Chapter 135: Divine Demon Physique (1)
After Jin Yeomyung and Ma Chulsoo entered the cave—
Baek Sang-ah and the subordinates left behind were blankly resting.
“So, are you ready to answer this old man’s question now?”
Baek Sang-ah shot a cold glare at Cheon Jeonmun, who had tossed out the sudden question.
“What do I get in return for answering?”
“Well? Not much changes, really. This old man is just asking out of curiosity. You, young lady, are of a bloodline that supports the Orthodox Faction like a pillar, so I thought I might hear something fresh.”
“……”
Though Baek Sang-ah had suspicions about his intent and identity, she soon let go of those thoughts.
He wouldn’t answer even if she asked, anyway.
“You asked whether the ‘True Supreme must be absolutely alone,’ right?”
“That’s right.”
Baek Sang-ah pondered for a moment, then nodded.
“Yes, I think they must.”
Cheon Jeonmun widened his eyes.
“Oh? Now that’s unexpected. Why is that?”
Baek Sang-ah replied curtly.
“Because it’s the position of the True Supreme, isn’t it? It’s a place where no one can be allowed to cross the line. If such a thing must exist in the first place, then it means the world around them is already abnormal.”
That meant anything that could shake the seat of the Supreme was unnecessary.
That was what Baek Sang-ah was saying.
“Hmm!”
“But… is there even a need for something like a True Supreme to exist at all?”
“And why not?”
“Well, it’s not like they’re some emotionless inanimate object… Whether they’re a Supreme or not, they’re still human. Why should they live such a bleak life?”
“What if a catastrophe arises that only a Supreme could handle?”
“Then we might as well let the world fall.”
“What?”
Baek Sang-ah scoffed coldly at the dumbfounded Cheon Jeonmun.
“If it’s a world that has to rely entirely on one person, then it’s better off ruined. Besides, that assumption is wrong from the start.”
“And why is that?”
“You can’t handle ten hands with just one. Sure, an extraordinary individual might manage a hundred, even a thousand. If they’re someone worthy of being called the True Supreme, maybe they could even handle ten thousand.”
“And you still say that?”
“Because rather than nurturing one extraordinary being who can handle ten thousand, it’s just better for ten thousand to gather together and resist.”
“Heh?”
“If ten thousand aren’t enough, make it a hundred thousand. If that’s not enough, then a million. And if that’s still not enough, gather all of humanity to resist. There’s no need to rely on a single person.”
“……”
“Well, I do think a leader who can act as a central figure is necessary, but that doesn’t mean it has to be a flawless True Supreme. Even if they’re a bit lacking, the people around them can help.”
Cheon Jeonmun slightly parted his lips and looked at Baek Sang-ah.
“I believe there is no such thing as an uncontrollable catastrophe.”
“You say that, even after experiencing part of the Heaven-Defying Society’s true nature?”
“…You know quite a lot, old man. Yes, that’s right. They were nightmarishly powerful. And I’ve learned there are beings far stronger than them within the Heaven-Defying Society.”
But still.
“No matter how many monsters like that exist, if the world truly can’t withstand them, then it would have already fallen. That’s what I think.”
“That is certainly a fresh opinion. A young one too.”
“Does that answer your question?”
Cheon Jeonmun nodded.
“It does. Not the answer I wanted, but a rather impressive opinion nonetheless.”
For a brief moment, Baek Sang-ah wondered what answer the old man had truly wanted…
But she couldn’t continue pondering after his next words.
“The price for your answer will be paid right now.”
“Huh? What do you mean…?”
“Your life should suffice.”
*Chill!*
In that instant—
A cold sweat rolled down her back.
It wasn’t because of Cheon Jeonmun himself.
It was the horrifying killing intent that felt like hundreds—no, thousands—of blades were aimed right at her.
Not just Baek Sang-ah, but everyone in the hall felt it.
Cheon Jeonmun looked off toward the entrance of Iron Steed Prison Cave and murmured.
“Well, now. An unexpected guest has arrived.”
“……!”
Everyone’s gaze turned simultaneously.
