Kururururung!
Red lightning rages violently.
The seven lightning spears embedded in Baek Woon's body all simultaneously emit a red glow and begin to thrash about.
Baek Woon's eyes roll back as if about to faint, trembling all over as she sits on her throne.
If she were human, she'd probably be foaming at the mouth.
Kwajijijik!
She shakes violently, unable to even scream, looking as if she's trapped in a prison of red lightning.
[S-s-s-...stop, stop...hugh, please...]
Seeing her state it seems like bringing Jeon Myeong-hoon here has worked better than using my Extinguishing Realm Demonic Curse Banner.
—Can you pull it out, Jeon Myeong-hoon?I ask him through heart language.
Thanks to having reached Void Shattering, the accuracy of heart language has improved significantly, making it almost indistinguishable from a regular voice transmission.
He holds the lightning spear for a moment before shaking his head and replying internally.
—It's impossible. I don't know who embedded it, but...even with my authority, I can't pull it out. The lightning is not cooperating with me. In fact, it's mocking me.
It's astonishing.
Regardless of what kind of lighting,
Even a Heavenly Tribulation usually becomes as tame as a lamb in front of Jeon Myeong-hoon. For the lightning spears left by Yang Su-jin to resist like this, they must possess an extraordinarily strong ego.
'What to do...?'
Originally, I planned to have Jeon Myeong-hoon threaten her through the lightning spears, then pull them out as a bargaining chip to slowly persuade her.
I assumed she would also want the spears removed. If she, like me, is bound by the laws of those [above] and has to follow the rules, removing them would be a benefit surpassing those rules.
I intended to heal her from the lightning spears but...
'This won't work. Then what...'
Clicking my tongue inwardly, I examine my own body.
'My body is a mess.'
That short confrontation with the Sacred Master has left my entire domain in near ruin.
If the plan to embed the Extinguishing Realm Demonic Curse Banner into Baek Woon had failed, my entire domain would have collapsed, leaving me in a semi-dead state, and I would have been forcibly become the Within Heavens Esteemed One.
'Fortunately, the attributes worked in my favor...'
There's no way someone in the Star Shattering stage could beat a Sacred Vessel Sacred Master under normal circumstances.
Not only is there an overwhelming difference in cultivation level, a Sacred Master also borrows the power of a Middle Realm or a star system. Within this area, they are practically equivalent to a True Immortal.
There's a reason why most Esteemed Ones in the Ancient Force Realm were purged by a single Sacred Master.
From the moment I first encountered her power, I gave up on directly confronting Sacred Master Baek Woon.
From the beginning, my plan hinged on somehow bringing Jeon Myeong-hoon here and having him touch the spears embedded in her body to have a chance of victory. If I couldn't even get that chance, the battle was already lost.
[Ah, aaargh! Uuuuurgh!]
I look at Baek Woon, who is almost being fried within the red lightning, and ask.
"...Originally, I intended to persuade you in a more moderate manner, but it seems that will be difficult. Hence, I'll ask you in this state."
Though I feel sorry for her, someone who has risen to the position of Sacred Master should be able to endure this level of pain.
"Will you rescind the conferral of the Esteemed One title?"
[Gu, gugugk...arguguguk...]
"Are you saying you will refuse to answer...?"
[Uu, urhguguguk...urghuk...]
"I will ask one more time."
[Uuh, uuah...aaahhh...]
"Will you..."
As I read her intent through the lightning, I continue speaking.
"...Rescind..."
The lightning blazes brightly, but within it, Baek Woon's intent is clear.
"...The conferral..."
A definite 'refusal'!
"...Of the Esteemed One..."
Kwajijijik!
To an outsider, it might appear as though I'm cruelly torturing a powerless woman with electricity and intimidating her.
But as I confront her true thoughts here, I understand clearly.
She is telling me, with great resolve, that she will hold on to the very end.
Though her mouth may scream, at our level of cultivation, we can communicate effectively without relying on words spoken aloud.
Even amidst the lightning, Baek Woon's eyes gradually become accustomed to the pain, expressing her strong will.
"...Title?"
[Heh, hehh...hehhhhhh...]
Pajijijijijijijijik!
Inside the prison of lightning, she starts to show a strange reaction.
[Heh...hehhehehe...]
