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“Whoa, what’s happening?”

It was Miyamoto Musashi who first sensed the change. Using his refined mind technique, he dodged the overwhelming strike from the Heavenly Spirit Pill while trying to find a gap against two powerful Dharma Guardians. Suddenly, he felt the tremors nearby rapidly spreading, consuming his Qi. With his sharp senses, he realized something wasn’t right.

Woosh!

Musashi, sensing danger, quickened his retreat, as if he were slicing through the fabric of time and space.

“Hey! Where do you think you’re running off to?”

As Musashi dashed away, the furious Dokgo Jun and the elder from the Su Shin Sect chased after him. Normally, Musashi’s stealth technique was undetectable by anyone below the level of an Absolute Realm expert, but now, flustered, Musashi couldn’t wield it effectively.

Boom!

Meanwhile, in a cave midway up the World Tree, someone stepped out, looking rather pale and fatigued, as if he’d just fought a full-on brawl. He sighed heavily.

“Hoo.”

He muttered, “The urgent urgency has arrived.”

Moments later, he vanished into thin air, for he still had unfinished business.

Thump!

“Ugh…argh!”

The Master of the White Lotus Sect collapsed, overwhelmed by pain while fighting Jin So-cheong. Jin So-cheong could’ve taken him down in one strike, but he deliberately withheld his attack, leaving the spear tip poised. Jin So-cheong looked down at him and said, “You’ve reached your limit.”

“End it.”

The Master replied calmly. Even if he faced sudden doom, he knew he could still engage in battle for a while longer. But against an Absolute Realm expert like Jin So-cheong, that time would dwindle rapidly. After a slight pause, Jin So-cheong spoke.

“Zhuge Sa asked me to inquire. If there’s a chance to save this collapsing world, would it be acceptable if it’s someone other than you?”

“Of course. If such a hero exists, I would gladly devote and sacrifice everything for him.”

Jin So-cheong shook his head, denying that statement.

“Your actions up to now have shown otherwise. You’ve cleverly deceived everyone, insisting that no one else but yourself could rise to the occasion.”

“I won’t deny it. However, I haven’t encountered anyone I could believe in.”

The Master of the White Lotus Sect slowly began shifting his gaze to the ceiling.

“Isn’t this situation—facing my imminent death—proof of that absolute lack of trust?”

“……”

“In the end, we’ve devoured ourselves.”

Indeed. It was just a matter of who would stab the other in the back first. The Baek Woong group made the first move. Had the timing been even slightly different, it would be Jin So-cheong now lying cold at the Master’s hands.

“I want to know the reason you’ve become tied to the Young Master.” Jin So-cheong stated.

“And what will knowing accomplish?”

The Master laughed derisively as Jin So-cheong steadied his gaze on him.

“Master, I’m a companion of the Reborn. And the Baek Woong we follow is that Reborn. One day, he will save you.”

“……?”

The Master looked as if he had been hit by a dumbbell. It was rare for him to be this incredulous. He thought he had achieved serenity before his death, but Jin So-cheong’s words were utterly unexpected.

However, his astute mind rapidly grasped the underlying meaning, and his body trembled.

“N-No way. That can’t be! So you all plan to exploit my weakness and gather the Seven Luminaries as well as the Four Great Spirit Deities into the mix?”

“I’m not lying. Please, I beg of you, Master.”

Jin So-cheong sincerely revealed the truth now that he had pushed the Master to the brink of despair. Had the Master any freedom to flee or act otherwise, he wouldn’t have disclosed such secrets.

“Ugh… ha ha….”

Finally, the Master erupted into laughter.

“Hahaha! This is absurd! Come on, how could that even be possible?”

He laughed heartily for a while but then murmured, sensing something off.

“Wait a second… then… it can’t be…”

“That person?”

“…….”

The Master fell into a deep silence, staying motionless for some time. Eventually, he spoke.

“Huh… The reason for the weakness… it must be because of my blood relation… I should have killed them… but I couldn’t.”

“What do you mean?”

The Master did not elaborate but continued.

“The future confrontation with Baek Woong and Dokgo Uncheon will not sway me with mere words. Because as you’ve seen, after learning the truths of this world in the Su Shin Sect’s Library, I became someone who trusts nothing… I can deceive the opponent until the very end.”

“But I can give clues.”

“What clues?”

“If you bring the Four Great Spirit Deities… and show me proof that the prophecy of the Divine Maiden has come true before me… then Dokgo Uncheon will surrender to that person.”

“……!!”

In that moment, the Master appeared to smile wryly.

“That was my lifelong wish….”

With a shriek, the dark energy from the Master began leaking away as he faced his end, the darkness taking his soul to the eternal throne as per their contract. The Master slowly let his hands fall.

“…I’m tired….”

The anonymity of the Master fell to the ground, leaving only his garments behind. What remained of his spirit turned to sand and faded away. Witnessing the tragic end of the once supreme being, who was called the mightiest in the Central Plains, Jin So-cheong felt a twinge of sorrow.

At that moment, someone called out to Jin So-cheong.

“Jin So-cheong.”

He glanced back to see Cheon Woo-jin.

“Let’s go. Time’s running out.”

“Did it really happen?”

Startled by Cheon Woo-jin’s urgency, Jin So-cheong took a moment before realizing Cheon Woo-jin’s mission was as crazy as it sounded. Knowing the nature of Cheon Woo-jin’s duties as a Sorcerer made it seem impossible.

Cheon Woo-jin replied wearily, “It did. It was exhilarating… like smashing through everything without a care.”

“Are you alright?”

Cheon Woo-jin chuckled, “Now’s not the time to worry about me. You’re the one looking like your parents just passed!”

“Um.”

