Thump, thump...
A strange pulsing sound echoes from within the gray world of nothingness.
There, someone is screaming.
A—
But the scream doesn't resound at all within the space, which lacks any medium to carry sound. It merely reverberates inside the mind of Oh Hyun-seok, the one doing the screaming.
"Keheok... Uuuaaagh..."
For a while, Oh Hyun-seok breathes heavily before the silver sphere at the center of the space of nothingness in front of him before finally escaping from the groaning.
"The end of Enders...s it to be granted an audience with the Future King, have their spirit formed, and then be taxidermized...? Ha, hahaha... I see. From the beginning...we were nothing more than objects..."
Bududuk...
Oh Hyun-seok grits his teeth and reads the [wisdom] passed on to him by Silver Basket. Silver Basket shows him the countless ends of Enders that they witnessed after having their main body slain in Mount Sumeru and awaiting resurrection in the distant future. Though the vision is unclear, he sees countless Enders seized in the Audience Chamber by the [being wearing the black mianguan], their spirits extracted and taxidermized somewhere, while their bodies are discarded into the Head Realm.
Obsidian died that way, Vast Cold died that way, and Golden Divine was extinguished in the same manner. All these scenes embed themselves in Oh Hyun-seok's mind. "Keheok... Kkuuuugh..."
Oh Hyun-seok clutches his throbbing head, gasping for breath.
"No more...
He grits his teeth.
Any more is impossible.
If he receives any more wisdom about the Future King, it feels as though the gaze of the Future King will land upon him at any moment.
"No more...I will receive no more wisdom regarding the Future King..."
[Wise. Knowing one's own limits is surely a mark of wisdom...]
Oh Hyun-seok decides to stop receiving wisdom related to the Future King, and asks a different question.
"...Do you know anything about the origin of my master, Hyeon Rang?"
[That is something even I cannot know. For the truths regarding Hyeon Rang, the Underworld, and...the Radiance Supreme Deity—only in regard to those truths has the Future King hidden them so that even I cannot read them.]
"Such..."
[However, there is one existence who has perused those truths.]
"Pardon..2"
[The being known as the Salt Sea Supreme Deity... Eight trillion four hundred billion years before this current moment, a new candidate for a "True Emperor' appeared—one who betrayed the Radiance Ten Heavens and succeeded in being enthroned as the immortal Beast King by perusing the hidden history within the chaos.]
ow
Ziiiiiing!
With those words, Oh Hyun-seok once again feels a pain in his head as if it's going to burst, and his eyeballs begin to ache.
The wisdom observed by Silver Basket pours into him.
"That is..."
A pure white Salt Mountain.
That being consists entirely of a snow-white Salt Mountain.
Their true form beyond that is not visible.
Could it be that even Silver Basket was unable to completely observe the true body of the Salt Sea Supreme Deity?
Oh Hyun-seok only gazes at the symbol of the Owner of Salt Mountain, feeling his eyeballs ache.
That pure white Salt Mountain is walking across the Outer Sea, doing something.
And Oh Hyun-seok, realizing what it means, feels a shock so intense it feels as if his eyes are about to pop out.
"They...are going against the past!?"
At some point, the Salt Sea Supreme Deity transcended light in the Outer Sea and headed toward the past.
And...
Continuing on in the Outer Sea, he endlessly explored a distant past by observing the Mount Sumerus of the past and...
Eventually entered a region of the past that even Silver Basket could not observe. "Crazy...
Oh Hyun-seok is appalled.
While it's possible for even ordinary Immortal Beasts to go against time to peruse ancient history, to explore such immeasurable stretches of the past is no different from throwing away one's life.
If the Heavenly Venerable of the Underworld explores the distant past by excavating the past through reincarnation,
Then the Salt Sea Supreme Deity wagered his life and charged head-in, recklessly surpassing light-speed and transcending spacetime to read the truth.
Oh Hyun-seok, as a Heaven-Earth Dual Cultivation practitioner, once transcended time to peruse the past of a few years back in order to train in history revision, so he understands just how absurd this is.
"Even Earth Immortals, when moving at superluminal speed to read truths of history for history revision, can barely manage a few years, or at most a few hundred years. Even that consumes an immense amount of life force, often leading even to those tenacious immortal Beasts to death...but to traverse and obsessively read such immeasurable pasts that number beyond the Ganges Sands...!?'
He is dumbfounded.
"How in the world is something like that even possible!?"
L...Even I do not know how such a thing was possible. However, if I were to speculate, perhaps he mastered some special Immortal Art that suspends death.]
"Still..the pressure and pain felt when transcending time wouldn't have been normal..." [Well..perhaps his enlightenment surpassed the very principle of pain itself. Indeed, even I can only guess at the enlightenment of that being known as Salt Sea. For he is a being who sprouted a [Sprout].]
"Sprout?'
Oh Hyun-seok wonders what exactly this repeatedly mentioned "sprout' is, but decides not to be greedy.
"I've already learned firsthand that the wisdom related to beings like the Future King is dangerous. Judging by how even the Creator God of another world avoids mentioning it, it must be wisdom on par with the Future King...I need to avoid being greedy and just obtain the necessary informa—hm?'
Just then, Oh Hyun-seok notices something trailing behind the trajectory of the Salt Sea Supreme Deity heading toward the past.
Shururuk—
itis a writhing black something.
It looks somewhat like a wisp of smoke, and also like a bug.
That black thing, in its entirety, resembles a snake.
Tstststststss—
With that, the wisdom Silver Basket had observed of the Salt Sea Supreme Deity's past comes to an end.
"...50, to learn the truth about my master, I must obtain the legacy of the Salt Sea Supreme Deity. Understood. By the way, what was that snake-like thing I saw at the end of the wisdom?"
Oh Hyun-seok asks, instinctively sensing that the snake-like thing is an extremely important clue.
lit concerns the Future King. Did you not say you would receive no further wisdom on that matter?)
"...Uuummm..."
Oh Hyun-seok groans.
"Certainly, any more would be dangerous.'
Even though he has only glimpsed the presence of the Future King through two pieces of wisdom, he feels that if he receives any more than this, he will die immediately—so he cannot ask for more.
"Then I will ask a few questions about the snake. Please only answer questions unrelated to the Future King, and for those that are related, please respond with 'It concerns the Future King."
[Understood.]
"What is the purpose of existence of that snake-like thing?"
(it concerns the Future King.]
"Is the snake related to the Enders?"
(it concerns the Future King.]
"Is the snake a subordinate or perhaps the Immortal Treasure of the Future King?"
(it concerns the Future King.]
"Is the snake a sentient being?"
(it concerns the Future King.]
"What are the major authorities the snake possesses?"
[Transcendence of spacetime. And Radiance. It suppresses the transcendence of spacetime by beings other than itself.]
"What are those functions intended for?"
[Through Light, the greatest purpose of its existence is to prevent beings other than itself from traveling into the past. The current power of the Origin Essence of Light, aside from the power of the Radiance Supreme Deity, mostly exists for this function. In other words...]
At the following words of Silver Basket, Oh Hyun-seok shudders.
[Light exists across all of spacetime and makes it impossible for any being other than itself to enter the past. For example...only a being possessing the mantra of that snake may travel to the past. And if a soul or something similar is attached to the mantra and enters the past, or if a Governing Immortal dares to interfere with time using power other than the mantra, Light will instantly tear them apart or crush them in punishment. That is the power of Light.]
Kugugugugugu!
Scenes infused with the wisdom imparted by Silver Basket appear before Oh Hyun- seok's eyes.
The power of Radiance in the Heavenly King Heavenly Domain, on the surface, lends about ten percent of its strength to Radiance Hall, and when they summon the symbol of Heuk Sa, it lends up to fifty percent of its power.
The remaining fifty percent of its power functions as a law spanning the entirety of spacetime, preventing other beings from interfering with spacetime.
Oh Hyun-seok sees the scene and breaks into a cold sweat.
It feels just like the omniscient gaze from a work called "1984" that he knows of. "Light...is everywhere, and knows everything."
[That is s0.]
"Then...are we not being watched right now as well?"
[That is not the case. You are currently connected and granted an audience to me through the Purple Soul Filling the Heavens that extends from me. Moreover, this space is a newly created world I've formed faintly using the authority of Creation.
[This world is, at present, undetected even by the Future King, and unless it is a being who has seized the Origin Essence of Life, it will continue to never be discovered. This is my sanctuary. The rules that apply here are fundamentally different from those of the outside, so be at ease.]
