“Uncle!”

Lee Gun was surprised when his nephew hugged him in a welcoming manner.

If one looked at this man’s way of speaking, appearance, and energy, he was clearly Chun Sungjae. However, his height and age were completely different.

In the past, Sungjae used to be 160 cm tall and looked skinny enough to be blown away by the wind. Now, he was over 180 cm tall, almost as tall as Lee Gun.

Therefore, he had to ask again, “Are you really Sungjae?”

“Of course, it’s me! Wehhh!” Chun Sungjae was so glad to see Lee Gun that he couldn’t speak coherently. “Me, me! Do you realize how long I haven’t been able to see you, Uncle!!!”

In the end, Lee Gun tapped his nephew on his rear, who continued to hang onto him. “Hey, if someone saw this, they would assume we’ve been apart for ten years.”

Chun Sungjae took deep sobs. “Two years!!! I wasn’t able to see Uncle for two years!! In two years, I could have rewatched footage for 730 days. I could have spent 17,520 hours buying goods. I could have used 63,072,000 seconds to film Uncle’s vlog!”

“Did you plan on taping me while I went to the restroom?”

He looked dismayed for a moment, but it didn’t take long for his face to harden.

“Wait a moment. What? Two years?”

It looked as if something was off. He had left the earth for six months, yet two years had passed for Sungjae.

‘Is the flow of time different here in Eden’s colony?’

Did this influence Sungjae’s growth? Of course, all of Sungjae’s genetics went toward him being smart. He wasn’t supposed to grow over 170 cm at the end of his growing phase.

‘I guess the Serpent Bearer temple is known as the temple of Life for a reason.’

He could revive dead hair, so why wouldn’t he be able to revitalize the stalled growth period? In other words, Lee Gun’s power had caused Sungjae to grow in height.

Lee Gun laughed as he said, “Hey, Sungjae. Don’t greet only your uncle. You should show some love to your father. He’ll be saddened if you don’t.”

Chun Sungjae turned his head in surprise. He finally saw his father, and he looked very happy.

“Ah…!”

However, Chun Sungjae immediately ignored his father and hugged Lee Gun once again. “I wasn't curious about Dad. I knew Uncle went to save him. Of course, you would bring him back!”

As if his world was crumbling down around him, Hugo was having a significant mental breakdown. “He should be a son who calls out to his dad. He should lovingly greet me. So why…!”

“Who the hell are you talking about?”

“Is he acting this way because I didn’t recognize him?”

“No, your son was always like that.”

“There is no way my son would act this way!” Hugo despaired. 

Chun Sungjae felt something was off and was embarrassed. He looked at Hugo. “Uncle… Why is Dad acting that way?”

“Well, there is a defect in your father’s head. He’s unable to remember you guys.”

“What?! He can’t remember us?”

When he saw Chun Sungjae’s expression, Lee Gun knew he made a mistake. He quickly tried to change the subject. “Ah! It must be shocking, but it’ll be fine. Uncle will quickly recover your father’s soul, and his memories will be given back to him.”

Chun Sungjae immediately grabbed Hugo’s hand. “It’s fine, Dad. You probably forgot that you planned on giving me ten million won to further my fandom of Lee Gun-nim. However, I understand what you’re going through.”

“Sungjae?”

“You always supported my fandom of Lee Gun-nim. You were a good father who gave me money so that I could collect figurines. You also gave me your room to use as a Lee Gun-nim fan cave. It seems you’ve forgotten all about that, but I can never forget that you were so understanding. I’ll use it well.”

“….”

Sungjae was so happy that he was trying to swindle his father.

Hugo, who didn’t have his memories, started to sweat as he saw his son looking at him with bright eyes. 

Did he really give up his room so that his son could pursue his fandom? Did he really plan on giving him ten million won?

“R-Really? I did that?”

“Yes! That’s why I really like you, Dad! Oh yeah! You told me to put in an order for large posters, figurines, and albums of Lee Gun-nim. They’ll be placed in the living room. Don’t worry, Dad! I ordered the highest quality frames!”

“Uh… Alright.” Hugo felt like a sucker for some reason.

Why would he let his son purchase a Lee Gun poster and hang it up in the living room? Hugo felt leery, but he couldn’t remember it. That was why he had only one train of thought.

‘It seems I was a father who prioritized the needs of my children.’

At the same time, Hugo looked at Chun Sungjae as if something was greatly bothering him.

‘I’ve seen this version of my son.’

