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From time immemorial, men have been born with a primal instinct for savagery.

They seek power, they seek status. The thrill of achieving their goals with their own hands, the joy of knocking down an opponent in competition—they pursue these things relentlessly.

Among the powers men seek, the most primal and immediate is none other than personal martial prowess.

Violence, born from the body, was the first power they encountered in their childhood, before they understood society and power dynamics. And not just that—martial power was also the last resort to protect oneself in times of crisis. A strong physique and mastered combat techniques were in themselves elements that built a man’s confidence and self-esteem.

As humans grow and hit puberty, this desire for martial power escalates exponentially.

During this time, boys grow bored with daily life and yearn to stand out.

They eventually come to believe that they possess a mysterious power unknown to others, and that there must be secret knowledge in the world to awaken and control such power. In other words, they catch the “middle school syndrome.”

This “middle school syndrome” usually fades with age as they face reality, often cringing at their past selves and struggling with their dark history. Around this time, they begin to learn the social skills of adults and finally recognize the social power and hierarchy formed by things other than martial prowess.

However, sometimes this syndrome doesn’t heal and instead deepens. Just as people can’t distinguish a true otaku by appearance alone, there are those who appear to be normal on the outside but harbor a matured “middle school syndrome” well into adulthood.

Such people become deeply immersed in martial arts, the occult, and the like, pursuing their mystical aspirations. Unfortunately, most of them end up being scammed by cult members, fake fortune-tellers, quack doctors, pseudo-religious leaders, pseudo-science believers, and martial arts fraudsters.

But even among such people, there are those who are genuine.

Lee Beom-seok. Born a prodigy, precocious and sharp-minded, he learned quickly and had a strong, agile physique—a man who could be classified as “humanly strong,” or “Inja-gang.” Such a man existed.

When his “middle school syndrome” struck, most people would be disillusioned by the gap between imagination and reality, but he was different. The body he believed held “secret power” was indeed exceptionally strong, and his innate sharpness and dexterity made him believe that he could quickly grasp the principles of any “secret knowledge” he encountered.

The problem was that his belief was somewhat justified. He not only had a sense of Qi but also had experiences of dispelling psychic phenomena with his innate energy. He had the insight to restore lost martial arts or spiritual rituals from just a line of text or a minor trace.

Given this, it was ambiguous to dismiss his beliefs as mere “middle school syndrome.” As he aged, this tendency didn’t fade but instead deepened, becoming ingrained in his life. One might say that being born too exceptional is something to ponder.

Regardless, his efforts to stand out and pursue power were sincere.

He was a hybrid of a gym rat, survivalist, martial arts otaku, and occult maniac. He worked out relentlessly to build his body, honed survival skills like handicrafts, and devoted himself to mastering combat techniques from both modern and ancient martial arts, as well as mixed martial arts and CQC.

Moreover, he studied myths, legends, philosophies, religions, and taboos from across the ages, hoping to find something genuine.

Frankly, it was close to a waste of life. Martial arts and survival skills were nearly useless in civilized society, and the occult mostly held only folkloric value or was mere hearsay, if not outright scams.

So, the fact that he managed to extract some essence and find something that could be called “real” was nothing short of a miracle layered with madness.

From the snow-covered peaks of the Himalayas to Stonehenge in England, he explored every secret realm and ancient site across the five oceans and six continents, sometimes even tracking down oral traditions passed down by local natives.

Amidst this, he found clues and traces of secret traditions. Through repeated restoration efforts based on these, he finally created his own “real” method.

It was, so to speak, a secret formula to strengthen his own existence and a proper method to rid himself of miscellaneous tricks.

As the saying goes, prophets do not deal with magic, and Buddhas do not handle sorcery. Where they reside, illusions are shattered, and malevolent beings are expelled.

To put it in RPG terms, it’s like leveling up and defeating low-level mobs with basic attacks—a concept he could grasp because he had once exorcised demons with just his innate energy.

Thus, he gathered ancient visions from East Asia to Western Europe, combined them with modern physical training (mainly powerbuilding and acrobatic gymnastics), and completed an extreme self-enhancement “Johnber” tech tree. He practiced this single-mindedly for about 110 years.