Feeling slight relief from those words, Oh Hyun-seok continues his questions.
"Why does the snake prevent other beings from traveling to the past?"
(it concerns the Future King.]
"Does the snake have anything it holds dear?"
(it concerns the Future King.]
"How can one Kill the snake?"
(it concerns the Future King.]
"Does the snake have emotions?"
(Hmm...]
Then, Silver Basket suddenly reacts strangely to one of Oh Hyun-seok's questions. "What is this?"
ll do not know. Should that be called an emotion? One thing is certain. It holds a very special feeling toward the Underworld and you all.]
"What would that feeling be, if expressed in language we can understand?" [Love-hate...2 No, that does not quite fit. It cannot be expressed. The term "love-hate' is not suitable either. It cannot be expressed in your language.]
"Then if you could transmit it through wisdom—"
(it concerns the Future King.]
on
[The moment I transmit the essence without specifying it through language, he wil notice. If it were ordinary feelings such as love or anger, which countless beings possess, it would be indistinct. But the snake's emotion is a unique feeling possessed only by that being in all of existence... If I were to manifest it and show it to someone, this place would be identified at once. I may be able to hide—but you will not.] "...Understood. It seems there is nothing more I can learn about the being called the snake."
Oh Hyun-seok sighs as he watches the sphere's size decrease slightly with each question.
The number of questions is not infinite, so he cannot afford to expend his entire encounter with Silver Basket just to deduce the identity of the snake.
"One last thing. Have we ever met the being known as the snake?"
lit concerns the Future King, and there is information you can handle. Will you see both?]
"Pardon..2 Then just the information I can withstand, please..."
Woo-wooong!
In response to Oh Hyun-seok's words, Silver Basket shows him a few scenes, and Oh Hyun-seok's face hardens.
Among those following Seo Eun-hyun, there is a being clad in black.
Oh Hyun-seok knows that face very well.
"...I see. Thank you..."
It turns out they have been accompanied by the "snake' far earlier than he had realized. Holding that being in his heart, Oh Hyun-seok speaks to Silver Basket.
"I will ask a different question now. In my current situation, having lost my name to my master, what must I do to defeat him?"
[As you are now, you have had your name stolen by him. Abandon the delusion that you can defeat the Owner of Names as "Oh Hyun-seok"]
ll can tell you the path to defeating the Owner of Names, but walking that path will be treacherous beyond measure. Will you truly be capable of doing s0?]
At Silver Basket's words, Oh Hyun-seok is taken aback.
For even Silver Basket, who until now has spoken with the detachment of a transcendent being, to say such a thing, it shows just how insurmountable the challenge of defeating Hyeon Rang is.
But a moment later, Oh Hyun-seok nods.
"I will accomplish it."
[How pitiful. You move forward without even understanding what suffering you must endure.]
A path so treacherous that even the Creator God feels pity.
But Oh Hyun-seok clenches his fists.
"If by doing so... can see my family again...then I will go forward. Please, tell me the answer now."
[...Very well. In that case, I must tell you regarding the Origin Essence.]
"Origin Essence..?"
Oh Hyun-seok is puzzled by Silver Basket's words, and he can't help but flinch in shock at the following words.
[What is called Origin Essence or Seats in this world—every single one of them is a spirit (248) of a living being.]
"Pardon..2"
[A spirit that has not been named. A spirit that has no relationship, whose every connection has been severed. Such spirits return to the world as laws and drift along, until they are unearthed and reborn under the name of Seat.]
"Wh-What do you mean by that? Then the Immortal Dao and Seat we cultivate are..." [You are cultivating by taking in spirits that, having no connections, received no heart from any being, and exist only as a law of the world. Did you not learn this when I gave you the wisdom concerning the Enders?
[You Enders are but fragments of the Absolute. And yet, why do you act and think like other beings who possess spirits, receiving and giving connections..? It is because the very fragment of the Absolute you possess is, in fact, a fragment of [a certain being]'s spirit.]
oa
[Why do you think the Naming Supreme Deity lives repeatedly and always becomes the Naming Supreme Deity again and again? It is obvious. The Naming Supreme Deity was once a spirit that was miscarried from long ago, a pure law that had never been named nor had any relationships. That spirit transformed into the Seat of Naming. Because that being is the Seat of Naming itself, he becomes the Naming Supreme Deity in every single lifetime, without exception.]
[TL/N: Miscarriage here could also mean abortion.]
Oh Hyun-seok's eyes tremble at the newly learned truth.
"...To summarize, the spirit of a being that has never been named, or the spirit of a being who has lost their name...becomes a Seat and turns into a law of the world?"
[That is s0.]
"Then all the children who were miscarried..."
Oh Hyun-seok smiles bitterly.
"Do they all end up as Seats?"
[That is not so. Most beings reincarnate, so their past-life connections must be included. Only if all connections and relationships from their previous lives are severed, or if the spirit is entirely newly born, can that happen.]
"If it's a newly born spirit..."
[The being known as Hyeon Rang was likely a 'new spirit, conceived and formed through the immense love of their parents, but before they could be born, they were miscarried and thus became a Seat.]
Oh Hyun-seok feels an inexplicable bitterness at those words.
After becoming a True Immortal, he learned from others and came to understand.
The intent of love and joy can, through oneself, become a power of creation capable of creating a spirit.
And if it's a love capable of creating a spirit, it must be an immense, immeasurable love. To be conceived within such parental love, and yet still be miscarried...
What kind of emotions must those parents have felt?
Just imagining such emotions makes Oh Hyun-seok feel as though his chest is tearing apart.
"I now understand that a "nameless spirit' is Origin Essence. Then, please tell me what I must do through it."
[Do you not understand? You too can now become an Origin Essence itself.]
"Pardon..2"
[You too have had your name stolen and all relationships erased. You yourself can now become an Origin Essence.]
"But I do not have a spirit, do 2"
[A fragment of a spirit... Do you not have a fragment of the Absolute? Once you leave this space, you will forget yourself and become the fragment of the Absolute itself.]
Cold sweat runs down Oh Hyun-seok's body at those words.
"Damn it...
[But there is one way to not lose yourself.]
"What is it?"
[The moment you become the fragment of the Absolute, do not miss that moment and follow your Immortal Dao.]
"My Immortal Dao...do you mean the Immortal Dao of Seven Stars...?"
[That is correct. In fact, being in the state of an Absolute Fragment will make it even easier to reach the peak of that Immortal Dao. After all, the roots would have become similar. Trace back the Immortal Dao you have cultivated, and reach the peak, the place where the Seat of the Immortal Dao lies.]
[Then unite with that Seat. If you merge with the Seat while your Absolute Essence is fully revealed, you can become a Heavenly King. Of course, since your name has been taken, your personality will collapse and you will soon die, being only a temporary Heavenly King... However, becoming a Heavenly King will greatly prolong the time before your personality collapses, and slow the rate at which your existence disappears. Therefore, before your existence fully scatters, if you fight the Naming Supreme Deity Hyeon Rang in the state of having become a Heavenly King and take back your name, your ego will also be preserved.]
Oh Hyun-seok listens to Silver Basket's words with his face pale, clenching his teeth.
If you do so, you will become a complete Heavenly King and be able to preserve yourself.]
That is Silver Basket's explanation.
He still needs to hear the exact details, but the general outline is now clear.
In a trembling voice, Oh Hyun-seok asks again.
"So...to summarize, you are saying that I have to enter the belly of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity while having no name, merge with the Seat that the Great Mountain Supreme Deity is absorbing, rip through the Great Mountain Supreme Deity's belly, return to Mount Sumeru, kill my master, and take back my name?"
[That is about right. Though it is not the belly of Great Mountain, but the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea.]
Only now does Oh Hyun-seok understand why Silver Basket warned that the path would be so treacherous, and he covers his face with his hand.
-x-X-x-
"Great Mountain Supreme Deity..."
Oh Hyun-seok still vividly remembers that day.
After all, Oh Hyun-seok was once a part of the Wuji Religious Order.
They were those he became close with, and people who followed him.
The memory of those people from the Wuji Religious Order being torn apart like bugs at the will of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity is a memory that he still cannot forget.
it may not compare to the pain of Seo Eun-hyun, who was the actual protector and ruler of the Wuji Religious Order...
But the pain Oh Hyun-seok felt on that day is by no means something he could ever ignore.