Only hearing Cheon Woo-jin’s laugh did Jin So-cheong realize his own melancholy expression. Unbeknownst to him, the truth of taking down the Master of the White Lotus Sect had broken his pride and belief. When he couldn’t respond, Cheon Woo-jin said,

“When the situation’s turned chaotic, you should’ve been prepared. Now it’s too late to go back.”

“Lead the way.”

“Alright.”

Cheon Woo-jin said with a defeated tone, “The World Tree and everything… it’s all over now.”

BOOM!

“What the heck is with these annoying guys… how many times do they come back to life?”

The Incarnation of the Flame King yelled angrily, unleashing waves of heat. He had been battling three of the Divine Guardians relentlessly, but every time it seemed he had taken them out, they would miraculously resurrect.

“Shouldn’t you feel embarrassed? For a being of your caliber, just meddling in human affairs?”

“Ha! I’m just here having fun while you lot looks like you’re on a coffee break!”

Suddenly, like a drop of water creating ripples, the Incarnation vanished from sight.

With this sudden disappearance, the Divine Guardians found themselves bewildered.

“Huh?”

“What just happened?”

Garuda looked at Cheon Jin with confusion. “Hey. What’s going on?”

Cheon Jin appeared just as lost. “I have no clue… was that part of some strategy?”

“Is he planning to cast some great magic?”

“If that were the case, he would’ve done that here.”

No one among them understood what had just transpired.

“……”

However, the Master of the Twelve Joules, Ha Eun-cheon, watching this distant fight remotely, understood the situation clearly. Sitting in a chair while propping his chin, he muttered, “The Master of the White Lotus Sect has died.”

As the Summoner, the Master of the White Lotus Sect’s death meant the Incarnation of the Flame King would return to another realm.

That was the most basic principle of summoning magic.

Who did it?

It was surely Baek Woong’s crew. At least the Twelve Joules or Manha Spiritual Gate didn’t have any present plans to attack the Master right away. They were in their base, which meant waiting to counterattack would be a far better strategy.

However, the Master of the Twelve Joules couldn’t grasp their intentions, feeling puzzled.

“Why?”

“I thought Zhuge Sa teaming up with the Master of the White Lotus Sect was their most probable plan.”

Among the three great forces, he found that the Twelve Joules had the upper hand in strength, thus easily predicting a joint attack to bring down the stronger force. Plus, from Zhuge Sa’s standpoint, there weren’t compelling reasons to kill the Master of the White Lotus Sect. Therefore, he couldn’t help but be bewildered by the sudden action to take him out.

“Could they genuinely think they could wipe out me, Sang Sa, and the Manha Spiritual Gate all by themselves?”

There was no way that was true. People of Zhuge Sa’s caliber wouldn’t engage in such irrational bravado. A sane evaluation of strength would have deemed it a horrible misstep to make.

As he pondered, something unexpected occurred.

Thud! Thud!

“Argh….”

“My Lord….”

Unexpectedly, the masters from the Three Masters collapsed one after another beside the Master of the Twelve Joules. Ha Eun-cheon was shocked and swiftly rose from his seat, immediately wielding the Cosmic Fragment to unleash a surge of spirit energy.

Whoosh!

As the spirit energy temporarily expanded from the Cosmic Fragment, the condition of the Three Masters improved slightly.

“What’s going on?”

“My Lord… we’re in serious trouble… the source we’ve been bound to… has been destroyed.”

Ha Eun-cheon rapidly grasped the situation. Before his rage could surface, utter disbelief overtook him, sapping his strength.

“What the hell…”

Now he realized Zhuge Sa’s intentions.

“A death trap operation!”

But even understanding that, there was nearly nothing he could do. At this moment, he recognized he had only two choices left.

To die.

Or to embrace insanity.

He felt an absurd yet bitter chuckle escape him. Even if a hundred Zhuge Sa goons came at him, they wouldn’t stand a chance against him physically; yet they had somehow cornered him into a no-win scenario, forcing him into a decision that a sane person would never fathom.

He discerned that the masters were fading away before his eyes. Now he had to accept that no matter what he did, there was no saving them. It was like a heart that had been crushed completely. The Master of the Twelve Joules, Ha Eun-cheon, placed his hand over their heads and spoke ruefully.

“I will make good use of your powers.”

Yu Sa and Un Sa closed their eyes.

“Please….”

“Save the future for us.”

As they transformed into light, they were drawn into the Master of the Twelve Joules’s hand, and the Wind King closed his eyes in resignation, saying, “Great Dan-gun, please… just ensure the people of Goryeo….”

“…so be it.”

As the Three Masters were absorbed by the Master of the Twelve Joules, he gradually stepped outside. Standing upon the vast land where the dark skies loomed, he remained silent for a brief moment until someone appeared before him.

“My Lord. I’ve subdued all of them.”

“Hong Gil-dong.”

At Hong Gil-dong’s feet lay the fallen Dokgo Uncheon, Myung Yong-ja, and Cheong Wol, all unconscious. Though it had taken a while, he had managed to capture all invaders alone. The Master of the Twelve Joules regarded the proficiency of Hong Gil-dong with a hint of bitterness, saying, “It’s pointless.”

“What do you mean?”

“Elder, follow me. There’s no point in lingering in a lost battle any longer.”

“What do you mean…?”

Boom!

In the next moment, a loud quake resonated, and a dark hole opened up at the edge of the ground where they stood. As the sky split, Hong Gil-dong gasped in surprise, while the Master of the Twelve Joules muttered as if he had anticipated it.

“It’s begun.”

“What’s happening?”

The weakly conscious Extreme Tiger overheard their conversation and became aware.

And lying down, he heard the Master of the Twelve Joules’s words.

The core of the World Tree is shattered. The Sacred Altar Tree is about to wither away.

 

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