༺ The First Sin (3) ༻

As the barrier was on the verge of being ripped apart, the Palace Lord moved swiftly towards the crimson sky made by Gu Cheolun.

The authority given to him by his Heaven was close to perfection.

It compensated for his own flaws as well as enhanced the strength he already had.

‘I will step into a new world.’

That’s what the Palace Lord told himself.

He convinced himself that he was different from his past self who used to crawl on the ground while being stepped on by the bastards from the Orthodox Faction.

Just like last time, he trusted the authority given to him by his Heaven…

“Crack…”

But it only took an instant for his trust to be shattered.

The man from the Unorthodox Faction saw a man under the reddened sky that resembled a calamity.

Despite the Great Oni having created the barrier with the power of Demonic Stones, the man was tearing it apart with sheer absurd strength layer by layer.

The Flaming Demon, Gu Cheolun.

He was the man who had made a hole in the Palace Lord’s stomach.

He was a monster of a man who had formed powerful treaties with many people of the Unorthodox Faction, rendering them powerless.

‘They say that the Sword Venerable is the pillar of the Alliance.’

Wi Hyogun had been called that title when he was active as the Leader of the Murim Alliance…

But the Palace Lord knew that it wasn’t the almighty Sword Venerable that the Unorthodox Faction feared.

It was instead the Flaming Demon who was born in flames.

He could see the man who resembled calamity from afar.

At some point, he had wanted to kill him no matter what method it took, and at another, the red martial artist was an object of envy.

Riiip-!

After ripping another layer of the barrier, Gu Cheolun slightly lifted his head.

The clear, or the horrifying red eyes aimed at the Palace Lord.

“…!”

As soon as their eyes met, the Palace Lord learned many things in an instant.

The Palace Lord was certain.

That even after many years and gaining authority, he wouldn’t be able to win against the Flaming Demon.

He knew that just by looking at him.

The fire that stood there was the same as a calamity and unlike the rumors, his fangs hadn’t dulled at all.

The Flaming Demon wasn’t showing any anger, nor was he showing flames to prove that he had the blood of Gu Clan.

Furthermore, his focus was solely on the barrier; Though their gazes met each other, the force he was emitting wasn’t aimed at him.

‘Even so, it’s that much?’

The Palace Lord had thought that the tiger was wasting his life hidden in some mountain, but in reality, the great tiger was only taking a nap.

He could reign over whenever he wanted.

So what was he doing? Was he just taking a small break?

“…How nonsensical.”

The Palace Lord whispered to himself.

He had been given that much authority and he had collected power by taking the lives of others.

But even so, he couldn’t match him.

“…Not yet.”

The Palace Lord, who had made eye contact with Gu Cheolun for a moment, turned around and headed somewhere.

Judging by the way he was breaking in so recklessly, the Palace Lord knew that it wouldn’t be long until the barrier fully shattered.

And because he realized that he couldn’t face the Flaming Demon, he told himself that it wasn’t necessary for him to stay here any longer.

The Main Palace was going to be thrown away anyway as soon as his Heaven no longer needed it.

And since a problem had occurred with his Heaven, there was no need for him to stay in this place any longer.

‘I am disappointed about the incident with the flame.’

But there was always another day.

And leaving this place with his Heaven was of utmost priority.

‘It was wise for me to inform the Great King beforehand.’

As soon as he brought Gu Huibi to the Main Palace, the Palace Lord informed the Black Dragon about this.

All he had to do now was leave this place without any regret.

One thing he was disappointed about was that he had to leave without any interaction with the Flaming Demon.

‘Wait a little more.’

He had left his pride in the Abyss a few years ago, but he had never been able to give up his desire to rise.

Because he had confirmed that the Flaming Demon’s flames hadn’t gotten any weaker, the Palace Lord only prepared.

He began to prepare water to pour down on that disgusting flame.

And a heavy rain that would drench this degrading world.

He planned to make it all rain down on the world by filling up the clouds completely.

Crack.

Blood flowed down from his clenched fist.

His look of turning around and running away despite being given authority.

He tried his best to ignore that pathetic appearance of his.

***

In between the nasty fog of Demonic Qi…

Underneath the violet-colored moon that changed the sky from noon to night…

Dribble-

The bastard poured a drink in a cup as usual.

With eyes that were slightly downcast, skin that was incredibly pale, and the violet-colored eyes that shone in between all of such things, I felt fear for some reason.

I knew that I was being pressured down by the aura that only this bastard had.

When I cautiously looked up, the eyes that resembled the moon were staring at me.

Noticing my gaze, the bastard spoke to me.

-Your gaze seems strange.

