Chapter 137
Chapter 137
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 137
Chapter Title: Fallen Saintess
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"I refuse."
Park Chan-woo gave his immediate answer.
Having a disciple would only be a hindrance.
"...Um... Is there really no way?"
Han Min-oh lifted his head slightly, his face etched with desperate longing.
In his eyes, Park Chan-woo was the strongest person in Korea.
He hadn't seen the full extent of his fighting prowess, but even on their first meeting, hadn't this man saved him from a demon?
He'd never heard of anyone capable of such a feat.
Because even the weakest demons were at least level 50.
'Maybe he's the strongest in the world, not just Korea...'
Becoming Park Chan-woo's disciple would mean having the world's strongest master.
The overwhelming swordsmanship that had slaughtered dozens of Incarnations in one go!
Inheriting those skills would allow him to surpass even his brother, Han Sin.
But Park Chan-woo's thoughts were different.
"If you want to grow strong, do it on your own."
"The Abyss... by myself?"
"Yes. Don't beg for help from anyone in the Abyss. That mindset will only make you weak. And the true Abyss isn't some gentle place where someone can come to your aid."
Park Chan-woo's advice was sincere.
'The real Abyss hasn't even appeared yet.'
The Abysses that had sprung up on Earth so far were the lowest-grade ones, slapped together by half-baked Creators looking to scrape together some pocket change.
Even the 'Second Night' crafted by 'Moon Lord Aheta' was merely a testing ground stuffed with duplicates to gauge human potential.
They were churning out these 'appetizer' Creator Abysses left and right.
The vicious kind designed to drive humanity to despair, revel in their frustration, and suck them dry to the marrow hadn't shown up yet.
'In the end, humanity has become playthings for the demons. Always pathetic in the racial wars.'
He had no expectations.
Humans were the weakest race, with limited coin recovery potential—barely breaking even even if you invested effort in them.
The demons rated human potential as 'the worst'.
Of course, the Creators were all vermin that needed to be bankrupted and wiped out, but the tug-of-war in between was crucial.
A necessary evil.
They had to periodically demonstrate to them that humanity had potential—that they were a treasure trove of coins, a resource capable of rivaling the twelve races.
To do that...
"Grow strong. You have the potential to become a savior."
Park Chan-woo said, staring straight into Han Min-oh's eyes.
Lee Hyuk-soo and Han Min-oh.
Both had the potential to become saviors.
The world ahead would need heroes in their own right, not just Incarnations.
For the racial wars, and to capture the Creators' attention.
Han Min-oh replied with a dazed expression.
"...Me? Could I really become a savior like Lee Hyuk-soo?"
Even after merging with him and erasing his trauma, it was hard to believe such a statement.
'What Han Min-oh needs is faith.'
Park Chan-woo was certain.
The memories from his world were riddled with distrust.
That had shattered his confidence, preventing his talents from shining.
Park Chan-woo emphasized firmly.
"You can. Otherwise, I wouldn't have saved you three times."
"Ah...!"
Han Min-oh trembled violently.
Those words meant he'd saved him three times solely because he saw that potential.
'He wasn't just some passerby!'
He was a benefactor, an enigma.
Han Min-oh bowed his head.
"Th-thank you. If there's any way I can repay the favor, could I at least get your contact info...?"
"We'll meet again."
"Ah..."
His face was filled with regret.
But this distance was for the best—for both of them.
Park Chan-woo turned his back and spoke.
"And it's about to begin soon."
"Wh-what is?"
"The true Abyss."
"The true... Abyss?"
Park Chan-woo didn't answer.
He simply walked away in silence.
Large-scale hunting Abysses wouldn't happen anymore.
But a more pressing issue remained.
'An Abyss filled solely with malice is coming.'
All the Abysses so far had been investments.
Made without real malice—to farm coins, position contingencies for Incarnations, or divine humanity's potential.
But the ones coming next would be different.
Abysses brimming with malice, hostility, grudges, and hatred.
Park Chan-woo clenched his fist.
And at that moment...
―Please, spare me!
―I'm not a heretic!
―Aaaah!
―It's hot! So hot!
―Mooooom!
...visions appeared before his eyes of countless people bound to crosses, burning alive.
And right there, the holy saintess offering prayers before them entered his sight clearly.
But...
'Fallen Saintess. That woman, who will be humanity's scourge—I have to kill her myself.'
She wasn't a saintess.
She couldn't be.
In some ways, more dangerous than Han Sin.
Fallen Saintess Yoo Jin-seo!
Whoosh!
Eight beams of light cascaded from the sky.
In that instant, screams began echoing from all directions.
"I-it's not me! I'm not an Incarnation!"
"Th-this has to be a mistake!"
"Damn it! I can't be an Incarnation!"
Park Chan-woo chuckled.
They denied it desperately, but those were undeniable Incarnations.
