TL;DR - Horns becomes Cale's spy. Cale gives assignments to his group. Cale's group meets the wolf chieftain, Jesse.
Double Agent Horns
Horns called Pope Kesilia and told her everything that happened. But he lied about one thing - that he betrayed them in order to act as their spy on Cale's group. In reality, he was Cale's spy on the church.
Of course, Cale did not fully trust him yet, so he assigned three people to accompany Horns when he returned to the church. And those three were... Clopeh, Hannah, and Rasheel. š
Cale thought his assignment was good because Clopeh was good at politics, Hannah was knowledgeable in church affairs, and Rasheel was a dragon who could threaten the church in case something goes wrong. But CJS had the same thought as us, readers. Those three were... "destructive." š¤£š¤£š¤£
Dragon Names
Last chapter, I complained about Past Dragon being unnamed. Fortunately, the author finally named him. His name was Zopf. MTL called him Chop or Chope, but frankly, that sounded weird, so I won't use it. Zopf is a type of Swiss, Austrian, and German bread. Past Dragon's name uses the same Korean word for Zopf, so I'll be using this one.
We also got the names of two other dragons.
Ryan - 1st Star, God of Domination, King of Beasts, Horns's biological father
Exion - 3rd Star, God of the Earth, strongest of the Three Stars
The Korean word used for Ryan is also the same for the word "lion", so you can say this is a pun because a lion is the king of beasts.
Group Assignments
Advance meeting with Pope Kesilia - Horns, Clopeh, Hannah, and Rasheel
Find CJG - Sui Khan, Zopf, Mila, Choi Han, Choi Jung Soo
Meet the source of the world/Aipotu - Cale, Raon, Wisha, Lock
The advance meeting group... Just wow. Clopeh is going? To meet a pope? Next thing we know, Pope Kesilia will convert from a dragon worshipper to a Caleism worshipper. š¤£š¤£š¤£
I thought Sui was going alone and not letting CH and CJS go with him, but I was wrong. Sui personally said the two should go with him too, and Cale agreed to it. Zopf would guide them, and Mila was going too because of Cale's distrust of Aipotu dragons. Cale still felt annoyed about Maxi placing a heavy burden on Raon.
Wisha would be guiding Cale and Raon to the source of the world, aka Aipotu. Lock was suddenly invited to go too because the path leading to the source of the world was located in the lair of Ryan, the King of Beasts.
The Aipotu wolf beast tribe worshipped the Blue Wolf as a god. The Blue Wolf gifted them "reason" in return, so that they could maintain reason when they undergo berserk transformation. But the Dragon Lord and 1st Star Ryan destroyed all the divine items of Blue Wolf, so the Aipotu wolf beast tribe lost their reason when in their berserk forms.
The worst part was that even when the berserk form was gone, their reason did not fully return. They slowly lose to their instincts the more they used their berserk forms.
1st Star Ryan was said to be a Blue Wolf-wannabe, so Cale asked Lock, whom the Aipotu beast wolf tribe feared and respected, to go with him. Hmm... is this foreshadowing of a possible battle between Ryan and Lock?
Ending Remarks
So many new dragon names today. But no DHB naming scene... š„²Next chapter would probably be Cale's trip to meet Aipotu.
TCF Theory: What If God of Death Had a Reason for Kidnapping Minors?
(Hey, @murasaki-cha, I might have a theory that could sorta maybe redeem your pathetic little meow meow! š)
[Also: SPOILER WARNING for... basically everything in TCF?]
So, here's the thing:
It's no secret I always hadā¦ issues with the God of Death for kidnapping the Chois.
Let me clarify a bit.
What he did to Kim Rok Soo, aka. Cale, was not okay either ā however! I can see it justified somewhat by circumstances: he was cursed, his life was generally depressing and terrible, and there was a world in need of saving. Honestly, the deal with the Original Cale Henituse to switch the two of them was best for all parties involved. (I'm still angry he did not ask Cale himself for permission, though! All the God of Death needed to do was tell him: "Look, this is the world where your BFF Lee Soo Hyuk reincarnated into. And the world is going to be destroyed in about 20 years if nothing is done about it. Would you mind cleaning that up for me?" You bet your butt Cale would have agreed fair and square, even if he were EXTREMELY miffed about the deal. But it's so much easier to simply hide your involvement in the transmigration, so that Cale doesn't have a personal vendetta against you once he gets OP, rightā¦? Not that it succeeded, lol. Cale still ended up cursing the God of Death a lot)
However ā all of what I just said? NONE of it applied for the Choi family member.
