After passing through the four gates, a strange sight greeted them.

Koo-goong—

"Ugh."

"?"

As they passed through the colorful mists, a massive tower, gilded in gold, came into view.

The sheer majesty of the tower left her speechless.

"..."

However, for Kalstein, it was just fascinating.

"A tower like that wouldn't have been hidden outside the Golden Seal."

Kalstein, immune to all illusions and mental-related seals, observed with keen interest.

"Is there a spatial difference? Hmm."

Moreover, since they had to travel quite a distance to pass through the Golden Seal, the scale was entirely different from what they had seen from the outside.

"Ugh. Is it okay? My spiritual energy... it feels frozen."

Since the tower revealed itself, the spiritual energy circulating through her body seemed to freeze and stopped moving.

"I can still manage at least the minimal operation of my dusk-stage techniques."

"That’s only because you’re you. I feel like my spiritual energy is completely frozen."

"Really?"

Well, anyway, she wasn't expected to fight.

"Let’s move forward. Something will come out of it."

"Aren’t you being too nonchalant?"

"Don't you think it would be stranger to turn back after coming this far?"

"Well, that's..."

A mysterious tower, gilded in gold, within the Golden Seal.

Any monk who could pass by it without taking a look would be, without a doubt, an exception.

"Why is the spiritual energy limited here?"

However.

Kalstein waved his finger, and the metal lump in his hand floated into the air.

"Hmm... this ability seems fine."

"Priest, how did you do that? You didn't seem to use any spiritual energy."

Spiritual energy wasn’t his only method. Up until now, he hadn’t learned how to use spiritual energy aggressively.

By cultivating methods like internal martial arts, he had been steadily accumulating and refining his spiritual energy.

"Let’s go."

Kalstein smiled happily.

Zhang Ilhong was at a loss for words.

"G-Good, I’ll go with you!"

Unable to use spiritual energy, her only lifeline was him.

Though, it was really more like he was dragging her along.

Creeeeak—

As he approached the entrance, the door opened automatically.

"An illusionary greeting?"

What awaited them was—

"Huh?"

"P-Priest..."

Zhang Sajeo instinctively grabbed his sleeve in fear.

Dozens of humans, dressed in all kinds of clothing, hung motionlessly in the air with vacant eyes.

However, their appearance was indistinguishable from humans.

The bizarre sight made Zhang Ilhong tremble in fear.

And no wonder— they looked like perfectly normal humans, but were fixed in distorted positions that no normal human could assume.

As Kalstein took a step inside, the dozens of eyes moved toward him.

"Oh!"

Were they alive?

The eerie sight seemed to have made Zhang Sajeo half-faint.

One more step.

Creeeeak—

Were they just watching?

That couldn’t be the case.

Thud—

As Kalstein walked a few more steps toward the center, the figures collapsed to the floor like dolls with severed strings.

"I guess we don’t need to wait for them."

He knew exactly what was happening.

These figures weren’t there to guide them kindly.

Creeeeak—

"Don’t worry. Just rest back there for a bit."

From the dusk-stage pouch, Kalstein took out something long and black.

Clink—

"Let’s see how tough this is."

The E-19A Blaster Rifle.

A prototype blaster-type assault rifle fired toward the front.

Bang— Bang— Bang— Bang—

Thud—

The first figure in line was sent flying and rolled across the floor.

"Oh?"

They weren’t human.

If they were normal humans, there wouldn’t even be any bone fragments left.

Creeeeak— Creeeeak—

The one with deep dents in its torso squirmed like a broken machine.

However, the problem lay with the others.

With Kalstein’s initial attack, the others began charging at them in a pack.

Bang— Bang— Bang—

The rifle was effective. After taking a few hits, some of them couldn’t move.

However, there was no way to stop all of them with just one rifle.

Even so.

"Hahaha."

Various firearms poured out of Kalstein’s dusk-stage pouch.

He effortlessly floated them into the air, and a joyful smile appeared on his face.

"I never said I would fight."

All the weapons fired simultaneously.

Boom— Boom— Boom—

"Let’s see who wins!"

Kalstein, who had started a war on his own, without even the slightest hint of wanting a proper fight.

***

Zhang Ilhong couldn’t close her mouth.

Boom— Boom—

Da-da-da-da—

What... is this?

From all the metallic lumps the priest had pulled out, flames shot out, sweeping everything in front of them.

"Sure enough, the higher we go, the tougher these guys get."

But what does that matter?

Under the dozens of flashes of light pouring from the metallic lumps, everything burned and was destroyed.

Flash— Kwoong—

Dozens of metallic objects circled around the priest, emitting fire. From another metallic object, a sound like tearing air echoed as bullets were fired.

It was nothing short of a fortress.

The speed of the projectiles was even hard for someone like her, at the 8th tier of the Practitioner realm, to detect.

The principle seemed similar to mundane firearms or cannons, but the power was incomparable.

