Chapter 202: Entrance to the Heaven of Sacred Spirits (2)

“W-Wait? You’re just going to leave me behind now?!”

As soon as she heard we were infiltrating the inner castle…

Baek Sang-ah widened her eyes and glared at us.

“You’re the Lotus Lord, aren’t you? You’re supposed to hold the center.”

“I didn’t become the Lotus Lord just to be sidelined like this, you know?!”

She shouted, filled with frustration.

She looked at So Cheon behind her as though she was ready to kill him, like someone looking at a friend’s friend who had stolen her place.

“No one’s leaving you out, so don’t worry too much.”

Surprisingly, Cheon Yura stepped in and soothed Baek Sang-ah.

“We’re just locating the entrance. We’re merely playing the role of scouts. It won’t take long, and we’ll be back soon.”

“…Really?”

“Of course. If you’re still suspicious, ask the Venerable Buddha. He’ll prove we can’t enter even if we find the entrance.”

“…Ugh!”

“But it’s a little sad. I thought we were comrades, yet we can’t even trust each other.”

“N-No! I trust you! I really do!”

For some reason, Baek Sang-ah completely fell for Cheon Yura’s fake display of sadness—who knows where she learned to act like that.

I gave her a pitying look.

‘Lady Baek…’

You’re from the orthodox sects, and we’re from the demonic cult.

And I’m truly sorry, but… the key to that place is currently in my possession.

If we end up going in there… it might take quite a while.

“……”

I desperately held back the urge to say all of this out loud.

If I said even a little, she might sulk badly, or worse, insist on coming with us, risking her life.

‘One of the key reasons the Black Lotus Union is running smoothly right now is the reputation of Demonic Sword Flower…’

Though Jegal Eun handles the actual operations, if the leader were absent, control could easily start to crack.

So for that reason, Baek Sang-ah had to remain as the central figure, as the Lotus Lord, until the mission was done.

“You’ll be back soon, right?”

“Of course. It’s just a short exploration, barely half a day.”

Relieved by those words, Baek Sang-ah nodded.

I silently pressed my palms together in prayer toward her.

‘Please handle things when the Sword King arrives.’

The letter I sent to the Sword King through a secret route mentioned ten days.

And those ten days had long since passed.

There was no telling when he might suddenly show up. At that point, only she would be able to deal with him.

‘I’m seriously counting on you!’

If she knew what I was thinking, she’d probably plant her twin swords in my forehead.

As the sun dipped below the horizon and a crescent moon rose high in the sky, night deepened.

Cheon Yura, So Cheon, and I dashed through the quietest parts of Luoyang and infiltrated the inner castle.

‘This is definitely easy.’

The inner castle of Luoyang wasn’t some hideout for a secret society or den of evil.

The guards stationed at the gates didn’t even notice our infiltration.

‘The martial officers directly under the lord are different, but it’s not like we’re here to assassinate the lord anyway.’

Before long, we reached the location indicated on the map that Jegal Eun had deciphered.

There was only one problem.

“It’s a vacant lot.”

The coordinates pointed to a wide-open yard in front of the inner castle.

“There’s no visible entrance around. Looks like we’ll have to sneak into the residence where the lord stays.”

“Hmmm…”

“Infiltrating the upper floors is easier. But underground areas are usually prisons, armories, or food storage, so there are fewer pathways and a higher chance of getting caught.”

Cheon Yura’s analysis was entirely on point.

“What will you do?”

Lurking around the outer buildings and sneaking inside were on completely different levels.

‘Should I just go crazy, knock everyone out, and go down?’

Anyway, the lord didn’t know we were from the Black Lotus Union.

Even if we caused a scene, there was a good chance they wouldn’t realize who we were…

“If it’s getting underground, I think I can handle that.”

“Huh? How?”

Cheon Yura and I both widened our eyes at So Cheon’s words.

“Watch this.”

So Cheon spread his arms wide and released a strange ripple.

—

-Taiji Bending-Void Circle

—

‘…What the?!’

The space around us distorted.

Cheon Yura and I immediately realized what So Cheon had done and were shocked.

He had warped the surrounding space to conceal our presence!

‘Localized spatial interference! He can really do this with martial arts?!’

And he hasn’t even reached master level yet?!

From the outside, it might just look like a visual distortion, but it was the middle of the night.

As long as we avoided the light, there was very little chance of being detected.

Should I be amazed at his abilities, or should I be in awe of Dao Zun’s martial arts for being so peerless?

