Chapter 743: Ruined World
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 743: Ruined World
Heaven Destruction Art, Fourth Form: Azure Sky.
An arrogant name, meaning "to create the heavens."
Considering the Fifth Form is Destruction of the Heavens, I suspected the Dishonored Venerable had named them this way with specific intent.
To create the heavens.
And then to destroy them.
I didn't fully grasp the meaning embedded within the names yet, but unlike the First, Second, and Third Forms—which were all single-strike techniques—Azure Sky was not an offensive art.
If I had to draw a comparison, it was similar to the process of igniting the body using the heat from the Gu Flame Wheel Art.
The Heaven Destruction Art was a martial art designed to reach transcendence through an artificial Rebirth. The Fourth Form, Azure Sky, was an extension of that principle.
It was an artificial state of selflessness.
A momentary trance that every martial artist must experience to achieve enlightenment. Azure Sky was a technique engineered to reach that state by force.
With a single movement, extraneous thoughts are purged and hesitation vanishes, allowing Qi to flow through the body with absolute fluidity. As the flow of Qi becomes more efficient, the destructive power of one's martial arts inevitably skyrockets.
It was a form of physical awakening.
In that moment, it felt as though my power had doubled.
The problem was…
‘The backlash is doubled, too.’
The absurd efficiency of doubling one's martial power naturally came with a devastating price. At first, I wondered if such a suicidal martial art could even exist, but I understood the moment I used it.
Use this incorrectly, and you die.
It was the same warning the Dishonored Venerable had given me when I first succeeded in manifesting it. He told me to use it only at the very, very end, if possible. He warned me that if I triggered it in the middle of a fight, I would die. He told me to be cautious until I had mastered it, and after experiencing Azure Sky, I finally understood why.
The Heaven Destruction Art was already a brutally taxing style, but the backlash from Azure Sky was on an entirely different level. After using it to perform the First Form for the first time, I had been bedridden for three days.
And that was from unleashing it just once.
Regardless…
Though the backlash was sickeningly severe, it also meant that while the technique was active, I possessed overwhelming firepower.
Thanks to that...
"Cough!"
I felt a strange sense of relief even as I vomited a mouthful of blood.
"Hoo... fuck."
I wiped the blood smeared across my mouth and looked straight ahead.
The scenery hadn't changed much. The floor was still a sea of black ink, and the surroundings remained pitch dark. It looked no different than when we started.
However...
[...Astonishing.]
Seeing the old man standing before me, I forced myself up.
The center of his chest was gone. A massive hole had been bored straight through the old man's torso.
It was the result of the One Fist, empowered by Azure Sky.
[Since when?] the old man asked.
Hearing his question, I tilted my head. "Since when for what, Senior?"
[I know this entire sequence was not the result of mere instinct or coincidence. Since when was this planned?]
“...”
Since when? Well, the answer was obvious.
"From the very beginning."
[...]
From the moment I first challenged the old man to a fight, the entire process, leading up to this final moment, had been calculated.
Granted, the part about Senior Tang Jaemoon wasn't in the original plan. Other than that, everything had unfolded exactly as I’d predicted.
However…
‘It’s not that everything went perfectly; it’s just that I had prepared for multiple contingencies.’
I had anticipated the old man's actions and mapped out half a dozen scenarios. I simply acted according to the one that manifested.
I knew my opponent possessed Solar Light. The effects of Solar Light seemed indistinguishable from reality. I started with that assumption. Then…
‘Ten chances.’
I recalled the ten opportunities the old man had granted me. To attack with all my might for ten turns—was he a being I could truly reach by doing so?
‘No.’
Not a chance. I always say, you have to be brutally honest with yourself. Whether this old man was real or a phantom, he was a being I could not defeat in a straight contest.
So, what was the solution?
‘I have to create a situation where I can win.’
If I couldn't win fairly, I had to rig the board.
So I thought: let's use those ten chances differently.
To do that, I showed him my full power for the first seven turns. I couldn't afford to fake it during that phase; my opponent would have seen right through me. I had to attack with my genuine maximum strength, and I did.
This is the limit of my attacks.
I forced my opponent to ‘recognize’ that as my ceiling.
Honestly, it felt like shit.
‘That was my real full power, and I couldn't even singe his clothes.’
