1327——————==

Soul of the Evil God

I couldn’t help but be flustered by Jeon Wook’s words.

“Wait, are you saying the contract of the Seven Luminaries could be broken… So all the contracts of the Seven Luminaries are essentially null and void now?”

[Haven’t you seen the evidence with your own eyes?]

Jeon Wook glanced down at the ruins and continued.

[No longer being able to maintain the contract of the Seven Luminaries means it’s just a powerful artifact now. Naturally, there’s no need for a guardian, and we don’t have to remain connected to the Seven Luminaries either. It makes sense that all power is reduced.]

“How could….”

I doubted, unable to understand.

“The contract of the Seven Luminaries was practically a peace treaty stopping the clash between the Three Sovereigns and the hundreds of Old Rulers here on Earth! If the Emperor broke that contract, it means I can’t really complain even if the war with the Old Rulers breaks out again!”

That’s right. The contract of the Seven Luminaries meant that it was a promise of truce between the Three Sovereigns and the Old Rulers. So I thought it was a sacred contract that could never be broken, and now that it’s shattered, it means the gods’ war will begin!

Then Jeon Wook said.

[You’re correct. All ceasefire agreements have been shattered, so the Old Rulers wanted to move. However, they aren’t stepping forward yet and are still holding back, waiting for the right moment.]

“Not stepping forward?”

[It’s likely that Emperor Gong Sun Xuanwen has come up with something. It’s extremely rare for them to take matters into their own hands, and even then, they only give light commands to the bonded aliens. There’s not a single Old Ruler actively moving in preparation for the end.]

“……!!”

[Heh… Perhaps they’re frightened of the rising Evil God.]

“Then why did you respond to the call from the ruins of the Moon Sovereign?”

The answer that followed was somewhat dispiriting.

[Everyone was in a state almost akin to hibernation, so it didn’t matter who made contact. I just came because it was close to my jurisdiction.]

“…….”

Well, Jeon Wook managed Liaodong, so location-wise, it made sense he was closer than the other Three Sovereigns. And considering that Nüwa, who originally managed the Moon Sovereign, was gone, it seemed he just came to check on that cheeky human banging on the door for the weakened Seven Luminaries.

Having grasped the full picture, I blankly stood there before suddenly gathering my thoughts and saying.

“Please tell me why the First Character could break the contract! Was that First Character itself powerful enough to do so?”

[…….]

After a moment, Jeon Wook began to speak.

[Yes. Right before the end, the Emperor shockingly used the First Character to break the contract of the Seven Luminaries…. And that First Character was, from the very beginning, proof of a ‘different promise.’]

“A different promise?”

[We assumed the ‘promise’ the Emperor referred to naturally meant the ceasefire agreement of the Seven Luminaries. That fact was clearly stated in the incantation. However, the cunning Emperor conspired with Chi You and established a double contract.]

“What kind of contract?”

Jeon Wook’s voice trembled with barely contained anger.

[The contract of the Deceiver. Emperor Gong Sun Xuanwen has held that power since the Primordial was born…!! He used the contract with the ‘higher being’ to break the lower contract!! The ‘First Character’ was precisely that medium.]

“……?”

[Chi You acted weak back then, but it was all an act to deceive… Heh, both the master and his slug of a servant decided to fool around with the Three Sovereigns and the priests.]

“What do you mean it was an act?”

Jeon Wook lamented.

[How much did they mock us in their hearts… We thought we had the upper hand with a character that could harm Chi You, believing we could kill him at any time… But in the end, Chi You was just a distraction while the Emperor was the real tool to deceive us.]

What does that even mean?

[Enough of the old tales.]

Swish!

Suddenly, a small bottle appeared in front of my eyes. I grabbed the neck of the crimson bottle, resembling molten lava, and inspected it, noticing it didn’t seem particularly special on the outside. I asked, feeling confused.

“What is this bottle?”

[That is the treasure of the Ten Thousand Ghosts Palace, the Honghoro. When called by name, it has the power to seal one’s soul.]

I was startled by Jeon Wook’s subsequent words.

