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00451 Dark Heaven Village ————————————————————————

After a moment of silence, Cheon Woo-jin nervously said, “This is a foreign land. Just vanquishing the great evil spirit is enough. It’s better to leave the rest to the people here.”

Clearly, he was saying this out of annoyance, but I nodded anyway. “Got it. Let’s start heading to Mount Tai.”

Even though I learned the location of Dongyoung’s Genesis God, there was nothing we could do about it right now. If that god was truly as powerful as legends claimed, he was likely stronger than the Demon King. Charging at such a being with just Cheon Woo-jin and me would be utterly pointless. It seemed we’d have to return after releasing at least two of the Seven Luminaries.

‘Let’s look into Myo Cheong and the Demon God, Ijina-si, later.’

Bang!

Cheon Woo-jin and I used the Overlay Technique to head towards Mount Tai. Rather than going directly to the Heavenly Altar, we moved to the outer walls of a nearby fortress, just in case.

“All the soldiers are knocked out.”

As soon as I arrived, I had intended to use the Invisibility Technique, but it turned out I didn’t need to. Soldiers lay sprawled out, unconscious, all over the fortress walls, and the inside was no different. The sight of them collapsed like straw dolls was pitiful. I approached a nearby soldier to check his pulse, and I was a bit surprised at what I felt.

‘Their spirits are suppressed.’

The soldiers were still alive, but their spirits were being suppressed, rendering them incapable of perceiving their surroundings or thinking properly. Even more astonishing was that this fortress housed a staggering five thousand elite troops. To have five thousand soldiers simultaneously have their spirits suppressed was unheard of in the Jianghu Martial World.

Watching from the sidelines, Cheon Woo-jin, who was using a technique to scan the area, spoke up. “King Mi-hu used the seventy-two transformations technique to incapacitate all the soldiers at once.”

“Seventy-two transformations?”

“King Mi-hu has mastered all seventy-two kinds of transmutation techniques since the days of the demons. This level of skill is nothing.”

Cheon Woo-jin said this while looking at me with a piercing gaze. “How about we stop dawdling and head out quickly?”

His words carried a strong conviction that King Mi-hu must not have lost, and he seemed eager to finish this annoying task so he could relax afterward. I couldn’t dawdle any longer, so I had no choice but to move straight to the Heavenly Altar of Mount Tai.

Upon arriving at the Heavenly Altar, an incredible sight unfolded before me.

The corpse of Vermilion Bird Zhuge Yulong!

There were signs of a fierce battle, and in the middle, Zhuge Yulong lay dead, brutally bludgeoned by a massive club. His body was so mangled that it was almost unrecognizable, but I knew it was him because it looked as though a multitude of explosions had concentrated around his corpse, which lay sprawled out, blocking the altar. In my mind, only Zhuge Yulong could have ended up like this.

Cheon Woo-jin surveyed the surroundings and said, “I can’t see King Mi-hu. Has he completed his mission and returned to the celestial realm?”

“…”

I approached Zhuge Yulong’s corpse and determined the time of death. The medical techniques from the Hua Tuo school allowed for measuring the time of death.

‘At this rate… he must have killed Zhuge Yulong right after arriving.’

The estimated time of death was nearly the same as when Master Mangnyang and I left his village. This corpse had been left here for several moments. But I didn’t let my guard down and quietly told Cheon Woo-jin, “As I mentioned, Zhuge Yulong keeps his spare body nearby. He’ll surely try to resurrect using his clone.”

“Is that so? Then let’s go smash the spare body.”

“Exactly.”

Though I had informed the celestial realm, it was possible that King Mi-hu had left his backup body’s location untouched. Since we had already disturbed the Vermilion Bird, we had to either eradicate him completely or significantly weaken his power. I first headed towards Zhuge’s secret base located near Mount Tai.

Smash!

“They’ve been destroyed…”

I muttered over the ruins. I had planned to teleport away, but feeling something strange, I decided to change my destination to the ground level, and that choice proved to be right. Zhuge Yulong’s secret base was utterly devastated, as if dozens of thousands of explosives had gone off, leaving it in ruins. The spare clone bodies inside were likely all wrecked.

Curiosity struck me, and I asked Cheon Woo-jin, “Cheon Woo-jin, I only mentioned that such a backup base could exist. But how did King Mi-hu find it?”

I hadn’t disclosed the precise location of the backup base, fearing the celestial realm might negotiate with me. If it came to taking down the incapacitated Zhuge Yulong, I could manage it alone with a few allies. However, seeing the current state, it seemed King Mi-hu had somehow discovered the location of the backup base and swept through it with his powerful seventy-two transformations.

Cheon Woo-jin replied, “From what I heard from my older brother, you seem to be only familiar with the Sword Master Yeodong-bin. However, though Yeodong-bin exclusively seeks martial skills and lacks proficiency in techniques, all other users of the Overlay Technique are at a remarkably high level of mastery. Given King Mi-hu’s abilities, he could definitely handle that.”

“You certainly rate King Mi-hu highly—what kind of being is he to be so remarkable?”

