Chapter 211: First Sin. (3)

Just before the formation was torn apart.

The Palace Lord was heading towards the Red Sky (赤天), created by Gu Cheol-un.

The divine authority bestowed by the heavens was close to perfection.

It filled his lacking aspects.

And strengthened the power he originally possessed.

‘I will step into a new world.’

The Palace Lord was convinced of this.

That he was different from his past self, that the self who crawled on the floor, crushed by the hands of the righteous sects, was gone.

Along with the passage of time.

It was a faith born from the divine authority bestowed by the heavens, but…

“Kkeudeuk…”

That deep faith shattered in an instant.

Beneath the blood-red sky, a man who was like a disaster to the demonic sects appeared.

A man tearing apart the barrier created by Taejeol-gwi using demonic stones, layer by layer, with unbelievable strength.

Gu Cheol-un, the Flame Demon (炎鬼).

One of the Four Demonic Emperors, the man who burned a hole in the stomach of the Black Night Palace Lord.

A monstrous man who forced many demonic cultivators, including the Black Night Palace Lord, to bow their heads by imposing treaties backed by his power.

‘They called the pillar of the Alliance the Sword Saint.’

While people certainly called Sword Saint Wi Hyo-gun that when he was the Alliance Leader of the Martial Arts Alliance,

The Palace Lord knew.

That the one truly feared by the demonic cultivators wasn’t the Sword Saint, the number one sword under heaven, but…

That Flame Demon, born from flames.

Far away, a man like a disaster is visible.

There was a time when I wanted to kill him by any means necessary.

And another time when that red martial artist evoked maddening jealousy.

Kwadeudeuk-!

Gu Cheol-un, having torn off another layer of the barrier, slightly lifts his head.

His distinct, or perhaps chilling, crimson eyes turned towards the Palace Lord.

“…!”

The moment their eyes met.

Even in that fleeting moment, the Palace Lord understood much.

The Palace Lord was convinced.

That even now, years later and having received divine authority, he still couldn’t defeat the Flame Demon.

Just looking at him was enough to know.

That the flame standing there was like a disaster, and unlike the rumors, his fangs weren’t dulled at all.

The Flame Demon wasn’t even emitting his characteristic killing intent.

Nor was he displaying flames, as if proving his lineage from the Gu family.

Moreover, even though their gazes met, he was focused solely on the barrier.

The direction of his power wasn’t aimed at me.

‘And yet, he’s this strong?’

I thought he’d be holed up in the mountains, just breathing.

The great tiger was merely sleeping.

Able to reign supreme at any time.

Was he just resting for a moment?

“…How pathetic.”

The Palace Lord whispered to himself.

After receiving so much divine authority.

And gathering strength while clinging to life.

Does that mean he still can’t make a breakthrough?

“…Not yet.”

After exchanging glances with Gu Cheol-un for a moment, the Black Night Palace Lord immediately turned his back and headed somewhere.

Judging by that brute-force method, the barrier wouldn’t take much longer to break.

And realizing he couldn’t face the Flame Demon right now.

He decided there was no need to remain here.

Originally, my purpose was to add value to the heavens and then be discarded immediately after;

Since there was a problem with the heavens, there was no longer any reason to stay here.

‘It’s a shame about the matter concerning the flames,’

But opportunities aren’t limited to just this one.

For now, leaving with Sky was the priority.

‘It was good that I gave Taizu (太主) a heads-up in advance.’

From the moment I brought Gu Huibi to my palace,

The Palace Lord had already alerted the Black Dragon of Guangdong.

Now it was time to turn back without any regrets.

If there was one slight regret.

It was having to leave the Flame Demon like this.

‘Wait a little longer.’

My pathetic pride was left behind in the Demonic Mirror several years ago, but…

Unfortunately, I couldn’t abandon my ambition for higher places.

Now that I’ve confirmed the Flame Demon’s flames haven’t died out.

The Palace Lord will now prepare.

Prepare to douse those filthy flames.

And also the downpour that will soak the corrupted Central Plains.

Gathering clouds high in the sky, I will make it rain endlessly.

Ppudeuk.

Blood dripped from his tightly clenched fist.

His own image, turning and fleeing even after gaining divine authority.

It was a desperate struggle to forcibly ignore how utterly pathetic he looked.

#

From within the thick fog of demonic energy that had settled oppressively.

Beneath the violet moon that had turned the clear daylight into a night sky.

Jjoreureuk.

He poured wine into his goblet, just like any other day.

His gaze, cast slightly downward, and his skin, pale to the point of being almost translucent.

Amidst it all, his distinctly shining violet eyes evoked an unspoken sense of dread.

I knew.

This was purely because I was being crushed by the aura emanating from that being.

Looking up cautiously.

Eyes resembling the moon rising behind him were looking at me.

