episode_0458

*** ***

We entered the Black Dragon Castle while being looked at as if we were looking at a crazy person.

My companions and I were guided to Socheonma’s residence.

“Are you sane!!!”

I had to face the storm-like anger of Socheonma Wi Seo-ryeon.

“What kind of mentality did you have to come in like this! If you had given me a hint, we would have discussed measures!”

“I’m sorry.”

“I really don’t know what you or your father are thinking!”

Wei Seo-ryeon clenched her fists.

What happened with the Heavenly Demon? Just thinking about Wi Ji-cheon made him so angry that he felt like he was going to die.

“Now, now…calm down. It’s already in the past, right?”

The black cat was breaking into a cold sweat from the stormy black dragon period and soothed the stomachache.

“You too…! Phew…”

Wei Seo-ryeon, who was angry at the black cat, let go of her anger and gathered her energy. It was because I saw Tang Xiaoyeol’s face turn white next to the black cat.

Wei Seo-ryeon gulped down the tea in front of her like it was a cold beer and sat down with a long sigh.

Wei Seo-ryeon, who was calmly calming down her anger, looked at me.

“You also saw the end of Jeongcheol. Are you confident?”

I nodded silently.

Although the preparation was not perfect, the odds of victory were still good.

Wei Seo-ryeon looked at me with complicated eyes.

“A warrior has the right to decide for himself who he will fight with, risking his life. It’s so great that the target is not me, but the Heavenly Demon Divine Art! very! I don’t like it, but…hehe!”

Wi Seo-ryeon raises her eyebrows as if she is feeling angry that she barely calmed down.

“Well, it’s good. It wouldn’t be suitable for a Heavenly Demon to get any more angry about something that has already happened. okay. The reason you are challenging the succession of the Heavenly Demon God is because you need the power of the Heavenly Demon God to defeat the Blood Cult, right?”

I nodded silently.

“However, Hocheonan, even if you inherit the Heavenly Demon Divine Art and become a Heavenly Demon, there is a high probability that the religious warriors will not follow you. You will certainly be respected as a Heavenly Demon, but that doesn’t mean I will participate in your ‘private’ revenge.”

Well, it was obvious.

No matter how much he is the leader of the group and whether he has absolute power, who will follow him if he tries to use the entire organization solely for his personal feelings?

And even if I become the Heavenly Demon, I will not become the head of the Heavenly Demon Church.

In a situation where there is a heavenly demon, Wijicheon, and Wijicheon’s enemy, Wiseoryeon, is there a religious warrior who can support me? It has to exist, but it can’t be said to be mainstream.

“I know.”

“Yes. Since I know, I must have said the original.”

Wei Seo-ryeon’s words were closer to lament. Wei Seo-ryeon is the person who went through and overcame the ordeal of the Black Dragon. He is a person who knows better than anyone else what it means to restore the original version of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, which to others is just a vague imagination.

There was a light of resignation in Wei Seo-ryeon’s eyes as she looked at me with an expression that said she had a lot to say but would not say it.

“Well, it’s good. Now that I think about it, it wasn’t all a bad thing. Even if you fail to restore the original, if you succeed in passing it on, you will become a heavenly demon.”

At Wei Seo-ryeon’s remarks, Yeo Il-ye, Mo Yong-yeon-hwa, and Hyuk Kirin’s expressions darkened.

….If I become the Heavenly Demon, the three people who belong to the historic political faction will be in an awkward position.

“Also, my qualifications as a partner have become clearer… hmm. Was this what your father’s stubbornness meant? no. Probably not.”

Wei Seo-ryeon was touching her forehead as if she had a headache.

“A thousand years old! A thousand years! Thousands of years! excuse me! I would like to deliver a message from Heavenly Demon, so may I come in?”

“….Come in.”

The warrior, sweating profusely, quickly bowed down to Wei Seo-ryeon’s tone, which seemed to be full of displeasure.

“Cheonma Nim’s intention was to hold Hocheonan’s transmission ceremony starting tomorrow.”

Wei Seo-ryeon asked about my intention with her gaze. I felt like he was being kind enough to buy me some time if I wasn’t ready, but I nodded resolutely.

Since there wasn’t enough time, I also wanted the ceremony to proceed quickly.

“I understand.”

In this way, the date for the ceremony was confirmed.

*** ***

I was informed that my transmission ceremony would take place over three days.

As soon as I left the front door of Wei Seo-ryeon’s residence for the ceremony, numerous eyes were on me.

Well… since I appeared causing such a fuss, it would have been natural for news of me to spread throughout Black Dragon Castle.

Hostility, anticipation, curiosity… or jealousy or admiration were all in my eyes to the point where my nerves were on edge.

I thought I was already used to receiving someone’s attention, but today it felt different.

This was because everyone was keeping quiet, without even a single whisper following their gaze.

As I’ve been going to and from Cheonma Bigo, I’ve always thought that Black Dragon City was no different from any other city.

Now, looking at this scene, I suddenly realized why the Church of the Heavenly Demon is a religion.

They are treating me, a challenger to the Heavenly Demon God, as some kind of inviolable being.

The place we arrived at with such a mysterious gaze was the gap where Jeongcheol had learned the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

Inside that gap, Wi Ji-cheon was standing with his back to the building where Jeong-cheol was taught the Cheon Demon Divine Art.

“Did you come.”

“Yes.”

