Chapter 204
Chapter 204
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 204
Chapter Title: Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors
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Mangnyang dropped the shocking revelation that the ancient Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors had actually practiced cannibalism, then spoke to me.
"Of course, this fact in itself is just a warning. Nothing more, so don't overthink it."
"Got it."
I let out a sigh of relief.
Sure, it was an astonishing historical truth, but it had no direct bearing on unsealing the Nine Darkened Nights right now. We could dig deeper, but we didn't have the means yet. That must be why Mangnyang shared this with me in Miho's absence—it wasn't that crucial.
And even if the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors had devoured humans, wasn't that ancient history? It had nothing to do with my immediate concerns. Right now, gaining the power to confront Dalgi was what mattered most.
Mangnyang said,
"Baek Woong. At this point, we'll have to resort to a brute-force method."
"No way..."
"Head back to the lake in the great steppe and just keep going north, trusting your body's instincts. Until you reach the Frozen Continent."
"Ugh, guess that's our only option."
It was impossible to scour every book in that massive library for a poison neutralization method that might not even exist. There were tens of thousands of volumes at a glance, and Mangnyang couldn't afford to waste time—he had to keep the imperial palace faction in political check while building his own strength.
My body was impervious to cold and heat, and I could convert my vast inner energy into stamina. As long as I bundled up in thick furs, the odds of freezing to death en route were negligible. I could race across the northern lands and return to Jinrang Valley if things got too tough.
'Whether I die or survive, I need to see this Arctic Continent with my own eyes.'
As I steeled my resolve, Mangnyang spoke.
"Baek Woong. Can you use Treading on Duckweed to Cross Water, by any chance?"
I nodded.
"Of course."
I couldn't originally. But during my fourteenth life, while intensively training under the Thunder God Style, I had to master lightness skills as well, so I picked up advanced techniques like Flying on Grass and Treading on Duckweed to Cross Water. Lightness skills usually demand innate talent, but with my flawless foundational qi circulation and insights gained from supreme martial arts, it was no issue.
Soon after, Miho returned. When she heard we were planning to charge straight through the northeast toward the Arctic Continent, she frowned.
"I had a feeling, but you're really going with that brute-force approach."
"Miho. Turn into a necklace and come with me."
"That's fine, but are you sure about this? It's nothing like crossing the perilous lands of the Central Plains."
"Suffering for a day or two won't kill me."
Dying without accomplishing anything scares me more.
I swallowed those words.
Before Miho and I left Jinrang Valley, Mangnyang said,
"Baek Woong. Don't torment yourself over how mythical beings' power doesn't reach you right now."
I sighed.
"I've spent nearly a hundred years building my strength and tempering myself, yet I can't even touch the tip of their toes. How could I not worry?"
"But you'll have another hundred years to build your power."
"......"
I stared at Mangnyang wordlessly, and he crossed his arms with a smile.
"After you brought me the fortuitous encounters with Nine Darkened Nights and inner energy, I skimped on sleep to train in martial arts and sorcery. Because my goal of toppling the imperial palace through strategy grew even larger once I learned I'd have to face Dalgi, the Demon King of the Divine Era. To boost my survival odds even slightly, I pushed myself."
"......!!"
Only then did I understand the reason for Mangnyang's explosive progress in this life.
Up until now, Mangnyang had focused on developing the Anti-Heaven Alliance and executing strategies, where personal martial prowess wasn't critical. But with such an overwhelming gap in power, the alliance or our allies could be wiped out at any moment, putting his life at risk. Realizing that, he must have trained even more desperately than before.
Mangnyang smiled faintly.
"The key is your heart."
"My heart?"
"Exactly. Baek Woong, the world will change based on the resolve you hold. So never forget righteousness and chivalry in your heart."
His words rang with sincerity. Having realized how much Mangnyang had labored in this life, I had to heed his advice. I nodded and replied,
"Don't worry. I'll make it work."
Flash!
In the next instant, Miho and I teleported to Ob Lake. According to Mangnyang, latitude-wise, Ob Lake was actually closer to the Arctic than Moscow or Astana. From here, we just had to head straight north.
Miho said,
"You're not getting involved further with that Westerner, Belov, or Ivan the Fourth, right?"
"Yeah. That's for later. No point rushing since the sealed dragon's antidote won't be available right away anyway."