When I bluntly countered, Cheon Woo-jin responded, “Would you believe it if I said that back during the demon king era, he infiltrated the celestial realm and flipped the heavenly palace upside down? King Mi-hu is among the top-tier users of the Overlay Technique, though he’s not widely known on the ground.”

“……!!”

He flipped the heavenly palace upside down?!

I was momentarily speechless, then shook my head. “Let’s check the other four locations.”

I began moving towards the secret bases Zhuge Yulong had set up around the Five Great Mountains. Each base was, without exception, in ruins, as if they had been hit by bombs. King Mi-hu had indeed done a clean job. At this point, we could assume that nearly all of Zhuge Yulong’s spare bodies had been destroyed.

‘But there could still be backups in the Imperial Palace or elsewhere…’

Given Zhuge Yulong’s caution to the point where he would rather smash a stone bridge than risk it, I couldn’t be sure he was dead just yet. In the past, it had been Cheon Woo-jin’s sealing technique that confirmed his disappearance. I felt it was wise to continue proceeding under the assumption that Zhuge Yulong was still alive.

However, considering that King Mi-hu had done this much damage, it was clear his strength had waned. I thought it was the perfect time for the Offering Ceremony, so I suggested to Cheon Woo-jin, “Let’s perform the Offering Ceremony now.”

“Seriously? You’ve been making me work and now we’re finally getting around to it?”

“First, I’ll need to find some experts to serve as Dharma Guardians for the ceremony.”

It was possible that Zhuge Yulong might be waiting for the right moment to strike. If he decided to ambush me, I would likely be unable to handle it alone.

A little while later, I headed to the Shadowless Gate and explained the situation to the Sword Demon. He listened and nodded cheerfully, “Of course, I’ll help out!”

“Thank you.”

“I’ll also bring along the Master of Shadowless Sword. With the two of them, we shouldn’t have any issues against Zhuge Yulong even if he attacks.”

Just as the Sword Demon had said, I felt extremely reassured when I arrived at the Heavenly Altar of Mount Tai with the Sword Demon and the Master of Shadowless Sword. With these two by my side, even if Zhuge Yulong came crashing in, we could fight back adequately. Once the preparations were complete, I headed to Jangryeong Valley to fetch Zhuge Sa.

Upon seeing me, Zhuge Sa exclaimed, “Let’s get to the Imperial Palace right away. We need to grab the Portrait Immortal and the Crystal Stele.”

“Is that alright?”

“Don’t worry. While you were adventuring, I handled the preliminary tasks.”

Together, Zhuge Sa and I infiltrated the Imperial Palace and stowed away the Portrait Immortal and the Crystal Stele in the Wooden Armor. Until now, I had avoided triggering the Imperial Palace and the Old Ruler, but I trusted that Zhuge Sa had taken care of it.

Finally, when we arrived at Mount Tai, Zhuge Sa grinned. “Alright, everyone’s gathered.”

All eyes turned to Zhuge Sa, and Cheon Woo-jin’s expression turned sour upon seeing him. He spoke to me with an irritable tone, “You… teamed up with the Demon Sorcerer?”

It seemed Cheon Woo-jin wasn’t fond of Zhuge Sa, who had learned the Demon Path. If I hadn’t been there, he might have attacked and subdued Zhuge Sa without another thought. But anticipating Cheon Woo-jin’s reaction, I calmly persuaded him.

“Although Zhuge Sa is a Demon Sorcerer, he has made up his mind to help me. I swear on my name that he won’t interfere with this ceremony.”

“Your word doesn’t mean much to me.”

“You think you can say that?”

I crossed my arms and smirked at Cheon Woo-jin. “Doubting me is the same as doubting Mangnyang.”

“Ugh…”

Cheon Woo-jin bit his lip, clearly stung by that remark. It was no surprise he would wane at the mention of Mangnyang. After a moment of contemplation, he sighed. “Damn it… Just finish the ceremony quickly.”

“Thank you.”

Zhuge Sa stepped forward and said, “Then let’s keep it simple. The purpose of this Offering Ceremony is to dispel the barrier surrounding the Fire Spirit.”

“……!!”

Cheon Woo-jin exclaimed in shock, “What?”

“Is there a need to be surprised? To gain the Fire Spirit, we must break through its barrier, and waiting for a solar eclipse is too tedious. We don’t have the strength to break through by force, so we’re asking the Three Sovereigns at the highest level of the celestial realm directly. The one who established the barrier should have the power to destroy it.”

Having said that, Zhuge Sa chuckled. “Well, this isn’t my idea; it was White Woong’s brainchild.”

Indeed.

The brilliant idea that had sparked in my mind previously was to ask the Three Sovereigns to remove the barrier around the Fire Spirit! I had worried Zhuge Sa would mock it for being absurd, but surprisingly, he regarded the plan as sound and added on the tasks I needed to accomplish along the way. Finding the enormous Obsidian or gathering Dharma Guardians were tasks I had followed his suggestions on.

Zhuge Sa continued, “And I’ve already ruffled the Imperial Palace forces quite a bit, so Enkai’s Sleeper is probably pretty annoyed. But I performed a separate offering ceremony to soothe him. For the time being, you don’t have to worry about the Old Ruler summoning apostles. Let’s focus on obtaining the Fire Spirit through standard methods.”

