Chapter 570: Heavenly Lord's Authority
Time seems to stop.
No.
Time is not stopping.
Everything in the world is slowing down.
I am becoming a fool.
Everything grows hazy and sluggish, as if addicted to the light of Glass Peacock.
And within that blurred time, only the will of Glass Peacock resounds clearly within me.
: : The past that has already passed never changes. Reversing history that has already progressed is absolutely impossible. : :Wo-woong!
A certain diagram unfolds before my eyes.
It is an explosion.
A certain [force] is continuously exploding, advancing toward somewhere.
And the remnants of that explosion spiral backward in a helix.
: : That is the absolute axiom engraved upon all beings who handle history. The First Law. You are correct... Time that has passed can never return. : :
Kugugugugugu!
Each time Glass Peacock flaps their wings, the light streaming from the edges of their feathers spirals, winding around me.
: : Even the being who calls Themself the Owner of Time...must stake Their very existence to defy history. Because [the past that has passed does not return] is the absolute law of history. A being under an absolute law cannot defy that law... Not even if they are a Heavenly Venerable... : :
Kugugugugu!
Something begins to stir.
: : That is why what those called Immortal Beasts perform as history revision...can never be a convenient authority like reality manipulation that freely edits history. The authority of history revision is mere deception that takes place under the absolute axiom that [the past does not change]... : :
The light of Glass Peacock grows stronger, and it feels as if the entire world is being dyed in their radiance, frozen still.
In this world, only three remain unfrozen.
My consciousness.
Glass Peacock's body.
And the technique of the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord, Sword-Guided Star Rain.
In this suffocating moment, I feel as though I am thrashing within an inescapable abyss.
Like struggling to escape from underwater.
Within that sensation, I come to understand a fragment of the Immortal Dao of [Addiction].
Why is it that Glass Peacock's authority, which turns opponents into fools, and Azure Peng's space labyrinth divine power both walk the Immortal Dao under the same Seat?
How can a space labyrinth and turning an opponent into a fool be classified under the same system?
'Wandering...'
A thought suddenly crosses my mind—Glass Peacock, too, is a being that wanders.
Perhaps the light of Glass Peacock does not turn others into fools...
Perhaps it merely draws out the foolishness that was already within them.
If Azure Peng is a being that wanders within an endless labyrinth...
Then might Glass Peacock be a being that wanders among fools?
That thought arises in me.
: : The past ultimately does not change. The only thing that changes is the 'perspective' of those who look upon the past... Our revision is merely an extension of such perspectives. : :
Finally, Glass Peacock and the two silver-white swords align on the same level.
Glass Peacock spreads their tail feathers and begins to rotate.
Their figure resembles the sun itself.
: : Though the past does not change, the [past remembered by an individual] can change as much as one desires. Just as one person may remember a ruler as a wise king, while another sees them as the worst of tyrants... Just as one woman may cherish the time spent with her beloved as the most affectionate moments, yet by the other as a tedious extension of work... The [truth] of what happened in the past is absolute, but its [interpretation] belongs solely to the individuals...! : :
In an instant, Glass Peacock's rotating tail feathers explode.
Within that explosion, I witness a certain scene.
Kwarurung!
That [scene] is a kind of story.
Within the tale of the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord's technique, [Sword-Guided Star Rain], Glass Peacock has now added this 'background setting'.
The tale of the Sword-Guided Star Rain now contains a new premise of [from the moment it enters Glass Peacock's sight, the 'foolish aspect' within it increases to an extreme degree].
Jjeoooong!
And the moment that tale is added, Sword-Guided Star Rain, struck by Glass Peacock's tail feathers, is foolishly and helplessly sent flying.
Pasasasasa!
The sword of Sword-Guided Star Rain turns into silver-white light, crumbling away without having any effect.
I widen my eyes at Glass Peacock's power, which has now neutralized not one but two strikes of Sword-Guided Star Rain—an attack that, in a single blow, could suffocate Blood Yin and collapse a corner of the universe.
: : Interesting. [I don't want to hurt them]... Such a sentiment coexists within the sword. Normally, deflecting this technique would have been impossible, but because such a foundation existed, I was able to amplify the contradiction and nullify the attack. : :
Glass Peacock lifts their gaze toward the direction where Sword-Guided Star Rain had flown.
: : Immortal Beasts are, in the end, beings who read stories and add background settings to them. That is why it is called history revision (改竄), not history rewriting (改變). Even if one reads history through the eyes of the Earth Tribe, the history they perceive is inevitably narrow and limited. Within that limited perspective, they impose their [own thoughts], force them upon history, and create connections between historical events. That is...what history revision truly is. : :
Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain.
