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I had this utterly foolish expression on my face.

“…?”

What the heck is that sound?

No… no way. I know what it means, but I really don’t want to accept it. It’s just too hard to think about it. I just want to look away!

Grrr!!

I can’t believe I’m in the worst-case scenario!

A shiver ran down my spine, from the crown of my head to the base of my tailbone, as irritation and unpleasantness swept over me. But quickly shaking off the feeling, I gathered my thoughts and replied.

“Seriously? Who is it?”

If Zhuge Sa has asserted it that strongly, it must already be true. All that’s left is to acknowledge reality and come up with a plan. As I regained my composure, Zhuge Sa made a strange face and chuckled mischievously.

“Are you really ready to hear?”

“Of course.”

I nodded resolutely.

“Even if it means dying thousands of times against that author, I will settle this!”

If someone meddled in my past life, they could be considered a reincarnator. And definitely, a battle between reincarnators wouldn’t be decided in just one or two fights. It would be a brutal exchange of life and death, drawing us into a darkness similar to the hungry ghost realm, but it was a fight we could never give up on. Noticing my determination to face reality, Zhuge Sa smirked and said.

“Your attitude is commendable.”

I urged Zhuge Sa.

“Hurry up! Things outside aren’t looking good; we need support fast.”

When I left, our side seemed to have the upper hand against Peng Zuo, but there was no way we could win like this. After all, our opponent had the Seven Luminaries, which meant they likely had a trump card. Our forces would certainly face massive damage. I needed to act quickly to prevent my comrades from dying.

Zhuge Sa shrugged.

“Honestly, I don’t know.”

“What? You don’t know?”

“Yeah. It’s clear someone’s meddled, but I can’t pinpoint who just yet. It’s half a success and half a failure.”

“What does that even mean…”

I was flabbergasted as Zhuge Sa continued.

“I’ll explain the details later. For now, let’s grab what we need before we deal with Peng Zuo.”

Swish!

Zhuge Sa moved the body of the homunculus and headed somewhere. As we moved, tentacles from the ship’s exterior tried to attack us, but I swiftly cut them down with my Thunder Sword and pushed the goo away with Spirit Power. As I easily defended Zhuge Sa, he remarked.

“There’s something we need in here.”

It was a powerful barrier that seemed to imprison Zhuge Sa earlier.

Bang!

I gathered Spirit Power the way I did before and smashed through the door, wrinkling my nose at the foul odor within. The brutal sight was filled with green monster corpses that looked like they’d just been vomited up and piles of ooze, tentacles, and suction cups scattered around, along with human body parts. As I scanned this nightmarish interior, Zhuge Sa said.

“This is it.”

“This is… no way!”

I spotted a pupa the size of a human body and my eyes widened. I had seen those countless times in my past life. I shouted its identity.

“Descendant of the Evil God!”

“Correct. More precisely, they’re pupae blessed to transform into the descendants of the Evil God.”

“Did they turn humans into this?”

“Most likely. They were probably humans living in this southern sea.”

No doubt about it. These are the pupae the imperial palace magically transformed from prisoners trapped in the Great Thunder Valley!

I had continuously rescued these pupae in my past life and stored them in my Wooden Armor to prevent hatching. Zhuge Sa had often suggested using these pupae as resources or sacrifices, but I had always refused since they had once been human.

“… Why is this here?”

I touched the pupa, dazed.

‘It’s… at least one head larger than the ones in the Great Thunder Valley.’

Then, feeling a warm pulsating rhythm from within, a trace of disgust washed over me, and I pulled my hand away. When I had touched the other ‘pupae,’ I didn’t feel such a vivid life force; they had been rock-hard.

As I reacted in shock, Zhuge Sa smiled faintly.

“Do you see the difference?”

“These are… about to hatch, aren’t they?”

“Exactly. The pupae in the Great Thunder Valley just after your reincarnation were still in their early transformation stages, requiring considerable consciousness and offering management. Even the ‘successful’ versions that turned black from enduring the blessing needed years to mature. But these pupae will hatch within three days if left alone.”

“……”

There were at least over ten pupae. Considering that the once nightmarishly powerful Nine Lotus Bishop had also been a descendant of the Evil God, borrowing the body of the Giant Race Seo Mun-hye, it was clear that once these pupae awakened, they would bring about an immense catastrophe.

‘The descendants of the Evil God are a powerful race even on a cosmic level. Comparing them to humans is quite rude…’

Each of these pupae might possess the power of the Great Immortal Level right from birth.

As I stared at the pupae with a glum face, Zhuge Sa said.

“After you stored all the pupae from the Great Thunder Valley in your Wooden Armor, the Bancheon Alliance has been consistently crushing the imperial palace’s plots for over a decade. So, they haven’t had any rituals to offer to the Evil God. But these pupae are different. There aren’t many demon sorcerers capable of using such powerful magic, especially of the Evil God lineage.”