"Good thinking."
"By the way, Miho, I've got a question."
"What?"
Knowing I'd have to run nonstop for a long haul, I sat calmly on a rock by the lake. Looking at Miho, I asked,
"If the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors were evil gods who demanded human sacrifices, then what exactly is the Heavenly Realm?"
"......"
Miho looked caught off guard.
"W-Why ask about that? It has nothing to do with heading to the Arctic, does it?"
"It's weird. The Heavenly Realm surely existed even during the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors' reigns. Did they just sit by while human sacrifices happened?"
Records in the Classic of Mountains and Seas stated that the Heavenly Realm's eldest immortals, like the Star Lord, were close with Emperor Gonggong Huangdi. That meant the Heavenly Realm knew about the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors accepting human tributes and performing brutal sacrifices.
To my question, Miho replied,
"I don't know much myself. But the immortals and divine beasts I saw in the Heavenly Realm were all righteous and order-abiding. Not evil like the demonic creatures in Dark Heaven Fragrance."
"Hmm..."
"Queen Mother of the West, whom I served, was the same. She was famous for kindly granting humans' prayers and rain rites at her shrines. The great immortals are all benevolent and fond of humans."
"I see."
Miho had no reason to lie to me about this. If anything, her words carried truth because she was exiled from the Heavenly Realm. Its great immortals and divine beasts were truly good, the polar opposites of evil gods.
'So the Heavenly Realm just stood by and watched the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors' tyranny?'
But that raised another issue.
Investiture of the Gods!
Sword Immortal Yeo Dongbin, a great immortal and transcendent, said the novel Investiture of the Gods, depicting the transition from the Yin to Zhou Dynasty, was fiction. The Yin Dynasty was an evil empire rife with human sacrifices, and Zhou ended that custom.
So... what really happened during the actual Yin-Zhou transition?
"Frustrating."
"What?"
"It'd be great if I could go back in time."
I muttered casually, then said to Miho,
"Miho. Any treasures or spells to go back in time?"
Miho pouted primly.
"Why ask me of all people?"
"Ah... sorry."
Miho was a great yokai with a gloomy past of exile from the Heavenly Realm. My question seemed to wound her. As I stammered an apology, Miho suddenly giggled and pinched my cheek.
"Ahaha, just kidding. From what I know, no such convenient, world-shaking miracle exists."
"Why? They say sorcery at its peak can even revive the dead."
"Hmph... I don't know the details, but manipulating time is inherently impossible. Even great immortals can't handle time. So ditch the pipe dream and focus on the present."
"Tch, can't even ask?"
"You're barely a novice sorcerer yourself."
Miho eyed me with amusement. She was right—I'd carried her spell bead long enough to build basic spell power and sorcery, but my repertoire was so meager I was just a novice. To Miho, an advanced sorceress, me bringing this up must seem absurd.
It suddenly hit me, so I said to Miho,
"Oh right, Miho."
"What now? Ask all at once."
"I need to learn sorcery. Will you be my master?"
"Didn't I teach you Flame Sorcery?"
"You know all sorts of other spells too."
Miho sighed.
"Sigh... After all that study, you still don't grasp how human and yokai sorcery differ?"
"Not really. You've never explained."
"Simply put, human sorcery is acquired, yokai sorcery innate. Yokai can learn others, but their natural spells are powerful without training because yokai essence stems from yin, drawing power automatically from the world's darkness.
Humans rarely have innate sorcery and must learn it postnatally. That's why their spell power lags behind yokai immortals, relying more on technique than raw force."
"I see..."
"For humans, a human sorcerer should be the master."
A brilliant idea flashed through my mind.
'Huh, there's that option?'
Seemed perfect.
I smirked inwardly. Talking with Miho had yielded a precious clue. So I hugged her tight.
"Thanks, Miho!"
"Ughhh... Did you even understand?"
Holding her shoulders and rubbing cheeks, Miho grimaced. She gently pushed me away, but I felt even better and kissed her cheek. Her face turned beet red.
"Eek, stop it! Get to work."
Miho yelled, then transformed into a necklace around my neck. Time to quit chatting and head north. Recalling her skin's feel, my cheekbones lifted in a grin.
Tap.
