Reincarnated Swordmaster

Chapter Title: Dark Heaven Village

The Prophet looked the same as ever, even after all this time. It made sense—he was an ancient race that had lived for thousands, even tens of thousands of years. He fixed his strange eyes on me and spoke.

[ A deal, you say...? ]

Yeah. First off...

I sorted through my thoughts and continued.

"Lend me a weapon from the Tower of No Windows!"

The Prophet fell silent at my words. Then, in a tone as if he'd pieced it together, he replied.

[ So you're a reincarnator... How much do you know about our weapons? ]

"Honestly, not much. I've never really used one properly. But I do know they're immensely powerful weapons that might even work against the [Ancient Rulers]."

I told him about the [Ultimate Homunculus] that the Imperial Palace was on the verge of completing. The Prophet's tentacles rippled as he listened with evident interest. After giving him a rough rundown of the situation, I pressed on.

"To get my hands on that homunculus, I'm short on power. To unravel that tangled mess involving the White Lotus Cult, the Twelve Rites, and the Imperial Palace, I need a weapon from the Tower of No Windows."

[ I see... Do you even know what this Ultimate Homunculus truly is...? ]

"Huh?"

A homunculus was a homunculus—what else was there to it?

But the Prophet seemed to have something else in mind, so I drew on my alchemy knowledge.

"Well... I heard the Ultimate Homunculus is also the ultimate artificial lifeform, a homunculus. It's the Western prototype perfected with Eastern bagua principles. Some guy named Hermes came up with the original concept, and they're using it to offer the ultimate sacrifice to the gods."

[ Impressive alchemy knowledge as well... ]

The Prophet muttered to himself before continuing.

[ This involves reaching directly into the gods' offerings... If you provide sufficient compensation, I could temporarily grant you access to a weapon. But it carries great risk for us too. What will you offer in return? ]

"I'll give you this!"

I immediately pulled out a demonic tome and held it out to him. The Prophet flinched in surprise.

[ Ho... This is... the Spiral Abyss Fortress Original Scripture. ]

"That should be worth a one-time rental, right?"

[ Hm... Hold on... ]

"What?"

Suddenly, the Prophet conjured a glowing blue ring above his head. It hummed and vibrated for a moment. Then he spoke.

[ We've consulted the hive mind... We've decided to grant you temporary access to the weapon. ]

"What was that ring?"

[ It allows instant communication between our kind, no matter the distance... Even a hundred million light-years apart. ]

Light-years? Whatever it was, it seemed important, so my curiosity piqued.

"Could you sell me that ring? I'll pay well."

[ It's not an object—it's magic. It channels power through the horn of a light-speed beast... Only our race can use it, so I can't teach it to outsiders... ]

"Tch..."

I grumbled for a bit before saying,

"The deal isn't done yet."

[ Speak... ]

I placed an obsidian on my palm and showed it to him.

"In the past, I traded with you and learned a spell to transmit memories via obsidian."

[ So you did... And? ]

"But obsidian has too little capacity and is inefficient. So either teach me to master this spell perfectly, or give me an alien metal formula for memory transmission with better efficiency!"

[...... ]

The Prophet rolled his eyes before responding.

[ No wonder... Every request you make is something hard to grant... It seems you've been trading with me for quite a while... ]

"Pretty long time, yeah."

[ If I teach you the formula, you think you can produce it with earthly metals...? ]

I nodded.

"You left quite a bit of memory transmission metal in ancient sites like Bohai, right? That means it's not shipped from space—it's made by combining minerals from this world."

[ Ho... Your theory? ]

"S-something like that."

To be precise, it was Zhuge Sa's speculation. He'd found records not just of the Silver Phoenix from Bohai but other transmission metals too, concluding they could be forged with earthly alchemy. The Prophet's tentacles rippled as he said,

[ Yes... It's possible. But at human levels... They'd rarely succeed... Still, if you want it, I can teach you. ]

"Rarely succeed?"

[ Your alchemy is too primitive... Even with the formula, it'd take a hundred years just to decipher it... ]

"Hmm, fine by me. You said direct imports from the homeworld are banned anyway, right? So teach me the formula."

[ Very well... Your payment. ]

I laid out the items I'd prepared: moonbeast hide, Earth Lord's inner core, and black-and-white lotus. After inspecting them carefully, the Prophet nodded.

[ Just barely sufficient... Take this. ]

He tossed a round orb my way. I snatched the crystal-like sphere from the air, and the moment I did, it glowed silver and transmitted memories to me.

Flash!

"......!"

The transmission speed was insane!

That was all I could sense. Compared to my usual obsidian spell, it was like a galloping horse versus a tortoise. Even complex memories that would've overflowed from capacity limitations were instantly understood. Once the formula filled my mind, the Prophet spoke.

[ Anything else to trade for...? ]

"Hang on. This crystal orb seems like alien material—are you giving it to me?"

[ Yes... A bonus for a good customer. It's one-use only, so use it wisely... ]

Since when did this guy give extras?

I eyed him with more suspicion than gratitude. He always gave exactly what was paid for, nothing more. But suspecting him wouldn't change anything, so I continued.

"Hm... I have questions about the Lifeless Mother's scriptures."

That was the exact question Zhuge Sa had instructed me to ask. Even if the other proposals fell through, I had to get this answer.

The Prophet visibly flinched.

[ A reincarnator curious about the scriptures... Things must have progressed quite far. ]

"What do you mean?"

[ What do you want to know...? ]

I nodded and went on.

"The White Lotus Cult Leader on earth is desperately gathering the scriptures. He believes that once collected, True Void Attainment will occur. But I've heard even the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors couldn't gather them all."

