---

Chapter 458 – Transformation

‘… Sigh.’

No matter how I think about it, I can’t figure it out.

What could be the way to return to the original world?

What was that regret that Tang Je-mun spoke of?

Could it be related to the things I did in my previous life? If not…

‘Is it about the Demon Sword Queen?’

I felt the throbbing of the Demon Sword Queen on my back as I pondered.

It’s related to the choice that Tang Je-mun mentioned.

What on earth should I choose?

I tentatively speculated it might have something to do with the death of the Demon Sword Queen.

Given the timing, the only choice in this situation seems to be that one.

‘So… are you saying to try to stop it?’

I don’t know.

It’s certain that the death of the Demon Sword Queen is one of my regrets.

‘If I manage to accomplish that in this world… will my regret truly disappear?’

I couldn’t even be sure if I could stop it.

Moreover, even if I somehow managed to prevent it, I’m not even certain if that’s the right thing to do.

What am I supposed to do about the consequences that would follow?

In any case, this was a matter from another world. Stopping it wouldn’t erase my regrets in my own world.

‘I don’t know.’

No matter how much I thought about it, nothing was clear.

“Huh….”

I could feel the breath of the Demon Sword Queen. Ignoring the tickling in my ear, I picked up my pace a bit.

My back felt damp.

The blood of the Demon Sword Queen was soaking my back.

Feeling that, I swallowed hard.

Though I tried to staunch the bleeding, it seemed to be a much deeper wound than I anticipated.

For now, instead of these complicated thoughts, it’s better to return as I saw and treat the Demon Sword Queen….

“…!”

I sensed something with instinct.

I twisted my body.

Crack-!

A tree behind me fell as it was severed.

I rolled onto the floor, adopting a fall recovery stance.

I cradled the Demon Sword Queen in my arms to minimize the impact.

Right after that, I drew in my energy to the maximum and filled my heart with demon energy.

In an instant, I raised my posture, beads of cold sweat forming as I looked ahead.

“Impressive.”

The one who delivered the attack I had just evaded approached.

“You aimed to cut my leg, yet you sensed this?”

“… Who are you?”

The wind blew.

Along with it, the elder’s dark-colored robe fluttered. His presence was faint.

No, even if it was faint, it was overwhelmingly vast.

Crackle!

Thunder Qi surged.

The thunder energy swirling around the elder resembled that of the Demon Sword Queen but felt more refined.

Trembling, I looked at the elder.

Heh heh—

The elder chuckled and spoke to me.

“It seems I made a mistake.”

“…”

The elder.

As I realized the meaning behind the mistake the Heavenly Lord was mentioning, I swallowed dryly.

That last strike was something I shouldn’t have been able to perceive.

Had there been no anomalies, my leg should have been severed by the elder’s sword.

Yet, I managed to evade it.

The reason was simple.

“… That evil spirit is indeed mournful.”

Before the strike came, I first felt that terrible killing intent.

‘This is maddening.’

Licking my dry lips while looking at the elder.

The last Nangong.

One of the Three Eminent Beings of the world, and the master of the Nangong Clan.

Heavenly Lord.

A colossal killing intent emanated from his physical body.

My fingertips trembled.

It was the pressure stemming from the gulf in our power.

‘This is genuinely dangerous.’

That killing intent was real. The Heavenly Lord was genuinely intending to kill.

‘What are you going to do?’

I furrowed my brows.

This is undeniably within the territory of Sichuan, which means that the Heavenly Demon could possibly intervene.

The Heavenly Lord should also be aware of this.

‘Is he ignoring the warning from the Heavenly Demon?’

Could this be the outbreak of war?

It wouldn’t be unusual. The Heavenly Lord had broken contracts in my previous life and started wars.

The issue was, why does it have to be right now?

‘Sigh.’

I gently set the Demon Sword Queen down on the ground and stood up.

The abrupt nature of this situation made it hard to grasp.

“… Why are you suddenly acting like this?”

I asked, channeling all my Qi perception towards the Heavenly Lord.

“This is Sichuan… have you forgotten the warning from the Cult Leader….”

Woosh.

“…!”

As I tried to shout out the warning from the Heavenly Demon to navigate through the situation.

Something sharp pierced into my chest.

I looked down.

A sword blade had been driven deep into my chest.

“Cough-!”

As I registered the situation, blood gushed from my mouth.

Slash-!

The sword was pulled out, leaving its mark on the ground.

My knee buckled weakly.

“Cough….”

As my energy giving me support dissipated, my vision slowly darkened.

I knew this sensation.

It was death.

Death was approaching.

… So suddenly?

“Ugh… Hah….”

As my upper body steadily fell, the Heavenly Lord walked past me leisurely.

It seemed his target was the Demon Sword Queen.

He reached out.

Even with my eyes closing, I tried to block his foot.

Thud.

I couldn’t reach him.

The only contact I felt was the cold sensation of the ground beneath me.

In the darkening view, the last thing I saw was the Heavenly Lord reaching for the throat of the Demon Sword Queen.

No! I had to stop that, but I couldn’t.

I couldn’t stop the encroaching darkness.

And I had to meet my sudden death just like that.

The burning and crumbling building.

The blood soaking the ground.

The day the Nangong Clan’s seed withered away from the world above.

The Heavenly Lord remembers that day.

How could he ever forget.

The grandson, once called the Clan Leader, was left with nothing but his body rolling on the ground.

The day the Nangong Clan, which declared they would reign over the righteous faction, disappeared overnight.

The Heavenly Lord would never forget that day.

“… How tragic.”

A dry voice slipped from the elder’s lips.

“Isn’t it so?”

The one who wanted an answer closed their eyes and kept their mouth shut.

