1352——————==

Soul of the Evil God

After accepting the Thief Gang as my subordinates, I spoke up.

“I feel like I was suddenly summoned by Hermes, and you guys ended up in a different outer universe? Were you all huddled together?”

“That’s correct.”

“What kind of world was it?”

I was curious about the places of the outer universe that someone other than me had visited.

Changing to a more formal tone, the Thief Gang continued, “It was a world made entirely of wasteland.”

“A wasteland?”

“A place so thoroughly destroyed that there wasn’t even a trace of civilization. Furthermore, there was no sign of any god.”

“……”

So, such a desolate outer universe exists?

I was perplexed.

‘What’s going on? I thought that outer universes would have similar histories to my original world…. They’re all so different.’

I wanted to know what outer universe the Eight Parts of the Divine went to, but as of now, that was the only clue I had. I asked another question.

“Another thing. Didn’t you encounter a being called the Observer along the way?”

“……? I don’t know. We moved right away through that [Gate] that appeared after the auction ended, and we didn’t meet anyone else during that time.”

“Hmmm.”

Something feels off here.

‘If it’s not through exceptional beings like Nailatop, shouldn’t we have to get permission from the Observer before traveling to outer universes?’

Why did the Observer allow the Eight Parts of the Divine to travel through the outer universe without meeting them?

‘I’ve heard that the Observer even extinguished powerful races that dared to travel to outer universes…’

Despite being a demon king, I doubt the Eight Parts of the Divine are above galactic-level races. No, there’s no way they could get away with that level of disrespect in front of outer beings. After all, they’d just be treated like bugs, so there’s no point in discussing hierarchy.

‘…I’ll find out more later.’

I didn’t fully understand, but I sensed there was another secret hidden here. I decided to put the unresolved doubts aside and spoke to the Thief Gang.

“I’ll step out for a moment. You be a training partner for Lee Kwang and teach him everything you can.”

“Understood.”

I gave the command and called Hermes to let me out.

“Let me out.”

Then Hermes said, “Baek Woong, let me give you a piece of advice.”

“What kind of advice?”

“Nailatop is a figure to be extremely cautious around, but at the same time, he’s an existence with top-tier intelligence. While diverting his attention from your actions, asking him a few curious questions could yield great benefits.”

“Hmmm… What do you mean by that?”

“That’s something I can’t say due to the Law of Cause and Effect. You’ll have to think for yourself.”

“Got it.”

“From now on, you won’t have to ask me for permission to come and go freely.”

Swish!

In the next moment, I could leave the vessel. Stepping out, I found myself facing the scene of the hotel accommodation of the Northeast Asian Liberation Army where I originally entered. I immediately stood up and re-equipped Mephisto on my wrist.

“Mephisto. I’m heading to where Nailatop is.”

No point in wasting time!

[Executing command.]

Woosh!

I instantly arrived in the interior of the Battleship Gaia, in a room with an antique style.

‘As expected, Mephisto can send me straight to where Nailatop is due to his influence.’

Just as I anticipated, while waiting in the oak chair, Nailatop appeared suddenly in the antique chair across from me.

With a clink of porcelain, Nailatop elegantly lifted a white teacup and asked, “Care for a cup of coffee?”

“No thanks. I’m not really a fan of coffee.”

“What about some coffee milk? It’s delicious.”

“…”

What on earth is coffee milk?

Ignoring Nailatop’s persistently useless chatter, I decided it was time to speak my mind.

“Nailatop. I’ve actually completed the tasks you assigned to Lieutenant Lee Hwan-woong. Plus, it’s way past the [deadline] you initially mentioned. By now, I should have already found the World Tree, right?”

“Ah, true.”

“‘Ah, true’ isn’t good enough. I came here to demand answers. I’ve done my part, and now it’s your turn to fulfill your promise.”

Seeing my somewhat angry expression, Nailatop slowly savored his coffee with his eyes slightly closed. After a moment, Nailatop spoke.

