Subdued Soul Chronicle

“Until now, we have tried various ways to exit this space and go to the stone pagoda. But the evil spirit continues to block us from doing that. So we might have to change the plan.”

“Hmm?”

No one understood Seol Young’s words.

“Change the plan?”

Jin Rim asked with a serious face.

“Then you don’t want to head to the pagoda but move further away from it?”

“Yes, Governor. Let’s head in the opposite direction.”

“Opposite direction?”

“Surely the space didn’t collapse when the Ghost Bridge was opened, right? One end of the bridge is blocked, and the other is left open. It’s on the other side of the world.”

Seol Young began to explain by drawing in the air.

“Currently, the God of Cataclysm is blocking the way, so we can’t go near the stone pagoda. So, let’s change directions and head to the other side. Rather than sitting here and doing nothing, it’s better to search for a new way while avoiding her.”

His own voice felt so calm as he spoke about it, as if he were talking from the other side of a wall.

How was he able to lie this well?

It was useless to head to the other side.

Perhaps the hallucinations they saw would occur again.

A world of twilight where everything had ended, with shadows simply lingering around.

Everything destroyed.

Even if they succeeded in crossing, there was nothing awaiting them on the other side. That was why the God of Cataclysm was struggling to never return there again.

Because she wanted to exist here. Even if she wanted to morph into another soul and use it, she wanted it to happen right here in Silla.

‘You brought in something that is so horrible.’

Seol Young felt bitter again.

“The Ghost Bridge isn’t the only way to connect the two worlds. Even when the High Governor and I suddenly went missing, we came back through that path. The God of Cataclysm is bound to the Ghost Bridge now, and we just have to get up and go through the other path. And then everything will be over. No one will die.”

“Hmm.”

Everyone seemed to be in serious thought.

No one had ever thought of going to the other side of the Ghost Bridge.

Should they still try it?

It was hard to be optimistic now, but there was hope that something was left to try.

“It seems like a crazy idea to go to the other side instead of the pagoda…”

Seo Geom said,

“Everything Seol Young-rang has done until now has been insane by my standards. I also think it’s better to try something than sit around without doing anything. If things go well…”

He couldn’t continue. Suddenly, he heard a tapping sound from inside his body. The pupils of his eyes were turning red, and his fingernails were sticking out.

“…!”

Seo Geom quickly put his sword on the ground and brought up his aura. A bright aura shone over it like a flame, and he managed to suppress the disfigurement of his soul.

“So cowardly!”

As soon as he calmed down, he burst into anger.

“As the head of the Hwarangs, I have been through so many crises, yet is it trying to stop me from saying even a few words now?”

“Do not get too excited.”

Mu Won advised him.

“Right. The sooner you lose your cool, the worse it gets. This is why it is continuing to show us these hallucinations. It works on anyone, so just driving one of us insane is enough.”

Hwa Un also helped and looked at them as if saying, ‘I think Seo Geom-rang will be the first to go here.’ Then he said,

“Come to think of it… The reason why the God of Cataclysm is able to find us despite the barrier is because our qi stands out, right? If everyone seeps into deep meditation and hides their qi, then it might be hard for her to find us. We will also not be shaken so easily, right?”

“That is worth trying, too.”

Jin Rim nodded and looked at Zaha.

“High governor, I will try it first, so please watch the flow of the qi.”

“I understand.”

Zaha moved to them.

‘Now.’

While they were discussing, Seol Young secretly focused. His consciousness began to gather at one point.

[…]

And he felt a call.

It was the same sound he heard in the lake before. Although it had faded now compared to then, he noticed it and moved.

Within the golden barrier, there was a part that was covered in darkness.

There it was.

The shattered fragments of the Great Mother.

It was as Seol Young had guessed. The reason why it was possible to build this barrier and was the only safe place was because of the last remaining traces of the God.

‘And if there are traces here…’

And he was right again.

The object Seol Young expected was also there. The arrow which rushed and broke at the last moment

Seol Young retrieved the bone fragments of the God of Cataclysm tied to the arrow.

‘It must have happened then.’

It must have been like this eight years ago when Zaha planned and executed the Die Together Circle.

He must have prepared for it step by step in this way, without anyone knowing. The chains and the techniques were all being prepared one after another.

He knew firsthand how it felt.

“… shouldn’t it be a feeling close to peace in meditation? Don’t let your guard down.”

The discussion ended.

The five of them, who had to fight for their souls, sat with a stiff posture, and Seol Young told them,

“Then I will look at the other side of the Ghost Bridge with the High Governor. I still have some medicine left…”

Baek Eon raised his eyes and looked at him.

Although this was a critical situation for him, the guy still smiled warmly. It seemed that he was proud that Seol Youn had finally resolved his ill relationships with the other leaders and began to look for new ways.

“Right. Be careful.”

“…”

Seol Young didn’t answer right away. He couldn’t lie to Baek Eon, who didn’t know anything.

‘Sorry. But the White Tiger Troops taught us to never regret our lives and follow our thoughts…’

His life would have ended in the hands of the Demon Lair Lord, so he had to repay the favor.