However, while Seo Eun-hyun carried that pain and suffering and swore vengeance on the Great Mountain Supreme Deity, Oh Hyun-seok is different.
"The Great Mountain Supreme Deity...cannot be defeated...
What remains more strongly in Oh Hyun-seok's mind than the slaughtered members of the Wuji Religious Order is the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity.
The colossal mountain of darkness made of countless corpses!
That oppressive mountain, that seems to crush the universe itself, suffocates him just by recalling it.
Even after becoming a Heaven-Earth Dual Cultivation Great Net Immortal, it remains the same.
He still cannot say with confidence that he would be able to win, even when fighting only the projection of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity that was at most at the Great Net Immortal level at the time.
"No... can't...
Oh Hyun-seok collapses on the spot.
"Is there...no other way...2"
[If this were not within Sumeru Mountain, I could have given you the names of divine ranks I know from other dimensions and maybe mediated to receive some of their help. But inside Sumeru Mountain, even that is impossible. Right now, that is the only method available to you.]
[If you were at least someone like Seo Eun-hyun, there would be many more methods to attempt, but for you as you are now, that method is the best option.]
Oh Hyun-seok clenches his teeth.
The gaze of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity rises in his mind.
That cold gaze with which the Great Mountain Supreme Deity looked down on Seo Eun- hyun and the others as if they were nothing but bugs!
I can't... can't stand against him...
In fact, if it were the weaker Oh Hyun-seok,
If it were Oh Hyun-seok during his mortal being days, before becoming Hyeon Rang's disciple...
Maybe he would've stepped up with courage.
But now, as a Heaven-Earth Dual Cultivation Great Net Immortal, he cannot face the Great Mountain Supreme Deity.
Because he can feel the presence of that being more vividly than when he was a mere mortal being.
"If, if that's the best option... there not a second-best, some kind of alternative?"
[The only alternative I can recommend for your current self is to wait in this space for eternal time and hope that Seo Eun-hyun comes to save you. If it is someone with a mentality like him, he will probably come save you someday.]
"Someday..."
[If you are too afraid to go seek out the Great Mountain Supreme Deity and venture forth, then sit here and pray to Seo Eun-hyun. Perhaps someday he will really find you. Of course, he might not be able to recover your name that was stolen by Hyeon Rang...] "Pardon? What do you mean by that?"
If Hyeon Rang buries your name deep within the Head Realm, then aside from the Future King, there is no one in the current Mount Sumeru who can retrieve it.]
ow
Oh Hyun-seok grits his teeth at those words.
"...Could you perhaps...show me what Seo Eun-hyun and the others are doing right now?"
[Are you asking me to show you the current battle situation between Hyeon Rang and your comrades? Understood.]
Woo-wooong!
Moments later, a massive screen appears in the space of nothingness.
On the screen, a mountain divine spirit clad in a white round collar robe has arrived at the Palace of Radiance Hall in the Heavenly King Heavenly Domain, shown conversing with the Radiance Eight Immortals.
[Mountain Divine Spirit, what brings you here?]
The Radiance Eight Immortals are wary of Seo Eun-hyun, yet they still conjure a nebula- lie throne and offer him a seat as they converse.
[I've come to propose an alliance.]
And Seo Eun-hyun extends his hand to Radiance Hall.
[You too, though in appearances only, are beings who use the title of Supreme Deity. The memories of different timelines felt from the Origin Essence of Radiance are probably beginning to return.]
[..]
ll believe you are now also beginning to recall the previous timeline. And as so...you will find it difficult to tolerate the atrocities Hyeon Rang committed in that previous timeline.] [That is none of your concern.)
[I know full well that you are the type who would even join hands with a mountain spirit if it serves your goals. That much is clear just by seeing your secret pact with my Senior Brother.)
[..]
If Hyeon Rang is left alone, he will become an uncontrollable variable. Just like us Enders. You Radiance Supreme Deities do not wish for that either...So, in a strategy of poison against poison, join forces with us and confront Hyeon Rang. It is a chance to cut down our strength without worrying about the Underworld, and an opportunity to subdue the troublesome Hyeon Rang.]
At Seo Eun-hyun's proposal, the Radiance Eight Immortals seem to exchange opinions among themselves, and then the Rain Dew Heavenly Lord speaks.
[There is something I find strange. The reason Hyeon Rang is able to suppress the Radiance Eight Immortals is due to the Heavenly Void Furnace in the Head Realm. To control the Head Realm, we embedded the Heavenly Void Furnace into the Head Realm, and to control the Head Realm, we bound a great portion of the Origin Essence of Radiance to the Heavenly Void Furnace.]
[Rain Dew!]
[it does not matter, Great Forest. If they received the protection of the Underworld, it is a truth they would learn eventually anyway... We, whose Origin Essence of Radiance is bound, cannot resist if Hyeon Rang uses his authority as the rightful heir of the Head Realm to control the Heavenly Void Furnace there. It is not a matter of strength but a difference in compatibility... But regardless, it is true that to overcome that incompatibility, we need external help. But what about you?]
At the Rain Dew Heavenly Lord's question, Seo Eun-hyun taps the armrest of the nebula throne with his finger and speaks.
[What are you referring to?]
[0 Immortal Beast King who is an Ender, you lack neither strength nor authority. If it is someone like you, alongside those Heavenly Kings with special authorities, you could have already subdued a mere Hyeon Rang. Yet why have you not done so, and instead extend your hand to us?]
[...Getting rid of Hyeon Rang with my own hands is not what's important... It is about needing the being who will personally defeat Hyeon Rang.]
[Who is this being?]
[One of my comrades. A being among the Enders you also know. mms. The one who entered as a disciple under the Naming Supreme Deity Hyeon Rang!]
At those words, many of the Heavenly Lords, including Great Forest and Rain Dew, show confusion.
[...Seeing that I cannot quite remember, he probably suffered from Hyeon Rang.]
[Stil it is strange. An Ender...and one who is sought after to such an extent by an Ender who reached Immortal Beast King is surely a powerful being. If such an Ender has been erased from our memories, there should be some dissonance...]
[There is no dissonance. How can that be...2 Are you saying that such a powerful Ender had no presence even before his name was erased...?]
At that moment, when the Radiance Eight Immortals are feeling a strange sense of incongruity about Oh Hyun-seok's presence—
Seo Eun-hyun calmly begins to explain.
[That is precisely the terror of the current Naming Supreme Deity. He steals a name so naturally that there is not even a trace of a backlash. He has currently awakened into something incomprehensible, probably something terrifying related to the Head Realm. To confront such a being means unavoidably suffering immense loss.
[Therefore...there is but only one way to face him and minimize damage. mma, who became his direct disciple, must clash with Hyeon Rang and awaken the heart of the "original Hyeon Rang' that still remains. If that happens, surely...Hyeon Rang will be weakened by the internal conflict of the heart, and he will weaken again to a level within the range of our understanding.]
[So you are saying that through mmm, you intend to revive Hyeon Rang's old personality and pit it against his current personality, creating a personality split and weakening him through it? Not a bad plan.]
[it's more about the heart than the personality...but sure, let's leave it at that.]
However, at Seo Eun-hyun's words, the Great Forest Heavenly Lord lets out a snort and speaks.
[Torch Candle, administrator of the Heavenly Void Furnace. Tell the Mountain Divine Spirit.]
At the Great Forest Heavenly Lord's words, the Torch Candle Heavenly Lord steps forward and raises something above their hand.
What appears are faint, misty clumps.
Everyone who sees those clusters can tell they are masses of immense wisdom.
Seo Eun-hyun seems to realize something and questions the Torch Candle Heavenly Lord.
lis it Omniscience?]
[itis the Akashic Records. As the Immortal Beast King, you would probably know it best. Look.]
Tsuaaaah!
Oh Hyun-seok trembles as he watches the scene beyond the screen.
The pale, misty clusters are observing everything within Mount Sumeru, recording information in real time. Inside them are seven faint colors of light.
They appear to be light clusters recording the information of the Enders.
However, one of the seven light clusters is growing increasingly faint and is gradually vanishing in real time.
[mma's presence is disappearing. The Akashic Records have determined that mmm is as good as non-existent! Even if one loses their name, if they are a being who accomplished great feats, their presence would be strong and hence be recorded in the Akashic Records for a long time... But this?