“I’ve already found the World Tree.”

“What!! When?”

“Maybe when you were busy attacking the Heavenly Altar of the Five Great Mountains? I didn’t want to bother you since you seemed occupied.”

“…So, can I get the core or the fruit of the World Tree right now?”

“Well, therein lies the problem. It takes time to grow the parasitic tree from the core’s surface.”

I recalled that they intended to grow the parasitic tree on the core and then detach it smoothly. Revisiting past information, I asked again.

“How long will it take?”

“About a week or so?”

I frowned at those words.

“Hey. Are you sure you’re not lying? You initially acted like you could pull out the core right away.”

“I don’t recall saying that. I only mentioned the expected timeframe was a month; I never lied.”

“Damn it… I’m not here to play games. If you’re deceiving me, you won’t get off easy!”

I deliberately exuded a strong killing intent.

‘I need to keep the focus on how angry I am.’

Honestly, I was anxious that Hermes had exposed our hand behind the scenes, but I couldn’t let that show. If I feigned anger while confronting him, it would force him to focus on my grievances, making it harder for him to corner me.

Then, Nailatop looked slightly surprised and said, “Oh… I admit I may have been a bit too optimistic. Nonetheless, a week isn’t exactly a long wait, is it? I’d say it’s rather short.”

“Damn. At this rate, I don’t even care about getting smarter using the core of the World Tree. I just want to get back to my original world, like, right now.”

“Hmmm. Well, considering you wouldn’t change anything by doing anything in the outer universe, that’s a wise decision.”

What?

Nailatop’s words just now were significant, and I furrowed my brows as I pressed him.

“What did you mean by that? What do you mean, nothing will change?”

Nailatop shrugged exaggeratedly.

“Simply put, no matter how much you gather the Seven Luminaries and change history in this world, it won’t affect the history of your world at all. It’s not a big deal…”

“……”

“You must have known that from the start, right? So I figured you wouldn’t mind gathering the Seven Luminaries and chatting with the Three Sovereigns.”

No way. My instinct said otherwise.

‘Something’s off!’

There’s no doubt Nailatop’s words held some hidden meaning. He slipped and tried to backtrack. Thanks to my numerous conversations with various opponents, I could sense this instinctively, but I still couldn’t figure out what Nailatop was hiding.

‘…I see. I need to play it a bit differently. I need to find out what he’s concealing.’

I tried to hide my expressions and emotions as much as possible while wearing a mask. Then I opened my mouth.

“Okay. Then I have one request.”

“What is it?”

“I’m already deeply involved in the history of this outer universe. Since I’m already this deep, I want to finish everything off properly before I leave.”

Nailatop took a sip of his coffee and said, “You want help assassinating Emperor Gong Sun Xuanwen during the moment of the formation of the Six Harmonies?”

“Since you already know everything, it’s more convenient. You will help, right?”

“Of course.”

“Wow, bold. I thought you might refuse…”

Surprised by Nailatop’s easygoingness, I stared at him. He smirked.

“Why would I refuse? Even if I’m a wandering being unbound by a single world, I can’t disregard the authority of a Reborn Person, can I? Aiding in an emperor’s assassination isn’t much to handle when I can obtain the power of the World Tree.”

“Is that so?”

“However, why you’d want to engage in such a futile act doesn’t make sense to me as a scientist. After all, isn’t Emperor Gong Sun Xuanwen sealed right now?”

“It’s just practice.”

Nailatop seemed to understand with my reply.

“Ah, of course. You mean to say Emperor Gong Sun Xuanwen will eventually revive during the reincarnation, so you want to use this as a way to prepare for that. It may sound foolish, but it’s actually quite reasonable.”

“…Don’t act like you’ve read my mind.”

“Hoho.”

Nailatop, who had been laughing merrily, suddenly said something unexpected.

“Anyway, cool. Then I’ll give you a week. After that, I’ll help you with the assassination of the emperor.”

