1354——————==

Soul of the Evil God

I was seriously bothered by the fact that there was no prophet. But considering I had summoned the avatar of Jeon Wook right in front of me, if I kept rambling on about nonsense, I’d definitely provoke his wrath, so I decided to quickly change my approach.

“Jeon Wook! My curiosity about the prophet was purely personal. In fact, I summoned you to report that I have gathered all the Six Fundamentals.”

Hearing this, Jeon Wook’s avatar relaxed a bit, stroking his chin.

[All gathered…? Does that mean you managed to snag them from that alien Apostle?]

Seems Jeon Wook was already aware that Halchi Olleifra was guarding the Golden Crow. I nodded vigorously, trying to keep my composure.

“Yes, indeed.”

[Impressive.]

Jeon Wook replied, sounding somewhat impressed. Given that reaction, Halchi Olleifra had to be a top-tier Apostle for sure. Then Jeon Wook said,

[Good. Then go immediately to the Heavenly Altar and carry out the ceremony for the release of the Six Fundamentals. At the same time, the spirits of the Three Sovereigns will gather, and today’s plan will be completed.]

“No, actually, about that… would you mind waiting just a bit longer for the Six Fundamentals release?”

When I cautiously opposed, Jeon Wook fell silent for a moment before replying.

[What’s your reason?]

The fact that he wasn’t outright angry showed that he was acknowledging me to some extent. I took a deep breath and spoke slowly.

“It’s none other than the Emperor we’re dealing with. It’s embarrassing to admit, but even if the other Sovereigns help me, I can’t guarantee I can withstand his strikes. At the very least, I need to hold out for a few exchanges to eliminate him, right?”

[Hmm….]

“I’ve recently made significant progress in my training and am on the verge of small success. Please give me a little more time to grow stronger.”

I wasn’t sure if the logic of asking for time to pile on strength would pass, but I was anxiously hoping.

Unexpectedly, Jeon Wook said,

[We know you won’t even have time to buy for yourself. You may be strong, but compared to our essence, you hardly make a conversation. So I think your proposal is pointless, but if that’s your desire, I’ll grant you a short reprieve.]

“……!! Th-thank you!”

Why is he granting a reprieve if he thinks it’s pointless?

I didn’t quite understand Jeon Wook’s thinking, but he continued speaking.

[Don’t get the wrong idea. Have you already forgotten? To give birth to a new Six Fundamentals, I told you to gather six of the [Old Rulers] for a binding contract.]

“…Ah! That’s right. So, why is that…?”

[You naïve fool. Did you think we’d do all that binding for you?]

“What?”

Jeon Wook pointed a finger at me.

[You also need to hit the ground and search for those [Old Rulers] who are on this planet. If you can’t find at least one, I won’t let it slide. The time I’m granting you is to fulfill this additional request.]

“Gah!!”

[Are you not going to do it?]

As an intense black flame erupted from Jeon Wook’s avatar, I genuinely felt killing intent and broke out in a cold sweat. This wasn’t a joke, so I frantically nodded.

“I-I will!”

[Good. And one more thing… have you gathered a hundred souls of immortals from the Celestial Realm?]

“Ah, that’s here…”

I quickly opened the wooden armor to show Jeon Wook’s avatar. Seeing the treasure of the Celestial Realm filling the insides of the wooden armor, Jeon Wook fell silent, and I went on to reveal the three souls of the Twelve Great Immortals I had prepared.

“The Celestial Kunlun vowed absolute allegiance to the Three Sovereigns and has manifested the souls of the Three Great Immortals. They requested that we use their souls in place of a hundred souls of the Celestial treasures.”

[Hmm… laughable.]

I lowered my head to Jeon Wook.

“Please, Jeon Wook as an Apostle. If we consider the Law of Cause and Effect, wouldn’t this be sufficient without needing to sacrifice a hundred?”

[…….]

After a brief moment of contemplation, Jeon Wook suddenly reached into the wooden armor as if he were being pulled in.

“Whoa!”

I was shocked by that, but Jeon Wook pulled out a handful of compacted treasures from the Celestial Realm that were small enough to fit in one hand. He must have compressed the objects’ volume exponentially using divine power. Then, without a word, Jeon Wook extended his other hand towards me, signaling for the souls of the Great Immortals, so I hurriedly handed them over.

Gulp.

Jeon Wook instantly swallowed the goods in his hands. Then, after chewing as if savoring it, he spoke after a moment.

[That should be enough. I accept your request.]

“Thank you very much.”

[You seem more capable than I thought, so I’m giving you some leeway. However, I hope you won’t hesitate to stain your hands with the blood of the weak when the time comes.]

