1252——————==

Soul of the Evil God

Thud

“Th-this profit….”

As I released the village chief by his collar, his face turned an odd shade of red and blue, but it seemed he finally grasped the situation as he glanced around and noticed everyone frozen in place. After a moment, he cautiously spoke up.

“…If you make me the chief, will you spare my family?”

Despite being just a village chief in a tiny town, he seemed to have enough basic situational awareness. I smiled and replied.

“I’ll spare you. But if you don’t listen to me, you won’t be so lucky. And from today, all your assets belong to me.”

Not that I cared if the chief’s family had any wealth, but I just wanted to see him squirm!

“Ugh.”

The thought of losing everything made the chief look quite distressed, but eventually, he dropped to his knees.

“Please just spare me…. Cough.”

“Good. Hehe.”

I felt a sense of motivation return, as if a spell was lifted, realizing that this was exactly what I wanted.

‘Yes…. This was one of my dreams in [my first life]!’

I had just been so caught up in everything as the Heavenly Secret that I forgot! I wanted to seize the wealth and authority of the chief, the most powerful figure in my life!

‘…I should’ve done this around the tenth time I died.’

At that point, being the ruler of such a small village would’ve been a piece of cake!

Now, it seemed relatively trivial, but my spirits were undeniably lifted. I eased up the internal pressure on the villagers around me and declared.

“Did you hear me? From today, I am the chief of Soeul Village!”

Murmur

The villagers seemed confused about what was happening. Naturally, it was shocking for a sweat-soaked kid who was practically a slave to the chief’s family to suddenly shout he was the chief. Probably because of that, the boys who usually bullied me stepped forward, smirking.

“Is the dung beetle crazy?”

“Hehe. How many times are you planning to get beaten today?”

Clench

‘No, wait….’

I thought I wouldn’t care about these guys, but seeing them act like that made my fists clench, and a surge of killing intent rose within me. I couldn’t help it; even though I had reached an absolute realm of strength capable of fighting Asuras, the memories of having been bullied were still etched in my mind, leaving mental scars.

‘…I thought I was over my hatred, but I still hate those losers?!’

Unbelievable!

And just like that, the killing intent morphed into murderous qi and shot towards the boys as I hastily tried to withdraw my intent. But the very moment the faint aura touched them, it was like a freight train.

“Cough….”

“Grrr….”

“Ah?! Jangtae!!”

The boys were left drooling and unconscious, while their parents were in a state of shock. Hearing the name Jangtae jolted my thoughts.

‘Long Water Uncle!’

He was the kind uncle who had given me potatoes. Of course, I felt a bit guilty since I had previously knocked his son Jangtae out for messing with me. I was relieved I had reined in my murderous intent because it would have been fatal otherwise.

‘Should I fix this?’

Using the Cave-Collapsing Sword technique, I could control their bloodlines even from a distance.

Swish

I waved my hand, sending out my intent to stimulate the boys’ bloodlines, waking them up from their stupor. As the dazed boys slowly opened their eyes, the villagers gasped in horror.

“AAAH!”

“Is this for real….”

They realized my power was extraordinary, and they all looked at me with a mix of fear and awe. I cleared my throat and said.

“Ahem. Now do you get it?”

“Dung beetle… I mean Chief… Why have you become our chief…?”

One of the village elders cautiously asked, and I replied confidently.

“I received a divine revelation! This power is also from the divine!”

Murmur

The villagers whispered among themselves, but it seemed more like they were accepting it rather than disbelieving it. Truth is, bragging about my martial arts level to the villagers wouldn’t mean much; they’d glorify even an absolute expert like a god. I added a bit more weight to my claims.

“The divine has commanded me to become the chief of Soeul Village and to prevent chaos in this world! So listen well moving forward!”

“OOOH!”

“Long live the Chief!!”

They quickly bought my words, lifting their hands and cheering. It was so simplistic it was almost deflating. Then an old man spoke.

“We can’t just call you Dung Beetle… What should we call you…?”

“My name is Baek Woong! You didn’t know that, you bleep!”

“Ah… I didn’t know… huff….”

“…….”

No malice intended, but those villagers sure were annoying!

“I’m Baek Woong! If you forget, you’ll regret it!”

“Yes!”

Despite inwardly complaining, I collected myself and said.

“Alright, disperse! If something comes up, I’ll call you again!”

“Yes.”

After dismissing the villagers, I turned a chilly gaze toward the former chief.

“Hey, ex-chief. What was your name again?”

“Gum Cheon-jae….”

I already knew, but I asked for kicks. I said to him.

“You and Kim Manje come with me right now. Got it?”

I had to go out into the world eventually, so I planned to bring these guys along to vent some of my past pent-up frustration.

“Eek?! Where are you going…?”

“Is there any reason you can’t leave the village?”

He hesitated a moment before answering.

“I must visit the Plum Blossom Escort Agency in two days… If I don’t, the village will suffer.”

“The Plum Blossom Escort Agency?”

“They do business with our village….”

Oh, now I remembered! The old chief had been raking in big bucks through connections with the Plum Blossom Escort Agency! They effectively provided free labor from the village, while the agency was forced to make a stop in Soeul Village to spend money. For the chief, it was likely his primary income source.

I casually replied.

“What happens if you don’t go?”

“Well… that is… the Supreme Elder of the Huashan Sect, the renowned Zhirong Sword Saint, happens to be there…. We’ve already agreed to present a birthday gift to him, so we must send it before then.”

“Eh?”