-…I am sorry.

-No need to apologize. I don’t mind it at all.

The Heavenly Demon lifted up the cup that was filled with alcohol.

All of that alcohol disappeared after a few gulps.

And after quenching that thirst, the Heavenly Demon stared at me without moving.

That gaze was uncomfortable, so I couldn’t stare back at it for long.

-Time to time…

Swish-

An unknown breeze of wind appeared along with the Heavenly Demon’s words.

-It seems like you are looking at someone else through me.

The Heavenly Demon’s words made my heart sink coldly.

As if every word spoken were sprinkling salt on my wound, already becoming a scar.

Despite knowing that those words would fade away, the meaning that was held inside was too cold.

-Are you thinking about the girl in your heart?

-No…

-No, you say, how amusing of you to put it that way.

It was true.

It was just a sophistry for me to escape.

-Chuckle.

The Heavenly Demon let out a small chuckle.

-The Demonic Sword Queen who died for you…If she saw you like this, she would be very hurt.

-…

-You still haven’t forgotten about her? How stubborn, that affection of yours.

-That’s not true, I-

-Lies do not work against me.

Thud.

Along with the overpowering pressure that pressed down on my shoulders, the Demonic Qi that filled my dantian stormed.

As if it was acknowledging the owner who stood in front of me.

The pain continued to storm inside my body, but I endured by holding my breath.

-…I am sorry.

Was my response finally satisfying?

Dribble-

Because the Heavenly Demon poured a drink in the cup once again.

After drinking a cup full of alcohol, the Heavenly Demon spoke to me in a chuckling tone.

-I am curious.

The world shook with each word.

This place was the sacred ground of the Heavenly Demon.

-Would you still be fine, even after that girl dies by my hand?

-…

The man didn’t give any response and the Heavenly Demon let out a chuckle as if his appearance was entertaining.

In that situation, the man only continued to watch the Heavenly Demon laugh.

Because that face resembled someone so much…

And to look at that face of enjoyment, his insides that were rotting away felt like they were calmed down for a moment.

‘Is it because I saw a smile on that face.’

At that thought, the man self-mockingly laughed.

After all, it was such an abominable thought for him to have.

To find a small consolation in his twisted life was impossible because he had burned the bowl that held a bit of consolation with his own hands.

His insides were empty.

The only thing left there was the regret that continued to burn.

In between the uncomfortable air, I lowered my head and closed my eyes.

***

Inside the room filled with Demonic Qi, I started to wonder as I looked at the child in the arms of the Palace Lord.

‘…Why does it have the appearance of a child?’

The fact that it was skinny and the fact that its eyes seemed like they were spacing out unlike the ones I saw in my past life wasn’t important.

The important thing was that that child was definitely the Heavenly Demon that I knew of.

‘…This is impossible.’

Was it just my mistake? I told myself that it was possible that I didn’t know better but because I knew that it wasn’t something I could mistake, I only bit my lips.

The child had a face that looked too similar to Wi Seol-Ah.

Furthermore, those unique eyes as well.

Others might be a different story, but it was impossible for me to not recognize who that bastard was.

Grrrgle-

‘…Shit.’

Just look at it, the Demonic Qi inside my body is storming this crazily.

So how could it be a mistake?

The problem was why the Heavenly Demon was in this place with such an appearance.

After all, the Heavenly Demon that I knew of had a body that was much more mature than its current state…

‘And it said that it came from the Abyss.’

It broke through the Alliance, and it came down upon the world through the Abyss.

That’s what it told me.

But in reality, the Heavenly Demon already existed in the world before that…

And it was in the Black Palace with such an appearance?

‘…I don’t understand a single thing.’

What the hell was going on here? None of these things were something I could have ever imagined.

“It seems like you can’t hear me.”

“…!”

I tilted my body after feeling a sudden sensation.

Crrrrggg!!

The Palace Lord’s energy stormed in the room and attacked me.

“…You dodged it?”

The Palace Lord let out a surprised reaction.

He seemed like he wasn’t expecting me to dodge.

I ignored my dantian that was aching in pain due to my sudden movement and spoke to the Palace Lord.

“Your way of greeting is a bit rough.”

“That face and energy… I see, so you are the Flaming Demon’s son.”

The Flaming Demon, huh…

I hadn’t heard that title in a while.

I knew that father was called by such a title, but I couldn’t believe I met someone who actually called him the Flaming Demon.

“The True Dragon, was it?”

“I’m honored, for the Lord of the Black Palace to know who I am.”

“Of course I know, how could I not? Especially when we have a bit of a history.”

Did he mean my encounter with the Black Palace when he said history?

