전생검신 1755화

Offering?

I felt a tinge of unease at Je-gang’s words and glanced at him.

“What do you mean by offering all of a sudden? If the threads of cause and effect lead out, can’t I just go out like this?”

[The creation of a thread gives you a basis to leave this place, but… you still lack the strength to break through the wall. Of course, having that basis means the required power has significantly decreased…]

After mulling over Je-gang’s words, I responded.

“Huh? Are you saying that even with my current divine power, I’m still lacking?”

[The void you’re in was directly sealed by the Outer Gods… The fact that there’s even a chance to break the seal is a cosmic miracle…]

“Umm.”

He had a point. If this was a place directly sealed by the Outer Gods, it’s only natural that I couldn’t break through, even with divine power close to that of a deity.

Suddenly, something clicked in my mind, and I asked.

“So… if I were to offer something, it means the conditions to escape this void would ease up?”

[Exactly… If you had no basis, whether you offer something or not, you would be stuck here until the universe comes to an end. But now that you have one, if you offer something substantial, the Outer Gods will let you out…]

‘…’

Feeling completely absurd, I exclaimed.

“But what am I supposed to offer? There’s nothing here!”

That’s the issue.

This void is literally in the middle of the universe! There’s no water, air, or earth. If I were outside in the world, I could rummage around and find something to offer, but here, there’s nothing at all.

Then Je-gang said,

[That’s for you to figure out… I’m merely here to assist you in leaving as quickly as possible…]

“Ugh… An offering…”

While frowning, I suddenly looked at the numerous spirit bodies sleeping in the empty darkness around me. They were hidden in the shadows, not glowing at all.

“Could those spirit bodies be offered?”

Sure, there’s nothing here, but when you think about it, what exists in this void is just me, Je-gang, and the numerous spirit bodies.

So, if I were to offer a spirit body, wouldn’t that solve the problem?

Je-gang expressionlessly replied,

[That’s your decision… But you’ll need consent from the other party.]

He didn’t seem to have any intention of stopping me from offering a spirit body. But I couldn’t help but retort in disbelief.

“What? Who’s going to agree to be offered?”

[That’s beyond my knowledge…]

I shot a glare at the cluster of spirit bodies in the distance.

“What are those spirit bodies even doing? Why are they hiding and sleeping in this void?”

That’s still a puzzler!

I only knew that within those spirit bodies lay an unknown soul of the abyss, but I had no idea why they were hiding or what they were. Contacting unknown entities is definitely risky, so I had no choice but to ask Je-gang first.

Je-gang replied,

[You’ll have to find out for yourself… I’m merely the caretaker here and don’t know everything that’s inside the spirit bodies…]

[Everything? So that means you do know some things.]

[…There are a few spirit bodies that I specifically monitor.]

After saying that, Je-gang floated effortlessly in the air and continued.

[Among the spirit bodies visible to you, none are under my special management, so… proceed as you see fit.]

‘…’

Je-gang, the caretaker of the void, has special spirit bodies under his management?

I was filled with curiosity, but I shook my head,

“Hmm… My own business comes first.”

There’s a lot going on, but the purpose of this reincarnation arc is to [obtain Chi You’s body]! To achieve that, I need to get out of this void quickly. I couldn’t afford to get sidetracked by my curiosity and forget my main goal.

“Shall I try talking to one?”

Muttering to myself, I selected a nearby spirit body and approached it, then casually initiated a conversation.

“Hey there! Sorry to wake you up while you’re asleep, but would you like to hear me out?”

Boom!

Suddenly, a brilliant, shining eye popped open on the spirit body, emitting an overwhelming glow. The shine was intense, so I quickly conjured a barrier with my divine power to block it. Once I shielded my eyes from the blinding shine, I continued.

“Who are you and what are you doing here?”

…

There seemed to be no response, but after a moment, an answer slowly echoed in my mind.

<<I don't know.>>

…?

It wasn’t a spoken language or divine language; it was like pure intent resonating within my head. This felt oddly reminiscent of a realm of martial arts known as ‘mind communication,’ and I blinked in surprise. I hadn’t expected to communicate like this.

Regardless, it seemed we could communicate, so I pressed on.

“I’m Baek Woong. Nice to meet you.”

<<Baek Woong...>>

It seemed the being was trying to memorize my name, mumbling to itself. I watched it and then said,

“I’m looking to leave this void, but I need an offering… uh…”

I hesitated, realizing that what I was about to suggest felt off. Ultimately, what I wanted to ask was if it would agree to be offered as a sacrifice.

What kind of crazy person would agree to being offered up?

Oh hell… I should’ve thought it through before approaching…

As I hesitated, the spirit body surprisingly spoke up.

<<Do you wish to use me as an offering...?>>

Gasp! Did it just catch wind of what I was planning?!

I had thought it was dull, just sleeping there, but apparently, that assumption was wrong.

Feeling embarrassed that my true intentions had been revealed, I scratched my head.

“Uh, no, I don’t have to use you specifically… I mean, if there’s another way, I’d like to find that.”

<<Fine...>>

“What?”

<<You can use me as an offering.>>

‘…!’

