Chapter 100

“A general shouldn’t lead from the front!”

It looked grand when a general boldly shouted ‘Follow me!’ while charging ahead with his troops. But if he gets hit by an arrow and goes down, the morale of the army could crumble in an instant, turning the strategy of war into a mere puff of smoke.

So, when a general leads, it’s purely a form of selfishness to satisfy their own desires, not some noble virtue—unless it’s a life-or-death situation.

Therefore, strictly speaking, there was no reason for the Supreme Being Representative to embark on an expedition personally. They could just sit solemnly on their high throne and accept the Heavenly Demon Soul offered by their subordinates.

In fact, the current supreme being was something of a puppet, not even invited to meetings run by the leaders of the Demon Sect. It was downright strange to see such a representative taking a spot on a perilous expedition for the Heavenly Demon Soul.

But lo and behold, the Leader of the Demon Sect was here.

Because the Heavenly Demon Soul was something no mere mortal could carry—it’s a sacred object one shouldn’t touch unless they’re qualified. It was something the Supreme Being had to take for themselves.

Qing, greedy for someone else’s property, paid the price. Suddenly, it felt as if the ground had given way beneath him—the sheer terror of falling under gravity swallowed his whole soul.

Qing’s mind went hazy.

Meanwhile, Qing’s body was undergoing its own calamities. The thick and heavy demonic energy exploded from the Heavenly Demon Soul that had sunk halfway into his grasp.

Pachen Magi. It was the crystallization of evil formed by Angra Mainyu, the Demon God, who molded the world’s despair.

The demonic energy engulfed Qing’s body, spiraling outwards in a whirlwind, creating a magnificent vortex of darkness in the center of the tomb.

Ji Seung-ju shook his head at the sight. He had foreseen that unleashing chaos during the transfer would result in a disaster for the leaders of the Divine Sect. But he never expected they’d be too foolish to realize what was coming.

Pachen Magi was an energy that couldn’t be controlled by mere humans.

Only those with a bloodline that contained magic could nurture their veins with special treatments while drilling the basics of Qi to barely become vessels capable of holding the Heavenly Demon Soul.

If someone incapable tried to wield Pachen Magi, their body would explode into pieces, unable to bear the raw evil energy. The lost energy would just return to the Heavenly Demon Soul, resulting in a meaningless death.

Just then, Ji Seung-ju clicked his tongue.

“No, no…”

Choi Riyong collapsed nearby.

Seeing this, Ji Seung-ju shook his head. It made him feel sorry for the dazed Ma Guan.

Within the formation, Ji Seung-ju saw Qing’s corpse. It was a blood-soaked figure sprawled out in a realm reminiscent of a mythological tale.

However, Qing was very much alive. So, it seemed someone had created an illusion of killing him out of spite. Or perhaps it was a trace of the whims of the demonic forces.

Looking back now, it was clear that the owner of that illusion was indeed Ma Guan.

No wonder he was acting so strangely towards Qing.

His mind became completely twisted in the formation.

Qing and the corpse of his deceased daughter had intertwined into one, thus giving the illusion of her corpse taking Qing’s shape. This unfortunate situation meant that his daughter had witnessed death twice.

But Choi Riyong was already dead long ago.

It was time to pat the foolish Supreme Being on the back instead.

The Supreme Being was still trapped in a lost illusion.

It was time for Ji Seung-ju to approach the Supreme Being.

“Oh! The Heavenly Demon!”

“The Heavenly Demon descends!”

Excited cries erupted around. Ji Seung-ju’s head instinctively snapped around, and soon, the young Ma Nao opened his eyes wide.

The demonic energy, which had been swirling in the form of the universe, suddenly condensed into a singular dot.

It wasn’t too dark a space.

Then, darkness shot upwards, spreading its wings towards the sky, blazing like fierce flames that filled the tomb.

Great wings. The wings opened their eyes.

Thousands of eyes lifted their wicked eyelids in chaotic order. Large and small, slanted in their unique ways, each eye boasted a different number of pupils—some with one, others two or even three, and many more.

A woman with wings stretched like a black barrier. Thousands of eyes and even more pupils adorned her wings.

Faced with the manifestation of such mythical evil, the believers knelt to the ground.

A short but eternal moment passed. The wings disappeared from sight.

In that midst, a young girl took her first breath.

The reincarnation of the Heavenly Demon. It was the moment the aspirations of the Divine Sect were realized.

—-

When he opened his eyes, the surroundings were already pitch black.

Qing jumped up in shock.

“Right! The Heavenly Demon Soul!”

With a grinding sound, the chair he sat on toppled backward with a thud.

Qing turned his head to survey the area and froze at the sight of a chair with five wheels.

“Wait….”

Qing looked around. It was a room with blackout curtains letting not a sliver of light in, only dimly lit by the monitor’s flickering glow.

It felt strange and unfamiliar yet eerily comfortable.

Qing fumbled around the wall to turn on the light. It was an unconscious action.

The LED lights instantaneously chased away the darkness.

Next to the sink stood a 138L refrigerator.

Qing reflexively opened the fridge and naturally pulled out a can of beer.

With a click, he popped the lid and blasted the cold beer down his throat, the icy drink scraping his esophagus.

“Ah! So cold. Phew.”

The chill of the beer washed over his empty stomach, and only then did clarity reign over his dazed mind.

