Chapter 228: Erased Records (2)

There had once been a record about the Devouring Dragon of a Thousand Treasures. Just as Gwanwi had suspected, someone had intervened to ensure no trace remained in the outside world.

“The Devouring Dragon of a Thousand Treasures. A monster that came up from the Lower Realm. It had the form of a dragon, but one would doubt whether it truly was a dragon. It grew stronger the more Dharma Treasures and minerals it consumed. The beast grew so large that it eventually devoured entire mountain ranges and rivers… its size must’ve been truly enormous.”

Gwanwi was astonished at the mention of mountains and rivers being devoured and continued reading the record.

“…One day, the monster ascended to the Upper Realm following a being known as the True Martial God. The True Martial God? That’s an amusing name.”

The name, meaning literally “True God of Martial Arts,” struck Gwanwi as juvenile, and he let out a small scoff.

“There aren’t many records left. Only a line or two more than what was in the Book from the Divine Dragon Clan. Strangely, there’s far more written about this True Martial God. It’s said he hated cultivators and constantly waged war against them. His skills were fitting of someone called a Martial God, and those slain by his hand were… hmm?”

Gwanwi’s eyes trembled as he read on. The contents were far too absurd.

“The number of cultivators killed by him is at least over a million…”

Some estimates suggested it could be several million. And according to the records, he didn’t lead an army — he acted alone.

Gwanwi had let out a hollow laugh at the unbelievable claim, but as he read further, his laughter vanished.

“The number of cultivators in the Fusion Stage killed by him…”

Forty-two.

“Cultivators in the Great Ascension Stage…”

Twenty-five.

‘What the…?’

The record defied belief.

In martial terms, Fusion Stage cultivators were equivalent to those in the Realm of Wish, and Great Ascension Stage cultivators matched those in the Immortal Realm.

For someone to defeat twenty-five Great Ascension cultivators alone… It was unthinkable. It was no different than saying someone had single-handedly wiped out the entire Central Heavens Martial Realm and the Six Great Heavens.

Stunned by the absurdity, Gwanwi raised his head, blinked several times, and re-examined the record.

There was no mistake.

It was clearly written: twenty-five Great Ascension cultivators were annihilated.

‘This doesn’t make any sense.’

No matter how strong a martial artist might be, this was beyond possible. The cultivators of the Spiritual Realm weren’t fools — surely they wouldn’t let themselves be taken down one by one like that.

If such a threat had existed, even those scattered across the land would have joined forces to resist.

‘…Wait a moment. What if…’

What if they didn’t choose not to unite — but couldn’t?

If the enemy’s power was simply overwhelming, they might have been unable to stand against him.

‘True Martial God.’

The name he had laughed at now lingered on Gwanwi’s tongue.

In the Upper Realm, those who ascended were often called Martial Gods. So typically, martial artists from the Middle Realm never used the word “Martial God” in their titles.

But this one did — and more than anyone else, he had earned it.

‘Why are there no records of such a man?’

“Is something the matter?” asked Jang Woo-hyun.

“…It’s what’s written here. It’s hard to believe.”

Gwanwi relayed what he’d read from the Dharma Treasure used for recording. As the tale continued, Jang Woo-hyun’s eyes widened.

“I know a fair bit about the Central Heavens Martial Realm, but I’ve never heard that name before. Have you?”

“No, it’s my first time as well.”

“This is clearly strange.”

For cultivators — or more specifically, the True Immortals of the Spiritual Realm — this was a truth shameful enough to erase.

But.

There was no reason for the martial world to hide it. And yet, no records remained.

Which meant—

‘Even the Martial Gods wanted to erase this.’

That was why no trace of the name True Martial God remained anywhere.

“I can’t understand it. If it was the martial world, there should be no reason not to reveal this.”

There was no need to hide it.

So why had the martial world erased all records of the True Martial God?

“Was there any mention of him attacking the martial world?”

“Being a martial artist, I’m sure he fought within the martial world. But no detailed records exist. Besides, it says he harbored hatred for cultivators, so his main enemies were likely from the Spiritual Realm.”

“I see.”

“It says he ascended to the Upper Realm, so at this level, perhaps he even crushed True Immortals and Martial Gods up there.”

As Gwanwi marveled aloud, Jang Woo-hyun suddenly recalled something.

A memory from the Dawn Continent.

The being that had erased the shadow of the Divine Beast King, and instilled terror into the god worshipped by the White Horn Tribe.

That being, shrouded in night-like darkness and wielding a sword like a star, was annihilating those presumed to be Martial Gods.

‘Could it be…’

Such monsters could not be common. Jang Woo-hyun had a hunch that being might be related to the True Martial God and the Devouring Dragon of a Thousand Treasures. Moreover, that being had felt more martial artist than cultivator.

“The last record says the Devouring Dragon of a Thousand Treasures followed the True Martial God up to the Upper Realm. This happened twenty thousand years ago, and yet… to think no records remain. Hm? What’s wrong?”

As Jang Woo-hyun was sorting through his thoughts, the moment he heard “twenty thousand years”—

He suddenly winced from a sharp headache.

Something was wrong. And even before he could register it—

Time seemed to race forward and his head turned blank—

━━━━━

“Ugh.”

It was as if something was trying to erase the events that had just transpired. A chunk of memory was being yanked away.

Boom!

At that moment, a massive pulse rippled out, and something stirred deep within his body.

An unfamiliar energy surged through him for the first time. His mind cleared, and Jang Woo-hyun immediately sensed that something was wrong.

Clink!

The Dragon King’s Scale shifted, wrapping itself around Jang Woo-hyun’s body—as if to shield him from an impending attack.

Jang Woo-hyun drew the Black Wilds Sword and slashed through empty space.

Nothing was cut. There was no resistance. Yet, it felt like he had to do it.