At the age of 160, facing death due to old age, Lee Beom-seok lamented.

“It’s frustrating! If only I had ten more years, I would surely see the end of this path and glimpse the next stage!”

It was a lament for completing his vision too late.

“Johnber” (holding on) always leads to victory, but only if you can hold on until the very end. But what could he do? No matter how much he regretted, he had already reached the limit of his lifespan. He had extended his life through profound energy and health management, but even that had reached its limit.

As death approached, Lee Beom-seok saw the figures of underworld officials who had been waiting to take him away. The man with a large sword planted on the ground was clearly the angel of death, Azrael. The skeleton-masked figure approaching with a scythe over his shoulder was the Grim Reaper. The man in black robes with a black hat and painted face was likely a death god.

At first, they came separately, but after he punched a few of them, they started coming in groups. Even so, he had managed to fend them off with his strength, but after decades of holding onto his lifespan with his energy, even the mighty Lee Beom-seok was starting to feel the strain.

‘I can still win one-on-one, but against the violence of time and numbers, there’s no winning.’

He glanced at a corner where a winged-helmeted warrior was secretly hiding, waiting to strike from behind. No need to hide it—it was a Valkyrie. She was probably planning to sneakily take him to Valhalla while he was busy with the other death gods. She must have thought today was the day.

He felt a pang of frustration. No matter how he thought about it, he didn’t want to go with her. Valhalla? Honestly, it’s just a battlefield. Not exactly a place for living, right?

But if he got caught by Azrael, he’d probably end up in Abrahamic hell. He briefly considered converting to Christianity to avoid hell, but it didn’t seem like they’d give him the time. If he had known, he would have attended church sooner. He inwardly repented, but it was too late.

The remaining options were to follow the Grim Reaper to Hades or the death god to the Buddhist underworld. But even these were a bit unsettling. Honestly, he had been resisting his predetermined lifespan and fighting these guys for decades. Surely, some troublesome punishment awaited him.

[Hey, Lee Beom-seok. You know there’s no point in holding out any longer, right? If you give up and come with us now, we’ll go easy on you.]

The black-robed death god, the boss of the underworld officials, spoke with a swaggering attitude. Lee Beom-seok felt a surge of anger.

‘This guy, acting like he’s already won.’

He had teamed up with others because he couldn’t handle it alone, and now he was acting all high and mighty! Lee Beom-seok gritted his teeth, calming his emotions, and furiously racked his brain.

‘What should I do? I can’t just be dragged away. I swore to see the end of the path I created with my own hands!’

But what could he do? Lee Beom-seok felt chaos creeping into his aged mind. How could he fend off these underworld bureaucrats? Even if he drove them away this time, they would surely return fully prepared.

It had happened before. Every time the Five Directions Gods came, they brought new tricks to make him fall. If his mental strength had been slightly weaker, or his energy less precise, he would have fallen countless times, rendering decades of training futile.

The worst was when the underworld officials teamed up with the Five Directions Gods. If they attacked while he was dealing with the Five Directions Gods, the outcome would be uncertain. Fortunately, that hadn’t happened yet… but you never know.

…Wait, there was a way. Long ago, while investigating forgotten ruins in the Himalayas, Lee Beom-seok had discovered a certain trace. To the untrained eye, it was just a meaningless mark, but to him, who had restored past traditions from such traces multiple times, it looked different.

It was a trace of a ritual. To be precise, it was a trace of a “great method to skip the underworld procedures and reincarnate while preserving memories, at the cost of one’s remaining lifespan.”

When he first grasped the full picture of this ritual, Lee Beom-seok made a strange expression. He was puzzled as to why such a ritual even existed. After all, the afterlife was always shrouded in mystery and uncertainty. To abandon the present for the future, even at the cost of one’s current life? No sane person would think of such a thing.

It was strange that such a method was devised, let alone actually practiced. Back then, the young Lee Beom-seok couldn’t understand it. But now, as he faced off with the underworld officials, he finally understood the context in which this method had emerged. Desperation, perhaps. Thinking about all the disadvantages one might face after death.