[Gather the souls of a hundred Immortals and place them inside the Honghoro. That is your first mission.]

“……!!”

Collect a hundred souls of Immortals?!

Forget about the sudden difficulty of the mission; I was curious why such an outrageous command was given.

So, I said.

“Gather the souls of Immortals? I lack the strength to invade the Celestial Realm and engage in combat.”

[What do you mean?]

“If the Twelve Great Immortals or the elite tactics of the Celestial Realm come at me, I won’t be able to hold out against their joint attack…”

I pretended to be weak, trying to weasel out of Jeon Wook’s command. However, I couldn’t help but be shocked by what he said next.

[Haven’t you realized that the Celestial Realm has been destroyed for hundreds of years? You said you were a disciple of Fuxi, yet you’ve been hiding away without even knowing such basic news.]

“What— the Celestial Realm has been destroyed?!”

[…….]

The dark light flowing from Jeon Wook’s avatar noticeably dimmed. I could feel that this expression signified growing distrust towards Jeon Wook. After a moment, he spoke gruffly.

[If I had subordinates just like my limbs, I wouldn’t need to send an ignoramus like you to do this job.]

“Um… I apologize. But I truly had no idea.”

[The Celestial Realm was long gone, and its survivors now reside in the Otherworldly Realm of Kunlun. Your task is to go to Kunlun and capture the souls of a hundred Immortals.]

“…Why did the Celestial Realm fall?“

[It is said that the Apostle of the Evil God descended and annihilated it.]

“……!!”

The Apostle of the Evil God!

I thought it was shocking to learn the reason behind the fall of the Celestial Realm.

‘Isn’t the Evil God supposed to remain dormant until the stars find their place again? Even though Nüwa has been erased and Queen Mother of the West is gone, the Celestial Realm is still the Celestial Realm…. How could a being strong enough to annihilate that mighty Celestial Realm descend?!’

I could sense there must be another situation at play. I wanted to ask more, but Jeon Wook appeared quite agitated due to my ignorance, so I decided to only ask essential questions.

“Understood. How can I get to Kunlun?”

[There’s an artifact left in the human world, called the Heavenly Altar. If you offer sufficient compensation at that artifact, you will be able to go there.]

“…May I ask why you need the souls of the Immortals?”

[What a rude fellow. You know nothing but have a million questions.]

I flinched at his sharp words but tried to retort.

“I apologize. However, I had to stay distanced from worldly affairs to follow the prophecies of Fuxi…”

[Heh… I dislike those who make plausible excuses.]

With a roar, dark light surged from Jeon Wook’s avatar, and a cruel voice followed.

[No more chatter! Bring back the souls of a hundred Immortals in the Honghoro!! I will tell you what you are curious about afterward!]

“…Understood.”

Pow!!

With that parting remark, Jeon Wook’s avatar vanished. I stared blankly at the empty sky for a moment before returning to the ruins of the Moon Sovereign, only to find that there were no guardians or giant spiders in sight.

“…….”

Regardless, since I obtained the Moon Sovereign, I’d achieved my initial purpose. I decided to ponder what I needed to do next.

‘So now I just need to head to the Heavenly Altar, offer a sacrifice, then go to Kunlun and fill the Honghoro with a hundred souls of Immortals…’

If I just do as I’m told, it shouldn’t be that difficult.

“I’ll need to ask.”

But feeling a nagging concern, I decided to head to the headquarters of the Northeast Asia Liberation Army where Zhuge Hyun was located again.

“Zhuge Hyun. I went to the ruins of the Moon Sovereign and this is what happened.”

When I arrived at the headquarters and shared my experience of obtaining the Moon Sovereign and meeting Jeon Wook, Zhuge Hyun listened carefully before speaking.

“Baek Woong, I suspect that the Honghoro artifact may be the treasure of the Golden Horned Brothers appearing in the Journey to the West.”

I was bewildered by his words.

“Journey to the West? The Golden Horned Brothers?”

What on earth is that?

Not understanding, I watched Zhuge Hyun smile sadly.

