Chapter 161 : Reason
Chapter 161: Reason
A white space stretched in all directions.
At the very center of that place, where the sky and earth could not be distinguished, a man clad in a splendid red robe floated in midair.
He slowly opened his eyes that had been closed.
The golden, glowing pupils revealed vertical slits, unlike those of humans. They looked as though beastly eyes had been embedded in place of human ones.
Wooong—
From the man’s head protruded golden horns emitting a soft light, and at his side was a sword embedded into him, as if it had been crafted from a constellation itself.
“Is this action even meaningful?”
The man’s gaze turned to the sword embedded at his side. As he did, white smoke rose from the hilt and floated about a jang’s distance away.
Sseu sseu sseu—
The smoke slowly condensed into the shape of a human, and before long, a middle-aged man appeared. Strangely, the man’s body shimmered with transparency, as if he could vanish at any moment.
【There must be meaning, or I wouldn’t be doing this. And you ask, though you already know, Dragon King's Scale.】
He spoke with a gentle smile and identified the man pierced by the sword.
Dragon King's Scale.
Divine Dragon Emperor Yong Cheon-myeong.
He was the very source of chaos in the Murim, one of the Six Heavens known as the sky of the Central Heavens Martial Realm.
Now, he was sealed here, with a sword pierced through him.
And the one who had sealed him was the transparent figure before him—Lord of the Sword Sky.
“I don’t understand what kind of trick this is. You're already dead.”
To Yong Cheon-myeong’s words, the Sword Sky Lord only smiled.
As he said, the Sword Sky Lord was already dead. What stood before him now was merely a projection infused into the sword embedded in Yong Cheon-myeong.
“This seal won’t last much longer.”
Though he had killed the Sword Sky Lord, the battle had not been an easy one.
Yong Cheon-myeong had sustained grave injuries and was currently recovering his body.
【It seems you still have some time.】
At the Sword Sky Lord’s response, a smirk played on Yong Cheon-myeong’s lips.
Truthfully, if he pushed himself, he could break the seal even now. It was simply more urgent to recover his wounds.
With more time, the power of the sword infused by the Sword Sky Lord would weaken, and Yong Cheon-myeong’s condition would improve further.
Then, Yong Cheon-myeong planned to shatter the seal that bound him and step outside once more.
“I’ll break it soon enough.”
【You may do as you wish.】
Even while dead, the Sword Sky Lord’s cheerful smile baffled Yong Cheon-myeong.
“Don’t you feel wronged? You died by my hand.”
【Life is but once. Isn’t death inevitable? I consider it an honor to have fought and died at the hands of the Great Emperor.】
“……”
To his indifferent demeanor, Yong Cheon-myeong gave no response.
【What is it that the Great Emperor desires?】
There had been no enmity between them, no past grievances. Yet Yong Cheon-myeong had suddenly launched an attack on the Sword Sky Lord.
“A new movement. In that matter, the guardian of the Murim is an obstacle.”
The Sword Sky Lord was the protector of the Central Heavens Martial Realm.
If he disappeared, forces from outside the Murim would more easily be able to enter.
Be they monsters, cultivators of the Fusion Stage or higher, or even unknown beings never before encountered.
“How long do you intend to stay confined within the walls of the Central Heavens Martial Realm? Do you truly not understand?”
【Understand what?】
“There’s an anomaly in the Upper Realm. The cultivators already know. Those who have reached the Great Ascension Stage have begun to move for their own purposes. And the Fusion Stage cultivators below them are aligning with or gathering around those in the Great Ascension Stage to serve their own benefits. While the cultivators bustle about, the Murim remains silent, as if nothing is happening.”
Yong Cheon-myeong paused, then met the Sword Sky Lord’s eyes.
“The world is changing. We need to change too.”
【I was unaware of the cultivators’ affairs.】
From the Sword Sky Lord’s perspective, he had no time to concern himself with such things. He was too occupied dealing with powerful cultivators and bizarre beings encroaching upon the Central Heavens.
Even when the Wind-Passing Great Sage was summoned by Jang Woo-hyun, he had protested to the Gyoma King, which had led to the Wind-Passing Great Sage being pinned beneath the mountain.