[No matter how powerful he might have been, he must have been a being who never established any great feats. The moment his name was taken, he is now nearly on the verge of erasure! At this rate, even if you kill Hyeon Rang, you might not be able to retrieve his name!]
Kugung!
At the shocking mention from the Torch Candle Heavenly Lord, Oh Hyun-seok can't help but flinch in surprise.
Though he heard to a certain extent from Silver Basket, he didn't know that aside from being buried in the Head Realm, one could also vanish like this from having failed to establish feats.
He grits his teeth, so shocked he can't even properly hear the following conversation between Seo Eun-hyun and the Radiance Eight Immortals.
Is it truly...a matter of choosing between two paths...?"
Oh Hyun-seok clutches his head and collapses to the ground.
"What am I supposed to do...2 Just what can I do so..."
Just then,
After several exchanges between Seo Eun-hyun and the Radiance Eight Immortals beyond the screen, Seo Eun-hyun speaks as if he's made a certain decision.
[...By now, I believe we have sufficiently explained our position. mmm can certainly be saved, and only mm can drag down Hyeon Rang from a being we cannot comprehend, to a being we can. So, will you accept our alliance proposal?)
[...Very well. We accept.]
The Radiance Eight Immortals also nod toward Seo Eun-hyun, seemingly having concluded their internal communication.
[But we have a condition.]
[What is it?]
[As you are now, you reached the realm Immortal Beast King, are a Great Net Immortal, and even possess Governing Immortal-level martial power. You are an existence beyond standard measure...a dangerous being. Furthermore, we cannot fully remember this strange divergence of timeline. Since it is presumed that you are the one who caused this timeline divergence, we have no way of knowing what tricks you might attempt. Therefore, we must have a means of controlling you in order to trust you.]
At the Great Forest Heavenly Lord's words, Seo Eun-hyun's eyes gleam as he asks. [What do you propose?]
[That s...]
[Split your Nascent Soul in half.]
The Sword Spear Heavenly Lord speaks.
[If it is me, even if Seo Eun-hyun tries to betray us, as long as I hold half of his Nascent Soul, I can counterattack in an emergency. I will hold his split Nascent Soul. Even if he causes a divergence in the timeline, the Radiance Supreme Deity is now also aware of the divergence, so what has been exchanged with us cannot easily be reclaimed. Therefore, if I personally hold half of his Nascent Soul, we can be freed from most worries of betrayal.]
ll see, Sword Spear. With the Vestige of Seo Eun-hyun you possess and half of his Nascent Soul, you can indeed sufficiently control him. So that is why you kept that Vestige—for a time like this, huh, Sword Spear!]
At the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord's words, the Great Forest Heavenly Lord laughs heartily and praises them, while Seo Eun-hyun silently gazes at the Radiance Eight immortals.
Not long after, Seo Eun-hyun thrusts his hand into his own chest without hesitation and pulls out a blazing mass of light.
Kurururururut
That searing cluster of Glass True Fire is half of Seo Eun-hyun's Nascent Soul.
[Take it. If it means forming an alliance with you, this much is a small price...]
The Sword Spear Heavenly Lord sharply snatches Seo Eun-hyun's half-Nascent Soul and takes it within their body, and Oh Hyun-seok's pupils tremble at the sight.
"Seo Eun-hyun...why...!?"
Even the Great Forest Heavenly Lord seems taken aback at the bold move and glares at him.
[What is this? Why would you so willingly hand over your Nascent Soul that is no different from your lifeline to us?]
"Why... Why would you so willingly give your lifeline to the enemy?"
Seo Eun-hyun simply rises from his seat and speaks quietly.
[Because I trust my friend.]
Kururung—
At those words, Oh Hyun-seok feels as though thunder has struck his mind.
"...Seo Eun-hyun..."
Suddenly, he feels ashamed of himself.
Even though Seo Eun-hyun has forgotten his name, he still trusts him.
Though he must be on the verge of completely forgetting the name Oh Hyun-seok due to Hyeon Rang's authority, Seo Eun-hyun still continues to firmly believe in him.
Oh Hyun-seok grits his teeth and slams the ground.
Kwaaaang!
At Oh Hyun-seok's punch, the colorless space vibrates with a hum.
"Damn it..."
He's furious.
Seo Eun-hyun, who trusted and followed him, and always guided them while moving ahead—still believes in him even now.
And yet, Oh Hyun-seok is still trembling in place from fear of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity.
You called me your friend...! And yet, what the hell am I doing here right now...1?'
"...0 Silver Basket..."
[Have you made up your mind?]
"...To be honest, I am still afraid. I still remember the terrifying authority of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity. But..."
He recalls the foolish heart of his younger days.
He remembers the reckless courage that once made him charge at the Great Mountain Supreme Deity while full of rage.
"Still... must move forward now. Because...there is someone who believes in me."
There was always someone who believed in him.
Oh Hyun-seok's wife.
His daughter in Penglai Island.
And yet Oh Hyun-seok failed to protect them both.
But precisely because he failed to protect anything, now is the time he must protect.
"I have no confidence in defeating the Great Mountain Supreme Deity! Please make me able to defeat him!"
[Even if you offer the worth of the tale you gave me and your Absolute in full, it would barely reach the point of being on the verge of defeating the current Ra Cheon. You cannot win. Ask for something proper.
"...Then, the plan to steal his Origin Essence, escape from his belly, return again, and face Master... Please give me the method to make all of that succeed."
Uf itis only that much...]
Tststststs—
Silver Basket's size shrinks.
Soon, the silver sphere returns entirely to its original form.
[I have granted it. Receive my wisdom and secret strategy, and complete your task. I shall bless you...]
"...Thank you, O Silver Basket."
Tsuaaaah!
As he reads Silver Basket's wisdom, Oh Hyun-seok gradually feels the world of nothingness blur, and senses himself returning to within Hyeon Rang's body.
itis then.
"Wait, this wisdom...
[The worth of the tale you gave me was slightly lacking. So I have taken something else from you as payment.]
"..12 What did—"
[Your fortune (38). Fortune is the finest resource in Mount Sumeru. I have taken part of your fortune, and bestowed misfortune (/) upon you.]
At Silver Basket's words, Oh Hyun-seok gradually drifts away, gazing back at Silver Basket.
[But as it is not the fortune and virtue of Mount Sumeru, until the day you face the Future King, you shall not feel any lack in this world.]
"Not the fortune and virtue of Mount Sumeru...2'
[What I have taken from you is the Fortune of Peace. Through you as the medium, I have taken the Fortune of Peace from your home dimension. From now on, your homeland will be engulfed in great chaos and be met with calamity.]
"Earth...1?'
Only now does Oh Hyun-seok fully realize once more that the being he made a deal with is by no means a benevolent one, but a transcendent existence.
He contemplates whether he should swear at the vanishing being before his eyes or simply offer a silent curse.
But before long, Oh Hyun-seok steadies his heart and bows his head toward Silver Basket.
"Thank you."
[Hoh...2 © mortal being, why do you thank me?]
"Because...even if you have scattered disaster upon my world... will one day stop it. Therefore, regardless of the calamity, I thank you purely for the solution you have given me in this current situation."
[How naive. Do you truly believe you can return to your homeland?]
"I will return."
At Oh Hyun-seok's continuing words, Silver Basket—who had seemed to mock him— falls silent.
"Because my family is still there. If it is to protect my family, I will return no matter what!" With the price of his tale fully paid, Oh Hyun-seok is completely expelled from Silver Basket's world with a bright smile.
For a while, Silver Basket watches in silence as Oh Hyun-seok vanishes from the world of nothingness.
Then, within the nothingness, Silver Basket lets out a faint laugh.
ll thought you were nothing more than a crumble of dust, but it seems you are at least a soil capable of sprouting a [sprout].]
Having truly transcended both past and future, Silver Basket gazes toward a certain dimension that exists in a distant future.
[0 those who carry the sprout of the Creator God. I pray...)
Silver Basket's gaze, surpassing the future, arrives at Oh Hyun-seok's home dimension The dimension where Earth exists.
[You reach higher than hope itself...]
In a point far into the future,
The universe that holds Earth is being shattered and scattered dimensionally by a single sword of the [being wearing a black mianguan].
Looking upon that distant future, and having taken the doomed dimension's fortune and virtue to stabilize their own space...
Silver Basket, defeated by the Future King and now a nameless being, offers only a quiet cheer for the one who holds a [sprout].
