Chapter 281: Yacha (夜叉) (1)

In the underground prisons of the Cheonma Shin Church, there weren’t only prisoners who had committed grave sins. Various troublesome demonic creatures that existed in the martial world also awaited within the cells, longing for the day they might see the sun once again. Within one such cell, a pair of yellow pupils gleamed.

“Krrr…”

It was a medium-class demon at least 5 meters large.

‘Since it’s the martial world, should I call it a ‘monster’ instead?’

Its size wasn’t the only impressive feature; the magical power it wielded seemed extraordinary as well.

“Wait.”

Jinhyuk reached out his hand towards the approaching Chae Hong-Ah and the prisoners.

“If you come any closer, I might just open this door without realizing it. How about it? Wouldn’t it be quite entertaining if this were opened?”

The demon caged inside looked menacing at first glance, hence it was undoubtedly imprisoned.

Of course, if such a creature were to be released, it would cause difficulties not only for them but also for the prisoners.

But…

“Hehe. Let’s see you try.”

Chae Hong-Ah carelessly lowered her spear that she had been aiming.

She looked far too confident, as if she had all the countermeasures in place.

And indeed, unlike the prisoners’ cells, the cell containing the demon had a green talisman with complicated symbols attached to it.

“…You’ve placed a spell on it.”

And a high-level one at that.

“The spell here can’t be cut even by sword qi. Did you really think we’d leave such a hazard unattended?”

Typically, spells in the martial world were made of a single attribute.

A spell combining two attributes required someone of elder-level prowess from a sect.

But the spell used here…

Wood (木), Water (水), Earth (土).

It was a grand spell composed of three attributes.

A spell likely sealed by the Simma Commander themself, who ranks fourth within the Cheonma Shin Church.

“Three attributes… certainly a pretty sturdy kind.”

Jinhyuk lightly touched the talisman with his finger.

In the Cheonma Shin Church, no, in all of the martial world, there was nobody who could surpass the Simma Commander regarding the control of zombies and spells.

Yes, that’s true, but…

The problem is, there’s no such thing as a perfect spell.

[A 1-star barrier ‘Chain of Attributes’ activates!]

[Lv15 ‘Primordial Flame’ activates!]

A fire (火) attribute was inserted into the magical circuit that interconnected the three attributes. It needed to precisely nibble away just 3.3% of the energy inherent in each attribute and settle in between them.

Then…

[The power of the spell seal weakens!]

Kukukukukuku!

Small fissures began appearing in the bars of the cell.

“How, how could you dismantle the Simma Commander’s spell…”

Chae Hong-Ah’s face changed drastically.

It was inevitable.

An outsider who had just joined the Cheonma Shin Church was breaking a spell that the top figure in the church had crafted with much contemplation over many years.

Even if the Cheonma himself were to appear, it would be impossible.

“This spell is effective at preventing anything from getting out from inside, but it’s relatively simple to destroy from the outside. It’s already struggling to hold against three attributes, so adding a fire attribute into the mix is more than it can handle.”

Jinhyuk poked the bars with his finger.

Crrraaack!

Crash!

The bars made a noisy sound and crumbled.

“Krrr!”

The demon inside pressed its head closer to the bars, instinctively sensing that its containment was near its end.

“Ah, no! If you open that…”

Chae Hong-Ah’s voice became desperate.

“Open it and what? Things get complicated? Or everyone here dies?”

Timing is everything when making a threat.

“I’m already in a dire situation. With so many people openly seeking my death, adding a little more chili powder won’t make much difference, will it?”

It’s like adding capsaicin sauce to already spicy fire chicken noodles – the result of death isn’t going to change.

“If we’re going to hell, we might as well enjoy the company on our way there.”

First, I’ll turn the whole world into hell.

And then whoever survives that is going to be the true winner…

Those are the new rules of this game.

Clang!

The door sealing the demon was opened.

“Kraaaah!”

A shadow burst out from within the bars.

Kwakwakwakwa!

“Aaaahhh!”

“Aaaaargh!”

A massive creature with the form of a fox tore through the prisoners, moving faster than one could imagine despite its size.

The prisoners were all skilled fighters but the fox only targeted those who were already wounded.

At that moment.

Vrooom!

A red spear aimed for the head of the fox.

“Krr…”

Sensing a threat, the fox took a defensive stance for the first time.

“This creature only needs to have its attention pulled from the front. I’ll take that role. The rest of you, attack from the sides!”

Chae Hong-Ah gritted her teeth hard.

It was still manageable.

Dokgoryong was observing the situation and surely he would send more experts through the secret passageway along with members of Neoryongdan.

Just a little longer and they could subdue this fox monster.

‘We can’t avoid letting the Dark Emperor know now, but it doesn’t matter. There’s not much time left before we start the great undertaking.’

Right on cue, as she was thinking this.

Clang!

“Wow, you really have a remarkable collection of beasts here. You’re not lacking any monster. Is this one a turtle species?”

Another door opened.

“You fool! Why would you open that one?”

Even Chae Hong-Ah, who rarely lost her composure, couldn’t help but curse.

The balance was barely maintained as is, and here he was, making a bigger mess.

“Ah. Shouldn’t have opened that one, huh? My bad, my bad… Well then, let’s get something else out. That one over there seems pretty eager to get out…”

Jinhyuk moved towards another cell.

“Bark! Bark! Bark!”

A two-headed dog bared its sharp teeth, dripping saliva, resembling the hellish guard dog, Cerberus.

“You can’t release that one. Stop it!”

