전생검신 90권 16화

But no matter how much I tried to deny it in my heart, the guy was spitting out facts that only a ‘Reborn Person’ from the past could know.

‘The truth is right, but… it’s hard to accept…’

In the end, I couldn’t hold back the resonance in my heart and yelled out.

“You can’t be… the Reborn Person!! Why in the world is there ‘Yuso’ and ‘Young Girl’ appearing in the Takrok Era? Does that make sense to you?!”

“……”

Tsukuyomi fell silent for a moment before replying.

“Must’ve made a deal, huh?”

“What?”

What do you mean, you just struck a deal out of nowhere?

As I blinked in confusion and stared at Tsukuyomi, he smirked ominously.

“You’ve made a deal with the Book, haven’t you…? For reasons unknown, but… you must have struck a deal and received the proposition…”

“……”

I flinched.

I couldn’t help but be surprised by Tsukuyomi’s words because he was spot on.

‘The deal with the Heavenly Secret…!!’

I still vividly remembered it.

[Merit – Be reborn three times or more within ten years.

Reward – Extending the Training World for 1000 years.]

The merit that the Heavenly Secret presented to me when I trained with Lee Gang-ryong! I wasn’t particularly attracted to the reward itself, but since it was almost the first time the Heavenly Secret directly proposed something to me, I decided to accept it after much discussion. After all, I was entangled in all kinds of issues and had a strong desire to resolve them all at once like a hot knife through butter.

‘How on earth?’

But for Tsukuyomi to guess that I made a deal with the Book!

When I looked at him in a panic, Tsukuyomi calmly said.

“Your expression says it all. If it weren’t true, it’d be hard for such chaos to shatter my omniscience so abruptly…”

“What? The Heavenly Secret broke through your omniscience?”

“Not exactly that, but it has touched the causal law so that it spurs your actions… Didn’t you feel like you were the only protagonist in the world, with all events unfolding just for you?”

“……”

“The direct cause might be another ability unique to you, but… the mere existence of the Book affects all surrounding conditions related to Reborn Persons. I’ve experienced it myself.”

“That makes no sense!! What have you experienced?!”

I shouted back at Tsukuyomi, who seemed to know everything, but I hesitated at his next words.

“Baek Woong, you’ve been proposed a merit by the Book.”

“……!!”

“The way to get rewards is by exercising the merit it suggested… So it’s a very straightforward exercise of the causal law, doing tasks to get rewards… Am I wrong?”

“Uh… how…”

“Planning to ask how I know? The reason isn’t as complex as you think.”

Tsukuyomi looked at me with a hint of malice in his smile.

“I too… used that merit to build strength as a Reborn Person! Do you not know what it means that I have endured the same as you?”

“……!!”

“How many times have you exercised the merit? I’ve done it over ten times, and each time I’ve gained something that wouldn’t have been obtainable through normal rebirth… You get the idea?”

“……”

I could only fall silent. Because he nailed it so perfectly, I could no longer deny the fact of being a Reborn Person.

He must have been a Reborn Person who once possessed the Book.

But because of that, I was even more reluctant to acknowledge it, and I replied to Tsukuyomi.

“…Okay, let’s say you were a Reborn Person. But just like you said earlier… why on earth did you butt into my previous life with omniscience and omnipotence in the past of the [Great Cycle]? Doesn’t being a Reborn Person mean…”

When I couldn’t finish my sentence, Tsukuyomi interjected.

“You’re curious if this is the end for a Reborn Person.”

“……”

“Sorry to break it to you, but… neither of us is that special. We may have felt like the center of the world as Reborn Persons, but there are those who have experienced the Book before us. The gap with them is beyond your imagination. And as Reborn Persons reach their peak, they inevitably feel the need to overcome the Outer God itself.”

“Outer God…”

“But you can’t overcome it by strength. You will quickly realize the futility no matter how many times you try. Even if you can easily overthrow an ordinary divine being, they are on a different level… Thus, the ultimate challenge becomes overcoming the trials of the Book itself.”

“Trials of the Book?”

Tsukuyomi nodded slowly.

“The one who overcomes the trial at the core of the Heavenly Secret’s heart, the [Gate], will gain unprecedented power. It’s a kind of special power that can’t be obtained just by repeatedly being reborn…”

As I listened to Tsukuyomi’s words, memories of the past [Gate] resurfaced.

