The Gathering Storm
Several cultivators sat in meditation, keeping their distance from one another. They stared at a single cultivator who sat with closed eyes at the center of the Star-Gazing Platform.
"How is it?"
"It has not changed."
The cultivators' expressions darkened in unison. They looked up at the sky, which was draped in the light of countless celestial bodies, then back at the cultivator in the center. No matter how hard they strained their eyes or extended their Spiritual Awareness, they could discern nothing, feel nothing. Though every single one of them was a renowned Golden Core cultivator whose name shook the Human Territory of Yangseo Lake, at this moment, in this place, they were nothing more than blind men.
"Let us review this once more," an old man spoke. It was Jang Mu-hyu, the Supreme Elder of the Geumyang Sect. "You said the flow of qi is blocked. What exactly does that mean?"
"It means it is not flowing. Like tea sitting inside a teacup."
The cultivator in the center opened his eyes. They flashed momentarily, as if countless starlights were sweeping past. "What I see now is nothing but shadows. Just as a stream of water is blocked by a massive boulder, the qi of Yangseo Lake is being suppressed by some colossal, stubborn force."
The Golden Core cultivators frowned at his hazy, half-awake voice. Though they had gathered here and spent several days together, they were still plagued by endless doubt and skepticism even at this very moment.
Of course, given their extensive knowledge and experience in the cultivation world, they knew that qi—or fortune—truly existed and held great significance. There is qi in heaven and earth, and there is qi in cultivators and races. Though all are called "qi," their weight and meaning are entirely different.
The human race had long since actively practiced and utilized the Qi Gazing Art to bolster the race's fortune, seeking prosperity and development. Thanks to this, the Qi Gazing Art and the Fate Seers who practiced it were highly respected on a racial level to this day. This was precisely why the various Golden Core cultivators gathered here showed a measure of respect to a junior who was merely in the Foundation Establishment stage. They respected this junior who could see what they could not see and measure what they could not measure.
But respect was respect; when he spouted such nebulous, cloud-catching nonsense, it was truly exasperating.
"Is a tribulation approaching?"
"A tribulation... Yes. Indeed. That seems to be an appropriate expression."
A tribulation? The Golden Core cultivators' faces hardened. Some of them had their eyes twitching.
"Is it the Gakchung Clan?"
"Unlikely. As long as the Red Province is peaceful, they do not care much about other matters."
"Indeed. If they had intended to take action, would they not have done so long ago?"
"But... if it is not the Gakchung Clan, where would this tribulation originate from?" Jong Gi-su, the Supreme Elder of the Geumyang Sect, spoke in a heavy voice.
"If it is not from within, then it must be from without."
The Fate Seer said nothing. He merely stared blankly up at the sky as if possessed.
"Wind? Is it wind?"
A faint glow brushed past his eyes once more, and he muttered in an uncertain tone. He wanted to think of a better expression, but he could not. His soul rang as if it had been severely battered by something, and he coughed up a large amount of blood, forced out of his state of Star-Gazing Enlightenment.
"Cough!"
His eyes flew wide in shock. Wind? Yes, wind. Was not a typhoon that overturned the earth and swept across the sea also a wind?
"Are you alright?"
Je Rim-so, the Sect Master of the Myeongseomun Sect, immediately placed a hand on his back to treat his injuries. As his majestic Dharma Power washed through the Fate Seer's body, his deathly pale complexion recovered slightly.
"A tribulation. And a great tribulation at that, the likes of which I have never seen or heard of in my entire life."
Though his coughing had stopped, dark red tears of blood now flowed from his eyes. He gasped for breath and warned them:
"You must prepare. Though I do not know if preparing will make much of a difference..."
His voice gradually faded, and finally, his head slumped powerlessly. Only after confirming that the Fate Seer had fainted from sheer exhaustion did Je Rim-so sigh and withdraw his hand.
"..."
The dark gazes of Je Rim-so and the other three Golden Core cultivators tangled complexly in the air.
"Venerable One! We have arrived! This is Yangseo Lake!"
High up in the sky overlooking Yangseo Lake, the silhouette of a colossal, monstrous bird emerged. Its three pairs of wings fluttered freely and irregularly; some even remained completely motionless. Atop these wings, which looked as if each were independently alive, clung relatively small creatures. It was they who had just spoken.
"Quiet. I know without you telling me."
