Chapter 101
“The Immortal Cult? That’s the first I’ve heard of it.”
Immortal Cult.
The word “immortal” seemed to hint at their ideology, but just as Jung Dong-gun was about to ask Jina Ahn for clarification, another voice interrupted.
“I’ll explain that myself.”
“And who are you?”
A man who had been quietly observing the situation from behind Jina Ahn raised his hand, volunteering to explain.
As Jung Dong-gun turned his attention to him, he saw a middle-aged man, though his youthful appearance suggested the effects of awakening.
“I’m Han Seong-geun. I was originally the leader of the Resistance here at Ulsan Airport.”
Han Seong-geun’s statement that he had been the Resistance leader before Jina Ahn’s arrival made Jung Dong-gun glance around.
Jina Ahn showed no reaction, as if the information was entirely expected, and none of the survivors seemed unsettled by Han Seong-geun’s self-introduction.
“So it seems to be true.”
Jung Dong-gun concluded that Han Seong-geun’s claim was genuine. His confident demeanor and the lack of dissent from others reinforced the credibility of his words.
However, in this apocalyptic world, voluntarily handing over leadership was an extraordinary decision.
“You were the leader. But now, Jina Ahn seems to be in charge. Was there a particular reason for the change?”
“Jina Ahn is stronger than me and has an established track record. So, I handed over the position and took the role of deputy leader. Besides, having a young and capable woman as the leader carries symbolic significance compared to an old guy like me.”
When asked, Han Seong-geun explained matter-of-factly that Jina Ahn’s strength and symbolic presence made her the obvious choice for leadership.
Jina Ahn, the most powerful awakened at Ulsan Airport, had also been the hero who reclaimed Fukuoka. Her credentials were undeniable, making her leadership both practical and symbolic.
“I understand completely.”
Jung Dong-gun smiled bitterly, unable to refute Han Seong-geun’s reasoning.
After all, even he, once a leader of a survivor camp, had sworn allegiance to the younger Choi Yuna and placed himself under her command.
In a world where visible strength dictated survival, leadership positions could be relinquished if it meant better chances of survival. For Han Seong-geun, aligning with Jina Ahn likely brought significant benefits.
“So, what exactly is this Immortal Cult?”
“They are a group that controls zombies and worships a certain being as their god.”
“I see.”
The idea of controlling zombies was unfamiliar, but the notion of worshipping a being as a god resonated with Jung Dong-gun and his group, who belonged to the Balhut Cult that revered God Bahamut.
Even if this being wasn’t Bahamut, the similarities in structure naturally piqued their interest and unease.
“And what is this being they worship?”
“The members of the Immortal Cult refer to it as ‘The One.’ They claim it’s a being whose name cannot be spoken.”
When asked, Han Seong-geun revealed that even the cultists referred to their god as a being whose name could not be uttered.
This secrecy suggested that the entity worshipped by the Immortal Cult was fundamentally different from Bahamut, likely even opposing in nature.
“I understand the situation. But what makes you a resistance force?”
“Because Ulsan is under the control of the Immortal Cult. Public opinion, governance—everything here is dictated by them.”
Just as the Balhut Cult had taken control of Gyeongju, the Immortal Cult had established dominance over Ulsan.
The Resistance, based at Ulsan Airport, opposed this control. Hearing this, Jung Dong-gun’s thoughts turned to his experiences in Gyeongju.
“So, the Immortal Cult didn’t oppress you from the start?”
“No. At first, they gained our trust by driving out the zombies that had overrun Ulsan. We even saw them as heroes.”
Initially, the Immortal Cult had been hailed as saviors of Ulsan.
“Heroes?”
Hearing this, Jung Dong-gun muttered the word with a puzzled expression, prompting Han Seong-geun to elaborate with a bitter smile.
“Imagine watching them cut through hordes of zombies as if parting the sea. To us, it was nothing short of a miracle. The zombies fell under their control, and they promised us that Ulsan would no longer face the threat of the undead.”
“It sounds similar to Bahamut’s methods… but with key differences.”
God Bahamut had similarly gained trust by protecting Gyeongju, not by controlling zombies but by eliminating them outright. This was followed by sincere discussions and negotiations with Gyeongju’s representatives to establish governance.
While the situations were similar, the Immortal Cult’s approach diverged significantly.
“If Ulsan was safe, why did you form a resistance?”
“At first, we were just survivors at the airport who chose not to join the Immortal Cult. For a while, their promises seemed to hold true.”
“You say ‘seemed to.’ What changed?”
“What changed was their laws.”
“Laws?”