[Let me tell you my hypothesis. The entity that opens that [Gate] and enters inside becomes the next Reborn Person. Or if you enter directly, you’ll achieve ascension.]

[Reborn Person, have you realized the merit of life and death?]

[If not, I advise you to turn back. With the current strength you possess, even I cannot win.]

[Hoh… Have you truly come here knowing that… then… I must say, you’ve reached here with quite remarkable strength for someone so lowly… You might be the fastest challenger to arrive here…!]

[As a fellow being, I urge you to turn back, for this trial is beyond your level.]

Those were the words of Naila Top, who invaded the Heavenly Secret to open the [Gate], and the previous Reborn Person, the Great Master.

Their words flashed in my mind, and I reflected on them moments I hadn’t taken seriously back then.

‘…I thought the Great Master treated me dismissively, but really he was just stating the obvious.’

The trial of the Heavenly Secret at its peak was about striving for a special power through the limits of being a Reborn Person. But how many reincarnations must it take to feel the limits of strength?

It was a trial for the ultimate challenge, and the Great Master had reacted with disbelief to my current power, which was only the 30th reincarnation.

At the same time, I recalled the words the Great Master had said after the trial ended.

[Indeed. If someone as weak as you faces the second trial and loses instantly to the Trial Master, what do you think will happen?]

[The real importance lies in the ability of that Trial Master to initiate a new rebirth.]

[The desires of Transcendents exist in dimensions we cannot fathom, capable of causing disasters that make what you’ve considered hell seem trivial.]

[…In any case, I see. You don’t really know what a challenger gains, do you?]

[That’s correct.]

Reflecting on my conversations with the Great Master, I opened my mouth.

For now, it was necessary to lead him to express what he knew.

“…Wasn’t the trial of the [Gate] merely aiming for ascension? And I just came out…”

At my words, Tsukuyomi jerked a little.

“What? Could it be you didn’t challenge it knowing what it was?”

“Yeah. I managed to somehow defeat the first Trial Master and just came out…”

“The trial of the [Gate] is structured such that each trial unlocks new strength. In other words, by passing the first barrier, you also gained something special as a reward.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Don’t you even realize it yourself? But I can guess what you obtained… that very ability with which you broke my omniscience…”

Tsukuyomi chuckled, seemingly amused.

“Ahaha… the 30th reincarnator easily defeats the final trial of the [Gate], but doesn’t even know what reward they have gained? Is that how you took me down?”

“No…”

“No need for any backhanded compliments here. It’d be odd for you to not realize something that trivial, right? There must’ve been many Reborn Persons, but someone as strange as you is likely a first.”

“……”

What the heck…?

Hearing such comments from a previous Reborn Person, I couldn’t tell if it was a good thing or a bad thing.

‘Regardless… I think I get it now.’

The first Trial Master, the Great Master, seemed concerned about me, a weakling, giving the previous Reborn Person a “chance.” Also, the Great Master, who sought only the True Martial Home, hadn’t challenged the [Gate], so they only knew the rewards of the Trial Master but not those of the challenger.

However, I seemed to have come to realize through my conversation with Tsukuyomi.

‘The reward for the Trial Master is a new opportunity for rebirth… In contrast, the challenger gains a special force to become stronger with each victory received from the Heavenly Secret!’

Was the structure of the [Gate] trials like that!

‘No wonder if the Great Master’s words seemed odd since the challenger was at a distinct disadvantage…!!’

One must be strong enough to be readily considered a challenger –

Which meant the rewards one gains as a challenger must also be huge enough for such powerful beings to covet them!

And though uncertain, it seemed the [reward] I received back then was crucial in dealing with omniscience like Tsukuyomi.

As I was lost in confusion, Tsukuyomi commented.

“I challenged that [Gate] you mentioned. And I’ve faced it several times, but in the end, I met the Demon Emperor and was defeated.”

“The Demon Emperor…”

“That one is on another level. They did not become a Trial Master of the Heavenly Secret because of lack of strength to fight against the Outer God…”

At that moment.

Huuwaah!!

Suddenly, a surge of dark energy appeared, sealing Tsukuyomi’s mouth. It was as if a translucent Hand of Darkness was forcefully pressing him down.

“……!!”

Shwoop.