Noticing my gaze, he spoke to me.

-Your gaze is peculiar.

-…I apologize.

-There’s no need to apologize. It doesn’t bother me much.

The Heavenly Demon downed the wine filling his goblet.

The wine, filled so generously, disappeared in just a few gulps.

Having moistened his throat, the Heavenly Demon calmly looked down at me.

His gaze was too burdensome, and I couldn’t meet it for long.

-At times, you…

Hwi-iik.

Along with the Heavenly Demon’s words, an unknown wind blew.

-It seems like you’re looking at someone through me.

The Heavenly Demon’s words chilled my heart, stirring it coldly.

As if sprinkling salt on a wound that was gradually becoming a scar.

Even though they were just casual words, the underlying meaning was chillingly cold.

-Are you thinking of the woman you hold in your heart?

-No…

-No? That’s a ridiculous sophistry to call a denial.

That’s right.

It was merely sophistry to escape.

-Kkeuk-keuk.

The Heavenly Demon let out a small chuckle.

-Daeju, if Ma-geom-hu, who died for you, saw this state, his insides would be burning with regret.

-….

-You still haven’t forgotten? How tenacious Daeju’s affection is.

-That’s not true. I, from the beginning…

-Lies don’t work on me.

Kung.

The pressure crushing my shoulders.

And the demonic energy filling my dantian surged.

As if recognizing the master before me.

Pain surged within me, like a sword fight breaking out inside my body, but…

I took a breath, gasping.

-…I apologize.

Perhaps my answer finally pleased him.

Jjoreureuk.

The Heavenly Demon refilled his goblet once again.

After quenching his thirst with the filled wine.

The Heavenly Demon spoke to me in a tone tinged with a smile.

-I am curious.

The world trembled with a single word.

This place was the Heavenly Demon’s domain and sanctuary.

-Whether Daeju will be alright even after that woman dies by my hand in the future.

-….

The man offered no answer.

The Heavenly Demon chuckled incessantly, seemingly amused by his reaction.

In such a situation, the man could only watch the Heavenly Demon’s laughter.

Seeing that face, so reminiscent of someone.

And the smile he wore as if delighted, it somehow calmed my decaying insides, if only for a moment.

‘Is it because I saw that smile on that face?’

Having that thought, the man let out a self-deprecating laugh inwardly.

Because it was a thought he considered utterly hideous.

To find small comfort in a twisted life.

I had burned down the vessel to hold that comfort myself.

My insides must be an empty space.

What remained there was likely the lingering attachment I desperately held onto, burning so it wouldn’t extinguish.

In the endlessly heavy air.

I lowered my head and closed my eyes.

#

Inside the room filled with demonic energy.

I looked at the child held in the Palace Lord’s embrace and felt a question arise.

‘…Why is he in the form of a child?’

Whether it was his slender build.

Or his vacant-looking eyes, different from his past life.

It didn’t matter.

What mattered was that this child was undoubtedly the Heavenly Demon (天魔) I knew.

‘…This is impossible.’

Perhaps it was a mistake? I wondered if I was mistaken, but…

Knowing it couldn’t be a mistake, I could only bite my lip tightly.

His face, so similar to Wi Seol-ah in aura and everything else.

Even his distinctive eyes.

If others couldn’t recognize him, it was understandable, but for me not to recognize him was nonsensical.

Kkureureuk.

‘…Shit.’

Look, the demonic energy within my body is rampaging like this.

How could it be a mistake?

The problem was why the Heavenly Demon was here in such a form.

At least, the Heavenly Demon I knew had a much more mature appearance than this, and…

‘He said he came from the Demonic Mirror himself.’

He said he broke through the Bottomless Pit and descended upon the Central Plains beyond the Demonic Mirror.

He himself spoke of his origins.

So, the Heavenly Demon had actually existed in the Central Plains long before, and…

Was he in the Black Night Palace in that form?

‘…I don’t understand any of it.’

What in the world is going on?

It was truly an unforeseeable event.

“It seems you can’t hear me.”

“…!”

A chilling sensation made me twist my body.

Kwadeudeuk!!

The energy emitted by the Black Night Palace Lord swirled through the room, attacking me.

“…You dodged?”

The Palace Lord uttered a voice mixed with slight admiration.

It seemed he didn’t expect me to dodge.

I too, ignoring the throbbing pain in my dantian from the sudden movement.

Spoke to the Black Night Palace Lord.

“Your greeting is rather aggressive.”

“That face and aura… Yes, you must be the Flame Demon’s son.”

The Flame Demon…

It was a sobriquet I hadn’t heard in a long time.

They say my father was called that.

To actually see someone called the Flame Demon.

“You were definitely called the True Dragon, weren’t you?”

“It’s an honor that the Black Night Palace Lord knows me.”