Wait?! Are you really agreeing to this?!

As I gaped in shock, the spirit body continued.

<<But... I want you to find my lost name...>>

“What? Your lost name? Does that mean you don’t have a name right now?”

<<Exactly... I've forgotten who I was... even what my name was... If you find my name for me, I’ll gladly become an offering...>>

‘…’

I was perplexed and said to the spirit body.

“Listen, being offered means you’ll die or cease to exist! What’s the use of finding a name in that case?”

<<Either way, this place is no different from a forgotten dumpster of the universe... It’s not much different to sleep here until the end of the universe or to cease to exist...>>

‘…’

<<And even if all matter ceases, the law of cause and effect remains... as do the obligations of the contract...>>

While the spirit body was saying cryptic things, its eyes flickered with light.

<<If you find my name... I could become your divine army!>>

It showed unexpectedly strong willingness.

I felt a bit confused watching the spirit body’s attitude.

“What the…?”

This being really didn’t seem afraid of being offered. Moreover, it didn’t consider being offered and ceasing to exist as the end at all! But based on what I’ve seen and experienced until now, common sense dictates that someone who is offered up completely disappears. Thus, I couldn’t quite comprehend the spirit body’s behavior.

In fact, if it were offered up, it would cease to exist, meaning it would lose the very subject that could find its name, so I wouldn’t even be obligated to fulfill my end. What a ridiculous situation! Yet the spirit body seemed to rationalize it all.

Regardless, it was clear that our understandings matched at this moment. I nodded and said,

“Alright. It’s a promise. But wait a minute, I need a bit of preparation…”

<<Understood...>>

The spirit body slowly closed its eyes. I stared at it for a while and sighed.

“Phew.”

[That’s impressive!]

Suddenly, Je-gang exclaimed in awe. I turned to him and asked.

“What’s so impressive now?”

[Most spirit bodies refuse to even converse with me… Apart from that, most entities in the universe struggle to communicate with spirit bodies in general… Establishing any form of communication with them is nearly impossible for even the gods… Yet you managed to converse with a spirit body and earn its strong favor…]

‘…’

[Baek Woong… you truly are a prodigy born for the path of demons.]

How is speaking with a spirit body such a big deal?

I received another compliment, but I couldn’t grasp what was so impressive, so I tilted my head in confusion. Regardless, what mattered to me right now was not this, so I turned a deaf ear to Je-gang’s words,

“Anyway, hang tight. I need to prepare.”

[Are you planning to train the knowledge of ‘offering’ from the Necronomicon?]

I smirked.

“Sharp as a tack, aren’t you? Well, knowing more can’t hurt, right?”

I could have offered the spirit body right then, but what sprung to mind was the five great realms mentioned in the Necronomicon.

Suin, Offering, Desire, Command, Incantation!

I had obtained the No-name Stage in Suin, yet the other four realms remained a mystery. Even so, I didn’t want to waste time, so I aimed to find a way out first, but then I happened upon the mention of “offering.” Given that, it made sense to look up the magical knowledge regarding “offering” contained in the Necronomicon.

Fortunately, the knowledge granted to me by the Necronomicon was already embedded somewhere in my mind, and it included training methods related to “offering”. According to the Necronomicon, I would accumulate power through that knowledge and training methods to achieve the realm of offerings.

“Hmm…”

I closed my eyes and strained to bring those memories to the forefront while gradually maximizing my concentration. After a while of searching, I stumbled upon an unexpected piece of knowledge, causing me to jump.

<<There exists a method to retrieve what has been offered, known as the Outer Heaven Sect, the greatest taboo of the Three Thousand Worlds and the Evil Thousand Deeds.>>

…!

Could the Outer Heaven Sect… be the higher realm of “Offering”?!

I felt something inside me blazing with a hot intensity as I read through that knowledge.

<<Generally, offerings made to divine beings cannot be reclaimed. It’s like when a person eats and swallows fruit; once swallowed, the original form is lost. However, the Outer Heaven Sect’s secrets make the impossible possible, and the principle can be described as Reverse Deeds...>>

Reverse Deeds?

<<To apply the principle of Reverse Deeds, a practitioner must deeply understand original sin and karma. However, many offering attempts often fail to meet one essential condition: their heart must not be corrupted by evil. Meeting this condition for at least 30 offering attempts is not easy...>>

…

I feel like I’ve met that condition…

<<Is the essential condition met? If so, there’s a second requirement, and you must follow the next training method.>>

I spent quite some time reading and studying the “training method.” After studying so thoroughly that I believed I had memorized everything, I finally began training. Training the ways of demon magic required caution; one wrong step could make it impossible to turn back. Especially since the Necronomicon wasn’t using the No-name Stage to enlighten me right now, I had to be even more careful.

Alright. Time to start training.

Wooong

I raised my hands, channeling magic and Qi into spherical shapes. I sat cross-legged and bit my lip.

“Training in the Three Wheels… begins now!”

Bang!

The next moment, the spheres of magic and Qi from my hands swapped places. It looked like a simple position swap, but I was caught off guard as a sharp pain coursed through me, as if my inner essence had burst.

“Cough!”

