Gargoyle Supremacy

The holy spirit's declaration revealed their ultimate desire to be worshiped as gods of the new world. Han's expression darkened, reflecting his deep concern, while Carn's twisted into outright disgust.

"Do you forget your origin, spirit?" Carn glared at the knight.

The knight scoffed, "We were once human, consumed and resurrected by the Mother Tree. We owe her our existence, and in return, we correct humanity's sins. This is the natural order."

Carn smacked his lips, annoyed but not surprised. He had long been aware of the holy spirits' origins. Each one had been a human victim, slain at the hands of their own kind. Their bodies and souls, buried or discarded, had unintentionally served as fertilizer for the Mother Tree. When the ancient entity matured, these souls were resurrected as holy spirits, bestowed with immortal life, and imbued with divine power.

At first glance, their allegiance to the Mother Tree seemed natural. They were her creations, defenders of the Aether World. But now, they were working with Kaim, who sought to destroy all living beings.

"Righting the wrong? What's right? What's wrong? What's your goal? By making yourself a god?"

"Humans have forsaken the sacredness of nature. They exploit and destroy without reverence. We shall restore that divinity ourselves. Humans must fear the dead, worship nature, and obey us. We will guide them, dictate their lives, and ensure they serve the greater balance."

Carn smirked. He found their pursuit of divinity both hypocritical and laughable. "You've forgotten one thing, buddy. Humans have free will. They won't bow to false gods like you."

"Then they shall perish."

Carn rose to his feet. He had enough. "Talking to you is pointless. You're drunk on your own arrogance."

Deciding the conversation was over, Carn took decisive action. He channeled an immense amount of Aether, condensing 100,000 marks into his right hand. In a single, calculated strike, he drove his fist through the knight's chest.

The holy spirit reeled in shock, unprepared for Carn's sudden assault. It hissed, summoning its holy power to retaliate, but the Aether in Carn's fist disrupted its energy flow, sealing its abilities.

Carn's hand emerged, clutching the spirit's essence core.

There was a rusty ring that radiated a faint, golden light in Carn's hand. The ring was a holy artifact containing its power and soul. Without hesitation, Carn crushed it in his grip.

The knight's form disintegrated into white dust. Yet its residual holy energy was unwilling to fade. It compressed into a golden orb, attempting to regenerate its lost form.

Carn grabbed the orb mid-air. The energy resisted and vibrated, attempting to free itself. However, Carn suppressed it and absorbed it into his body. His arm surged with light as the orb dissolved into him. 25,000 gold marks were added to his arm.

Exchanging 100,000 Aether for 25,000 gold marks was not worth it, but Carn understood the cost of dealing with powerful entities like the holy spirits.

The knight was gone, but Carn knew this act would trigger a war between him and the other holy spirits. Those entities would sense the destruction of one of their own, and retaliation was inevitable.

Meanwhile, Han stumbled, coughing violently as the death of the holy spirit caused a stir within him. His complexion turned ghostly pale, though his reserves of Aether and holy power remained intact. The connection he shared with the spirits, however faint, had been disrupted, leaving him unstable.

Carn turned toward Han, noticing the sudden shift in his father's complexion.

"Stay here. Don't leave this room. I'm going to deal with the other spirits and the government officials. You don't have to do anything."

Han tried to protest, "Carn, wait—*COUGH*"

"What is it?"

Han got a bitter smile on his face, and he struggled to sit upright. His dizziness made the effort exhausting, but his concern for Carn outweighed his discomfort. "Can you deal with the eleven others?"

Carn grinned, "Had it been yesterday, no. But thanks to their coordinated afford and the invasion, I have enough energy to deal with all of them. As long as the spirits from the Aether World don't cross over, I can drag them from Heaven and burn them with hellfire. Oh, and if they send their pets after me? Even better. I'll hunt their chosen ones, rob their holy power, and piss those angels off for fun. Actually, that's what I should be doing… I have an idea."

Without waiting for a response, Carn teleported out of the room, putting his inspiration to work.

He reappeared in Manhattan, the ruined city still heavy with the aftermath of the battle. His destination was the Statue of Liberty. She had absorbed the remnants of 1.7 million silver marks from the spirits she had purified, and Carn could extract them whenever he wanted to.

