Chapter 583: Sunlight Hunting (3)
'It's hot.'
A boy thinks.
Nine lights floating in the sky.
The elders of his family, who have reached the Four-Axis stage and can travel between planets, have spoken.
They said that in this Crystal Glass Realm, there exist nine suns, and because of those nine suns, the world is gradually growing hotter.
Hwiiiiiii—
A sandstorm blows.
The boy squints.An endless desert stretches out before him.
Most of the land in Crystal Glass Realm is like this.
Though Integration stage Grand Cultivators have managed to create habitable living areas by merging their Integrated Dao Domains with formations, that is the extent of what they could do.
No one can lower the temperature of the entire world.
Back when there were only eight suns, the three Sacred Vessel stage beings known as the Three Divine Spirits—Yeo Hwi, Ham Jin, and Yu Hwi—each used their powers to cool the world as much as possible...
But now, even they are helpless against the heat of the nine suns.
The elders of his family have said that soon, a tenth sun will be born.
The Three Divine Spirits have also warned of this, so it must be true.
Hwiiiii—
Standing in the midst of the desert wind, the boy narrows his eyes.
"In Ye! Where are you, In Ye!?"
The elders of his family, the In Clan, call out to him from within the formation protecting the residential zone.
"This little rascal! Didn't we tell you not to leave the settlement?"
"More than that, this barrier should only be breakable by someone at least in the Heavenly Being stage. How in the world did you get through it?"
"In Ye, you brat! Didn't we say the air outside the settlement is thin, and the temperature is too high making it even dangerous for Qi Building stage cultivators! Why do you keep running off on your own!"
At the scolding from the elders, In Ye simply scratches his head.
'I just don't want to practice archery anymore.'
That is his true thought, but he knows that if he says it out loud, he'll only face harder scolding, so he makes up another excuse.
"...I just...wanted to see the desert with Mister."
He glances at the man in white standing beside him.
He can clearly feel his presence.
His breath, his scent, the white clothes he wears—all are vividly visible.
Yet the elders only respond with anger.
"This brat...are you seeing things again!?"
"If he were a ghost, we'd sense something. It seems like he's having hallucinations within his own mind."
"Damn it...the most talented child has a broken mind. What are we supposed to do with that!? Just come along! You haven't even finished today's training, and you're already trying to run away!"
The elders sigh in frustration, and as In Ye is dragged toward the training grounds by the hand, he mouths a question to the man in white.
"Mister, why can't anyone else see you?"
The man in white smiles faintly.
"Because I am both everywhere in this world and nowhere. It is simply that...your talent has surpassed a singularity, allowing you to perceive my existence which lingers in the Plane of Qi."
"Hmm..."
In Ye tilts his head at the cryptic words.
But somehow, he feels like he understands.
"I see. Mister...is a god. A god far greater than even the Three Divine Spirits."
Feeling the Qi that pervades this entire world, he asks,
"Then, are you the very Heaven and Earth spiritual energy that fills this world?"
"In a way, yes."
"I'm jealous. Mister can go anywhere you want. Meanwhile, if I take even a few steps outside the settlement, the elders always come chasing after me..."
"Can go anywhere...huh. Hahaha."
The man in white smiles as he speaks.
"I am not such a free god."
"What do you mean?"
"You will understand when the time comes."
In Ye finds it strange but lets it go.
After all, the man in white always speaks in vague riddles.
Time passes.
In Ye has already grown into a young man.
Having reached the Four-Axis stage at the age of twenty, In Ye fires an arrow into the sky.
Puhwak!
The arrow soaring into the sky suddenly vanishes into the void.
The Immortal Art he infused into the arrow surpassed the plane and reached the Plane of Fate.
But reaching it is all he can do—he cannot change anything.
"What do you think, God?"
Even now as a young man, In Ye turns to the man in white who still lingers by his side.
"I did what you told me. But the Plane of Fate...is too strong. It won't budge at all."
As time passed and In Ye gained more knowledge from his family, he learned to speak with greater clarity.
Eventually, he revealed the existence of the 'god' that only he can see.
The family was thrown into chaos.
A being taken form from the Heaven and Earth spiritual energy of this world?
And is attached to In Ye?
In Ye was immediately named the next head of the clan.
Everyone treats him with the utmost reverence, constantly reminding him of how fearsome and extraordinary the entity following him truly is, urging him to always show the highest respect.
But In Ye does not find the 'god' to be so awe-inspiring.
Or rather, he does feel a deep sense of awe.
Yet, it is the kind of awe one feels when witnessing the vast beauty of nature, not the reaction one has to an unfathomable mystery or monster.
To him, the god is simply the 'mister' he has known since childhood.
He may carry the title of God, but he is just a very familiar presence.
If anything...because he is always there, In Ye finds his constant gaze a little burdensome at times.
"A strong heart was not put into it."
"Didn't you say that the ultimate form of archery is No-Thought (無念)?"
