Chapter 204: The Great Evil (3)
Chapter 204: The Great Evil (3)
The Thousand Sorcerer was watching the tower’s entrance.
Just moments ago, his granddaughter—precious enough to be painful even if she were put in his eye—and the guy she liked had entered the tower with other women.
‘Who knows?’
The Thousand Sorcerer had the role of overseeing the tower.
Although others did not fully understand, this responsibility placed an immense burden on him. So much so that even the culprit could not imagine.
The Emperor, Celestial, and Overlord were free from this duty, but the Thousand Sorcerer, Martial King, and Sword Saint were different stories. Even the Sword Saint, who split gods, struggled to fulfill his role, and the Sword Demon almost went mad.
If a transcendent being went mad, the damage would be tremendous, but the Thousand Sorcerer could not help him.
He could not help.
If he had assisted the Martial King, he himself would not have been able to move for at least half a year. And that would have had a tremendous impact on the present world. If not careful, it might have tilted the balance of power in Korea.
‘There is no time.’Boom.
A sound of something collapsing was heard. However, the surroundings were quiet, as if nothing had happened.
‘It’s starting again.’
Cracks.
As all worlds—martial arts, fantasy, evil empire, holy empire—merged, they were drawn into this world. The crack that started from there had grown a bit.
The Thousand Sorcerer hardened his face.
The time for the crack to grow was accelerating. This meant that entities from beyond were moving.
The current peace was not peace.
It was merely a façade, pieced together with the blood and sacrifice of heroes.
All the transcendent beings could do was sacrifice themselves to delay destruction a little.
That was the only thing they could do.
‘I must become stronger.’
He instinctively knew he would not last long. At most, three years. Within that time, his granddaughter had to gain enough power to survive even if the world ended.
That’s why he allowed her to enter the Demon’s Tower.
Though he wanted to keep her forever wrapped up, seeing only pretty things, the times did not permit it.
He knew how dangerous it was, but he trusted the boy who believed there was a chance. Or perhaps he wanted to believe.
The Thousand Sorcerer briefly glanced at the Demon’s Tower. Then he disappeared.
Blood-red sky, withered land.
A scene reminiscent of hell unfolded as soon as we entered the tower.
“…I’ve seen it in footage, but this place is truly eerie.”
“It’s the Devil’s Tower. Oh, make sure to wrap yourself in magic slightly. The magic might erode you…”
“There was a reason people struggled with the Devil’s Tower.”
Ershil frowned while wrapping herself in magic.
“Then let’s prepare to move quickly. Which floor did you say the Hwarang Guild member was kidnapped to?”
“The 5th floor.”
Fortunately, it was the lower floor.
“Even so, with others quickly clearing the floors, we should reach there soon.”
We quickly headed upwards.
There was no problem moving. With Seo Ga-yeon, Sung Han-byul, Kim Seo-hyun, Ershil, and myself, our force was enough to take over a city.
‘Even if a bit underestimated, this force is high level.’
Slice.
Kim Seo-hyun cut down a fallen angel with her white sword.
-Amazing. The balance hasn’t dulled. It’s not as good as the Black God Martial Arts, but it’s just below that level.
‘No, she probably made it herself.’
-…? What do you mean, master?
Black Heaven spoke in amazement.
Originally, Kim Seo-hyun didn’t have such external power. But now, she had trained herself to have an external power comparable to the Black God Martial Arts. It was simple.
Probably while training with me, seeing my body tempered with Black God Martial Arts, she tried to imitate it.
Others might call it nonsense, but for someone like Kim Seo-hyun, who inherited the thousand-year martial veins, it was terrifyingly possible.
Ershil tripped, and Kim Seo-hyun killed, and the rest of the remnants were handled by Sung Han-byul and me.
Seo Ga-yeon told us not to act rashly. The star power she used was powerful. If the tower saw it, it might react unpredictably.
As we climbed the tower, we reached the presumed location where the Hwarang Guild member was kidnapped.
Tents were pitched, and there were signs people had been there until recently. Using magic, the time around here was delayed as much as possible.
“…This is the place.”
“Can you find it? It looks difficult.”
If this were a game, it would enter the deduction part, starting a mini-game.
I used Divine Sight to look for traces.
The one who kidnapped the Hwarang Guild member was hiding their traces while luring people. The enticing magic was scattered around.
‘The Thousand Sorcerer seems to have a rough idea.’
But he wouldn’t find it. The moment he stepped into this world, the Demon King would react.
“Even my grandfather had a hard time, so it’s possible we might not find it.”
“If Seo-ha is doing it, there’s no way it will fail, right?”
While I was briefly lost in thought, Kim Seo-hyun and Seo Ga-yeon were arguing. Kim Seo-hyun thought I might fail, and Seo Ga-yeon, with a nonchalant attitude, said I was amazing.
‘…They trust me too much.’
Of course, I found it.
“Everyone, calm down. The Thousand Sorcerer couldn’t move for other reasons. If he had, we would be close to clearing the tower.”
“…Really?”
“And I found where they went. It seems they’re cooperating with the king?”
“The king?”
“Yes, the being at the top of the tower. But even if we go, they will just observe, so we need to go now. Follow me.”
