Chapter 421: Chapter 421

In a world where time had stopped and the landscape was bathed in crimson, two men with otherworldly airs stood facing each other.

"Haha..." the Blood Demon began to laugh, his shoulders shaking with mirth as his eyes twinkled with interest.

Although he did not raise his voice, the entire world trembled. Part of the sky shattered like glass and a distant mountain crumbled to dust.

Slowly, the hysterical laughter grew louder, accelerating the destruction across the realm. The ground beneath the two men cracked like parched earth, and collapsed buildings dissolved into dust that scattered on phantom winds.

This terrifying power was worthy of being called a calamity, but it didn't affect Baek Suryong.

"I told you to cut the crap!" he snapped.

The world's tremors immediately ceased as if by divine intervention. Time seemed to rewind, restoring everything that had broken to its original state.

"Enough with that cocky attitude. You're just a parasite who snuck into someone else's dream."

Baek Suryong scoffed and manipulated the 'dream. Within moments, the blood red world regained its original colors.

The situation where he could only watch the memories of his past life, unable to move, was over. This 'world' was now under his control.

The Blood Demon smirked. "I thought you had fallen completely into a trance. How were you able to snap out of it?"

He knew. As Baek Suryong relived ten years of his past life, he had gradually forgotten who he was. He lost his sense of self and had almost completely assimilated with Number 27. If he hadn't awakened at the last moment, he would have succumbed to temptation and been trapped in this world forever.

"It's all thanks to your ridiculous nonsense."

Baek Suryong, whose hair and eyes were now the color of blood, glared at the Blood Demon. Standing face to face, the two of them looked remarkably similar, so much so that people would think they were twins.

"You told me I could change my fate and that I should choose again. Whether then or now, I'm not naive enough to fall for such empty promises."

Ultimately, what pulled Baek Suryong out of his stupor was the guilt from his past life. The Blood Demon's temptation to change everything and start over was certainly appealing, but the moment he heard those words, his mind instantly cleared.

Even if I try to look away and run, nothing in reality will change.

He had resolved to meet his old students again, no matter the consequences. He had no intention of running from the sins he had committed in his previous life.

The Blood Demon smiled lazily, unperturbed by his plan's failure."Is that so? It seems I misjudged you."

Baek Suryong's eyebrow twitched irritably at the man's composure. "Let's see how long you can afford to be so relaxed."

Tremendous power gathered in his fist like a gathering storm.

This was a dream world created from the memories of his past life. Here, he was no different from a god.

With a single devastating punch, he sent the Blood Demon hurtling hundreds of meters in an instant, shrinking to the size of a dot before smashing into solid rock.

That wasn't the end. Baek Suryong kicked of the ground and chased after the distant Blood Demon, crimson enhanced qi blazing like divine fire around his fists.

Wave after wave of merciless violence hammered down upon the Blood Demon's body. The ground buckled and reshaped itself under the assault. The crimson qi overflowing from Baek Suryong's entire body obliterated everything in its path.

"Is this enough for you to vent your anger?"

The Blood Demon slowly raised his upper body and looked at Baek Suryong. There wasn't a single wound on his body. "If you're all done releasing your frustration, then..."

"Who said you could get up?"

Baek Suryong stomped hard on the Blood Demon's chest. The ground caved in, burying the Blood Demon deep within the fractured earth.

"How long have you been scheming this?" he demanded.

Rage boiled like lava in Baek Suryong's eyes. As he revisited the memories of his past life, he became certain that the Blood Demon had manipulated him throughout his whole life.

"You sent me to the Ancient Archives on purpose and planted the Heaven Defying Divine Art there so that I would find it. You assigned the trainees to me so that I would be forced to learn and perfect my masters' martial arts. Everything was part of your plan."

"......" The Blood Demon remained silent, neither confirming nor denying Baek Suryong's accusation. He simply smiled mysteriously, staring intently at the eyes that were the same color as his own.

"That's not even all there is, is it? From the treasure vault in the Valley of Evil to the finger you left behind at the Namgung Clan to the Poison Demon leaving behind his poison essence when he died... Come to think of it, they were all miraculous encounters related to the Heaven Defying Divine Art." Baek Suryong glared daggers at the Blood Demon and pressed down with his foot, but the man's smile didn't fade. "All of that was part of your scheme, wasn't it?"

Baek Suryong knew that the person before him was not the real Blood Demon. It was merely a lingering will dwelling in the finger that had been used to perform the Heaven-Defying Blood Circulation Art. However, since the Blood Demon's spirit remained in that will, they were able to have this conversation that transcended time and space.

"I understand why you're so upset," the Blood Demon replied slowly, his relaxed manner contrasting sharply with Baek Suryong's frigid expression. "The thought that I held your life in my hands and toyed with it must fill you with rage and fear. What if even you losing your qi center was part of my plan? No, maybe even before that..."