The Palace Lord continued to speak while looking at me.

“You look identical to your father.”

“I’m sick of how many times I heard that now.”

“I thought that your older sister was an extraordinary talent, but seeing you makes it impossible to describe you as such.”

As the Palace Lord said such words, I noticed that some unknown emotions were in his eyes.

Was it envy?

Or was it jealousy?

A martial artist who had reached the Fusion Realm, or even the peak of it, showing such emotions to me felt very awkward.

“Now will you answer me, how did you open that door?”

“What do you mean by how did I open the door, isn’t it obvious that I pushed it open?”

I checked behind me as I responded.

Because of how much Demonic Qi there was, it seemed like the swordsmen of Gu Clan couldn’t easily enter.

‘What should I do?’

If the child in the arms of that bastard really was the Heavenly Demon, I couldn’t afford to let him escape.

“How fascinating.”

“…What is.”

“Your eyes seem as if you know who this person is.”

The Palace Lord was calling the Heavenly Demon, a person.

And just by him calling the child by such a title, it meant that they didn’t have a good relationship.

‘Does that mean that the Heavenly Demon turned the Palace Lord into a Demonic Human?’

Not only him, but all the other martial artists of the Black Palace.

Did the Heavenly Demon play a part in that?

Just like the Demonic Humans in my past life.

‘In order to learn about this…’

I had to capture the bastard no matter what.

Even if I stood no chance against him.

Blaze-!

I immediately summoned flames after charging my Qi.

My dantian was still aching in pain, but I couldn’t afford to hesitate just because of that.

When the Palace Lord saw me charging up my strength, he formed a slight smile on his face.

“I don’t believe that a child like you knows your own place. If that’s not the case, does my generosity seem funny to you?”

When the Palace Lord drew a line with his hand, the energy that filled the room instantly attacked me.

I increased my speed while burning my flames.

Flash.

I tried to attack the Palace Lord, but when I reached him…

Slam…!

“…Ugh…!”

But my side was exposed to the Palace Lord’s arm.

Along with an explosive sound, I flew far backward and rolled on the floor.

‘…It’s hard for me to react properly because I can’t use my energy to the fullest.’

It’s already a difficult situation because of the differences in our levels.

But because my dantian wasn’t working properly, this was almost impossible.

‘But you’re telling me to let this go when it’s right in front of me?’

How could I?

‘Even if by using Blood Qi…’

By doing everything that I could,

Even if the process destroyed me…

I had to capture the bastard.

“Because of the current situation, I’m not killing you which you should be thankful fo- “

The Palace Lord started talking, but suddenly stopped.

This was the same for me as I was about to use my Blood Qi.

The reason was because the Heavenly Demon, who was in the arms of the Palace Lord, had its finger pointing at me.

Shortly after, the Heavenly Demon spoke.

“…That.”

“My Heaven, how come you…?”

“Is… mine?”

It tilted its head as if it was confused.

‘…Perhaps…’

It was reacting to the Demonic Qi inside my body.

If that child really was the Heavenly Demon, such a thing was possible.

Because my ability to absorb Demonic Qi, was the Heavenly Demon’s power in the end.

Right then…

Grrrrr-!

“…!”

The Demonic Qi that was sealed inside my body, began to boil.

And because the Demonic Qi went wild inside my body, my dantian that was already in pain screamed inside.

“Ughhh…!”

“…Mine…”

It seemed like the Heavenly Demon in the arms of the Palace Lord knew something.

‘…Fuck…’

My Demonic Qi began to move.

It felt as if it was trying to escape my body with a will of its own.

And because Demonic Qi was a type of energy, it leaving my body in an instant would damage my body, so I had to block the flow of the energy while enduring the pain.

“…How is such a thing…”

During this, the Palace Lord noticed the energy that was going wild inside my body.

His eyes widened even more.

“How come… How do you, possess that energy?!”

As if he was angered, his voice had an emotion.

I was curious why he was showing such emotion, but I couldn’t afford to question that at this moment because I was busy enduring the pain.

As I continued to struggle with the pain for what felt like an eternity…

[…Rrr.]

From very deep inside my dantian, I heard a sound.

It sounded as if it wasn’t happy about something.

[Grrr…]

It was the growling of a beast.

“…Gasp…!”

At the same time as I was surprised, the Demonic Qi that was storming inside my body calmed down.

“Huff… Huff…”

Along with cold sweat flowing down my body, I panted out as if I was screaming.

It was that painful.

But it also made me curious.

Because the Demonic Qi that felt like it would explode at any moment, calmed down in an instant.

Shortly after this, when I looked up at the Heavenly Demon…

‘Why is it afraid?’