Astral Realm.
There, the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord stands atop an entire galaxy, their eyes gleaming coldly.
Beyond their mask, a murderous glint surges.
: : A mere beast...dares to block the path of Radiance Hall. Has Radiance Hall ruled Mount Sumeru too leniently since the era of Vast Cold? : :
: : Wait, Sword Spear... : :
: : I cannot allow this insult... Do not forgive me...Rain Dew. Since I am fated to die, I shall leave behind a precedent ensuring that no one dares question the workings of Radiance Hall. : :
At the dreadful aura emanating from the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord, the Rain Dew Heavenly Lord flinches and hastily sends their intent somewhere.
Wo-woong!
: : All True Immortals under Radiance Hall, hear me. Especially those within the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain, listen carefully. Immediately withdraw from the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain, taking all devotees, Immortal Treasures, and supported Sacred Masters with you. I repeat, those inside the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain... : :
Kiiiiiiing!
As the Rain Dew Heavenly Lord repeats the warning, the form of a [silver-white snake biting its tail] behind the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord grows even more distinct.
It is as if the entire world is being dyed silver-white.
: : Furthermore, this is a message to all True Immortals near the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain. Enter the nearest Heavenly Domain and take shelter. Evacuate from the surroundings of the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain at once. Right now... : :
With tense eyes, the Rain Dew Heavenly Lord stares at the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord and delivers the final warning to all of Radiance Hall.
: : The Sword Spear Heavenly Lord...is about to unleash their power. : :
At those last words, every True Immortal within and around the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain begins moving frantically.
Kuaooooooo!
After Glass Peacock fended off the two Sword-Guided Star Rains through history revision,
I let out a small breath of relief and glance up at the sky.
But it's at that moment.
"...!"
Something else is flying in from above.
It is [three] more Sword-Guided Star Rains.
'E-Each one is a single strike capable of slaying a Great Net Immortal, and now there are three...'
Seeing this, Glass Peacock spreads their wings and takes flight once more as if exhausted.
: : All the way here...I can feel waves of fury. Has the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord grown enraged...? Ahaha, I'm sorry, Seo Eun-hyun. I'm sorry... : :
For some reason, Glass Peacock is in despair.
They take flight, shedding tears for me.
All the while burning themself ever brighter.
However, I am struck with overwhelming shock as I witness that appearance.
'They are riding it...?'
Glass Peacock is not merely soaring into the void.
They are carrying themself upon some kind of 'current.'
And, receiving the force of that 'current,' they begin to fly with a 'different speed' that no one can comprehend.
Seeing that 'speed,' my eyes widen.
I have seen that 'speed' before.
It was from Kim Young-hoon.
His saber was so fast that, in an instant—
Even if only for the briefest moment, I had seen him go into the [past].
Just like Kim Young-hoon.
No... The order is wrong.
Rather, it would be more accurate to say that back then, Kim Young-hoon had approached the authority of an Immortal Beast with his martial arts alone.
And as I witness this, I realize that, without even being aware of it, I am following Glass Peacock's 'speed.'
'It is rotating.’
Before my eyes, the Three Great Ultimates rotate, refining my mind.
Just as I had once refined my mind briefly to the True Immortal Realm by endlessly drawing circles with Sumeru Sword Dance,
This time, the Three Great Ultimates are refining my mind, following Glass Peacock into the past.
Glass Peacock glances back at me.
Seeing me keeping up with their speed, their eyes widen slightly in surprise, but they soon smile.
That smile, for some reason, looks sorrowful.
But they no longer look at me and instead gaze [upward].
It is the direction where the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord's Sword-Guided Star Rain had flown from.
And within that direction lies the [branch of history] that led the Sword-Guided Star Rain to reach this place.
Glass Peacock flies towards that [branch of history] of the Sword-Guided Star Rain and collides with it.
Then, they explode.
There is no sound.
Only an explosion.
Inside, a scene appears.
The branch of history is [interpreted] in a slightly twisted direction.
Glass Peacock moves once more within the explosion.
They search for an even earlier point in history.
They resist an even earlier branch.
Then, they explode.
In the brief moment when the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord launched Sword-Guided Star Rain,
Within that fleeting instant, they find the turning point of history.
Then, they explode.
Within the explosion, they [interpret] history through their own perspective.
They search for history.
They resist it.
They explode.
They search for history again...
Countless times, Glass Peacock explodes their own body, resisting history—
Yet, in the end, they cannot rewrite history itself.
