Chapter 753: Light and Salt (9)
Kururung—
Blood Shark Race Integration stage Grand Cultivator, Gyo Yeom.
At his appearance, the Lightning God chuckles.
[Well, look who it is. Don't you know me?]
Twitch-
At those words, Gyo Yeom flinches, but then he grips his red trident with a hard face.
"...I know. You are the friend of the Devil King who, long ago, invaded the Human Race, drove the Human Race out of the Sky Island Archipelago and forced them to migrate into the Heart Tribe territory, and waged war across the entire Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain...that was you. Thinking about it now, you must have been the clones of True Immortals."
[You may think so if you like...but is there not something more important than that.]
Kaang—
The Lightning God's thunder spear and Gyo Yeom's red trident collide.
[That day, it was this one and this one's friend who gave you the Heavenly Lotus Fruit to save your wife. Do you not even remember the favor of that time?]
"..."
[Come to think of it, where is your wife?]
"...Her lifespan is running out and she is slowly dying. My lifespan is also almost at its end, so I will soon exhaust my fate together with my wife... My wife is of the Sea King Race, a distant blood descendant of the Ancient Force Realm Sacred Master Hae Lin. Because of the restriction placed upon the Sea King Race, if she leaves the Ancient Force Realm and uses power beyond a certain degree, she cannot live, and so my wife grew weak. But it was thanks to the Heavenly Lotus Fruit you gave that day that I could save my wife by breathing in the power of the Ancient Force dwelling in the Heavenly Lotus Fruit."
At the conversation of Gyo Yeom and the Lightning God, Wol Ryeong, who is recovering her strength, shudders.
'No way...betrayal?'
If that is so, she might really have to die without resistance.
However...
"But if it was only about my wife, it would not matter, yet I have children."
[Hooh...]
"Because of Thunder Resonance Valley who inhales the Heaven and Earth spiritual energy of the Earth Tribe territory, my children who bear the bloodline of the Sea King Race...have come to suffer the same illness as my wife. As they are mixed-blood with me, they do not bear the Sea King Race's restriction in full...but if the Heaven and Earth spiritual energy within their bodies falls below a certain point, they suffer an illness the same as my wife's."
[...]
"O Lightning God. I know well that that day you saved us and bestowed grace upon me. However! How can you so inhale the Heaven and Earth spiritual energy like this and give such pain to my whole family...!? Why! Do you drain the Heaven and Earth spiritual energy!?"
Kwaaaang!
The Lightning God, with only the strength of the Qi Refining stage left, flies backward along with Gyo Yeom's outcry.
[...Because an abundance of Heaven and Earth spiritual energy is not a blessing.]
Pachijijik...
Lightning flickers in the Lightning God's eye.
[I have long held deep discussions with my friend, the one whom you call the Mountain Divine Spirit or Devil King. As a result, I arrived at one conclusion. Excessive Heaven and Earth spiritual energy sustains the Immortal Cultivation system, and because the power of the Immortal Cultivation system spreads to too many beings...many beings come to have excessive lifespans and undue power and come to wield tyranny upon those below.]
Chichijik—
The Lightning God rises with their spear and continues.
[Therefore...through sects that bear upon their backs my teaching, such as Thunder Resonance Valley, I wished to test it. If Heaven and Earth spiritual energy is reduced to the extreme so that even more beings cannot even enter the Immortal Cultivation system. If those without qualification cannot even come to possess power...whether the world will perhaps become a little better.]
"What insane nonsense is that!?"
[It is the heart. If one wishes to hold power, then let one polish one's own heart to come to repentant enlightenment regarding what is good and what is evil, and if only the good can hold power...will the world not become even more peaceful?]
"Nonsense!"
Kwaarururung!
Gyo Yeom's Integrated Dao Domain unfolds.
The surroundings fill with a sea of blood.
[Nonsense, you say...? How do you treat other races? Has there been a time where you did not raise mortal races under the moniker 'slave race' and abuse them? You are all endlessly cruel to the weak, yet you spout strange words.]
"What I mean is...that peace is nothing but by your standards!!"
Chwaaaa—
The Lightning God's spear techniques are formidable.
With only the strength of the Qi Refining stage, they match the Integration Grand Cultivator, Gyo Yeom.
No, at a glance, it even looks as though Gyo Yeom is hurling himself with full force, trying to bring down the Lightning God's spear of lightning with the sea of blood.
To Wol Ryeong, it still feels as if the Lightning God holds the upper hand in battle.
'Is that...the enlightenment of a god...!?'
Quite literally, the opponent is the God of Lightning.
The one who wields Heavenly Punishment.
For that reason, even though only the strength of the Qi Refining stage remains, their lightning still overwhelms the Integration stage.
"Why in the world do you say lowering Heaven and Earth spiritual energy to make one polish the heart is for peace!? Do not spout hypocrisy!"
[You...]