I saw that the Heavenly Demon was shaking with a face full of fear.

Such an appearance resembled an ordinary child which made me angry.

“…My Heaven, what is wrong?”

The Heavenly Demon didn’t answer the Palace Lord’s question.

It only continued to stare at me while shaking.

When I looked at that, a thought crossed my mind.

‘Did it notice?’

The Blood Demon, Dok Gojun’s comment about how there was a beast inside my body.

Was what I heard earlier the growling sound of that beast?

If that was the case, was the Heavenly Demon afraid of that beast?

Because if that wasn’t the case, how could you explain such a reaction?

‘But what is this beast…? What the hell is inside my body?’

To think that such an existence would feel fear from it.

“This is something that I cannot comprehend.”

It seemed like the situation was incomprehensible for the Palace Lord too, seeing as how he spoke in a confused tone.

However, his voice also had murderous intent.

“So, I shall clean this up now.”

His energy gathered into one to form a shape of an awl.

I could tell from his Combat Qi that he was aiming that at me.

However…

My body wasn’t listening to me because of what happened earlier.

So at this rate, I would die by his energy drilling a hole into me.

Right then…

“Tsk…”

The Palace Lord, who was about to release his energy, clicked his tongue.

“…I wasted too much time it seems.”

As soon as the Palace Lord spoke in a disappointed tone…

Blaaaze-!

Flames entered the room through the passage behind me.

The flames surrounded me as if they were trying to protect me, then they formed a wall in front of me.

And judging by this heat and the color of it, I could tell whose flame this belonged to.

“You really try your best to get in trouble.”

Along with a voice that had no emotions…

Thud.

Heavy Qi appeared as if it was trying to pressure down the area.

And as if the Demonic Qi that filled the room didn’t affect him at all, the Tiger Warrior Gu Cheolun, my father, stepped into the room.

“I told you not to act rashly, but you still caused trouble.”

Surely the Demonic Qi would make it hard for him to breathe, but Father acted as if it didn’t affect him at all.

Such a thing was impossible.

Demonic Qi was no different from deadly poison to a martial artist who had Qi.

“Palace Lord.”

The Lord of the Black Palace smiled on his face after hearing Father’s call.

“It has been a while, Flaming Demon.”

“You broke the promise.”

“I’m sure that you also didn’t believe that I would keep this promise until the end of time.”

Despite the Palace Lord speaking in a mocking manner, Father didn’t show any reaction.

It looked as if he didn’t care.

“I guess even a demonic man like you cares about your own child, for you to come all the way here after putting aside your work.”

“I won’t have any unnecessary conversation.”

To prove his words, Father gradually surrounded himself with flames.

Seriously, the amount of Qi he had was as overpowering as ever.

However, the Palace Lord continued to smile as if he wasn’t afraid.

“You don’t need to act strong, even though you must be having a hard time.”

“Silence.”

Flames made by great strength flew towards the Palace Lord to burn him…

Slam!

But a wall formed by the Palace Lord’s energy blocked the attack.

His wall of energy shook for an instant as if it was about to break down, but it couldn’t fully break through.

‘…It doesn’t seem like he’s completely unaffected by Demonic Qi.’

It didn’t feel like a mistake, because in my eyes, I noticed that father was shaking for an instant.

“Don’t be in such a hurry, we are going to see each other again anyway.”

Finishing with those words, the Palace Lord stepped backwards.

Towards the entrance to the Gate of Demons that shone in a violet color.

“I, too, have something I want to talk about with your son, so we should be able to see each other soon enough.”

I clenched my teeth as I watched the Palace Lord getting further away.

It was because my body still didn’t move.

‘I have to let him escape just like this…?’

That calamity that was in the arms of the Palace Lord?

As I continued shaking, the Palace Lord whispered to me in a quiet voice.

“Once that happens, Gu Clan will have to commit the First Sin.”

“…!”

Finishing with that sentence, the Great Oni, the Palace Lord, and the Heavenly Demon disappeared after entering the Gate of Demons.

Up until the last moment, I stared at the Heavenly Demon.

And the young Heavenly Demon also stared back at me.

When the Gate of Demons swallowed up all their members, it disappeared as if it closed its eyes in the air.

So quietly that it felt like it wasn’t there to begin with.

‘…Why?’

Despite the fact that I let the Heavenly Demon escape, I had to rethink what the Palace Lord said last.

‘Why did the Palace Lord leave after saying such words?’

The First Sin.

The First Sin of the Gu Clan.

That was when they opened the Gate of Demons for the first time in the world long ago.

That was what the First Sin, and the duty of the Gu Clan, was.

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