895——————==

True Martial Home (진공가향)

“Why not go?”

I looked at Zhuge Sa with a puzzled expression.

“What’s up with that?”

At my words, Zhuge Sa slowly brought his index finger to his lips. That action symbolized silence and secrets, and after a moment, he continued speaking.

“It’s like the reason you need to be careful with your words.”

“……”

I couldn’t quite grasp it, but I understood that there was a deeper meaning in Zhuge Sa’s words. I still didn’t know exactly why I was being cautious about my ‘rebirth’ in this life, but the strategists viewed it as a prerequisite. Once the absolute taboo was brought up, I was left speechless.

After a moment of thought, Zhuge Sa spoke again.

“Going to the Primordial Palace isn’t such a bad strategy after all. Your brother thinks that even if it violates a taboo, finishing the Celestial Realm’s assault successfully and toppling Queen Mother of the West is the goal. The focus is all on immediate success. However, from your perspective as Baek Woong, violating the taboo to reach the Primordial Palace, even at the cost of perishing against Queen Mother of the West, is something that cannot happen.”

“Taboo? Why…”

“Baek Woong, let’s make a proposal here.”

Zhuge Sa’s eyes sparkled.

“Just leave Xiang Yu be. Let’s negotiate with Queen Mother of the West to find a way out.”

“……”

“That’s the most realistic option right now. We have the materials for negotiation.”

“What are we going to do?”

“Queen Mother of the West might be aggressive, but she’ll realize she’s at risk once the Heavenly Mysterious Woman of Nine Heavens becomes serious. In that case, we need to make the Heavenly Mysterious Woman genuine first. Then, Queen Mother of the West will fear death as well.”

Make the Heavenly Mysterious Woman genuine?

‘What strategy is Zhuge Sa planning?’

Not understanding what he meant, I looked puzzled, and Zhuge Yulong spoke up.

“You really only know your lord, huh? That’s an option that would only bring misfortune to everyone besides Baek Woong.”

It was a jab aimed at Zhuge Yulong, who probably understood his own schemes, but Zhuge Sa answered nonchalantly.

“What the strategist is responsible for is only to the lord, isn’t it? Stop spouting nonsense, brother.”

“… Huh.”

Zhuge Yulong sighed and said to me.

“Baek Woong, if you claim you’re fighting for the greater good, then listen to me. Do you know what Zhuge Sa is thinking?”

“I’m not sure…”

“The difference between the Heavenly Mysterious Woman and Queen Mother of the West is whether they want to protect the Earth or dismiss it. The Heavenly Mysterious Woman is weaker because she has something to protect. Therefore, if we eliminate what she wants to keep, she will have no reason to hold back any longer. Then we can fight on a level or even superior footing, forcing Queen Mother of the West to negotiate with us.”

Only then did I realize and my expression hardened.

“You want to destroy the Earth?!”

“The method would probably be simple. Now that we have the Primordial Void in our hands, if we manipulate it, we can nullify all the barriers currently forming the Celestial Realm and collapse Mount Kunlun. Then the aftermath of the Celestial Realm collapsing will shake the world, unleashing various catastrophes.”

“……!!”

“Baek Woong, is that what you want?”

I looked at Zhuge Sa to see if Zhuge Yulong’s predictions about his strategy were true. Zhuge Sa shrugged and said.

“That’s right. You really are my brother, able to read my strategy.”

“Zhuge Sa! Is it really possible to do all that using the Primordial Void?”

“It should be possible. With the help of my brother, the master of the Eight Trigrams, we could do even more, but I don’t suppose you will help, will you? Even so, with our and Hyun’s skills in the Eight Trigrams, we could twist the balance of the world and cause the Celestial Realm’s downfall. The Primordial Void wasn’t created by humans, but rather by the Three Sovereigns’ Fuxi, so it has powers beyond the Seven Luminaries.”

“But that’s not acceptable. We can’t choose the path of destroying the world!”

When I firmly stated that, Zhuge Sa countered.

“Then what will you do? As the lord, tell me how you plan to turn this situation around. If you do, I, as the strategist, will supplement and propose improvements.”

