The Twenty-Fifth Regression: Desperation in the Demon Realm
Whew!__
Consciousness returned.__
It was the same situation again.__
I panted heavily and looked around at my companions.__
Oh Hyun-seok was still wiping tears from his eyes and smiling. Kim Yeon kept her solemn face, with the white crow drawn on it. Jeon Myeong-hoon trembled as if his memories had resurfaced, while Seo Ran had returned to his main body. Hong Beom looked disoriented as he scanned his surroundings.__
“Quickly! Move!”__
I tore open the entrance to the Demon Realm using astral projection and summoning, tossing my companions through and trying to follow myself. But the moment my body crossed into the Demon Realm, it was violently repelled. At the same time, every ounce of my power was forcibly sealed.__
[: Waited. : ]__
Following the familiar voice.__
“Wait, just a moment! Chief Judge General…”__
Pow!__
Before I could even finish speaking, I was crushed flat. The last thing I remembered was just Yu Ho-deok’s single word.__
[: No matter what, the one who called [Him] from within my circle cannot be forgiven. : ]__
Consciousness plunged into darkness.__
That was my twenty-fourth regression.__
* * *__
The first moment of the twenty-fourth cycle!__
“Hah!”__
I shuddered violently and ground my teeth.__
I looked around again. It was exactly the same. My regression point had been fixed in its worst possible form!__
“No… I can’t…”__
I felt my mind go blank and clenched my teeth. ‘Time has been fixed.’ I had to find a way out. I needed a method to escape this situation. ‘First, don’t use astral projection.’__
I sealed all law power and spirit qi, hid my companions in the void space, and crouched in the darkness. The next instant.__
[: Waited. : ]__
“This damn…”__
Kwadok!__
That was my twenty-fifth regression.__
* * *__
The first moment of the twenty-fifth cycle. ‘Stay calm. First, accept that regression has been fixed. Find the best method.’__
I recalled Taesan’s warning to me. ‘A ferocious demon is waiting before me.’ Probably the thing he meant was exactly this—being trapped in the cycle of time. ‘He taught me how to defy destiny.’ Let me think about Taesan’s words.__
[: Waited. : ]__
“This… crap…”__
And before I could even think, Yu Ho-deok came. Kwadok!__
That was my twenty-sixth regression.__
* * *__
The first moment of the twenty-sixth cycle. ‘Hurry! As fast as possible!’ I recalled Taesan’s words. There was no time to think calmly! -Remember that destiny is always realized. The destiny prophesied by the True Immortals is something that must be realized. Yu Ho-deok prophesied my destiny of inevitably meeting him again. Therefore, that destiny must be realized. -If you reach this realm, you can break the prophecy head-on, but that’s impossible right now, so I have to give you a shortcut. Listen carefully, you fool. The way to defy destiny is simple. If there is a destiny that the universe will be destroyed, the way to trace it is to raise a slave called “Universe” and kill that “Universe.” Then destiny will be realized somehow, and you can escape the absolute nature of destiny by forcing this world that you did not defy it. That is the way to mock and defy destiny. Kwadok! I immediately cut off my own arm and made a cursed beast. What? The cursed beast rolled its eyes as if it couldn’t understand the situation, and I shouted at it. “From now on, you are Yu Ho-deok.” “?” “Now we’ve met! Is that good!? I’m going!” I opened the gate to the Demon Realm with my companions. My companions reached the Demon Realm. And I was repelled. Twung! “Hah… hah… Ugh…” Sweating coldly, I looked back. [: Waited. : ] There was the guy again. That was my twenty-seventh regression. * * * The first moment of the twenty-seventh cycle. I realized I was a fool. ‘There was no time to think calmly, so I acted too hastily.’ But even if there is no time, failure is failure, and it still brings growth. Taesan’s words came to mind again. -Of course, a True Immortal-level existence won’t allow such a sloppy loophole. For example, if you raise a slave called “Universe,” if that slave only has the name of the universe and nothing else, there is a high probability that identity will not be tolerated. So to slip past destiny through such a sacrifice, you must at least bring a “small universe.” If it truly has the essence identical to the entire Heavenly Realm, you can realize destiny somehow. [: Waited. : ] “…Give me some time to recall the past. Twenty-eight…” Pudok! That was my twenty-eighth regression. * * * Twenty-eighth cycle. I had no choice but to recall Taesan’s “whisper” even faster within the limited time. -Therefore, the way to defy destiny is to realize that destiny perfectly on a small scale. Then, since you have experienced that destiny once, you will develop tolerance for it, so it will not be easy to experience it twice… That is the only way to defy destiny at your level. In short, it is a kind of “protective charm.” Stepping in a pile of shit and falling into a small misfortune, preventing you from falling into an even greater misfortune, like a protective spell. And with such a protective charm, just as I have developed tolerance after seeing and indirectly meeting the “upper existence” a few times, I would develop tolerance for the same destiny and be able to escape destiny. It was like the gods couldn’t destroy the world twice with the prophecy of the great flood. -Of course, that still requires at least Star Plate level ability. “…What are you supposed to do?” -I have told you everything. Survive. And die at my hand. That marked the end of my memory of Taesan’s advice. “Hah…” What am I supposed to do? [: Waited. : ] “Wait, sir…” Kwadok! ‘Completely… same essence… on a small scale… realize destiny…’ That was my twenty-ninth regression. * * * Twenty-ninth cycle. Twung! The moment the cycle began, I immediately flung my companions toward the Star Realm, then moved to the Demon Realm myself. “Ha, ha ha, ha ha ha ha!!!” I roared with joy. “Success!!!” I had separated from my companions, but the moment the cycle began, without hesitation, I was the first to enter the Demon Realm and succeeded in arriving. According to Baek-woon’s explanation, the Demon Realm was in fact identical to Yu Ho-deok. The destiny of ‘meeting Yu Ho-deok’ had been realized…. “For now, if I can just move to the lower realm or another middle realm…” And. The sky of the Demon Realm turned red. [: Interesting. : ] In fact, we were originally one body. Even though we had separated, since we were the same existence, I thought the destiny of ‘meeting again’ had been realized. ‘…Is it because the names are different?’ Names carry meaning. The existence that had been Yu Ho-deok was renamed to Yu Ho-deok, and that name had also changed. Therefore, the Demon Realm is not the same existence as Yu Ho-deok. [: I waited for you. You called [Him]. The one who called Him cannot be forgiven…. : ] ‘But even while doing that, it is a world where intervention can be made at any time because we were originally the same existence…’ I felt an overwhelming despair and clenched my teeth as I pulled out my final means of survival. “Sulleon will soon be true… a small amount of salt…” Kwadok! That was my thirtieth regression. * * * Thirtieth cycle. “Hee, hee… hee hee…!” From the thirtieth cycle onward, I felt my sanity slipping away. It was terrifying. There was no answer. How was I supposed to escape from here? I felt that even running to the ends of the universe, that existence could follow me. ‘I cannot use the Dharma-Destroying True Word.’ It dies before it activates. No, even if it activates, the gap between Taesan and me is too great, and not even the Heavenly Realm but the human realm and its vicinity could be destroyed. “Destruction of the Universe…” I activated another shortcut to defeat destiny, the Myeonsingeobcheon. Reversed clouds of calamity cover the sky and block destiny! [: Do you know how many times I have been hit by lightning? : ] Poof! A red world rushes over me, piercing the clouds of calamity. [: Waited for a long time. : ] Kwadddeuk! That was my thirty-first regression. * * * Thirty-first cycle. “Hah…! Ha, ha ha! Hahaha ha ha ha ha!!!” I laughed madly. Everything felt despairing, just like when everything had been destroyed in front of Taesan. When I was tortured by Yeongseung, I managed to recall my memories at the ‘last moment,’ but even among countless regressions, I had lost ‘my own’ memories, so it had not been this despairing. But this time, I clearly felt that there was truly no answer. I was trapped in this timeline. “Hwa ha! Hwa ha ha ha ha ha!” [: Waited. : ] “Hwa aaaa aaaa!!!” Kwadok! That was my thirty-second regression. * * * Thirty-second cycle. “Hwa aaaa aaaa!!!” I squeezed out all my strength and rushed at Yu Ho-deok. I only screamed and died. That was my thirty-third regression. … Thirty-third cycle. Thirty-fourth cycle. Thirty-fifth cycle. “You bastard! Do you know who I am! I am the chief judge general of the Underworld’s…” Ppaddeuk, ppaadduudeudeuk! Trying to impersonate the existence of the Underworld with the strengthened aura of death, I died the most painfully so far. That was my thirty-sixth regression. … Sixty-second cycle. Sixty-third cycle. Sixty-fourth cycle. “Jeong-ryeo, Jeong-ryeo, Jeong-ryeo! Yeongseung! Yeongseung! Yeongseung! You bastards! Let anyone come here for a moment! Quickly!!! Please!!!” That was my sixty-fifth regression. … Two hundred twenty-second cycle. Two hundred twenty-third cycle. Two hundred twenty-fourth cycle. “Hehe, Yu Ho-deok. Do you know who I am? The one sent by… the [oldest one]…” [: Who dares to use a false title? : ] Ziiing! Chi ji ji ji jik! I died experiencing all the pain possible in a human body, and all the pain possible in the bodies of the Gwanghan Realm and Demon Realm and Yu Ho-deok’s soul beings. That was my two hundred fifty-fifth regression. * * * ‘What cycle was this again?’ I remembered. Now it was already the five hundredth cycle. I felt a headache and thought. Even while dying repeatedly, I thought. ‘I have tried every method and every power I could use in these five hundred times.’ I had even called Jeong-ryeo, Yeongseung, or even the Bright Eight Lights that Baek-woon had called. But the time given to me was too short. No matter what I did, I died in an instant. ‘Confrontation is impossible.’ Even the “way to defy destiny” Taesan told me cannot be attempted unless you reach Star Plate level. However, I was not even a Seongban; I was not even a Shua-seong. Martial cultivation realm was Heok-gong-bun, but… “…Wait.” I recalled upon my five hundred fifty-eighth death. ‘Can I do it?’ I organized the newly thought idea and clenched my teeth. I had even begged Yu Ho-deok for help, but it didn’t work and I died even more painfully. Asking someone for help could not break this situation. ‘I need to raise my realm.’ Right now. I must combine the realms of Heaven and Earth to reach Shua-seong! Wadok! Six hundred twelfth death. ‘If I turn the Heavenly Earth Heart into Shua-seong, the Triple Taiji will be exerted.’ In addition, within my domain, there was already an artificial star created by Goe-gun. ‘When I reach Shua-seong, I can strike the Heavenly Earth Heart Beast!’ Then… Perhaps it was possible to exert power at the Star Shattering level, which is the same as Star Plate level. ‘Climb to Shua-seong, defy destiny with the power of Star Plate, and break through head-on.’ Head-on breakthrough. What remained for me was only that. I continued to swallow the recipe from Elixir Cultivation to Shua-seong for the sake of head-on breakthrough in endless death. Seven hundredth cycle! I lit up with eyes and completed the ritual. ‘From now on…’ I will begin the Shua-seong promotion ceremony.