First, we have Choi Jung Gun, aka. Nelan Barrow. Let me remind you, the kid was FIFTEEN. Freaking 15!!!! The God of Death kidnapped a literal CHILD with no combat experience, and dropped him in the middle of an active war zone! Sure, technically Super Rock was there and presumably took care of him ā but still, that was an objectively a terrible thing to do, God of Death! Bad boy!! š§¹š§¹š§¹
Then we have Choi Han, and ohhh boy, he had even worse somehow! Even though he was 2 years older than Choi Jung Gun when he got transported, he still ended up in the freaking FOREST OF DARKNESS. Weaponless, isolated, under constant threat of death. It's a miracle Choi Han did not die or completely lose his mind ā and in a sense he did ā but he was still able to retain a piece of himself, NO THANKS TO YOU GOD OF DEATH. My goodness! What a way to treat your "chosen hero ", mister!
...as you can probably tell, I was pissed enough at the God of Death for kidnapping poor Choi Jung Gun, but I am NEVER forgiving him for what Choi Han went thought. Should have given him something! A letter, a sword, or at the very least ā A FREAKING MAP!!!
Aaaand finally we have Choi Jung Soo. Which was a bizarre case in comparison to the previous two. Even the God of Death remarked how unusual it was.
First of all, consent was asked ā WHAT A TWIST! š¤£
Secondly, Choi Jung Soo was already an adult, and experienced fighter. He'd have a much better time in Nameless 1 world than any of his predecessors (excluding the fact that he'd have a TERRIBLE time trying to fight the White Star; who may I remind you possessed Kim Rok Soo's face... Also, did he even get to read "The Birth of a Hero"...?). He was also on the verge of death. AND he allowed to say no!! It was much more fair than what happened to the other two.
...But why though? Why the special treatment, God of Death? Why not kidnap Choi Jung Soo as a kid as well? The timing was kind of strange.
So here my theory comes in.
What if, it wasn't the God of Death who determined the timing of the transportation? What if there was an outside factor involved? Just because there seemingly wasn't a strict pattern to WHEN the Chois got transported, that doesn't mean there couldn't be one.
An outside factor like, let's say.... the Hunters? š¤
From his behaviour in the Sloth Test, we know that Choi Jung Gun absolutely hates the Hunters. And it seemed very personal too. Even if we take it for granted that the Hunters were responsible for the existence of the Original White Star and the war and all that... It was still VERY personal. Like, "I will tear you to bloody pieces with my bare hands and chew on them with my teeth" level of personal. So, what gives?
Then it hit me.
The Five Colored Bloods Hunters are Wanderers who can freely travel across dimensions. They targeted young Kim Rok Soo, because he had a "mark" of the God of Death on. They assumed it could be a sign of a Single Lifer, and it did not matter to them if it necessary to kill him just to "check". The only reason why Kim Rok Soo survived was because Choi Jung Gun was there (even though I have issues about his execution ā using a minor as BAIT?! Not cool man! Almost as bad as the God of Death!). Without him, young Kim Rok Soo absolutely would have been killed. And the way Choi Jung Gun was acting in the Sloth Test made it seem like it wasn't the first time something like this happened either.
Meaning: the Hunters were already on Earth 1. They have been there.
So, what if... the Hunters had already targeted the Chois in the past? Including Choi Jung Gun himself?
Think about it. If the Hunters had any clue that this particular lineage could produce Single Lifers... they'd certainly keep an eye on the Choi family, right? There would be no need to directly interfere. Just, watching them from the sidelines and let them produce next generations. Spying on their kids ā like the total creeps they are.
And perhaps, there was a particular sign of a potential Single Lifer to watch out for, that could manifest around adolescence? What if Choi Jung Gun showed such a sign at the age of 15?
Instead of simply using him as a weapon to save another world... was the God of Death actually trying to save Choi Jung Gun? By transporting him into another dimension??
It would... kinda make sense, right? By transporting Choi Jung Gun, his "Single Lifer power" activated. His lifespan became much longer, he developed an Ancient Power too. He was initially weak, but he grew stronger overtime. Strong enough to stand up to the Hunters and protect himself; and also taking him away from their immediate reach.
...What if the same happened with Choi Han? What if Choi Han became a target at the age of 17? And the only way to save him was to transport him as well? I mean it worked with Choi Jung Gun, why not try it a second time? If the first one became a powerful ally who could fight the Hunters, the God of Death would certainly like another one on his payroll, right?
And then there's Choi Jung Soo, of course. Maybe he escaped the scrutiny of the Hunters? Or maybe because he developed powers which made him a harder target? Why would the Hunters bother with difficult opponents when they can always play dirty and go after literal children, instead? There is also the issue of the Monster Apocalypse, as Cale suspects the Hunters were behind it as well. Maybe the Hunters had a different plan for Earth 1, and so they had to stop using it as hunting grounds for Single Lifers?
