A Way, There Must Be a Way
'A way. There must be a way...'
Within Jegu's Demon Core, a faint trace of the memories left behind by the Demon King still lingered. It was by relying on those memories that Gwak Yeon had devised her plan to sacrifice the cultivators within the Secret Realm to borrow Taotie's power. Yet, even the Demon King's memories offered no answer to her current predicament. Thus, Gwak Yeon had no choice but to eliminate Myeong-ha as quickly as possible and pray for the Tribulation Fate to disperse.
Rumble! Thunder crashed. It was the signal that the Lightning Tribulation was imminent. Unable to delay any longer, Gwak Yeon unleashed dozens of talismans all at once.
Boom! A destructive light engulfed the area, sweeping over not only the altar but the entire surrounding terrain. Even amidst the chaos, she took care to ensure the sacrifices remained unharmed—the utmost limit of her remaining rationality.
"You..." After unleashing her barrage, Gwak Yeon's face contorted in fury. Her gaze fell upon the Tribulation Fate, which had not thinned in the slightest.
At that moment, she felt her Divine Sense being subtly disrupted. There were several discrepancies between what her Divine Sense perceived and what her eyes actually saw. They were minor differences that she might have overlooked had she not been paying close attention, but the crucial point was that her Divine Sense was no longer entirely accurate.
'Where is he? Where?!' Experiencing this for the first time, Gwak Yeon instantly lost her composure. To make matters worse, a gloomy voice echoed from above.
"I accept."
Above the altar, the fully materialized envoy of Taotie writhed violently. Massive chunks of flesh twisted and split apart, revealing hideous teeth buried deep within. A long tongue darted out from between the parted teeth, licking the empty air, as if it wanted to taste even a fraction of the abundant sacrifices gathered here.
Hummm—! Following that single declaration of acceptance, the space around the altar began to warp. It felt as though two or more dimensions were overlapping. Bizarre pillars materialized out of thin air, and a viscous fluid dripped onto the shattered rocks below.
'What is that?' Things that had seemed like mere illusions reflected on water gradually solidified into reality. At the same time, the old, dilapidated altar seemed to be painted anew, regaining its light and majesty.
Jekyeong, who was still recovering, narrowed his eyes as he watched the spectacle. An urge to turn around and flee immediately welled up inside him. Had he not known it would be a futile struggle, he truly would have run.
"The path is opening. Taotie's domain is descending. Do you see them? Those are the Hungry Ghosts. One of Taotie's primary servants. Or perhaps they should be called fallen servants?"
Unlike the deeply anxious Jekyeong, the remnant soul of Sangyoza sounded relaxed and intrigued, as if he had found an entertaining spectacle. His voice was so gratingly smug that Jekyeong unconsciously gathered fire in his maw. If the remnant soul had a visible form, Jekyeong would have blasted it with flames immediately, regardless of whether it would do any damage.
"What happens now? Once Taotie's domain fully manifests, will Taotie descend in person?"
"How could that be?" Sangyoza's remnant soul dismissed the idea with an amused snort. "Do you think an Evil God has nothing better to do? Taotie wouldn't spare a single glance for sacrifices of this meager caliber. Even that bastard Jegu couldn't directly contact Taotie back in the day. It will be the same this time. At best, she will connect with a mere sliver of his consciousness. But even that will be enough for that girl to achieve everything she desires. Of course, what comes after... well, you can guess without me telling you, can't you?"
Wooooo—! A ghostly wailing echoed. It was not a metaphorical description; spirits were literally shrieking. Within Taotie's domain, which had now almost completely merged with the Secret Realm, the Hungry Ghosts howled. A chilling, agonizing desperation vibrated through their cries.
"They say that everything those creatures devour flows straight into Taotie's stomach. That is why no matter how much they eat, their hunger is never sated. They suffer under an eternal curse of unquenchable hunger." Sangyoza's remnant soul babbled on, sharing information Jekyeong had neither asked for nor cared to know.
