The Return of the Divine (2)
“Jeongdobang, Chilgeommun, Bukyangmun…”
The names of martial sects rolled off the soldier’s tongue, one after another. These were the sects that had recently been annihilated.
“The bodies were all found shriveled, completely drained of blood and moisture.”
From the moment he first received the report until now, Galsaryang’s expression had remained stone-cold.
He knew who was responsible. It was Cheon Soseon, the very person Byeokridan had been pursuing. Ever since Byeokridan went missing, Cheon Soseon had been openly committing massacres.
The Martial Alliance had been tirelessly trying to capture him, but he was as elusive as a ghost, making it nearly impossible to track his movements.
Finding him was hard enough, but capturing him was even harder.
Even if they managed to locate him, Cheon Soseon was such a formidable master that confronting him was no easy task.
To kill him, at least fifty elite members of the Myeolmadan would need to be mobilized. Although they had Baekpyo on their side, Cheon Soseon was one of the top three martial artists in the world. Moreover, there was a possibility that he had an ally who could surpass him.
What Galsaryang feared most was a scenario where Baekpyo and Cheon Soseon would both end up severely wounded.
Especially since Baekpyo was determined to stop Cheon Soseon’s atrocities, he would likely charge in to kill him if they met.
Galsaryang’s worries deepened.
The soldier cautiously brought up another matter.
“There are talks within the Elder Council regarding the Alliance Leader.”
Galsaryang’s expression hardened. The Elder Council had always been at odds with the Alliance Leader, so it was unlikely they had anything good to say.
“What are they saying?”
The soldier hesitated before speaking carefully.
“They’re suggesting we elect a new leader.”
Bang!
Galsaryang slammed his fist on the table.
“Those damned old fools! The leader’s fate is still unknown, and they’re already talking about a new one? Have they all gone senile?”
These old men were of no help in his lifetime.
“Who’s leading this? Is it Seobok?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
Seobok had been the one who vehemently opposed making Byeokridan the leader. While Byeokridan was in charge, Seobok had kept quiet, but now that the disappearance had dragged on, he was starting to stir up trouble. Such sly and cowardly tactics.
“About ten elders seem to be siding with him.”
“They’re pulling this stunt relying on those pathetic old men?”
Galsaryang still had control over the other martial factions, so subduing the Elder Council wouldn’t be difficult.
The problem was appearances. Attacking the Elder Council while the leader was missing would make it look like internal strife. It was a burdensome situation for the Alliance.
Seobok knew this well, which is why he was acting this way. But internal division had to be prevented at all costs.
“Who in the Elder Council has the worst relationship with Seobok? Is it still Yang?”
“Yes, that’s right. Yang Hojung, the Divine Spear of Henan, doesn’t get along with him.”
Their animosity wasn’t a recent development.
“Arrange a secret meeting with him.”
“Understood.”
“And find a pretext to implicate Seobok.”
“Understood.”
The plan was to secure Yang Hojung on their side and then swiftly take down Seobok. Accusing him of treason would silence even his supporters among the elders. With Yang Hojung’s backing, he would handle the aftermath.
“Also, elevate the Alliance’s emergency status to the White Tiger Order.”
The White Tiger Order was just below the Blue Dragon Order. The Blue Dragon Order was issued when preparing for war, so practically, it was the highest level of emergency.
Once the soldier left, Galsaryang turned to the large map on the wall. It was dotted with flags marking the locations of the annihilated families, moving steadily from north to south.
Galsaryang knew. The final destination of those flags was the main base of the Martial Alliance.
‘Leader, where are you?’
As soon as I stepped through the door the old man opened, someone grabbed my wrist and pulled me along.
“Run!”
I found myself running alongside him.
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
Dozens of energy blasts struck where I had just been standing. The door I entered through was sliced apart, and the area was reduced to rubble in an instant.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
These weren’t ordinary energy blasts. They were the kind launched by highly skilled martial artists.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Terrifying attacks continued to chase us. Different from the previous ones, but still numerous and powerful.
“This way!”
The man and I leaped off a cliff.
Crash!
The cliff edge we jumped from was shattered by another energy blast.
I followed the man’s lead without resistance. I sensed goodwill from him, so I went along with it. I didn’t know who he was, but he certainly wasn’t on the side of those trying to kill me.
I felt energy blasts closing in from behind. Their attacks were relentless.
We were falling at a frightening speed when the man shouted.
“Over there!”
I saw the entrance to a cave on the opposite wall below.
I used my lightness skill to propel myself toward the cave. Fortunately, my body was in its usual state. My internal energy and memory were intact.
In other words, I was in the peak state of the Demon God’s Art, the world’s greatest martial artist. However, using my lightness skill consumed an unusually large amount of internal energy.
