Chapter 1202: Scorched World

Kwaduk.

The sound of chewing and swallowing could be heard. As if opening its mouth to chew something. The energy took form and was munching away the Blood Demon’s energy.

“This……”

The red energy that started from the ring had enveloped my entire body, but the purple energy, as if intending to devour it all, slowly began to bind the Blood Demon’s energy from the outside.

‘What is this?’

I stared at the energy with puzzled eyes. Why is that guy acting like this all of a sudden?

‘The energy was definitely the Blood Demon’s.’

How could a divine spirit harm its master? Just as I was watching it strangely,

Kwadudeuk-!!

The energy continued to devour the Blood Demon’s energy. And finally, just as the red energy completely disappeared,

Siaaaah-!

“……!”

My head suddenly cleared and my mind snapped into focus.

“……Ugh.”

Catching my swaying body, I clutched my forehead.

“Kke……”

A headache surged. Amidst it, I felt my mind clearing, like dark clouds parting.

Furthermore.

“You son of a bitch.”

Anger surged within me.

“Hey.”

I spoke, looking at the faint red energy that remained.

“What did you do to me?”

“Tsk tsk tsk.”

As I asked like a growl, the Blood Demon let out a low chuckle.

“Ah, what a shame. It was a chance to gain a good vessel……”

“You crazy bastard? I asked what you did.”

With my mind suddenly clear, my thoughts raced. Only then did the strangeness become apparent. No, things I hadn’t even noticed as strange were now vividly felt in my body.

‘Why did he come?’

He came despite noticing the strangeness of Dogga.

Even if I had asked my father to make arrangements, this was still strange. If he knew something was strange, he wouldn’t have come this way. He wouldn’t have been trapped underground in the first place.

A body no different from a normal person, with limited strength. It made no sense that he moved despite clearly knowing that.

And.

‘It’s absurd that he focused on Dogga’s affairs, setting everything else aside.’

He didn’t focus on my body ending up like this.

Even.

‘He ignored Namgung Bi-ah’s situation too.’

He had been engrossed in this matter, even ignoring Namgung Bi-ah’s appearance. It was utterly nonsensical.

It was as if…

‘He was brainwashed.’

It felt like his mind was focused as if compelled to do so. Moreover. I had some idea of what this feeling was.

“It was you.”

It was the Blood Demon’s doing.

“You secretly did something to me. Didn’t you?”

I asked, looking at the ring. Again, a dog-like laughter was heard.

“Kukukuku. Ah… what a pity.”

My brow furrowed at that voice.

“Since it was an incomplete vessel, it was a golden opportunity… but for things to go wrong like this.”

“When was it? When did you do this to me?”

Even as I asked, I had already realized the answer.

“Was it when you gave me the ring?”

This strange ring. I recalled carrying it around without any suspicion, even though the Blood Demon had given it to me. Thinking about it now, what could be stranger than this?

“Above all, although the body was complete, it was an unstable vessel as the awakening of its rank was recent. There was nothing better to infiltrate.”

He meant it was when he gave the ring.

“Then, luckily, Taechen did something foolish and I even entered the rank… .”

The deep laughter in the Blood Demon’s voice vanished for a moment.

“You are interfering with me. What is this?”

Kkeudeudeuk-!

The purple energy, which had been devouring the blood essence, reacted as if growling at the Blood Demon’s words.

“This is impossible. My baits wouldn’t have acted foolishly.”

The Blood Demon seemed puzzled by the reaction and kept questioning, but I didn’t believe even that. Knowing what kind of guy the Blood Demon was, I believed this was also a fake.

‘If this is the case, I can’t trust that egg either.’

Whatever its intention, that egg was ultimately related to the Blood Demon.

Just then.

Kwajik-!

A sound came from the ring. It cracked. A clear, thick crack appeared on the ring,

“Tsk. Is the time already up?”

The Blood Demon licked his lips, looking at the ring.

“We’ll meet again. It won’t take long.”

“You son of a-!”

Pak-!

Before I could even finish speaking, the Blood Demon’s ring was crushed and fell to the floor. Seeing its effortlessly destroyed form, I clenched my teeth.

‘Damn it.’

Was everything that had been acting strangely until now the Blood Demon’s doing?

‘From the moment I got the ring?’

I had gained a divine spirit, but because it couldn’t bloom, the vessel became unstable instead. Did the Blood Demon infiltrate then?

‘Even after obtaining the master’s rank, the gap wasn’t sealed, so he remained?’

Something similar had happened in my original world. My grandfather had burned away the Blood Demon’s meddling in the past.

‘Moreover, the energy in my body was sealed.’

Meaning it was a perfect state for the Blood Demon to run rampant.

‘Still, even so.’

Kwadeuk.

I stomped on the fragments of the broken ring. The fact that I had been played by him infuriated me more than anything,

‘Damn it.’

