전생검신 98권 06화

I decided to follow Master Mangnyang’s advice and find Master Mangnyang.

When I arrived in the misty village of Master Mangnyang, I called out to Mangnyang, who was next to me, through the fog.

“Mangnyang, are you there?”

Wait, why is there fog again today?

Was it always like this?

I tilted my head, but no response came from Mangnyang. I suddenly felt trapped in a place that was as unclear as a maze, realizing that the current situation was different from before.

‘What is this…?’

Normally, after entering Master Mangnyang’s village, I’d faint due to a powerful desire for sleep and meet Master Mangnyang in my dreams. So why is it filled with mist now?

On top of that, I didn’t feel that strong desire for sleep calling me like usual. Even though I sensed something strange, I noticed a faint light shining through the fog, seemingly guiding me, so I walked silently towards the light.

As I approached the light, the mist started to dissipate, revealing the scenery around me. But the sight was neither the village of Master Mangnyang nor the path to meet him.

“…!”

A vast universe was unfolding, filled with gigantic planets that seemed to be close enough to touch, radiating an otherworldly terror. I instinctively flinched, knowing that if these celestial bodies were that close to Earth, everything would be doomed in an instant. Just then, as I stood at that bizarre horizon, someone appeared before me.

Seeing the figure, I couldn’t help but shout out in joy.

“Mangnyang! When did you get here?”

Indeed, it was obviously Mangnyang.

But Mangnyang was staring at me with empty eyes, offering no response, and I found that odd. Upon closer inspection, it became clear that Mangnyang wasn’t wearing the attire I recognized; instead, he donned an oddly ancient robe, distinctly different in demeanor.

‘What is that outfit?’

I paused, realizing that this Mangnyang in ancient garb was not the Mangnyang I knew. Without saying anything, I continued to gaze at him, and after a moment, he opened his mouth.

“Hindu.”

Huh?

I tilted my head at the incomprehensible utterance, and in that moment, I felt a searing pain, as everything in my body twisted along with a earth-shattering upheaval. It felt as if bugs were crawling through my blood vessels, and I couldn’t help but scream.

“Kugh!”

The planets that were overshadowing the world seemed to awaken, and it felt as though the very essence of the universe was watching me with an eerie gaze. Their eyes held nothing but emptiness, which only heightened my fear. I didn’t know where those feelings stemmed from, but at that moment, a strong anger surged within me. It felt strangely like it wasn’t even my emotion, as if I had been split in two inside.

As I was losing my grasp on reality, Mangnyang in front of me murmured again.

“Swordma.”

The darkness deepens further.

“Ah… Uaaah…!”

Something feels wrong.

As I was drawn into the endless abyss, a strange sensation rose within me, as if something was about to burst forth from my chest. That conflicting feeling seemed to indicate that the command held significant importance.

As everything before my eyes began to blur and I was consumed by darkness, a final phrase emerged.

“Azatra.”

With that last third utterance, Mangnyang before me was gazing into the void with hollow eyes.

He wasn’t looking at me.

“In the name of the Azure Dragon.”

And then, everything fell silent.

*

Bam!

Moments later, I opened my eyes. I found myself on a path, and in front of me was Master Mangnyang, appearing as his usual cat form. The pain I had just experienced faded like a mirage, leaving me bewildered, and I shouted out.

“Hey! Master Mangnyang! What did you do to me?”

[… Crossed into a dream, did you have an unusual experience?]

“What? You did this, didn’t you?”

[I don’t know what you mean, but no.]

“Ugh…”

I felt it was the truth. That damn cat never lied, even if it twisted its words or babbled nonsense.

‘Then what was that I just went through?’

Why was Mangnyang chanting those strange spells?

While I was puzzled, Mangnyang said, “My disciple is coming over there.”

Sure enough, on the opposite side of the path, Mangnyang was coming, looking around curiously. I was about to greet him when I hesitated. Because I had just experienced someone in strange ancient garb acting strangely, I found myself wondering.

‘Is that really Mangnyang?’

But as I watched Mangnyang show martial authority to Master Mangnyang, I had no choice but to drop my doubts.

“Master, your disciple, Mangnyang, greets you.”

[Ah, yes.]

“I came because I urgently need a request today.”

