Overgeared

The landscape was divided into tens of thousands of prongs of lightning. It was the aftermath of the lightning flowing from the body of the Blue Dragon that disrupted his vision.

His transcendent senses and artificial senses warned of danger. It could be guessed based on the ‘Lightning God’ skill, but the Blue Dragon wasn’t a creature composed of bones, flesh, and blood. It was literal lightning shaped like a dragon. The existence itself was a threat.

‘How did the White Tiger beat the Blue Dragon?’

The White Tiger was a giant tiger. Its height and length reached tens of meters. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that it was as huge as a mountain. The white fur that fluttered into the sky like a wave was beautiful and mysterious. It was a presence that reminded anyone of a ‘god.’

However, it was rather shabby when compared side by side with the Blue Dragon. In front of the Blue Dragon, even this huge body was reduced to a normal size. The white divinity felt too gentle compared to the blue divinity of the Blue Dragon. Should it be said that the White Tiger looked relatively cat-like? The Blue Dragon was so big and powerful. At a glance, it was obviously stronger than the White Tiger.

‘Of course, I shouldn’t judge by appearance alone.’

It was a matter of compatible natures. The Blue Dragon was different from a dragon itself. It was a dragon, but it was a dragon of the east. Thus, it had no feet to step on the ground. It flew all the time and released thunder and lightning without the help of rain and clouds.

On the other hand, the White Tiger was the god who ruled the earth. It was bound to the ground, so it had little advantage over the Blue Dragon, who never set foot on the ground. It also didn’t have a special object like the yeouiju that the Blue Dragon was holding in its mouth.

In fact, Mir had said it openly—out of the Four Gods, the Blue Dragon was the strongest.

The Blue Dragon was also the master of a shocking myth. It was a myth where it drilled a hole into the heart of Hanul, a god of the beginning. However, by what means did the White Tiger use to beat the Blue Dragon in the last fight?

‘The last time the White Tiger and Blue Dragon fought was before the Blue Dragon pierced Hanul’s chest...’

In any case, the White Tiger seemed to have an invisible potential.

It happened as Grid was staring at the Blue Dragon and the White Tiger...

-Trash.

The White Tiger said in an imposing voice. The first words it spoke after being revived after hundreds of years were shocking. The Blue Dragon’s eyebrows twitched as it stared at Grid.

-One who can’t even bite is still alive with this mouth.

-I heard you were badly injured in the process of being sealed, but did you hurt your head the most at that time?Have you forgotten the memory of losing the fight with me?It wasn’t me who couldn’t take a bite, it was you.

-Are you talking about the shameful victory you got out of luck because of an unexpected event on the day I should’ve won my 1,000th victory?

-You have a long tongue, just like a loser.

‘...It isn’t 99.’

Did it lose 999 times and win 1 time? There was a saying that the final winner was the real winner, but this was too much. Grid was clicking his tongue when the willpower of the Red Phoenix and the Black Tortoise appeared on his left and right sides.

-What disgraceful behavior are you showing in front of your benefactors?

Grid often regarded the Red Phoenix as a motherly being. Not only did it warmly care for his wounds, but its tone was always calm. Grid could feel the heart full of consideration and affection. It was the same for the Black Tortoise. Today, they met for the first time in a while and Grid was saddened by the fact that the two gods used honorifics toward him.

These existences were so kind to him.

-Those who haven’t forgotten you have unsealed you.Far from thanking them, you growl at each other. You are no different from beasts.

-There must be more than one or two people who are disappointed that you are gods.Rather, they will say that the days when they lived in a fake myth were good.

They harshly criticized the Blue Dragon and the White Tiger. It was at the level of digging at the hearts of the listeners. It was hard to believe considering the personalities that the Red Phoenix and the Black Tortoise had shown so far.

‘Didn’t they come to play the role of mediator in the first place?’

At this right, they were going to cause a fight rather than stopping one. Grid was worried, but fortunately, the atmosphere quickly calmed down.

-I’m sorry.

-I will apologize as well.

The Blue Dragon and the White Tiger were surprisingly obedient to the Red Phoenix and the Black Tortoise. No, to some extent, the expression that it was common sense was correct. They were ashamed as they bowed to Grid and their benefactors. In particular, the attitude toward Grid was cautious. They regained consciousness and were resurrected in response to Grid’s will, so they understood what Grid was like. It was the result of a short, but intense, communication.

The strong will that easily broke through the thick seal created by the disgusting malice of the invaders... They thought it was extraordinary, but it was even more amazing in person.

They were the protagonists of the East Continent’s myths and saw through it at once—Grid was also the protagonist of a certain myth and the god of a certain world.

-You...there is a very short history, but you are still very strong?

After bowing to Grid, anger suddenly spread across the face of the Blue Dragon as it observed the group more explicitly. It was because it had seen the identities of Mir and Yeum. The clever Mir and Yeum tried to control their energy to look like ordinary human beings, but it was impossible to deceive the Four Gods.

-Come to think of it...

Following the Blue Dragon, the White Tiger also showed its killing intent. The two gods remembered the method Grid conveyed his strong will to them. He danced with a sword. It was a sword dance that reproduced emotions, ideas, symbols, etc. It was from the culture of the disgusting invaders.

-You guys are Hanul’s henchmen.

-I thought he was abnormally strong, but he seems to be a mutation that opposes Hanul.

-Shameless guys...!Do you intend to drag us into your faction fight?Don’t think we will be as easily coaxed as the good-natured Black Tortoise and Red Phoenix!

-Us gods exist for human beings.As I have said in the distant past, I have no intention of being reduced to being your tool.

‘It is rotten. I thought it was going too well.’

Grid had guessed that the Blue Dragon and the White Tiger would cause problems. He was prepared for a big fight. However, things unexpectedly went well and he was flustered. Now it ended up like this.

