The Fallen Moth
‘Is she a future Heavenly King?’
I recalled the words I had heard before upon hearing the term Heavenly King.
‘The Seven Flame Kings of the Buddha Path.’
The concept of Heavenly King first emerged from Tae Yeol-jeon’s lips.
The Seven Great Bodhisattvas of Buddhism, each of whom bore the title Heavenly King at the end of their names.
‘So that’s what she means?’
I quickly turned my thoughts over in my head.
‘She’s calling me a future Heavenly King… Is that simply a point one could reach by becoming a Heavenly King?’
Even a rough calculation showed me the answer.
Of the Seven Flame Kings, the one symbolizing unity—the Cold Lunar Heavenly King—ruled the Gwanghan Realm.
He was a Heavenly King in name and in essence.
And from everything I had heard in the rumors, Gwang-han was most likely a Terminating One as well.
Therefore, her words of ‘future Heavenly King’ most likely meant another way of referring to a Terminating One.
‘In a way, she is reaching out for a clue about the Terminating Ones.’
I could not afford to be careless.
I quickly checked my current state to prepare for any emergency against Yu-o.
‘My body is gone. I am currently nothing but a soul.’
It seemed that during the pull into the Underworld, I had been briefly tossed in front of Yu-o’s holy ground through the Seopmyeong Ship.
Thanks to that, I could only be a mere powerful entity of soul, possessing only the consciousness domain of Star Shattering Void Refinement.
‘I cannot pull up my original body’s strength through the Chongcheon-geom’s power…’
I clicked my tongue inwardly while confirming Yu-o’s spatial domain.
Even if I adjusted my position and pulled the original body’s strength, I felt that her space itself was sealed in a place where it could not do such a thing.
‘In an emergency, I might escape through the Formless Void Shattering realm or some profound art, but I have no idea how powerful her combined power with the Myeong-gwi Realm has become… I cannot be reckless.’
The reason I had shown my fangs to Baek-woon right after reaching Formless Void Shattering was because she had already suffered a wound from Yang Su-jin.
At the same time, Jeon Myeong-hoon stood beside me, ready to unleash Yang Su-jin’s power at any moment.
That was why I had felt it worthwhile to clash with the Saintess even if only for a moment.
‘But… is she truly a Saintess?’
A vague, ominous premonition without beginning or end rose from the Yu-o before me.
At the same time, I sensed some kind of déjà vu, but I could not recall what it was.
‘In any case, dealing with her recklessly is certainly a dangerous thing.’
I swallowed hard and gazed at the teacup in front of me.
The faint scent of plum wafted out. It was clearly plum tea, a specialty of the Myeong-gwi Realm.
‘Black plum tea, then.’
It was the seed that grew in the jurisdiction of the Black Ghost Valley’s Black Ghost Palace, the most popular plum variety in the Myeong-gwi Realm.
And because of that, living people who ate it suffered heart attacks from its extreme sourness.
Slurp.
‘Not bad.’
I drank the black plum tea and glanced alternately between Yu-o and Seo Ran.
“I am grateful for your hospitality with this fine tea.”
“It is I who am grateful that you enjoyed the meager tea. I would have personally brewed something far better for you, but the situation forced me to make do. It is my only regret.”
“Haha, you humble yourself too much. This is already an excellent tea….”
“I only offer thanks for the excessive praise.”
“Since the topic has come up… I would be grateful if you could spare just a little of this fine tea for my friend Seo Ran as well.”
I looked at Seo Ran, who was trembling like a cypress tree and said it.
“I would be grateful if you would ease your divine pressure on my friend a little. He is still only at the Four Pillars stage, so it seems difficult for him to endure the Saintess’s authority.”
While sipping the black plum tea, I asked her to stop the pressure on Seo Ran at the level where it would not make her uncomfortable.
Yu-o tilted her head with a puzzled expression.
“Hmm… What strange words you speak, young one. I have done nothing to that child. It was the Seopmyeong Ship’s power that brought the Venerable and his own soul into the inner part of my palace. Meeting the two of you here was not part of my plan, nor was it included in it, so I had no opportunity to take any action.”
