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Chapter 316: The Secret of the Dragon

My vision was hazy.

In front of me was a field filled with cherry blossom leaves.

It felt both somewhat suffocating and oddly cozy at the same time.

‘Ah.’

It was distant.

The complex thoughts that had swirled in my mind moments ago had cleared, even if just for an instant.

‘Complex thoughts?’

What had I been thinking?

There had been something incredibly terrifying, but I couldn’t quite remember. Nevertheless, the notion that I couldn’t forget lingered.

I turned my pounding head to recall.

‘…!’

I was momentarily dazed by the comfort, but it quickly returned.

– You are a calamity.

The words Yeon Ilcheon had said to me.

– Have you never thought it strange about your return?

They burrowed deep into my heart.

– That is destiny.

The soothing feeling in my stomach was quickly overshadowed by a sensation of darkness.

‘Calamity.’

The Blood Demon referred to it as a calamity.

And if calamity were to follow in the wake of karma…

Unlike what Yeon Ilcheon suggested in his thoughts about calamity being the Heavenly Demon,

he referred to me as calamity instead.

‘Am I a calamity?’

I had never thought about it this way.

I returned through death.

Having returned, I now wished to live a different life.

Did I hope for a peaceful life?

Or a safe life?

If not that…

‘… Did you wish for a life where she would be happy?’

Perhaps it was her that I wished to be happy.

Whatever it may be.

There was something hidden within my return.

If that secret was what caused the calamity…

What should I do?

Such thoughts flooded my mind.

In just the moment of a fleeting conversation…

Could the grip on my sanity unravel to such an extent?

And yet, it seemed that my grasp on sanity was simply a shallow hope.

‘Am I afraid of my guilt now?’

Had I wanted to forget that I was a villain and a demon?

That hope of erasing what I had done and what I would do had swelled so greatly.

Yet now I was hearing the truth that it was all your fault.

Was I that aggrieved?

‘Damn it all.’

A laugh escaped my lips.

Since when had I ever been a good person?

Even upon my return, I had no intention of playing the hero.

‘Tell it to hell.’

I was someone who lived as I pleased.

The reason I tolerated doing things I didn’t want to do was that they were worthy pursuits.

…

!

….

….

But who had marked me as a calamity?

If my return also contained someone’s purpose…

‘No way, hell no.’

I didn’t know who it was, but I had to refuse it vehemently. I needed to find them and beat them down.

If that were fate…

And if it were something unavoidable, then I would look for a way.

If I was to give up just because it was unattainable…

I would have run away the moment I returned.

I would have hidden in the mountains, farming away.

I wouldn’t have been doing this dog’s work.

Even if I had to smash my way through, I would escape.

Just like I always had.

‘In the first place, I’m not even sure I’m a calamity.’

Only suspicions lingered.

There was no evidence.

It was certainly the Heavenly Demon who had brought back the Blood Calamity in my previous life.

But that didn’t mean it was me.

As I pondered, I felt something brushing against my hair.

“…Hmm?”

A rough, weathered hand…

Felt like Elder Lee was patting my head.

Was this sensation of being held and shaken that long-lost feeling of dizziness?

As I turned my gaze to see what it was…

The cherry blossom leaves surrounding me had taken on a human shape.

Was it… patting my head? What the hell? This is creepy.

Wait… could it be?

“…Noya?”

[Seeing you act pitiful is tempting me to smack your head, but since I like how it feels, I’ll let it slide.]

“…Where have you been and what’s going on?”

It had to be over a year.

After my father’s punishment, when I spent nearly three months in closed training.

Noya had been gone for about a year.

The issue was that it had been far longer than that.

“Have you been hibernating?”

[Ha ha, I woke up just to find that I kept this old body alive, yet your mouth is still as loose as ever.]

“…That’s the extent of your welcome.”

[I’d be careful if I were you; if I rolled out the welcome mat twice, you might just end up folded in half.]

