Chapter 8

Chapter 008 — Inhwang Chasa Awakening Control Program

“Good grief. You’ve got the Black Spirit Band wrapped around your forehead practically announcing, ‘I’m the Inhwang,’ and you’re even wearing a Chasa uniform with the Bulgasari emblem on your chest. Why are you asking me that?”

At my question, Mancheon Chasa answered as if he couldn’t understand what I was talking about.

Now that I listened to him, I noticed the other Chasas weren’t wearing anything like a band around their foreheads.

There weren’t any symbols on their chests either.

Maybe that was because they weren’t combat Chasas, but ordinary administrative Chasas.

“Mancheon Chasa, what exactly is this Black Spirit Band?”

“The Black Spirit Band is a treasure bestowed by the Jade Emperor himself, as well as a protective artifact symbolizing the Inhwang. They say it contains the power to ward off and defeat evil spirits.”

“Then what about this Bulgasari?”

“I don’t know the details myself, but I’ve heard it’s a legendary monster that devoured one hundred thousand evil spirits in the deepest abyss of Hell. It is also the symbol of the Inhwang Chasa.”

I had unexpectedly learned several interesting things.

“But what brings you all the way here? Has your punishment already ended, by any chance?”

“I’m not really sure about that. I came to see the three vengeful spirits who recently arrived at Dosan.”

“Oh! Then of course I must do as you command. But who is this lady? Seeing as you’re holding hands... could she perhaps be your wife...?”

Mancheon Chasa said while looking at Nayeong’s spirit.

He had yelled at me when he thought I was beneath him, but now that he knew I outranked him, he immediately started flattering me.

This old man seemed to have the typical personality of a stubborn senior who sucked up to anyone above him.

“We’re not in that kind of relationship.”

Before I could even answer, Nayeong replied first.

It seemed she was no longer afraid of Hell.

She looked toward the people suffering inside the pit of blades.

“Will the three people brought here also receive punishments like that?”

“I don’t know what kind of bastards they were, but Lord Yeomra first examines the sins they committed in their previous lives. Then he decides whether they’re the type who will become evil spirits or whether they can repent and eventually reincarnate.”

“And after that?”

“Hell is basically divided into eight levels. If someone is judged likely to become an evil spirit, they’re sent to at least the fifth level or below, where their sentence becomes much heavier. If there’s a chance they can truly repent, they receive a considerably lighter punishment on the fourth level or above. So you can assume that most of the people being punished below the fifth level of Hell have already turned into evil spirits.”

“Is that the end?”

“Of course not. Once their sentence ends, King Yeomra judges them again to see how deeply they have repented for their sins. If he decides their soul has become clean again, they are allowed to reincarnate into the living world.”

“I see.”

Mancheon Chasa answered Nayeong’s questions one after another.

With a gloomy expression, Nayeong continued staring at the souls suffering on the mountain of blades.

After a while, she spoke.

“Detective... let’s go back now.”

“You don’t need to see those bastards?”

“I’ve seen enough. And... I’m going to turn myself in together with my younger sister.”

“Are you sure you’ll be all right?”

Because I knew the full truth behind the case, seeing her like this made my heart ache.

This was what had really happened.

Nayeong and her younger sister, Jiyeong, were identical twins who attended the same university.

Both were beautiful and quite famous on campus.

There were always men lining up just to win the sisters’ attention.

Then, one day...

Nayeong was gang-raped by three men.

They were male students whom the proud Nayeong had never even bothered to look at before.

They photographed the assault and continued using those pictures to torment and exploit her.

Unable to endure it any longer, Nayeong attempted suicide.

That was how her younger sister, Jiyeong, learned the truth.

The two sisters dropped out of university together and underwent plastic surgery to change their faces.

Afterward, Nayeong approached the men who had raped her and married them one by one, before arranging their deaths to look like accidents.

Getting them to marry her wasn’t difficult.

Those bastards cared so much about a woman’s appearance that they fell for a few seductions and sweet gestures without much resistance.

However, Jiyeong was the one who actually committed the murders.

At the intersection.

On the stairs.

And at the building under construction.

Each time, Jiyeong had been the one who pushed them.

Meanwhile, Nayeong established an alibi somewhere else.

Nayeong spoke quietly.

“Even if I have to be punished, I think I’d rather receive that punishment in the living world than here. And no matter how much I try to hide my crimes in this world... everything will eventually be revealed in the afterlife anyway.”

Her expression was sad.

