A group of black-robed people gathered around a single candle inside a large cave. Some were men, but most were women.
The group's leader said, "We will have a new comrade."
"Wow, that's amazing. Who is it? Where is he?" asked a woman red hair.
"Don't be in such a hurry. I only felt his presence for a moment. I also don't know if this premonition is correct or not," the man said, lifting his head.
"So you're still relying on premonitions, huh... or is it intuition?" a man thought, grinning with an unnaturally wide mouth.
"Calm down. We're all here because we have something in common, aren't we? Why keep doubting his premonition? After all, it's never been wrong," another said.
The red-haired woman spoke again, "Is he from a different race this time?" she asked.
The man shook his head and replied, "I don't know." For a moment, his expression looked confused.
"If we continue like this, we might run out of time. I don't want to waste any more time. The era of martial artists from every region might soon become extinct—"
"Hey, don't just say that!" yelled another man.
The woman's words were suddenly cut off, but instead of getting angry, she just laughed.
Then she said, "I'm not kidding. If we lose our minds when the era of martial artists becomes extinct, what kind of humans do you think will survive?"
The leader of the group stopped the conversation just by hitting the cave wall, making it shake. The person looked angry, and for a moment, their face looked different from a normal human's. It was like a specter.
"Shut up!" the man shouted, warning them not to fight.
"What he said is true. All the worries you have are on my mind too, but remember, our position is also on the brink of destruction itself," he warned in a deep voice.
An unsettling aura made everyone there feel pressured. Each of them, who had intentionally worn cloaks with hoods, were in fact a group of martial artists, but parts of their own bodies seemed to deny their existence as humans and instead resembled monsters.
"There's no more time! Quickly scatter and find the cursed one!" he shouted, giving the order.
"Alright!" They said in unison, then vanished in an instant.
***
A red horn slowly grew upwards, and the nails on each of his fingers and toes also lengthened, becoming monstrously black.
Yong was shocked to see the drastic changes in his appearance, especially his teeth, which had suddenly turned into sharp fangs.
"Are you kidding me? What's happening to me?"
Yong didn't understand. He asked himself what was wrong, making his heart feel very anxious. He felt distressed by his horrifying appearance.
"S-sir, can I talk to you for a moment?"
A girl he had helped earlier came to speak with Yong. But not in his current condition.
"GET AWAY FROM ME!" He unintentionally shouted, telling her to leave.
His loud, coarse voice made the girl flinch in shock and then fear. She slowly stepped back, confused and anxious, but on one hand, she wanted to tell the boy something.
"But, Si—"
"No! Get away! I said... get away! Don't come near me!" Yong yelled, then left in his thick clothes. Worried that he would attract people's attention, Yong covered his face.
With a non-human appearance, anyone who saw him would be terrified. Besides fear, the residents would surely do something terrible later.
The sound of heavy footsteps felt weighty and astonishing. The boy desperately ran barefoot while covering his demonic face.
Filled with fear that made him flustered, Yong's feelings became chaotic because of his own state.
"Hey, look! Who's there?"
"Ah, that... wait, a horn?"
When one of the residents mentioned the word "horn," all the sharp-eared residents around immediately heard it and looked in the directed way. Yong froze in surprise. He was already surrounded by many people, including martial artists from the local sect.
"Don't look," Yong whispered, still trying to cover his long horn.
"A horn? His nails are also black and long. Is it possible he's a person cursed by the gods?" a poor resident said, voicing his thoughts in public.
"But why is a cursed person still alive? He's supposed to die as a sacrifice for the continuation of life here, right?" another expressed a different opinion.
None of them sided with him. Yong stood there, resigned, as if he truly had no other path. All eyes were on him, and the way they stared was as if they were facing a real demon.
"The same look as when I was famous. They praised me, but behind my back, they insulted me. It's just slightly different now; it's more open," Yong muttered.
There was no point in hiding after being found out. He took his hands off his face, intentionally letting everyone see his horrifying appearance.
"Ah, it's true! Quickly, get rid of him!"
Everyone's views may differ, but once they've decided on something evil, it won't change until the end.
"Demon!"
The martial artists from the local sect drew their swords from their sheaths. Afterward, they would surely attack Yong without hesitation. With this demonic face, his true identity would be hidden, but he would regret it immensely if he died in such a foolish way.
"If I die, is it okay? After all, I have no purpose in life other than to desperately survive for my own sake," Yong cursed, then smirked.
The thick layers of clothes on his body made Yong seem to have a little trouble walking, as his body had slightly enlarged, but he still stepped closer toward the blades of the martial artists.
"Stab me... now," Yong said.
The martial artists' eyes grew sharper, and they no longer hesitated to swing their swords.
A sword slash like the wind didn't cut his body. Yong disappeared right after the man swung his sword, surprising and panicking everyone.
"Where did he go?"
"Up!" his comrade shouted, warning that another figure had taken Yong upward.
"What? No way!" the martial artist shrieked, looking up in disbelief.
They floated in the air for a set amount of time, after which the black-robed man slowly descended, not just to come down, but he had already gotten ready to escape from there.
"The appearance of an evil spirit has been detected! Tell the others to inform them of this, and then quickly find and destroy all of them!" the martial artist shouted, giving the order to the others.