Chapter 257
Chapter 257
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 257
Chapter Title: Heavenly Realm
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As Yi Ji had said, once we defeated the giant earthworm, we were able to enter the cave behind it. The cave was wide enough for two grown men to walk side by side, but there were no torches or anything of the sort inside. So we broke off branches from nearby trees, fashioned them into torches, and proceeded down the long tunnel.
As I walked through the cave, I muttered to myself.
"How did Clear Moon Protector make it through alive?"
The size of that giant earthworm we'd just seen was no joke. No, by the standards of ordinary people or even average martial artists, it was a disaster incarnate. It was a legendary monster that would require thousands or tens of thousands of soldiers to take down. Even now, Elder Dokgo Seong of the Thunder God School had to unleash his full power in a single instant just to sever its lifeline. I couldn't help but wonder how Clear Moon Protector had passed the guardian of the Life Woods.
There's no way he took it down one-on-one.
Dokgo Seong, who was leading the way, responded to my muttering.
"He probably deceived the worm's senses and sneaked in."
"Is that even possible?"
"Of course, that thing back there had sharp senses, so ordinary lightness skills wouldn't cut it. But Clear Moon's divine movement arts are top-tier even in the Thunder God School, so he must have managed somehow."
Curiosity piqued, I asked.
"So Clear Moon Protector's specialty is movement arts? Does that mean he knows the Soul Extinguishing Step?"
"You seemed to have learned it too. Yes, Clear Moon is the rightful inheritor of the Soul Extinguishing Step. If he were still alive, he'd be counted among the world's greatest movement art masters."
"Hmm."
That made sense. The Soul Extinguishing Step was a movement technique so terrifyingly fast that even I was sometimes startled by its speed when executing it. It was so quick that there were times I couldn't fully control my own movements. If a master had trained in it for over half a century, it was believable that he could slip past the giant earthworm.
Halt.
Our conversation came to a stop as our advance did. The narrow cave path ended abruptly at a sheer cliff. The opposite side was about twenty-odd zhang away.
Dokgo Seong glanced at the distance and asked.
"Can you cross it with movement arts?"
Nobunaga peered down into the darkness below and replied.
"I could with Thought Severing Sword, but that abyss down there bothers me."
I translated for Dokgo Seong, who nodded in understanding.
"I thought as much."
Everyone here was a peerless expert who could dominate the world, so crossing twenty zhang was doable. The problem was the ominous killing intent emanating from the bottomless abyss-like depths below. It was proof of a threatening presence prickling the senses of high-level experts, giving us pause.
Dokgo Seong handed me his torch. As I took it, he suddenly launched himself toward the opposite side.
Whoosh!
His figure crossed the chasm in an instant, landing on the far side. He sent us a transmission.
[Jump without worry. If an enemy attacks, I'll handle it.]
[Understood.]
Next, Tsukahara Bokuden unleashed his movement arts and leaped across. Unlike before, a massive tentacle-like thing shot up from the cliff base at incredible speed, attacking him.
"What the—!"
Tsukahara Bokuden hurriedly swung his sword, slicing the tentacle, but using his ultimate technique mid-leap left him stalled in midair. Dokgo Seong then unleashed sword thunder, striking the rising tentacle mass from above.
Crackle!
[Kiiiiiaaaaaah!!]
A massive, grotesque scream echoed. Dokgo Seong didn't miss the retreating tentacle and used magnetic force to pull Tsukahara Bokuden to safety. I quickly grabbed Nobunaga's hand and jumped across.
Once all four of us landed safely, Bokuden clicked his tongue.
"I can't let my guard down for a second. What kind of monster was that?"
"Probably a demonic beast."
Nobunaga took up the words with a pale face.
"This is absurd... I have no confidence in surviving the Death Sea..."
Bokuden's bitter mutter was no joke—it was sincere. Even the Great Sword Hero was agonizing over the future challenges. This was the overwhelming demonic landscape of Aokigahara's Sea of Trees.
After walking some more, we spotted light ahead. It was bright and large, clearly man-made. As we entered a staircase where the glow was bright enough to render our torches unnecessary, a strange tension settled over the group. We couldn't relax, not knowing when an enemy might strike.
Soon, a spiral staircase appeared, and we began ascending it. As I climbed, I thought to myself.
'This feels just like one of those alien race ruins.'
It was all too familiar.
At the top was a vast cavern with an altar. It was exactly like the human sacrifice altars I'd seen in ruins before. Dokgo Seong looked around and said.
"The path is blocked."
"Should we go back and look for another way?"
