Chapter 230
Chapter 230
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 230
Chapter Title: Cultivator's Mountain (4)
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―I curse you. How dare you seal me away!
―You betrayed me. Heavenly Demon! I will surely annihilate you!
―Everything you desired! The world you lived in! I'll erase it all...!
Back when he had encountered the Pandarian King.
The moment he mentioned the name 'Heavenly Demon,' Charlpham unleashed a torrent of hatred and curses.
Because he had finally recalled the name of the one responsible for sealing him.
He had forcibly calmed him down at the time, but that resentment hadn't eased in the slightest.
If anything, it had only grown stronger since the memories resurfaced.
So he had hesitated for a moment.
Was summoning Charlpham here truly the right choice?
'Running from it won't solve anything.'
The internal conflict was brief.
He had resolved to uncover the hidden truth.
Related to the Heavenly Demon.
Or perhaps an even greater divine intent lurking in this place—confronting it head-on was the best approach.
Soon after, the summoned Charlpham looked around, then stared at the wall and spoke.
A curt criticism.
At the same time, the old man's expression hardened.
"That shadow is supposed to be Guardian Charlpham?"
Park Chan-woo nodded.
"It's the same existence, just a different form."
"That can't be. Guardian Charlpham ascended alongside the Founder Heavenly Demon..."
Charlpham cut off the old man's words.
His voice was still laced with anger, as always.
"...Faithless wretches."
At the claim that the Heavenly Demon was a mere coward, the old man's eyes gleamed with murderous intent.
In an instant, his body felt heavier.
His breath grew ragged, cold sweat dripping down.
He had mental resistance against demons or Creators, but he had to take the full brunt of the aura from other existences.
'Even in his near-death state, this much power!'
He couldn't even imagine how strong the old man must have been in his prime.
Normally, a powerful being's killing intent would shake the surroundings, but the old man's was focused solely on him and Charlpham.
An insane pressure.
It felt like every bone in his body was shattering.
Yet killing intent was ultimately just the flow of mana.
After absorbing the transcendent Lil's mana, Park Chan-woo could somewhat 'control' mana itself.
He neutralized the old man's killing intent as much as possible.
Concentrating all his focus, he dispersed the mana flow outward.
'...Impressive.'
The old man's eyes lit up.
For someone to handle his killing intent so fluidly.
And this wasn't ordinary killing intent.
The old man had reached the realm of 'Heart Instant Kill.'
Normally, death would come the moment he willed it.
Yet he hadn't died.
He could see, feel, and finely adjust the flow of the energy.
"...!"
In that instant, the old man's pupils dilated like saucers.
Heavenly Firmament Kill!
The Killing God's technique that slays the entire heavens.
With this profound art, the Heavenly Demon could kill anything around him at will.
A dying old man like him couldn't possibly wield 'Heavenly Firmament Kill' perfectly.
But.
Someone who knew its name.
...Could be counted on one hand.
Charlpham looked back at the mural.
Then he reached out and erased the Heavenly Demon.
In a flash.
Another phrase appeared.
Charlpham ground his teeth.
As if utterly fed up.
"...If you truly are Guardian Charlpham, then you should know His true name as well. Answer me. The moment you err, both of you die here for certain."
He meant it.
He couldn't let such insolence live.
Tearing him to shreds wouldn't even sate his rage.
Moreover, no one else knew the Heavenly Demon's true name.
Among the living, only the old man did.
Charlpham hesitated.
The Heavenly Demon's name.
Was he to utter that hated name aloud?
Charlpham looked at Park Chan-woo.
Park Chan-woo nodded.
"......"
The old man shut his mouth.
But his eyes shook even more violently than before.
He had guessed correctly.
He knew a name no one should know.
"Truly... are you Guardian Charlpham?"
"Then this man... is he perhaps... His successor...?"
"...!!!"
There was no room left for further shock.
"Half right."
Meaning he was the successor, yet even superior!
...However, Charlpham's intent differed slightly from the old man's understanding.
The Heavenly Demon had been one of the Demon-Sealing God's former masters.
And Park Chan-woo had inherited the Holy Grail's ownership rights—that was why he was introduced as the successor.
Aside from that, Park Chan-woo had no real connection to the Heavenly Demon.
"Ah! He hasn't abandoned us!"
Misunderstanding greatly, the old man's body trembled.
Then he shouted fervently.
"He sent a successor for us! He has sent a savior to earth to break the chains of this endless hell!"
Grand words indeed.
Park Chan-woo simply watched him for a while.
If he spoke the truth, the old man might grab him by the throat and bid farewell to the world.
The old man prostrated himself, burning his final will.
"Forgive my failure to recognize you! I shall atone with death. Please, grant me death!"
"...It's fine."
"Then from now on, we Twelve Heavenly Kings shall serve you. Reclaim the Temple of Myriad Gods from those rebels and reign as supreme sovereign!"
"......"
"Though my body is now frail, the might of the remaining eleven Heavenly Kings can shatter heaven and earth..."
"Is one of those Twelve Heavenly Kings that skeleton by any chance?"