‘I used to wonder how he stole the Heavenly Demon Divine Sword in our past life… but with this? He could’ve fooled even the Guardians.’

With pride, So Cheon said,

“This is one of the minor techniques Master taught me. It came in handy back when I was surviving in the House of Slaughter.”

Cheon Yura praised him with genuine admiration.

“…It’s far from a minor technique. That was brilliant.”

“Hehe, thank you, Young Cult Leader.”

Watching So Cheon scratch the back of his head, I couldn’t help but harbor some very reasonable doubts.

‘Don’t tell me… Dao Zun was also skilled in thievery?’

Would a Daoist from the Wudang Sect develop this kind of skill for no reason? And the way he immediately recognized So Cheon’s talent too…

Now that the Venerable Buddha had been exposed as a bald monk, if even Dao Zun was like this, the future of the orthodox sects…

“Let’s go, Jin Yeomyung. You can worry about that later.”

“Ah, yes.”

Caught by Cheon Yura’s uncanny intuition, I flinched and started moving.

Thanks to So Cheon’s unexpected skill, we were able to descend into the inner castle’s underground with ease.

‘Good, the underground warehouse passage is connected to the coordinates.’

If that hadn’t been the case, we might’ve had to start digging in the direction of the coordinates ourselves—a complete disaster.

There were some duty soldiers posted in the underground storage, but…

We’d come this far. Taking them down was no big deal.

“This is the place.”

We arrived somewhere inside the warehouse, cluttered with all sorts of junk.

The problem was, there wasn’t any obvious entrance even here.

Cheon Yura sighed as she looked around the dust-covered storage room.

“Was it a wild goose chase?”

“No, we’re in the right place.”

“Hm?”

Neither So Cheon nor Cheon Yura seemed to notice it, but I could sense a faint flow of sorcery in the air.

‘As I thought, I probably have more talent as a sorcerer than a martial artist.’

Having handled mystical tools and divine artifacts in my past life, my spiritual sensitivity was unusually high.

If I’d been born into the Illusion Clan, Hwan Yul might have tried to push me as the young clan head.

Not that I regret being born into the Jin Clan, of course!

‘First… I need to gather the flow… into a circle…’

I drew in the scattered sorcery drifting around the area with my will, weaving it together into a unified current.

Then—

Vmmmm!

The key to the Heaven of Sacred Spirits, tucked into my chest, suddenly reacted.

As I brought the woven, elliptical sorcery current into contact with the key—

Vwoooooom!

A radiant burst of multicolored light flared before us, and a dimension gate appeared—just large enough for a person to pass through!

“Oh?”

“Wh-What is this? It’s amazing!”

Seeing such a strange dimension gate for the first time in their lives, the other two looked on in wonder.

‘This was much easier to find than I expected.’

I thought we were in for some kind of epic quest, but to my surprise, the entrance to the Heaven of Sacred Spirits had revealed itself with almost no effort.

Yet that very “ease” made me more anxious.

“This is the crossroads.”

I turned to the other two and spoke.

“We either go back and prepare more thoroughly… or we press forward now.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to prepare?”

Cheon Yura’s judgment was sound.

“That would be the proper choice, yes. But if we go back now, this gate likely won’t open again for at least half a year.”

“…Half a year?”

Cheon Yura’s expression stiffened slightly.

“Yes. This isn’t the kind of door you can open carelessly. If things like this were opened frequently, it would disrupt the world’s balance.”

More than anything, the energy within the key had noticeably weakened after a single use.

“I’ll leave the decision to Lady Cheon. What would you like to do?”

“……”

Cheon Yura remained silent, deep in thought.

It was rare to see her hesitate over a decision.

But this situation called for a high level of caution.

Nearly half a quarter-hour passed before she finally spoke.

“Let’s go in.”

“Will you be alright?”

“If it’s half a year later, I’ll be in Ten Thousand Mountain, with everything already settled. There’s no way I’d be able to return to Luoyang. In that case…”

She looked at me with a kind of affectionate, resolute gaze.

“I want to take a chance—just this once.”

“Understood.”

I chuckled and nodded.

“You’d best brace yourself. No one knows what lies beyond.”

“I’m prepared.”

“Lady Baek might be a bit upset… but what can we do.”

Cheon Yura nodded firmly.

“I’ll offer her a sincere apology later.”

And thus, our journey beyond the gate was decided.

…

“But, uh, that’s all well and good… What about my opinion?”

