Chapter 457 : Chapter 457

Vol 2 Chapter 97. I Entrust the Future to You, My Friend. (3)

[This ‍​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​​​‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​​​‌​‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​​​‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​​​‌​‌​​​‌​‌‌‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌‌‌​‌​‌​‌‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌​​​‌​​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​​​‌​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌‌​​​​​​‌‌‌‌​‌‍is the truth. In the end, we drove out the Blood Cult and won the war, but that victory was not won by our own hands. It was merely a false victory, brought about by someone’s whim, or perhaps their circumstances.]

“……”

[How ‍​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍disastrous must I have felt then? You, of all people, would know, wouldn’t you?]

How ‍​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍could he not know?

He ‍​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍could tell that Jaegal Hyeon must have been bursting with frustration even as he carved these words.

As ‍​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​​‌​‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌​​​​​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​‌‌​​‌‌‌​​‌​‌‌‌​‍someone with more pride than anyone, the wound to his heart must have been great.

Thinking about that…

“Pfft, serves you right.”

As expected of Patrick Schneider.

[You’re thinking ‘serves you right’ now, aren’t you? Are you even human? You demonic bastard?]

Likewise, as expected of Jaegal Hyeon.

“What do you want me to do, you punk? It’s your fault for being weak and getting your ass kicked. Huh?”

[If you were human, you’d have at least…. Ah, you’re not human, you’re a demon. My apologies. I made an unreasonable demand of a creature for whom human common sense and morality are impossible.]

“You want to die?”

[You’re probably going to say ‘You want to die?’, but are you an idiot? By the time you read this, I’ll already be dead.]

“Grrr.”

It felt unpleasant, as if he were being played with in the palm of someone’s hand.

[Returning to the main point, a false victory was still a victory, and with that victory, we were able to obtain peace. We drove out the Blood Cult and ended the dreadful war.]

“……”

[However, the aftertaste of this victory was not refreshing, so I continued to investigate. Why did the Blood Demon choose to die on his own back then? His attitude of giving up, as if his own life was nothing, was by no means normal, no matter how much I thought about it.]

“……”

[So I had to know. Was this peace we were now enjoying truly safe? To be sure that I could believe in the future, I had to know the truth.]

“You relentless bastard…”

Patrick clicked his tongue.

It seemed Jaegal Hyeon had instinctively realized the danger of the Blood Demon.

And he must have constantly agonized to find a reason for his intuition.

In fact, to find the cause of the Blood Demon’s actions, Jaegal Hyeon researched the records of the Blood Cult and the Demonic Cult voraciously.

To others, it might have seemed as if Jaegal Hyeon had become obsessed with the doctrines of the Blood Cult.

‘Tsk, this guy also has a personality that sees things through to the end once he starts digging…’

Thus, Jaegal Hyeon immersed himself in his research, gathering even the smallest clues, inferring unseen connections, and weighing the possibilities.

And after 20 years of research, the conclusion he reached was…

[I learned many things. The existence of the Celestial Realm, the existence that governs the rise and fall of the world and its antipode. And the existence of countless other worlds that exist parallel to ours. Crucially, I even learned that the Blood Demon is an existence that repeats resurrection.]

“Wow… you crazy bastard.”

Patrick was genuinely impressed.

Jaegal Hyeon had reached the truth of the world.

The truth and structure of the world that Patrick had only learned about after receiving the protection of the World Tree and fighting the Four Gods head-on.

Jaegal Hyeon had figured that out purely on his own.

“Should I call this being smart? Or being tenacious?”

[You should see it as both, shouldn’t you?]

This ugly bastard isn’t really watching, is he?

It was getting scarier and scarier.

[The moment I reached the truth of the world, I felt my own existence ascend to a higher dimension. As a result, I became able to read the secrets of heaven.]

“Wow, so this bastard also eventually ascended to divinity.”

[And I naturally came to know. That the time I could remain on this earth was short.]

“Hmm…”

[At first, I tried to resist. But after realizing that it was a rule of the world that could not be fundamentally resisted, I changed my actions. In the remaining time, I tried to leave behind arrangements for when the next Blood Demon would return.]