“There are no bad dogs in this world.”

“What kind of nonsense are you talking about!”

Amidst Chae Hong-Ah’s desperate cries, yet another door was opened.

***

“Oh heavens…”

“What on earth is this…”

When Dokgoryong and the Neoryongdan’s leader, along with the peak masters, arrived at the place that had become a veritable hell on earth…

The situation had already spiraled into chaos.

Many prisoners were dead or had fled, and Chae Hong-Ah, who was left alone, was desperately fighting against three demonic creatures.

Urgent reports poured in from those surveying the interior.

“Sir, through the second passageway, it appears about three monsters have escaped!”

“It’s the same with the third passageway. We’re trying to prevent them from getting out, but if this continues, the entire church will learn of this incident.”

The secret passageways that were originally designed to cultivate ‘dokkebi fire’ mushrooms easily had now become escape routes for the monsters to reach the surface.

In the end, the plan to handle the situation quietly fell through completely.

“I will handle the monsters first. Neoryongdan, follow me!”

“Yes, leader!”

Members of the Neoryongdan immediately sprung into action to aid Chae Hong-Ah.

Only then did they get a brief respite to catch their breath.

“Chae Hong-Ah! That damned man. Where is he?!”

Dokgoryong was furious, arteries bulging on his neck.

He wanted more than anything to charge in and melt the audacious youngster alive.

“He went inside… He entered deeper into the prison.”

“Inside? You mean he went to the upper-level goblins?”

“The upper-level goblins are already dead. He went further inside… deeper in!”

To the core.

At that revelation, Dokgoryong’s heart sank.

At the core of the prison, the most important and most dangerous of creatures was sealed.

The collection of dokkebi fire.

The seal placed on the monsters here.

It was all for the sake of harnessing one creature to achieve their great undertaking.

‘We must… stop him.’

If he can undo Simma Commander’s spell…

There’s no guarantee even the last seal is safe.

No, it absolutely can’t be allowed.

If that being were to be released before they had refined the dokkebi fire completely, they could face an irrevocable disaster.

***

While the monsters ran rampant, Jinhyuk was able to handle the upper-level goblin and gain access to the deepest part of the prison.

Upon entering that place, the pieces of the puzzle came together seamlessly.

The Cheonma Shin Church’s biggest incident during its ten years of seclusion, ‘The Night of Wildflowers’.

And at the center of that incident was the named monster, Yacha (夜叉).

And now he stood before that very being.

‘Were they planning to use dokkebi fire to brainwash Yacha and use it as a card against the Cheonma and my master?’

The thought made him shudder, his entire body breaking out in goosebumps.

‘With this kind of monster, it might indeed be possible.’

Jinhyuk gulped.

Sure enough, the system had designated this a linked quest.

Although he had encountered various linked quests in the past, this was the first time he received one in the martial world.

Back then, there hadn’t been a variable like ‘dokkebi fire’.

The most significant change since that…

‘Elris.’

He had taken Elris from the corridor, thus creating an early contact with the vampire families.

The dokkebi fire at the upper levels must have been handed over to Left Protector by those creatures.

As the pieces came together, a grand picture began to emerge.

This would be a decisive factor in the outcome of this situation, depending on how well he could leverage it.

‘Alright.’

Jinhyuk steadied his breathing and walked deeper into the darkness.

Fwoosh!

[Lv15 ‘Primordial Flame’ activates!]

Flames as large as skulls appeared in the air, brightening the room until he could see clearly.

A gigantic pillar stretching from the floor to the ceiling.

And bound to the pillar, a humanoid demonic creature.

Its spiky red hair, reminiscent of goblins, was conspicuous.

Jinhyuk used ‘Eyes of Gluttony’.

Name: Yacha (夜叉)

Gender: Male

Age: ?? years

Level: ???

Strength ??? Agility ??? Stamina ??? Magical Power 0 Inner Energy ???

Unique Ability: Incredible Strength (怪力亂神)

Skills: Lv?? ‘Spirits of Illusion and Disorder (魑魅魍魎)’, Lv?? ‘Indomitable Soul’, Lv?? ‘Great Mountain Sword (太山劍)’

Your level of ‘Eyes of Gluttony’ is too low to fully identify the target’s skills.

[Description: A mad demon refuses to compromise with anyone, refuses to ally with anyone. A being that follows only its instincts, despising and seeking to kill all. That’s ‘Yacha’, one of the most powerful named bosses in the middle floors.]

[Copy Conditions: The survival of the Cheonma is an essential prerequisite to suppress the beings on the 50th floor. However, Yacha is one of the few weapons capable of killing the Cheonma. If you can kill Yacha before it harms the Cheonma, you can copy one of its unique abilities or skills.]

The copy conditions appeared.

Following that…

Ding!

[Hidden quest influence has activated the failure penalty.]

[If the Cheonma dies for any reason, one of them will manifest on the lower floors of the tower. (Manifestation limit: 30 minutes)]

As expected…

The hidden quest was also related to those beings on the 50th floor.

Yacha’s very existence is the first quest itself.

‘The rewards for the quest are important, but I must also obtain his powers.’

Incredible strength.

A close-combat unique ability befitting the name ‘Yacha’.

Thinking about the possible synergy it would have with his ‘Dark Heavenly Destruction’, his heart beat faster in anticipation.

To obtain that power…

‘Even if I have to pluck the moon from the sky, I must succeed.’

These were the tasks that couldn’t be failed.

The first step…

[Yacha’s seal has been released.]

…had finally begun.