“Ah… it’s truly funny. You brought over a printing press from the Western American continent to charm Sun Wukong and get him to write Journey to the West, yet it doesn’t even exist in your world. Is this the distortion of history caused by the Non-Birth Mother?”

“What are you talking about? Are you referring to the Celestial Sage?”

“In our world, we frequently refer to him more as Sun Wukong than Celestial Sage. Hmm. Honestly, I can’t believe the legendary Sun Wukong actually uses a smartphone in this world.”

Zhuge Hyun sighed before continuing.

“Anyway, that Honghoro was likely a treasure of the powerful Great Demons that fought against the Celestial Sage. It must have ended up in the Ten Thousand Ghosts Palace.”

“I have little interest in the origins of the Honghoro. Why do you think Jeon Wook needs the souls of a hundred Immortals?”

“Naturally, it’s because he currently cannot exert any power. He likely wants to absorb the souls of a hundred Immortals to recover his strength and law of cause and effect.”

My eyebrows twitched at Zhuge Hyun’s words.

“Absorb souls?!”

“If it’s Jeon Wook, that’s highly likely. He probably intends to create an opening to resist the Emperor by utilizing the law of cause and effect of a hundred Immortals.”

“Um… is it wise for me to do this mission?”

I expected Zhuge Hyun to argue against it. However, his response was the opposite.

“You must absolutely do it. Right now, you should go to the Heavenly Altar, make an offering, and then go to Kunlun to capture the souls of a hundred Immortals and put them into the Honghoro.”

“…….”

“Sine you’ve made a promise, you must do it, and considering Jeon Wook’s habit of making contributions clear, if you succeed in the task, he’ll likely reward you. That reward should greatly benefit someone like you who is a Reborn Person.”

“…….”

“Why do you look at me like that?”

“Well, if it’s Mangnyang I know, he’d probably say to stop the cruel acts.”

Then Zhuge Hyun smirked.

“Sorry, but I’m Zhuge Hyun, not Mangnyang. And even if I were Mangnyang, in this situation I would have spoken the same way. This world is an Outer Universe anyways, so why bother saving the lives of unknown Immortals?”

“If you put it that way, I can’t dispute it.”

“After all, those Immortals never helped while this world ended up like this. Perhaps it’ll be fortunate if the souls of those useless beings can at least help a Reborn Person like you! You don’t need to feel guilty.”

Zhuge Hyun said sharply as he glanced out the window.

“However, since you don’t know what will happen if you go directly, it’d be better to collect at least the half-formed Seven Luminaries first.”

“Are you saying to gather the Fire Spirit and Water Spirit?”

“Exactly. If it’s you, using those Seven Luminaries should keep you safe in Kunlun.”

“Understood. Then I will move immediately.”

After nodding, I spoke to Mephistopheles on my wristwatch.

“Mephistopheles, go to the location of the Water Spirit that I remember.”

[Successfully read the waves of memories. Executing user command.]

Pow!!

As I powerfully thought in my head, I arrived at the seal of the Water Spirit shortly after. Before descending into the spiral staircase at the seal of the Water Spirit, I decided to search the snowfield one last time.

‘Let’s see.’

I rummaged through the snowfield for a while but eventually realized that there were neither Black and White Lotuses nor Thousand-Year Snow Ginseng anywhere. I thought this was also a result of historic changes and went down, similarly discovering that there were no gold bars.

Swoosh

Then I found several human skulls scattered here and there and could see snake demons materializing from the darkness.

‘Treasure hunters must have discovered the ruins of the Water Spirit. And although most were annihilated, did some flee after finding gold bars…?’

Thunder Sword

Splat

I quickly wiped out dozens of weak snake demons and headed to where the Water Spirit was. And unexpectedly, I found the Water Spirit still right where it had been.

Chiri-ring –

It reminded me of the first time I discovered the Water Spirit. There was a narrow bridge over a pit like an abyss, and at the end shone a sword; the Water Spirit was right there. I realized that no treasure hunter thus far had been able to acquire the Water Spirit, and without hesitation, I leaped in to snatch it up.