After all the hell I've been through in my past and present lives, I couldn't even burn the hem of that old man's robes. What a fucking life. But what could I do? Even if it sucks, you have to find a way.
Seven. I had to burn seven of the ten chances, but because of that, my opponent learned something: he believed he knew the peak of my strength.
Once that succeeded, I introduced a variable starting from the eighth turn. To crush any potential suspicion, I had to create a variable myself.
Flames weren't the only thing in my arsenal. I had another type of energy.
That was why I went out of my way to use the Heaven Destruction Art.
Make him recognize my power, then introduce a variable to sow chaos. I showed him I was doing my absolute best to prevent his mind from working too quickly. That was how I spent those ten chances.
Honestly, I had many reasons, but the conclusion of those ten turns was singular.
‘To ensure that old man didn't find out about my Solar Light.’
One might ask, why not just hide the Solar Light from the start?
‘The old man said it himself. He was watching me.’
He had already noticed the Taoist Qi from Elder Shin within my body. I couldn't be certain. He might have known about the existence of Solar Light as well. If so, baiting him this way was more effective.
Plan, plan, and plan some more before the fight even begins. Even if I had to fight dirty like a bastard, this was the right way. There might be no honor in a dogfight, but there is survival.
To me, survival was more important.
[Haha... Incredible.]
Hearing my words, the old man let out a laugh filled with genuine admiration.
Swoosh.
"...!"
Then, I watched as the old man's body began to regenerate.
Oh, am I screwed? I didn't think he could die since he was a soul to begin with, but wasn't this a bit cheap?
Just as I was scrambling to come up with a countermeasure…
[You have won.]
The old man spoke to me with a smile.
[I admit it. I have lost, and you have won.]
“...”
Finally, the old man conceded.
Thump.
"Haaaah..."
Only after hearing those words did I allow my body to collapse. I felt every ounce of strength drain out of me.
"This is so damn hard..."
As I exhaled a breath heavy with exhaustion, the old man nodded.
[You believe me so easily? How do you know I am not speaking nonsense?]
"Because you said it yourself, Senior."
[Hm?]
"That you can tell everything by crossing swords. I'm the same way."
The old man wasn't the type to spout empty words. I could tell that much from our brief exchange.
[You seem like a cunning brat, but in moments like this, you are different. A peculiar one, indeed.]
"I hear that a lot."
[Then, child.]
"Yes."
[What was it you said just before?]
"What was what?"
[That Tang Jaemoon is a woman.]
"Ah."
—Tang Jaemoon is a woman.
The words I'd spat out to buy the seconds I needed to overlay Azure Sky. I wasn't sure about the other parts, but that had been a real gamble. I was lucky it worked; if it hadn't, it would have been the end of me.
Remembering this, I smirked. "Who knows?"
[...Hah?]
It was my way of saying I had no intention of answering. The old man wore a dumbfounded expression. Watching him, I flicked my hand.
Fwip!
The bound Solar Light was released, transforming into the shape of a bandage, which I then tossed to the old man.
Thwack.
The bandage rolled and landed in the old man's hand.
"Thank you for letting me use it."
[...]
The old man's eyes were unreadable as he looked at the returned Solar Light.
[...Child.]
"I'm listening."
[Did you say you are my reincarnation?]
"Yes, well. That's what I was told."
I pushed myself up again. My whole body was throbbing as the backlash gradually set in. So the pain is just as real in this mental space, huh? I briefly wondered what state my physical body would be in when I returned.
[Seeing the Solar Light... I suppose that may very well be true.]
He had heard my words. Did he finally find conviction in them?
[Then it is strange. How is it that you are not a child of Mount Hua?]
“...”
A heavy statement. Hearing it, I cleared my throat slightly. It was a question I had heard far too often. That I am Elder Shin's reincarnation. Around the time I first heard that… there was also something The Light of Might had mentioned while looking at the Elder.
He failed.
The Elder, who should have been reborn into Mount Hua long ago, had failed to reincarnate and had become a spirit instead. Seeing that, The Light of Might had fallen into despair. It meant it was an event of immense significance.
[Child. Then...]
"Just a moment."
I cut the old man off, raising my hand.