“What are you getting at?”

“Don’t you get it? Peng Zuo personally came to retrieve them from the West, and the fact that he isn’t afraid of the interference from the Three Sovereigns means these blessed pupae are all connected.”

“… No way.”

I stared at Zhuge Sa in horror.

“The Evil God?!”

“That’s right. I heard about it from the zany Peng Zuo while my brain was still floating. These pupae are the attribute pupae created with blessings directly bestowed by the Evil God.”

“You’ve got to be kidding! That guy is asleep in the sea, waiting for the end and revelation!”

As I shouted, Zhuge Sa shook his head.

“This is entirely possible.”

“Why?!”

“Unlike other demon gods who are protected in the Shujosi City, the Evil God isn’t completely asleep. He’s in a half-asleep, half-awake state. Have you ever felt that he can still wield influence over the world if he wants, even after your reincarnation? And if he sees a certain benefit, he’s ready to awaken at any moment.”

“……!!”

“Moreover, having acquired one of the Seven Luminaries and with the West’s technological advances surpassing the East’s, the chances of the Evil God aiding Peng Zuo, who took the lead in the Eastern invasion, are extremely high.”

“……”

“In other words, the ultimate enemy you need to eliminate in this life is the Evil God himself, a ruler so powerful that even the Three Sovereigns hesitate to attack.”

Unbelievable.

Why did the difficulty increase so suddenly…?

‘I’ve only been training my martial arts!’

As I lost my words, Zhuge Sa continued.

“… Of course, this is outrageous. In this life, you’ve largely kept yourself out of the world, and I, along with my comrades in the Bancheon Alliance, have strived to control all variables. It’s not an exaggeration to say that almost no one knows the name Baek Woong in the martial arts world. Yet suddenly, the seal from the West breaks and Peng Zuo, along with the Evil God, invades the East.”

I picked up on what Zhuge Sa was getting at.

“Is that what the variables mean? That the variable is another reincarnator, other than me?”

“Exactly. I’m convinced a variable exists behind Peng Zuo, and I freely volunteered to become his hostage. As you can see, I had the confidence to slip away at any time with the Soul Exchange Technique.”

“Hmm, could it be that Peng Zuo is involved in my past life…”

I said, looking conflicted, as Zhuge Sa leaned against the nearby tentacle wall. The tentacles squirmed as if alive, but showed no signs of attack. It was likely because the homunculus itself wasn’t attacked by the tentacles.

“No way. Peng Zuo knew nothing about your past life. He was the same Peng Zuo we know. He only hired the Asura of the Eight Parts of the Divine after Chi You disappeared, borrowed his power, acquired the Golden Crow, and became a subordinate of the Evil God.”

“Ah…”

“Had he meddled in your past life, he wouldn’t have been so loud while invading. Instead, he would’ve gained the strength and information needed to seal Baek Woong carefully. The ruckus is evidence he isn’t a reincarnator.”

“I see.”

“However, there was something in his story that caught my attention.”

“Caught your attention? Is it the sudden disappearance of Chi You?”

“Yes, but there was something else…”

Zhuge Sa frowned.

“… The constellation has changed.”

“What do you mean?”

“The ease with which Peng Zuo captured the treasure of the Golden Crow, Paliyas, wasn’t just due to the power of the Asura of the Eight Parts of the Divine. The fort, which was originally protected with strong power, has weakened because the magical powers of the constellations have increased and their movement has altered.”

“Hmm… the constellations…”

“The flow of the constellations in this world has completely changed. I don’t know why, but it seems like it has happened relatively recently. According to Peng Zuo, even the [Old Rulers] don’t know the reason.”

“……”

“The abrupt disappearance of Chi You resulted in the whereabouts of the Asura of the Eight Parts of the Divine changing, enabling Peng Zuo to receive help. However, that doesn’t prove that someone meddled in your past life since the cause of Chi You’s sudden disappearance and the events have yet to be established. But the constellations are a different story…”

Zhuge Sa’s eyes gleamed.

“The change in the movement of the constellations is an unprecedented anomaly. Just because you reincarnated doesn’t mean the flow of the constellations changed, right? Moreover, this is an anomaly even the [Old Rulers] do not know about. And any domain unknown even to the [Old Rulers] could very well be your domain of reincarnation abilities.”

“Hmm.”

“There definitely exists someone who has meddled with your reincarnation ability. I can assert that.”

Is that the “evidence”?

I was secretly impressed by Zhuge Sa’s abilities. I had never even considered such a possibility, and he took all the risks of being disassembled and tortured to sneak into enemy territory and gather precious information, successfully deducing the situation. Without him, I would have been completely lost, tossed around by fate until I got hit from behind.

“But I still don’t know who the being is that turned the constellation upside down. Since they didn’t intervene directly with Peng Zuo, they went through multiple causal relationships.”