"It is all only by your standards. Do not recklessly judge those below with the eyes of a higher being! O God, do you know? The overwhelming majority of the Earth Tribe—we Demon Race—from birth have no reason, and only upon reaching the peak of the Qi Refining stage do we gain reason! Then only upon reaching the Qi Building stage do we gain complete reason! You say one must polish the heart to grow strong? Ridiculous! Then we Demon Race, who only gain reason and intellect upon reaching the peak Qi Refining stage, how are we to polish the heart? You say polishing the heart is to make us realize clearly the discernment between good and evil—but what is good, what is evil? If a Qi Refining demon beast, hungry, eats an ordinary beast that has not yet reached Qi Refining, is that evil, or is it good? If a Qi Building demon beast skewers a Qi Refining bug demon on a branch to eat later, causing it pain, is that evil or is it good? Our world is of the wild. Only after gathering Heaven and Earth spiritual energy and reaching the Transformation stage can one shed wildness and speak peacefully of peace. Yet even such is narrowly understood with the eyes of the Heaven Tribe, and for what justice, by your own measure alone, do you bring suffering to my children!!??"
Kwaarurururung!!!
Chwaaaa!
A tidal wave rises from the sea of blood.
The tidal wave surges over the Lightning God's spear of thunder, and as the Lightning God listens to Gyo Yeom's words, they no longer resist.
Somehow, it feels as though the Lightning God has taken a blow.
[...I have been foolish. I am sorry.]
Chuaaaaaa—
The tidal wave sweeps away the Lightning God's descent body, and at last the descent body becomes a single streak of lightning and vanishes somewhere.
[But I am not wrong...only that I did not consider every circumstance... My method is what spreads the Vast Cold Heavenly Circle most quickly...]
Pajijik!
That is the end.
Kwarururung—
As though they exhaust all strength, the forty-eight Nascent Soul elders, whom Wol Ryeong suspects are the clones of Entering Nirvana stage beings, all crumble into ashes and scatter.
—Tsuaaaaa.
Gyo Yeom's Integrated Dao Domain is once again absorbed into Gyo Yeom's body, and seeing that, Wol Ryeong's eyes shine.
"Greetings, Demon King Gyo. I have heard much about you. I am Wol Ryeong of the Radiance Spirit Sect."
"Ah, I too have heard much. You come from another Heavenly Domain..."
"You truly are remarkable. Even before that terrifying divinity, you shouted and dismantled the God's logic..."
"It is nothing special. How could a mere commoner like me shout before the strong? It was only because I saw the possibility to win did I read the situation and spit out the words I did. It was only possible because Grand Cultivator Wol already shaved down their strength considerably."
"You are painting my face in gold. Even if I did not shave down their strength, if it's Demon King Gyo, you surely would have repelled that existence well enough. All the more so as a practitioner of Heaven and Earth Dual Cultivation."
She speaks, recalling that Gyo Yeom did not manifest the Integrated Dao Domain into his body but spread it outward around him.
But Gyo Yeom shakes his head awkwardly and speaks.
"Heaven and Earth Dual Cultivation...I do not walk such a grueling path. The Integrated Dao Domain just now...it was my wife unfolding it for me. The Sea King Race, who enshrines the Xiezhi as their direct ancestor, once received a ritual method bestowed by the Xiezhi, so by classification they are of the Heaven Tribe."
"Pardon? Your wife unfolded the Integrated Dao Domain together with you...?"
"That is...u, ubb...keheok...!"
As he tries to speak, Gyo Yeom starts gagging as is and then opens his mouth wide.
From Gyo Yeom's shark jaws, an elegant woman with blue hair and a thin layer of blue scales around her body pops out.
"Hello, my apologies for the late greeting. I am Hae Jin of the Sea King Race, the mistress of my husband's household."
"Ah, he...llo."
Hae Jin hooks both her hands and her own chin on Gyo Yeom's lower jaw, and looks at them comfortably as if Gyo Yeom's maw is a chair.
At that bizarre entrance, not only Wol Ryeong but even Seo Gyeong beside her wear strange expressions.
"...Hello, nice to meet you. I am Seo Gyeong, a disciple of the Radiance Spirit Sect."
"Hello, young hero? You look cute."
"...But may I ask why you are inside Cultivator Gyo's mouth..."
"Ah, originally, among us marine creatures there are many who have unique cultures. Among carnivorous marine demon beasts such as the Blood Shark Race, especially cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage or higher, there are many where the head of the family carries family members inside the body. From the start, our interiors have things like the Four-Axis Canopy and the Integrated Dao Domain, so carrying them inside causes no problem."
"...Then perhaps the Sea Dragon Race as well...?"
"Pardon? Why suddenly...? I do not know well, but the probability is high."
"...No...it is just that there is a cultivator of the Sea Dragon Race among my acquaintances, and that fellow also said he carries his family inside his body, so I asked."
Seo Gyeong finishes speaking as if thinking of something, and Hae Jin, from inside Gyo Yeom's mouth, giggles and chats with Wol Ryeong and Seo Gyeong.
"Ah, look at me spacing out. I am sorry but I forgot I have laundry hung out and I have been here like this. Then I will head back in for now, so later please come into my husband's belly and have a cup of tea before you go."
"...Yes, then..."
Just like an anglerfish's light or an alligator snapping turtle's tongue luring fish, Hae Jin beckons to the two a few times from within Gyo Yeom's maw and then disappears back into Gyo Yeom's mouth.
