Chapter 186: Floating Stronghold

After settling everything, the three returned to the Floating Stronghold of the Twin-Winged Lotus Lord.

It seemed a fierce battle had taken place, as the massive Floating Stronghold was shattered in several places.

Entering through a large gaping hole, they saw the members of the Fighting Ghost Unit moving busily.

“I almost died.”

Seo Ryeom approached the three. Judging by the wounds covering his body, the fight had been far from easy.

“The Twin-Winged Lotus Lord was stronger than I thought.”

Seo Ryeom had underestimated her, but since she had amplified her power using Beastkin, she was difficult to deal with alone.

Moreover, dozens of martial artists she had gathered were around, making it hard for others to provide assistance.

“When everyone abandoned me, it was the Antlered White Mask who came to help.”

Seo Ryeom continued, his face filled with discontent. Having left the aftermath of the Twin-Winged Lotus Lord to Seo Ryeom, Jang Woo-hyun and Mak Ya-wol had no excuse. The Wind-Passing Great Sage hadn’t paid it any mind at all.

Hearing Seo Ryeom’s story, Jang Woo-hyun realized he had made a poor judgment.

The moment he sensed the power of the True Immortal, he had thrown everything aside and rushed in that direction. If not for the others, the group might have been in real danger.

“Senior Seo, I’m sorry. I acted thoughtlessly.”

Realizing his fault, Jang Woo-hyun bowed his head and apologized.

“Huh? Why is our Captain apologizing? The ones who left me behind were the former Division Leader and the Wind-Passing Great Sage. Well, the Great Sage has always been like that, so the real problem is the former Division Leader. Don’t you feel anything, seeing our Captain act like this?”

Seo Ryeom narrowed his eyes and glared at Mak Ya-wol.

“Hey, it wasn’t easy for us either. The cultivator imbued with True Immortal power—”

“Oh, so you left your subordinates behind and had fun with the True Immortal alone? Very commendable behavior indeed. We nearly got wiped out by the Twin-Winged Lotus Lord over here.”

“…….”

Mak Ya-wol couldn’t reply to the emotionally charged words. Though Seo Ryeom spoke mockingly, nothing he said was wrong.

“Brother.”

“Ha-un, are you alright?”

“Yeah, it was tough, but we won, so it’s fine.”

Jin Ha-un briefly recounted how their fight had gone to Jang Woo-hyun.

“In the end, the Antlered White Mask came and helped us escape a dangerous situation. We won.”

“But what about Senior Maeng?”

“She went that way. She said she had some questions for the captured martial artists. The Antlered White Mask went with her.”

Jang Woo-hyun, understanding what she was likely doing, simply gave a slight nod. He figured they would learn more once Maeng Ye-ju returned.

And soon after, Maeng Ye-ju returned.

She had sustained several injuries, but what stood out most was her blood-stained fist.

Blood dripped from her hand as if she had just been in a fight. Of course, it wasn’t her own blood.

“I got some information.”

Behind Maeng Ye-ju was the now-unmasked Antlered White Mask. The two had interrogated their captives using fists and spells.

“The Ascension Cult is entangled in this mess in multiple places.”

Maeng Ye-ju began revealing what she had learned.

“From the beginning, Hyeonwol of the Radiant Light Sect was in league with the Ascension Cult.”

This was information obtained by tormenting the executives of the Twin-Winged Lotus and a few cultivators scattered throughout the stronghold.

“The Left Guardian of the Five Elements Cult is the same. The Ascension Cult approached him, gave him something, and turned him into a traitor. Even the Divine Dragon Family is slightly entangled.”

“What did they give him?”

“That, they didn’t know either. But I did find out what was stolen from the Five Elements Cult.”

When Maeng Ye-ju glanced at the Antlered White Mask, he opened his mouth to explain.

“The Left Guardian of the Five Elements Cult stole the Five Wheel Illusion Diagram.”

“What is that?”

