Reincarnated Swordmaster

Chapter Title: Dark Heaven Village

I decided to ask the Nine Heavens Celestial Maiden for help to figure out where we were. She cast her World-Sea Divination Technique and immediately said,

[This is a very distant continent...]

"...Even if you say that, I don't really understand..."

[I'll show you directly.]

Flash!

[It's right around here.]

The Nine Heavens Celestial Maiden conjured up an illusion resembling a globe and pointed to one section of it with her finger. It was probably a representation of this world. Having studied geography and magical lore extensively under Zhuge Sa, I had no trouble accepting it.

'Hmm. Definitely... west of Tianzhu, on the eastern edge of the [Black Continent]... near the Great Food Kingdom?'

The distance from the Great Food Kingdom to the Central Plains spanned tens of thousands of li. I had once sprinted like a madman to circumnavigate the continent from the Central Plains to the Great Ying Empire, but even that hadn't been a distance I could cover overnight. Moreover, reaching the southern continent base I needed to get to would require even more. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it was half the world away!

But I only had seven days left before Shin Gyo-woong was supposed to come looking for me. Running there like this would make it hard to even arrive on time, and even if I did, there'd likely be almost no time remaining. Seeing me deep in thought, the Nine Heavens Celestial Maiden spoke.

[Where are your comrades?]

"They're around here... but that's too far."

[Knowing the location is enough. Point out a more precise spot.]

"......?"

Puzzled by her urging, I expanded the map of the southern continent section and indicated it. Moments later, she swung her fairy robes and chanted a spell, enveloping my body in light.

Flash!

"Ah!"

In the blink of an eye, my body was in a lush, verdant area of the southern continent. Had she really teleported me tens of thousands of li in an instant? I'd done similar feats with flight before, but accomplishing this so effortlessly with sorcery was impressive.

Soon after, she cast another spell, and we returned just as quickly to the southern village where we'd been staying. She made finding someone seem incredibly easy.

When I sought out Mang Ryang, Zhuge Sa, and the others and entered the village, strangely, there were no signs of life in the building where we'd been staying. Suspicious, I summoned the village chief and asked him. He looked flustered and said,

"Ah... no, it's you."

"What happened? Where are my comrades?"

The shaman-priest and chief of the Mabuag tribe let out a sigh.

"I don't know... Didn't you all handle your affairs in ways that made it impossible for us to understand? All I know is that a year after they returned from the Central Plains, the presence vanished, and your entire group disappeared without a trace."

"What?"

I asked in disbelief.

"You're telling me to believe that now?"

"Northern Eye, I know of your mystical powers and the overwhelming might of your comrades. Why would I lie, staking the safety of my tribe on it? Your comrades left for somewhere overnight."

"Didn't they tell you where they were going?"

"I didn't hear anything like that."

"......"

It made sense. Even if I were Mang Ryang or Zhuge Sa, I wouldn't report our every move to these southern barbarians. There was no guarantee enemies wouldn't track us here, and the more we concealed our tracks, the better.

'Enemies... probably?'

After I left for Dark Heaven Village, Zhuge Sa and Mang Ryang must have kept moving. Assuming they still believed I wasn't dead, their departure meant there was a reason—and abandoning a safe base like this could only be because they'd sensed pursuit from powerful foes.

As an uneasy feeling gnawed at me while I pondered, I suddenly jolted and asked him,

"Wait. A year? What do you mean? Does that mean years have passed since I left this village?"

"I don't know exactly when you left. But it's been five years since those men returned from the Central Plains. They left four years ago."

"...Hmm."

Five years?

It seemed that after I departed for Dark Heaven Village, my comrades returned here, stayed another year, and then left somewhere. And even that was four years ago—so five years had passed since I'd gone to that otherworldly Dark Heaven Village.

Did time flow differently between Dark Heaven Village and here?

I'd spent no more than three days there, yet three years had flown by here in an instant, leaving me stunned. But having once been sealed away for fifty years in an unknown place because of that Changhil bastard, I could calmly sort through my thoughts.

Where had my comrades gone during these five years?

How could I find them?

I turned to the Nine Heavens Celestial Maiden and said,

"Nine Heavens Celestial Maiden. Can you find out where my comrades are?"

[Tell me their names.]

"First, Mang Ryang, Zhuge Hyun, and Zhuge Sa..."

Whoosh...

The Nine Heavens Celestial Maiden emitted waves of light and cast her World-Sea Divination Technique, seemingly searching for my comrades' traces. After a moment, she opened her eyes and said,

[Both are deceased.]

"......"

Stagger...

For a moment, strength drained from my body, and I nearly collapsed.

What did the Nine Heavens Celestial Maiden just say?!

"W-What do you mean?"

[I scanned the lifeforms dwelling in this world with the World-Sea Divination Technique, but the beings you recognize by those names are already dead.]

"That's impossible! That's...!!"

[Tell me the other names. I've fixed the spell, so I can check quickly.]

Mang Ryang and Zhuge Sa, dead!

I bellowed in rage but soon cooled as if cold water had been poured over my head.

"...It could happen."

Five years since I left for Dark Heaven Village. During that time, the White Lotus Cult had been frantically hunting us, the Twelve Laws Lords lurking with predatory eyes, and even Zhuge Yueyong had borrowed the Seven Essentials Eight Trigrams Array from Dark Heaven Village to strike back at us for crippling his forces. All three major powers had been covertly targeting or exploiting us.

