Chapter 52: Heaven and Earth Rakshasa
“Summon Heaven-Passage Gate!”
I raised the Spirit Sovereign Tablet and shouted.
Thin mist began covering the floor.
RUMBLE....
A huge tiled gate slowly rose from the mist.
I recognized the general shape.
But...
“Huh?”
I looked carefully.
“Isn’t this different from the Heaven-Passage Gate I saw before?”
The previous one had looked simple.
No decoration.
A rough lock.
This gate was completely different.
Two fierce-looking goblin statues stood on either side.
A heavy golden lock connected thick chains around the gate.
The tiled roof had colorful painted decorations.
The signboard reading [Heaven-Passage Gate] was larger too.
Overall...
It looked expensive.
CLUNK.
RUMBLE....
“Huh?!”
The doors began opening by themselves.
The previous time, an Underworld Chasa had to state his identity, department, and name.
Then light came from his Chasa Tablet and opened the gate.
This one didn’t ask me anything.
“Hehehe.”
Aize smiled beside me.
“That’s the VIP Heaven-Passage Gate.”
“Automatic doors?”
I stared.
“It doesn’t even check my identity?”
“With your Spirit Sovereign Tablet, they don’t need to check.”
Aize shrugged.
In the living world, important officials and famous people sometimes passed airports using special passports without ordinary inspections.
Maybe this was similar.
Besides, the Spirit Sovereign Tablet was engraved into my body.
Nobody except the Inhwang could use it anyway.
There was no need to verify my identity.
A black, glass-like curtain covered the open gate.
Its surface rippled.
Someone began walking through.
Two beautiful heavenly maidens wearing pure-white feathered robes stepped out.
They stood on each side and bowed.
“We welcome the Inhwang Chasa to the Underworld.”
“Ah....”
I became awkward.
“Yes.”
“Thank you for your hard work.”
I had never been welcomed this politely while alive.
For a moment, I had no idea how to react.
“Oppa.”
Aize whispered.
“Transform into your Chasa form first.”
“Why?”
“Do I really need to?”
“It’s much better to travel through the Underworld looking like the Inhwang.”
She explained.
“Otherwise, every five minutes you’ll have to say, ‘Yes, I really am the Inhwang.’”
“Fine.”
At some point, I had started automatically following Aize’s advice.
I transformed into the Inhwang.
“Oh my!”
One of the heavenly maidens covered her mouth.
“It really is the Inhwang Chasa.”
“Oh....”
The other looked almost overwhelmed.
I leaned toward Aize and whispered so quietly they couldn’t hear.
“Aize.”
“My hair got longer and my clothes changed.”
“Why are they reacting like that?”
Aize whispered back.
“You still don’t understand how famous you are.”
She pointed subtly toward my forehead.
“Just seeing the Inhwang’s Black Spirit Band and Inhwang Chasa uniform is enough to make most heavenly maidens in the Underworld faint.”
Honestly, I wasn’t used to this.
Nobody had ever looked at me with that much admiration.
“Then please follow us, Inhwang Chasa.”
The heavenly maidens smiled brightly.
Aize grabbed my hand.
“Let’s go.”
“All right.”
I looked toward the black curtain.
“Let’s go to the Underworld.”
The first time I went there, I had been killed by the Asek-gwi.
I lost consciousness and only remembered waking up afterward.
This time, I would cross over while fully awake.
I couldn’t help wondering what the Underworld truly looked like.
Aize and I followed the heavenly maidens through the Heaven-Passage Gate.
The moment we crossed through, a huge hall opened before us.
Aize and I stood on something like a raised altar.
Pure-white stone covered the vast floor.
Dozens of white pillars stood in regular rows on both sides.
Between the pillars stood many other Heaven-Passage Gates.
Dozens of Underworld Chasa constantly entered and exited.
Whenever a Chasa returned from the living world, they often brought the soul of a recently deceased person with them.
I watched.
The Chasa politely guided the souls.
The deceased followed them out of the great hall.
For some reason, the sight made me feel solemn.
“Well, well.”
A voice came from below.
“Isn’t that the Inhwang?”
Two female Chasa were climbing the stairs toward us.
The woman who spoke looked like a female warrior.
Beautiful, but full of energy.
Her long hair was tied behind her head.
A red silk band was wrapped around her forehead.
Her Chasa uniform had a female figure embroidered on it instead of a Nahan.
“Oh my.”
The other woman noticed Aize.
“Mija is here too.”
She wore a similar uniform.
But her hair was short.
Her beauty felt calmer and more composed.
Looking closely...
The two women looked nearly identical.
Almost like twins.
Aize’s eyes widened.
“Oh!”
“Isn’t that Heaven Rakshasa and Earth Rakshasa?”
I leaned toward Aize.
“Who are they?”
“They’re Heaven Rakshasa and Earth Rakshasa.”
Aize whispered back.
“They are two of the Three Great Rakshasa of the Underworld.”
“Since Wol-Rakshasa is gone, people just call them Heaven-Earth Rakshasa now.”
I remembered.
During the fight with Rakshasa Pokgwi, Aize had told me about the Three Great Rakshasa.
Wol-Rakshasa had been killed by Dae-ryeok Magwi and eaten by Rakshasa Pokgwi.
These two were the remaining pair.
“I heard rumors that Taebaek’s final reincarnation awakened as the Inhwang.”
Heaven Rakshasa leaned toward my face.
“So it was true.”
She examined me from every angle.
Her stare was so intense that I felt like holes might appear in my face.
“Unnie.”
Earth Rakshasa covered her mouth.
“If you keep staring that hard, you’re going to make holes in the Inhwang’s face.”
Aize asked,
“Why are you two in the Heaven-Passage Great Hall?”
“You’re supposed to guard the royal family in the Heavenly Palace, aren’t you?”
So this giant place where Chasa guided souls was called the Heaven-Passage Great Hall.
“Oh, that.”
Heaven Rakshasa answered.
“We’re patrolling because of the incident in Hell.”
Earth Rakshasa continued.
“We analyzed the soul-power wavelength that accessed the Underworld database.”