“It’s a Dharma Treasure that creates a space. It’s a divine item of the Five Elements Cult. It allows the creation of an artificial training space or manipulation of elemental energy within a designated area.”

“Oh, sounds like that gourd you gave away.”

Maeng Ye-ju referred to the Dharma Treasure Jang Woo-hyun had yielded to the Beast King Sect. The inner space of that gourd was vast enough to contain a mountain range.

“What was the purpose of stealing it?”

“That’s still unknown. But the one who wanted it was Hyeonwol of the Radiant Light Sect, so he must be plotting something.”

“Any guesses?”

“Since he has the Five Wheel Illusion Diagram, he could create a domain of his own. I don’t know what kind, but he might even combine it with other Dharma Treasures within the Radiant Light Sect to create something entirely new. We don’t have enough information yet, so that’s all I can surmise.”

Jang Woo-hyun fell into thought at Maeng Ye-ju and the Antlered White Mask’s words.

“What now? If the Five Elements Cult and Radiant Light Sect are involved, this won’t be easy. They’re on a different scale than the Twin-Winged Lotus.”

The Twin-Winged Lotus, though famous, was still manageable. But the Five Elements Cult and Radiant Light Sect were different.

Even if there had been internal strife, those two belonged to the Ten Sects and Three Clans. With their current numbers, they would be hard to take on—that was Maeng Ye-ju’s assessment.

However, not everyone agreed.

“Oh! Captain, are we heading for the Five Elements Cult or the Radiant Light Sect next?”

“I’d rather not deal with the Radiant Light Sect. They’re full of spellcasters.”

“Yeah, spellcasters are annoying. Always with the tricks. But the fights are fun once they start.”

Seo Ryeom, Mak Ya-wol, and the Wind-Passing Great Sage, who had been listening silently, became excited at the thought of a new opponent.

Normally, Jang Woo-hyun wouldn’t have agreed with them. But this time, there was something he had to consider.

‘They said only two remain.’

Of those presumed to have come from Earth, only two were left alive.

What the True Immortal showed might’ve been an illusion to confuse him. But Jang Woo-hyun decided to assume the worst.

Was what the True Immortal showed real, and only two survived?

Then the chances were high that it was himself and Kim Min-soo. And if Kim Min-soo was still alive, he had to find him before something happened.

‘One of the places was the territory of the Five Elements Cult.’

The Kim Min-soo he met on the Dawn Continent was not the original but a Projection, so he couldn’t remember everything.

Among what he remembered, there were two places where other Projections might be. One was the territory of the Divine Dragon Family, and the other was the territory of the Five Elements Cult.

Walking into the Divine Dragon Family’s territory—currently the epicenter of chaos—on his own would be madness. So the choice was clear.

‘I have to go to the territory of the Five Wheel Five Elements Cult.’

With that thought sorted out, Jang Woo-hyun first thanked Maeng Ye-ju.

“Senior Maeng, thank you.”

“Huh? For what?”

Maeng Ye-ju widened her eyes at the sudden thanks.

‘I would’ve missed everything if I were alone.’

Jang Woo-hyun’s original goal had been to destroy the Twin-Winged Lotus and find traces of the Ascension Cult.

But upon sensing the power of the True Immortal, his focus shifted entirely to that. He hadn’t paid attention to anything else.

Though facing such power wasn’t a wrong decision, without companions like Maeng Ye-ju or the Antlered White Mask, someone might have been hurt or valuable information missed.

No matter how strong, one could only do so much alone—but his companions were filling those gaps.

‘So this is why he told me to make companions.’

The more time passed, the more he understood why Kim Min-soo had given that advice.

“Why the sudden sentiment?”

“Because you’ve been making up for my shortcomings.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.”

Still, perhaps pleased by Jang Woo-hyun’s words, Maeng Ye-ju gave him a pat on the shoulder.

“What now? Shall we track down the remaining Twin-Winged Lotus?”

“No. We’ve captured their leader, so let’s leave the rest to the Beast King Sect. I have something I need to check in the territory of the Five Elements Cult.”