"I'm already terrified enough, so cut it out."
"Oh? You don't look it at all."
"I'm just holding it in. But I'm reaching my limit, so why don't you get to the point?"
"The point?"
"Stop with the nonsense about coincidences piling upon coincidences. Fine, maybe your awakening and finding me at this exact moment was a coincidence. But don't try to tell me there's no intention behind you chattering in my ear ever since you woke up. I won't believe it."
When Sangyoza's remnant soul fell silent for the first time, Jekyeong knew his suspicion was correct.
"Very well. You are quick-witted. Then, as you say, let us get to the point. It seems we do not have much time left."
For a fleeting second, Jekyeong thought he saw the illusion of a middle-aged man standing with his hands clasped behind his back. The man, who had a sharp and confident air, reached out and pressed his index finger against Jekyeong's forehead. The moment the man's finger touched his forehead, unfamiliar memories and knowledge flooded into Jekyeong's mind.
"Aaaah!" The collapsed human cultivators shrieked. Skeletal, skin-and-bone hands, bumpy tentacles, and tongues split into dozens of branches like tree limbs seized them and dragged them away. Like objects floating on water sinking beneath the surface, they were swallowed one by one into Taotie's domain.
Just then, the mass of flesh floating in the air, which had been watching the entire process as if judging it, shuddered violently. A moment later, the unnaturally bloated flesh sagged, and a massive pupil squeezed its way out from between the folds. The giant eye paid no heed to the human cultivators being dragged away, nor to Gwak Yeon standing right beside it; instead, it stared intently at the Tribulation Fate in the sky.
"Amusing." A bubbling, boiling voice instantly plunged the chaotic altar into dead silence. "I remember this place. Previously, my servant disappointed me here."
The Demon Core embedded in Gwak Yeon's forehead—now practically fused with her—trembled violently. It was as if Jegu's memories remaining inside the core were shaking in terror upon hearing its master's voice.
"Does a new servant arise where the old one vanished?"
"I pray that it may be as you say." At this moment, Gwak Yeon summoned more courage than she had possessed in her entire life. Although what inhabited that flesh was merely a sliver of Taotie's consciousness, that alone made her soul and body tremble uncontrollably. Let alone speaking, even looking at it was an agonizing struggle. Had the demonic energy of the Demon Core not sustained her, she would never have dared to utter those words.
"Very well." The moment the answer emerged from the flesh, the Tribulation Fate obscuring the sky dispersed. Gwak Yeon assumed that Taotie's power had pushed back the Heavenly Dao's influence over the Secret Realm, and she felt anew the sheer weight and meaning of the title "Evil God."
"Oh?" But in the next instant, she realized she had misunderstood. The eye embedded in the flesh, which had been directed toward the heavens, shifted downward. There, a single figure was flying toward them, staggering with great effort.
"I greet the Evil God."
"Who are you?"
"I am called Myeong-ha."
Gwak Yeon instinctively tried to raise her hand, but her body was already completely out of her control, refusing to budge even an inch. In utter shock, she tried to turn her gaze toward the flesh harboring Taotie's consciousness, but even that was impossible.
"Was this to draw my gaze?"
"I know my place. Even if I had continued as I was, I would have failed anyway."
"Honest." Myeong-ha remained silent, struggling to force the corners of his trembling lips upward. It wasn't by choice; his words felt glued to his tongue, completely unable to escape his mouth. Just like Gwak Yeon, he was summoning every ounce of courage he had ever possessed.
"Since I lost one here, it is only fitting and good to harvest another in this place." The flesh bloated and contracted once more, contorting. Above and below the massive eye, hundreds, thousands of needle-like teeth sprouted. "And since a child of the Heavenly Dao has sought me out of his own accord, that too is a welcome turn of events."
