1185——————==

Soul of the Evil God (사신지혼)

I awkwardly sat in my chair after Zhuge Sa spoke and asked, “Zhuge Sa, how did you end up here…?”

“That’s something I’ll get into later. I have a lot to say right now.”

“…Got it.”

Zhuge Sa sat back, fingers interlocked and one knee drawn towards him, gazing at Hang-a with bored eyes.

“What I’m about to say is just my rambling, so feel free to respond if you want, or not. Heh heh heh.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Hang-a shot a glare at Zhuge Sa.

“You are an unwelcome guest. Please leave at once.”

Zhuge Sa smirked slickly.

“No way! Go ahead, try chasing me out!”

“…….”

“You said this place is where all the powers of the world get sealed. Similarly, since you’re just a [piece], you have limits to the powers you can wield here. Kicking out an unwelcome guest like me was never an option from the start. Do you really think I’d come here without knowing that?”

“Well, there wouldn’t be any benefits in making such an assertion.”

Zhuge Sa pointed his index finger at Hang-a.

“No, I’ll assert it. You can’t do a thing here. If you could, you would have brainwashed Baek Woong or controlled him directly by now.”

“…….”

“All you can do is charm that foolish Baek Woong with your words. I suppose that alone can manipulate the situation well enough, though.”

Hang-a bit her lip in silence.

While listening to their conversation, I realized something was off and spoke up.

“…Uh, Zhuge Sa. How do you know that? How do you know what Hang-a said….”

Something’s fishy.

Zhuge Sa spoke as if he clearly remembered what Hang-a just said.

[Moreover, you can’t train in this space.]

[Try drawing out all your divine power and qi.]

[This is the path of reincarnation. All powers in the world are nullified, and only the law of cause and effect and choices remain. Besides the freedom of thought, you’re controlled.]

When I mentioned during the last [Knot] that I would stay indefinitely in this path of reincarnation to grow stronger, Hang-a said exactly that. No matter how hard I tried to train, every power would be nullified, making it a space where only the freedom of thought remains.

…But surely, Hang-a said.

[Your master won’t be able to share what happened in this space. That’s the will of the book.]

That’s why I couldn’t relay what happened in the reincarnation path to my companions, even imbued in obsidian. I could only explain it verbally. In fact, there were very few companions who even knew this background information.

So how could Zhuge Sa, who hadn’t met Hang-a even once in 500 years, know the content of their conversation so well?!

Then Zhuge Sa chuckled.

“Baek Woong. Didn’t you think it was strange? Why the core of the world-class Thunder God lineage’s Nine Chambers of Thunder technique is the Soul Exchange Technique. Why I provided the Soul Exchange Technique, the heretical ultimate vision, for martial arts.”

“……?”

“Think about the principle of the Soul Exchange Technique. What exactly allowed a spirit to come to this place, where Zhuge Sa’s spirit resides, a place that nobody can find?”

At that moment, I had a lightbulb moment and my eyes widened.

“Baek (魄)……?!”

“Hehe… Correct.”

What!

Realizing what Zhuge Sa was saying, I muttered in astonishment.

“The principle of the Soul Exchange Technique attracting the spirit… Wait, are you saying you are….”

“The Nine Chambers of Thunder technique forms the Thunder Soul (雷魂) and whirls it within your body. And once you reach a considerable level of achievement in that training, your spirit begins to harmonize and you, yourself, start to embody the quality of Baek (魄). I would have taught you this advanced part of Soul Exchange Technique before.”

“……”

Oh… I think I learned that, but it totally slipped my mind….

How could I even imagine such a situation….

“Right. As your achievement level of Nine Chambers of Thunder increases, you transform into a giant Baek (魄) in human form. I just had to follow your Baek and transfer my spirit, hehe.”

Dumbfounded, I mumbled.

“That… that’s absurd…. How could that be…? ”

The idea that mastering the Nine Chambers of Thunder means I embody the very essence of Baek!

Zhuge Sa continued.

“Is there anything impossible? That’s precisely the Soul Exchange Technique. It was a safeguard I prepared out of worry you’d follow that strange person. After all, if something untoward happens to you, other companions wouldn’t receive the information through obsidian.”

“Then, are you telling me… you know everything from your conversation with Hang-a…?”

Completely flabbergasted, I shouted.

“Are you saying that the moment I mastered the Nine Chambers of Thunder, I got caught up in your Soul Exchange Technique?!”