"...Of course, No-Thought devoid of any heart is powerful. But to reach that state, you must first have a direction. And that direction is your heart."
"I see..."
"...In Ye."
The god asks him a question.
"You are not interested in the bow, are you?"
In Ye nods.
"Yes. I don't really have interest in it. I was born with great talent, but...I don't know if this is something I actually like. Well, the elders keep telling me I need to train my archery, but honestly, they don't explain why. 'Because you must'...is all they say."
He shrugs.
"The elders say I need to master archery to shoot down the sun. But...why should I? I...don't mind the desert landscape."
"...I see. You still do not know your fate."
"My fate?"
"Yes. The task you must fulfill."
"Are you also going to tell me the same-old bothersome words about how I need to shoot down the sun, God?"
"Wrong... Bringing down the sun is not your fate. It is not your purpose, nor is it something you truly want."
In Ye nods.
"God understands me well. Then...why must I practice archery? What is my fate, and what is my life?"
To In Ye's question seeking an answer about his fate and life, the man in white averts his gaze and once again speaks in ambiguous words.
"Huhu... You don't want to practice archery? Then what do you want to do?"
"Just...um..."
Paaatt!
In Ye soars into the air, looking around at the planet his clan has settled on, and speaks.
"I just want to zone out and stare at the desert."
"The desert, huh... That is good too. Then keep looking at the desert. You don't have to practice archery."
"...You are sure that's what you said, right, God?"
Without hesitation, In Ye lets go of his bow.
With the words, 'God permitted it', he immediately runs away from the family.
As a child, he had to be dragged back by the hands of the adults...
But he is no longer a child.
His family sends pursuers after him, but In Ye shakes them all off and finally arrives at a secluded spot in a desert.
"From here on, I'm just going to space out here. My lifespan will keep increasing as long as I breathe and get struck by lightning every now and then, so there's nothing to worry about."
"...Do as you wish."
"...Is that all you have to say?"
"It is your choice. What do I have to say?"
"...Forget it."
And so, from that day forward, he does nothing but gaze at the desert of his home planet.
Simply spacing out.
Yet, perhaps because of his overwhelming talent...
Even as he spaces out, In Ye slowly develops a demon beast method.
Through this technique, which absorbs the essence of the desert, he absentmindedly advances in cultivation even while only staring blankly.
Ten years, twenty years, thirty years pass. A hundred years go by.
The elders of his family find him once more.
They try to take him back by force, but it is now no longer possible.
In Ye has already reached the Four-Axis stage, and they would never be able to capture him with force.
The elders of the family fall into deep distress.
They cannot understand why the one once hailed as the hope of their clan refuses to practice archery.
Some become furious at him, some plead with him, and others even prostrate themselves and beg.
But In Ye remains unmoved, only watching the desert.
A thousand years pass.
The family gives up on In Ye and selects a new candidate for the next clan head, leading to a power struggle.
His younger cousin, In Hang, is chosen to become the next clan leader.
In Ye does not care.
And so, ten thousand years pass.
Kugugugugu!
Lightning tribulation rages across the sky.
At some point, In Ye has reached the Integration stage.
Without doing anything, simply breathing and gazing at the desert, he naturally built the Five Elements Axes and reached the Integration stage within ten thousand years.
"...It's hot."
With a blank expression, In Ye looks up at the sky.
At some point, besides the nine suns, a tenth, smaller light has begun to shimmer.
"The tenth sun will be complete in a few tens of thousands of years."
"According to legend, a sun is born once every million years... Why is the tenth sun forming already? From what I know, it hasn't even been five hundred thousand years since the ninth sun was created."
"They are resonating."
The man in white looks up at the sky and speaks.
"The nine suns that were created first and the final sun that is still forming are resonating, accelerating its completion."
"...What happens when the tenth sun appears?"
"What do you think will happen? The world...will just get hotter."
"...Hotter than this?"
In Ye clicks his tongue.
"Well, that's...sure going to be hot. I'm glad I reached the Integration stage early."
"Is that so?"
Had the elders of his family heard this, they would have been furious, but the man does not get angry.
He simply nods calmly.
"...Do you...not have something to say?"
"It is your choice. What do I have to say?"
"...Yes."
And so, In Ye continues to sit beside the man, simply breathing with his eyes open.
Forty thousand years pass.
In Ye turns fifty thousand years old.
"...Ah."
In Ye squints as he sees the sky growing hotter.
At some point, just by breathing, he has reached the Grand Perfection Integration stage.
Yet, he looks ahead with a slightly dissatisfied expression.
"The desert...is melting."
"I see. Until now, the minerals that Yu Hwi buried underground had absorbed the heat, at least preserving the desert's form, but..."
Hwarururuk!
The tenth sun is now nearly complete.
As its heat merges with that of the nine other suns, the planets of the Crystal Glass Realm begin to go beyond desertification. Now even the deserts themselves are melting.