Moments later, the translucent darkness dissipated. Tsukuyomi suddenly seemed to have lost significant vitality, as his voice became hoarse.

“Haah… ha… hehe… yeah… that’s right… Even if the position of a Reborn Person is dropped, the rule of not leaking trial information remains unchanged… Ahaha…”

It seemed the Heavenly Secret was preventing Tsukuyomi from discussing the trials.

I swallowed hard, witnessing the power of the Heavenly Secret.

“…What on earth is the Heavenly Secret? How can it grant such ridiculous power to its users?”

To be able to reincarnate and reverse the [Great Cycle]… to even suppress a Reborn Person who was already eliminated at will.

Could any Demon Artifact in the world achieve such a thing?

When I posed my biggest question to Tsukuyomi, he chuckled slyly.

“Would I have ended up like this if I knew? Hehe…”

“……”

“What’s certain is… if you lose as an active Reborn Person, you’ll end up like me!”

“Like you…”

“At the moment of defeat, your spirit and body will be torn apart. You’ll lose all your power and memories, absorbed by the chaos before creation, wandering through an eternity… You can’t understand how cruel that suffering and obliteration of existence really is…”

“……!!”

I felt a chill run down my spine at that moment.

‘…I must have been crazy!!’

It wasn’t merely losing the powers of a Reborn Person but facing such a horrifying plight!

If I had known the ‘cost’ Tsukuyomi mentioned, I surely would’ve been too scared to challenge the trials of the [Gate]!

Tsukuyomi continued.

“The reason I was revived in the Takrok Era after failing as a Reborn Person… and why I’m split between omniscience and omnipotence… that I don’t know either. It was only after I came here with omniscience as Tsukuyomi that I could resurrect my sealed memories.”

“Ugh.”

“However, there’s one thing I now suspect.”

I felt my ears perk up at Tsukuyomi’s words.

“What is it?!”

What Tsukuyomi said next was so bizarre that I wondered if I had misheard.

“It’s because of the Book.”

“…What?”

“Where did your situation start to go wrong? If it had merely bounced off into the Outer Universe, you would’ve dealt with it more reasonably. But with someone like Naila Top interfering and breaking into the interior of the Book, your terminal was inevitably rewound to the past in the [Great Cycle].”

“……”

“But… have you ever thought that the situation itself was instigated by the Book…?”

The Heavenly Secret?!

Caught off guard by the unexpected statement, Tsukuyomi continued.

“You ended up accepting a deal presented by the Book, which is why your situation turned favorable… Can’t you see that the Book intended all this?”

“…Are you saying that…”

I barely grasped Tsukuyomi’s words, speaking up.

“Simply… to establish a merit contract between the Heavenly Secret and me… the Heavenly Secret resurrected you and intended to lead us to this situation?”

“That’s correct.”

“Does that even make sense?! What kind of piddling deal is that… All I got for agreeing to the Heavenly Secret’s request was a mere extension of the Training World for a thousand years! You’re telling me it did all this for that nonsense?!!”

Stunned, I looked at Tsukuyomi, who suddenly burst into brilliant laughter.

“Ahaha… Do you know what it means to be alive…? Among the countless flows of cycles, being a tale-bearer through the hands of numerous Reborn Persons who become the source of various calamities… do you understand the absurdity in that?”

“……!!”

“It’s like being drenched in light rain… You fall under the spell of the power granted by the Book… and in the end, you’ll reach the [Gate]… that’s how you’re being guided…”

A shiver coursed through me like lightning struck my brain.

‘If… what that jerk said is true…’

Is the Heavenly Secret not just some monster?

Just to establish a contract of merit with me, Tsukuyomi clearly used this entire cycle for its purposes?

But because it seemed so unbelievable, I couldn’t help but refute Tsukuyomi’s words at that moment.

“You’re making some wild leaps! It kinda sounds plausible, but it’s all just conjecture! Especially since I can’t ever believe what you’ve tried to kill me with until now!”

“Ahaha… Ahahahaha…!!”

At my fierce shout, Tsukuyomi erupted in insane laughter. He then said,

“Don’t you get it? I’m already done for! I’ve become the enemy of a Reborn Person, so I’ll either be reborn to take revenge or trampled! Or I’ll be forgotten for countless eons without even a thought! I know the fate of a loser!”

