The area was desolate.

Normally, when a place was said to be sparsely populated, it meant there were few traces of people, either due to its remoteness or because it was restricted for safety reasons.

But this... this wasn’t just sparsely populated.

‘This isn’t just a lack of people...’

There was no presence at all.

Not just human presence, but any sign of life—completely absent.

‘What is this?’

How could this even be possible? A deep sense of unease crawled over my skin.

This wasn’t just a low presence of life.

‘There’s nothing.’

Absolutely nothing.

There wasn’t a single trace of any living being.

That shouldn’t be possible.

Ever since I reached transcendence, my sensory perception had expanded to an extreme degree—both in range and depth.

And yet, I couldn’t sense anything?

Frowning, I scanned my surroundings again.

Just like before, there were barely any trees or grass.

The landscape was mostly rock, making it feel even more devoid of life.

‘...There’s no way it should be this empty.’

Feeling something was off, I gathered my energy.

Fwoosh—!

A ring of energy formed behind me. I quickly rotated it, pouring most of my power into my sensory field.

Immediately, my perception expanded rapidly, flooding me with a massive influx of information.

It was so overwhelming that I felt a slight headache.

And yet—

‘There’s no sign of life.’

I could sense the characteristics of the land and its formations, but there was still no trace of any living creature.

I expanded my range even further.

Then—

Ting—!

"...!"

At the very edge of my senses, something triggered a reaction.

I immediately cut off my energy.

‘Shit.’

That was a mistake.

‘I stretched it too far.’

Even though I knew what was here in Mount Marryeong, I had momentarily forgotten.

‘I ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) withdrew my energy quickly, but... did it notice?’

In my extended range, I had finally detected a living presence.

However—

‘...It’s too massive.’

It was far too large and violent to be called a normal living being.

It felt similar to when I had sensed Yusa before.

Which meant—

‘There’s only one thing that could have such an overwhelming presence.’

Since I knew what resided here in Mount Marryeong, I could deduce its identity immediately.

Without a doubt, it was him.

‘Du Ryeong.’

The ruler of Mount Marryeong.

The guardian of the second Divine Tree I had come here to find.

One of the generals.

That presence—

It was him.

Thanks to my expanded perception, I had pinpointed Du Ryeong’s location within Mount Marryeong. That was a valuable piece of information.

But the problem was—

‘Just as I sensed him...’

‘He may have sensed me as well.’

Just as I had confirmed his existence through my energy field—

He could have noticed my presence from the disturbance.

And if that was the case—

‘If he knows my location—’

KUGUGUGUGUNG—!!!

"Goddammit."

Before I could even finish the thought, a tremor shook the ground.

The entire mountain rumbled violently. 𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Even though I had withdrawn my energy, his presence erupted like an explosion.

I knew he was still far away, and yet, an oppressive killing intent surged toward me from all directions.

‘Yeah, he definitely noticed me.’

My lips curled into a smirk.

It was guaranteed now—Du Ryeong knew I was here.

‘Ah...’

What should I do?

There wasn’t much time to think.

Even if the distance was great, he could close it in an instant if he wanted to.

I glanced to the side.

Cheonma was staring intently in the same direction, clearly aware of the massive presence approaching.

‘Hmm.’

If I used her properly in battle, there wouldn’t be much of a problem.

‘But will she even listen?’

Would she act as I wanted her to?

That was an unknown variable.

‘...And I don’t particularly want to fight alongside her anyway.’

So, what was my best course of action?

‘Actually, this is perfect.’

I lifted my head.

Yeah, this was good.

‘I needed to test him out anyway.’

If Du Ryeong was coming here, that saved me the trouble of going to him.

That was much more convenient.

Thinking that, I immediately grabbed Cheonma’s wrist.

"Huh?"

"Follow me."

I pulled her along as I moved.

**********

Fwoooosh—!!!

The wind howled violently.

Being at such a high altitude, strong winds were natural, but right now, they were even fiercer than before.

Was this rage?

No.

This wasn’t anger—it was fear.

The wind itself was trembling at the approach of something monstrous.

I stared up at the sky with tense eyes.

And then—

A tiny speck appeared against the night sky.

At first, it was barely visible, like a dot.

But as the seconds passed, it grew larger and larger.

Before long, its form became clear.

A massive being with the head of a bull and the body of a man.

With murderous eyes and flames engulfing its body, it descended from the sky.

KUUUUUAAAAAHHH—!!!

The ground shattered upon impact.

Rocks and debris exploded outward, creating a deep crater in the earth.

It was as if a meteor had struck.

Dust surged into the air, obscuring the view, but my enhanced vision—evolved under the moonlight—saw through it with ease.

