Chapter 453: How Manyth World Is This (2)

After walking through the Demon Gate, I arrived in a dark and cold place.

Starting from the ground, the coldness seeped into my body.

It was quite problematic for me to feel cold.

My Qi should’ve started circulating.

After the seal inside my body was released, heat began circulating.

Therefore, I shouldn’t have been able to feel any coldness at all, yet that wasn’t the case right now.

This meant one thing.

This place is disgustingly cold.

It was unbelievably cold here.

I started to see a few things as my eyes adapted to the darkness.

There were a few lanterns on the wall, but that wasn’t enough to illuminate the room that felt extremely large.

Where was this place?

Since I came through a Demon Gate, there was a big possibility that this place was the Demonic Realm.

After scanning around, I looked into one direction.

First, I need to find where this coldness is coming from.

Just where was this cold air coming from that made even me feel cold?

I didn’t even have to think, as it was obviously the thing right in front of my sight.

In front of me, there was an unbelievably big ice crystal.

This is…

I’ve not seen anything like this.

In the Ice Palace of the North that prohibited from outsiders from entering, I heard that there was a legendary treasure called the Ice Crystal of Thousand Years.

Perhaps this thing was similar to that.

I walked up to the crystal.

Crack.

“…!”

I felt the coldness getting more intense as I walked closer.

It was a whole different level compared to where I was standing before.

This might be a bit dangerous huh?

It was too cold.

How long has it been ever since I felt this cold?

It even felt like the flame inside my body was going to freeze.

One step was my limit.

I would freeze to death if I walked another step forward.

Right as I was about to step backwards,

[Nice to meet you.]

I started to hear a voice.

I looked upwards.

I wasn’t’ looking for where this voice came from.

After all, this voice was way too clearly coming from the ice crystal.

I was able to see it when I carefully observed the ice crystal.

Inside the crystal that poured out disgustingly cold air, there was something inside.

Well, instead of putting it that way,

I guess trapped is a better way of putting it.

No matter how much I looked at it, it didn’t seem like that thing willingly went into the crystal.

On top of that,

This voice.

My eyes became thinner as soon as I heard the voice that greeted me.

I’ve heard this voice a few times already, and it wasn’t a voice that I would forget so easily.

Moreover, I was already expecting this to happen, so it wasn’t even shocking.

I gazed up at the ice crystal and responded to the voice.

“Blood Demon.”

Woong.

Once I spoke its name, the ice crystal started to vibrate.

[Oh…?]

The voice sounded as if it was amused.

[You must know who I am.]

I observed the bastard’s reaction and deduced the situation.

First,

This bastard doesn’t seem to know who I am.

If the bastard trapped inside the ice crystal was truly the Blood Demon I knew of, then there was no way that he wouldn’t know who I was.

Judging by that reaction,

…This world really isn’t the one I live in.

I became certain by this point.

This world also wasn’t the world I knew of in my past life either.

[How fascinating.]

The Blood Demon started to speak with his gaze on me.

[I only knew that you were a being belonging to another world, but it’s strange for you to show this much presence, and on top of that…]

Swish…

A mysterious aura suddenly passed by my body.

I didn’t bother stopping it.

[You even have my energy inside you?]

“…”

It seemed like this Blood Demon noticed the Blood Qi in my body.

A being belonging to a different world.

I put my attention into those words.

Both the Dancer and the Blood Demon seemed to know that I was from a different world.

At first, I thought they called me this way because I came from another world, but I felt something different.

Considering they keep saying I belong to another world,

Perhaps…

They mean ruler of a world?

Why though?

I became confused for a moment, but it didn’t take long for me to realize that it wasn’t a strange thing for this to happen.

All kinds of monsters were inside my body, and my vessel was about to shatter because of it.

One of the bastards of the bunch was…

The ruler of the Demonic Realm… was it.

That’s what the Blood Demon called the beast inside my body that endlessly consumed Demonic Qi without rest.

At the time, I couldn’t get a grasp of the term, but by this point, I knew just what it meant to be a ruler of a world.

To be a ruler meant that one had the responsibility of looking over the lives of a world, according to the World Tree.

Is that why this Blood Demon mistook me for one?

Because of the damned beast inside my body, it wasn’t too strange for this Blood Demon to mistake me as a ruler of a world.

But I did have one question in mind.

How did such a bastard even end up in my body?

A ruler of a whole world was inside my body.

The World Tree told me this at the time.