“The Plum Blossom Escort Agency is filled with Huashan Sect’s hidden disciples… If we don’t send the birthday gift, Huashan Sect might look down upon our village….”

It felt like the chief was trying to put pressure on me, but I just scoffed.

“Ha! They’ll look down upon us? Who cares?”

“Well… then the village will face hardships….”

I was going to leave immediately, but that changed things. So that Supreme Elder is really at the Plum Blossom Escort Agency, huh?

“I believe he’s there. He is a former master of the agency….”

I clenched my fist and said.

“I’ll deliver his birthday gift myself. You and Kim Manje, come with me.”

“Understood.”

I took out a large cart from the village and attached horses to it, then took the reins to start moving quickly.

Thump thump thump

“Whoa—”

“AAH!”

Gum Cheon-jae and Kim Manje screamed simultaneously as the cart began soaring through the air thanks to my void-walking technique. This was something even the White Lotus Sect’s Elder Council could do, so it was easy for me.

‘Oh right. Almost forgot.’

I first headed to the cave where the Heavenly Secret was located, retrieved it, and took off again. Using my vast internal power, I pulled the cart through the skies, arriving at the Plum Blossom Escort Agency about an hour later.

Crash

I rammed the cart into the highest building of the Plum Blossom Escort Agency’s five-story complex while using my qi to protect Gum Cheon-jae and Kim Manje as they touched down safely. As we settled in the wrecked building, astonished faces greeted us from the agency’s owner and the Huashan Sect’s experts. There were around ten Huashan Sect experts present, mostly young, which suggested they had brought late-stage disciples.

“Uh… no way.”

“A cart from the sky?”

While everyone was panicking, I nodded at Gum Cheon-jae, who carefully stepped forward, fumbling his words.

“E-everyone… This is our new chief Baek Woong from Soeul Village. He has come to deliver a birthday gift to the Supreme Elder Hwan Woo-jeong….”

“…….”

The owner of the Plum Blossom Escort Agency stood there, mouth agape, unable to utter a word, as if some unimaginable event had taken place. And just as he was frozen, an elderly Huashan Sect expert stepped forward and said.

“Hoho…. I am Hwan Woo-jeong. What is it that the chief Baek Woong of Soeul Village wants from me?”

As Hwan Woo-jeong revealed himself, I crossed my arms confidently and said.

“Hwan Woo-jeong! You’re the master of the Plum Blossom Escort Agency and hold a high rank in the Huashan Sect, right? Then you’d better promise to fully support and back Soeul Village!”

According to my plans, Soeul Village would need a lot of funds. Sure, I could muster that much on my own, but having the Huashan Sect and the agency in my corner would make transactions a lot smoother.

“…….”

“I’ll treat you and your Huashan Sect well if you promise.”

Hwan Woo-jeong let out a furious growl, seemingly furious.

“How dare you, a mere child named Baek Woong, speak so arrogantly to the Supreme Elder of the Huashan Sect?!!”

“Uh? Was that a bit too harsh?”

I scratched my head and decided to tone it down.

“Can you help Soeul Village, please? It’s a humble request.”

Without acknowledging my plea, Hwan Woo-jeong called over his disciples.

“Kang Jun! Lee Il-lu!”

“Yes!”

“Yes!”

“You two, as the elite disciples of the Huashan Sect, capture this brat and teach him a lesson!”

Thud

Kang Jun and Lee Il-lu, the elite disciples, charged at me wielding their sword techniques. I glanced at their faces and suddenly realized something.

‘Oh, so these guys were the ones from back then.’

They were the same idiots who had attacked me with swords during the Ijeok Incident at the Huashan Sect!

Realizing that, I couldn’t help but grin.

“Well, it’s been a while, you idiots!”

Thud

In one swift motion, I knocked Kang Jun and Lee Il-lu out cold with just a flick of my wrist, then flew directly in front of Hwan Woo-jeong, preparing a front kick. It wasn’t even an advanced technique, but Hwan Woo-jeong was so slow he didn’t even register the kick’s speed.

Halt

I stopped my foot just inches from Hwan Woo-jeong’s solar plexus and said.

“I don’t get why you’re calling yourself the Supreme Elder when you can only be compared to that of a minor character in a lesser story. Seems like the Huashan Sect is on a far lower level than I expected.”

The Supreme Elder of the Great Sword Gate must have been overly humble. There’s no doubt he was among the strongest in the Martial Arts World.

“Hu… huh….”

Hwan Woo-jeong seemed to recognize the gap in our powers and was struck with fear as he realized I could easily kill him with a moment’s thought.

“Who… who are you…?”

“No need to fuss. What did you think of my earlier proposal?”

I asked with a calm tone.

“Think it over. I’m offering to help your Huashan Sect. So this gift you failed to bring along is quite valuable, eh?”

“……!!”

Hwan Woo-jeong quickly nodded, appearing to understand my implication.

“I will absolutely follow your orders!!”

“Good. I trust you got it, Owner of the Agency.”

After wrapping up negotiations, I placed Gum Cheon-jae and Kim Manje back into the cart. The cart was intact since I had protected it, so I would reuse it.

“Well, see you later!!”

Whoosh

I soared into the sky with the cart. While flying, Gum Cheon-jae, who seemed to have gotten used to it, asked.

“Uh, where are we headed to now?!”

“Great Thunder Valley.”

“What’s that….”

I flashed a grin.

“Just a nice place.”

It’s better to get the Golden Lamp first, but since it is pretty much sealed away, I should aim to get the Wooden Armor first!