I could see him.

‘It’s him.’

The first general I had encountered upon arriving in Mangye.

The one they called Du Ryeong.

A towering figure with blackened skin, the head of a bull, and the body of a warrior.

At least several times the size of an ordinary man.

He gripped an axe as large as his own monstrous frame.

And slowly, he began to rise.

Ssssshhh—

‘Damn.’

A laugh slipped out involuntarily.

Not just because of his sheer size, but the overwhelming presence and aura radiating from him sent a shiver through my body.

‘I really ran into this thing first back then?’

Now, I could see things I hadn’t been able to before.

It was the same feeling as when I had reached transcendence and met Yusa.

But the problem was—

This thing was even worse.

‘This isn’t killing intent.’

It was fighting spirit.

An overwhelming, maddening thirst for battle poured out from him.

No, there was definitely killing intent as well, but his fighting spirit was so overpowering that it nearly drowned out everything else.

‘What kind of monster is this?’

He looked like he was absolutely itching for a fight.

It was such a ridiculous aura that it almost made me admire him.

And more than that—

‘If he catches sight of me, there’s no way to avoid a fight.’

Just looking at his state, I knew it was best to avoid being seen.

Right now, I was hiding between cracks in the rocky terrain, keeping a safe distance while observing him.

‘Hmmm...’

I narrowed my eyes.

Glancing up at the moon, I noticed a small sphere floating faintly between the lunar glow.

The Nine Flames Firewheel.

I was using it to suppress my presence.

Hiding my energy, I made sure Du Ryeong wouldn’t be able to sense me, and to be extra careful, I shrouded myself further with flames to lower my presence even more.

Cheonma was beside me, but she seemed to understand the situation and had reduced her presence significantly as well.

Even if the Shadow King himself were here, he wouldn’t be able to notice us.

Using that advantage, I continued to observe Du Ryeong closely.

Tsk...

But as I watched, my brow furrowed.

‘I can’t see inside him clearly.’

For some reason, I couldn’t perceive his inner workings properly.

Was he deliberately cloaking his body with energy?

‘That could be it.’

He had already sensed someone probing him.

Maybe he didn’t know exactly who I was, but he definitely realized an outsider had used Qi Perception on him.

He was likely shrouding himself in energy to prepare for an unknown threat.

Given the situation, I needed to be careful in how I examined him.

If he detected anything else unusual, he might lock onto my exact location.

Hmmm...

I exhaled quietly.

Circulating my energy internally, I built up heat.

‘Should I fight him?’

I considered it.

What were my odds of winning if I fought him now?

Would there be any losses?

What would be the potential gains?

I carefully weighed everything.

At the same time, I adjusted my stance, expanding my body slightly.

‘The conditions are good.’

The situation was actually favorable.

With no other life present, that meant Du Ryeong had no allies to assist him.

‘And his authority doesn’t work on me.’

Even if he had an Undying Authority, my own Devour ability could completely neutralize it.

That was a huge advantage.

Beyond just negating his ability—

‘He won’t know that until we fight, which means it’ll mess with his combat style.’

If he was relying on his supposed immortality, his approach to battle would be obvious.

‘He’ll charge in recklessly, believing he can’t die.’

That was always the combat style of those with high regeneration and durable external defenses.

A perfect example—

‘...Would be me.’

I had done the same.

Even before I became a dragon, the moment my regeneration increased, my fighting style became even more reckless.

I doubted Du Ryeong was any different.

So—

‘I’ll use that against him.’

A fighter who believes they are unkillable will act accordingly.

If I can exploit that moment of shock when he realizes his ability doesn’t work, the fight won’t be difficult.

But—

‘Not yet.’

I took a step back and decided to observe a little longer.

Starting a fight the moment I arrived carried too much risk.

It was better to gather more information first.

With that conclusion, I turned to leave with Cheonma.

Just as I reached up to remove my mask—

"What a shame."

Fwoosh.

Du Ryeong exhaled through his nostrils as he spoke.

"I had hoped that those who dared step onto my land would be warriors of courage."

"...!"

"But it seems that is not the case."

Hearing that, I turned my head to look at him.

And in that moment—

"...Ha."

I let out a dry laugh.

He had been standing on the rocky ground alone, scanning the area.

But now—

He was looking directly at us.

Which meant—

‘...That bastard.’

He had noticed us from the start.

_________________________

TL Notes: 

Hey fam!

I couldn't leave my most friendly chat without an update today. I hope this single chapter keeps you excited for tomorrow's combo, which will be released in about 7 hours. Get ready for some intense moments! 🔥