Chapter 259
Chapter 259
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 259
>Chapter Title: The 31st Horse Overturns the Game Board
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No one in Jega's group was entirely ignorant of Small Heaven. The illusory realm where enlightened Taoists ascended.
But what did it matter if the outside world was invisible from there.
Moreover, this place couldn't be exited from within, nor easily invaded from without.
“Pfft… Hahaha! Trying to threaten me? You're still full of bluster, aren't you. So brazen even after that humiliation just now.”
“Whether it's bluster or not…”
Boom…
Rumble…
The space itself seemed to tilt and shift.
Rumble rumble rumble…
Boom…
“This vibration…”
“What's wrong? Have Small Heaven's residents already lost interest?”
“No…”
“This isn't them… This is… like… a ghost? No…”
Everyone's gazes turned upward.
The stifling sky of swirling whirlpool streams.
Crack crack crack crack crack…
Countless slashes etched across it.
“Im… impossible…”
Sunlight poured through the gashes, an immense light seeping in.
Crack crack…
The whirlpool sky was tearing apart.
“The whirlpool streams…”
Shinyo had once felt this sensation before. That heavy aura belonging to the one capable of such a feat.
- You did well coming to Yocheon.
- I'm looking forward to that one line you engraved in the Silver Resentment Record.
- Oh?
- Depending on how you use it, it might even save your life once or twice, Shinyo.
“It's that man.”
Kwaaaaaaaa—!
The whirlpool ceiling shattered and flew apart.
Bitan shouted.
“Found you! You're here!”
The sudden loss of the ceiling unleashed a ferocious gale, sweeping away those unprepared along with the debris.
“Uwaaaah!”
“The wind… urgh…”
Whiiiiiing—!
As gaps formed in the whirlpool streams, Shinyo felt her spiritual power returning.
Clap—!
She clapped her palms together.
[Shinyo uses divine power: Silkworm Brew.]
[It spits out a massive amount of thread.]
Swish—!
The threads caught the airborne Dragon Flowers and set them down in the space.
“This place…”
“Small Heaven!”
The mysterious dragon mists nearby and the bizarre rocks entangled in them proved this wasn't their original world.
At the edge of the torn ceiling stood a man.
The man who had brought the midday sun.
No—this was the dead of night.
Swoooo…
The surroundings darkened swiftly.
The man vanished.
“Seolhong.”
“Mmgh…”
Seolhong and Kang Seol reunited.
Darkness scattered as Kang Seol stepped beside Seolhong.
“Kang Seol…”
“Close your eyes.”
A serene voice.
If you just listened quietly, he sounded like someone come to wake them for sleep here.
“I'll cut them all down.”
Whooooom—!
Bitan emanated black energy.
It was the power of pure slaughter he had gained after slaying the Dark Whisperer before.
The Dark Whisperer's blade ignored defenses, proving just as effective at terrain destruction—and it was this power that had torn the whirlpool ceiling.
[Dark Whisperer's Blade activates.]
[Inflicts darkness-attribute defense-ignoring damage.]
Pfft—!
“Gah…”
“Urk…”
None of Jega's subordinates could block Kang Seol's blade.
“No! Stop! You can't use ghostly power in Small Heaven!”
Shinyo shouted loudly enough for Kang Seol to hear, but the deed was already done.
Zzzzzzt…
Far off, space tore open, and something enormous emerged.
“Bai… Baikyeong…”
The overwhelmingly massive whale floating in the sky turned toward the ghostly energy Kang Seol had emitted.
The illusory beast that devoured ghostly qi.
Grooooo…
An aura so immense it made their bodies tremble.
Kang Seol glanced once toward Baikyeong's approach.
“I'll close the door now, so buy time…”
Buy time.
Shinyo berated herself.
She had actually uttered the mad request for a human to hold off an illusory beast.
But what choice was there.
Right now, they had to worry first about being devoured by that beast, even more than Jega.
Ziiiiiing…
Shinyo's tattoo glowed again.
“Please… please…”
Squeeeee…
The surrounding air was sucked into Baikyeong's maw.
No, it wasn't mere air.
The sucked-in energy was forming something.
“No!”
Ziiiiiing…
A powerful force pulsed, followed by needle-thin power surging toward them.
If it struck the whirlpool streams, it could annihilate them entirely.
Clang…
Whoooosh!
Kang Seol's sword flashed out like lightning.
[Ultimate: Night Sea activates.]
Slaaaaaash—!
The black sea easily bisected the power Baikyeong had unleashed.
‘Wrong!’
Shinyo sensed the end.
Kang Seol was inhuman, but even that wasn't enough to repel Baikyeong's might.
Right then.
Slaaaaaaaaash—!
[Ultimate: Chain: Shadow Arrow activates.]
Another black slash clashed midair with Baikyeong's power.
Chiiiiii…
This time, it didn't yield easily.
Of course, Kang Seol would lose eventually, but for now, this was enough.
“Retreat! Focus!”
Shinyo's tattoo burned white-hot.
“Waste no time!”
Kwaaaaaaaaang—!
