The Hero Returns

"Please speak."

Whatever the case might be, King Yama chose to pay attention to Su-hyeun's offers.

Thankfully, though, he no longer emitted the same level of animosity from earlier. It seemed that Su-hyeun's offers managed to entertain him.

"If you take care of my request, I shall choose the second one of your offers. You will be fighting Osiris eventually, or some other gods will inevitably kill him anyway. Therefore, that option is what you really want, isn't it?"

He said some things that indicated he had seen straight through Su-hyeun's thought process.

The first option took too long, while the odds for the third option were just too low. Even if Su-hyeun worked with Sun Wukong, there was no guarantee that they could bring down King Yama.

In all honesty, Yama choosing the second option was what he wanted the most.

"What kind of request is it?"

Still, this meant he got to turn most of the heat found in the Hell of Scorching Heat as his own, so Su-hyeun figured that it was not a significant loss to help out with a single request.

Of course, it was still dependent on what kind of request King Yama made. Even so, Su-hyeun planned to fulfill it as long as the task wasn't too outrageous.

"Somewhere deep inside this Hell of Scorching Heat is a lost little child."

"A little child, you say?"

"That's right. Of course, it's a child only on the outside. Its actual age isn't that different from the Hell of Scorching Heat itself, but its mental age is definitely still stuck in the child-like state even now."

"Is your request related to this child?"

"Try appeasing that child."

Shu-rururu...

King Yama's figure scattered like smoke and drifted up to the sky.

Su-hyeun stared at the scattering, rising smoke and paid attention to Yama's parting words.

"If you manage to appease that nuisance, then I probably don't even need to ask for anything else."

Su-hyeun made a puzzled face at King Yama's faint voice drifting down from the sky, "That... nuisance?"

To think that the one and only King Yama would use the term "nuisance."

Su-hyeun's curiosity was piqued just a little at that. Nonetheless, he also got an ominous foreboding. Maybe investing one year of his time staying in the Hell of Scorching Heat and restoring it might have been a better deal for him.

Even so, he already had an agreement with King Yama. Su-hyeun certainly had no desire to lower his head and beg for the request to be changed.

"He said deep underground, didn't he?"

"Eut-cha!" Sun Wukong listened from the side, stood back up, then slammed Ruyi Jingu Bang on the ground. "Planning to go down right away?"

"Yes, I must."

Su-hyeun confirmed the status of his body that had been gradually recovering during the negotiation.

His fatigue level was now 39.

If it was only that much, moving his body around shouldn't pose too much of an issue. If he needed to fight right away, then he would certainly be able to.

"Well, in that case," Sun Wukong smirked at Su-hyeun's reply, then muttered softly, "Extend, Ruyi."

Ka-booooom'”!

* * *

Ruyi Jingu Bang extended rapidly.

It burrowed deep into the ground and continued to go lower and lower. Rather than descending underground, it would be more apt to call it breaking through the ground instead.

Dururuk, dudududu...

Su-hyeun, currently descending lower while grabbing tightly onto Ruyi Jingu Bang, used his free hand to prevent soil from getting in his eyes. How many kilometers had they traveled in this way? The scenery they had been searching for finally revealed itself.

Fwhoooosh'”

Under the ground, somewhere really deep...

The place was even hotter than the inside of the lava. Su-hyeun was under the belief that he had managed to suck up most of the heat existing within the Hell of Scorching Heat, yet so much more still remained intact underground.

"It's going to get pretty stuffy in here, too," he thought to himself.

Thankfully, the divine Flame's status improvement seemed to do the trick as it didn't feel all that hot in here.

However, he could still guess how hot it must be after taking in the sight of Sun Wukong next to him. The Monkey King was leaning helplessly against Ruyi Jingu Bang, his tongue hanging limply out of his mouth.

"Third Brother, are you going to be alright?"

"I thought I could breathe again, but man... This heat is killing me."

Sun Wukong had also traveled down here with Ruyi Jingu Bang and, almost immediately, started sweating buckets from all the heat rising from the ground. There was even the sizzling noise of flesh on someone's feet being cooked as well.

