The Ghost King's Revelation
“What…!”
Something familiar surged through me with an almost audible hiss, giving me no chance to dodge. A foul presence slithered deep into my body.
Squelch, squelch!
All at once the world before my eyes shifted to a deep violet hue.
I clearly told you, Lord. All I needed from Bongrae-do was two things….
Kukukuku….
A cold, sinister laugh echoed beside my ear.
One of those things is your very body, you fool!
Twitch, twitch….
A nauseating phantom scent tickled my nose.
Before me, the Yin-Yang that I had once seen somewhere else began to stir.
An endless spiral of mixing and change, the Taiji, transformed into violet and poured straight into my mind.
And then Yuk Rin appeared in front of me.
He wore a lecherous smile, victory plain on his face.
Now, hand over your body! Hand over your realm, your memories, your enlightenment! You belong to me!!!
‘…This is.’
I observed the Purple Soul Filling the Heavens technique with lazy calm, my brows knitting together.
It was an utterly terrifying art, no doubt.
Even I, who had mastered every method taught by Cheongmun Ryeong, found it almost impossible to follow the changes with my eyes.
At best I could guess its fundamental characteristics.
‘Is it an art that steals the opponent’s flesh, dissects their memories, soul, abilities, and bloodlines, then accepts only what suits it while automatically expelling the rest…? In theory, if it can protect the opponent’s soul, it could evolve into a perfect being without end….’
Yet.
That was all there was to it.
Compared to the Takhon Mancheon that bore the name of an immortal technique…
It looked pitifully lukewarm.
Takhon Mancheon spread like a virus, infecting before the victim could even notice, silent and swift.
By contrast, Purple Soul Filling the Heavens spread at a pace slow enough to draw a yawn.
Comparing it to Seohul’s immortal technique was, in a sense, an insult to the pirate captain’s own completeness.
Still, I smiled faintly.
There was one thing I knew for certain.
[They share the same root as Takhon Mancheon.]
I could feel it in my core.
I even laughed while watching Yuk Rin, completely oblivious, in my inner world, a twisted smile on my lips.
[Finally…! I have the clue to Takhon Mancheon!]
Yuk Rin had been delighted at the thought of claiming my body, but he was wrong.
Rather, I had seized the very thread of Takhon Mancheon that he carried.
I moved my consciousness.
I could not use the energies of Bongrae Island or any other mystery here.
Even consciousness itself was useless, but my inner world belonged to my own will, so it was irrelevant.
[If you want my body, come and get it.]
[What…?]
The next instant I invited Yuk Rin’s consciousness into my inner world.
Once I reached Sitting Liberation and Standing Death, I could not only read the opponent’s mind but also invite anyone who had exchanged true intent with me into my inner world.
And the next moment.
[Gwaaaaah!!]
Yuk Rin’s tormented cry filled the air as his entire body was pierced by swords and he wailed in agony.
Yet, perhaps because he had bet his Integration Grand Completion throne, he ground his teeth and glared at me.
I turned my back on him and began the slow climb up the mountain.
Puck, puck!
The swords pierced my whole body as well, yet I ascended with perfect calm and ease.
[If you want my body, catch up to me. Then we will fight at that time.]
***
Yuk Rin’s pupils shook violently.
At first he had thought it was merely a glass sword mountain in his mind.
But he felt it.
The deeper he sank into Purple Soul Filling the Heavens, the closer the essence of this sword mountain world poured into his brain.
By the power of the art, the world’s form was peeled away layer by layer, and the true appearance of Seo Eun-hyun’s consciousness slammed into Yuk Rin’s mind.
Whoosh-whoosh-whoosh-
Flames blazed everywhere.
The stench of sulfur filled the air, and the sky was swallowed by pitch-black smoke.
[Hic… haaack…!]
He clenched his teeth and gasped for air in the acrid atmosphere.
[After all… as the demon lord from the Ghost Realm… I thought you were either mad or a monster drenched in the dao of the true man…]
Plop… plop….
Blood dripped from every pore of his body.
He staggered and took a step forward, trembling.
Puck!
His entire frame was impaled again.
Yuk Rin ground his teeth and looked up the mountain at the being ahead.
[This… is even more insane than I thought.]
Plop… splat, splat….
Blood poured from that being as well.
And it flowed down the mountain, soaking the sword ground where Yuk Rin stood.
He shuddered and looked down beneath his feet.
Countless corpses lay there.
Every last one belonged to the same being.
The Demon Lord Seo Eun-hyun.
Every corpse of his wore the same agonized, tragic expression as it died.
Yuk Rin trembled with terror.
[What… exactly are you?]
Beneath his feet were, without a doubt, Seo Eun-hyun.
He could feel it.
