Kwaaang, kwaaaang!
The explosion shakes the surroundings.
With each of my strikes, the nearby space shatters, and Oh Hye-seo's body bursts apart.
: : From the very start... : :
Wrapped in Glass True Fire, I charge toward Oh Hye-seo and clamp her mouth shut.
Flash!
White wings bloom from her back.
At the same time, a pure white Heavenly Pegasus (天馬) manifests behind her.
It is muscle.With a horse's head above the neck and the body of a winged human (翼人) below, the being clasps its hands together like a dharma statue before launching a fist at me.
A fist.
Watching that pure white fist, I feel time compress.
The world slows, leaving only the fist targeting me within it.
Even though Oh Hye-seo has reached the Entering Nirvana stage, that punch and my reaction speed seem too much for her to follow, as she barely manages to track it with her eyes.
Kwaaaaang!
Power!
Not any Immortal Art, authority, rewrite, or prophecy—just pure, concentrated power, flies at me.
Jjeoong!
And that concentrated force explodes within the Blood Sea!
Chiiiiiii!
By the authority of order, the Blood Sea I had split apart restores itself.
Kugugugu!
The phantom of the White-Winged Heavenly Pegasus summoned by Oh Hye-seo glares at me before charging in an instant, swinging its fist.
The Heavenly Pegasus's fist aims for my cheek. I lower my waist to evade and strike at its ribs with a hand blade.
The Heavenly Pegasus spins in place and swings its wings to smash me upward above the Blood Sea.
Paaang!
Kicking off the Blood Sea's surface, the Heavenly Pegasus soars toward me, extending both legs straight out.
Maintaining that form, it slams its legs down at me.
Sound disappears.
The two legs of the Heavenly Pegasus drive into my stomach, triggering an explosion.
Within the explosion's range, all sound vanishes, and the entire order of the Blood Sea begins to rearrange itself for the Heavenly Pegasus.
I laugh.
: : I like this. : :
Releasing my will, I reach out toward the phantom of the Heavenly Pegasus.
My hand blade collides with its fist.
Bruises form on my hand, while its fist is sliced away.
It retaliates with a knee strike. I shift my upper body, trapping its knee in my armpit, then stab its solar plexus.
A single thrust.
With that one thrust, a hole is pierced through the Heavenly Pegasus's solar plexus.
Even with a gaping hole in its chest, it continues our battle with an unrestrained smile.
Its back kick shatters my jaw.
My hand blade severs its left hand.
Our exchange grows fiercer.
Kugugugugugu!
But the end is approaching.
From behind, Oh Hye-seo barely keeps up with our exchange, overlaying her form with the illusion of Supreme Tiger, while summoning another Immortal Beast's illusion within both hands.
Kwaaaak!
I grab the Heavenly Pegasus's shoulder with my right hand.
The Heavenly Pegasus also grabs my shoulder with its right hand and grins.
With all our strength, we slam our heads against each other.
Another explosion erupts. Blood pours from my seven orifices, while the Heavenly Pegasus's entire head flies off, its upper body sliced apart.
Chiiiiii—
Grinning, I watch the Heavenly Pegasus's illusion scatter.
: : Good. : :
The authority of the White-Winged Heavenly Pegasus is order.
Through that order, it nullifies supernatural authority and Immortal Arts, forcing battle with nothing but pure flesh—a true member of the close combat faction.
: : I'd like to meet you properly someday. : :
And then, as if my words had reached it—
As the Pegasus's illusion dissipates, a voice echoes in my mind.
—Interesting fellow. Let's play again sometime.
Wiiiing!
I flinch in surprise.
That just now was the heart language of the Heart Tribe.
And the realm of the Heavenly Pegasus that could be judged by the resonance of that heart language is...
"Severing Heaven realm!?"
It is the realm of Severing Heaven.
For a brief moment, I stand there in a daze before offering a short bow in the direction where the White-Winged Heavenly Pegasus's illusion disappeared, as a gesture of respect from a junior to a senior.
Kugwagwagwagwang!
