The Madman Returns (Part 2)
The machinery clattered relentlessly.
I scanned my surroundings, searching for any weak points.
‘No point in begging this lunatic for anything else. The answer is already set—you’ll just end up modified like a dog.’
‘Should I just kill myself?’
But...
The thought of Kim Yeon being dragged away by that madman flooded my mind.
‘If I die right now, will he drag her to that insane workshop and turn her into his puppet too?’
I hadn’t truly faced him before, but now I understood.
Kim Yeon couldn’t be left alone with him for even a second.
‘Fine, suicide is out. So escape must be possible.’
‘I could sever the circuits of the nearby puppets with my Invisible Sword and run.’
That wouldn’t work either.
It might have fooled Nascent Soul cultivators, but these were all at least Qi Condensation level, with many Core Formation puppets scattered around us.
And we were already inside Goe-gun’s jaws.
‘Damn it.’
Before I could finish thinking, the ceiling exploded with puppet arms plunging toward me.
I instinctively spread my Mountain Moon Eclipse Blade, deflecting the limbs.
[Hm? You’re trying to escape?]
The moment I dodged, Goe-gun’s eyes gleamed.
‘Fuck...’
Despair set in. One arm would be enough to tear me apart; my whole body would be remade into his toy.
I stared at him with a forced smile.
‘...I’ll go by myself.’
[Oh? That’s a good idea. Lie down and open wide. I’ll install something pretty for you.]
‘...’
I gritted my teeth and climbed onto the worktable, lying down.
‘Will this madman even give me anesthesia?’
I didn’t expect it in this era without human rights.
I was used to the pain of being torn apart, but the real worry was Kim Yeon.
‘Later, when she’s remade, I’ll make her drink anesthesia myself.’
As if reading my mind, Goe-gun walked over, and the ceiling arms descended again.
[Let’s see, open your mouth.]
He shoved his hand straight into my mouth, forcing it open, then stared deep inside.
[Ho-ho-ho... Good, good. I expected you’d move around, but you really are a martial artist. Isn’t that right?]
“Ugh... ah...”
[I see. I knew martial artists were easy to deal with. The rumors said so. You’ve already reached Five Qi Consorting with the Origin. Impressive. Your talent is rich, so I’ll treat you generously. There will be a slight tingle, so bear with it for a moment.]
‘...?’
Zzzzt!
A bolt of lightning slammed over me.
I clenched my teeth and endured it.
‘A lightning-induced earthquake?’
And then, after a while...
I survived the lightning without passing out.
When it faded, Goe-gun was staring at me.
[Hm? You didn’t faint? I shot you with lightning thinking it would anesthetize you. You have incredible willpower!]
‘...Isn’t the usual way to knock someone out with lightning just to incapacitate them?’
Before I could react, Goe-gun grinned, revealing his teeth.
[With this much willpower, you should be able to handle remodeling without anesthesia, right?]
Clang!
At the same moment, a bit was forced into my mouth, and my limbs were bound.
‘This bastard! If anesthesia isn’t working, he should’ve just kept going instead of this half-measure!’
The puppet arms and machinery surged toward my left arm.
***
Whirrr...
[Perfect! You’ve done exceptionally well! You’re truly outstanding! You didn’t even twitch while the remodeling happened. You truly have exceptional talent!]
I let out a sigh as I stood up from the table.
‘Kim Yeon’s worrying me.’
With my current level, I hadn’t moved a muscle while enduring that insane remodeling.
A normal person—and even most Core Formation or Nascent Soul monks—wouldn’t have survived the pain I’d just felt.
Clank, clank...
I lifted my left arm.
The madman’s sudden remodeling had produced something surprisingly usable.
Circuits packed the inner side of the arm, and it moved with perfect smoothness according to my will.
Once I infused my consciousness, the sensations were sharp and clear.
Even just the arm was usable as an artificial limb, but the inner functions were overwhelming.