He pointed to the skeleton sitting in a high monk's pose beneath the mural.
The old man averted his gaze slightly and calmly changed the subject.
"...The might of the remaining ten Heavenly Kings is enough to overturn heaven and earth, so they will surely be of help..."
"They're all dead already."
"...?"
"I saw them on my way through this cave."
"Th-that can't be. Their wills were firmer than steel."
Of the Twelve Heavenly Kings, only the old man remained.
Moreover, most had given up escaping the cave and ended their lives by smashing their heads.
He could hide it no longer.
He pulled a book from his inventory.
"This is the book where they recorded their 'divine arts' and 'insights.' It wasn't mine to begin with, so do with it as you will."
This book labeled 'divine arts' was, in a way, their keepsakes.
Handing it over without attachment, the old man received the worn tome.
Shuffle.
He opened the book and read it slowly.
Thud.
Reaching the final page, the old man said.
"...Ahh. So they all... eventually passed on."
Tears streamed down once more.
A moment later.
After unsummoning Charlpham.
The now-calmed old man introduced himself as First Heavenly King Chiwu.
And he explained how the Twelve Heavenly Kings had ended up trapped in this Avici Hell.
"After the Heavenly Demon vanished, the Temple of Myriad Gods split into two factions for a long time."
Temple of Myriad Gods.
That was what they called Cultivator's Mountain.
"But He left no successor, no token, not even His martial arts. So the faction loyal to the Heavenly Demon weakened quickly. Deemed lacking legitimacy, they were pushed to the brink of annihilation. We Twelve Heavenly Kings had no choice but to turn to forbidden martial arts."
Pain crossed First Heavenly King Chiwu's face.
The Heavenly Demon's name had been erased even from the Temple of Myriad Gods.
The blind followers of the Heavenly Demon lacked legitimacy and power.
Thus, they resorted to forbidden arts.
"The nameless supreme divine art. The only martial art He personally sealed due to its extreme danger! But the moment we touched it, we were trapped in this Avici Hell."
"Who imprisoned you?"
"...The new master of the Temple of Myriad Gods. Another God-Slayer. He sealed us here."
Meaning another who had slain an outer god existed.
The new master of this mountain, capable of designing this Avici Hell—an immense being without doubt.
"He... that monster erased His name from the Temple of Myriad Gods. He slaughtered all followers of Him and imprisoned only us here."
"Only the Twelve Heavenly Kings?"
"Yes. He crippled all our dantians, but perhaps... he was curious if we could truly master the forbidden art after touching it."
He had destroyed their dantians.
Meaning their stored mana was ruined.
Indeed.
That's why he said even completing it wouldn't let them leave.
"Was the divine art completed?"
"Yes. Thanks to you, successor, it is complete. But... I lack the time left to cultivate it."
He was dying by the second.
A state where dropping dead any moment wouldn't be surprising.
His perceptible mana was barely a handful.
But First Heavenly King Chiwu's will remained intact.
"It won't match the arts of the Lord of Myriad Demons, but please, allow us to pass on our final insights?"
"You want me to learn the 'divine art'?"
"No need to invest separate time to cultivate it. The divine art consists of twelve insights. It reaches perfection through twelve enlightenments."
No need to effortfully practice the martial art separately.
Just accept and awaken to the insights.
It was simpler than expected, almost suspiciously so.
Different from the martial systems he knew.
Normally, one embodied, practiced, and perfected arts with the body.
The twelve insights likely referred to the 'words' they had written in the book.
"Once I transmit the insights, as you ascend the Temple of Myriad Gods and face the Arhats, you'll awaken to them naturally. However... if word gets out that you've learned this 'divine art' or that you're the Heavenly Demon's successor, they will attack with all their might."
"So I have to climb while hiding it thoroughly."
"I apologize. It should be our Twelve Heavenly Kings aiding you, but..."
"It's fine."
"...Even after all these years, there must be those who carry His will. Please ascend the Temple of Myriad Gods with them and make your name resound!"
First Heavenly King Chiwu knelt.
Desperate.
Park Chan-woo couldn't easily refuse amid such resolve.
He couldn't say he was far from a true Heavenly Demon successor.
Though he held the Demon-Sealing God's Holy Grail and was Charlpham's master, so not entirely untrue.
He had already impersonated the Heavenly Demon once with the Pandarian King.
'I have to climb Cultivator's Mountain anyway.'
This wasn't all there was.
After escaping here, the true 'Cultivator's Mountain' awaited.
Avici Hell was merely the mountain's shadow, its deepest recess.
The real ascent hadn't even begun.
Moreover, this supreme art called the divine art piqued his curiosity greatly.
A martial art premised on enlightenment.
The fact it could only be learned against Arhats only amplified his intrigue.
...After a brief contemplation, Park Chan-woo nodded.
"Very well, I will."
Sorry to Charlpham, but he couldn't pass up this opportunity!
As First Heavenly King Chiwu transmitted the insights and imparted his teachings, he could scarcely contain his trembling heart.
'Th-this perfect physique! Could it be the Heavenly Martial Body...!'