“……!!”

Tsukuyomi’s eyes had a slight bloodshot hue.

“Since it’s already over… I just wanted you to know how monstrous and terrifying the Heavenly Secret really is… Either way, I can’t avoid destruction, but I wouldn’t want to see you so easily caught by the Heavenly Secret after defeating me… Ahahaha!!”

“……”

This is utterly ridiculous.

If there’s any common sense, you’d think he’d be just spouting absurd spaghetti.

There’s absolutely no reason for me to believe what he says, someone who hates me like that.

More likely, this is highly likely a scheme to wreck my plans with malevolence.

But…

‘I think it might be true.’

Strangely enough, the instincts of a Reborn Person were sympathizing with what he said. Those outrageous claims were ringing alarms within my life as a Reborn Person, which suggested something was off about the behavior of the Heavenly Secret.

After all…

No matter how powerful Naila Top equaled an Emperor, how could he so easily infiltrate the core of the Heavenly Secret?

Could this have been possible even with superior technology?

The reason that it could happen must have been thanks to the tacit approval of the Heavenly Secret, right?

And with Naila Top messing about, I was forced to rewind the [Great Cycle]… the consequence of my actions was…

“……”

While I remained silent, Tsukuyomi grinned slyly.

“Ahaha… You’ve spilled a ton of information that would harm the Heavenly Secret, yet unlike before, the Heavenly Secret isn’t silencing me now, curious why? It’s because they’re certain that you’ll ultimately follow the will of the Heavenly Secret… No matter how many thousands of times you reincarnate, you will still rely upon the Heavenly Secret…”

“That’s nonsense.”

“Baek Woong, lacking power, you had no choice but to con people among the countless [Old Rulers]… And you deceived the Primordial Void Ruler as well… You can’t even imagine how frustrating it is for a Reborn Person to be powerless and unable to do anything…”

“……”

“You’re ultimately going to become like me. You’ll think you can control the Heavenly Secret, but you’ll fall for their temptations. And a predictable conclusion will follow.”

Tsukuyomi’s words sounded like a curse or prophecy. The tone he used could only be articulated by someone who had lived the life of a Reborn Person, and his words resonated in my heart.

I paused for a moment and then suddenly said to Tsukuyomi,

“Is that something you said because you’ve experienced it too? You heard warnings about the dangers of the Heavenly Secret while you were reincarnating and still challenged the [Gate], right?”

“……!!”

At my jab, Tsukuyomi flinched for a moment. Then he grinned.

“Are you expecting any different?”

“I am different. I’m not reincarnating for my own selfish desires like you.”

“……?”

Tsukuyomi looked at me as if seeing some crazy notion.

Then he said,

“What? I thought you were just a rookie on your 30th reincarnation, but… are you still moving around based on some delusional sense of justice in this world?”

His tone sounded more incredulous than derisive. It seemed my thoughts were being taken offset as odd to a Reborn Person.

I said coldly in response to Tsukuyomi’s words.

“If my sense of justice was just nonsense, I wouldn’t have come this far. I have found my own path.”

“Your own path? You’re not actually saying you intend to truly rescue the world from chaos, are you?”

“……”

“Isn’t it funny? I had no idea there’d be another bumbling figure like that monk. I thought your Reborn companions were just playing with that concept, but you were serious?”

I replied defiantly.

“No matter what you say, I’m going to achieve it.”

“Haah… ha… hahahahahaha.”

In this empty-sounding place.

Tsukuyomi looked at me like I was a madman and said,

“I knew two of the most powerful Reborn Persons, and even they couldn’t do it, yet you think someone like you could hope to succeed?”

“That’s the plan.”

“Ahaha. No need to see it coming. You’re like that guy who took a detour and thought he could create his own world out of a model garden, huh? Feel free to do that…”

Who the heck is that guy? What kind of nonsense is this…

I muttered inwardly, but in response to Tsukuyomi’s mockery, I shot back,

“I won’t tell you my ideals. Do you know what the most certain truth here is? I won, and you lost.”

“……!!”

“That you’re a loser!”

“This punk…”

It was a concise remark, but Tsukuyomi’s face scrunched up. Seeing his reaction, I wore a sly smile inwardly.

‘This is it.’

No matter how many insults you throw, the truth of victory and defeat cannot change.

