Three days after the Blood Demon’s death, just as depicted in the novel, the Thousand Demon, leading an army of malevolence, descended from the Heavenly Mountain.
The righteous martial artists also hastily rallied their forces, and the two factions stood facing each other on the vast plains between the Central Plains and Heavenly Mountain.
Even though parts of the Central Plains were broken or scarred from the long war against the Blood Cult, they trusted in the might of the Sword Sage alone.
I too trust in Cheolbin.
I pray that this chapter concludes with Cheolbin’s reincarnation ending.
The stifling silence, the insidious air of tension, the boiling murderous intent—
Amidst it all, from the Central Plains side advanced Cheolbin, and from the Cult side advanced the Thousand Demon.
The Central Plains army and the Cult army, separated by a distance of nearly a hundred units, stared each other down in an eerie silence.
And right in the middle, Cheolbin and the Thousand Demon stood no more than three steps apart, gazing into each other’s eyes.
I can say for certain that, at that moment, I was the most tense I had ever been across both my past and present lives.
“…….”
“…….”
As soon as the lips of Cheolbin and the Thousand Demon opened, I dared not breathe a word.
All I was granted was the ability to watch.
“…….”
“…….”
Why must the prelude take so long? Cheolbin and the Thousand Demon conversed for an unexpectedly lengthy period of time. When I thought, “If they’re going to fight, why don’t they hurry up?”—
An unexpected event occurred.
“Our sect will retreat to the Ten Thousand Great Mountains.”
“…!”
Though the distance was too great to overhear their conversation, I distinctly remember the last thing the Thousand Demon proclaimed.
He’s done it.
Cheolbin, that mad fellow, has somehow managed to save the world yet again.
“What, what is this? Why are you just leaving?”
“Did the Sword Sage take some action? What did he do?”
The righteous martial artists, who had gathered in force to fight the Cult, looked confused. But that didn’t matter.
Because it was over.
Peace came to the land, and the story concluded with a happy ending.
It was different from the original conclusion of the work. This was the outcome that he and Cheolbin created.
At that moment, I was filled with a profound sense of satisfaction that was indescribable.
“Where… am I?”
A space completely occupied by white.
I’m walking through it.
I don’t know why. I don’t know where this is.
All I know is that I was here when my vision returned after the war ended.
—Wait a second. Isn’t this similar to when I first reincarnated?
That thought startled me.
“Mr. Tae-yang.”
Behind me, a voice called my real name. I turned my head quickly and saw an old man dressed completely in white.
At the sight of him, I immediately knew who he was.
“Author…?”
“In this world, I am called ‘Heaven’ or ‘Sang-je’.”
“What… Why are you here…?”
“Hmm… Well, I could just send you back, but I wanted to thank you at least once before that.”
And with that, the old man bowed to me.
I had no idea why he would thank me. But one thing was clear:
He was very grateful to me.
So I asked.
“What… are you thanking me for? I’ve never supported you.”
“Haha, well…”
The words that followed from the old man’s mouth were like being struck by a hammer one by one.
“Thanks to you, the sequel has been a big hit.”
“…Eh?”
“Our lovely reincarnated Cheolbin and the plotting reincarnated strategist… they’ve been more popular than expected. Thanks to you, I hit the number one spot on the daily rankings for the first time in my writing career!”
“Huh…?”
“To be honest, all your actions in the martial world have been serialized as they happened. Of course, everything here in this space is an exception, as this is where I write.”
What on earth was he talking about?
It didn’t take long to start making sense once I remembered the comment he posted ten years ago, before my reincarnation began.
– I support you. Best of luck.
– In words only?
“Could it be…?”
My throat trembled. No way, that comment couldn’t mean… surely not.
After everything I went through being dragged into this place, suffering for years, with no increase in power or physical changes like other reincarnated characters—none of it was real.
It was all…
“Thanks to you, I’ve been able to write a good story.”
“…”
Because I said ‘support’… because I said ‘best of luck’…
Just because I mentioned those words… what?
“In support, actions are more important than words.”
“A—Are you serious…?”
My head was numb. What was I even hearing?
But his meaning was crystal clear. Crystalline enough to make me furious.
“Sequel?”
“Yes. Readers love the chemistry between you and Cheolbin.”
“You mean… when Cheolbin defeated the Thousand Demon and saved the declining martial world with ’99 Ways to Save the Martial World’—”
“That was just some extra cookies… breadcrumbs. It felt natural to have them defeat the Blood Demon and also the Thousand Demon.”
“…!”