“Standard methods?”

Cheon Woo-jin shouted in disbelief. “Is this even a standard method? Who in their right mind calls on the Three Sovereigns to get the Fire Spirit?”

Zhuge Sa snickered. “Hehe, while it might be unconventional, it is indeed a standard method. So, how about you change the heavenly weather to hasten the solar eclipse?”

“Why should I do that?”

“Either help out like that or stay quiet. The difficulty level of obtaining the Fire Spirit is already insane, so this is a perfectly valid method.”

“Damn you guys.”

Though Cheon Woo-jin complained, he had a quick mind and soon grasped Zhuge Sa’s point. It seemed his outburst was merely due to his aversion towards the Demon Sorcerer and annoyance at having to keep working on my behalf.

Whoooo

Soon, the preparations for the Offering Ceremony were complete, and Zhuge Sa and Cheon Woo-jin began setting up flags as they prepared to receive the celestial energies. Meanwhile, the Sword Demon and the Master of Shadowless Sword stood guard on the outskirts, ensuring no suspicious figures would interfere with the ritual.

‘I’ve decided on who to call.’

Bang!

Moments later, along with the Ten Thousand Ghosts Palace, from the darkened sky emerged a powerful Three Sovereigns wearing ceremonial attire. Having seen this scene before, I observed it with indifference. Once the manifestation was complete, the being spoke.

[ I am Jeon Wook, the Sovereign of the Five Sovereigns, descendant of the Emperor. Who is it that has summoned me?]

The Three Sovereigns Jeon Wook!

Although historically known as a tyrant and deemed ruthless, in my experience, none of the Three Sovereigns had ever been as good as Jeon Wook. Unlike Nüwa, who was overly sensitive and unpleasant, or Shao Hao, packed with irritation, Jeon Wook was quite kind-hearted and took an interest in worldly affairs. While I had offered an idol representing him as a price for the imperial arts, given my possession of Xuyou, summoning Jeon Wook was definitely feasible since Xuyou was crafted by him and served as a strong medium.

As Jeon Wook manifested, I immediately spoke, “Jeon Wook! Accept this offering.”

As I presented the heart of the Portrait Immortal to him, Jeon Wook appeared satisfied and said, [ This is satisfactory. What do you wish for?]

I realized that I had entered into a high-stakes gamble. Despite Jeon Wook’s kindness, I could still end up killed here on account of disrespect. Gathering my courage, I took a deep breath and said boldly, “I wish for the barrier around the Fire Spirit to be lifted. And even after the barrier is lifted, please ensure the celestial realm does not move.”

[ ……]

Jeon Wook looked at me with a face full of surprise for a moment before saying, [ It is possible, but, Mortal, do you know the location of the Fire Spirit?]

“Yes, I do.”

[ So after acquiring the Fire Spirit, will you conduct the Offering Ceremony again to seek my permission?]

“Yes.”

He seemed to have figured out our ulterior motives.

The advantage of this plan was that unlike the Great Luck Overlap, I could survive after acquiring the Fire Spirit. Though there was the drawback of expending treasure over three or four rituals, it wouldn’t matter since the Great Luck Overlap would certainly lead to death anyway. It was actually beneficial to proceed alive with the Fire Spirit in hand for the next actions.

After pondering in silence for a while, Jeon Wook burst out laughing. [ Hahahaha… how amusing. It’s the first time since the ancient era that a human has been so blatant about wanting the Seven Luminaries.]

“… So it’s not possible?”

[ Not impossible. But do you understand the significance of the Seven Luminaries in this world?]

“The Seven Luminaries are the keystones of the ancient pact, signify the truce between the Three Sovereigns and the Old Ruler, and are proof of humanity being protected under the Three Sovereigns’ blessing.”

[ ……]

Jeon Wook seemed dumbfounded. As the ascendance of their lord shifted, the retainers from the Ten Thousand Ghosts Palace began murmuring among themselves. After some time, Jeon Wook asked, [ Who exactly are you? How do you know all this?]

I replied casually, “I already possess Xuyou. Who else could be closer to the secrets of the Seven Luminaries than I?”

[ Hmm…]

“While acquiring the Seven Luminaries may be tricky for you, the power of the Otherworldly Race has significantly infiltrated the Imperial Palace of the Great Ming Empire right now. This is an issue that even the Three Sovereigns would have difficulty meddling with, isn’t it? I can help solve that problem.”

[ Are you claiming that you will restrain the Otherworldly Race’s power?]

“Yes. For that, I’ll need the power of the Seven Luminaries.”

Jeon Wook seemed to think over this unexpected situation. After a moment, he said, [ … Very well. I shall lift the barrier of the Fire Spirit at your request.]

Whooooon

As Jeon Wook waved his hand, something resembling a disc of light flew far across the horizon. When the disc disappeared beyond the horizon, Jeon Wook watched and continued speaking, [ Very interesting… What is your name?]

“Baek Woong.”

The next moment, I was hit with an unexpected offer. [ Baek Woong, will you not become my apostle?]

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