Day One of the Fifth Cycle
I opened my eyes and immediately smelled that familiar scent.
It was the forest of Deungsunhyang.
*I’ve regressed again.*
Before Jeon Myeong-hoon could even say a word, I pressed my fingers deep into his sleep acupoint and knocked him out cold.
*I wonder if the prince managed to cut it.*
It had felt like my body moved, but I couldn’t be sure.
*Did I even help at all…?*
I never thought a master would possess such a thing.
After all, even martial artists usually hid at least thirty percent of their true strength, and those who hid their ultimate techniques were common. There was no reason a master shouldn’t have some hidden method.
*From the fact that he hadn’t used it at the very end, it looked like something external rather than his own power. Probably a kind of magical artifact.*
From now on, when dealing with masters, I would first check for any hidden techniques before acting.
I sorted my thoughts while feeling new vitality surging through every part of my body.
The regression was undeniable.
*In my last life… I reached the realm of Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown.*
It was the achievement I had dreamed of for so long.
And it was also the goal I had sworn to accomplish in that previous existence.
Yet…
*I died far too soon.*
In every life before this one, death had come exactly at the end of my allotted lifespan.
I had lived nearly fifty years, gradually gathering and ascending my understanding.
But in my last life, I had died before my time.
*How unfortunate.*
If I had lived for several more decades and deepened my insights further, perhaps I could have reached Five Qi Consorting with the Origin.
*…Ah, no point in regretting it now.*
I let out a small sigh and shook my head.
It was already over.
The miracle of obtaining another life was itself a blessing, and I offered a quiet thanks for this new existence.
“Eh? Agent Seo. Master Jeon wouldn’t wake up no matter how I called him. Where are we…?”
Kim Young-hoon and Chief Oh Hyun-seok held Jeon Myeong-hoon, their faces pale with shock.
“I have some knowledge of traditional medicine. Let me check his pulse.”
“Really? I trust you!”
I pretended to feel his pulse, then pressed my own acupoint to knock him out again.
“Mmm…? Here…”
Before the man could regain his senses, I applied the sleep point once more.
“He seems to have just dozed off. He must have been carrying quite a bit of fatigue.”
“Is that so? Thank goodness.”
“No, he should have been woken up. We don’t even know the situation…”
I pointed at a large tree nearby, watching as the bewildered expressions of Kim Young-hoon and Oh Hyun-seok played out.
“I’ll climb up there for a moment to check what’s around us.”
“Wha…?”
Ignoring their bewildered replies, I walked to the tree and unfolded the true form of Mountain Lord and Moon Rock’s True Body I had learned in my last life.
*Mountain Lord Moon Rock.*
I leaped branch to branch like a tiger crossing a great mountain, ascending and descending the tree in seconds.
“Wow… Agent Seo, you’re incredible.”
“When did you learn that?”
“Haha…”
I explained that nothing dangerous lurked nearby, then guided them into the cave and set up a windbreak and campfire.
While preparing the fire, I continued to harvest the insights of Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown.
*To remain in constant communication with the opponent.*
When I had just entered the realm, I could only communicate with my opponents in battle. But the more familiar I became, the more I realized I could also connect with the consciousnesses of my allies or the spiritual beasts I raised.
*And when this ability reaches its peak…*
I would eventually read not only plants and inanimate objects but the countless consciousnesses flowing through the world itself, achieving communication with the world.
*That might be the realm of Five Qi Consorting with the Origin.*
I smiled faintly while vaguely imagining the peak realm.
Suddenly, laughter burst from my chest.
“Haha! Hahahaha!”
Chief Oh Hyun-seok, gathering firewood for the campfire, turned to me with a puzzled expression.
“Why are you laughing?”
“Ah, it’s just… something a little funny crossed my mind.”
I had always thought the peak of Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown was the absolute end.
But it was only the beginning of the path to Five Qi Consorting with the Origin.
*Five Qi Consorting with the Origin would be the same.*
The end is merely the start of the next journey.
I was still so weak.
Yet…
*One day, I will reach it.*
That was what the word “start” meant.
My goal in this life was, of course, Five Qi Consorting with the Origin!
Only one step remained until I became a true master.
* * *
Night had fallen.
My colleagues were all asleep.
Jeon Myeong-hoon, who had slept deeply all day, tried to wake up, but I struck his nape again and knocked him out.
I left my companions behind and stepped outside the cave to dig up and eat the wild ginseng, replenishing my inner energy.
Then I selected a suitable branch, sharpened it, and made a sword.
Whoong—
When I circulated my inner energy through the blade, a dazzling Sword Gang formed on it.
It was not the solid body I had forged in my previous life.
Yet my grip no longer hurt even when I gripped it tightly.
*Perfect. This is what a new life feels like.*
The life felt right after death, right when it seemed everything was over, was the most precious thing in the world.
I closed my eyes for a moment and observed my own body.
Then I looked at the Sword Gang and inhaled the scent carried on the breeze.
*That direction.*
Tat!
Unfolding Mountain Lord Moon Rock, I leaped onto the tree and ran swiftly through the branches, following the scent.
Whoosh!
With each step, the trees flashed past me like they were running beside me.
That scent was unforgettable.
And in the distance, I saw a vast consciousness domain.
There.
A fox.
Zit, zit!
When I examined the fox’s consciousness domain with my naked eye, tension rippled through my entire body.
The domain was more than thirty zhang in radius, centered on the fox.
*Core Formation level…!*
Now I could roughly judge the opponent’s realm by the size of their consciousness domain.