-They haven’t changed.

The Red Phoenix and the Black Tortoise also reacted like something was coming. They weren’t very flustered as they started to raise their divinity. It seemed they were going to intervene by manifesting themselves here.

-......?!

-This...?I can’t...

The Red Phoenix and the Black Tortoise flinched and immediately stopped acting.

-The gods of the Hwan Kingdom have descended to the surface.They are besieging Xing and Cho.

It was a surprise attack the moment the two gods left and the barrier was weakened. From the perspective of the Hwan Kingdom, the Blue Dragon Dao suddenly being taken away by Grid was tantamount to a sudden surprise. Yet even taking that into consideration, the subsequent response was more delayed than necessary.

At the very least, the gods of the Hwan Kingdom should’ve noticed the change when there was a problem with Uram’s personal safety. At the latest, common sense said they should’ve come to the surface before Grid’s group reached the base of the Chivalrous Robbers.

He had been puzzled because they weren’t seen, but it turned out they were besieging the Xing and Cho Kingdoms. It was a checkmate move. The gods of the Hwan Kingdom clearly knew the nature of the Blue Dragon and the White Tiger and were predicting future developments. They knew that Grid wouldn’t be able to handle the Blue Dragon and the White Tiger without the help of the Red Phoenix and the Black Tortoise and forced a choice.

Would they sacrifice Xing and Cho in order to mediate between the Blue Dragon and the White Tiger? Or were they going to give up on the Blue Dragon and the White Tiger that had been unsealed at best?

“This... things are so bad.”

The face of Hwang Gildong, who usually smiled under any circumstances, hardened.

“The base can’t handle the aftermath of the two gods’ divinity. It will break in an ildagyeong.” [1]

The location of the base will be discovered immediately...

Hwang Gildong covered his head and continued talking, “In the worst case scenario, we will lose everything.”

If the Hwan Kingdom invaded the scene when the Blue Dragon and the White Tiger were making a fuss, Grid’s party wouldn’t be able to avoid annihilation. The Blue Dragon and the White Tiger would be sealed again and the situation in the East Continent would become even darker.

Who would search for the new seals of the White Tiger and the Blue Dragon on the continent where Hwang Gildong and the Chivalrous Robbers had collapsed and disappeared? It wasn’t something that Grid could do alone. Even if it was possible, he didn’t know how long it would take. The gods of the Hwan Kingdom might find a way to invade the Xing Kingdom and Cho Kingdom before Grid could find the White Tiger and the Blue Dragon.

‘The gods of the Hwan Kingdom have descended to the surface in large numbers.’

Even Grid’s myth could be destroyed here today...

Hwang Gildong’s voice deepened as he muttered to himself while Grid was questioning the system.

‘How many hours is an ildagyeong?’

He remembered that one sijin was two hours and an ildagyeong was four hours. Yet he needed to check the exact time just in case he was wrong.

[15 minutes.]

‘Isn’t this crazy?’

The unit that meant four hours was one ilgyeong, not ildagyeong.

Grid was sulky and sweaty as he tried to speak to the two gods, “These two gods, please listen to me. I am the Overgeared God who created a new divine world called the Overgeared World. I have nothing to do with the Hwan Kingdom. Rather, I am an enemy of the Hwan Kingdom.”

-This is the first time I’m hearing about the Overgeared World.

-It is the same for me as well.

“You don’t know because you have been sealed all this time!”

-It is impossible to persuade them.They are buried under the belief that their judgment is always right and it is right to think that you can’t communicate with them.

The sharp criticism of the Red Phoenix continued, but the Blue Dragon and the White Tiger weren’t agitated. Perhaps they didn’t know a sense of shame, but they were proud as they said, ‘Red Phoenix really knows us.’

“We are running out of time. Let’s subdue them by force.” All of a sudden, Mir came to Grid’s side. His appearance of confidently using the power of the Four Gods in front of them was reliable.

“They have just been released from the seal and haven’t regained their strength. There is a chance.”

It was just a question of whether they could be subdued in 15 minutes.

[The time attack quest has begun!]

The system determined the situation to be an emergency quest. The splendid reward details that seemed to demonstrate the high level of difficulty made Grid even tenser. His back came into contact with Mir’s back. They trusted and relied on each other as they once did.

“Here.” Grid recalled that Mir was bare-handed and handed him a few swords. “Pick the one you like and use it.”

It wasn’t a dragon weapon. It was because the dragon weapons could only be used by Grid, a Dragon Slayer, a Sword Saint, and Grid’s apostles. Yet beside the dragon weapon, Grid had many weapons that deserved to be called divine objects and Mir was able to handle them perfectly.

“Let’s aim for the easy opponent first.”

Mir nodded at Grid’s words. Their gaze shifted to the White Tiger, so the Blue Dragon laughed while the White Tiger’s expression crumpled.

-I am stronger than that one!

The White Tiger roared and swung its front paws. Grid and Mir were already under attack at the moment they used Shunpo. Grid and Mir’s swords collided with the claws of the White Tiger and there was a deafening noise.

“White Tiger!”

Blue Tiger appeared at the scene just as the Sanctuary of Metal was unfolding. There was a very worried expression on her face. She wanted to persuade it with coaxing words. The White Tiger realized and lamented that its bloodline had degenerated to become a subordinate of the Hwan Kingdom. It resented the past few hundred years of its absence.

Blue Tiger urgently shouted at it, “White Tiger, you are really going to die!”

-......?

-......?

The Blue Dragon and the White Tiger doubted their ears. Their eyes widened at the same time. The others were surprised as well.

Blood was rising from the White Tiger’s wall-like chest.

1. an old Korean unit of time ?