[First, the basic power source is powered by the Wondrous Castle’s own energy when inside it. Outside, it will drain your own qi and use it as fuel. Go ahead and test its performance.]
Clank, clank, clank!
In one corner of Goe-gun’s workshop, a target appeared.
The instructions on how to control the new puppet arm were transmitted straight into my consciousness.
Clang!
I extended my left hand and focused my will. Qi surged to my palm.
Whoosh!
A blinding white ray shot out, instantly reducing three targets to slag.
‘...It fired a ray from my fingers without even activating the left arm.’
Hooom!
I curled my fingers slightly. Five fingertips formed a cluster of pure qi, shooting out as snow-white nails.
Whoosh, whoom!
With a swing, the nails elongated freely, slicing through the targets.
Kiing! Clank, clank!
I clenched my fist. The arm’s joints opened, and ejection ports fired.
Kwa-kwa-kwa!
Energy blasted from the ports as I flew forward, smashing the target into dust.
I should use it to amplify my punch later.
Just this much showed a normal Core Formation martial artist could challenge even Qi Condensation 10th or 11th stage monks with this arm alone.
Of course...
‘Everything can be done with the Invisible Sword anyway.’
From my high cultivation perspective, these were just cumbersome abilities.
I’d treat them as extras, but the real power of the puppet arm was probably something else.
‘Harmony... It perfectly syncs with my body, which has already achieved perfect balance at Five Qi Consorting with the Origin. No discordance, qi and blood flow naturally.’
The movements were so natural they were indistinguishable from my real arm.
That was the true advantage.
And the real reason Goe-gun had made it...
[What are you doing? Try pulling it out.]
Whoosh!
An Invisible Sword shot from my left arm.
[Ho! It comes out of that arm too!]
He must have been curious whether the Invisible Sword could manifest through the puppet limb.
‘Leaving aside the fact that it’s attached to my body, it’s no different from a magical treasure. Makes sense.’
I had already used it as a Magical Treasure before.
It was basically the same as layering the Invisible Sword over a glass sword.
But Goe-gun licked his lips, eyes sparkling, muttering to himself.
And then, the glinting eyes narrowed.
[Hmph... Good. That’s enough. You may go.]
Whoosh!
A transport puppet appeared in the hall.
[This fellow will guide you to your new lodging. For now, we’ll skip the lessons and let you rest today.]
Goe-gun ignored my reply, approaching me with his Core Formation puppet body and starting his mad work.
Whoowhoom!
I flew away with the transport puppet.
***
Flash!
The space jump landed us inside a vast estate within the Wondrous Castle.
The grounds were arranged like a real-world estate, with lush grass, trees, small animals, and insects everywhere.
Everywhere, puppet servants moved about, cleaning and maintaining the place.
But something sent a chill down my spine.
‘Not a single living thing.’
Even the grass and trees were intricately crafted puppets. The insects and small animals too.
And the servants were all puppets pretending to be human.
Clank, clank...
When I was looking around, the puppet servants approached and bowed deeply.
“Will you be my guide?”
Clank, clank...
The servants nodded, and I followed them deeper into the estate.
They showed me my lodging and various locations around the grounds.
‘It’s so bleak.’
Though the puppets were polite, the lifeless place made me feel like the air was choking me.
That was when I noticed it.
‘...?’
Far away, a faint life aura shimmered.
‘What is that energy...?’
I kicked off the ground and flew toward it.
It was in the neighboring estate.
In a corner of that estate, Kim Yeon—now wearing fresh clothes—sat blankly on a rock.
She wore a peach-colored gown, her face filled with confusion and terror as she stared at the servants working nearby.
Thud!
I landed beside her.
“Ah, Senior Seo?”
When I sat down, color returned to her face.
“Thank goodness! I have no idea what’s going on here, and it’s terrifying! And those bushes, those trees! Are they even real? They’re all robots! There isn’t a single living thing here! What are we going to do?”
‘...’
I looked at her terrified face and sighed.
“Kim Chief, listen carefully to what I say.”