"I'm sorry, but isn't it my turn to ask the questions? Why are you sneakily interrogating me?"
We had agreed that the winner of the bet would ask the questions. Yet, the old man kept prying. Finding it absurd, I pointed it out.
[Oh dear, I've been caught.]
The old man smacked his lips as if disappointed.
This guy...? He knew exactly what he was doing.
Unbelievable. How can a Taoist be so thick-skinned? I frowned and immediately fired my question.
"What are you?"
At last, my turn had come.
[As I said from the beginning, I am Mount Hua's...]
"That's not what I'm asking."
[Then what is it you are asking?]
"I have met the Divine Sword of Mount Hua before."
[...What?]
"Not you. A different gentleman."
When I mentioned Elder Shin, the old man's reaction was palpable. Observing him, I added an explanation. I didn't go into every detail, but I summarized the events from the moment I met Elder Shin until now.
At that…
[...What is the meaning of this?]
The old man's expression shifted to one of pure bewilderment.
"That is why I cannot believe you are the real one."
[...]
"Circumstantially, it seems you are the real Divine Sword of Mount Hua..."
The evidence and my gut feeling pointed to it. Moreover, the secret vault of Shaanxi? The context fit perfectly. But…
"No matter how much I think about it, I don't feel like you are the real one. What in the world are you?"
For some reason, the old man in front of me didn't feel real.
What are you? What are you doing here?
In response to my question, the old man's reaction was…
[...]
First, silence. Whether it was to organize his thoughts or because he was in a state of profound shock—or perhaps both—I couldn't be sure.
But I waited for his answer. For some reason, I felt I had to.
After a long silence, he finally spoke.
[I see.]
The old man's voice was calm now.
[So that's what happened.]
His voice, as if he had realized a terrible truth, was laced with an unidentifiable sorrow.
[Child.]
"Yes."
[You said it yourself. The Shincheol you know does not remember his own end.]
"Yes."
That was the state of Elder Shin's memory. He remembered the moment the Blood Demon's sealing was finished. He said he lived out his life as the Sect Leader. Then one day, while spending his time as usual, he woke up to find himself sealed inside the treasure.
That wasn't all. The Elder's memory was fragmented. There were far too many gaps. It seemed he had realized a few things over time, but it meant his situation was fundamentally different from the old man standing before me.
[Hearing that, I finally understand.]
"Understand what, Senior?"
[There was always a part of this that was a mystery.]
Splash.
The old man took a step forward, approaching me.
[Child. Do you know where this place is?]
"...Here, you mean?"
The ink that flooded the floor and the black energy that choked the sky.
"I have no idea."
It was a space I had no way of identifying. I had simply assumed it was a mental landscape.
To this, the old man replied:
[This place is Mount Hua.]
"Pardon?"
A shocking answer.
"...What did you say?"
Mount Hua? Hearing his words, I looked around. What kind of bullshit was that? How could this place be Mount Hua?
I've been to Mount Hua; I know what it looks like. It is a mountain of brilliant flowers and azure light. There, in harmony with the martial artists' Qi, plum blossom trees bloom in abundance, and a fragrant floral scent always lingers in the air.
Knowing that, I scowled.
[To be precise... it is what wasMount Hua.]
The old man continued in a pained voice.
[You said it. That your world succeeded in sealing the Blood Demon.]
"...Yes."
Honestly, the sealing wasn't a complete success. The Blood Demon was still roaming around, but since the ritual had been performed, I answered that way.
At my answer, the old man smiled bitterly.
[I see.]
"What's wrong?"
[It is nothing. I had held onto hope, but I have only just realized it was a mere dream.]
Ripple.
The old man sat down weakly on the floor. The moment he sat, a wave rippled through the dark water and spread outward. It was a gentle, mournful ripple.
[It was a strange thing. In the first place, there was no way I could have met a child of Mount Hua. It seems I was swept up in hope and indulged in a dream. How embarrassing...]
"...Excuse me. What is that supposed to—"
[‘We’ failed to stop the Blood Demon.]
"Pardon?"
Just as my frustration was rising at his cryptic words… the old man's next statement left me speechless.
I couldn't help it.
[We... ultimately failed to stop the Blood Demon. And this place is Mount Hua, destroyed at his hands.]
It was a shocking revelation.