Rebirth of the Thunder God

"Did you meet the Blood Demon?"

Namgung Hui couldn't help but tilt his head at the name he was hearing for the first time.

Besides, it didn't make sense that Namgung Hui, who had even been to the Blood Cult, wouldn't know a title that included the character for 'Demon'.

"Blood Demon? It's a title I'm hearing for the first time. Are you perhaps referring to the demonic head of the Blood Cult?"

"Hmm... I was a bit impatient and unkind. The Blood Demon I speak of is the head of the Blood Cult. And the reason I came to know this is all because I divine the future. It's a type of astrology, but what I see is a bit more special. Anyway. Through such divination, I learned that a red-glowing divinity has appeared in the Blood Cult. I have decided to call that existence the Blood Demon."

It was a title that suited the name of the Blood Cult well.

The head of the Blood Cult certainly deserved to be called by the title of Blood Demon.

However, as far as Namgung Hui knew, the current head of the Blood Cult was the Young Cult Leader, the Sword Demon.

Hadn't he said that he would hold a competition for the Young Cult Leader position, select the next one, and simultaneously ascend to the position of Cult Leader himself?

It was a matter he had confirmed with the military strategist, Bukgung Jinwu, so there was no mistake.

"Perhaps the being you saw, the Blood Demon, is referring to the Young Cult Leader, the Sword Demon. As he is likely the strongest within the Blood Cult right now."

"Did you visit the Blood Cult recently?"

"Yes. I went there roughly under a disguised identity."

"Hmm... If that's the case, then it could be so. Well, good. Thanks to that, you have deviated somewhat from the law of causality, so I will give you a few answers within the limits I am allowed."

Namgung Hui had many things to ask Cheongi-ja, so his eyes sparkled as he immediately launched a barrage of questions.

"By any chance, do you know when the Four Gods disappeared? And why they vanished?"

"By the Four Gods, you mean the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise, correct?"

"Yes. There are no other beings who could be called the Four Gods besides them, are there?"

Cheongi-ja stroked his beard and nodded.

"That is true for now. I understand. This is not a great secret, so I will tell you right away. This is also related to the law of causality, so it's a good opportunity. First, to explain the law of causality, it literally refers to cause and effect, the relationship between antecedent and consequent, but the law of causality I wish to speak of refers to the law by which one moves to the next branching point upon reaching a certain state in a system. Explaining this with words would also be quite complex and take a long time."

Namgung Hui couldn't immediately follow the explanation due to the flurry of difficult words like 'law of causality' and 'branching point.'

Still, one thing was certain: Cheongi-ja was not talking nonsense.

[Oh. The law of causality? I think I've heard that word too! For some reason, it sounds like a scary word.]

The Sword Spirit also chimed in, and it didn't seem to be a word used in a good sense.

As Namgung Hui remained silent, Cheongi-ja continued to speak.

"To put it simply, it's similar to how one's martial arts realm rises. When the Life and Death Gate is opened with one cycle of internal energy, one becomes able to handle sword qi, right? Of course, enlightenment must also support it, but ordinary martial artists usually handle aura energy when they reach that level. I think of this as a branching point, or something in a similar context to the law of causality."

As Cheongi-ja put it this way, he began to get a rough idea.

It meant that upon fulfilling the necessary conditions, one would enter the next stage.

"So, by meeting a certain being, you have come closer to the principles of the world and have reached a stage where you can glimpse a certain amount of heavenly secrets. As much as that, adversity will follow you. And you may face a backlash for deviating from the law of causality."

"Yes. I roughly understand what you're talking about. But why did you bring up the term 'law of causality'? What I asked about was the whereabouts of the Four Gods, wasn't it?"

"I was just about to say that. Those Four Gods are also beings who cannot be free from the law of causality. They committed an act that greatly violated the law of causality and were imprisoned in the heavens. And that was 100 years ago."

What on earth could one do to have even the Four Gods imprisoned by the law of causality?

This seemed to be no different from an absolute law that protected the foundation of the world.

"You don't know for sure what that was, do you?"

"That's right. I cannot know either. Even knowing it might violate the law of causality. Still, one thing I can speculate is that if it's a law of causality that could imprison even the Four Gods, it can only be related to time and space."

"Time and space? For example, what kind of case?"

"It would refer to acts like turning back time or reviving someone. It would have to be on that level to be considered going against the providence of nature."

"!?"

Namgung Hui inwardly thought it might be related to his own reincarnation, but he soon shook his head and had to deny that fact.

The incident Cheongi-ja mentioned occurred 100 years ago.

Namgung Hui had died 60 years ago, so the timing didn't match.

Come to think of it, his reincarnation happened this year, so that was also completely off.

'Then isn't that an even bigger problem? It means someone else's time might have been turned back, or they might have been reincarnated.'

Of course, this was also just Cheongi-ja's speculation, but as he said, if it was a law capable of imprisoning all Four Gods, it would have to be on that level.

Having heard such shocking and difficult words, Namgung Hui couldn't help but feel a little dazed.

Because of that, the questions he needed to ask Cheongi-ja one by one didn't immediately come to mind.

"That's enough about the law of causality... Is there anything else you want to ask?"

"Could you wait a moment? I think I need to organize my thoughts."

Namgung Hui was pondering not only his questions for Cheongi-ja but also how much he could trust him right now.

'Seeing as he's telling me such a profound story, he doesn't seem like a person who would be harmful to me. Of course, this could also be a thoroughly calculated action, but at least for now, he doesn't seem to have any ill intentions.'

As Namgung Hui's realm rose, his Ki sense developed, and he could sense something unseen.

He couldn't call it a spiritual eye, but he thought it was about the level of a sixth sense.

This was probably one of the phenomena that occurred as the upper Dantian opened wide.