A vivid blood-red dragon crest embroidered in flamboyant fashion.
A middle-aged man, clad in an imperial-looking robe, was walking toward them with only a single sword at his waist.
Though he was a handsome middle-aged man with a chiseled jawline and neatly trimmed beard, Baek Sang-ah had no time to admire his appearance.
Shiver!
Her instincts screamed at her.
Run. Now.
‘A m-monster!’
Baek Sang-ah desperately fought the urge for her knees to buckle.
If Cheon Jeonmun was unfathomable in a mysterious way, this middle-aged man was a clearly identifiable monster at a glance.
Colorful Flower Lord? Peak Master Level?
He couldn’t be compared with such beings. He was at the true summit.
“G-g—!”
One of Ma Chulsoo’s subordinates tried to scream, more out of terror than anything.
But Cheon Jeonmun cut him off and spoke first to the middle-aged man.
“Who would’ve thought a man of your level would come running like a dog with diarrhea? Is this for love of your son? Or are you here to cover things up before your secrets spill?”
“So this is where you were.”
Apparently familiar with each other, the middle-aged man gave a slight nod.
“I didn’t expect you to be enjoying a ‘game’ here.”
“Bah! A game, you say? People’ll get the wrong idea.”
Cheon Jeonmun waved a hand with a hearty laugh—
But his eyes made it clear: no nonsense would be tolerated from this point forward.
The middle-aged man didn’t show much reaction to that gaze.
“Well, it doesn’t matter. I only came here for one reason.”
His eyes turned toward the cave where Jin Yeomyung had entered.
As if to block that gaze, Cheon Jeonmun smiled subtly and asked:
“So, what brings the Clan Lord of the Blood Dragon Demonic Clan to such a prison-like place?”
“……!!”
Baek Sang-ah and the subordinates screamed in silence.
Clan Lord of the Blood Dragon Demonic Clan—Sword Demon, Ma Seonghwan.
A supreme master known as the Greatest Sword of the Demonic Faction, he had come to this place, Iron Steed Prison Cave.
“I’m here to bring this series of incidents to a close.”
At those words, Ma Seonghwan’s gaze swept across everyone inside.
Shiver! Shiver!
Every time his eyes passed over them, the subordinates of Jin Yeomyung and Ma Chulsoo instinctively lowered their heads.
Even meeting his eyes for a moment sent a terror through them so intense, it felt like their entire body would be torn into thousands of pieces.
“For someone of your caliber to be scaring children… that’s quite a wicked thing to do.”
“……”
“Still, I promised to protect them, so I’d appreciate it if you didn’t glare like that.”
At that, Ma Seonghwan’s face briefly showed surprise.
“Do you intend to break your promise?”
“A promise? Is protecting those not even involved considered breaking a promise?”
“In that case, I assume there’s no problem if I handle those who are involved myself.”
“No, you can’t!”
Baek Sang-ah instantly realized who Ma Seonghwan meant by “those involved.”
Jin Yeomyung.
For reasons unknown, Ma Seonghwan had just declared his intent to kill Jin Yeomyung, who had entered the cave.
“I won’t stop you if you insist… but I’d advise you to choose wisely.”
Cheon Jeonmun chuckled heartily.
And then issued a warning.
“I’d rather not witness the fall of the Blood Dragon Demonic Clan, which has lasted a thousand years.”
“……”
After a moment of silence, Ma Seonghwan spoke.
“I thought you hated us.”
“I still do. But what can I do? Now’s not the right time.”
“You were the one who broke the promise first.”
“I do regret that. I’ll make sure you’re compensated accordingly.”
Compensation? Promise?
Baek Sang-ah was frustrated at the cryptic conversation between the two.
But no matter how annoyed she was, this wasn’t the time to voice complaints.
“But I still need to see him in person. I must know whether he’s truly worthy of you breaking your promise for.”
“That’s true. Since your second son also went in, go ahead and take a look. If you’re lucky… you might even meet your third son alive.”
“……”
Ma Seonghwan didn’t say another word. He simply turned and began walking into the cave.
‘Young Master Jin!’