‘The Guardian Giant Spider isn’t showing up.’

It seems treasure hunters were unable to make it this far since they couldn’t even defeat the snake demons. Feeling somewhat relieved, I scratched my head and descended further, finding Jeon Wook’s statue to stash away in my wooden armor.

It seemed I had fully explored the ruins of the Water Spirit.

“Mephistopheles. Let’s go to the ruins of the Fire Spirit.”

Pow!

I headed to Uluru, where the ruins of the Fire Spirit were located. There, I confirmed that the barrier was still in place.

‘It seems the barrier of the Fire Spirit was a strong barrier originally set, independent of the guardian. So after the contract of the Seven Luminaries was broken, it hasn’t just disappeared but continued to be maintained?’

After a moment, I moved to break the barrier.

‘Originally, other sorcerers lent me the powers from the Eight Trigrams Formation and the Earth Trigram to help me activate the Tai Ping Magic, allowing me to break the barrier of the Fire Spirit.’

But now, I likely wouldn’t need to do that.

There was no need to hold back.

Swoosh

I gathered pure divine power and, without needing to restrain it, activated my powers as they were rooted in my memories. No—this was a power that didn’t really need help from Heuk Woong.

The divine words that only Jeon Wook’s subordinates could use flowed from my mouth involuntarily.

[As the Apostle of Jeon Wook, I turn back time….]

I felt the divine light and whirl of divine power burst from my eyes.

[Barrier of the Fire Spirit, return to the time before it was formed!]

Crash!!

The next moment, the barrier of the Fire Spirit trembled violently, then completely shattered and disappeared before my eyes. I breathed a sigh of relief as the ability I hadn’t used in a while successfully activated.

“That’s a relief.”

Since I had used that ability roughly before without Heuk Woong, my expectation that Jeon Wook would take on the control of this power was confirmed. If I could confidently use this power to control the [Small Cycle] in Jeon Wook’s name, there would be hardly anything I couldn’t do in this world.

Sss….

But this power wasn’t eternal, as the barrier began to restore at a sluggish speed, visible to the naked eye. I hurriedly dashed into the ruins of the Fire Spirit and began searching for where the Fire Spirit awaited.

And I had no choice but to be taken aback by an unexpected situation.

“Gong Gong?! Why are you still here…?”

[…….]

Yes.

The Guardian of the Fire Spirit, Gong Gong, was standing firmly inside the ruins!

I shouted in disbelief.

“The contract of the Seven Luminaries has broken; you no longer need to be a guardian! Why are you still here, not breaking the barrier of the Fire Spirit and leaving?!”

Then Gong Gong fell silent before speaking.

[O questioning human, why do you appear in the human form of Fuxi?]

“I asked the question first.”

[Answer me.]

“…I am Baek Woong, the old disciple of the Fuxi. The end is approaching, and I’m moving to recover the Seven Luminaries. This appearance is a transformation made in honor of my old teacher.”

[Is that so…. Heh… You dare to step forward to save this world now, devoid of any hope….]

Gong Gong muttered as if sighing.

[Baek Woong… I no longer have any hope left…. I am a living corpse, so feel free to do as you wish with me.]

“…….”

[Since there’s nothing I can do anymore… I have merely decided to sit here and watch the end of the world.]

“…I don’t understand. With Nüwa gone, the barrier imprisoning Yan Emperor Shennong should have also disappeared, right? Why aren’t you going to your lord, Shennong?”]

Gong Gong replied weakly.

[Oh disciple of Fuxi. You must not know what happened afterwards.]

“What happened afterwards?”

With Gong Gong’s words, I couldn’t help but be startled.

[Immediately after Nüwa’s demise, Emperor Gong Sun Xuanwen led the troops of the Divine Temple, attacked his lord, Yan Emperor Shennong, and killed him to absorb his power….]

“……!!”

[With Shennong gone, the hope of the Giant Race has also extinguished.]

As soon as I heard those words, I could feel even more deeply how desperate the situation in this world currently was.

‘This is impossible….’

This is a world where the Three Sovereigns have perished.