Sichuan, Part 3
"...What on earth is the meaning of this?"
"Forgive us, Abbot."
A monk, barely managing to cool his anger, struck the wooden fish temple block himself.
"..."
"..."
It was a sight unseen for a very long time—indeed, for most present, it was the first time in their lives.
The Fist Emperor, Abbot Myeonghyeon.
He was one of the Five Emperors currently ruling the Tower.
Among them, he held the title of Fist Emperor, the sovereign of martial might.
As one of the few Grand Masters in the Tower, his mental discipline and spiritual cultivation were of the highest order.
He was a man whose composure would not easily waver under any circumstance.
Yet, faced with the current situation, even his hard-won peace of mind was thoroughly shaken.
To think our vow to protect the Tower's hero would be repaid with such humiliation.
Rolling his Buddhist prayer beads between his fingers, the Fist Emperor suppressed a surge of unbearable humiliation and anger.
It was a disgrace that even the name of the Buddha could not wash away.
A faint, lingering thought refused to leave his mind.
Is this the karma of my past life?
"..."
The incident was shocking enough to completely shatter the composure of one of Murim's absolute rulers and the leader of the Martial Alliance.
Of all places, to show such a humiliating display right in front of the Dang Clan.
And for it to be orchestrated by the Overlord, the very person we need to recruit...
Especially when Hyeonbeop, one of our finest rising stars, was forced to kneel...
The real problem was that the Overlord, Lee Jin-hyuk, was the one who had orchestrated this entire situation.
Before the Fist Emperor arrived, Jin-hyuk was the hero who had saved both the Potala Palace and Shaolin.
But now, because of that very same hero, Shaolin had been forced to kneel before the Dang Clan. The situation had become incredibly awkward.
"Ugh..."
Perhaps his status as a Grand Master was not just for show.
By exerting his utmost mental composure, he managed to calm his raging emotions to some degree.
"We are sorry. If only we hadn't intervened..."
"...No. I was the one who ordered you to protect our benefactor at all costs if anything happened to him."
Shaolin had been made to look utterly ridiculous.
"This, too, must be the will of the Buddha."
The Fist Emperor forced a bitter smile, recalling what had transpired earlier.
It was an unbelievably divine flame.
By the time the Fist Emperor arrived in Sichuan, the situation had already concluded.
The Overlord.
True to his title, the powerful and arrogant Lee Jin-hyuk had only allowed the Shaolin monks to stand after the Fist Emperor arrived and practically begged him.
To turn the tables or salvage the situation, they would have had to paint Jin-hyuk as a villain.
However, even that kind of political maneuvering was impossible.
It was because of the skill the Fist Emperor possessed.
His appraisal skill allowed him to gauge the nature of an opponent's power.
When he checked with that skill, the Overlord, Lee Jin-hyuk, wielded a flame rooted in pure divine power, just as the rumors suggested.
Far from being demonic, it was a holy power strong enough to eradicate evil at its very roots.
Therefore, it was impossible to frame him as a villain.
We are outmatched in both justification and sheer power...
Sigh.
"To harbor jealousy in the face of righteousness is not the way of the leader of the Martial Alliance, nor the Abbot of Shaolin."
"Then...?"
"We must forge a good relationship with him."
"A relationship, you say?"
"Though there was an unfortunate incident, it is also true that the Overlord shares our goals. He seeks to destroy the Witch's Coven and the Heavenly Demon Cult..."
Sigh.
"We must cooperate. Even if it means swallowing our pride and bowing our heads a little."
"Amitabha."
"Amitabha."
As they recalled Lee Jin-hyuk's face and expression, sighs and prayers naturally began to escape the monks' lips.
"Hahaha! It feels great to have the four of us gathered like this!"
"Peep!"
Lee Jin-hyuk, Kaelion, Dang So-wol, and Russell.
The four of them, brought together by chance, were sharing drinks in a tavern that exuded a distinct Murim atmosphere.
In truth, every single one of them was a heavy drinker.
Kaelion used a cultivation technique to purify the flow of energy within her body.
Dang So-wol, being a master of poison, was naturally highly resistant to alcohol toxicity.
Russell possessed a body sturdy enough to withstand almost any status ailment or poison.
And Jin-hyuk, who possessed a unique constitution that made him completely immune to all poisons, was in a realm of his own.
Thus, the four of them were able to down incredibly strong liquor without a second thought.
"What happened while we were apart?"
Kaelion, the oldest among them, looked at Jin-hyuk and asked.
