CHAPTER 483: THE END POINT (2)

Seol-Hwi moved to the former headquarters of the Demonic Cult.

It felt like entering a cave set with traps, but there was no other viable option at the moment.

If he didn’t decide now, that guy would continue to avoid fighting him and somehow wreak havoc in the Central Plains.

‘In the end, he might destroy everything.’

Even after shattering the Central Plains, Jang Dal might not appear before him.

Based on Jang Dal’s behavior so far, it was easy to infer.

‘I have to confront him directly to find the answer.’

Seol-Hwi hadn’t completely abandoned the plan he devised.

Of course, the idea of putting him in a difficult situation through superhumans including Earth Demon had already evaporated from his mind.

But that didn’t mean the plan had failed.

If he could put that guy in a bind, a new path he wasn’t aware of might open up.

Although it’s merely formal, he is also a ‘manager’ like him.

“What? This is…”

Seol-Hwi’s gaze went straight up as he arrived at the rear garden of Lingering Garden Palace, where the disciples gathered.

A tree soaring high, piercing through the clouds, almost touching the sky.

It was so unnaturally large that it was immediately clear it wasn’t naturally formed.

“Did that guy make it?”

Seol-Hwi carefully examined the bizarrely large and tall tree.

Even though it looked artificially made, the detailed texture was the same as usual.

The massive tree trunk and branches spreading in all directions.

Its circumference was about the size of ten houses, so it took quite a while to grasp its shape.

‘There’s no entrance.’

Seol-Hwi circled around the entire tree.

Upon confirming there was no entrance, he approached the tree until his face was almost touching it, just in case.

[This is the Editor Center of the Heavenly Demon Cultivation Simulation.]

At that moment, a system message began to appear before his eyes.

[Would you like to enter? Accept/Decline]

It asked for his decision.

‘Enter inside?’

Seol-Hwi briefly looked up at the tree with a somewhat displeased expression.

The deliberation didn’t last long.

He had no intention of turning back after coming this far.

[Entering the Editor Center.]

Fla————-sh!

The light before his eyes.

This light was not meant to conceal the passage of time.

‘……!’

As darkness approached, Seol-Hwi realized that the space had shifted.

Upon seeing the scene unfold before him, he realized this was not the world he lived in.

[You are an administrator. You are not subject to this system.]

The phrase appeared above his field of vision and then disappeared.

When a slight light settled in the perfect darkness, he could see the surrounding objects.

And he also realized that the stairs he was standing on were floating in the air.

It was reminiscent of the place where he had met the Siming Star in the past.

[Welcome, Oh Great Demon God. This is the Editor Center specially crafted for you.]

Seol-Hwi glanced at the flowing information before his eyes and walked slowly.

Tap.Tap.

The sound of footsteps echoed in the vast space.

In the distance, the floating stone stairs appeared in Seol-Hwi’s view as he walked.

‘Does the law of nature not apply here?’

Rocks of various shapes floating in the air to the left and right.

And for some reason, pebbles continuously moving up and down.

Phenomena that couldn’t be seen in nature were unfolding before his eyes.

Rustle, rustle.

Without a word, they walked for a long time until the seemingly endless path disappeared, revealing a place resembling the Kongtong sect of Martial Sects.

And there stood a person.

“You’ve arrived.”

As Seol-Hwi stepped into the hall, the person slowly turned around.

Dressed in black, it was Jang Dal.

His face, not equipped with the absolute gear as before, showed signs of aging like an old man.

“So we meet again. We’ve met a few times, but… let’s formally introduce ourselves. I’m Jang Dal.”

Seol-Hwi nodded and spoke.

“I’m Seol-Hwi.”

Jang Dal, who was standing on a spot about two steps higher, came down and slowly approached.

Then, stopping about three feet from Seol-Hwi, he spoke.

“You must have a lot to say to me. And many questions too. Meeting here is a kind of fate, so today I’ll kindly answer.”

Then Seol-Hwi immediately asked.

“Where is this place?”

“Oh, here?”

At those words, Jang Dal looked around once before continuing.

“This is a place bound to me by the system. Here, I can customize my world. Do you see that?”

Jang Dal pointed to a spot with strange patterns drawn on it.

“When you stand there, the administrator’s authority is activated. It means you can adjust everything in the world as per your liking.”

A customization ability he did not possess.

Using it to create characters, produce numerous divine weapons and elixirs, and even adjust the direction of individual lives.

He was saying that omnipotent power is exercised there.

“It’s also the place that prevents the use of the toolbox ability.”

He seemed to be referring to how he couldn’t use his toolbox.

“I think that’s enough explanation, so let’s resolve our relationship now.”

Seol-Hwi didn’t want to drag things out any longer.

To be honest, he didn’t want to keep talking to him.

He wanted to smash his face in right then and there.

“Right now, it’s better for you to listen to me. We can’t fight here anyway.”

“What do you mean?”

“This place not only allows customization but also protects the administrator. Don’t you understand what that means?”

“Then… are you saying we can’t fight?”

“At least in here, that’s the case.”

Seol-Hwi furrowed his brows.

It was an entirely unexpected statement. Not being able to fight.

‘Come to think of it, this place…’

Something about the qi in the place felt different.

Was it more accurate to say it’s non-existent, or just faint?

The usual flow of qi was barely noticeable.

Of course, even so, he thought there wouldn’t be a problem in unleashing his power.

Because he had already surpassed that level.

However, he needed to check if the energy would reach Jang Dal.

‘Let’s try it.’

Swish.

The Fourth Ability.

Seol-Hwi summoned the qi of the universe through the Hundred Points Union and gathered it around the Taiji.

It was the chaos of Taiji.

