전생검신 96권 02화

I responded to him.

“Through the Thousand Sacrifices ceremony, you can communicate with the World Tree itself? Is that even possible?”

Solomon chuckled at my words.

“Indeed. I have experienced that communication myself.”

‘……’

I couldn’t easily trust Solomon’s words.

The World Tree!

In some ways, that was the world itself, known as Sephiroth. The source of the life force that prevented the Creator God from giving birth to the Old Ruler and established the order of eternity was the World Tree. Thus, the World Tree of that realm had powers and abilities of a different dimension than the one here, containing the power of the Sephira, which even the gods could transcend. Furthermore, the administrator of that world, the Seven Heavens, was dependent on the World Tree, so its majesty was beyond question.

That’s why I’ve always regarded the World Tree not as a communicable entity but as the law and power of the world itself. The idea of being able to communicate with that World Tree was something I had never even considered.

But did Solomon even have a reason to lie about something like this?

From his perspective, wouldn’t it be easier to just send me to Earth through the Door of the Demon Gods?

…Well, for now, I’ll listen closely.

I said to Solomon, “What’s the benefit of this communication?”

“Hmm… You know what it’s like when you ascended the Sephira. When you make an offering to the World Tree, it responds mechanically to what you have sacrificed.”

“That’s true.”

Back when I refined my internal power and offered that life force to the World Tree, it was precisely like that. There was a set quota for each Sephira, and as I dutifully honed my training to meet that amount, it felt like my level up was guaranteed! As I replied to Solomon, he continued speaking.

“I once thought that was what it was like as a human. However, while studying Sephiroth, I sensed something strange. To be precise, it was thanks to acquiring the Dead Sea Scrolls.”

“What do you mean? What exactly are the Dead Sea Scrolls?”

“I already mentioned it. The Dead Sea Scrolls are a grimoire from another world that allows direct communication with the world of Sephiroth. I happened to obtain the Dead Sea Scrolls while performing a summoning ritual.”

“Hmm.”

“That book contained the fundamental conditions and spells to reach all Sephira, as well as details about the guardians of each realm. And another important thing… it included a method to hear the Voice of the Sealed One.”

‘……?’

What? What the heck does that mean?

I asked out of curiosity.

“The Voice of the Sealed One? What’s that?”

“No need for long explanations. Take this king’s scepter.”

Woosh!

Solomon summoned his king’s scepter again and tossed it to me. The moment I caught it, I felt a tremendous echo resonate as if it were piercing my spirit body.

Wooooooom…!

‘……!’

Th-this is…?!

I sensed that this echo wasn’t aggressive towards me. It was a kind of phenomenon. Like the twinkle of stars in the night sky, it simply existed as a phenomenon! Yet, within that echo, I faintly felt a hazy will resembling a human voice entering my mind.

It was unlike any spirit’s speech I’d ever encountered.

As I seemed lost in the lingering echoes, they soon faded away, and Solomon spoke to me again.

“What you just felt was the Voice of the Sealed One.”

‘…… It felt pretty strange… like a distant echo calling out to me.’

“Exactly. That echo is, in fact, the very sound emitted by the World Tree.”

I was startled by Solomon’s words.

“The sound of the World Tree? But I’ve never heard such a sound before…”

“Only the one who possesses the Dead Sea Scrolls… or the one who holds the scepter infused with its magic can perceive that sound.”

“I see. But even if it’s really the sound emitted by the World Tree, what does that even mean?”

As I tilted my head in confusion, Solomon slowly replied.

“I didn’t think it had any significance, but… do you know how many Sephira I performed the rituals with during my human days while offering the Thousand Sacrifices?”

‘……?’

I pondered for a moment.

Let’s see… As far as I remember, the god of magic Hermes was at the 5th level of the 10 Sephira, and his disciple Simon Magus was at the 4th level. This meant that the 5th level was the divine status, and the 4th level was the highest among mortals, meaning this Solomon guy during his human days was likely at…

‘At around the 3rd level, wouldn’t you say?’

Solomon laughed as if he knew I’d think that and waved his hands dismissively.

“Hahaha. During the ceremony for ascending the throne while performing the Thousand Sacrifices, I was merely a 20-year-old young man. I might have had talent in magic, but how could a mere kid my age achieve even the 3rd level of Sephira? There were countless old geezers who trained for a thousand years and still couldn’t reach the 3rd level.”

“What? Then…?”

