Chapter 251
Chapter 251
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ace
Chapter: 251
Chapter Title: Heavenly Realm
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Heavenly Realm
After killing the Zhuge Division overseer, it didn't take long to sweep tens of thousands of books from the Inner Imperial Pavilion into the storage pouch. With the Sword Demon and me using lightness skills and bursts of internal energy, it was over in an instant. Once we'd grabbed everything in sight, Zhuge said,
"This should do it. Next up is stealing the portrait automatons and the crystal monument."
I was stunned by his words.
"What?! If we do that, the [Old Ruler] will fly into a rage."
"That's a bit different."
Zhuge grinned slyly as he spoke.
"If, heaven forbid, we offered the portrait automatons or crystal monument to another god or damaged them, then sure, the laws of causality would let the [Old Ruler] intervene. It'd be justified, and no one in the Heavenly Realm could complain. But if we just 'borrow' them, it's a whole different story."
"What do you mean by that?"
"It means as long as they're fed, it doesn't matter who does it."
With that retort, Zhuge continued.
"I'll take responsibility, so let's go steal them right now. No reason to delay."
"......"
I'd seen the power of the Demon King's emergence with my own eyes, so I couldn't accept his words at all. But as I stared at Zhuge, the Sword Demon sent me a transmission.
[Accept it.]
[But.]
[If things go wrong, you can just kill him starting from your next reincarnation. For now, there's value in exploring the possibilities.]
I felt my body stiffen at the Sword Demon's words. They seemed utterly cold and rational at first glance, but they implied he was even willing to accept his own death. That line of thinking was more fitting for a reincarnator—something no one living their current life could entertain.
'No choice.'
I replied to Zhuge.
"Understood."
Flash!
Moments later, I entered Tian Lan's chamber with the group. I knew an unfinished portrait automaton was kept here. Back in my early reincarnation, it had only looked like a doll-like female figure.
But now it was different. I let out a groan upon discovering over ten human-like forms laid out on stone beds.
"Urgh..."
Once completed, portrait automatons wielded tremendous power—and here were ten of them! I was terrified they might awaken and attack at any moment. Each one looked exactly like a real human, with pulsing veins, which made them all the more frightening.
Zhuge peered slowly into the portrait automatons and said,
"As expected. Artificial lifeforms fusing sorcery and magic? I thought this kind of research was only done in the West, but this alchemist must be a grandmaster. Or maybe he's from the West himself."
He seemed well-versed in sorcery and magic. Then he continued.
"Take them all for now."
"You sure it's okay?"
"I said it is, so stop worrying... If you're that concerned, do this."
Scribble, scribble.
Zhuge appeared to write something on each portrait automaton's forehead with his finger. Once he'd marked all of them, he snapped irritably.
"Hurry up."
"What did you do?"
"Engraved the mark of an ancient god. It means 'I shall borrow your offering.' That should keep the [Old Ruler] from getting angry or rampaging."
"......!!"
"Bonus: I also erased the tracking spells."
I stared at Zhuge, wondering what he meant.
"The mark of an ancient god?! You know the sorcery of the Yi Clan...?"
"A little. So what?"
Wiggling his ears, Zhuge snapped again.
"Damn it, hurry! Even thieving is a pain when we can't get our act together."
With no choice, I stopped prying and stored all the portrait automatons in the pouch. Time was indeed short. Once that was done, we headed to the depths of the imperial palace where the crystal monument was kept.
Flash!
Zhuge muttered in excitement upon finding the crystal monument.
"Jackpot. Maybe we can achieve immortality with this."
"Immortality is that easy?"
"Once the Philosopher's Stone is complete, it'll be easier than flipping your palm."
Answering like that, Zhuge turned to the Sword Demon and said,
"The crystal monument will be a huge help going forward."
"In what way?"
"I'll show you later."
His sly grin was downright ominous. Seeing it, I intuited that Zhuge knew all about the crystal monument and the Philosopher's Stone. And if he'd even mastered Yi Clan sorcery, he might be more versed in it than Mang Ryang.
