Deep within Bisuta Valley lay the far end of a canyon, where thousand-fathom cliffs stood ringed about like a folding screen.
Pushing through the dense forest, a massive rock wall rose as if to cover the sky.
On the surface of the rock, blackened by the weathering of time, moss and vines were tangled together, and a cave entrance gaping like an open mouth was pierced through the center like a black hole.
The height of the entrance alone was large enough for three or four grown men to stand on top of each other, and the width was wide enough for five or six carts to enter side by side.
Scattered chaotically on the ground around the cave were bones large and small, with the bones appearing to belong to deer or wild boars bleached white.
The wide open space in front of the entrance was trampled so thoroughly that not a single blade of grass could grow properly.
Massive claw marks were deeply gouged into the rocks.
A fishy smell resembling rotting flesh drifted from inside the cave, and occasional low growls echoed through the canyon.
The surroundings were enveloped in a strange silence; not a single bird chirped.
-'Uaaagh!'
-'Save me!'
But then, desperate screams echoed from the cave entrance.
Bu Eunseol, who was hiding outside the cave wrapped in Wind-Cloud Divine Qi, widened his eyes at the desperate screams.
'An incident has occurred.'
Up until now, he had been constantly following Pahon and meticulously observing his whereabouts.
However, a massive wanderer alliance was formed to hunt the Blood Bird, and numerous wanderers had entered the cave.
He had no choice but to wait outside.
After all, Pahon and his companions were merely playing the role of porters in the rear.
Moreover, it would not matter how well he hid himself.
If he lingered around while they were fighting inside the cave, he could end up disrupting the formation the wanderers had set up.
But then the screams echoed endlessly from the cave, and the wanderers came rushing out in droves.
He intuitively realized that something had gone wrong.
'Pahon has not come out.'
Bu Eunseol, wrapped in Wind-Cloud Divine Qi, immediately and stealthily entered the cave.
'Damn.'
From the entrance it was a complete mess, and the gruesome corpses of wanderers were scattered everywhere.
He went inside and thoroughly examined the interior, but only fleeing wanderers and Blood Birds brushed past him.
Pahon's figure was nowhere to be seen.
'It's dangerous.'
Intuiting that he had fallen into danger, Bu Eunseol spread the Wind-Cloud Divine Qi in all directions.
Then, a bizarre energy began to be felt from deep within the cave.
Sssst.
Bu Eunseol turned his body transparent with the Wind-Cloud Divine Qi and moved rapidly deeper in.
There he discovered a narrow crevice that a person could barely squeeze their body into.
And as he entered it,
"...!"
He was able to discover a gaunt man sitting quietly in a lotus position, with a worn piece of cloth wrapped around his head.
He sat peacefully in a hellish space filled with corpses and blood.
He was just like a Buddha undergoing asceticism.
And Pahon was lying flat on the floor in a gruesome state,
[Do you want revenge.]
An unexpected conversation was going back and forth.
[If so, I will give you power... but in return, you must become the king of the spirit creatures.]
The man reached out a bony hand toward Pahon.
'The king of spirit creatures...'
In that moment, Bu Eunseol widened his eyes.
He intuitively realized who that gaunt and quiet man, looking like a Buddha, was.
The True Demon.
That man was trying to take him in as kin by exploiting Pahon's vengeful spirit, which had only deep grudges left.
Clench.
Bu Eunseol, who was watching with clenched fists, was momentarily engulfed in conflict.
'Must I intervene.'
He was a person who did not belong in this era. His body had also completely changed into that of an unknown person.
What if this place was actual history?
Was it truly acceptable to intervene in its flow?
"Uuuuuh."
At that time, along with a low howl, the prostrate Pahon was slowly reaching out his hand.
As if it were a trick of fate, he had lost everything and fallen into the swamp of despair.
And now he was about to enter a path of corruption that could not be turned back even after a thousand years.
'If I just leave him be.'
For a long age to come, Pahon would live as something else.
He would become one body with the king of spirit creatures, the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede... hating humans, hunting humans.
And he would live a desperate life, chased by humans in turn.
Was he supposed to just watch this moment when the endless cycle of pain and anger was placed on him?
'I cannot.'
However, the situation was already rushing toward catastrophe.
In a silence where even time seemed to have stopped.
The man sitting in the lotus position moved.
He slowly reached out his dry hand toward the head of Pahon, who was sobbing face down on the ground.
Paaat!
A dazzling radiance blooming from the tip of the man's hand completely swallowed the interior of the cave.
"Stoooop!"
Bu Eunseol shouted as he dashed forward with all his might, but,
Flash!
The interior of the cave instantly turned into a pure white space where all color and sound had been erased.
Booooom!
The blinding flash lasted as long as eternity.