“Umm….”
I looked at Seo Ran.
I could not read his thoughts or intent inside the palace; Yu-o had done something here that defied such analysis.
‘Then why…?’
“Seo Ran, what is it?”
Yet Seo Ran trembled even more like a cypress tree as if my words were not reaching him.
“Umm… It appears a profound art has been placed to protect his mental balance. Perhaps because he was too close to such a great existence, the profound art developed a flaw. That must be the cause.”
“Umm….”
I remembered Gwagwam striking Seo Ran’s abdomen and placing the profound art.
‘The Mount Tai profound art had been protecting his mind, and then Hyeol-eum’s appearance caused a crack in that profound art…’
“Fortunately, the profound art I know can be mended. It is fate that we meet here, so I shall mend it for you.”
Tap!
Yu-o flicked her fingers. The surrounding qi shifted around Seo Ran, and he immediately regained his senses.
“Huff… Ha… Ha….”
“Are you all right, Seo Ran?”
Seo Ran trembled like a cypress tree, then raised his head to look at Yu-o.
After staring at her for a moment, he bit his lip tightly.
“Who… is she exactly?”
“She is a Saintess of the Myeong-gwi Realm, called Yu-o.”
“In addition, she is also the current palace master of the Blue Bone Palace. Please treat me well, Seo junior brother.”
She smiled warmly upon seeing the black mourning robes Seo Ran wore.
But the next instant, words I had not expected spilled from Seo Ran’s mouth.
“Mother…?”
“…?”
“Mother…? Is it… you?”
I felt as if I had been slapped on the back of the head and looked alternately between Seo Ran and Yu-o.
‘What is this…? No, wait. If I remove the part of Seo Ran’s face that resembles Seo Hyoel… it almost looks like Yu-o?’
While staring at the two of them in utter shock,
Yu-o looked at Seo Ran with an interested expression and said,
“Hmm… What exactly are you saying, junior brother?”
Seo Ran replied with a bewildered face.
“When I reached the Nascent Soul realm, I also saw the moment I was born. It happened too quickly for me to see clearly, but… I remember my mother’s face clearly. And I once asked my master for a portrait of my mother. My mother’s name is Yu-o, a disciple of Black Ghost Valley. Her name and appearance are exactly the same as those of the Saintess.”
He looked up at Yu-o with an astonished expression and said,
“The Saintess… is not my mother…?”
Upon hearing those words, Yu-o’s Saintess showed a moment of thought before speaking.
“Hah… I have no children of my own. But perhaps I could have a child with Yu-o.”
“Eh…?”
Seo Ran and I stared at her, puzzled by what sounded like an absurd statement.
And then Yu-o suddenly turned her head.
“Eh…!?”
“Hah…”
Crunch, crunch, crack…
Both Seo Ran and I could only be surprised by her actions.
Of course; she had bent her neck completely around and turned her head 180 degrees.
But what was even more astonishing was not that.
“…!!!”
Where she had fully rotated her neck stood ‘another Yu-o.’
‘Another Yu-o’ was fast asleep with her eyes closed.
“It is a fact known to all the high-ranking members of the Myeong-gwi Realm, but… the term ‘Yu-o’ actually refers to ‘the two of us.’ I have two faces and two personalities. And we two alternate every few years, one sleeping while the other wakes and acts.”
Crack!
Yu-o turned her head counterclockwise once more, bringing the ‘awake’ face to face us.
“That is why… the ‘me’ who is awake now has no child. But perhaps the ‘other’ Yu-o who is sleeping now might have a child of her own.”
“Th-then… could you not wake the other person now?”
“Umm, that would be difficult. I have two personalities, and every few years they switch between sleep and activity according to my technique. This method balances yin and yang with two faces and draws closer to profound arts. If I suddenly wake you today, you would drift infinitely far from the profound arts.”
“That… I understand.”
Seo Ran sighed and lowered his head.
