The Origin of the Apocalypse
Two days later.
Han Yujin received the location of the National Intelligence Service agents’ safe house in Beijing’s Sanlitun district. With its abundance of embassies and international commercial facilities, the area allowed foreign activity to blend in naturally without overly strict security.
Let’s see.
As always, he stepped out of the Great Rift with Mu-yong cradled in his arms. After checking the location on his smartphone map, he transformed into a streak of violet light and shot skyward at blinding speed.
Whenever he activated the Five Elements Heavenly Escape Art, he sometimes had the peculiar sensation that he wasn’t moving at all; rather, the surrounding scenery was rushing past him in an unreal blur.
The ability to pass through every state of matter represented by the Five Elements meant he could ignore all interference and restraints—including air resistance.
Consequently, none of the effects that should have accompanied such velocity ever registered. It felt less like traveling through reality and more like gliding through a dream guided solely by will.
The insight came to him unbidden. He wondered whether blending it with Dream Illusion Only Mind might elevate the technique’s power even further.
Before he could properly organize the thought, he had already arrived at his destination. Even without flying at full strength, the journey had taken him less than ten minutes.
Once I master it completely, I should be able to make the round trip in two or three minutes.
Having reached the Decisive Stage, the Earth now felt remarkably small. At his current speed, circumnavigating the globe would take only half a day.
Feeling once again that he had become a superhuman among superhumans, he reviewed the shared data and made his way to the NIS agents’ safe house.
It was the building of a small trading company established with the help of several local collaborators. The firm actually conducted legitimate trade, so to any outside observer it appeared completely above suspicion.
Identifying which individuals inside were NIS agents proved simple enough. He didn’t need divine powers or spells; his enhanced senses alone picked up the subtle tells in their behavior. It wasn’t that their disguises were sloppy—his perception had simply grown far beyond the ordinary.
Agents operating unofficially in the shadows like this were almost certainly Black Agents.
Even in death they could not have their names properly recorded. At irregular intervals, a single silver star would simply be added to the memorial sculpture in the National Intelligence Service’s main lobby.
The irregular timing, incidentally, was deliberate—to minimize any traceable connection to the exact moment of the agent’s death.
For the safety of such people, Han Yujin needed to keep his visit completely hidden. From the moment he left Korea he had already concealed his appearance and presence using Dream Illusion Only Mind.
Thus, no one detected him as he slipped into the building through the Five Elements Heavenly Escape Art. He walked quite casually, yet remained utterly unnoticed.
Among those he passed were several agents possessing detection-type abilities, but none of them sensed anything amiss.
His final destination was the branch manager’s office on the upper floor.
Inside, a bespectacled man who appeared to be in his late forties was diligently working at his computer. A quick glance over his shoulder confirmed that the work was genuinely related to trade.
Tap. Tap.
He lightly tapped the man’s shoulder to announce his presence.
The branch manager reflexively brushed at his shoulder with his other hand, then froze as he caught Han Yujin’s reflection in the monitor’s black plastic frame.
“Please don’t be alarmed. I’m Han Yujin—the one scheduled to visit today.”
“……Y-yes, of course.”
“My apologies. Had I known you’d be this startled, I would have knocked at the door like a normal person.”
Stepping out from behind the branch manager, he pulled out a chair at the side table and sat down. The branch manager stared at him with a somewhat dazed expression that didn’t match his dignified features, then quickly regained his composure.
“It’s been… less than thirty minutes since we sent you the location, hasn’t it?”
“I came straight here after receiving the information.”
“Were you already in Beijing, then? In that case the transportation records—”
“I flew directly from Korea, so there’s no need to worry. I may not be an expert in espionage, but I’m not an idiot.”
The branch manager’s expression remained tense.
“You flew? Using flight abilities? That only creates more problems. Do you have any idea how far beyond imagination modern anti-air radar systems have become?”
“Since I’m already here, let’s not waste any more time on that subject.”
Han Yujin’s figure vanished like a mirage.
He reappeared at the exact spot where he had first appeared and tapped the branch manager’s shoulder again.
“I understand your concern, but my concealment ability distorts reality itself into the likeness of a dream. No existing scientific technology can detect it. Is that clear?”
“Distorts reality like a dream…?”
To anyone hearing it for the first time, the statement would have been nearly incomprehensible. Han Yujin had no desire to engage further with someone who continued to display such a dumbfounded attitude.
For a moment he even wondered whether the man was deliberately acting this way. Perhaps he viewed Han Yujin as nothing more than a talented but ignorant twenty-something S-class Hunter who would only interfere and ruin carefully laid plans.
He might be trying to find fault, establish psychological dominance, and then control the situation.
“Just hand over the information you’ve gathered so far. I’ll review everything here and leave it behind. There’s no need for any further cooperation.”
After a brief silence, the branch manager spoke in a slightly different tone.
“This is quite different from what I was told.”
“In what way?”
“I was informed you would provide assistance in areas requiring force. For example, disguising yourself to raid a Blood Scale Society stronghold, seizing specific documents, or drawing their attention.”
Han Yujin had never revealed the full extent of his abilities. It wasn’t surprising that the information had been relayed in such a limited form.