It was something he wouldn’t have done before.

It was one of those fleeting moments when he should’ve questioned it but didn’t even realize he missed it.

But this time, it was different.

The White Nothingness that had taken root inside his body aided him.

That sense of déjà vu he felt when Yong Seo-hee spoke of twenty thousand years—there had been a reason for it.

“You all only started becoming like us not too long ago. I don’t know the exact number, but maybe… twenty thousand years?”

General Yangjeon, whom he had met in the territory of the cultivators, had also mentioned twenty thousand years. Even back then, he’d sensed something was off about that span of time.

‘I didn’t even realize it and just let it slide.’

Now, it finally returned to him. He had clearly recalled something at the time, but without even noticing, he let it go.

Even during his conversation with Yong Seo-hee, and just moments ago—if not for White Nothingness’s help, he would’ve let it go again.

As if… he wasn’t supposed to think about it.

‘What was I thinking again?’

Leaving the startled Gwanwi behind, Jang Woo-hyun retraced the thought that had seemed strange to him.

‘It’s too long a time.’

For cultivators and martial artists whose lifespans were extended, and other races who lived for thousands of years, twenty thousand years might not seem all that long—but that was only by Middle Realm standards.

In the Lower Realm, twenty thousand years was absurdly long.

And yet… nothing had changed. That was the strange part.

‘Progress has stopped.’

Those who had ascended were all martial artists. Not just two hundred—but twenty thousand years had passed, and still, there was no sign of development in science or civilization. Everything remained the same.

Had even a few thousand years passed, surely someone wielding a gun instead of a sword might have ascended.

But everyone came from the martial world. As if time had simply stopped.

‘Senior Kim is the same.’

Demonic Divine Fist Kim Min-soo was a man from three hundred years before Jang Woo-hyun’s time. And yet, strangely enough, even after three centuries, the martial world hadn’t changed much.

‘Why haven’t I thought about this before?’

No, it wasn’t that he didn’t think about it—it was that he couldn’t. Some unseen force had prevented him from questioning it.

There was no progress. The world hadn’t changed.

Why?

And more importantly—why was he being prevented from thinking about it?

‘Could this be the work of the beings from the Upper Realm?’

That was his first thought—but Jang Woo-hyun shook his head.

Where they were now was beyond the reach of the Upper Realm beings. This was a different power, not theirs.

Trying to resolve his doubts, Jang Woo-hyun pulled himself out of his own thoughts.

“Are you alright?”

Startled by his sudden armor and sword-wielding stance, Gwanwi had stayed quiet, watching Jang Woo-hyun think deeply.

“I just… something came to mind. I had a sudden headache and swung my sword instinctively. I apologize.”

“There’s no need to apologize. You said you had ties to the True Immortals—perhaps hearing that word again triggered something. It’s understandable. Their power can do that to people. Are you feeling better now?”

“Yes, I’m alright now. This might be a bit of an odd question, but… may I ask you something?”

Smiling, Gwanwi welcomed the question.

“As someone who has ascended… twenty thousand years doesn’t feel like a short time. So why hasn’t the Central Heavens Realm developed in that time?”

“Developed? In what sense?”

“I mean in terms of technology, civilization, or science.”

“I’m not sure why you’re suddenly bringing that up… but we’re progressing little by little. Compared to before, our technological capabilities have improved.”

It was true that they possessed enough absurd technology to shift continents and had lifespans beyond reason, so their progress might seem slow. Perhaps their current advancements were the result of a long period of development.

But Jang Woo-hyun could tell from Gwanwi’s expression that his suspicion had hit the mark. He had seen that expression once before.

When talking to Pung So-bong about the difference between Ascension and Flight to the Heavens.

Back then, Pung So-bong had looked at him with an almost pitiful expression, as if wondering why he was saying such nonsense.

But Jang Woo-hyun knew—Pung So-bong was not someone who would ever dismiss things like that. And yet, that day, they hadn’t been able to communicate properly.

This moment was the same.

The gentle and warm Gwanwi was now looking at him with a slight furrow in his brow, clearly confused by Jang Woo-hyun’s questions and unable to understand them at all.

And from that look, Jang Woo-hyun realized what was behind all of this.

‘The sky.’

“We’re not talking about the visible sky. It’s more appropriate to call it Law, or Providence, or Heaven’s Principle. My theory is that what we call Heaven, or Providence, is a law that exists above even the True Immortals and the beings of the Upper Realm. Maybe it’s the true god. I won’t know for sure until I get up there, but that’s my guess.” — Kim Min-soo

As Kim Min-soo had said, it was Heaven that inflicted Heavenly Tribulation upon cultivators and aided martial artists in Ascension. A force greater than the True Immortals or Martial Gods.

The beings of the Upper Realm might wield godlike power—but they were not true gods.

They did not know everything, nor could they do everything. The fact that the records of the Devouring Dragon of a Thousand Treasures hadn’t been completely erased, and remained in the Divine Dragon Family, was proof of that.

‘But this is different.’

The power currently distorting people’s memories so completely was something beyond them. That was why it could influence even Jang Woo-hyun’s consciousness in a place shielded from the eyes and awareness of the Upper Realm.

‘If not for White Nothingness, I’d have let it slip again.’

It was only thanks to the new sword inside his body that Jang Woo-hyun noticed the oddity.

As he finished organizing his thoughts and raised his head, he saw Gwanwi’s confused expression.

Seeing that look, Jang Woo-hyun felt he might be the only one aware that the world hadn’t progressed, that time itself had stopped.

‘It must be because I don’t belong to this world.’

He and Kim Min-soo were the only ones who found the difference between Ascension and Flight to the Heavens strange.

And now, once again, Jang Woo-hyun realized—

This world is not normal.

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