The Hero Returns

A single sparkling jewel could be seen within the pile of Britra's remains.

It had a striking resemblance to Britra's eye. It sparkled brilliantly as if it was burning in crimson flames.

Su-hyeun bent down and picked it up, sensing warmth coming from it. It wasn't too hot or anything like that. Not just Sun Wukong, but even regular people would be able to pick this thing up without an issue.

But the moment he grasped it...

KHAAA-AAH—!

An open maw of a massive red dragon suddenly pounced on Su-hyeun.

Fwhoooosh—!

"Heok...!" Su-hyeun was startled and ended up letting go of the jewel, only to catch it again with his other hand quickly.

That momentary illusion that appeared before his eyes had been too vivid. It depicted the maw of Britra when it was still alive.

Wuuong...

"What's the matter, little bro?" Sun Wukong asked when Su-hyeun dazedly stared at the jewel for a while.

It seemed that he didn't witness the illusion as his little brother did.

Su-hyeun was about to explain but then shook his head, saying that it was nothing. It wasn't as if Sun Wukong would see the illusion just because it was explained to him, and more than likely, he would just laugh it off while saying Su-hyeun was a scaredy-cat.

"For now, let's take this with us."

The Hell of Scorching Heat, the divine Flame, and King Yama—Su-hyeun had been thinking about these things and how there must be a reason why Master Subhuti chose to send him and Sun Wukong down here. The old god must have glimpsed the events of a relatively far-off future.

But now, it seemed that two more items needed to be added to that list: Britra and the Cintamani.

"Also, we should speak to Uncle one more time."

* * *

Breaking out of the Hell of Scorching Heat didn't prove that challenging. Most of the heat had vanished from it, so they didn't need to worry about the lava. Also, it wasn't as if powerful opponents could stop Su-hyeun and Sun Wukong in that place.

And so, it took them two days to escape from the Hell of Scorching Heat.

"Whew. Yup, that's how skies should look like," Sun Wukong muttered while staring at the azure sky visible among the gaps of the tall grass. They were on their way home after successfully escaping from hell.

Sun Wukong climbed a tree and took his time enjoying the view of the sky and the feeling of the breeze before looking down at Su-hyeun on the ground, "Hey, little bro! Don't you feel hungry?"

"Do you want to catch a boar or something, brother?"

"Well, it's not really like that. I was thinking of dropping by Second Brother's village and getting a couple of potatoes from him."

Grrrrrowl...

Sun Wukong hadn't been able to enjoy a proper meal for the past few days, and his empty stomach began demanding for something, anything, to fill it up.

Back then, he clamored noisily for meat, but now, it seemed that his taste buds had adopted sufficiently enough to accept things like grass, vegetables, and potatoes.

"But if you head to his village now, you might end up devouring all the potatoes the villagers worked hard to harvest, brother."

"I'll only eat a little, promise."

"We'll go there later, then. Later," Su-hyeun chuckled at Sun Wukong as the Monkey King whined. Then, he raised his head, a severe expression formed on his face as he muttered, "It looks like we must go there first, after all."

"There? Where?" Sun Wukong activated his Fiery Golden Eyes and looked beyond the clouds. Even his expression became serious as he replied, "Yeah, looks that way."

Tap—

Sun Wukong climbed down from the tree, pulled out Ruyi Jingu Bang, and then stabbed it on the ground.

When Su-hyeun walked up closer and grabbed the shaft of the staff, Sun Wukong spoke up, "Extend, Ruyi."

Fwhooooosh—!

Ruyi Jingu Bang extended rapidly, allowing Su-hyeun and Sun Wukong to ascend into the sky. The staff didn't need long to break through the cloud cover, leading the duo to the Heavenly World above.

Whoosh—

The world beyond the clouds appeared only after the duo broke through the cloud cover.

It was the world initially ruled by the Jade Emperor and populated by a race who called themselves gods, with the clouds themselves serving as its solid ground.

But now, that Heavenly World was...

"Utterly in ruins."

That was the sight of the world above as viewed through Insight. The grand city was filled with destroyed and crumbling buildings, clouds with many holes resembling Swiss cheese, and a once-pristine lake that had become pitch-black.

