전생검신 95권 16화

As soon as I realized the corpse on the throne was King Solomon, I found it odd.

‘Why does Solomon look human?’

[…….]

‘Looking at that skull, it resembles humans way too much for someone who existed trillions of years ago. How could someone like that take on such a form?’

Indeed.

What puzzled me was that Solomon’s physique and appearance on that throne were surprisingly similar to a human’s. No, as someone who had thoroughly studied martial arts, medical techniques, and even anatomy, I concluded that he was nearly indistinguishable from a human.

However, the human race had emerged millions of years ago, so how could a being from trillions of years ago look human? Not to mention, there’s a huge discrepancy in the timeline for the ruler of the Demon Empire to be mingling with humans.

Eligor paused in silence before responding to my question.

[I have no reason to answer you, nor do I trust you enough. But if you wish to hear the answer, there’s something you must do.]

‘What is it?’

[If you can wake the person from their seal, then you might get your answer. Right?]

‘……!’

I frowned, realizing what Eligor was hinting at with his words.

‘Are you saying I should break King Solomon’s seal? Me?’

[That’s right.]

‘Are you insane… didn’t the Outer God seal him after killing him? What makes you think I can break the seal of an Outer God?’

I was in disbelief with Eligor.

The second most powerful entity in the universe, the ruler of the Demon Empire, King Solomon!

And the seal on him was an Outer God’s—yet he expected me, a first-time intruder, to break it?

Setting that aside, I just couldn’t fathom why Eligor was making such an offer to a foreigner like me.

Then Eligor continued.

[Because I sensed a peculiar potential within you. When I nearly killed you earlier, we held a meeting and concluded that you could indeed have a chance.]

‘…… We?’

[Let me introduce you.]

Hoo!

In the next moment, Eligor swung a massive black spear horizontally. It was as if reality itself was being cut like a curtain, and strange, blood-like energy oozed from the segmented space. Powerful beings with immense strength revealed their silhouettes beyond that plane.

Gooo!

Each of them was an apostle radiating tremendous magical power! Although there was no physical form among them, the power they wielded was enough to claim dominion over the Demon King of the world, and I could easily infer their rank. With their numbers far exceeding dozens, they formed a formidable faction.

Eligor, turning his back on the roughly seventy apostles, sheathed his black spear and declared.

[We are the 72 Demon Gods that serve King Solomon and the ultimate monarchs of the Demon Empire.]

‘……!’

[Welcome to the lion’s den.]

Eligor’s description of a ‘lion’s den’ wasn’t wrong.

All of those 72 demon gods were [Old Rulers]! I had seen the collective of the [Old Rulers] before, but they also constituted a formidable force—maybe only the alliance of the Ancient Gods, Memphis, could compare?

…… Would I stand a chance against such formidable foes if they ganged up on me?

While I was internally assessing the odds, Eligor continued.

[The Belial system has detected that dozens of star clusters are linked to you. It’s an unprecedented occurrence, and your powers seem rather bizarre. What kind of power are you wielding?]

‘Belial system? What’s that supposed to mean?’

[It’s a system developed using the Thousand Sacrifices to assess the Law of Cause and Effect. How can you perform acts like that without using divine power?]

‘…….’

I fell silent.

Apparently, those guys could sense that my power was automatically absorbing the energies of countless stars using the Thunder Soul.

Eligor spoke in a low growl.

[You seem hesitant to share… but it’s fine if you don’t tell me. I think there’s a chance you might just be able to break King Solomon’s seal.]

‘Hey, aren’t you getting ahead of yourself? It’s an Outer God’s seal! No matter how peculiar my powers are, how could I hope to break it?’

[We don’t hold high expectations. But since the Revelation of the End is approaching, we’re willing to try anything.]

Just then, another demon god stepped forward and said.

[I am the Demon God Astaroth. You could say I’m the one directly managing the Door of the Demon Gods. If you want to use the Door, let’s make a deal.]

Demon God Astaroth resembled a colossal, fiery rock giant. Of course, this was just the apostle; I had no idea what the true form looked like, but somehow I instinctively felt it might resemble this one. I replied to Astaroth.

‘What kind of deal are you suggesting?’

[If I grant you access to the Door of the Demon Gods, you must find a way to break King Solomon’s seal. You have until ten thousand years before the end… even if you have to scour the universe!]

‘……!’

[If you accept this contract, our 72 demons will assist you.]

I realized what they were after.