So Cheon’s quiet complaint dissipated hollowly into the void.

A vast land where a mighty river flowed…

The surrounding environment resembled the tropical rainforests of Namman.

‘So this is… the Heaven of Sacred Spirits?’

The moment we crossed the gate, we immediately began to assess the dangers around us.

The path was untrodden, and the trees grew in wild, irregular formations.

It felt like someone had transported the untouched wilderness of Namman right into this place.

But more than anything, the most striking part was—

‘The density and concentration of qi… is insane!’

Just breathing in this place was enough to make my Eight Extraordinary Meridians contract wildly, filling my dantian with internal energy.

Ten times the normal density? No, twenty?

Cheon Yura frowned at the overwhelmingly unreal environment.

“Staying here for too long will be dangerous. This place is more perilous than it looks.”

I agreed with her.

“It feels similar to when we were inside the current field of the Nine Heavens Mystic Maiden.”

That was the perfect comparison.

If an ordinary person without martial arts training set foot here, their body would burst from the overload before long.

“Ugh!”

Cheon Yura and I had experienced something like this before and could withstand it to a degree.

But So Cheon, unaccustomed to this kind of environment, immediately collapsed to his knees and began circulating his qi.

After scanning the area for a while, I came to a conclusion.

“This place is strange. It looks like a jungle, but there isn’t a single insect in sight.”

I examined the water as well—no fish there either.

And then—

“That’s not the real problem.”

At some point, Cheon Yura’s voice had hardened.

“…?”

“Look over there.”

She pointed across the river.

“…!”

I followed her finger with my gaze.

And my eyes widened.

Across the river, in the distance—someone was there!

This was clearly not a normal situation, and the atmosphere between Cheon Yura and me instantly became tense.

—Oh? I didn’t expect a human to show up here…

Worse yet, the figure noticed us and started speaking.

Flash!

The figure sprang from its position.

‘Walking on air? No… this is beyond that!’

In a single step, the person crossed a massive river—dozens of jang wide—and landed right before us!

A young man with strikingly long, ebony hair.

With just a little makeup and grooming, he would undoubtedly appear like a peerless beauty. His appearance was that unrealistic.

Somehow, he reminded me slightly of Cheon Yura… was that just my imagination?

“And who might you be?”

I asked.

The man gave a small chuckle.

“Haha, I believe that’s my question to ask first. I thought the next person to enter this place would surely be the one to inherit from ‘her’.”

‘Her’? ‘The one to inherit from her’?

As he spoke in riddles, the young man introduced himself.

“Still, since you’ve come through the gate properly and not through some shortcut, I’ll give you a formal—albeit brief—introduction. I’m the gatekeeper of this area.”

“…!”

“I exist to stop any unqualified intruders from entering this place. Even if they used the key to get in.”

So this man was the gatekeeper guarding the entrance to the Heaven of Sacred Spirits.

‘Do I have to fight him?’

But even as I thought that, I hesitated.

‘I can’t even gauge his level of strength…’

It shook me.

Since reaching my current realm, there hadn’t been a single opponent—besides the Cult Leader—whose strength I couldn’t roughly assess.

But this young man… he felt like a ghost. I couldn’t sense anything at all.

At that moment, Cheon Yura respectfully spoke.

“There’s something I’d like to ask.”

“Hmm, what is it?”

“You said you’re a gatekeeper. What is your name?”

“…?”

I was surprised by her question.

She’d never once shown interest in anyone’s name—only their abilities ever mattered to her.

“A name, huh… At this point, it doesn’t mean much.”

The young man stroked his chin as he replied.

“Ever since I became the gatekeeper, separated from my main self, I’ve long discarded my worldly name. Still… in the past, I was once called ‘Cheon Yuseong’.”

“I see. Thank you for sharing that.”

Cheon Yura bowed deeply, showing great respect.

The young man waved it off with a hand.

“No need for thanks. Since your energy resonates with mine, it’s only natural that you’d be curious about who I am.”

As soon as Cheon Yura straightened from her bow—

Cheng!

She drew her sword without hesitation, her fighting spirit rising.

I was stunned by her sudden action.

“Lady Cheon?!”

“Oh?”

Interest began to sparkle in the young man’s eyes as he saw her.

“Prepare yourself, Jin Yeomyung.”

“…!”

Her voice carried a subtle excitement.

“Let us show the Founder of the Heavenly Demon—what the swords of his descendants are capable of.”

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