The Path of Radiant Ascension
Having someone who knew how to use his head around certainly made things easier on the body. Dodging traps came easy, and whenever we ran into other entrants we talked our way out without a fight. Even when we crossed paths with monsters, he proved useful. Still, I wished he would set up those barriers a little faster.
“Number 123.”
“What is it?”
We were walking a path as narrow as a balance beam. Wind swept in from the side, and the pits flanking us bristled with spikes.
Yet Jegal Mo-sun and I remained completely at ease. We were masters who had reached the realm of Chulji. For experts of our caliber, walking a balance beam was nothing. We could have sprinted across it if we wanted.
“I heard you swore loyalty to Number 88.”
“Ah, yeah. I did.”
That had been roughly two months ago.
I had sparred with Cheon Yu-un unofficially and lost. Part of it was thanks to his help, and part of it was genuine admiration for his skill, so I went ahead and pledged my loyalty while I was at it. That was the official story, anyway.
“……How did you know? Did Number 88 tell you?”
“I deduced it from your attitude. It shifted in subtle ways.”
As expected of Jegal Mo-sun. He truly was the man destined to become the Demon Brain, the very mind of the Heavenly Demon Cult.
“That’s not the only reason, is it? You decided to serve Number 88 yourself. That’s how you figured out I’d sworn loyalty.”
“You’re quite sharp. Yes, that’s correct. I have sworn loyalty to Number 88.”
“You’re being awfully open about it. The Ipmaso director said they’re watching us.”
“It’s fine. I’m not betraying the Heavenly Demon Cult. On the contrary, swearing loyalty to Number 88 is itself an act of absolute loyalty to the Cult.”
“So you know Number 88’s true identity.”
“Would I swear loyalty without knowing?”
“……What exactly are you curious about?”
“The reason for your loyalty. I saw potential in Number 88—the potential for him to become the master of the Heavenly Demon Cult.”
“……Number 88 is stronger than I am. I acknowledged his power. That’s all there is to it.”
“That’s absurd. You expect me to believe that? There are any number of people stronger than you in this Cult. The Ipmaso director alone could kill someone like you in ten exchanges.”
“The director doesn’t have that overwhelming something that Number 88 possesses.”
“And what is that ‘something’?”
“…Hard to put into words. It just exists.”
“Well, fine.”
Thud.
From behind, Jegal Mo-sun’s hand clamped down on my shoulder. The strength in his grip alone was enough that a simple shove would have sent me tumbling sideways off the path.
“…What the hell are you doing?”
“Number 123. Let me warn you in advance. Do not hold me or Number 88 back. The moment I decide you are no longer useful, I will kill you without the slightest hesitation.”
I turned my head slightly and looked at him. His face was utterly serious.
“I could say the same to you, Jegal Mo-sun. Plenty of people already suspect you’re a spy from the Jegal Clan. Don’t forget that.”
“I’ll prove them wrong in due time.”
He released my shoulder.
“How long do you plan to stand here? Move forward, Number 123.”
I scowled and walked on.
Two men and one woman lay sprawled on the ground. Jegal Mo-sun and I approached and examined their wounds. Their clothes were soaked in blood, yet the injuries themselves were not severe.
“Sword wounds. They’re still alive. Nothing fatal.”
“Numbers 215, 307, and 421. Who did this to you?”
Jegal Mo-sun asked in a calm voice. At the sound of their numbers the three of them trembled faintly. The one who answered was the largest of the men. His eyes unfocused, he groped through his memories as he spoke.
“An evil ghost…. We were attacked by an evil ghost….”
“An evil ghost? You mean a monster?”
“Not a monster…! He’s human! An evil ghost wearing a mask, dual-wielding swords… a martial artist…!”
“Give us more details! Number 215! Number 215!!”
“…….”
Number 215 had lost consciousness. He wasn’t dead—just asleep. Jegal Mo-sun checked Numbers 307 and 421. They too had blacked out.
“Collapsing all of a sudden doesn’t make sense. No—this isn’t a simple faint.”
“Sleeping powder.”
“Yes. Someone used a soporific. The work of that ‘evil ghost’ they mentioned, no doubt.”
Jegal Mo-sun’s gaze flicked toward my back. The evil-ghost tattoo was etched there, after all.
“It wasn’t me.”
“I don’t suspect you. You’ve been with me the entire time.”
“I don’t like the look in your eyes.”
Jegal Mo-sun didn’t even bother snorting. He finished examining the fallen and rose to his feet.
“We’ll need to be more thorough with our vigilance.”
“You’re oddly calm. Do you know something about this evil ghost?”
“I don’t. But I can make an educated guess. The evil ghost defeated them and put them to sleep. He’s almost certainly a martial artist of the Heavenly Demon Cult—someone the Ipmaso director deployed.”
“Why?”
“Because the level of this batch of entrants is unusually high. We simply need to focus on what we have to do.”
We left the unconscious trio behind and pressed forward.
A fork appeared in the path.
Left and right looked identical. I closed my eyes and listened.
“Water flowing on the right. Nothing on the left.”
“Hmm. Let’s take the right.”
“Reason?”
“Difference in information. Knowing that water is flowing is better than knowing nothing at all. And where there’s running water, there might be an exit nearby.”
We headed right.
Soon we came upon the stream. The problem was that the water was flowing downward—into the underground. No matter how hard I focused my gaze, I couldn’t see the bottom of that abyss.
“Well, well. Numbers 123 and 366.”
Two women who had been hiding in a corner stepped into view. Number 290, Seomun So-ryeo, and Number 567, Yeon Ye-ha. Blood stained Seomun So-ryeo’s clothes, though it didn’t appear to be hers.
“To think we’d run into you here…. How fortunate.”