Just by affirming my victory, I could easily squash Tsukuyomi who stood opposite me.

And since I wasn’t satisfied with just feeling victorious, I slowly opened my mouth.

“If you want, I can share my path as a Reborn Person.”

It was my first time meeting another Reborn Person outside of the Great Master. Maybe that’s why I felt a desire to tell Tsukuyomi what I had been contemplating.

He was one of the few who understood this endlessly repetitive cycle of rebirth, so even as an enemy, it felt necessary to get this off my chest.

“What do you mean? Planning to practice something like the True Martial Home? Do you think that’s the answer?”

Tsukuyomi mocked me, but I slowly shook my head and replied.

“Because of you… or perhaps, maybe because of the Heavenly Secret, I’ve wandered quite a bit in this life. But because of that, I’ve come to feel something about my own path.”

“……”

“I won’t think too much about overly complicated and large alternatives. My abilities and even my companions are just being swept up by the situation. Therefore, my goal has been simplified.”

That was what I felt during this 30th life.

The more I pursued tranquility, the more chaotic time and space became, as if everything was intertwined.

It could also be seen as a blunder that resulted from my arrogance in attempting to maintain the status quo without any real goal.

“…What’s the goal?”

At that, Tsukuyomi spoke with a hint of curiosity, and I grinned.

“I’ll become the Sword God and meet the Martial God.”

“……?!”

“How’s that? Pretty simple, right?”

The initial goal had been to become the Sword God. I had already resolved to do that during my confrontation with the Universe Sword Saint, Ajidahaka.

Furthermore, to be meeting the Martial God as the Sword God!

There could be no more concrete goal than that.

‘I’ve got to face the Evil God… I’ve got to confront the Emperor too…’

Even in a situation where such formidable opponents abound, I had trained to endure through this 30th reincarnation.

Wanting to meet the Martial God as the Sword God was an ambition I was entitled to hold.

At that, Tsukuyomi responded in disbelief.

“Martial God…? Why would you want to meet that illusion? You don’t acknowledge that something like warfare can’t possibly affect a cosmic being?”

“Who knows. Whether it’s an illusion or not… I’ll have to meet them first to decide, right?”

“Such a waste of time.”

This jerk?

Pow!

At that moment, I punched Tsukuyomi in the face. He had been all talk and no action, and I was tired of it.

Tsukuyomi spat out blood.

“Ugh… this punk…”

I roared at him.

“Shut it! What I want to do is none of your business!”

“You punk… how can a Reborn Person who’s gone through dozens of cycles be such a…”

Tsukuyomi looked at me as if I had lost my mind, but I ignored his reaction and clenched my fist.

“You’ve never met the Martial God, have you? You can’t say you know anything without experiencing it yourself!”

“……”

“I’m gonna meet them!”

At my words, Tsukuyomi seemed furious and pursed his lips. Then he spoke in a sharp tone.

“Even if you do meet them, it won’t amount to anything! If they possess something beyond the Divine Skill, then why hasn’t the balance of power in the world shifted? That’s why I have no interest in martial arts!”

A flicker of realization broke through my mind at Tsukuyomi’s words.

‘Hmm… is this the norm for Reborn Persons to think this way?’

Both the Great Master and this guy seemed to undervalue martial arts. It was understandable, considering the limits of power gained through magic and divine authority were overwhelmingly superior compared to martial arts. They probably saw me, aspiring to reach the Martial God by diligently practicing martial arts, as a madman.

I collected my emotions and calmly said,

“There may indeed be nothing to gain when we meet.”

“Of course. Then what will you do?”

“What will I do?”

In response, Tsukuyomi suddenly froze.

“By then, I’ll become the Martial God.”

“……”

Tsukuyomi couldn’t hide his incredulous expression, but I was sincere.

So I gathered my resolve even further in my heart.

‘Whether the Martial God exists or not, I have no choice but to go all the way.’

Is saving the world all there is?

Will everything end once I resolve the grievance of the True Martial Home?

No… even then, life continues.

And the life that I live is a life of martial arts.

As long as there’s life, I cannot give up – in the end, I just want to see it through to the end.

Through countless years of training in the Training World, that desire only grew more urgent.

Thus, whether the Martial God exists or not no longer mattered.

I had decided to go on. No matter who was at the end of that path.