My mind went blank with panic, as if it had been bleached white.
That blankness quickly transformed into searing anger.
Why me?
Why did I have to be dragged into this ridiculous story and endure all this torment?
Why did I have to risk my life fighting the Blood Cult and face numerous threats to my existence?
Why did I have to be dragged somewhere unknown in the middle of the night to be beaten mercilessly?
“Because of a… novel?”
“A story needs realism. You helped bring that.”
“…!”
My back tingled with fear as an uncontrollable rage surged within me.
For ten long years, I had been unwillingly dragged into this harsh journey.
And it was all…
Just for the sake of some “realism”?
“Is that… that really so important?”
“Well… readers like realism, and I care about the reader’s reactions, not the quality of the story. The goal is the reader’s reactions.”
“Why… why did I have to come into this mess just for your writing experiment…?”
With my composure shattered, my throat trembled.
“Because you said you’d support it.”
“…”
“You need to take responsibility for what you said.”
“You, you piece of s!!”
I don’t know why I did it.
Even knowing full well that it wouldn’t work.
“AAAAH!!”
I dared to make a move against the author.
I must have lost my mind at that moment.
“AHHH!!!”
“…Have you gone mad?”
Of course, my punch effortlessly passed through his body.
As I lost my balance and stumbled, he spoke.
“Pretty unruly, aren’t you?”
He placed his hand on my head.
“Damn… damn piece of garbage!!”
During my life as a martial artist, I experienced countless traumas that I could never forget.
The horrifying scenes of internal organs rolling around and bones flying through the air.
Watch helplessly as cherished characters die one after another, leaving me to spend sleepless nights filled with inexplicable anguish.
Everyone was lost but White Shadow Assassin King and Iron Tiger Wanderer.
“Tch, I was going to send you back, but you’re too unruly.”
He clicked his tongue at me and pressed his hand against my forehead.
What he said next shocked me deeply.
“If you continue to be so negative, I can’t send you back, you know.”
“…!! You piece of s!!”
“Since you despise the martial world so much… why don’t you try living until you die there?”
“…!”
GRRGGRRT-.
As he applied more force with his hand, I sank helplessly.
Through the white space, I fell all the way through the floor.
“Arghh…!”
“Such an insignificant character.”
It was my mistake.
Even when supporting someone, I should’ve known never to insult a writer who forces people to reincarnate, but I cursed at him anyway.
At that moment, I should’ve begged him to kill me instead.
WHOOSH-!
And so, crossing the sky while plummeting endlessly from the heavens—
I found myself back in the martial world.
CRACK-!
I will get revenge. Somehow, I’ll make this happen.
I’ll make you regret sending me back here, Author.
I’ll make you regret it, make you bleed tears—I’ll do whatever it takes.
“Krrr…!”
Only there’s no way.
He is the heavens, and I am merely a “character.” Not even the protagonist, just a supporting role.
That’s why I’m grinding my teeth and gnashing them, waiting for any idea to come into my mind, but nothing occurs.
‘I know nothing about him.’
To take revenge, I need to know something about the author, but I know nothing.
At best, I know he’s insane enough to drag someone into a different world just to twist it for the sake of reader feedback.
…Reader feedback?
‘Reader…?’
Now that I think of it, he did say the story was being serialized live, didn’t he?
“…”
I think I’ve figured it out.
How to get revenge on the author.
I’m not sure if this will actually work as revenge, but this is the best I can do in my current situation.
‘Let’s ruin the story.’
The story isn’t over yet.
Even though ’99 Ways to Save the Martial World’ has ended, the next story the author mentioned is presumably still ongoing.
Everything I do from now on will surely be recorded.
It has to be that way.
‘Then, how should I ruin it properly?’
The key is to drive the readers away.
The author values reader feedback, so driving the readers away is my main goal.
If that’s the case, the most effective way is through atrocious plot twists.
The first idea that came to mind was killing Namgung Cheolbin.
There’s nothing more anticlimactic than a story where the protagonist dies in a supposed happy ending.
Still, I quickly dismissed this thought.
‘He’s trained for this.’
If I truly tried, I could probably kill him.
The Cheolbin of this chapter hasn’t reached the state of all-poison immunity (萬毒不侵), intentionally or not.
With the way we share the same home, it would be effortless to lace his tea with potent poison.
But the author’s already killed the protagonist in the previous work. Killing the protagonist again wouldn’t make the readers leave.
Considering the world is steeped in deaths, anyway.
‘Then what else could work…?’
