Blood Demon of the Past Life – Chapter 152

Chapter 152: The Truth Behind the Scenes （2）

It was an unfamiliar trial.

Until now, trials, with the exception of the unordered S-rank Outbreak, always required the current trial to be solved before moving on to the next. However, this twenty-sixth trial was different. There was no penalty for failure, and as explained, it was possible to receive the next, twenty-seventh trial while still in the midst of the twenty-sixth.

Azmoon.

Luca Bellino.

What exactly were their intentions?

Experiencing this Im Chan-yeong incident, Kang San began to question the fundamental meaning of the trials.

And that wasn’t the only thing that bothered him.

The trial’s explanation included a very unfamiliar word, as unfamiliar as the trial’s method itself.

‘Heretic?’

Sun God Church.

Azmoon’s trial referred to them, the ones vying for the status of a national religion in the US, as a heretical teaching. In other words, it could be interpreted to mean that the Sun God Church and Kang San did not share the same roots. If the people of the Sun God Church, like Kang San, were given special trials by Azmoon and were resolving the karma of their past lives through them, the twenty-sixth trial wouldn’t make sense.

Their roots were different.

The direction they were heading was also different.

Naturally, a fierce conflict arose in Kang San’s mind.

‘According to Priest Oh Man-seok, the being the Sun God Church worships foretold the disaster that will happen in Pohang. That alone makes it clear that it’s a transcendental being like Azmoon, but no matter how much I think about it, the Sun God Church’s pursuit is different from Azmoon’s. If Azmoon’s trial means preventing the disaster to avoid over ten thousand deaths, the Sun God Church is only using it as a means to prove their own existence. At least from what’s apparent on the surface, the Sun God Church’s god could be called an evil god.’

This trial.

There was no reason to push himself.

The absence of a penalty meant there was no coercion pushing him forward like before.

However.

‘I’ve already stepped into the swamp of trials. To reach the truth, I can’t avoid the trials.’

“Min-yeong.”

Oh Min-yeong raised her head.

Seeing her tear-stained face, Kang San smiled.

“I’ll help you. So that your father can return to your side safely.”

✦✦✦✦✦✦

The next day.

Kang San attended the Sun God Church gathering.

At first, everyone reacted favorably.

New believers were always welcome, and Kang San was a fairly well-known figure in South Korea. And for good deeds, too. The Sun God Church followers couldn’t help but welcome someone like Kang San.

But a few days later.

The atmosphere towards Kang San changed.

It started with a question.

“I have a question.”

During the gathering.

Kang San raised his voice.

With the attention of Priest Oh Man-seok and the followers focused on him, Kang San spoke with a calm face.

“Just now, Priest-nim, you said that our efforts in this life guarantee our lives after the Rapture. But this life and the afterlife are both the same life. Don’t you think it’s wrong for one complete life to be sacrificed for the other? Then does the life we are living now have no meaning?”

“No. I believe that the present life in which we serve Him is also meaningful and noble.”

“To me, it feels like the current life being affected by the unknown worlds, like the past life and the afterlife, which we cannot define, is like guilt by association. Does anyone here remember their past life? If there’s an afterlife, there must be a past life, but no one remembers their past existence. Then the afterlife won’t know the efforts of this life, and all the benefits bestowed in the afterlife will be seen as the natural order of the world, just like how there are gold spoons and dirt spoons in this era, not as the result of efforts from the past life.”

The purpose pursued by the Sun God Church.

Kang San was closer to that issue than anyone else.

He remembered his past life, his present life was affected by it, and therefore he found this structure very unreasonable.

“The afterlife doesn’t remember the efforts of this life. Even if we struggle desperately to achieve comfort in the afterlife, if this life has to endure such sacrifice, I don’t know if it’s truly meaningful. What I want to say is that the present life deserves to be recognized for its value as the present, regardless of the past that has gone by or the future that we must accept. Can’t we say that achieving a complete family and smiling happily now is no less happy than the happiness promised in the future?”

He immersed himself in the current situation.

Honestly, it was frustrating.

Priest Oh Man-seok had neglected his daughter, who only looked to him, and made her unhappy for the sake of the life after the Rapture.

Then what was the point of being happy in the afterlife?

Kang San wanted to be happy now.

He didn’t want his present life to be painful because he was tied to his past life; he wanted the life he had lived as Kang San to be filled with complete happiness, regardless of any shackles. In that sense, the Sun God Church’s doctrine fueled his rebellious spirit. If it had been a positive message like ‘Do good deeds, live a generous life’, he might have accepted it, but he couldn’t understand the sacrifice of burning oneself for the Rapture.

For several days after that.

The debate continued.

Kang San constantly challenged them, and as time passed, the followers’ gazes towards him became less favorable.

“……Today’s gathering will end here.”

Oh Man-seok’s hardened expression revealed the strained relationship with Kang San.

✦✦✦✦✦✦

The followers of the Sun God Church.

They gathered in one place, centered around Oh Man-seok.

“Priest-nim, how about we kick out that Kang San?”

“That’s right. I don’t think we should keep accepting such an impure element. I’ve seen several cases where people who were about to join turned away because of Kang San’s remarks. If this continues, instead of carrying out ‘His’ teachings, the existence of the Pohang branch might be shaken.”