As Oh Hyun-seok emerges from the world of nothingness, he begins to read the wisdom Silver Basket has passed down to him.
"What in the world?"
They are forty-nine Immortal Arts created by Silver Basket in Mount Sumeru, along with the mantras formed by combining them.
While none of the mantras clearly reach the Supreme Deity rank or stand out as particularly exceptional, when all of them are combined, it seems entirely possible to subdue a Supreme Deity using only Immortal Arts, without relying on the Immortal Dao. "On top of that..the sequence of combining the Immortal Arts, the methods of combination, the proportions in combination, the surrounding environment during combination... If all these variables are accounted for, wouldn't it be possible to create almost infinite mantras...?'
Though no single transcendent mantra can be made, the secret art that allows one to generate mantras of good enough strength in nearly infinite numbers by combining the forty-nine Immortal Arts.
True Devil Forty-Nine Treading Divine Art (EEEPG-+ILESH).
"This is crazy, Silver Basket... Just how did you manage to create such a secret art? This is practically on the level of creating an entire world...
Looking at the True Devil Forty-Nine Treading Divine Art, Oh Hyun-seok feels like cold sweat is forming.
Tssaaaah—
But soon, he realizes he doesn't have the leisure to dwell on such thoughts.
"My consciousness is gradually scattering. If I stay inside Master's body like this, I'l truly be annihilated.
Using the Immortal Arts he obtained from Silver Basket, he begins to perceive his essence even more clearly.
Woo-woooong!
His essence begins to resonate with his will.
The Absolute Fragment of Pleasure gradually begins to reveal itself, and Oh Hyun-seok begins to transform into a Primordial Chaos that mixes everything together.
Soon, he merges with the entire world and identifies what is connected to him through the Immortal Arts.
I can feel it.
The Immortal Dao of Seven Stars he has been following.
The peak of that Immortal Dao, where the Origin Essence lies.
"Wait for me, Great Mountain Supreme Deity...
Tsuaaaaaaat!
Having become the Absolute itself, he gradually feels as though he is traversing through transcendent worlds and being moved elsewhere.
Not long later, Oh Hyun-seok senses himself being carried somewhere and recognizes that he has reached the end of that flow.
"This place is...
A familiar suffocation and pressure presses down on him.
Kugugugugu!
Within pain that begins to grind his entire body, Oh Hyun-seok opens his eyes with a groan.
The more he regains his senses, the more the maddening pain surges in.
—It hurts...it hurts...
—Kill me... Enough... I want to stop...
—Where is this place... Where is this place..?
—Mom...Mo...
"Kuuuuugh..."
The place he has regained his senses is the inside of Great Mountain, made of countless corpses.
itis the gap within the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea.
"Get a hold of yourself, Oh Hyun-seok...!
But Oh Hyun-seok clenches his teeth and comes to his senses amidst the overwhelming pain emitted from the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea, and soon activates one of the immortal Arts taught by Silver Basket.
"According to Silver Basket's wisdom...the Great Mountain Supreme Deity is currently completing the Splitting Heaven Mantra, so he can't perceive everything within the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea right away. That means he won't notice my intrusion immediately, but...
Still, a Supreme Deity is a Supreme Deity.
it won't be long before he senses the anomaly in the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea. "That's why I have to hide from the Great Mountain Supreme Deity's gaze..."
immortal Art.
Avidya (488).
Tsuaaaaah!
At once, Oh Hyun-seok becomes darkness itself as if he had activated Purple Soul Filling the Heavens, and naturally blends into the horrific mountain of darkness.
But having become darkness and blended into the mountain of darkness, Oh Hyun-seok now has to endure even more horrific pain.
"Aaagh... Kuaaaaagh...!"
Pain!
This mountain is truly an echo formed of pain.
Countless beings flail in torment, and Oh Hyun-seok, unable to hold his mind together under the pain tearing his mind apart, screams.
"Kuuuaaaaaaagh...!"
A colossal whisper reverberates through the entire mountain.
—Undergo repentant enlightenment.
"Aaaaaaaaagh! Kuaaaaaaagh!"
—Immortal cultivation is repentant enlightenment.
Within the pain, Oh Hyun-seok becomes connected to the mountain, and from within its darkness, he is forcibly subjected to repentant enlightenment.
—Like tiny grains of salt gathering to form the sea...
The pain erodes his mind.
Oh Hyun-seok becomes connected to the Great Mountain Supreme Deity.
And now connected to the Great Mountain Supreme Deity, he directly feels the pain of the Supreme Deity's self-mutilation.
—Build mountains through repentant enlightenment.
A certain mantra drills into Oh Hyun-seok's mind.
If he could regain his senses amidst the pain and accept that mantra, he might even be able to obtain it, but...
Oh Hyun-seok fiercely rejects the vile mantra with all his strength, refusing to accept it amid the agony.
No, in truth, the majority of sentient beings inside the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea thrash about desperately to avoid accepting that mantra.
Because that terrifying and brutal mantra is absolutely not one that they can control.
itis a mantra that causes one to instinctively feel primal fear that if they were to obtain it, it would devour its user. Hence, no one in the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea even thinks of mastering the mantra. Rather, they thrash about in madness and scream, trying to forget even its formula.
—Building a mountain of salt is perhaps the fastest way to reach the heavens.
Amidst the resonance of this brutal and fearsome mantra, Oh Hyun-seok sheds tears of blood and wails.
The face of the screaming Oh Hyun-seok, bleeding from his seven orifices and soaked in agony, soon resembles the corpses writhing in pain within the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea.
Gradually, he becomes assimilated into the pain of this world of ignorance (Avidya). "How long has it been?"
Suddenly, Oh Hyun-seok regains his senses in the midst of the pain.
I don't know."
Within the agony of the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea, he continued to scream endlessly. At some point, he lost even the strength to scream and he only gasped, like wind escaping his lips.
And the more accustomed he became to the pain, the deeper he was pulled into the depths of the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea.
Before he knew it, he was pulled toward the center of one of the many mountains within the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea.
Merged with the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea and receiving pain that paralyzes the soul, Oh Hyun-seok begins to perceive his surroundings in a half-delirious state.
'000000h...
The mountain formed of beings like him is not a singular one.
These mountains of corpses and darkness stretch on without end.
So endless are they that the mountain ranges look as though they form a vast plain.
But Oh Hyun-seok realizes that even this plain is merely a single cross-section of a much larger mountain.
These massive great mountains combine to form the finger of some gigantic being, and as Oh Hyun-seok gradually perceives the body beyond the finger, the more overwhelmed and intimidated he becomes.
"Crazy...
Even the greatest size of Hyeon Rang, who is known as a giant god, feels like a child compared to this monstrous god.
Perhaps the only entities that could compare in size to this being are the Gandhara of the Heavenly Venerables or the projection of the Underworld.
"This is the Great Mountain Supreme Deity..."
Once again feeling the despair, Oh Hyun-seok grits his teeth within the pain.
When he stood before Silver Basket, resolving his will, he brimmed with confidence. But now, properly facing the Great Mountain Supreme Deity, he only feels more and more despair.
"I never even dreamed of defeating him...but would I even be able to escape?"
Even though he is a Great Net Immortal, and his true body is quite massive, before the Great Mountain Supreme Deity, he is no more than dust.
Yet within the agony, Oh Hyun-seok steels his resolve.
'No...l can do this. No, I must..."
He clenches his teeth and gradually begins to resonate with the Origin Essence of Seven Stars deep within this mountain of darkness.
"Wait for me, Origin Essence. I will make it. I will, no matter what..."
Though simply existing in this place threatens to make him lose his mind from the unbearable pain, Oh Hyun-seok does not give up and continues to resonate with the Origin Essence.
He has no grasp of how many years have passed, but even so, he does not stop his arduous journey and pushes forward.
Because he has lost his [name], if he doesn't maintain his existence with the True Devil Forty-Nine Treading Divine Art, his existence would disperse in an instant. Even while maintaining his existence, the fear that his existence is still slowly scattering away creeps over him, yet he still does not stop.
"I can't stop here. Because..."
For him to stop here, there is already too much resting on his shoulders.
Oh Hyun-seok clenches his teeth as he recalls Seo Eun-hyun saying that he trusts his friend.
"Resonate... Origin Essence of Seven Stars...! O Seat of the Sea of Nature... Kugugugugu!
Feeling the power of the Origin Essence resonating with his Immortal Dao, Oh Hyun- seok slowly begins to move within the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea.