For the Heavenly Lord, it was a face he longed to see.

An enemy who exterminated his everything, the only remaining bloodline in this world.

Moreover, it was the reason the Heavenly Lord continued to live.

“I wanted to ask.”

Why did you do that?

The Heavenly Lord wanted to ask her that. Why did you burn your own clan to the ground?

Did you bear such resentment that you would sever your own father’s neck?

What made you turn into such a monster?

Such questions remained on his mind, but they no longer mattered.

“…”

The Heavenly Lord’s gaze shifted to the handle of the sword in the Demon Sword Queen’s hand.

Even in a state of unconsciousness, it seemed she clung tightly to the sword as if refusing to let go.

That was the symbol of the Nangong Clan. It was the product imbued with the commands of the ancient ancestors.

The one recognized by the Thunder Fang.

He was the master of the Nangong Clan.

Words left by the Thunder Sky One Sword.

Crack.

The Heavenly Lord ground his teeth.

“… How absurd.”

It was merely the empty words of the ancient ancestors.

That’s what the Heavenly Lord thought.

If it were otherwise, how could it even be possible?

The Heavenly Lord could not wield the Thunder Fang. Yet, he had taken up the position of Clan Leader.

Because he was the strongest.

The future Clan Leaders were the same.

The grandson, once called the Sword King, could not draw the Thunder Fang, yet he became the Clan Leader.

The topic of the Thunder Fang had become an insignificant detail in determining the Clan Leader.

However.

‘Why are you…’

The grandchild standing before him could wield the Thunder Fang so casually.

And how could someone like that annihilate their entire bloodline?

The Heavenly Lord was left unable to understand.

This painful regret tormented the Heavenly Lord.

That night.

If he hadn’t listened to the words of the alliance and gone to the Martial Alliance.

Or.

“I should have killed you when I first saw you.”

Then perhaps this wouldn’t have happened.

The Heavenly Lord recalled.

The moment the Thunder Fang had returned in the hands of this child.

The form of the Thunder Fang, bursting forth with light.

The ambitions of the Clan Leader he saw and the jealousy he felt from them.

“…”

Where did it all go wrong?

No, it no longer mattered.

The Heavenly Lord slowly reached out toward the Demon Sword Queen.

Thin, pale neck easily gripped.

He shouldn’t step into Sichuan’s territory.

This was a warning given by the ancient Heavenly Demon to the Three Eminent Beings.

As such, the Three Eminent Beings truly hadn’t stepped foot in Sichuan for years.

The despair and fear instilled by the Heavenly Demon were reasons for that.

Yet, the most crucial reason was, the dancer had directly told him not to go.

Now was not the time.

There would surely be a chance.

The Heavenly Lord had not followed anyone’s orders, yet absurdly, he heeded that advice and truly didn’t step into Sichuan.

He knew.

He was subtly hoping for justification.

The fear of the Heavenly Demon made him shrink back, needing a reason not to fight the Heavenly Demon.

How disgraceful.

It was embarrassing to bear the name of Nangong.

So perhaps it was fortunate.

Now, the Nangong, with his eyes fixed on this child in front of him, had all vanished.

“… Tsk….”

The Heavenly Lord bitterly smiled.

This is what he had become.

The embodiment of contradiction. The Clan that was burning with revenge, yet—

The coward who hesitated out of fear of the Heavenly Demon.

A person enveloped in pride and inferiority.

That was him.

The evil spirit deepening further.

Now, the Heavenly Lord wanted to end it all.

With the last of the vengeful spirit that kept him alive, he finally wanted it all to end….

“….”

The Heavenly Lord froze his hand, which was about to snap the Demon Sword Queen’s neck at a sudden feeling of strangeness.

“… Something’s….”

Something felt off.

He had just hesitated due to the fear of the Heavenly Demon, but why was he now inside Sichuan?

Also…

‘… Why now….’

Leaving aside the revenge of his clan.

Where has the old man’s greed, which sought to die upon the land of the Nangong Clan immediately after all wars ended, gone?

Clearly, that was the case, yet why was he here, holding the neck of the Demon Sword Queen?

Caught up in this peculiar strangeness, the Heavenly Lord had a momentary dizzy spell.

What is this? How did it come to this?

The Heavenly Lord tried to recall why he was in this place.

I don’t know. The Heavenly Lord felt as if his head was blackened.

Amidst the blurred chaos, the only thing clear was.

—I will allow it.

A sensation that someone had granted permission.

The moment he recalled that, the Heavenly Lord’s eyes sharpened, and his hand tightened again.

As if possessed, when he was about to carry out his vengeance again.

Thud Thud.

“…!”

The Heavenly Lord felt something and quickly turned his head back.

But there was nothing behind him.

Was it an illusion? Just as that thought crossed his mind.

“Huh?”

The Heavenly Lord immediately realized it was not an illusion.

The reason being, there shouldn’t have been ‘nothing’ there.

There should have been at least one corpse lying there.

He had pierced the heart with his own hand, so it obviously should be there.

In the direction the Heavenly Lord was looking, nothing remained.

Not even the blood that had spilled.

No traces whatsoever.

As he confirmed that absurd situation, just when the Heavenly Lord was trying to ascertain the situation.

Vroom!

A vibration was felt.

The direction was to the left. The Heavenly Lord turned his head.

“…!!”

In that spot, where an unidentified vibration was felt.

A look of horror spread across the Heavenly Lord’s face.

Something was there.

Upon closer inspection, a doll standing blankly was clearly staring at the Heavenly Lord.

The reason he couldn’t be sure of that gaze was simple.

Flame~!

Blue flames wrapped around the doll, burning its entire body.

 

---