Heh heh.

The old man’s voice was sharp and piercing, resembling that of a sage.

But it was still quite a relief to hear.

By the way…

“…Is it okay if I ask what’s going on?”

[What do you mean?]

“What’s the current situation?”

I asked Noya about the circumstances leading up to the moment before I faced Yeon Ilcheon’s thoughts.

Noya answered me.

[How would I know?]

“What do you mean?”

[Asking an ignorant person who just woke up about trivial matters. If I knew that, I’d be a Wudang master myself.]

“ ”

In some ways, aren’t Wudang masters… masters too?

A trivial thought flitted through my mind.

“When did you wake up?”

[The moment you stepped into the secret place.]

If the words were true, it meant it hadn’t been long.

A memory flickered by.

I recalled feeling a presence within my body not of a beast, but of someone else’s energy.

That must have been the presence of Shin Noya.

“…But why didn’t you respond at all?”

[…]

Noya hesitated before answering.

It seemed he was choosing his words carefully.

Finally, Noya disclosed to me.

[That guy was watching you, you know.]

That guy referring to…

A man with deep golden hair.

It must refer to Yeon Ilcheon.

“Is that guy… no, is that person really a companion of Noya?”

[If you plan to curse, make sure it’s clear.]

“No, even so, cursing in front of him is just…”

Though my mood was a bit foul, that didn’t mean I could insult Yeon Ilcheon in front of Noya.

After all, he is a friend, right?

“So, is he really King Gwon Cheolgeum?”

[I don’t know.]

“…Huh?”

I flinched at Noya’s answer.

You don’t know? What does that mean?

“You clearly acted like you knew back then.”

I distinctly heard Shin Noya say to the thoughts that it was nice to see the face last time.

[That was just because I was pleased to see his face.]

“What does that even mean?”

[What else is there?]

How absurd.

[The only thing I can say for certain is that those thoughts were indeed from Ilcheon.]

“Yet, how can you not tell if it’s him or not?”

[The thoughts and presence belong to Ilcheon, but a thought is just a thought.]

“…That makes it hard to believe. Is this Noya’s power?”

The cherry blossom leaves that surrounded me.

And the nonsense Taoist Qi flowing around me.

Was this Noya’s power?

To my question, Noya responded.

[That guy said it was the arrangement prepared for me.]

“.•.Really?”

Not only the secret place…

But all those unknown encounters I had experienced…

Perhaps they were all prepared for Noya.

[This is that arrangement.]

“Is this it?”

The Taoist Qi enveloping me and the energy taking human form.

Even with a glance, I could tell.

I could sense the immense power contained within.

“…So, this is Noya’s original strength…”

[You must be joking.]

“Isn’t it?”

Noya let out a laugh, as if my words were ridiculous.

[Did you think such a trivial amount of power was all I possessed?]

“ ”

[I am not such a weakling.]

A trivial amount of power? I was momentarily stunned.

The energy I was currently feeling was indeed tremendous.

Were it to solidify and turn deadly, I wouldn’t last a few seconds before being torn apart.

That kind of power was labeled as petty in Noya’s eyes?

‘…Just how strong were you?’

I couldn’t even imagine how Noya had been when alive.

Even as a former martial master, there were so many records throughout history.

At its best, I thought it was on par with the Three Eminent Beings.

‘No way, could it be stronger than that?’

If one were to say the current energy was that powerful…

It was possible that he had been on the level of Wi Seol-Ah, the Divine Sword…

‘No, there’s no way.’

I shook that thought from my mind.

To imagine that five people of that caliber existed.

‘What level of being was the Blood Demon to contend with such beings?’

Even among the reincarnators, there was Yeon Ilcheon, who had overcome Noya and had become the greatest hero.

To be capable of handling beings like that and yet end up with a sealing, rather than a death…

It was an almost impossible feat unless the Blood Demon was a deity.

