Chapter 141: Not Ascension, but Flight to the Heavens

“By the way, what’s with this place? It reeks.”

Sniffing the surrounding air, Windstorm Great Saint asked.

“There’s no way it should smell like this in the Lower Realm.”

Sniffing around, Windstorm Great Saint stepped into a crevice in the cliff and discovered a hole in the ground.

“What is this? What’s down there? The smell seems to be coming from here.”

“There’s nothing there now.”

After stabilizing Kim Min-soo’s Projection, Jang Woo-hyun had returned alone to the cave.

Upon arrival, the intense and oppressive force he had felt pressing down from all directions was gone, and the white object underground had also vanished.

“When you say there’s nothing now, you mean there was something here before?”

In response to Windstorm Great Saint’s question, Jang Woo-hyun hesitated for a moment before sharing what he had seen.

“Martial God’s memory? There was a major battle in the Upper Realm?”

“Yeah, that’s what I think. Why? Do you know something?”

Since Windstorm Great Saint was a high-ranking being known as a Great Monster of the Demonic Spirit Realm, he asked just in case. But the answer he got was not what he expected.

“Then what about me?”

“……What now, all of a sudden?”

“Ah… I should have been part of it too. Why are they fighting without me?”

Jang Woo-hyun frowned as he watched the disappointed Windstorm Great Saint grumble.

What the hell is in this guy’s head? Probably nothing but fighting.

“Forget it. Talking to you is pointless.”

He had hoped Windstorm Great Saint might know something, which is why he shared his experience, but it had turned out to be a waste.

Ignoring the monkey Monster who was sulking about being left out of the fight, Jang Woo-hyun approached Kim Min-soo.

“Is everything going well?”

“Almost done.”

Kim Min-soo replied and activated the Spell Formation.

Rumble—

The entire cave shook, and Soft Light burst from the patterns drawn across the walls.

“Let’s go outside.”

Taking Windstorm Great Saint and Jang Woo-hyun, Kim Min-soo climbed up the cliff.

It had once been an area always covered in snow, but now the snow had disappeared, revealing the hidden Spell Formation.

Wooooong—

Light began emanating from the Spell Formation etched on the ground, accompanied by a humming vibration.

“You go there, Junior. Windstorm Great Saint, you’re here.”

The two positioned themselves where he pointed.

“Then let’s begin.”

Sitting down at a spot, Kim Min-soo channeled energy into the ground.

CRAAAACK!

With a tremendous roar, the entire cliff shook. Immense power surged toward Windstorm Great Saint and Jang Woo-hyun.

Feeling the overwhelming force, Jang Woo-hyun realized why Kim Min-soo had said that even a martial artist in the Absolute Realm wouldn’t be of help.

“Huh? Hey, this is a bit dangerous.”

Windstorm Great Saint, shocked by the intensity of the force pressing in on him, called out to Kim Min-soo.

“Just endure it for a moment. When the line appears, release your gathered power toward it.”

“No, there’s no way I can hold out with this body……”

“Monkey, just endure it. Aren’t you supposed to be a Great Monster of the Demonic Spirit Realm? Why so chatty?”

“I’m telling you, just look at this. The power is too strong.”

Windstorm Great Saint pointed at himself.

His body trembled violently, as if it were about to shatter from the incoming force.

“Endure it with spirit.”

“This isn’t about spirit! This is dangerous!”

Ignoring their bickering, Kim Min-soo kept time.

After a short while, with the two still squabbling, he shouted.

“Prepare!”

At that moment—BOOM!—a thunderclap roared as a beam of light burst from one side of the cliff.

The golden light split the sky, leaving a long trail.

The sky-splitting light vanished quickly, and where the long line had been, only a small dot remained.

“There!”

At Kim Min-soo’s shout, Jang Woo-hyun slashed with his sword, and Windstorm Great Saint extended his hand, exploding the energy he had gathered in his palm.

The power of the Dragon Vein combined with the force of the two and aimed for the golden point.