Desperation does make a point, huh? They might not know the precise method, but they’re just grasping at anything to break King Solomon’s seal.

I looked between Eligor and Astaroth, weighing whether I should accept their proposal.

…….

Okay then.

Having considered the situation, I smirked and said.

‘I feel like I’m the one taking the short end of the stick here… You guys.’

[What do you mean?]

‘It’d be convenient to have the Door of the Demon Gods, but it’s not essential. If it becomes a nuisance, I could just crash the party and go wherever I want. But you want me to cooperate to break an Outer God’s seal? Isn’t that a loss for me?’

[Then what do you suggest?]

‘How about you clear things up a bit more definitely?’

[In what way…….]

Upon hearing my words, the 72 demons seemed startled.

‘As for me, I might as well break King Solomon’s seal immediately. If I do, you guys would become my subordinates. How does that sound?’

I was taking on a significant risk, but it would be quite a venture if I could make the 72 demons my minions.

[Wha—…? Is that really possible?]

‘Yeah. It might not be guaranteed, but I think it’s doable.’

[To become our subordinates means that if you break the seal, we’d serve you instead of King Solomon.]

‘If you feel that’s betraying your lord, then I won’t force you…….’

I trailed off, but the 72 demons rushed to shout.

[We’ll do it!]

[We’ll do it!]

[Accept my loyalty!]

[As long as you set him free!]

Hustle bustle

With the mood shifting as they snapped to agreement, I found myself momentarily taken aback.

‘…… Huh?’

What’s up with these guys?

Changing their loyalty to me, and yet they’re so enthusiastic about it?

Am I still missing something about them?

As I was feeling flustered, Astaroth spoke with an amused undertone.

[Hehe… If you’re saying that much, you must have a solid method. What is that method?]

‘Method? It’s nothing special…….’

[Tell me. If it doesn’t sound like nonsense, I’ll agree to your proposal.]

‘Hmm. In that case…….’

I finally revealed the ‘method’ that had popped into my head.

As soon as I finished speaking, Astaroth and all 72 demons froze, standing there dumbfounded.

[……?!]

‘So, what do you think?’

After a moment, Astaroth roared in rage.

[You lunatic! That’s absurd! You were mocking us!]

‘No… why are you jumping to conclusions? Why do you think it wouldn’t work?’

[Would you trust that if you were in my shoes?]

I ended up getting mad instead.

‘Why can’t you trust me! I’m telling you, I went to meet that person and came back in one piece! Three times, no less!’

[……!]

‘There’s no guarantee that I’ll succeed, but even if I lose, it’s worth a shot!’

As I shouted that while putting my name on the line, Astaroth genuinely looked startled.

[Wait… is that really true? How can that be…… Who the heck are you?]

‘I’m Baek Woong!’

[…….]

After a brief moment, the 72 demons started whispering amongst themselves.

Once the discussion wrapped up, Astaroth finally spoke.

[Alright… if you succeed, we’ll serve you as our lord for eternity!]

‘Great! Now send me through the Door of the Demon Gods to ‘that’ location. You know what I mean, right?’

[…… Are you really going to do this? Are you completely insane?]

‘Who cares? It’s too late to care about that now….’

[F… Follow me.]

Whoosh

I followed Astaroth to the Door of the Demon Gods. As I arrived in front of it, I let out a brief thought.

‘This looks a lot like the Five Demon Gate.’

The dimensional passage that connects to the realm of the ancient sovereign.

The Door of the Demon Gods seemed strikingly similar to the Five Demon Gate, just with a few aesthetic differences.

[What’s the Five Demon Gate?]

‘It’s a—.’

As I explained the Five Demon Gate to Astaroth, he seemed to smirk for some reason.

[Since Solomon’s knowledge comes from the divine seat, it’s possible the beings that descend from there share similar knowledge as well.]

‘But why have you been speaking casually to Solomon? Isn’t he your lord?’

[…….]

Without responding to my comment, Astaroth reached out and injected magical energy into the Door of the Demon Gods.

Gooo……!

As the door started to emanate dark magical energy and activated, Astaroth warned.

[You know once you step through this door, there’s no turning back. Once you cross the boundary, you won’t be able to emerge without the permission of a Great Being.]

I couldn’t help but laugh at Astaroth’s words.

‘I know all that. I probably know better than you do. So just send me along already.’

[…… I warned you. I genuinely hope for your success.]

‘Got it.’

