Reincarnated Swordmaster

Chapter Title: Dark Heaven Village

Dark Heaven Village

Zhuge Sa headed to the New Market with Cheon Woo-jin. His comrades had arrived first and were waiting for them at the barrier in front of the New Market. Zhuge Sa looked over them one by one before speaking.

"Where is the White Lotus Cult Leader?"

"Not here yet."

"With the Dan Clan nearby, have you met them already?"

"Over there."

When Jin So-cheong pointed to a rock near the waterfall, there sat a man dressed in Goryeo-style robes blended with white and blue. He must have been there from the start, but his skill at blending his qi with nature made him seem as if he had melted into the scenery itself. The man rose from his seat and greeted Zhuge Sa.

"Hmm. Are you our guide?"

"Your group hasn't all arrived yet, so I've been waiting here."

Zhuge Sa stared silently at Hong Gil-dong. Of course, this was their first meeting for Hong Gil-dong, but Zhuge Sa knew of him.

A master of the Avatar Technique!

A powerhouse even acknowledged by the Lord of the Twelve Rites!

It was clear this man was no pushover. Achieving the grandmaster realm in the Avatar Technique alone put him at a level where he could roam the world freely. Zhuge Sa spoke.

"We don't need to wait for the White Lotus Cult Leader. I want to meet the Rite Lord first."

"Understood. Follow me."

They followed Hong Gil-dong through deep mountains, valleys, and cloud bridges more than ten times. While walking behind him, Zhuge Sa asked Jin So-cheong via transmission.

[How strong is that Hong Gil-dong guy?]

[Very strong.]

[Damn it. Do thorns grow in your mouth if you explain?]

[Just from his gait, there's not a single deviation. I also probed him briefly with intent sense and found no weaknesses, so he's at least among the top ten experts in the Central Plains martial world.]

[Hmm... Not Absolute Realm?]

[Hard to say. He seems extremely adept at concealing his power.]

They said those in the Absolute Realm could recognize each other, but apparently not always. If it were that easy, they wouldn't have misjudged Yong Jung-il's full strength until now.

Zhuge Sa shook his head.

'Even so, mastery in both martial arts and sorcery makes him a threat in himself.'

He knew the destructive power from skillfully combining two abilities, as seen with Zhuge Bu. Unlike the greenhouse flower Zhuge Bu, Hong Gil-dong, who fought on the front lines against the two-legged ones and received the Twelve Rite Lord's teachings, was undoubtedly far superior. He might even be on par with Jin So-cheong among the current group.

Soon, they entered the New Market and came face-to-face with the Lord of the Twelve Rites. The Rite Lord seemed quite displeased, slouching crookedly in his chair, and immediately said to Zhuge Sa.

"What did you talk about with Jeon Uk?"

"What do you mean..."

"A sorcerer like you who opened the Ogre Heaven Gate and returned alive must have spoken with the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors. I'm asking what you discussed."

Zhuge Sa grinned.

"I could tell you, but first, return the Half-Phoenix Bead."

"You really want that?"

"I clearly suggested we go together, but you refused. I've even handed over the Half-Phoenix Bead—why should I tell you anything?"

"...Don't push my temper too far."

A pale blue light flickered in the Twelve Rite Lord's eyes. In that instant, intense intent sense swept in like a storm, and Jin So-cheong thrust out his spear to block the pressure bearing down on Zhuge Sa. The Rite Lord glanced at Jin So-cheong and said.

"I don't like you lot. What's your scheme?"

"Oh... What a coincidence. We don't like you either. What's your scheme?"

Zhuge Sa smoothly countered, and the Rite Lord grunted before speaking.

"Fine. With a common enemy right before us, I won't press further. But since you've entered my domain, the New Market, you'll have to follow my orders to some extent."

"Of course."

"Back to the point—your plan against the Eight Celestial Guardians is just to block and counter using the World Tree's barrier? That's it?"

"I don't see any better countermeasures..."

Zhuge Sa glanced at the massive tree visible outside the window and continued.

"I've heard the World Tree's power even suppresses the Sea God. There's no method beyond a barrier using such a potent spiritual entity."

"Where'd you hear that?"

"I picked it up while searching for traces of Penglai Island. No need to get upset."

"Hmm. True, a barrier using the World Tree could be called the pinnacle of what human sorcerers can achieve..."

The Rite Lord crossed his arms.

"But you know it's not enough power. Even adding the Half-Phoenix Bead's strength leaves it hopelessly short."

"True enough."

If the Eight Celestial Guardians transformed into their true forms and struck a few times, the World Tree's barrier would shatter. Of course, that assumed a simultaneous assault, but as things stood, extermination was the only outcome. Most critically, they lacked the power to withstand the Guardians' true forms.

Zhuge Sa knew there was another way, of course.

'You can just summon the Phoenix.'

The Twelve Rite Lord possessed the ability to summon the Phoenix. He even had the feat of repelling the Sea God who once tried to land in Goryeo's western capital using that divine authority. But Zhuge Sa didn't voice it and said.

"If you truly saw no chance of victory, you wouldn't have let us into the New Market from the start. I'd like to hear your thoughts first."

"Hmm. Nothing special. Just retrieve one more of the Seven Relics."