“……”

[In that process, I realized one interesting fact. No matter how many times I cast the trigrams, I could not find the whereabouts of your, Jin Cheon’s, soul.]

“Hmph, as if you could find it?”

[At first, I made a reasonable inference that I couldn’t find it because you had fallen into hell, but….]

“This bastard is asking to die.”

[I couldn’t feel even a trace of you. It was as if you didn’t exist in this world.]

“That’s because. I was sold off to the Continent of Pangemonia for the purpose of catching the Heavenly Demon. Haa…. It pisses me off just thinking about it again.”

They had freely sold off someone else’s soul according to their own circumstances.

Honestly, anyone would have been pissed off, not just Patrick.

[But as I read the secrets of heaven, I came to know one fact. When I divined the person who would appear as the antipode at the time of the next Blood Demon’s resurrection. It turned out that existence was you.]

“……”

[At first, I thought it was some kind of error. I saw your corpse with my own two eyes. But you, who were like that, would appear as the adversary of the Blood Demon? It didn’t make sense.]

It was only natural that Jaegal Hyeon was confused.

It was strange that a person who was already dead was designated as the adversary of the Blood Demon who would appear again after his death.

[Could it be your reincarnation? I thought. But it’s not like that. Even if a human is reincarnated with the same soul, once they are reborn, they are separate individuals living different lives. So how could this be?]

“……”

[I offered half of my remaining lifespan to summon the Goddess of the Ninth Heaven.]

“Anyway, this crazy bastard…”

Patrick frowned and continued to read the next passage.

[The Goddess answered that you would return at the next moment of crisis.]

“……”

The fact that the Celestial Realm on this side gave such an answer probably meant that it was after the point when Patrick had taken the Heavenly Demon’s head.

Unless the two worlds were connected as they were now, the timelines of the two worlds were arbitrarily skewed, so it was entirely possible.

[After that answer, the Goddess did not give any more answers. But I focused on the words that you would return.]

“……”

[The word ‘return’ means that you are not here now. As I set up that hypothesis, all the questions began to be resolved.]

“……”

[Probably, after you died at the Falling Phoenix Sect, you were reborn with a new body and soul in a completely different world. And after fulfilling your role in that world, you will return to this world where you originally existed. To finish what you have to do. Isn’t that right?]

“Well… it’s more or less correct.”

Anyway, he was an amazing guy.

An ordinary person would not believe such an absurd truth even if they found it out.

Wasn’t it a hypothesis that would completely change the worldview they perceived?

Even if they heard it, they wouldn’t think it was the truth.

The limit of ordinary people is to dismiss it as just a delusion.

But…

[My thoughts cannot be wrong. Who do you think I am?]

“Yeah. You’re that kind of guy.”

A man who, if he figured out that the world was round through reasoning in his head, would believe that fact without a doubt.

That was the kind of person Jaegal Hyeon was.

[Knowing that you would return, I created these ruins to prepare for this time. And just in case, I placed a mechanism that only the Radiant Dragon Great Master Jin Cheon himself could pass.]

“……”

[And so, you will now be in front of me. Across time, across worlds, you are once again in front of me.]

Patrick gently closed his eyes.

A familiar young man came to mind.

An appearance so ugly it was hard to look at with open eyes.

But the emotion revealed on his face was self-confidence, and his gaze was sharper than any treasured sword.

The familiar and missed face of his friend appeared vividly before his eyes.

“……”

Opening his eyes again, Patrick wiped the dust from the stone slab and continued to read the few remaining passages.

[I have left two arrangements for you. They are….]

A look of astonishment appeared on Patrick’s face as he calmly read the words left by Jaegal Hyeon.

“This guy…. Wow…. This is really…”

He couldn’t help but be surprised.

Still, hadn’t it been 200 years since he died?

But to think he had looked this far ahead, across 200 years, and left such an arrangement?

Patrick realized anew.

‘It’s a real relief I wasn’t enemies with this guy in my past life.’

He felt sorry for Marquis Krupa, but there was no comparison.

It was truly a divine stratagem.

No, it was a vast and elaborate net created to deceive even ghosts.