"...!"
Kwachiiiing—
She extends her hand toward me.
Just that movement alone punctures a part of the lightning prison, and Baek Woon's withered, branch-like hand extends from within.
Zuuuuuung—
Attraction force emanates from her hand, twisting the surrounding spacetime.
In an instant, her hand touches my shoulder.
[Let...us...share this feeling...]
"...!!!"
Woooooong!
Through her hand, a crimson curse spell is cast onto me, transferring a portion of Baek Woon's pain into my body.
A curse that pushes one's own suffering onto others!
—Seo Eun-hyun!
—Don't stop!
Jeon Myeong-hoon, taken aback, tries to stop, but I loudly shout back through heart language and instead laugh.
'So, you want to take this to the end?'
Honestly, while I felt a bit sorry for her, I thought I had a chance to win the moment I first embedded the Extinguishing Realm Demonic Curse Banner .
But it seems I misjudged the situation.
At the level of a Sacred Master, one would likely develop some resistance to this level of pain.
If that's the case, I, too, will steel my resolve.
Tststststststs—
Curses flow out from my entire body.
I burst out in mental speech, grabbing her wrist tightly.
[My shoulder...don't touch it so carelessly.]
Paaaaaat!
Wududududuk!
I transform into the Ghost King with 21 heads, and I begin to pry Baek Woon's hand off my shoulder.
Wudududuk—
But it's heavy.
'This is crazy...is this really the strength of a 'Heaven Tribe' cultivator on the verge of death...?'
The sheer physical strength flowing from Baek Woon's frail arm surpasses the power of my Heaven and Earth Dual Cultivation in the late Integration stage.
Only by wrapping myself in the All-Heavens Sword and adding the sword's strength am I barely able to peel her thin arm off!
I once read a record from Lofty Dragon's storage scroll about an Integration stage cultivator who was beaten up by Lofty Dragon True Person in human form, having their domain shattered and almost dying.
Now, I finally understand.
That if someone were at the True Person level, it might really be possible to kill an Integration stage cultivator purely with physical strength!
Moreover, I heard rumors that Sacred Master Baek Woon was originally a True Person, who, due to some incident, lowered her cultivation realm to enter the Bright Cold Realm.
'Her physical strength might at least be on par with Lofty Dragon True Person in human form!'
At this rate, I'll lose for sure.
Therefore, I need to resort to drastic measures.
I use one hand to pull her arm off my shoulder.
Of course, the pain she's enduring floods into me through the hand holding her arm, but it's bearable.
Then, with my other hand, I release a curse spell.
The Extinguishing Realm Demonic Curse Banner emits a sinister light as it forms above my hand.
A black mass of something resembling flesh.
Inside, countless mouths and eyes writhe grotesquely.
Grasping the banner's staff, I grip its end in reverse, and then shove the black banner into Sacred Master Baek Woon's stomach.
[————————-!]
Jjiiiiing!
An unrecognizable scream echoes through Qi, Soul, and Fate — resonating through all three planes.
The same scream that the True Persons let out!
It means that Sacred Master Baek Woon is experiencing a truly unbearable pain.
[—————!]
[Kuaaaaaaargh!!]
Through her hand, the pain I pushed into her comes surging back to me.
What remains now is a battle of endurance—who can withstand the pain better!
'Let's see who wins, Sacred Master!'
Even amidst the agony, I show a crazed smile as I drive the banner even deeper.
Dudududududu!
'Madness...'
The entirety of the Bright Cold Realm begins to shake violently.
I can feel the Sacred Master Baek Woon going mad.
Right now, because of Yang Su-jin's legacy, it feels as though there's nothing she can do to us directly, who stand right in front of her.
However, due to her seizures, I can sense earthquakes, tsunamis, and disasters erupting all over the Bright Cold Realm.
I immediately sense earthquakes and volcanic eruptions occurring beneath Heavenly Lotus Mountain.
Furthermore, the attraction force of the Bright Cold Realm is recklessly stretching out to the Astral Realm, pulling in fragments of wandering stars toward it.
Meteors are raining everywhere, and the Vestiges of the Interdimensional Void are entering the Bright Cold Realm.
Woo-woong!
Then, I feel my mind becoming hazy from the ensuing madness.
