전생검신 Volume 98 Chapter 5

Jin So-cheong as the Emperor?!

I was flailing a bit, struggling to understand Zhuge Yulong’s totally out-of-the-blue proposal. I thought hard for a while, but it didn’t make sense, and after a brief silence, I finally blurted out to Zhuge Yulong.

“What do you mean? What difference does it make if Jin So-cheong becomes the Emperor in this situation?”

“You probably already know this since you’re a reborn person, but Jin So-cheong has a much higher claim to the throne than the current Emperor, Zhu Hu Chong.”

“Ah, right.”

Zhuge Yulong’s words jogged my memory. Indeed, it was originally the case that the war hero Jin Cheon-hwi was the first in line for the throne, but after his sudden death, Jin So-cheong still ranked higher than Zhu Hu Chong.

‘Master of Zen was the first to tell me that fact.’

However, I never really grasped the meaning of that until now, so I decided to ask.

“I’ve been curious about this—what do you mean that the current Emperor lacks legitimacy?”

“Originally, Zhu Hu Chong was pretty far down the line. There were at least twenty-five other claimants above him.”

“…Twenty-five? How did he even become Emperor then?”

I was dumbfounded. Generally, one would expect only those within the top ten in the succession order to even think about it, but there were over twenty-five people ahead of Zhu Hu Chong? This was ridiculous!

Then Zhuge Yulong’s next statement shocked me.

“I had them all killed.”

“…?!”

“The one who appointed Zhu Hu Chong as the next Emperor eliminated everyone above him in the order, so he just kind of became Emperor by default. Of course, only a select few know this, and outwardly, they’re all reported as having died of illness or gone missing.”

“What the… who did such a thing?!”

“Me.”

“……”

Huh?

As I made a rather bewildered face, Mangnyang, who was standing next to me, let out a short sigh.

“Ha! The royal blood of the Great Ming Empire wasn’t incompetent, and they were all quite skilled… so the only one Zhuge Yulong could manipulate was the greedy little brat that is Zhu Hu Chong. So Zhuge Yulong assassinated them all.”

“Gah…?”

Wait, seriously?

I looked at Zhuge Yulong in disbelief and exclaimed.

“You madman! Why would you do something like that? You really are an evil bastard!”

“I can’t deny it. However, what I want is to use the Great Ming Empire to destroy the Celestial Realm and save humanity, so I thought of it as a sacrifice for a greater good.”

“……”

…Right. Even though I’m reluctantly cooperating now, this guy was originally a great evil that needed to be killed, wasn’t he?

Suddenly, I recalled something Lee Kwang had said in the past.

[Shut up, Vermilion Bird! Didn’t you kill the previous Sovereign?!]

[Isn’t it obvious that that cruel bastard Zhu Hu Chong had the previous Sovereign killed, and you just stood by and watched?! Did you think I didn’t notice that your Zhuge Clan had their own schemes while pretending to uphold the integrity of the throne?! You’re the real traitor, the monster that’s ruining the Great Ming Empire!]

That was right. At the time, I thought Lee Kwang’s words were just venting frustration, but looking back now, his intuitive guess was completely accurate. Lee Kwang seemed to have vaguely sensed that Zhuge Yulong had murdered all the royals.

I cautiously repeated Lee Kwang’s words.

“…Just to confirm, did Zhu Hu Chong kill the previous Emperor? And did you stand by and watch?”

“Yes.”

“Ha! So everything Lee Kwang suspected was spot on.”

“He was always sharp as a tack. Among the Four Great Experts of the Imperial Palace, he was the fastest thinker. If he hadn’t retired to the countryside, I would have assassinated him.”

I shook my head.

“Anyway, that’s not the point. I didn’t partner up with someone like you who is clearly evil. So what changes if you make Jin So-cheong the Emperor and you end up assassinated by the Eight Parts of the Divine and the Alchemists?”

“It’s quite simple. If you lend me the National Seal for a bit, that’s all it takes.”

“National Seal?”

Why?

I was puzzled, but Zhuge Yulong continued.

“From what I understand, the National Seal requires a minimum qualification to use. Someone like Zhu Hu Chong doesn’t qualify at all, but Jin So-cheong might just manage it. So, if we make Jin So-cheong the legitimate Emperor, I will do everything I can to support him.”

