1089——————==

Soul of the Evil God

Before heading to the Cheon Woo-jin, I decided to stop by the Fericire restaurant in Romania. It was none other than Dracula’s lair.

‘Let me grab some info from Dracula before I hit up the Cheon Woo-jin.’

The more information I gathered, the more accurate the advice from the Cheon Woo-jin would be.

Pa-at

As I stepped into the second floor of the restaurant, a middle-aged Dracula in a black suit frowned with displeasure. I looked at him and said,

“Don’t you serve warm Longjing tea here?”

Dracula’s eyes went wide.

“Are you talking about the Longjing tea from Hangzhou?”

“Yep. I like that stuff.”

“You sound like a foolish medieval Chinese person. Asking for Hangzhou Longjing tea in a Romanian cafeteria….”

“I heard it’s the age of globalization, so you should up your global competitive game.”

As I teased him, Dracula shouted to the kitchen:

“Kargalon! Bring some Longjing tea from the storage.”

[Understood…. Master….]

With a gloomy and dark voice, something that felt like smoke moved toward the exit.

‘So they do have Longjing tea, huh?’

If he’s keeping tea from the far-off Central Plains in storage, maybe Dracula has a surprising passion for tea. I asked him,

“Is that your familiar?”

“Just a servant and housekeeper. Don’t mind him.”

Dracula replied curtly.

“You’re here to gather information, I presume. What do you want to know?”

“I asked you to find out about Faust, the Guardian of the West, and Merlin. How much do you know?”

“I don’t know Faust’s whereabouts. He used to be the master of the Alchemist Guild but threw it away and has been hiding for ages. The Guardian of the West is chilling at the ancient sealed place, Paliyas, and Merlin is in Cornwall, where the former British Empire was.”

“What’s the use of just knowing their locations? Did you figure out what they’re up to?”

“I know what Merlin is planning.”

“Oh…?”

I focused on Dracula’s surprising statement.

Click

At that moment, warm Longjing tea appeared on the table in front of me. When I glanced at the tea, Dracula slowly began to savor it, and I did the same. It certainly felt like the flavor I remembered.

“Merlin is currently conducting an offering ceremony at the Stonehenge in Kamlan. I’m not sure what it’s for, but it seems he’s pouring everything he has into it, and it’s been going on for decades.”

“Stonehenge in Kamlan? What’s that?”

“It’s a massive circular stone ruin that existed all over the British Empire. Apparently, it’s been around since ancient times.”

I didn’t know that…

‘Wait a minute…’

I rummaged through my memory of when I first sought out Merlin in Cornwall. After a moment, I recalled and was startled.

‘That sounds familiar.’

It definitely happened when I went to Kamlan near Cornwall to find Merlin. I remembered sneaking near the lake after getting a secret transmission from him to come there, and Merlin had given me the cursed sword Hrunting back then.

But then I recalled the peculiar stone pillars clustered together by the lake. I had passed by them without a second thought but could it be that those pillars were the Stonehenge?

“And I don’t know the goals of the Guardian of the West or Faust. All I know is that the Guardian of the West recently sent his subordinates to seek out the ‘Seven Trumpets.'”

“Seven Trumpets?”

“I just picked that up while digging for info. No idea what it means.”

Trumpets…

The number seemed oddly significant…

I tilted my head and said,

“You said Merlin has been doing the offering ceremony for decades. Is it really possible to continue an offering for that long without knowing the purpose?”

“It is possible. The larger the scale, duration, and offerings of the ceremony, the more likely the recipient will respond to the call or grant the wish. So, if Merlin’s wish is that significant, it’s only reasonable for such a great sorcerer to prolong the ceremony.”

“It sounds like a huge wish.”

Curiosity ignited within me. What could Merlin, a great sorcerer supposedly on the side of ‘good,’ want so desperately to keep the offering going for so long?

‘Maybe I should check out Kamlan when I get the chance…’

As I mulled over it, Dracula spoke.

“Baek Woong, I have a question.”

