Reincarnated Swordmaster

Chapter Title: Dark Heaven Village

After returning to base, I checked how much power the Fire Dragon Divine Sword had recovered. Drawing out the latent power within the blade and holding it alongside my sword spirit in both hands, just a light infusion of qi felt like it was stirring up a storm of energy.

Whooooing

Then I swung the sword and executed a full set of Thunder God Style swordsmanship. Once the sequence was complete, Poison King Dang San—who was wrapped head to toe in bandages—crossed his arms and spoke.

“As expected, it’s not quite the Absolute Realm. But you’re right on the verge of taking that one step.”

Our side’s Absolute Realm experts had been almost entirely wiped out, but Dang San was the sole one we’d recruited. He’d suffered a fatal wound and passed out in his duel with the Nine Yin Cult Leader, but barely survived thanks to the aid of the world’s Five Great Physicians.

Since Dang San was an Absolute Realm expert himself, I figured he could give me an objective read on my current state, so I’d demonstrated my martial arts for him. With cold green eyes glinting like a serpent’s, he continued.

“Exactly as Jin So-cheong said. I’ve got nothing more to add.”

“That’s not something to brush off. Can’t you offer any advice at all?”

“Fine, call it whining if you want. I need every bit I can get right now.”

Shame meant nothing to me.

At my resolute words, Dang San smirked.

“Scared you’ll die tomorrow when you meet the Great Sage Equaling Heaven?”

“Yes.”

“Can’t blame you. From your perspective, a poison absolute like me is someone you can only meet after waiting fifty years. Not something you run into every day. Makes sense you’d want to squeeze every last drop out of this.”

Dang San gulped down the Little Scarlet Bead hanging from his finger and went on.

“But even if I gave you my all in advice, I doubt it’d shorten your journey much.”

“What do you mean?”

“Suppose by some miracle my words grant you enlightenment and you reach the Absolute Realm. Then what? At best, you’d be mere finger-fodder for Earth Immortals. You saw what Jin So-cheong did to me.”

“…You’re right.”

“And the enemies left are absolutes who crush even Earth Immortals, and monsters who kill those absolutes with a flick of the finger…”

“……”

He cackled.

“It’s utterly pointless. And Baek Woong, are you really right in the head? No matter how many infinite reincarnations you get, taking on demon gods who rule the world for real?”

I replied calmly.

“If I dwelled on that, I’d have given up long ago. That’s not for you to worry about.”

“Kekeke… Guess as a scion of the Dang Clan, born with madness in my blood, I don’t hate your guts.”

Dang San suddenly plopped down where he sat and said.

“Fine then. Assuming you die tomorrow, how about I share a few vital secrets and tips? As the strongest expert in Sichuan Dang Clan history.”

“…Strongest in history? Isn’t that a bit arrogant?”

“Arrogant? Before me, the Sichuan Dang Clan never produced a single Absolute Realm master, and I’m the only one in history to master the Formless Finger Poison. Even counting five thousand years of martial history, I’d rank in the top twenty easy. If we’re talking poison arts alone, I’m confident no one surpasses me.”

“……”

He wasn’t wrong. Dang San had shown a lot of weakness lately, but that was only because Jin So-cheong and the Nine Yin Cult Leader were such freaks. He was absolutely worthy of the title strongest poison expert in martial history.

Dang San continued.

“First off, as I mentioned before, my ultimate technique and strongest poison art, the Formless Finger Poison, isn’t a real poison. Which is why you can’t create it through physical means.”

I nodded.

“I remember. All the poison masters of the Central Plains failed to create it because they were trying to make something that doesn’t exist…”

“The Formless Finger Poison is the ultimate poison formed by the mind. That’s why it can even poison concepts and intangibles. And since it’s not material, it’s impossible to antidote. Even an Absolute Realm expert can only endure it with their mind.”

“Hmm!”

“Of course, forging an unshakeable pillar of heavenly will requires immense venom cultivation. At any rate, you need to form a Poison Spirit Core in your dantian that’s on par with a thousand-year anchor.”

Dang San explained softly.

“Anyway, I think the knack of this Formless Finger Poison could help the current you, Baek Woong.”

“Help me?”

Dang San fixed me with a cold stare.

“The mind is the power of imagination that can do anything, humanity’s will against the world. The Absolute Realm is forging your believed strongest form through conviction. But as Jin So-cheong said, your body and mind are out of sync right now, so you can’t grasp that ultimate conviction. Even though your cultivation surpasses most Absolute Realm experts…”

“……”

“The solution’s simple. Shape a body that matches your mind.”

“You’re saying to shed the bones and rebirth? But that’s wrong from the premise. The disharmony comes because I can’t…”

At my words, Dang San grinned.