I wanted to comfort her, but after having my left arm remodeled, I felt harder.
“Forget about our modern world. This place has no human rights. That madman could go berserk at any time and turn us into his puppets.”
Clank...
I held up my left arm for her to see.
Her face drained of all color.
“W-what is this... Senior Seo, are you... joking?”
“Kim Chief.”
I gripped her shoulders and made her look into my eyes.
“This isn’t a joke. Listen to me. I know it’s hard to believe, but I’ll explain this world to you.”
I slowly told her about martial artists, demons, monks, martial arts, magic, upper and lower realms, Goe-gun, and the woman, among other things.
Kim Yeon’s awakened consciousness and what it meant.
“...That’s the world we’re in. Do you understand?”
“Ah... still...”
“Let me show you instead.”
I sealed the contract.
My remodeled left arm had no problem circulating pure qi, and because it was even tougher than the original, magic was no issue.
“Break!”
Chirararar!
The moment I spoke, the Blood Body Armor technique that had been enhancing my regeneration all this time was dispelled from my body.
Chrrrr!
The blood inside me flowed sideways and gushed out with a slurp, returning to Won Rip’s Blood Body.
Chuk, churruk...
Because the Blood Body had been constantly replenishing my regeneration, my cultivation had regressed from late Core Formation all the way back to early Qi Condensation.
“Th-this is...”
Kim Yeon’s eyes widened as she stared at the Blood Body.
I connected my seal through its hand.
Fwooruk!
Flames erupted from the Blood Body’s palm, and countless divine techniques appeared.
“Now do you believe? This world is full of these impossible things.”
“I believe it! I was just confused whether this was a dream or not. If someone had told me it was a terrible nightmare, I would have...”
‘...’
For a moment, Kim Yeon rubbed her face with both hands, exhausted.
That was when...
Twitch, twitch...
Chak!
The Blood Body’s veins twitched, and a baby snake shot out from inside.
‘Ah, I forgot about that guy.’
I had placed it inside me through the Blood Body during all this time, using its regeneration to withstand the spatial pressure.
Of course, with spatial pressure that intense, it should have shattered dozens of times, but regeneration had its limits too.
‘I feel a little sorry...’
I had blocked the pain, but I had still shattered the body of a living being multiple times.
‘Stay inside for now.’
I controlled the Blood Body, pushing the snake back into its own veins, covering it with flesh, and shoving it deep inside.
It was impossible to pull it out freely in Goe-gun’s Wondrous Castle.
And after a while, Kim Yeon seemed calmer and asked, staring at the Blood Body.
“By the way, Senior Seo, how do you know so many things? And this woman... or man? Or what is this person anyway?”
“Kim Chief, as I told you, you and all the company colleagues have awakened strange abilities, right?”
“Yes.”
“I have the same thing. This body that isn’t male or female is also part of my awakened ability, and these memories are too.”
“Is that so? Speaking of my ability...”
“And!”
I cut her off.
“Never speak of what abilities you’ve obtained.”
“Eh? We’re the only two here...”
“It’s not that kind of problem. It’s hard to explain, but... could you promise me you’ll never speak of it?”
I grabbed both of her hands and looked into her eyes.
I could see her determination, and her face flushed red.
“Yes, yes! I promise! Later... you’ll tell me, right?”
“I’ll tell you later.”
I smiled bitterly as I looked into her determination.
“So promise me. No matter what, don’t reveal my secret even on your deathbed.”
“Yes, yes...”
Looking at her determination, I thought...
‘If that’s the case, it’ll be hard to leave her behind in the future.’
Kim Young-hoon would feel a little sad when I left him, but he’d live happily alone.
But I didn’t know what would become of her if I left now.
I gave her a few warnings and shared a few more pieces of information about this world.
That was how the first day in the Wondrous Castle ended.
***
From the next day, we each received basic cultivation manuals from Goe-gun.
They were the Foundation Establishment Basic Cultivation Texts, along with the Strange Star-Mind Scroll.