“…Are you saying there’s a special ability tied to the National Seal that requires this minimum qualification?”

When I speculated, Zhuge Yulong slowly nodded.

“You probably never needed to use it, but the ancient texts state that the National Seal has a power very useful to Emperors: [Exile].”

“Exile?”

“The effect is simple. It strips the designated target of all their weapons and exiles them beyond the empire’s borders. That alone is more than enough to deal with an Alchemist since their power is linked to their workshop. If they are separated from it, they can’t bring out their full strength.”

“Ah!”

I grasped Zhuge Yulong’s point and felt impressed.

‘Right! This definitely makes things easier.’

An Alchemist may not be a demon king-level threat, but they are a hassle because if given time, they can mass-produce their lackeys, plus their Portrait Immortal keeps getting stronger. So even if you take one down, it could escalate into a massive brawl, making Zhuge Yulong’s plan a tidy way to eliminate the Alchemist.

However, I had a thought and said to him.

“By the way… back in the 30th cycle, I had help from the real Saint Germain to easily change his true name. Since we still have Saint Germain on our side, can’t we get rid of him that way?”

“Ha… It seems you’ve forgotten that the core issue is with the Eight Parts of the Divine rather than the Alchemist. If we slip in and take out the Alchemist without anyone noticing, the Eight Parts of the Divine would just see it as a nuisance and directly invade the Imperial Palace.”

“What do we do then?”

“We publicly reveal that we have officially replaced the Emperor with a powerful one and dismiss the Alchemist in front of everyone. That way, the Eight Parts of the Divine will be concerned about the new Emperor Jin So-cheong’s capabilities and hesitate before directly confronting him. This strategy allows you to build your own influence, drive out the Alchemist, and keep the Eight Parts of the Divine in check all at once.”

“Ah…”

I began to see the depth of Zhuge Yulong’s plan. In recent times, I had been thinking solely about assassinating the enemy or overwhelming them in one blow, but I hadn’t considered such a strategic approach.

As I contemplated this, I realized Zhuge Yulong’s plan had merit.

“Alright. The National Seal’s power might be lacking, but I can manage to supplement that. But is it true that Jin So-cheong himself truly agrees to this plan?”

“Yes.”

Zhuge Yulong’s gaze shifted to Jin So-cheong, who quietly said,

“After my master fell, I learned many things from Mangnyang and reflected a lot. I concluded that what I must do is help you, my fellow reborn Baek Woong, so don’t worry about me.”

“Hmm… but…”

I turned to Jin So-cheong, feeling uneasy.

“It might actually be more beneficial for you to spend that time training in martial arts rather than taking time out to be Emperor…”

Indeed, that was the problem.

Jin So-cheong was a true martial arts genius without any equals! I’d personally witnessed the jaw-dropping results of his years of training through every past life. So if I made him take on the role of Emperor, wouldn’t that cut into his martial arts training time?

Then Jin So-cheong replied,

“I discussed this issue with Zhuge Yulong. As it turns out, the Emperor of the Great Ming Empire can choose not to show themselves in public for decades. Therefore, I plan to do my duties from the Imperial Palace only during the initial ascent and then return to the Shadowless Gate to train later. Zhuge Yulong will handle all the official duties anyway.”

I was taken aback by Jin So-cheong’s words.

“Wait, are you saying the Emperor can be absent for decades?! How is that even possible… I attended court regularly while being Emperor in my 28th life!”

“That was probably because you’re unusually diligent. In fact, no law in the Great Ming Empire requires the Emperor to attend court. Even if such a law existed, it would only provide guidelines for how to proceed in the Emperor’s absence.”

“……”

“The Emperor is the absolute being above the law in the Great Ming Empire, and that’s just the way it is.”

No… no way… even if that’s true, how could an Emperor skip court for decades?!

I couldn’t believe that there could be a truly insane Emperor who would actually do such a thing!

I looked at Jin So-cheong, worried.

“…Jin So-cheong. Don’t you feel any anger towards Zhuge Yulong? By his words, he’s the one who wiped out your relatives and kin.”

