Ranker Who Lives Twice
chapter-489

Yeon-woo couldn’t believe his ears. ‘What?’

「H-H-H-Heavenly Demon?」

「No way…!」

But it didn’t seem like he’d heard wrong. Shanon and Hanryeong gasped in shock. Even the usually impassive Boo and Rebecca were also surprised. The shadow under his feet trembled. The words the man had spoken were simply too shocking.

In an almost monotheistic manner, the Devil Army worshipped him as the true god and regarded the other gods and demons as fakes. Because they were such fanatics, Yeon-woo had believed all this time that the Heavenly Demon wouldn’t be much different from his followers. Since the Heavenly Demon was supposed to be the only evil who had ever reached the heavenly world, Yeon-woo was expecting a monster who could only destroy, a rabid beast who hated anything that tied him down.

He’d always thought that the Heavenly Demon was like a great demon to whom even the Demon Kings would bow. He wasn’t the only one who believed this; most of the players in the Tower all had the same impression, which was why the Heavenly Demon had a very small following.

‘But…this person is completely different.’

He looked so lofty, as if he had transcended everything. Even though Yeon-woo was close to transcending and realizing holiness, the Heavenly Demon was like a faraway star. It was an impossible task, like reaching the sky from the ground by stretching one’s arm. Yeon-woo had no idea how great the star was.

He could tell the general sizes of conceptual gods like Mother Earth and otherworld gods like the Crawling Chaos, and compared to them, it was safe to say the Heavenly Demon was a supreme being. ‘Perhaps he’s considered evil because…the gods and demons can’t reach him at all.’

Whether you were mortal or immortal, it was impossible not to be scared of an opponent so great that you couldn’t even tell how powerful they were.

“Well, but I like the name Bright King better. It’s more lit.” The Heavenly Demon joked with a shrug, not realizing how dumbfounded Yeon-woo was. He seemed even more amazing because of it.

It was difficult to maintain an easy attitude like that. You had to be confident that no one would disrespect you and that nothing was impossible. Most of all, you had to believe in yourself in order to be so carefree. Yeon-woo only knew two people like that. ‘Master.’ Why did he see the Martial King Nayu in the Heavenly Demon? ‘And the Monkey King…’

To be exact, it was the Monkey King’s exuviae that he’d absorbed, but the being was still quite similar to the Heavenly Demon. After all, the Monkey King was one of the many past lives of the Heavenly Demon—or one of his faces, as the Devil Army described it. Since they shared the same soul, it was natural their personality or the way they carried themselves would be similar.

“Now that I look at it, you smell a bit like me. Whew, seems like it’s the monkey guy. Dang! You ate such a rotten one. Didn’t you feel sick afterwards?

Although Yeon-woo had no idea why the Heavenly Demon was in the Changgong Library, he became sure of one thing: the Heavenly Demon had no plans to fight him. In fact, he seemed happy to see a visitor, and his joy seemed to be multiplied by the fact that they were from the same planet—and the same country—and that they both knew the Monkey King.

This was why Yeon-woo gathered the courage to ask a question. “Weren’t…you asleep?”

“Asleep?” The Heavenly Demon cocked his head and burst out in laughter when he realized what Yeon-woo was talking about. “Hahaha! I guess it can look that way. They must be thinking of me as some sleeping beauty below, huh? I didn’t even think of that.” He giggled, then shrugged at Yeon-woo, who was standing still with a serious face. “My true body has indeed closed its eyes so they’re not wrong, but as you can see, my mind has been here for a while.”

“So, you didn’t abandon the Devil Army?”

“The Devil Army? Oh, those crazy guys?”

Yeon-woo was speechless.

“It’s every man for himself; I didn’t abandon them.”

「Wow. How can he be so ruthless with his followers? He’s amazing…」 Shanon was shocked, and his impression of the Heavenly Demon was shattered to pieces.

If a god denied his followers, it meant he was denying himself. In most cases, the power and strength of a god came from the quality and amount of faith the followers gave it. If he denied them, he was also denying their faith, so his power and strength would inevitably decrease. However, the Heavenly Demon didn’t seem to care. It was a confidence that his power and strength didn’t rely on his followers’ faith.

“Well, it might seem strange for me to be saying this, but I’ve done all I can for my followers from here, like the Exodus, where I headed for the Sky Mountains and then returned to this place, the ark. When the heavens and earth were disconnected, I no longer had any responsibility over humans. Li and I didn’t want to be bound to legends anymore.”

Yeon-woo didn’t understand everything the Heavenly Demon was saying, but he could see that he hadn’t left the Devil Army because he disliked them. He was more like a parent who wanted his child to be independent. Even if the child walked a twisted path the he didn’t approve of, he firmly believed one day, the child would return to the right path.

‘The attention the Head Bishop and Kindred want so desperately… They were likely wrong from the beginning.’ The Head Bishop and Kindred wished for the Heavenly Demon to guide them again, and when he didn’t respond, they tried to become one of his faces and steal that power. Then, when that failed, they gave up on the Heavenly Demon and chose the Great Sage’s brothers, the Seven Great Demon Kings, in order to scheme something.

But now that Yeon-woo thought of their actions as a result of a misunderstanding of their parent’s intentions, he felt some pity for them.

“Anyway, if they’ve established their fundamental belief to be evil and not light, I hope they keep walking that path. That’s it.”

It occurred to Yeon-woo that this might be the best stance a god could take.

* * *

“This library isn’t like what people think; it’s not that grand. It just records events happening everywhere from the beginning of time to the present and the end. That’s all.” The Heavenly Demon began to explain how the library was set up. Yeon-woo turned to look at the direction the Heavenly Demon was pointing to. “But then, everything might be messy and disorganized, like your little sister’s room, right?”