Because Purple Soul Filling the Heavens was an art that could dissect a victim’s memories and history, it excelled at uncovering the true essence of the opponent.
He could clearly sense it.
The countless ‘Seo Eun-hyun’ laid out on the ground before him were the true Seo Eun-hyun.
But then, why did the true ones die in such numbers and scatter across the mountain floor, while the one now climbing the mountain was something else entirely?
‘That something’ emitted a faint light, so in the dark sword mountain world it looked like a small swarm of lights climbing the black mountain.
[I… cannot give up…!]
Yuk Rin’s eyes blazed with fury.
[You monster who has trained the power of Bongrae… that power is mine…!]
He endured the impaling swords and chased after the figure ahead.
And at some point the shape of ‘that something’ became clear in his vision.
It had seemed wrapped in light.
But it was no longer light.
It was a charcoal lump in the shape of a human.
Chi-chi-chi-
It burned in the residual flames,
shedding ash and charcoal from its body,
yet smiling in an eerie, serene way, as if its face were calm.
Yes, that thing was a ghost.
Yuk Rin panted heavily.
Through his dealings with Jin Ma-yeol of the Tuma Pirates he had learned about the mental world.
And he had learned that the mental world revealed the true nature of its owner without filter.
Then, what exactly was the thing climbing the mountain while its body was impaled by swords and still wearing a human shape?
That thing was a dead man.
And at the same time a monster.
More insane than the greedy monster Yuk Rin considered himself.
Yuk Rin thought.
‘I must kill this Demon Lord. No, at the very least seal him.’
Instinct told him.
Although the outer appearance was still fairly human, this charcoal monster was the most dangerous creature in the Goryeok Realm right now.
Every time he took a step on the sword mountain, even the Integration Grand Completion Emperor felt as if his soul would tear apart from the pain.
Yet Yuk Rin clenched his teeth and followed the charcoal monster.
‘I must destroy that thing. I must destroy it!’
From the very core of his instinct rose a fear he had never felt before, terrifying in its intensity.
That thing had to be stopped.
If he failed… death was the only outcome!
And finally, even as his mind began to slip, Yuk Rin caught up to the charcoal lump.
And he reached out his hand toward it.
Then he realized his mistake.
[Gwaaaaaaaa!!!]
The instant his fingertips brushed the charcoal body.
Yuk Rin screamed in agony as if his entire frame were burning.
The pain would not stop!
The residual flames rising from the charcoal had not clung to him.
They were flames meant only to burn the charcoal itself.
But at the same time Yuk Rin understood.
If he wanted to devour and absorb Seo Eun-hyun through the technique, the same flames would attach to him.
He had entered this world to consume Seo Eun-hyun and had finally touched that hot charcoal lump.
He now shared its agony with the man.
He finally understood.
[What are you…?]
The charcoal turned to look at him.
Instinctively he knew.
[What are you…! You monster…! How… how can a living being endure such pain?! Even the immortals could not bear this pain so easily… what exactly is this fire?! How is it possible to survive inside this karma?!]
This charcoal was not human.
Nor was it an ordinary mortal.
Not even a true man’s follower!
If it had been granted the fate of a mortal like him, it could never have endured such pain in its right mind!
The charcoal looked at Yuk Rin.
The first to retreat was Yuk Rin, who had come to absorb and dismantle the charcoal with Purple Soul Filling the Heavens.
[Go, go away, you monster…! Gwaaaaa!]
Yuk Rin forgot the swords impaling him and fled from the charcoal lump.
It had been painful.
It was not the impalement itself, but the lingering heat of the fire that burned away his very soul after just one touch.
No, it had been worse than any karma technique he had endured while alive!
He had to escape!
The farther he got from that monster, the sooner the pain would vanish!
He ran down the mountain.
[I… I have to escape…! I have to escape here!]
Half out of his mind with pain, Yuk Rin descended to the foot of the mountain.
When he reached the base, it seemed the edge of the mental world had come into view.
He rolled his eyes and threw himself toward the exit of the mind.
And.
Splat!
[…!]
At the foot of the mountain, between the swords, the corpses of Seo Eun-hyun rose as one and seized Yuk Rin.
Yuk Rin screamed at the blood-soaked corpses.
[Let… let me go! Release me!!! Let me go! Hic, huaaaaah! Hurry!!! This thing!!!]
He turned around.
The thing he had descended from was coming down.
The charcoal monster was descending the sword mountain toward him.
Even using Purple Soul Filling the Heavens to shake off the corpses’ hands, the corpses would not let go.
Crack-crack-crack-crack-crack-crack-
Crack-crack-crack-crack-
Crack-crack-crack-crack-
Crack-crack-crack-crack-crack-
It was truly a hell diagram!