The Blood Demon's pupils contracted vertically, like a snake's. "You must feel that I controlled your destiny from the moment you were born, no?" he teased, his cloying voice tickling the ear.

A large crater was bored into the spot where the Blood Demon had been sitting, but he was no longer there.

The Blood Demon re-materialized in front of Baek Suryong as if his body were made of mist.

Baek Suryong glared at him. As he heard the Blood Demon's words, an unpleasant thought had crossed his mind. "Is your goal to steal my body and resurrect yourself?"

"That would be one method. It could also be part of the process. It's just one possibility among many," the Blood Demon replied ambiguously. "However, that's not what's important right now."

Baek Suryong remembered the Blood Demon's world-weary eyes. This man had no ambition to conquer the murim. His gaze was fixed on something far more distant and remote.

He didn't mince his words. "So your resurrection is just one step in the grand scheme of things. What is your actual objective? What are you planning to do after you're resurrected?"

The Blood Demon's beautiful face lit up, as if he were genuinely delighted to finally talk to someone about his true intentions. "Follow me," he said, floating into the air as if gravity held no power over him.

Baek Suryong hesitated for a moment before following him. This was his world. What was impossible in reality was possible here.

The two men soared high into the sky, piercing cloud layers and continuing to ascend for a long time. Starlight poured down from the pitch-black night sky, so intense that it was painful to look at directly.

Baek Suryong glanced down. The ground looked dizzyingly far away.

To think the mountains and rivers could be so small. At this height, us humans seem smaller than dust, completely invisible.

"Interdimensional Travel."

Baek Suryong turned to the side to see the Blood Demon staring blankly up at the cosmos, the brilliant stars reflected in his crimson, jewel-like eyes.

"I will open the heavens," the Blood Demon declared.

Baek Suryong was speechless. How should he describe the Blood Demon at that moment? The man seemed to have such a pure and intense desire that even he, an enemy, couldn't take him lightly.

"Open the heavens? What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"

"......" The Blood Demon smiled mysteriously and said no more.

In any case, one thing is certain.

Baek Suryong stared coldly at the Blood Demon. He didn't know exactly what he meant by Interdimensional Travel, but it was clearly something incredibly dangerous. Just that declaration gave him goosebumps and sent heaven-defying energy running rampant all around.

"Now I get it," he muttered. "You're not the absolute being the Blood Cult speaks of. You're just a madman and a delusional fool beyond imagination."

"Hahahaha...!" The Blood Demon burst into manic laughter that made the air itself vibrate, as if he found those words hilarious. "You're right. I am an unfortunate madman born with a heaven-defying destiny. I tried time and again to open the heavens to escape fate, but I failed every time due to heaven's jealous interference..."

The Blood Demon, who had been looking up at the heavens, turned to face Baek Suryong directly. "However, things are different this time."

Against the backdrop of the pitch-black night sky and countless stars, the two red-haired, red-eyed men stared at each other wordlessly.

"If it's you, then perhaps you'll one day come to understand me completely."

The Blood Demon chuckled and closed his eyes. For once, his words felt less like a prophecy and more like a wish or a prayer.

The Blood Demon's form slowly turned to dust and scattered, starting from his feet. As the power of the finger used for the Heaven-Defying Blood Circulation Art ran out, his lingering will also disappeared. His plan to take over Baek Suryong's body had ended in failure.

Still, Baek Suryong didn't think this was the end.

"I look forward to the day we meet again. I wonder what you'll be like then. Not even I can read your destiny, which makes me all the more excited."

Finally, the Blood Demon scattered into the night sky.

Baek Suryong watched for a moment before descending to the ground.

"It seems the Heaven-Defying Blood Circulation Art is almost complete..."

He looked around. The scene was faded and frozen like a painting from the distant past. He saw the backs of his old students as they returned to their quarters, the worn-out lodgings and training grounds, and the broken liquor bottles scattered carelessly on the ground.

My memory is correct up to this point.

The Blood Demon's lingering will had completely vanished. He had achieved his goal of fixing his severed meridians and could awaken now. However, he didn't want to end the dream of his past life just yet.

Just a little longer.

Baek Suryong's red hair and eyes returned to normal, and his face became that of Number 27 again.

Simultaneously, the suspended time started flowing again. A rusty hinge creaked in the wind, and the trainees, having heard their master's command, hurried toward their rooms.

"Wait!" he commanded. Fınd the newest release on novel⸺fire.net

The trainees immediately stopped and turned around. Their eyes still held no emotion, but Baek Suryong didn't mind.

"I have something to say to you."

Even if this was just a fleeting dream from which he would soon awaken, there was something he wanted to tell them.