Yeon-woo didn’t speak.

“Mm. That was supposed to be a joke. Wasn’t it funny?”

“I only have a brother.”

“Oh. Really? Damn. I need someone to relate with me on this. I know because my youngest sibling is a girl. Her room was a pigpen. It’s just like this place.”

The Heavenly Demon had siblings? Yeon-woo wondered what she was like for a moment.

“Anyway, when you try to look for something, you can’t find it, and only weird things appear. And the law of causality system, which is the database here, might have errors. So, I classify and organize it like a drive optimizer.” In other words, he was the librarian. He suddenly clapped, and books on the shelves slid out and quickly moved to other locations. Yeon-woo watched with interest as he stood in front of a shelf.

Books were organized in lists that the Heavenly Demon had written and stuck onto the shelves. Time, history, people…it was almost wondrous to see them all placed in alphabetical order. Of those, one title stood out. Tower. Year 5,211, the First Month. Event Report.

Year 5,211 was the present. Yeon-woo pulled it out and opened it in the middle. He saw empty white pages, but black letters began to appear at the top of the page.

[The effects of ‘Dragon’s Knowledge’ allow you to read the words.]

He could instantly understand what was written in the book.

Along with the appearance of the floating castle, the standoff between Arthia and hostile forces that began on the fifty-second floor…

Faceless and the Black Prince are definitely planning something crazy. But that’s why it’ll be fun…

There aren’t many places left to hide from Mother Earth. Now that there aren’t many survivors left, the suggestion to leave the skies…

It was a disorganized mess since events were being recorded as they occurred. Books were probably divided into sections after they filled up.

It took him some time to understand what he was reading because the sentences were out of order. But three main writings stood out. The first was Arthia's current situation. They were fighting to take control of the fifty-second floor on his orders, and the second recorded the thoughts of the missing Bow God Jang Wei, and the third was concerned with the whereabouts of Olympus’ survivors.

His eyes widened. He had thought Phante might have killed Jang Wei, but instead, he was alive and in contact with Faceless. Why were two of his enemies meeting? The appearance of the Black Prince was also unexpected. They were definitely plotting something, and the truth came out quickly. They were planning to make an attempt on the Martial King’s life. It was impossible, an act of suicide. He had no idea why they would even have such thoughts knowing how strong the Martial King was.

As for the survivors from Olympus, when he skimmed over the book, he could see that they were still running away from the Titans and Giants. Many seemed to be injured; he could almost feel their fatigue through the book. Thankfully, Athena and Hermes were still alive.

‘But leaving the skies?’ Leaving the skies meant they’d throw away their divinity and live as mortals. It was how the Protogenoi tribe in the Elohim had been created. They were in so much danger that they might have no choice but to abandon their pride as gods.

When he discovered their location, his eyes widened slightly. ‘Erebus?’

It was the territory of the Underworld that was far below even Tartarus. Most people didn’t even know whether it existed. If they were truly there, it meant they were standing on the edge of a cliff. They would have difficulty maintaining their holy power there since there were limits to how much faith they could collect. It was possible that they would die if they stayed, and he understood why they were discussing leaving the skies.

Each piece of information was necessary. He continued to read, wanting to know more, but it became impossible.

[The effect of ‘Dragon’s Knowledge’ has ended.]

[You cannot read the words.]

[You cannot view any further.]

[If you wish to view more, you must be qualified for it.]

The words looked like squiggles again. Yeon-woo looked at the Heavenly Demon frantically, hoping he’d tell him how to read the book.

“I don’t mind telling you, but it’ll use up the time you’re allowed to stay here. And you have a limited number of visits, right? Think of that as a sneak peek.” The Heavenly Demon spoke firmly, as though he knew Yeon-woo’s thoughts.

Yeon-woo pressed his lips together. ‘Jang Wei’s scheme and the whereabouts of Olympus’ survivors are important, but…’ He tried to organize his priorities. He was only allowed to visit the Changgong Library three times, so he needed to use this time effectively. ‘What’s most important to me is…’ His eyes flashed. ‘The path to darkness. The identity of the Black King.’

Now that he was here, in the library with all the knowledge of the universe, he couldn't miss this chance. From the very beginning, his motive for climbing the Tower had been to find his brother’s soul. His other companions were important as well, but nothing was more important than this.

Furthermore, information about the Black King was probably expensive. His three visits might not even be enough, so he needed to get started. He could stop Jang Wei and Faceless’ plot as soon as he finished his business here, and it wouldn’t be impossible to find the survivors from Olympus even without the help of the library once he exuviated and gained transcendence. In the end, he cut off all lingering attachments and finished clearing his mind.

Watching Yeon-woo’s eyes darken, the Heavenly Demon grinned. “I guess you’ve decided. Ask me what you want to know. I don’t usually do this, but it’s fine since you’re the first person from back home I’ve met in a while.”

Yeon-woo thanked the Heavenly Demon and asked what he wanted to know most. “Can I have information about the Black King?”

“Huh? What?” The Heavenly Demon seemed stunned. Yeon-woo wondered if he didn’t know about the Black King.

“I don’t know who he is exactly, but from what I’ve learned, the Black King is a type of progenitor or conceptual god linked to death or dreams…”

“No, no. I’m just curious why you’re looking for him. I know him well. There’s no oldie like him.”

‘I finally found it!’ Yeon-woo clenched his fists, thinking things were finally going smoothly.

“How could I not know him?” The Heavenly Demon smiled mischievously as he continued, “I was the one who stuck him in emptiness.”