“Got it…”

At that moment, I suddenly recalled what Hermes had said earlier.

‘He told me to ask Nailatop a question I’m curious about?’

Everything I had said until now was merely making the necessary conversation for our negotiation. Given Hermes’s wording, it meant he purely suggested asking something I was genuinely curious about, so I felt this was indeed the moment.

‘What should I ask…?’

It would have been easier if I had a scribe; thinking about this all of a sudden was a headache. I put on a troubled expression, and while Nailatop kept drinking his coffee, he finally spoke.

“If you dislike coffee milk, how about cold brew latte?”

“I said I’m not drinking anything.”

“Hmmm… That’s a pity.”

“……”

This guy really loves coffee…

While I pondered what to ask that wouldn’t sound pointless, a thought suddenly struck me.

“You said you travel through these outer universes often, right? Were there always the Three Sovereigns and Evil Gods present in every outer universe you visited?”

Upon hearing the earlier remark by the Thief Gang about the ‘wasteland outer universe,’ that thought had crossed my mind. Would even bleak universes like that have the Three Sovereigns or Evil Gods? Until now, my experiences suggested so, but there’s a difference in verifying it directly from a wandering being’s lips.

Unexpectedly, Nailatop looked at me, surprised, and said, “Reborn Person, that’s quite an interesting question. It’s also a key question.”

“Key?”

“Hmmm… This might trigger the Law of Cause and Effect… Should I answer it or not? Given that I brought you here, perhaps I should take the risk?”

Nailatop, who seemed deep in thought, opened his mouth after a moment.

“Not every outer universe has the Three Sovereigns present. However, Evil Gods always exist.”

“Even without the Three Sovereigns, there are Evil Gods in that outer universe… I’ve seen something like that before.”

The universe where Dharma existed was exactly that.

It seems I’d confirm what I thought.

“Tch… I should have asked something I didn’t already know.”

I felt a bit disappointed.

Suddenly, Nailatop grinned mischievously.

“Guhuhuh. Reborn Person, Evil Gods are far more special than you think.”

“Hmm?”

“Their end is predetermined, but where it all begins is something no one knows. That’s the difference between the other [Old Rulers] and Evil Gods.”

“Wait, so they’re not from the Divine Council?”

Nailatop chuckled softly.

“…They’re truly special… even those from the Divine Council might not grasp the true essence of Evil Gods.”

“……?”

“Since you’ve amused me, I’ll generously spend some of my cause and effect to indulge you with that.”

What the hell is that supposed to mean?

I tried to wrestle through his enigmatic statement, but I just couldn’t decipher it. So, I stood up with a perplexed expression and said, “Anyway, see you in a week.”

“Take care.”

Whoosh!

I left Nailatop’s presence and headed to meet Zhuge Hyun of the Northeast Asian Liberation Army.

“Damn it. My magical power has been building up again…”

Deciding against using obsidian because it might be risky, I opted to recount the events without its use. Zhuge Hyun pondered deeply after hearing my story.

“So you plan to first secure the core and fruit of the World Tree before attempting to assassinate the emperor? You’ll melt the core down to create fruit of talent for yourself and use the fruit of the World Tree, the fruit of good and evil, to return to your original world.”

“That’s right.”

“The order isn’t wrong, but… there’s one thing that bothers me.”

“What is it?”

Zhuge Hyun spoke in a serious tone.

“From the beginning, Nailatop should have known that your world has a confirmed World Tree. So why, knowing that, did he go look for one in an outer universe that may or may not have one? Why go through such unnecessary trouble?”

“……”

Huh, true?

I tilted my head and replied, “Maybe he just enjoyed raising a disciple like Lee Hwan-woong?”

“Impossible… Lee Hwan-woong is just an amusing mortal and nothing more. You know that Nailatop looks conceptually human, yet he’s a divine being.”

“Hmmm.”

“His irrational choice… I believe it ties to the fact that he’s hiding the time gap between your [original world] and the [outer universe] from you.”