"...You know its location?"

"I know one. I'll fetch it and use the Seven Relics Resonance to amplify the barrier."

Naturally, this was the alternative Zhuge Sa had already anticipated.

He plans to retrieve the Lunar Relic!

By spilling blood at the Lunar Relic's altar slumbering in Mani Mountain on Ganghwa Island to summon its guardian, then defeating the guardian to claim the relic—that was surely the intent. As expected, the Twelve Rite Lord had known of the Lunar Relic all along but left it untouched.

'Why, though?'

What reason could there be for leaving the Seven Relics sealed?

Obviously, the Rite Lord had mastered some method to unseal them. Otherwise, the Wooden Relic wouldn't have been freed without heavenly permission. If he retrieved and unsealed the Lunar Relic, he'd possess two freed Relics, making him fearless of the world—yet until now, he'd only had Great Master Seosan guard it secretly without touching it.

The only conceivable reason was concern over scrutiny from the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors or the heavenly realm. Holding two freed Relics would draw attention from anyone. But that was knowledge gathered by Baek Woong while collecting info on the Relics—ordinary mortals could never learn such things in their lifetime.

Whatever the case, Zhuge Sa replied.

"Then we'll use that Relic on our side."

"What nonsense are you spouting like it's obvious? This is my domain, found with my information, so I'll use the Relic. Both of them."

"You're too greedy."

"Not really? Even two Relics won't change the world's balance."

The curtly responding Rite Lord continued.

"Once the White Lotus Cult Leader arrives, I'll assign him and your group to guard the World Tree."

"Hmm."

As expected, the Twelve Rite Lord intended to hold the initiative from start to finish. And Zhuge Sa saw through another of his schemes.

'If we succeed in repelling the Eight Celestial Guardians, he plans to discard us.'

Otherwise, there'd be no reason to bring potential rivals into his home base, the New Market. Whatever it was, the odds were high he'd prepared traps to bind or kill them. It was the perfect chance to eliminate both the hostile White Lotus Cult and the suspicious Baek Woong group at once. Zhuge Sa thought the Rite Lord's greed was immense.

'Well, natural for the hegemon of this era.'

Zhuge Sa grinned and said.

"Then..."

It was then.

Whoooosh!!

Black wind swirled into the room like flowing shadows. After the gale subsided, the White Lotus Cult Leader and his guardian warriors stood there. Seeing him, the Twelve Rite Lord said.

"White Lotus Cult Leader, that's rude. How do you barge in mid-conversation?"

[I don't see us as close enough for formalities.]

The curt Cult Leader glanced over the room's occupants before continuing.

[I have a good idea. If it works, we can defeat the Eight Celestial Guardians at once.]

"Ha! Everyone's full of enthusiasm. What's the method?"

[Human sacrifice.]

"What?"

The White Lotus Cult Leader said emotionlessly.

[I've prepared ample offerings. Summoning an avatar of the [Ancient Overlord] to block the Eight Celestial Guardians is the most realistic approach.]

"......"

In that moment, Zhuge Sa wore a complicated expression. The Twelve Rite Lord said uncomfortably.

"You're offering your White Lotus followers?"

[Yes.]

"That's your business, but bringing that demonic power into the New Market means I, as its lord, can't just stand by."

[No need to worry. Summon the avatar outside the New Market.]

"Hmm... Do as you like."

If Baek Woong or Mang Ryang had been here, they would have been shocked and vehemently opposed the Cult Leader's plan to sacrifice his followers for an [Ancient Overlord] avatar. It wasn't on the scale of the Luoyang tragedy where 30,000 were offered, but it still meant hundreds or thousands of lives lost.

But neither the Twelve Rite Lord nor Zhuge Sa had strong objections to human sacrifice. There was no reason to reject the Cult Leader's proposal. For Zhuge Sa, though, his complicated feelings stemmed from elsewhere.

'The Cult Leader has his own scheme too.'

It seemed like a sacrificial best strategy for the alliance at first glance, but the Cult Leader surely planned something with the avatar. He couldn't pinpoint it, but his instincts as a strategist screamed suspicion. Baek Woong might have brushed it off, but Zhuge Sa was half-convinced of the plot.

Likely seizing the New Market itself or assassinating the Twelve Rite Lord amid the chaos to claim the Dan Clan—something like that. Seeing the three great powers gathered yet only scheming to stab each other in the back, Zhuge Sa chuckled inwardly.

"Kukuku."

They couldn't win like this.

The Rite Lord freeing two Relics for resonance, the Cult Leader summoning the [Ancient Overlord] avatar, Zhuge Sa summoning the Fire Demon while relying on the World Tree barrier—it sounded impressive. In raw power, it could withstand the Guardians' joint assault. But with zero trust between them, something would go wrong, and disastrously so. He sensed it.

'Then my task is set.'

If the three forces could truly unite against the Guardians, he'd strategize fully. But the atmosphere was far from that. With no reason to force harmony, he decided to stir chaos.

Grinning, Zhuge Sa said.

"Alright, let's give it our all."

The three would go all-out to smash each other's backs—but it didn't matter.

Now his mind was at ease.

He only needed to watch the biggest variable, 'that one.'

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