If I'm right about this, then the God of Death's actions became a liiiiitle bit more understandable.
I will forever criticize the man for not asking at least three of his victims (and don't try to give me some bull about him being "unable to", God of Death used various means to communicate through the story; Choi Jung Gun even freaking wrote "The Birth of a Hero" books for the sole purpose of giving necessary exposition to a transmigrator ā more than that, if he had enough space to simp for Whales and provide Harol's backstory for no reason! He could have included ANY type of message in there, to ANYONE!), but if Choi Jung Gun were to literally die if he did not get kidnapped and transported into a war-torn dimension in need of saving... Well? Saving someone's life via transmigration might be unconventional, but I've seen it happen a lot in many isekai. I can roll with this.
...But seriously tho, I hope Choi Jung Gun makes that broom beating a regular thing. The God of Death certainly can use it. You know ā for emotional intelligence improvement! š
TL;DR - Sima Pyeong and Jegal Mi Ryeo figure out that Cale was an otherworlder. HD having a drink date with CH. Cale returns to Roan and gets greeted by a very polite Alberu and 6 dragons.
The Good and Evil Factions
Today's the last chapter of the murim arc, so we get our final scenes with the key figures of the two factions. Apparently, news of the emperor arriving in Hainan Island reached the murim people's ears, so everyone was behaving well. The murim people were scared of the emperor because he was kind to the civilians but harsh on the murim people.
However, we didn't get more scenes of the emperor. The first half was about Sima Pyeong and the Good Faction's meeting. The smart ones of the two factions - Sima Pyeong and Jegal Mi Ryeo, figured out that Cale was an otherworlder. Sima Pyeong's clue was the magic Raon taught him, and the Good Faction's clue was Cale's power in stopping the tsunami.
Both factions also realized that Cale was leaving soon, and began to prepare gifts to their benefactor. And Jegal Mi Ryeo also decided to carry out some reforms to the Good Faction because of their realization that they had been arrogant.
And that was it for these two factions. No mention of what happened to Toonka who was still probably hanging out with the Evil Faction people. š
A Drink Under the Moonlight
Our cheater HD was having a drink with CH in the garden under the moonlight. BUT. It was actually CH who asked to meet HD, even getting Cale's permission to do so. What? CH making the first move? He even refilled HD's cup? š
Anyway, CH wanted to meet HD because he wanted to learn how to remove the dead mana from one's body. HD went on to say that he had actually not completely removed the dead mana from his body as the human body had hundreds of miniscule blood vessels, so a complete removal would take time.
And when HD said that the method only worked if you had dead mana in your body, CH clarified that it was not for him but for two people - Hannah and Clopeh. Yes, a Clopeh mention! š„³
But it was quite funny when CH was thinking that it would be good for Clopeh to remove the dead mana in his body, and then frowned when he realized that he actually thought/cared about that crazy guy... š¤£š¤£š¤£
Why did Cale even agree in CH meeting HD? Because he wanted CH to pass to HD a map of the Absolute God of War's tomb location (that he ripped off from Jungwon) and have HD learn the martial arts of that man in order to become stronger. I think this man was mentioned earlier in the murim arc, though I forgot how EAP translated the name.
Ah, why do I see a parallel here to Alberu? Cale once gave Alberu the dead mana of a dragon to make Alberu stronger, and now he's doing the same to HD for the same reason?
However, HD refused it, saying that he wanted to follow his own path (of martial arts), and even asked CH to spar with him next time. CH agreed but also made himself as the goal that HD should catch up to.
We also get CH praising HD for being amazing (because HD had gotten this far at his young age), and HD replying that it was CH who was amazing. Wait, our last scene of HD is him bonding with CH and not Cale? š
Moving on, HD was excited to learn that Cale could summon him in Cale's future fights. Or was he more excited to spar with CH? I dunno. I didn't expect HD to be friendly with CH. Then again, I didn't expect to have a scene of CH calmly drinking with someone else, or CH missing his hometown in Roan.
Traitor Alberu
Cale had been really careful about the Aipotu stuff because he was worried about the young Raon handling all of that heavy stuff. But when Alberu heard all about it from Cale, Alberu went on and told about it to the dragons.
So when Cale finally arrived back in Roan, his welcoming party was a very nervous Alberu (who was acting politely) surrounded by 6 dragons (if you count the half-blood dragon as a dragon). There was Eruhaben, Rasheel, Dodori, and Mila. Sheritt and the half-blood dragon were seen in the video communication device Alberu was holding.
