Chapter 313: You Are a Formal Disciple of the Twin Dragon Sect (1)
Chapter 313: You Are a Formal Disciple of the Twin Dragon Sect (1)
In the beginning, the problem arose from an imbalance: two destroyers for a single world.
So, if there were another world to destroy, wouldn't the problem be solved?
In the history of the Martial World, it was recorded that the Heavenly Demon and the Blood Demon fought on the same day at the same hour and perished together in mutual destruction.
But that was not the truth.
The two had simply shed the shackles of their physical bodies at the same time and transformed into their true essences.
And then, the two of them waged war against the Heavenly Realm simultaneously.
* * *
“The Heavenly Realm?”
-…I am still speaking.
“No, but does that place actually exist?”
-You crossed dimensions through death and have lived in this world where the existence of gods has been proven. Furthermore…
The White Tiger pointed to himself with a claw.
-What do you think we are?
“Ah…”
Right. He had forgotten because he’d grown so accustomed to them, but these beings also existed within the realm of myth in the world Patrick originally came from.
It was just that since he’d been beating up these beings—who were no different from imaginary creatures—right in front of his eyes, it hadn't felt very real.
“Go on.”
* * *
The Blood Demon and the Heavenly Demon.
The Heavenly Realm lacked the power to stop those two, who had cast off their human shells and returned to their true essences.
And, from the Heavenly Realm's perspective to begin with, the Heavenly Demon and the Blood Demon were not evil.
Just as one does not define fire as evil simply because it burns a person to death, the Heavenly Demon and the Blood Demon were merely beings that existed as they were.
Beings who heralded the end of a world.
Their positions were simply different from the gods; they were not beings whose good or evil could be measured.
And because of that…
-There was room for negotiation.
The White Tiger continued with a deep sigh.
The Heavenly Realm proposed a negotiation to the Heavenly Demon and the Blood Demon.
Stop the war and remain faithful to your essences.
If they did so, the gods promised to open a path to another world.
The Heavenly Realm already knew what the Heavenly Demon and the Blood Demon were after.
In fact, the current situation where two destroyers were born in a single world was a serious error that the Heavenly Realm needed to correct as well.
Thus, the practical situation and their mutual interests aligned. And so, crossing the dimensional wall, one destroyer crossed over to the Pangemonia Continent.
The Heavenly Demon.
The King of all Demons.
He had come to fulfill his role of destroying the world.
Yupinel and Kalaron, the gods who ruled Pangemonia, were furious.
From their perspective, the Heavenly Demon was a complete foreign substance.
He was merely an invader who had come to destroy their world.
In Kalaron’s case, the fury was particularly extreme.
Originally, it was his role to deliver the trial of destruction when this world became corrupt and reached the end of its lifespan.
He could never coexist with the Heavenly Demon, who had so nonchalantly encroached upon his domain.
A desperate war broke out, one unrecorded in human history.
The Heavenly Demon waged war alongside the familiars he had brought across the world’s wall, as well as those in this world who chose to follow him.
The Dark Priests.
Those who would later be called Dark Mages were born in this manner.
Yupinel and Kalaron also fought back by creating powerful guardians known as Dragons, and the long, brutal war eventually ended in the Heavenly Demon’s defeat.
The Heavenly Demon was pierced by Yupinel’s spear and sealed in the abyss of the world, and the familiars he brought were temporarily taken in by Kalaron, who oversaw the same domain of destruction.
* * *
“Wait, wait a second…”
Patrick, who had been listening to the explanation, cut him off.
There was something he wanted to clarify.
“You just said Kalaron took in the Heavenly Demon’s familiars, right?”
-…That is correct.
“Is that, by any chance…?”
-…It is us.
The White Tiger spoke with a reluctant expression.
The other Four Calamities also pointedly avoided Patrick’s gaze.
Patrick looked at the Four Calamities as if he found the situation absurd.
“You guys were originally the Heavenly Demon’s familiars?”
At that, the Vermilion Bird spoke with a displeased look.
-How could that be? I was the Guardian God of the South and the King of all birds.
“Then why were you acting as the Heavenly Demon’s lackeys?”
Now they weren't even familiars, but "lackeys."
