Chapter 80

The back gate of Taebudong.

It was the treasure of the Great Buddha Temple—an unknown secret technique possessed only by the temple.

The back gate of Taebudong was said to open only under the command of the Great Buddha Temple’s Head Monk and chief priest, and only with two Dharma Protectors in attendance.

Who could have imagined something like that existed behind a Buddha statue as massive as a cliff?

“Taebudong…”

Hyuk-min clenched his fists.

The Great Buddha Temple’s treasure, said to push one’s potential to its absolute limit in a short period.

“Sometimes, knowing too much can be a poison.”

That giant Buddha statue—so difficult to approach—was the reason Hyuk-min had come here, and it was everything to him…

Yet his worry and anxiety came from the fact that he was one of the few who knew it wasn’t an all-powerful solution.

“You’ve come.”

It seemed Chang-kyung had noticed Hyuk-min’s bitter smile.

Chang-kyung approached, looked up at Taebudong, and patted Hyuk-min’s shoulder.

“I suppose that was included in the future you saw?”

“You’re here, sir.”

In his previous life, he’d spoken casually to Chang-kyung, but using honorifics now felt unbearably awkward.

And as expected of someone with the eyes of [One Who Awakens Potential], Chang-kyung noticed it immediately.

“Speak comfortably. To have seen the future means you have lived in that future.”

“Yes.”

“You just said ‘Taebudong.’ Was that included in the future you saw?”

“Are you curious?”

Chang-kyung paused, then gave an awkward smile.

“They say there is nothing more foolish than worrying about a future that has not yet come… It seems my training is still lacking.”

Then, as if he had gathered his resolve, he looked Hyuk-min straight in the eye.

“I am curious. I am very curious—what you saw that made you come to me, and what happened at Taebudong in the future you witnessed.”

Taebudong.

More precisely, the stone gate that opened behind that giant Buddha statue.

“The people who came out of Taebudong’s back gate were generally of two types.”

“Two types, you say…”

Chang-kyung’s eyes widened, then quickly returned to normal.

“I suppose that would be the case.”

“Most of them…”

“Most of them?”

Chang-kyung’s ears perked up, as if he couldn’t help himself.

“Came out as corpses.”

“…I see.”

Worry clouded the eyes of the man who had been curious just moments ago.

“What happened to the rest?”

“The rest walked out just fine, as new people.”

While Taebudong was a treasure of the Great Buddha Temple that maximized potential, the truth was that it was a double-edged sword.

For those who endured the trial, it maximized their potential, placing in their hands everything they could not have before.

But for those who failed, it offered death—without even the chance of a second attempt.

It was either become a monster or die.

“That’s good. Yes.”

Chang-kyung smiled and said it was good, but the color did not return to his face.

It was likely because he was thinking of the people who had died in Taebudong.

Chang-kyung felt responsible for those deaths.

Seeing that, Hyuk-min stepped closer, supported Chang-kyung’s slumped shoulders, and smiled.

“I was one of them—the one who walked out. Thank you.”

“Ah…”

Hyuk-min usually read people through their eyes.

In the short time they’d spoken, countless emotions had flickered through Chang-kyung’s.

He could see how much Chang-kyung cared for people, and how much Taebudong weighed on him.

“Don’t worry. I’ll succeed this time, too.”

“No one has entered Taebudong twice, but according to those who have…”

“I know. You’re not given the same trial. That’s why you talked about mindset last time, right? Because there was a trial related to mindset recently?”

Chang-kyung’s eyebrows shot up.

Then, as if he had snapped back to his senses, he forced his expression into sternness.

“The back gate of Taebudong will not be opened right away. We must teach you all so that no more people die.”

A laugh escaped Hyuk-min without him meaning to.

Harsh as Chang-kyung’s words were, they answered everything Hyuk-min needed.

“Get ready.”

Chang-kyung turned and began walking back toward his quarters.

“Yes.”

The bright smile on Hyuk-min’s face slowly faded.

He knew exactly why Chang-kyung had come to his senses.

‘This must have been when it happened. The day Gakyak, the Left Dharma Protector, lost his son.’

Hyuk-min turned his body.

He was about to head back as well, sorting through his memories of the Great Buddha Temple from his previous life.

“You.”

