---

I was watching from a distance as the Eight Parts of the Divine began to repel their demon troops. Suddenly, a horde of Otherworldly beings poured out from the palace and vanished through the spatial gate—there were hundreds of them! I could also see the lights going out in the rooms where the rituals of the Demon Path were being conducted. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that within Moscow’s Kremlin, a magical palace was taking shape.

“Ugh… huff…”

A moment later, I spotted an old man gasping for breath, leaning against the throne. I stared at him blankly.

‘Ivan IV.’

The immense power I had seen in myth seemed to have disappeared. Although some strength remained, it looked like it would extinguish soon, and he appeared to have returned to being an ordinary human.

‘… That Celestial fellow. Did he drain all his power after enhancing himself to a legendary state because he no longer needed it?’

As I walked closer, Ivan IV faintly opened his eyes and looked at me while I directed my sword at his neck.

“Are you ready to die, Emperor?”

Ivan IV, whether he understood my words in the Central Plains language or not, responded with a faint smile in the same language.

“Who are you? If you wish to kill the emperor, then reveal your name.”

As the emperor of Arasa, did he also learn the Central Plains language as part of his education?

I thought he spoke it well.

‘Even so, to be able to smile in this situation.’

That was an unusual level of composure. I felt a mix of respect for Ivan IV and opened my mouth.

“My name is Baek Woong. I am the emperor of the Central Plains.”

“… I see… Just as I heard… you are that…”

Ivan IV didn’t seem overly shocked, as if he had heard rumors about me. Even though it would be reasonable to suspect a young boy claiming to be an emperor, he appeared unfazed. Recognizing that this was the kind of calm dignity expected from a ruler, I found myself wanting to let Ivan IV pass with ease.

“I shall deliver your death without pain. However, the Archbishop Belov is soon to arrive; do you wish to speak with him?”

“… Belov…”

A sudden look of gloom crossed Ivan IV’s face before he shook his head.

“No. Tell him I’m sorry for treating my most treasured friend in such a manner…”

“You seem to be a remarkable ruler. Yet, why did you ally with the Demon Path?”

“… Anastasia… my wife…”

Ivan IV coughed weakly and continued.

“It was because I was told I could revive her… I, in the end, was consumed by [power]…”

“During your legendary state, you weren’t in your right mind, were you?”

“Yes… that power was incredibly sweet. However, now… I regret letting it cloud my purpose…”

After a brief silence, Ivan IV suddenly straightened his back. His eyes became bright and clear, as if a radiant light was flowing. With the aura of a ruler restored, Ivan IV boomed.

“Strike me down, Overlord of the Central Plains! If you defeat me, then this world is yours to claim, march forward bearing the mantle of conquest!”

I gazed directly at Ivan IV. There wasn’t a trace of cowardice or fear in his eyes. After exchanging looks for some time, I slightly lowered my head and said.

“Farewell!!”

Swish!

With a clean single slash, I swiftly severed Ivan IV’s neck. It was so fast and precise that he wouldn’t have even felt pain. As I slowly sheathed my sword, I thought.

‘This man, too, was a hero!’

Few can face death with such composure and dignity. Having lived through countless battles, I had witnessed most of my enemies’ eyes glaze over with fear and despair at the sight of death. To maintain such a dignified gaze knowing one was going to die is certainly worthy of respect.

Before long, Belov and the allies of the Eastern Orthodox Church entered the palace. Belov glanced between me and Ivan IV’s corpse before speaking.

“What did he say at the end?”

“He asked me to tell his most treasured friend that he was sorry for doing as he pleased…”

“……”

As I fixed my gaze on Belov, he seemed to understand. He bit his lip and picked up Ivan IV’s head, wrapping it in cloth. Once he finished securing the head, Belov said.

“Thank you for your help in this matter. Now we shall arrange our affairs in our homeland; if you have no intention to assist, then please take your leave.”

“Sounds good. But I have one question.”

“What is it?”

“Do you know about the Law of the Non-Birth Mother?”

“……?”

He looked puzzled. Well, it wasn’t common knowledge that Belov would have, but since this was the most pressing matter, I felt I had to press on, whether or not he had an answer. I licked my lips and said.

“If you don’t know now, then please try to find that information later. That will be my payment for this business.”

“Understood.”

Phew.

I mounted Black Dragon Dracula and left Moscow in a hurry. I didn’t ride the Golden Lamp directly, as I had received information from Krishna beforehand.

‘Hmm… it should be near here.’

After soaring for a while, I spotted what looked like a dazzling light, luring me in, and I ascended a cliff standing in an empty plain.

