〈 Rapidly changing situation (1) 〉
Ya Yul-hwan, a former military member of the Heavenly Demon Church, was troubled.
For the ritual, a dragon vein is absolutely necessary, but that place is already occupied by forces that claim to be using quite a bit of power.
Now that we have secured the command of most of the detachments that went out for the operation, it would not have been difficult to take it by force if we wanted…
‘The larger the scale of the dragon vein, the more effective the ritual becomes. However, the better the location, the stronger the power will be.’
It was inevitable that losses would occur in the process.
Should you target weak areas and accept a decrease in effectiveness in exchange for reducing damage, or should you be greedy and pour in all your power, aiming to maximize awareness?
It is not the end of everything just by taking over the dragon vein, and since the resources and time to operate it are also limited, it is a matter of careful selection.
‘…Is there really a need to find a new dragon vein?’
At that moment, a place suddenly flashed through his mind.
Wasn’t there a place left unattended that could be said to be the largest in the world in terms of scale, with no power to occupy it and no need to consume power?
“Brave heart.”
Beijing, where the ruins of the imperial palace are now located.
Since it wasn’t too far from where he was now, I was able to save time.
‘Plus, now that it has become a completely cursed land, there will be less worry about it being exposed to the outside world.’
Currently, its central core has been forcibly torn out and its function has been completely lost, but at one time it was the most vibrant holy place on the continent.
Now it has become a center that drains the energy of the world like a bottomless poison, so it has become so devastated that not even an ant can survive, but its symbolic meaning does not go anywhere.
‘Anyway, I have no intention of communicating or dealing with an alien god. There is no need to insist on a healthy dragon vein.’
What he wants is to completely absorb the energy of the dragon god that resides in the dragon children.
As long as you had the qualifications for an altar, it didn’t matter much even if you performed the ritual with the Dragon’s Heart, whose effects were now reversed.
‘No, it might actually be better. In the center of a world where the dragon’s heart has been stolen and its function has been lost, the dragon children arranged by God are taken…’
Is there any cause and effect more perfect than this in terms of magic?
Since the Dragon Children were originally created to restore the dragon’s heart, it was clear that the effect would be doubled if the ritual was held there.
This was an opportunity.
In the meantime, they were trying to find a safe way to increase their strength while hiding in the shadow of the Heavenly Demon, but that method had the disadvantage of taking a very long time to accumulate the necessary karma.
But if only I could use this method to achieve the status in one fell swoop….
“Hehehe, this is luck in your later years. “When Heavenly Demon died, I thought all my efforts would have been in vain.”
Ya Yul-hwan’s eyes were gently widened as he burst into laughter.
Eye area folded like a crescent moon with dark wrinkles.
In the center of the black eye, the vertically split bright yellow pupil like a reptile gave off an eerie light.
***
Private laboratory at the Gaehwagung Palace of the Heavenly Demon God.
“A thousand horse ships. “Are they gathering only the dragon children in one place?”
Hans took his hand off the head of a dead body, tilted his head and stroked his beard.
Next to it, dozens of dead bodies were already spread out on the floor, stained black.
They were all warriors belonging to the Heavenly Demon Church who had clashed with Harley in a place far away from Shinjiang, and those who had left home had finally returned to their hometown through “Avatar Cloud.”
Although it may not have been the form they had hoped for.
“Tsk, you had presumptuous greed. “It would have been better for both of us if we had surrendered obediently.”
I could fully guess what he was thinking.
In fact, for someone who had mastered the magic arts like him, Dragon Child was nothing short of a legendary elixir.
Up until now, he had been pushed back by the Cheonma and had only given in, but now that he had the opportunity to dominate everything on his own, it was natural that his eyes would turn back.
‘Still, it’s strange. Even if you complete the ritual safely, you know that it is meaningless unless you can do something about this body that killed the Heavenly Demon. ‘Do you really think you are that confident?’
I looked back at the information I had collected about the Cheongimaseon Yayulhwan, but there was nothing particularly special about it.
As a military man, he is very smart, and his achievements in terms of magic are so high that he is counted on one hand in the entire Demonic Cult. Even when he went to war against youkai, he was said to have achieved remarkable achievements.
