The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 61

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Heavenly Supreme Has Died – Episode 061
I tore through the rough forest path at a sprint. The trees were dense and the overcast sky obscured everything beyond an arm’s length, yet still I ran without pause.
I didn’t even close my eyes. This all-out dash after so long was draining my energy considerably.
My thighs burned.
Running through such treacherous terrain for the first time in ages put strain on my ankles as well.
Ah, I should have focused more on training.
Such regret flickered through my mind, but only briefly.
‘Where is it?’
Even as I thought this, my legs had to keep moving.
My eyes had to search the ground ahead, not the path itself.
‘Where is it.’
What I sought was not the path.
It was a single phenomenon etched upon the earth.
A Spirit Mark.
I was following the traces left behind by wandering spirits.
With dark clouds overhead and yin energy saturating the air, the marks were far clearer than usual.
‘Something’s off.’
Even accounting for that, they were unnaturally vivid.
‘There are too many.’
The number of Spirit Marks was excessively abundant, almost impossibly so.
Moreover, it wasn’t just the marks—there were far too many wandering spirits as well.
Even considering weather like this, it was excessive.
‘Damn it.’
I clenched my teeth hard.
This wasn’t good. No—it was bad. Filthy bad.
Following this trail would lead to troublesome complications.
I was certain of it. Not a guess or delusion, but absolute conviction.
And knowing this clearly,
‘Do I still have to go?’
I asked myself.
Did I really have to go, knowing all of this?
To think rationally about it.
Wouldn’t the answer be different then?
I would not involve myself in matters of spirits, no matter what.
That was the first resolution I made after my reincarnation.
A vow I bound myself to in order to live differently than in my past life.
‘Madman.’
Yet knowing all of this, I continued running.
I had wanted to live a life indifferent to whether others lived or died.
I had dreamed of a life furthest removed from the deaths of others, and yet here I was, foolishly moving forward once more.
Even a god had never encountered such a god.
[Ah, child.]
Yoo Cheon-gil’s voice reached me. He floated effortlessly in the empty air, leisurely following in my wake.
[What are you thinking?]
I didn’t answer his question.
If I opened my mouth to respond, my breathing would surely fall into disarray.
[I don’t understand. The one I knew wouldn’t seem to care about something like this?]
His words carried the tone of genuine confusion.
I agreed with him. Even by my own judgment, my current state was decidedly strange.
And I knew this better than anyone.
Crack—! I stopped my frantic pace, my footsteps crushing twigs beneath me.
It was where the spiritual energy had been severed.
At that same moment.
‘…A fishy stench.’
A peculiar, acrid smell brushed against my nostrils.
It was an odor that stirred unease, yet it felt disturbingly familiar.
Where was it from?
Where had I encountered such a wretched smell before?
“…Ah.”
After a moment of thought, it came to me.
That dungeon from back then.
The dungeon where I had faced that creature called Sanchen Gwiin or whatever it was.
That same smell had permeated the dungeon then.
‘That scent was unmistakably….’
The reek of blood.
The stench of spilled blood from the dead, pooling and festering.
‘That it lingers here as well means….’
I slowly lifted my gaze toward what lay ahead.
“….”
A village stood before me.
The small village I had passed through by carriage earlier.
I had deliberately bypassed it then, as stopping to rest would have been tactically inappropriate for my mission.
In that small, insignificant village.
Calamity had unfolded.

* * *
“Bang Disciple…!”
Cheon Euijin and Do-hyeong arrived belatedly. They were quite startled when Bangseong-yeon suddenly bolted away.
To suddenly halt the carriage and dash off like that.
Confronted with this unexpected turn of events, Do-hyeong and Cheon Euijin furrowed their brows.
Especially Do-hyeong. Not only had Bangseong-yeon stopped the carriage without permission from Do-hyeong, the one in charge of the mission.
But to act alone without explaining the circumstances beforehand.
No matter how one looked at it, this crossed a line.
Just as Do-hyeong was about to say something to Bangseong-yeon.
“Bangseong….”
Do-hyeong, who had been speaking, closed his mouth.
Cheon Euijin did the same.
Both men stiffened as they surveyed what lay ahead.
“This is….”
“What in the world.”
Cheon Euijin and Do-hyeong reacted simultaneously.
The village had been reduced to ruins.
Though not large, what must have once been a quaint and neatly arranged village was now stained with the acrid stench of blood and the marks of devastation.
Mutilated corpses lay scattered throughout the village.
From their condition, it was clear these were far from peaceful deaths.
“How could this have….”
Cheon Euijin spoke in shock as he surveyed the scene.
“Huh, what?”
Someone emerged from a house, speaking as he walked out.
“Ah well. This is troublesome.”
A man of considerable build. He wore an expression of inconvenience as he looked at the three of them.
“Strange. I was certain I’d made sure there would be no witnesses…?”
The man spoke words that made no sense.
Cheon Euijin furrowed his brows at the sight of him.
Because something grotesque hung from his hand.
It was a severed head of someone.
The expression of despair frozen upon it spoke volumes of what had transpired.
“Who are you wretches?”
To Do-hyeong’s words, the man gave no proper answer and only spoke his own thoughts.
“Hmm… Well, looking at you, you don’t seem worth much, so I suppose I should just dispose of you and report…. Hmm?”
Just as the man moved with casual indifference, his gaze fixed upon the garments the three wore.
“Wait…. That is…?”
While the clothing itself seemed unremarkable, the specific embroidery and the pattern drawn upon the chest were quite renowned throughout the Central Plains.
There was no help for it. There was only one place in this vast Central Plains that used the crescent moon as its symbol.
“Cheongwol Gate…?”
The Cheongwol Gate of Hannam.
Garments worn only by their members. Moreover, the peculiar embroidery on two of these three…
“Sowoldae…?”
It was what only the masters of Cheongwol Gate wore.
“Damn it all.”
The man’s expression darkened the moment he saw it.
“소월대가 왜 여기에—!!”
The flustered man tried to cry out, but at that moment Do-hyeong drew his blade and rushed forward.
Clang!
The man desperately parried Do-hyeong’s attack with his own weapon.
He barely managed to block that single strike.
Whoosh!
“Wha…?”
Suddenly my vision blurred.
By the time I registered the strange sensation, the man’s head was already falling to the ground.
Thud!
His massive body collapsed, and Do-hyeong spoke while looking back.
“There are more.”
“…”
Upon hearing those words, Cheon Euijin grew vigilant and extended his senses outward.
Just as Do-hyeong said, strange presences lurked hidden throughout the village.
‘…An ambush?’
They didn’t seem to be mere bandits—judging from what I’d just witnessed between Do-hyeong and that man, they were clearly martial artists.
‘Why?’
Why on earth would martial artists need to attack this small village?
Such thoughts filled Cheon Euijin’s mind.
But more than that.
‘How did Bang Disciple even know?’
How had Bangseong-yeon become aware of this situation and come running?
And from such a great distance at that.
‘I didn’t even notice.’
Was it even possible to sense something happening this far away from a moving carriage and come running?
‘…’
It was absolutely impossible unless one was an extraordinary master.
Yet Bangseong-yeon had accomplished it.
“Disciple.”
“Ah, yes…!”
Cheon Euijin, who had been standing dazed in thought, quickly drew his blade at Do-hyeong’s call.
First, I needed to handle this strange situation.
With that determination, Cheon Euijin focused his mind.
‘Wait….’
Cheon Euijin’s eyes widened as I noticed something amiss.
‘Bang Disciple is…?’
Bangseong-yeon, who had clearly been in front of me just moments ago.
He had vanished.