And above all, Namgung Hui had one more excellent detector.

[From what I can see, there are no bad intentions. However, I still can't figure out this old man's inner thoughts. He's a type of human I've never seen before in my long life. No. Is this person even human?]

[You say you don't even remember your past, so what's with all this 'first time seeing' talk? Anyway. As long as there are no ill intentions, it's fine.]

Since the Sword Spirit had even given its confirmation, he decided to trust Cheongi-ja for now.

"And why did you tell Uncle Gwon Cheong to take me to Qilin Peak? Was it your intention for me to meet the Blood Qilin?"

"Oh! Did you meet the Blood Qilin?"

"Yes. Thanks to you."

"In that case, the change in your law of causality might be thanks to the Blood Qilin."

Even as Namgung Hui thought about it, the Blood Qilin possessed tremendous spiritual power, and its existence as a divine beast was extraordinary in itself.

Wasn't it an existence that stood shoulder to shoulder with the Four Gods, who were isolated for violating the law of causality?

Then, it suddenly occurred to him that he hadn't been able to meet the Blood Qilin again.

'Could it be that the Blood Qilin was isolated because of me? No. Did she give me something significant... She did. She gave me the Yin-Yang Immortal Fruit...'

Although the one who consumed it was Beak Seolhwa, it had still resulted in interference in the human world.

Wouldn't it be in a similar context to how immortals cannot carelessly interfere in the human world?

Perhaps the smell of blood that the White Snake and White Wolf had mentioned was an injury that occurred because of that.

'This makes it even more difficult to approach the Blood Qilin. It would be a big problem if another retribution of the law of causality awaits because of me.'

No. Rather, since Namgung Hui received something from her, if he returned it appropriately, wouldn't that be an act of restoring the law of causality?

But this was also a headache.

What kind of price must be paid to a divine beast to restore this to its original state?

'She would have an abundance of spirit medicines, so she wouldn't need them. I suppose a treasure would be good.'

Wouldn't giving one of the three night-luminescent pearls he possessed achieve some balance?

Or, for some reason, entrusting her with the peerless divine art, the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, that Namgung Hui was currently seeking also seemed like a good idea.

If she held the secret manual as a way of sealing it, the balance of the law of causality would be somewhat maintained.

'Still, let's burn the Heavenly Demon Divine Art if possible.'

"Since you found the Blood Qilin as I intended, I can breathe a sigh of relief. So. Did you receive a decent spirit medicine from her?"

"Yes. I received one, but I did not consume it myself."

Cheongi-ja, who rarely showed surprise, frowned.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Hmm... I just had some circumstances and ended up giving it to someone else. That's not to say I didn't get anything in return, so you have achieved your intended purpose, Cheongi-ja."

Hadn't he been able to completely melt the Hwaryeong Divine Pill thanks to her yin energy after giving the Yin-Yang Immortal Fruit to Beak Seolhwa?

Profound internal energy would certainly be helpful in performing the Two Forms Heart Art, but thinking of future potential, the Dantian and blood vessels reinforced by the Hwaryeong Divine Pill were more important.

After all, increasing the total amount of internal energy was possible with other spirit medicines, but there weren't many ways to strengthen the Dantian and blood vessels like this.

At best, there was Bone Transformation, but since Namgung Hui had already undergone it, the Hwaryeong Divine Pill could be said to be the only means.

Anyway. Both Cheongi-ja and Namgung Hui had achieved what they wanted.

However, Cheongi-ja's intentions were still shrouded in mystery.

"For what purpose on earth did you send me to the Blood Qilin to make me stronger? From what I've learned in my life so far, there is no such thing as a favor without a reason."

What had made Cheongi-ja most suspicious until now was the fact that all his intentions had worked to Namgung Hui's benefit.

The meeting with the General, the meeting with the Blood Qilin. And the advice he had given in between.

All of these had acted as favorable factors for Namgung Hui, never once becoming a negative one.

"Just know that this is also due to the law of causality. The time is not yet right."

As if he had expected such an answer, Namgung Hui showed no sign of disappointment.

He just nodded and prepared his next question.

"Alright. I didn't expect an answer anyway, so I'll move on to the next question. Do you believe in the existence of spirits that dwell in objects?"

[What? That's my story!]

[You say you don't even remember your past. This could be a good opportunity to find out your true identity. Stay still.]

At Namgung Hui's question, Cheongi-ja stroked his beard for a moment and fell into deep thought.

"I do believe that such beings exist. Of course, if souls and spirits exist, why wouldn't there be spirits? But why do you suddenly ask such a question?"

Namgung Hui contemplated whether it would be alright to show the Sword Spirit to Cheongi-ja.

'Even if I show him the Sword Spirit, nothing much will change. If he's a good guy, he'll just let it go. If he's a bad guy, Cheongi-ja will give me some advice.'

[Sword Spirit. It's not a bad thing for you either, right? Will you show yourself for a moment? You said no one but me has recognized you anyway.]

[Alright. He doesn't seem like a bad person to me either. It should be fine.]

The Sword Spirit slowly revealed its form from the Thunder God Sword.

As expected, the Sword Spirit's form was not visible to Cheongi-ja's eyes either, as he was still looking directly at Namgung Hui.

Namgung Hui looked into Cheongi-ja's eyes for a moment before continuing.

"It's nothing. I just asked out of personal interest."

"Hmm... I don't think you would ask for no reason, but I understand. I'll let it go for now. Then, is there anything else you want to ask?"

"Ah. Lastly, I have something I'm curious about regarding the Iron Blood Alliance. Have they really become independent from the Hoicheon Association?"

The moment Cheongi-ja was about to open his mouth, his white beard trembling.

Namgung Hui's door burst open, and someone rushed in.

(End of Chapter)