At that moment, Oh Hye-seo seizes the opening and unleashes her divine power toward my back.
But I simply turn around slowly, letting the Dragon Wave she fires from both hands strike my bare body.
[Die, Seo Eun-hyun!]
The phantom of Supreme Tiger overlays her body.
The phantom of Black Dragon surges within her hands.
She brings her hands together, aiming at me as if emitting energy. Her hands have transformed to resemble the maw of Black Dragon as it breathes a dragon wave at me.
: : Is this all? : :
Thud, thud.
I take one step forward, then another.
: : Is this really the Dragon Wave of the Immortal Beast Black Dagon? Do better. The strongest technique of dragons is normally the Dragon Wave, and yet, there's no way something like this is Black Dragon's ultimate move. : :
[D-Don't come closer!]
Thud. Thud. Thud!
: : If you've reached the Entering Nirvana stage, if you've faced death countless times...by now, shouldn't you not just be borrowing the power of an Immortal Beast but drawing out the very power itself? : :
Thudthudthudthudthudthud!
I start running.
Charging straight through the dragon wave of Black Dragon, through the beam fired by Oh Hye-seo, I rush towards her.
: : You dare call this the power of an Immortal Beast!!?? : :
Piiiiiit!
A single leap.
In an instant, the distance between us vanishes.
Kwaduk!
My hand grips her shoulder.
I wring out all of my spiritual energy, all the energy within my Immortal Body.
Then, using the elasticity of my Immortal Body, I swing a hand blade towards her face.
Jjeooooong!
An explosion erupts, and Oh Hye-seo's brain bursts apart.
The very woman who had been licking the brains of devils just moments ago now has her own brain scattered, dancing in the air.
The Blood Sea, which had briefly recovered due to the power of White-Winged Heavenly Pegasus, begins to break apart again.
Oh Hye-seo borrows the authority of the Blood Sea to regenerate her body.
: : Get a hold of yourself, Oh Hye-seo...! Seo Hweol is gone! : :
I shout in a firm tone.
[Shut uuuuup!]
Oh Hye-seo regenerates her body again while screaming.
[Seo Hweol is alive! He's right he—]
Kwagwang!
Once again, she fails to finish her sentence as her upper body is torn apart.
'Three strikes left.'
I glance at the space of the Blood Sea, struggling to withstand the impact, and draw forth even more power.
: : Open your eyes and look around! : :
[N-No! Don't be ridiculous! As if I'd listen to you! Seo Hweol is, Seo Hweol is right here!]
: : Seo Hweol is gone! : :
I kick Oh Hye-seo's jaw, blasting apart her upper body once more.
'Two strikes left.'
Then, I fly straight towards the spot where her lower body remains and grab her ankle.
She regenerates her body from the lower half upward, summoning and merging the authorities of Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape and White-Winged Heavenly Pegasus in both hands.
The jade of Yin-Yang and Five Elements engulfs me.
It seems she learned this from the Great Mountain Supreme Deity as well.
[That person has granted us power! Take this, Seo Eun-hyun!]
Kiiiiiiiing!
My body begins to assimilate with the jade of Yin-Yang and Five Elements.
But with cold eyes, I tighten my grip on Oh Hye-seo's ankle.
[Great Mountain!]
Paat!
Kwaaaaaang!
Light engulfs me, but I hold onto Oh Hye-seo and slam her into the Blood Sea.
The entire space containing the Blood Sea warps, fractures spreading through it.
'One strike left.'
With just one more attack, this Blood Sea will collapse.
Kiiiiing!
My body, which was beginning to break apart under the effects of the Great Mountain Splitting Emperor Technique, is held together with the Phenomena Extinguishing Mantra, nullifying her technique.
Oh Hye-seo appears dazed, her breath ragged as she struggles to regenerate her body.
: : So, you've learned the Great Mountain Splitting Emperor Technique. For you to have mastered a technique incorporating over eighty percent of the Phenomena Extinguishing Mantra's formula...it means Senior Brother has taken a liking to you. You are Senior Brother's disciple. : :
Kuguguguk!
