The man stared at the scene unfolding before his eyes with an emotionless face.
The corpses were strewn here and there. If the corpses were piled up in one place, it would literally form a mountain of bodies, but there was no particular reason to do so.
The man's gaze slowly lowered.
Two torn corpses and the weapons they were holding lay on the floor, their owners missing.
The ground, soaked in blood, was dyed red.
Despite all this, the man's eyes did not hold even a passing emotion.
He slowly raised his hand. He stared at it, unstained by a single drop of blood, before turning his gaze to the distant sky.
"High priest."
At that moment, the warrior approached and called out.
"I have erased all living things in this area."
However, no words came from the high priest's mouth. The cleric simply prostrated himself on the cold floor, waiting for him to speak.
Finally, the high priest opened his mouth.
"… Isn't it weird?"
"What do you mean…"
The man, once called Dan Ja-Kang but now nameless, lowered his head and spoke.
"It is so easy."
"…."
"For the Cult, the Central Plains was a place that had to be erased from the world at all costs."
"That is right."
"But these people are so weak."
The high priest slowly shook his head.
"Are they weak? Or are we so strong?"
"I do not know the answer."
"Well, either way, it is the same for us."
The high priest walked slowly. He crossed the land covered with blood and corpses with a sloshing sound.
"If it was so easy… why did the Cult endure all that time in hunger and despair?"
"Because that is the mission of the Cult."
"… Yes. It is the mission given to us."
Because it was His command.
The eyes of the high priest darkened.
'I don't know.'
Was it because he wasn't faithful? Or was the teaching of the Cult wrong?
After witnessing the true nature of the Central Plains, which he had despised so deeply, a pressing question gripped the high priest.
"Why was the Cult defeated?"
"… the Cult was not defeated."
"Then let us change the formation. Why couldn't the Cult trample on the Central Plains and had to hide in the barren land? Against such weak people."
"… that is…"
The man hesitated, unable to speak. He feared that even the slightest misstep in his response might cast doubt on his faith.
The high priest smiled gently.
"You don't have to answer that."
"…."
The reason was simple.
Had this place called the Central Plains completely lost its former power after being immersed in peace for the last hundred years… if not, then…
The high priest shook his head, as if to dispel the disturbing thoughts creeping into his mind. It was an old habit of his to shake his head in such moments.
When he raised his head, it seemed as if the words he had heard countless times echoed in his ears.
-Our mission is to wait for His Second coming. Do not think anything else. Do not doubt. The only thing that is allowed to his servants is sincere faith.
'Such old people….'
A hundred years have passed. Over time, the mountains and rivers have changed tenfold.
They just waited and waited.
Believing in that 'Second Coming' that has no timetable.
Can they truly call it a life, not thinking, not doubting, and just blindly following?
He did not have this mindset from the beginning. To him, faith in the Heavenly Demon was so natural. He served the Heavenly Demon since he could remember anything. He learned to wait for Him with joy, and he practiced dedicating his life to Him with joy.
The first time he questioned and thought about something was due to a very small incident.
Someone's death.
Like him, he had never seen the face of the Heavenly Demon. For the first time, he saw someone who was born after the war, who had just learned and lived by the teachings, get sick and die.
Those who wait will witness the light of the Second Coming.
Right. Let's say that's not wrong.
Then? What about those who died without seeing the Second Coming?
What is given to those who died without ever confirming the existence of the Heavenly Demon even once in their lifetime?
What is left for those who endured hellish training just for that moment and lived a life without meaning?
If nothing is given, why do the followers have to endure such a painful life?
Why?
The high priest's eyes were gloomy beyond belief.
No matter how much he questioned, there was no answer. All he could say was to believe and wait.
Those who controlled the upper warriors of the Cult were those who had experience in the previous war in one way or another. And those people were so obsessed with the extreme fanaticism of the Heavenly Demon that they did not allow any doubt.
What kind of conversation could one have with those who would consider it an honor to take off their own skin and use it as a footcloth for the Heavenly Demon?
So Dan Ja-kang waited. He simply waited for those long years. He tried to shake off his doubts and fill himself entirely with faith alone.
But once a doubt sprouted, it never leaves. Doubts were eating him away like a demon.
What if the Heavenly Demon never returns? No, what if he returns after he dies?
Then what on earth was the purpose of Dan Ja-kang's life?
No matter how great a famous sword is, it is meaningless if it is not taken out of its sheath and swung. Who would want a sword born as a famous one only to rust and turn into scrap metal without ever being swung?
"High priest…."
A subtle sense of anxiety crossed the voice of the prostrated messenger warrior.
"You can still turn back. High priest. Even now…."
"Enough."
Dan Ja-Kang shook his head firmly this time.
"High priest."
The messenger warrior bit his lip.
"I don't care about my life at all. I fully understand that what you are trying to do is another way to prove your faith in Him."
"But?"
"But they won't think of it like that. They will not tolerate such doubt. If we go further…"
"What? Are you worried that I'll be torn to pieces by those old men?"
"… High priest."
"It is a pointless worry."
Dan Ja-Kang's gaze turned to a distant place.
"We will not set foot in the Central Plains and will wait for the Second Coming."
"Yes. That is our mission."
"Those who defy the command of the Heavenly Demon will only be punished with death."
"That too…"
The warrior closed his mouth. He understood Dan Ja-Kang's intention.
Those two things are absolute propositions that any disciple must adhere to. However…
"The moment they set foot in the Central Plains to capture me, the old men will also be betraying their mission. They will never set foot here."
Dan Ja-Kang smiled bitterly.
'It's full of contradictions.'
The teachings of the Heavenly Demon did not match each other. He only realized this after becoming a high priest. The teachings they believed in were nothing more than a jumbled string of short phrases that elders uttered.
