Chapter 427 - World Tree’s Prophecy

Chapter 427 - World Tree’s Prophecy

The party members stared anxiously at the white light flowing out from Iris.

[Savior.]

Soon after, Iris’s consciousness faded and Elune took its place. Elune slowly turned to Kang-Woo, her expression filled with trust and expectation.

“How is the World tree?” Kang-Woo asked cautiously.

The World Tree was the only way for them to find the Demon God’s heart. Their plan would be irreparable if the Word Tree were not revived.

[It has yet to regain its full strength, but it is getting better,] Elune answered with a faint smile.

The party members expressed relief.

“In that case...”

[Yes.] Elune nodded. [I can locate the Demon God’s heart.]

“Phew,” Cha Yeon-Joo sighed in relief.

“What a relief,” Layla remarked as she looked at Kang-Woo.

Kang-Woo asked in a low tone, “Where is the Demon God’s heart?”

[Please give me a moment.]

Elune closed her eyes and brought her hands together. Bright green light particles floated around her; an inexplicably warm and comfortable energy filled the room.

[O great Titan Yggdrasil,] Elune prayed, her voice echoing. The green light filling the room shone even more brightly as she prayed. [Light up the path of the Savior.]

Whoooom—!

The light particles around Elune swirled aggressively. Kang-Woo squinted due to the blinding light. Just then...

[Ah.] Elune’s eyes widened and she trembled in pallor. [A-Aaaahh.]

‘What with her all of a sudden?’ Kang-Woo frowned as he stared at the pale-faced Elune. ‘Is it because of me again?’

Elune looked exactly like when she had foreseen Kang-Woo and Kim Si-Hun’s futures. Kang-Woo frowned, thinking that it was because of him again.

“Is something wrong?” he asked.

[P-prophecy...] Diisscover new chapters on n0ve(l)bin(.)com

“Prophecy?”

[I have received... a new prophecy,] Elune stammered as she looked up blankly at thin air.

“What prophecy?” Kang-Woo asked.

Silence fell. The light disappeared from Elune’s eyes like a machine that lost power. She then began to speak, [The black sun will burn the sky, and the Triad will meet its end on the day that the Demonic Sea floods.]

Kang-Woo sighed as if he had expected it after hearing Elune’s prophecy.

‘It’s fucking me again.’

He had no idea what the black sun was, but he was sure that the flooding of the Demonic Sea was referring to himself. He bit his lip as if he was tired of it now.

‘What the fuck? I don’t give a flying fuck about ending worlds. Just leave me the fuck alone. Why is everyone trying so hard to kill me?’

Kang-Woo grabbed the back of his head but the rage-induced headache only lasted for a moment. He took a deep breath and calmed down.

‘I doubt it’s a baseless prophecy.’

If that was the case, Elune would not be so panicked. There were likely differences in terms of specific details, but it would most likely occur in the future.

‘What is gonna happen?’

Kang-Woo had no clue. The prophecy was so vague that he did not even know the general time frame of the foretold event. He lacked far too much information to guess what the prophecy was warning them about.

“What the hell does that even mean?” Yeon-Joo asked as she tilted her head in confusion.

[I am not sure either.] Elune shook her head with a hardened expression. [But... I am sure that the Triad will be in grave danger soon.]

Deathly silence fell.

Si-Hun lowered his head with a darkened expression and said, “Even after all that we’ve done... Nothing has changed?”

They had killed one of the Four Heavenly Kings and revived the World Tree, but the future did not change at all.

“We already expected this, didn’t we?” Kang-Woo laughed brightly to uplift the somber mood.

He could not tell exactly what the prophecy was trying to say, but he did not need to worry as long as the prophecy was directed at him.

‘Why the hell would I end the world?’

There were so many things that he had not been able to do yet. He would be crazy to end the world when he was trying to enjoy his life after suffering in Hell for ten millennia.

‘Moreover...’

“What is wrong, my king?” Balrog asked.

“Something’s off.”

“What do you mean?”

“You know, you and Si-Hun pretty much destroyed half the forest back then.”

“Ah.” Balrog coughed, having recalled his embarrassing actions. “I remember, but... what about it?”

“There are no traces of it.”

Kang-Woo came back down and placed his hand on the ground. He searched the area using the Authority of the Beholder, but he could not sense any traces of the forest being destroyed.

“That is strange indeed. There is no way traces of that idiot’s rampage would disappear in just a few months,” Lilith remarked as she walked over.

“Could it be because of those Maokai? You know, those moving tree monsters,” Yeon-Joo asked.

Kang-Woo shook his head. “No. Even if that’s the case, seeing no traces of the destruction whatsoever is abnormal.”

The moment they arrived at the Nightmare Forest, Kang-Woo felt a sense of incongruence that he had not felt when the party had arrived on Aernor for the first time. The entire area felt hot and stuffy like the summer air after rain.

‘It feels like... we’ve arrived in another world.’

“Umm... Kang-Woo,” Han Seol-Ah called.

“Yeah?”

“Come take a look at this.”

She extended her hand toward Kang-Woo, showing him what was in her hands. Kang-Woo’s face hardened.

“This is...”

“You mentioned it before, didn’t you? That there was sand like this where you came from... in Hell.”

Seol-Ah had red sand, dirt containing demonic energy that could not sustain any life whatsoever, in her hands. Such dirt could only be found in the Nine Hells.

“Where did you find this?” Kang-Woo asked.

“Over there... in that tree.” Seol-Ah pointed at a tree with its bark stripped off.

Kang-Woo walked up to the tree and touched it.

Pour.

“What the...”

The entire tree turned into red sand and collapsed.

‘Wait, could this be...’

Kang-Woo’s expression hardened as the worst-case scenario popped up in his head. Kang-Woo lightly swung his arm at the trees around him and shot light particles about the size of a fingertip. And then...

“Fuck...”

The trees burst as soon as the light particle struck them and scattered on the ground as red sand.

“The hell? Why did the trees become sand all of a sudden?” Yeon-Joo tilted her head in confusion.

Kang-Woo bit his lip and answered, “They didn’t become sand.”

“Then what?” Yeon-Joo asked.

Kang-Woo bent down, stuck his hand into the ground, and dug out about a fistful of dirt.

“This entire forest... has been corroded by the Nine Hells.”

Under the dirt was sand as red as blood.

***

A being was blown away past the trees in a desolate forest where no life could be felt.

Boom!

He was smashed into the ground, creating a massive dust cloud made up of red sand.

“Kurgh, cough!”

The being that pathetically tumbled across the ground grunted in pain as he clenched the ground.

Step, step.

A boy with blank eyes walked toward the being.

“What’s wrong, Lucifer?” The boy with blank eyes exuded chilling bloodlust as the corners of his mouth split open. “I thought you’d give me a warm welcome.”

The boy giggled as he looked down at the collapsed Lucifer.