1116——————==

Soul of the Evil God

Are we summoning something?

Usually, “summoning” carries an ominous meaning, so I urgently said.

“Then we might as well kill it right now!”

Shwoosh!!

At that, Fuxi teleported me next to him. A massive Tai Chi barrier surrounded us.

[You don’t need to rush. Right now, both Nüwa and I are giving it our all. No being can remain unharmed within.]

Fuxi continued without taking his eyes off the front.

[But there’s one thing I want you to know. Both the outside world and the sovereign you’ve made a pact with won’t hear what I say, so be honest.]

“Eh?”

[Baek Woong. Since we first met, you haven’t clearly told me your goal. Isn’t that right?]

“……”

[You entered the Land and Earth Diagram to train for the apocalypse, and by chance, you ended up in this world… that was your explanation, right? But your actions and words suggest something else entirely.]

“I don’t really have a different purpose…”

I said in a voice that seemed to crawl out of me, but Fuxi firmly replied a moment later.

[You want to kill all the gods.]

“……!!”

[That’s probably your ultimate goal.]

What?! How did he know? I didn’t say a word!

I tried to keep my expression neutral, but Fuxi continued.

[You claimed you were training for the end times, yet it seems you have little intention of simply leading humanity to safety. You didn’t even mention efforts to protect humanity or create gods to safeguard them. You’ve accepted the apocalypse as a given.]

“……”

[It’s a contradiction. A savior without any efforts for salvation. And if my guess is correct, you are a being that restarts whenever you die…. For you, the ultimate victory condition isn’t saving humanity. Even if it means confronting the apocalypse, you seek to gather all information and ultimately eradicate all beings that harm humanity—essentially, the One Who Destroys the Gods, right?]

Fuxi’s face slowly moved closer to mine, and the cosmic pressure was overwhelming as his mysterious eyes locked onto me.

[No matter how many times it takes.]

I feel caught.

Fuxi spoke.

[You’re in deep thought.]

“What do you mean?”

[If your goal was just the salvation of humanity, I would support you entirely. But the more I think about it, the more convinced I become that you will grow into a being that destroys the world, both chaos and order included. Is it right to assist someone destined to cause such destruction?]

“……”

[To be honest, sealing you in this world forever would be the right choice. Your power is weak now, but in the future, you will become infinitely strong. If a being that transcends cycles repeatedly engages in this task, outclassing the Three Sovereigns will become inevitable.]

“W-who knows about that…”

[You’ve already been an apostle of Jeon Wook, haven’t you? From what I know, just the power you’ve gained here at the Land and Earth Diagram is more than enough for you to become the overlord of Earth.]

Ugh.

Feeling threatened and hesitant, Fuxi said.

[So answer me, Reborn Person.]

Fuxi seemed to have already guessed that my life’s trajectory qualifies as a rebirth.

“What do you mean?”

[If given the chance to annihilate all existence, would you proceed with it, or would you seek to preserve humanity and compromise for its continued existence and peace?]

“……!!”

[Ultimately, your future hinges on that choice…. I, Tai Long Fuxi, want to hear that answer.]

I realized how significant this question was. Just one answer would decide everything. I blinked for a moment, realizing I already had a response ready. But to express it, I needed courage more than logic.

I clenched my teeth and answered.

“Lord Fuxi. What you call the ‘annihilation of all’—I refer to it as True Martial Home.”

[Since you’ve named it, does that mean someone has tried it before?]

“Yes. A being named Dharma attempted it later. Although, it ended in failure.”

I continued.

“I’m reincarnating to fulfill Dharma’s will and achieve the true True Martial Home.”

[What does true True Martial Home mean exactly?]

“Eradicating even the Outer Gods that exist beyond the ‘cycle.’ Dharma succeeded in establishing True Martial Home initially, but he lacked the means to eliminate the Outer Gods, resulting in failure. He left the maintenance of this task to me.”

[…….]

Fuxi widened his eyes slightly in surprise, indicating he found my words unexpected. I was aware that saying the wrong thing could lead to my end, yet I bravely continued.