Swoosh.
I lightly flew through the air and landed at the cave entrance.
“We’re safe. They can’t follow us into this cave. It’s a sort of safe zone.”
“Who are they…?”
I stopped mid-sentence. I finally saw the face of the man who had come with me.
He looked at me and spoke.
“Familiar face, isn’t it?”
I nodded slowly.
“Right now, it probably looks like the face of the person you hate the most.”
The man’s face was that of Cheon Hwa-jin.
The face of my past self, the former leader of the Martial Alliance. A face full of arrogance as the world’s greatest, and pride in sacrificing for the martial world. Stubborn and unbearably frustrating. I despised that version of myself the most.
The man added.
“At the same time, it’s someone you miss dearly.”
“Miss?”
“I can sense your love-hate relationship with this face. Whose face is it?”
He seemed unaware of whose face he had taken on unless he looked into a mirror.
“My past self.”
“I see.”
The man nodded as if he understood everything.
“Who are you?”
“I am the guide for this trial. You can call me ‘An,’ short for guide, or simply guide.”
Given that he had my face, what did it matter what I called him? He probably wasn’t even human.
“This trial is quite harsh.”
What kind of trial starts with an attack alongside the guide? This alone spoke volumes about the nature of the trial and how difficult it would be to pass.
“Who were those attackers?”
“The Black Demon Army.”
The inevitable follow-up question.
“Is there a White Demon Army too?”
The guide gave an enigmatic answer.
“They are also the White Demon Army.”
“What do you mean?”
“If you become the Demon God, all the demon armies here will pledge their loyalty to you.”
“So killing them means killing my future subordinates.”
“Yes, but there’s no need to worry. They are reborn immediately after death. They are beings that undergo endless reincarnation until the Demon God is born. As soon as they die, they are reborn as the Black Demon Army. It’s their fate.”
In other words, killing them was pointless.
“Where is this place?”
“This is called the Demon Realm. Specifically, it’s where the Gate of Divinity is located.”
“How do I complete this trial?”
“Follow me.”
He led me deeper into the cave.
The cave walls were adorned with vibrant murals. They depicted the history of the Demon Realm and the battles of the primordial Demon God in vivid detail.
I paused at a mural showing the three gods entangled in battle.
The Dark God I had killed was there. Of course, it looked nothing like the form I had faced. I had fought the Dark God inhabiting the body of the Dark General.
The three gods in the mural were symbolic entities. The Dark God, the Blood God, and the Demon God were all evil spirits that possessed humans. They were evils created by humans and nurtured by them.
The man waited for me. With Cheon Hwa-jin’s face, he gave off a truly strange feeling.
It was as if I was guiding myself.
Perhaps this was all to make it clear that everything was my choice.
I followed him further inside until we reached a large space. It resembled the beautiful cave of the Celestial Crane, but it was darker and more barren.
In the center was a clear pond, surrounded by a field. Flowers and trees grew in the field.
“As I mentioned earlier, this cave is the only place the demon armies cannot enter. It’s the only place where you can rest. Especially if you enter that pond, it will heal your wounds. It’s called the Pond of Rebirth, and it cures all external and internal injuries. If you fail the challenge and return, recover in the Pond of Rebirth.”
“How strong are the demon armies?”
“Very strong. If you compare them to human masters, even you would face a great ordeal.”
I would have to fight them to know exactly how strong they were.
He led me even deeper into the cave.
On the opposite side of the cave, there was an entrance. From the edge of the cliff, I could see a castle in the distance. Even from afar, its immense size was evident—it was truly a colossal fortress.
Between this cliff and the castle lay a series of challenging terrains. There were forests, swamps, villages, and even a maze.
“The test is simple. You pass if you reach the top of that castle.”
“Can’t I just fly over there from here?”
“That’s not possible. Do you see the starting point over there?”
Sure enough, there was a small door that marked the beginning.
“Once you step through that door, you can’t use your lightfoot technique. Well, you can, but it will require dozens of times more internal energy than usual. The longer you use it, the more energy it consumes, exponentially so. You’ll end up exhausting your energy before you get very far, putting yourself in a dire situation.”
I had no doubt that formidable challenges awaited on the path to that castle.
“When can I start this test?”
“You can start right away. If you find yourself overwhelmed, you can return here and try again. But once you exit through that starting door, the test resets. The demons you defeated will reappear as if nothing happened.”
In other words, the moment you step out of that entrance, everything resets to the beginning.
“Don’t return recklessly. You might find yourself in even greater danger. On the other hand, don’t push yourself too hard just because you don’t want to lose progress. Make wise decisions.”
The man warned me, emphasizing the critical nature of the situation.
“Remember, if you die here, it’s for real.”