The seventh chamber.
This time was different.
There were five stone pedestals.
The chamber was large.
And—
there were people.
Living people.
Fifteen of them.
They were divided into three groups, keeping one another in check.
The first group numbered five.
Unorthodox martial artists.
Killing intent hung around them.
The second group numbered four.
Wandering martial artists.
They seemed to have formed a temporary alliance.
The third group numbered six.
Their clothing was uniform.
Black robes.
No emblem.
But their movements were those of trained men.
The three groups were facing off around the stone pedestals.
No one had touched anything yet.
Who would move first?
That was the key.
When the three entered the chamber, every gaze turned toward them.
“...More have come.”
The leader of the unorthodox group spoke.
“Three? That's all?”
One of the wandering martial artists snorted.
The black-robed group said nothing.
They quietly studied the three of them.
Namgung Wonyang grasped the situation.
It was very simple.
They had stepped into a three-way standoff.
It was not a good situation.
Namgung Wonyang examined the pedestals.
Five stone pedestals.
The first held a black jade box.
Its contents could not be seen.
The second held a book.
The cover read Blood Shadow Boundless Art.
A demonic art.
The third held spiritual pills.
Three red pills rested on a jade plate.
The fourth held a sword manual.
It was written on thin silk.
The name Heaven-Shattering Blood Sword was visible.
The fifth held a bottle.
A jade bottle similar to the one they had seen in the second chamber.
But larger.
Namgung Wonyang's eyes stopped on the fifth pedestal.
That's it.
Her instincts told her.
That jade bottle.
It was larger than the one they had obtained earlier.
There would be more inside as well.
It might help her lord recover.
But the problem was that the other groups each had something they wanted too.
“Wonyang. Ju Soa.”
At Chief Seong's low voice, the two women turned their heads.
“Leave this one to me.”
After saying that, Chief Seong stepped forward.
The gazes of all three groups fixed on him.
“I have a proposal.”
“...A proposal?”
“There are five stone pedestals and four groups.”
The leader of the unorthodox group narrowed his eyes.
“So?”
“Each group takes one. No need to fight.”
“One each? There are five, but four groups. Wouldn't one be left over?”
“The group that chooses first may take two.”
The man's brow furrowed.
“The group that chooses first?”
“That's right. Wouldn't it be fair for the strongest group to choose first?”
The leader of the unorthodox group gave a faint laugh.
“Oh? Then we'll choose first.”
“Wait.”
A voice came from the black-robed group.
It was the first time one of them had spoken.
Their leader.
A lean man.
His eyes were sharp.
He was hiding his killing intent, but Chief Seong could feel it.
He was also in the Heaven-Human realm.
He had definitely not seen him at the entrance, yet he was here?
Something was strange.
“The strongest group chooses first? That sounds fine, but how do we decide who is strongest?”
Chief Seong answered.
“The strongest person from each group steps forward. Each displays his realm and ability. With skill.”
“...Interesting.”
The black-robed man nodded.
“Fine. Let us do that.”
The wandering martial artists reluctantly nodded as well.
So did the leader of the unorthodox group.
“Good. That sounds fair.”
Chief Seong stepped forward.
One person from each of the four groups came out.
Chief Seong.
The leader of the unorthodox group, large and covered in scars.
A middle-aged man from the wandering group, quiet in bearing.
And the leader of the black-robed group, lean and sharp-eyed.
The four stood in the center of the chamber.
“We release our energy at the same time, yes?”
The leader of the unorthodox group spoke.
The black-robed man nodded.
“Yes.”
The four exchanged glances.
“One. Two.”
“Three.”
Their energies erupted at once.
The leader of the unorthodox group.
Early Heaven-Human realm.
A rough, violent energy.
The middle-aged man from the wandering group.
Divine Transformation realm.
He was the weakest.
Sweat beaded on his forehead.
The black-robed man.
Late Heaven-Human realm.
A sharp, sinister energy.
Killing intent was hidden within it.
Chief Seong.
Peak late Heaven-Human realm.
A stable, heavy energy.
The result was clear.
Chief Seong was the strongest.
The black-robed man nodded.
“I acknowledge it. Choose first.”
“Thank you.”
Naturally, Chief Seong headed toward the jade bottle on the fifth pedestal.
He silently picked it up.
Then spoke in a quiet voice.
“I have changed my mind.”
Everyone's brow furrowed sharply.
But when they heard what Chief Seong said next, their eyes widened.
“I will take only this one.”
“...Are you serious?”
“I am.”
After saying that, Chief Seong observed the reactions of the other groups.
When the strongest person was saying he would take only one, not two, no madman would refuse.
Instead, they were looking at Chief Seong strangely.
That was all.
“We will be going now. The rest is for you to decide among yourselves.”
Chief Seong and the two women naturally left the spot.
No one followed.
From here on, those people would be fighting among themselves.
After they left the chamber, Ju Soa let out a sigh.
“...This is driving me insane. What was that just now?”
“Experience.”
Ju Soa looked at Chief Seong with a strange expression.
“In the end, we took what we needed most, and now they'll fight over four of the five rewards.”
“That is likely what will happen.”
“We take only the profit.”
“And they take the losses.”
Namgung Wonyang was impressed.
“...This time, you really were like a Chief Steward.”
Chief Seong chuckled.
They had gained what they wanted without fighting.
There was no better outcome than that.