“Hmm, did you think there was a chance you could drive me out after taking the dragon children? Or maybe it’s just out of loyalty that they can’t follow me for killing the cult leader.”
Hans pondered for a while and frowned.
I already had a lot of things to do, but I suddenly felt annoyed because of the annoying problem.
‘Before he begins the ritual, we must retrieve the Dragon Children, including Zhuge Hyemi and Zhu Kang-in. Perhaps only those in charge of transportation knew the destination, but they didn’t know much. … Actually, even if I knew the location, I would have already changed the location.’
This was a very troubling issue for the Kang Hwan community, which had limited channels for collecting information.
No matter how great he is, isn’t there a limit to just using a few avatars?
‘If Olivia and the ghosts were there, I wouldn’t have to worry about this. At the very least, if the forces here were able to actively operate the information network they have… Hmm? No, wait.’
Hans, who had been thinking like that, paused for a moment.
As I thought about other forces, I suddenly realized that I shouldn’t have to deal with this headache alone.
‘Why was I worrying about this alone? The issue of the Dragon Children and the Dragon Heart is a matter of the Kang Hwan World here, right? Then people here should be more proactive!’
Of course, I knew that Geumo-do was working hard, but it was true that they alone, moving secretly in the dark, were not enough.
‘First, let’s bring in all the other forces. The more people participate, the easier things will be.’
It was completely understandable that they had struggled on their own up to this point.
Since the entire royal family was disintegrated due to a trick prepared by the Demonic Cult over a long period of time, they must have judged that no one should be trusted easily.
‘But things are different now.’
Hasn’t the Demonic Cult, the object of that vigilance, already been swallowed up by oneself?
Of course, not all of those who went out were eliminated, but there was a limit to what they could do without help from the headquarters.
If you hide like you are now, you won’t have time to do that.
“Kukku — yes, let’s start right away.”
Compared to Outerica, his involvement in the Kang Hwan world was not very long.
The information network was extremely weak, the foundation gained was just being built, and there were still many things we did not know about this world.
‘First of all, from Geumo Island.’
But he had the power to surpass them all.
The power to move this world.
***
Geumo-do did not agree to the plan from the beginning.
However, after cross-checking the information Horus gave with a serious expression and realizing the seriousness of the situation, they had no choice but to ultimately convince themselves that it was the best.
Since the current situation is so critical, they have decided to take some risk.
And the results could be confirmed immediately at Yongjungsan Mountain, where Hugo was staying.
“hello? Bindo is said to be Cheonggwan from the Mosan faction. “I have something urgent to tell you, so I have come to you at the risk of being rude.”
Taoist monk Cheong-gwan wears an old gi and greets you politely as usual.
Although Zhuge Ce’s side reacted in confusion to the sudden visit, they had no choice but to let him in.
In fact, at first, Sega was so confused that they tried to just send it back, but the words that came out of his mouth made it impossible to do so.
“This is a story about Zhuge Xiaoze and the demonic cult that kidnapped her. “This is a very important matter, so please take a moment.”
Although they are two factions that are called the two major mountain ranges in the world of martial arts, unlike the Zhuge family, who were active enough to be ranked among the largest families, the Mosan faction was a faction famous for being closed.
Although the Zhuge Dynasty is slightly inferior to other great powers, it is not lacking in martial arts-related areas too much.
The Mosan faction grew by focusing solely on magic and dispatching personnel to places that needed magical help rather than regional activities.
Of course, the apparent power difference was incomparable, but when limited to the field of martial arts, the world’s perception of the Moshan faction was slightly higher, so Zhuge Emperor could not help but be concerned.
In such a situation, the words of Cheong-gwan, who came as a representative of the Mosan faction, were bound to have a great shock to them.
“…So, are you saying that our Hyemi… was born as a sacrifice to rebuild the hearts of those called dragon children?”
In the presence of some of Sega’s key figures.
Zhuge Howon, the head of the Zhuge family, asked back in a somber voice.
Not only did he open his mouth, but the expressions on the faces of the others present were not very good either.
Of course it has to be that way.
Who would be happy to hear that a family that has been together for a long time was destined from birth to be sacrificed for the world?
There was also an issue of self-esteem.
No matter how different their specialties may be, there is no way they could easily accept what they thought they were competitors in the same industry first telling them about what they couldn’t figure out.