Yuk Rin writhed in agony and, teeth clenched, exploded his spiritual body.
This was the only way to escape!
Boom!
His spiritual body burst apart, and in the end the hands of Seo Eun-hyun could do nothing but release him.
The charcoal monster merely watched the scene in silence.
***
I opened my eyes.
When reality returned, there before me was Yuk Rin, clutching his own head and panting in his original body.
“Purple Soul Filling the Heavens… thank you. Thanks to you I obtained a most interesting technique.”
Because he had self-destructed his spiritual body inside my mind to escape, I had gained the core of Purple Soul Filling the Heavens from that fragment of his soul.
I would study it properly later.
He looked up at me, grinding his teeth.
“What… exactly are you?”
“Hmm?”
“How… did charcoal… charcoal… that… that hot… gwaaaaa!”
Yuk Rin furrowed his brows as if he had seen something in my mind and moaned in pain.
‘Did he touch the karma for a moment?’
Charcoal… what on earth was that supposed to mean.
Probably the pain had been too much and he had hallucinated.
“You are far too dramatic.”
I chuckled and rose from the throne, kicking him in the ribs.
The karma in his body had already been weakening and nearly extinguished.
Now it was nothing but residual flames, yet he acted as if he had touched even that and collapsed in drama.
‘After all, the fire that only burns me will not cling to anyone else unless it completely devours me.’
But he still seemed unable to recover from the shock of the karma’s pain, trembling and barely able to stand.
I stepped forward in my royal robes and stomped on his neck.
“Purple Soul Filling the Heavens… quite a profound work, yet it seems lacking compared to its higher counterpart.”
I asked the trembling Yuk Rin.
“So, what is your true goal? Tell me your true goal.”
Yuk Rin shook violently in agony, coughed, then began to laugh.
“Ha, hahaha… ahahaha…! Goal…?”
“…”
I delved into his mind, guessing his true intention, and suddenly shivered.
Uuuuung-
His strength was returning.
More precisely, the ‘core’ I had been sleeping outside this formation had connected to his body!
Tsu-tsu-tsu-tsu-
It seemed that by inheriting the throne and completing my true intent, the memories of those who had not been able to recall them until now began to return, and at the same time they began to regain their power just as I had.
And I stepped harder on Yuk Rin’s neck.
He was trying to do something!
“What… are you scheming?!”
“The question… was wrong, you monster.”
He smiled lewdly and, enduring the pain, looked up at me.
“It has already begun!”
***
In the Angry Dragon Sea Area.
In the vast open sky just below the horizon where all light had vanished, a man named Wiyun was concluding a blood pact with a crimson blood demon qi.
She extended her hand toward the sky as she sealed the pact.
And at some point.
Kuuuuuru!
A vast formation unfolded in the air, and the phantom of Angry Dragon Island appeared in the center of the Angry Dragon Sea Area.
The Deep Sea Island that had hidden beneath the legs of Jeongryong Island.
And at the center of that phantom, a phantom of a massive sea dragon raised its body.
From the actual Angry Dragon Island, using Wiyun and the sea area itself as a medium, the sea dragon’s phantom transmitted power and revealed a projection in its place.
Kugugugugu!
Passing by Wiyun, half out of her mind from the blood demon qi, the sea dragon flew swiftly and stopped in a corner of the Angry Dragon Sea Area.
A corner of the sea where the water was split apart.
The projection of the sea dragon that had climbed upon it.
The current Jeongryong Princess who had taken the flesh of the late Angry Dragon Palace Lord Yuk Ung.
The body of Yuk Rin’s true form began to use its power.
Kugugugugugu!
When he clenched his fist, the split deep sea of the Goryeok Realm began to slowly close.
Yuk Rin was beneath the split sea.
He smiled as he communed with his clone on Bongrae Island.
[So… it’s done. If I had obtained even the Demon Lord who trained the power of Bongrae, it would have been perfect, but there is no need to be greedy. I need only obtain what I truly desire…]
Yuk Rin’s eyes split vertically as he looked down at the Bongrae Island below.
The time for morning had come, and the world was gradually returning to light.
Bongrae Island shone brightly as the formation acted upon it, and at the center of Bongrae Island the palace built on the summit of the Salt Mountain using the Salt Crystal shone as well.
[Even the imperial art that the late Angry Dragon Palace Lord Yuk Ung, who had reached only the small achievement of Integration Grand Completion, could only barely master, the Salt Sea Return Dew Jade! The power to control the hegemony of ancient energy is finally complete today!]
The attraction of Yuk Rin’s true body poured toward the palace made of Salt Crystal.
Kudududuk!
The palace connected to the Salt Mountain began to be pulled out.