And in the middle of everything were Master Subhuti and King Yama sitting down with one more person.

"You two have finally arrived?" King Yama said.

Su-hyeun, who had come here to speak to Subhuti, acknowledged King Yama and lowered his head in slight astonishment. Meanwhile, Sun Wukong walked up to the trio and spoke in his usual attitude, "Why are you here too, Buddha?"

"Buddha?" thought Su-hyeun.

Su-hyeun, who had lowered his head to offer his greetings, looked up at the frail-looking old man next to Subhuti and King Yama.

Buddha was the one responsible for raising Master Subhuti and the deity the people of Sun Wukong's world believed in the most.

"And quite possibly one of the Five Godly Sages, too," but Su-hyeun kept these thoughts to himself.

Two of the Five Godly Sages and King Yama were together. However, their appearances seemed a bit odd.

The clothing on Yama was either ripped to shreds or got decomposed and melted down. Master Subhuti could be seen in the same state.

Even the surrounding environment had transformed significantly as if an intense battle had occurred.

"Did you guys fight someone?" Sun Wukong asked about what Su-hyeun wanted to know.

Subhuti shook his head, "It's nothing, Wukong."

"Listen, uncle." Rather obviously, Sun Wukong didn't believe him. "I'm not a kid anymore."

While saying that, he turned his head and alternated his gaze between King Yama and Buddha.

It seemed that he was trying to get answers from those two if Master Subhuti proved to be too unwilling. Buddha, who previously had his eyes closed while quietly reciting Buddhist sutra, directly looked at Sun Wukong.

He said, "It's about time he learns the truth."

"But, master—"

"Wukong is correct. You can't treat him as a child and coddle him forever," Buddha replied before turning his head. "Do you not agree, Yama?"

"Surely, you're the only one under the heavens who treat the one and only Great Sage Heaven's Equal as a child, Master Subhuti."

The opinions of the two deities matched each other.

The only one trying to hide the truth was Subhuti. He sighed at length, then raised his head, "In that case... take a look for yourself."

Gu-wuwuwu...

The surrounding air tumbled, and their color shifted. Like paint bleeding into each other, it became pitch-black in color. Then, everything is divided into various hues to reflect a different scene.

Sun Wukong went, "Wow," to express his amazement, but Su-hyeun, next to him, didn't, having already experienced something similar before.

"First Brother..."

This was the same phenomenon back when the Bull Demon King replayed his battle against Fafnir to Su-hyeun.

Even though it might seem like an illusion, this was no ordinary illusion at all. This was the power to recreate what happened in the past and show it to the intended audiences.

The sky had turned pitch-black.

On the ground were the beautiful lake and trees, while Master Subhuti, Buddha, and King Yama were talking among themselves within this scenery.

They all looked up.

At that very moment, a massive eyeball revealed itself up there.

"Wait, is that the Dark Realm?"

Dark, stormy clouds filled up the skies above, and then, a massive doorway appeared.

Countless Predators showed up from it like a swarm of bees, and in the middle of the incoming swarm, the owner of that eyeball revealed himself.

It was a handsome man in his early 20s with green hair.

Despite this being a recreation of the past, Su-hyeun immediately understood who this being was. That truly arrogant and haughty glare in this green-haired man's eyes was locked only on Master Subhuti and no one else.

"Osiris!"

Green-colored spheres began floating all around Osiris next.

And then, the Heavenly World was destroyed right afterward.

FLASH—!

For a moment there, the entire world was dyed in the verdant hue, and then...

KWA-AAAAAH—!

The buildings on the surface were reduced to rubble, while the forest was extinguished outright, from their roots and all. The only living things left intact were the two Taoist Gods and King Yama.

The ensuing battle was surprisingly intense, and the battle ended when Osiris chose to retreat.

Shu-ruru...

Whoosh—

The surrounding scenery reverted to how it used to be.

But it didn't differ that much from the recreation of the past Master Subhuti had displayed—a devastated Heavenly World, dead air, ruined skies, and Subhuti and King Yama injured in various places.

They waited until Su-hyeun and Sun Wukong regained their wits, then Subhuti opened his mouth, "Have you seen everything?"