“To be honest, they were just people I’ve never seen before. If they had lived, they’d likely have fought for the throne amongst themselves. Besides, my birth father, Jin Cheon-hwi, was unharmed, and we were allies, so I really have no reason to blame Zhuge Yulong.”

“Even so, if you hadn’t been raised by Lee Kwang and had been in the palace, you would’ve likely been killed by Zhuge Yulong…”

“Speculating about what might have happened is pointless, and you know that better than anyone. The present moment is what matters most.”

“Hmm.”

“I actually wanted to learn from you, Baek Woong, which is why I’m here.”

With those words, Jin So-cheong bowed to me and said,

“I heard from Mangnyang that in my past life, you were my Grand Master. Thus, I request that you impart the True Body Techniques to me this life!”

“Of course. I fully intended to do so. I just haven’t brought it up since Lee Kwang is still unconscious and things are hectic…”

I absolutely had to teach Jin So-cheong. It was an unavoidable duty. If I didn’t help him progress, then who else would I cultivate?

But it felt awkward to say that Jin So-cheong needed my teaching when Lee Kwang was laying there, so I’d been wandering around doing other things until Lee Kwang woke up. I turned to Mangnyang and asked,

“By the way, Mangnyang. Is Lee Kwang still out cold?”

“Well… he’s receiving treatment in the advanced medical facility of Yi Seong-gyeham, but he’s still in a coma.”

“What?! That’s hard to believe! They can revive someone who’s half dead there…”

“According to the analysis, it appears he’s trapped in a state called Heart Demon. No matter how advanced future science becomes, it seems they can’t interfere with the mind, so we’ll have to monitor him for now.”

“……!”

Heart Demon!

Lee Kwang is stuck in a Heart Demon state and can’t wake up?!

I was in shock at this unexpected turn of events. I had used a tremendous amount of internal power to recover the damage from the rupture, coupled with advanced healing technology, so I figured his physical injuries shouldn’t be a concern anymore. But I never imagined there would be a mental issue.

“No way… how can a rupture lead to a vegetative state and then trigger a Heart Demon? There shouldn’t be a reason for that…”

“I’m not sure. This is entirely Lee Kwang’s issue… perhaps it was a Heart Demon that had already been attached to him.”

“Hmm…”

I was in disbelief, but I just decided to take that as it is. The fact he was still alive meant I could treat his Heart Demon later. If the Heart Demon went wild, I figured I could overwhelm it; it couldn’t possibly be stronger than me.

I turned to Jin So-cheong and said,

“You don’t need to call me Master. Since there are no Obsidian stones this life, let’s just proceed straightforwardly.”

“Understood.”

“Aside from that, I will teach you all the martial arts I know.”

“Please take care of me.”

Once Jin So-cheong grows strong enough to match the Demon King, that would truly be the beginning.

As I envisioned the future I was planning, Mangnyang said,

“Actually, Baek Woong, there’s something I wanted to mention…”

“What is it?”

“The training world within the Heavenly Secret… couldn’t we use it?”

“Ah!”

I suddenly recalled what I had overlooked.

The training world!

The training world inside the Heavenly Secret had been created by the Cheon Woo-jin, and thanks to that, I could leisurely train for hundreds of years. Mangnyang continued,

“From what you’ve said, it seems you’re unsure just how time within the Heavenly Secret’s training world differs from the real world. Since it twists space and time… But given how much training you’ve managed to do, for our companions pressed for time in the current realm, this would give us plenty of breathing room.”

“That’s true.”

“Yet, it’s strange how you’ve been hesitant to mention the training world. Is there a reason?”

“…….”

I hesitated and finally said,

“…They say once a reborn person enters the Heavenly Secret’s world, they can never come out.”

“What?!”

“My terminal, the Cheon Woo-jin, told me this, so it must be true… I managed to train in the world until the Cheon Woo-jin succeeded in making the Heavenly Secret contract and turned the Great Cycle; later, I returned to the current world through a loophole in the conspiracies of the outer beings… But without Cheon Woo-jin, I don’t know what the outcome would be now.”

Mangnyang looked startled by what I said, as if he hadn’t seen this coming.

