1105——————==

Soul of the Evil God

[……?]

At my words, Shao Hao Jin Tian tilted his head, and the atmosphere briefly froze.

Shao Hao Jin Tian said to me,

[Aren’t you a disciple of Fuxi? And now you want to be my apostle?]

“Uh… that’s the thing…”

[Are you out of your mind?]

I thought to myself.

‘If I die as the apostle of Shao Hao Jin Tian, I could borrow his power in my next life, so I thought it was a useful tool to ask him to make me his apostle…’

Fuxi and the Three Sovereigns are currently in conflict, so it’s indeed a strange situation for me, a disciple of Fuxi, to become Shao Hao Jin Tian’s apostle.

But I had thought about this a little. So while glancing at Fuxi next to me, I spoke.

“Well, it’s not like deities have to fight forever, right?”

[What?]

“If later, the Emperor, your lord, changes his mind and teams up with Fuxi, Nüwa, Shennong, etc., it would be awkward to get friendly then! So I’ll actively work on building relationships when that time comes. I’ve always wanted to try being an apostle…”

[What? You’re saying we’ll team up later? What’s your basis for that?]

Shao Hao Jin Tian reacted violently, as if screaming in rejection.

[Don’t be ridiculous! I’ll kill Fuxi, Nüwa, and Shennong!]

“……”

This guy has similar thoughts to Jeon Wook, who almost jumped in earlier!

It’s useless to say this to those who came sharpening their swords for a fight!

‘The early Three Sovereigns indeed had terrible relations.’

Damn. I need to be more persuasive.

Just a moment ago, Fuxi and Jeon Wook were battling fiercely, so saying this wouldn’t resonate well.

I quickly wracked my brain and said,

“I don’t know why the great deities are fighting, but according to the deities’ standards, [End] and [Revelation] can’t be too far off, right? A few thousand years is just a blink of an eye to deities.”

[Hmm.]

It seemed like Shao Hao Jin Tian slightly reacted to the word ‘End’. But he quickly sneered and replied.

[That’s not your concern. Do you even realize how ridiculous what you just said was?]

“I know. I said something really stupid. But… it wouldn’t hurt you, Shao Hao Jin Tian?”

[It wouldn’t hurt me?]

I realized this was a crucial moment. So I desperately tried to persuade him.

“During those fleeting moments, wouldn’t it just be a waste of energy to fight and do only good for others? After all, both sides are powerful; it won’t easily conclude in a fight, will it? Moreover, there are many old rulers from other realms around…”

[…….]

“In the end, a compromise will come, I believe…. Deities of this caliber wouldn’t fight endlessly against one another. But if they keep trying to kill each other and then reach out afterward, wouldn’t that be awkward?”

[Awkward, huh.]

Feeling it wouldn’t work like this, I decided to take a bit of a risk.

“Yes. If by any chance, the deities decide to agree to a ceasefire, I’ll do my best. I don’t know for sure, but hasn’t the Emperor shown signs of such intentions? He’s at war with Fuxi now, but later he might not want to fight anymore or something…”

It’s nonsense, but let’s drag the Emperor into this!

If I guess right, great! If not, I’m dead!

[…….]

He maintained silence, but Shao Hao Jin Tian’s reaction was noticeably different. Furthermore, Jeon Wook and Jeogok, who were watching the conversation nearby, also seemed intrigued.

Did the Emperor drop some hints or something?

‘Thank goodness.’

It seems my words had slightly gotten through to them. Seizing that moment, I rubbed my hands together.

“And since I really respect you, Shao Hao Jin Tian, I even made this royal seal, so please grant me just this one request. Hehe.”

[Hmm….]

“It’s not that difficult, right?”

Shao Hao Jin Tian thought for a moment before saying,

[Alright. It could be fun to have a bug-like human apostle for a change.]

“Then…!!”

[Shao Hao Jin Tian declares that Baek Woong will be my apostle! Fuxi, do you agree?]

Fuxi nodded.

“Sure, why not? If that’s the case, I’m in favor.”

He even smiled casually about it.

“There are precedents for this. We simply need to include a contract with mutual secrecy between you and me as part of Baek Woong’s duties, right?”

[Let’s do that.]

Pa-at!!

[I appoint you as my apostle!]