────────!!

A sound like the world breaking apart erupted from the unleashed power of the two.

Moments later, cracks formed in the sky, and the spot where the golden dot had been shattered like glass.

WOOOOOOO—

A howl of unknown origin.

At that sound, Jang Woo-hyun and Windstorm Great Saint frowned, and Kim Min-soo staggered as if about to collapse.

“Senior Kim!”

“It worked.”

Kim Min-soo smiled faintly in response to Jang Woo-hyun’s worried shout. Following his gaze, Jang Woo-hyun turned to see a sky turned silver.

RUMBLE—

With a deafening noise, the silver sky crumpled like paper.

“A hole’s been opened. The sky will realize the workings of the True Immortals. Soon, you’ll be able to ascend to the Central Heavens.”

As he spoke, Kim Min-soo plunged his hand into his chest, as if to pull out his heart.

When his hand emerged again, he held a glowing orb the size of a child’s fist.

“I’m entrusting my heart to you.”

Grinning as he handed the orb over, Kim Min-soo was met with a deadpan reply from Jang Woo-hyun.

“If you keep talking nonsense, I’ll crush this.”

“No! No, that’s not my heart. So don’t destroy it.”

Now that Jang Woo-hyun knew what kind of person Kim Min-soo was, he shut down the joke before it could go further.

“It’s like a memory orb. If you meet another Projection, give it to them. They’ll know. Can’t even joke around now.”

As Kim Min-soo grew serious, Windstorm Great Saint detached his arm and placed it against Jang Woo-hyun’s waist.

“What are you doing? What is this unpleasant feeling?”

“Hehe, you’ll need it. It’s a kind of coordinate.”

“Coordinate? What coordinate? Explain properly, stop speaking in riddles.”

“You’ll understand when you get there. The road to the Central Heavens won’t be easy. And maybe something fun is waiting for you there.”

Though he asked again, Windstorm Great Saint didn’t respond and simply laughed, wrapping his arm around Jang Woo-hyun’s waist.

That arm soon transformed into the long tail of a white monkey, coiling around Jang Woo-hyun’s waist.

“When you go up, summon me properly. Have a decent Spellcaster do it. Keep your promise.”

“Yeah. Don’t worry.”

He didn’t know what trick he had up his sleeve, but since he had helped, Jang Woo-hyun intended to keep the promise. As their conversation ended, Kim Min-soo spoke.

“Remember the places I mentioned last time? Go find those two. If they’re still intact, they’ll be helpful.”

While Lee Ga-hang brought the Spellcaster, Kim Min-soo told him where his preparations were stored.

The Projection before him didn’t retain all information due to its nature. He only remembered two places.

One was within the domain of the Five Wheel Five Elements Cult, and the other within the territory of one of the Three Clans, the Divine Dragon Family.

As the three exchanged a few words, the silver sky turned blue again. With the power of the True Immortals that blanketed the world gone, Jang Woo-hyun’s body was enveloped in light.

“I’m going.”

“See you later.”

“Be sure to summon me.”

The nearly transparent Projection of Kim Min-soo and Windstorm Great Saint waved toward Jang Woo-hyun.

Just as Jang Woo-hyun was about to wave back—

Light surged.

And so, Jang Woo-hyun disappeared from the Dawn Continent.

It was his second Flight to the Heavens.

Wrapped in light and flying through the sky, Jang Woo-hyun thought:

‘Come to think of it, I never got to talk about the old days.’

Like when exactly they had arrived here, or how it seemed they had lived in Korea around the same time, but ended up arriving in Central Plains centuries apart. He had so many questions, but neither of them had asked anything.

Not to mention Kim Min-soo had once written in the Demonic Martial Divine Art that he’d look for a way back to Earth, but he hadn’t spoken of it at all. It was the kind of thing one would normally bring up.

‘Is it because he’s a Projection?’

Since Projections were created as needed, they might not possess all memories. Their knowledge could also vary depending on when they were created.

‘I’ll ask next time we meet.’

He figured he’d eventually meet another Projection or the main body, and could ask then.

Fortunately, it was not a final farewell with Kim Min-soo. There would likely be other Projections he left behind in the Central Heavens, and perhaps, he might even meet the main body someday.

It was just as he was hoping to see Kim Min-soo again in the future.

Bang! With a sound, a silver chain pierced through the pillar of light and rushed inside.

“……!”

Jang Woo-hyun immediately drew Mukya and summoned his energy, ready to counter at any moment.

But the chain wasn’t aiming at him.

Clatter—

The chain kept extending. Spreading out in all directions, it multiplied into tens of thousands of strands as if constructing walls.

Sensing something off, Jang Woo-hyun swung Mukya to slash at the surrounding chains.

Upon closer inspection of the shattered chains, he realized their shape was strange.

The silver chains weren’t made of interlinked rings but appeared like countless tiny silver hands gripping each other’s wrists, forming a chain.

‘Silver hands?’

Though small, they were unmistakably silver hands, as if coated in mercury. The size was different, but Jang Woo-hyun recognized them.

‘So they don’t intend to let me go easily?’

The power of the True Immortals, which had once smashed him into the Lower Realm, was once again obstructing him.

Determined to retaliate, Jang Woo-hyun gathered his strength.

But the chain moved a beat faster.

KUAANG!

Suddenly, the surrounding space trembled, and the pillar of light began to crack. Shockwaves exploded outward, and Jang Woo-hyun was hurled out of the pillar of light.

‘That was stupid.’

Jang Woo-hyun laughed at himself in self-blame.

He had let his guard down while thinking about that guy. Just like his first Ascension, he couldn’t ascend peacefully this time either. In fact, this time he was thrown out even faster.

The space resembled a universe, filled with radiant streaks of multicolored light.

Crunch.

As soon as he was outside, a pressure weighed heavily on his body. Jang Woo-hyun deployed the Sacred River Flowing Armor to resist the force.

His eyes searched for the enemy approaching him.

As if that was the signal, something began to approach with a sound that shook the space from afar.

The smile on Jang Woo-hyun’s face deepened.

There was only one being that could interfere with his Ascension.

The True Immortals. Heavenly Venerable of the Silver Radiance and Universal Transformation of the Three Pure Ones.

And in this universe-like space, the True Immortals had left something behind.

━━━━━━!!

A strange sound rang out, and the being revealed itself in the distance.

A giant coated in mercury.

A faceless giant—without eyes, nose, or mouth—drew a massive sword and flew toward Jang Woo-hyun.

Kim Min-soo had clearly stated the being wouldn’t attack unless provoked. But the situation had changed.

Jang Woo-hyun had just torn through the True Immortals’ power and ascended. The being must have already recognized him.

“Been a while.”

Of course, Jang Woo-hyun had no intention of avoiding it either.

He summoned all the energy within and launched himself into the air.

His movement was different from before.

The first time he faced the being, he had just entered the Realm of Transcendence. But not now.

Having completely mastered Void Movement Technique and the Realm of Transcendence, he could fight as if on solid ground even in midair.

Creating invisible footholds, Jang Woo-hyun unleashed a swift display of movement arts.

Within the Realm of Transcendence, the Six-Legged Horse King’s Step allowed him to move like a flash of light.

In just a few steps, he traversed hundreds of jang of space.

Before the silver giant could even register his presence—

Jang Woo-hyun stood before it and slashed with his sword.

KWAANG!

With Annihilation Slash, he struck off the giant’s head and laughed heartily.

Before, he would’ve launched an attack and fled. But not this time.

He stabbed Yongwangrin into the beheaded creature’s neck and immediately infused Internal Energy to detach it.

BOOOM!

Hundreds of blade scales burrowed into the giant’s body and exploded on impact.

The silver giant’s body shattered.

Jang Woo-hyun didn’t stop there; he controlled the hundreds of blades.

