Chapter 342: Comeback (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 342: Comeback (2)
Crack.
A strange, aggressive sound echoed around me.
But it wasn't just the noise. My entire body felt as if it were being compressed, squeezed without mercy.
Ughhhh.
The pressure mounted, bringing waves of searing pain. I couldn’t even open my mouth—all I could do was scream inside my own mind.
How long had it been? I had no idea. Time had lost all meaning.
Goddammit. Seriously.
Regret washed over me as the agony dragged on. Entering that place had made me nauseous, but leaving… this was a whole new level of suffering. It didn’t compare to anything I’d felt in my past life. Back then, crossing over had only made me queasy. This time was completely different.
Had I underestimated the warning I’d been given?
—Apostle.
That was what the World Tree had called me after finishing its tale.
—You will experience great pain upon returning. Be prepared for that.
—I’ve already been through it once. That much is nothing, I’d replied smugly.
Now, I deeply regretted those words.
“Experienced,” my ass…!
This was torture on an entirely different scale. And why was it taking so long to return?
Even as the thought crossed my mind, I shook my head internally.
Maybe this is the weight of all my burdens.
I thought I understood why, based on what the World Tree had told me. It said the world it resided in was a false one—an Abyss created to punish it. No one should have been able to enter or leave freely. Not that I’d known that at the time.
Still, I went there to uncover hidden truths and deal with Jang Seonyeon. The crucial part was the difference in time flow: a few years there amounted to only days in the real world. I needed that. I had to make the most of my time there, since I wouldn’t be able to return once I left.
That extra time was vital. I was struggling to break through my limits—I simply needed more time to train.
After my conversation with the World Tree, I made a request: time to train within that world. With all I had consumed, the experience from my past life, and the body I had rebuilt from scratch, I was fully prepared. Yet for some reason, I still couldn’t overcome the next wall. I had to.
Training felt like my only answer, so I turned to the Abyss as a last resort. I intended to brute-force my way to the next level, using its distorted time to my advantage.
The World Tree accepted. I began training immediately.
Even though it was a false world, all my senses were intact. I could feel hunger and pain. Almost everything felt as real as the normal world. The sensation of my fist striking out, the Qi flowing from my Dantian, the control over my body heat—it all felt the same, allowing me to train as usual.
Many thoughts occupied my mind, but having ample time eased some of the pressure. Though, it became a problem when I lost track of the days.
I didn’t know how I managed to work so hard, given how little motivation I’d had for most of my life.
One day passed. Then another. Before I knew it, an entire year had gone by. I’d stopped counting after about half a year, but the World Tree informed me when a year had passed.
I felt nothing. Only disappointment that, despite a full year, I still hadn’t broken through my limits.
I thrust my arm out again, deciding another round of training was better than dwelling on it.
One difference in the Abyss was that my body aged more slowly than in the real world. But that didn’t matter. My body wasn’t the important part. I gained muscle, but I didn’t grow any taller.
What did that mean? Was this as tall as I would ever be? Possibly, but I didn’t think so. I hadn’t been particularly tall in my past life, but I knew I’d been taller than I was now. Considering how quickly I’d grown after regressing, I hoped I might eventually surpass my previous height.
But that wasn’t the point. I needed to train my mind to break through my limits.
More time passed. The World Tree stopped telling me how much time had gone by. Day turned to night, over and over. No Demons interfered, since I was training close to the World Tree. I was simply fascinated by it.
What were the Demons doing in this false world? I was curious, but I pushed the thought aside and focused on training my Qi and refining my breathing technique.
The compression of Qi to enhance my body was a technique I’d learned from Elder Shin. I also worked on minimizing my Qi usage for greater efficiency. I pushed aside all complex thoughts and focused solely on my Qi, my movement, and clearing my mind.
Surprisingly, this made my Qi feel like it was flowing more smoothly. Could that be the reason? I honestly believed I was close to breaking through the wall. I thought it would only take a few more months.
Or so I thought.
A few months, my ass. I’d been foolish.
Reality hit me as I repeated the endless cycle of training. I had only reached the Peak Realm thanks to everything I’d consumed and the experience from my past life. My power was no different from other martial artists at the Peak Realm, but I hadn’t gotten there through talent alone.
What’s more, now I had to use my Qi sparingly, unlike in the past when I could unleash it freely. My past-life experience didn’t help much anymore.
Because of that…
“Phew…”
It took a very long time to reach the level I desired. I hadn’t counted the days, but judging by the flow of time, it must have been several days in the real world. I’d been in that false world longer than I’d expected.
But I’d achieved my goal. It was time to return.
Now, in the present, I struggled with searing pain.
Fuck.
It felt as though my body were being folded in on itself.
There was a reason for this pain upon returning. Everything achieved in that world wasn’t supposed to be brought back into the real one. In my past life, that’s what happened to everyone: their memories were wiped, and their bodies reverted to their original state before being drawn into the false world.
But I alone had returned with my memories intact.
So what was this pain?
In a way, it was a kind of recoil. I was returning to the normal world with the body and strength I had gained from my training in the false world.
And that…
Hurts so much, seriously.
The pain was excruciating. It felt like I was being struck repeatedly by a blunt weapon. I couldn’t even open my mouth to scream, afraid my body would tear apart if I moved too much. All I could do was endure.