"It seems even that is no longer enough to endure."
Watching this, In Ye clenches his teeth with empty eyes.
Wo-woong!
His Integrated Dao Domain unfolds.
It spreads over the melting desert, stopping it from dissolving any further.
"...Are you not going to say anything, God?"
"What do I have to say? Have I ever said burdensome words? It is your choice. What do I have to say?"
"...That's true."
With an inexplicable dissatisfied expression, he glares at the desert, now at least holding its form within his Integrated Dao Domain.
One year passes.
"...Damn it."
In Ye grinds his teeth.
"God, just why are you doing this!?
"...What have I done to you?
"Why do you keep lingering around me!?"
"I am not lingering around you. I exist throughout this entire world. Among them, I simply dwell a little more deeply within the bloodline of your family, and you alone perceive me."
"Then why don't you say anything to me!? Why won't you reprimand me at all!? The family records state that the Unruly One, Ham Jin, ruled our family so harshly it was practically oppression. Yet you, who seems far greater than him, say nothing at all and merely watch over me! Why!?"
"Do you have some kind of complaint?"
At the man in white's indifferent attitude, In Ye flares up in anger.
"I do! Of course I do! The scenery I wanted to see was an endlessly sprawling desert. But right now, what I'm looking at is the edge of my Integrated Dao Domain! And beyond that edge, there's nothing but melted, shapeless lumps. I'm saying I can't even see what I want to see!"
In Ye grits his teeth and shouts at the man in white who has remained by his side his entire life with that calm demeanor.
"You...if you, the only one who has ever resonated with me from the depth of my being, commanded me, I would not have let go of the bow. If you, the only one who has watched me closest and understood me best, had pushed me, I would have become the head of my family and worked to rid the world of such a sight. If you had scolded me, I...I wouldn't be here so disgracefully as a Grand Perfection Integration stage!”
"...It seems you are misunderstanding something."
"...What?"
"I am not something like your fate. I have never commanded you, nor did I ever force anything upon you. I did grant you talent with the bow, but that was all. I have always respected your freedom."
The man in white.
Seo Eun-hyun gazes at In Ye with calm, transparent eyes and continues speaking.
"The steps that led you here were your own, and the choices were yours alone. Do not seek answers from me—look within yourself. Repentantly enlighten upon yourself and find the answer. How can the answer thrown down by the heavens be your own? So...do not ask me, the God of this Crystal Glass Realm."
"..."
He does not scold him. He does not grow angry. He remains as calm as ever.
Yet, In Ye feels an indescribable sense of shame.
Perhaps it is because the being before him reflects him so transparently, like a mirror.
"...What am I supposed to do?"
"Try whatever."
"...Damn it."
From that day, In Ye stops sitting idly, staring blankly at the desert.
Instead, he wanders.
He roams across his entire planet, then moves on to other planets.
He travels throughout the entirety of the Crystal Glass Realm, where nine suns burn, observing countless beings and their ways of life.
A thousand years pass, and at last, In Ye finds his answer.
"...I still don't understand. Just where...where is the answer? I... I..."
He clutches his head in despair and falls to his knees in the middle of some desert, vomiting the words out.
"I have no idea why I was even born... The bow doesn't interest me. Neither does dual cultivation, nor cultivation methods, nor the pleasures of the world, nor its finest delicacies. I don't even know...what I must inevitably do. That's why I've just kept watching the desert. Because the desert, like me, is meaningless. But when the desert started to melt, I finally understood. I had been giving meaning to the desert all along. The desert...held the meaning I gave it. But...what about me?"
He cries out in anguish.
"What is my meaning? Was I born simply to possess unparalleled talent with the bow? I have no interest in archery. My parents are far more interested in it than I am. I grew up with the elders of my family seeing me as a 'child with talent for the bow,' and the position of head of the In Clan, which reveres the bow above all else, was predetermined for me. But...that is not the meaning I should have. Not anything in this Crystal Glass Realm as well!"
It is a resentment ordinary people cannot understand.
"This is not my fate!"
The anguish of a genius unable to find his own purpose.
The cry of a young man who cannot find meaning in anything.
"Just what meaning does my life even have? I...I don't know!"
"..."
"Please tell me, O God. Please...tell me...the meaning of my life."
"..."
Seo Eun-hyun says nothing.
He just transparently reflects In Ye's figure with his clear eyes.
Just as Kim Young-hoon had once watched him with the same clear eyes, waiting for him to reach Entering Heavens.
"...The meaning of my life... My life... What is it supposed to be?"
"Life..."
To In Ye, who desperately seeks the meaning of life, he offers only a few words.
"I don't know either."
"...I see. How profound. Truly..."
In Ye grinds his teeth and rises to his feet.
"You have never given me answers. As if to say my path is mine to find...I understand. I will seek it myself. I will find what interests me...on my own!"
Paaaatt!