‘The Strange Star-Mind Scroll is a type of consciousness technique focused on training and developing the consciousness. It’s also essential for controlling the residents of the Wondrous Castle. Until Qi Condensation, master the Strange Star-Mind Scroll. From Foundation Establishment, when your consciousness stabilizes, I’ll teach you my true personal consciousness technique, the Strange Nature Heart Scripture.’
Given the mention of Wondrous Castle residents, it was clearly optimized for puppet control.
From that day, I trained the consciousness technique with Kim Yeon, helping her master the basic one better.
Six months passed.
***
Above the valley where the Wondrous Castle was located.
Ku-gugugu-gu!
I saw five strands of qi clouds spinning around me after six months.
‘Insane speed.’
Without any Fox’s Dawn, just by absorbing qi from the air and relying on the insights, I had reached the peak of the Five Qi Consorting with the Origin in just six months.
If things continued like this, I could break through to Foundation Establishment in about a month.
And Kim Yeon was currently...
Kurung, kururung...
On the other side of the valley, she was biting her lip in frustration after failing the Seven-Star Ceremony.
Heavenly Rejection.
I hadn’t known about it when Kim Young-hoon was alive, but it was definitely a phenomenon that appeared in us who had come from the modern world.
“Again... it failed. What do I do?”
Her voice trembled as she asked.
I patted her shoulder, but she flinched and stepped back.
Over the past six months, Goe-gun had remodeled both of my arms into puppet arms and her shoulders into wooden ones that felt nothing like human flesh.
I had experienced Heavenly Rejection in the Gwanghan Realm too.
But in my case, I had torn through the clouds with rays from the puppet arm, overcoming Heavenly Rejection without needing any Strong Arm.
Which meant...
“Senior Seo... what do I do? Now even my arms... are being remodeled by Goe-gun.”
If I couldn’t overcome Heavenly Rejection, Kim Yeon would be remodeled by him too.
‘...There’s still time. The next trial is coming soon, so try again then. And Goe-gun is...’
I looked into her consciousness.
Unlike the chaotic mess from six months ago, her consciousness after mastering Goe-gun’s technique now calmly covered heaven and earth in a perfect sphere.
“Kim Chief won’t get remodeled like I did.”
I looked down at the Wondrous Castle below and said.
Six months had passed since Goe-gun gave us the consciousness and basic techniques.
He had been locked in his workshop since then, remaking Core Formation puppets.
“How can you be so sure? He said he’d come out in two months. If you still haven’t passed the Seven-Star Ceremony by then...”
She stared at my arm with fear in her eyes.
‘Heavenly Rejection...’
I looked at the clouds drifting in the sky and thought.
“Kim Chief. How far have you mastered the Strange Star-Mind Scroll?”
“11th stage.”
The Strange Star-Mind Scroll had twelve stages total, so she was just one step from the peak.
“Perhaps you can overcome Heavenly Rejection.”
“H-how?”
I raised the puppet arm.
“If the puppet’s power is treated as my own power, perhaps even if Kim Chief controls the puppets...”
“I don’t want to!”
But Kim Yeon shook her head, looking devastated.
“Senior Seo knows too! Trying to control those puppets...”
I let out a small sigh.
It was true that controlling the Wondrous Castle puppets without issues would have saved me a lot of trouble.
But there was a problem with the puppets here.
“I... I’ll go insane.”
As you could tell from the circuit research done by Buk Hyang-hwa for the transport puppets.
The Wondrous Castle puppets had circuits corresponding to the Seven Emotions.
And those circuits were linked to all the puppets in the entire Wondrous Castle.
Isolated transport puppets could be controlled fine.
But trying to control the circuits of puppets connected to the entire Wondrous Castle was like controlling living circuits.
The operator’s consciousness was invaded, and controlling the puppets of the Wondrous Castle would inevitably drive them insane.
Because the puppets were designed to sync with Goe-gun’s madness, anyone who tried to control them without him would merge with Goe-gun and split their own mind.
