Episode 150. How to kill the gods (1)
There have always been many tales about gods. The ability to create stories is a feature that distinguishes humans from other animals. And fictional ‘gods’, whose existence couldn’t be confirmed, were constantly reconstructed based on human imagination.
Humans praised animals or prayed to the sky. They always needed something to lean on, and an almighty ‘god’ was enough to fulfill that need.
So simply put, humans basically created the concept of gods themselves.
“No animal predicts their fate by looking at the sky. No green plant, blossoming flower, or rock on the ground depends on or leaves their fate to an almighty being.”
I muttered as I tapped a piece of paper with my pencil. After that day, I searched all sorts of old records. Myths and tales about almighty beings were all stories that humans created themselves.
‘Transcendents build up their class through stories and shape images to create powers.’
But did that only apply to Transcendents? That was my biggest question. When I was staying in the world of Transcendents, I uncovered the nature of a Transcendent made entirely of fire. And the moment I was about to destroy it, the Traveler said that I had figured out how to kill Transcendents.
It was like solving a question. The moment I figured out how he was constructed inside and deconstructed his nature, the Transcendent would die.
So, if you created a scene where you destroyed the image they believed in, you could extinguish them.
‘Which means I have to destroy the very significance of their existence.’
I wrote down a sentence with my pencil. I didn’t know much about Transcendents, but it wasn’t difficult to figure out how they died.
‘The important thing is how to handle images.’
In the end, it wasn’t so different from dealing with monsters. In fact, it might be easier than fighting monsters.
This was a process that needed the perspective of the ‘Analyst Jeong Si-woo’, not the ‘hunter Jeong Si-woo’. Secretly taking out a building block and tearing down my opponent based on a small weakness. This was what I did best.
‘It’s like a game.’
If fighting monsters was an MMORPG where you built up your stats and followed an attack plan, this process was a sort of strategy game.
Reading the next move. A game where you predict everything based on a single piece of information and studying how and where to stab your opponent. It was a game I had played all my life.
My head became clear, and another line was drawn on my palm.
“I think this much… should be enough.”
Tap.
I put down the pencil and looked at the screen in front of me.
-Prolonged gaming can have an adverse effect on your health.
I thought strategy games were the most similar to the method of dealing with gods. So, I played for three days, thinking that it wasn’t a game but the real deal. My opponents were ordinary gamers, not Transcendents, but the practice wasn’t so bad.
-Player: Jeong Si-woo.
-100W 0L 0D.
Including my first practice game, nobody could beat me.
-Hell. Are you smurfing? Or are you a cheater? Who the hell plays like this!
I ignored the chats popping up on the bottom side of the screen and turned off the computer. I stretched my hand, took out my phone, and sent a message.
-There’s somewhere I need to drop by. I’ll call you when I’m done.
Then I looked up at the sky and opened my mouth. It wouldn’t take long.
“You kept summoning me, right? Why don’t you tell me why? Take me away.”
I concluded that it wouldn’t be so difficult to wipe out every single being that could endanger me and treat me like an insignificant toy.
[…I’ve been waiting for a very long time.]
And with that, my body slowly faded away. It meant that I was leaving my dear world and returning to the world of Transcendents.
[We can talk once you’ve returned.]
* * *
The Traveler’s world was no different from when I was there before. An empty white space with nothing special. In the center was the Traveler, an old man that resembled a mountain god.
“Time flows differently here and there, anyway. Why did you take so long? Do you have any idea how long I waited?”
“Haven’t you lived for a very long time? Waiting that much more shouldn’t be a problem for you.”
“You don’t know how valuable my time is. How frustrating.”
I went near the Traveler and comfortably sat down. He was about to say something, but he just let out a sigh and spoke.
“I guess you don’t know why I kept calling you. Yes, I may have been annoying because you thought everything was over, but I kept talking to you.”
“You are well aware of it.”
“Well… I do take an interest in you because this place is dull and boring. At least the same day doesn’t repeat where you were. But you are a Transcendent now, aren’t you? There are things you must do as a Transcendent, which is why I summoned you myself.”
“Things I must do…?”
“Yes. After all, I am undoubtedly the one who made you into a Transcendent. So it is my duty to tell you.”
His duty to tell me. Why was he rambling on like that? What was he about to say?
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