He suddenly finds himself disliking Seo Eun-hyun's gaze that transparently reflects him.
With a desire to escape that gaze, In Ye takes to the skies.
Leaving his home planet behind, In Ye swiftly traverses the Crystal Glass Realm.
'Come to think of it, that's right. That god is the God of the Crystal Glass Realm. If I go outside, I won't have to see that sickening gaze anymore.'
He has begun to dislike everything.
He just...wants to go somewhere else where no one exists.
And so, a new thought forms In Ye's mind.
'Let's leave the Crystal Glass Realm. I'll leave this place, and...go to a wider, different world.'
With that resolve, In Ye begins to fly towards the edge of the Crystal Glass Realm.
Decades pass, and upon reaching the outermost boundary of the Crystal Glass Realm, In Ye sees a veil of hazy mist.
This is the end of the Crystal Glass Realm.
"Hmph. A mere veil like this..."
Paaatt!
He confidently attempts to pierce through the mist, but for some reason, when he emerges again, he finds himself still in the Crystal Glass Realm.
"Hm...!"
Gritting his teeth, he dives back into the mist, only to return to the Crystal Glass Realm once more.
"This is... This mist... If I can't break through it, does that mean I can't leave the Crystal Glass Realm? No..."
Staring at the mist, he discerns the true cause of the problem.
Turning around, In Ye sees the ten massive attraction forces that dominate the Crystal Glass Realm.
Nine suns, and the nearly completed tenth sun.
"Attraction force...is it? The attraction force of those suns is distorting the space of the Crystal Glass Realm."
In Ye's eyes gleam.
"...Damn it."
Before he knows it, he groans as he sees the lingering image of Seo Eun-hyun standing beside him.
"This world... Are you saying I cannot leave it?"
"You can leave."
"Then let me pass through this mist! You are God, aren't you?"
"...I cannot allow it right now."
Seo Eun-hyun lets out a bitter smile.
He cannot allow it.
Not because he fears them leaving.
But because he fears what will happen when they leave—when they face the despairing spacetime of emptiness.
He fears the moment they gaze into this infinite, empty spacetime and fall into infinite despair.
"You say you cannot allow it? Do you truly mean that!?"
"..."
And yet, why is it?
When In Ye hears Seo Eun-hyun speak words of 'denial' for the first time in his life, he feels like laughing.
Seo Eun-hyun looks at him again with a bitter smile but does not respond any further.
But In Ye smiles brightly without even realizing it.
"Don't...make me laugh. I will get out of here. No matter what...I will leave this Crystal Glass Realm!"
"..."
"I don't need your permission. It's fine! O God. Just as you always have, please continue stupidly watching! I...will break through you and see the world beyond this world! From this moment on, that is my goal!"
Finishing his words, In Ye does not look back and returns to his planet.
Returning to his homeland after decades, he seeks his bow once again.
'I will leave.'
In Ye's eyes redden with bloodshot veins.
'I will leave!'
The hands that once held the bow tighten.
Though they are hands that have not held a bow for tens of thousands of years, it does not matter.
Because the talent embedded in his bloodline, in his fate, has already reached the pinnacle of the In Clan!
'No matter what...I will leave and see the wider world beyond!'
From that day forward, he resolves to devote himself to 'effort' once more.
However...
"...Where's my bow?"
"There is no bow for you."
The current head of the In Clan.
In Hang speaks coldly to In Ye.
"I discarded it long ago. Do you really think someone with such brilliant talent, who turned his back on the clan and stupidly stared at the desert all these years, deserves a bow?"
"Wait a moment..."
"You will not find a bow anywhere on this planet, nor anywhere in the Crystal Glass Realm. That is my decree as the clan head. Even if you try to craft a bow yourself, I will destroy it."
"In Hang...I..."
"You have a face that looks as if you want to put in effort after finally finding a reason. Ha! Don't make me laugh!! There is a time for effort! While you wasted away, staring at the desert like a fool, I poured in blood and sweat to inherit the position of clan head. I am the clan head now!"
"...Then, even if I must make one with my own hands..."
Wo-woong!
Just as In Ye melts nearby objects with his Dan Fire to create a bow and arrow...
Piyung!
A streak of light flashes past, and the bow and arrow he was forming shatter into pieces.
"While you only sat idle, I truly...put in effort. And now you come here to pretend to start trying? I said don't make me laugh! Now, you don't even have the right to put in effort. Even effort has a time granted by the heavens!! From now on, you won't even be able to try. Because I will stop you! Do you understand?"
"..."
What blocks In Ye's path is, in the end, none other than his own past—the years in which he never put in any effort.
In Ye clenches his teeth.
Then, he takes his stance, aiming at the void.
Without any energy or Dan Fire, he merely positions himself and mimics shooting an arrow.
Seeing this, In Hang scoffs and turns away.
"...Good. Without any bow or arrows, keep making those pathetic motions. That...is the punishment of the In Clan to you, who has kicked away his own talent and time."