“Of course, how could I not know? We have our connections, after all.”

When he says connections, does he mean the slight friction between the Black Night Palace and myself?

The Black Night Palace Lord continued speaking, looking at me.

“You resemble your father.”

“I hear that so often it’s become tiresome.”

“I thought your sister also possessed uncommon talent, but seeing you, even those words can’t fully capture it.”

As the Palace Lord spoke, an unidentifiable emotion flickered in his eyes.

Was it envy?

Or perhaps jealousy?

It was an emotion far too awkward for a martial artist who had at least reached the Hwajing realm, or its very edge, to show towards me.

“Now, won’t you answer me? How did you open the door?”

“How did I open the door? Isn’t it obvious? You push it open.”

Even as I answered, I glanced behind me.

Perhaps because of the overwhelming demonic energy surrounding us, the Gu family’s Sword Guards seemed unable to enter easily.

‘What should I do?’

If the child in his arms is the Heavenly Demon.

I couldn’t let him slip away here.

“It’s fascinating.”

“…What is?”

“Your eyes seem to know this person.”

The Black Night Palace Lord referred to the Heavenly Demon cradled in his arms as ‘this person’.

Using such a title itself implied their relationship wasn’t exactly comfortable.

‘Then. Did the Heavenly Demon turn the Palace Lord into a demonic being?’

Not just him, but the other martial artists of the Black Night Palace too.

Had the Heavenly Demon’s influence already reached them?

Like those demonic beings from my past life.

‘To find out…’

Whatever it took, I had to capture him.

Whether I could face him or not.

Hwareureuk-!

I immediately raised my body’s energy and ignited flames.

My dantian still throbbed with pain, but I couldn’t hesitate because of it.

Seeing me unleash my killing intent, the Palace Lord slightly curled his lips into a smile.

“I don’t think a child like you would lack self-awareness. Or perhaps you find my generosity laughable?”

The Black Night Palace Lord drew a diagonal line with his hand.

The energy filling the room instantly surged towards me.

Burning flames, I increased my speed.

Pat.

Shaking off the energy, I approached the Palace Lord and assumed a stance, but…

Ku-ung…!

“…Kkeuk…!”

I had no choice but to expose my side to the arm the Palace Lord extended.

With the sound of energy exploding, I was sent flying far away and rolled on the floor.

‘…I can’t properly use my energy, so it’s hard to react properly.’

Even without this, the difference in realms made the situation overwhelming.

With my dantian not functioning properly, this was close to impossible.

‘Let him go when he’s right in front of me?’

How could I possibly do that?

‘Even if I have to use my vital energy….’

Doing everything I possibly could.

Even if it meant destroying myself.

I had to capture him.

“Given the circumstances, be grateful that I’m not killing you…”

The Black Night Palace Lord clicked his tongue, about to say something to me, but stopped.

It was the same for me, who was about to use my vital energy.

The reason was that the Heavenly Demon, held in the Palace Lord’s embrace, pointed at me with his fingertip.

Then, the Heavenly Demon opened his mouth.

“…That.”

“Sky, why…?”

“Mine…?”

He tilted his head as if unsure.

‘…No way.’

Did he react to the demonic cultivation technique within my body?

If that child truly is the Heavenly Demon, it’s entirely possible.

The Demonic Heaven Absorption Technique contained within my body was, after all, the Heavenly Demon’s power.

Just then.

Kku-uuk-!

“…!”

The dormant demonic energy within my body began to boil.

As the demonic energy rampaged like a storm, my exhausted dantian naturally screamed.

“Kkeu-euk…!”

“…Mine…”

It seemed the Heavenly Demon in the Palace Lord’s embrace was doing something.

‘…Crazy…’

The demonic energy gradually began to move.

The demonic energies burned with their own will, as if intending to escape my body immediately.

Since demonic energy is a type of energy, it was obvious that my body would overload the moment it erupted all at once.

I had to forcibly prevent the energy from twisting and endure the pain.

“…How can that be…”

Meanwhile, the Palace Lord, perhaps sensing the surging energy within my body.

Narrowed his eyes and reacted.

“How do you possess that energy?”

His voice was laden with emotion, as if filled with anger.

I wondered why he showed such emotion, but I didn’t have the luxury to ponder it while enduring the pain.

As I struggled and endured for a long time.

[…Reureuk.]

A sound came from very deep within my dantian.

It contained a clear sense of displeasure.

[Keureureung….]

The growl of a beast.

“…Hwik…!”

With a startled cry, the rampaging demonic energy instantly subsided.

“Heo-eo…. Heok…”

I continuously gasped out breaths mixed with screams, accompanied by cold sweat pouring down.

The agony was that intense.

Yet, I was also puzzled.

Because the demonic energy that felt like it would explode any second suddenly calmed down.

