Chapter 205: Heavenly Demon Founder (3)

The Murim Alliance Leader and the Golden Dragon Heavenly Sword Squad he led had currently set up camp on the outskirts of Luoyang.

Though it would have been an easy matter for the Golden Dragon Heavenly Sword Squad to enter Luoyang City, the Sword King remained cautious.

In the current situation, entering Luoyang without prior negotiations would be tantamount to declaring war against the Black Lotus Union.

They had set up camp about five li outside of Luoyang, and nearly a full day had passed.

“Uh, My Lord.”

Baek Gongjin, the Captain of the Golden Dragon Heavenly Sword Squad, entered the tent where the Sword King resided.

“What is it?”

“A messenger… has arrived from the Black Lotus Union.”

“…”

“Things seem to have gotten very tangled.”

Even in front of the Alliance Leader, Baek Gongjin’s expression was deeply twisted in frustration.

The Sword King looked at Baek Gongjin with a gaze that seemed to understand his frustration.

“Sigh… Very well. Let him in.”

“…As you command.”

Soon after, a hunched old man wearing a black mask appeared inside the tent.

“Huahaha! I am the envoy of the Black Lotus Union and the amiable Ten Thousand Evil Blade Emperor!”

The Sword King glared coldly at the old man who burst out laughing so heartily.

“Heon scum. What the hell are you doing?”

“Now, now, I’m the Saber King of Myriad—”

“Cut the nonsense and take off that mask before I send a petition about you to the Northern Heon Clan Head.”

Faced with the Sword King’s uncompromising demeanor, the Saber King clicked his tongue and removed his mask.

“Click. Did you eat boiled squash or something? No sense of humor.”

Only after the mask came off did the familiar old man’s face reveal itself.

Upon seeing it, the Sword King let out a sigh so deep it seemed the ground might collapse.

“What the hell are you doing, bringing my granddaughter into this mess here in Luoyang?”

As if the accusation was absurd, the Saber King flicked his index finger.

“Click click, you’ve got the cause and effect reversed. It’s not that I’ve taken your granddaughter along—your granddaughter is the one dragging me around.”

“What did you say?”

“The Black Lotus Union was going to be established just the same, with or without me.”

“I’m aware of that. The problem is why you, of all people, got involved.”

According to the original plan, the Black Lotus Union should have already been annihilated by the Golden Dragon Heavenly Sword Squad by now.

But because of this Saber King bastard’s interference, the plan had gone completely off course!

“It’s obvious. You probably jumped in without a second thought just because it looked fun.”

“Ahem! Honestly, it’s not entirely my fault.”

With much to be guilty about, the Saber King enthusiastically threw his collaborator under the bus.

Eventually, when the Sword King realized the true identity of the Left Guardian, he nearly spat blood.

“What? Even the Venerable Buddha got involved in this?”

“Exactly! I mean, once big brother Venerable Buddha joined in, how was that bastard Gwan Hyun supposed to resist us?”

“…”

Though the Saber King was practically spitting as he pled his innocence, the Sword King could no longer focus on his antics.

‘Something’s not right.’

The Venerable Buddha was someone commonly referred to as a mad monk, even viewed as a disgrace by Shaolin itself.

But from what the Sword King knew, the Venerable Buddha was not someone who made impulsive decisions.

Despite his reputation as a master of the Profound Realm and one of the Three Supremes with heavenly talent, the Sword King was one of the very few who knew the Venerable Buddha’s past—and knew that part of his essence was that of a revenge-obsessed ghost.

“Where is the Venerable Buddha now? I should meet with him before making any decisions about what comes next.”

“Ah, well…”

Suddenly, the Saber King looked sheepish.

“Big bro is… currently missing.”

“…What?”

“Maybe he holed himself up in a monastery somewhere around here, but he hasn’t shown up for three days.”

“…”

At that moment— the Sword King felt a sudden, inexplicable sense of dread.

****

Whoosh!

The view from my severed head spun chaotically for a brief instant.

“Gah!”

I came to my senses, gasping through a wave of intense pain.

‘Just now…’

That had definitely been Illusionary Killing—a type of mental sword technique.

Had I truly believed I died in that moment, then my death would’ve become reality.

“As expected, that’s not something a normal human willpower can withstand.”