Hearing the mention of laundry, Wol Ryeong cannot help but suffer a major cultural shock at the ecology of the Blood Shark Race, thinking they must have built a cave residence inside the belly.
Gaaap-
Once his wife's chat time ends, only then does Gyo Yeom close his mouth and laugh heartily.
"Isn't she a pretty wife? In the past she was once ill, so I roamed around diligently to heal her sickness."
At those words, Seo Gyeong wears a somewhat strange expression and asks,
"...Now that I think of it, when you fought the Lightning God, I heard that you wandered around to find the Heavenly Lotus Fruit... At that time too, did you carry your wife...in your belly...?"
"Oh dear, how could that be? When she was ill, how could I, wandering dangerous places, carry my wife in my belly? Instead, I took half of my wife's brain and always carried it in my belly. The area where I went to obtain the Heavenly Lotus Fruit to give to my wife is an area related to my wife's progenitor, the Immortal Beast Xiezhi, so at that time I received help from my wife's brain in real time to find the path."
"..."
At the strange ecology of the Blood Shark Race, Seo Gyeong is dumbfounded yet also fascinated.
"Hooh..."
"And at times when I explosively spit out venomous words, that too is greatly due to my wife's influence. When my wife flares with a thousand flames inside, she spews out venomous words, and I simply spew them out through my mouth the same way."
"Then when you cursed the Paired-Winged Race cultivator, calling the Paired-Winged Race Grand Cultivator a bedwetter, that too..."
"Pardon...?"
"No, it is nothing. It is just that your ecology is different from the Human Race, so I found it fascinating."
"Hahaha, I see."
Gyo Yeom laughs heartily, and Wol Ryeong and Seo Gyeong laugh together as well.
Thus, the mission Wol Ryeong received from the Radiance Spirit Sect to subjugate Thunder Resonance Valley...
...is successfully completed.
Wol Ryeong and Seo Gyeong ride the teleportation formation prepared by the Earth Tribe and pass through several regions on their way back to the Human Race territory.
As for Mu Geom and Bi Hwa, struck dead in a single blow by the Lightning God or left fatally wounded, since they are at the Integration stage, they will be able to revive at the cost of losing cultivation instead.
"We can soon return."
"Yes, let's go back. Let's return and proudly tell Master that we subjugated Thunder Resonance Valley with our own strength, Ryeong-ah. Then this time even Master will..."
At Seo Gyeong's words, Wol Ryeong smiles faintly and hugs Seo Gyeong from behind.
"...I do not need it, Master's praise."
"Hm? What do you mean, Ryeong-ah?"
"...I think I no longer need Master's praise."
She, in this subjugation expedition, smiles gently as she confirms the sprout growing in her heart.
She has gained something precious.
Something so much more precious that it can't compare to anything she once believed to be precious.
Therefore, she no longer needs to strive for the recognition of others.
She smiles, feeling her heart lighter than ever before.
"...When we reach the Human Race territory, let's send the subjugation completion signal to the Radiance Spirit Sect, and set up a descent array so that Master can descend into the Vast Cold Realm. With about twenty years of effort, Master will be able to come. In the meantime...let's explore the Vast Cold Realm."
"...Alright, Ryeong-ah."
Seo Gyeong smiles softly as he looks at Wol Ryeong, who seems to have become unburdened.
Human Race Grand Alliance, Heavenly Human Island.
A hidden place there.
Bi Hwa revives.
"..."
Looking at her own naked reborn body, Bi Hwa clenches her teeth.
She has died.
She, a so-called genius, died in vain without being able to do anything.
'...What are you, Wol Ryeong?'
And yet, Wol Ryeong defeated the opponent against whom Bi Hwa could do nothing, and subjugated Thunder Resonance Valley in the end.
A talent that reached the Quasi-Star Shattering stage in less than ten years.
A true genius, overwhelming herself who was once worshipped as a genius.
Looking at that, Bi Hwa clenches her teeth in inferiority.
"S-Senior Sister Bi Hwa."
As word spreads that Bi Hwa has revived, other disciples of the Radiance Spirit Sect who are waiting nearby rush to her side and quickly clothe her.
"Hurry, are you not going to move faster!?"
"Eek, s-sorry!"
Among the disciples who ride together on the Radiance Ship are those at the Heavenly Being stage and above who ascended to the Vast Cold Realm at the request of Mu Geom and Bi Hwa to accompany them.
Word has it that the sinister plot of the Gi Clan has been more or less thwarted by the Radiance Spirit Sect, and their master is delayed handling the aftermath.
"Damn it, damn it..."
In the midst of her inferiority, seeing Wol Ryeong's request to set up the descent formation for Esteemed One Baek Geom, she frowns sharply.
"Are you telling me to set up a descent array? Treating me like her subordinate...ha, enough."
From within her heart, inferiority rises.
She cannot control it.
Feeling inferiority toward Wol Ryeong, she steps into a dark corridor.
After all, she still must fulfill Wol Ryeong's request.
Just then,
Within the darkness,
Something begins to speak.
: : Do you...desire talent? : :
It is something made of a Sword Mountain.