The Vermilion Bird hemmed and hawed at those words, unable to answer.
While the other Four Calamities hesitated, the Black Tortoise spoke as if he had resigned himself.
-We volunteered for it.
“Huh?”
-When the Heavenly Demon came here across the world’s wall, we volunteered to become his familiars.
“…No, why?”
He couldn't understand it.
Weren't these guys highly successful beings in the Central Plains, revered as Divine Beasts?
What were they lacking that they would bow their heads to the Heavenly Demon and cross the world’s wall?
Even for the wicked purpose of invasion, no less.
The White Tiger spoke to the puzzled Patrick.
-If the Heavenly Demon destroyed this world and reset it, a vacuum would be created in the axis of order in this world.
“…Don't tell me you guys…?”
-We coveted it.
“Haaaa…?”
-You might not know, but for a being who has reached the Divine Throne, a higher Divine Rank is something worth aiming for, even if it takes eons. So…
A look of blatant contempt appeared on Patrick’s face.
“You wrap it up in fancy words like ‘Divine Rank’ and all that… but in the end, you’re saying you agreed to an invasion because you wanted someone else’s seat, right?”
-…….
“And after getting your asses kicked, Kalaron took you in?”
-That… well, yes, for now, that is the case.
“For now, my foot. At this point, shouldn't you actually be grateful to Kalaron?”
-…….
“He accepted the surrender of the guys who came to invade and even gave you jobs.”
-…….
“You mangy striped cat. You were cursing and badmouthing Kalaron so much before.”
-No, that was…
“It was just karma, wasn't it? Anyone can see you guys were the bad ones.”
-…….
“Tsk, tsk, tsk. That guy Kalaron, he talks big about being the god of chaos and destruction, but at his core, he’s as big a pushover as my master or my father. If it were me, I would’ve killed you all.”
The truth hurt.
It seemed to hurt more than being hit by the Radiant Dragon Twelve Sword Styles.
-Can… can I continue?
“Go ahead, for now.”
The White Tiger struggled to continue.
* * *
Kalaron set one condition when he took them in.
Although the Heavenly Demon was sealed, it is impossible to eternally seal a being possessing divinity.
Above all, leaving the Heavenly Demon in this world would only cause the cracks in the world to grow larger.
Therefore, one day, the Heavenly Demon must be completely eliminated to normalize the world.
That was the condition.
But there was a problem.
No matter how much the Four Calamities were beings with divinity, the Heavenly Demon was stronger.
The Four Calamities, who were barely maintaining their divinity after consuming so much power in the war, could never defeat the Heavenly Demon.
Kalaron and Yupinel knew this as well. Thus, the two of them reported this issue to the higher-ranking gods above and asked for a solution.
* * *
“Higher gods? There’s such a thing?”
At Patrick’s question, the Blue Dragon nodded and spoke.
-We do not know everything either. However, there are lower divine ranks that constitute the world, and there are higher divine ranks that manage that world. It is the domain of creator gods like Yupinel and Kalaron.
“Then what’s above that?”
-We do not know.
Why was he so confident about it?
When Patrick frowned, the Blue Dragon spoke.
-It is not as if we know everything. To begin with, what we know only extends to the domain of the administrators who constitute the creation and destruction of the world.
“…….”
-We know that divine ranks exist above that, but we cannot know what kind of beings they are. Our divinity is too low to know such things.
“So… in terms of government, you guys are like local village magistrates, and Yupinel or Kalaron are like lords governing a whole province.”
-That… is one way to look at it…
“And when a problem broke out because the lords fought each other and they couldn't solve it themselves, they snitched to the high-ranking officials in the central government?”
-…To put it in an easy-to-understand analogy, yes.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk. They say everywhere people(?) live is pretty much the same…”
He thought that whether it was gods or humans, the way the world worked was remarkably similar.
“So? What did this high-ranking official god from the center say?”
-He said he would give us an opportunity to set things right.
“What kind of opportunity?”
-He said that one day, he would send a human who could cross the world’s wall and return the Heavenly Demon to nothingness.
“…Is that, by any chance…?”
-Kalaron called him the Prophesied Human.
Ah, right, so that was me.
I wondered why they kept calling me the Prophesied Human, and that was it.