“Priest-nim. Please make a decision.”

All eyes were on him.

Ultimately.

The decision rested with Priest Oh Man-seok.

Having traveled all the way to the US and been granted the status of a priest, he received blind trust from the followers.

Oh Man-seok spoke.

“There’s no need for that.”

“……Do you have some kind of clever plan?”

“To be precise, it means we don’t need to try to resolve this situation. Faith cannot be instilled by force. We know that this life is a trial given to humanity. Because this unstable life will end someday, we burn our bodies to seek the afterlife. Think about it. Throughout the long history of humankind, there have been predators that preyed on humans, but there has never been a situation where inexplicable supernatural abilities manifested and drove humanity to extinction. Because they couldn’t give up on this life, they react like Kang San.”

This life.

It meant nothing to Oh Man-seok.

Therefore, he was ready to die at any moment, shouting the name of the Sun God Church.

“Why did we settle in Pohang? To be martyred under the name of the Sun God Church when the disaster foretold by Him strikes. Our value will be proven at that moment. No matter how much good deeds Kang San does and is called a hero, do you think he can sacrifice his life so easily like us in the face of a truly insurmountable disaster? Absolutely not. As humans, they cannot sacrifice their limited lives that are not promised an afterlife. So wait. On the day when our value is proven……”

He looked around at the followers.

They all had their own circumstances.

People who had lost their families like him, people who had become disabled due to monster attacks, people with holes in their hearts due to such loss, visited the Sun God Church seeking hope. The afterlife was incredibly appealing to them. They could regain what they could never recover in this life.

That’s why they believed.

In the happiness that would come someday.

Their prayers, repeated every night before going to bed, were filled with the struggle to escape the pain of this life.

“Our very purpose is to make even impure elements like Kang San turn away.”

✦✦✦✦✦✦

Half a month passed.

Having grasped the Gokumsan area to some extent, Kang San couldn’t stay tied to Pohang because of the Sun God Church.

He had to prepare for the Outbreak.

To stop the disaster that would surge in like a tsunami, he had to struggle every second to become stronger. So he went up to Seoul on weekdays. He planned a schedule of participating in parties and raids on weekdays and attending Sun God Church gatherings on weekends, but as soon as he arrived in Seoul, he received an unexpected offer.

It was from Kim Myeong-min.

He, whom he hadn’t seen in a while, said,

“If you’re planning to focus on raids for the time being, how about working as part of the ‘Ranger’ team? The accident rate in Seoul has increased dramatically recently. With incidents occurring several times a day, both our team and other Ranger teams are experiencing a shortage of manpower. Of course, generally, we rarely operate Ranger teams with external personnel, but the Hunter Management Bureau considers you, Kang San-nim, a special case. You’re a mercenary, but you’re also a Ranger, and you’ve shown dedication to helping people both in Korea and Japan.”

“……I’m sorry, but this time, I’m planning to focus on raids for growth.”

“You don’t have to worry about that. All the rewards earned through Ranger missions are yours, and we’ve agreed to provide sufficient compensation for each mission you complete. To be honest, in the case of raids, isn’t it true that searching for hunting grounds and rewards are highly dependent on luck? If your focus is on growth, I think this offer isn’t bad.”

It was definitely a good offer.

Not only the rewards obtained during raids, but also additional compensation for each mission completed.

Of course, there was a purpose behind the Hunter Management Bureau’s offer.

Kim Myeong-min looked at Kang San.

‘The Korean government is showing tremendous interest in you, Kang San-nim. Since it’s a condition where they’re trying to win your favor by showering you with benefits, I see no need to interfere.’

Kang San.

He was a special individual.

When they first met, he was someone taking the E-rank test, but now he had not only passed the B-rank test but also proven himself to be a skilled individual beyond A-rank. As a result, talk of recruiting him into the Guardians had resurfaced within the Korean government. Since Kang San had refused before, Kim Myeong-min had no intention of intervening, but after hearing the Korean government’s conditions, he changed his mind.

Kang San was someone with clear boundaries.

He would draw the line himself if he didn’t want something, so Kim Myeong-min judged that it was fine for him to reap the benefits.

Kang San thought the same.

After hearing the conditions, he changed his mind, just like Kim Myeong-min.

“Then I’ll discuss it with my party members and make a decision.”

“Alright.”

An hour later.

The result was as expected.

The party members unanimously agreed.

As long as Kang San judged it to be beneficial, none of the party members showed any opposition.

So the next day.

Kang San’s party gathered at the designated location.

It was the place where Rangers waited before incidents occurred, and as soon as he entered, Kang San heard a familiar voice.

『The twenty-seventh hardship and trial have been assigned.』

『Due to the karma of an evil person, you must now save people in danger. The drop rate of rewards will increase while performing missions as a Ranger team, and additional rewards will be given depending on how many Ranger missions you complete. ‘Special information’ will be provided for smooth rescue operations, but if you fail the mission, all rewards received so far will be confiscated, and the karma will become stronger.』

『Reward: ??』

It was as expected.

While accepting Kim Myeong-min’s offer, Kang San had anticipated a trial like this in a situation where overlapping was possible.

However.

‘It’s strange.’

It was the same as in Japan.

This trial.

It seemed to have the intention of making him grow, disguised as a trial.