CFZ

Rumble---!!!
The deafening roar from the sky threatened to burst my eardrums.
Crackle.

Boom.
Beyond the churning black clouds, streaks of lightning swirled, crackling with raw energy. It was a scene one might expect only in the heart of a thunderstorm.
Everyone watching could only hold their breath.

Even without knowing its cause, the sight was awe-inspiring. Yet, this spectacle hadn’t formed naturally—it was the work of a single human.
How could anyone not be astonished?
This was no ordinary display—it went beyond mere admiration.

Rumble-!! Rumble---!!!
The storm above raged as if a colossal serpent writhed within the clouds.
A breathtaking scene, impossible to look away from.

While countless eyes remained fixated on the ominous display—
[Keeeee-aaaaah---!!!]
A monstrous cry pierced the air.

And at that moment—
[Kraaaaaaa---!!!]
From the countless Magyeong Gates suspended in midair, swarms of monsters poured out.

They resembled beasts but were far larger and more grotesque than any ordinary animal.
It was like watching massive buildings come crashing down.
Each one was powerful enough to raze an entire village, and the warriors nearby instinctively held their breath.
Disaster had struck.

Crimson-ranked monsters—beasts so powerful that only highly skilled martial artists could handle them alone.
Now, dozens of such creatures appeared at once.
If these monsters reached the ground, everything would be annihilated.

No matter how much they fought with determination and unity, there was a limit to what the warriors could endure.
They had already resolved to lay down their lives in battle.
Yet none of them could have expected this.

“Stay on your guard.”
That someone like me would dare face such monsters—
“It’ll get blinding, so you’d better close your eyes if you can.”

—only to summon ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) something even more fearsome.
Whoosh.
A crimson robe fluttered as the old man raised his index finger and made a slight downward motion.

And then—
Rumble---!!!!
Boom--!!!

Lightning rained down from the heavens.
[Kraaaa!!]
[Kiiiik-!!]

A relentless storm of divine punishment.
The immense bolts of lightning struck the monsters with terrifying precision, piercing through them.
Even the formidable defenses of the crimson-ranked monsters crumbled under the assault.

[Kyaaaaaaa!!]
Their howls filled the air.
The acrid smell of burning flesh lingered in my nostrils, and the ground trembled under the force of the strikes.

Monsters, driven by bloodlust, were being reduced to ashes one by one.
“…Ha….”
I swallowed hard as I watched.

‘…That old man….’
Was he always this strong?
He wielded nothing but a single sword, yet with a flick of his fingers, he was slaughtering a force strong enough to obliterate an entire region.

Namgung Myung, the Thunder God.
One of the Three Lords under Heaven.
A living legend of the Namgung clan, said to have fought thousands of demonic martial artists single-handedly in his prime.

His power was undeniably worthy of the title Lord.
The sheer presence he exuded now lived up to his moniker as the Heavenly Lord.
But—

‘He wasn’t this strong before.’
I couldn’t help but question it.
When I first heard about the resurrection of the dragon from the First Demon, I prepared for the worst.

I had drawn up plans and backup strategies, anticipating monsters stronger than myself.
‘Monsters are powerful.’
Without reaching the realm of the mind, they couldn’t even be scratched.

Their defenses and attacks were so overwhelming that fighting them alone was almost impossible.
But knowing I’d need to hunt them down eventually, I devised a simple solution:
‘If I can’t kill them, then I’ll bring someone who can.’

If I couldn’t hunt a crimson-ranked monster myself, I needed to summon someone who could.
And that’s how I found him—the Heavenly Lord.
The strongest person I could manage to recruit.

It had taken considerable effort, swallowing my pride and resorting to every trick in the book, but in the end, I succeeded.
For some reason, after the Tang Clan incident, the Heavenly Lord had followed my father to the Gu family estate. He’d even taken up guarding the gates, claiming he had to at least earn his meals.
This led to a bizarre arrangement—Sword Lord trained me, Heavenly Lord stood watch over the gates, and Martial Lord oversaw my practice.

Regardless—
‘…I managed to bring him here.’
Whatever it took, he had come to Hanam at my request two weeks ago.

And now he was showing this overwhelming display of strength.
‘But why is he this strong?’
I couldn’t help but be stunned by what I saw.

Heavenly Lord was strong. That much was obvious.
After all, how else could he be one of the Three Lords?
Even in my past life, I’d encountered him a few times and knew better than to challenge him directly.

He had always been stronger than me—even now, after I’d grown significantly since my reincarnation.
Of course, I expected him to be strong—but—
‘…This is beyond my expectations.’