“I still… don’t have a concrete plan on how to achieve that. But one day, I will make it happen.”

[Truly absurd. How can you declare to annihilate beings that exist outside the cycle? These beings are transcendent entities, equivalent to my ancestors…. Hmmm. However, from one perspective, you too are a being that transcends the cycle, so it might be possible.]

“Yes. I will not compromise and will strive for my goal one day. In fact, someone has already made such a proposal to me, but I turned it down.”

Five hundred years into the future, when I had a dream, it was during the gathering arranged by Master Mangnyang.

Someone proposed that in exchange for ensuring humanity’s future prosperity and postponing its doom, I should relinquish my right to ascend. I kicked that sweet proposal away and chose to say nothing.

Looking back, that was an incredibly foolish choice, but I had no regrets about it. I felt I’d come too far to compromise now.

Fuxi, affirming my conviction, said,

[Good. Then why do you seek to annihilate everything? Why don’t you strive to protect the happy reality before your eyes? By becoming the Emperor of the Peaceful Millennium Kingdom, you could enjoy immense happiness. And your companions could be happy as well.]

“It’s simple.”

I expressed my true feelings through my murky eyes.

“Ultimately, as long as gods exist, such happiness is meaningless… Nothing will end unless this very world is eradicated.”

[Nothing will end, you say….]

“I will kill this world. I would rather smash it all to pieces than watch someone mockingly play with it.”

The hatred boiling from the depths of a crawled-up existence.

That emotion still smoldered and blazed within my heart.

Perhaps it was because of feelings like this that I was never meant to be a king.

[After the True Martial Home has annihilated everything, there’s no guarantee that something new will begin, you know?]

“Yes.”

From the feeling I had during Zhuge Sa’s demise.

And the realization I felt from Dharma’s inheritance.

All of that was encapsulated in this reply.

[…….]

Fuxi stared at me in silence.

[Baek Woong. If I told you that being honest would make me want to seal you, you probably saw that coming. But still, is there a reason you shared your thoughts so openly?]

“If you do so, I won’t hold it against you. I’ve already received that much grace from you.”

While I couldn’t hand over the obsidian to Fuxi, I still felt I owed him greatly, so I was ready to speak my mind, believing it was only right. Even if he intended to seal me for eons, I would have to accept it.

[So… I see.]

Fuxi suddenly said,

[Baek Woong. The fastest way for you to reach your goal is to resurrect the One Who Destroys the Gods.]

“Excuse me?”

[Resurrect that being, eliminate the Emperor and all the Three Sovereigns, and while you perform the ritual of True Martial Home, ensure you have a Dharma Protector stationed. That would be the best course of action.]

I blinked in surprise at those unexpected words.

“You’re not going to seal me?”

Fuxi chuckled lightly.

[As I said from the start, if this world is a fictional one, then anything I do now would be meaningless… Sealing a reincarnated being as weak as you in a dreamlike state would be going against the order of things.]

“…….”

[If you had spouted some lame excuse or falsehood, I would have been disappointed and done away with you. I wouldn’t want to help a meaningless fool.]

I felt a chill run down my spine.

Could it be that the desperate choice I made turned out to be the right answer instead?

I stammered in shock.

“B-but I’m not joking. I really will annihilate the world one day….”

Fuxi burst into hearty laughter.

[Hahaha. Maybe in about 56 billion years?]

“…….”

[Looks like you haven’t been reincarnated for long yet.]

“Excuse me?”

[I’ve realized that I’m just a memory of the Land and Earth Diagram, and I don’t feel much impact from it. I’ve had a vague awareness of my existence as a dreamlike being ever since I was born in the God Seat. For me, it’s just like adding another picture frame to a dream.]

Fuxi continued with a strange tone.

[But… doesn’t this attitude to life apply only to those within the Land and Earth Diagram? Don’t you guys have frames as well? Not my place to judge.]

“……?”

What’s he talking about?

[Someday… a time will come when all beings must face the truth. Perhaps that could be the true apocalypse.]

Fuxi continued with obscure words.