They want me to kill the Heavenly Demon.
“Hahahaha.”
-It is a relief that you have realized your destiny… Where are you going?
“Ah. Sorry, I left something at home. Well then, see you next time.”
As Patrick tried to slip away, the Four Calamities hurriedly blocked his path.
-Where do you think you are going?
“I told you, I’m going home.”
-You must face the Outer God. Do you not understand?
“I’m running away because I do understand, you bastards!”
The Outer God.
In other words, the Heavenly Demon.
Patrick knew very well what kind of being that was.
Along with the Blood Demon, he was a being called the worst calamity in the history of the Martial World.
Every single one of the demons of the Heavenly Demon Cult he left behind was a monster that surpassed the sect leaders of the Nine Great Sects and the One Union.
In fact, whenever such demons appeared in the Martial World and caused trouble, the Righteous and Demonic factions would unite to drive them out by any means necessary.
And they want me to fight and defeat not just one of those demons, but the Heavenly Demon himself?
Even more so, from what I’ve heard, the Heavenly Demon is a being with power equal to a massive divinity?
And you want me to fight and defeat that?
“You make it sound so easy.”
Right now, Patrick felt like throwing everything away and quitting. But…
-What will happen if you quit?
“Not my problem, is it?”
-If the Heavenly Demon is left free like this, the cracks in the world will only grow larger. Then, ultimately, the world itself might collapse.
“…And when would that be?”
-At most, there are only about two thousand years left.
Oh… that’s a lot of time.
“Goodbye. I’ll be going now…”
-I told you not to go!
“Let go! Won't you let go? You want a piece of me? Huh?!”
A moment later.
After a bout of chaos, the Blue Dragon, who had somehow managed to catch Patrick, spoke in an exhausted voice.
-It is not as if we are unaware of the Outer God’s power.
“…….”
-But do you really think we would ask you to fight the Outer God immediately without any preparation?
At the Blue Dragon’s words, Patrick’s ears perked up slightly.
He had intended to ignore it because it seemed like a problem he couldn't possibly handle. But…
“You’re saying there’s a way?”
If so, the story changed.
At Patrick’s words, the Blue Dragon spoke.
-In fact, in terms of strength as a martial artist alone, the difference between you and the Heavenly Demon is not great. The fact that you defeated us is proof of that.
“Huh? Really?”
What? The Heavenly Demon passed down in history was a monster who supposedly wiped out an imperial army of 100,000 by himself and defeated the entire Shaolin Temple alone.
Wasn't he a monster that dozens of Profound Realm masters couldn't even stand against for a single move?
Were the records of the Martial World exaggerated?
As Patrick thought this, the Blue Dragon spoke.
-The difference lies in the presence or absence of divinity.
“…What’s that?”
-No matter how much you have honed your martial arts and become strong, you are still just an ordinary human.
“…….”
-And an ordinary mortal can never harm a being possessing divinity.
“What’s that? That’s totally cheating.”
-It cannot be helped. This is the law of the world.
“…….”
It was absurd.
But come to think of it…
‘Now that I think about it…’
It was said that in the old Martial World, they couldn't handle the Heavenly Demon and the Blood Demon at all.
It was recorded that even when dozens of Profound Realm masters launched a coordinated attack, the Heavenly Demon and the Blood Demon didn't suffer a single scratch.
Until now, he had thought it was an exaggeration, but if it was because of the difference between a normal human without divinity and a being who had reached a Divine Rank, as they said…
‘The story adds up.’
Patrick sighed and spoke.
“So, what do you want me to do?”
-The point is simple. If you also possess divinity, you can fight the Heavenly Demon on equal terms.
“Are you telling me to shave my head now, study the Buddhist Law, and become a Buddha or something?”
-As if that would work.
“Huh?”
-No, it’s nothing. Ahem, anyway, there is no need for that.
The Blue Dragon hurriedly changed the subject.
And he continued…
-You already possess divinity.
“Huh? Really?”
-Yes. Otherwise, how could you have attacked us? We are also beings of Divine Rank who possess divinity.
“You guys don't look all that great to me…”
-…….
-…….
All of the Four Calamities were hurt by Patrick’s words.
But Patrick didn't care and spoke.
