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“So, the Sect Master has withdrawn into that meditation training, huh?”

Ever since then, the Sect Master hasn’t even shown up at the Seven Great Techniques Study Group and has been holed up in silence. Meanwhile, the Dharma Guardians focused on securing safety in Luoyang and expanding the influence of the White Lotus Sect.

Before his retreat, I received a separate order from him.

[Baek Woong. I must consolidate my enlightenment. Before I break my meditation, I need you to do one more important task for me.]

The Sect Master, calling me aside, spoke solemnly.

“What other task could there be…?”

[You mentioned before that a guy named Zhuque stole secrets from the Celestial Altar through unauthorized means.]

That was something I had to explain out of necessity when recounting how we dealt with Zhuque. I nodded.

“That’s right.”

[We too can eavesdrop on their plans like Zhuque did.]

“But Zhuque got caught snooping around; I’m pretty sure the Celestial Realm has blocked off most infiltration by now.”

The Sect Master shook his head.

[Had it not been for your report, they wouldn’t have even noticed. I’m convinced the Celestial Realm will expose another vulnerability.]

I was flabbergasted and asked, “What are you talking about? That’s just wild conjecture!”

[The Celestial Realm is arrogant.]

The Sect Master said this with a fervor that was clearly building inside him.

[They’ve deluded themselves into thinking they’re the administrators of humanity while leaving countless flaws bare for us to exploit. The fight against the Southern Flower Immortal only strengthened this realization for me. I definitely won’t overlook that intuition. The Celestial Realm won’t imagine they’ll be fooled twice with the same weakness.]

“……”

Could it really be so?

[Baek Woong. Quickly suppress the Heavenly Altar of Mount O and uncover the secrets of the Celestial Realm through it.]

“No matter how you say it, that’s a tough one.”

I grimaced, worrying that if things went wrong, the Celestial Realm might label me as a heinous criminal and hunt me down till my last breath. The situation was tense enough; I didn’t see any reason to take that risk. The Sect Master then chuckled softly.

[Don’t you see? The water has already spilled! The Celestial Realm will strike harder at our White Lotus Sect than the Southern Flower Immortal ever could. If you don’t struggle with everything you’ve got, you won’t last.]

“Hmm…”

[I’m granting you full authority to use all the power of the Su Shin Sect. You better deliver.]

After the Sect Master’s seclusion began, I started consulting Zhuge Sa. This kind of operation was uncharted territory for me, and I needed Zhuge Sa’s wisdom.

“What do we do?”

Zhuge Sa bluntly replied, [Just do it. Is this really something to be worried about?]

I rested my chin on my hand and muttered, “Suppressing Mount O means facing off against the Nine Great Sects head-on. Is this really an easy decision?”

Indeed. Setting aside the Celestial Realm’s problems, Mount O consisted of Mount Tai, Huashan, Hengshan, Wangshan, and Songshan. Among these, except for Tai and Wang, the other three were strongholds of the Nine Great Sects, with Huashan being one of the most notable schools among them. Hengshan was known for its fast swords, while Songshan housed the Shaolin Temple, where the Zen Master held his ground.

Then Zhuge Sa smirked and said, [What nonsense…]

“What?”

[The Sect Master has granted you authority to move the Su Shin Sect forces. Then, you don’t need to act yourself; just send each of the three elders of Su Shin to smash one of the Nine Great Sects. How hard can that be?]

I retorted to his nonchalance, “Those guys wouldn’t give a damn about the circumstances of the Nine Great Sects! There’d be bloodshed everywhere, and that’s not an option.”

The Su Shin elders were all unpredictable beasts. Perhaps it was due to the aftereffects of the Heavenly Spirit Pill, but they occasionally exhibited frightening cruelty toward humans. If it meant carrying out a command from the Sect Master, they wouldn’t hesitate to wipe out even innocent lives. Given the righteous pride of prominent sects, the Nine Great Sects would surely suffer catastrophic losses.

It was against a Jianghu man’s conscience to casually direct such bloodshed. Zhuge Sa, apparently unfazed, said, [What’s wrong with a few old farts from the Nine Great Sects perishing? What help do they provide to the world?]

“What are you saying?”

[Enough with the righteous act! Can’t you see that the Celestial Realm and the White Lotus Sect are on the brink of a do-or-die showdown? You’re in trouble now, why worry about someone else’s business? No matter whether you succeed or fail, getting info on the Celestial Realm is a challenge that must be faced.]

“But they haven’t done anything wrong.”

Zhuge Sa scoffed, [The Nine Great Sects’ sins? They’ve got two: being weak, and having the audacity to keep their heads held high while being weak!]

“You little…!”

I fell silent at Zhuge Sa’s words.

[If it were Lee Kwang, he’d have wiped them out without hesitation. While you’re sitting here pondering, he’d have annihilated them and forced the Master of the Teng Yu Alliance to submit to the White Lotus Sect with a written agreement.]

“……”

[You’re backing down over something trivial. Do you really want to defeat the gods?]

I clenched my teeth. “No! This is definitely a different issue!”

[What’s different?]

I poured out the true feelings I had been holding back, driven by an instinct that prompted me to be sincere when Zhuge Sa had just hit the nail on the head.

“This is not about others; it’s a choice for myself. That’s why I can’t choose easily!”

[…What are you talking about?]

Zhuge Sa seemed taken aback. I continued.

“I learned long ago through my rebirth that human lives aren’t so precious! Mangnyang held me back, but subconsciously, I chose to let him guide me because it was necessary.”