“What is the connection between the Blood Scale Society and the Eternal Goddess Cult?”
“Hmm……”
The man pondered for a moment, then let out a heavy sigh.
“I didn’t expect you to arrive this quickly… Shall I prepare a written report, or would a verbal explanation suffice?”
“Verbal is fine. Just don’t leave anything out.”
“Despite appearances, I am the person in charge here, so you needn’t worry on that account. The Blood Scale Society……”
The explanation began.
The Blood Scale Society was a deeply rooted Chinese criminal organization whose history stretched all the way back to the Qing Dynasty. Abroad it was widely known as Blood Scale. Like the Japanese yakuza, it had become so famous that it frequently appeared in all forms of media. From past to present it had embedded itself so thoroughly throughout Chinese society that eradicating it had become impossible.
Recently, however, a new faction had emerged within the society. Its name was Eternal Secret Pattern, and it possessed a distinctly religious character.
More importantly, this Eternal Secret Pattern faction appeared to be receiving financial support from high-ranking Chinese politicians. The agents had detected signs that funds allocated to various non-profit organizations—cultural foundations, research institutes, and the like—were being funneled toward them.
“How did you detect it?”
“It wasn’t easy. The disappearance of Korean migrant workers dispatched to China provided one clue. During joint Korea-China operations, there were several instances where the Chinese public security gave suspiciously inadequate explanations. We also tracked the financial flows of front companies linked to the Blood Scale Society inside Korea and carried out extensive hacking.”
The branch manager added, “However, all of it remains circumstantial. We have no decisive evidence.”
“Who is this high-ranking politician?”
“To secretly support them by mobilizing such non-profit organizations, the most likely candidate is the CPPCC Chairman. That is, the Chairman of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference—Standing Committee Member Li Haozi.”
“A Standing Committee Member……”
A Standing Committee Member ranked among the ten most powerful figures in China. The Beijing connection was more than sufficient.
As if reading his thoughts, the branch manager supplied further details.
“The Standing Committee Members primarily reside in Beijing’s Zhongnanhai area. At most they might travel as far as the Shunyi District on the outskirts.”
He sighed again.
“Frankly, in my personal opinion, what we’ve uncovered already suffices. This is the kind of material that can be leveraged politically, and in such matters clear evidence is often unnecessary. The risks required to obtain concrete proof far outweigh the expected benefits.”
“I understand.”
Han Yujin nodded.
“Where does this Li Haozi reside?”
If this had been a movie, Han Yujin would likely have cooperated with the NIS to raid a Blood Scale Society outpost, gathering information through carefully staged operations.
Only after confirming the Standing Committee Member’s connection and obtaining additional data on the Eternal Goddess Cult would he have planned the next move.
After all, a Standing Committee Member was an overwhelmingly powerful figure that no one would dare touch lightly.
The logical and dramatically compelling storyline would involve painstakingly following the trail from the bottom up, locating their secret base, launching an assault, and finally fighting the decisive battle.
But Han Yujin had already transcended common sense. And this was not a movie—it was reality. There was no need to worry about what made for good entertainment.
The moment he obtained information on Standing Committee Member Li Haozi, he left the disguised trading company building. Even the branch manager he had been speaking with face-to-face failed to witness his departure.
He moved using the Five Elements Heavenly Escape Art while concealing his presence with Dream Illusion Only Mind. His senses, elevated to the Decisive Stage, spread out across a wide area. His perception, which far surpassed the ordinary, scanned and identified every individual one by one.
Knowing the target’s residence and daily routes made locating him remarkably easy.
As it happened, the man was staying at a villa in Beijing’s outer Shunyi District—an area where he need not worry much about prying eyes. The villa’s imposing size and grandeur fittingly displayed the authority of one of China’s highest-ranking officials.
Just as Han Yujin was about to enter directly, he saw a man in his forties stepping outside and decided to interrogate him first.
“Hmm?”
The middle-aged man, walking as usual, suddenly stopped in his tracks. His eyes widened at the sight of Han Yujin appearing like a ghost before him.
He had a rounded jawline that gave a gentle impression, the sort of face that looked quick to smile. While Han Yujin formed this brief impression, the already-activated Dream Illusion Mind Snatching Art had plunged the man into a dream state and was extracting every piece of information.
The Ministry of Public Security bodyguards stationed throughout the area showed no reaction whatsoever. The continuously deployed Dream Illusion Only Mind concealed all attention.
A moment later, the middle-aged man—chief secretary to Standing Committee Member Li Haozi—collapsed unconscious.
Han Yujin wore a subtle expression, realizing he had come to the right place from the very beginning.
The NIS information had saved him considerable effort.
Had the agency been less competent or had he received no assistance from them at all, he would have been forced to interrogate every notable figure in Beijing one by one.
In any case.
The information he obtained was quite shocking.
Some damned ghost race bastards whose origins no one knows—how dare they set their sights on my homeland?
These were undoubtedly the true culprits who would trigger the ghost apocalypse in the future.
For now, only a single ‘Apostle’ had been swept up in the dimensional collision phenomenon, crash-landed, and was secretly maneuvering in the shadows.