I grasp her regenerating face with one hand, lifting her body as I speak.
: : Listen well to your Martial Uncle, Martial Niece. Seo Hweol...is dead. What you are seeing is nothing more than a lingering remnant of the past. : :
I tell her the truth with a bitter tone.
Seo Hweol's heart remains with her without a doubt.
But what Seo Hweol truly wished for was for her to 'survive safely'.
Surely, he never wanted Oh Hye-seo to become someone who desperately searches for him in vain like an insane Mad Lord.
How could anyone look at the current Oh Hye-seo and call her 'safe'?
: : Seo Hweol wouldn't have wanted you to suffer like this either. Get a hold of yourself. For your sake. And for Seo Hweol's! : :
From the moment I realized that Oh Hye-seo had received strength and guidance from the Great Mountain Supreme Deity...
I could no longer completely hate her.
Because, in the end, she has become my martial niece.
Drip... Drip...
From Oh Hye-seo's face, gripped within my hand, something warm drips down.
She is crying.
[...D-Don't...be ridiculous...You don't get to...decide that...on your own...]
: : ...! : :
Her body trembles, and I flinch at the power of the Blood Sea resonating with her.
'This is dangerous.'
The Blood Sea, which Oh Hye-seo had never properly drawn upon before, is now revealing its overwhelming force.
'Oh Hye-seo's madness is resonating with the power deep inside the Blood Sea...!'
Pain and resentment.
Screams.
These are drawing forth the power of the Blood Sea.
: : Oh Hye-seo... : :
[You...! Don't speak as if you understand!!! In the end, you don't know the truth either...!]
: : ...What? : :
[What do you even know!? If I don't do this, then what the hell am I supposed to do!? Tell me! What do you expect me to do!? Just what reason do I have to keep living!? Answer me, Seo Eun-hyun! Why are you still alive right now!? Why are you alive at all!?]
Kugugugugu!
Powerful resentment.
That power surges over us.
The Blood Sea rises in waves, swallowing both me and Oh Hye-seo.
Jjeooooong!
But I slam Oh Hye-seo's head down, completely shattering the world of the Blood Sea.
'This place is...!'
I realize where I am.
A rift in history!
Somewhere within the river of Taiji, Oh Hye-seo had momentarily shoved in the power of the Blood Sea to create this subspace.
'I see. Oh Hye-seo must have pulled my spirit into her domain while I was reading history through the Earth Tribe senses.'
As I prepare to return to reality, I search for Oh Hye-seo within the depths of the Source River.
I intend to take her with me.
But suddenly, I see an illusion before my eyes.
[Immortal Beast: Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape.]
Kugugugugu!
It is a massive mountain.
And I have seen this mountain before.
My pupils contract sharply.
A mountain of countless corpses pressing down upon the universe—a tyrannical mountain of darkness!
The very mountain which the Great Mountain Supreme Deity once sat appears behind Oh Hye-seo as an illusion, looming like a great folding screen supporting her back.
The fragments of the shattered Blood Sea world are absorbed into that illusion, allowing the presence of the mountain of darkness to manifest in this world.
[You don't know either, Seo Eun-hyun...why you live. Why others live... What it even means to be alive... What life even is...]
Oh Hye-seo, now fully regenerated, sheds dark-red tears as she meets my gaze.
[Don't speak so carelessly when you know nothing.]
Gigigigigik!
The Great Mountain Supreme Deity's authority activates!
Under normal circumstances, Oh Hye-seo wouldn't even be allowed to draw upon such power, yet I can feel that the Great Mountain Supreme Deity is permitting it because I am the opponent.
Wiiiiiiiing!
Dark-red streaks of light flash.
And the illusion of the mountain that Oh Hye-seo has summoned...
In front of it, the jade of Yin-Yang and Five Elements coalesces, beginning to emit attraction force.
'Phenomena Extinguishing Mantra!?'
I realize that the Phenomena Extinguishing Mantra is targeting me.
The attraction force that compresses an entire universe into a single point is focused solely on me.