With a pace and presence subtle enough to avoid the notice of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity, he steadily proceeds toward the Seat of Seven Stars.
Endless time passes once more.
"How long...has it been?"
Oh Hyun-seok wants to give up.
Even his will, which he thought would never break, seems useless in the face of this eternal, unending pain.
It hurts too much... It's painful... It's hard...
He wants to let it all go.
"I've suffered this much... Isn't it okay to rest a little now...?'
Now, he has lost the will to maintain the True Devil Forty-Nine Treading Divine Art and even forgotten the reason why he is even doing this at all.
Just then, as he is about to accept the pain within the futility...
—Child who reaches the impossible.
Co
—Have you ever thought of it to be a privilege...2
Suddenly, Oh Hyun-seok sees something within the pain.
itis bright sunlight.
"A hallucination...?"
—Even if life is pain, to move forward amidst it is surely both a duty and a privilege. Have you ever thought of advancing toward righteousness within it...>
Beneath that sunlight, Oh Hyun-seok sees someone standing with their back turned to him.
itis an immense, muscular giant, whose shoulders seem like a great mountain. —Holding faith, have you ever thought of reaching the stars?
The figure throws a question toward Oh Hyun-seok.
Oh Hyun-seok, looking at them, trembles with blurred eyes.
Then, he lets out a bitter smile.
"... have not."
He is a failure.
He could not save Oh Hye-seo, who suffered on Earth.
He could not save his daughter, dying in his wife's womb.
He could not save his comrades who fell into the Head Realm.
He could not save the master who taught him in the Bright Cold Realm.
And now, he cannot even save the master who taught him after he became a True immortal.
"I was nothing more than trash. Stars? They were far beyond me. Such a grand privilege, I've never dared to enjoy it. I...am nothing."
Within the pain, Oh Hyun-seok, as if entranced, falls into self-reproach and despair.
But the giant figure chuckles softly.
—Then, child. Why is it that you still drag those heavy shoulders forward and take another step?
"Take...a step...?"
Suddenly, Oh Hyun-seok realizes that even though he wishes to give up everything, he s still stepping forward toward something.
"Why am L..still walking?"
Why does he continue walking, suffering in this eternal, undying hell without giving up? Oh Hyun-seok ponders amidst the agony.
And suddenly, he realizes that the answer is already within him.
I already know the answer. But..."
However, he cannot explain why he keeps walking.
Yet, regardless of that, he walks.
Perhaps it is because, even back on Earth, he always had a certain grit.
Perhaps it is because he had the grit to study only what he wanted abroad while even knowing that a child named Oh Hye-seo was in danger.
Perhaps it is because he had the grit to stay at work, saying he would leave after just ten more minutes, even when his wife called saying her stomach hurt.
Perhaps it is because he had the grit to not care about those in the Black Ghost Valley and the Golden Divine Heavenly Thunder Sect, and especially those left to age in the Head Realm, like Kim Young-hoon and Seo Eun-hyun, while he himself endured hellish training in the Azure Heaven Creation Sect.
"My life is one filled with regrets."
He still does not know the exact reason.
No, he knows—but he does not know how to put it into words.
Thinking simply that it is due to his grit, Oh Hyun-seok keeps walking.
Toward the vaguely felt Seat of Seven Stars, toward that illusion of sunlight wavering before his eyes along with the pain...
And then, at some point—
"Heok...!"
As he climbs the mountain of darkness, Oh Hyun-seok suddenly feels his hand about to slip and panics.
Just then,
Clench!
[Someone's hand grabs Oh Hyun-seok's wrist and pulls him up to somewhere.
"Th-This place is...2"
Oh Hyun-seok looks around in confusion.
An endlessly sprawling prairie.
A clear sky.
A vast, clear world where the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea is nowhere to be seen. Entering such a place, Oh Hyun-seok opens his eyes wide.
"What...is this...2'
Then, he suddenly becomes aware that someone is standing before him.
it is an incredibly massive giant, and perhaps it's because their face is hidden in the backlight, or there was never a face to begin with...it cannot clearly be seen.
But one thing is certain.
"..Who...are you...2"
The being before him is someone Oh Hyun-seok has met before.
"Who exactly are you...to carry the exact same aura as my master...2"
As he recalls feeling the aura of Azure Tiger Saint while crossing the Outer Sea in a previous timeline, Oh Hyun-seok's voice trembles.
And he feels the being with the same aura as Azure Tiger Saint smile.
[1 am the Immortal Beast, Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape. At the same time, the Heart Demon of Ra Cheon...and his friend. His pure aspect.)
The giant who introduces himself as Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape extends a hand and lifts Oh Hyun-seok up as he continues speaking.
[Child who wears the armor forged from my hair-clone.]
The giant taps on Oh Hyun-seok's Blue Sky Armor and laughs.
[it seems you've encountered my Buddha-Nature left behind in the Head Realm.] "Buddha-Nature...?"
[it is the will I left behind, hoping that one day, when Ra Cheon challenges the Audience Chamber, it might become a possibility that moves his heart...the fragment of my pure heart that practiced righteousness. To protect that Buddha-Nature, I sent my hair-clone to the Head Realm, asking it to become a guardian deity for those who inherited the Buddha-Nature... So, how was it? Did my clone protect you well?]
Oh Hyun-seok remains silent for a long while.
Then finally, recalling old memories, he smiles.
L...Yes. It truly...protected me well.]
At those words from Oh Hyun-seok, the giant—
Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape, Cheong Min (%)—smiles gently.
[The final domain preserved by the Origin Essence of the Sea of Nature. Welcome to the realm of Azure Scenery Heavenly Net (BRKE).]
-x-X-x-
Tsaaaaaa—
Oh Hyun-seok looks out at the plain where a clear wind blows.
Then he looks up at the clear sky.
Around the blue sky, white clouds draw a circle.
"Is this...inside a formation?"
[No. Didn't I tell you? This is the domain of the Azure Scenery Heavenly Net. A small- scale Heavenly Domain. If you're a capable Immortal Lord, though it takes some effort, you can create at least one Heavenly Domain.]
Wooong—
Oh Hyun-seok speaks, feeling the distinct presence of the domain.
"I don't feel...any cultivation."
[Because this is a Heavenly Domain meant to seal Immortal Cultivation.]
"Seal Immortal Cultivation..2"
[That is right. Any cultivation accumulated through the path of Immortal Cultivation is powerless here. Only the heart cultivated through the Primordial Origin Immortal Cultivation system holds any effect. It is a modification of the Immortal Art of Penglai that my master originally created.]
Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape turns his gaze away from Oh Hyun-seok and begins to walk across the wide plain, and without realizing it, Oh Hyun-seok begins to follow him. [More than the material light, the light contained within the system of Immortal Cultivation is far more insidious and dangerous, so this domain was made to hide from that light. Of course, now it has become a place to run away from myself...]
Oh Hyun-seok silently watches Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape walking ahead for a while, then asks a question.
"...Is Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape..."
[Call me Cheong Min.]
Oh Hyun-seok flinches for a moment at the name that is so familiar to him, then asks again.
"Elder Cheong Min...are you the main body of my master?"
[Your master, huh...2 Well. Being imprisoned by Ra Cheon, I do not know who taught you. And the Buddha-Nature I placed in the Head Realm is a kind of prophecy and law. Though there may be those who are born inheriting its power or grit strongly, my Buddha-Nature cannot exist as an individual being... I may have "influenced' the existence of your master, but I am not the main body of your master.]
Hwiiiili—
Feeling the cool wind, Cheong Min climbs a hill dyed green together with Oh Hyun-seok. [But one thing I do know. You seem to be a disciple who learned very well from your master.]
"...Please do not say that. What could I possibly have learned?"
At Cheong Min's words, Oh Hyun-seok smiles bitterly and shakes his head.
But Cheong Min smiles gently and pats Oh Hyun-seok's shoulder.
[There is nothing better than knowing your own shame. There is no need to be overly modest. You have certainly come through well.]
Why is it?
With just those few words, Oh Hyun-seok feels the heaviness that had unknowingly built up in his chest melt away in an instant.
[Let me hear your name. For someone like you, I want to remember it. Even if I become one with Ra Cheon again someday, I want him to remember that a person like you existed.]
"...1 am...not someone worth remembering."
[itis fine. Neither am 1.]
"..I have...lost my name."
He speaks bitterly.
