As Blood Flower finished explaining the ancient text, another Blood Guard rushed into the hall, carrying a leather satchel filled with documents.
"Boss! We've compiled all the intelligence you requested about the dimensional corruption timeline, and... there's something you need to see immediately."
Jin Ho accepted the documents, his eyes scanning the reports. What he found made his blood run cold.
"The first recorded instance of dimensional anomalies," he read aloud, "occurred exactly sixty years ago. Small-scale reality distortions in remote areas of the Blood Demon Realm, dismissed as natural phenomena."
Seol Hwa-rin leaned over his shoulder. "Sixty years... that's when..."
"When Eum Mugeuk first appeared in our village," Jin Ho finished, his voice tight with realization.
Blood Heaven Great Emperor's voice carried grim satisfaction: 『The timeline matches perfectly. Too perfectly to be coincidence』
The Blood Guard continued his report. "There's more, boss. We managed to trace the pattern of dimensional instabilities over the past six decades. They consistently center around locations that Eum Mugeuk has visited or lived in."
Jin Ho felt his world crumbling. "Show me."
The guard spread out a map marked with red dots indicating corruption sites and blue dots showing Eum Mugeuk's known locations throughout the years. The correlation was undeniable—wherever Eum Mugeuk had spent significant time, dimensional corruption inevitably followed within a few years.
"This can't be..." Jin Ho whispered.
Thunder Lightning King's voice was filled with cold anger: 『It can, and it is. Your friend has been systematically mapping our reality's weak points for sixty years』
Blood Flower examined the map closely. "Look at this pattern. He's not just randomly moving—he's been deliberately seeking out places of dimensional significance. Ancient cultivation sites, natural energy nexuses, places where the barriers between realms are thin."
"But why?" Jin Ho asked, though part of him already knew the answer.
"To prepare for large-scale corruption," Seol Hwa-rin said quietly. "If the Void Overlord wanted to corrupt multiple dimensions simultaneously, it would need detailed knowledge of their structural vulnerabilities."
The Blood Guard handed Jin Ho another document. "Boss, there's something else. We found this among the Shadow Society's abandoned communications."
Jin Ho unfolded the paper, revealing a message written in coded script. Blood Flower quickly translated: "Phase Three complete. Dimensional core points mapped. Initiating simultaneous corruption protocol. Awaiting final reunion signal."
The room fell silent except for the crackling of torches.
『Final reunion signal』 Blood Heaven Great Emperor's voice was barely a whisper. 『That's what happens when all four fragments come together』
"So the entire plan..." Jin Ho's voice shook with betrayal and rage, "has been to position Eum Mugeuk close enough to trigger the automatic reunion, then corrupt the process from within?"
Thunder Lightning King's response was filled with fury: 『Sixty years of friendship, sixty years of trust, all to deliver the perfect backstab at the moment of ultimate vulnerability』
Jin Ho's hands began to glow with blood-red energy mixed with crackling lightning. "That bastard... he saved my life multiple times, supported me through my weakest moments, all while planning to use me as a weapon against existence itself?"
"Jin Ho, calm down," Seol Hwa-rin said, though her own ice aura was unconsciously manifesting. "If you lose control now..."
"I know!" Jin Ho forced his energy back under control. "But how could I have been so blind? All the signs were there—his mysterious background, his convenient appearances during crises, his knowledge of things he shouldn't have known."
Blood Flower placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Boss, you couldn't have known. According to the ancient text, the Shadow Demon Lord fragment was specifically designed to be trustworthy and protective. Even corrupted, those base instincts would remain, making the deception nearly perfect."
"Nearly perfect," Jin Ho repeated bitterly. "But not quite."
The Blood Guard nodded. "There's one more piece of evidence, boss. We tested some of Eum Mugeuk's personal belongings that he left behind during his visits. Your blood thunder energy reacted to them."
"Reacted how?"
"It detected trace amounts of void energy. The same signature we're seeing in the dimensional corruptions."