Even if he claimed he only wanted to see his face, it was wishful thinking to believe nothing would happen upon meeting a giant like the Blood Dragon Demonic Clan Lord.
Baek Sang-ah clenched her teeth and desperately prayed for Jin Yeomyung’s safety.
***
The cave was quite long.
So long, in fact… it was almost comparable to Yoo So’s tomb located beneath the Eastern Sea Fortress.
“How far does this thing go?”
Ma Chulsoo groaned at the seemingly endless path of the cave.
With no light, they had to rely on shadow techniques and their senses to proceed—it was incredibly uncomfortable.
‘If there had been traps or mechanisms, we’d have been in trouble.’
Fortunately, they had deactivated the mechanisms beforehand. If deadly traps had been set in a place like this, Ma Chulsoo would have surely died—if not me as well.
Still—
“We’re almost there.”
“Is Jinyoon over there?”
“Not sure. I don’t sense any presence…”
Both Ma Chulsoo and I were unsure, but we eventually reached the end of the cave.
And at the end—
‘A research annex?’
A massive annex that looked clearly abandoned long ago came into view.
But—
“What… what is this horrifying place?”
The state of the research annex was far from normal.
“What the hell was this place used for?”
I silently agreed with Ma Chulsoo’s reaction.
Inside the abandoned annex, dried remains—what appeared to be human or animal entrails—hung here and there.
Bloodstains were scattered across the floor, and there were even surgical tools left in a sinister-looking state.
Most of all—
‘Glass tubes?!’
Most were shattered, but there were clean, transparent glass tubes scattered around—so pristine they were rarely seen in today’s age.
Ma Chulsoo seemed to recognize this too, picking up a shard and marveling at it.
“Amazing. Even among imported goods on the Silk Road, I’ve never seen glass this refined and transparent.”
I agreed with him.
These were the kind of glass tubes you’d only see in my first life—crafted with perfect curvature and clarity.
“There’s also an ominous Yin aura lingering… What was this place?”
I murmured quietly, trying to grasp the nature of the place.
“Human experimentation…”
“What?”
“This place was used for human experimentation.”
“What?! Are you serious?!”
“I’m about ninety percent sure.”
Aside from the overly large size of the annex, this was a textbook human experimentation facility.
“Disgusting place.”
Ma Chulsoo frowned and spat on the floor.
Still, he didn’t seem overly disturbed.
After all, factions like Heaven Revering Hwan Clan still manufactured corpses for Jiangshi in remote parts of their territory.
Even aside from that, there were several clans that conducted human experiments to improve their physical enhancement arts.
‘Looks like all important documents were either destroyed or taken…’
Ma Chulsoo and I spent quite a while searching the archives, trying to find traces of what Ma Jinyoon might have left behind.
Eventually—
“Restoration Records of the Divine Demon Physique’s Body?”
Amidst the annex where all other books had disappeared—
I found a single, blood-stained, old manuscript that could be called the only surviving text.
‘No way, could this be it?’
The “truth” that Ma Jinyoon—or maybe even Cheon Jeonmun—was looking for.
I hurriedly opened the book and began skimming the contents.
The Restoration Records had no author’s name listed.
Only diary-like entries were written.
[The 14th Year of the Jiajing Era. At the command of Cult Leader Cheon Myeongjo, the experiment began.]
‘Experiment?’
[Since the second Heavenly Demon passed away, our cult had failed to produce a third for hundreds of years. While the Orthodox Factions grew in strength each day, our cult kept cannibalizing itself due to conflicts between the Six Great Demonic Clans, so it was understandable that the Cult Leader grew increasingly impatient.]
‘This is…’
If it was the 14th year of the Jiajing era… that would be at least half a century ago.
‘That was the time our cult was in crisis, according to the stories.’
The conflict among the Six Clans was said to have reached its peak back then, and the Cheon Clan’s influence had significantly diminished.
[The young Cult Leader gave us an order—to determine whether it was possible to artificially create the “Divine Demon Physique” said to be naturally born with the First Heavenly Demon.]
In other words—
[He meant for us to create a new Heavenly Demon by our own hands.]