"I was once accepted as a disciple by the Owner of Names, the Naming Supreme Deity Hyeon Rang. But one day, my master completely transformed into an entirely different being and took my name away from me."
[...s that so, that guy...]
"I heard the two of you were friends."
After sighing for a while, Cheong Min looks at Oh Hyun-seok and speaks.
[...He was not my friend. He was Ra Cheon's friend. But after Ra Cheon separated from me, he said he no longer resonated with Ra Cheon and chose to associate only with me.] Though he says he was not his friend, Oh Hyun-seok somehow feels a bitter sadness from Cheong Min's shoulders.
[What state is Hyeon Rang in now?]
"...Itis said he awakened as the [Western Zero King."
Oh Hyun-seok answers, recalling the wisdom he learned through Silver Basket, and Cheong Min seems to flinch slightly before letting out a bitter smile again.
[It repeats every time. The same tragedy repeats, again and again...]
"Pardon?"
[I understand now why you came here. You came to save your master, Hyeon Rang, didn't you?]
At Cheong Min's question, Oh Hyun-seok nods.
"Yes. To save Master, I will become a Heavenly King through the Origin Essence of Seven Stars, and after becoming a Heavenly King, I will escape from the belly of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity and confront Master...and I will...save him."
[..Do you understand what it means to save that one...?]
"Yes. I understand. To save him...it means... will have to kill him. Without killing him..." [Can you kill your master?]
At that question, Oh Hyun-seok lowers his head.
"...1 do not know."
[You must know. Whether you kill or not, if you don't set your resolve clearly, you will not be able to do anything.]
"...1 do not know..."
Oh Hyun-seok clenches his teeth.
"I don't know what the right answer is...I don't know anything. I've failed since Earth, and I've made nothing but regrettable choices. And yet, making a choice like killing my master with my own hands... How can I possibly make such a choice..?"
[Then are you saying it is fine if someone else kills your master? For example, the Great Mountain Supreme Deity Ra Cheon who will one day try to swallow all of Mount Sumeru...]
"That's...not it. Just, I..."
[You do not know what is right, or what choice will leave you without regret.]
"Yes"
Oh Hyun-seok answers with shame.
He's come this far thanks to one sentence from Seo Eun-hyun.
But now, when Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape asks, "Will you kill Hyeon Rang?"...
He realizes he cannot make that decision.
[You are a child who is like chaos. Because every decision has brought regret, a child who will endlessly hesitate over every choice that lies ahead...]
"..Yes. That's the kind of person I am. Please...Senior Demon Ape, please give me the answer."
[No. I did not start speaking to give you an answer.]
"Pardon..?"
[If you do not know anything, then sit here and contemplate. If you know nothing, do nothing. Do nothing, and endlessly anguish until you find the answer. That is all I have to say to you.]
"0-0 Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape..2"
Oh Hyun-seok's eyes widen. He thought this being might push his back like Azure Tiger Saint, or give him an answer like Silver Basket, or guide him like Seo Eun-hyun.
The Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape standing before him was the one who had influenced Azure Tiger Saint and could even be considered a kind of fellow peer of Seo Eun-hyun. He never expected such a reply from him.
[Sit. And...practice repentant enlightenment.]
"That is..."
[1 will not force you into pain-ridden repentant enlightenment like Ra Cheon. But the answer is surely within you, so I will let you find it yourself.]
Slightly dumbfounded at those words, Oh Hyun-seok follows Cheong Min's instruction and crosses his legs into a lotus position, sitting down on the spot.
[Whether you should kill your master or save him. Whose power you will borrow. How to push through what lies ahead... All the answers lie within you. Until you find them, do not rise.]
"N-No, wait...Senior Demon Ape—no, Senior Cheong Min!"
Oh Hyun-seok is taken aback and tries to stand up to speak to Cheong Min, but in that moment, he feels his body grow immensely heavy.
Ugh!"
He cannot move at all in the lotus position.
Some strange pressure is pressing down on him.
Even when he tries to activate the Immortal Arts he learned from Silver Basket, or the techniques he's honed until now like Azure Wing Heavenly Shatter, nothing works.
Inside this domain of Azure Scenery Heavenly Net, it seems as if all cultivation is sealed. "Damn it...
Even his physical body, trained up to Great Net Immortal, is sealed off.
It's as if Qi itself is sealed.
His powerful flesh and blood energy are thoroughly suppressed, and so Oh Hyun-seok can only sit there, unable to move, staring at the blue sky and the green field.
"There's no time, Senior! If I stay like this, I'll die from the aftermath of having my name taken by Master! Senior!"
However, Cheong Min, standing beside him, no longer replies. He simply turns his back and walks off somewhere within the formation of the Azure Scenery Heavenly Net.
In this current state, where even turning his head is difficult, Oh Hyun-seok bites down on his lip, feeling as though he might faint.
"Damn it... No... If it goes on like this... won't be able to do anything...
Countless worries flash through his mind.
But suddenly, another thought arises within him.
Perhaps a terribly cowardly one.
If I stay stuck here like this, maybe I won't have to kill Master with my own hands. Then...maybe I can leave it in the hands of Seo Eun-hyun or someone else. After all, I'm being held by an irresistible force anyway... Yeah...maybe, in a way...this turned out for the better...
And so, Oh Hyun-seok begins to sit blankly, staring up at the blue sky of the Azure Scenery Heavenly Net.
Turning his back on a problem he might be able to resolve if he just contemplates a bit, and choosing instead only the easy path laid before his eyes, trusting in his own "grit,' he thus begins to kill time in that place.
A day passes.
Ten days pass.
A hundred days pass.
A year passes.
Oh Hyun-seok sits atop this hill where he can see the vast plain and sky at a glance, continuously thinking.
I..made the best choice."
"There's no way I can break through the Immortal Art and domain of Mountain- Destroying Demon Ape Cheong Min with my own strength. That's impossible."
"Instead, let's gather strength here.
"How could I kill Master with my own hands? Surely Seo Eun-hyun will take care of it this time again."
"I've...suffered enough. I already went through hell crossing the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity... Even if I gain the Origin Essence of Seven Stars, won't I have to go through that hell again to return?"
"Even if Silver Basket lent me wisdom... can't do it. I don't have the confidence to escape from the Great Mountain Supreme Deity."
'So..let's just hold my breath here."
He thus steels his resolve to sit in this place for ten years, a hundred years, even a thousand years.
Rationalizing it in any way he can.
As he faces the blue sky within the domain of Azure Scenery Heavenly Net and practices repentant enlightenment, Oh Hyun-seok's consciousness gradually clears, and he begins to feel his strength accumulating.
Of course, no matter how much he gathers, that power cannot be used within the domain of Azure Scenery Heavenly Net, but that doesn't matter.
Oh Hyun-seok simply lives quietly, believing that Seo Eun-hyun will one day make good use of the power he has gathered.
Because no matter how many questions he asks himself, escaping from this situation is impossible anyway.
"Maybe this is actually for the better. Rather than getting captured and tortured by the Great Mountain Supreme Deity, being caught by Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape and peacefully practicing repentant enlightenment until Seo Eun-hyun comes to save me is much more...
Is it really okay to live like this?"
Then, as Oh Hyun-seok continues to rationalize while sitting, he frowns at a certain voice.
"Is it really okay to live like this? Of course it's not okay. But what am I supposed to do!? I can't do anything right now...
"...Let's have some grit."
Oh Hyun-seok clenches his fists tightly and closes his eyes.
There's nothing he can do anyway, so trying to do something here is meaningless.
So, it's not that living like this is okay, but rather that he has 'no choice' but to live like this.
Oh Hyun-seok tries to move by telling himself that it's okay.
Is it really okay to live like this?"
However, that voice continues to echo in Oh Hyun-seok's heart.
"Of course it's okay! Because I'm bound with no other choice...
Is it really okay to live like this?"
Bududuk...
He grits his teeth.
Blood flows from his gums.
"Just what do you want me to do?"
The doubt that has been lingering in his mind for a while.
Oh Hyun-seok grits his teeth and shouts toward that question.
"I can't do anything, can I! You want me to kill Master!? You want me to tear through the belly of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity!? You want me to break free from the binds of Mountain-Destroying Demon Apel? Just what am I supposed to doll?? Even borrowing strength from Silver Basket is not enough! Someone like Seo Eun-hyun has always done everything until now anyway! Won't someone do it again!? So please just..." Is it really okay to live like this?"