“……”

“It’s a dilemma, isn’t it? After all, humans are no different from livestock raised by the gods, so a little cleanup wouldn’t hurt, would it? If science and technology just advance a bit more, they’d probably grow like mold on their own.”

Zhuge Sa’s words were laced with deep disgust and madness towards humanity. I could tell from his words that he expressed his opinion even knowing it wouldn’t be accepted. It meant my current situation had deteriorated to the point where I could no longer advocate for the greater good.

‘What should I do?’

If we were to follow Zhuge Sa’s plan to collapse the Celestial Realm with the Primordial Void and send Mount Kunlun crashing down, the Heavenly Mysterious Woman would inevitably have to exert her power to suppress Queen Mother of the West. While that situation would be advantageous for us, it was undoubtedly an extreme and evil plan.

However, I couldn’t simply oppose Zhuge Sa’s words by solely putting the greater good first when there were no viable alternatives. While I was lost in thought, Zhuge Yulong spoke up.

“Let’s go to the Primordial Palace. And help Xiang Yu.”

“… You said it’s a taboo.”

“It is a taboo, but that would be a matter of whether we ‘recognize’ it or not.”

“What do you mean?”

“As long as you follow the warning Zhuge Sa mentioned, the taboo won’t be the worst thing that returns. Unintended outcomes are more likely to be enjoyed by the opponent. If it’s just by coincidence, there will be no problem.”

“……?”

“Baek Woong, it’s a good thing you’re not overly smart.”

What?!

Why all of a sudden am I getting a lecture on my intelligence?

I didn’t understand what Zhuge Yulong was trying to say. His words were so twisted that I couldn’t follow along. But then, Zhuge Sa spoke as if realizing there was no way out.

“It’s pointless for the lord to keep pretending to be kind… In this situation, destroying the human world would be far more efficient! Baek Woong, it’s meaningless to drag this out any longer, so just do as my brother says.”

“You want me to go to the Primordial Palace?”

“Yes. Even if it’s dangerous, it’s better to see how Xiang Yu’s fate unfolds. That’s tremendously valuable information. But just don’t cross the ‘taboo.’ If you can manage that, it’ll be fine.”

“Got it!”

“I’m warning you, don’t overexert yourself trying to discover what you don’t know.”

“I got it.”

Clap

For now, I didn’t know what was going on, but I decided to follow the strategists’ orders. So, I headed to the Primordial Palace with Zhuge Yulong and Zhuge Bu. Zhuge Sa said there was no need to send other companions, so it was just us three going together.

Upon entering the Primordial Palace, I felt a strange sensation. Soon after, I figured out why I felt that way.

‘There’s not a single barrier.’

Every palace in the Celestial Realm has an owner, usually the Great Immortal. Great Immortals would set up various barriers or techniques to protect their palaces, and the aura of those techniques would get picked up by my Spirit Power and Fire Eye Golden Spirit. I had felt such barriers even in the Three Pure Ones Palace.

But the Primordial Palace bizarrely lacked any traces of techniques or barriers. It felt like stepping into something completely empty. The internal scenery resembled a Taoist palace, but it felt desolate and eerie.

Yeah… This place is completely empty.

Zhuge Bu, who had been silent, finally spoke.

“Father, two entities are facing off just ahead.”

“Oh?”

“One seems to be Xiang Yu, and the other is an enigmatic man.”

“…… Hmm. Here it comes.”

With Zhuge Bu’s report, Zhuge Yulong made a low sound.

“Let’s go.”

After a brief moment, we arrived at the location where Xiang Yu was. At the heart of the palace stood a shabby altar styled after ancient Taoist architecture, and on the round marble altar stood a man.

The man was grinning while looking down at Xiang Yu.

“Your coming this far means you must have guessed quite a bit, right?”

“……”

“It’s been a while. I thought I wouldn’t see you in this form until about five hundred years later, but it seems we’ve met sooner than I expected.”

His voice was relaxed and leisurely. Though I had never heard it before, I felt strangely familiar with the tone. Unexpectedly, Xiang Yu didn’t rush in but spoke slowly.

“Yuan Bang. I wanted to see you too.”

……?!

Yuan Bang?!

The man known as the Red Dragon King, who founded the Han Dynasty, is now standing before Xiang Yu?! The only rival to Xiang Yu, historically recognized as the last victor, the founder of the Han Dynasty, is unexpectedly in the Primordial Palace!