I had to endure.
I stood for what felt like ages, bearing the sensation of fire and lightning tearing through my body. After barely withstanding that hellish pain for an eternity…
Crunch.
A crunching sound echoed.
Patter…
My feet touched solid ground.
Then, I felt a breeze. It had been a long time since I’d felt one.
With that sensation, I finally spoke.
“Wow, fuck.”
The curse slipped out. I couldn’t help it.
“I seriously almost died…”
I really felt like I was going to die. This was far different from my past life. One wrong breath, and I might have been torn apart right there. Isn’t that insane?
“Never doing that bullshit again.”
I’d used this method because I was short on time, but if I’d known it would be this dangerous, I wouldn’t have attempted it.
I brushed my hair aside with one hand. My body felt unusually heavy, even with a simple motion like that.
Setting that aside…
I needed to focus on what mattered first. I had to look for Jang Seonyeon. Even if he’d been killed by flames and reduced to ashes, that was only in the Abyss. I’d asked the World Tree if it could keep him dead, but it said that would break the rules.
That meant there was a high chance Jang Seonyeon had returned alive too. I’d expected that, though. If he was back, I’d just have to kill him again. There would likely be plenty of Demons around as well…
With that in mind, I looked around.
“Now where am I— …What the hell is going on here?”
I’d assumed I’d be sent back to where I’d entered the Abyss, but instead, I was standing in front of a building, not a forest. Fortunately, I recognized it. Even after all this time, I knew the building of the Heavenly Dragon Academy.
But its condition was… odd.
Why is it such a mess?
The once-sturdy structure now looked like it might collapse at the slightest touch.
Wait…
A horrifying thought struck me. I’d assumed only a few days had passed here, but there was no way the building could have deteriorated like this in just a few days.
Had it been a long time in this world as well? If that were true, I was really screwed. All my training and plans would be pointless. I’d have returned to an incredibly dire situation.
Tap.
As I was lost in thought, I sensed a presence nearby. I turned my head.
“Hmm?”
There, a familiar old man knelt, bleeding heavily, missing an arm. Before him stood a large figure holding a great sword, staring in my direction.
I frowned, wondering what was going on.
Flinch.
The old man with the great sword flinched in shock. Why was he shocked by my face? That’s insulting.
Setting that aside, I looked at the one-armed elder.
…The Qinghai Sword?
I recognized him instantly, though it took a moment—it had been a while. What was going on? Why was he in such a state?
Then my senses fully returned. Only then did I smell the thick scent of blood all around. I also sensed the foul Qi of the Unorthodox Faction, along with their killing intent.
I began to understand what was happening.
“It seems like something happened here.”
I wasn’t sure of the details, but trouble was clearly afoot.
I fixed my gaze on the old man in black. He was clearly not from the Orthodox Faction, and he didn’t seem normal either. He seemed interested in me; his pupils trembled as he spoke first.
“…What are you?”
How should I respond to that?
I took a step toward him, letting my Qi flow through my body. The sensation was familiar—the same feeling I’d struggled with while trying to break through my wall.
I took another step and charged my Qi, channeling it into my middle Dantian. It filled up instantly.
“What would you do if you knew? You obviously don’t seem like a welcomed guest.”
“You should watch your words, child.”
The old man’s gaze remained fixed on me, his eyes nervous. Was it because he couldn’t grasp my level yet? He should’ve just swung his sword at that point.
I took a third step. I directed my Qi from my middle Dantian to my top Dantian.
Swoosh.
“…!”
The old man’s expression shifted instantly, as if he’d realized something.
“You bastard…”
He must have been shocked. To him, it must have looked like I was breaking through to a new level right before his eyes.
Obstacles rose each time I moved my Qi, but they weren’t as problematic as before. I controlled my Qi, breaking through each one in my path. This was what I had endured the Abyss for. I’d trained my mind and body relentlessly to reach this point.
The wall shattered. The tip of my Qi, once a small fang, became a massive spike, piercing through to my top Dantian.
Swooosh—!
The quality of my Qi began to change. It grew denser, making my previous Peak Realm Qi feel like a joke. Simultaneously, I spread it throughout my body.
As my top Dantian opened, my perception shifted. The sounds I heard felt different; the flow of my Qi transformed. I had finally broken past the grave of most martial artists—the Peak Realm—and reached the Fusion Realm.
It was an entirely new sensation.
“Watch my words?”
But there was no time to waste. I could tell something was happening here, and I needed to act.
“I’ve never respected the scum of the Unorthodox Faction. After all, I’m true Orthodox blood.”
I smiled. The old man clearly didn’t like it; he began to raise his great sword. I knew the opponent in front of me was extremely powerful, but with my Qi reaching my top Dantian, I felt braver than ever.
“And why is the sky like that?”
I thought it might be night, but that wasn’t it. As I looked up, I sensed the old man moving. I felt his Qi shift as well. But I didn’t react.
Instead, I looked down, met his gaze, and channeled my Qi from my top Dantian. It wasn’t night, but I didn’t like how the sky had turned black. So I decided to brighten it up.
Swoooosh—!
The old man stepped back as heat radiated from my body. He shouldn’t have done that. He should’ve kept advancing, fear or not.
Watching him hesitate, I whispered softly.
“Red Heaven.”
And with that, I shattered the night.