The world is growing hotter.
The ten suns are nearly complete, and the Radiance Ten Heavens are resonating, intensifying the heat.
Now, even the Integration stage Grand Cultivators are beginning to feel the scorching heat.
The Crystal Glass Realm is no longer a place where living beings can survive.
The entire planet has become a blazing hell.
The living beings take refuge in the inner worlds created by the Three Divine Spirits—Yeo Hwi, Ham Jin, and Yu Hwi—to preserve their lives.
Now, only cultivators at the Four-Axis stage and beyond can move and act in this blazing hell.
Huarurururuk!
And within his homeland that has become a blazing hell...
At the very place where Ham Jin once met In Yeon, a lone Grand Cultivator is gesturing towards the sky.
It is In Ye.
'It's hot.'
He closes his eyes.
How many times has he repeated the motion of drawing the bowstring?
At some point, he succeeded in vividly recreating the memory of the time when a bowstring was truly in his hands.
Reviving that memory, he's been shooting arrows.
There is no bow, no arrow, and whenever he tries to create them, In Hang immediately intercepts and shatters them like a ghost. But it does not matter.
'Back then...I had a bow and arrow, but I had no heart.'
Now, it is the opposite.
'Now, I have the heart, but no bow to shoot...'
Even gathering energy into shape is not allowed.
If he so much as condenses energy into the form of a bow or arrow, In Hang's interception will come immediately.
Yet, strangely, he finds that it does not matter.
'The pinnacle of archery is No-Heart (無心).'
A truth once imparted to him by the god of the Crystal Glass Realm.
'Practice with No-Thought (無念). If I do so...even without a bow or arrow...I will definitely be able to draw closer to the pinnacle of archery.'
He senses the gazes that bind him.
Once, only the gaze of the God of the Crystal Glass Realm, Seo Eun-hyun, followed him.
But ever since In Hang's warning...
Now, he is once again under the eyes of not just In Hang but the entire clan.
In Ye recalls how he once despised being watched.
Within this burning hell, as he puts in the effort he had never given in the past, he is able to reflect on himself.
'I see...I hated being watched.'
Gazes are expectations.
Every gaze carries an intention.
Even staring blankly at the sky contains an unconscious intention of 'wanting to feel at ease.'
And In Ye hated carrying expectations.
Especially expectations with the bow.
Because he never liked the bow.
To be burdened with expectations tied to something he did not even enjoy was suffocating.
It felt like being trapped behind invisible bars, shackled in chains.
'Right. That's why...I revealed that I could see the god to the entire clan. Then, I used his advice as justification to run away.'
Paaatt!
Unconsciously, In Ye releases the bowstring.
A hole pierces the target he was aiming for.
At some point, the gaze of In Hang who has been watching him grows even more intense.
Pishit!
A streak of light grazes In Ye's cheek.
Blood trickles down.
It is In Hang's warning.
To stop trying.
To continue wandering the desert as before.
That is the message behind the warning.
But In Ye ignores it and continues pulling back the imaginary bowstring.
Piiiit!
'You've grown strong, In Hang...'
Once, In Hang was not even a match for In Ye.
He was the overwhelming next family head, while she was just an average late-stage disciple.
Only when he began staring blankly at the desert, rebelling, and kicking away the position of next family head did the opportunity finally fall to her.
But now, it is different.
Through bone-grinding effort, In Hang has become capable of shooting arrows so fast that even In Ye cannot perceive them.
'Is this...the gap between one who has merely breathed and one who has carved away their bones?'
Feeling the distance between himself and In Hang, he caresses the imaginary bowstring even more fervently.
And with each motion, more and more persistent gazes start latching onto him.
Among them are the Three Divine Spirits of the Crystal Glass Realm, Yeo Hwi, Ham Jin, Yu Hwi...
And even the gaze of an unknown, chilling presence reeking of blood and rotting corpses.
In the midst of those gazes, he realizes.
'I hated being watched. I hated their expectations. I hated being oppressed... Yes. I...'
Paaang!
Flames tear apart in a perfect circle.
Puhwak!
An arrow from In Hang pierces through space and buries itself in In Ye's body.
The arrow of light, fired by In Hang, buries itself in his body before scattering.
Yet, he once again pulls back the imaginary bowstring and smiles.
'I wanted to be free.'
Paaang!
The heart of In Ye, once more fired forward, pierces through the flames before vanishing.
But it has not disappeared completely.
It has merely transcended planes, reaching fate.
Peong!
A hole is pierced in Filling the Heavens Governing View.
It is not a large hole, and even that is soon filled in by the surrounding mist.
Pukwak!
Another arrow from In Hang embeds in his body.
But In Ye pays it no mind.
He cares for nothing else, focusing everything on the tip of his arrow.
'I...never wanted to hold a bow.'
Paaang!
'I never wanted to be born into the In Clan.'
Paaang!