“Well… I have done many good deeds, and I’ve accumulated enough virtue to be called a hero. Still, I didn't know I’d lived virtuously enough to possess divinity.”
Patrick praised himself immensely. But…
-What is he saying?
-Are you going to keep talking nonsense?
-Listen seriously.
-Do you even have a conscience?
The Four Calamities, including the Blue Dragon, retorted with expressions that said his claim was preposterous.
“Huh? It’s not that?”
-It is not that easy to accumulate divinity through good deeds and reach a Divine Rank.
And they pointedly didn't add the part: And at the very least, it’s absolutely impossible for you.
Instead, the Blue Dragon pointed toward Patrick’s chest and spoke.
-Is there nothing in there that comes to mind?
“In here…”
Patrick touched his chest.
What was in here was…
“Solid pectorals?”
-…….
“A heart?”
-…….
“My pure and virtuous conscience?”
-…….
This guy was hopeless.
To Patrick, who showed no sign of realizing it on his own, the White Tiger spoke kindly.
-Did the World Tree not leave a seed within you?
“……? Ah, that?”
-Yes. You, who harbor the seed of the World Tree, are already a being who has accumulated divinity.
“I forgot about it.”
Looking at Patrick, who spoke while scratching his cheek, the Four Calamities sincerely pitied the World Tree.
It must have staked its everything on this man, but the man himself had forgotten about it.
-Ahem, anyway, you are now no different from a demigod.
“Ahem!”
Are you happy? You like that?
-Of course, it may still be insufficient to contend with an Outer God. However, we are the ones who can fill that gap.
“How are you going to do that?”
-As you are from the Central Plains, you likely know that we were originally Divine Beasts who protected the four directions, each guarding our respective constellations.
“Was that so?”
-…….
“What? I’m not some long-haired Taoist priest who reads scriptures, so why would I know that?”
What did they expect?
Let’s just let it go.
-Anyway, we each command our respective constellations. We each commanded seven constellations of the four directions and were the masters of the Twenty-Eight Mansions in the sky.
“Is that a good thing?”
At that, the Vermilion Bird shouted indignantly.
-Do you even have to ask? To command constellations means to enjoy the protection of those constellations.
“Really?”
-Each and every one of them is a noble authority that anyone who has reached a Divine Rank cannot help but covet. The protection of the constellations is power, and at the same time, it is honor and authority itself.
After hearing the Vermilion Bird’s passionate speech, Patrick nodded and spoke.
“So, you’re saying that even if you’re the same low-level magistrate, the number of soldiers or the authority you have under you increases?”
-That… well, that…
“Is it not?”
-…….
It was roughly correct. It was correct, but…
-Do you have to keep using those kinds of analogies?
“You got a problem with it?”
The Black Tortoise, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up. Well…
“As long as the analogy is easy to understand, that’s all that matters.”
His words didn't even make a dent.
The Four Calamities sighed, and Patrick spoke.
“So, you’re going to give me those constellations you have? Just like the World Tree gave me the seed?”
-That is correct.
-We have also consumed almost all the power of the constellations compared to our prime. However, if we all join forces and concentrate the constellations upon you, you will find a sufficient chance of victory against the Heavenly Demon.
“I see… so that’s why.”
Hearing the story, he thought he understood why they had been so cautious about identifying Patrick as the Prophesied Human until now.
To win against the Heavenly Demon, they had to concentrate their divinity.
But from what they said, it seemed that the protection of these constellations was consumable.
That must be why they said they had declined compared to their prime. Therefore…
“There was only one chance.”
If Patrick were to be defeated by the Heavenly Demon after receiving the protection of the constellations, their fate would also be nothing but ruin.
They had to stake their destiny on a single gamble.
“I understand the general situation.”
-…….
“So? When are you going to give me that protection of the constellations? And how am I supposed to fight the Heavenly Demon after that?”
At Patrick’s words, the White Tiger spoke with a brightened face.
-Are you saying you will do it?
“If it were something I couldn't do, I’d have no choice but to refuse, but…”
Patrick shrugged his shoulders and continued.
“If there’s a possibility, I can’t just ignore it.”
It was the moment Patrick declared he would fight the Heavenly Demon.