If not for the priest’s unknown transparent shield, even brushing against it would have reduced her to dust.

"Whew."

Priest Ga-hwi walked leisurely as if strolling through a flower garden.

‘Am I caught in an illusion?’

Zhang Ilhong couldn’t help but think that.

‘A法器?’
What kind of artifact could fire so powerfully and continuously without using any spiritual energy?

She had never seen or heard of anything like it.

Even from a glance, these solid and seemingly indestructible objects were shattered and unable to approach.

The surroundings were already in ruins, with dust clouds rising.

Thud— Thud—

The only silver lining was that the outer wall of the tower remained intact.

"What... is this...?"

"Hahaha!"

She couldn’t speak as she stared at the priest, whose eyes had gone wild.

***

The highest floor of the tower.

Creeeak— Creak— Creeeak—

From somewhere on the highest floor, which looked like a laboratory, a voice could be heard.

[Myeonggung…?]

The entity connected to the tower, aware of the disturbance from the lower floors, had known of the chaos since it began. The uproar started on the first floor and was quickly heading toward the upper levels.

The speed at which it was climbing was far too fast.

The tower was a spatial artifact created using sealing stones that sealed spiritual energy.

It was a place that sealed monks with spiritual energy, a place they could never break through.

Yet, if someone was able to pass through with such ease, perhaps only a figure like Myeonggung could manage it?

However, considering it a pursuer of Myeonggung, there was no notable reaction from the Golden Seal prepared against Myeonggung.

[....]

There are occasionally monks from the swordsman sects, who have trained their bodies to the extreme without using spiritual energy, but layers have already been set up to counter them.

In the end, they would only become new materials for him.

Monks who had broken through the Golden Seal and infiltrated the tower made from sealing stones had all invariably ended up as puppet materials, on display below.

The new arrivals would meet the same fate.

[Anyone will do.]

After all, no one would be able to reach this place.

Especially the floor just below the highest one.

That place was impassable even for Myeonggung’s pursuers.

Clink—

However, if a monk were to break through everything and reach the highest floor...

It would certainly be the one he had been waiting for.

Truly.

Though, it was impossible.

But if that were the case...

[Hehehe.]

It would surely be the one to fulfill his long-awaited wish.

Of course, no one had ever arrived after such a long time of searching, so he didn’t have much hope.

***

Boom—

"The firepower’s running low."

"That’s impossible."

Zhang Sajeo had been repeating that same line like a parrot, trailing behind.

"If this is an artifact used by monks, shouldn’t this much firepower be possible?"

"Well…"

It wasn’t impossible...

But for the priest to still be standing after unleashing this much firepower, it wasn’t a problem with the artifact; it was something only a high-tier monk could manage.

"Hmm. They don’t fall easily. No real weak spots either. You called them puppets?"

"Mm-hmm."

The "puppets," considered the pinnacle of artifact creation, were known to be difficult to craft, even by the Hwagum Sect.

Before Kalstein stood hundreds of puppets, each taking positions and moving organically, charging toward him.

Some of them even used sorcery.

Boom— Boom— Boom—

However, the hundreds of firearms Kalstein had pulled out weren’t ordinary either. Among them were cannons far larger than typical rifles.

"Hmm. If I increase the firepower any further, I think this side might not be able to hold up."

He could usually endure the recoil with a few emergency defense kits, but any more than that would be impossible.

"Is this the end of the shooting game?"

"What?"

Kalstein, completely unfazed by the situation, began to move.

Crunch—

"I’ve more or less figured it out."

"...!"

He clenched his fist in the air, and one of the nearby puppets twisted and stopped moving.

Crunch—

"It’s not easy."

"W-what?"

"Surprisingly, these guys seem to be made of metal too."

Crunch—

Kalstein dismantled one of the puppets, turning it into scrap metal, and shook his head.

"Still, it’s tough…"

But, despite the difficulty, there was no sense of urgency.

Well, after all...

"It might be boring, though."

There was no need for him to destroy them completely.

As Kalstein waved his hand, several of the puppets stumbled.

Not only those attacking, but also those defending, charging, or advancing.

Their stances wavered, and their formation fell apart.

In the meantime, countless bombardments rained down.

Boom— Boom— Boom—

Even the firearms began to show strategic movements rather than indiscriminate bombardment.

"I wonder what kind of reward they'll give me?"

To someone at the 8th-tier Practitioner level like her, all of this felt like a dream.

However, even when she pinched her cheek, nothing changed.

"Priest... Could it be...?"

"Hmm?"

"Could it be that you infiltrated the Hwagum Sect while hiding your true cultivation level...?"

"What are you talking about?"

"A high-tier monk concealing their identity?"

"...?"

"What do I do? Until now, I—"

"Sajeo."

"Hmm? No, yes?"

"Get a grip."

Shake, shake—

Was the Neck Slice not enough?