People who had sold their souls to demons for immediate power.
Leaving them alive was to raise awareness.
To show the world there were more Incarnations than they thought, and to prepare against their dangers by rooting them out.
'The rest is up to the Abyss Safety Department.'
Minister Park Sang-min and Lee Hyuk-soo.
They'd handle the remaining Incarnations.
Not just these eight here.
'The Incarnation Alliance. I don't have time to deal with them all.'
He knew about it.
Why Han Min-oh's bodyguards, and so many Incarnations, had gathered.
Because of the organization called the Incarnation Alliance.
'Leeches.'
Park Chan-woo clicked his tongue.
Leeches parasitizing everywhere in the world.
They had ties across politics and business.
Thoroughly organized in cells, rooting them out would take too much time and effort for him.
Park Chan-woo, pressed for time, couldn't go around picking them off one by one.
And there was no single 'head' of the Incarnation Alliance worth targeting.
Their goal was singular.
To sow chaos in the world, steadily increase their numbers, and dismantle national foundations.
To create a world of Incarnations with no one to fear.
' entrust it to them with confidence.'
By now, the Abyss Safety Department should have been somewhat purged.
Park Chan-woo slowly exited the Abyss.
His ears itched uncomfortably.
'Someone cursing me?'
Minister Park Sang-min scratched his ear and looked at Lee Hyuk-soo sitting across from him.
"Putting them all in one department was surprisingly effective."
"They're sniffing out traitors among themselves now."
Following the Prophet's advice, they'd herded the Incarnations into one place, and they'd spiraled into self-destruction.
Tails biting tails in a frenzy of whistleblowing.
Claiming they weren't Incarnations while accusing others—it was all division tactics.
But Minister Park Sang-min and Lee Hyuk-soo already knew they were all Incarnations.
"...The 'Incarnation Alliance' seems bigger than we thought."
Minister Park Sang-min said gravely.
They'd pretended to console them while stepping on their tails.
Thanks to that, they'd glimpsed one facet of the Incarnation Alliance rooted in Korea.
"Just the ones we've identified number over five thousand."
"If five thousand are confirmed, the actual number probably exceeds fifty thousand."
Out of a 50 million population, 50,000.
One in a thousand.
The problem was their numbers were growing rapidly.
Incarnations were everywhere.
Hiding meticulously, biding their time.
Minister Park Sang-min sighed and continued.
"The other day, the second son of Han Yeon Group was attacked by over forty Incarnations."
"I heard. All of them were his hired bodyguards."
"Yes. They're good at washing their identities clean. Sigh... Where do we even start?"
The roots ran deeper than expected.
If they didn't uproot them all at once, they'd scatter.
"Lee Hyuk-soo, do you have anyone reliable around? It feels like this operation's too much for just us two."
"...No."
He hadn't expected much.
Lee Hyuk-soo didn't seem the type with many friends.
"Hmm. Why did the Incarnations target Han Min-oh?"
"If that many attacked, the Creators were likely in on it too."
"Something about Han Min-oh that the Creators covet?"
"Definitely. They don't move without profit."
Minister Park Sang-min stroked his chin at Lee Hyuk-soo's response.
Han Min-oh.
What did he have to draw so many Incarnations—and Creators?
Or rather...
"...How did he survive?"
According to info from other survivors, Han Min-oh shouldn't have made it.
Yet he did.
Lee Hyuk-soo stood up.
"Where are you going?"
"I'll meet him myself."
"Who?"
"...Han Min-oh. I'll see with my own eyes if he's trustworthy."
There was something.
Something valuable enough for countless Creators to covet.
Lee Hyuk-soo intended to confirm it personally.
And if he was trustworthy, with that kind of talent...
'We're short-handed.'
...Recruiting him to the Abyss Safety Department might be an option.
Late at night.
Park Chan-woo walked a chilly street.
Whoosh!
Whoooosh!
"Wow!"
"Shooting stars!"
"So pretty."
Countless shooting stars began streaking across the sky.
People gasped in awe at the sight.
But...
Boom!
Kabooooom!
"Wh-what?!"
"It actually crashed!"
"Holy shit...!"
The awe turned to horror.
Seizing the chaos, Park Chan-woo silently headed to where the star had fallen.
And soon, upon arrival...
'Black star.'
A black star that had plummeted into a construction site.
It reeked of ominous magic at first glance.
...This was the Abyss.
A Creator Abyss from another world, crashing onto Earth.
Something that shouldn't be here.
He approached the star and reached out without hesitation.
In that instant...
Fox Den.
The worst Abyss humanity couldn't yet conquer.
But it had to be cleared.
'Fallen Saintess Yoo Jin-seo.'
He had to kill that woman.
'Yoo Jin-seo isn't human.'
Wearing human skin, but Yoo Jin-seo wasn't human.
She was a fox.
To be precise, a 'nine-tailed fox'.