After spending the entire day recovering, Sol was pleasantly surprised to receive an invitation from the head Abbot himself, Shi Ming. Apparently, the kid believed this was only possible because the old monk had taken an interest in Sol's prowess in warfare. To the monks of Mount Hau, his appearance was a blessing—but they were unaware of Sol's thoughts.
Bringing him close to Shi Ming was the worst mistake these people would make. Even in his current condition, this body was strong enough to snuff out the lives of a few people, let alone an old monk.
'I guess everything ends tonight,' Sol told himself before putting his mind to rest and focusing on recovery. The stronger he became before the meeting, the better.
For the entire day, he slept, and by nightfall, he woke to the sound of calm, serene prayers. When the boy came to take Sol to the Abbot, he pretended to have trouble walking, leaving the boy with no choice but to give him a cane and assist him along the way.
Leaving the room, Sol walked through a corridor lined with several rooms filled with injured or sick people receiving treatment. Everyone who noticed him rushed over to pay their respects with a bow. In their eyes was deep hope, unlike anything he had seen before.
"I didn't think my arrival meant so much to the monks of Mount Hau," Sol said. The boy quickly shook his head.
"Are you kidding me? We're running low on supplies, and the Abbot grows weaker every day. Risking your life to deliver news of help that could end this war has given hope to people who had been silently waiting for death!" the boy argued.
Sol was taken aback, unsure how to respond. The impression the Jin army had was that the monks of Mount Hau had all the time in the world. He never thought his arrival would serve any purpose beyond helping the Jin army, so he probed further—and was shocked by what he learned.
The battle monks of Mount Hau numbered five thousand elites, trained diligently in martial arts for decades. According to the boy, he firmly believed those five thousand were worth Jin's fifty thousand soldiers. However, the main problem was that monks did not practice martial arts for the sake of warfare. They had little knowledge of it and lacked an effective leader capable of commanding them in battle.
And that was where Sol came in.
The discovery of their small number of soldiers and severe supply shortages left Sol unsure whether to laugh or cry. Emperor Tai Zhao had been losing sleep over people who appeared to be on the verge of collapse. Like the massive golden bell surrounding the mountain, they looked sturdy on the outside but weak within.
Sol did not head directly to Abbot Shi Ming's private shrine. Instead, he had the boy show him around. While the place was nothing compared to the extravagant capital of the Jin Empire, it was simple, peaceful, and beautiful. The roads were swept, benches cleaned, gardens watered and trimmed. It was quiet, and the people were respectful. Even warrior monks offered help to the elderly.
People gathered in stores, shared meals, and laughed. Believers sat beneath cherry blossom trees, listening to monks teach. Monks and civilians alike gathered in temples to pray. It was a completely different world from that of Jin's nobles, who were obsessed with flaunting wealth and status.
However, this was not the kind of society that could withstand the wrath of Emperor Tai Zhao. With this realization, Sol concluded that the monks stood no chance against the Jin army without reinforcements. The discovery was anticlimactic for someone who had hoped to witness mystical monks capable of defeating a thousand men with a flick of their fingers.
Because of this, his urge to destroy the barrier vanished instantly. How could he allow the story he had carefully molded to end anticlimactically?
It didn't feel right.
After a long tour across the mountain, Sol and the boy reached the northern edge, where a simple temple without walls or doors stood. This was Abbot Shi Ming's private shrine, a place overlooking the entire region. There were no guards, and to make things better, the boy left after escorting him there.
Walking up the cliff path, Sol couldn't help but look beyond the mountain toward the northern camp. He knew the monks had a good view of it, but he hadn't expected it to be so spectacular.
Thud!
Slamming his cane against the ground as he stepped into the temple, Sol allowed the sound to echo several times. His attention was drawn to a black dancing Buddha statue with fangs, a serpent-like tongue, and multiple arms forming different seals. The towering statue made the old, bald monk in black-and-red robes look small.
'This can't be right,' Sol thought while staring at the statue. The longer he looked, the more a strange familiarity washed over him.
"What brings the son of General Wang to my humble temple?" the old man asked, his back still turned. His voice was shaky and hoarse.
He knows?
Sol tilted his head slightly to the left, his eyes narrowing as his grip on the cane tightened. Both the man and the statue emanated a presence different from the radiant golden barrier protecting the mountain. He found it hard to believe this man was its source.
"To kill you and take down the barrier for my Jin army," Sol replied calmly.
Eerie chuckles escaped the Abbot's lips.
"And yet, you have not struck me down despite possessing the means. Why?" Shi Ming slowly opened his eyes, revealing pitch-black pupils.
Sol didn't answer immediately. He stared at the man for a full minute. Confusion flickered in his gaze, followed by realization—and then annoyance.
Bam!
The cane slipped from Sol's hand and hit the ground. He leaned against a pillar, folding his arms across his chest as he thought deeply. He realized the reason he hadn't crushed Shi Ming's skull was simple—doing so wouldn't give him the outcome he wanted.
When he first came here, he expected a camp ready to fight to the death. He wanted to be the traitor who pushed them into a relentless siege that would last weeks, maybe even a month. But from what he had seen, killing Shi Ming now would result in the mountain being wiped out before midnight.
That wasn't the outcome he wanted.
"Make no mistake. My decision has nothing to do with emotions," Sol said after a moment. The old man chuckled.
"So what do you plan to do now?"
Sol's frown deepened. He hadn't thought that far ahead.
"Maybe wait until reinforcements arrive. Then I might take control of your troops as well—to make this a fifty-fifty battle," Sol answered honestly.
He didn't care who won the war. All he wanted was chaos. If helping the people he came to sabotage was what it took, so be it.
"And that is the true essence of the Devil Origin Core," Shi Ming said. "Unpredictability. Chaos. Irrationality. The one who holds the least attachment to life is the one who controls it."
Shi Ming slowly turned to face Sol, a small smile on his lips.
What?
Sol was confused. Had the trial ended just like that?
He replayed the Abbot's words in his mind. After a moment, understanding dawned.
The one who attaches the least sentiment to life controls it.
Sol's eyes widened in realization.
"Ruining Wang Yan's relationships over lustful impulses. Destroying his bond with his father out of curiosity. Forcing the Yao clan into treason through greed. Leading fifty men to their deaths—and gladly offering your own—for thrill alone. Endangering an empire just to satisfy your hunger for glorious battle. Have you noticed the pattern?" Shi Ming asked calmly.
Sol was stunned.
Looking back, he realized he had never cared how his actions affected others. He acted purely for his own amusement, manipulating everyone around him.
"Devil Origin Core…" Sol murmured. "Is that the true nature of my origin core?"
Shi Ming nodded slowly.
Memories surfaced—moments before the third door, the emotions tied to it.
Exposing his parents' affairs simply to watch them fight.
Revealing teachers' scandals to see the school descend into chaos—and when he learned his father was involved, he exposed him too, just to burn his home to the ground.
Only now did Sol understand the dark fragment of his soul that had earned him the Devil Origin Core.