My mother was the one that gave me it.

It was given to me by none other than my mother.

I wasn’t able to come up with any conclusions after hearing this…

But I was able to realize after hearing mother’s voice when I met the Celestial Sword.

There is something special about my mother.

The World Tree said this.

Mother was the second calamity of the world, and the ruler of ten thousand worlds.

Being a ruler of ten thousand worlds alone was already shocking enough.

Dammit… why are there so many things that conflicts with one another?

“…So, why did you want to see me?”

I hid my complicated thoughts and asked the Blood Demon a question.

I started to hear a small chuckle from the Blood Demon shortly after.

[I was simply curious. Of why a being from another world came to this one.]

“…”

A reason huh.

I wanted to know as well. Why was I even here?

After checking my expression, the Blood Demon added on.

[Judging by your reaction, it doesn’t seem like you came here willingly.]

“…”

Fuck, I’ve been caught.

This shitty expression management of mine I swear. I always failed in important times like these.

I quickly went back to my normal expression and worked my brain.

“I’m not sure what you are talking about.”

[It doesn’t matter. The important part is your goal of visiting this place.]

“Does that mean you’ll do something to me if you don’t like my goal of visiting this place?”

I came here wanting to know what this world was, but I wasn’t going to put myself in danger.

My Qi is thankfully flowing though.

Would I be able to run away using my Qi?

I only had myself to rely on, as I walked into this place with my own two feet.

[Hehe…]

The Blood Demon chuckled.

[Worry not. I’m simply curious is all.]

“How could I not worry in a situation like this?”

[You may have the great one inside you, but you don’t seem to have much knowledge.]

“…”

He was spot on.

[I have no intention of harming you.]

“How can I bel- “

[The evidence is right in front of you. You are breathing perfectly fine right in front of me. That’s the important part.]

What a poor attempt of a threat that was.

It was obvious that the bastard couldn’t do anything trapped inside the ice crystal, so why did it speak as if it had the ability to harm me?

…

However.

Despite knowing that, I couldn’t speak recklessly because my instinct was preventing me from doing so.

What is it?

I didn’t know.

I just knew that it was something extremely dangerous.

Ache-!

The scale on my right arm was aching in unbelievable pain.

Tsk.

It felt the same as when I met the Blood Demon during the meeting of the Orthodox Faction.

I felt uncontrollable hostility towards the Blood Demon at the time.

One difference compared to back then, was the fact that I didn’t feel that hostility right now.

[It truly is fascinating.]

“…What is?”

[A ton of my energy is filling your body, yet you are shedding using your own strength. How could that not be fascinating?]

“Shedding?”

I frowned after hearing the Blood Demon.

Once I reacted out loud, the ice crystal started to vibrate faintly.

[Oh… It seems like you were unaware of it.]

“Speak in a way that I could understand.”

[Judging by how you know me and your way of calling me, it seems like I exist in that world too… how envious.]

“What…?”

Envious? About what?

[How could I not be envious of me in an alternate universe that came across someone like you?]

I was reminded of what the bastard said to me back then after hearing this Blood Demon.

The Blood Demon wanted me to continue what I was doing.

To become even bigger than before, or something like that.

But why does the Blood Demon show such behavior towards me?

It was obvious that the bastard was planning something, but the Blood Demon seemed to be fond of me for whatever reason.

It made me feel bothered.

[I’ll ask one thing.]

Suddenly, the Blood Demon started to ask me a question.

[Was it me who sent you to this world?]

“What?”

I frowned after hearing the Blood Demon. Was it the Blood Demon that sent me down to this world?

What kind of nonsense was that?

After seeing my frown, the Blood Demon murmured in a disappointed tone.

[I suppose it wasn’t. Then I wonder who…]

“What are you saying right now.”

[You don’t even seem to know of your own existence, so you wouldn’t have come here willingly. Then who was it that sent you here?]

“…”

I thought to myself after hearing the Blood Demon.

Why didn’t I think of that before?

If this truly was a different world, then I shouldn’t have been able to come here so easily.

But then how did Tang Jaemoon…?

How did Tang Jaemoon manage to send me here when she was just a leftover of her past?

Moreover, what was it that the Blood Demon was implying?

Furthermore,

“…Just what is this world?”

What was this place that I was in?

The Blood Demon let out a small laughter after hearing my complicated question.

[What a strange question for you to ask what this world is.]

“…”

[Haha-!]