Snap!

Zhuge Sa gleefully clicked his fingers.

“Exactly! Thanks to that, I’ve been fully aware of everything you’ve seen and heard up until now. The essence I infused into the Soul Exchange Technique when I first created the Nine Chambers of Thunder links to me, Zhuge Sa, as a grand master.”

“…….”

“You don’t need obsidian after all, huh?”

What the heck is this…

The world-class martial skill, Nine Chambers of Thunder, was a bait Zhuge Sa set up for the Soul Exchange Technique?!

As I stood there, mouth agape in shock, Zhuge Sa cackled.

“Hehe… Don’t worry. The power of the Nine Chambers of Thunder is real, so that’s not a concern. Anyway, back to the main topic.”

Zhuge Sa’s gaze shifted back to Hang-a.

“What do you think about what Asura said?”

“Huh? Are you talking about me?”

“Baek Woong. The thing that guy lamented when you mentioned the [Knot] should ring a bell.”

“Um… I distinctly remember…”

I racked my memory.

“Something about starting my 29th life just by dying…”

“Exactly. I watched that guy with the Soul Exchange Technique and thought he was sharper than anyone else. He definitely doesn’t depend on powers, hence his swift mindset.”

“…What? So, are you saying the right answer is to just die here without starting the Knot?”

“Exactly. Why make things complicated? You’re a reborn person after all.”

Zhuge Sa continued to look at Hang-a as he spoke.

“It was a mistake for you to get ensnared by Hang-a and start the first [Knot]. You’ve been caught like a fish on a hook.”

“……”

“I’m here to correct that from now on.”

“What do you mean it was a mistake?”

I protested cautiously.

“Thanks to starting the Knot, I passed the trial of Celestial Emperor Hang Yu, and I gained the powers of both the Jade Emperor and the Wheel King! I’ve also pretty much found Chi You’s body – minus two parts – and if I continue powering up like this, I could…”

“Find a way to defeat Gong Sun Xuanwen? You think you could resurrect Chi You or do whatever will actually make it possible?”

“That’s right. It could work out… somehow…”

Upon my words, Zhuge Sa burst into laughter.

“Haha!!! You dense fool. What if you couldn’t pass Hang Yu’s trial? What about that?”

“…Uh? Ah, I mean, because of Eungui’s omen, I was doomed to die the next day so I…”

“Think hard. What happens if you die?”

“Uh… My 28th life ends, and my 29th begins.”

Zhuge Sa stared at me blankly.

“Well then, so what’s the problem?”

“…….”

Huh?

“At that point, you’d have already acquired the Nine Chambers of Thunder, known the strategies of Aiternum Mundi, and learned that Sagong Lin awakens into the Heavenly Demon. You’d also have gathered an immense amount of information from your experiences over 500 years. Dying at that stage wouldn’t be something to lament at all.”

“Ah…”

“The whereabouts of Chi You’s body could just be learned over a few more reincarnations, and the remaining information was it really so essential? You’d realize it wasn’t that significant once you gained what you did. Was there really anything fabulous enough to drastically shorten your journey of reincarnation?”

“I… But I obtained the powers of the Wheel King.”

“The powers of the Wheel King… Impressive. But in the end, it became a trap that prevented your death. And while there are many actions you can take with that power, there aren’t too many critical clues derived from it, right?”

“…….”

Zhuge Sa’s eyes narrowed into crescents.

He wore a smile that seemed to mock me.

“You can’t discern, can you? The difference between reality and the adventure in the path of reincarnation. That’s why your experience in the Land and Earth Diagram is so unique. Fuxi said it was like a [frame].”

“That’s true.”

Zhuge Sa began to show disbelief.

“You still don’t realize? You really can’t distinguish between what is real and what isn’t. Oh, foolish master.”

Wait a second…

“…Uh…? You don’t mean…”

“[Knot] doesn’t manipulate cycles. Baek Woong, the moment you first died to Hang Yu, you entered a branching path known as the [Knot]. A divergence that doesn’t exist in reality…. That’s probably the true power of the Heavenly Secret Artifact – Hang-a.”

“……”

The warning sounded raised waves of uncertainty in my mind.

Zhuge Sa went on.

“The [Knot] began the moment you died at the Tower of Heaven to Hang Yu. Right now, you and I exist within a [dream].”

“`

 

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