The light pierced through his eyelids, and an ear-splitting explosion penetrated his entire body.
In an instant, everything disappeared.
Sound, light, and even sensation.
Bu Eunseol felt as if he were sinking into deep water, and even though he tried to move with all his might, his body would not listen.
Twitch.
Finally, sensation slowly returned to his body, and,
"This is!"
When he opened his eyes, the two people were nowhere to be seen.
Only sand dust fluttered emptily, as if to prove that someone had been there.
Both the Buddha-like man and the screaming Pahon... had vanished without a trace, as if they had evaporated.
Fwooosh!
Bu Eunseol hurriedly spread Wind-Cloud Divine Qi in all directions to trace their presence.
But as if they had never been here from the start, he could not find a single trace.
"They will appear again soon."
―'Do you want revenge.'
When the horribly wounded Pahon howled, the True Demon clearly asked if he wanted revenge.
In other words, Pahon had lost his comrades and wanted desperate revenge.
And he had accepted the offer.
He would undoubtedly return for revenge.
And that premonition soon became a terrible reality.
―'The king of spirit creatures has appeared in Nasumina!'
A forest thickly covered in damp fog.
A rumor had spread that the king of spirit creatures, the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede, had appeared in Nasumina.
Wanderers blinded by greed all flocked here.
But what awaited them was not a legendary spirit creature, but an incarnation of revenge risen from hell.
Every time two red eyes flashed in the darkness, screams spread out.
Every time a massive shadow brushed past the forest, fresh blood soared like a fountain.
―'Save me!'
The wanderers swung their weapons like madmen in terror.
But they could not pierce the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede's skin, which was like solid armor, and instead lost their lives in vain.
―'Retreat!'
In the end the wanderers fled madly.
The Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede relentlessly pursued them.
Tearing their limbs apart one by one like paper, crushing and tearing at their flesh and bones...
He delivered a cruel death, very slowly.
Most of the dead wanderers were of one kind.
They were those who had driven Pahon's comrades to death in the past.
They were the despicable ones who had worked the naive wanderers, who lacked ability but relied on each other to survive, like beasts.
And who in the end threw them to the spirit creatures as prey, and survived.
Pahon delivered death in the same way his comrades had died.
No, a death even more gruesome than that.
―'Hehehe... Hahahaha!'
Having severed the breath of all the wanderers, Pahon burst into a desperate, mad laughter.
He had torn apart all the enemies who drove his family-like comrades to death, but.
What filled his chest was only endless emptiness and sorrow.
―'Humans are not worth keeping alive.'
The only things that could fill the emptiness and sorrow were hatred and slaughter.
Thus, he became the king of spirit creatures, a great demon who tore apart and ate every wanderer who entered the forest.
―'The Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede must be eradicated!'
Nasumina became a forest of death that no one could enter, and as rumors of the appearance of the king of spirit creatures spread throughout Cheonchuk.
The martial artists and wanderers of Cheonchuk gathered in Nasumina.
Wanderers shouting for revenge for their sacrificed comrades, martial artists chasing honor, and even factions trying to maintain order...
Thus, a massive punitive brigade, comprising all the elites of Cheonchuk, was formed.
―'We must absolutely kill the Black Centipede and restore peace!'
The punitive brigade included not only top-tier wanderers but also numerous outstanding masters from various sects.
It was no longer a disorganized rabble.
Having cast a multi-layered net around Nasumina, they advanced.
They kept extremely precise formations and strategies, holding their ranks strictly.
Rrrrumble.
Pahon, who had become the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede, attempted to defeat the punitive brigade individually by disrupting them using the forest's geography.
Appearing from the darkness to slit their throats with sharp claws and vanishing, he drove them into a corner by spreading poison mist.
The punitive brigade suffered massive damage, but that was because they were not yet accustomed to the existence and abilities of the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede.
As time passed, they gradually got used to Pahon's strategies and began to counterattack.
On the other hand, Pahon lacked combat experience.
Since he could not perfectly control the power of the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede, he could not control other spirit creatures.
Moreover, he did not yet have the ability to separate his human form from the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede form.
He had no choice but to directly transform into the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede and fight alone.
―'The Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede is using strategy and tactics like a human.'
The punitive brigade thoroughly analyzed the movements of the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede, gaining information at the cost of sacrifices.
As the battle dragged on, the balance shifted.
They gradually saw completely through Pahon's strategy and tactics, and finally succeeded in driving him to the top of a dizzying cliff.
Rooaaar!
Amidst the blade light and sword shadow pouring in from all directions, Pahon roared loudly.
But there was no space to dig into the ground, and the fight eventually turned into an all-out war.
Thoom! Rrrrumble!
Every time the massive body moved, dozens of wanderers scattered blood and fell.