However, by applying subtle 'interpretations' to the great river known as history—
Those faint currents merge, and merge again...
Until at last, they become a massive wave that twists the flow of history.
The interpretation of history that Glass Peacock accumulated and accumulated again has...
Kugugugugu!
...At some point, reached reality, and is reflected according to the interpretation.
Pasasasa!
The three Sword-Guided Star Rains, which had fallen to just above my head, crumble just like that right before they can strike me.
Hwiiiiiii!
"Master!"
I fly towards Glass Peacock, who has become battered and broken after blocking three strikes of the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord's Sword-Guided Star Rain.
Glass Peacock transforms into the form of a frail woman and falls into my embrace.
"Master, are you all right? Master!"
"...Huu. At last, I...find myself...in your arms."
Even in such a moment, they tightly embrace me as they speak.
"...At last...I get to hug you."
"Why say such things, Master?"
"...Sorry."
"No, Master, you saved me..."
"You are going to die."
Glass Peacock is crying.
Holding me, clinging to me, they tremble uncontrollably.
"Perhaps...I only provoked their wrath. Regardless of the process, this is the result. The Sword Spear Heavenly Lord is about to sincerely take action. This is the end for us. Even my main body will likely be captured by Radiance Hall and annihilated, sent into reincarnation...I'm sorry...I am sorry...I am sorry...! For failing to protect you, I am sorry!"
She bursts into tears, gripping my back and burying her face in my chest.
Kugugugugu!
I lift my gaze toward the distant starry sky.
From there, another silver-white sword streaks toward us.
It even seems larger than the last.
'That makes seven...'
I hold Glass Peacock a little tighter, then gently set her down and rise, facing the Sword-Guided Star Rain.
A technique capable of cleaving a Great Net Immortal in half in a single strike.
Under normal circumstances, I would never even dare to counter it.
But after witnessing Glass Peacock's move just now, I understand.
'I can do it.'
I, too...can do it!
"I will return, Master..."
Glass Peacock is dying.
Of course, even if this world's Glass Peacock perishes, her true body still survives in another Heavenly Domain.
But she said that even her true body will be captured by Radiance Hall and destroyed.
'In that case...this might be the last image I can show to Glass Peacock in this life...'
Let's show her the best version of myself.
So that I am not ashamed in front of the one who is my master!
"Don't... No... You cannot face it... Come back... Foolish... You must not stand against the light... The light...is absolute...!"
"In front of one who has become my master, I can never show a shameful side."
I go.
I kick off into the void, drawing the Impermanence Sword, and fly towards the Sword-Guided Star Rain.
"Come, Gyeong-ah...!"
Thump... Thump...
I feel as if my heart is pounding.
In an instant, the dreadful chest pain sweeps over me again.
The pain spreads throughout my entire body, filling me with agony.
But this time, it is even more excruciating.
Yet within the pain, I smile.
For I have found the clue to this suffering.
For a mere being's will to defy the storm known as the world, to twist fate and history—
Is that not, in itself, a contradiction and an impossibility?
That is why I suffer.
Glass Peacock spoke in passing about what the Way of Salt is.
If ordinary True Immortals use limited blessings or ancient force to rewrite the world—
Then I am trying to break the world with nothing but my own willpower.
A single being attempting to overpower the whole—naturally, I am crushed under the weight of the whole, writhing in agony!
That is the true nature of the pain I have endured all this time.
The moment I realize this, I feel the rotation of the Three Great Ultimates before me reaching its peak.
Paaaatt!
'Ah...'
Such a thought has crossed my mind before.
If the Heaven and Earth Dual Cultivation during my mortal era becomes useless in the realm of Vestige Liberation Immortal, then why did the Three Great Ultimates appear, and what purpose do they serve?
Now, I finally understand.
'The Three Great Ultimates...are ultimately Martial Arts.'
In the end, all martial arts of people are—
The degraded behavioral patterns of the Earth Tribe.
The degraded cultivation methods of the Heaven Tribe.
There is nothing people can purely do on their own; everything is borrowed from Heaven and Earth.
Yet, even if borrowed, it develops, is inherited, and is passed down, growing over time.
As it takes the name of 'Martial Arts', it embeds itself into the bodies and hearts of people, becoming the [spirit].
I had understood the Three Great Ultimates as a special 'phenomenon' that occurs when Heaven, Earth, and Heart combine.
But I was wrong.
The Three Great Ultimates itself is Heart.
In other words, a symbol subordinate to Martial Arts.
There is no such thing as pure martial arts.