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

[You don’t seem to be using the Apostle’s pattern we granted you. Why not?]

Huh?

‘Why the pattern?’

I was taken aback by Jeon Wook’s unexpected question. Then I realized he was talking about the three patterns bestowed by the Three Sovereigns and spread my palm to take a look. Concentrating a bit of divine power, I saw three patterns swirling around on my palm, and then redirected my gaze to Jeon Wook.

“I thought it was only for proving my identity…”

[Now that you mention it, I never taught you how to use it. I’ll tell you the words of the incantation.]

“Incantation?”

[Just recite after me. Mask of Frenzy, arise.]

“Mask of Frenzy, arise.”

Kwah-KING!

Simultaneously, I felt a translucent mask suddenly cover my face.

“Wha?!”

I was about to tear the mask off, thinking it was trying to take over my essence once again, but this time, oddly enough, it wouldn’t budge. It wasn’t a matter of lack of strength or pain; it felt like I couldn’t even reach it with the Technique of All Things. As I flailed my hands, Jeon Wook spoke.

[You previously removed the Mask of Frenzy yourself, so there should be no restrictions left, only the mask’s power remains. It’s merely a form of the mask, a mass of pure power intertwined, so it’s tricky to remove.]

“Oh… I see.”

[It’s quite unexpected. The fact that you can use the mask’s power without restrictions… ]

Muttering with a tone that sounded somewhat annoyed, Jeon Wook continued.

[You can keep increasing your physical strength while using the Mask of Frenzy. That is the gift of frenzy.]

“Physical strength…”

I was taken aback by this. So I asked.

“Um, physical strength, isn’t that merely the power of the body? It seems a bit weak for an Apostle’s power.”

My line of thought was reasonable. After all, compared to the staggering powers of divine beings who alter time and space, level mountains, and manipulate elements, just mundane physical ability enhancement seemed insignificant. Especially considering I had just arrived at the Absolute Realm, where ordinary internal power increases could barely compare to such divine abilities.

[It can continually increase in proportion to the user’s capacity. This power was so formidable that Zhu Rong nearly refused to grant it even to his Apostle.]

Jeon Wook appeared quite confident. I, however, didn’t understand how that was supposed to be so powerful.

“…?”

Just making my physical strength stronger is regarded as powerful?

Is that what he meant by hesitating to grant it to Zhu Rong?

[I see, you don’t get it. If you don’t understand, feel free to use it as is….]

Jeon Wook shook his head as if it were a bother to explain and left me with one last remark before vanishing.

[I hope next time we meet, you are on the verge of releasing the Six Fundamentals.]

Pa-at.

I reported back to Jeon Wook, organizing the situation and buying time. While I had somewhat resolved the given task, I had a new mission to meet one or two [Old Rulers] and involve them in the binding contract for the Seven Luminaries, which felt like a hassle.

‘Damn it… Do I really have to deal with yet another difficult task in just a week? I should just chill inside the wooden armor and train.’

With those words on my mind, I started to head back into the wooden armor but paused.

“Hmm. Either way, I have to return to the village of Master Mangnyang to meet Daji in a week… It’d probably be better to complete Jeon Wook’s task neatly as well.”

I realized this request might be easier than I thought.

Right now, it’s the End Times. Given the current situation, countless [Old Rulers] must be hiding in seclusion on Earth. Finding a few among them shouldn’t be too challenging. But as searching for them would become more of a bother, I pondered over an easier method.

Since nothing struck me, I decided to seek out Zhuge Hyun and ask him.

“So, I need to find the [Old Rulers] to propose a contract for the Seven Luminaries, but what should I do?”

“You want to know an easy method to locate the [Old Rulers].”

“Yes.”

“If you want an easy route, you could go and ask Nailatop, but considering you have a crucial matter ahead of you, it wouldn’t be wise to owe him anything. My method of recommendation would be to head to the Human Alliance headquarters in Antarctica.”

I was taken aback by the unexpected suggestion.

“Human Alliance headquarters in Antarctica? Why there…?”

“The Human Alliance has probably scanned the existence of not just aliens but potential future threats like the [Old Rulers]. With Dr. Faust around, they wouldn’t have overlooked that! Just getting that information would make it easy to accomplish your mission.”

“Ah…! I see. I’ll head there immediately.”

Pa-at.

I set off to the Human Alliance headquarters in Antarctica. Upon arrival, I sought out Dr. Faust and said,

“Give me information about the [Old Rulers]!”

“What’s going on so suddenly?”

“As you know, I’ve defeated several formidable alien forces. However, behind those aliens are the [Old Rulers]. I aim to negotiate with them to restore peace to humanity.”