The power he demonstrated was on a completely different level.
A single motion of his fingers swept away waves of crimson monsters.
It was the same in my previous life.

When crimson monsters first appeared, the Heavenly Lord was the one to hunt them down and discover their weaknesses.
There were two methods to deal with crimson monsters:
First, target the small gaps in their regenerating barriers to take them down.

This method had already been shared with the world under an alias I had established, helping to reduce casualties.
Second—
‘Overwhelm their barriers with sheer force.’

The barriers protecting crimson monsters could be shattered if flooded with enough energy.
While the second method seemed simpler, the required energy was so immense that most people relied on the first approach instead.
And yet—

‘…He’s just spamming it?’
I was dumbfounded watching the Heavenly Lord.
Rumble--!!!

[Kiiiik-!!]
A bolt of lightning struck and instantly killed a crimson boar-like monster, the Scarlet Boar (Jeokbi-don).
It was resistant to fire and physical attacks, making it a tricky opponent—but it died in one hit.

He didn’t even bother finding its weak spot.
The sheer amount of energy in his lightning overwhelmed the barrier outright.
While I had started relying on the second method as well, I couldn’t imagine using it so recklessly.

‘How can he keep it up?’
It was impossible to handle so many monsters that way.
Not only did it require immense energy, but maintaining that level of firepower also drained stamina rapidly.

‘The old man’s stamina is insane.’
But the Heavenly Lord didn’t seem bothered at all as he continued to unleash lightning strikes.
Boom-!! Rumble---!!

The thunderstorm raged on without pause.
[Krrrkkk-!!]
Each strike claimed another monster’s life.

I narrowed my eyes.
‘I have more energy than him.’
Despite his experience and high cultivation, my raw energy reserves should be larger.

So how could he keep this up?
I couldn’t understand it.
‘What’s the difference?’

Was it a matter of technique?
For now, I put the question aside.
‘So this is the strength of the Three Lords.’

I swallowed hard, coming to terms with the overwhelming presence of the Heavenly Lord.
Was I blind to this in my past life?
Now, with my current level of cultivation, I could truly grasp it.

Heavenly Lord.
I finally understood why he wasn’t called a Sword Lord.
‘…This is on another level.’

It was my first time facing one of the Three Lords as an equal in cultivation.
The Martial Lord had regressed, so his strength no longer mattered—but the Heavenly Lord?
‘He’s a wall.’

A wall so high I couldn’t yet scale it.
Even the Sword Emperor, a top ten martial artist, only seemed stronger than me.
But the Heavenly Lord felt like an insurmountable barrier.

One I’d have to conquer someday.
And that wall now stood before me.
“…Ugh….”

I staggered to my feet.
Even the slightest movement sent sharp pain through my bones.
‘Shit… I’m screwed.’

Judging by the damage, I’d be out of commission for at least two months.
My internal injuries were severe—so much so that I had to stop circulating my Tua Pacheonmu.
When I’d tried earlier, I’d nearly passed out.

“Huff… Huff….”
I barely managed to catch my breath and looked around.
And then, I noticed the reactions of the people around me.

‘These people… Didn’t I tell them to close their eyes?’
Despite the Heavenly Lord’s warning, everyone stood with their eyes wide open and jaws dropped.
Didn’t the lightning hurt their eyes?

“…That… person… could it be…?”
“The He-Heavenly Lord…?”
“Why is the Heavenly Lord here…?”

Even without seeing his face, clad in his crimson robes, they knew who he was.
Because there was only one person in the entire world who could create lightning like this.
Kuaaaa---!!!

As if to emphasize that thought, another bolt of lightning fell, striking down another monster.
The monster, charred black by the lightning, collapsed lifelessly.
“...”

And that was it.
Over thirty monsters.
A force that could have ravaged all of Hanam was annihilated by the gestures of a single old man.

The only things left were the scorched bodies of the monsters and the acrid stench of burning flesh.
At the center of it all, the old man calmly turned around and began walking toward us.
He still held his sword, though he hadn’t even swung it.

All he did was wave his hand a few times.
And that was enough to create this catastrophe.
‘Heavenly Lord.’

Cold sweat trickled down my back.
‘So this is how strong he is.’
Even in a fleeting moment, his presence was overwhelming.

How could I have not known his strength in my past life?
Was it because I hadn’t seen him fight properly?
‘No, this isn’t something you can miss just by not seeing it.’

It was a power perfectly suited for an era of war.
And he hadn’t even used his primary weapon, the sword. If he fought seriously, his strength would be even more terrifying.
This wasn’t something I could have overlooked in my previous life.

It was bizarre—but—
“Are you all right?”
Seeing the Heavenly Lord approach, I couldn’t dwell on my thoughts any longer.