After much contemplation, three ideas came to my mind.
Three great drifts that make modern online novel readers not only convulse but potentially spit blood.
‘BL drift, TS drift, NTR drift.’
First up, the BL drift is impossible.
There was a frail, beautiful boy following Cheolbin, who had learned the art of Gender Transformation, yet even through multiple reincarnations, Cheolbin never glanced his way.
He only sees his wife, ignoring other women altogether.
The TS drift also seems hard to pull off.
The only method to transform men to women in this martial world is to achieve the Gender Transformation technique. And how could I ever make Cheolbin learn this demonic art?
With the calamities over, there’s not even a need for martial practice anymore.
In the end, only one option remains.
Drift more insidious than the first two, deemed the most heinous.
The NTR drift.
Unlike the other kinds, it’s not only feasible but also capable of driving away most readers.
However… the world isn’t always easy. Even NTR isn’t straightforward.
Setting aside the fact that Cheolbin’s our subject, the biggest issue lies within my own body.
‘Damn it.’
I peeked down between my legs through my pants, but there was nothing to see.
Of course.
Namgung Bin’s thing is barely an inch.
In the narrative description of ’99 Ways to Save the Martial World,’ Cheolbin was portrayed as having a size comparable to an entire yard, indestructible and mighty.
The basic condition for an NTR is thus unmet.
Furthermore, if I were to use drugs, a web novel I read before my reincarnation haunts my memory.
It’s not impossible. Our sole heroine, Soeun Yu, isn’t a chaste nun, and the martial world is equipped with ‘love potions.’
However, before I reincarnated, I read a novel that contained similar elements. A heroine who, despite the potion-induced betrayal, never lost her heart to the protagonist—an untitled story that included ’15 days’ in its title, I believe.
Regardless, the comment sections of that novel were filled with readers still loving the heroine, even labeling her ‘honorary virgin.’
Modern readers are too open-minded now; even acts that would have caused a scandal in the past no longer faze them. It’s more the American way, one could say.
…Ultimately, I have only one path to tread.
I’ll win Soeun Yu’s heart, thereby driving away the ‘readers’ the author loves enough to drag someone into this world.
Can I do it?
…I will do it.
I will definitely achieve it.
Somehow, I’ll make that damn author’s face twist. The one who ruined my life—I’ll make him regret it. Let him cry in despair when the time comes.
*
“…”
As he exited the basement, Bin Namgung clicked his tongue silently.
Scenes of the past few years swept through his mind.
‘It’s been… four years already, hasn’t it?’
Namgung Bin reflected on everything he’d done to achieve his current situation.
He took advantage of the strange change in Namgung Cheolbin’s personality to undermine him,
Trained his otherwise unchangeable body by mastering the blood art, a practice that defied all natural laws.
At least, the size of his… equipment had grown slightly. Half an inch.
Also, to avoid being killed by Namgung Cheolbin before the plan could succeed, he had carefully built up a hidden force to counter him.
‘Damn… The husband is cheating and even practicing demonic arts. Why does she still long for him?’
The most critical part—winning Soeun Yu’s heart—has still not been fully accomplished. But still, the late Namgung Bin believed it was only a matter of time.
For that reason, these days, he even goes through the trouble of serving her a soothing cup of tea late at night.
With sincerity, the heavens can be moved, and one day, Soeun Yu will understand his feelings and come around.
He felt no guilt toward Namgung Cheolbin, despite having fought alongside him for ten years.
‘He’s just a character, after all.’
In the first place, he only helped Namgung Cheolbin out of necessity to survive, not out of kindness.
If he were truly a good person, he wouldn’t have amassed secret funds as a military officer during the war or frequented brothels and abused women.
‘Kick.’
CREEK-.
As he immersed himself in these thoughts and approached the basement exit—
“Ah…?”
Something felt… off.
SWOOSH-.
Intent to kill.
An overwhelming wave of murderous intent blanketed the Namgung estate.
It was the kind of intent he had only felt once before.
“B-Bulldozed already…!”
The higher the level of an assassin, the more they suppress their intentions. That’s the fundamental rule of assassins.
They cannot let the target detect their presence, lest they escape or prepare defenses.
It’s said that assassins who reach the supreme level can suppress their breathing entirely—or even go without breathing altogether, to become completely invisible.
But there is an existence that defies such common sense.
“Damn…!”
The only god for all assassins.
An absolute assassin whose intent to kill cannot be blocked or avoided, no matter how much they unleash it.
Killer Star.
She was here, in the Namgung estate.