'Senior Brother...do you truly wish to merge that mountain and me into one!?'
The Corpse Mountain Blood Sea that Oh Hye-seo spoke of.
The Great Mountain Supreme Deity seems to truly want to fuse me with that Corpse Mountain Blood Sea.
'Even descending a portion of Their will to use the Phenomena Extinguishing Mantra...'
I must escape.
I cannot take Oh Hye-seo with me right now.
'I have to wait for another opportunity.'
Kiiiiiiing!
I prepare a technique that is essentially the reverse arrangement of the Phenomena Extinguishing Mantra.
I ready the Great Mountain Splitting Emperor Technique.
'For now...I run!'
: : Great Mountain! : :
Dududududu!
Before my eyes, the same jade of Yin-Yang and Five Elements gathers.
: : Splitting Emperor! : :
Kwaaaaaang!
I detonate the jade, using the resulting repulsive force to partially escape the attraction force of the Phenomena Extinguishing Mantra.
Since both share the same root mantra, the nullification effect is quite strong.
But that is all.
"I-It's still pulling me in!!"
Gritting my teeth, I prepare the Great Mountain Splitting Emperor Technique once more.
'Can I escape with the Great Mountain Splitting Emperor Technique? No...I can't escape!'
I instinctively know.
I cannot escape this.
At most, I can slightly weaken its effect—but just barely.
'The words of Great King Qin Guang...was this what they meant...?'
That as long as the Seat of Repentant Enlightenment is seized, it is absolutely impossible to win in a battle of interpretation.
It is exactly as they said.
From within that Phenomena Extinguishing Mantra, I feel enlightenment that I could not sense before.
When my cultivation was lower, I was unaware. But now, having reached a higher realm, I can tell.
The gap between Their enlightenment and mine is something that can never be bridged.
'Even with pure enlightenment in repentant enlightenment...I'm still far behind...'
I realize, quite literally, that the Great Mountain Supreme Deity is trying to merge me with this Corpse Mountain Blood Sea to share Their enlightenment with me.
Surprisingly, though Their method is oppressive, there is no malice in it!
'Insane...'
The Great Mountain Supreme Deity, in Their own way, is genuinely, purely trying to pass on Their enlightenment to me.
However...
As I look at the corpses shedding blood tears within the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea, I cry out.
: : Senior Brother. Are you watching? : :
The Great Mountain Supreme Deity is not present here.
That Corpse Mountain Blood Sea is merely a remnant of the power They left behind—it is neither Their clone nor projection.
Only a faint trace of Their will resides within it.
Yet, for some reason, I feel as if the Great Mountain Supreme Deity is listening, so I speak towards Them.
: : I have my own enlightenment. I will walk the Immortal Dao under you, Senior Brother, but... : :
Wiiiiiiing!
A pure white light begins to gather in my hand.
: : That does not mean I accept your way! : :
That light is the glow of a hazy mist.
: : I have my own path! Do not force your way upon one who rejects it! : :
Flash!
The light gathered in my hand bursts forth right before my eyes.
And within it, a certain 'scene' unfolds.
This scene is one that only I can see.
The scene within the Canvas of Myriad Forms and Connections is the moment when Glass Peacock pressed her lips against my cheek.
The trace that Glass Peacock left on my spirit in my past life!
That trace frantically scatters light, radiating an attraction force towards a familiar presence.
: : My Dao is the Cause and Connection of All Phenomena (萬狀因緣). : :
From afar, going against the current of history, a massive peacock enveloped in pure white light begins to soar toward me.
: : This is the interpretation of Repentant Enlightenment that I have chosen. I will not accept your way, Senior Brother. : :
In an instant,
Kugwagwagwagwang!
Glass Peacock, soaring against history, crashes directly into the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea. An enormous explosion erupts from Glass Peacock, shattering the core of the Phenomena Extinguishing Mantra spreading from the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea.
Then, Glass Peacock's frenzied voice echoes across the entire river of history.
: : Where are you!? Where!? Ten million years! Where is my [Lover] worth ten million years!? : :
Shiver!