“……!!”

Dr. Faust seemed deeply moved, dropping the round glass vial he was holding. Luckily, it was made of reinforced glass, so it didn’t break. He hurriedly picked it up and then said,

“If that’s the case, I’ll definitely provide it. I didn’t put in any information for fear Mephistopheles would have it taken from him, but you’ve come at a good time.”

Beep.

Then, Dr. Faust began to operate a complex machine at a huge computer and gestured for me to step onto a round pad. Once I stepped on it, he said,

“I will transfer the data directly to your brain using the neural device. It will take some time, so please stand still.”

Wuuuuuuum.

I could feel knowledge entering my mind as Dr. Faust had mentioned. Admittedly, it was certainly slower compared to obsidian, but surprisingly felt quicker than the transfer done by the Great Bear Empire.

‘Is the current human technological prowess somehow better than that of the Great Bear Empire…?’

Well, given that I received direct scientific knowledge from Nailatop, known for reaching the extremes of science, it made sense. I was mentally accepting this notion when—

Fizz.

“Ugh….”

Suddenly, it felt like lightning struck inside my head. A blinding headache followed, akin to someone grinding my temple with a metal wire.

“Urgh… Gah…”

Having experienced all sorts of pain, this was entirely new, and as I looked pale from nausea, Dr. Faust grew concerned.

“What?! What side effects are these…?”

“Ugh… You’re not trying to kill me with this, are you…?”

While I squirmed on the floor, he vigorously denied it.

“No! If I wanted you dead, I wouldn’t use such a crude method! I’d approach it much more scientifically!”

“……”

What on earth is this excuse!?

“This is a completely unknown phenomenon… just wait a moment…”

Then suddenly, Dr. Faust exclaimed with bulging eyes,

“1… 1279.7 yottabytes… no, that’s several quintillabytes worth of computational power…?! How is this even possible in a human brain, this, this is absurd!!”

Fizz!

In an instant, my vision turned dark, and I lost consciousness.

In an utterly dark space.

That space began to gradually fill with light. And I started to feel a vile, metallic stench of blood filling the air.

It was revolting.

This was the Blood Path.

Pure crimson blood gushed along the walls, covering them entirely. The floor was sticky, with blood pooling up to my ankles. I took an involuntary half-step forward, and the splashing sound of blood echoed loudly.

My head spun.

It felt as though this area was extremely cramped.

‘Somehow… I think I’ve been here once…’

Throb!

The headache lingered. Yet it wasn’t nearly as intense as the insane migraine I had just felt. I sensed my queasiness easing a bit while I staggeringly steadied myself in one spot.

Goooowwwww—

From the other side of the Blood Path, a horrifying and ominous creature’s roar echoed. I stumbled, slowly making my way along the scarlet Blood Path, feeling the creeping blood odor enveloping my entire body.

The scene was horrifying yet strangely didn’t feel horrifying.

Why is that?

This doesn’t seem like blood but something else.

Walking about a hundred steps, I caught a glimpse of the creature’s outline at the passage’s end.

Goooowwwww—

The creature was highly bizarre. With eight black bird wings spread wide and three eyes on its face, its skin was submerged in a bloody red hue. Additionally, its pupils sparkled with an unknown starlight, while its limbs had transformed entirely into monstrous appendages, with surprisingly its torso resembling that of a human.

The monster seemed unable to approach me because it was grasping iron bars blocking the passage. It stared at me with wide, rolling eyes.

As I looked up at this distorted creature that was about two heads taller than me, I felt an unsettling discomfort.

“What is this…?”

I found it utterly repulsive. I felt an immediate desire to kill it.

The creature seemed to have the same thought and let out a sudden roar.

Gooooowwwwwwwww!!!

The Blood Path trembled with a wave of crimson floods. While I was drenched in that bloodlike substance, I continued to stare straight at it, feeling an unexplainable primal urge rising within me.

I have to kill…

I must kill that thing!

Kwah-KING!

I summoned the Immortal Sword into my hand. Fortunately, it seemed this space was conducive to the powers of the Immortal Sword.

I was about to swing the sword to cut down the iron bars.

“Let’s have a chat.”

That was just before I heard the voice of a fragile girl.

I immediately turned, recognizing the familiar voice.

And spotting the girl holding a raccoon doll standing on the surface of the blood pool, I instinctively dropped the Immortal Sword.

Plop.

“……”

The solidified Immortal Sword fell noisily onto the blood puddle.

I stood there, mouth agape, trembling all over.

And I called out the name of the opponent.

“Cheon Woo-jin.”