The instant Shao Hao Jin Tian’s massive feather flew toward me and pierced my heart. Distorting the cause, there was no time to avoid it, and I could feel the feather slowly turning silver as it seeped into my heart without inflicting any wounds.

Wuwung

‘Is this the power of Shao Hao Jin Tian?’

It felt purely destructive, like a silver force. Although Jeon Wook’s power was destructive, Shao Hao Jin Tian’s felt like a force created to destroy stars from the very beginning. It may have less adaptability or stability compared to Jeon Wook’s Spirit Power, but it likely has far greater offensive capability.

At that moment, Jeon Wook beside me spoke.

[This guy… he was waiting for this moment!]

What?

I realized the instant Shao Hao Jin Tian’s power flowed into me, the vast Spirit Power within me had explosively triggered, stimulating Jeon Wook. Had he been watching me all along?

In that fleeting moment, Jeon Wook looked at me with sharp eyes and shouted.

[How dare you…. No matter how you’ve linked your cause with me, you have no right to become an apostle of another!]

“……?!”

[Give me your Spirit Power!]

Boom!

In that instant, Shao Hao Jin Tian’s power invading my body clashed violently with Jeon Wook’s Spirit Power. The term “battle” was fitting because the differing natures of the two powers reacted violently against each other.

Twizz!

“AAAHH!”

The half of me which was dominated by Spirit Power turned a blinding blue, while the part possessed by Shao Hao Jin Tian turned deathly pale. Blue and white wrapped around each other, painting my body wildly, and I could hear my skin continuously tearing. However, no blood was being shed; the powers were eroding my body without allowing any blood to flow.

[Jeon Wook! What have you done to my apostle!]

Shao Hao Jin Tian shouted angrily at Jeon Wook. Jeon Wook, crossing his arms, calmly replied.

[Apostle? You might see him as a toy, but I need to reclaim my power from him, so…]

[Ugh… how annoying.]

[Do you want to test me, Shao Hao?]

[It’s not like I can’t.]

The mingled powers of destruction and darkness glared at each other.

While they continued their conversation, I felt the sounds of rupture within my body intensifying.

Twizz!!

“AAAHH!”

It hurts so much!! If threading needles of fire through my flesh felt like this, it must be the worst agony! And it was happening in dozens of places all over my body, making me feel like my eyeballs were going to pop out. When I couldn’t help but moan from the pain, Fuxi, watching from the side, remarked.

“Hmm. Too much of anything is bad.”

“Hu, huh…. P-please help me….”

Fuxi squatted down in front of me, tapping my forehead with a folding fan.

“I won’t question why you have such immense Spirit Power… but it seems Shao Hao Jin Tian is angry now. He is trying to forcefully harness his power directly into your body, using the excuse of being your apostle. This makes all that Spirit Power inside of you, which was originally much more than Shao Hao’s, not matter at all.”

“…What?”

“To put it simply, both Jeon Wook and Shao Hao Jin Tian are having a tug-of-war over your body. Jeon Wook shouldn’t be able to intervene due to the laws of cause and effect, but he has taken advantage of the loophole in the contract between me and Shao Hao to interfere with you. This is not supposed to happen, unless you’ve done something with Jeon Wook already?”

“Ugh….”

I flinched. There was something I suspected.

“The reason he intervenes is easy to guess. He wants to feast on the Spirit Power residing in your body for free.”

At that moment, I was stunned enough to forget my pain. Fuxi’s words were so clear.

‘…I’m going to die!! If this goes on, there’s no way I can survive!’

If Jeon Wook and Shao Hao were pulling on me like a rope? Eventually, the rope would snap! It wouldn’t be strange to die right away! I had never experienced being torn in half and hoped I wouldn’t in the future, so I desperately clung to Fuxi.

“Fuxi!! I’m sorry for saying I want to be an apostle of the Three Sovereigns!! Please, save me!”

“Not really. I’m not particularly angry about it.”

“What?”

“Hahaha.”

Fuxi chuckled while patting my head.

“Baek Woong, I never doubted you from the very beginning, so I wouldn’t be terribly upset even if you became Shao Hao’s apostle. Haven’t I been saying that?”

“……”

You’re way too crafty.

When I saw Fuxi smiling, I had no words left. He was undeniably a figure unlike anyone I had ever encountered.

“Even so, I don’t have any way to help you in this current situation. If I participate in the tug-of-war, I could momentarily stop your body from being torn apart, but eventually, your body won’t withstand the divine power and will shatter.”