'I never wanted to be born into the heating Crystal Glass Realm.'
Paaang!!
'I...wanted to break free from my bridle and see a wider world.'
It was not because the desert seemed meaningless that he liked it.
It was because it seemed vast enough to hold any meaning he wished to give it.
At last, he finds his dream.
'I want to go to a wider world!'
In search of freedom!
Paaaaaang!!!
His arrow pierces through Filling the Heavens Governing View.
And this time, the path left in its wake does not close.
At some point, he has fallen into a trance.
And In Ye gradually begins to see it.
The countless gazes and the thoughts their owners hold.
'Hope can be seen.'
The thoughts of the Unruly One.
'Could it be...that boy...!'
The thoughts of the Twin Constructing One.
'Please, please...!'
The thoughts of the Obsidian One.
'This is chilling. Seo Eun-hyun...'
The thoughts of the one reeking of rotting corpses and blood.
'...What is that talent? Why did he waste it all this time? Why did he make me admire him, only to run away? Why did he make me love him, only to leave? Why did he make me like him, only to become garbage... If he was going to return, then what have I been doing all this time?'
The thoughts of In Hang.
'That is the greatest talent in the history of the In Clan...!'
'The pinnacle divine technique that stands face to face with the God of the Crystal Glass Realm!'
'I envy him.'
'It's beautiful.'
'I am jealous.'
'Why, when he possesses such power...'
'Just what meaning does it hold?'
'How is something like that possible!?'
The gazes of the In Clan members, along with the countless Integration stage Grand Cultivators of the present Crystal Glass Realm.
Those countless gazes become chains that bind In Ye.
Yet, though he may be trapped by those chains, the arrow he shoots soars freely into the sky.
There lies In Ye's heart.
His heart alone remains free.
His heart escapes all those gazes and pierces through the sky.
But there is one gaze he cannot escape.
A man in white.
The gaze of the Crystal Glass Being, Seo Eun-hyun.
Under the eyes of this God of the Crystal Glass Realm, he cannot escape.
'I will escape.'
His gaze is too vast.
Not only the present spacetime, but also the future, and even the entire history of the In Clan unfolds beneath his sight.
'I will escape!'
In Ye observes himself.
He repentantly enlightens himself and reads the will of the Crystal Glass Being entangled in his clan's history.
He hates the bow.
Because in the end, it is a weapon made to kill someone.
What he longs for is freedom, not to kill.
Yet, he was born with an overwhelming talent for killing. A talent for the bow.
That's why he sought to escape from his talent first.
'I will escape!!!'
But it's ironic.
To escape the bridle, he must first reach the pinnacle of the bridle.
The only thing he knows how to do is shoot arrows, and so, to escape that talent, to escape that fate, he must shoot.
He continues to shoot his arrows.
Even as he is struck by In Hang's arrows.
Even under the gaze of the Crystal Glass Being.
Even under the countless expectations and stares that he hates.
As he begins to dream, he begins making endless effort.
How much time passes beneath the fate of light that sets the world ablaze?
'...What is that?'
Suddenly, In Ye notices something strange.
Everything in the world disappears, leaving only himself and the target.
At first, he cannot see the target clearly.
But the more arrows he fires at it, the more distinct it becomes.
At some point, he realizes the identity of that target.
The target is himself.
"...I found it. My fate..."
He smiles brightly.
Then, without hesitation, he releases the bowstring with all his strength, aiming at the target.
The heart that shoots out from his grasp pierces through himself far too easily.
Pukwak!
At that moment, an overwhelming pain surges through his entire body, and with it, an indescribable sense of euphoria engulfs him.
'My fate... I shot...my fate!'
The moment he realizes this.
The state of oneness with the world he had been immersed in during the unstained time ends.
"Kehuk...! Heok, heheok..."
Hwarururururuk!
'...It's hot.'
In Ye regains consciousness.
Someone is shaking him wildly.
"Ye...! Ye...!!! You damned bastard!!!"
"...Hang...ah..."
"Shut up!!! Just what did you do to your body!? What did you do!? Why isn't it healing!? Why!!!??"
What he sees as his mind clears is In Hang shedding tears.
"...I shot...my fate. Hu...hu...Even with decent...Immortal Arts...it won't...work."
"Fuck! You goddamn idiot! Are you trying to get yourself killed!? Fuck...fuck...I became the head of the clan...so that you could do whatever you wanted. I knew a long time ago that you hated archery! That's why I became the head—so that a bastard like you who hates archery could roam around freely...so that I could take on the troublesome position in your place... But who the hell shoots themself with the bow that they so hate? Just what kind of idiot does that!?"
She trembles, shaking In Ye's body.
"...It's hot."
In Ye smiles.
Hot.
He has always felt overheated because of the surrounding light.
But he didn't know this until now.
The light has always been around him.
And it has always been within him.
"Outside, inside...it's hot."