But the wounds on Pahon's body were also gradually increasing.
―'Victory is in sight!'
Eventually, the punitive brigade began to seize the chance for victory.
Massive spears and sharp blades dug into the tough skin, and hundreds of hidden weapons flew into the open wounds.
He recalled the gruesome deaths of his comrades, the wickedness and cruelty of humans.
Pahon used his erupting hatred as the driving force of his power.
But ultimately, he was outnumbered.
The only ending awaiting him was being caught by the punitive brigade and meeting a terrible end.
-'I cannot die like this!'
Rrrrumble! Kabooom!
Squeezing out his last remaining strength, Pahon spread an immense wave of qi and poison mist in all directions.
Then he threw himself down the cliff into the river below.
Splash!
The moment a massive spray of water rose from the raging river, Pahon undid his transformation and returned to human form.
The punitive brigade, watching the sight from the edge of the cliff,
―'The Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede has transformed into a human!'
―'Catch that bastard!'
Seeing him change into a human form, they became even more frenzied.
But Pahon's figure disappeared in an instant along with the violent current.
Paaat!
Having barely escaped the punitive brigade's pursuit, Pahon went deep into a mountain and hid himself.
On his bloodied lower abdomen hung something.
It was the inner core, the source of life force and the thing that enabled union with the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede.
It hung precariously outside his body in the shape of a crimson bead.
Every time he breathed, terrible pain swept through his entire body. With these injuries, he could no longer move.
"I must hold on somehow."
He found a small cave and curled his body up inside it.
"I will definitely recover my body and kill them all."
Pahon took his intense desire for revenge and his hatred toward humans as his driving force.
He held onto his fading consciousness and worked to restore his body.
How much time had passed?
"Ah?"
Beyond his fading consciousness, someone's clear voice was heard.
He struggled to open his eyes.
Near the cave entrance, a small shadow stood with its back to the sunlight.
It was a girl with chubby cheeks and unusually large eyes, carrying a small basket at her side as if she had come to gather herbs.
The girl's gaze passed over Pahon's bloodied appearance and reached the crimson bead hanging from his lower abdomen.
"Ah, ah."
The girl had grown up in an herbalist village that had gathered herbs in the vicinity for generations.
She knew how to distinguish rare spirit grass, and could also vaguely grasp the energy of spirit creatures.
The girl recognized at a glance that what Pahon had on his body was no ordinary bead.
It was the inner core of a spirit creature, condensed with powerful life force.
'Why are humans... their eyes flip the moment they discover a treasure.'
Intuiting that the girl's eyes were fixed on his inner core, anger filled Pahon's mind.
Once, he too had been human.
But since he had now become a demonic creature, his hatred for humans was growing day by day.
Step, step.
As the girl carefully approached and reached out her hand, Pahon bit his lip.
He wanted to tear her to death right then and there, but all the strength had completely drained from his body, to the point he couldn't even lift a finger.
'Am I going to die like this.'
To think that he, who had made Cheonchuk tremble in fear, would have his inner core ripped out and die by the hands of such a little brat?
Clench.
Pahon gave up on everything and quietly closed his eyes.
But the expected pain did not come.
Instead, the fragrant scent of grass touched the tip of his nose.
The girl had not reached out to grab the inner core.
From her basket, she had carefully applied a liquid made from crushed herbs onto his wounds.
Dab, dab.
It was clumsy, but there was no hesitation or malice in it.
"What are you doing?"
When Pahon asked, the girl looked at him with clear eyes.
She pointed to his wound and made an 'Ah, ah' sound.
Looking closely, the girl had a deep wound dyed purple on her neck.
Her vocal cords were severely injured, making her unable to speak.
"What half-hearted sympathy."
Pahon glared at the girl with eyes full of contempt.
"Humans always... act kind for self-satisfaction, but are always ready to betray when the situation goes wrong."
"Ah, ah."
"Get lost!"
When Pahon shouted, the girl was startled and stood up.
"If you don't get lost, I'll chew you up!"
At Pahon's words, the girl looked scared and quickly ran away holding her basket.
"Damn."
Seeing the girl leave, Pahon let out a sigh of bitter regret belatedly.
"I should have coaxed her quietly to approach and then killed her."
In his excessive excitement, he had forgotten something.
He was exposing his inner core while unable to even lift a finger.
What if the girl returned to the village and told them everything? Greedy humans would swarm and try to take his inner core.
"I lack experience too much."
The battle with the punitive brigade was the same.
He only had strong power but almost no combat experience, and he had been defeated because he couldn't carefully devise a strategy.
Just as Pahon was regretting that, a small shadow was seen outside the cave again.
It was that very girl.
Tremble, tremble.
Though trembling in fear, she held out a water container carved from bamboo.