As for the surrounding scenery, it didn't look that different from the surface above. A slight difference existed: Almost no natural light coming from the sky could reach this place. The lava here didn't flow freely like water. It simply oozed and drifted lazily among the various cracks in the terrain.

Splash'”

When Su-hyeun stepped on the lava and stood still, he felt warmth from the bottom of his feet.

"What the hell?!"

Of course, Sun Wukong still found it way too hot, hurriedly leaped, and created a small cloud before plopping his butt on it.

Su-hyeun walked in the direction of the lava flow. The underground was structured similarly to a massive cavern system.

He didn't know just how long he had walked like this.

"Huh?"

"Those... seem to be trees."

Something that shouldn't be here was growing tall in this place.

A tree that looked like it would burn to cinders not from the lava emitting such intense heat but from some lonely torch was growing wildly down here. It wasn't just one tree, either.

"A forest?" Su-hyeun thought.

It was a forest consisting of trees that were burning vigorously in flames.

Su-hyeun stared dazedly at this forest for a while.

* * *

The half-transparent image reflected on the lake's surface finally disappeared.

Master Subhuti, who had been leisurely watching the image, slowly got up from his spot, "It seems they have arrived."

"You're not going to watch anymore?" Buddha asked while observing Subhuti stand up.

The latter had been watching Su-hyeun and Sun Wukong nonstop for the past several days, but to think that he would stand up immediately just because they couldn't be seen anymore?

That seemed too abrupt of a change in one's attitude.

"Not only can we not continue watching them, but a guest has arrived, master."

"Yes, it seems you're right," Buddha also got up from his spot.

Around the same time, the sky above them turned dark, and the surrounding temperature became stiflingly hot.

"Welcome, Yama."

RUMBLE'”!

Ku-rururu...

The skies roared like a wild beast. At the same time, a giant with reddish skin appeared among the pitch-black fog.

"It's been a while, Buddha."

It was King Yama.

He walked up while letting out heavy, thudding footsteps. Standing up, Master Subhuti and Buddha lightly lowered their heads at him, then settled back down on their spots.

Thud'”

The ground rocked as King Yama took a seat.

He was trying to sit as carefully as possible. Yet, the surrounding animals were still startled awake from the noise in the end.

"Sorry about that," King Yama smiled awkwardly and offered his apology, prompting both Subhuti and Buddha to chuckle faintly.

After checking out their response, Yama reached down and picked up a teacup meant for him. It was no bigger than his pinky nail. After tossing the tea in his mouth, he alternated his gaze between Buddha and Subhuti while asking, "It was you who sent those two punks, right?"

"It was this one over here," Buddha pointed at Subhuti.

King Yama nodded as if he had already guessed it, then locked his gaze on Subhuti.

"I honestly didn't even notice the passage of time. But it seems that the time has come already. So I stopped by to say my farewell, but it seems that one of you doesn't have much time remaining, to begin with."

"Now that you mention it, Yama, this situation probably isn't your first, now is it?" Buddha changed the subject when King Yama brought up the matter of Subhuti's lifespan.

Even someone like him didn't want to talk about the approaching demise of his most treasured disciple if it was avoidable.

Thankfully, though, King Yama was a relatively simple individual. He rubbed his chin and dove deep into the ocean of his thoughts.

"Let me see... which number is this universe again...? I can't remember it well. Still, this universe has been quite strange, alright. Osiris, Uranus, and even you two. There has never been a universe filled with so many unique fools like you until now."

"Is that how long it has been? So long that it's too hard to even count with your hands?"

"Yeah, it's hard to count them all. Too much time has passed by, after all. You two have lived for a long time, sure, but I've lived several times longer than both of you. Isn't it only normal that I get confused by these things?"

"Yama. This must be the reason why you're so simple."

"You have a point there. However, even my current personality results from time eroding what I was like in the past. Without being simple, you can't avoid getting worn down by the passage of time, you see," Yama said. Then, while staring at the empty teacup for a little while, he continued, "Now then, let's see. Since I was treated to some rare tea, it's only fitting that I repay your kindness."