In this space of cascading multicolored lights, Yongwangrin unleashed a storm of blades.

Unlike last time, when the pressure dissolved the Qi Threads, it was different now.

Not only did he emit Qi Threads, but Jang Woo-hyun had completely dominated the surrounding space. Even under the crushing pressure, he moved Yongwangrin freely.

“This time won’t be so easy!”

Jang Woo-hyun slashed toward the fragments of the shattered silver giant. From his past experience, he knew it wouldn’t die so easily.

‘Come back to life if you dare!’

He didn’t care if it resurrected again and again.

Even if it revived dozens or hundreds of times, he would crush it every single time.

After slicing the fragments with Mukya, he moved Yongwangrin to grind them down further.

‘One more time.’

Then he attacked again using Black Wolf Fang and Annihilation Slash.

‘Again.’

Jang Woo-hyun didn’t stop, killing and killing the silver giant repeatedly.

Only after it had been reduced to fine powder did he finally end his assault.

“……”

To avoid invoking the cliché line of “Is it dead?” Jang Woo-hyun silently scanned the surroundings.

Under his relentless attacks, the silver giant had been completely obliterated.

Exhaling a deep breath, Jang Woo-hyun finally relaxed. Only then did he let his body follow the upward current.

A brief rest. Then he thought to himself.

‘But where am I supposed to go now?’

During his first Ascension, he just had to remain in the pillar of light. It automatically took him to the Central Heavens.

But now it was different. This time, he had to decide his own path. Even during the previous Ascension, he was flung out after flying for a while inside the light, but this time he was thrown out the moment he emerged.

‘What now?’

The situation was more serious than he initially thought. There was no map, and he had no idea which direction to go.

Furrowing his brow, Jang Woo-hyun fell deep into thought, searching for a solution.

Wriggle.

At that moment, something squirmed around his waist. Lowering his gaze, he saw a tail partially uncoiling and pointing in a direction.

Seeing that, he recalled what Windstorm Great Saint had said before parting.

–Hehe, you’ll need it. It’s a kind of coordinate.

‘Ah… that damn monkey.’

He had anticipated this exact situation and set something up around his waist.

‘Could’ve given me a heads-up.’

Cursing Windstorm Great Saint, Jang Woo-hyun began moving in the direction the tail pointed.

After some time, Jang Woo-hyun stood before a scene reflected in midair.

It shimmered like a reflection on a lake, showing an image of the blue sky.

The tail pointed directly at it. Jang Woo-hyun swung his sword, slicing the transparent barrier before him, and jumped inside.

He passed through pitch-black darkness and arrived at a bright space once again.

Regaining his senses, he observed his surroundings.

He stood atop a softly glowing pond, and the surrounding energy was incomparably richer than that of the Lower Realm. Even floating islands could be seen in the distant sky.

Jang Woo-hyun realized he had returned to the Central Heavens.

“Oh, a new junior. Welcome.”

A middle-aged man nearby smiled and approached Jang Woo-hyun.

“Huh? Ah, yes. Nice to meet you.”

“I’m the one who manages this plac—hmm?”

The man suddenly stopped and furrowed his brow. His gaze shifted from Jang Woo-hyun’s chest down to his Dantian.

“Hmm, what is this? Who are you, really?”

“Excuse me? I’m Jang Woo-hyun……”

“He’s a martial artist! He’s not a cultivator!”

Before Jang Woo-hyun could finish, an old man nearby ran over and shouted.

At that cry, the middle-aged man also summoned his strength. Feeling the energy erupting before him, Jang Woo-hyun’s expression stiffened.

“Huh?”

This wasn’t the Qi of a martial artist.

It was similar to what he had felt from Pung So-bong or from Yeong-gok during the battle inside the gourd.

Jang Woo-hyun voiced his suspicion.

“Cultivators?”

He had not arrived in the Central Heavens Martial Realm, but in the domain of cultivators.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep