Chapter 160
Chapter 160
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 160
Chapter Title: Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors
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A short while later, Dongbang Mugeol was seated at a large table, surrounded by the Thunder God Style experts. It was a fact that he was one of the Five Great Physicians of the world and a renowned elder of the jianghu. It was also a fact that we had forcibly kidnapped him. Perhaps because of that, Lee Gwang spoke to him politely.
"Pleased to meet you. I am Lee Gwang."
"To think I would meet the Azure Dragon who shook the Shaanxi martial world like this."
"I am equally pleased to meet the esteemed physician."
After exchanging light greetings, Dongbang Mugeol spoke.
"Where would you like me to begin?"
"With everything, of course."
"You want me to show my full sincerity, then."
"Wouldn't you?"
Lee Gwang's words seemed polite and measured, but they carried a razor-sharp edge beneath the surface. It meant that while he was maintaining decorum outwardly, the atmosphere could turn hostile at any moment. There was no greater folly in the world than treating him like an ordinary scholar. As if sensing Lee Gwang's true intent, Dongbang Mugeol gave a wry smile.
"Very well. I'll start from the beginning—how I came to form a connection with the White Lotus Cult."
All eyes in the room fixed on him.
"It was about several decades ago now. Likely after your Thunder God Style had been driven out. I was wandering the world, feeling it too small for me, when curiosity led me to visit the White Lotus Cult's headquarters.
At the time, I even considered joining them, but the cult had a strong air of rejecting outsiders. So I planned to just tour as a guest and leave. But then the White Lotus Cult Leader summoned me."
"The White Lotus Cult Leader?"
"He asked me to travel the world and find the Dragon Flower Tree for him."
Hearing this, Lee Gwang paused in thought before responding.
"Isn't the Dragon Flower Tree the legendary tree from Buddhist lore, said to descend with the Future Buddha?"
"Indeed."
"If you're trying to toy with me now, you won't leave in one piece."
Kuuu...
Lee Gwang unleashed his killing intent, his aura so overwhelming that even the surrounding Thunder God Style disciples flinched and trembled. With his inner energy sealed, Dongbang Mugeol paled under the pressure but responded with resolve.
"I stake my name on it. The cult leader clearly asked me to find the Dragon Flower Tree."
"......"
"It's the tree said to herald the advent of Maitreya."
Maitreya!
Maitreya was the Future Buddha in Buddhism. Legend held that fifty-six billion, seven hundred million years after Shakyamuni's nirvana, he would descend from Tusita Heaven to this world. Until then, he resided there as a bodhisattva, enlightening sentient beings. Thus, Maitreya was called both a bodhisattva and a buddha.
But with such an inconceivably vast span of time, the Dragon Flower Tree had become little more than a symbol of mythology, its existence doubted. Temples devoted to Buddhism might build halls to honor it, but even great monks could not confirm if it truly existed.
Let alone the White Lotus Cult Leader, supreme ruler of the world's martial arts, asking someone to find it!
Lee Gwang calmed his killing intent, deciding to hear him out.
"And what did you reply?"
"Naturally, I agreed. The cult leader staked his own name, assuring me that the Dragon Flower Tree does exist."
"...What did you say...?"
"From that day, I gained free access to the White Lotus Cult and could even exchange words, however superficially, with their Dharma Protectors. I traveled the world in search of the Dragon Flower Tree."
Not just Lee Gwang—even we listeners fell silent, hanging on his every word. Lee Gwang's expression soured in particular, shocked that the cult leader believed in its existence. After listening quietly, he responded.
"The Dragon Flower Tree exists in the Central Plains too. It's a real tree. Did you really go all the way to the Southern Man lands searching for something like that?"
Dongbang Mugeol chuckled.
"Hah, do you think I'd overlook that? Of course, the Dragon Flower Tree as a common species is rare but visible here and there in the Central Plains. However, the one the cult leader meant was the primordial strain from ancient times, imbued with the divine power to allow Maitreya's descent. A place where a buddha-like divine being could manifest."