Ssssss

I stepped into the Door of the Demon Gods. Moments later, I felt an unpleasant darkness wrap around my entire being, and I realized I was sinking into the gooey mud of the universe.

This is it.

‘The Remains of Chaos I passed through with the Giant God!’

I muttered to myself.

The Remains of Chaos!

This abyssal sea is the outermost part of the universe, formed by the aftermath of the primordial war that took place at the universe’s birth. Due to the chaos’ density being billions of times thicker than regular space, ordinary beings would be contaminated by chaos upon stepping here and perish.

However, the last time, the Giant God had protected me, but this time, I realized I was entirely unaffected by the Remains of Chaos even without his protection.

Vroom vroom vroom

The Thunder Soul at the center of my being was spinning with force!

As long as this Thunder Soul was rotating, it seemed like I would suffer no harm from the Remains of Chaos. To be precise, the gentle waves emitted by the Thunder Soul kept pushing the Remains of Chaos away, to the point where it felt like the muck around me was being thoroughly cleaned.

‘Sure enough, the current power of the Thunder Soul is even overwhelming the Remains of Chaos. Just how much energy has it absorbed…….’

I had given it some thought, but the current power stored within the Thunder Soul was likely of an unparalleled caliber. Not only humans, but even entire civilizations could struggle to measure it. After all, with a power of this magnitude, it made sense that the 72 demons had yielded a move against me, right?

With that thought, I flew forward through the Remains of Chaos, unimpeded, since I knew what was on the other side.

Whoooooosh…!

After a moment, I sensed the boundary I had crossed.

‘……!’

Why did it feel like this?

Following the method that Cheon Woo-jin had taught me to recognize [the boundary], I released my strength based on an intuitive feeling, and indeed, the moment I crossed the threshold, a massive hand seemed to snatch me away and push me into some unknown chaos.

…… If it hadn’t been for Hou Woo-jin’s method, I probably wouldn’t have sensed it and would’ve been caught by that hand!

I clenched my teeth and unleashed the Thunder Soul toward that palm, drawing my sword.

Thunder God Sword Name!

Zap!

The moment the sword of thunder struck that palm, it split apart like it had been sliced by a sharp blade, just missing my body. As I sliced the palm in half, it seemed as if another hand came rushing in as if waiting, but in the state of having no thoughts, I simply sliced again.

Slash slash

As I repeatedly slashed through it dozens of times, eventually, the attacks ceased, and I realized I had entered a vast space veiled in a chaotic white.

‘…… I’m in.’

This was indeed the Outer Dimension, a place known as the Path of Reincarnation!

Once a place I had feared as a nightmare, it felt familiar after visiting multiple times.

Even in this Outer Dimension, I knew that ordinary beings could quickly perish as everything succumbed to chaos, and all laws twisted irregularly. However, instead of being consumed by fear, I simply remained calm and revolved the Thunder Soul within me.

Vroom Vroom Vroom

As the Thunder Soul whirled and generated waves, I could sense those waves gently shielding me once again. It just wasn’t strong enough to push chaos away as before; it merely held my position. Thus, I realized the essence of the Outer Dimension.

A place where chaos overlaps infinitely to appear white!

Moreover, it seemed that the Thunder Soul bore the potential to resist even that infinite chaos.

How long had I waited?

Suddenly, before me, I noticed the being I had been anticipating appear.

[How bold.]

An [eye] emerged in the empty white space.

Upon seeing that eye, despite my resolve, I felt my heart sink.

As expected, the stature was different.

No matter how many times we met, I would never get used to the incomprehensible terror that it brought.

But forcing my heart to steady, I opened my mouth.

“I imagine you are already aware, but I must still make my request.”

How intriguing.

In this Outer Dimension, I could speak vocally instead of just as a spirit.

[…….]

“Please break King Solomon’s seal.”

The method for breaking King Solomon’s seal was simple.

Since it was an Outer God’s seal, all I needed to do was ask the Outer God to break it.

In response to my request, the Outer God Observer said.

[Reborn one. You must understand you might be facing annihilation for eternity, yet you dared to come before me. Explain why.]

“…….”

[Is it that you wish to save Solomon so badly?]

“No, I just wanted to see if you could annihilate me while I’m undergoing the trials of Al Karda.]

This wasn’t a gamble to save Solomon.

If I was already being toyed with by the Outer God, I wouldn’t let myself be dragged along any longer.

A gamble on my fate!

Since I’m being toyed with, I want to understand the nature of the Outer Gods’ relationship.