Ep525 - I Became a Drunkard in a Martial Arts Novel.

God. An entity reputed for omniscience and omnipotence, yet whose existence remains uncertain. Such an entity now stands before me. And, astonishingly, it has even initiated a confrontation. The first reaction from the god, forced into a choice by a mere human, was... "L-Laha... Hahaha!" Laughter. Amusement mixed with absurdity. Perhaps an expected response. For a human, imagine an ant, unnoticeable unless scrutinized closely, baring its teeth abruptly at you. How amusing, when a life so easily snuffed with a simple step dares to challenge. And yet, it is not merely laughter. As if stifling a laugh from the pit of its being, the god stops and calmly glares at me. "Did you find me laughable because I treated you kindly?" What follows is a slight anger. A needle in the pocket always has a way of piercing through to reveal itself. The god is no different. No matter how shabby its appearance or nonchalant its demeanor, its presence cannot be concealed. Especially for someone like Baek Woo-jin, who has reached an unusual human zenith, would feel this acutely. Which means, this audacious human displayed such a demeanor even while sensing the god’s presence. "Among all the toys I've had, I endeavored more with you to cherish you as special, yet my favor seems to have felt like a right to you." A voice rich with thick ire reverberates throughout the entire temple, returning with pressure. The intensity is substantial. Mere words cause knees to buckle and strength to wane. At this point, fear should prompt at least one conciliatory word. "I saved your dying world twice, shouldn’t that be considered a right?" Yet, he remained undeterred. No, he fought fiercely against yielding. The god, disbelieving, inquired incredulously. "Do you truly believe so? Would my world have vanished without you?" Baek Woo-jin shook his head. "It wouldn't have vanished. However." A crooked smile played on his lips as he continued. "It would have remained a grand failure. Perhaps as an exemplar of a notorious flop in the annals of literature…." Before he could finish, the god erupted. "How dare you!" The infuriated god waved a hand, scattering something into the air. From the fingertips swept through the void, a long object shot out. Enshrouded in a bright white glow, it was hard to discern, but it was undoubtedly a brush. Unlike its original use, the stiffened tip aimed straight at his loudly talking mouth. He blocked the incoming brush with the flat of his blade. BOOM! A thunderous sound shook the temple's interior. Simultaneously, Baek Woo-jin's body was propelled back, slamming into one of the walls. CRASH! Intense pain radiated from his back and waist. Yet, it was nothing. "Guh…!" The tremor in the arm and sword that blocked the brush did not cease. Such power in a casual flick to ward off a buzzing mosquito at his side. ‘This is screwed.’ He can't fathom at all. Where the limit of that power lies. But even the god was equally astonished. "Blocked it...? A mere human?" Just as humans don't exert full strength to catch a fly, a mosquito, or a cockroach, neither does a god. Yet, it was an overwhelming force to easily capture a mere human. The human before him, however, stood resilient, having faced this power full on. Under kinder circumstances, this might have been admirable. Yet, enraged as he was, the god could no longer dismiss it lightly. "Dare you defy the actions of a god...?!" Despite the bare display of anger through words, the god did not rashly extend his hand again as before. Though he wished to annihilate instantly, he restrained himself. ‘Blasted causality.’ Beyond the insolent behavior shown in front of a god, he had excellently completed the task assigned to him. Thus, he must be rewarded. In the form of the "wish" originally promised. No god, no matter how powerful, is entirely free from the laws of nature. This right was bestowed solely upon the chief deity who created the world along with the god himself. Ultimately, quelling his anger, the god leaned back against a grand chair, seemingly resigned, and asked. "Haa..., very well. As you say, it is your right. State your wish." Baek Woo-jin, struggling to detach himself from the wall, dusted off his clothes and replied. "I told you. Don’t interfere with my world anymore." To which the god, agitated, shouted. "It's not your world; it's mine. And I believe I made it clear that I cannot grant that wish." "Well, that's the only thing I want." Their opinions ran parallel, never intersecting. Neither was willing to yield. The god, who was on the verge of experiencing an unprecedented headache, waved a hand through the air. A halo of light followed the motion of the fingertips. Soon, a familiar object materialized. A gigantic sheet of paper, as if two or three men had stitched it together. Upon it, a brush tirelessly wrote, filling every inch with writing. "Do you see this? This is the brush that scripts your world. It's diligently at work as we speak." In the blink of an eye, hundreds of letters etched themselves onto the paper. A sight that left him a tad deflated. The rise and fall of an entire world were being dictated by mere words on a page. "If this brush stops, the world slips out of my grasp. I don't know exactly what you desire, but the flow will continue in chaos, unsure if it will end immediately or survive thousands of years before perishing." "Sounds great to me." That was precisely what Baek Woo-jin wanted. He did not care how it ended. As long as it was the result of the choices made by those living on that land. A world not manipulated this way and that by a transcendent being was all that mattered. But... "This brush cannot be stopped by anyone, not even by its master—me." As always, hope arrives just to shatter right in front of him. It pretends to be within reach but is like mist or vapor, never tangible and pushing one deeper into despair. Just as it did now. ‘It’s not a lie…’ He wished it were a lie, but he saw no hint of deceit from the god. No matter how "wishful," even a god cannot fulfill the impossible. Seeing Baek Woo-jin’s despondent expression, the god felt a sense of smug satisfaction. His words were no lie. Once a flow had begun, the brush never ceases its movement. The only instance it stops is but one: when the life of the world concludes with its end. ‘He won’t be stubborn anymore.’ It was a minor blemish. It was, after all, a brush of his divine creation, yet he couldn't control it at will. He had intended to keep this secret, but his steadfast nature forced the truth out of him. Though it bruised his pride, he found solace. ‘Now, make your wish.’ The man must now wish for something else. Once this was granted, there would be nothing left in the way. He would have liked to deliver divine retribution and utterly obliterate the man's being and soul. ‘My mind’s changed.’ Seeing Baek Woo-jin's dejected demeanor, he reconsidered his approach. He understood. He knew why Baek Woo-jin insisted on preventing divine interference in his world. ‘It must be because the family he gained for the first time is so precious.’ He couldn’t abandon his ties, so he conformed to live within his world, knowing all too well. He knew that as long as the god existed, the world could be threatened again at any moment. Aware of this, he put his life on the line to rise in defiance. Realizing this, the god decided not to kill Baek Woo-jin but to conceive a new tale. Now, a husband to several women and a father to a child, his struggle. He cared not for entertainment. What he wanted to witness was the destruction and breaking of Baek Woo-jin as he strove to protect his family. And in the end, he intended to crush it all. One by one, he would kill every being Baek Woo-jin cared to protect, right before his eyes. ‘I’ll keep you alive till the end. You’ll never find death, only live on in perpetual despair.’ Determined, he addressed Baek Woo-jin in a benevolent tone. "I understand you're not feeling well about this. But you cannot remain like this forever." Baek Woo-jin’s clouded gaze shifted. Between the unexpectedly gentle god and the brush scribbling away silently. His focus moved, settling on the brush. Even the god could not stop it, he said. So, is it truly the end? He shifts his thoughts. ‘If a god can’t stop it, does that mean I can’t too?’ If, as he says, it can never be stopped. "Then I'll just have to break it." "What…." Baek Woo-jin said with a bright smile, looking at the frowning god. "I'm going to break that." Author’s Note Sorry for the delay. It seems the closer to the end I get, the harder it becomes to write. I'll try to be diligent. I'll see you in the next chapter. Thank you, as always, for reading. Thank you, and have a restful night as well. (_ _)