“Fufu, one day you will find your real family. I have two heads, so my intuition is twice as sharp. Believe me.”
Yu-o comforted Seo Ran gently, and
I thought why someone with only two heads would say such things, then suddenly realized I only had one head and felt ashamed, lowering my gaze slightly.
“Hah… Yes. When the other Saintess wakes, I will ask her again about your mother.”
“Y-yes.”
I cleared my throat and changed the subject. Yu-o then turned her gaze back to me.
“What is your relationship with the two of you?”
“Friends.”
“Friends, eh… I hope you get along well.”
“By the way, I have something to ask.”
I took another sip of the black plum tea and asked her with a serious face.
“What does the term ‘future Heavenly King’ mean?”
“As you would expect… it refers to the two of you. You must have guessed roughly? The Venerable Seo, the Rejector of Heaven?”
“…!”
I trembled slightly upon hearing the words.
Seo Ran looked at me with a puzzled expression, not knowing what Rejector of Heaven meant, and I stiffened my face, raising my tension as I continued.
“A Rejector of Heaven becoming a Heavenly King… does that mean the Seven Flame Kings are simply… referring to ‘us seven’?”
“Correct. Even the Cold Lunar Heavenly King, the Gwang-han Heavenly King, was famous in the distant past for screaming at the heavens during the Seven Stars Ceremony of the Qi Condensation realm.”
“……”
She was indirectly telling me that Gwang-han Heavenly King and the Seven Flame Kings were Terminating Ones.
“As you well know, the Seven Flame Kings of Buddhism are existences that shape the heart of existence. And you seven Rejectors of Heaven are the candidates to become such Heavenly Kings. Therefore, the Seven Flame Kings are ultimately existences that must practice mind cultivation. Although it has only been a short time… have you been doing mind cultivation well so far?”
“Short… I have only lived about 700 or 800 years, but that does not seem like such a short time.”
“Fufu… Time is not important. What matters is what kind of heart you experienced during that time. From my perspective, Venerable, it seems you have practiced mind cultivation quite well. I can sense traces of profound arts.”
“It is thanks to a connection that allowed me to meet a good master and learn well.”
Yu-o’s eyes sparkled as she asked me.
“I have suddenly become curious. I heard that you only recently became a Venerable, yet traces of the profound art of ‘Gye-ui’ are felt… Where exactly did you study and with whom?”
“I only studied with a good master in a good place. Of course, I cannot boast because I am not superior to you, the Saintess, but…”
Upon hearing my words, Yu-o sipped the black plum tea and her eyes gleamed.
“It seems you have no intention of telling me.”
“It would not do to say such a thing, but… we are meeting for the first time today, are we not? My master’s status is not something that can be casually revealed.”
“Meeting for the first time… Hah, well then… it seems I need more familiarity.”
She set down the teacup and said,
“Then I shall tell you one interesting story about the Heavenly Kings I know. Perhaps you could build a little more friendship while listening.”
“Hmm… What kind of story is it?”
Glug-glug—
Yu-o poured more black plum tea and laughed.
But I could not help but be startled by the words that came from her mouth.
“Falling into an ‘abnormal world,’ ‘having someone you love,’ ‘losing a loved one [inevitably],’ ‘realizing one’s destiny through that person’… I shall tell you the story of some moths, complete with the beginning, middle, and end.”
“……”
Even a fool could understand.
The ‘moths’ she was referring to now were ‘us.’
And I immediately sensed an oddity in her words.
‘Thinking about it… aren’t they all similar?’
Kim Young-hoon, Jeon Myeong-hoon, Kang Min-hee, Oh Hyun-seok, Kim Yeon… Oh Hye-seo was the one I could not read at all, but all of them had one thing in common—they had lost someone they loved.
With Kim Young-hoon, it had been his own wife.
‘Then why are they so similar…?’
While feeling some strange déjà vu, I focused on the story coming from Yu-o’s lips.
“Let me begin the story. Long, long ago, there lived a monster called Black Quartz.”