“Oh.”

Seeing the qi gathered in his hands, Jang Dal expressed his admiration.

Yet he didn’t move.

Without hesitation, Seol-Hwi immediately unleashed the qi at him.

Boom!

A shockwave came from the wall that was hit by the qi.

However, there were no remnants of an explosion there.

Moreover.

“……!”

Seol-Hwi couldn’t believe his eyes.

It was just as he said.

His qi had no effect on Jang Dal’s body.

Even after striking and passing through his true self, it had no impact.

“I told you. We can’t kill each other.”

Crackle.

Just then, an intense qi of unknown origin flowed around them.

Seeing this, Seol-Hwi had to acknowledge it.

The qi present there, specifically the qi emitted by Jang Dal and himself, was not clashing.

It was likely due to this specially constructed space.

“That’s why you called me here.”

From the start, Seol-Hwi didn’t think this coward would suddenly want to fight.

Perhaps that’s why he could better understand his attitude and this situation.

“It’s not just for that reason. Of course, you’re half right, but there’s another reason.”

Jang Dal grinned as he continued.

“In fact, I respect you. More precisely, your ability to reach the level of a Demon God. So I didn’t see the need for us to risk our lives fighting. Although you might think differently.”

“……”

“So I considered our mutual interests. Then an interesting thought came to me. I have a proposal. Once you hear it, you’ll find it quite tempting.”

Seol-Hwi didn’t respond, but Jang Dal continued to speak.

“Even though we’re both administrators and can’t fight, you still want to fight me. Because of the various pains you’ve suffered in the past. Isn’t that right?”

“So?”

“There’s a way. You just need to lose your administrator privileges.”

“……!”

As Seol-Hwi widened his eyes in absurdity, Jang Dal calmly continued.

“Of course, I can’t make you lose your administrator privileges. You and I are equals. So it’s something you must do yourself.”

“……What do you mean?”

“See over there? That space I mentioned earlier. Go there and remove your administrator abilities. Then you can fight me properly here. How about it? Isn’t it tempting?”

When Seol-Hwi didn’t respond, Jang Dal chuckled softly.

“Ah! Of course, I know you won’t agree with me right away. I’m not a fool. That’s why I’m going to tell you why you should.”

Jang Dal raised his index finger.

“The reason you should accept my proposal. First, look ahead.”

That’s when it happened.

Swoosh—Swish, swish.

The massive rocks floating in the air began to merge one by one.

And then, as they aligned over a wide area, one side turned transparent like glass, just as seen during the mission.

And it appeared.

People actually moving inside.

“As you might have heard, there are currently over hundreds of thousands of people deployed in the Central Plains. They look exactly like themselves.”

Jang Dal was bringing up what the fake Earth Demon had mentioned in the past.

“They have the same abilities and appearance. The difference is that they’re slightly stronger than the original ones. I have customized not just the Demonic Cult but the entire Central Plains. What I’m trying to show you here is…….”

Snap!

That’s when a face was caught.

Seol-Hwi’s expression hardened upon seeing it. It was a familiar face.

‘Goo Jong-myung…….’

A fierce battle was raging with the Mount hua Sect.

Scenes of life and death.

In it, Goo Jong-myung was overwhelmingly superior in his fight with him.

The scene continued to show him killing and saving others.

“Because I generated on such a large scale, I set them slightly stronger than their original abilities. That’s probably why that guy, who became stronger with your touch, survived this fight. But what about the others?”

“…….”

Seol-Hwi’s eyes widened as he saw the next scene.

It was another familiar figure.

And a dearly missed one.

‘Master.’

Cheong Heo was struggling hard.

Of course, it seemed like he was overcoming himself, but that wasn’t the issue anymore.

The old master whose life’s flame was flickering out.

Using the wager inevitably shortened his lifespan further.

Even if he won, it wouldn’t truly be a victory.

“This one might be different, right? Of course, he’ll survive.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“Listen. Once this third great chaos ends, I’ll start the fourth. For a specific person. No matter how strong, this time, they won’t survive. Eventually, they’ll be replaced by the NPCs I created… Watching that from here wouldn’t be pleasant.”

Jang Dal was showing this as a means to relish Seol-Hwi’s suffering.

Seol-Hwi asked again.

“……Is that the reason you have to do it?”

“That’s part of it, and there’s a second reason for it too.”

Jang Dal turned his gaze, extending his middle finger as he continued.

“If you can kill me, you’ll receive a great reward.”

“……Reward?”

“Yes. If you kill me, you’ll become the sole god and gain the administrator’s abilities. Then you can become the administrator here and create everything in the world as per your wish.”

“For just such a reason……?”

“Just? Don’t you want to see her?”

“……!”

In an instant, Seol-Hwi’s eyes widened.

Only then did he realize the significance of gaining all his abilities.

“Ultimately, the choice is yours. You don’t have to accept my proposal. Anyway, I have no intention of leaving here.”

That was his true intention.

From the start, Jang Dal wasn’t trying to engage in an equal fight with himself.

He was merely trying to remove Seol-Hwi by exploiting his weaknesses.

“What’s your plan? You need to decide quickly. Soon, the fourth chaos will begin… Will you live here with me forever, or will you take all of my powers and achieve your dreams?”

His proposal.

But it was also a trap.

Just as Seol-Hwi had initially planned… he had designed it to somehow put himself in a predicament.

‘Is this an opportunity, or a trap?’

Seol-Hwi knew.

Jang Dal coming this far meant that if the administrator abilities were removed from him,

there was a basis for him to be confident that he could kill him.

‘The last life. What is the right choice for me?’

And that was.

It was likely the final choice that would determine his fate.