[I have a reason for laying it all out before you. Because I can’t stop that summoning with my power.]

“Excuse me?!”

You can’t stop the summoning?!

Kugugugugu

As Fuxi said, the Emperor’s body trapped in the Eight Trigrams and moonlight was burning away, but dark smoke continued to seep out. It was certain that the Emperor was summoning something at the cost of his own life. Stiffly staring at the scene unfolding before me, Fuxi said.

[It seems that being is trying to summon an Outer God. No doubt about it.]

That caused me to gasp.

“Outer God!! Is it really possible to summon an Outer God?!”

[No matter how much we are gods, normally, that would be impossible. Even if all the conditions for summoning are met, there’s no guarantee it will respond. It could all be for nothing, sacrificing only their own souls, so generally, it’s something people avoid.]

Fuxi narrowed his gaze at the scene ahead.

[The Emperor has confidence. He believes that the Outer God he’s calling will surely respond to his summons, and also that it won’t harm him, the summoner….]

“How is that even possible?”

[There’s one case in which it’s possible….]

At that moment, Fuxi glanced at Nüwa with a lingering gaze. I was puzzled as to what that meant, but Fuxi quickly got to the point.

[Since I’ve called upon my father Pangu’s strength, I won’t be easily defeated either. However, now that summoning the Outer God seems a foregone conclusion, we can already consider this fight as lost.]

“……”

[Baek Woong. I will share my reasoning with you, trusting you. This Land and Earth Diagram belongs to whose memory?]

I flinched in surprise at Fuxi’s words and nodded eagerly.

“Please tell me.”

I needed to know whose memory this was to exit this treasure. Focusing all my attention, Fuxi said.

[This isn’t the memory of the Three Sovereigns. Nor is it Nüwa’s or my own. And it’s certainly not the memory of the Emperor and his subordinates that could qualify as sovereigns either.]

“…No way. That doesn’t make sense…”

[The owner of this memory is someone we weren’t even aware of. I’ve already figured out who it is.]

“How do you know that?”

[You were involved in the demise of Yu Shun, weren’t you?]

“…That’s probably true.”

[As I thought.]

Upon quickly linking the contradictory dots, I hesitated but replied, and Fuxi continued.

[As far as I can tell, for Yu Shun to perish in that manner, a contradiction in the simultaneity of existence must have occurred. It must be due to the martial techniques or powers held by that powerful tool you possess. You probably used that tool to annihilate Yu Shun, and since then, Yu Shun has been destined for annihilation in the temporal space of the world you exist in.]

“……”

How could there be such an astute being?

As I stood there, astonished, Fuxi said.

[Yet, despite Yu Shun facing a contradiction in simultaneity and being eliminated, none of the sovereigns experienced any derivative effects or influence. This means Yu Shun is definitely not the true owner of the memory, nor are the sovereigns linked to Yu Shun. Because they are all interconnected through the Law of Cause and Effect of the Divine Temple, if someone were the owner of the dream, they surely should have exhibited anomalous behavior due to those derivative effects. But neither the Emperor nor anyone else acted outside of the expected parameters.]

“Jeon Wook didn’t betray the Emperor?”

[I’ve suspected from the beginning that he’d act up once given the right trigger.]

“…I see.”

[And if Nüwa and I were the owners of this memory, while reaching this point where the dream’s conclusion is near, we should have sensed an omen—but none was felt. Not to mention Shennong.]

“Then whose memory is it?”

[Isn’t it obvious? All the events until now have been close to all-knowing. There has been no interference from anyone’s perspective or will. That’s why I deduce the presence of a third party, and there can only be one.]

“Hmm…. Could it be…?”

I called out with a glimmer of hope.

“It’s the Thunder God! He’s the true owner of this memory!”

[What makes you think that?]

“…Uh…. The painting in the Land and Earth Diagram depicted Fuxi, Nüwa, and the Thunder God, right? If so, it must be one of the three, and if it’s not you or Nüwa, it has to be the Thunder God!”

I brimming with confidence, thinking my deduction was right.

Zzap zzap

But Fuxi was dismissive as he watched the summoning of the Outer God unfold.