With everything finished, we returned to the Shadowless Gate via the shadow gate. Back at the Shadowless Gate, Zhuge abruptly asked the Sword Demon,
"What are your future goals, Gate Master?"
The Sword Demon answered without hesitation.
"To solidify our position in the Thirteen Laws and lay the groundwork for re-entering the Central Plains."
"That's an intermediate step. If you spread your wings further, how far do you aim?"
"To surpass the White Lotus Cult's Dharma Protectors in power."
"Hmm... I see. Even if it means external arts?"
"No, not at all. I want to surpass them purely with my own strength."
"......"
Zhuge pondered deeply. Then he said,
"Gate Master, even if you surpass the Dharma Protectors, you can't topple the imperial palace with our current forces."
"Why not? We killed the Zhuge Division overseer and stole all their treasures—they'll only get weaker."
"The alchemist is just a lowly pawn in a massive dark force. We've only disrupted their production for now, but dozens or hundreds of superhuman soldiers, forged by demonic path powers, are already deployed in the imperial palace. That's a force capable of shattering the heavens."
"......"
"The imperial palace as it stands can't be touched unless the White Lotus Cult Leader steps in personally."
If hordes of powerful transformations called demons or dragonkin swarmed us, there'd be no answer. The Sword Demon and I had faced superhuman soldiers directly, so we knew their strength all too well. As we fell silent, Zhuge said,
"This is war. We need to produce forces to counter them."
"You're not thinking of mass-producing demons, are you?"
"Give me permission, and using the forbidden books and crystal monument, I can create soldiers just as strong."
Mass-producing troops!
It was an idea we'd never even considered. Our only strategy had been to topple the imperial palace before they could mass-produce superhumans. I was tempted for a moment but quickly realized that wasn't right.
'Mang Ryang would've thought of that.'
It definitely exists.
There's a moral or ethical issue with that plan.
As I stared piercingly at Zhuge, he smirked.
"Hey, White Protector. Something to say?"
Even the arrogant Zhuge was moderating his tone in the Sword Demon's presence.
"I don't see how what you're proposing differs from the dark forces. Mass-producing those troops must come at a steep price."
"So you're opposed."
He shrugged at my objection.
"If that's how you feel, White Protector, go to Dragon King's Valley right now and focus on sword training. I'll assist the Gate Master in the meantime."
"......!!"
"Stop acting like a child. I said this is war. If the Shadowless Gate sits idle, we'll be subjugated by the Thirteen Laws forever, unchanging for a thousand or ten thousand years. We're already late to topple the imperial palace—we need to do our utmost and produce troops."
Zhuge seemed to address me, but he was really subtly pitching his idea to the Sword Demon, convincing him of its necessity. The Sword Demon, arms crossed, said,
"Can you control the portrait automatons?"
"Of course. They're built on the Eight Trigrams, so with a bit of know-how, moving their bodies should be simple."
"I can't fully trust you yet. We'll test it first and decide based on the results."
"Understood."
"Gate Master!"
As I cried out to the Sword Demon, he said,
"I share your aversion to heretical sorcery. But Zhuge's right. If there's a way to mass-produce troops, just knowing it is a gain. Isn't it, White Protector?"
"......"
The Sword Demon was subtly telling me to observe Zhuge's methods closely—for use in the next reincarnation.
'But he's dangerous.'
I sensed Zhuge was a dangerous man.
More dangerous and insidious than even the Zhuge Division overseer. He couldn't be trusted blindly.
I bit my lip hard and said,
"Understood. I'll assist Strategist Zhuge as well."
"Heh heh. With the Seven Desires' master helping, it'll be easier. Looking forward to working with you."
"Yes, likewise."
I felt the need to wear a mask.
'I need to master the smiling blade technique.'
Smile on the outside, hide the knife within. Until now, I'd only ever shown open hostility to enemies, but as things progressed, I'd face more snake-like figures. The headache was that I couldn't just discard them outright—I'd have to cooperate at times. Spending time with Zhuge, I'd need to stay vigilant and hone my mask in his presence.