He had seen it previously.

‘He looks the same as the one shown in the prophecy of the Delphi Oracle.’

It was around the time when Jean-Louis had invaded the holy ground of the Virgo temple. He had been overwhelmed because of Lee Gun.

- Run!

Hugo had seen it clearly.

Yooha, Sungjae, and the Archer disciples had become corpses, and the city had been decimated.

At the time, Hugo hadn’t paid much attention to that version of the future. Sungjae looked different. Moreover, the ones who could create a similar scenario to that in the prophecy had been Confusion and Time, and they were dead.

‘My son looks exactly like the one I saw in the prophecy.’

Hugo froze. Delphi Oracle didn’t tell him the date when something would happen. He had thought it was a false future, but it turned out to be a future that had been far out in time.

‘Does that mean something will cause death to my family in the near future…’

Hugo was flustered. The monarchs had been all taken care of by Gun.

‘Was it an attack from the gods?’

However, Hugo merely shook his head from side to side. This was a problem for a different time.

“Gun. We have to get out of here quickly.”

Yeonwoo spoke in a pressing manner.

“This place is Eden’s colony. If we don’t hurry, we’ll get brainwashed by Eden, including the Constructs.”

That wasn’t all.

“Moreover, Eden is warlike, like Valhalla. The residents of this colony will be formidable.”

“You’re right.”

Hailey had come to the Divine world before, and Yeonwoo had been a god of the Divine world. Therefore, they were well-informed about Eden.

‘Like Mahabharata, Eden is made up of gods that want “Order.” In fact, they have gone to war in the past to protect the rules.’

However, their definition of Order differed.

The gods of Mahabharata refrained from killing. They considered killing dirty, so the only one with the license to kill in Mahabharata was their fighting-type god. It was all left for him to do.

Basically, the way they punished others was by sending them to the Samsara hell, a place of teaching, enlightenment, patience, and control.

Eden was the opposite. They deluged the humans with punishments. In other words, they kept order through executions.

Moreover, the Constructs and civilians of this place were trained to be warriors. So they were fanatic executioners who believed unconditionally.

‘Words don’t work against them.’

Olympus was known for trade. Ennead stood for purity. Kunlun stood for charity. Mahabharata was known for public order. And Eden was known for executions.

The gods of Eden never listened to others, and in terms of cruelty, they were at the top among the eight great forces.

“If we continue to stay here, the residents will discover us…”

As expected…

“Who’s there?”

“!!”

Everyone flinched when they heard the sharp voice. It seemed the residents had realized intruders had entered this place.

The guards who looked over the Eden colony raised their weapons, glaring at Lee Gun.

“How dare a cunning snake like you crawl into Eden!”

“Disrespectful bastard! Are you here to steal Eden’s disciples?”

Moreover, they numbered in the several dozens. The snake seemed unwelcome in Eden. This had been the case in Ennead too.

‘Well, it’s understandable. Snake is an existence that tempts the gods in Eden.’

Why would Eden like the snake god?

‘Moreover, they were the guards placed over the colony.’

They were loyal to the archangel. There was no way that they’d let Lee Gun and his party leave quietly.

In the end, Lee Gun could read the mood, so he brought out Heaven’s Punishment. The enemies rushed toward him, so he released his Divine power. He was about to swing Heaven’s Punishment, but…

“Wait a moment!! Stop!!!”

“?”

The attacking guards suddenly came to a stop. They shouted as if they had seen something that they weren’t ready to see.

“That weapon…! Isn’t that the great Heaven’s Punishment-nim!!!”

“What?!”

“…?”

They seemed afraid of scratching Heaven’s Punishment. They quickly put away their weapons, and their bodies shook.

In disbelief, they looked Lee Gun up and down. “D…D…Does that mean the one holding Heaven’s Punishment is…! The one with the nasty look in his sharp eyes is…!!”

“…?”

“Him!!!”

“It is him!!!”

“…????”

The guards got on their knees in front of Lee Gun as if they were greeting their god.

“Oh, oh! How could we not recognize your noble face?”

“You look sterner than in your picture!”

“Oh snake god!”

Did they lose their mind? Lee Gun’s expression was a sight to behold.

Yeonwoo, who had been the previous snake god, knew Eden better than anyone here. Her and Hailey’s expressions were a sight to behold as well.

‘Eden is supposed to hate the snake...’

‘Eden has a system where they have only one god, yet they are worshiping a different one…’

The guards couldn’t even look at Lee Gun’s face as they took a beating from Sungjae.