"No. It's just blocked. It's been a single path all the way, so no doubt about it."
Dokgo Seong glared at the altar and declared firmly.
"You hiding there—come out."
Rustle...
Like mist dispersing, a human figure materialized from empty space atop the altar. It fully took on human form.
He wore pristine white robes and a specially crafted headdress. I recognized the attire and let out a groan.
"Onmyoji."
It was the garb of the onmyoji, the sorcerers of the Eastern Capital. A style passed down from ancient times. Gender was ambiguous—the face was delicately pretty and androgynous.
The onmyoji who appeared before us cupped his hands toward Dokgo Seong and said.
"You've arrived safely. I am Abe no Yoshihara, of the administrator clan of the Sea of Trees."
I translated for Dokgo Seong. He stared at Yoshihara for a moment before speaking.
"I am Dokgo Seong of the Thunder God School. Do you know our Clear Moon Protector?"
I started to translate again, but surprisingly, Yoshihara understood Central Plains speech fluently and replied in kind without hesitation.
"You're referring to the man who entered decades ago. Yes, he crossed the Death Sea and entered the Entry Sea."
"Are you certain?"
"Heh heh..."
Abe no Yoshihara gave an enigmatic smile and said.
"You've come to this hell seeking Clear Moon?"
"Correct."
"Then I recommend turning back. As administrator, that's why I've come here."
"What do you mean?"
"Behold this."
Woooong.
Moments later, light emanated from various points on the altar, and strange forms floated up in all eight directions of the cavern. We tensed, thinking it was Yoshihara's sorcery attack, but soon saw trigrams manifesting in each direction. Yoshihara spoke slowly.
"This place is sealed by the power of the Eight Trigrams. It's one of the multilayered, powerful barriers designed to suppress the mighty demons within the Sea of Trees. We pride ourselves on a perfect seal, both physical and sorcerous, using the Eight Trigrams arts."
Dokgo Seong glanced at him and remarked.
"You're talking nonsense. It doesn't seem perfect at all."
Hearing that, Yoshihara smiled bitterly.
"Haha, indeed... That Clear Moon fellow pierced our barriers with his movement arts alone. We've since reinforced them several times over out of fear, but against experts of your Thunder God School, we have no confidence."
"You're afraid we'll destroy your barriers, so you've come to advise retreat?"
"Yes. One at the pinnacle of martial arts could tear them like paper."
"You keep saying 'we' and 'us'—what's this administrator clan?"
Yoshihara replied slowly.
"Our administrator clan, starting from Abe no Seimei's time, has gathered the demons rampant in the Eastern Capital lands and sealed them in the Sea of Trees. Without divine treasures like the altar clans possess, it was the only way to sustain human civilization. And from then on, we've devoted ourselves to maintaining that seal."
"What happens if the seal breaks?"
"The demons gathered in the Sea of Trees would burst out and destroy these Eastern Capital lands in three days."
"......"
No exaggeration. Even the demonic beasts in the first stage of the first zone, Life Woods, were beyond ordinary human power. If those in Death Sea, Entry Sea, and Annihilation Sea were stronger, human civilization would crumble in moments.
Dokgo Seong seemed to grasp the situation. But he crossed his arms calmly and said.
"I don't care what you do. Our goal is to meet Clear Moon Protector. If you interfere, we'll cut you down."
"I suppose so..."
Yoshihara looked deeply troubled. He seemed to believe Dokgo Seong could indeed destroy their barriers. After much deliberation, he said.
"If you insist, gather eight people. Then we'll gladly open the gate to the Death Sea."
"What do you mean?"
"From the Death Sea onward, demonic beasts beyond mere martial prowess appear. If you assemble a party of eight, including yourself, Dokgo Seong, our administrator clan will bestow the Eight Trigrams' blessing. It will greatly boost your survival rate."
Dokgo Seong scowled.
"What nonsense. Why should we need your blessing?"
"Because otherwise, you'll die. And upon death, your bodies and souls become the Demon God's property, bolstering the enemy."
"......"
Dokgo Seong silently drew his sword. He clearly deemed Yoshihara's words bullshit and was ready to strike. Nobunaga and Bokuden shot me alarmed glances from the side, and I hurriedly stopped Dokgo Seong.
"Wait! Hold on a moment."
"No time for this drivel. I can handle any demonic beasts."
"His words aren't drivel. We need to listen."
"What? On what basis?"
I stated firmly.
"He's telling the truth. If there are demonic beasts with mental attacks, we can't withstand them. I've fought such beasts before, so I know."
"Illusions can be endured with the Thunder God School's secrets."