"Of course it is, you fool. What kind of madman shoots arrows for tens of thousands of years as if possessed... Damn it! It's all over anyway... The tenth sun...is almost complete."
The Crystal Glass Realm is now filled with light and heat.
Ham Jin, Yeo Hwi, and Yu Hwi can all sense it.
The moment ten suns rise, and the Crystal Glass Realm becomes filled with light and heat—
They will die.
Not simply from being burned alive, but from an enormous explosion that will erupt from the light and heat.
The Radiance Eight Immortals govern [Rebirth].
Thus, the moment a Vestige Liberation Immortal completes the ten suns of the Radiance Ten Heavens, they explode within the light and heat, undergoing rebirth.
Within this explosion, Mount Sumeru absorbs the radiance, and the Vestige Liberation Immortals who endure the absorption advance, while those who fail are devoured by the Radiance Supreme Deity.
That is the Upper Immortal advancement ritual.
Now, the tenth sun is on the verge of being born.
It has been approximately 9.6 million years since Seo Eun-hyun began creating the Crystal Glass Realm.
At first, the creation of a fixed star took a million years, but due to the resonance of the fixed stars, the process gradually shortened.
Now, the tenth fixed star shines brightly, hurtling towards the end of the Crystal Glass Realm.
Woo-wooong!
Due to attraction force, the Crystal Glass Realm begins to take shape in order.
The planets align in a straight line.
The aligned planets take formation in an optimal array to receive the power of the fixed stars, preparing for the imminent Upper Immortal advancement of the Crystal Glass Being.
Creating ten stellar systems, and grinding all beings within them to advance.
That is the Upper Immortal advancement.
Knowing this, Yeo Hwi breaks into a cold sweat as she gazes at the answer they have sought for nearly ten million years.
She stares at the pinnacle of the In Clan, In Ye.
In a world growing ever brighter,
In Ye smiles in In Hang's embrace.
"...Hang...I think...I'm going to die now."
"You..."
"But now that death is near, I understand. I see the way to escape the gaze of the Crystal Glass Being."
He raises his hand towards the void.
Then, he mimics the motion of pulling back a bowstring.
"I think...I can shoot...Shoot and...go to somewhere...free...somewhere...wider..."
His expression is one of regret.
He looks as if he could stop breathing at any moment.
Watching him, Ham Jin feels as if his blood is drying up.
'Teacher... The descendant of In Yeon you arranged is about to die. How in the world do you intend to overcome this crisis? Teacher!'
It's at that moment.
"...Shoot."
In Hang bites her lip and places her bow into In Ye's hands.
"Everything is on the verge of ending anyway. So...even if it's you, who abandoned the In Clan, at least for today...I'll let you hold it. What you wanted so desperately that you even shot yourself to obtain...try to obtain it with this."
"...I don't like it. This thing called the bow...as always."
"Shut up and nock the arrow. Forcing you who hates the bow to shoot...That is my final punishment as the clan head to you who abandoned the clan."
Ye staggers as he rises.
Since he wounded his very fate, he looks as though he might die at any moment. But even so, he trembles as he aims his bow towards the sky.
Yet, he lets out a dry laugh.
"...I can't pull it back. I have no strength..."
Watching him, In Hang wears a strange expression.
A face that seems both on the verge of tears and smiling.
"...After shooting like that for tens of thousands of years, of course you can't."
Then, Hang places her hand over Ye's.
From behind, Hang embraces Ye, pulling the bowstring together with him.
"Now, you can shoot, right?"
"...Who knows."
In Ye shifts his gaze to the side.
Beside him stands a man in white.
Seo Eun-hyun's will stands, watching him.
"...Something more might be needed."
Just then, as In Ye speaks in riddles, someone steps forward.
The Three Divine Spirits of the Crystal Glass Realm.
It's Yeo Hwi, Ham Jin, and Yu Hwi.
"Let us help as well. Allow us to shoot with you."
Ham Jin looks towards the same place In Ye does.
Seo Eun-hyun's will and Ham Jin's will commune with each other.
"Senior!"
"Alright. I, the Immortal Treasure of the Crystal Glass Being Seo Eun-hyun, Twin Constructing Chain Yeo Hwi, act as the agent of the Lord. You, who have made a contract with the Lord. You, who have made a promise with the Lord. Come forth to this place!"
At Yeo Hwi's declaration, the void distorts.
Normally, this is a spacetime of emptiness that no one should have been able to interfere with.
However, Yeo Hwi, acting as the agent of Seo Eun-hyun, calls upon his promise, and Ham Jin borrows Oh Hye-seo's power to connect the contractors into this spacetime.
Kurururururu!
The void splits open, and two powerful wills descend upon the space.
Yu Hwi protects the mortal beings from perishing under the wills.
: : Well, who do we have here? : :
: : Ahaha. Truly, living long enough lets you see everything. To think that evil god (惡神) would one day look up to us? : :
Ha Woon and Jeok Ru.