"Divine power... So you're saying the White Lotus Cult Leader believes in such superstitions."
"Don't blame me. I merely trusted the word of the world's greatest, the White Lotus Cult Leader."
Lee Gwang and the other Thunder God Style experts wore complicated expressions. For my part, accustomed to myths, sorcery, and otherworldly beings, I wasn't particularly surprised. As the supreme figure, I had expected the cult leader to be tied to transcendent entities.
Dongbang Mugeol continued.
"I scoured every corner of the Central Plains, following myths and legends, but found nothing. Then suddenly, a messenger from the White Lotus Cult summoned me to treat the Young Cult Leader's strange illness."
"That was when the Five Great Physicians gathered."
"Indeed. The others were skilled enough in medicine to claim they could cure any ailment in the world. But that illness was different. It didn't feel like a disease of this world at all."
With a sigh, Dongbang Mugeol went on.
"As you know, it ended with the Five Great Physicians drawing the ire of the Central Plains and being scorned. But unlike the others, I realized the illness stemmed from sorcery or a curse, so I had a private audience with the White Lotus Cult Leader."
"What did the cult leader say?"
"He said there was no helping it unless I procured something sacred like pure Sacred Lotus or the Dragon Flower Tree, or eliminated the curse's source."
Lee Gwang crossed his arms, looking puzzled.
"Then why call the Five Great Physicians in the first place?"
"Probably a faint hope. Testing if medicine could achieve something. But the outcome was predetermined from the start."
"I see... So you resolved to go as far as India in search of the Dragon Flower Tree."
"That's right."
"And why stop in the Southern Man lands along the way?"
Dongbang Mugeol shrugged.
"Not as much as India, but the various kingdoms there are deeply tied to Buddhist myths. Since I was committed to finding it, I decided to search thoroughly."
Lee Gwang's eyes sharpened.
"You found a cure for the illness. That's why you returned to the Central Plains."
"Correct. Though not immediately."
"What is the cure?"
To Lee Gwang's question, Dongbang Mugeol replied.
"I'll tell you, but first, I have something I want to know."
"Speak."
"What is that kid?"
Dongbang Mugeol's gaze turned to me. As all eyes followed, he stared at me as if beholding something utterly bizarre.
"That golden censer and wooden armor... Even calling them sorcery artifacts feels inadequate for such incredible items. And his martial prowess defies his age. What exactly is this Baek Woong kid?"
"......"
After a moment's silence, Lee Gwang replied.
"Baek Woong is a disciple of the Thunder God Style. That's all that matters to me."
"You're not curious about the origins of those strange artifacts?"
"Hmm."
Lee Gwang glanced at me and abruptly asked.
"Baek Woong. Where did you get the golden censer and wooden armor?"
It was a simple question, but hard to answer. Still, since I planned to merge the Thunder God Style experts with the Anti-Heaven Alliance anyway, I saw it only as coming a bit early. So I answered slowly.
"I obtained them while subjugating pirates."
"Pirates?"
"I personally wiped out the Blood Path Group, which controlled the trade routes to Goryeo."
I explained that I had gotten the golden censer and wooden armor from the Blood Path Group's lair. Of course, the wooden armor came from the Great Thunder Prison where Golden Flame General was sealed, but revealing that would inevitably bring up the general and the Anti-Heaven Alliance, so I omitted it. When I added how I had discovered their functions and helped people, Lee Gwang exclaimed in admiration.
"You truly have the heart of a righteous hero. To help people like that without expecting any reward?"
"You're too kind."
Even as I replied, I felt an odd sensation. Right now, not just Lee Gwang, but Jin So-cheong and Geuk-ho were genuinely impressed. It wasn't mere enjoyment of my tale—they were sincerely astonished by my sense of justice.
'What is it? Did I do something so righteous?'
I had heard from Mang-ryang that such acts were only natural. So I felt no urge to boast. As I pondered inwardly, Lee Gwang asked.
"But why didn't you tell me about those items?"
"There wasn't an opportunity."