He got up from the spot, then looked up at the sky above that had turned gloomy before anyone had noticed it.

A giant eyeball floating in the air was above the beautiful lake and its garden where the Taoist Gods took strolls.

"Welcome, Osiris," King Yama greeted the eyeball.

Soon after that, hell was unleashed on the land of the gods.

* * *

The inner part of the vigorously burning forest was surprisingly normal.

Except for the undying flames everywhere, this place didn't seem that different from regular forests.

"You know, I've lived inside a forest for a long time, but even so, places like this are a no for me," Sun Wukong continued to fan himself with his hand while chatting to Su-hyeun. "Don't you agree, little brother?"

"It's oddly comfortable for me, though."

"What?"

"It's also warm here."

"Did you get heatstroke or something after being in here for too long?" Sun Wukong shook his head as if he couldn't understand it. Even so, he continued to mutter while glancing at the back of Su-hyeun walking up ahead. "At least I can now figure out why uncle decided to send you to this place."

"Sorry?"

"Nah. It's nothing," Sun Wukong shook his head again and tried to let it slide.

However, it wasn't as if Su-hyeun didn't catch what was being said. Even he was thinking the same thing.

"The ability called Predation, the heat of Hell of Scorching Heat, the divine Flame, and finally, King Yama," Su-hyeun thought.

He had a feeling that all these things connecting were just too smooth and natural.

"Did Master Subhuti plan it so that they would happen in sequence?"

There was an old saying that went, "Before the sun sets, the sky will brighten just for a moment." It meant that the state just before one's death would be when you shone the brightest.

To Su-hyeun, Master Subhuti seemed to be in that state.

He chose not to stop his aging process, causing his body to become old and diseased, making him lose his strength. However, the state of his mind was nothing like that.

The price for not stopping the aging process and letting the innumerable passage of time affect him was his mind becoming even wiser and more savant.

Su-hyeun had never seen a pair of eyes so deep and so unfathomable like Subhuti's. He already met Zeus, who was also among the Five Godly Sages like Subhuti, and Apollo, who supposedly possessed Insight even better than the Five Godly Sages. Even then, Subhuti had a depth to him that the eyes of those Olympian gods didn't have.

As such, Su-hyeun didn't have any misgivings on this difficult trial laid out by Subhuti. It was the same for the trial King Yama had given him.

"In any case, just what I am supposed to do here?"

King Yama said they should look for a "child" down here. His request was to find and somehow appease this child.

Crackle, sizzle...

Rumbleeee...

The problem was with how any child could even survive in an ocean of fire like this one.

"It just doesn't look like any kid can survive in here, though."

Sniff, sniff'”

Just as Su-hyeun began muttering that to himself, Sun Wukong suddenly began sniffing the air while staring in a specific direction.

Wondering what was going on, Su-hyeun stared at the Monkey King. The latter changed the direction where he was heading, his Fiery Golden Eyes glowing bright red. "Something's over there."

"Over there, you say?"

That was where the flames seemed to be at their weakest compared to other locations.

Sun Wukong gestured Su-hyeun to follow, then began walking up ahead. The latter silently followed as the Monkey King walked past the weaker flames.

And when they did, the flow of the flames changed somewhat weirdly.

"They are all flowing toward one direction?"

They traced the flow of the flames.

The longer they ventured forward, the weaker the flames burning the forest became. It was as if someone was devouring the fire burning here, just like how Su-hyeun used Predation to absorb the lava found in the Hell of Scorching Heat.

And after walking for some time...

Grrr-rrng, gya-ong'”

A familiar growl could be heard.

"Miru?"

No, wait'”that growl couldn't have been Miru's. Not only was Miru not summoned at the moment, but the red dragon had grown up quite a bit by now, so it no longer made that juvenile-sounding growl.

That didn't mean they made a mistake, however.

And sure enough...

"A dragon?"

In the far distance, where the flow of the flames ended, was where a young dragon covered in red scales could be seen slumbering.