[You’re thinking too much again.]

“…I was just told something nonsensical.”

Heh heh.

I was thoroughly confused while Noya merely chuckled at my plight.

“Are you laughing at me?”

[How could I not laugh? Just look at your face; it’s downright hilarious.]

I was utterly perplexed. It’s not just someone else’s business…

No, it’s not someone else’s business either. Now that I think about it, Noya seems quite implicated in this whole affair.

[Don’t waver.]

The hand that had been shaking my head became rougher.

[Nothing is more dangerous than losing yourself.]

“…I understand.”

[Of course, you would. Knowing yet still not being able to act is what makes you human.]

“Noya, did you know?”

[What about?]

“About the calamity and destiny he mentioned.”

The world was meant to have been destroyed by the Blood Demon.

Even sealing him wouldn’t prevent calamity from reemerging over time, just as his companions understood.

Did Noya also know these truths?

[No, I did not know that.]

“…What?”

[The reason I slept within you for all this time was to regain my memories.]

“Regain your memories?”

From the moment I first met Shin Noya, he had mentioned.

How his memories were clouded and fragmented, full of broken pieces.

Because of that, he had even teased me about being I don’t know what.

[It took longer than I expected to recover them.]

“Then, have you found everything?”

I asked, curious to know if there was any useful information, but Noya shook his head in denial.

[I have almost recollected everything, but I can’t remember the last moments.]

“The last moments?

[The last memory is of the battle against the Blood Demon.]

The massive battle between five martial artists and one Blood Demon.

The last memory Shin Noya could recall was from that time.

“…So it was.”

[That’s right. I know that wasn’t my end, however.]

Shin Noya didn’t die in the battle against the Blood Demon.

According to records, the Hwasan Sword God repelled the Blood Calamity and returned as Hwasan’s Sect Leader.

He lived out the rest of his life.

[I should have reincarnated and sought out the secret place. They all said so.]

From Hwang Ah Bul Yeong to King Gwon Cheolgeum…

Even the voices of Yeon Ilcheon and Nangong Ming told Noya to look for the deity.

All of them referenced Noya’s reincarnation.

[I do not know the secrets of the world.]

The Central Plains, which should have perished, still held life.

And the calamity known as the Blood Demon, along with the future Heavenly Demon.

[That might be why those damn fools attempted to reincarnate me.]

[Ilcheon is always full of secrets; he’s cunning, and Ming is a bit of an unlucky bastard, while Je-mun is just out of his mind.]

What can I say?

Heroic figures they depicted were collectively not normal.

Such words held a faint sentimental tug, but I couldn’t delve too deeply into it.

[Though I am a temperamental old man and speak rather bluntly.]

You knew…?

He was aware of the situation.

[…At the very least, I wouldn’t have let it go if I had asked just once. They might have been aware, and made you suffer for it.]

“So in the end, they passed the burden onto me.”

[Thinking like that proves they really are bastards.]

Well, I didn’t mean it to the extreme.

[Ultimately, their attempt failed.]

“…What’s your reasoning for being so certain?”

An entity whose soul didn’t have a clear memory…

How could he possibly be sure?

It could be that Shin Noya, just like Yeon Ilcheon, was merely a thought.

In reality, Noya’s reincarnation might have succeeded, but he could have died during his growth.

[Ha.]

Noya burst into laughter at my doubting thoughts.

[If I truly succeeded in reincarnation, there would be a great uproar across the Central Plains by now.]

“Why’s that?”

[Looking at the martial artists now, it seems everyone is a complete fool. How could the genius that I am be reborn and not cause a ruckus?]

“ ”

What kind of ludicrous confidence is that?

[If I were to be reborn, I would be known by the name of the Plum Blossom God or something, for sure.]

“So even in reincarnation, you remain the Hwasan Sect Master, huh?”

[That’s just stating the obvious.]

With a rustle.

A single cherry blossom leaf fell and landed on my nose.