"Uncle..." The whites in Sun Wukong's eyes rapidly grew.

His irises that burned in the distinct crimson hue due to his Fiery Golden Eyes gradually shrunk. Eventually, Sun Wukong's eyes resembled that of a wild beast.

Even the restriction of the Golden Fillet was meaningless now.

Sun Wukong, who was seething in rage, was no longer the practitioner and the master of Sage Arts but just another Yogoe right now.

"Who... the hell was that punk?" He growled like a beast that might start howling at even the slightest provocation.

Master Subhuti didn't want to see this, but he had no choice but to accept this side of Sun Wukong. "That was Osiris."

"Osiris?" Sun Wukong asked back while glancing at Su-hyeun.

That name had been brought up during King Yama and Su-hyeun's negotiation.

And now, his eyes were asking a question, "Little bro, did you know more about this?"

"He's a 'god' from the Outer World. He's also referred to as a Predator and a long-time enemy of mine," Master Subhuti replied as such before shifting his gaze over to King Yama next to him. "It's the same deal for King Yama."

Yama nodded in agreement.

After this revelation, the explanation was mostly about things Su-hyeun already knew. Such as how Subhuti had evaded Osiris for a long time, that he got discovered not too long ago—how Osiris showed up here personally after locating Master Subhuti—and that they ended up facing each other once more just now.

"Through this battle, he probably has figured out that I don't have much lifespan remaining, and that's why he decided to withdraw, most likely."

"Uncle..."

"And thanks to this event, even 'that' has dwindled by a lot, it seems."

Sun Wukong's eyes quaked powerfully.

During the Bull Demon King's ascension, he had not made such an expression. That was understandable, however.

Unlike the Bull Demon King, who ascended to godhood, Master Subhuti was about to die. Unlike his First Brother, whom he sincerely believed they could meet again someday, his uncle would be welcoming his eternal rest.

Worse still, that was what Subhuti wanted. No one could argue and dispute his decision, and no one could interfere with it.

And that moment had already crept up right in front of his nose.

"Wukong, come with me for a moment."

After explaining everything to him, Master Subhuti called Sun Wukong out separately.

Some clouds split up and flew in the middle of the two. They boarded this cloud and flew off somewhere. Su-hyeun wordlessly stared at the direction they were flying off to.

"How did you deal with that baby dragon?"

It was King Yama who called out to Su-hyeun just then.

Only then did Su-hyeun recall his promise with Yama, and while pulling out the crimson jewel from his pocket, he replied, "It left this behind and returned to its grave."

"That's that creature's core."

"Do you know what this is?"

"That punk had been staying in my Hell of Scorching Heat for a very long time while devouring the flames there. From the get-go, it had an affinity to every element, so adapting to flames and living among them wouldn't have been an issue for that little dragon."

As expected, King Yama was aware of Britra's story, such as how long the red dragon had been down there and maybe even the reason why Britra was stuck in the Hell of Scorching Heat in the first place.

"Every dragon has a 'heart.' It may look as beautiful as a gemstone, but in reality, it's an item that contains the entire life of a dragon."

Su-hyeun recalled Fafnir, who had killed the black dragon and bathed in the creature's blood flowing out from its heart.

It seemed that this jewel was something quite similar to that.

"Does that mean this is...?"

"The Dragon Heart, yes. It is also the essence of all the fire of the Hell of Scorching Heat that Britra has devoured during its extended lifetime."

The essence of fire was also the heart of Britra, the god of all dragons.

Su-hyeun stared at the jewel shining in crimson light resting on his palm.

"So... how am I even supposed to use this thing then?" he mused.

He now knew that this was Britra's heart containing the spectacular fire. However, he still had no idea what to do with an item of this nature even now.

Since this belonged to Britra, should he just bury it somewhere to match the passing of the red dragon?

Or, just like what Fafnir did, should he just break it open and take a bath in the blood coming from within?

Just as Su-hyeun began pondering his options...

"You should swallow it," Buddha, who was listening to Su-hyeun and King Yama's conversation from the side, suddenly decided to voice his opinion.. "If you do, something quite amusing will occur."