Oblivious or not to my thoughts, Zhuge said,
"Anyway, what powers does that Seven Desires Darkblade have? I can't know unless you tell me."
"It grows through killing."
"Oho, through slaughter! Fascinating."
Zhuge's eyes sparkled as he continued.
"Then pull out three portrait automatons. Let's grow the Darkblade right here."
"Yes."
I retrieved three from the storage pouch: a young girl, a boy, and a middle-aged man. Their common trait was doll-like, inhumanly perfect beauty. Admiring their features, I said in wonder,
"How can they look so flawless?"
"Because they're dolls."
Yawning, Zhuge said,
"The one who crafted their bodies is a master of the Eight Trigrams. Look closely—their flesh is formed by the perfect blend of yang and yin lines, following the 64 hexagrams for each body part.
Take the upper body: the head and neck gather flesh according to the six lines of the Qian hexagram, right? With the Eight Trigrams' harmony elevated to art, their appearances naturally achieve supreme balance."
"Urgh..."
My sorcery knowledge was too low to see it. As I stood dumbfounded, Zhuge continued.
"Of course, the body is structured with Eastern Eight Trigrams sorcery, but the power source seems different."
"If we make the Philosopher's Stone, can we move them properly?"
"Probably."
Muttering, Zhuge said,
"Enough. Use them as fodder for the Darkblade."
"......"
"Ripping out their hearts with the Darkblade seems most efficient."
I hesitated, gripping the Darkblade. No matter how I looked at it, the portrait automaton before me was a living human, making the brutal act hard to perform outright. But feeling the Sword Demon's gaze, I gritted my teeth and tightened my grip.
'These aren't human. They're dolls.'
Stab!
Soon after, I ripped out the first portrait automaton's heart. I'd killed plenty, but carving out a heart from a defenseless foe was new. As I did, it jerked without expression, as if feeling no pain. Even after, it stood motionless.
Zhuge casually extended his hand.
"Give me the heart."
"......"
I'd targeted it precisely to minimize blood spray, but some still splattered, wrinkling my nose.
I repeated the process for all three. Examining the hearts one by one, Zhuge said,
"Hmm, just as I thought."
"What do you mean?"
"Look at the heart. Something engraved there, right?"
We leaned in close with the Sword Demon. On the left atrium, black characters were branded like a stamp—some form of eldritch script. Showing it to us, Zhuge continued.
"Gate Master, they were made as offerings from the start. Not for combat."
"Really? I heard portrait automatons wield strange superpowers."
"Probably innate abilities. Fundamentally, they're just for sacrifice to the [Old Ruler]—not made to fight."
"That's terrifying..."
Portrait automatons aren't for battle!
With that chilling declaration, Zhuge said,
"White Protector, does the Darkblade feel stronger?"
"Yes... a little..."
I answered honestly. Each time I'd carved out a heart, I'd felt odd vibrations from the Darkblade—like something trembling in ecstasy. And now, a faint blue spiritual energy, visible only to me, rippled from its blade. Clear proof its power had grown.
Zhuge eyed me suspiciously.
"Stronger, but I can't gauge how much. No ancient knowledge or sorcery coming to mind?"
"Nothing."
"Then it's either physical enhancement or it hasn't drunk enough blood yet."
Muttering that, Zhuge dropped a bombshell.
"White Protector, follow me. We need to clean up—help with the human sacrifice."
"......!!"
The Sword Demon and I were shocked simultaneously.
Human sacrifice?
He planned to do that horrific thing?
Zhuge explained calmly.
"You fed the portrait automatons' power to your Darkblade, damaging the [Old Ruler]'s offering. We need to offer the hearts now to appease the god as much as possible."
"What if we don't?"
"We'll likely incur the [Old Ruler]'s curse. No choice."
The Sword Demon stepped forward.
"Zhuge, you know the human sacrifice ritual?"
"Yes. Few in the Central Plains know it better."
"How?"
"My main studies were Yi Clan sorcery and ancient rites."
Grinning darkly, Zhuge replied.
"It's nothing much. Just feeding the god—let's keep it simple."