[I was born at Hwasan, and my soul and spirit are bound there. Even upon rebirth, I would still be a child of Hwasan.]

His reasoning may have lacked finesse, yet it was filled with conviction.

[I am the divine sword of Hwasan. That won’t change, even if my memories are empty and my life has reached this current form.]

[So you too must not waver. If you can’t trust yourself, who can?]

“…!”

Listening to his final words, a faint echo rang in my chest.

He must have spoken that to draw me back to my senses.

Even after meeting again after such a long while, there was little growth in me. How old was I, anyway? Tsk tsk.

“…If you hadn’t thrown that last remark, that would have sounded quite impressive.”

Bam!

“Ugh!”

With one more sentence, I felt a blow to my head.

That hand that had been stroking my head turned into a fist and struck my head.

[I’ve always wanted to smack you. That felt refreshing.]

“…Ugh…”

[Forget about calamity and destiny. Focus on what you need to do.]

“ ”

[If you’re unsure of where to go, rather than stopping, you should just keep walking, even if it turns out badly. I’m sure you know that already, you greenhorn.]

“.•.Yes.”

Swaying slightly.

As I answered, the cherry blossom leaves that had filled my vision began to move.

The rough hand that had been touching my head also paused.

[You better get up. Now you need to work on my behalf too, because I have a busy schedule ahead. Heh heh.]

That sounded a bit odd.

“…Why do I have to work on your behalf?”

[Because I can’t do what I wanted now that I’m in this state, so you need to do it instead.]

“No, how does that work?”

[Old man’s tried using up his strength to keep me alive. You should step in and help. It’ll be similar anyway; quit whining about it.]

To deal with the Heavenly Demon while also handling the Blood Demon was blatant arrogance.

It was a rather outrageous request from someone not contributing squats.

I mean, sure, I intended to do it, but the sensation was strange.

Yet, thanks to that, I felt a bit clearer in my head.

Whether I was a calamity or not.

I am me.

And if I don’t want to be a calamity…

I had to believe that I could choose not to be.

Noya must have wanted to remind me of this trivial matter.

Given how old I am, I still don’t know why I’m receiving this kind of teaching.

Perhaps I still have a long way to go before becoming sensible.

Siaaaa…

[Hang in there.]

As Noya’s voice rang in my ears, the cherry blossoms gradually faded, revealing the sky.

The sky was still dark, with the moonlight shining down at the center, illuminating me.

“…Ah.”

I shot up abruptly.

Seeing as the last place I was at was inside the secret place, I needed to assess the situation.

However, for some reason, I found myself in the middle of a grassy field.

Specifically, the entrance where I had entered the secret place.

“Ah, you’re awake.”

Just as I was about to check the situation, a voice called out from somewhere.

It was the voice of the Sleeping Dragon.

Fortunately, it seemed I had escaped the secret place intact…

But why the hell was I sleeping here?

“If you’re awake, can you help me out now?”

“…Huh? Help with what?”

Hah, with the sound of the Sleeping Dragon’s distressed voice, I turned my head toward the origin of the sound.

Ah.

There stood the Sleeping Dragon smiling brightly, and in front of him…

The Sword Demoness and Cheonghae Ilgeom were looking at me with strange expressions.

99

• • •

This definitely feels like I’m in deep trouble now, huh?

“Phew…”

I quickly turned my head.

I needed to find a way to get out of this situation.

“…!”

I suddenly remembered.

I quickly pointed at the Sleeping Dragon and shouted toward Cheonghae Ilgeom.

There was no hesitation.

“That guy started it! I just went along with it!” Saving my own hide with my friend was a skill I had honed over my lifetime.

It was a technique I had crafted having gone through life with rather noble intentions.

“…Is that really what you’re calling that?”

Having not used it often due to the lack of friends, its effectiveness was quite weak.

As expected, it didn’t work at all.

Damn it all.

 

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