Chang-kyung’s voice—who Hyuk-min thought had already gone far—stopped him.

“Yes?”

“Since I’ve already broken my discipline, let me ask one more thing.”

“What is it all of a…”

“In the future you saw… do I die?”

The question was tossed out as if it were nothing, without warning.

But it was heavier than anything else, heavy enough that Hyuk-min couldn’t control his expression.

Seeing that expression, Chang-kyung smirked, the corners of his mouth curling up as he nodded.

“So that’s what happens.”

“I haven’t answered yet.”

“Does an answer have to be spoken? I can tell by your face.”

Hyuk-min didn’t even know what expression he was wearing.

He tried to get a grip, but he couldn’t figure out how to handle this.

And because of that, he unknowingly played a strong hand.

After all, one of the reasons he had come here was to save Chang-kyung.

“There’s a way!”

However, Chang-kyung’s reaction was not what Hyuk-min expected.

Chang-kyung shook his head.

“Don’t bother.”

“Pardon?”

“The ability to go against the natural order—or a man’s fate—is permitted only to those who have defied it once before.”

“…?!”

“Pay it no mind. In the end, all people are born to die.”

Chang-kyung’s gaze as he looked at Hyuk-min was calm, as if he knew everything.

A life that could be serene in the face of death.

As Hyuk-min pictured Chang-kyung’s final moments—which were anything but ordinary—his fists clenched on their own.

Why?

Because Hyuk-min had not been able to be serene in the face of his own death.

“Do you believe in fate?”

Fate…

Hyuk-min shook his head.

“I’m not sure. Sometimes I believe in it, and sometimes I wish I didn’t.”

“It seems you’ve met a bad connection as well.”

Meeting Chang-kyung, and meeting his former comrades, could be called fate in its own way.

But Park Chung-ho and Jang Han-bit.

The worst of all connections—ones that had tangled his previous life in revenge and killing intent, and in the end, had incited his comrades and brought about his death.

When he thought of them, he couldn’t help wishing fate didn’t exist.

“So it’s true.”

“What do you see in me?”

Chang-kyung had said he couldn’t see anything because of [UNLIMIT].

But now, Chang-kyung was piercing through everything, as if the eyes of [One Who Awakens Potential] were fully awake.

“I see nothing. It is so pitch black that when I look at you, it feels as if my eyes have gone blind.”

“But then how…”

“You should be asking yourself that, not me. That thing—like a black curtain—only shows what it permits. Is that black curtain not also you?”

“That is also me?”

“Since I see it from you, it is also you.”

It was an unplanned variable.

Something completely unexpected—something Hyuk-min had never seen or even heard of in his previous life.

For someone who pursued only perfect plans, being told that [UNLIMIT] was also part of him left him with nothing but bewilderment.

“I am not a god. Which is to say, I cannot create something from nothing. Do you understand what I mean?”

Hyuk-min nodded.

Chang-kyung was right.

As [One Who Awakens Potential], Chang-kyung could only push what already existed to its limit. He couldn’t create potential that wasn’t there.

If that was true… did that mean [UNLIMIT] had really been Hyuk-min’s all along?

Did encountering the unplanned [UNLIMIT] mean it was a new fate—one that hadn’t existed in his previous life?

“Hey! I was wondering where this bastard went, and here he is!?”

No Death’s voice rang out from the distance.

“See? I told you. My uncle is different from you, mister. He’s not the type to run away.”

“What’s that? This brat keeps talking back? You’ll get hurt if you find out who I am, you know?”

“I’m young, but I know things, okay? Devil! Demon! Even just looking now, I’m right, aren’t I? Doesn’t that mean I know better?”

A deep smile formed on Chang-kyung’s lips at No Death and Hyun-jung’s bickering.

Chang-kyung patted Hyuk-min’s shoulder again.

“You’ve got some good friends.”

They gave him headaches when they fought, but at other times, they were party members who could make him smile.

“Isn’t the reason you tried not to accept us because of that friend?”

Hyuk-min glanced toward No Death.

Chang-kyung nodded.

“I thought he was an evil person. It was due to my lack of training.”

“What kind of…”

“The mark of an evil person was simply too large. Around him were many things that marked him as a good person. I was merely blinded by that one mark and refused to see the others. That is all.”

“Then is that guy, No Death, a good person too?”