The grotesquely widened maw stretched out and swallowed the paralyzed Gwak Yeon whole. *Crunch! Crunch!* Gwak Yeon, frozen like a living statue, vanished into the flesh in the blink of an eye. Myeong-ha's eyes trembled at the sight, but he desperately maintained his forced smile.
Jekyeong had pressed Sangyoza's remnant soul because he knew they no longer had the luxury of idling around. He, too, wanted to pry as much knowledge and information as possible from this highly knowledgeable ancient relic, but the situation did not permit it. Although he had bet on Myeong-ha's plan, it was a decision forced upon him by a lack of other options. If there were a better way, why would he refuse it?
Of course, Jekyeong did not expect the other party to offer goodwill without demanding a price. Perhaps the scheme hidden within was a trap laced with malice. But then again, who could say for sure? After all, the more possibilities one kept open, the better.
"I propose a deal."
"A deal?" The start wasn't bad. He didn't try to win Jekyeong over with sweet talk of fortuitous encounters, nor did he lay down bait with a long, tedious sob story. The straightforward proposal was unpolished, but that was precisely why it felt more trustworthy.
"Yes, a deal. What I desire is liberation." Sangyoza's remnant soul spoke faster, as if sensing the 'ominous world' drawing closer. "I told you before that I sealed myself inside my Grotto-heaven to escape Jegu's schemes, did I not? I am still trapped there. To be precise, my lingering soul, unable to disperse, is trapped." An undeniable—or perhaps intentionally unconcealed—pain seeped into his voice. "At the time, I exerted the absolute limit of my power to seal the Grotto-heaven. Though seven thousand years have passed and the seal's restrictions have loosened significantly, I still cannot escape. Sending out a mere remnant soul like this was my limit."
Having spoken that far, he chuckled and added, as if reading Jekyeong's inner thoughts: "Do not worry. Once the Grotto-heaven is opened and my soul is freed, I will immediately dissipate. Only by meeting a true death will I finally be able to seek a chance at reincarnation."
Sangyoza's remnant soul finished speaking, but Jekyeong fell into deep thought and delayed his reply. Any living being naturally craves life, but nothing in this world is absolute. In the face of a life worse than death, even instinct and will can be broken. Jekyeong had experienced something similar in his past life, so he could understand Sangyoza's feelings.
"What exactly is it that you want me to do?"
"You simply need to undo the Grotto-heaven's restrictions and break the seal. A simple task."
"And the reward for this simple task?"
"The Grotto-heaven. And everything inside it."
The moment he heard those words, Jekyeong unconsciously caught his breath. He did not know what lay inside the Grotto-heaven, but if a Core Formation cultivator had chosen it as his final refuge, it would hardly be empty. Of course, seven thousand years had passed, so there was no telling how much of it remained intact, but even if nothing was left, it was fine. Even if the Grotto-heaven was empty, the Grotto-heaven itself was the prize.
"Wasn't a Grotto-heaven something only Core Formation cultivators could possess?"
"To be precise, it is not that you cannot possess it, but that you cannot wield it. If a Qi Condensation cultivator obtains a Dharma Treasure, can they use it? You can think of a Grotto-heaven in a similar light."
Jekyeong's burning excitement cooled slightly, but his anticipation remained high. Even if he couldn't use it immediately, a Grotto-heaven was still a Grotto-heaven. Jekyeong had previously heard from the seniors in Bul-mang-won that even among Core Formation cultivators, those who possessed a Grotto-heaven were exceedingly rare.
"The task is simple, but the reward is far too generous."
"It may seem that way, but in truth, it is nothing. Those are things you could have taken even if I did not give them to you. In a manner of speaking, I am merely taking credit for offering items that will soon lose their owner."
Jekyeong understood immediately. Since Sangyoza was the master of the Grotto-heaven, once he truly died, the Grotto-heaven and everything inside it would become ownerless. Looked at that way, Sangyoza's words were entirely correct.
"You know I cannot refuse."