Rebirth of the Thunder God

"I called you. So come in at once."

"..."

As Namgung Hui hesitated for a moment, the Empress's voice was heard again.

"Aren't you in disguise anyway? So nothing will happen. Don't worry and come in at once."

‘Is she saying that a clumsy act won't work? Well, since it seems things will proceed quickly, this isn't bad either.’

However, the fact that the Empress knew this meant that she had prepared countermeasures.

That meant that this was a rather dangerous visit for Namgung Hui.

The moment he opened the door and entered, it wouldn't be strange at all if all sorts of hidden weapons and assassins rushed at him.

Even now, a number of presences were detected in the bedchamber.

Their Ki was also quite outstanding, and their practical experience was also abundant, so it was like looking at a sharp blade.

‘But still, they are no match for me. If it comes to it, I'll deal with them all.’

No matter how great the First Empress's information network was, it was clear that she would not have anticipated Namgung Hui's martial power, which he had achieved recently.

That would be the same even if General Yi, the brain of the Hoicheon Association, came.

Namgung Hui, since he had been invited anyway, entered with a bold stride.

Deureureuk!

As the door opened, the First Empress, with a gentle impression, was seen in front along with a fragrant flower scent.

Her face held a trace of the First Princess, whom he had met a short while ago.

In fact, since the Empress had given birth to the princess, the opposite would be correct.

"Inspector Jang Myeong..."

"The pseudonym is enough."

"...I greet Her Majesty the Empress."

Still, he did not stop the greeting he was doing and paid his respects.

Because he judged that the Empress of a country was worthy of it.

Perhaps it was because a fragment of his past life still remained.

Namgung Hui instinctively gauged the bodyguards hiding around him and calculated on his abacus.

‘Three on the ceiling, two on the floor, four on the left and right walls. For now, there are nine hidden, and if you add the court lady next to the Empress, there are a total of ten.’

Each and every one had skills that surpassed the supreme master level.

If it were a master of the Transformation Realm, it was a force that could be easily subdued.

However, from the Profound Realm onwards, the story would change.

Although a supreme master was a great master, they were no match for a Profound Realm master.

At least a master of the Transformation Realm had to be mobilized to be able to stand against a master of the Profound Realm.

"Still, seeing you pay your respects, your character is not bad at all. And. If you are a child of the Namgung family, your personality would not be angular."

Did she know all of Namgung Hui's identity?

Namgung Hui had certainly not leaked this information to anyone after his private meeting with the emperor.

Although he had told the disciples of the Hao Faction, would they really leak Namgung Hui's information?

"You seem very curious as to how I found out. Shall we have a question and answer session?"

"Alright. Your Majesty. How did you really know my identity?"

"There is no place in the Imperial Palace that my eyes do not reach. Even if it is by the emperor's side."

Did she mean she had eavesdropped on the conversation with the emperor?

Although he didn't know what kind of skill she had used, when Namgung Hui had been talking with the emperor, there had been no such sign.

‘Don't tell me it was information leaked by the emperor's closest aide who was hiding behind him? No. The emperor wouldn't be so clumsy.’

"Now it's my turn. What was the request that the emperor asked of you? Don't tell me he asked you to bring my head?"

"...He did not ask me to bring your head."

"But it seems he didn't tell you to spare me either."

From the question just now, it seemed she had not eavesdropped on the conversation with the emperor.

Because if she had heard it, she would not have asked the question now.

"How did you find out that I am a child of the Namgung family?"

"Didn't I just answer you? There is no place in the Imperial Palace that my eyes and ears do not reach."

"But I haven't been particularly exposed in the Imperial Palace."

"Huhu! That's information that others can leak even if you don't. And isn't that not an important matter? The future is what's important."

As the Empress said, the present and the future are what's important.

Whether his identity was exposed or not, there was only one question to ask her.

"Your Majesty. Have you really joined hands with the Hoicheon Association?"

"Yes. In order to restore the heavens, I have willingly joined hands with the General."

"Why is that? You are the one who even established an organization called the Anti-Heaven Alliance."

"Oho. You've found out that far? You're a child with a considerable information network. Alright. If it's to this extent, you are worthy of hearing my story."

At the Empress's remark, the court lady behind her hurriedly shouted.

"Your Majesty! That person has not yet been verified..."

"That's enough. He is a child of the Namgung family. Besides, would the emperor entrust a task to just anyone? He is also second to none when it comes to insight. And in order to stop him right now, I need to tell him the inside story. Do you think you can stop him?"

"If you entrust it to us, we will take care of it. We will also wipe out the Namgung family."

Namgung Hui narrowed his eyes at the court lady's words and glared at her.

How ridiculous.

It wasn't enough for a person who hadn't even reached the Transformation Realm to say that she would take care of Namgung Hui.

She was going to annihilate the Namgung family.

Originally, he had no intention of being rude in front of the Empress, but his thoughts changed.

Namgung Hui materialized his mental image and pressed down on the court lady's shoulder.

Teolseok.

As the court lady's knees suddenly buckled, she widened her eyes and glared at Namgung Hui.

"You're performing a sorcery! Are you trying to reveal your true nature now?"

"This is your level. You don't even know what kind of skill the other person is performing, and you're trying to assist Her Majesty the Empress with just that kind of insight? Rather, seeing you, I'm relieved. Because no matter where you stick to, whether it's the Hoicheon Association or the Blood Cult, you're not scary at all."

Namgung Hui, who was extremely mocking the other person.

The court lady also bit her lip as if she were frustrated.

She now knew.

That the formless energy felt from Namgung Hui was by no means a sorcery.

Rather, a supreme skill that had reached the pinnacle of profundity.

It was similar to the energy he had felt when he had met the abbot of the Shaolin Temple in the past.