If he weren’t the real Mangnyang, Master Mangnyang would never receive such greetings. Watching the exchange between them, a somewhat complicated thought filled my mind.

‘So what I just experienced was genuinely what?’

Did I witness something even Master Mangnyang didn’t know about in his space?

What in the world was that?

This was the first time such an occurrence had happened in all 31 episodes!

“So, Master, I wish for the power to enter the area around the Heavenly Secret and then exit.”

After completing the explanation, Mangnyang made his request, and Master Mangnyang sat still on the wall for a while, not moving at all. Then, he said something unexpected.

“You’re taking the hard way when there’s an easier one. That’s why you’ll never be the best as a strategist. Unless it’s a different path.”

“Huh?”

Mangnyang tilted his head.

Master Mangnyang continued.

“If that is the edge of a dream, you can just connect this site to it. Handle the work directly here.”

“…!”

I was taken aback by those words.

“Wait, can that actually be done?!”

Even if Master Mangnyang wasn’t joking, connecting the path to the outskirts of the Heavenly Secret was something unthinkable!

It seemed Master Mangnyang could, to some extent, interfere with the Heavenly Secret!

Master Mangnyang calmly responded to my astonished exclamation.

“But let me just say this: Calling forth the outskirts of the Heavenly Secret is easy, but what may come out is beyond my expectation.”

“What does that mean?”

Master Mangnyang stayed silent, but even Mangnyang, who was standing beside him, seemed tense when he said to me.

“Just because you call forth the terminal Solomon doesn’t guarantee he’ll show up. You have no idea what kind of monster may come out…”

“…!”

I shuddered. If the world I faced during my rebirth was one thing, the inner world of the Heavenly Secret was filled with mysteries, and I couldn’t know what might emerge from there. No matter how strong I had grown, a sense of fear was unavoidable.

As I was frozen in place, Mangnyang tried to reassure me.

“Don’t worry, Master is here. Nothing will go wrong.”

“That’s true, but…”

“Please give me an order. For now, there’s no other way.”

[Got it.]

Master Mangnyang took a stance extending his front paw. A strange magic circle appeared in the air, and shortly afterward, the whole space trembled with vibrations.

Kaboom!

As the tremor—resembling a slight earthquake—subsided, the length of the path dramatically extended, revealing a dark, blood-red horizon beyond the surface. It was a sight completely opposite the peaceful path, indicating that something had overlapped in this space.

As I swallowed hard and looked towards where the path extended beyond the horizon, a small black figure was walking toward us.

‘Weirdly unclear…’

With my inner strength, I could see an ant thirty miles away clearly, yet strangely, I couldn’t discern what that black figure on the path looked like. Just when I squinted, trying to see it better, the figure slowly took shape, revealing a Dragon Person.

He appeared before us in ancient armor and wielding dual swords, looking at Master Mangnyang.

“Excuse me! Where am I?”

Master Mangnyang replied as if he had anticipated this.

“This is the boundary of a dream.”

Upon hearing that, the Dragon Person placed his hands on his hips and grumbled.

“How unfortunate. I heard this way was the fastest route to the Demon King’s palace, but I ended up in the realm of the Outer Gods?”

“O Hero known as the Dragon King, this is not the world you can operate in. You are a being from another dream; you must leave.”

“Send me to the Demon King’s palace!”

[Understood.]

Swish!

The next moment, the Dragon King suddenly vanished.

I looked on, captivated by the incomprehensible conversation.

“Wh-What was that, Master Mangnyang?!”

[They exist beyond the dream. They come from a place with completely different laws, and the author is called the Dragon King; he is a hero who will save the world.]

“…?”

[Connecting to the outskirts of the Heavenly Secret is like this. That place is also a boundary, so beings beyond the dream frequently appear there. Most of the work I do is to guide those authors who become lost back to their original cycles.]

“I don’t understand…”

Mangnyang calmly added.

“Baek Woong, it’s impossible for mortals to grasp this. For now, let’s focus on our goal.”

“Th-That’s right.”

For some reason, Mangnyang seemed accustomed to such experiences. Well, he was Master Mangnyang’s disciple, so he probably had seen even worse. After all, wandering beings had come before several times, regardless of whether Mangnyang sent them back each time.