"Not that level. Beasts with strong mental assaults can bewilder even Grandmaster-level experts. I barely held out with the altar's power."
Dokgo Seong looked surprised.
"Really?"
"Yes. I stake my life on it."
I was certain. Demonic beasts with mental attacks or illusion control were truly dangerous. In the past, fighting the Moon Beast at the Great Thunder Jade's core, even Lee Gwang and Jin So-cheong—Peak Experts—had nearly fallen to its curse.
Given the Life Woods guardian's power, no guarantee such beasts weren't ahead. Quite the opposite—I was sure they existed.
Dokgo Seong sensed something in my tone and groaned thoughtfully. After a pause, he said.
"How do we fill eight? Just headcount?"
"Include allies who won't get in the way. Sorcerers are fine too."
"Annoyingly picky."
"No choice. This is the world's worst demonic realm."
"You said Clear Moon is in the Entry Sea now—is he alive?"
"Yes, alive. But he can't advance further."
Dokgo Seong turned to us.
"Let's head back. Need to regroup."
Yoshihara sighed in relief.
"Whew... Thank you. I'll guide you to the exit."
Flash!
Moments later, we returned to the forward base at the Sea of Trees entrance with Yoshihara. Having seen his teleportation, Nobunaga questioned him.
"With such convenient transfer arts, why not just send us to the Entry Sea, eight or not?"
"This spell only works from later checkpoints to earlier ones. Personal transfer has no limits, but group transfer does."
"Hmm..."
"Then I'll await your return."
With that, Yoshihara vanished like smoke.
Dokgo Seong stared at the spot and remarked.
"A mysterious being. No sense of substance."
"What do you mean?"
"It was an illusion. But also real—likely some unique sorcery transforming his body."
Muttering that, Dokgo Seong continued.
"We know where Clear Moon is now. Let's withdraw."
Another thought struck me.
'Wait. Isn't this the perfect training ground to recharge Mokya's power?'
According to Nobunaga and Bokuden, the Life Woods' demonic beasts regenerated infinitely from demonic qi. Like filling a quota. And since Mokya absorbed their power, wasn't it like farming training points?
So I said to Dokgo Seong.
"I want to train by fighting demonic beasts here."
"Demonic beasts?"
Dokgo Seong looked surprised, then shook his head.
"Forget it. I don't want to waste time here—I want to meet the Sword Demon."
"Hmm..."
I felt troubled. We still had plenty of time until the one-month promise with the Sword Demon, but Dokgo Seong seemed eager to go immediately. It was natural he wouldn't want to fight endless beasts in this hellhole.
"Actually..."
I had no choice but to explain everything. How Jeon Jeon-sa was suspicious, our plan to bait him out over time, and my desire to charge up Mokya's power.
Dokgo Seong tilted his head at my words.
"That Jeon Jeon-sa guy's suspicious? Then just kill him."
"His knowledge and talent on the alien races are too valuable."
"Hmm. Tricky situation."
"I want to charge Mokya's power in case things go south."
Dokgo Seong replied curtly.
"You're just a third-rate martial artist overly reliant on divine artifacts."
"Well..."
"Fine. We'll stay until that one month is up. Maximize that Mokya thing by then."
"Thank you."
And so, I stayed at the Sea of Trees' entrance, fighting demonic beasts to grow Mokya.
The promised month passed, and we returned to Goryeo. After breakfast, Dokgo Seong asked.
"Have you met your goal?"
"Honestly, not sure."
In that time, I'd absorbed hundreds of demonic beasts into Mokya. With four Peak Experts around, hurling qi blasts, there was no danger. Yet Mokya showed no visible change despite the influx.
'Of course, I feel it getting stronger...'
How do I properly grow Mokya?
As I pondered, Dokgo Seong said.
"You said Mokya is a treasure made by a god, right? Think simply."
"Simply?"
"The sacrifices' quantity and quality are just insufficient."
"......"
The beasts and yokai here were all powerful enough to be called great yokai in the outside world. If absorbing their demonic qi wasn't enough, what kind of superior sacrifice was needed?
"Let's go. I'm sick of demonic beasts now."
"Yes."
Flash.
With farewells exchanged, we returned to the Shadowless Gate in Goryeo. No anomalies upon arrival—the sect members all seemed fine.
We went to find the Sword Demon. He greeted us joyfully.
"Oh! You've come, Baek Woong."
"Yes, Sect Leader..."
It was at that moment, with the Sword Demon beaming.
Slash!!
Without a word, Dokgo Seong lunged and severed the Sword Demon's head.