“…Yes… I’m fine….”
“Allow me to assist you.”
“There’s no need for that, Elder. And…”

I glanced around before continuing.
“As I’ve said before, please… lower your speech. Too many eyes are watching….”
I’d already asked him multiple times to stop calling me ‘Young Master’ and to speak casually.

Yet—
“How could I? I’m merely serving as a retainer.”
“...”

I’m going insane.
Why were the Sword Lord and the Heavenly Lord both so intent on making me uncomfortable?
Were they enjoying this?

“The Heavenly Lord is speaking respectfully to So Yeomra?”
“How… how could that be? I heard So Yeomra was engaged to the Namgung family…”
“Then could it be…?”

Damn it.
As expected, strange rumors were already starting to spread.
I was about to cut them off when—

[Kee… Kee… Kiiiik…!]
A sound interrupted us, making everyone turn their heads.
It wasn’t over yet.

The one who had summoned the crimson monsters—the dragon—was still alive.
But—
‘…It’s already dying?’

Its condition was far from normal.
Its massive wings were riddled with holes, barely more than shredded rags. Its already emaciated body looked even more withered.
“I refrained from interfering, just in case. I hope I didn’t overstep.”

“...”
So that’s why it was still alive?
The Heavenly Lord had intentionally spared it?

Hearing that, I quietly muttered under my breath.
“…No. Thank you. I needed this.”
“I’m glad I could be of help.”

The old man smiled, and I steadied my breath.
Anyone could tell it was about to die.
But then it hit me—

‘If it dies now, it’ll be a problem.’
I couldn’t let it die just yet.
Ignoring the pain in my shattered body, I forced myself to move forward.

“Young Master…!?”
Tang So-yeol tried to stop me, but—
Someone stepped in her way.

It was Namgung Bi-ah.
“Sister…! Why are you…?”
“…Wait….”

“But the Young Master—!”
“…He must have a reason….”
“...”

Seeing Namgung Bi-ah block her, Tang So-yeol bit her lip and fell silent.
Wi Seol-ah also hesitated, her eyes full of worry, but she didn’t move to stop me.
“So-So Yeomra! Why are you going alone?!”

“It’s dangerous!”
“Damn it, move! We need to save So Yeomra—!”
The other martial artists shouted and tried to follow me.

But—
Crackle.
A brief surge of lightning surrounded them, stopping them in their tracks.

“Ugh….”
They flinched in shock as the source of the lightning—the Heavenly Lord—spoke with a faint smile.
“Apologies… but please wait a moment. It seems there’s a reason for this.”

It was the Heavenly Lord’s command.
No one could defy him.
“Haa….”

With my battered body, I finally reached the monster.
[Kii… Kiiiii…]
It was already on the brink of death.

I reached out my hand.
Fsshh.
“...”

The barrier surrounding it had long since vanished.
It was clearly at its limit, probably using the last of its strength to summon the monsters earlier.
‘That first strike was the right decision.’

Attacking it immediately when it appeared had paid off.
Without that, I might not have won.
With that thought, I grabbed the monster’s throat.

[Ki…ii…]
It didn’t even resist.
I looked down at it and spoke.

“You’ve lost. Admit it.”
[...]
There was no answer.

Well, not that it would make any difference if it did.
‘…Does this even mean anything?’
If it didn’t acknowledge its defeat, I wouldn’t be able to use Tam.

Had I hoped for too much?
I was about to finish it off when—
Vrrrr.

“…!”
I felt something stir near my heart.
Fwoosh.

Dark energy erupted from the shadows, engulfing the monster.
It was Greed.
Crunch.

Crack.
Greed began devouring the monster’s power.
“...”

It’s working.
I had been prepared to kill it outright, but for some reason, Greed was absorbing its energy.
As Greed finished feeding and receded back into the shadows—

Gurgle.
“…Haa….”
I let out a deep breath, feeling something seep into my heart.

This was the monster’s power—its Authority.
I took in the sensation and collapsed onto the ground.
[Krrr….]

The monster, now drained and emaciated, finally began to die.
I watched it silently.
It no longer had the strength to fight back.

“Haa….”
I exhaled heavily, trying to recover.
[…Th-…Thank…you….]

“Huh?”
A voice—weak, but unmistakably human.
[Th-Thank…you.]

“What?”
I jumped up, startled.
The monster had spoken—in human language.

“What did you just—?”
Whoosh.
Before I could finish, its body crumbled into dust, leaving behind nothing but a single, pure white gem.

A White Demon Stone.
“...”
I stared at it, frowning.

I didn’t know why—
But something about it felt wrong.