“Ugh! Gah! Uuuugh… Hahhh.”

Even as Fuxi spoke, I had to supress my moans as needles were mercilessly piercing my flesh. Even the tortures of the Golden Eagle Guard wouldn’t bring this kind of extreme pain. While I trembled in pain, Fuxi mentioned,

“Baek Woong, you understand Tai Chi and can use it. The technique you used to block the divine attack last time requires an understanding of Tai Chi. Isn’t that right?”

He’s referring to the Peerless Technique.

“Huhh… yes, that’s correct, but…”

“Then you can overcome this crisis using your own power. Think carefully about the nature of Tai Chi.”

“……?!”

“If you’re my disciple, you can do it.”

Use Tai Chi to overcome this?

The nature of Tai Chi?

‘What is that?’

I suddenly realized that while using the Peerless Technique, the transformation of Yin and Yang existed.

‘Could it be that I need to separate each force into Yin and Yang and create harmony like Wei Zhi-hun did?!’

Wei Zhi-hun had differentiated his life into Yang and death into Yin during the battle with Divine Avatar Arjuna to create the Ultimate Tai Chi. If I approach it like that, I might be able to turn the divine power, which likely carries predominantly Yang energy, into Yin and match it with the Spirit Power to reach a balance of Yin and Yang.

But….

‘No way…!!’

I was soon filled with despair.

What on earth am I supposed to do?!

The Yin and Yang during the Peerless Technique is very simple. It transforms the immense power formed via the Unity of Six Great Techniques into a state of Wuwei, nullifying the opponent’s energy. In other words, if I stray even slightly from this setup, it means I have to draw everything in the Universe into the Yin Yang scenario solely with my innate sense.

Maybe that’s why I can’t grasp how to do it. What exactly did Wei Zhi-hun do to create the Ultimate Tai Chi? The mastery to apply freely outside the confines of the Peerless Technique was still far beyond my reach and could be seen as transcending humanity completely.

Gulp! Gulp!!

As I remained powerless while spitting blood, Fuxi scratched his head in surprise.

“Hmm. It seems you understand the principle but can’t apply it. What’s the problem?”

“Hah…. Gah…. I… I can’t really figure out how to change it like the transformation of the Peerless Technique.”

“Oh, so it’s the transformation of the Peerless Technique you’re referring to. That’s a nice name.”

Fuxi seemed to admire it as he brought his index finger to my forehead.

“I guess I’ve got no choice. Why are humans so weak? You dying right now would be a problem, so I’ll help for now.”

Divine Arts

Heavenly Eight Trigrams

Kuwaaat

In the next moment, the pain throughout my body felt as if it washed away, and I realized that the Eight Trigrams had settled on my limbs, crown, forehead, heart, and lower Dantian.

‘Heavenly Eight Trigrams!’

I knew this was from Eastern arts, rotating the very principles themselves, but who would have thought this was divine arts too?

‘Now that I think about it, the body of the Portrait Immortal also had the Heavenly Eight Trigrams enabling the rotation of chaotic power… was that the intention behind it?’

In ancient times, this would have been passed down as divine arts, but in later generations, no one had the ability to wield divine arts, and it slipped into the study of the I Ching instead?!

I felt as if I had uncovered an absurd truth, but overcoming the pain was making my consciousness hazy to the point I felt like I might faint at any moment. As I collapsed onto the ground, Fuxi tapped my head with his fan again.

“Don’t struggle too much. You still have physical and mental strength left.”

“Ugh…. It hurts too much…”

“You’re not in pain anymore. Get up.”

It was like he could pierce through my condition.

Reluctantly, I got up from the ground, and Fuxi said,

“What you refer to as the transformation of Wuwei, I’ve implemented using the Heavenly Eight Trigrams instead. The divine power has been temporarily restrained, and Jeon Wook and Shao Hao can’t interfere with you right now due to the influence of the Heavenly Eight Trigrams.”

“Thank you.”

“Don’t get too happy about it. This is only temporary, so it doesn’t solve the problem. Since this is the case, I’ll finish it as the Celestial Dragon of the Universe.”

With that, Fuxi shouted at Jeon Wook who was floating in the air.

“Jeon Wook! Are you really going to act so childishly?”

Jeon Wook, meanwhile, shouted back loudly.