That was the part where Kim Yeon was currently struggling.
‘Even with overwhelming talent, Heavenly Rejection is holding me back...’
I watched her worried face and fell into thought for a while.
Then I said to her.
“I can’t help you tear through the sky.”
“...Then...?”
“But I’ll find some way to help.”
“Ah...!”
I looked at my remodeled arms.
She couldn’t possibly endure the remodeling surgery in her current state.
Not even with anesthesia before the cut.
When Goe-gun finished the Core Formation puppets and came out, he would realize she was still only at Qi Condensation 7th stage because of Heavenly Rejection and remold her arms too.
‘I can’t stop this madman from remodeling, but I’ll do everything I can to stop it.’
I made a promise while watching Kim Yeon tremble in fear.
One month passed.
Ku-gugugu-gu!
I reached Foundation Establishment.
The familiar pure qi flowed through my body.
Kururung!
I split apart the falling heavenly thunder and dispersed the black clouds.
I continued absorbing heaven and earth qi and circulating the technique.
The next manual after Five Qi Consorting with the Origin was the Yin Soul Ghost Curse.
Fwatsstst...
The Yin Soul Ghost Curse wasn’t a technique that raised your realm by “feeling pain.”
It raised your realm by “understanding pain.”
Ultimately, the key was “comprehension.”
So I reached the peak of early Foundation Establishment in just one day after breaking through.
Ku-gugugu-gu!
The dark curse enveloped my entire body.
With this level, I should be able to help Kim Yeon.
‘Tomorrow or the day after, Kim Yeon’s Seven-Star Ceremony trial will begin.’
And I would use the Yin Soul Ghost Curse to assist her in it.
***
“You want me to control the puppets?”
“Yes.”
I looked at the puppets and said.
“You’ll feel the madness, but infuse your consciousness and try.”
“...Okay.”
Kim Yeon nodded, seeing my determined eyes, and reached her consciousness toward the puppets.
Uuwoom!
The residents of the Wondrous Castle.
Countless Qi Condensation and Core Formation puppets moved their bodies.
And...
“U-uuu...!”
Kim Yeon clutched her head in pain, enduring Goe-gun’s madness.
I grabbed her shoulder and tried to match my consciousness as closely as possible to hers.
And...
“Kim Chief, I will overlay my consciousness onto yours. Align your consciousness waves as much as possible with the Strange Star-Mind Scroll’s manual.”
“Yes, yes...!”
Uuuuwoom!
Kim Yeon’s and my consciousnesses synchronized instantly.
At that moment, the madness of the puppets connected to the Wondrous Castle through her began to surge in.
Kwa-dudu-duk!
Viscous madness.
This madness wasn’t just causing mental breakdown.
Twitch, twitch...
The madness was pushing out the original owner’s personality and gradually taking over the body, trying to seize the operator’s consciousness.
One, but this time I had chosen the wrong target.
Wood!
I passed on all the pain Kim Yeon was feeling through the curse, making myself the curse doll.
Pit, pit!
Veins burst in my head, blood gushing from my nose.
‘This much pain...’
I clenched my fist and overwhelmed the madness trying to devour my mind.
‘Impossible!’
Ku-guk!
Even in that state, I said to Kim Yeon.
Or rather, I didn’t need to say anything.
Our consciousnesses were already connected.
[Can you control the puppets now?]
[Yes...]
She frowned, then extended both hands.
Ku-gugugu-gu!
The puppets lined up in perfect order according to her will.
Hundreds of Core Formation puppets began listening to her.
[That’s about it so far.]
[Yes, it’s still unfamiliar.]
[Anyway, we can now try the ceremony.]
I spoke to Kim Yeon, exchanging consciousness.
[Shall we try the Seven-Star Ceremony?]
Clank, clank, clank...
Above the valley.
The altar for the Seven-Star Ceremony.
Around it, countless puppet legions assumed formation, preparing to unleash their own techniques toward the sky.
The Seven-Star Ceremony in the Gwanghan Realm was no different from the previous world.