Given how serious all the dragons looked, Cale realized that Alberu had tattled on the Raon stuff to the dragons. And he glared at Alberu who avoided his gaze... š For the first time in his life, Cale felt betrayed by Alberu. š¤£š¤£š¤£ Maybe he even regrets wanting to work under Alberu than become a god? š
Ending Remarks
FINALLY, THE MURIM ARC IS OVER!!! It took us around 119 chapters for this arc alone. My suffering from reading confusing MTL because of murim terms finally ends! š„³Next up is a brief interlude in Roan before the Aipotu arc. Will we finally get Cale's conversation with the Molans? And what happened to CJS? Why was there no mention of him today? Did he break up with Cale's group? Or did he go with them? What about the Orsena sisters? Where is Karin? So many questions still left unanswered.
It's hilarious how the gods in TCF certainly seem to have a liking towards people who absolutely despise them:
(In Ancient Times)
God of War: (sets a slave free) There you go, you're free now
Sky Eating Water: Neat, thanks
God of War: Now go and be a judge for me
Sky Eating Water: (runs away)
Cage: That God of Death, he's so annoying!!
God of Death: I wish she was my saintā¦ š¢ Cale, would you-?
Cale: N O .
God of Death: Well, at least I still have Choi Jung Gun working for m-
Choi Jung Gun: (beats him up with a broom)
God of Despair: (drug dealer style) Hey kid, wanna become a member of the demonic race??
Cale: No, you crazy psycho!!!
God of Despair: Cute. Here, have a test to change your mind
White Star: W-wait, I thought I was your-
God of Despair: Heh, no! That Cale is clearly superior in every way
White Star:šØ
Alberu: (His entire life) I hate the Sun God church so muchā¦ Discriminating against my race, it's their fault my mother's people can't live in peace and my entire bloodline is cursed-
Angelina: Cursed you say? No problem! Here, have this cool gun instead
Cheapskate: Cale, let's have a karaoke contest! Win and make a ton of money!
Super Rock: He does have a point, I bet you have a great voice
Crazy Kid: Yeah Cale, let's XXX destroy those XXX XXX with our XXX music!
Thief: Let's steal the spotlight!
Glutton: And buy delicious victory meal!
Cale: Alright, guys, I get it, now shut up!
Eruhaben: (Unlucky bastard is talking to himself againā¦)
White Star: You can't do this! I am superior in every way, including singing-!
Cale: You can't compete tho, this song is a duet
Choi Han: *takes the microphone* I'll sing with you, Cale-nim!
Cale & Choi Han: *sing a sick duet and win the contest*
Choi Han: (This is so much fun!)
Cale: (I hope the reward is worth itā¦)
White Star: *beaten & sulking in the corner*
Alberu: (Waitā¦ Am I paying for this?!)
Choi Han: Cale-nim are you hungry, we could grab something to eat-
Cale: *suddenly realizes he overused his Ancient Powers by sinning a sick duet with Choi Han* (Well crap) *dramatically coughs blood*
Choi Han: I'llā¦ tell Raon to bring apple pieā¦
Litana: ā¦Is he the Dragon of the Legend?
Cale: (smiling) No, I am not a Dragon
Obante: T-that aura! Sir, are you a Dragon??
Cale: (confused) ā¦No, I'm not a Dragon
Jeet: That scent of natureā¦! Are you perhaps-?!
Cale: (frustrated) I am not a Dragon!
Eruhaben: You must be of Dragon Slayer lineage, I see
Cale: (exasperated) No I am not
Dragon Half-Blood: ā¦A Half-Dragon like me!
Cale: (shocked) What the hell, no!
White Star: A perfect Dragon Slayer candidate, then!
Cale: (furious) NO!
Bakehe: The leader of Dragonsā¦ Must be a Dragon!
Cale: (tired) For the last time, I am not-!
Blood Cult Barrier: Dragon Recognized. Passage Granted!
Cale: ā¦ā¦ā¦
The difference between ORV and TCF fandoms is actually quite simple:
Orv fandom:
Someone: Guys Kim Dokja didn't die!
ORV fandom: OH THANK GOD! He survived another chapter! Yes! Squid lives another day everyone! Save the tears he's not dead yet!
TCF fandom:
Someone: Guys Cale didn't get hurt or cough up blood!
TCF fandom: GOD DAMN IT! Why not?! Noo! Not another chapter! Why isn't he coughing up blood anymore!? Not even fainting a little bit!! Got my hopes up for nothing!
*Raon made something explodes again*
Raon: oh no-
Alberu, running into the room in a panic: did something happened?!
Cale, walking by the room calmly: what died?
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