Krishna was waiting on the cliff. He said,

“Baek Woong, you now bear another burden.”

Krishna had mentioned that he would meet me here once the task was done. As I descended from the neck of the Black Dragon, I replied.

“Are you planning to preach about living righteously?”

“Discussing good and evil before you would be a futile endeavor…”

Krishna muttered meaningfully.

“I can’t discuss [clues] here. Please come find me later at the temple in Gujirat.”

“What? What nonsense. I certainly fulfilled all your demands. Do you think negotiating with the Eight Parts of the Divine is easy?”

When I frowned, Krishna sighed.

“… [That] one is keenly observing the fluctuations in the Law of Cause and Effect. At least in this realm, we cannot evade his gaze, so I would like you to come to a safer location. Otherwise, we might all face immediate obliteration.”

“[That]? Who are you talking about?”

“……”

Krishna stared at me quietly, indicating he wouldn’t answer. I took an educated guess on who he meant, so I reluctantly nodded and said.

“Fine. Since there’s nothing urgent to do now, guide me. I’ll follow you and hear the clues.”

“Please come find me later.”

“Damn it… What’s your scheme?! Why do I have to look for you later?”

“I, too, have a great task ahead and must make various preparations. I swear by my name Krishna that I will definitely share [clues] with you, so trust me.”

“… Just this once. Next time you say something like that, I won’t let it slide.”

“Thank you.”

Reluctantly, I had to accept Krishna’s request, as there was trust involved when he invoked his name.

I turned to Krishna and said.

“One more thing. I’ve been bragging to the Eight Parts of the Divine for now, but do you know exactly where Asura is?”

I had tried looking it up with the National Seal, but the location of the Eight Parts of the Divine didn’t show up. So when I bragged confidently while negotiating with them, I had no clue where Asura was at that moment. If the Eight Parts of the Divine came looking later to know Asura’s location, that would be a hassle.

Then Krishna handed me a talisman, a kind of Gujirat talisman.

“This will lead you to Asura.”

“Really? What is this?”

“It’s a talisman of Brahma. If you seek Asura, don’t rush to confront him… he is too dangerous right now.”

“I can handle myself.”

“Then…”

“Oh, wait! I have another question: do you know about the Xuanyuan Sword?”

“Come find me later, and we can talk about that.”

Swish!!

Krishna departed just like that. After concluding negotiations with Krishna, I returned to the base riding the Black Dragon. I shared the news about the Obsidian with my companions, and Zhuge Sa asked.

“Why are you back so soon?”

“Huh?”

“You took down Ivan IV, so why not simply proclaim yourself as the emperor of Arasa? If you declare your intent to conquer Arasa and open the Transference Gate in the Central Plains to send a great army, it would be over in no time. That Belov would try to refuse, but at that point, soothing Behemoth would have the Eastern Orthodox Church in your grasp.”

“……”

“Then you’d unify the Central Plains and Arasa, effectively claiming 30% of the world territory.”

Uh, is that how it works?

I scratched my head, feeling flustered.

“Th-this isn’t even the main point. It’s not like we’re just playing a game of territory expansion…”

“It’s essentially a game of territory expansion. Considering the benefits of devouring Arasa, even if it sounds childish, it makes perfect sense to pursue that expansion. The gold and treasures flowing from such a vast empire would fill mountains, and we’d have countless troops and manpower at no cost.”

“……”

“If we assume the available military forces in the Central Plains is around 400,000, we could double our troops in no time.”

“Uh…”

As I fell silent, Mangnyang spoke up.

“Baek Woong has a point, uncle. With tensions rising against the Twelve Joules, being greedy and acting hastily could lead to a risky situation. Besides, if a vast empire is ingested in one go, the resistance will be substantial, don’t you think? Since the Eight Parts of the Divine are out of the picture, Arasa is a land without a ruler, so it’s always ripe for conquest.”

“That’s true.”

“More importantly, that Krishna fellow seems quite suspicious. He particularly insisted we come to the temple in Gujirat… He must have some ulterior motive given his awareness of the Primordial Deities’ supervision.”

The Primordial Deities – I knew all too well the hidden meaning behind that was the Emperor Gong Sun Xuanwen. Krishna had previously said he couldn’t defy the Emperor, so I couldn’t help but sense something was off. Curious, I asked Mangnyang.

“While Krishna’s logic is sound, what makes it suspicious?”

“Because his logic is perfect, it feels odd. It’s as if he’s offering clues waiting for our desperation… I can’t shake the need to be on guard.”

