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Taecheon Spoke.

“I will obtain Mankye.”

The being I serve said so.

For it was said that both the exalted sky and the will were so. He merely followed the will.

Having been granted a pair of wings, he was called to soar high, filled with his own intention.

The man wandered through the open skies, embodying that will.

“You must acquire Mankye.”

So spoke the Master.

How to obtain Mankye? The man’s mind questioned, yet he did not voice it.

Even with questions, it mattered not. His will had become his own.

Moreover, as he worried, the Master also spoke.

“Do not worry, my servant.”

“Everything will proceed according to the will of the heavens.”

Taecheon had said so, and so it would be.

The man believed it to be so.

*

Guuuuuuuuuuu—!!!

The ashen sky was restless. Beneath it lay a shallow barrier shimmering with light. A deep blue barrier surrounded him.

It was a flow of vitality, scattered for daring not to seize it all. As the trembling flow of life spread like clouds, obscuring the sky, the man exhaled softly, gazing ahead.

He saw Yarang, collapsed, and the figure squatting in front of her.

There was no movement. The one who had fallen was Yarang, struck by his attack, yet the one before him showed no signs of life.

A dragon.

An arrogant race that had long since been extinguished by the Master of Mankye.

Once, they sought to impact Mankye, Taecheon, and Changcheon.

The Dragon Emperor, who broke the discipline, attempted to become a world unto himself.

It was said that he had been sealed by Mankye due to the wrath of the world.

“How?”

Why did a life, absent its master, linger before him?

The man expressed his confusion, but…

“It matters not.”

Now, that too was irrelevant. He subtly opened his hand to look.

His white palm caught his eye. Ordinarily, it would have been the only sight, but now, his gaze held much more.

“Splendid.”

Beautiful and full of life.

Thanks to Taecheon’s mercy, immense vitality filled his entire being.

He had told the duryeong of the Master’s will, causing hesitation in broadening the vessel ahead.

His physical form had been significantly enhanced.

In its original state, it was a body beyond comparison.

‘Is this…’

Is this divinity?

The exalted, great being capable of being a master.

A vessel that could wholly receive the power of a world.

It was a vessel that could only be attained with the world’s permission. There was a staggering disparity, incomparable to a mere living being.

“Good…”

Become the Master of Mankye.

Hearing that word, the confusion he had borne became futile.

Taecheon always had intent.

However…

“If there’s a regret…”

Had it not been for the fact that it could have been a far more perfect vessel, rather than the reality.

If from the beginning the problem lay in the duryeong’s extreme foolishness.

Secondly, it was a problem that this existence was discovered too early.

If he had bought only about fifty to a hundred more years.

That would have been sufficient.

But it did not happen.

And the third was…

“It’s because of you.”

The one who sat, showing no movement.

The one who appeared as a dragon, disturbing his plans in Mankye.

It was that very one that was the problem.

Perhaps everything previously mentioned could be pointless thoughts.

If that one had not existed, there would have been no issues from the start.

Or was it not?

Perhaps… perhaps…

“It might have been because of that one from the beginning.”

How long had it been since? To the man, it was a moment ago.

The new general the Master had brought seemed to be an outsider.

The duryeong had rejected him with extreme anger, and Yusa seemed to have liked him, chasing after, but…

In the end, he was betrayed.

For he had vanished with the seed of the Divine Tree.

Thus, he had vanished, and allegedly founded a clueless group known as Hwasan.

What was strange here was…

“The Master let such a one be free.”

The Master of Mankye had vanished with the seed of the Divine Tree, yet it didn’t make sense to let it roam freely.

This had probably confirmed what Taecheon had said.

“There have been issues with the Master of Mankye.”

Recalling this, it seemed to be true. The talk of the Abyss and the Master’s movements led to a twist in Mankye.

Something had gone awry in Mankye. And…

“I will not miss that.”

The man had no intention of letting this pass.

Thud,

Vitality gathered and combined within the body, brimming with potential.

A sensation as if the very air present in the void became the source of energy.

Power surged forth.

“Is this what it means to be a master?”

A half-hearted master.

He had not yet become the world’s master, yet a body with potential to do so.

Even that alone bore a fundamentally different caliber.

An incomprehensible disparity that beneath could look up.

The man felt that as he took a step.

No sound reached his ears.

Even the ground seemed to bow to his existence.

“Have you given up?”

He questioned.

Yarang’s frail body, breathing lightly.

It felt as though if she did not regenerate, she would surely meet death.

And she would not regenerate.

For the man had not permitted it.

Yarang, now gradually dying.

He looked at her.

“Remarkable.”

Honestly, it was surprising.

What Yarang possessed was merely swift movement and ample information.

To think she had concealed such strength.

Even breaking through ranks to land an attack.

What could that be? It was a strength he had not seen before.

“To think it could strike against divinity.”

A lowly strength that should not reach.

The power penetrating through.

Is it power? No.

It was something distinctly different.

What could it be? For a moment, such questions arose, yet now they were not particularly important.

After all, it was a force destined to be eliminated.

“It will cease to exist now.”

He showcased his altered caliber.

Kurururung–!!

The heavens cried out. The ashen sky melded with his emotions, gradually distorting.

The clouds gathered.

This place was solely for the man bestowed by Taecheon. However, with the heightening of his caliber, it wouldn’t be long before it affected all of Mankye.

Though he might not yet be capable of opposing the Master of Mankye.

“Still, she will not be able to move.”

Now was the opportune moment.

Even a lackluster vessel could pass as situational.

Thinking that, the man approached the one who had collapsed.

“It seems you have already given up.”

The one showing no presence behind the fading Yarang.

He approached the young dragon.

Possessing a strength that could not be compared to even the general.

Perhaps it was a being that took the place of the now-deceased Dragon Emperor.

“That cannot be.”

For he had vaguely witnessed the strength of the Dragon Emperor.

That level of power merely fell short of reaching the Dragon Emperor. Probably the most significant remaining dragon.

Thinking this, he moved his hand.

“Now, die.”

With no more anomalies left.

Everything would proceed according to Taecheon’s will.

Believing this, the man moved his hand.

Swish-!

A lightly swung hand.

However…

“Hmm?”

Something felt off.

“What is it?”

Why had nothing occurred? The vitality meant to burst forth and eliminate them should have vanished without a trace, yet nothing happened.

“What is it?”

In the moment of casting a strange gaze at the situation.

“Uh?”

He belatedly caught on.

“What the…?”

The arm he swung down had disappeared. The marks of having been torn from him remained visible.

What on earth was happening? The man couldn’t comprehend, his eyes wide with shock.

Thud.

A sound of something falling reached him. He directed his gaze that way.

His arm lay on the ground.

Simultaneously, the one who had been sitting rose.

The one he had referred to as the young dragon. As he prepared to scowl, suddenly.

“You…?”

The dragon turned around.

At that moment.

Bang-!

The man’s vision flickered.

Psss.

A sound of something crumbling reached him.

Debris from above struck the man’s face.

“…?”

Where am I? Inside a building.

The one he had burrowed through was collapsing. Instantly, the man rushed out.

Boom!

As he cleared the debris, the street appeared strange.

It’s over.

The end of the space granted by Taecheon.

Originally, the center area had felt so close, yet now it felt oddly distant.

Could it be.

“…Was I knocked out?”

Had he lost consciousness?

Had the shock sent him flying this far while he briefly lost consciousness?

“That can’t be…”

How could that possibly happen? It made no sense.

Furrowing his brow, he spread his wings.

Whoosh–!!!

Three pairs of white wings unfurled, accelerating. His body lifted, soaring toward the center.

In an instant, his view transformed. The man’s body soon arrived at the center.

“…Hmm?”

Upon arrival, the man narrowed his eyes.

Gone.

“Where did they go?”

The two beings that should have been there were absent.

Upon noticing this, the man scanned the earth’s energy. He needed to find them as they had hidden somewhere.

Yet, no matter how he searched, there was no sign.

Was it perhaps the sky instead?

Just as he began to channel energy to discern that.

“…!”

It was felt.

Right behind him-.

Wham-!

“Cough!”

The man was struck by shock and plummeted to the ground.

A tremendous impact shattered the earth.

Crack–!!

“Ugh–!!”

With crushing force bearing down from above, the man flailed about. He pulled forth his strength, yet could not push it away.

Turning his eyes, he confirmed who was pinning him down.

There, stood…

“Growl—.”

A beast cloaked in white fur.

A gigantic body adorned with purple eyes. A massive beast with multiple tails, utterly white and enormous.

 

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