“What is it?”

“You said you could make the end disappear. What does that mean?”

“……”

“Speak. I’m holding onto your words with a thread of hope.”

Uh… Maybe I said too much.

I flinched but answered Dracula.

“I can’t explain the method, but I have a secret technique that can nullify the end before it arrives. I can swear on my name that this is true.”

When I staked my name on it, Dracula’s admiration shone through. The fact that I put my name on it guaranteed its credibility.

“Indeed…!! Incredible! I can’t believe a technique like that exists!”

“But it doesn’t mean salvation. Rather, um… it means ending things a little sooner….”

“Either way works for me. Better than being brutally annihilated by the Old Ruler. If you have a way to avoid destruction, that’s all that matters.”

“……”

Dracula slowly stood up, bowing his head.

“Here, I swear my genuine loyalty to you. This is permitted by my lord, Niratsa Dag, and I offer my entire soul to you.”

Woong!

In that moment, an aura of command spread, and I felt a fleeting connection of cause and effect establish between Dracula and me. The powerful pledge of loyalty seemed to shine for a brief moment. Simultaneously, three long tattoos appeared on my hand.

“Huh?”

“It’s the blessing of the three-headed dragon. It seems my lord, Niratsa Dag, has blessed you.”

Blessing of the three-headed dragon?

“What kind of effect does this have?”

“I don’t know either. All I can say is that when the time comes, that blessing will help you.”

With that said, Dracula’s voice held a hint of regret.

“Baek Woong, you’ve made me rethink the salvation of humanity, which I once pursued. Until the end, I will do my utmost for you!”

“……”

Now that I think about it, the reason Dracula became an Apostle was rooted in his noble desire to protect his homeland and ultimately, humanity. Over time, he had fallen into the corruption of apostolic power and became the Evil Dragon, but he seemed to have shaken off the demon’s ki now. I nodded in agreement with Dracula’s words.

“Leave it to me! At the very least, I’ll make sure we dodge the worst of endings!”

No matter what craziness happens, I couldn’t escape death, but at least I would keep hope alive!

Then, Dracula advised me.

“I wouldn’t recommend heading to Kamlan where Merlin is right now. I didn’t mention this earlier, but there’s information that Ahasverus, the strongest of the thirteen Jesuit Zodiac members, is stationed there to guard the great sorcerer Merlin.”

“…Ahasverus! That guy?”

“Do you know him?”

“Kind of…”

I recalled a memory from the past. It wasn’t something I had experienced firsthand but rather an indirect memory relayed through Mangnyang’s Mirror of Clarity. After the battle with the Sacred Altar Tree, when the Sword Demon and her party were searching for the Grave of the God, they were pursued by the Demon King, Miyamoto Musashi. The one who rescued them from being killed by Musashi was none other than Ahasverus of the Jesuits.

Ahasverus was a powerful figure capable of looping the Small Cycle three times. I didn’t know what kind of power he possessed, but he wasn’t someone to underestimate, even against a Demon King. I wouldn’t bet on being able to easily defeat him even in my current state.

As I pondered this, Dracula continued.

“Ahasverus is a well-known figure in the dark world of the West. He built his notorious reputation long before I became an Apostle. I’ve heard tales that even if all twelve other Zodiac members were to team up, they couldn’t beat Ahasverus.”

“Hmm…”

“At this point, he can’t even be considered a mortal.”

I frowned at his words.

“Zodiac members? Those guys are nothing special, right? Kaliostro, Bathory, Matteo Ricci—they’re not all that tough….”

Dracula put a hand on his temple as if my words stunned him.

“…They’re weak by your standards, but Bathory Erzsebet was a master of blood magic that struck fear in the medieval era, and she’s the witch who conquered Constantinople during the Crusades. Kaliostro, the Rune Master, is also one of the world’s most powerful sorcerers. Don’t apply your standards to everything.”

“Well, I guess that makes sense.”

“Anyway, I wouldn’t recommend fighting Ahasverus. He’s essentially the might of the Jesuits.”

