The space left behind by the vanished Divine Tree was quickly engulfed in darkness.

The sunlight, which had seemed to pour in from nowhere, extinguished in an instant.

The same was true for the grasslands and the lake. By the time I noticed, all those things had disappeared as if they had never existed.

Light vanished, and darkness took its place.

I surveyed the dimmed space.

‘What...?’

When did it change?

Just moments ago, this place had been dazzling. And now, it had transformed entirely.

It felt unnatural, yet at the same time, there was a deep-seated certainty that this was how it was supposed to be.

Where did this certainty come from? It wasn’t something I knew from experience.

If the Divine Tree is gone, then of course, this is what happens.

That unknown knowledge was now embedded in my mind.

It felt as if the Divine Tree’s energy had seeped into me, bringing about this change.

‘If the Divine Tree disappears, then naturally, this is what follows.’

Why? How? There were no such questions. The idea that this was simply how things were meant to be had taken root within me.

Step.

I took a step forward, heading toward the entrance. There was no need to open the door. Even though I was sure I had closed it when I entered, it was already open.

Ahead, I saw a staircase. If I had to descend, it would have taken quite some time. Climbing up, I spotted the hole I had come through.

I gathered strength in my toes and leaped.

With swift momentum, I soared back up to where I had entered.

Returning to my original position, I saw sunlight streaming in through the window. Night had passed, and it was now day.

Feeling the flow of time, I sharpened my senses to detect any presence nearby.

At that moment—

Saaaaaaaah---!!!

“......!”

The sheer flood of information made me narrow my eyes. Countless sounds and scents overwhelmed my senses. The sheer volume of it was enough to give me a headache.

I quickly shrank my sensory range. Only then did it become somewhat bearable.

“Hoo...”

Exhaling deeply, I rolled my eyes. What the hell just happened?

The range of my sensory perception had expanded dramatically.

Sure, my senses had improved as I transcended, but this was beyond that.

Just by slightly extending my awareness, I could feel the presence and hear the sounds of the entire Yahwol Palace.

This...

‘Could it be the effect of absorbing the Divine Tree?’

Since I had absorbed the Divine Tree embedded in Yahwol, was I now able to perceive everything in this area?

Just like—

‘Just like Yusa.’

Just as Yusa had once claimed to be aware of most events in Yahwol.

Perhaps what he had been capable of had now been passed on to me.

That was my hypothesis.

‘...It’s unbearably noisy.’

If this was what it felt like to extend my senses just a little, then I could somewhat understand Yusa’s strange personality.

At this rate, I, too, would lose my mind.

Suppressing the overwhelming sensation, I moved forward. Sparks flickered as I landed on the roof of the council chamber.

“......”

Looking up at the crimson sky, I steadied my breathing.

What had just happened felt like a dream.

Seeing my mother’s reincarnation. The things I had heard there.

It all felt like a fleeting dream from a single night.

Or maybe—

‘Maybe I just wish it were a dream.’

Perhaps I was just clinging to the hope that this wasn’t real.

It was only natural.

After all, I had learned the truth I had always suspected but desperately wished wasn’t real.

Hoping it was all a mistake or just a dream was the only rational response.

“...A calamity.”

I was a calamity upon Zhongyuan.

Or rather, I was fated to become one.

My mother, the ruler of Mangye, had given birth to me for the sole purpose of bringing disaster upon Zhongyuan.

And as a result, I was born.

I didn’t know how I would become a calamity.

But the very meaning of my existence was exactly that.

“Haha.”

I chuckled mid-thought.

Recently, I had come to realize—when things are only mildly shitty, you can just complain.

But when they are truly and utterly fucked, all you can do is laugh.

“Hahahaha. What a goddamn joke.”

Of course, laughter wasn’t the only thing that came out.

“...What a fucking mess.”

Life.

No, ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) I could no longer even call this life.

Neither dragon nor beast—what the hell was I supposed to be?

As I pondered that, the answer surfaced on its own.

‘A monster.’

A monster.

That was the only fitting word for me now.

I couldn’t even deny it anymore.

If someone were to ask what I had become, that was the only correct answer.

“......”

I thought about it as I stared down at my palm.

Now that it was daylight, I had returned to my original form, no longer in the shape of the Moonlit Night Tribe.

Looking at my hand, there was no difference from that of a human.

‘It’s just the appearance.’

What lay inside was far from human.

I had drifted too far from humanity.

At first, I told myself it was for my own sake. That I had no choice.

But now, looking back, it felt like this had been fate all along.

‘Even though I was born human.’

By the time I had lived my life, I was no longer one.

Perhaps that had been predestined from the start.

Now, I couldn’t help but think so.

“......”

Unease rippled across the shallow water of my mind.

I pressed it down.

Smack!

I slapped both of my cheeks, hard.

I needed to get a grip.

Sure, the situation was fucked, and my emotions were all over the place. But—

‘I have to focus right now.’

