“Such a waste of the name Seongcheon. Who would have imagined that Namgung, trembling like a worm in a cave, would end up like this?”

“Haha! Isn't it just like those righteous sect fools, obsessed with hollow fame?”

“Pretending to be righteous, but when it's time to face death, they get scared.”

“Thanks to that, we’ve just wasted valuable time.”

Their words pierced his chest like daggers.

Namgung.

He knew.

He knew that what he had done now was something a warrior from the Namgung family would never even dream of.

Though it allowed him to survive, escaping from their eyes…

Was it because of his own shame?

Even though their loud remarks were clearly meant for him to hear, he could only bite his lip, unable to retort.

- “Jin-ah… You must survive. The family can be rebuilt. So, you must survive.”

Those had been his father's words the day the Namgung family was consumed by the demonic sect's schemes.

“Judging by the fact you don’t reply, you probably know that yourself.”

“Heh! Everyone should have seen this. What a sight!”

“Now, learn to crawl out of here quietly.”

“….”

Was surviving this humiliation the right thing to do?

He still didn’t know. All he felt was the weight on his shoulders.

Even if he survived like this and tried to rebuild the family, what would become of the dignity and honor that had been thrown away, discarded on the ground?

Was he enduring this disgrace because of his father’s dying wish? Or was it, perhaps, that deep down he just wished to survive, no matter how disgracefully?

The endless thoughts left him full of self-reproach, leaving deep scars in his heart.

However, he soon realized that these worries were a luxury.

He had no choice.

He picked up the formation device his friend from the Jiegal family had made for him as a joke and stood up.

Right. No matter what, he couldn’t just lie here and wait to die.

At the very least, if he was going to die, he would die with his sword in hand, so that his ancestors wouldn’t look down on him.

Namgung Jin tightly gripped the sword at his waist and slowly crawled out of the underground cave. Even as he squeezed through the narrow tunnel, a sense of shame gnawed at him.

As he emerged from the cave, he noticed the formation device and a black dagger about 1 foot (33 cm) long lying there.

‘…’

At first glance, the dagger looked like a dark thorn. The long, triangular blade was etched with scales like a fish’s skin, forming tight waves across the surface.

There seemed to be reactions from those around, congratulating or envying him… but its appearance didn’t match the hype at all.

Moreover, it was a dagger. While not a bad weapon, he was a warrior from the Namgung family. An unfamiliar weapon would only be a burden.

But for some reason, he couldn’t dismiss it easily.

The administrator wasn’t an ordinary person. Every action he took stirred up a storm, shaking the entire community.

There was no way something prepared by him could be ordinary.

Namgung Jin carefully gripped the dagger.

It was cold and stiff.

‘But it’s as light as a feather.’

*Ping—* *Ping—*

He flicked it a couple of times, and a sharp metallic sound rang out.

Was it just the weightlessness, or did he feel a strange sense of anticipation?

Still, he hesitated.

This could very well be his last chance to wield a sword in his life.

Perhaps, no, it was certain. This was his last chance to let the Namgung family’s swordsmanship soar once more, even if only for a final moment.

If that was the case, should he not raise the banner of Namgung using the sword he had received from the late family head, the sword he had trained with for seven years?

Covered in dirt and dust, as he crawled out of the cave, a warrior, around fifty years of age, looked down at him.

“A public figure wouldn't have fallen this far. No place for you here. Heh.”

“Haha! The fall of the Namgung family, this is the end!”

“The hypocritical bastards with their high noses.”

“Take him!”

“Yes, sub-leader.”

A young man, about the same age as Namgung Jin, in dark armor, swiftly approached.

The young man, who also seemed to be at a peak martial level, emitted a fierce black aura from his body.

The sight of his relaxed face twisted Namgung Jin’s insides. It was as if he were saying, "I’ll crush you and take the recognition of others."

At least, Namgung Jin hadn’t drawn his sword to show off. Regardless of righteousness or martial arts, it wasn’t the mindset of a true warrior.

What irked him was the fact that the young man’s inner energy was at least equal to his own.

*Crash*

“Cough.”

His body wasn’t in a normal state.

Namgung Jin’s treasured sword flew through the air, landing on the ground. His wrist went numb. He had reacted reflexively, drawing his sword to counterattack, but lacked the strength to make it count.

Dropping a weapon during battle was the worst thing for a warrior. It was clear his body was far from normal.

“Haha. Did you see that? A greenhouse flower. Look at this weakling, so obsessed with the theoretical, never having experienced real combat. This is clearly the epitome of a righteous fool.”

The young man laughed as if he were trying to get the surrounding audience to cheer.

Namgung Jin bit his lip. It was clear the young man wanted to show off his experience in real combat.

And it wasn’t wrong.

“Haha. Just a clown with a sword. The title ‘warrior’ is wasted on you. Why don’t you try some real fighting? Hahaha.”

The young man’s *Soul Crushing Claws* slashed through the air again, his sharp claws and the dark energy from his weapon obscuring his vision as they approached.

Namgung Jin saw the twisted, bloodthirsty smile as the young man purposefully avoided targeting vital areas. He realized the man intended to humiliate him even with his death.

‘You won’t get your way!’

Namgung Jin pulled the dagger from his inner pocket and leaped toward him, preparing to unleash his final, desperate thrust, disregarding death in a move called *Donggyeojeon*, an all-or-nothing strike.

‘I won’t let you dishonor me in death!’

But was it because the dagger was too short? Or was it because his condition was so poor?

Before the dagger even reached him, the young man twisted his body and easily dodged.

‘Damn it! Just a little longer, and I could have—!’

“Is that the *Donggyeojeon* of the *Changgungmuya* sword style?”

“I don’t think I’ve seen that in person before.”

“Heh. These righteous fools. Why is the *Donggyeojeon* stuck in the same old pattern? Tch. Isn’t that right, *Blood Demon Sword* Bi-Gwang?”

“….”

The demonic sect’s forces chasing the Namgung family’s secret treasure consisted of elite members, including the highest-ranking sub-leader and over three hundred elite warriors.

Among them, the strongest, *Blood Demon Sword* Bi-Gwang, who was a direct descendant of the Blood Demon Clan leader, quietly led the team in place of the lazy main leader.

The demonic sect was focused on recovering the *Heavenly Demon Sword*, the legendary sword, which they desperately needed.

“Bi-Gwang, Sub-leader? Why so quiet?”

“Haha. I heard that young man is close to Bi-Gwang, right?”

“Definitely one of the top-tier warriors.”

However, for some reason, Bi-Gwang, who usually responded to praise with plenty of words, was unusually silent, his eyes widened.

“Bi-Gwang?”

Just then, another sub-leader noticed Bi-Gwang’s abnormality.

It was at that moment.

*Swish* *Thud* 

The head of one of the sub-leaders fell, and Bi-Gwang's heart exploded with a burst of blood, collapsing to the ground.

“Eh?”

“Bi, Bi-Gwang?”

A chilling silence fell over the demonic sect’s forces. Moreover…

“What?!”  
“Ahhh!”

Suddenly, several warriors began collapsing, blood pouring from their chests without warning. There were no signs, not even traces of inner energy.

“!!”

“Who did this?!”

Namgung Jin, still in the midst of battle, was confused. But to the onlookers from the demonic sect, it was nothing short of a disaster.

“I don’t know who you are, but it’s time to show yourself.”

“You seem like a hero from the righteous sect. Let’s talk face-to-face. Though our factions differ, we still respect our elders.”

The demonic sect’s sub-leaders were tense, clearly sensing that they were dealing with an unspeakable power.

An ambush that even peak warriors couldn’t detect! And from the righteous sect!

The answer never came.

Meanwhile, Namgung Jin, still wielding the dagger, felt something strange.

‘What is this? Am I imagining things?’

For a moment, it felt like the dagger was growing in size. But he dismissed it as just a trick of the light, thinking it was just the dagger’s light weight.

‘The footwork of this opponent isn’t ordinary!’

The young man twisted his torso, easily dodging the attacks with light footwork.

Just as the young man turned his attention to the commotion around them…

‘Now

’s my chance!’

Namgung Jin swung the dagger horizontally, aiming to strike him down.

“Die!”

“Pathetic. Do you think such an attack will—”

The young man quickly bent backward, evading the strike. Unlike before, where he merely twisted his upper body, this time, his footwork was extraordinary.

‘Damn! Is this the end?’

He had no strength left to move.

‘Eh?’

As his surroundings came into focus, Namgung Jin couldn’t help but be stunned.

“What… what is this?!”

The area around him looked as if it had been slashed by massive swords, the ground and rocks torn apart.

*Swish—*

The opponent, who had narrowly evaded, now began to disintegrate—his upper and lower body separating. 

*Gurgle.*

“…?”

Namgung Jin had no idea what was happening.

---

**[Meanwhile…]**

“What a complicated path. It’s like a tangled spider’s web.”

It was very different from the Great Sephiroth.

“Anyway, I think it’s connected here…”

Kriella finally managed to find the traces of the dimensional path and successfully locate the culprit. It was a stroke of luck.

“I should finish this and return.”

Being outside the Sephiroth was like being in the deep sea, and the longer he stayed, the worse it was for his divine energy. It was being depleted as the touch of the Great Sephiroth, his mother, was absent. If he stayed any longer, he might not be able to return.

“Hm…?”

That’s when he noticed a woman with starry hair entering his sight.

“Girl! Do you know where this is?”

She exuded a strangely chilling aura.

But what did it matter?

He was Kriella, the great god who ruled over a world!