“As a poison master, I can tell you reshaping the body isn’t limited to shedding bones and rebirth. For example…”

His explanation of the ‘method’ left me stunned. I stood there blankly for a moment before snapping back and saying.

“You’re telling me to use such an extreme method? That’s insane.”

“You might as well be immortal anyway, right? I’d try it even if it killed me ten times.”

“Ugh.”

“Honestly, if there weren’t side effects, I’d have done it myself. But I became a supreme expert before needing to, thanks to my genius.”

“……”

This guy’s not right in the head either.

Still, it was worth noting, so I committed Dang San’s advice to memory. It sounded crazy, but worth a shot.

Dang San went on.

“And Baek Woong, drop this noble crap about saving humanity this lifetime.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve lived fifty years in the Central Plains, and humanity might as well be extinct already. All ethics, justice, morality, and civilization that let humans stay human have been destroyed long ago. Saving them now means starting from scratch. Most survivors have already submitted to madness and ruin.”

“……”

“In the end, if you win, everyone wins, right? If needed, toss the human race aside lightly in the big picture.”

Normally, I’d have said absolutely not.

But I hesitated, then replied.

“I’ll think about it.”

Thinking of Jin So-cheong’s death made my half-baked vow to save all humanity feel like hypocrisy.

‘…In the end, all I can protect are the comrades within my reach.’

Thinking of Jin So-cheong, who’d thrown away fifty years of life for me, I couldn’t utter the word ‘everyone.’

It felt like I was compromising more with reality, but I shook off the unease. No matter what I thought now, all I could do was press forward. Wavering more would insult my comrades’ deaths.

Soon after, I got more intel from Dang San, then went to find Mang Ryang and Zhuge Sa. That’s when I noticed Mang Ryang’s grim expression.

“Mang Ryang, what’s wrong?”

“Hoo…”

Mang Ryang hesitated a long while before speaking.

“I got word on my junior brother from the heavenly immortals.”

“Cheon Woo-jin’s?”

“My junior brother…”

Tears finally streamed from Mang Ryang’s wrinkled old eyes.

“He’s been sentenced to extreme punishment for rebellion against Heaven…”

“……?!”

What?!

I stared at Mang Ryang in shock, and Zhuge Sa spoke coldly from the side.

“That’s all the info we have. Hyun-i offered fervent prayers to Heaven, and they just tossed out that declaration.”

From Zhuge Sa’s words, I caught the hint and said.

“So they didn’t explain the details of why he got the extreme punishment for rebellion.”

“Yeah. You’ve noticed too—it’s highly suspicious.”

Zhuge Sa smirked.

“Whether Cheon Woo-jin lives or died, he’s definitely tangled in some huge incident up there.”

“……”

I asked Mang Ryang.

“Any word on Miho?”

“Nothing on Lady Miho. Unlike my junior brother, they say she never even came to Heaven.”

“But didn’t Miho ascend to Heaven midway?”

“If Heaven denies it, we’ve no way to confirm.”

I ground my teeth.

My comrades went to Heaven and vanished, and we’re stuck like this!

Steel myself, I said.

“Don’t worry. I’ll handle it somehow.”

And the next day.

As promised, I headed to Mount Tai. Naturally, bringing comrades would be too dangerous, so I went alone.

Flash

I’d only been told to come to Mount Tai, not where exactly. But logically, the most important spot was the Heavenly Emperor Altar, so I walked calmly toward it.

‘No demons.’

Demons and yaksha rampaged across the Central Plains, but not here. Likely because Heaven had erected powerful barriers to protect Mount Tai’s Heavenly Emperor Altar. Thus, I worried about clashing with heavenly immortals or generals en route.

Fortunately, none appeared by the time I reached the altar. As I stared at it, a familiar voice rang out.

“Hey. Good to see you.”

Looking aside, a monkey-like freak emerged slowly from the woods.

“Great Sage Equaling Heaven.”

The Great Sage, Monkey King Mi Houwang, had transformed into something far more human-like than before. He perched lightly on the Heavenly Emperor Altar, chin on knee, gazing at me.

“For someone inheriting Jin So-cheong’s will, you look awfully dim-witted.”

“What business does the Great Sage have with a human like me?”

“Obviously, I called you because I have business.”

The Great Sage stared blankly at me, then continued.

“Ah, still not quite trustworthy. Can I really count on you?”

I replied coldly to the Great Sage.

“My power’s no better than a bug compared to yours, so what use could I be?”

“Kekeke, you’re pissed off good. Well, Jin So-cheong’s death shook even me.”

Dodging glibly, the Great Sage seemed pleased with my response instead. With a somewhat relaxed face, he went on.

“Don’t worry. What we discuss today is important, but if you don’t want in, no problem. It wouldn’t stand anyway without the power.”

“What’s the matter?”

“Well… simply put… the gist is…”

His following words startled me.

“The world will end soon.”