“Yes, this is the proclamation issued by the Immortal Cult.”
Unlike the Balhut Cult, which had consulted legal experts like Hwang Seung-man to develop Gyeongju’s governance framework, the Immortal Cult’s laws incited backlash among Ulsan’s residents.
Han Seong-geun handed Jung Dong-gun a proclamation issued by the Immortal Cult. The document read:
________________________
Proclamation by the Immortal Cult:
- All political activities, including the formation of survivor camps, leadership positions, assemblies, and protests, are strictly prohibited.
- Any denial of the Immortal Cult’s rule or attempts to overthrow it, including the dissemination of fake news, manipulation of public opinion, or false propaganda, are strictly prohibited.
- All community activities in Ulsan are subject to the Immortal Cult’s oversight.
- Strikes, slowdowns, and assemblies that disrupt societal order are strictly prohibited.
- All survivor camps must join the Immortal Cult’s domain within 48 hours of receiving this proclamation. Non-compliance will result in being deemed enemies of Ulsan’s peace and dealt with accordingly.
- Law-abiding citizens will be afforded measures to minimize inconvenience in their daily lives.
Violators of the above will be subject to immediate arrest, detention, and searches, with offenders executed on the spot if necessary.
_________________________
“This… this is essentially a declaration of dictatorship!”
This proclamation was effectively a death sentence for all survivor camps.
Survivor camps under the Immortal Cult could not make demands or oppose the policies imposed by the cult. They were even forced to surrender all their rights and submit to the Immortal Cult’s authority.
‘Even the early Balhut Cult, with its strong religious overtones, wasn’t this extreme!’
The early Balhut Cult had united as a coalition through extensive dialogue with God Bahamut. In contrast, the Immortal Cult’s proclamation was essentially a declaration to treat anyone who opposed them as enemies.
Moreover, the proclamation implied that the Immortal Cult could interfere with the survivors’ food supplies under the guise of minimizing inconvenience in daily life. For survivor camps that depended on scavenging city resources to survive, this proclamation was disastrous.
“Still, there were those who accepted it.”
“This? Are you serious?”
“While you were unifying Gyeongju and advancing on Pohang, we had been worn down by six months of constant battles against zombies. Inevitably, some people felt it was easier to join the Immortal Cult, who had at least driven out the zombies.”
Some survivors welcomed the proclamation.
Exhausted from fighting zombies, some survivors saw the proclamation from the heroes who had cleared Ulsan of zombies as a way to find peace. The Immortal Cult had proven their strength and delivered results.
If such a proclamation had been issued before the apocalypse, it would have sparked outrage across South Korea. But the unique circumstances of the apocalypse made it an option people could not ignore.
“At first, we weren’t a resistance force. But no matter how dire the situation, this felt wrong. Those of us who shared that belief established a camp near Ulsan Airport. The Immortal Cult had settled further south, so we initially had no conflicts.”
However, many more opposed the Immortal Cult.
Survivors, no longer weak civilians but powerful awakened individuals, could not easily accept the cult’s proclamation.
While the Immortal Cult had driven out the zombies, there was another perspective.
“We began to wonder—what happened to the zombies under the Immortal Cult’s control? And where did they dispose of them? We have no idea.”
The Immortal Cult failed to inspire trust.
Han Seong-geun explained that the cult never revealed what they did with the zombies under their control. They never addressed what had happened to the vast numbers of zombies they had subdued.
This lack of transparency bred distrust. What would happen to someone like Han Seong-geun, who refused to follow the Immortal Cult? The mere thought chilled him.
‘This is the complete opposite. We united against zombies as humanity’s enemy.’
The Balhut Cult had earned trust by decisively eliminating zombies, which strengthened solidarity among survivors. This approach had allowed the Balhut Cult to liberate Pohang and become a beloved organization.
The Immortal Cult, on the other hand, controlled zombies, raising suspicion, while the Balhut Cult earned trust by exterminating them.
The stark contrast between the two left Jung Dong-gun wondering if this was some kind of elaborate prank.
“And now, all the zombies in Ulsan have disappeared. Are they under the Immortal Cult’s control, or have they been secretly relocated? We don’t have any information.”
“True, we noticed something strange as we approached. There were no zombies or survivors in sight.”
“The Immortal Cult claims they evacuated the residents under the guise of rescue missions. But we don’t know where those people went.”
The unusual calm in Ulsan created unease among Jung Dong-gun’s group as they advanced.
Why were there no zombies on the streets or people in the villages?
For someone like Han Seong-geun, who lived in Ulsan, the sudden disappearance of both zombies and residents without explanation was deeply suspicious.