Swallowing my curses, I turned my gaze elsewhere. The energy swirling around my body. It was directed towards the purple egg.

“What are you?”

Having apparently devoured all the Blood Demon’s energy, it slowly began to withdraw its energy.

Dugeun-! Dugeun-!

Even after that, the heartbeat sound echoed in my ears. What was that? What was that reaction it showed the Blood Demon just now?

‘They said it was his energy.’

If the body and energy were separated. They said that was the energy.

The source of its divine spirit.

Just as he left his heart in the Northern Sea, they said that was equivalent to the Blood Demon’s power.

‘……To feel the Heavenly Demon’s energy from there.’

I saw the Heavenly Demon being raised by the Black Night Palace Lord. Then, it must be related to the Black Night Palace Lord.

‘That Black Night Palace Lord…’

Is the same as Do-cheol, the current head of Dogga.

Then.

‘That egg containing the Heavenly Demon’s energy…’

I bit my lip as thoughts surfaced.

Perhaps.

‘Is the Heavenly Demon inside?’

The Heavenly Demon. Could she be inside? One might ask how a human could exist in an egg, but

‘The Heavenly Demon isn’t human.’

She is not human. I had heard that in Man-gye too. They said the Heavenly Demon was a dragon.

‘Judging by how it was affected by my Gluttony.’

The power to nullify and devour the authority of dragons. I recalled Gluttony attacking the Heavenly Demon and being affected by it.

This means…

‘The Heavenly Demon wasn’t defeated because she was a dragon, but rather’

because it was the authority itself.

If it was defeated because the authority took human form, then…

‘……it makes sense.’

How authority could take human form was a question, but if you didn’t consider just that, everything was permissible.

“…Because the Heavenly Demon was the Blood Demon’s energy.”

That seemed to be why it worked.

‘So that egg is the source of the Heavenly Demon?’

The Heavenly Demon is born there? With the energy the people of Dogga kept feeding it?

‘……Then.’

Another question flashed through my mind.

‘……They said the energy was the Heavenly Demon.’

If the Blood Demon’s authority itself was the Heavenly Demon,

‘What about the body?’

The body containing it? The Blood Demon’s body itself…

“……”

Someone passed beyond my trembling eyes.

“No……”

I wanted to deny it, but

“Damn it.”

I couldn’t. The answer took shape on its own. If the Heavenly Demon was the Blood Demon’s authority, I already knew the body.

The woman who instantly became the greatest under heaven, led by her uncanny physical talents and a face that closely resembled the Heavenly Demon.

‘……Divine Sword.’

Divine Sword Wi Seol-ah.

The Blood Demon’s body seemed to be Wi Seol-ah.

“……”

My hesitant eyes looked down at my hand. The trembling tips of my fingers betrayed my emotions.

“Hoo……”

Is this for real?

‘……The Blood Demon’s energy and body. The Heavenly Demon and Wi Seol-ah?’

So.

‘Is that why he called them daughters?’

When the Blood Demon called them daughters, it wasn’t because they were his actual daughters, but

‘because they were his vessels.’

Split and divided vessels. That must be why he called the Heavenly Demon and Wi Seol-ah his daughters.

“Hoo……”

Cold sweat trickled down. It felt like I had learned a truth I never wanted to know.

How could this happen?

“Why……”

Why Wi Seol-ah of all people?

‘I went through so much trouble for a reason…’

So that it would be different from my past life. Hoping for a world where you could smile. Even if I had to break myself for it. I had wished for a different life from back then.

‘Fate doesn’t change.’

“……”

It truly was a relentless world.

“Ah……”

My throat was dry. I felt thirsty. My weakening knees hit the ground.

“Aaaah……”

I had to regain my senses. Escaping this place, putting aside what I had discovered, was the priority. After that. Then, I should think about what to do next.

Logically, that’s what I thought, but

“Bullshit.”

Kaduk.

I ground my teeth. Reason? What bullshit. I have to be rational even in this situation?

“Stop talking bullshit.”

Kwak-!

I punched the floor. I was too enraged to do anything. My heated breath escaped as a sigh.

“Haa…… ha……”

I had to get up somehow. Even if I was angry, I had to do something. Reason and these damn emotions warred within me. As I struggled to steady my shaken mind,

Ppeojeojeok—!!

“……!”

A violent sound came from beside me.

“What the…?”

I looked sideways with startled eyes. It was where the purple egg was. But.

Kwadudeuk-!! Ppeojeok–!!

“What the…”

The purple egg stopped its heartbeat sound and began to break itself.

Tutuk-!!

The egg, cracked all over in an instant. Something emerged from it.

‘……What is that?’

What emerged was, surprisingly.

A hand?

It was a very pale white hand. A hand that anyone would recognize as human.