“What kind of connection?”

“He might be planning to stab you in the back. If he has a reason to hide the truth, then what else could it mean?”

“Hmm…”

That made sense. It was a shabby thought, but as I nodded in agreement with Zhuge Hyun’s suspicion, he continued.

“So when you go to the World Tree before the emperor’s assassination, take me with you.”

“Take you?”

“I’ll watch over Nailatop while standing by your side. If necessary, I could utilize the Vajra you’ve given me to attack him, which would be tremendously helpful.”

“Hmmm… Even if you possessed Vajra, you were just an ordinary person until recently. If Nailatop goes all out, you’d probably be squashed like a bug.”

“Don’t worry. Vajra won’t let me down like that.”

“Vajra won’t let you down?”

At Zhuge Hyun’s follow-up, I was taken aback.

“The Thunder God Vajra has made a life contract with me. If my life is in danger, Vajra will automatically control my body. If Vajra fights directly, even Nailatop won’t be able to kill me in one hit.”

“……!! What have you done? If that happens, then a single duel means you’ll die for sure!”

“If an ordinary person wishes to exert power, they must pay a price like that.”

Zhuge Hyun said in a trustworthy voice.

“I owe you a great favor. I want to help you until the end, so let me accompany you.”

“…Alright. I’ll do that.”

I nodded, thinking I had no other choice. If his resolve was this strong, it’d be more of a disregard for his will not to take him along.

Once my conversation with Zhuge Hyun ended, I began to ponder where to go next.

“Hmmm. Should I just head back to the vessel?”

If I enter the vessel and train hard for a month or so, the time I promised Nailatop will come. That seems the most straightforward and simple route.

Yet, for some reason, I felt it was a bit awkward to go in right now.

After pondering for a while, I suddenly had a revelation.

“Ah…!! I got it!”

I shouted loudly, “Mephisto! Let’s go to Luoyang!”

[Executing user command.]

Whoosh!

I swiftly commanded Mephisto to take me to Luoyang. Then I set off to estimate the location of a nearby village in Luoyang and soon arrived at the place I was remembering.

‘There it is.’

Why didn’t I think to investigate this?

‘…There’s no aura of the cloud or magical energy.’

So, it seems Cheon Woo-jin isn’t in this world.

I reached the entrance of the rural village, and as I walked into the desolate village square, I noticed something expected.

A dark, cramped shrine.

The entrance was marked with the name Yeodong-bin.

“……”

Just then.

“What brings you here?”

A familiar voice.

I turned around, and there, almost as if awaiting my arrival, stood a familiar face.

The stunning beauty clad in a white cloak—

I looked at her and said, “Daji.”

Indeed.

Daji had chased me down to this place once again.

Daji gazed at me with a strange look and said, “You fought with that foreign apostle and seem to be quite exhausted. Don’t you feel guilty leaving this maiden in such a dangerous place?”

“Don’t talk nonsense. You could win even in a straight-up fight against him.”

“Hohoho.”

Daji burst into melodious laughter. Then, suddenly turning serious, she said, “I’ll ask you again. Why did you suddenly come here? Is something important here?”

“……”

I paused for a moment, then had a thought this was just the opportunity I needed, so I asked Daji.

“Daji, do you know of Master Mangnyang?”

This was indeed the village of Master Mangnyang that I was familiar with.

Seeing the shrine of Yeodong-bin confirmed that this was the right place.

However, Cheon Woo-jin was nowhere to be found, and since Master Mangnyang, who always invited me to the Dream World, was also absent, I asked Daji while holding onto a glimmer of hope.

Daji responded as if she didn’t know. “Who’s that?”

“……”

“Is he a powerful god?”

She really doesn’t know…

I glanced at the inside of Yeodong-bin’s shrine.

‘Then why is that there…?’

Inside Yeodong-bin’s shrine.

Although Master Mangnyang was absent, there was a rusty iron sword.

“`

 

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