“As external communication grew increasingly unreliable, Ulsan’s silence only deepened our doubts. That’s when we decided to investigate the Immortal Cult. Fortunately, my awakened ability allowed me to learn an invisibility skill, letting me spy on the cult without being detected. Through this investigation, I discovered an inexplicable sense of unease blanketing the city.”
Han Seong-geun had the ability to secretly monitor the cult and uncovered an ominous atmosphere pervading Ulsan.
“I noticed that residents who joined the Immortal Cult started behaving differently. Among them was someone I personally knew.”
“What do you mean by ‘behaving differently’?”
“I’m not sure. Is it the cult’s teachings? Madness? Or just the effects of the apocalypse? Their actions became increasingly similar to those of zombies.”
Han Seong-geun observed cult members exhibiting bizarre behavior.
Whether it was the cult’s doctrine, insanity, or the apocalyptic environment, their actions eerily resembled those of zombies.
“Zombies?”
“They would sit motionless on the ground, suddenly become violent, or… even engage in public orgies. Honestly, it was unbearable to see my acquaintance acting like that. I fled immediately.”
“That sounds like symptoms of severe drug addiction.”
“Ah, yes! Exactly! It felt like they were under the influence of an incredibly potent drug. They had no rationality, and their appearance was ragged enough to be mistaken for zombies.”
Struggling to articulate what he had witnessed, Han Seong-geun described the residents as if they were addicted to a potent drug.
Jung Dong-gun summarized it as drug addiction, and Han Seong-geun confirmed the comparison. The citizens seemed intoxicated, as if they had lost their humanity.
“I couldn’t ignore the ominous feeling any longer. Why was the cult doing nothing about this? Why is there no information about this on Ulsan’s community forums? The more I questioned, the more suspicious everything became.”
“You’ve been through a lot.”
As Han Seong-geun confessed his struggles, Jung Dong-gun offered words of comfort.
“They’re necrophiliacs.”
“Necrophiliacs?”
Unable to contain herself, Jina Ahn interjected, referring to the Immortal Cult as corpse-loving maniacs.
“They’re people obsessed with corpses! They’re not immortal—they’re turning people into zombies! Feeding cult members to mutant zombies to create stronger ones!”
Her shocking statement left everyone speechless.
“They even raise corpses from graves!”
“From what I’ve seen, the leaders of the Immortal Cult appear to be necromancers, akin to those described in fantasy novels. The cult likely venerates the undead.”
Han Seong-geun calmed the agitated Jina Ahn, explaining that the Immortal Cult likely worshipped the undead.
“As Jina Ahn said, when she joined us, we had already witnessed these horrifying acts. That’s when we decided to form the Resistance. Fortunately, many awakened individuals in the city retained their sanity, allowing us to establish a foothold near the Taehwa River.”
“And I had my boat there. Securing the harbor area was essential.”
After witnessing the cult’s atrocities, Han Seong-geun informed his camp and began building a resistance centered at Ulsan Airport. They successfully expanded their influence to the Taehwa River with the help of awakened allies in the city.
However, one question remained.
“Why hasn’t this information reached the outside world? Couldn’t you have sought public support through external forums?”
Despite the chaos in Ulsan, the local community forums remained eerily quiet.
“The Ulsan forums are controlled by the Immortal Cult. Any post we make is deleted, bombarded with dislikes, or ridiculed.”
“So, they’ve been manipulating public opinion?”
From the moment the proclamation was issued, the Immortal Cult had been controlling public discourse.
The cult had seized control of Ulsan’s community forums, preventing any information about the city’s state from reaching the outside world.
“Yes. We’ve effectively lost the means to seek outside help. Even if we try to share this on other forums, we’re dismissed as fake accounts or conspiracy theorists. How can we prove anything without officially recognized posts from the Ulsan forums?”
“But surely the internet or social media… oh.”
In the pre-apocalypse world, such clumsy attempts at censorship would have been futile. Information would have spread rapidly, making surveillance impossible.
But this was the apocalypse.
Only survivor camps with resources could afford internet access, and even then, it was more of a luxury than a necessity.
Moreover, even if this information reached the internet, there was no one left to act on it.
“Yes, unless it’s verified by local forums, posts are dismissed as spam or rumors. Officially, Ulsan is known as a zombie-free zone.”
“That makes it even more suspicious!”
Even if they tried to expose the truth, the lack of verification from Ulsan’s forums would render their claims meaningless.
“Immortal Cult.”
For the first time, the Balhut Cult had encountered a named enemy. It was likely an adversary they would have to defeat.
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