‘Don’t be too sad.’

Seol Young said while suppressing the choking sensation in his throat.

“Great-rang, take care of yourself too.”

Baek Eon nodded with his half-closed eyes, and the other leaders were already meditating with their eyes fixed on the pagoda.

Zaha looked at them and then turned.

“Do we leave then?”

“Yes.”

Seol Young turned around without looking back.

When he came out of the golden barrier, he could see the scene outside. The sky was on fire, and the ground was cracking. The space itself turned into an absurd scene.

“You said let’s go, but I don’t know how far we can go in this place.”

Zaha looked ahead. The flash of light in the sky made his face visible, and the golden light in his eyes was clearly burning bright.

“Certainly, I don’t feel the resistance as strong as when we went into the pagoda…”

He raised his hand and drew something in the air. The thick energy that spread around them began to collapse like a thin mist.

“But should we be careful?”

“…yes.”

Seol Young replied that way. With only the two of them left, it seemed that even the slightest hint of being suspicious would be immediately discovered.

The two quietly walked along the crack.

When they changed direction, it felt so different. Even after leaving the barrier, the strange feeling that their nature would change didn’t come to them.

Zaha drew his sword, ready for anything.

“I can’t be careless. I have demonic qi within me and a strong resistance, so I should use your body as a measurement. Tell me the moment something feels off right away, so we can head back.”

“Yes.”

Seol Young walked and looked ahead.

Whirlwinds lined up along the horizon, which continued to throw winds at them. Between them, clouds of all kinds of colors rose like pillars.

‘Can we head there?’

He calculated the approximate point while estimating the demonic qi that spread through the space.

Was it because, unlike earlier, he was holding Mita’s bone?

He could feel the black film hidden in the space quickly gather around him.

‘When will it start?’

Seol Young raised his hand. Then lightning flashed, and a thick sandstorm rose from the crack.

“One wrong move and we will miss the chance. I should at least keep talking so you don’t move far.”

Zaha said as he continued to walk.

“Come to think of it, you asked what I would do for a living once everything ended, right? What will you do, Seol Young-rang?”

“Me?”

Seol Young answered.

“I will return to the White Tiger Troops. Take on missions with my hyungs and solve them, as well as teach the trainees.”

“You will be busy. You should be busy. Still, I am glad that you don’t have to fight with the other troops. I can’t bear to hear the White Tiger Troops always saying, ‘Seol Young-rang isn’t friendly, but he isn’t a bad person’ anymore.”

“…”

“I know that you can hear me. If Seol Young-rang sneaks into my house and puts up talismans in a rushed manner, and if I get angry and throw them all away… then your three hyungs will come and apologize instead.”

“Right.”

Before he knew it, he began to feel odd things in his body. Seol Young pretended to touch his sword and looked at his left hand.

‘I can’t even get to that point.’

He thought as he hid his hand, and Zaha said,

“But we might die without getting anything out.”

Seol Young hesitated.

“… right.”

His heart clenched. It seemed that a single mistake here would expose everything.

“If we die, what happens? It’s a world where even the Buddha died.”

Zaha mumbled.

“Seol Young-rang, do you know what Buddha left behind in his death?”

“I don’t know.”

“What is the will of Buddha? High Governor, you are trying to play with the wrong terms. Are you really thinking about that? But really, before Buddha passed away, there was a will he left to his disciple, Ananda. Would you like to listen?”

“… Yes.”

“When Ananda learned that Buddha would soon pass away, Buddha called to him and said…”

As he walked through the wilderness, he continued,

‘Ananda, did I not tell you? Everything you love has no choice but to disappear, and no choice but to part and change. Everything that is born, grows, and comes into existence is bound to crumble one day, so how could it not disappear even if told them not to?’“

Why was he saying something like this? Like he knew something.

Seol Young was in agony.

However, he listened without saying that, and his heart slowly settled.

“So Ananda. Do not grieve or feel sad. Become an island and find a haven within yourself. Those were the last words of Buddha.”

All the past events passed through his eyes, one after another.

‘Right. It’s no’t bad to end up like this.’

Seol Young closed his eyes and opened them again. The huge barrier from the rift was blocking the path. It was brilliant and overwhelming, as if it were announcing the end of the world.

The two stopped in front of it and looked up at the wall.

“What do I do now? Are you going to find a way to break through?”

Zaha took a step ahead. When Seol Young didn’t move, he turned around and asked,

“What is it?”

Seol Young raised his eyes and looked at him.

“Well. Now that this has happened, no matter what I say, I have no choice but to believe it. Even if I am led to hell, I have no choice but to follow. So, I guess this is where we finally arrive.”

“….?”

“And this cannot happen anymore.”

Seol Young held out his left hand, which he had been hiding. The darkness was already taking over his hand, and even as he was showing it, it was slowly spreading.

It began to change.

“I think you know what this means…”

His voice trembled, unable to continue. But he wanted to be strong until the end.

But now, thinking that it was really over, he felt emotional.