Jegal Mo-sun smiled thinly.
“Did you find your Blackwood Beads? We still haven’t. We need to find the beads first.”
Seomun So-ryeo spoke, a trace of impatience in her voice. Yeon Ye-ha beside her remained silent. Even here her face was expressionless; I had no idea what she was thinking.
“We already found our Blackwood Beads. The fourth trial hasn’t been underway long, so we can take our time searching for both the exit and any remaining beads. First, let’s drink some water and formulate a plan.”
The instant Jegal Mo-sun finished speaking, all of us whipped our heads around toward the path we had come from.
A man wearing an evil-ghost mask stood there, a sword in each hand.
We swallowed as one. The aura rolling off him crushed us for a single heartbeat. At minimum, this man was a master of Ogi or higher.
Yeon Ye-ha moved first. She drew her sword and charged straight at the masked figure. I followed a step behind and barked at Jegal Mo-sun.
“Number 366! Set up a barrier!”
“Understood. Buy me time!”
Jegal Mo-sun began driving steel rods into the ground while Seomun So-ryeo fell in behind me. The three of us coordinated our attacks against the masked man. He responded with leisurely, almost casual swings of his twin blades.
Damn. I can size him up at a glance. Mid-stage Ogi, roughly?
The silver lining was that he was only half-heartedly dealing with us. If he had truly intended to kill us, I would have been forced to release my seal.
White sword-qi erupted from Yeon Ye-ha’s blade. She swung. The trajectory warped, scrambling the eye. An outstanding illusion sword. Yet the masked man casually batted her attack aside.
Clang!
With a thunderous impact Yeon Ye-ha was hurled backward and tumbled across the ground.
Seomun So-ryeo and I exchanged a glance and simultaneously dove in from either flank. The masked man raised both swords and spun in place like a top. The rotation was so ferocious we couldn’t even close the distance.
I kicked a protruding rock on the floor. The stone shot toward the spinning figure—and the instant it touched the whirling blades it disintegrated into dust that sifted to the ground.
“Done! Activating the barrier!”
Whoooom.
Jegal Mo-sun’s barrier flared to life. The air grew heavy in an instant. The masked man stopped spinning.
We regrouped, still wary of him. He simply stood there, apparently willing to give us time to plan.
“The barrier will slow his movements. Can you defeat him?”
“Winning is impossible.”
Yeon Ye-ha stated it flatly. Seomun So-ryeo and I both nodded in agreement. To beat the masked man we would need at least five more masters of Yeon Ye-ha’s caliber.
“Then fleeing is our best option. Please keep him occupied for a short while. I only need a little time.”
“What do you plan to do with that time?”
I asked.
“I’ll forcibly shrink the barrier and lock down his movements. Barriers and formations aren’t my specialty, but… I can buy us enough time to escape.”
“Understood. I agree.”
Yeon Ye-ha and Seomun So-ryeo nodded as well. That very moment, sword-qi from the masked man sliced through the air toward us. We scattered in every direction and dodged.
Leaving Jegal Mo-sun behind, the three of us charged the masked man again. Whether from the barrier or not, his responses had slowed. That still didn’t mean we could land a decisive blow.
Clang! Kang! Claaang!
We had trained together for some time now. As a result, our coordination was decent.
Then the masked man’s attitude shifted. His previously defensive swordsmanship turned aggressive.
“Aaaagh!”
Seomun So-ryeo screamed as she was slammed into the wall. Blood poured from her left shoulder.
“You bastard!”
I charged straight at the masked man.
A rising blade that climbs from below.
The masked man simply took one step back and avoided it with ease. But the real attack was behind me. Using me as a shield, Yeon Ye-ha had hidden herself from his line of sight; now she stepped on my shoulder and launched herself at him. Her white sword-qi instantly multiplied into four blades that filled the air and rained down on the masked man.
His eyes widened behind the mask as if startled. He crossed the two swords in his hands and swept them outward. A shockwave of qi erupted from his body and blasted both Yeon Ye-ha and me away. We rolled across the ground and sprang back to our feet at the same time.
“Now! Run!”
Jegal Mo-sun shouted. The steel rods embedded in the earth shot toward the masked man, pinning his movements.
Jegal Mo-sun and Seomun So-ryeo began fleeing toward the rear.
“Number 567! We have to run too!”
“…No. We’re a little too late. We have to fight.”
“What?”
Boom!
The masked man was suddenly right in front of us. Protective qi blazed around his body like flames—he had used it to break free of Jegal Mo-sun’s barrier restraints.
He swung both swords. Yeon Ye-ha and I raised our blades simultaneously and blocked. Another shockwave exploded outward. I ducked low and barely withstood it, but Yeon Ye-ha could not. Her body lifted into the air. Without mercy the masked man raised his sword high.
Charna!
I used Charna to yank Yeon Ye-ha’s body toward me. The masked man’s blade grazed past her by a hair’s breadth.
Charna! Charna! Charna!
One arm wrapped around Yeon Ye-ha’s waist, I chained Charna after Charna and dove into the flowing water. The masked man leapt after us. His sword plunged into the stream. A column of water shot all the way to the ceiling, but we let the current carry us and slipped free of his attack.
I braced for the next strike, yet he simply stood there watching us. Only then did I realize that the protective qi shielding his body had vanished, and the barrier that still remained was once again binding him in place.
Yeon Ye-ha and I were swept farther and farther downward by the current.
Splash!
We plunged into a vast underground lake. Holding Yeon Ye-ha, I swam to shore. Spitting out the water that had filled my mouth, I looked at her. Soaking wet, Yeon Ye-ha sat up with her usual blank expression. Then she fixed her gaze straight on me and spoke.
“Number 123. So it was you.”