Patrick, who had reviewed the explanation of the plan several times, nodded and raised his sword.

And then…

SHIIIIING!

Dozens of sword strikes split the stone slab left by Jaegal Hyeon into hundreds of pieces.

This writing could not be left in the world.

If this plan were discovered, everything could be exposed.

However…

[I entrust the future to you. My friend.]

He did not cut the last sentence.

He carefully carved it out and placed it gently in his bosom.

“Just trust me.”

* * *

When Patrick came outside.

“Venerable Master Bong-gong!”

“Wow, you’re finally out.”

“Squad Leader. Are you alright?”

The disciples and squad members greeted Patrick with surprised expressions.

“What’s this? Why do you all look like you haven’t seen a person in a long time?”

“It has been a long time. We’re seeing you for the first time in almost two months, aren’t we?”

“What? Two months?”

“Yes. What happened? We asked Clan Head Jaegal, but he wouldn’t answer, saying it was a secret.”

“Two months…”

Patrick smiled bitterly.

It seemed that after entering that space, the flow of time had unfolded differently from the outside.

To think he had the ability to distort even the flow of time, beyond a simple illusion formation…

‘It’s nothing new, but he’s an amazing guy.’

As Patrick smiled bitterly, Jaegal Gyeom came running from afar, out of breath.

“Evil-Breaking Swordsman!”

Shouting loudly, he ran up in one go, looked Patrick up and down, and said.

“You… you didn’t come out in the middle, did you? You passed through to the end, right? Right?”

To his repeated questions, Patrick shrugged and said.

“Well, something like that.”

“Th-then, did you really bring the legacy of our ancestor, Jaegal Hyeon? Is that so?”

It would be rare for the head of the great Jaegal Clan to show his greed so openly.

But others who had heard the story from the side understood.

“Jaegal Hyeon? Could it be?”

“The Heavenly Secret Wise King, Jaegal Hyeon?”

“The one they call the greatest genius of the Jaegal Clan…”

“I wondered where he had gone…”

Everyone looked at Patrick with faces full of anticipation.

And Patrick smiled at them and said.

“Are you curious?”

Everyone’s gaze simultaneously nodded up and down.

Then Patrick stretched out his hand and…

“If you’re curious, five gold nyang.”

“Oh, really?!”

“Venerable Master Bong-gong!”

Patrick was Patrick.

* * *

Above the sky, where five-colored clouds shone brilliantly.

In this beautiful world where there is no night and the bright sun always shines, huge palaces are built here and there.

This is the Celestial Realm, and each of these palaces is the abode and domain of those who have reached divinity.

And one of those palaces.

There was a peerlessly beautiful woman there.

To be more precise…

“Uncle. What is the meaning of this?”

She was confined in a restrained state.

It was none other than Persona the Lord.

She was currently bound with her hands in handcuffs, chained, and the chain was fixed to the wall.

If it were an ordinary chain, she could just break it, but this one couldn’t be.

The moment she was bound by these handcuffs, she could not use her divine power or martial arts.

Now, she was just an ordinary woman.

And the three figures in front of her.

The three in the form of a young boy and girl were the Azure Dragon, the Vermilion Bird, and the White Tiger.

They were the three of the Four Gods who had returned to this world following Patrick.

Among them, the Azure Dragon spoke to Persona with an apologetic expression.

“I’m sorry. It is not our intention, but we cannot go against the will of the Celestial Realm.”

“I only made a reasonable request. But is this something to be restrained for?”

“We don’t really know the reason either. But the Jade Emperor has refused your request and ordered your confinement…. I am truly sorry.”

“And you’re locking me up for that? Uncle!”

To the roughly shouting Persona, the Azure Dragon spoke with a dark complexion.

“It is better than being confined by others.”

“As long as you are confined in our palace, you will at least be safe…”

“Is that the problem right now?”

To Persona, who was throwing a tantrum, the White Tiger spoke carefully.

“Sona. We will also look into the situation, so for now, please wait for the right time.”

“Stop with the bullshit and undo this!”

Persona shouted roughly, but the Four Gods shook their heads and left the place.

Now there was no one here to help her.