I awkwardly laugh, knowing exactly what Glass Peacock means by 'worth ten million years'.
It seems the mark Glass Peacock left on my cheek in my past life was exactly that kind of mark.
Kugugugugu!
From deep within the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea, a fierce [arm] bursts forth and grabs hold of Glass Peacock's body.
'As expected... It's not just a fragment of Their will, but a part of Their split soul that They left behind.'
The Great Mountain Supreme Deity has heard my entire declaration.
: : Y-You, is it you, Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape? Ugh, uhut! Fine. Being seized by your rough hands and being utterly violated felt amazing too. If it's you, I could go for ten million years. B-But no... The one I carved this mark that I [must absolutely taste] was not you, Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape! : :
The split soul of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity.
Glass Peacock, caught in its grasp, rolls her eyes back and looks at me and Oh Hye-seo.
Then, our eyes meet.
: : So it's you! Wait for me! Wait for me! I will definitely... : :
Kwajijijijik!
The powerful hand of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity clenches tightly, crushing Glass Peacock into a small clump resembling a rice cake in its palm.
But perhaps because They only left behind a mere remnant of Their power—
It seems to be unable to completely subdue the body of Glass Peacock, who is at the Great Net Immortal-level, and is using all its strength just to hold onto her.
Jiiiiiiing!
At that moment, I sense someone has intruded into my Colorless Sword Enclosure.
It is a hulking figure, wrapped head to toe in bandages and draped in a tattered robe, sitting leisurely within my Colorless Sword Enclosure as if it were their own.
I quickly form an incarnation within the Colorless Sword Enclosure and bow before the figure.
"It has been a long time, Senior Brother."
Kwaaaang!
But They immediately swing Their bandage-wrapped foot, kicking my head and slamming me into a mountain within the Colorless Sword Enclosure.
[Who is your Senior Brother? Do not run your mouth carelessly...]
"Are you getting revenge because Junior Brother had beaten Marital Niece too much? Huhut."
As I dust myself off, I shudder slightly at the sight of [Gwak Am], whom I haven't seen in a long time.
Unlike before, Gwak Am now wears a yellow mask.
And for some reason, looking at that masked figure, someone comes to mind.
"...That appearance..."
[You do not need to know.]
They coldly cut off my words and glare at me.
[I prophesize this. One day, you will regret rejecting the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea I left behind today...and shed tears of blood.]
That is all.
With those words, Gwak Am, wearing the yellow mask, vanishes from my Colorless Sword Enclosure.
But I laugh.
Though They called it a prophecy, they were merely words—lacking any attraction force of a true prophecy.
Then...
: : S E O E U N - H Y U N !!! : :
Kugugugugu!
From the far reaches of the Source River, Golden Shaking Bird and Jeon Myeong-hoon have entered, holding Yeo Hwi.
It seems they came to rescue me after I was suddenly pulled into Oh Hye-seo's alternate space.
Paaaaat!
The two Lightning Path Immortals swiftly fly in and grab my hands.
Kugugugugu!
For a brief moment, Gwak Am's attraction force holds me in place, but I grip my friends' hands tightly and break free from Their attraction force.
The Corpse Mountain Blood Sea of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity no longer pursues me.
That is because it is using all its strength to restrain Glass Peacock, who is struggling wildly to pounce and violate me.
Relaxing my body, I sincerely offer my thanks to my long-unseen Senior Brother.
"Thank you, Senior Brother..."
Thus, with the strength of my connections, I escape the repentant enlightenment of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity and look back at them,
Golden Shaking Bird, seeing that Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape and Glass Peacock are fighting, hurriedly insists that we must leave the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain and quickly departs the Source River.
"...Let's go."
Recalling the moment right before I met Oh Hye-seo, I speak to Jeon Myeong-hoon and Golden Shaking Bird.
"To the Good Sight Heavenly Domain."
Oh Hye-seo and the Great Mountain Supreme Deity.
That brief yet intense encounter with the two of them comes to a close as we flee towards another Heavenly Domain.