Kugugugugugu!!!
Up and down reverse.
Heaven and Earth invert.
The sky [above] shifts below.
The earth [below] flips above.
It feels as though the screams of the countless Bright Cold Realm inhabitants are ringing in my ears.
It's not just a simple reversal of up and down—gravity remains the same.
In other words,
The sky has come to the place where one should stand on the ground.
But gravity stays the same.
What happens then?
"Seo Eun-hyun! Do something!!!"
Jeon Myeong-hoon shouts desperately, while I break out in a cold sweat.
The entire Bright Cold Realm has flipped upside down!
All the living beings of the Bright Cold Realm are falling toward the sky!
Fortunately, the vast majority of the Bright Cold Realm inhabitants are cultivators, so they can fly, preventing a disaster.
But even so, a terrifying thought grips me. If this continues, the Middle Realm might be destroyed.
Kwarung, Kwarururung!
As Heavenly Tribulation falls from the 'ground', the entire Bright Cold Realm is instantly engulfed in a sea of lightning.
Kwajijijik!
If it were just normal lightning, there would be no reason to worry in a place where Jeon Myeong-hoon stands.
But I realize what the Sacred Master Baek Woon is doing.
'This crazy...'
Heavenly Tribulations are now descending all over the Bright Cold Realm!
In each and every tribulation, images of Jeon Myeong-hoon and me torturing Sacred Master Baek Woon are being transmitted across the entire Bright Cold Realm.
The power of the Heavenly Tribulation itself isn't so great. Even someone at the Core Formation stage can endure it, but just brushing against it reveals the current situation.
In other words, I'm now being publicized across the entire Bright Cold Realm as an evil breed torturing the Sacred Master.
"Seo Eun-hyun!!!!!!"
Jeon Myeong-hoon looks at me with an expression as if he's about to lose his mind.
However, I show a bright expression instead.
'Right now, she's pleading for salvation from other living beings!'
In other words, she's reached the point where her mental strength has been pushed to its limits, and she's now begging for help from others.
[Just a little more! Put in more strength, Jeon Myeong-hoon!]
With fighting will surging in all 21 of my heads, I grip the flagpole even tighter.
[This...is not yet my full strength, Sacred Master...!]
Severing Mountain Swordsmanship.
Thirty-second Move.
Sub-Heart Sword.
Transcending Mountain Ridge Embedment!
Kiiiing!
The sword image formed in my heart essence plunges deep into the soul of Sacred Master Baek Woon.
As long as she thinks of me, her heart will be endlessly cut away.
From now on...even the last of her mental strength shall be sliced away!!
Paaaaaaatt!
A blinding white light surges.
The next moment.
Snap!
"...Huh?"
I feel cold sweat trickling down.
All phenomena has stopped.
'This is...'
A frozen world.
In this place, only I, and the being before me, can move.
[...You have won.]
I look at the figure before me.
'What is this?'
A beautiful woman dressed in a white robe, with patches of skin resembling tree bark exposed here and there, and branches sprouting from her head.
Sacred Master Baek Woon.
Her appearance at her prime stands before me.
She clicks her tongue with a lamenting expression and speaks.
[Vile breed. Do as you please. Thanks to you, I've had to unleash the power I had saved, and I can't even begin to fathom the immense loss I've suffered. Do whatever you want. I won't grant you the title of Esteemed One, so just disappear from my sight.]
Though she appears beautiful as if fully recovered, it seems she has lost the authority to instantly expel me across the Bright Cold Realm, merely telling me to 'disappear' without actually doing so.
[...I am grateful for the Sacred Master's mercy.]
I return to my human form and bow respectfully before her.
She turns her back to me with an irritated expression and says,
[I am no longer a Sacred Master.]
It is only then that I realize what she has done.
By temporarily lowering her realm by one stage, she created an incarnation that escaped my power.
However, considering this insane authority that briefly stopped time in the Bright Cold Realm, it's clear she only became an Esteemed One 'temporarily.'
In a few years, she will surely regain her realm as a Sacred Master.
[Get lost from my sight, Sword Devil...]
And so, after reaching the realm of an Esteemed One,
I gained official recognition for the title of 'Sword Devil,' and was able to avoid being granted a formal title as an Esteemed One.