“The 1st level. I barely squeezed into the Sephira and awakened. I was just a run-of-the-mill sorcerer with nothing extraordinary.”

‘……!’

I couldn’t help but be shocked by his revelation.

“Have you realized? A measly sorcerer at the 1st level of Sephira received numerous gifts and powers from the Creator God in the world of Sephiroth! It wasn’t simply because the Creator God was feeling generous; it was because I communicated directly with the Voice of the Sealed One.”

A mere 1st level sorcerer got powers and gifts that even the gods would envy!

The fact that it was due to communicating with the Voice of the Sealed One blew my mind!

Driven by curiosity, I asked, “No matter how powerful the Creator God is, he can’t ignore the law of cause and effect. Are you saying that the Voice of the Sealed One has enough value to bear that cause and effect?”

“…….”

After a brief silence, Solomon spoke.

“What I sensed while performing the Thousand Sacrifices was… that the Sealed One is not the god of angels known as Tetragrammaton.”

‘…… What?’

“I’m not entirely sure, but it’s just a guess. If that’s not the case, then the overwhelming reward I received wouldn’t make sense. The World Tree holds secrets that even the Seven Heavens do not know.”

‘……’

He continued.

“If you ever manage to contact the Voice of the Sealed One, you might receive rewards greater than I did. Because, unlike the mechanical responses of the World Tree during standard offerings, if you communicate with the Voice of the Sealed One through the methods in the Dead Sea Scrolls, the returns will be entirely different.”

‘Different methods? What does that mean?’

Solomon briefly averted his gaze.

“You know that the World Tree prefers life force, right? However, the Voice of the Sealed One does not have such a preference and allows you to offer anything you desire in return.”

‘…… So you’re saying it’s okay to offer something other than life force?’

“Exactly. I proposed a migration method to send people from this world to that world by utilizing that fact. You know, such forms of offerings are generally not allowed in Sephira, right?”

“That’s true…”

I finally began to understand Solomon’s words.

The Thousand Sacrifices was precisely a method entirely different from the conventional Sephira training, exclusive to the Dead Sea Scrolls!

It was about making offerings to the very essence of the World Tree, the Voice of the Sealed One!

Thus, it wasn’t necessary to offer life force but instead anything else, and it might even be possible to obtain even greater returns than conventional methods. Solomon standing before me was the living witness of that.

Having grasped Solomon’s explanation, I nodded but suddenly felt something odd and said.

“Wait a minute… Who created the Dead Sea Scrolls? Who could possibly create a grimoire containing secrets that even the Seven Heavens don’t know?”

“There’s a high chance it’s the Sealed One.”

‘The Sealed One?’

“I don’t know who it is, but… there wouldn’t be a reason to create the Dead Sea Scrolls unless it was the voice’s owner. But the only one who might know who that is would be the Creator of Sephiroth, since even the Seven Heavens didn’t know.”

‘Hmm…’

Hearing his words made me suspect that he might have spoken with the Seven Heavens before… Is that guy a bigger shot than I thought?

“Anyway, there’s immense potential hidden in your Thunder Soul. If you can create your own offering ceremony using that power, you might gain tremendous gifts in the future.”

“I see. So what should I do?”

At my words, Solomon’s expression slightly faltered.

“…Hmm?”

“Huh?”

“What do you mean by ‘what’? Didn’t you have any specific methods planned other than refining life force using your Thunder Soul?”

“I thought you had some methods in mind…”

I was tempted to mention how I didn’t even understand the phrase ‘established through training,’ but I felt it was better to keep that to myself.

“…”

After a pause with a dazed expression, Solomon finally forced a smile and said,

“Hehe… You’re just joking a bit too much. I know you’ve already thought everything through. This must be a test for me.”

‘……’

“Anyway, it’s good. If I’m to say what the method entails, then it’s important what you offer. The Voice of the Sealed One also seems to enjoy weighing good and evil, so you might want to keep that in mind.”

At hearing something unexpected, I was bewildered.

“It enjoys weighing good and evil? What does that even mean?”

Solomon rested his chin on his scepter.

“When I made offerings of a thousand people from the common folk at the ceremony for the Thousand Sacrifices, the Voice of the Sealed One questioned me. It asked why I would do such wicked deeds to gain power. I responded that by offering these lambs as God’s people, it was surely a greater good than that of being abused and disrespected in this world of despair. That discussion determined the success of the offering.”

‘……!’