I started running at tremendous speed. As I raced like the wind, Miho sent a grumpy mind transmission.
[Why the goofy grin?]
"Hehe."
Not sure why, but hugging Miho filled some inner void. Like I'd been recharged with Miho essence. The fatigue and irritation from recent days vanished instantly.
After running about a full day, I arrived in an unknown snowy plain. Leaving the steppe for true frozen tundra, brutal cold and blizzards assailed relentlessly. Visibility dropped to zero in the blowing snow.
Whoooosh!!
The gale sliced like knives. Ordinary humans in furs wouldn't last an hour here. But impervious to cold with vast inner energy, I climbed rugged mountains unfazed.
Tadadot...
Leaping across massive boulders, I traversed sheer cliffs sideways. In trackless wilderness, this was the fastest way over mountains. Sidestepping made summits seem quicker.
For about an hour of lightness skill climbing, I felt baffled.
'What... how is it this high?'
My lightness skill could scale a sub-peak in at most a quarter-hour. But this mountain was so towering and sheer, every trick barely got me to the top. Even expert climbers couldn't attempt it.
Reaching the summit revealed a vast vista. Paths behind and ahead unfolded. Targeting the opposite peak, I dashed again.
Tadadot.
Whooooosh—
No respite; gales, cold, blizzards raged ceaselessly. I'd never faced such harsh terrain. Noticing my clothes icing, I circulated qi to shake off snow. Then ran and ran, lips clenched.
'This is insane. No decent rest spots.'
How many hours passed? At least four.
I'd covered three hundred li at least, yet endless trackless snowy wastes, cold, wilderness. Realizing this was the true northern continent, I shuddered. Vast, yet unfit for human habitation.
Whoooosh—
Mid-run, I halted in the gale-swept plain center. Not tired yet, but deepening darkness and tumbling snowballs filled the air. Camping here seemed unwise.
'Hmm... Use the Return Bead and head back?'
No major snags yet, but the brutal terrain was disheartening. After agonizing, I shook my head.
'No. Let's go further.'
Tap.
I ran again. Ran despite occasional breathlessness. Used only Soul Extinguishing Step—no Thunder Command, as it sped things up but strained cold-resistance qi allocation. Soul Extinguishing Step yielded great power with minimal qi.
Rumble...
Dodging my third avalanche, I landed. Spotting a cave midway, I entered for rest.
"Huu..."
The cliff cave was shallow, barely room for one to lie. Lying on the floor, I muttered to Miho,
"Miho. Head back to Jinrang Valley?"
[Know where we are?]
"Not a clue."
[Then keep going till you see settlements or landmarks.]
Realizing my resolve wavering, I felt ridiculous. The savage nature had daunted me. But Miho's words steadied me as I gazed at the white vista outside.
After an hour's nap in the cave, fully recovered, I set off again.
Tadadot!
Run and run. Trusting north, surmounting mountains, rivers, cliffs heedless. No one else traverses continents this way.
After another full day nonstop, inner energy bottomed out; chill seeped in. Utterly drained, I pulled the Return Bead.
Flash.
Back in Jinrang Valley, Mangnyang spotted my frostbitten state. Miho reverted from necklace, warming me with foxfire. After half a day asleep, Mangnyang asked worriedly as I woke,
"You sure you're okay?"
Shaking my head, I replied,
"Yeah... A few more days should do it."
Felt like at least a thousand li covered. Probably more. However vast the continent, doubling that distance should reveal the end.
With Miho, I Return Beaded back to the last cliff. From the nameless sheer peak, I leaped with lightness skill.
"Raaah!!"
Resolve surged. Anyway, run!
Soon, I found myself in a trance, running mindlessly. Worrying only about qi depletion, Soul Extinguishing Step carried me over; I dodged colossal avalanches flipping heaven and earth.
After three days and nights—
"......"
What was this? Standing on ice, staring at barren snowfields, I pondered, but it was odd. Days should bring nights, yet here darkness never fell. Bodily sense said night had long passed. As I puzzled, Miho reverted from necklace and said,
"Night doesn't come here."
"What's going on?"
No snowstorms or gales here.
Silent.
Miho gazed at the desolate ice plain and said,
"Means we've reached the goal."
============================ Author's Afterword ============================
Please give likes and recommendation comments~ It gives me strength~