[……]

“As you said, humans might be trash. I often think that way too. But if I keep treating them like garbage to be disposed of, what happens to me? How would I know what I need to protect in this world?”

[Hmm…]

“If that’s the case, then I won’t need to be reborn anymore.”

I clenched my fists. “So no matter what you say, I have to hold onto my humanity! Because I need to keep going!”

It would’ve been much simpler to just eliminate any hindrance without a care and move forward. Just looking at the success I’ve had in this life with Zhuge Sa compared to my previous one with Mangnyang made that clear. But I didn’t think that Mangnyang was any less capable than Zhuge Sa, because there’s significance in walking the righteous path.

[……]

Zhuge Sa remained silent for an extended period, longer than ever before in all our time together. This silence lingered until he abruptly spoke up.

[Why do you endure? All this long suffering and patience.]

“You said it yourself. Because I need to defeat the gods.”

[Are you really thinking that? Do you believe you can eliminate the Evil Gods and restore order to the world through rebirth?]

I nodded.

“Absolutely!”

Zhuge Sa couldn’t hide his astonishment.

[How can you hold onto that belief so firmly? Weren’t you just a nobody without anything at the start? Even now, there’s no concrete reason for you to fight the gods; how can you be so unwavering?]

“Didn’t you see all my memories?”

[Answer the question.]

What’s with him? I tilted my head but soon replied.

“I’m grateful for my life.”

[…What?]

I answered confidently.

“It’s been filled with regrets, but just living again is a blessing. Plus, with the Heavenly Secret, I can keep being reborn, which is the best part of it. I still haven’t found a reason to be broken.”

[……]

Zhuge Sa hesitated, looking so flabbergasted he was stuttering.

[You mean to say you’re not unhappy crawling up from the bottom like trash? You’ve already died 18 times. The suffering you’ve endured exceeds what an ordinary person would face in a lifetime by hundreds of times. Regular folks wouldn’t despair like you do.]

I responded back, puzzled. “What do you mean I’m unhappy? I’m not done yet. If I’m not done, then I can’t be unhappy.”

[Oh…]

“Before I meet my end, the gods will meet theirs first.”

As I firmly stated this, Zhuge Sa looked surprised.

[Do you really, truly think that?]

“Why are you acting weird today? I mean it.”

Suddenly, Zhuge Sa exploded in anger.

[You idiots! Do you even know what the ‘Old Ruler’ means? The powers of rulers you’ve seen thus far are merely the tip of the iceberg! You think you can seriously fight and win against those who treat the world as their playground?]

“What are you saying? Haven’t you been helping me all along for that?”

[Hah! Hahaha!]

Zhuge Sa burst into wild laughter, his voice tinged with genuine madness.

[One truly pure fool! Truly…]

Continuing with that tone, Zhuge Sa added:

[I got it. Let’s do it your way.]

“You understand me?”

Zhuge Sa shot back with an unusually gloomy voice.

[Shut it. I’ll devise a plan according to what you want; just do it.]

“…Oh, understood.”

What’s up with the sudden shift in vibe? Something felt off, and I couldn’t figure out why Zhuge Sa’s mood had changed so drastically. He continued speaking.

[As I said, wiping out the Nine Great Sects is not a problem. You can either play nice with them or not, it’s up to you. What’s important is finding a way to glean secrets of the Celestial Realm from the Heavenly Altar.]

“That is the problem…”

[Only two people know how to do that: Zhuge Yulong and Zhuge Bu. However, Zhuge Yulong’s soul is sealed within the Celestial Realm, and you’ve already used Zhuge Bu’s spirit, so you can’t command him to use the Heavenly Secret Technique now.]

“Hmm.”

The weakness of the Heavenly Secret Technique was this: even the most powerful spirits couldn’t be summoned or questioned again until a full year had passed since the last summoning. Hence, I couldn’t give orders to Zhuge Bu’s spirit for the next year.

[But there’s another person who knows a thing or two.]

My ears perked up.

“Who is it?”

[Among humans, there’s only one person who knows about the Heavenly Altar a bit better. Any guesses?]

I thought hard but couldn’t pin it down. As I hesitated, Zhuge Sa said.

[The Heavenly Altars of the other Four Evils have either lost their significance or become unmanageable, or turned into dens for fake Taoists and sorcerers. But there’s one Heavenly Altar that remains intact and guarded.]

Then it hit me.

“Songshan! Master Myung-ho!”

[You got it now?]

Indeed. Master Myung-ho!

The highest master of the current Shaolin Temple and the strongest practitioner among the martial artists outside of the Dharma Protectors! He had previously guided me around the Heavenly Altar and explained how it works. Also, he had ties with experts like Lee Kwang and Jin So-cheong. It was likely he would know how to use the Heavenly Altar.

“But what he knows is only how to make offerings at the Heavenly Altar, right? Zhuque stole the secrets through the altar, so just because he knows the procedure doesn’t mean…”

[You’re only half right. Master Myung-ho isn’t someone who blindly follows the will of the Celestial Realm; he’s someone who follows Master Mangnyang instead. He respects the Master protecting humanity over the arrogant Celestial Realm and has grown using the Blessing of the Sky. You really think he just stood guard over the Heavenly Altar?]

“……!!”

[Don’t you think it’s a coincidence that the Shaolin Temple didn’t suffer major damage despite the countless calamities during your last reincarnation? Most likely, he used some means to receive information beforehand and evaded misfortune.]

Is that so?!

As I processed this revelation, Zhuge Sa said, [Move quickly. We have to wrap this up before Miyamoto Musashi comes back with an answer from the Master of the Twelve Joules!]

 

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