Why on earth is my essence being harmed just by switching positions?

The reason was that I had sacrificed my own essence’s “durability” as a cost for swapping positions.

I mumbled hesitantly.

“I see… just wishing to sacrifice ‘durability’ would actually accomplish that…”

Interestingly, the question loomed – who exactly was the ‘essence’s durability’ offered to?

Of course, the training method explained this as well, so I moved on to the next step.

“Haa!”

Wooong!

In the next moment, the magic flowed into the injured area of my essence, swiftly repairing the damage. I grinned at the sight of this process.

“Wow, it actually works!”

Why is this possible? Because the ‘durability’ had been infused with ‘magic.’

Since it was an offering, the reception of power could happen without side effects.

Training in the Three Wheels.

It involved rotating the three distinct powers: the magic sphere, the Qi sphere, and the physical body, in a cycle between them.

Durability goes to Qi, Qi goes to magic, and magic goes back into durability.

They each take turns paying a price, which is their pure ‘power’ itself.

In other words – power offers power in an infinite cycle!

I couldn’t have imagined that there would be such a method for training the Path of Offering, which left me in awe of the Necronomicon’s wisdom.

Wooong

I continued the cycle of power infusion with a strong intent to offer to each of those powers. The Necronomicon had stated that thought power was essential, but it was also mentioned that intent could replace it. I kept recalling the contents of the knowledge while circulating my powers.

<<Through training in the Three Wheels, the total amount of power a practitioner holds does not increase. However, the cycle must not be interrupted. What matters is the number of cycles, accumulating an infinite trajectory. When the practitioner reaches a level in training, they can employ many things using the Three Wheels' trajectory.>>

<<As long as offerings are directed outward, they cannot escape the limits of the finite. If you genuinely seek to pursue the ultimate depths of the Path of Offering, you must offer your own true self and create an infinite flow. That is Reverse Deeds.>>

In the next sentence, I grasped just what advantages awaited at the end of this realm.

<<In the future, breaking down the boundaries of self and others to merge them into your Three Wheels... that is the only taboo of the Outer Heaven Sect from which you can retrieve your offerings.>>

Wooong!

I began to spin the Three Wheels more quickly and violently upon realizing that this training resembled something I already knew.

“This is… really similar to the training of Sephiroth!”

The words of the Archangel Seraphim echoed in my mind.

[You dedicated your strong life force to the World Tree Sephiroth. It can be said that your arrival at this Malchut was acknowledged because of that merit.]

That’s right. Unlike typical Sephiroth practitioners, I had trained by converting my own life force into magic without offering up others. By utilizing techniques like the Thunder Dragon One Qi Technique and Internal Energy Cultivation Techniques to condense that life force, I had continuously dedicated it to the World Tree. Though I had repeated that mindlessly, I had never sacrificed another being.

This training of the Three Wheels was, besides a minor difference in method, oddly akin to the training of Sephiroth. A conversion of the form of power into an offering, sustaining an infinite flow, isn’t that the same? Maybe that’s why I was quickly getting used to the Three Wheels, just like when I trained in Sephiroth.

Though the difference was that… the end result of the flowing power didn’t go to the World Tree but remained within myself.

Wooong

The sound gradually morphed to one resembling the buzzing of a beehive. This was due to the increase in speed at which I offered power while rotating the Three Wheels. I became more immersed in training, feeling like I had three distinct points existing within me, sending waves of immense power that roiled like an ocean.

During this immersion, I suddenly realized that the Three Wheels I was training in had extended slightly more. It was just a minuscule amount, but the rotation had begun to reach beyond my body, stretching out toward the exterior.

Boom!

In that moment, my focus broke, and I opened my eyes. I stopped training, dazedly gazing at my essence’s hands and muttering.

“Could it be… the Outer Heaven Sect…?”

I glanced up at the spirit body way off in the distance. Then I quickly crossed over and placed my hands on it.

With wide eyes, I pulled the Three Wheels back out.

Wooong…!

In that moment, I felt the powerful energy flowing from the Three Wheels intertwining with the spirit body through my palm. And gradually, the edges of the Three Wheels began to squirm, pushing forward, penetrating into the spirit body.

‘……!’

I was worried that the spirit body might react painfully and retaliate, but it showed no signs of disturbance and even kept its eyes closed. It seemed it wasn’t hurt or damaged in any way. As the power of the Three Wheels seeped into the body of the spirit body, I suddenly felt a strange sensation, as if my palm was melting away.

Sizzle

“Ah… ugh!”

I let out a muffled sound.

My palm felt like it had fused and become one with the spirit body. Simultaneously, I felt a surge of divine power belonging to it flowing into my body.

“Ugh!”

I quickly halted the circulation of the Three Wheels and withdrew my hand.

I shuddered.

What a ludicrous sensation of merging!

“So… that’s how it is… the Outer Heaven Sect is…”

I grasped the higher arcana of the Path of Offering, the Outer Heaven Sect, and shivered with excitement.

Breaking down the boundaries with the one I offered to, merging with [myself], it’s a realm where I can reclaim what I have offered!

It’s no mystery that reclaiming what’s been offered is not odd when it’s being returned to [myself].