The building, which had been damaged due to the failure of Jeongcheol, had been neatly restored, and the same cushions as before had been placed in place.

Wi Ji-cheon opened his mouth without delay as he sat down with the useless feeling that he was sitting in the same place where Jeong-cheol died.

What kind of being is the Heavenly Demon?

What obligations must one bear?

Wi Ji-cheon’s explanation, calmly reciting various words, led to the history of the Demonic Cult.

This is a story about the first Heavenly Demon who dropped the black dragon in Xinjiang during a time when spirits ruled the world.

Wi Ji-cheon, who finished talking about the invitation, continued speaking.

“The fact that one can only become a Heavenly Demon by overcoming the ordeal of the Black Dragon is a chronic weakness of the Heavenly Demon Church.”

It’s a weakness.

“You know enough about outsiders and the Heavenly Demon Church. Have you ever wondered why the Church of the Heavenly Demon moves in a completely different system from the outside world?”

I shook my head.

Because it was a problem I had never thought deeply about.

In a way, it was natural for a unique culture different from other places to bloom in a closed environment.

“Unlike other clans and families, succeeding to the Heavenly Demon God was a series of uncertainties. It wouldn’t have been strange if the price of the Heavenly Demon was cut off at any time.”

Wi Ji-cheon calmly spoke about history stained with blood.

The successor to the Heavenly Demon God is selected through a very strict process.

however.

No matter how severe the test was, there was no guarantee that the succession would succeed. Since there was no guarantee, there would naturally have been cases of succession failure.

The name Cheonma was maintained through the blood of the candidates.

“At all times, the Church of the Heavenly Demon did its best to prepare to succeed the Heavenly Demon God, but things did not always go as planned.”

Why is the Demon Cult described as a group of demons who went crazy in the Jungwon Forest?

Because there was a time like that.

It was a time when many people gave up their lives to inherit the Heavenly Demon God.

The wounds from that time did not completely disappear and became scars that still remained in the Heavenly Demon Church.

Wijicheon was someone whose meaning I couldn’t understand at all on a regular basis, but perhaps he had lifted that curtain today.

Wei Ji-cheon’s eyes showed that the scar had not simply ruined the reputation of the Heavenly Demon Church.

“You have been going in and out of Cheonma Bigo for a long time. There, you would have seen many martial arts made by heavenly demons whose names were hidden. Have you ever thought about why the past Heavenly Demons created so many martial arts even though they learned the best martial arts called the Heavenly Demon Shingong?”

I hadn’t thought about it, but I could understand the reason.

Because the Heavenly Demon Church was the soil where those who would become the Heavenly Demon should be raised. The reason the Heavenly Demons continued to create new martial arts was probably to make the soil fertile.

“Do you now understand why the warriors of the Heavenly Demon Church are only crouching in this Xinjiang?”

All warriors had the potential to become Heavenly Demons. If talented and outstanding fighters leave the midfield and do not return, the possibility of producing Cheonma in a stable manner will decrease.

“And now, do you understand why an outsider like you can challenge the succession of the Heavenly Demon God?”

The worst of the worst.

The rule that outsiders can challenge the Heavenly Demon Divine Art is probably a rule that takes into account the situation when no one can be found within the Heavenly Demon Divine Arts to continue the Heavenly Demon Divine Art.

When I nodded, Wi Ji-cheon looked straight into my eyes and said.

“Then it means that you now fully understand the weight of returning the ‘original’ of the Heavenly Demon God’s Art.”

I couldn’t breathe due to the pressure.

It was something I had prepared for, but the weight I realized anew was pressing down on my shoulders.

“Perhaps even if you find the ‘original’, the curse of the Black Dragon Blood will not end. The curse of the Black Dragon Blood has become one with the principles of the Heavenly Demon Divine Technique, so it will come up again every time the principles of the Heavenly Demon Divine Technique are discussed.”

Obtain the original copy of Heavenly Demon God’s Art.

This was something I had never experienced even in the martial arts world, so I couldn’t guarantee the outcome either.

Therefore, Wi Ji-cheon’s judgment will be more accurate than mine, who has not experienced the Heavenly Demon Divine Art or the Curse of the Black Dragon’s Blood.

“Nevertheless, the long-cherished wish of this Church of the Heavenly Demon to obtain the original does not simply mean restoring the martial arts practiced by the first Heavenly Demon.”

Wi Ji-cheon extended his hand to me.

For some reason, it felt like my hands were covered in blood.

“This is because the original is an opportunity to continue the vein of the Heavenly Demon Religion, and it is the only salvation that will save the lives of countless believers when countless blood must be shed for the Heavenly Demon God’s Religion to continue.”

Wi Ji-cheon asked through his gaze.

“So, you will become the benefactor of the religion, and the Heavenly Demon Church will gladly draw its sword for its benefactor.”

Can you do it?

“If you feel hesitation and fear, you can give up now.”

That’s why I answered.

I can do it.

Did you accept my answer? A subtle smile and clear anticipation appeared on Wei Ji-cheon’s face.

…For some reason, the intense light in his eyes felt closer to obsession rather than anticipation, but Wi Ji-cheon is also a human being, so there may be times when his emotions become intense.

“Then, engrave the meaning in your heart and think about it.”

Wi Ji-cheon turned around and said.

“Preparation for succession to the Heavenly Demon God is like that.”

like that.

The first day of classes to prepare for succession has ended.