No matter what, I had to hold myself together.

‘It’s not like there’s no way forward.’

Mother had said she would do something.

That I should endure.

That thought, though not much, gave me a sliver of comfort. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

‘But even if not for that—’

Even if I didn’t have my mother’s words, I couldn’t afford to break down here.

‘Whether or not it’s true that I will become a calamity—’

Right now, there was something more important.

‘Noya.’

I had to save Noya.

That was why I had come to Yahwol to find the Divine Tree.

I had to save Noya.

‘But did I gain anything from the Divine Tree?’

What had I obtained from Yahwol’s Divine Tree?

I had taken action to acquire the Divine Fruit and fulfill my mother’s arrangements, but—

The results weren’t all that significant.

‘Other than the fact that I now need to head to Mount Marryeong for the next Divine Tree...’

And that Mother had left something behind at each of the Divine Trees.

If I followed this sequence and completed each step—

‘Will I be able to obtain the Divine Fruit?’

Will I be able to meet the Master’s Divine Tree and acquire another Divine Fruit like the one I had consumed before?

I placed more importance on this than the brief conversation I had with my mother.

The fact that she had come to bring forth a calamity.

That I was destined to become that calamity.

That she was willing to do whatever it took to prevent it.

None of that mattered as much as—

Finding a way to save Noya. That was what I focused on.

‘...Whatever happens.’

In the end, the conclusion was clear.

‘I need to find another Divine Tree.’

Whether it was to uncover what my mother had prepared.

Or to save Noya.

The one thing I had to do right now—was to find the next Divine Tree.

And for that—

‘I have to go to Mount Marryeong.’

I needed to head to Mount Marryeong, where the next Divine Tree was said to be.

With that judgment, I took a step forward.

Fwoosh—!

A spark flared under the midday sun.

*********

I returned to the Mount Hua Sect.

I was curious about how Yahwol would change after Yusa’s death, but there was no time to watch.

I wanted to leave for Mount Marryeong immediately.

I truly wanted to set out this very moment. But I couldn’t.

Because of what my mother had said.

‘Find the Abyssal Pit.’

One of the two rulers of Mangye, and the entity my mother had entrusted with a task—the Abyssal Pit.

It had also been with me ever since I was in Zhongyuan.

Judging by the Blood Demon’s reaction, I had always suspected it was something extraordinary.

But I never imagined it was on the same level as my mother—a ruler in its own right.

‘I was even more shocked when I saw it in person.’

Back when I first arrived in Mangye, the first thing I encountered was that being.

And that wasn’t even its true form.

From what Noya had told me, what I saw was merely an avatar.

‘And yet, even that presence was overwhelming.’

It was an existence beyond reason.

Just looking at it made me feel an insurmountable wall.

Something utterly impossible to overcome.

And on top of that—

‘...They said it was the source of all demonic beasts, didn’t they?’

The source of the entities emerging from the Magyeong Gate.

The Abyssal Pit, which stored and disposed of extinguished souls.

But when it failed to contain them, the cracks formed, and the demonic beasts spilled out.

The Abyssal Pit was the very origin of those creatures.

Which meant—

‘Is it also the source of demonic energy?’

The demonic aura held by the beasts.

Or the demonic energy that Cheonma wielded.

Since it was the same energy as the beasts carried, could Cheonma’s power also be considered the power of the Abyssal Pit?

‘Something about that doesn’t quite add up, though.’

Logically, that should be the case. But if so—

‘How?’

How was Cheonma using demonic energy?

It didn’t seem like an entirely different force.

There was a connection.

I didn’t know what it was yet, but it undoubtedly existed.

That was what I thought.

Step.

I walked to the end of the path.

In the distance, I could see the Divine Tree of the Mount Hua Sect.

Even as I looked at it, I couldn’t take another step forward.

“Tch...”

This was a problem.

If I wanted to see the Abyssal Pit, I needed to go where the Divine Tree was.

‘But I can’t go there.’

I couldn’t approach the Divine Tree.

Hadn’t the turtle warned me?

Noya needed to remain near the Divine Tree.

And I had to stay away from it.

‘What am I supposed to do about this?’

My mother had told me to seek out the Abyssal Pit and question it.

But at this rate, even meeting it was a problem.

To ask it anything, I needed to get closer.

But I couldn’t approach.

I had completely forgotten about this issue.

“Hmm...”

What should I do?

How could I get close enough to see it?

Just as I was pondering that—

—Grrr...

“......!”

A familiar growl.

From behind me.

I turned my head immediately.

And there—

—Grrrrr...

A creature resembling a wolf stood on all fours, staring straight at me.

That, in itself, was fine.

The problem was—

“......What the hell are you doing?”

Perched atop the creature’s back—

“Hello.”

Cheonma was sitting there, casually waving at me with a smug look on her face.

As if she had every right to be there.