Especially in his case, since his lifespan had long been exhausted, he had no reason to cling to his remaining life.

He had hesitated to use the method due to doubts about its reliability, but now there was no time to hesitate. Especially since he couldn’t guarantee he could fend off the underworld officials right in front of him.

“I have no choice.”

[That’s right, good thinking. You know resisting will only add to your sins, right? Who knows? Maybe the great kings will offer you a position, impressed by your abilities.]

What nonsense. Lee Beom-seok silently cursed.

To him, the black-robed death god’s statement was clearly a mistake. He knew well that the underworld had its own power struggles. Just as population and achievements were sources of power in the human world, the same seemed true in the underworld.

In such a situation, if the death gods tried to take the lead, the others wouldn’t just stand by. They probably thought they had already won and acted quickly, but the others wouldn’t just let themselves be outdone.

Sure enough, Anubis, who had been glaring at the black-robed death god, started a quarrel.

[Black-robed, don’t forget that we also have a stake in this soul’s disposition.]

[What? I can’t hear you, you outdated relic from thousands of years ago.]

[You…!]

Haha, well done. Lee Beom-seok laughed. The Valkyrie in the corner seemed to be muttering, “This is it!? Headhunting gods from other myth systems is totally possible!”

‘Hey, are you planning to backstab me while the underworld officials are fighting and take me to Valhalla? How does one even come up with such an idea? Ah, I’m really dizzy now…’

Anyway, there was no reason for him to face their bickering any longer. He had already decided to perform the reincarnation ritual.

Focusing his mind, the seven great wheels and 88,000 small wheels aligned along his central nervous system began to resonate and rotate. True energy surged from his three dantians, and the “Gias” engraved on his body, the “Mark of the Anointed” on his forehead, and the traces of “Chivalry” and “Trials” on his meridians reacted, controlling and amplifying the energy.

Managing and converging the energy flowing like Niagara Falls, Lee Beom-seok divided the flow into two streams, sending one to the base of his spine and the other to the crown of his head.

Originally, these were the places where life force and spiritual energy were sealed, and the energy preserved there was only used to maintain one’s lifespan. But now, having exhausted its original purpose, it had been replaced by his own energy to delay aging and extend his lifespan. Fortunately, it had now found its final use.

“Chakravarti Punarnarjama (Transcendental Rebirth Technique)!”

In an instant, a blue light emanating from deep within enveloped Lee Beom-seok’s body. The underworld officials, busy arguing over jurisdiction, were startled by the sudden phenomenon. Memories of being defeated and driven away by Lee Beom-seok’s various strange methods flashed through their minds.

To them, Lee Beom-seok was a man who always had something new up his sleeve, no matter how much they tried to deal with him. Just when they thought he was running out of steam, did he have another hidden card? They each went on high alert.

[Huh? That light… could it be…?]

Sarameya, the underworld hound with some knowledge of Tibet and Nepal, widened his four eyes. The local god serving the Eastern Peak Great Emperor asked,

[Is this a known phenomenon?]

[Big trouble! That guy seems to know the Transcendental Rebirth Technique!]

The underworld officials, initially confused, turned pale upon hearing Sarameya’s explanation.

[Hey, hey! This is cheating! Humans can’t escape birth, old age, sickness, and death! Trying to evade proper administrative procedures is cowardly, don’t you think!?]

The black-robed death god, realizing the situation had taken a bizarre turn, rushed forward. If his hand reached Lee Beom-seok, his soul would surely be pulled from his body. But the black-robed’s action was a futile gesture. The light emanating from Lee Beom-seok’s body had already matured, completing the activation of the great method.

In an instant, Lee Beom-seok’s soul condensed into a beam of light and was sucked into a certain point in the void. The underworld officials shouted and tried to follow, but it was useless. Lee Beom-seok’s soul had vanished without a trace, leaving behind only his empty, lifeless body and the underworld officials, who stood dumbfounded in silence.

 

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