Chapter 1843 – 1843. Ascension To The Light
“Could you be a possessor?”
I could tell that Cheon Yu-un was asking with half-certainty. This guy doesn’t bring up possibilities that are completely out of character for him. Of course, that’s an exception when he’s trying to deceive someone. As befitting a protagonist, he tries his best not to lie.
“You could say it’s similar.”
[The Joyful Life App] and possession were similar but different. Possession meant taking over someone’s body, but I felt more like I was interfering with the world.
Cheon Yu-un slowly nodded, as if he had understood something on his own.
“…I see. Now I understand. The reason why everything I did went wrong was because I didn’t account for you as a variable.”
“Me as a variable? What are you talking about?”
I frowned, not understanding his words. I had no intention of genuinely hindering Cheon Yu-un. My plan was to build trust while pretending to be Yeom Gu-seok and then stab him in the back. So, I cooperated as much as possible. Sure, there were some big and small incidents, like me sleeping with Yeon Ye-ha, but it was hard to say that they had a significant impact.
“Are you pretending not to know? If you’re a possessor, you should know the original story, right?”
“Is there a rule that says the original story you know and the original story I know have to be the same?”
“…Cheonmu Shingun (Heavenly Martial God). You must know. That I’m the villain in that martial arts novel.”
“Ah, right.”
The original story I knew was [I Woke Up and Became a Heavenly Demon], but from Cheon Yu-un’s perspective, the original story was a martial arts novel called Cheonmu Shingun. And I didn’t know much about the novel Cheonmu Shingun.
‘He definitely seems to be stalling for time.’
I was a little intrigued, so I decided to play along. I racked my brain. I knew what kind of novel Cheonmu Shingun was, a novel within a novel. It was often mentioned in the original story.
“What did you do to the protagonist of Cheonmu Shingun? Shouldn’t he have stopped you, the villain?”
“I changed the protagonist’s fate. This world is a Xianxia world, not a martial arts world, so it was hard to find him… but I eventually found him.”
“Did you kill him?”
“The opposite. I assigned people to create peace. He’s the protagonist. What if I tried to kill him rashly and he survived? In martial arts novels, trials come with opportunities. He would somehow survive and take revenge on me. So, I decided not to give him any trials. I didn’t let him learn martial arts. I managed him to death as a commoner. That was my plan, and it succeeded three years ago.”
“…The protagonist died?”
“It’s been 60 years since I possessed this body. The protagonist lived a normal life for over 60 years and died.”
It was different from the original story I knew. In the original story, the protagonist of Cheonmu Shingun dies fighting a martial artist from the Demonic Sect. The reason was that Cheon Yu-un stole the protagonist’s opportunity, preventing him from growing properly.
‘Did it change because this world is Xianxia? Or… did Baek Ran interfere?’
Baek Ran, the Regressor Heavenly Demon. She could have been interfering for decades. From my perspective, Baek Ran was the biggest variable.
“The plans I made didn’t go as expected. It was too far to go get the opportunities myself, and when I sent trustworthy people, they either died or someone had already taken the opportunity. I thought it was all your doing. But… seeing you in person, it doesn’t seem like it.”
“Why are you so sure?”
“If you had obtained those opportunities, you wouldn’t be standing in front of me. You would have mastered the Cheonmu Shingong (Heavenly Martial Divine Art) and become a master of the Righteous Sect.”
In the original story, Cheonmu Shingong was called the only martial art that could rival the Heavenly Demon Divine Art. I didn’t know if that was true now that the world had changed. There was no way to confirm it. And I didn’t know where the Cheonmu Shingong was.
“You had other plans, too. For example… Muk Ji-ryeon.”
“So, you knew about Muk Ji-ryeon as well. No, you must have known, which is why you moved the First-Class Guards to pressure me.”
Cheon Yu-un seemed to think that all of this was my plan. I felt a little wronged. Baek Ran was the one who made most of this plan.
“Half of the ten things I tried failed. Most of them failed due to accidental incidents, but it felt like someone was always interfering with my plans. The same thing happened in Baek San Fortress. Suddenly, some guy popped out, interfered with me, and took the White Yang Flower.”
I was the one who took the White Yang Flower, but I didn’t feel the need to tell him the truth.
Cheon Yu-un looked at my face and clicked his tongue.
“Tsk. Don’t you get it yet? You and I aren’t the only possessors. There’s a possessor interfering with me from the shadows.”
“Are you saying we should join hands against that possessor?”
“Yes. We have to face the same enemy. We can form an alliance and coexist.”
“What I want is the position of the Heavenly Demon. As long as you exist, I can’t become the Heavenly Demon.”
“You’re being too hasty. Aren’t you going to listen to my opinion? I didn’t become the Lesser Heavenly Demon because I wanted to be the Heavenly Demon. I just woke up and was the Lesser Heavenly Demon.”
“You can give up being the Heavenly Demon?”
“Why can’t I give it up? I want wealth and glory. There are many ways to enjoy wealth and glory without becoming the Heavenly Demon. Let’s join hands. If I die, that guy will target you.”
Cheon Yu-un said with a serious expression. I didn’t believe his words. In the original story, Cheon Yu-un wanted power. He used various methods to achieve it. Cheon Yu-un was not the type to give up on being the Heavenly Demon so easily.
When I remained silent, Cheon Yu-un seemed to think I was hesitating and continued.
