Chapter 217
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 217
Chapter Title: The Kingdom in the Mist
Chu Hon-ga-ha was not a weak warrior in the Southern Jungles. No, to be precise, he was among the strong. He was skilled enough to be considered one of the elites among the many masters of the south.
However, throughout their few spars, he had been utterly defeated every time without a single victory. This was true even when he summoned his poison bird to fight alongside him.
"Well... it seems you're no match at all. Are all the warriors of the Southern Jungles this weak?"
"N-No, it's you all who are too strong."
Mu-heun had no choice but to call for Cheon-hyang.
"Cheon-hyang."
[Yes, Master!]
"You deal with him."
[Yes, Master!]
Chu Hon-ga-ha asked in disbelief.
"What? You want me to fight that owl?"
"That's right. Don't underestimate it just because it's an owl. You have no chance of winning."
"No, that's ridiculous..."
Chu Hon-ga-ha's pride was wounded. No matter how much of a spirit beast Cheon-hyang was, he was a master who had reached the pinnacle. There was no way he would lose to a mere owl.
But the result was...
A crushing defeat.
Cheon-hyang toyed with Chu Hon-ga-ha and his poison bird as if they were children.
"This is... impossible."
*Chirp!*
[It's possible, you fool! Why are the master and the bird both such bird brains!]
*Whoosh!*
[I beg of you once more, Lord Cheon-hyang!]
*Chirp!*
[Well, I'll be. The bird is better. Yes, the bird is better.]
After several training sessions, including with Cheon-hyang, Mu-heun's party finally reached Ahalabdala Mountain.
It was a mountain in the central part of Qinghai Province.
A place where the source of the Yellow River was said to be, with the Dragon Spring on its mountainside serving as the river's headwaters.
Mu-heun looked up at the mountain and spoke.
"So, this is where we'll find a clue about the Evil God."
***
The Mad Demon, Wi Ryeon-gwang, headed for the North Sea as commanded by Mu-heun.
Cheon Ji-gyeong, the Lord of the Law Palace, and U Mu-gyeong, a rising star representing the palace, also followed him. U Mu-gyeong, who served Cheon Ji-gyeong, asked with a sense of wonder.
"Master. Does the Law Palace normally participate in the Cult's external affairs?"
"...No."
"Then why are we going to the North Sea?"
"Normally, it is not a good thing for this much of our strength to leave the Cult. Especially since a Cult where the Law Palace is not functioning properly is likely to face chaos. However, these are special times."
"Special times?"
"It is the Cult Leader's prophecy that an unprecedented threat is coming."
"..."
"Even if you do not understand, just follow. Ever since the current Cult Leader appeared, everything has been unprecedented."
"I am well aware that the current Cult Leader is a remarkable person. I even had the chance to face him directly during the Divine Dragon Assembly. I also know that he has become incomparably stronger than when he fought me. However, to suddenly form an alliance with the Orthodox Sects and order an investigation into a threat approaching the entire Central Plains... this is a bit strange."
"It is said, 'Wisdom is like the sea, its depths immeasurable.'"
"You mean his wisdom is like the sea, so deep it cannot be measured."
"Indeed. The Cult Leader, who has become the sky of our Cult, is different from all the leaders before him. Never in the history of the Divine Cult has the selection of a new leader been without a bloodbath. However, our current Cult Leader not only ended the selection process in three days but also achieved the feat of ascending to the throne without killing a single person."
"I understand that his martial prowess is that exceptional."
"It's not just his martial prowess. The choice to end the selection in three days, the decision not to kill the candidates, the display of overwhelming power."
"All of it had a purpose."
"In the Divine Cult, ruled by the logic of survival of the fittest, he subjugated the leaders of each faction with overwhelming power."
"That was the most appropriate way to minimize the loss of our Cult's strength and prepare for the grand plan ahead."
"Look at the policies he has reformed since taking the throne."
"He is an unprecedented genius, proficient not only in martial arts but in both military and civil affairs."
"You can tell by how he reads the flow of events and sets the stage. Do you think such a person simply appears out of nowhere? No. The era, or the heavens, or some transcendent being has chosen our Cult Leader."
"He is a hero who has appeared by necessity upon the great tide of the world. To go against his will now is no different from going against the times."
"My disciple, take my words to heart."
"...Yes, Master."
The Mad Demon fully agreed with Cheon Ji-gyeong's words.
The Cult Leader, Baek Mu-heun.
He was a being forged by the great currents of the world.
The selection for the Cult Leader... it was almost embarrassing to call it a spar. How long had it been since he was crushed by such overwhelming power? He possessed enough strength to wipe out the entire Divine Cult on his own. But he didn't.
This meant he had a clear objective, though its exact nature was unknown. If someone like him predicted there was something in the North Sea, then there must be something there.
The Mad Demon recalled his spar with Mu-heun.
*'I don't know.'*
No matter how many times he replayed it in his mind, he could not fathom the limits of Baek Mu-heun's power.
He had no way of knowing whether Mu-heun had simply reached the Realm of Life and Death, or if he was originally at the peak of the Transcendent Demon Realm and had momentarily reached the Realm of Life and Death using the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon.
*'What if he's not amplifying his ki with the Divine Arts of the Heavenly Demon, but is simply in the Realm of Life and Death?'*
If, by some chance, that were true, then he was a living Heavenly Demon, a living legend.
Just then, as the North Sea drew closer, the Mad Demon, Wi Ryeon-gwang, gathered his energy.