In my last life, I had seen the consciousness domain of a Jin Clan master at the Core Formation realm, and it had been roughly this size.
Whoong—
Maintaining the perception of a Peak martial artist, I observed the fox’s domain glowing with purple light.
At that moment, the fox sensed something strange and opened its eyes.
Shuk!
I hurriedly forged my intent and severed the fox’s recognition, then used the Void Recognition Law to erase my presence.
The fox looked around, but finding nothing unusual, closed its eyes again and returned to sleep.
*It was fortunate that I was still far outside the domain.*
If I had been inside, I would have had no way out.
Unlike the sparse awareness of a Qi Condensation master, the consciousness of a being at the Core Formation level was dense and profound.
It would have been almost impossible to find a gap and slip through unnoticed.
*…As expected, the fox is still beyond my reach.*
The size difference was too vast.
*Before I could even kill it, I would need to reach Five Qi Consorting with the Origin just to escape.*
Before that, I wouldn’t even be able to pry open the dense consciousness gap.
*…First, I need to train a bit more in the Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown realm.*
I stared at the enormous purple consciousness domain floating before me and focused my awareness.
A while later, the purple domain began to shift toward red, and I could clearly distinguish my intent from the fox’s.
Even at the Three Flowers Gathering at the Crown realm, intent might appear purple, but by consciously controlling it, I could perceive the separation into red and blue.
After experimenting with combining and separating the purple, blue, and red intents, I slowly descended back to the ground.
Then I took a step toward the fox.
Shuk!
As I stepped forward, I simultaneously severed the fox’s recognition again.
Another step.
Another step.
I drew closer and closer to the fox’s consciousness domain, constantly sharpening my own intent.
*I cannot enter the inner part of the domain. But… I can get as close as possible!*
How close could I get to the fox?
The boundary of a consciousness domain seemed to define the space it controlled, but the boundary itself was not clear.
Even if it appeared divided to a Peak master’s eyes, faint consciousness continued to flow beyond it.
I would cut through that faint consciousness and approach the fox.
*What level am I?*
How far could I go?
Where exactly did I stand now!
This was both a chance to test myself and an opportunity to understand and train with the Wansuigungmurok technique.
Whoong! Whoong!
My sword sliced through the air, cutting the faint gap in the fox’s awareness.
With every step, cold sweat poured down my body.
With every cut that split a countless number of consciousness gaps, my heart pounded with tension.
*No, I can do more.*
But I took another step.
Only thirty bo remained until the fox’s domain.
It was when I took another step, cutting through the consciousness gap.
Whoowhoong—
The fox’s consciousness stirred.
Something felt off.
I hurriedly poured all my focus into the cut and severed the consciousness gap, then withdrew from the fox’s recognition range.
*Too far…*
If it had been Kim Young-hoon from my last life, he would have crossed this distance in a single breath and entered the inner part of the domain.
But this was my limit.
Twenty-nine steps into the proper consciousness domain. That was my current level.
*No, that can’t be it.*
But I gritted my teeth.
*I can go further.*
With all my strength and focus, I saw even more gaps.
And I swung the sword again, sweat pouring down.
Whoosh!
The intent on the blade cut another gap.
*Is this really my limit?*
What then?
My limit had always been far below this.
I hadn’t even been able to get close to the fox; I had spent my days waiting in the cave like an easy target.
I had jumped beyond my limit again and again to reach this point.
This time, I would surpass my limit as well.
*Brain power!*
Until my brain burned out!
I was already familiar with the Peak realm, so it felt comfortable now.
But in the beginning, when I first ascended to the Peak, I had constantly felt as if my brain was on fire!
It felt like my brain was burning.
The countless gaps in consciousness became even more detailed.
I took another step.
The distance to the inner part of the fox’s domain shrank.
Twenty-seven bo.
Twenty-five bo.
Twenty-two bo.
Twenty bo.
Fifteen bo.
And then…
*Ten bo!*
The excessive burden on my brain caused it to scream.
My muscles and body contracted in the tension that exceeded my limits.
*One more step and I’ll be caught.*
The next step would take me to the place where the fox’s consciousness was subtly leaking out.
One more step and I might be discovered.
*…What the hell.*
Sweat poured down my body like rain, yet I actually grinned.
*If I can take one more step, I’d be fine even if I died.*
My flesh screamed in madness.
It felt as if blood was rushing to my brain.
*If I want to live, I have to squeeze out more power!*
I was slow.
So when the opportunity came, I had to drain my abilities to the point of death or I would never advance.
I couldn’t advance without dying!
Blood flooded my brain.
At the same time, I took half a bo forward.
Half a bo.
Originally I needed to take one full bo, but my body instinctively blocked me from going any farther.
Yet…
*I surpassed my limit.*
I hadn’t been caught.
The fox was still sleeping, and my body had gone far beyond the spot I had thought was my limit.
I smiled wickedly, silenced my footsteps, and retreated while constantly cutting the fox’s awareness with my sword.
*This is where it ends in this life.*
In the next life, I would go even deeper.
Completely outside the fox’s influence, I ran back toward the cave, lost in thought.
*Next time, even more…*
I will go even deeper!
Shlurp…
Upon reaching the cave, blood poured from my nose.
It was probably from overloading my brain so much.
Yet despite the exhaustion threatening to make me collapse, I laughed with my teeth bared.
“Haha, hahahahaha!”
This life.
The very first day I had awakened.
I had once again surpassed my limit!
By constantly surpassing my limits, I would definitely reach the next realm!
Fifth regression.
The realm of Five Qi Consorting with the Origin now seemed right before my eyes.