The Prophet affirmed lightly.

[...Indeed impossible. Not just them—no one could... ]

"What exactly are the scriptures? Why can't they be fully gathered, and what happens if they are?"

[...... ]

After a pause, the Prophet said,

[ An enormous wheel turns... ]

He began with a sigh-like murmur.

[ The Lifeless Mother's scriptures are, precisely, the sole possibility capable of reducing countless apocalypses to nothingness. ]

"What!!"

I let out a scream-like shout.

Was it real after all? Was the True Void Attainment the White Lotus Leader pursued so relentlessly an actual solution? I'd thought it might be a delusion or mirage, so this shocked me deeply.

"Th-then True Void Attainment really means the [Ancient Rulers] vanish and we get a peaceful world..."

[ No. It's not that convenient... That's a blatant misinterpretation. You humans are foolish, dull creatures who see only what you want to see... ]

The Prophet denied it firmly.

[ But... one thing is certain. ]

"What?"

[ All current [Ancient Rulers] know of the scriptures' existence... And in some ways, they fear it more than the liberation of the Seven Desires Artifacts... Thus, if an [Ancient Ruler] possesses a scripture, it can never be obtained through trade... ]

"......!"

All [Ancient Rulers] knew about the scriptures?

And what did "never through trade" mean?

I was confused for a moment, but soon grasped his implication.

'The Seven Desires might be acquirable via trade with an [Ancient Ruler], but the scriptures make that impossible'

That made it insanely difficult. Stunned, I said,

"Wait, so even if an [Ancient Ruler] has a scripture, to get it I'd have to..."

[ Face the [Ancient Ruler] head-on and defeat it. Not an avatar, but the true body in its home dimension. A terrifying battle. ]

"......"

Of course, I dreamed of someday defeating an [Ancient Ruler] outright. But bearing that obtaining the scriptures was as hard as my ultimate goal left me dumbfounded. What kind of item required fighting a god head-on to claim?

Calmly, I asked,

"So..."

That was when the Prophet's tentacles rippled.

[ That's the preview... ]

"Huh?"

[ Want more information? Pay up... ]

Ugh... He dangles it right in front of me and demands payment!

Frustrated, I rummaged through my spatial pouch. Plenty of treasures, but my mind was a whirlwind.

'I need these for the battle at Mount Yeosan.'

Sacrificing them now would give a big clue but weaken us at Yeosan. All the remaining treasures were practical and precious—meant to equip my comrades.

Especially the Yodo Muramasa, White Cloud Sword, Twin Demon Swords, Three Sovereigns Inner Manual, and so on—I couldn't part with them easily. Thinking of Wang Liang with the Three Sovereigns gear, Sword Demon with Muramasa, Cheon Woo-jin with White Cloud—it was agonizing. Elite warriors with top gear became overwhelmingly strong. And the Nameless Ritual Tome massively amplified Zhuge Sa's power—no way I could give that up.

As I hesitated, the Prophet rippled his tentacles more vigorously.

[ Splurge... ]

"What?"

[ Splurge, I said... Where else will you hear intel like this...? ]

"......!"

[ If I were you... I'd splurge... ]

"Damn it all!"

I was torn. This guy egging me on—who'd have thought?

I considered slipping away to consult, but he was setting the mood like this was a one-time chance. He was pouring all his energy into fleecing me.

'This bastard doesn't care if the world ends—he just wants to squeeze me dry!'

No choice. I pulled out the pure fish hook and contacted Zhuge Sa, relaying the trade so far.

Zhuge Sa replied matter-of-factly.

[ No need to hesitate. Give it all. ]

[ What? ]

[ Scripture info is something we'll need eventually. Now or later doesn't matter. Plus, our current forces can survive against the three powers without treasures. Don't be greedy—hand them over. ]

[ Ugh... Got it. ]

It pained me, but I pulled out Yodo Muramasa and White Cloud Sword and offered them.

[ Here. ]

[ Not enough... ]

"Damn it. Adding Twin Demon Swords..."

[ Still short... ]

"...Three Sovereigns Inner Manual."

[ A bit... more needed... ]

Furious, I bellowed,

"You're being too greedy! Three Sovereigns and White Cloud are treasures!"

[ Scripture info is worth that much... ]

"You bastard! I'm a regular—can't you cut me a deal?"

[ You might think so, but this is my first time seeing you today... Don't play the loyal customer card... ]

The Prophet wriggled his tentacles and added,

[ Hm... Fine, I'll cut a little. Deal. ]

"......"

He'd "generously" discounted, but I'd basically handed over all my practically useful treasures. Now I only had one unliberated summon left. Trembling with regret, the Prophet began revealing the scripture info.

[ The scriptures... are a miraculous product born from astronomical coincidence. ]

"Miraculous product?"

[ Don't know the full details, but... they were originally a single demonic tome... Then shattered into six fragments and scattered across the heavens and earth... That was the great incident a thousand years ago. ]

Arms crossed, I replied,

"So, gather all fragments and it becomes the demonic tome again? What's its name?"

[ No idea... Probably not even the gods know. Only Dalma, who received the scriptures, does... ]

Dalma.

Founder of the White Lotus Cult, the mad demonic sorcerer.

As I repeated the name in my mind, the Prophet said,

[ The ones who shattered the scriptures were the [Ancient Rulers]... Even one second of its complete form manifesting in the mortal realm would bring catastrophe to the entire world... The Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors joined in that task... ]

"What?"

The Prophet grinned.

[ Yes... A thousand years ago... White Lotus Leader Dalma... was killed by the collective will of all [Ancient Rulers]. I watched from the sidelines... Quite the spectacle. ]

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