Chapter 353: Bound Beast (1)

I examined the wide black cup placed before me.

“This is… the Holy Grail?”

A sinister energy radiated from the black cup before my eyes.

More than anything, the material—whether glass or metal—was indiscernible, and the oracle bone script etched on its surface revealed that this cup could not have been crafted merely a thousand years ago.

“……”

“Is there something wrong?”

Gu Chil asked again, his voice tinged with concern.

I picked up the cup and murmured quietly.

“This is contaminated.”

“Contaminated?”

Just as Gu Chil was about to come closer to inspect the Holy Grail—

I hurriedly released qi to push him away.

“Keuk! W-What are you doing?!”

Gu Chil fell backward and grimaced as he protested.

“It’s dangerous for you to look at this up close right now.”

The contaminated demonic energy exuding from the Holy Grail was harmful just to behold.

Even for someone of Gu Chil’s level as a demonic practitioner.

“So this is why the Evil Refining Sect couldn’t relocate elsewhere.”

I turned my gaze toward the entrance of the Heaven of Sacred Spirits, which now exuded a completely different aura.

‘Unless one possessed the key, they would never have known the true cause of what’s happening here.’

Had this place been left untouched in the past, it would’ve already become renowned as a demonic realm overflowing with monsters and venomous miasma.

‘The descendants of the Sun and Moon Divine Cult who founded the Evil Refining Sect must have placed this holy relic here to purify the leaking demonic energy…’

However, whether the previous Cult Leader of the Evil Refining Sect spoke with the assumption that I’d have the power to claim this object remained a question.

Even someone of Extreme Demon Realm could turn into a world-devouring monster if they mishandled this artifact.

“Gu Chil, did you say the Evil Refining Sect worships a being called the Great Evil Spirit?”

“That’s right.”

“The Evil Refining Sect split off from the Sun and Moon Divine Cult, didn’t they? Then why do they worship some unheard-of being like the Great Evil Spirit instead of the Sun and Moon Star God who illuminates the earth?”

Faced with my barrage of questions, Gu Chil scratched the back of his head in confusion.

“W-Well… I’m not too sure about that either…”

In truth, most people living in the current age would react the same.

To properly learn the history of the Evil Refining Sect, one would have to consult documents rather than people.

I fell into thought for a moment.

‘Senior Brother Sa claimed the Great Evil Spirit they speak of is the same god worshiped by the ancient Sun and Moon Divine Cult. But what if even Senior Brother Sa had inaccurate information…?’

After all, the Sa Gumhui he encountered was someone who existed before any of the endings had unfolded.

‘At the very least, I need to go inside to uncover the truth.’

But there was something bothering me.

‘If I enter now, will I be able to come back out in time?’

I already knew that time flowed differently inside the Heaven of Sacred Spirits, and I had benefited from that before.

But conversely, a single misstep could lead to a disaster where years—or even decades—passed.

‘What should I do…’

Ordinarily, I should withdraw and tie up all loose ends before returning.

Yet for some reason, I had a gut feeling that if I left now, I’d never find this again.

“……”

After agonizing over it for a while, I finally made a decision.

“So Soryu, how’s the cleanup going around here?”

“Almost perfectly done. Judging by the absence of children or women, it looks like the residential quarters must be located elsewhere.”

So Soryu clicked her tongue in disappointment.

Beside her, Gu Chil grimaced at her attitude and sent her a look of disgust, but she seemed unaware.

Even though this was the main base of the Evil Refining Sect, most of its actual military strength, including the Cult Leader, was out in the field, so this was practically a vacant lair.

“Gu Chil.”

“Yes.”

“If I don’t return within two days, leave this place immediately and return to the main cult.”

“……What?”

“If it were like with So Cheon, and I had the circumstances to train you, I’d want to bring you with me…”

I let out a bitter laugh at the ominous demonic power emanating from beyond.

“But no matter how I look at it, this just isn’t one of those times.”

Gu Chil shouted in a panic.

“W-Wait! What are you saying?!”

“I’m saying there’s something worth the risk of sudden danger.”

There was definitely something beyond that point, something as perilous as Cheon Yujeon when she awakened into the Heavenly Evil.

But still—

“For some reason, I feel like I might gain something huge this time.”

“Y-Young Master?! Young Maaaaster?!”

“Listen to me carefully and follow my instructions.”

Ignoring Gu Chil’s desperate cry, I opened the door leading into the Heaven of Sacred Spirits.

A place once overflowing with qi so dense that ordinary people couldn’t withstand it.

But unlike the jungle-like chaos of before, the completely different scenery before me made me swallow nervously.

‘It’s dark.’

And desolate.

The forest and trees had all withered and died, and the once-mighty river lay dry, exposing the barren land.

Crunch, crunch.

With every step I took, the brittle branches crumbled meaninglessly beneath my feet.

A landscape where all vitality had been sucked dry, leaving behind only a shell.

If there were ever a place that embodied the term “ruined world,” none would fit better than this.

‘Is it over there?’

I slowly made my way toward the distant source of the ominous aura.

Crossing the dried-up river, I soon arrived at the site where the corpse of Cheonak, once shown by the Heavenly Demon Founder, had lain.