Cold air intensely poured out from the ice crystal along with his laughter.

[So you really know nothing. How could that be possible?]

“Whether it’s this world or the other, you don’t fail to confuse me. It’s rather annoying you know.”

Chuckle.

[I apologize. One must know naturally after shedding, yet you don’t which is why I find you fascinating. How is such a thing possible… this feels as if…]

Woong.

[It feels as if someone purposely blocked your ears.]

“…”

Someone purposely blocking my ears huh.

Funnily enough, that sort of made sense to me.

If that wasn’t the case, then there wouldn’t be an explanation as to why I had no knowledge of anything. As my mind became more complicated, the Blood Demon continued to speak.

[You asked what this world was, yes?]

“…”

[This world isn’t different from yours.]

“What…?”

[It’s just an alternate possibility.]

I couldn’t understand his answer.

I continued to stare at the ice crystal, wondering what this nonsense was. Without caring about my gaze, the Blood Demon continued to speak.

[There is a rock on the ground in front of you.]

“A rock?”

[To pick that rock up, to not pick it up. You were given that choice, and you chose to pick it up in the end.]

I wondered why the Blood Demon suddenly started to talk about a rock, but I decided to listen for now.

[What do you think would happen for something simple as that?]

“What do I think will happen?”

Was there anything special about it?

Nothing special will happen just because I picked up a rock.

After reading my expression, the Blood Demon gave me an immediate answer. However, I couldn’t understand that answer.

[It means that an alternate universe is made, where you don’t pick up the rock.]

I let out a laughter of doubt immediately after hearing him.

There wasn’t a nonsense more nonsensical than this.

“Then what, countless number of worlds like this could exist is what you are saying?”

Basically, the Blood Demon was saying that simple decisions like sleeping, eating, drinking, could lead to countless number of alternate worlds being made.

How could such a thing be possible…?

[Why do you show disbelief? The fact that you are here right now is a proof of it.]

“…”

I had to shut my mouth right as I was about to speak.

[Do you really find it strange for a world like this to exist, when simple decisions like those form countless number of alternate universes?]

If I heard this from anyone else, I would’ve treated them as a crazy person, but it was a different story in my current situation.

Okay.

Let’s try to think differently.

Let’s just say that that’s real. I’ll say that this world was one of the many worlds that was made in that process.

“…So, what’s the alternate possibility you spoke of before?”

The Blood Demon called this an alternate possibility.

Then what was this possibility for?

The bastard spoke as if this separated world had a different meaning to it.

After hearing my question, the Blood Demon remained silent for a moment, then started to speak slowly.

[This world you see.]

For some reason, the tone of his voice sounded deeper than before.

[It’ll only become satisfied only after it reaches its desired outcome.]

“What the hell are you- “

[If you failed two times already, you wouldn’t want to fail a third time.]

“…!”

[The existences of many worlds’ possibilities, is the same as the worlds’ will of not wanting to fail.]

My eyes widened after hearing the Blood Demon.

Two failures.

I felt like I knew what the Blood Demon was implying.

Perhaps,

It’s the cycle of calamity…?

The first was the Blood Demon, and my mother was the second.

Both of them failed to become the ruler of the world I lived in.

After some time, I met the spirit of Yeon Il-Cheon, and he called me the calamity, but I believed that the Heavenly Demon was the next calamity.

However, the Blood Demon here spoke about the possibilities of many worlds and its will.

Does that mean that it was desiring to create a world where calamity successfully descends to the world?

Was that why countless number of worlds were being created?

“What…?”

I couldn’t accept this reality.

I didn’t know if the Blood Demon was even telling me the truth, but I had to ask one important question if everything he said was correct.

“If what you said really is true…”

If the Blood Demon was telling the truth,

“What happens to all the other worlds that fail to meet the world’s conditions?”

If a world succeeds in creating a new ruler through calamity, then what would happen to worlds like this one where that fails to happen?

The Blood Demon responded in a calm tone.

[Once that happens, the other worlds are no longer needed. After all, there only needs to be one.]

“…”

I made a speechless expression on my face after hearing the Blood Demon.

It meant that all the other worlds besides one, would be erased completely.

Basically, a living being in a world only had two options which was to be erased for a new ruler to descend into the world they lived in, or to wait until their world becomes erased as a whole, once a different world successfully manages to create a ruler.

Wow.

What a shitty universe we live in.

That was the first thought that passed by my mind.