I walked briskly in the direction where the kidnapped member was last seen.
“How were the Hwarang Guild members kidnapped?”
“Hypnosis. The opponent who kidnapped them is a master of hypnosis.”
“You got caught by mere hypnosis magic?”
“The opponent’s hypnosis magic is not just mere hypnosis. We’ve arrived.”
I informed Sung Han-byul, who wore a disbelieving expression, that we had reached our destination.
An empty plot of land lay before us. However, the lingering dark energy indicated this was the place.
“Senior, please infuse some magic here.”
“Got it.”
Sung Han-byul stepped forward. A gentle glow surrounded her, and a magic book wrapped in light appeared before her.
It was the “Book of Law (S+).”
From the “Book of Law (S+),” she drew a talent related to dark energy. With it, she could contain dark energy deemed impossible for humans to harbor.
Buzz─.
The residual dark energy reacted to the magic exuded by Sung Han-byul, forming a magic circle.
A space-transference spell.
‘Shall we begin?’
I removed the Black Flame Radiance Deity. From the blood, all the energy of defying heaven was tightly contained in my heart. The only thing left in my body was a giant vessel that replaced the heart of the Black Flame Radiance Deity.
‘Eternal Heaven.’
-Yes.
Eternal Heaven drew the spell. Using the Conceptual Stat Alchemy, golden mana surged, calculating the magic formula. The barely formed magic circle from the residual dark energy started to strengthen.
A rune of convergence. A rune of enhancement.
Eternal Heaven strengthened the magic formula with spells, Conceptual Stat Alchemy, and mana. As a sinister red light surged, my body was transported somewhere.
“Oh my, cute kids have come.”
As soon as we moved, we witnessed a being.
Silvery hair flowed mysteriously, eyes of the same hue. A cloak seemingly made of raven feathers adorned the figure. The being wore a black evening dress and was perched on a throne.
“…What is this?”
Kim Seo-hyun reacted, staring at the opponent with a dumbfounded expression.
Everything around her began to erode due to her dark energy.
She did nothing.
But the aura she possessed, her transcendent abilities, were being manifested.
“…Why is a great evil here?”
“Guarding is boring. So sometimes I come out to play.”
The being, laughing with a relaxed attitude, had the demeanor of an absolute being who was certain we posed no threat.
“But, the boy with black hair. You’re very pretty. Would you like to play with me? I’ll give you anything you want.”
“Sorry, but I’m already taken.”
“Oh my, I’m more attracted to taken men. It’s so delightful to see the woman cry when I take her man. Now I’m even more interested.”
The temptress looked at me, smiling.
“Others don’t deserve to hear, but… since I’m in a good mood today, I’ll tell you my name. My name is Daji, the woman of captivating beauty who brought a kingdom to ruin.”
Daji introduced herself with a seductive smile.
Not to me, but to Sung Han-byul.
“And… I’m also the woman who killed those guild members with the mark in a fun way.”
“Fun… you killed the Hwarang Guild members for fun?”
“Yes, it was quite fresh and fun. Usually, people can’t resist my hypnosis, but they tried to resist. It made it even more fun. Their bodies automatically killed the ones they loved, and resisting only prolonged their agony.”
Daji’s eyes twinkled mischievously.
“They screamed. Even as the sword pierced their hearts, they whispered that they loved you. They said you did nothing wrong and blamed me. The one who stabbed them wept and wailed. Then they started to hate me, trying to kill me.”
Daji opened her hand.
“Isn’t it impudent? Seeing livestock try to resist me. So, I killed them. By their own hands.”
And then she clenched her fist.
A corpse began to move. It was a woman in her twenties, animated by a necromantic spell that trapped her soul in her decaying body, forcing it to remain in this world.
Necromancy.
The body, not long dead, showed no signs of decay. However, it was covered in blood. A sword was stuck in the chest, and the face was stained with bloody tears.
Sung Han-byul’s body trembled at the sight. Her complexion turned pale, and her lips were bitten to the point of bleeding.
“Necromancy… making Jiangshi isn’t my specialty… but seeing this, it’s not bad. I might make it my focus and have fun with it.”
“…Hey.”
Magic surged from Sung Han-byul’s body.
Near-infinite mana flowed, and divinity began to envelop her. It was the power of light, the best counter to dark attributes.
“Hehe, you’ve filled yourself with strange things? What is it? The vessel is bigger, but the contents are odd.”
“…It’s you.”
“Oh my.”
The magic shook the surroundings.
Tremendous murderous intent swept through the area. Ershil’s face turned pale as I stepped forward.
Daji looked at Sung Han-byul.
She seemed genuinely surprised.
“You intend to kill me?”
“I will kill you!!”
Boom!
Sung Han-byul leaped. The magic of light exploded around her. Light overlapped and overlapped, forming a single sword.
A giant sword, reaching 100 meters.
It was a sacred sword of light, created by Sung Han-byul’s immense power in an instant.
Even the highest-ranked demons couldn’t think of blocking that attack. The power was concentrated in an instant. It flew towards Daji at high speed.
And the moment it reached Daji.
Crash!
It shattered into pieces and scattered.
“With just that level of skill?”
Daji laughed as she looked at Sung Han-byul, as if she was amused.