* * *
CRACK–!!
I tore away the wooden wall before me. The metal had long since corroded, so the tearing itself wasn’t difficult.
“Phew.”
I wiped away a thin layer of sweat and hurled the torn door outside.
Only then did the interior come into view.
“….”
There were two corpses.
One was a woman’s body, mangled in various places.
The other was a man’s body, severed at the waist.
They appeared to be a married couple.
Bangseong-yeon’s brow furrowed at the sight of them.
Not so much from the excessively violent scene itself.
-There… over there…. Please, please listen to me….
The woman’s desperate pleas grated terribly on my ears.
-Please… please hear me…. God, please….
Dead long ago, yet still seeking God.
It was rather absurd, but no laughter came.
Where could it be? I walked cautiously, subtly determining my destination.
That wall cabinet, perhaps.
The woman was signaling me frantically in front of that cabinet.
-Please… if only God existed….
“….”
I turned from my path and headed toward the cabinet.
-Aaaah…!!
At my approach, the woman let out a sobbing sigh.
I reached the cabinet and tore open its door.
Inside, a child was huddled.
“….”
Could they be sleeping? That couldn’t be.
I placed my hand on their neck. I felt no pulse.
They were dead. Just before I arrived.
Looking at that, I lowered my gaze.
‘Wounds.’
The child was clutching their belly, fast asleep.
When I looked at my hand, blood was flowing from it.
I carefully lifted the child up.
I could still feel warmth, but soon it would grow cold.
I held the child and remained motionless.
Then.
[Duck down.]
Yoo Cheon-gil spoke.
Without hesitation, I lowered my body.
콰가가가각—!!!
In that instant, a tremendous sound erupted above my head.
I turned to look behind me.
There stood a Bald Man, gripping a rather enormous blade.
He looked at me with a slightly flustered expression.
“How did you know?”
He seemed quite startled that I had evaded his attack.
“I was certain I concealed my presence… This is strange.”
Regardless of what the man said, I gently set the child I was holding onto the ground.
I found straw as clean as possible and laid the child down, then slowly rose to my feet.
“Haaah…”
I steadied my breathing.
I needed to remain as composed as possible.
Then I spoke to the man.
“Let me ask you one thing.”
“Huh?”
At my words, the man bared his fangs as if bewildered.
“What are you asking? Are you insane? Or can’t you see the situation you’re in?”
“Why didn’t you kill the child?”
“What?”
“You already knew the child was here. So why did you wait instead of killing them?”
He had already known the child was hiding in the wall closet.
Knowing everything, he deliberately refrained from killing and left them alive.
Then, just as I arrived, their breath stopped.
Why had he done that?
When I asked the reason, the man let out a snicker.
As if to say, why would you ask such a thing?
“It was fun.”
“Fun?”
“Yes. Watching parents die before their eyes, seeing them tremble in terror. That was truly amusing.”
“…”
“That’s why I made sure to stab him just enough to keep him from escaping—not enough to kill him outright. I wanted to watch him tremble before I carved him up at the end. But what about you? Why are you interfering with me?”
Anger was seeping into the man’s face with each passing moment.
“Why would you ruin something I’ve seasoned so carefully…”
The man examined my clothing and furrowed his brow.
“…Wait, those clothes are… Sowoldae…?”
“I’ll make you just one promise.”
Before the man could finish speaking, I drew my blade.
Then I spoke to him.
“Even in death, you will find no peace.”
Power surged into Wol-an as energy coalesced within the sword.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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