“That’s the problem. How long do we intend to keep playing amongst ourselves, holed up in a corner of the Central Heavens? Your actions may have protected the Murim, but they may have also made it complacent.”
Thanks to the Sword Sky Lord’s sacrifice, the peace of the Central Heavens Martial Realm had been maintained. But viewed from another angle, his protection had prevented Murim martial artists from making greater progress.
“They’re stagnant. Still water rots.”
【I understand what the Great Emperor is saying. But… did it have to be this way?】
Though not entirely erased, the Sword Sky Lord understood what was currently unfolding in the Central Heavens Martial Realm.
Behind the movements of the Divine Dragon Family stood Yong Cheon-myeong. The war currently raging had been instigated by him.
【What is it that you truly desire?】
“To unify the Central Heavens Martial Realm.”
【……That answer is unexpected. Have you grown old and now dream of becoming a Conquering King?】
The sudden proclamation left the Sword Sky Lord speechless. Conquering the Murim now?
But Yong Cheon-myeong’s ambition did not end there.
“And with a united Murim, I will place the Central Heavens Realm beneath my feet.”
【…….】
This time, the claim was so preposterous it left the Sword Sky Lord at a loss for words.
No one truly knew the size of the Central Heavens Realm. Some even said it was still expanding.
To conquer such a place? It was absurd.
【Unexpected indeed. So the Great Emperor has become a dreamer.】
Yong Cheon-myeong smiled at the Sword Sky Lord’s remark. Because what he wanted didn’t stop there.
“Have you ever thought about the cultivators’ Flight to the Heavens?”
【Flight to the Heavens? Why ask that now?】
“Don’t you think it’s strange?”
【I’m not sure what you mean.】
“Cultivators ascend to the Central Heavens with great difficulty during their Flight to the Heavens. And every time they rise in cultivation, they experience something called heavenly tribulation. As if the heavens themselves oppose their advancement. But martial artists don’t, do they?”
A truth Yong Cheon-myeong had discovered by chance.
No one questioned it. No one found it odd.
【You’re just stating the obvious. Flight to the Heavens is a path not permitted by the heavens, while Ascension is a journey undertaken with heaven’s approval. Naturally, there’s a difference. That’s why they remain different even afterward.】
“Approval? Then are martial artists blessed by the heavens?”
【I don’t know about being blessed, but one could say we receive some benefit.】
“Then what about lifespan? Why do cultivators live longer?”
For those from the Spiritual Realm, lifespan increases dramatically with each stage of cultivation. Hundreds of years by default, often thousands, even tens of thousands.
But martial artists were different. At most, one to two thousand years. Even the long-lived races didn’t surpass three thousand.
【Isn’t it the same? We follow the natural order, while the cultivators defy it. They extend their lifespan by rebelling against their fate and the flow of nature. Of course they live longer than we do.】
As the Sword Sky Lord’s answer ended, Yong Cheon-myeong laughed heartily, his voice resounding through the white space.
“Uahahahaha!”
Martial artists follow the natural order? Then shouldn’t they die without their lifespan ever increasing? Perhaps even Ascension itself, which defies fate by exceeding the allotted lifespan, is wrong to begin with.
Of course, it could be that Yong Cheon-myeong was mistaken, and the Sword Sky Lord was right. But what troubled him was that not a single person, in response to the earlier conversation, even considered the possibility that they were wrong. No one tried to even ‘understand’ Yong Cheon-myeong’s point.
As if it were truth. As if it were a fixed law.
Everyone Yong Cheon-myeong had met had been that way. Without exception.
Even the critical ones, the logical ones, even the inherently negative people—none of them considered a different perspective regarding the doubt he had raised.
‘If the Sword Sky Lord is like this…’
There was no need to look at anyone else. If even one of the top experts of the Central Heavens Realm reacted this way, how could others possibly perceive things differently?
“It was an amusing story.”
Yong Cheon-myeong closed his eyes again, as if to say no further discussion was needed.
【A new wind is coming.】
This time, it was the Sword Sky Lord who spoke.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
With renewed interest, Yong Cheon-myeong reopened his closed eyes.