“Huff, huff…!”

“To escape from the binding of Illusionary Killing, you just exceeded the limits of your physical body.”

At those words, I opened the palm of my clenched hand.

It was drenched in cold sweat.

“The Founder… is quite aggressive.”

“It’s the fastest and most certain method.”

Fast, maybe.

But the moment I experienced that Illusionary Killing, even if you placed a hundred of the Heavenly Demon Cult’s top-tier late-stage cultivators in that space, all hundred would’ve died.

Still, my complaints vanished with his next words.

“At least, for one who has walked the path before.”

“…”

“Whether it’s you or my descendant, age doesn’t matter. Even if your spiritual framework is different, as long as a catalyst exists, you can ignore all causality and enlightenment and experience explosive growth.”

If Cheon Yura was the type of genius who shattered the path and charged ahead, then I was the type who could walk a road again once I had trodden it once.

“I know you’re hesitant. The imbalance in your body caused by damage to your innate qi—because of that risk, you’re hesitant to cross the wall prematurely.”

The Heavenly Demon Founder had perfectly grasped even the deepest issues inside me.

“But don’t worry. With the thorough guidance of a true master, I’ll help you open the path to a complete rebirth, safely and surely. Once that happens, you won’t need to worry about such fractures.”

“…”

Well… I don’t know where to hide from this ancestor’s intense affection.

While I grimaced at the situation, he suddenly shot me a question.

“Jin Yeomyung, do you know how a martial artist’s battle truly unfolds?”

I paused for a moment, then answered.

“When both fighters are at their peak, battles below Second-rate are decided by mastery over their learned techniques.”

“And?”

“Battles below Master Level are determined by the compatibility of martial arts and the ability to manipulate qi. From the peak level onward, it’s about how well one can wield the harmony of martial techniques and will.”

Of course, if one started weighing additional conditions and variables, it would be endless, but if I had to prioritize, that was the rough order.

The Heavenly Demon Founder nodded.

“Very well. Then, how is a battle between Profound Realm and Transcendence determined?”

I hesitated for a moment before answering.

“The Transcendent realm… is when one completely breaks free from the constraints of qi and becomes capable of tempering their will. To be precise, it’s determined by how deeply one can enter within a microscopic time-frame using their will-tempering ability.”

Things like Mind Sword or Illusionary Killing are, in the end, just additional functions.

Once one surpasses the wall and begins to break free from the body’s limits, victory is determined by how far they can elevate their own cognitive ability.

From this stage onward, the dimension of the battlefield itself changes.

The Heavenly Demon Founder’s eyes curved faintly like a crescent moon.

“As expected, you’ve experienced it before.”

“…”

“Would you happen to know what comes after?”

There was no point in holding back after coming this far.

“…It’s a stage beyond mere shaping—where one inscribes their will into this world, giving it form and meaning. Often referred to as Authority, it’s the realm where one begins to build their own rudimentary divinity.”

“Excellent.”

This stage is known as the true domain of ascension.

Because it escapes the limits of mortality, it’s called Life-and-Death Transcendence, and since one becomes entirely free from the bindings of mental demons, it is also called Demon-Surpassing Realm.

“Have you ever reached that level?”

I shook my head.

“No. I’ve merely had experience handling it.”

“Experience?”

While I hadn’t reached that level by my own power, I had once been forcibly dragged into a similar domain, fully saturated with divine tools and blessings.

Well, if I had survived that final battle and continued training, I might have eventually reached it…

“Experience, you say. Indeed, that golden glow you hold in your heart is probably the byproduct of that experience.”

“I won’t deny it.”

“Good. If you’ve experienced it… then you at least have a minimum chance.”

A chance?

“Are you referring to the Primordial Heavenly Evil?”

I fully expected to hear a “Yes, of course.”

But surprisingly, the Heavenly Demon Founder shook his head.

“No. While the Heavenly Evil is certainly dangerous, there’s no need to talk about chances against a being that hasn’t even resurrected yet. Besides, wasn’t it around 400 years ago? The last time it tried to revive, it was stopped and hasn’t surfaced since.”

“…Then?”

The Heavenly Demon Founder smiled gently.

And pointed to his own face with his finger.

“I’m talking about my original body.”