Was it ten times or more? Just when I was starting to feel overwhelmed…

“You’re here.”

With Master Mangnyang’s remark, a familiar face emerged from beyond the horizon.

Seeing that familiar face, I exclaimed in delight.

“Solomon! How have you been?”

“….”

For some reason, Solomon swayed toward us, his eyes hollow. I sensed something was off and felt alarmed.

“Hey, what’s wrong?”

“…I can’t perform the function of the terminal right now.”

“What?”

“Reborn beings are immortal, but terminals are not. They can cease to exist, and if they weaken, they die. I… I suffered a great impact because you devoured the [Coordinates of Order] at the location of Rebirth and the Divine Power.”

“….”

Ah, indeed…

I felt an overwhelming shiver of guilt welling up. Though I wanted to dismiss it, the shock I had experienced back then had indeed affected Solomon. With a sigh, Solomon continued.

“It will take a long time to recover, but that’s not the only reason… I also lost my law of cause and effect to the Foolish God’s Tower.”

“What? The Foolish God’s Tower? What is that?”

“Don’t you remember? At the end of your last life… the spell of the Outer God cast by the Tsukuyomi, who was thrashing about.”

“…Oh!”

Only then did I recall. At that moment, Tsukuyomi had unleashed something as his final gambit, yet it hadn’t harmed me at all. He had summoned a tower and self-destructed, leaving no lasting memory of it.

Recalling that now, I scratched my head.

“Why was that? Wasn’t Tsukuyomi just being stupid?”

“No. The spell activated as it should. Instead, rather than tearing into the reborn being’s physical body, it sealed away his essence.”

“What are you saying?”

Following his explanation, I watched wide-eyed.

“In the current training world of the Heavenly Secret, the Foolish God’s Tower has been constructed. If you intend to use the training world later on, you must surely eliminate that tower. Tsukuyomi’s spell had the effect of summoning the Foolish God’s Tower into the Heavenly Secret.”

“…?!”

“That tower is preventing me from doing anything. Unless you summon me in this manner, I cannot respond to your call.”

I felt utterly confused, blinking in disbelief. I couldn’t comprehend what this guy’s words even meant. How could a spell that had done me no harm act within the Heavenly Secret?

As I mulled over this, Mangnyang stated, “That tower interferes with your ability to function as a terminal.”

“That’s right. As it is an Outer God’s spell, it can influence the Heavenly Secret.”

“But isn’t that a contradiction? If a reborn being doesn’t use the terminal, they can enter the Heavenly Secret at will, yet the terminal itself has no power to function. There’s no way to resolve this…”

“It can’t be helped. It seems like the entire design of the Foolish God’s Tower functions that way…”

“How about appointing a secondary terminal?”

“Haah… that won’t work. Thanks to the tower’s malice, the power of a secondary terminal can’t help you leave. Unless you manage to challenge the Foolish God’s Tower and succeed in one go, death there is a substantial blow to a reborn being.”

As Solomon sighed, he continued.

“Baek Woong. I can’t find a method, so you’ll need to find one yourself. And while this might not help, here, take this.”

I accepted the royal scepter that Solomon handed me. This was an extraordinary item, a personal weapon of Solomon’s from his lifetime, far exceeding supreme treasures. However, I had no pressing need for it now, so I grimaced slightly.

“…Is there really no other way? It feels too wasteful to leave the training world as it is.”

“Well… I’ll naturally recover with repeated rebirths, so the only way is to wait until then. Once my power is restored, I might be able to open a path to the Foolish God’s Tower. But who knows how long that will take? If not, it might be better to leverage the power of the Outer God.”

“Outer God?”

“As I mentioned, an Outer God could open a path toward the Foolish God’s Tower. Of course, passing through the tower’s trial must be done entirely by your own strength.”

With that, Solomon vanished.

I turned to Mangnyang.

“It looks like we can’t use the training world.”

“Don’t worry. I anticipated this as well.”

And with a confident tone, Mangnyang remarked.

“And with this, didn’t you just learn something good?”

“What do you mean?”

Mangnyang looked at Master Mangnyang and said somewhat provocatively.

“If we ask Master, we might be able to cross beyond the dreams.”