“If that’s true, then entering the training world means it’s game over…”

“That’s right. The reason I was able to train comfortably there was all thanks to my terminal, the Cheon Woo-jin helping me out.”

“But as you mentioned earlier, didn’t you appoint some new terminal called Solomon? Can’t Solomon grant you access to the training world?”

“Well… I’m not sure.”

I hesitated as I took out the Heavenly Secret from my pocket.

“I still can’t read its contents. It seems that when Solomon came out with me at the end of the 30th cycle, he was affected by the [Coordinates of Order] and was destroyed… So the contract with him may have been severed.”

“Hmm… that aside, it was an event in the 30th cycle, right? Being your terminal means you transcend space and time. So how about we try calling Solomon and see if we lose anything?”

“Alright. Terminal Solomon! Respond to my call!”

……

I shouted with the Heavenly Secret in hand, but there was no response. I awkwardly lowered the Heavenly Secret again, and Mangnyang, looking entertained, stroked his chin.

“Hmm. There are two possibilities. One is that Solomon was deemed dead in the 30th cycle and therefore removed as a terminal… The other is that Solomon is still a terminal, but is in a state where he can’t respond to your commands.”

“Ugh… but right now, there’s no way to find out…”

“There is a method.”

“Eh? What is it?”

Mangnyang smiled and pointed to himself.

“Appoint me as a subordinate terminal. That way, at least I can enter the Heavenly Secret and ascertain whether the training world still exists or Solomon’s current state.”

“……!”

That method!

‘That’s right! The concept was that the Cheon Woo-jin was the primary terminal and Mephistopheles was the auxiliary terminal. Unlike the primary terminal, the auxiliary terminal seems to have fewer limitations on appointment… I could appoint him directly or the primary terminal could autonomously appoint an auxiliary terminal.’

As I recalled past experiences with terminals, I saw that Mangnyang’s suggestion was indeed convincing.

But at the same time, I felt uneasy and said to Mangnyang.

“…Mangnyang. The Heavenly Secret is a formidable beast feared even by outer beings. I can’t guarantee your safety at all, and if anything goes wrong inside, even the gods won’t be able to save you. Knowing all that, are you really willing to become a subordinate terminal and check on the Heavenly Secret?”

“……”

“It’s too dangerous. No matter how voluntary it is, I can’t allow it.”

I meant it sincerely.

Thinking of what happened to Chi You and Yu Shun after getting eaten by the Heavenly Secret, what Mangnyang proposed sounded recklessly dangerous. There was a chance that this time around, Mangnyang could become an eternally tormented soul.

In such a situation, I wouldn’t be able to keep my sanity. I’d probably end up blaming myself forever for not saving a comrade again.

Hearing my words, Mangnyang looked a bit frightened, realizing the truth in what I was saying. But he quickly regained his composure and said,

“Hmm, I kind of expected that. In that case, I do actually have a second plan, although it’s not certain.”

“What is it?”

“Baek Woong, I’ve asked you several times about the story of your fight with Hang-a in the 28th cycle, right? That tale intrigued me, especially one detail.”

“……?”

“As you know, the place where you fought Hang-a was the outer area of the Heavenly Secret, not the inside. It was a place where you could escape, and you could use some degree of abilities and martial arts there.”

“Hmm… true. But why are you bringing this up now?”

“Go to the outer area of the Heavenly Secret and try calling Solomon again. I bet he’ll hear you better than if you called from here.”

“……!”

The outer area of the Heavenly Secret?!

I widened my eyes at Mangnyang’s unexpected thought. But then I realized how absurd that was and shook my head.

“Though it’s called the outer area, back then, I couldn’t navigate that space by myself, and it was only due to Mangnyang’s help that I was able to call his name three times and get out. The outer area of the Heavenly Secret is still a dangerous magic realm, just less so than the Heart of the Forest.”

“Exactly.”

“Eh? What do you mean by ‘exactly’?”

“Think about it. Who is standing in front of you right now?”

“……?”

At first, it didn’t make sense, but then something clicked, and I realized.

“…Oh!”

I suddenly remembered Mangnyang…!

Seeing my expression, Mangnyang smiled.

“I’ll request permission from my master to enter the outer area and ensure I can get out afterward. My master is sure to grant this request for his beloved direct disciple.”