The only difference was that we had to face a completely different star than the twenty-eight mansions of the previous world.
Of course, the name we called it when performing the ritual was the same.
According to the nearby race that Goe-gun had kidnapped months ago, the star names for the twenty-eight mansions in the upper realm were fixed across all dimensions.
We weren’t really looking at the actual star and aligning the ritual to it.
Instead, we performed the ritual according to the “energy” of that star.
So if any world had a star with a similar “energy,” we would call it the same as the star in the previous world.
Kurung, kururung...
Black clouds began gathering in the sky.
Kim Yeon finished the ritual and reached both hands toward the sky.
And, hundreds of Core Formation puppets manipulated by her all erupted with light.
Kwa-gwang, kwa-kwa-kwa-kwang!
The attack of hundreds of Core Formation puppets tore through the sky’s clouds as if they were paper.
And because she had moved the puppets with her own hands, the sky seemed to accept her action.
Flash!
I felt Kim Yeon safely advance to Qi Condensation 7th stage.
[Ah... Eun-hyun oppa.]
Through her consciousness, a deep sense of relief and indescribable warmth came through.
[Thank you...]
Kim Yeon, who had crossed the crisis of Qi Condensation, wiped her eyes and looked back at me.
I smiled bitterly as I looked at her, then severed the consciousness connection.
“Congratulations, Kim Chief.”
I knew her heart better than anyone.
But I couldn’t receive it.
“Now there should be no more danger of being remodeled because of realm stagnation.”
“Yes, it’s all thanks to Eun-hyun oppa. By the way, when will we stop calling each other Chief and Senior? Haha.”
Kim Yeon slowly descended from the altar.
“It’s not a company anymore.”
“...What should I call you then?”
“No, more importantly, Eun-hyun oppa used to speak casually when we were at the company. Why are you still using honorifics?”
‘...Was I?’
That was 900 years ago.
I barely remembered.
“Speak casually. The feeling I got while doing the Seven-Star Ceremony...”
She said, accompanied by deep relief in her determination.
“We should get along well with the people left.”
But I knew that wasn’t all she meant.
That determination was one I couldn’t possibly not know.
‘Actually, I am...’
That was when...
[Oh, you’ve been doing well?]
With a pop!
Goe-gun suddenly stuck his head through the space.
Flash!
He looked around with his glittering eyes.
Kim Yeon didn’t understand, but I did—and a chill ran down my spine.
Goe-gun was looking at the color of Kim Yeon’s determination.
[Ooh, oooo... Ooh!]
The madman’s gaze on Kim Yeon’s determination made him emit a suspicious exclamation.
Since I couldn’t read the madman’s intent, tension always gripped me.
I swallowed and asked him.
“...You’re already back? Master... I thought you’d come out in another month...”
[Ah! I made the Core Formation puppets faster than I expected!]
Chaaak!
Goe-gun, who had torn through space, flicked his hand.
Kuuuwoo!
The Wondrous Castle below began slowly rising.
[By the way, the spy puppets I sent found plenty of materials from the Bright Spirits Lake to inject into the woman’s body. But the race that occupied the Bright Spirits Lake is quite strong. It’s the Cold Spirit Race. They have a Core Formation monk living in the Bright Spirits Lake, so they’re quite troublesome.]
“...What are you planning to do?”
Goe-gun spread both arms with eyes flashing as he shouted.
[What do you mean what? It’s war! I’ll conquer the Cold Spirit Race and anything else that gets in my way! If the world blocks me, I’ll conquer the world! Hihihihi! World conquest! World conquest! Let’s go! The method to make Core Formation puppets has stabilized, so from now on, I’ll go to war with the Cold Spirit Race!]
Ku-gugugu-gu!
From the Wondrous Castle, three full-fledged Core Formation-level powers erupted.
At the same time, the momentum of Goe-gun—who had undergone the previous heavenly tribulations in the past six months and reached Core Formation—covered heaven and earth.