“I see now. You joined hands with Muk Ji-ryeon. When I asked you to investigate Muk Ji-ryeon last time… you lied to me.”
See? He was already retracing my steps and suspecting everything. As I quietly raised my demonic energy, he also raised his demonic energy.
Two Heavenly Demon Divine Arts. But my demonic energy was denser and greater.
There were many reasons for this difference, but the biggest was the difference in cultivation level. Cheon Yu-un had not yet broken through the wall of the Three Stages.
His eyes trembled as he felt the gap.
“…Muk Ji-ryeon are not trustworthy people. I myself was backstabbed by Muk Ji-ryeon. Do you know the identity of the leader of Muk Ji-ryeon?”
“The Rakshasa Woman. A blonde beauty.”
“Doesn’t that name sound familiar?”
“I don’t know. I don’t know her real name. She’s called the Rakshasa Woman because of her nature.”
I thought that Rakshasa Woman was a kind of nickname. In this world, a woman with a nasty temper, cruel nature, and great strength was called a Rakshasa Woman.
“Rakshasa Woman is her real name. And when you say Rakshasa Woman, Journey to the West is famous.”
“…Are you saying that the Rakshasa Woman is the Rakshasa Woman from Journey to the West?”
“That’s right. Her husband is the Bull Demon King, and her son is Red Boy. That woman is working to resurrect the Bull Demon King. That’s why I broke up with the Rakshasa Woman. She basically has no interest in humans.”
“……”
My mind became complicated. Journey to the West was mixed into this world? Why? The answer came easier than I thought.
‘…Mu Wang Online.’
[Mu Wang Online] was a web martial arts game. Its source was a Chinese game. It wasn’t strange for the Great Sage Equal to Heaven or the Bull Demon King to appear in that story.
“What is Muk Ji-ryeon’s purpose in spreading the Demonic Reverse Divine Art? It doesn’t seem like their goal is to create allies.”
“They’re sacrifices. Humans who have turned into monsters using the Demonic Reverse Divine Art are preferred sacrifices for the Underworld. Also, according to the Rakshasa Woman, just existing helps the opening of the heavens.”
“Opening of the heavens. I’ve heard that a few times. The Emperor seems wary of it. What exactly is the opening of the heavens?”
“The sky opens. It means connecting to other worlds, such as the Immortal Realm and the Underworld. I don’t know much about it, but I heard that the sky has opened a few times in the distant past.”
“……”
“We’re not too late. We can achieve our goals without interfering with each other.”
“I’ll consider it if you answer my last question.”
“…Last question? What is it?”
“What is this place?”
Cheon Yu-un looked around silently. A space with an eerie aura. He chuckled.
“As you can see, it’s an altar. As more than half of my prepared plans failed, I realized that if I stayed like this, everything would be ruined. I didn’t want to, but I decided to use sacrifices. I give the monsters who have mastered the Demonic Reverse Divine Art and receive elixirs and power. It’s a deal with the Underworld.”
Wasn’t that saying the protagonist was performing human sacrifices? It was absurd, but it made sense since the other party was Cheon Yu-un. He valued efficiency.
“If the Emperor finds out, he’ll wipe out the Heavenly Demon Cult right away.”
“It’s fine as long as we don’t get caught.”
“But I caught you.”
“…You can become my ally and keep the secret. But you don’t seem to have any intention of becoming my ally. So, I have to kill you and silence you.”
Murderous intent flashed in Cheon Yu-un’s eyes. But I wasn’t intimidated at all. Did he think I was just talking for no reason? I was playing along with the stalling because I was confident.
I raised my sword. Cheon Yu-un pretended to swing his sword at me, then stabbed the obsidian sword into his own abdomen.
Instead of blood, a dark energy enveloped his body from Cheon Yu-un’s abdomen. It was an energy from the Underworld, similar to demonic energy but drier.
Heavenly Demon Sword Art (天魔神劍) – Crushing Flash (擊閃).
He swung his sword and unleashed a pitch-black slash. The energy of the Underworld that enveloped Cheon Yu-un’s body moved quickly and blocked my slash. No, it was neutralized with the slash.
‘Oh?’
Even though it looked like this, it was a slash where I didn’t hold back and used my full power. And he blocked it? Even if it was neutralized by the energy of the Underworld, it was unpleasant.
I raised my sword again. Did he feel threatened by it? Cheon Yu-un opened his mouth wide and shouted.
“Guijue (鬼咀)! Fulfill the contract! I didn’t offer you sacrifices for this kind of situation, but… if I die here, you’ll be in trouble too! Come out now!”
Heavenly Demon Sword Art (天魔神劍) – Crushing Flash (擊閃).
The slash flew again. This time, the energy of the Underworld didn’t neutralize my slash. Instead, a muscular arm with red skin sprouted from Cheon Yu-un’s shoulder and swung a large sword, cutting my slash.
Cheon Yu-un’s transformation began.
His skin turned red, and his physique grew larger. His height instantly grew to 2.5 meters, and another arm sprouted, giving him a total of four arms. Each of the four arms held a sword, spear, blade, and mace. A black liquid gathered on Cheon Yu-un’s face, and his face changed.
Into the face of a demon. The center of his forehead split open, and a third eye opened.
I had heard of a being with that appearance before.
‘Guishura (鬼修羅)…!’