What exists is only something borrowed from Heaven and Earth, patched together piece by piece.
But that something is shaped by a person's will.
In [the beginning], it could never have been comparable to Heaven and Earth. At the dawn of creation, humans were not even microorganisms, only mere clumps of particles that had not even become carbon...
But at [the end], we will surely stand alongside Heaven and Earth.
That is Martial Arts. That is the heart.
With the Impermanence Sword, I reach the True Immortal Realm, momentarily glimpsing the domain of purity.
Unlike with Heavenly Escape, I do not enter.
I can only see it.
And within that domain of purity, I see a certain [shadow].
That shadow mirrors my stance exactly, exuding the momentum as I do.
Reflecting me like a mirror, the face of that shadow for some reason belongs to Hyeon Gwi.
With empty eyes, Hyeon Gwi gives a faint smile and mutters from within the dark void.
"At last, you've fully stepped upon it. Upon Udumbara (優曇婆羅)."
As her next words follow, I feel chills running through my entire body.
"Welcome to hell."
But those are chills of ecstasy.
'So that's how it is...'
We are still—
Still in a place where the road stretches endlessly ahead, so far that we can call it hell.
So Martial Arts can go even beyond the domain of Immortals!
I laugh within ecstasy and madness.
Hyeon Gwi.
The Heavenly Venerable of the Void, the True Martial Great Emperor Hyeon Mu (玄武) also laughs with me within the void and madness.
I raise the Impermanence Sword and take my stance to swing it towards the Sword-Guided Star Rain.
Hyeon Mu moves exactly as I do, allowing me to grasp, with perfect clarity, every single flaw in my stance.
But I cannot correct them just yet.
'What I must do right now is...'
Rather than Hyeon Mu's, engrave the teachings of Glass Peacock.
Kiiiiiiiiing!
I begin to swing my sword.
In an instant, the speed of my sword starts to transcend reality.
Just as Kim Young-hoon once did.
Just as Glass Peacock had shown just moments ago.
I transcend time, capturing in my eyes a trajectory that reaches into the past.
'I see it...!'
It is familiar.
I have seen it countless times upon every regression.
The endlessly spiraling Taiji.
The [river of scenes] flowing within it.
I clearly defy the course of that [river of scenes] with my will.
I cannot overturn an overwhelming expanse of time like the Underworld or the Heavenly Venerable of Time, but I can reverse a single fleeting moment.
Enduring the pressure of defying time, I set my eyes on my objective.
Among the countless moments within the river of time—
[The moment Sword-Guided Star Rain is created]!
I swing the Impermanence Sword toward that scene.
"Immortal Cultivation is repentant enlightenment..."
Kwaaaaaaaang!
My sword crashes into that scene, exploding beyond spacetime.
And within the eruption, I impose my own interpretation.
My own direction upon the fixed flow of history.
"Like tiny grains of salt gathering to form the sea..."
Like countless failures accumulating to form success.
"Build mountains through repentant enlightenment..."
Within this moment, I shall embrace failure.
Jjeoooooong!
At my strike, the [scene] of the Sword-Guided Star Rain's creation trembles.
Yet history itself neither vanishes nor changes.
Only now, this history carries my own interpretation, my own direction.
Even if history itself does not change, the perspective of those who witness it does.
Paaaatt!
As I return to the original spacetime, I gaze at the starry sky.
Pasasasasa!
Sword-Guided Star Rain is crumbling.
"Haa...haa..."
Pain courses through my entire body.
Is it because I briefly transcended spacetime? Or is it because I forced a history revision with the body of a Vestige Liberation Immortal?
Or is it perhaps because the gap in rank between the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord and me is simply too overwhelming.
Maybe it is all of the above.
'I feel like I'm going to die.'
But I laugh.
Because, regardless,
"Look, Master. Your disciple...has not kneeled."
Floating in the vast cosmos, Glass Peacock looks at me.
Her face carries pride and admiration.
And also, pain and regret.
"...Master...?"
Just at that moment.
: : I am sorry. : :
Pasasasasak!
Beyond the crumbling silver-white sword fragments, a certain will reverberates.
The owner of this will is a presence far too familiar to me.
"...Gyeong-ah?"
Gyeong-i.
Yes, it is the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord.
: : This Immortal taught you the breathing of Radiance Hall. And with it, this Immortal made you my slave and took pleasure in it. However...you aided in fulfilling this Immortal's purpose. With that, this Immortal shall consider the debt settled. : :
Wo-woong!
"...Wai...t..."
I,
can only stare,
blankly,
at that distant,
starry sky.