In such a situation, if they had to abruptly abandon their base after just a year, there must have been dire circumstances. It wouldn't be strange for strategists like Mang Ryang and Zhuge Sa, who were on the weaker side militarily, to perish amid the chaos. Though far stronger than peak martial artists of the world, they weren't a match for the guardian-level powerhouses operating in the shadows.

Five years was time enough for anything to happen.

My hands trembled with emotion, but I regained my composure and said in a quivering voice,

"...Sword Demon Seomoon Daeyong."

[Deceased.]

"When, where, and by whom was he killed? Can you tell?"

[I can't know that. The spell only detects if a soul exists in this world.]

So it was just a spell to check for a soul's presence or absence in this world?

I nodded inwardly in understanding and continued.

"Illusion God Cheon Woojin."

[Not detected. But it feels like artificial sorcery, so his status is unclear.]

Was Cheon Woojin hiding somewhere?

Or perhaps using a method undetectable by the World-Sea Divination Technique. Based on past examples, his unknown status actually brought relief.

"Geuk Ho."

[Alive.]

The first survivor!

Feeling inner relief, I said,

"Where is Geuk Ho?"

[His soul seems to be in Goryeo.]

"...Goryeo? You don't mean Gae Kyung, do you?"

[Correct.]

"......"

Geuk Ho was in Goryeo's capital, Gae Kyung.

I wondered why he was there but soon thought it likely tied to the Twelve Laws. For now, I was glad he was alive and continued questioning the Nine Heavens Celestial Maiden.

"Jin So-cheong."

[......]

"What's wrong?"

[Something's off... He's flickering, like a faltering light.]

"Flickering?"

[We should check the others first.]

"Then Dang San, Cheong Wol, Myeong Ryong-ja, Seomun Hye."

As I named the others in order, she soon replied,

[Dang San and Seomun Hye are alive.]

So Cheong Wol and Myeong Ryong-ja were dead?

As I looked at her expectantly, she continued,

[The one called Dang San is in Sichuan, and Seomun Hye is in Liaoning Province.]

"Hmm... If we know their locations, can we go straight there?"

[It's possible.]

I knelt before the Nine Heavens Celestial Maiden and pleaded,

"I beg you. We need to check on the survivors. Please help me."

[Very well. I'll assist you in reuniting with your comrades.]

She agreed readily but then said something puzzling.

[However, it's strange... Cheon Woojin used sorcery passed down from Monk Mang Ryang to hide from the World-Sea Divination Technique, but Jin So-cheong's state defies understanding. His soul and vitality are flickering uncertainly.]

"Neither fully alive nor dead?"

[You could put it that way, but it's inexplicable. In all my long years, I've never seen such a case.]

"...I want to go to Jin So-cheong first. Let's head to wherever he's flickering."

[Understood.]

Heading straight to Goryeo where Geuk Ho was could mean running into one of the Twelve Laws Lords right away—troublesome and dangerous. Compared to Dang San and Seomun Hye, Jin So-cheong's bizarre state, which even the Nine Heavens Celestial Maiden couldn't fathom, took priority. With a wave of her hand, the World-Sea Divination Technique guided us, and we arrived somewhere.

Flash!

The place I'd arrived was a desolate ancient temple. But having been to this barren, high plateau once before, I was startled and looked around. I said to the Nine Heavens Celestial Maiden,

"N-Nine Heavens Celestial Maiden. Jin So-cheong is really here?"

[He's flickering nearby. The origin point is here.]

"But... but this is."

Ssshhh...

Moments later, the head of a nearby withered god statue, resembling an elephant's, crumbled into sand, and darkness spread across the floor. It was unmistakably the manifestation of powerful evil sorcery, so I tensed and stared ahead. In a trembling voice, I muttered,

"...Jurban's Temple."

The stronghold of the ancient Heretical Cult, a place I'd reached beyond the Qingzhang Plateau due to Zhuge Sa's 'contract' in the past. Here, I'd gained the qualifications and blessings as the Heretical Cult's leader and confronted 'that being.' A place I could never forget.

Ssshhh—

With a grotesque sound like a snake's tongue flicking, black sand-like particles swirled around, taking human form. The figure that emerged was one I'd faced multiple times before—even subjugating once.

A beauty with an icy, chilling aura appeared at the temple's center, opening her mouth to speak aloud.

"So you're the human Zhuge Sa spoke of. I was planning to seek you out due to karmic fate, but you've come to me on your own feet. How grateful I am."

"......"

She glanced warily behind me before continuing.

"Well then, shall I hear why you've come to my temple with the Nine Heavens Celestial Maiden—stranger?"

She had already detected the Nine Heavens Celestial Maiden hovering transparently like a spirit behind me. Gritting my teeth, I said to her,

"Wall of Earth Image... no, Simon Magus, the one prophesied by God-King Demiurge. Being who attains Aion through the Revelation of the End! It's an honor to meet you."

I praised her with flattery and honeyed words as best I could.

Because my opponent was none other than Simon Magus—the grand sorcerer who had masqueraded as human for millennia, reigning as a lord of the demonic path, and ascending to demon king realm as the first leader of the Heretical Cult. This was the worst existence who had contracted with Zhuge Sa to create his own Myriad Demon Hall and become an [Ancient Ruler]! If she held my comrade Jin So-cheong's life in her grasp, I couldn't afford to act rashly.

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