“There you go. That’s the right call.”

“Knew it, Captain!”

Just as the trio of battle maniacs were getting excited—

Kwagwang!

A thunderous noise rang out and the Floating Stronghold shook.

Jang Woo-hyun instinctively grabbed his sword and expanded his qi perception, thinking it was an attack.

“It’s Uncle Cho-su.”

“Pardon?”

“He’s doing something. Said he was going to remodel it?”

“……Excuse me?”

The completely unexpected explanation left Jang Woo-hyun speechless for a beat.

“It’s a mess, but usable.”

“That sounds contradictory.”

“Oh? Does it?”

Realizing how strange his own words sounded, Cho-su let out a laugh.

“I explained too briefly. Overall, it’s a mess. They expanded and remodeled without any plan, repeatedly piling new parts on top—total chaos. But the core structure is still usable.”

“So you’re remodeling it?”

Cho-su nodded.

“I plan to tear down everything unnecessary and modify the essential parts so it can be ridden. There are more people now, and the ship is too cramped.”

“Then… we’ll have to give up the speed we had before?”

Their fast travel had been thanks to riding the Giant’s ship.

Even if they downsized and remodeled the Floating Stronghold, if they couldn’t ride the Giant’s ship anymore, their speed would surely drop.

“You don’t need to worry about that. I’m fixing that part too. You know the core from the Mokryeong Tribe you gave me?”

“Yes.”

“I’m going to use that to wrap the entire remodeled Floating Stronghold, by fusing it into the ship made of Dry Wood. If I also tear apart the Annihilation Thunder Cannon and use it as a power source, it won’t be much different from before. It’ll take time and I’ll need materials, though.”

“Oh… I see.”

He roughly understood what Cho-su was saying, but didn’t truly grasp the details.

Jang Woo-hyun simply thought, ‘Uncle Cho-su knows what he’s doing,’ and decided to follow instructions.

“Is there anything I can help with?”

“Of course. We need to tear off all the attached buildings and unnecessary parts.”

Under Cho-su’s command, the mountain-sized Floating Stronghold gradually shrank. Thus, the group’s new mode of transport and home was taking shape.

While Cho-su remodeled the Floating Stronghold, the others had nothing much to do.

In the beginning, the work focused on demolition, so Jang Woo-hyun and others helped. But now, it was about creating something new—and aside from the Antlered White Mask, no one else could contribute.

Eventually, out of boredom, they decided to duel and gathered in a space like a large training ground.

“This space is so big, you can even move around freely during combat.”

“Exactly. Captain, shall we have a round?”

Jang Woo-hyun and Seo Ryeom faced each other.

Seo Ryeom held three short swords, even using his tail, while Jang Woo-hyun held the Black Wilds Sword in his right hand and the Dragon King’s Scale in his left.

They had agreed to hold back on internal energy during this duel, so controlling the Dragon King’s Scale freely was difficult.

“Here I come.”

Seo Ryeom quickly closed the distance.

His first advantage was speed—so fast that even Jang Woo-hyun had trouble reacting.

With minimal internal energy, Seo Ryeom moved swiftly to Jang Woo-hyun’s side and slashed with two swords.

Jang Woo-hyun twisted his body slightly and parried with the Black Wilds Sword.

Kaang!

The clash of swords rang out. Jang Woo-hyun stepped in toward Seo Ryeom’s right.

No—he should have. But he couldn’t. Another sword suddenly thrust toward him.

Seo Ryeom’s third strike—the sword gripped by his tail.

Jang Woo-hyun leaned back and slid away to dodge. A small cut appeared on his cheek as he retreated.

“Tch, I aimed for it but missed. Be careful, Captain. I’ve got three swords, you know.”

Seo Ryeom grinned, waving his long tail. The sword wrapped in it swayed like a living creature.

Seeing that, a smile spread across Jang Woo-hyun’s face too.

Watching such a unique martial art made his heart race.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep