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The words of my ancestor held multiple meanings. The arrangements left by my mother.

Everything I had gained while searching for the Divine Tree and clashing with the general.

Reflecting on this, I placed my hand over my heart.

Suuuuuu…

The vessel I no longer felt.

Fortunately, even though the vessel had disappeared, the soul remained. I didn’t know what kept it intact.

The soul spun within me, not dispersing at all.

Inside it, I felt the energy I had accumulated so far.

The flame energy of the Technique of the Flame Wheel.

Although it was dormant, it still existed within my body.

Hwasan’s Taoist Qi.

Even though it wasn’t abundant, it existed within my soul.

The Qi and Demon Energy of the Tua Pacheonmu also swirled around.

The energies that remained without colliding with one another.

While I truly felt those energies, I also sensed something slightly foreign among them.

Whether it was a bet, Taoist Qi, Qi, or Demon Energy.

Something odd that did not belong to any of those energies.

That was the unknown energy obtained from the Divine Tree.

Just as I wondered if that was the arrangement my ancestor spoke of regarding my mother—

“That is Divine Status,”

My ancestor said, as if conveying that thinking for myself was the correct answer.

“……Divine Status?”

The name of the energy was Divine Status.

If I just looked at the words, it seemed incredibly arrogant. Divine status, really?

Can one even name that energy something so lofty?

“What is Divine Status?”

I understood that the energy obtained from the Divine Tree was called Divine Status.

But what could Divine Status be?

Why did my mother embed it in me as an arrangement?

“Divine Status is, quite literally, Divine Status.”

“……What a simple explanation.”

Is that really what you call an explanation? I felt heat rising.

Are you challenging me? If so, that would be just fine. I needed a fight to ease my frustration.

However, as if to say that wasn’t the case, my ancestor continued to explain.

“Those with a low status usually cannot elevate their soul and meet their death.”

Zzeoreu…

The sky split open once more.

At that moment, I felt a vibration in my body.

Wooouuu…

“Kugh.”

I knelt from the pain.

Originally, I couldn’t feel it, but now, each time the heavens split, pain surged through me.

A sensation like my body was being torn apart, I gulped down the pain, and through it all, my ancestor continued explaining without a care.

“Of course. Status is something predetermined. It is unwavering like a miracle; it cannot change. However…”

My ancestor’s gaze shifted, looking sadly at Shin Noya.

“Occasionally, very rarely, there exist those who strive to break through their status even in the eons of time.”

Beings that surpass the laws set by the world and elevate their status.

“Born with a high soul, in the brief span of life, through countless realizations and beliefs, they shatter the thick walls of status and reclaim a lofty status.”

Kugugugung.

Now beyond mere tearing, my inner world began to collapse entirely. Beyond my knelt legs, an overwhelming pain surged.

So fierce that it was becoming hard to hold onto my consciousness.

“The power gained from that elevation of status is precisely Divine Status.”

“Heugh…..”

“It can also be a condition for becoming a master, or the being you call calamity.”

“……!”

I grasped my trembling mind and looked at my ancestor.

Are you saying that I need Divine Status to become a master?

“Of course, the very existence of a master is defined by the laws of the world. So even if one elevates their status, not everyone can become a master. The world’s master is something the world directly decides.”

Thud.

My ancestor knelt in accordance with my gaze. Though a fireball merely took a human form, I couldn’t clearly ascertain where its eyes were.

Instinctively, I recognized that what I was seeing were its eyes.

“Then, descendant, what do you think of the Central Plains?”

“That is….”

“The punishment the world has bestowed upon the Central Plains is, to put it plainly, a barrier raised against elevating status. The world detested that. It loathed the emergence of beings who could brightly elevate their status in the world that had been punished. The world despised the appearance of such a precious being in a world it wished to erase.”

A great achievement.

To elevate one’s own status is indeed a monumental feat.

My ancestor explained to me.

“So, in a world without a master, who do you think would replace that role?”

Hearing that, I answered in a fatigued voice.

“….the Gu Clan?”

“Correct.”

“……”

“The world cannot endure without a master. Hence, the role of the Gu Clan in the Central Plains is crucial.”

These are the matters you would understand once you become the Clan Leader.

Could it be what my ancestor is speaking of now?

“The matters beneath the Gu Clan are somewhat different. However, aside from that, the direct descendants of the Gu Clan exist beyond the established laws of elevating status.”

Tap.

The crimson flame slowly ignites from the embers.

“In the end, it is to prevent the collapsing world from lacking a master.”

“……That sounds insane.”

Even amidst the pain, I couldn’t help but smile.

To become stronger outside of status, is it to serve as a substitute for a master that has vanished from the world?

“……If that’s the case…”

I recalled the ancestor before me, invoking memories of my grandfather who resembled him.

“……Does that mean I can treat that gentleman as the master of the Central Plains?”

If the Gu Clan serves as a substitute for the master.

Drawing from the feelings I had when I looked upon my grandfather, my judgment took shape. Every master I had met thus far carried an air of something unfathomable.

At the time, I had not understood, but now I could see it.

The presence and feelings I sensed from my grandfather were not so different from those of the masters I had met thus far.

That means.

‘Grandfather is the master of the Central Plains.’

Or a substitute.

It would be correct to judge it that way.

Additionally.

‘The reason grandfather had my father carry out orders was…’

To quickly elevate me to the position of Lesser Clan Leader and prepare me for the next Clan Leader.

‘……Because I need to rise to the next master’s seat?’

To elevate my father into the position of master.

If the achievements of the Gu Clan are to continuously substitute for the master’s place, then perhaps that might be the right way to see it.

“A master, huh….”

As I spoke those words, my ancestor wore an expression as if pondering for a moment.

“That is true. It is not incorrect. However…”

While it seemed he was about to agree, something was bothering him, so he corrected one thing.

“Not a master. A key. I believe that would be a more fitting term.”

“A key?”

“Yes, a key.”

A key? It’s a somewhat ambiguous term. I frowned at a word that didn’t seem to relate at all to a master when suddenly—

“The moment you become the Clan Leader, you will come to fully understand the tenets of the Gu Clan.”

He said as he looked at me.

“To break free from being a Clan Leader also means you will hold a key in your hand.”

“……What do you mean? Holding the key means—. Cough!”

I coughed mid-sentence.

Zzeoreu-!

A sound reverberated from all around me that echoed from within my own body.

With trembling eyes, I looked at my hands, which were cracked.

Even from the cracks emerged heat.

Blue flames flickered.

I clenched my fist, determined to prevent any further cracking.

In such a situation, my ancestor continued to speak.

“Yes, a key.”

“What….”

“This part, once you fulfill the achievements, you will naturally come to understand, so I won’t bother explaining. The important thing will ultimately be what choice you make.”

Thud.

As my ancestor spoke, he moved his hand. A spark flickered at his fingertips.

The flames that flowed out wrapped around my body. Instantly, my crumbling flesh began to knit together again.

No, it wasn’t sticking. It felt more like being held together under pressure to create that illusion.

“Right now, your body embodies Divine Status. That is also the reason it’s breaking down.”

“Haa….”

As the pain dissipated, I was finally able to exhale.

“Quite a pity. Forcing in a Divine Status that doesn’t even match yours caused this situation, did it not? The greed was too much.”

“……I didn’t even want to obtain it. Greed is bullshit.”

“I never said your greed. If anything, it leans more towards your mother’s wish. I did say, what is contained isn’t supposed to be.”

“……Is it really such a huge problem?”

“Originally, the soul of the Gu Clan is meant to embody a fixed Divine Status. It has been passed down for generations; nothing else is supposed to contain it….”

Flame!

The fire wrapping around my body danced briefly. It seemed my soul was reacting just a bit to the flames.

“Divine nonsense and your mother’s arrangements overlapped. It seems deliberate. Thanks to that, the timing has been accelerated.”

“……The timing has accelerated?”

“The timing of you becoming a calamity, that is.”

“What?”

“You already know. You were meant to become a calamity. That was the law set by the world and the end of the Central Plains.”

I had heard it before, words that had been repeated so often that my ears bled.

“The original timing was when you surpassed being the Clan Leader and stepped into the position of substitution. At that time, fate would have unfolded, and you should have become a calamity.”

“……!”

Swallowing hard, I felt a lump in my throat.

That time was supposed to be the timing?

‘When I was meant to ascend to my grandfather’s position…’

To become a calamity then?

It was a suffocating statement.

“It should have been that way. That was your fate.”

My ancestor spoke, but hearing that, confusion settled in my mind.

‘It couldn’t have been, it hasn’t happened.’

In my previous life, I had never even risen to my grandfather’s position, let alone the Clan Leader.

It couldn’t have been a possible scenario.

“That should have been the case, but fate twisted it. It’s a pity, the unfortunate one who desperately tried to tear apart the mold. Even if repeated infinitely, you would never achieve it. But still, you wouldn’t give up.”

“You call that unfortunate…?”

“Don’t you know? The reason you couldn’t become the Clan Leader? All sorts of troubles led to a disturbance in the timeline.”

“……Huh?”

My ancestor’s words immediately made me recall someone.

The reason I hadn’t become the Clan Leader.

And the reason I have returned.

All were the actions of a single person.

“The Heavenly Demon…?”

The leader of the Demonic Sect, the Heavenly Demon.

She came to mind.

 

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