She looked as though she had finally accepted everything.

I turned toward Mancheon Chasa.

“Hey, Mancheon Chasa.”

“Yes, Inhwang-nim.”

“What happens if someone is punished for their crime in the living world, truly repents, and then comes here?”

“King Yeomra makes the final decision, of course, but in most cases their sentence is greatly reduced. A five-hundred-year sentence might become one hundred years. However, they will still have to receive punishment. A sin is still a sin, after all.”

That was at least somewhat reassuring.

Nayeong also seemed a little relieved after hearing that.

Mancheon Chasa suddenly lowered his voice.

“Since you are the Inhwang, let me give you one more little tip...”

“There are tips for this too?”

Mancheon Chasa covered his mouth with one hand, as though afraid someone else might overhear him.

From my perspective, it looked more like he was deliberately trying to get on my good side.

“If she accumulates good deeds, her sentence can be reduced even further. For example, even if she goes to prison, she could help other people, sacrifice herself for others first... things like that, you understand.”

I lowered my voice as well.

“What if I put a little pressure on Grandpa Yeomra? Would that help reduce her sentence?”

Mancheon Chasa leaned closer and whispered.

“If it’s you, Inhwang-nim... who knows? These days, even in the afterlife, there’s a bit of a trend where people say it’s better if everyone gets along, ahem...”

“Then thank you. Mancheon Chasa, I’ll never forget you, even after I die—no, even after I come here.”

“Hehehe. Thank you, both of you. I know you’re only saying all this because you’re trying to make me feel better.”

Nayeong quietly laughed while looking at Mancheon Chasa and me.

Her usually emotionless face seemed a little brighter now.

“Then let’s go back, Detective.”

“Shall we?”

I looked toward Mancheon Chasa.

“Mancheon Chasa, thank you for everything. I’ll be going now.”

I rose into the air together with Nayeong.

Then our bodies disappeared like mist as we returned to the living world.

Behind us, Mancheon watched us disappear.

“Take care of yourself and stay well, Inhwang-nim. If this Mancheon has managed to repay even a tiny part of the debt I owe you for saving me a thousand years ago... then I’m satisfied.”

Mancheon remembered the broad back of the great Inhwang Chasa who had protected his young self from the flames of Daeryeok Magwi, one of the Three Great Evils of the Underworld.

Tears of deep emotion flowed from his eyes.

“Thank you.”

Those were the first words Nayeong spoke when I opened my eyes.

She gave me a quiet smile.

“I’ll turn myself in to Detective Park. I don’t really want to surrender to you.”

Nayeong stood up.

I stood as well.

She let out a small laugh.

“Hehehe. What just happened... no one would ever believe it. My younger sister probably won’t believe me either. She might even resent me on the day we turn ourselves in. But I’m going to do my best to get through everything together with her.”

“If there’s anything you need...”

“There’s nothing. If I’m going to be punished, I should at least accept it honestly.”

The more I listened to Nayeong speak, the more my chest hurt.

“Then take care, Inhwang Chasa-nim.”

With those words, she left.

She really was a strong woman.

And yet...

Something continued aching deep inside my chest.

In the end, I simply left work without permission.

At the summit of the highest mountain in Hell stood an enormous castle.

Pitch-black spires rose toward the sky like countless spearheads.

It was Yeomra Palace.

It served both as the residence of King Yeomra, who ruled over Hell in the afterlife, and as the center of its entire administration.

At the top of the highest tower in Yeomra Palace was King Yeomra’s office.

Yeomra had just finished a meeting with his ministers.

He was sitting comfortably in a soft chair, taking a short break while drinking fragrant Longjing tea.

Knock, knock.

Someone knocked on the door of his office.

“Come in.”

At Yeomra’s permission, an elderly man wearing a perfectly pressed suit entered.

“Welcome, Jangryeong. What brings you here?”

The old man was Jangryeong, leader of the Royal Guard Chasas and Yeomra’s chief steward.

Yeomra trusted Jangryeong, who appeared to be around the same age as himself, more than anyone else.

Jangryeong was one of his most loyal confidants.

He was also one of the Primordial Immortals alongside the Five Great Immortals and the founder of Wolgang Martial Arts.

In practical terms, he could be called the second-most powerful person in Hell.

Jangryeong approached Yeomra’s desk and stood respectfully before him.

“I came to report on the progress of the Inhwang Chasa Awakening Control Program.”

“Is that so? Has some problem occurred?”

