Chapter 294. Constellation System (5)
An old memory.
Yet one that still remained vivid in his mind.
“Nice to meet you. I am Arlecchino Number49. You may simply call me Number49.”
“Ah, it seems speaking is difficult for you. My apologies.”
“Judging by your condition, you seem to be in an extremely difficult situation. It must be very painful.”
“May I help you?”
“Well, to be precise, I’m not the one helping you.”
“It is the great ‘Nameless One’ whom I serve.”
“I am merely his representative.”
“He said that he is the guardian of all those struggling at the very bottom of this world.”
“He learned of your existence and decided to show you mercy.”
“He intends to help you escape from this place.”
“Of course, it will only be assistance.”
“Even a Constellation must pay a tremendous price if they interfere too heavily in a human life.”
“First, let’s form a contract with the ‘Nameless One’ I serve.”
“That will be the beginning.”
“Will you accept the contract?”
“Since you cannot speak, blink twice quickly. I will treat that as your acceptance.”
“Stay strong, no matter how difficult things become.”
“Anyone without even that much willpower has no right to contract with him.”
[You have formed a contract with the S-rank Constellation ‘***’.]
[From now on, the S-rank Constellation ‘***’ will protect you.]
[As a benefit of contracting with an S-rank Constellation, you may choose one of five Blessings.]
[1. 1,000,000 G Coins]
[2. 10 Enhancement Crystals]
[3. 5 S-rank Random Boxes]
[4. 1 Constellation Summon Ticket]
[5. Complete removal of all status abnormalities. Full recovery of Health and Mana.]
“There’s no need for me to explain, is there?”
“You should choose number five.”
“Blink five times quickly, and I’ll register that as your selection.”
Recalling that memory...
Kang Yujin awkwardly operated the Observer.
Watching the situation in the Material Realm...
from his throne in the Spirit Realm.
[S-rank Constellation ‘Heir of the Nameless’ promises maximum support.]
[S-rank Constellation ‘Heir of the Nameless’ is cheering you on with all his might.]
“HAAAAAH!”
I shouted and moved with everything I had.
“Ugh...!”
At that moment...
Taigong Wang finally began using the Taoist arts he had been keeping sealed until now.
BOOOOM!
My fist collided with the barrier he created.
Sparks exploded.
“You bastard... inherited Kang Yujin’s power?!”
“Yeah.”
Kang Yujin’s Constellation Armament, [Hero of the Material Realm].
It reproduced Kang Yujin’s martial prowess itself.
The martial prowess of a human born in the Material Realm who had accumulated countless achievements.
Kang Yujin had obtained a Constellation Armament similar in nature to those of Shuten-doji and the Bull Demon King.
That was why he could grant me his power.
And I had watched Kang Yujin longer than anyone.
Reproducing his power...
was not difficult for me.
“This is impossible...!”
Taigong Wang shouted in disbelief.
“Kang Yujin became a Constellation...”
“and he can even grant his own power to someone else?!”
“How could such an absurd coincidence happen?!”
“No.”
“This isn’t coincidence.”
With my fist still pressed against Taigong Wang’s barrier...
I drew up every ounce of energy in my body.
“This is faith!”
"...!"
The barrier shattered.
My fist slammed into Taigong Wang’s torso once again.
“This is impossible!”
Nezha shouted while staring at the scene before him.
“Kang Yujin became a Constellation?!”
“No, how?!”
“Why are you so surprised?”
Jason scoffed beside him.
“Your master Taigong Wang said it himself, didn’t he?”
“Kang Yujin had the qualifications to become a Constellation.”
“No, even so!”
“How could it happen in such a short time?!”
“And there was no guarantee Kang Yujin would become a Constellation capable of helping you!”
“That is correct.”
Princess Longji answered coldly.
“That is why we said we couldn’t come up with a guaranteed strategy.”
“In other words...”
“this was a gamble.”
“A-A gamble?”
“And at the same time...”
“it was faith.”
“We believed Kang Yujin would become a Constellation and help us.”
“That’s absurd!”
“You relied on something so uncertain...”
“and challenged Taigong Wang to a one-on-one duel?!”
“Hey, Nezha.”
Jason grinned.
“You were a Constellation for ten years too.”
“You should know.”
“K-Know what?”
“That kind of razor-thin, dramatic development...”
“is exactly what makes Constellations go wild.”
“Ghhh...!”
Taigong Wang vomited blood after taking my attack.
But perhaps he had protected his body with Taoist arts.
He didn’t collapse.
His body shot up from the sea...
and he tried to escape into the sky.
[B-rank Constellation ‘Golden and Silver Children’ has sponsored you with 100 million Coins.]
[B-rank Constellation ‘Hunter Favored by the Moon Goddess’ has sponsored you with 100 million Coins.]
[A-rank Constellation ‘Third Son of the God of War’ has sponsored you with 300 million Coins.]
[S-rank Constellation ‘Golden-Haired Knight Commander’ has sponsored you with 500 million Coins.]
[S-rank Constellation ‘Shining Guardian’ has sponsored you with 1 billion Coins.]
[S-rank Constellation ‘Wise Returner’ has sponsored you with 2 billion Coins.]
[S-rank Constellation ‘Grand Preceptor of the Golden Whip’ has sponsored you with 5 billion Coins.]
“Number49!”
“Weapons!”
“From the sky!”
“Understood...!”
There was no need for detailed instructions.
Number49 immediately understood what I wanted.
The Coins being donated in real time by the Constellations vanished in an instant.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Then gigantic iron maces fell from the sky.
Not one.
Dozens.
More than ten billion Coins had already come in...
so purchasing that many was easy.
It was a mass attack...
converting the Constellations’ donations directly into destructive force.
“GAAAH?!”
Taigong Wang was crushed beneath the sudden rain of iron maces...
and plunged back into the sea.
[A-rank Constellation ‘White-Feathered Knight’ applauds and cheers.]
[S-rank Constellation ‘Monster-Slaying Hero’ expresses amazement, saying this is the first time he has seen weapons bought from an Apostle used in such a way.]
[B-rank Constellation ‘Young Master Who Rules Goblins’ nods, saying your teamwork is as good as ever.]
[A-rank Constellation ‘Monk with Flower Tattoos’ shouts that you should completely smash him.]
The Constellations reacted wildly.
And of course...
the sponsorships continued pouring in.
“Number49, do we have any useful long-range weapons?”
“There’s a bow that was created before with the cooperation of the ‘Pure-White Hero’!”
“I’ll send it!”
More than ten billion Coins vanished instantly.
A bow similar to Arjuna’s Gandiva appeared in my hands.
I drew the bowstring...
and pulled up the energy within my body.
“HAAAH!”
An arrow of destruction reminiscent of Brahmastra shot forward.
It split the sea like the miracle of Moses...
and struck Taigong Wang just as he was barely managing to rise from beneath the pile of iron maces.
“H-How can this...!”
“If I think from my perspective...”
“you were all far too careless.”
Jason spoke to the flustered Nezha.
“You never realized Kang Yujin might become a Constellation and join the fight.”
“No...”
“even if you did realize it, you probably never thought it would be much of a threat.”
“If you had considered it dangerous, you could’ve shut down the Constellation System entirely or done something else to block it from the start.”
"...!"
“Maybe Taigong Wang has an excuse.”
“But Nezha...”
“you should have noticed.”
“You’ve been living as a Constellation this whole time.”
“And you watched Kang Yujin all along.”
From that perspective...
this truly had been a gamble.
If Taigong Wang’s side had prepared even the slightest countermeasure...
the plan could never have succeeded.
“You underestimated us too much.”
“Ghhhh...!”