Qing let out a soft chuckle.

What on earth kind of dream am I having? Entering inside a game!

First things first, Qing checked the time. It was 10:23 PM.

Hold on a sec. Was I on the night shift or the day shift?

The night and day shifts mattered a great deal. It related to sleep time; a bit of wisdom from the life of a production worker trying to maintain their biological rhythm.

If it was the day shift, he should be sleeping now, and if it was the night shift, he’d need to stay awake until morning and then sleep.

But then, he couldn’t remember a thing about the work schedule.

Of course! That was years ago. No, not just years. It was more like a dream.

But it really felt like years had passed.

Qing frowned and pondered for quite some time.

Yet nothing came to mind.

Reluctantly, Qing scanned the desk.

He picked up his familiar smartphone and unwittingly scribbled an unfamiliar pattern to unlock it.

As if he pressed the wrong touch, the camera app opened immediately after unlocking.

Reflected on the screen was the pretty face of a girl.

“Huh?”

Qing exclaimed, startled as he examined the phone screen.

A bunch of hair was fluttering over his right ear.

Qing skillfully let his hair down and tied it back up again.

After doing that, a strange feeling settled in—

– A woman’s body? But a woman shouldn’t be born with this bloodline?

It was a sudden voice that popped up.

Qing’s head snapped around.

It was a gentle voice flowing from the speaker.

The screen showed a scene from the game. A beautifully painted girl appeared in an elegant art style, and a line of dialogue at the bottom was slowly erased to make way for new text.

Qing read the line of text within the dialogue box.

[The Heavenly Demon furrowed her brow and mumbled. But that was just for a moment. The Heavenly Demon couldn’t hide her admiration.]

—-

“A woman’s body? But a woman shouldn’t be born with this bloodline?”

The Heavenly Demon furrowed her brow and mumbled.

Maybe it was the heaviness hanging from her chest, but her shoulders felt oddly tight. It made standing even a bit uncomfortable. This was because she’d never lived as a woman in her countless lives.

But that only lasted for a moment. The Heavenly Demon marveled at her body.

Her muscles seemed capable of lifting mountains, and her tendons were tough yet supple, surpassing the limits of anyone she’d known before.

And the vastness of her Dantian was greener than any body she had ever experienced, truly inconceivable by any human standards.

No body had ever managed to fully contain Pachen Magi before. This was the reason the Heavenly Demon could not remain on earth for long.

But what about this body?

It had completely trapped Pachen Magi inside and still had room for more!

The Heavenly Demon frowned.

There was a genuine Qi hiding in the upper Dantian, avoiding the swirling Pachen Magi; it clearly wasn’t just one.

The Qi, contrary to being united in harmony, clashed against each other irrationally, but strangely, they formed a solid mass in the upper Dantian corner as if guarding something.

Yet, it wasn’t of utmost importance.

The Heavenly Demon quickly shrugged off her concerns and pure admiration flowed in.

“What does it matter if it’s a woman? A wonderfully flattering body! With such a physique, to only attain the Supreme Martial Artist level, it seems you had quite a lack of talent?”

Dozens of believers knelt in the tomb, not daring to breathe.

Just as silence was about to break, a cracking sound began, flowing like a twisting cacophony of bones.

It was the sound originating from the Heavenly Demon’s body.

As her bones settled into place and her muscles reassembled, her skin began to swell in odd twists.

It was what you’d call “transmutation.”

Changing bones to acquire the most perfect form—the phenomenon of a body reaching the peak of its potential.

In other words, you could say it was the optimization of the flesh.

Even during this transmutation, the Heavenly Demon kept walking.

What a truly astonishing skill it was.

During the moment of transmutation, everyone would get caught off guard.

All joints would disconnect, bones would grow or be trimmed down, and muscles would release before compressing and fusing back. It was a process that occurred only once after reaching the Supreme Martial Artist level.

Accompanied by both pain and strange sensations of reconstruction, one could lose their wits entirely.

But the Heavenly Demon had experienced this often enough to become accustomed to it.

Even undergoing transmutation, she could walk out without wobbling.

When the Heavenly Demon finally completed her assembly back into a woman’s form, she appeared so beautiful that the darkness felt shy to cast its shadows upon her.

“Ma Nao, are you there? Who’s the Ma Nao of this generation?”

“Heavenly Demon descends, blessings of ten thousand demon kings. I am Ji Seung-ju. It’s an honor to meet you, soul and master of the future.”

Ji Seung-ju stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

The Heavenly Demon reached out her slender, white fingers.

Her exquisite hand patted Ji Seung-ju on the head.

“Oh! You’re still a young Ma Nao. A young Ma Nao like you is a first in my long life. I’ll keep you by my side for a long time. I’m so glad! I look forward to your future.”

The Heavenly Demon’s words were gentle and benevolent.

It was the very essence of the Divine Sect’s long history, coming from the words of the incarnation of the Heavenly Demon.

“Yes, Supreme Heavenly Demon.”

Ji Seung-ju’s voice trembled with emotion.

At that moment—

“Supreme Heavenly Demon! Here’s a body for you! The perfect vessel for you to take!”

A voice that boldly overstepped its boundaries rang out. At the same time, an old man suddenly rushed in.

Grabbing the neck of the Supreme Being, he shoved it to the ground, kneeling on top as he barged in without even seeking permission to speak.

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