“Hey! How could you not recognize his face at once? You lack faith!”

“Sect leader!!!” The dumbfounded Lee Gun looked at his nephew. “Sungjae?”

“Ah! Please do not worry. Everyone here is my subordinate.”

“Lee Gun-nim! Please sign this!!!”

The guards remained prostrated as they took off their shirts and handed them over to Lee Gun.

Dismayed, Lee Gun looked at Chun Sungjae.

‘What the hell did he do in his time here?’

These were the guards of Eden, who were supposed to monitor and put down any rebellions in the colony. Yet, they seemed oblivious as they called for their subordinates.

“What are you doing? Lee Gun-nim has come! Hurry up and bring all the tributes that we gathered and give them to Lee Gun-nim!”

“It’s a must if we want to grow the Serpent Bearer temple!”

When the guards yelled, screams came from the buildings.

“What? Who’s here?!”

“Lee Gun-nim?!”

These were the screams that could be heard at a concert. The ground started to shake.

At the same time, large beast folks and civilians prostrated before Lee Gun. They started stacking items that were very useful to gods. They offered Talents, Divine power-recharging snacks, and other tributes.

“Lee Gun-nim! Huhk, huhk!”

“Lee Gun-nim!! Please take this!”

“These are the tributes that the Eden colony gathered!”

These were all the tributes that should be sent to Eden.

Usually, tributes were harvested from each colony and sent to the Zodiacs. The Zodiacs used them to grow their power. As they became stronger, the number of Constructs they could possess rose. It was possible to upgrade their territory, abilities, and Divine body. 

Above all else, their lifespan would grow, and they would receive special privileges from the Divine world.

“Sungjae….”

“You don’t have to be on your guard against them. All of them have over 100% faith toward the Serpent Bearer temple.”

“…”

He seemed to be telling the truth.

[Eden Guard’s Serpent Bearer Faith: 200%]

[Eden Guard’s Serpent Bearer Faith: 182%]

…

[Eden Resident’s Eden Serpent Bearer Faith: 287%]

[Other beings with Serpent Bearer Faith over 100%: 120,983,984]

What kind of missionary work did he do that he achieved a number that had been impossible to achieve on the earth?

[The Zodiac Saint of the Serpent Bearer temple (Chun Sungjae) has reached level 20. He possesses a weak Divine status.]

[You may designate him as a Construct (low-rank) rank. You can grant him a Divine status that you currently possess.]

[Currently, Chun Sungjae possesses the Divine name of Demonic Sect Leader.]

Lee Gun couldn’t believe his eyes.

‘My god! The dad is a pushover, and the son is a Demonic Sect Leader.’

Unlike Divine status, Divine name was like a personal trait. He possessed two Divine names, but…

“Listen to me! Uncle… No, Lee Gun-nim is the only god. He possesses the Divine name of Beginning and End Serpent and Designer!”

“Oh, oh! He has two Divine names?!”

“It is rare for a god to possess two or more Divine names!”

“It’s something only the strongest of the gods can have! He is extraordinary!”

“He is more amazing than the owners of Eden!”

Lee Gun grabbed the back of his neck. That wasn’t all.

[A total of 120,983,984 beings want to follow the Serpent Bearer temple. They want to offer tributes.]

[It is an act that goes against the rule of the Divine world. Will you take them?]

Lee Gun smirked at the unexpected windfall. He didn’t care about the rules. Of course, he would take it. Although he was dumbfounded by this development, this was good for him.

‘I’m just paying them back for trying to steal my land.’

“What are you guys doing?”

Suddenly, an unfamiliar voice came from the sky. It looked to be two angels. They had found it odd that the residents of the colony were gathered in one place.

The angels were especially taken aback by Lee Gun’s presence.

“Guards! Didn’t I tell you to keep surveillance over the Demonic Sect Leader’s safety?”

When the angels got closer to them, Hugo immediately brought out his bow. “Should I get rid of them?”

He planned on blasting them before they arrived. However, Lee Gun smirked. “No. I’ll turn them all into my devotees.”

“What?”

“I’m stealing this territory.”

“What?!!”

“They were the ones who stole first.”

“Still, we are within their Colony! They look to be high-rank gods! Are you sure it is possible?”

When he heard those words, Lee Gun took out the Heavenly Peach, and his eyes flashed. “If they don’t want to serve me, I’ll make them want to serve me.”

The power of the snake god violently surged forward.