It is the two sworn sisters who once lived as nothing more than Yeo Hwi's slaves.
Yeo Hwi glares at the will of the two beings, grinding her teeth in humiliation.
"...Please...I beg of you. You, who once exchanged promises with my master... Please lend us your strength in this place..."
: : Ahahaha!!! : :
: : Truly, living long enough lets you see everything. Good! If our Yeo Hwi is begging like this, we have to lend a hand! : :
Kugugugugu!
As the wills of the two Upper Immortals descend, their Immortal Arts emerge.
Immortal Art, Cutting River.
Immortal Art, Ominous Dragon.
The two Immortal Arts take form, and Yeo Hwi, who once wielded the Immortal Arts through Immortal Treasures, skillfully combines them to create a certain shape.
The flowing Immortal Art of Cutting River imbues in In Hang's bow and arrow.
The bow and arrow in Ye's hands darken, rippling like a river.
Through the Immortal Art of Ominous Dragon, Yeo Hwi, Ham Jin, Yu Hwi—
As well as the members of the In Clan, and all living beings present in this Crystal Glass Realm, have their lives intertwined into a form of a writhing piece of flesh.
For a moment, countless consciousnesses intertwine.
Yu Hwi stabilizes the merged consciousnesses instantly using ghostly energy through the Ghost Path Method.
"J-Just a moment... O Divine spirits, this is heavy!"
Hang begins sweating as the weight of the bow increases under the infused Immortal Arts.
Then, Ham Jin speaks calmly.
"Do not worry. Why do you think we are all connected?"
Cheok!
Woo-woong!
In Hang suddenly feels as if countless beings are overlapping behind her, just as she is overlapping with In Ye.
The ones drawing the bow are no longer just Ye and Hang.
The entire In Clan, their collective consciousness, their very lives—
It feels as if all the living beings of the Crystal Glass Realm are placing their hands upon the bowstring.
Gigigigigik!
The combined strength of all living beings in the Crystal Glass Realm lifts the bow, drawing back the string.
Ham Jin trembles as he watches.
'...So it was this, Teacher...'
Woo-woooong!
The very scene that Seo Eun-hyun's barely regained consciousness envisioned.
The moment he dreamed of through Immortal Arts without a single star.
The family of In Yeon.
The moment when they would all draw their bowstring toward the heavens—
This was the future that Seo Eun-hyun had long drawn.
Ham Jin wipes away his tears at the awe-inspiring sight.
Kugugugugugu!
Other than Ye, all the living beings of the Crystal Glass Realm are holding the bow.
However, in Ham Jin's eyes, it appears as if the arrow that Seo Eun-hyun once nocked and drew in the past is only now being released.
Finally, Seo Eun-hyun's will overlays itself upon the bowstring of the In Clan.
The power of the Impermanence Sword settles within them, and Seo Eun-hyun smiles from within the history of the bloodline he has brought into the world.
Ham Jin, witnessing the sight, shouts.
"Shoot, Ye! In Yeon is within you now!"
And Ye, standing on the brink of death, smiles.
The countless [gazes] that had been watching him—
Those very gazes are now looking in the exact same direction as he is.
—Of course, No-Thought devoid of any heart is powerful. But to reach that state, you must first have a direction. And that direction is your heart.
Seo Eun-hyun's advice flashes through his mind for an instant.
At this very moment, countless hearts are forming a directionality stronger than anything else.
And at the end of those directionalities, Ye succeeds in attaining perfect No-Thought.
Kuguguguguguk!
The sky continues to brighten.
Then, at a certain moment—
The last fixed star of the Radiance Ten Heavens.
The light of Rain Dew is born.
Ye gazes directly at that newly born light and, within his No-Thought, releases the hand that holds the bowstring.
"...Fly high and reach."
Immortal Art.
"Sunlight Hunting (Sun Shooting)."
———!
The history of In Yeon (因緣), released from Ye's hands—
Crosses the endless passage of time and pierces through the sunlight.
That heart imbued with everyone's intent rips apart the newborn fixed star in a perfect circle, shattering the symbol of the snake.
Sunlight Hunting has begun.
===
Author's Note:
This episode was overly long.
I imagine some of you may have found it tedious. It seems my tendency for overly dramatic, convoluted storytelling is a chronic affliction of mine.
While writing this part, I thought a lot about the disciple episode.
I think many readers must have felt frustrated because of the excessive rambling, melodrama, and incomprehensible statements.
But...even if I had to stretch the episode a little, this was a scene I absolutely wanted to write—a necessary buildup.
In web novel serialization, dragging things out and becoming tedious is practically a sin. And since I committed that sin in this episode (at the very least, that's how I see it), I have no excuses.
All I can do is push forward with as much content and continuous updates as I can to finish the episode as an apology.
Today's continuous updates are my personal atonement for this tedious episode, so I hope you will accept them.
As always, I deeply thank everyone for your love for this work.