"Well, a lot of things happened," Jin-hyuk chuckled.
From killing the Ice-Sinking Ghost Jang Man-hong through a holy war, to clearing the 9th-floor trial, meeting Russell, and defeating Chardis.
"Peep!"
Though his explanation was brief, Elruin knew how difficult and grueling the journey must have been. She wrapped her tiny wings around Jin-hyuk's neck in a tight hug.
"You're all grown up now."
Jin-hyuk hugged Elruin back and gently fed her a seed from the side dish plate.
It was a seed brimming with life energy, cultivated by Kaelion during her recent training.
"...You killed Chardis?"
Dang So-wol shuddered as she listened to Jin-hyuk's tale.
"Is this really true?"
"Of course it's true! Hahaha! And yours truly lent a major hand!"
Dang So-wol frowned, deploying a mana barrier to block the bits of food and alcohol flying from the laughing Russell's mouth.
Listening to the story, Russell's contribution wasn't entirely negligible.
However, his role had been fighting off Chardis's subordinates by the hundreds and thousands.
The one who had actually subdued and killed Chardis, the Witch of the Rack, was none other than Jin-hyuk.
This is insane.
Even if he was a ranker in the top 1,000, defeating Chardis was an unbelievable feat.
It was especially true given the location.
Blood Rock Valley was a sanctuary Majuron had custom-built for Chardis so she could focus entirely on her research.
As such, it must have been filled with tentacles empowered by the energy of ruin.
Although Dang So-wol had been excluded from the vessel-making process and didn't know all the details, she knew one thing for certain.
Chardis was terrifyingly powerful inside Blood Rock Valley.
With her combination of curses, Wailing Ghosts, tentacles, and failed experiments, her army would have been overwhelming.
Even if she wasn't a High Ranker, she could exert power comparable to one in that place.
And yet, he defeated her?
He killed Majuron's eldest daughter?
No matter how unpredictable he is...
Dang So-wol let out a soft chuckle, thinking that even after all this time, he still managed to make her heart race with shock.
"I have one burning question."
"Go ahead."
"What did you do about the steel tentacles?"
"He ate them!"
"...?"
At Russell's response, Dang So-wol stared at him as if he were talking utter nonsense.
"I'm serious, he really ate them!"
"..."
"It's true," Jin-hyuk said with a smirk. "He actually possesses the power of the Bulgasari."
"The divine beast Bulgasari? I heard there are fewer than ten of them in the entire Tower. You have that power?"
Instantly, Dang So-wol's eyes gleamed.
"If you don't mind, could I dissect you just once?"
"...That is extremely rude!"
Though things were still slightly awkward, the shared connection of Jin-hyuk allowed the group to bond quickly.
Before my regression, we always used to have get-togethers like this after a major battle.
A smile spread across Jin-hyuk's face.
...Well, that became impossible after the war with Asgard.
It was a peaceful, pleasant feeling, reminiscent of his past life.
Even though the alcohol had no physical effect on him, he felt a pleasant warmth, and his smile widened.
"Fufu. I didn't know you were capable of making a face like that, Jin-hyuk."
"...What do you mean? How did I smile?"
"You just did."
"Hahaha!"
As they continued to talk, it became clear that Kaelion and Dang So-wol had also achieved impressive results.
Kaelion had created and mastered up to the 9th form of her sword technique, refining her existing style to a whole new level.
"The Mount Emei Sect was a huge help."
She had even mastered a new cultivation technique, allowing her to accelerate plant growth and infuse seeds with pure vitality.
"Peep!"
The greatest beneficiary of this was, of course, Elruin.
"As for me... I'm about the same, honestly."
Dang So-wol scratched her head sheepishly, her cheeks flushing slightly.
The path she had pursued was not focused on developing her personal skills, stats, or items.
She had devoted all her efforts solely to the advancement of the Dang Clan.
While I was standing still, everyone else was running forward.
Though she had smiled in awe at the news of Jin-hyuk defeating Chardis, a sharp thorn of anxiety pricked her heart.
Amidst Russell's hearty laughter and Kaelion's achievements, she felt as though she were the only one left behind in the shadows of the past.
A shadow of inadequacy crept over her, making her feel stagnant.
"I don't think you need to worry."
"...Pardon?"
"From what I see, you have the potential to grow the most out of everyone here."
"What do you mean by that...?"
"Shall we get moving?"
Deciding they had enjoyed themselves enough, Jin-hyuk stood up with a broad grin.
"Come on. I have a present for you."
"...This is the present?"