“It seeks assurance on goodness. If you have your own rationale, you’ll be able to pass easily.”

It was a strange story.

Assurance on goodness?

Even in this murky and evil world, someone still wishes for that?

‘……’

If the result can be interpreted as good, is it acceptable for the wicked as well?

But could that be real goodness?

As I contemplated Solomon’s words, I finally spoke.

“In that case, I know what I need to do first.”

“What is it?”

Thump!

I pointed at Solomon with my finger and said, “As the leader of the Eastern Demon, command the persistent Celestial Emperor to stop doing bad deeds in the future.”

“……!”

Solomon seemed surprised by my unexpected command.

“If I’m to converse with someone who values good and evil, I should at least act nice on the surface, right?”

“Hmm… Is there any guarantee that the persistent Celestial Emperor is up to no good? I don’t think it’s necessary…”

I snickered at Solomon’s retort.

“If they aren’t bad folks, then why would you call them the Eastern Demon? They’re probably committing evil deeds on a galactic scale! You heartless bastard!”

Having heard that sorcerer’s remarks about the alien races before, I had no doubt.

The persistent Celestial Emperor!

It’s certain these guys are a bad group that bullies the surrounding alien races with power. And if I indeed gain authority similar to the Emperor of the Celestial Emperor, it would be right to stop them.

“…Hehe. That’s not necessarily wrong.”

“What’s the issue now?”

“Just that the 72 Demon Gods you banished earlier are planning to summon their apostles to counterattack…”

‘……’

“Since I chased them too far away, I can’t suppress the 72 Demon Gods immediately with my command.”

“No… Come to think of it, why did you have 72 Demon Gods serving you in the first place? While some were a bit weaker, they were all known as the Old Ruler.”

“Of course, I had them to conquer and rule the entire universe. The more power, the better, right?”

“Damn it. You really are a piece of work.”

As I was exasperated, Solomon hummed a thoughtful note.

“Hmm… To prevent even more tedious matters, I should convene a diplomatic gathering now. Is that alright?”

“Diplomatic gathering? Whatever it takes to stop this mess from getting worse!”

If this continues, there would be a chaotic liberation war throughout the universe!

“I got it.”

Bam!

Solomon’s scepter struck the ground, and a gentle vibration echoed as three grand thrones started to materialize in the Emperor’s pavilion where Solomon and I stood.

Kugugugugu…!

The thrones resembled great chairs. Solomon sat down with his arms crossed, waiting for something, while I curiously asked, “What’s going on? What are those three thrones?”

“They will soon respond to the summoning.”

Solomon’s gaze sparkled for a moment.

“The rulers of the four corners of the universe…”

Kugung!

Kugung!

Kugung!

With three heavy thuds, a radiant light descended from the sky onto the thrones. As the light embedded itself, apparitions gradually appeared above the seats.

Among the thrones marked with “West,” an apparition cautiously spoke with a fierce demeanor.

[Could it be that the legendary Demon Emperor still lives…? Our Western Galactic Tribe Alliance cannot overlook this great calamity!]

“……”

Solomon simply rested his chin, not responding to the apparition’s words. But when I saw that apparition, I was taken aback.

“Kalbiog?!”

It was undeniably Kalbiog, the one I knew!

The chieftain of the Western Galactic Tribe Alliance!

Then, following Kalbiog, an apparition appeared on the throne marked “South,” which quietly said,

[Has the seal of the foreign press been lifted? It’s perplexing since it shouldn’t have been done through my own efforts.]

It was only then that Solomon adjusted his posture and greeted,

“Long time no see, Tao King.”

[……]

The being referred to as the Tao King in the southern seat was wrapped in a heavy robe and chose not to respond. From the looks of it, he didn’t seem human.

Lastly, a bizarre figure of light, sitting at the throne labeled “North,” spoke.

[Solomon. I knew you were revived through the activation of the Door of the Demon Gods. However, I never expected you to perform such an unusual act of relinquishing control over your dominion.]

“The treaties between East and North are still effective. I have no intention of launching an attack on the Lords of the Northern Star.”

[That’s uncertain. You have always been known as the wicked King of Demons, renowned for your malicious plots… who knows what kind of schemes you could be plotting now?]

“……”

Solomon surveyed the room and nonchalantly remarked.

“Regardless, it’s nice to finally see the rulers from the four major powers of the universe.”

Indeed, all the major powers from the East, West, South, and North were gathered in this very presence.

 

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