A hearty laugh burst from Chang-kyung.

“Hahaha, that seems to depend on you.”

“Pardon? What does that…”

“I must go and prepare. I’ll see you in a bit, then. Hahaha.”

As always, Chang-kyung didn’t give a straight answer.

Was ‘like master, like disciple’ the right phrase?

Or had Hyuk-min simply been around Chang-kyung for too long?

“Hyuk-min! Do you know how long I looked for you, thinking you ran away? What on earth were you doing here!?”

At No Death’s nagging, Hyuk-min answered with a gentle smile.

“I was studying life.”

“What? Studying?”

“It’s just something. The Dharma Protectors will be here soon. Let’s get ready.”

“Why is it so frustrating whenever I ask this guy something…? It’s so annoying.”

Hyuk-min’s eyes fell on Hyun-jung, who was holding a pistol.

“Hyun-jung, what are you doing?”

Hyun-jung, with the muzzle aimed at No Death’s head, replied flatly.

“He keeps talking. If he says one more word, I’m going to shoot.”

“What?”

“He won’t die anyway. Mr. No Death needs to get a grip.”

“Ha! Listen to this brat. Is she crazy?”

“Again! I’m really going to shoot!?”

“Hey! Hyuk-min! Do something about her. She really thinks I’m a target!”

Hyuk-min knew exactly what was happening just by looking at her.

An adult is a child’s mirror.

“Sigh…”

A deep sigh escaped Hyuk-min as he watched Hyun-jung becoming more and more like him and No Death.

= = =

The Wind Cave on Ulleungdo was experiencing an unprecedented rush of visitors.

[A Cave That Grows Longer Every Day! The Wind Cave!]

[Over 10 Interview Reservations with Overseas Magazines!]

[The Cave the World Will Soon Be Watching!]

[If Not Now, It’ll Be Hard to See Later! Enjoy It While You Can!]

[Insta-Hotspot!]

The tourism promotion department head’s PR push was paying off.

Before, it had been hard to find even a single visitor.

Now there was a line of people waiting to take pictures.

Thanks to that, the guides who led people there could finally gather, chat, and catch their breath.

“No, seriously, does this make any sense? People believe this stuff?”

“It’s true, though. It really is getting longer.”

“Sigh, thanks to this, the department head is in a good mood, so he nags us less. Isn’t that a win for us?”

“That part is pretty nice. Except for being busy… sigh, I just wait to get here these days. It’s so nice to catch a breath. They just wander around on their own.”

“But do you really think this place blew up because of the department head? Isn’t it because the Wind Cave has become more cave-like than before, not because of his PR?”

“Right! That’s it! Before, no matter how much he promoted it, it was too small and unimpressive. Now it’s long enough to fit a lot of people. That makes perfect sense.”

“It’s annoying. I wonder if this isn’t just making that annoying department head look good.”

As they bad-mouthed the cave and the department head, one guide silently watched the countless visitors going in and out.

“I have a bad feeling…”

“Hey! Kim Sang-gyu, what’s wrong with you?”

Only Kim Sang-gyu—who had been warning for a while that the cave was dangerous—wore a worried expression.

Perhaps remembering what he’d said before, another guide walked over, grabbed his arm, and spoke.

“Hey, hey! Don’t worry. Even if something happens, it’s not our fault. It’s the department head’s fault for not managing it properly.”

“That’s right! We just bring people here and reap the benefits. The person in charge is the department head, not us, right?”

At the others’ words, Kim Sang-gyu’s expression eased a little.

“I guess so, right? Nothing will happen, right?”

“Of course! It’s not like we didn’t raise the issue. It’s his fault for not listening. Don’t worry about it.”

But no matter how he tried, the image of the blue bloodstain from that bug he’d never seen before kept flashing in his mind.

‘Ah, what does it matter? Even if something happens, it’s not my problem. I definitely said everything I needed to.’

He forced himself to shake his head, sweeping away his worries.

Then, with a bright smile, he blended back into the other guides.

Do you know the phrase ‘the calm before the storm’?

The quiet state before something happens.

This was that very moment.

A moment when everyone was enjoying the peace, with not a single person holding their breath in tension.

“Aaaaaaaah!!! He-help! Help me!!!”

In the end…

It happened.