[Wrong.]

“…What?!”

[If what you said were true, the Thunder God would have to create new causalities or incidents in some way as it’s his own memory. In a realm of memories, that can’t help but be the case. However, after he was defeated by Nüwa and me in a joint effort, he never showed himself again.]

“……”

[Baek Woong. Think a little harder. If the Land and Earth Diagram is a painting, doesn’t that mean there are four characters present?]

“Four characters? But I only see three…”

There were precisely three figures—Nüwa, Fuxi, and the Thunder God—visible in the painting. No other characters were depicted within the scroll. I fidgeted, confused by Fuxi’s words, yet he smiled faintly and said.

[There is a character not drawn in the painting…. Isn’t it the existence that has merely observed these events and preserved them in memory? An observer wouldn’t draw themselves in the painting, would they? After all, they witnessed it with their own eyes, so there’s no need to depict themselves.]

“…Oh.”

[Based on what you’ve shared, there’s only one possible observer. That is….]

Dukukukuku…!!

At that moment, darkness settled over the Emperor, and bit by bit, he began to entomb himself in the mist of darkness. Just as the Emperor’s form began to fade as if consumed by shadows, he spoke.

[Fuxi…. I will curse you. I can’t believe that, thanks to you, I would have to use my trump card to combat the vile being during the time of the apocalypse.]

[What?]

Whoosh!

[The Great Chaos is descending.]

The Emperor’s form vanished completely. The area surrounded by the Eight Trigrams and moonlight was left only with dark smoke, thickening the ominous silence. Fuxi, Nüwa, and all the divine beings stared at the scene, tense.

What on earth is happening?

After waiting in vain for a while, nothing seemed to materialize. I held my breath, and when nothing happened, I let out a sigh of relief, saying to Fuxi.

“Lord Fuxi, I don’t think anything’s wrong.”

[…….]

“When will that smoke disappear?”

[Baek Woong.]

“Yes?”

[Send me straight to Luoyang. You need to find the ‘Observer’ there.]

Fuxi’s voice was imbued with tension. He was staring intently into the heart of the smoky haze, and I could sense a hint of [fear] in his demeanor. Confused, I spoke.

“What do you mean suddenly? Has the Outer God already descended?”

[…Yes. The observer watches us from there. Can’t you feel this power?]

Fuxi, speaking in a slightly trembling voice, said.

[The faceless chaos…. the coming chaos.]

Woowooong

Fuxi quickly created a barrier of Eight Trigrams around me. Then, forcefully teleporting me, he said.

[You must…. find the observer!! There’s no other way!]

Pa-at

In the next moment, I found myself in a desolate place. Surrounding me were primitive-looking barbarians resembling those from prehistoric times, and they stared at me with curious eyes.

Did Fuxi send me back to the earthly realm?

As I pondered this, a sorrowful cry from a god echoed out, making me feel something twist inside me.

‘This, this is.’

Is the connection from the apostle’s contract breaking?!

Moments later, I saw something drop from the sky. Within the vast night sky, the dark battlefield of the gods was reflecting, and there I spotted the neck of Shao Hao Jin Tian flying away.

Bam

With a horrific noise, I felt another severing of the apostolic connection.

This was a feeling that was hardly ever sensed.

And from the remnants scattering in the night sky, I realized what was happening in the Divine Temple.

That was the broken armament of Jeon Wook.

‘No way….’

Swish swish swish

Next, I saw the giant sword of Shennong sailing through the night sky. The arm wielding it had been torn apart, akin to something mauled by a beast.

Kugugugugu

[I can’t take this any longer…. But….]

[Nüwa, it was enjoyable while it lasted. Now it’s the end.]

[Fuxi…!! This can’t be happening.]

Nüwa and Fuxi desperately fought against someone, unleashing their elemental powers, but it appeared they were outmatched as their flesh was being continually ripped by the darkness. Moments later, their forms were completely consumed by the shadows.

“……”

I stared into the night sky and then dropped to my knees.

The Three Sovereigns had been annihilated.