"Conceal your energy. We will investigate with the utmost caution."
"Yes, Vice Palace Lord!"
***
Mu-heun and his party stopped before Ahalabdala Mountain.
Before leaving the Divine Cult, Mu-heun had sent letters to the Martial Alliance and the Kunlun Sect via messenger eagle. The results of that action would soon arrive in the vicinity of this mountain.
This was an insurance policy, carved in case a major battle was to occur.
It was his second move, and his final one.
Mu-heun expanded his senses to check the mountain's surroundings, and felt that all his pieces were in place.
And...
"We will begin our ascent now."
He led his party up the mountain. It was so high that they climbed for a long time. Yet, they found no traces of anything unusual. Not until they reached the Dragon Spring on the mountainside.
Upon reaching the spring, Mu-heun felt a kind of divine power he hadn't sensed before.
A thick mist enveloped the mountainside. The divine power emanating from the mist formed a sort of barrier. It was like the one the monsters had created in Yuhua County, and the one the Rakshasa had deployed at the Guiyuan Temple in Hubei. The presence of this unidentifiable barrier told Mu-heun that this was the Evil God's abode.
"It seems we've come to the right place."
The mist was like the artifact used by Gu Pae-seon of Kunlun, the Seonmu-i, and seemed to be blocking entry with some kind of formation.
In the past, he likely wouldn't have been able to force his way through, and even if he had, he would have been quickly discovered and captured.
Furthermore, if more than five Rakshasa had appeared, his entire party would have been annihilated before they could even think of escaping. It was a relief, in a way, that they had only come now.
But things were different now.
For Mu-heun possessed immense power and a divine artifact.
"Everyone, carry these beads I'm giving you."
Mu-heun detached the beads one by one from the Butterfly Dream rosary on his wrist and distributed them to his companions.
Of course, Cheon-hyang and the poison bird, flying overhead, were no exception.
"From now on, wrap this Demonic Sealing Paper around your wrists and ankles, and follow me with your energy concealed. Cheon-hyang, you will sit on my shoulder. Chu Hon-ga-ha, you will look after your poison bird."
"Yes, Cult Leader."
"You must not act rashly. We are not here to fight, but to gather information. Even if a fight breaks out, you must follow my instructions."
"Yes, Cult Leader."
Mu-heun then walked into the mist.
And he felt it.
This place was a different world.
Something inverted from the world he normally inhabited.
Another space. Another world.
A completely isolated world that one could not enter intentionally, nor find by searching.
*Crackle—*
The mist shattered due to the Butterfly Dream.
And what appeared through the mist was a massive royal palace.
*'I think I understand now why Yeok Mu-gi described this place as a land where immortals live.'*
As the curtain of mist lifted, a grand palace appeared before their eyes.
The palace of light, standing within a pitch-black curtain, was enormous, and the walls surrounding it seemed to be at least a *li* long.
Their height was impossible to scale with bare hands. Moreover, the massive main gate was guarded by two faceless giants.
The giants were at least two *jang* (about 6 meters) tall.
With pure white skin, the giants were like dolls crafted by someone's hand, devoid of any expression.
They were beings clad in armor, guarding the gate, and they showed no sign of aggression upon seeing Mu-heun's party, simply standing there aloof.
However, the aura they exuded was at least of the Transcendent Demon Realm—the Profound Realm.
*'They seem even stronger than Mahoraga...'*
*'So this is what Yeok Mu-gi saw before turning back.'*
But Mu-heun had no intention of simply turning back like Yeok Mu-gi. He had to cross this gate and see what lay beyond.
*'That said, I have no intention of causing a disturbance.'*
Mu-heun stood a short distance from the main gate and conveyed his plan to the party.
"We must enter that palace."
"What? C-Cult Leader, how could we possibly..."
Chu Hon-ga-ha, along with Pa-sun, Un-pyo, and Seol Ha-ryeong, expressed their concern. No matter how strong the Cult Leader was, they could not ignore the immense aura emanating from those giants.
"I have a plan."
Mu-heun began to sprinkle the Myriad Fragrance into the air.
He was the leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, the second Heavenly Demon, a Divine Doctor, a sage, and a scholar. On the mountainside of Ahalabdala, he began to study the space that had been created here.
*'If you break anything down into its smallest parts, there is nothing you cannot understand. And once you understand, there is nothing you cannot utilize.'*
Then, he began to inscribe a formation to divert the gatekeepers' attention.
*'After using the Illusionary Grass before, I became able to replicate its properties with the Myriad Fragrance. Now, while they cannot detect us, it's worth a try.'*
"Illusion Formation, Manifest."
As Mu-heun activated the formation, a human silhouette appeared before the gate guarded by the giants. It then moved as if to boldly walk through the main gate. However, the giants showed no reaction at all.
"So that's how it is."
Mu-heun then infused the illusion with ki. Another silhouette appeared, this time with a small amount of ki mixed in, and attempted to pass through the gate.
Then.
*CRASH!*
The giants moved their massive fists and smashed the silhouette to pieces.
"They don't react to sight, but to ki."
"In that case, if we completely conceal our ki, they won't attack us?"
"That seems to be the case."
Mu-heun immediately checked the auras of his party. Their energy was faint due to the Demonic Sealing Paper, but he didn't know the limits of the giants' perception, so he decided to try several more times.
"Wait here for a moment."
After creating a doll with the Myriad Fragrance, he sent it forward infused with energy seven times.
Mu-heun had figured out the amount of ki to which the giants would react.