And at that spot, instead of the original corpse, stood an old man whose entire body was bound in massive chains.

“……”

No doubt about it.

That being before me was the very one worshipped by the Evil Refining Sect as the so-called Great Evil Spirit.

Outwardly, he appeared as a heavily wounded old man, but I cautiously approached, prepared to draw my sword at any moment.

When I got within about ten paces—

Sssh.

A black radiance leaked out as the old man opened his eyes.

“It has truly been a long time since I’ve had a guest. What brings you here, young one?”

“……”

A calm and polite voice, far different from what I had expected.

But the moment I heard that voice, I couldn’t hide my shock.

Though slightly altered by time, it was unmistakably the voice of the Heavenly Demon Founder.

Maintaining my composure, I asked him,

“Are you… the Founder?”

At my words, the old man curved his lips into a faint smile.

“Oh? Could it be that you’re a descendant of the Cult? How delightful.”

The old man rattled the chains that bound him and gestured toward them.

“Judging by that vast and stable flow of energy, you must be the Cult Leader of a later generation.”

He immediately saw through my strength.

Although his guess that I was the Cult Leader was completely off the mark.

“This must be fate—would you mind freeing me from these cumbersome chains? From what I sense, you should have more than enough power.”

Instead of answering his request, I asked him a question.

“…‘Old man,’ how did you end up like this?”

At that, the old man shook his head with a bitter tone.

“I was betrayed. And most cruelly at that.”

“By whom?”

“By the one I trusted most.”

“If you mean the one you trusted most, are you referring to Yoo Jeon, who committed treason and was expelled from the Cult?”

The old man beamed like a child at my words.

“Oh? You’re well-informed! That much is certainly worthy of being recorded in history.”

“……”

He knew at least part of what happened in the past.

But amidst our short conversation, I began to feel a sense of unease.

He was merely echoing my words, avoiding giving any real answers to my questions.

“Come, now. Free me from these chains. If you do, I shall pass on all the insights and power I possess to you…”

“I’ll ask just three things. Please answer with only yes or no.”

“……”

Ignoring his offer, I pressed on.

“Is your true name Cheon Yuseong, the Heavenly Demon Founder?”

“……”

He gave no answer.

I ignored his silence and asked the second question.

“Are those divine chains binding you truly the work of the First Disciple, Yoo Jeon?”

“……”

Still, he remained silent.

“For the last question—what is the exact name of the one you say betrayed you?”

“……”

“Answer me.”

Even then, he did not respond.

He simply released a deadly aura toward me, exuding a presence entirely different from before.

Before long, a horrifying voice like metal scraping echoed out, completely unlike that of the Heavenly Demon Founder.

—Release this, now.

…Shiver.

The fact that it spoke not with a human voice but with spirit speech meant that this was its true voice.

I sighed and drew my sword.

“It seems you are not the Master I once knew.”

—What did you say?

“If you were truly the Heavenly Demon Founder, you would have recognized instantly that I am the disciple who inherited your legacy.”

This being undoubtedly possessed transcendent power.

But aside from that, it was not a martial artist.

“The one responsible for forging the chains binding you… I can more or less guess who it was. Perhaps a collaboration between the two of them.”

—……

“A being that holds the Founder’s memories, yet is not the Founder. My father-in-law once told me that such things exist in this world.”

It is the fate of those born with the Divine Demonic Physique.

A destined enemy they must one day face and overcome.

“The demonic nature. More precisely, a fragment of the Demon Immortal that makes up the soul of the Heavenly Demon Founder. That’s your true identity, isn’t it?”

—……

“Am I wrong?”

The being refused to answer me to the very end.

Clatterrrr!

Instead, the massive chains that bound it began to stir all at once.

And then—

The densely packed chains, stretching to blot out the sky, all came crashing down toward where I stood.

Kwagwagwang!

—You’re a perceptive little brat.

The demonic nature—no, the fragment of the Demon Immortal—ground its teeth.

It had planned to lure me into releasing the seal, devour my body, and return to the world once more.

But somehow, from just a few words of conversation, I had sensed something off and seen straight through its identity.

—I cannot understand. A long time must have passed in the outside world, and the place where I, the True Immortal, was sealed should have long since faded into the annals of history…

Kwaang! Kwagwagwang!

The corrupted black chains relentlessly struck the eroded ground.

—And yet, you speak as though you lived through that era yourself.

“To a degree, I have.”

Even amid the chain bombardment, I managed to protect myself somehow.

The moment it saw me emerge through the thick cloud of dust—

—I truly cannot understand.

The fragment of the Demon Immortal frowned and asked me this:

—Why are you smiling right now?

“How could I not smile?”

I was overjoyed.

Truly overjoyed.

Even though the being before me was sealed, it was clear I couldn’t handle it with my current strength.

And yet—

One single realization made me forget every hardship I had endured in body and spirit.

“The fact that you are still bound here means the two Senior Brothers ultimately succeeded in resolving the demonic nature that once bound Master.”

Considering all the fragments of the Heavenly Demon Founder scattered throughout the world, the process must have been anything but smooth.

Which means—

“Then the demonic nature currently residing within Yura can also be resolved—somehow.”

Now that I had confirmed this fact—

There was no way.

I was leaving empty-handed.

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