However, having lived a life where reason was more important than emotion since childhood, they calmed down their excitement and began the discussion calmly.
And after analyzing and putting our heads together through the information and related data we have collected so far, the conclusion we have reached is that there is a very high possibility that what Cheong-gwan said is true.
Above all, the fact that the eldest son of the Shaolin Temple, who suffered from the same symptoms as Zhuge Hyemi, was also kidnapped in an attack by the Demonic Cult on the same day was decisive.
“The Demonic Cult is using these kidnapped people to increase their personal power. From what we have confirmed, the recent rapid increase in the level of the Heavenly Demon is also due to the fact that several dragon children have already been sacrificed…”
The Qing official continued.
After Zhuge Dynasty, people’s faces hardened.
This was not simply a matter of the safety of their family, Zhuge Hui Mi.
I have heard well about the majesty of the Heavenly Horse.
In the middle of the Shaolin Temple, which is filled with Buddhist techniques to suppress demons, he cut off one of the arms of a priest and continued a two-on-one fight with a new master of Hyeongyeong who joined late, showing his superiority throughout.
However, he performs a ritual of offering additional sacrifices to become stronger.
Even worse, the scapegoats needed are those who are absolutely necessary to normalize this chaotic world—.
“…Whew, this isn’t a problem we can solve on our own.”
Rebuilding the Dragon Heart was a matter to consider later.
Even if we had to force them to sacrifice later, we had to stop the Demonic Cult’s actions at all costs.
“That’s why I came here too. “With the help of Zhuge Dynasty, it wouldn’t be that difficult to spread this fact to other major powers.”
Although martial arts is the main mystery in this world, other powers were also fully aware of the usefulness of magic.
It’s just that there are too many limitations in learning and mastering it, so it’s not easy to achieve results.
And Zhuge Sega, who had both personal connections and infrastructure, had the ability to quickly spread the desired information throughout the continent.
“…Good. Then let’s get started right away. “I’m already busy with a lot of work to do, so I’m really dying.”
“The Taoists of our Mosan sect spread across the continent will also be able to help in the progress of the ritual. “If they take care of the relay, the power consumption due to distance can be reduced as much as possible.”
“That’s great. Then please take care of me.”
Transmitting information using long-distance communication is not used often because it requires a lot of effort, but if the Mosan faction also helps here, the work could be completed more easily than expected.
Based on the cooperation of the two organizations, known as the two major mountain ranges of the magic world, news began to be delivered one by one to the powers that dominated the territories across the continent.
About the conspiracy of the Demonic Cult and the danger of their leader, the Heavenly Demon.
And about the possibility of ending the current chaos.
***
‘Okay, things are going smoothly.’
Since no one other than the Demon Cultists knew yet that the Heavenly Demon had died, there was no other excuse to stimulate the world’s sense of crisis and unite them.
There was already no one who didn’t know about the majesty that Cheonma showed at Shaolin Temple.
‘If the entire continent’s attention is focused on us, we won’t be able to stay quietly hidden like we are now. Eventually, the traces will be revealed somewhere.’
Of course, since information has been spread on such a large scale, some people who heard the rumor will have strange thoughts.
Perhaps even at this very moment, there are quite a few people who have begun to plot the underworld to use the dragon children as they wish.
It was a problem that could eventually become the starting point of another tragedy, but…
‘It doesn’t matter.’
Hans didn’t care about such trivial matters.
Now, it wasn’t like I was ignoring the dragon children no matter what.
It just literally doesn’t matter anymore.
The answer to that has just been completed.
“Now—get up.”
Hans’ low voice rang softly.
Wiggle—
Inyoung, who was lying on the bed, twitched to the sound.
The body reacts intermittently at first, but then gradually begins to move rapidly, as if convulsing.
Then, all of a sudden, all movement stopped.
Ssssssssssssssssssssssss—
The next moment, the being had stood up and was kneeling in front of Hans and bowing politely.
Shining black eyes with no whites.
“…Glory to the master of death. Please give me your command.”
After swallowing up countless karmas, the Heavenly Demon eventually became swallowed up by karma himself.
A new undead born from his corpse and a dagger forged to target the fateful enemy known as Beoncheonhoeju.
The tentative name was ‘Karma Gangshi’.