: : And you once caught a glimpse of this Immortal's face. That is an unforgivable sin. However...at the same time, you taught this Immortal...the heart. It was a hellish heart, but there was also joy that transcended the teachings of Radiance which I had followed all my life. Therefore...the debt of seeing this Immortal's true face shall also be considered settled for teaching this Immortal the heart. In that case, no debts remain between us. : :
Laughter,
escapes.
"This is..."
From behind, I sense Glass Peacock closing her eyes.
All the beings in the world hold their breath.
: : However, now this Immortal must kill you. I must take your life. Thus...now, in turn, this Immortal shall be indebted to you. I cannot think of any way to repay this debt. Therefore... : :
How...
How utterly arrogant is this?
Thinking that the mere act of someone like me swinging a sword a few times...
Could block the sincere authority of a Heavenly Lord?
Only now do I realize why Glass Peacock had sobbed and apologized to me.
And I come to another realization.
'I am sorry, Master.'
Once targeted by the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord,
Perhaps those intertwined with me are inevitably doomed to destruction.
: : As compensation for your life, this Immortal shall tell you my true name. It is...far too insufficient...but it is the price for your life. Accept it. : :
"A Heavenly Lord's authority...?"
With a blank expression, I look up at the starry sky.
There, filling the starry sky, is a vast silver-white sword.
Kugugugugu!
It is the same as that time.
—Phenomena (滅) Extinguishing (法) Mantra (眞言)!
It is the same as when I witnessed the Heavenly Domain being destroyed by the Great Mountain Supreme Deity.
The Sword Spear Heavenly Lord's piercing voice fills all of the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain.
[Filling (滿) the Heavens (天) Sword (劍) Rain (雨)!!!]
Sword-Guided Star Rain. Each one can inflict a fatal wound upon a Great Net Immortal, and each one can collapse the corners of the universe.
It descends, blanketing the universe.
With each strike of the Sword-Guided Star Rain, the edges of the Heavenly Domain begin to collapse.
Not as a metaphor, but as a direct reality.
The Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain is collapsing.
A different kind of End from the Phenomena Extinguishing Mantra.
'This is...the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord...'
A being who can rule an entire Heavenly Domain with the sword alone.
The Fifth Seat of the Radiance Eight Immortals.
Sword Spear Heavenly Lord.
"Ha, haha...!"
And yet, I laugh.
Because even so, Gyeong-i is still Gyeong-i.
Laughing, I raise the Impermanence Sword and advance towards her destruction.
'I once swore an oath.'
To never show a shameful appearance before my master.
'Gyeong-i is also my master.'
Sword Spear Heavenly Lord.
Glass Peacock.
Even the Heavenly Venerable of the Void...
All those who have imparted their teachings to me in one way or another are watching me.
Before them, I cannot die disgracefully!
Even if I die—
I will not give up!
Before the destruction of the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain, I charge towards the Filling the Heavens Sword Rain that is tearing it apart.
: : My name is... : :
The world collapses, and as I am engulfed in pain, I swing my final sword.
Even the Impermanence Sword shatters before the apocalyptic sword that destroys the universe.
But...
My heart alone remains in this place.
: : Ji-hwang (地黃). : :
[Editor: Literally means 'Yellow Earth,' from the famous line 天地玄黃 ('Black Heaven Yellow Earth').]
I send my Heart Sword embedded with my heart towards the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord as my final act before closing my eyes.
: : Yang Ji-hwang (洋地黃). That was...my name in my mortal days. : :
That, is my one thousand and second return.
Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain.
There, struck by Seo Eun-hyun's Heart Sword and facing his heart, the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord trembles, sobbing uncontrollably.
: : I am sorry... I am sorry... If...if there is a next life... : :
Having destroyed the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain along with Seo Eun-hyun, the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord kneels upon the galaxy in a posture unbecoming of a Heavenly Lord, clutching their mask.
: : I beg...to the Heavenly Venerable of the Underworld... I beg thee... Let me be born...to be by his side once more. : :
Watching this unfold before them, the Rain Dew Heavenly Lord calmly clasps their hands together.
: : Truly terrifying are emotions...that they hold such power to make us beg before our greatest enemy... : :
The Rain Dew Heavenly Lord gazes down at the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord as they begin radiating power.
: : I shall execute you. O god (神) who has come to possess emotions. : :
Paaaaatt!
Behind the Rain Dew Heavenly Lord's head, the form of a [black-blue snake biting its tail] emerges like a halo.
And so, on that day—
A Heavenly Lord who came to love another falls to a state lower than even that of a mere mortal.