

The moment the order to retreat was given...

"Where do you think you're going?"

Flash!

Suddenly, OhGong, who had ridden on his Flying Nimbus, appeared in front of Ne Zha.

Thud!

Thud!

OhGong's fist struck the top of Ne Zha's arm.

Ne Zha blocked OhGong's punch with one hand and pulled out a new weapon with the other.

Kik-.

A long chain extended around OhGong.

Giiiiing-.

Surrounded by the chains, a transparent crystalline layer spread around OhGong.

"It must be the Demon Subduing Chain." (缚妖索)

OhGong's eyes narrowed.

The Demon Subduing Chain.

Among the six weapons in Ne Zha's arsenal, this was the one he feared the most.

An object that trapped its bearer, sucking them into the chain and taking them to a completely different prison-like world. OhGong was caught and captured by this very weapon over a thousand years ago.

BANG!

OhGong, who had already been trapped, struck the Demon Subduing Chain with his fist.

Pap-!

A small crack appeared in the chain.

But that was it.

The Demon Subduing Chain would not break easily.

"Grand General!"

Ne Zha hurriedly looked for Lee Rangjin.

As soon as possible, he had to get out of here and join the Celestial Realm.

"Now! Quickly..."

Pak, pak, pak.

But as he turned his head, Ne Zha saw the figure of a giant bull in front of him.

It was Lee Rangjin, wielding his Unbreakable Sword, and the Bull Demon King, fighting by his side.

"Come to think of it, there is still one more person left."

The main actor of the Great Celestial War, who, along with Son OhGong, had torn through the heavens.

As long as he remained, it would be difficult to leave this place safely.

A conflict arose for a moment.

Should he help Lee Rangjin here and escape with him?

Or...

"Preserve the troops!"

Lee Rangjin's voice.

Ne Zha became alert upon hearing his voice.

"I will stay here."

He was holding off the Bull Demon King.

He had given the order to retreat before Ne Zha and had planned to stay behind from the beginning.

Pak, pak-.

The cohesion of the Demon Subduing Chain was gradually crumbling.

Although it was the Demon Subduing Chain, the one trapped inside was the Great Sage, Heaven's Equal.

He couldn't buy much time.

Making a decision was not difficult.

"We retreat!"

Ne Zha left Lee Rangjin-gun with the Demon Subduing Chain.

When the orders of the God of War and the Grand General fell. The soldiers and generals who hesitated at the conflicting orders began hastily abandoning their positions.

Clang, clang-.

The sky opened up.

One by one, the Celestial Soldiers were absorbed into it.

BANG!

"...! ...!"

OhGong shouted from within as he broke the chain.

And while doing it...

Ung-.

Li Jing's body, who had been fighting with YuWon, also began to rise slowly towards the sky.

"I ran out of time..."

With a sigh of regret, Li Jing looked at YuWon.

Cuts and spear stabs. YuWon covered the wounds on his body with one hand and looked at Li Jing.

"How unfortunate, how unfortunate. Just a few more minutes, kid, and your head would be rolling on the ground somewhere around here..."

Pak-.

Li Jing's face blurred.

His vision through the Golden Cinder Eyes trembled. Of course, YuWon couldn't deny Li Jing's words.

Perhaps it was because he didn't have much time left.

Unlike the first time, Li Jing wielded his spear with murderous intent. Apparently, he had to catch YuWon somehow before this fight ended.

As expected.

"You won't survive much longer."

Li Jing pointed the tip of the spear in his hand at YuWon, declaring.

"Before you have a chance to grow, I'll cut you off at the root."

Woof-.

Li Jing's figure gradually blurred.

It was a harsh warning, but YuWon felt quite relieved.

'Anyway, it's over on this side.'

The golden and red eyes returned to their original color.

His tense body relaxed. He had succeeded in his main goal of rescuing OhGong.

No.

The same went for the second goal.

Kwowwww-!

Twack!

A relentless fight continued.

Lee Rangjin swung his Unbreakable Sword as hard as he could against the Bull Demon King. The clouds were torn apart by the spear's tip, and the ground was filled with hundreds and thousands of spear marks.

'So it has come to this.'

It would be difficult to capture Ne Zha with the Demon Subduing Chain around him. The Demon Subduing Chain was an object that was no different from a natural enemy of Son OhGong, as it could completely restrict his movements for at least another minute or so.

During that time, they had two options.

Ne Zha and Lee Rangjin joining forces to defeat the Bull Demon King.

Or, while one waits for their moment, the other takes the soldiers and flees.

And even with two men, it would be impossible to defeat the Bull Demon King in less than a minute.

Naturally, the choice was the second one, and he chose to stay behind.

It was a choice very characteristic of him.

And then...

Boom, boom, boom-.

Son OhGong, who had been caught by the Demon Subduing Chain, was freed.

BAM!

The restraints broke, and OhGong slipped away. Son OhGong scratched his head in annoyance as he watched Prince Ne Zha disappear and the Celestial Soldiers leaving one by one.

"They're all gone."

OhGong's gaze turned towards Lee Rangjin.

He was holding his ground against the Bull Demon King. He didn't seem to have given the slightest thought to retreating, even though he knew OhGong had escaped from the Demon Subduing Chain.

"I'll leave that side to you for a while..."

OhGong's gaze turned towards YuWon in the distance.

All the Celestial Soldiers had fled, leaving only YuWon behind.

Before he realized it, all of OhGong's alter egos had disappeared.

Step, step-.

OhGong walked towards YuWon.

It was a long way, but with each step he took, the distance decreased.

Zap, zap, zap.

After a while, Son OhGong stopped in front of YuWon.

It was strange.

He had thought that once freed from the chain, he would fight against Lee Rangjin without looking back.

It was a strange but familiar feeling.

One thing was certain, the reaction of the OhGong standing before him now was very different from what YuWon had expected.

'This is not the OhGong I know.'

Son OhGong had come to himself, not to the Bull Demon King, nor to his expected adversary, Lee Rangjin, but to himself.

'Why?'

What's even more puzzling.

'Why does he have those eyes?'

Son OhGong, who was seeing him for the first time, was wondering why he had such mischievous eyes.

And then...

Swoosh.

"Long time not see you"

Son OhGong, who had been trapped in the Five Elements Mountain for over a thousand years, stepped forward to greet YuWon.

"Kim YuWon."

"...!"