Yuan Bang said.

“Xiang Yu, unlike last time, you’re not starting with your fists this time. Without Soh and Zhang Liang, you could kill me in one punch, couldn’t you?”

It sounded almost like a taunt, but Xiang Yu didn’t flinch. Instead, he looked at Yuan Bang with a calm and composed expression while suppressing his killing intent. Seeing Xiang Yu in such demeanor was rare, and as I looked on with curiosity, Xiang Yu opened his mouth.

“Those guys are merely puppets to you. I realized that during the Gaixia battle, and I understood you were far more frightening than the avatars of all those constellations. And when I decided to kill you, you brought up your woman, Yu Ji.”

“Hahaha.”

Yuan Bang laughed heartily and then spoke.

“Honestly, I thought I’d have to accept death, but Xiang Yu, you have more humanity and feelings left than I expected. Even though I can slaughter a million strangers without remorse, my heart softens for my own woman… Quite beautiful.”

“……”

“Yes, I fulfilled my promise to you. In exchange for your suicide, I spared the remaining soldiers of Chu and didn’t discriminate against them in their recognition. So what brings you here to the Celestial Realm’s Primordial Palace?”

“The real problem is that you are here.”

Xiang Yu’s gaze sharpened.

“… Where did you start to toy with me? While not even the Red Dragon, you claimed to be the Red Dragon King, what exactly are you?”

“Well, that’s true. I hastily pieced it together when I descended, but it was quite impressive seeing you knock down the Southern Dragon King. Hahaha.”

“You’re evading my question. What is your true identity, the so-called owner of the Primordial Palace claiming to be Yuan Bang?”

“True identity, huh…”

Yuan Bang smiled broadly.

“I’m not quite sure about that… I’ve had so many masks that I’ve forgotten which one is the original.”

“What…?”

Yuan Bang suddenly wore a look of emptiness. His usual taunting demeanor gave way to a hint of despair.

“Also, this form of mine is just one of my masks, and it bears various names. No matter what persona the mask holds, you can’t guess the character behind my true face, can you? If that were possible, it wouldn’t be a mask… How ironic.”

“……”

“It’s pointless to ask about my identity. As you surmised, I am the owner of the Primordial Palace, and I am Yuan Bang, but simultaneously, I am nothing at all. However, I can tell you a few things I can offer you right now.”

Yuan Bang gestured with his thumb behind him.

“Do you wish to see Yu Ji? Or do you truly want to know my real identity? You can choose only one.”

“Don’t get cocky.”

“Hoohoo! Regardless of what choice you make, I can enjoy myself, so I’d be satisfied either way. Even if you didn’t submit and attempted to kill me, I’d still accept that.”

“……”

It’s obvious Xiang Yu isn’t a fool. In this situation, killing Yuan Bang is something everyone knows is a stupid move—something even a kid would realize. Faced with this binary choice, Xiang Yu fell silent, unable to move. No matter how strong he was, this wasn’t an easy decision to make.

‘Now’s the time!’

I thought this was my moment to step in. Therefore, I boldly stepped forward and called out to Yuan Bang.

“Emperor Gao of Han, Yuan Bang! I am Baek Woong!”

Yuan Bang’s gaze turned toward me. I shouted at him.

“I don’t care who you are, just do something about Queen Mother of the West! I will pay the price!!”

“……”

At my words, Yuan Bang lost his composure for the first time and looked utterly astounded. Suddenly, he wore a curious expression and stared at me.

“I’ve been watching from the sidelines, but you said your name is Baek Woong? You really are an interesting one. Both your martial arts and abilities seem extraordinary, yet your intellect doesn’t match. It’s peculiar how you’ve gained the trust of such renowned beings without much effort.”

I smiled back at him. There was no need to respond to such sarcasm.

“Haha, you don’t have to praise me.”

“… Uh, well, never mind that.”

Yuan Bang seemed slightly drained and changed the subject awkwardly.

“Anyway, do you possibly have some special abilities?”

“What abilities do you mean?”

“Like…”

It seemed as if a chaotic mist was swirling in Yuan Bang’s eyes.

“An ability to reset upon dying…?”

 

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