“Rather than a problem, a new awakening report has arrived concerning Kang Hyunwoo, the final reincarnation of the Inhwang. I thought I should inform Your Majesty.”

Hearing that, Yeomra became interested and set down the Longjing tea he had been drinking.

The awakening of the Inhwang Chasa had already begun when Kang Hyunwoo, the Inhwang’s final reincarnation, returned to the past.

The Life Regression Tea Kang Hyunwoo had consumed was not simply meant to send him back through time.

It also contained a special herb known as Jeonghoncho.

Jeonghoncho was an extremely rare medicinal herb that grew only in Hell.

It possessed a mysterious power that allowed someone with a special kind of voice to freely regulate another person’s soul power.

From the moment Kang Hyunwoo drank the Jeonghoncho, the power of the Black Spirit within him had effectively fallen under Yeomra’s control.

The Inhwang Chasa Protocol?

The Inhwang Chasa Level Up?

Ridiculous.

There had never been any such thing as a protocol or a level-up system in the first place.

Every ability belonging to the Inhwang Chasa had already been engraved inside the Black Spirit.

That was also why Kang Hyunwoo had been able to learn the Black Spirit Demonic Spear Art almost instantly.

The Jeonghoncho placed inside Kang Hyunwoo’s body had been designed to react to Arang’s voice.

Arang, princess of Hell and the Moon Duty Chasa, possessed an ability called the Voice of the Moon.

Through the Jeonghoncho, the Voice of the Moon could regulate the Black Spirit within Kang Hyunwoo’s body.

That was also why Arang had asked Kang Hyunwoo to accept each level-up.

She needed his acceptance in order to activate the Voice of the Moon.

During one of his early level-ups, Kang Hyunwoo had jokingly asked Arang whether she was reading from some kind of script.

But that joke had actually been true.

There really was a script written in advance according to the planned stages of his level-ups.

Arang had merely read what was written in that script.

If Arang wanted to—

No.

If King Yeomra wanted to—

They could restore every single one of Kang Hyunwoo’s abilities as the Inhwang Chasa right now, all at once.

But they couldn’t do that.

Because continuously awakening the Inhwang’s Black Spirit would also cause Taebaek’s memories to return much faster.

Yeomra looked toward Jangryeong.

“So? Is there anything unusual in the awakening report?”

“There are no problems with the Inhwang’s current awakening process thanks to Princess Arang’s cooperation. However, the report says there may be a slight problem with his psychological state.”

Yeomra’s expression immediately changed.

“What? Explain in detail.”

He urged Jangryeong to continue.

Kang Hyunwoo’s abilities could be controlled through the Jeonghoncho.

His memories, however, could not.

What worried Yeomra the most was when Kang Hyunwoo would recover the memories of Taebaek, his previous life.

Jangryeong continued.

“Kang Hyunwoo, Taebaek’s final reincarnation, has already reached a psychologically unstable state due to the unstable soul power and negative memories accumulated through Taebaek’s repeated reincarnations over the past thousand years. Now that the Inhwang’s Black Spirit has begun awakening, there are signs that memories from his previous life may also begin returning.”

Yeomra’s expression hardened.

“That could become a serious problem. Inform Arang about this as well. From now on, tell her to avoid unnecessary conversations that could stimulate Kang Hyunwoo’s memories, and to keep direct contact with him to an absolute minimum whenever possible. Also, strengthen the monitoring of Kang Hyunwoo.”

“Understood. I will deliver your orders exactly as stated.”

Jangryeong bowed respectfully to Yeomra before leaving the office.

Once he was alone, Yeomra sighed.

“Good grief... this is much harder than I expected. I suppose this is karma too. Karma...”

Taerang, the former Sun Duty Chasa who had escaped with the Three Great Evils of the Underworld and countless evil spirits, was a terrifying man.

He had once governed the Heavenly Realm brilliantly in place of the Jade Emperor, without allowing a single major problem to occur.

At one time, Taerang had been considered the most talented and promising immortal in all of Heaven and Hell.

But now that such a man had become their enemy, he was frightening beyond words.

Yeomra had no idea what kind of scheme Taerang was preparing in the living world, or how he intended to threaten the Underworld.

That was precisely why Kang Hyunwoo, the final reincarnation of the Inhwang Chasa, was absolutely necessary until Taerang and the Three Great Evils of the Underworld were captured.

Before Kang Hyunwoo completely recovered Taebaek’s memories...

They had to keep him firmly under control and use him to resolve the problem of Taerang.

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