“So that’s why you said you didn’t know.”

“Let’s wrap up the conversation here; it’s time to go out and capture Peng Zuo.”

Zhuge Sa pulled himself up from the wall and started walking.

“We need to torture Peng Zuo to glean every bit of information he knows to eliminate this ultimate threat.”

“Got it.”

“Before we leave, gather all the pupae and put them in your Wooden Armor, then smash the barrier at the back once more. That’s where the stolen treasures from the Celestial Realm are hidden.”

“Aha!”

I followed Zhuge Sa’s instructions.

‘These are items I’ve only found once in my 24th life!’

I pulled out the Qingyun Sword and Flower Fire Grass from the stolen treasures. The Qingyun Sword was in sword form, ready to replace my Iron Sword immediately, and I roughly knew the usage method for the Flower Fire Grass from previous life experiences, as it usually took the form of a statue. Zhuge Sa chuckled.

“You can handle that, right?”

“Of course!”

I quickly replied and bolted outside with the Qingyun Sword in one hand and my Thunder Sword in the other.

Boom!

EEEEEK –

As I soared into the sky using both the Sword Flying Technique and Martial Arts, the Qingyun Sword in my hand wailing loudly. Ancient treasures are tricky to use because they don’t easily recognize their owner. Thus, even after acquiring them in my 24th life, I couldn’t use them properly, but this time was different.

I drew upon Spirit Power from within as I unleashed the Fire Eye Golden Spirit.

[Shut up!! You are mine!]

In that moment, the vibrations of the Qingyun Sword stopped, and I could hear a voice from it.

[… Descendant of Jeon Wook… I accept… ugh… so please stop the divine power.]

The spirit of the Qingyun Sword seemed to be speaking to me. It appeared that by infusing it with Spirit Power, the spirit of the treasure awakened, yet it was also suffering from the Spirit Power’s effects.

Perhaps the accumulation of Spirit Power over time was significant?

It seemed even ancient treasures could no longer easily defy my command.

I replied bluntly to the Qingyun Sword.

[If I’m going to use you in battle, I need Spirit Power in the sword. So, what should I do?]

In a hurry, the Qingyun Sword responded.

[I… will fight harder if you lend me your power. Please…]

I shot back, mildly uninterested.

[Nope~ Why would I…]

[If that’s the case, there’s a blue jade on my handle. Please pour your energy there… Then I’ll fight with all my might, I promise.]

[Well, if that’s the case.]

Whoosh!

I infused Spirit Power into the blue jade embedded in the Qingyun Sword’s handle. Immediately, blue light burst forth from the Qingyun Sword, enlarging my sword strength tenfold! It wasn’t a lie that the Qingyun Sword could enhance itself.

‘Whoa!’

This is useful!

Simultaneously, I poured Spirit Power into the Flower Fire Grass to awaken its spirit as well. The spirit, resembling a dolphin, began to scream and shouted.

[Kyaaaah! Stop torturing me!!]

[Nope~]

The spirit of the Flower Fire Grass twisted its body and yelled.

[Damn it! Who are you planning to attack? I’ll take care of them myself! Just withdraw your Spirit Power!!]

[That guy over there with the glowing pearl and the winged one. ]

[Alright!!]

[Get going fast.]

[I got it…]

[I’m your master, right?]

The Flower Fire Grass retorted irritably.

[Right! You filthy creature!]

At that moment, the Flower Fire Grass, a treasure from the Mythological Age, revealed a gigantic creature that overshadowed the sky and attacked the winged being summoned from the Golden Crow. The golden-winged being flinched, quickly summoning a golden spear to retaliate, but after taking a few hits, the Flower Fire Grass twisted away and attempted a body slam.

Boom!

KA-POW!

The ocean unleashed a tremendous roar, waves surging in every direction as the Flower Fire Grass dragged the golden being beneath the waves.

‘Excellent!’

With that, I dived into the hall with the Qingyun Sword, charging toward Peng Zuo, who was being flanked by the Master of the White Lotus Sect and the Three Dharma Guardians. Peng Zuo glanced at me and seemed to conclude that I didn’t possess the Absolute Realm, so he showed a relaxed expression. However, upon seeing the overwhelming blue light emanating from the Qingyun Sword in my hand, his expression changed drastically.

[No way! How do you have the Qingyun Sword…?!]

“Take this!!”

Swish!

In the next moment, I severed Peng Zuo’s left wrist, sending it flying. Thanks to the combined strength of the Qingyun Sword, reinforced by Spirit Power, and the Blade of the Thunder Sword, I managed to execute the attack. While Peng Zuo wore a bewildered expression, I grinned.

“I’ll make sure to cleanly behead you, Peng Zuo!”

After all, I need to use the Eight Trigrams Garment myself!

 

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