"Child. If it's to that extent, she would have understood, so withdraw your energy."

"Yes. Your Majesty. I apologize for showing you an unsightly appearance."

"Huhu! Isn't that something our court lady here should be saying? As expected, the Namgung family's child education is amazing. There's a reason why they are called a prestigious family."

In fact, the reason Namgung Hui was being polite to her was because of the memory of his past life.

If it were from the perspective of the Namgung family, he would not have needed to be polite to the Empress.

Namgung Hui also didn't understand why he was being so polite to the Empress.

‘Even if it's a memory from my past life. It's just a moment from my childhood. It's a short period of time that can be seen as a fleeting moment. But still, when I see the Empress, my heart weakens for some reason. Is it because our mothers are from the same Han family?’

"Yes. Are you ready to listen?"

"Yes. Your Majesty."

"Alright. Then I will personally tell you why I brought you here. You asked why I joined the Hoicheon Association despite having created the Anti-Heaven Alliance, right? That is. It's all because of the emperor."

"Because of His Majesty?"

"Yes. Since you've also met the emperor, I'll ask you on this occasion. How did you see His Majesty?"

"He seemed rather sick and his presence was faint, but there was an indescribable aura."

The Empress nodded her head as if she were satisfied with Namgung Hui's answer.

"You saw very well. I will now explain the reason. Don't be surprised when you hear it. In fact, the emperor is... a ghost."

"A ghost. What do you mean...?"

"It's just as it sounds. A ghost that should have disappeared in the past. The soul inside the emperor is a stale soul whose identity I don't even know. In other words, it means that another ghost is dwelling in that emperor's body."

"!!?"

Although Namgung Hui had heard an unbelievable story, it wasn't that he couldn't understand it at all.

He himself had experienced something called reincarnation.

Moreover, for some reason, a series of events flashed through Namgung Hui's mind.

‘The Soul-Stealing Sutra and the Sword Spirit. Was this the reason for experimenting with the imugi's soul?’

The eternal life that the First Emperor had so desperately sought.

Could it be that the soul in that emperor's body was that of the First Emperor?

No. The First Emperor had certainly died and had gone to the underworld.

Since he had vaguely heard this from his master, it must be certain.

If so, what was the identity of that ghost?

"Can't you even guess who it is? And how did you know that there was another soul in His Majesty's body?"

"It's the bond of a married couple who have lived together, skin to skin. Although we were not bound like lovers, among the successive imperial families, we were on the side of having a good marital relationship. In the first place, wouldn't you be able to tell just by looking at the fact that I occupy this Chang'an Palace? You... you have no experience with women."

Namgung Hui wanted to shout "no" for a moment, but since the atmosphere was what it was, he couldn't particularly refute it.

In fact, since that experience was something that had happened recently and was extremely insignificant, the Empress's words were not particularly wrong.

‘And a spouse is literally a person you spend your whole life with. They would have remembered every single trivial habit. If the inside changed, it would be strange not to know. But, how can a soul dwell in a body?’

"But what does that have to do with you joining the Hoicheon Association? Wouldn't it be a wiser course of action to use the independent Anti-Heaven Alliance to retrieve His Majesty's body?"

"Yes. There is some truth in your words. But, there are very complicated circumstances in this. This is a matter that I also had a big misunderstanding about. In fact, the General is a more righteous person than you think."

Namgung Hui found it difficult to sympathize this time.

The numerous atrocities he had committed in the martial world were all matters of grave guilt.

He had made not only drugs but also human trafficking rampant using the black market.

He had hunted spirit beasts using bandits and had ravaged the people of that area.

Not only that. He had even embraced bandits and water bandits and had even protected them.

This could clearly be seen as a great sin.

"As far as I know, the atrocities that the General has committed in the martial world are not just one or two. Since I have personally clashed with those incidents, this is a matter I can guarantee. I believe Her Majesty the Empress has also heard the rumors."

"Yes. That's also true. It would be better for you to hear this directly from the General. Even if I say it, I don't have the confidence to convey it well, and the General would also want that. Anyway, I judged that if it were someone as smart and resourceful as the General, he would be able to retrieve the emperor's body. Even if he is an untrustworthy person as you say, wouldn't it be worth trying to cooperate with him?"

Even from Namgung Hui's perspective, if it were the General's ability, he thought he would have the ability to drive out the soul dwelling in the emperor's body.

It wouldn't be too late to keep the General in check with the emperor after the emperor had fully regained his senses.

Now he understood why the General was aiming for the emperor's body.

But the important issue was whether it was really true that a soul was dwelling in the emperor's body.

Couldn't it be that the emperor's mind was just going back and forth?

Because sometimes when a person went mad, there were talks of another soul being possessed or being possessed by a ghost.

Namgung Hui, more than anything, asked the Sword Spirit, who was an expert in this field.

-Sword Spirit. What do you think when you hear it? Do you really think another soul is dwelling in the emperor's body?

[There's a sufficient possibility. For some reason, something is trying to come to my mind. But it's hazy and blurry, as if a restriction has been placed on me.]

It seemed that the help of Jang Hwang was needed for the Sword Spirit to regain his memory.

If he could regain the imugi's body, his memory might return.

Even if not, he might be able to somehow resolve the restriction placed on the Sword Spirit.

"Your Majesty. Then please give me some time to think."

"Time? How much should I give you?"

"Just three days will be enough."

"Three days. Isn't that too dangerous a time for me? I've confessed everything to you. What if you report this to the emperor and try to strike me in return?"

"If I were going to do that, I would have done it already."

"There have been several attempts in the past. It's just that I've blocked them all. It seems it won't do. I need to hear your answer today. Guards! Restrain this fellow!”