Chief Seong naturally handed the jade bottle to Namgung Wonyang.
Two jade bottles.
Namgung Wonyang tucked them both away with great care.
The three smiled.
In the darkness of the secret realm,
they went deeper.
The eighth chamber.
The ninth chamber.
The treasures gradually dwindled,
and the corpses steadily increased.
When they reached the tenth chamber,
the atmosphere changed.
It was not a chamber.
It was a plaza.
A vast underground plaza.
Luminous stones were scattered across the ceiling,
like a night sky.
And in the center of the plaza
stood a massive stone gate.
It was closed.
Words were carved before the stone gate.
Namgung Wonyang read them.
“Three enter, one leaves.”
Her face stiffened.
“It means that if three enter, only one comes out.”
“What could be inside?”
Ju Soa looked up at the stone gate.
There were more words above it.
Heavenly Sword Returns to One.
“...Heavenly Sword Returns to One...?”
Namgung Wonyang's eyes widened.
“If it says Heavenly Sword Returns to One... could it be from the Heavenly Sun Sword Sect, which was destroyed during the Thousand-Year Chaos...?”
“Heavenly Sun Sword Sect?”
“It was a righteous sword sect. They say it was annihilated while fighting against the demonic path during the Thousand-Year Chaos. It was renowned throughout the world for its sword arts.”
“It's not a demonic art?”
“No. It isn't. It's orthodox swordsmanship.”
Ju Soa's eyes shone.
“Everything that's appeared so far has been an atrocious demonic art, yet this secret realm belonged to a righteous sect called the Heavenly Sun Sword Sect?”
It was only natural to be confused.
While Ju Soa voiced that doubt, Namgung Wonyang read the words on the stone gate again.
Three enter, one leaves.
She emphasized it once more.
“If three enter, only one comes out.”
The three stared at the stone gate.
Chief Seong spoke.
“...Let us not enter.”
“...”
“If three enter and only one comes out, that means two of us die.”
Ju Soa said,
“It may not necessarily mean death. It says one comes out, but that doesn't necessarily mean the other two die...”
“It means the same thing.”
Chief Seong spoke firmly.
“In a secret realm, when words like that are written, they must be taken exactly as written.”
Namgung Wonyang stared at the stone gate.
Heavenly Sword Returns to One.
Orthodox swordsmanship.
True martial arts, not a demonic art.
She wanted it.
Honestly.
But—
“Chief Seong is right.”
Namgung Wonyang turned her head.
“Let's not go in.”
She turned her back on the stone gate.
“This is enough. Two jade bottles. We've achieved our objective.”
Chief Seong nodded.
“Let's go. We need to find the way back.”
Just as the three were about to leave the plaza—
Ruuuumble!
The ground shook.
All three stopped at once.
The ground beneath their feet trembled.
The luminous stones in the ceiling shook violently.
Their light flickered.
It was not an earthquake.
The plaza itself was changing.
Light surged up from the floor.
White light.
A radiance so intense it dazzled the eyes poured from every crack in the ground.
The light spread.
It covered the entire plaza.
Climbed the walls.
All the way to the ceiling.
Light surrounded them on every side.
“The exit...?”
Namgung Wonyang turned.
The path they had taken was gone.
A wall of light blocked it.
They were trapped.
Chief Seong drew his daggers.
“Be on guard.”
The three naturally stood back-to-back.
The light grew stronger and stronger.
It became difficult to keep their eyes open.
Then—
the light stopped.
Suddenly, everything fell silent.
There was no sound of wind.
Only their breathing.
The three slowly opened their eyes.
The plaza had changed.
The blue glow of the luminous stones was gone.
In its place, silver-white light filled the entire plaza.
Like moonlight.
But clearer than the moon.
Deeper than the moon.
And—
someone stood before the stone gate.
No.
To call him a person would be inaccurate.
He was far too transparent.
A figure formed of silver-white light.
An old man.
White hair fell to his waist.
His beard reached his chest.
He wore a robe.
A sword hung at his waist.
His face was gentle.
His eyes shone between deep wrinkles.
They were not the eyes of the living.
But neither were they the eyes of the dead.
A lingering will.
The remnant of a will that had endured a thousand years.
The old man looked at the three of them.
The three froze.
Not because of pressure.
Not because of killing intent.
His very existence was simply different.
This was nothing but a lingering will.
Yet even from that alone,
they could not dare imagine it.
Chief Seong's lips trembled.
How strong had this old man been in life?
The old man opened his mouth.
—Are you trying to leave?
His voice echoed
throughout the entire plaza.
It was a sound like space itself was vibrating.
The three could not answer.
The old man asked again.
—You came all the way to the gate. Why do you turn back?
Chief Seong opened his mouth.
His voice trembled.
But he spoke.
“...It said that if three enter, only one comes out.”
—Correct.
“That is why we are turning back.”
—Do you not find it regrettable?
The old man asked.
—You must know what lies inside.
“We assume the sword art of the Heavenly Sun Sword Sect is inside.”
Namgung Wonyang answered.
The old man's gaze turned to her.
—Yes. It is the sword art of the Heavenly Sun Sword Sect. A sword art that has not been passed down to anyone for several hundred years.
“...”
—Do you not find that regrettable?
Namgung Wonyang answered,
“I do.”
She was honest.
“But I cannot pay the price of two lives.”
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