Fierce, glaring eyes looked down. From this high up in the sky, a proper cultivation domain looked like nothing more than a large puddle. Small and insignificant. It looked that way now, and it seemed to be the reality. His Divine Sense, spread out like a net, solidified this assumption into certainty.
"Just another small well."
The presences of Core Formation were extremely few. Excluding the sacrifices, the already small number would dwindle even further. Of course, numbers were not everything, but they were certainly an important indicator. In that respect, this place called Yangseo Lake was merely a common, run-of-the-mill well.
"Venerable One. Is there anyone who catches your eye?"
He did not answer. He cast the net of his Divine Sense wider, searching to see if there were more hidden sacrifices or if there was anyone worth paying attention to.
"There is. One."
Just one, at least. But from the feel of it, even that one is half-baked.
"Oh? Will you go see them?"
"Of course."
Half-baked or not, a master must be treated as a master. If he barged in without a word and caused unnecessary commotion, things might become troublesome. It was not that he feared a commotion, but if he could handle things more cleanly, he was more than willing to endure a little hassle.
*
"They are coming."
At the low voice brushing past his ears, Norak opened his eyes.
"Coming? Who is coming?"
There was only one person who could wake him from his slumber. Therefore, his question was extremely calm and respectful.
"I do not know either."
"Hmm?"
Norak's gaze shifted. Dozens of eyes flashed in unison, and he immediately underwent anthropomorphism to leave the narrow cave.
Stepping out of the cave, he spread his Divine Sense with all his might. However, he could detect no other presence besides the children of his clan who were either moving busily or sleeping.
"I cannot feel anything."
"Neither can I. I only know because he made his presence known to me."
"He?"
An increasingly confused Norak narrowed his eyes.
"He is here."
When the tense voice brushed past his ears once more, Norak raised his head without realizing it.
Darkness draped over the midday sky. The sun, and even the celestial bodies that emitted their own light beside it, were completely obscured. In an instant, it was as if night had fallen.
An darkness that seemed to swallow all light writhed around a single, massive figure.
Three pairs of fluttering wings. A long tail. Eyes as brilliant as stars. He could see it in a single glance, but the moment he averted his eyes because he dared not look directly at it, the memory of it vanished from his mind.
"You are..."
With his head bowed and eyes averted, Norak managed to part his lips with great difficulty. A sense of helplessness, as if he had become a mere insect. He had never experienced such a feeling since ascending to the King Realm—no, even before then. For he was a being born to be a king.
Yet now, he felt no humiliation whatsoever. His instincts as a cultivator told him that it was only natural to feel insignificant before the indescribable existence in front of him.
"Who are you?"
A calm, low voice sounded. It was the same voice that had brushed past his ears, but this time it echoed clearly from above his head. Norak raised his head with great effort and saw a familiar back facing the darkness before him.
"If you have come as a guest, I do not believe there is any need to intimidate us in this manner."
"Do you think I have come as a guest?"
"Indeed. If you had not come as a guest, you would not have made your presence known in advance."
At her calm, steady voice, Norak felt the fear that had unconsciously encroached upon his heart gradually disperse. As expected of the Insect Mother. Even this foreign powerhouse had no choice but to show her some respect...
"This is the problem."
A playful voice poured cold water—no, ice water—over Norak's rising spirits. The darkness draped over the sky grew even deeper, and a sinister wind began to blow.
"Most big frogs in a small pond like you are just like this. Babbling as if you know everything. It is truly laughable."
"You..."
"If you wish to lift your head before me, prove that you have the right to do so first!"
Heaven and earth screamed. Before the explosively expanding, sinister momentum, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth was instantly twisted and shattered. Though shocked, Norak immediately lent his strength to the Insect Mother. However, before the destructive Monster Power that surged like a tsunami, they were nothing but duckweed swaying precariously in the wind.
*
"Hmm?"
Jekyeong, who was meditating and cultivating as usual, detected a sudden abnormality in the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and raised his head. The naturally flowing stream of spiritual energy had abruptly grown turbulent.
Knowing that this anomaly had occurred far beyond his range of detection, Jekyeong's eyes flashed.
'What is happening?'
It was an anomaly occurring so far away that he could not even begin to guess its source, let alone detect it directly. Nevertheless, the fact that it could affect the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to this extent meant that a force of at least the Core Formation stage was at play.
'Has it begun? But the direction...'
Jekyeong suspected that a Demon King of Muryangae or his subordinates had arrived at Yangseo Lake to stir up trouble, but the direction of the anomaly was not toward the Yojeong.