The world will end?

The sudden massive revelation threw me off, but I quickly regained composure. A normal person might faint, but I’m so used to crises that even world-ending news barely stirred me.

“Why will it end?”

“Huh, not that surprised.”

“The human world is already half-destroyed. Hearing it’ll fully end now…”

At my words, the Great Sage gave a wry smile.

“Fair from a human view. But the problem is… Heaven plans to thoroughly sweep everything on the surface—ground level and all. Humans won’t have a single seed left.”

“What?”

What is this?

Pondering the Great Sage’s words, I said.

“You’re saying Heaven’s mobilizing armies to hunt down every survivor one by one?”

“What’s the issue there? I’d smash immortals myself to stop that. It’s not obvious.”

He was hostile to those gathering the Seven Evils, but the Great Sage seemed to like humans, as a Great Law Immortal.

“Then…”

“It started when the Nine Yin Cult Leader routed Heaven’s forces at Luoyang and seized it. Heaven felt the greatest crisis in history, convened the top brass, and decided then.”

The Great Sage spat.

“To cast Pangu’s Curse.”

“Pangu’s Curse?”

“A spell borrowing the Creation God Pangu’s power to destroy the world. It exterminates malign spirits’ kin, humans, flora, fauna—all in a day. The world flips entirely.”

“……!!”

“Heaven decided to wipe humanity to eliminate the Nine Yin Cult and the malign god’s plot. From the moment they took Luoyang, Heaven’s been acting.”

Heaven borrowing the Creation God’s power to end the world?!

The story ballooned out of nowhere, but I quelled my shock and asked.

“A world-ending spell—can Heaven even cast that? I thought this world was bound by countless karmic laws and pacts, preventing such arbitrary tyranny.”

“Right. Higher beings can cast world-ending spells, but karmic backlash usually prevents it. But…”

The Great Sage’s eyes sharpened.

“For some reason, the Three Pure Ones approved, the Queen Mother of the West petitioned, and the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors granted it without even 49 days’ grace. Heaven started chanting Pangu’s Curse—something I’d never heard or seen in my life. Gods and Heaven resolved to end the world together.”

“……”

“Now, 108 immortals in Heaven are chanting it full force. It’s against all common sense.”

Suspicious.

Way too suspicious.

The Great Sage said.

“Logically, such an absurd mega-spell should’ve collapsed from karmic backlash before completion. But watching from Heaven, it proceeded flawlessly.”

“That possible?”

“I think it’s because the Queen Mother of the West is at the chant’s center. She’s doing something.”

Queen Mother of the West!

Foremost among Heaven’s great immortals, deemed equal or superior to the Three Pure Ones! She’d acted like a shadow manipulator across my past lives, now stepping forefront. Tensing, I listened intently as he continued slowly.

“If this goes on, Pangu’s Curse activates, and everything ends. We must stop it first.”

“Thought Jin So-cheong’s help would make it double alone, but he’s dead?”

“Yeah. Jin So-cheong evolved fighting like a Battle God.”

The Great Sage crossed his arms.

“Anyway, Pangu’s Curse is ridiculously vast. A mortal sorcerer would take 10,000 years. Even with Heaven’s immortals, it’ll take at least ten days and nights more, but who knows when it finishes.”

“I see.”

“But attacking the Queen Mother alone is impossible, so I gave you three days to prepare.”

“……”

“Will you come with me to stop Pangu’s Curse?”

No choice in the offer.

If it activates, comrades die helplessly, and I reincarnate alone. With the Great Sage’s help, I can’t pass it up.

But sensing discomfort, I said.

“Even you find it tough… meaning those guarding Pangu’s Curse aren’t pushovers.”

“Well, it’ll work out. Earth Immortals guard it, but few surpass me. Just…”

“Just?”

The Great Sage shrugged.

“I’m not confident beating the Queen Mother. Once, invading Heaven alone, she punched me in rage, and the wound still lingers.”

“……”

“The Queen Mother’s a different league. Even the Three Sovereign and Five Emperors treat her special. So focus on disrupting the chant, not winning.”

Even the Great Sage’s unimaginable power fell short of the Queen Mother?

My mind reeled, but I shook my head.

‘No, I sensed it…’

In past lives, the Queen Mother descended alone and casually crushed Izanagi no Mikoto. No Earth Immortal could do that lightly. I’d heard multiple times she outclassed other Great Law Immortals.

After pondering, I asked.

“Before that, could you let me meet the Nine Heavens Mysterious Woman?”

“Hm? Why?”

“I must see her. If you grant this, I’ll help with all I have.”

The Great Sage tilted his head, then nodded as if understanding.

“Fine. Get ready now.”

“Now?”

The Great Sage grinned.

“Of course! Taking you to the Nine Heavens Mysterious Woman right away. She’s on my side too.”

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!