"Hmm... We'll discuss that later. Understood."
"Yes."
Lee Gwang set the matter aside for now and turned back to Dongbang Mugeol.
"As you heard. The child is a prodigy who simply pursued his own path. There's no need to doubt he's a Thunder God Style disciple."
"Hmm..."
Dongbang Mugeol eyed me reluctantly before speaking.
"In any case, I found the solution in the Yue Kingdom of the Southern Man lands. With help from their king, the Black Prince Naresuan, I accessed an ancient library there and learned the Dragon Flower Tree's location—and the legend of the Seven Luminaries."
"You speak the Yue language too?"
"I've not lived to this age for show. I know the languages of all seven surrounding kingdoms."
"Hoo..."
As they continued conversing, I was startled by what I heard.
Seven Luminaries!
Why were the Seven Luminaries mentioned here? Focusing intently on their talk, Dongbang Mugeol went on.
"The Dragon Flower Tree, it says, is a being that warms its seeds with fire qi beside the Fire Luminary's treasure, waiting eons. Find the Fire Luminary's hidden treasure, and the Dragon Flower Tree will be yours too."
"So where is it?"
"......"
After hesitating, Dongbang Mugeol said.
"Well... how to put it... It's in a truly, truly distant place."
"Where, exactly?"
"Further south from the Yue Kingdom of the Southern Man lands lies an archipelago of island nations, and beyond that, the great ocean... Then several thousand li further south, you'll reach the legendary continent where Shennong was exiled after losing to the Yellow Emperor."
"......"
"......"
Silence fell over the room. Even Southern Man lands or India were seen as vastly remote frontiers, but the place Dongbang Mugeol described was the stuff of fantasy—the very edge of the world. Irritated, Lee Gwang snapped.
"You're really not mocking me?"
"Damn it! That's why I didn't want to tell you. Who would believe it besides the White Lotus Cult Leader? But this is all from my own investigations and findings."
"Ahem..."
Lee Gwang coughed uncomfortably. Likely, his senses told him Dongbang Mugeol was speaking the truth, making it hard to press aggressively. Until then, Jin So-cheong, who had been listening silently, raised a hand and asked.
"You planned to go to the White Lotus Cult in western Gansu and tell them that? Essentially, you found that they just need to go to the southern end of the world—but wouldn't that seem insufficient?"
Dongbang Mugeol looked a bit guilty and nodded.
"Fair point. So I dug up another treatment from a different legend."
"Which is?"
"The location of the pure primordial Sacred Lotus!"
Lee Gwang interjected.
"Isn't the Sacred Lotus a spirit medicine cultivated only by the White Lotus Cult? Does purity matter that much?"
"Well... The current Sacred Lotus of the cult has had its divine qi removed for mass production. Pure primordial Sacred Lotus could cure the Young Cult Leader's illness outright, but the current version merely boosts inner energy."
Catching his breath, Dongbang Mugeol's eyes gleamed.
"From the ancient library in Yue, I learned that the pure primordial Sacred Lotus blooms as a Black-White Lotus near the Water Luminary's ruins! The Water Luminary's ruins are surely somewhere in the Central Plains. Find them, and we can definitely cure the Young Cult Leader's illness with the pure Black-White Lotus."
Lee Gwang nodded in admiration.
"Impressive... If true, this information is worth a fortune."
"Hahaha."
"So... where are the Water Luminary's ruins?"
Dongbang Mugeol looked embarrassed.
"Er... I don't know exactly. I have a clue: the ancient mountain where Zhuanxu of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors left the final evidence of his flood control. But not the precise location..."
"Hmm. I see."
As they wrapped up, I could hardly contain my itching curiosity—or my laughter. I shouted inwardly.
'So that's why!'
The reason the Black-White Lotus smuggled from Goryeo in the past revived the White Lotus Cult.
The reason the Dharma Protectors came to Goryeo seeking the Black-White Lotus.
The causal chain from my tenth reincarnation had finally unraveled in the fourteenth!