【There’s something I saw that the Great Emperor does not know.】
The appearance of the Wind-Passing Great Sage. That had been a new wind. Since then, he had felt that something had begun.
“What did you see?”
【Who knows.】
Without giving an answer, the Sword Sky Lord simply smiled.
An unexplainable premonition.
Yet, having protected the Central Heavens Martial Realm for a long time, he was certain. A new wind would blow through the Central Heavens Martial Realm, and that wind would quell this chaos.
“Pointless words.”
Receiving no proper answer, Yong Cheon-myeong closed his eyes once again. He was focused on recovering from his wounds as quickly as possible to escape from this place.
What he sought wasn’t merely to gain control over the Central Heavens Realm.
Yong Cheon-myeong planned to unite the Central Heavens and head for the Upper Realm.
And whether they be True Immortals or Martial Gods, beings revered as gods—he intended to surpass them and climb even higher, to uncover the truth of this world and of martial artists.
‘Ascension is never a blessing.’
If it had truly been heaven’s grace, as the Sword Sky Lord claimed, then not everyone would give such a mechanical, predetermined answer.
—He’s wounded, but he might be of use somehow. Take him as a spoil of war.
In Jang Woo-hyun’s hand was an item handed over by Dan Hong before their parting.
A seed wrapped in vine-like material.
Roughly twice the size of an adult male’s fist, it was the core of a Tree Person from the Wood Spirit Tribe that Jang Woo-hyun had defeated.
“Oh? There’s another small one here?”
When Jang Woo-hyun pulled out the core given to him by Cho Ryeong, Jin Ha-un, walking beside him, asked.
“Is that one from the split?”
“No, I got this one earlier.”
“Earlier? Ah, from when we saved that strange tree woman.”
Since they had talked during their travels, Jin Ha-un understood right away. Jang Woo-hyun gave a small nod and began recalling the items he possessed.
The Divine True Steel and ominous necklace from Lee Ahn, the core from Cho Ryeong, the core from the defeated Wood Spirit Tribe cultivator. And even the Yonghyeolhwan that Yong Seo-hee had handed over.
‘I’ve gathered quite a bit.’
He hadn’t even used them, yet they kept piling up.
“Hyung-nim, then are we meeting Lord Shin and heading to the Suwang Sect?”
Before they parted, Maeng Ye-ju had firmly insisted he visit the Suwang Sect to meet Kang Yung as well. Jang Woo-hyun had business with the Antlered White Mask too, so he had agreed to go this time.
‘He did say to introduce me before. I’ll ask him to summon the monkey.’
Although Antlered White Mask had been injured, by the time Jang Woo-hyun reached the Suwang Sect, he would have recovered enough. He planned to ask him to summon the Wind-Passing Great Sage.
“I do plan to go to the Suwang Sect, but first, I’ll visit Cho-su-nim’s home.”
“Ah! Right. Yes. Cho-su-nim was really worried when you were in that state, Hyung-nim.”
They had no choice but to leave Jang Woo-hyun behind. After that, Jin Ha-un went berserk, which had caused Cho-su a great deal of trouble.
As they walked, Jin Ha-un confessed his mistakes and talked about Cho-su.
The two had entered a city near the Samcheong Tai Chi Sect, where Jang Woo-hyun had previously stayed.
While talking and walking, they passed through a street filled with inns, crossed the marketplace, and entered a quiet alleyway.
Having been there once before, it didn’t feel unfamiliar.
As Jang Woo-hyun approached slowly and was about to knock on the bookstore’s door, Jin Ha-un grabbed his arm.
“Hyung-nim, he’s inside, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Just a moment.”
Dusting off his clothes and fixing his attire, Jin Ha-un took a deep breath to ease his nerves.
“All right, I’m ready.”
Jang Woo-hyun, who hadn’t thought much until now, also felt a bit nervous from Jin Ha-un’s attitude and knocked on the door.
“Is anyone there?”
“It’s open. Come on in.”
An elderly voice called out from inside.
Jang Woo-hyun and Jin Ha-un exchanged glances once, then opened the bookstore door.