I nodded honestly.

“Alright, I won’t go to Kamlan. I’ll come back later.”

I definitely didn’t want to mess with such a tough guy. Challenging an unknown force right now would be foolish, and I knew getting killed would mean the worst outcome. It’s best if I regarded Ahasverus’s caliber as equal to that of the Master of the White Lotus Sect.

Pa-at!

I withdrew from Dracula and headed towards Luoyang. When I asked Cheon Woo-jin if I could use the Cheon Woo-jin, he replied with a bit of exhaustion in his voice.

“You can use it.”

“Is the threat from Mephistopheles completely gone?”

“Yeah. We’ve dismantled the entire electronic system of the Cheon Woo-jin and put it back together piece by piece…. Everyone is exhausted from the work.”

With a huge sigh, Cheon Woo-jin turned his head.

“I’ve been on night duty for three days straight, so I’m heading to bed.”

“Aren’t you taking a vacation?”

He flinched.

The mention of vacation made Cheon Woo-jin’s body shudder like lightning, and he yelled as if having a fit.

“Damn it! I want a vacation too! I want it!! But Sagong Lin won’t let me!!”

“……”

Cheon Woo-jin laughed with his eyes wide open.

“Anyway, I’m going to sleep! I can sleep! Ha ha ha ha….”

A scream of sorts.

Then, he staggered off into the distance. I scratched my head, utterly confused.

“Hmm. He’s acting like this just because he can’t take a vacation after working three nights. Looks like Cheon Woo-jin’s mental strength has really gone down.”

He used to be more active, but now he’s just comically weak.

Moreover, I was half a step away from infinite internal power, so I could easily hold out for a month without sleep, which made it even harder to understand his situation. Anyway, I didn’t want to think too much about Cheon Woo-jin and headed towards the Cheon Woo-jin.

Wiying!!

As I activated the Cheon Woo-jin, I was immediately transported to the Cheon Woo Space. Upon arrival, the Cheon Woo-jin made its presence known.

“…You’re here?”

Huh?

That wasn’t the unexpectedly prickly tone I anticipated. Rather, it felt somewhat shy, which caught me off guard. I thought maybe it was just my imagination since an AI normally wouldn’t feel that way, so I plopped down on the sofa and said,

“Tell me what I’ve learned so far.”

“You don’t need to tell me.”

“What?”

Woo-ooong

In the next moment, a translucent screen resembling glass appeared before me, displaying my memories in a video format as if they were playing in front of my eyes. This was literally my memories being replayed, and I was shocked.

“……!!”

“The moment you wore the Cheon Woo-jin, all the data existing in your neurons becomes shared with me….”

After skimming through my memories for a moment, the Cheon Woo-jin said,

“I see. You’ve done a lot of research on the Hidden Piece.”

“I opened the lid on the Hidden Piece but I still don’t know its true identity. To figure out the Hidden Piece’s essence, I think I need to find a way into that clock room.”

The Cheon Woo-jin spoke.

“Baek Woong, the solution has already been derived.”

“What? You have a way to break in?”

The Cheon Woo-jin replied.

“When you enter the Hidden Piece’s clock room, the seventh needle that appears in the transformed clock is the Kalpa. You need to move the Kalpa’s needle to solve the hidden riddle in the clock room.”

“……?”

“I bet if you take Mangnyang with you, you’ll be able to unlock it. Or you could resurrect Heuk Woong.”

It sounded like a solution was provided, but I was having a hard time focusing on it.

I blankly asked back.

“What’s Kalpa?”

“Since Kalpa has been presented as the solution to the problem, what Faust intends to convey is quite simple and clear.”

The Cheon Woo-jin ignored my words, focused on finishing its thoughts, and I stiffened when I finally connected the dots.

“Faust had been aware of the existence of reborn persons since the time he passed the basic resources of AI to Zhuge Bu. And he secretly wanted to meet a reborn person, utilizing the Hidden Piece to create that riddle.”