Judging by her sweat, it seemed she had run around just to draw this water.
"Why."
At Pahon's question, the girl pointed to his parched lips.
It seemed she was saying, 'Because you looked thirsty.'
"I'm asking why you're helping me."
The girl again pointed to Pahon's deep wound. It seemed she was saying, 'Because you're hurt.'
At her pure appearance, Pahon's heart sank.
Because he felt as if the human emotions that had been extinguished were reviving.
"I am the king of spirit creatures who hunts humans."
At Pahon's shout, the girl looked into his eyes for a moment, then shook her head.
It was an expression that she didn't believe him.
"It doesn't matter whether you believe it or not."
Pahon spoke while revealing sharp teeth.
"Get out right..."
But suddenly, the sky and ground spun round and round.
He had fought the punitive brigade without resting for a single day, and then plunged to the riverbed to barely save his life.
Having suffered a deep wound and exhausted all his true strength, he had no more ability to endure.
"Ugh."
He tried to gather his senses, but eventually passed out with a thud.
―'Why are you sleeping so deeply?'
Opening his eyes, he saw the faces of the comrades he had missed.
―'You have to get up.'
Behind the bright sunlight, they smiled brightly and held out their hands.
With a relieved expression, Pahon tightly held their hands.
At that moment, he woke up from the deep dream.
"Gasp."
Opening his eyes, he saw the interior of a shabby thatched cottage.
The surroundings were filled with the smell of burning herbs, and there were blood-stained clothes and a bowl where decoction had been boiled.
Looking down at his body, the long tear on his lower abdomen was tightly bound with clean cloth.
It was clear that they had taken his inner core.
Human greed never went anywhere after all.
"Of course."
The small warmth that had barely bloomed in his chest cooled instantly, as if it had never been there.
And what filled that place was a contempt that seemed ready to burn even the soul.
"As expected, humans are not worth keeping alive."
Dark red energy swirled like a storm from Pahon's body.
Since his inner core was ripped out, he would not be able to transform into the Black Centipede, and he himself would die before long.
If so, he had to kill at least one more person quickly while he still had breath.
Crackle.
His skin began to be covered in pitch-black fur, and his eyes burned with a light of hatred redder than blood.
Even though he had no inner core and was injured, the strength to kill people had returned.
'Now I have no sympathy, no lingering attachments.'
Pahon became a complete demon.
He intended to become a perfect destroyer, trampling and hunting every human before his eyes like insects.
Crack, crack.
Finally, just as he slowly stood up and was about to explode his anger,
'Wait?'
He had thought it was definitely taken.
But as his anger erupted, the sleeping power of the inner core was awakening again.
"Of course."
Pahon laughed hollowly and covered his forehead.
"If they wanted to take the inner core, they would have just killed me... there was no need to treat my wounds so carefully like this."
In the end, they had not taken out the inner core of the Ten-Thousand-Year Black Centipede, which held a value that could not be measured with money.
Instead, they had carefully treated only his wounds.
"Why on earth."
Swooosh.
As the anger disappeared, Pahon's physical body, which had turned into a monster, reverted to human again.
As he struggled to take a step and went outside, the scenery of a quiet village was seen.
'As expected, they dragged me to the village.'
When he collapsed, the girl must have immediately brought people and moved him to the village to treat him with utmost care.
'If they are herbalists, they wouldn't be ignorant of the inner core's value?'
At that time, seeing him stand up, the villagers approached him with favorable smiles.
However, they were being very careful, not coming too close lest they startle him.
"What is it?"
Pahon shouted.
"What on earth are you people!"
As he shouted furiously, blood surged again from his barely healed wound.
"Why did you save me!"
His head grew hot, and the whole world began to spin round and round.
"Why on earth!"
Every time he shouted, his lower abdomen ached intensely, and his vision darkened.
His fingers trembling, his face even turning pale, he,
Thud.
Eventually lost consciousness once again.
Chirp, chirp, chirp.
At the sound of birds, Pahon opened his eyes again.
As he raised his body, the wound area was again wrapped in clean cloth.
Pahon stared blankly at the empty air for a long time, like a man who had lost his soul.
The villagers came to him every hour to treat his wounds.
Because herbalists frequently fell from high places or lost their footing in the mountains and plummeted, they always carried good medicine with them.
They were all naive herbalists and good-natured people who lived without greed.
Pahon said nothing at all, like a mute.
But the villagers asked nothing and silently treated his wounds using the herbs they had.
Every time their hands touched him, something shifted.
The hatred and anger that had been frozen solid like ice were melting away very slightly, very slowly.
It had begun inside the dark and cold cave.
It had begun with the warmth the girl had offered.
And now the naivete and warmth of the villagers.
Were purifying Pahon's distorted heart, very slightly.
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