[What’s childish? Fuxi!! How can I stay quiet when an unappointed disciple of mine is linked to me as an apostle? Furthermore, that guy’s Spirit Power is far beyond what a mortal should possess!]

“Really… Is that so?”

[Absolutely! He’s too suspicious! I was suspicious from the start, but I couldn’t act due to the laws of cause and effect, and now I’m taking action!]

“……”

[You can’t say I did something unreasonable!]

“That’s true. I would be on edge too.”

As Fuxi agreed, Jeon Wook poured out an ominous aura and shouted.

[Whether that guy is human or not is no longer important! It’s best to eliminate him immediately!]

“……”

Fuxi seemed to be contemplating something.

After a moment, he smiled broadly and said,

“Jeon Wook, the more you say not to, the more I want to do it. The opposite is the same. If you tell me to do it, I won’t.”

[What?!]

Jeon Wook appeared perplexed as Fuxi muttered self-deprecatingly.

“The reason I don’t get along with Nüwa might be because of this personality.”

Fuxi tucked away his folding fan and then his eyes glimmered.

“It’s quite a messy situation. Aside from the Emperor, everyone else should just leave today.”

[Fuxi…!!]

Celestial Dragon Roar

Duuun!

In the next moment, Fuxi unleashed the [Roar of the Dragon].

That [Roar] couldn’t be heard by human ears but surely had a defined target. It was directed precisely at the Five Sovereigns before Fuxi! As the roar flew toward them, the Sovereigns tried to use their divine powers to block the attack, but then Shao Hao Jin Tian looked shocked as he exclaimed.

[[Small Cycle] isn’t moving!!]

Whoosh!

In an instant, Shao Hao Jin Tian was swept away by Fuxi’s roar. Following him, Jeon Wook and Jeogok didn’t even manage to resist and disappeared through the Dimension Door, along with Yu Shun’s portal.

The only exceptions were the Emperor’s apostle Qi Bai Chen and the dimension he existed in. Those entities remained untouched by Fuxi’s roar. I exclaimed, astonished.

“D-Don’t tell me you completely annihilated all the Sovereigns with just one roar?!”

Fuxi grinned.

“Hmm. Baek Woong.”

“Yes!”

“In my view, you seem entirely trustworthy, but you appear a little foolish.”

“……”

Fuxi pulled out his fan again from his robe and said,

“No way I could do that. I’m not [Father], this simply doesn’t happen. I merely expelled them from reality.”

“Expelled?”

“Right. As a direct descendant of Pangu, I can expel any chaotic being from this world. There are limitations, but this ability can’t be blocked even by manipulating [Small Cycle].”

“……!!”

Unbelievable!

I was astounded at Fuxi’s incredible power, which I had never heard of before. I had seen all sorts of amazing supernatural abilities but had never encountered powers more supreme than the ability to manipulate [Small Cycle] and time-space. Furthermore, if he could expel an [Old Ruler] without any actual combat, there couldn’t be a better power than that!

I questioned him incredulously.

“So, if those guys are expelled, can they never return?”

“No. They could return in about a thousand years.”

“……”

“Well, they’re potent divine beings, so they won’t be expelled for too long.”

Is that good or bad?

Fuxi chuckled.

“It’s just a handy ability for troublesome occasions. Those guys will probably be bored to death if they’re expelled for a thousand years, haha.”

“W-Wait, Fuxi!”

“If they come back, I’ll just expel them again and again…. Eventually, it should work out.”

I realized that Fuxi didn’t view the Sovereigns as serious adversaries at all. He merely regarded them as a mischievous friend willing to entertain him. So, utterly nonplussed, I said to him,

“Don’t you think we should defeat those demons? After all, they’re the ones trying to attack and eliminate Fuxi, Nüwa, and Shennong.”

“Well, unless we deal with the Emperor’s main body, I’m just wasting my energy getting annoyed with his subordinates. If I vent at Jeon Wook or Jeogok, the Emperor will likely laugh at me.”

After saying that, Fuxi gazed at Qi Bai Chen from a distance and spoke.

“Don’t you think so, Qi Bai Chen?”

As Fuxi addressed him, the being named Qi Bai Chen briefly lifted his ten eyes to stare at Fuxi before replying in the divine language.

[The Emperor has said that he will see you next time.]

“`

 

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