"There is no need to doubt."
Dan Ja-Kang said in a heavy voice.
"If He truly cares for us, watches over us, and guides us, He will surely respond to our earnest desires. I am merely a servant who represents the disciples and conveys His message to them."
"…."
When there was no answer, he glanced down at the messenger warrior.
"Say."
"… How can…"
"Say it."
Unable to resist the urging, the man bit his lip and then slightly opened his mouth.
"If… if… one in a thousand, one in a thousand, He does not hear our cries… if He does not return right away, what will you do?"
Dan Ja-Kang answered with indifferent eyes.
"That cannot be."
"High priest."
"He will surely respond."
He turned away from the warrior.
But deep in his eyes, pretending to be indifferent to all, something small flickered.
'Do I not have an answer?'
He had asked that question countless times. However, no matter how much he asked himself, the answer didn't come.
'I will find out when it happens.'
Dan Ja-Kang's eyes, which had been suppressing the gloom blooming in his heart, suddenly turned faint.
"We have guests."
The messenger warrior got up at those words and stared ahead with a sharp gaze.
"They seem a bit different."
A faint smile formed on the lips of Dan Ja-Kang.
Maybe they would let him experience the true power of the Central Plains, which he hadn't realized until then.
"I will handle it."
"No, leave it to me. Let me listen to them first."
Dan Ja-Kang slowly stepped ahead. The opponent must have recognized him, as he ran straight towards Dan Ja-Kang.
Soon, warriors, so aroused that their skin felt hot, lined up opposite Dan Ja-Kang. There were over a hundred of them.
"Hmm."
Before Dan Ja-Kang could even open his mouth, one person walked out from among them.
A cold-faced middle-aged man wearing a blue shirt, Desolate Gold Elder, finally faced Dan Ja-Kang.
"In charge?"
Dan Ja-Kang did not answer.
However, Desolate Gold Elder seemed to have already heard of it and didn't wait any longer before giving a signal.
Then, the people behind him brought out this large box and placed it in front of Desolate Gold Elder.
Tak!
More than a dozen boxes the size of a human stomach fell ahead at the same time. The lids opened, and all kinds of precious jewels and gold bars poured out. The sight was like a grain sack bursting open.
Dan Ja-Kang absentmindedly glanced at the treasures that were so numerous that his eyes were spinning.
"What is this?"
"A gift."
"… Gift now?"
Desolate Gold Elder nodded slowly.
"This is the place to welcome the world's greatest Demonic Cult, so I cannot come here without gifts. Think of this as the sincerity of the Black Ghost Tower."
Dan Ja-Kang's lips formed into a smile.
"And what do you want?"
"Conversation. And negotiation."
"Conversation…"
When Dan Ja-Kang didn't continue speaking, Desolate Gold Elder spoke first.
"I want to know what you want."
"Why?"
"If there is something we can do, we can cooperate."
The eyes of Desolate Gold Elder were dark enough to make it hard to guess what his plans were. Dan Ja-Kang mumbled slowly.
"If it is what I want…"
Step. Step.
He calmly walked ahead. Then he picked up a handful of treasures lying in the box.
"It is abundant."
Clench. Crack.
The treasures in his hand were distorted and broken in an instant. The gold was torn and melted, and the jewels were turned to dust and scattered.
"… this is such a rich land. Such useless things that cannot be eaten have value."
"If you want…"
However, Desolate Gold Elder was not at all flustered.
"The price could be grain piled up like a mountain. Or it could be the land you will live on."
"…"
"I cannot guarantee that I can give you everything one can get in the world. But I can give you most things."
"Hmm."
"Tell me, what do you want? It won't be a losing deal. What we want to gain is so small compared to what we will give you."
Dan Ja-Kang curled his dark lips.
"We don't need grain, land, or wealth…"
"Then?"
Desolate Gold Elder didn't waver.
It was clear that they wanted something. So there was no reason to waver.
"But… I think you do have what I want."
Dan Ja-Kang stared right at Desolate Gold Elder.
"Tell me, you infidel."
"…"
"Is your fame high enough to shake this Central Plains?"
Desolate Gold Elder nodded with a blank expression at those words.
"My fame is not that low."
"Right. I see. Then it is good enough."
Dan Ja-Kang smiled brightly.
"Your death will definitely be known to the world. So much so that everyone will know that we are here."
Desolate Gold Elder's eyes, which had been calm the entire time, twitched for a moment.
"What you want…"
"Now shut your filthy mouth, you disgusting infidel. Just talking to you is rotting my ears."
Blood began to pour from Dan Ja-Kang's eyes.
"All I need is your last words. Shout, shout until your throat bursts, so that your insignificant screams will echo throughout the world."
"Fucking…"
The expression on Desolate Gold Elder's face changed.
The madness emanating from Dan Ja-Kang was suffocating him.
"Great lord!"
"Negotiations are broken off. We will start by striking the head of the enemy!"
The good news, however, was that they were right in front of the enemy leader. If they could just eliminate that one man, the followers of the enemy would be in shambles!
"Kill them!"
As soon as Desolate Gold Elder's order was given, the elite of the Black Ghost Tower charged towards the High Priest, emitting killing intent.
But at that moment.
Kwaaaang!
A storm of unimaginable demonic qi swept through Dan Ja-Kang. The black qi surged endlessly into the sky like the giant fist of a dragon.
In front of that magnificent sight, the elite of the Black Ghost Tower who were rushing in stopped in their tracks.
"Uh… hh…"
Is this really a sight created by humans?
Blood light poured out from the ominously dark and black vortex.
"Only death will make you worthy!"
Demonic qi from Dan Ja-Kang gushed out in all directions.