"Please just leave me alone!"
Oh Hyun-seok knows.
This is his Heart Demon.
And through this Heart Demon, he poignantly feels why the Great Mountain Supreme Deity severed Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape.
"What do you want me to do!?"
Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape says the answer is within Oh Hyun-seok.
But Oh Hyun-seok cannot feel it.
No—perhaps he doesn't want to acknowledge it.
Everything he has called "grit' until now may in truth be "cowardice,' and perhaps he simply cannot admit that he is a cowardly, petty, utterly filthy piece of trash.
"What more do you want from mel? Back then, I took Hye-seo to the hospital properly! Whether she liked me or not, it was big brother who was responsible for her! I wasn't her parent!
"Same for my daughter. Back then, I was clearly in a meeting when she contacted me saying, 'My stomach hurts a bit. Can you take me to the hospital?' But it wasn't a meeting I could just leave, and she clearly said, It's fine if you're ten minutes late, so take your time'! There wasn't a single problem until then either!
"It's the same even when I was kidnapped in the Head Realm! At the Azure Heaven Creation Sect, Master was beating me senseless every day, so how was I supposed to worry about my other comrades in that state!?
"And..."
Oh Hyun-seok can't continue.
He tries to talk about the other daughter he met in Penglai Island, but the words don't come.
—You trust Dad, right?
Those were the words he personally said to her when they parted.
Unlike everything he's said up to now,
At least for that child, Oh Hyun-seok had been her guardian, and with his own mouth, he had told her he would be back after just a few nights.
And...
Oh Hyun-seok could have, at least by asking Seo Eun-hyun for help, gone back to Penglai Island, or found an opportunity through Seo Eun-hyun to rescue that child again. Oh Hyun-seok finally realizes that, when it comes to the daughter in Penglai Island, he can't make any excuse.
"...She's not...really my child...anyway..."
A pathetic excuse.
Oh Hyun-seok speaks those words and, at last, is able to accept his own wretched self. "Then, shouldn't I have done whatever it took to save my real child?"
No matter what it took.
Whatever it took, he should have saved them.
But he failed to do so.
And the reason is only one.
Because the human Oh Hyun-seok is a coward who, when faced with the choice of solving a problem by taking a slightly winding path or ignoring it and taking the easy way, always chooses the easy path.
How many years has it been since Cheong Min forced him to sit and undergo repentant enlightenment?
At long last, Oh Hyun-seok manages to face his true self.
"..I'm...sorry..."
He is trash.
He couldn't protect anyone.
No. He "didn't' protect anyone.
Even though he might have been able to!
And...
Only then does Oh Hyun-seok manage to move his body while seated in a lotus position. Wuduk, wudududuk!
Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape never lifted the restriction.
it's just that Oh Hyun-seok is pulling forth strength he's never been able to summon until now.
Gathering even his strength from when he was an infant drinking milk, he finally understands he must stand up, even if every bone in his body shatters.
'If it couldn't be done, then I should have made it possible.
He clenches his teeth, sincerely facing the cowardice he had only ever half- acknowledged until now.
Pukwak!
Oh Hyun-seok's true body tries to reveal itself within the domain of Azure Scenery Heavenly Net, but the laws of Azure Scenery Heavenly Net that restrain Immortal Cultivation suppress him.
The backlash causes Immortal Beast true blood to erupt throughout his entire body.
But he clenches his teeth and puts forth even more strength.
Even though the Azure Scenery Heavenly Net's domain was designed to ignore Immortal Cultivation, Oh Hyun-seok pushes his cultivation to explode with the resolve to be crushed beneath its laws.
Pukwak, pukwak!
immortal Beast True Blood bursts from all of Oh Hyun-seok's seven orifices. Tsuaaaaaaaah!
The methods he learned from the Azure Heaven Creation Sect, methods he learned from Gol Maek, the Immortal Arts and wisdom gained from meeting Hyeon Rang, and the immortal Arts and wisdom he gained from Silver Basket—all erupt at once.
Oh Hyun-seok's bones shatter.
Gol Maek's Bone Armor Treasured Origin Art reinforces the broken bones.
Oh Hyun-seok internal organs are pulverized.
The Immortal Arts learned from Silver Basket replace them.
His blood vessels all rupture, and his muscles tear.
The Azure Spirit Starlight Quintessence Great Method becomes his new muscle.
Oh Hyun-seok's very existence is crushed.
The enlightenment regarding the Immortal Daos of Name and Seven Stars he learned from Hyeon Rang sustain his existence.
Oh Hyun-seok, mobilizing all the teachings he has ever learned from all the connections he has ever formed, rises from his place.
Tsuaaaaaaaah!
The blue energy radiating from his body mixes with the red Immortal Beast True Blood, becoming purple.
Flutter!
Wings begin to sprout from Oh Hyun-seok's back.
[At last...]
And at some point, Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape has appeared behind him, smiling faintly.
[I can see your name now, Oh Hyun-seok.]
Kugugugugugu!
Oh Hyun-seok, enduring the pressure of Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape by squeezing out all of his being, by squeezing out all of his connections, smiles faintly.
He has mobilized all the power he gained from the connections he's formed.
Because the power originating from his relationships has been mobilized, he has finally found the name that symbolizes the relationships himself.
[Have you found the answer?
"Yes. It was inside me."
[What is the name of that answer?]
"...Honesty."
itis the honesty to face his own cowardice.
[How admirable.]
Cheong Min, smiling brightly, begins to gradually collapse in place.
[Honesty is pleasure. For pleasure comes when problems are resolved, and honesty is the best way to resolve all problems.]
Oh Hyun-seok looks at Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape Cheong Min.
Until now, Cheong Min's face could not be clearly seen, but now, at last, it has become properly visible.
[Now you are smiling, Hyun-seok-ah.]
Oh Hyun-seok, gazing at Cheong Min's face, realizes the smile forming at the corners of his own lips.
"...Thank you. Then, I'l be going now."
[And what will you do, once you leave?]
"..My master..."
Oh Hyun-seok says something to Cheong Min.
Upon hearing Oh Hyun-seok's answer, Cheong Min smiles brightly.
Turning his back to Cheong Min, Oh Hyun-seok flaps his wings.
The single pair of wings gradually multiplies, becoming ten pairs.
With ten pairs of wings spread wide, Oh Hyun-seok stomps down and tears apart the laws of the Azure Scenery Heavenly Net with all his strength, escaping its domain. Kwaaaaaaaaang!
At the same time, he feels it.
Is this it..2"
The Seat in which Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape once sat!
The conscience and Buddha-Nature that the Great Mountain Supreme Deity severed, unable to overcome his own shame and disgrace.
The Origin Essence of the Sea of Nature!
Oh Hyun-seok feels the hidden Origin Essence within the domain of the Azure Scenery Heavenly Net, and he senses it flowing into him.
It is permitted to him by the former owner of that Origin Essence, Mountain-Destroying Demon Ape.
Tsuaaaaaaah!
As the world of the Azure Scenery Heavenly Net shatters, he once again sees the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea that blankets the entire world.
And he also realizes that the Owner of the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea is watching him. But Oh Hyun-seok pays it no mind and begins to expand his body, projecting his presence across all directions.
The power of the Origin Essence mixes with Oh Hyun-seok's Absolute.
At the same time, Oh Hyun-seok feels his perception change.
Having lost his [name], he cannot exist as a named being. But having come to know [meaning], he can, albeit only "temporarily,' reach that realm.
One who invokes the Absolute.
Heavenly Venerable Rank.
The realm of Heavenly King!
Kugugugugugu!
The nameless Heavenly King of Avidya reveals his colossal form that has become Primordial Chaos itself, and turns to face the Owner of the Corpse Mountain Blood Sea who glares at him.
:: Who are you? : :
The Great Mountain Supreme Deity Gwak Am asks, and the nameless Heavenly King answers.
11am Oh Hyun-seok. : :
That name should not be audible to Gwak Am due to Hyeon Rang, but regardless, he proclaims it loudly for all of Heaven and Earth to hear.
: - A disciple who has come to save his master, and a father who has come to rescue his child. : :
The gaze of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity collides with that of the Giant God of Primordial Chaos, and Oh Hyun-seok, revealing the presence that had long been hidden beneath his cowardice, shouts.
: + Hand over my child, O Owner of Penglai Island. I have come to fulfill the promise I made with her. : :