“Mm!”

“With how he made a promise invoking a command, he probably doesn’t intend to betray us outright, but there’s definitely something fishy going on. We shouldn’t get dragged along mindlessly.”

“So you’re saying we shouldn’t go to the temple in Gujirat?”

“Not exactly. You should just ensure adequate preparation before approaching that fellow.”

Continuing from that, Mangnyang resumed.

“Baek Woong. The first thing you should do now is to trace Asura’s whereabouts. By locating Asura now, it will pave the way for better progress in the next life.”

“Understood. Should I go alone to find Asura this time as well?”

“Hmm…”

Mangnyang looked unusually troubled. Not understanding why he was worried, I cocked my head, and Zhuge Bu, who had been listening, said.

“Baek Woong! What do you think is our greatest current problem?”

“Huh? I’m not sure… Was there a problem, Zhuge Bu?”

When I questioned him, Zhuge Bu smiled wryly.

“The problem is that there are only you and the Master of the White Lotus Sect as the strongest contenders against a transcendent being.”

“Ah…!!”

“Even though we possess the largest force among all past lives, surprisingly, the number of people who can stand against transcendent beings is low. You and the Master of the White Lotus Sect are indeed capable of facing the Eight Parts of the Divine one-on-one, but the Dharma Guardian falls somewhat short, and us sorcerers don’t even count.”

“That’s true. I’ve felt that too.”

“If our ambition is to conquer just the human realm, we won’t have issues, but considering foes like the Celestial Realm or the Three Sovereigns, we are insufficient as we are. Thus, what we need now is to cultivate more martial artists.”

Zhuge Bu continued.

“Krishna also stated that meeting Asura directly is ill-timed. Therefore, now is the time to fortify our ranks and strengthen martial artists using your memory and fortuitous encounters. And raising up experts in the Absolute Realm to their fullest potential is paramount!”

“… Understood!”

After a lengthy meeting with my advisors, I exited the conference room. I then sought out the Sword Demon.

Swish.

Upon arriving at the Shadowless Gate, I greeted the Sword Demon.

“How have you been?”

“Hmm! Come inside, Your Majesty.”

The Sword Demon led me to the inner chamber, chuckling heartily.

“Since you’re the emperor now, it’s inappropriate for others to see you speaking informally to Baek Woong.”

“Being called an emperor is quite uncomfortable…”

“Since you’ve come here, does that mean you need my strength?”

I nodded and shared the Obsidian with the Sword Demon. After absorbing the memories, he pondered carefully.

“I see… Raising experts in the Absolute Realm! That’s extremely important.”

“Currently, you and Jin So-cheong are the closest to that goal. Extreme Tiger is also a possibility…”

“Extreme Tiger has already made a pact with you.”

“Yes.”

“Hmm. I understand your purpose for approaching me. You are seeking counsel on nurturing experts in the Absolute Realm for our forces, aren’t you?”

“Exactly.”

“Then we need to scout and cultivate the Poison King Tang San. Also, the Master of the Shadowless Sword and Dokgo Seong are the closest to the Absolute Realm. Personally, I think Master of the Teng Yu Alliance Wei Zhi-hun possesses similar martial talent.”

“I can’t fully trust them as comrades yet…”

“Haha. Trust… is that something we really need to discuss?”

“Huh?”

The Sword Demon smiled broadly.

“You’ve already proven your qualifications as a king and have become a true emperor. Those who know your truth can’t betray you. So there’s no need to be anxious about earning the trust of your underlings.”

“Hmm…”

“If it becomes necessary, you can simply expel them later.”

“Come to think of it, I heard you became the supreme being of the Heretical Sect. What happened to the other Eight Demons?”

“Oh, following your suggested approach made things quite easy. I killed off those who wouldn’t listen and the rest have all become my subordinates.”

The Sword Demon chuckled.

“I was skeptical, but as I properly mastered the Seven Great Techniques and the Eight Immortals Divine Art, those pests turned out to be nothing… Haha.”

Indeed.

What I suggested was simply infusing his martial art memories with the Obsidian so the Sword Demon could diligently train until the next gathering. After enhancing his internal power significantly with the Black and White Lotus technique, the Sword Demon attained more prowess than anticipated. The key was the quality of the memories.

The Sword Demon stroked his chin.

“Hmm. If you utilize your Obsidian well, nurturing experts in the Absolute Realm will not be a big issue. However, there is one thing that concerns me…”

“What is it?”

The Sword Demon’s eyes sparkled.

“An affair.”