"Yeah."
"Jin-hyuk, seriously..."
She trailed off, staring.
"Are you out of your mind?"
It was rare for such blunt words to escape Dang So-wol's lips.
But that was how utterly unexpected Jin-hyuk's "present" was.
It was the limp body of a woman lying on the bed.
Indeed.
Jin-hyuk had brought the very vessel that Majuron had poured her heart and soul into, and that Chardis had been refining, to give to her.
"H-How could you just bring this here?"
How this body—this vessel—had been created.
No one knew better than the witches of the coven just how much effort Majuron had invested in this.
Furthermore, Dang So-wol was one of the highest-ranking members among those witches.
Even if she hadn't been directly involved in its creation, she understood its astronomical value better than anyone.
"Ho... So you can enter this body?"
Beside them, Russell lifted the vessel's limbs with his pincers, looking intrigued.
"Don't touch it so carelessly."
"Peep!"
Kaelion and Elruin quickly stepped in to stop Russell.
"Alright, alright... I get it."
Dang So-wol could only stare blankly at the vessel, still in a state of shock.
Even without using a skill, the emotion written all over her face was clear.
It was a look of sheer disbelief, as if asking, Is this really okay?
"Didn't you hear from Kaelion?"
"I definitely told her."
Quick-witted as always, Kaelion began ushering Russell and Elruin out of the room.
"Let me look a bit more! It's fascinating!"
"Peep!"
Elruin bit Russell's earlobe as if telling him to read the room, forcing the giant man to reluctantly step outside.
Left alone in the room, Jin-hyuk and Dang So-wol stood in silence.
"I expected it. The possibility that you might not want to rebel against Majuron."
"...So you weren't looking out for me out of pure goodwill after all?"
"Of course. Didn't you also cast a spell to hypnotize me when I went to face Majuron?"
"I knew it."
Dang So-wol slumped down beside the vessel.
"You knew all along. And if my guess is correct, you've already taken care of it."
"You're quick on the uptake."
"..."
Pulling up a chair to sit opposite Dang So-wol, Jin-hyuk smiled.
"My previous attempt at persuading you was half-hearted. A recruitment offer is always best made face-to-face, with the goods right in front of you."
He had promised her everything the Witch's Coven possessed, but for a player as smart and cunning as Dang So-wol, that level of persuasion was insufficient.
It was only natural.
Promising her "everything the Witch's Coven possessed" was far too vague and abstract.
One of the sharpest minds in the entire Tower was not going to fall for such a simple trick.
No matter how much of a miracle-working Overlord Jin-hyuk was.
And he couldn't exactly reveal his regression and say, "This is how things will turn out in the future."
He had spent a lot of time pondering how to win her over.
Her hatred for Majuron wasn't all-consuming yet.
In fact, she still held the mindset that it was only natural for players to be exploited, just as she had been.
"This is your reward."
"..."
"The Ghostly Vessel. A body that holds all the talents of the Witch's Coven."
"..."
"If you stand by my side and help me take down Majuron, this vessel is yours."
At this point in time, Dang So-wol was extremely cautious and prudent.
At the same time, she was incredibly ambitious.
Perhaps because she had grown up in a hyper-competitive society, she firmly believed that becoming stronger was the only way to survive.
And in the Tower, that is the absolute truth.
As Dang So-wol knew all too well, this vessel had been created by Majuron to absorb the power of 'all witches.'
The powers of spirits, Wailing Ghosts, and Ice-Sinking Ghosts were a given.
Even the powers of other high-ranking witches.
For instance, she could absorb powers associated with titles like 'Binding,' 'Poison,' or 'Ruin' without any limitations.
Indeed.
This vessel was optimized to receive the spells of witches and the power of the Banished Constellation.
If I can't entice her with anger, I'll entice her with greed.
"What do you say?"
Jin-hyuk was certain.
Dang So-wol would have no choice but to accept this offer.
"Don't you want to take all of Majuron's power and become the ruler of all witches?"
Dang So-wol looked down at the vessel and took a slow, deep breath.
She knew.
This was a reward that could not be dismissed as a mere "present."
To hold the power of all witches in her hands and monopolize the power of the Banished Constellation?
It was a power that could potentially shatter the established power structure of the Tower.
"Alright," Dang So-wol replied after a long silence.
"But I have an additional condition."
"You're more demanding than I thought."
Even as he said those words, Jin-hyuk was grinning.
Things were progressing much smoother than he had anticipated.
"Let's hear it."
"First of all..."