“…What?”

You’ve got to be kidding me.

“My true body is still alive. Somewhere in this world. Without having ascended.”

Seriously.

I really didn’t want to hear that.

“The reason a descendant of this age, who should have already ascended to the upper realm, remains here on Earth is likely because of my true body.”

That “descendant” he was referring to must be the current Cult Leader.

“Ah, of course, it’s probably not in a proper state. It’s not even clear whether it still qualifies as a living organism.”

With a bright smile, our dear Founder delivered words straight from hell.

I really wanted to punch him once.

“Even if it’s no longer alive, its danger level is beyond what any being on Earth can endure. And it would be a completely different existence from who I am now.”

“You speak as if you’re certain that it’s different.”

“Heh heh…”

He smirked—this time with a very different aura from before.

And from his lips, a forgotten history of the past began to spill forth.

“When the Sun and Moon Divine Cult was destroyed, the central plains were a land torn into countless fragments—an era of chaos and nightmare repeated endlessly.”

I had studied history before.

That must’ve been before the Sui dynasty unified the nation.

“In an age when those who dreamed of ‘Return’ ran rampant, the collapsing Sun and Moon Divine Cult gathered all its remaining power to forge a guardian from fragments of the soul of a Demon Immortal.”

…No way.

“That’s how they created me, and then they went into eternal rest.”

“…!!”

“Descendant, Jin Yeomyung.”

The Heavenly Demon Founder’s eyes carried a tinge of sorrow.

‘I’—he meant himself—was a being destined to be buried under the weight of duty the longer time passed. Although this incarnation of him had found emotional freedom after separating from the original body…

…the main body must still be parasitizing this world to fulfill its duties.

If its only purpose was to protect the world, he wouldn’t say such things.

“You mean, its purpose may have become twisted?”

“Yes. That’s inevitable.”

He nodded and spoke with a desolate voice.

“Because of that nature, I probably wasn’t able to end things well with the ones I loved or the disciples I cherished. Even if I don’t know how it ended, I can make an educated guess.”

“…”

A vision passed before my eyes—a man clutching the corpse of a woman, crying out before an altar.

And another set of eyes, cold and emotionless, looking down upon that scene.

Even if what the Heavenly Demon Founder said was hypothetical, it struck disturbingly close to the truth.

“That’s why you must stop it.”

He gripped his sword and solemnly faced me.

“To prevent the tragedy soon to come from turning into a catastrophe, I’ll pave the path you must walk.”

Shling!

“To go beyond the end you’ve already once reached.”

“…Heavenly Demon Founder.”

There was only one answer I could give.

A world falling into chaos was the exact opposite of the ideal I pursued under ‘her’ reign.

Since he said he’d bestow upon me such an opportunity, as a descendant, I had no choice but to risk my life to accept it.

“I will humbly uphold your will.”

“That attitude—I like it very much.”

Pleased with my resolve, he nodded approvingly.

I gripped the sword’s hilt tightly.

A chance to overcome the wall.

No matter how brutal the training, I would endure it.

I would absolutely endure…

“Let’s begin by ripping apart your twelve standard meridians and regenerating them.”

…My expression froze.

“…You’re going to rip what now?”

Instead of answering, the Heavenly Demon Founder said something else entirely.

“The pain won’t last long. You don’t need to worry.”

“…This isn’t a matter of worry, is it?!”

He ignored my protest.

“After that, we’ll grind down your eight extraordinary meridians and your upper, middle, and lower dantian before regenerating them. And to fix the imbalance in your soul that slightly misaligns with this world, we’ll soak you in the Sacred Spirit Pool until equilibrium is restored.”

In short: he was throwing my body into a blender and waterboarding my soul.

I instinctively stepped back and said,

“…Uhm, Founder? Doesn’t this count as… torture?”

Taking a step forward to match my retreat, the Founder replied.

“This isn’t torture. It’s a necessary procedure for a connection like yourself. Our descendant is already facing Transcendence head-on, so how long do you, her partner, intend to remain stagnant?”

Stagnation, my ass. How is this reasonable?

This was exactly the kind of thing a demon king or high demon would do to a contracted human after their deal ended.

“Trust me. I’ll make you strong.”

“…”

And so…

Hell began.

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