If he could extract those silver marks, it would give him the resources needed to confront and annihilate every holy spirit on Earth. Their ambitions for godhood would be crushed before they could gain a foothold.

.

.

The death of the golden knight sent a ripple across the interconnected rift network, causing the dimensional cracks worldwide to react. Each rift exhibited subtle signs of stabilization, with their perimeters slightly contracting by a few centimeters. Though this recovery was negligible compared to the average portal dimensions of 10 meters in height and 5 meters in width, the implications caused troubles for the government workers in "Farm Rifts".

The stabilization formed a thin transparent barrier over each portal, effectively filtering what could pass through. While this barrier was strong enough to block weak creatures from crossing into Earth, it also imposed a restriction on humans. Those without innate Aether or mana found themselves unable to enter the other world, as the barrier denied passage to entities lacking the required energy resonance.

A mining team, which relied on automated drones and machines, encountered a serious setback. Their equipment, loaded with resources extracted from the other world's rich mines, became trapped on the far side of the portal.

Earlier that day, logistical trucks had passed through the rifts effortlessly, delivering essential supplies to their outposts. But now, only hours later, over a hundred transport vehicles were stranded on the other side, and their operators were unable to navigate them back. Attempts to retrieve the machinery failed, as the lifeless constructs lacked the energy signatures necessary to breach the barrier. Without their payloads, the operation was brought to a halt.

Curiously, human explorers managed to return unscathed, adding to the confusion. Researchers and technicians gathered at the affected rifts, pouring over their equipment and hypothesizing. Theories ranged from sudden portal destabilization to an unexplained shift in the energy flow of the rifts.

.

At Alaska Base, one of the USA's largest rifts stood there, uncontested by other nations. A thousand workers in thick clothes minded their businesses, handling the imported cargo with care. Rows and rows of steel cargo containers were transported through the portal via trucks.

Inside the cargo containers were precious Steel Pine, which were unique trees that only grew in Aether World. Each lumber was at least 50 meters long and five meters in diameter in thickness. However, they could be smelted into pure steel, similar to Earth's steel. This reduced the construction cost, enabling the country to build high-rise buildings at a cheaper rate.

That was not all. The "fruits" of Steel Pine would be converted into mana fluid, which they would use as a catalyst for many advanced tools and gadgets for hunters.

But today, several trucks had an accident.

Standing in front of a troubled portal was a military man with a cyborg body, except for his head. He still wore a thick fur coat to warm himself. He gazed at the transparent wall while his subordinates stared at the truck on the other side in confusion.

The cyborg man, Lt. General Green Iceberg, walked toward the portal and tried to touch the thin wall. However, his finger dipped into the other side and scratched the front bumper of a truck. He frowned and pulled his hand back.

Green turned around and gazed at an invisible holy spirit, which appeared as a 3-meter one-eye giant with gold skin and a pair of feather wings. He asked his sponsor.

"Angel, what happened here?"

The giant angel stared at the portal and crossed his thick arms. He replied in a voice that only Green could hear.

"One of my colleagues has been killed. The rift has become unstable."

"Oh? So, killing you affects the rift?"

"Not just this rift, but every rift around the world."

"Hoh…" Green was interested in this phenomenon. "So, if all of you die, the rifts are gone?"

"Yes. Our existence in this world causes the rifts to open. We are the ones disrupting the fabric of space. Therefore, if you wish to maintain the rifts, you'd better follow our instructions."

Green smirked as he found their relationship funny. He shrugged and extorted the giant, "Then, you'd better grant me more of those gold tattoos. I want to win some lotteries."

The giant scoffed, "Rather than that, you should be prepared. The undead invasion has started, and we need you to play hero."

"I know, I know. But before that, can I go home and win some lotteries? I need funds to stock up supplies and what-not."

The giant paused to think. He gazed at the horizon for a moment, staring in the general direction where the gold knight had been killed. After a minute of contemplation, he ordered his incarnation.

"Change of plans. You should abandon this base and return home. We'll join up with two other holy spirits and their incarnations. We'll hunt down Demon Lord Pebble and his subordinates!"