Raising my head to look at the Heavenly Demon.

‘Why does he look scared?’

The Heavenly Demon was visibly trembling with a thoroughly frightened expression.

Seeing him like an ordinary child, anger welled up in me involuntarily.

“…Sky, why are you acting like this?”

The Heavenly Demon didn’t reply to the Palace Lord’s question.

He just trembled and glared at me.

As I watched him, a thought flashed through my mind.

‘Did he recognize it?’

The beast that Blood Demon, Dokgo-jun, mentioned was inside me.

Was that growl I heard just before from him?

If so, is the Heavenly Demon afraid of him?

If not, then what is this reaction?

‘What kind of being is he…? What exactly is inside my body.’

That even that impossible being is showing fear.

“This is inscrutable.”

The Black Night Palace Lord, too, seemed unable to comprehend the situation.

His voice held a tone of slight bewilderment.

However, his voice also contained a killing intent.

“Therefore, I must dispose of it beforehand.”

Energy coalesced, forming a spike-like shape.

I could guess from the pouring killing intent that I was his target.

However.

My body wasn’t responding due to the intense pain just moments ago.

If things continued like this, I was certain to be pierced by the energy and die.

Just then.

“Tsk…”

The Black Night Palace Lord, who was about to unleash his energy, clicked his tongue briefly.

“…It seems I’ve delayed too much.”

As soon as the Palace Lord spoke, sounding somewhat regretful.

Hwareureuk-!

Crimson flames surged into the room through the passage behind.

The flames seemed to embrace me protectively, wrapping around me.

Forming a veritable wall to block the attack.

Whose power this intense heat and crimson flame belonged to.

I didn’t need to think to know.

“You’re acting recklessly, deserving of a severe scolding.”

Accompanied by a calm voice devoid of emotion.

Kung.

A heavy aura, as if trying to crush everything around, arrived.

As if the pervasive demonic energy had no effect whatsoever.

The chivalrous Gu Cheol-un. My father stepped into the room.

“I told you not to act rashly. Yet you cause trouble.”

Surely, the demonic energy should make it stuffy and suffocating.

But my father acted as if unaffected.

This was impossible.

For a martial artist wielding internal energy, demonic energy should be no different from potent poison.

“Palace Lord.”

At my father’s call, the Black Night Palace Lord grinned.

“It’s been a while. Flame Demon.”

“You broke your promise.”

“You didn’t think a lowly promise like yours would be kept forever, did you?”

Despite the Palace Lord’s sarcastic words.

My father didn’t react strongly.

He looked as if it didn’t matter.

“Even a fiend like you seems to cherish your child, coming all this way having forgotten your sins.”

“I won’t engage in pointless conversation.”

As if to prove his words, my father gradually began to envelop himself in flames.

Truly, his internal energy output was still overwhelming.

However, even seeing that, the Palace Lord merely smiled, seemingly unafraid.

“There’s no need to pretend to be strong, it must be very difficult for you.”

“Be quiet.”

The flames, formed from vast energy, then flew towards the Black Night Palace Lord as if to burn him, but…

Kwang!

A wall created by the Palace Lord’s energy blocked it.

For a moment, the energy seemed about to crumble and wavered, but…

It seemed unable to break through after all.

‘…It seems he isn’t completely unaffected by the demonic energy.’

It wasn’t my imagination; even from my perspective, I could feel my father faltering slightly.

“Don’t be hasty. We’ll have to see each other again anyway, won’t we?”

The Palace Lord said that and took a step back.

Towards the Demonic Mirror Gate, radiating a distinct violet light.

“I also seem to have some business with your son, so we’ll likely meet again soon.”

Watching the Palace Lord slowly retreat, I gritted my teeth.

Because my body still wouldn’t move.

‘I have to let him go like this…?’

That disaster held in the Palace Lord’s embrace?

Seeing me trembling uncontrollably, the Palace Lord whispered in a quiet voice.

“If that’s the case, the Gu family must fulfill the first sin.”

“…!”

With those words, Taejeol-gwi, the Palace Lord, and the Heavenly Demon disappeared into the Demonic Mirror Gate.

Until the moment they vanished beyond the gate, I stared at the Heavenly Demon.

The young Heavenly Demon was also staring intently at me.

The Demonic Mirror Gate, having swallowed them, disappeared in the air as if closing its eyes, as if its task was complete.

Quietly, as if nothing had been there at all.

‘…Why?’

Even while letting the Heavenly Demon escape.

I had to ponder the last words the Palace Lord left behind.

‘Why did the Palace Lord say that before leaving?’

The First Sin.

The Gu family’s first sin.

In the distant past, opening the very first Demonic Mirror Gate in the land of the Central Plains.

That was the Gu family’s first sin and burden.