Like lightning striking, the Dragon Flowers within the ceiling-less whirlpool streams escaped Small Heaven.
Squeeeee—!
And right after, Baikyeong's light beam incinerated where they had been.
* * *
Crack crack crack…
“Haa… haaa…”
Crack crack crack crack…
The patched-together world sealed shut.
Boom…
“We're… back.”
They had miraculously returned from Small Heaven.
But they plummeted immediately.
“Jangdu!”
“Here!”
“Catch!”
Slap—!
[Shinyo uses divine power: Spring Feather.]
[Drastically reduces the target's weight.]
The annex had already exploded from the shock of opening Small Heaven's gate, and Jangdu—who had been fighting the remnants—waited for Shinyo's return.
Kwaaaaaaaaang—!
“Urgrgrgh…”
Jangdu deftly caught the falling whirlpool mass from the second-story height and slammed it to the ground.
Boom…
“Haa… haa…”
“Damn it… urk…”
For a moment, they groaned from the aftereffects of their otherworldly trip.
Small Heaven was beautiful, yet terrifying.
Jega snapped to his senses, clutching his head and squinting.
“Get up! Urk… The bastards… the bastards…”
No one remained around Jega.
The Dragon Flowers he had puppeteered lay scattered far off, and his subordinates sprawled haphazardly on the floor.
Headless.
In that brief moment as Small Heaven's gate closed, they had all lost their lives to Kang Seol.
“You damned son of a bitch!”
Jangdu appeared drenched in blood, as if he had bathed in it.
And he reared back to smash Jega's head.
Jega panicked at this absurd turn.
Things had been proceeding according to plan despite minor issues, but Shinyo's bizarre schemes plus Kang Seol's arrival had reduced it to ruins in an instant.
The gap was so vast he couldn't even think of it as defeat.
“Jangdu! Stop!”
“Th… this… Lady Shinyo!”
“We can't kill him carelessly.”
“You don't mean to forgive this scum, do you?”
“No, that's not it.”
Jangdu glanced around.
Seolhong and Kang Seol glared at Jega.
“……”
Jangdu stepped back.
He was furious too, but the Dragon Flowers had suffered directly at Jega's hands.
He couldn't overstep.
As the mood shifted oddly, Jega hurriedly assessed the situation.
Then he slammed his head to the floor.
The Dragon Flowers, battered in every way, staggered toward Seolhong.
As if she were to pass judgment on this incident.
“F… forgive me, Seolhong! I was wrong!”
“……”
“I just… wanted to achieve something too. I… I wanted…”
“……”
“Huh? You know too! You're inadequate too! So you get it, right? Everyone ignored you!”
Seolhong wore a fairly gentle expression.
“Brother Jega. Do you remember my childhood?”
“O… of course! So many tormented you! You suffered too!”
“That's not what I mean to discuss.”
“…Then?”
Jega looked perplexed.
“I can recite every letter you sent me over the years. Your actions were the pillar of my heart.”
“Y… yes! Right! Without me, you…”
This was his chance.
He had to dig into Seolhong's weaknesses and cling to them to escape.
If she opposed it, no one could touch him recklessly.
After all, it was none other than Kang Seol—Seolhong's guardian stone—who had come to Small Heaven to rescue her and the Dragon Flowers.
Jangdu sensed something off and moved to intervene.
“I…”
“Don't.”
“…But.”
Shinyo shot Jangdu a chilling glare. He stepped back.
She was confirming how much Seolhong had grown.
Whatever the past, Jega was now an unforgivable villain.
- Seolhong can only choose one path. She's always been that way. Do you think that's righteousness? That frail behavior forever…
- There's no rule she'll stay that way. Lady Seolhong is learning now.
‘That's right, show me your answer, Seolhong.’
What would Seolhong's answer be. Still the same.
Or had she changed, even a little.
“Y… yes! So I…”
As Jega tried to defend again, Seolhong parted her firmly closed lips.
“…Jega, it's no use.”
“What?”
“No matter what you say, I won't forgive you.”
Then she had changed.
Shinyo's eyes widened.
From the mouth of Seolhong—whom she had seen as a child—came an utterly unexpected reply.
Her resolute expression seemed unyielding even to a needle's prick.
Jega finally spat curses.
“You witch! Who do you think you are! Ask any imperial citizen! Who would want a cursed wretch like you, born killing your own mother!”
“…I'll do my best. So they desire it.”
Seolhong bowed her head.
“On behalf of the child Seolhong from those days, I say this, Brother Jega.”
“Y… you… bitch!”
Jega's mad scream couldn't sway Seolhong's heart.
Bloodshot eyes seemed ready to spurt rage-filled blood.
“Truly, thank you. Your meaningless kindness gave me strength to become who I am now. I'll always cherish that sentiment.”
“……”
The Dragon Flowers fell silent.
This was Seolhong's ritual alone.
“Then, that's it.”
Seolhong bit her lip desperately and spoke to Kang Seol. The moment to sever her past weakness.
“Cut him down.”
Pfft—!
“Seo… Seol… gah…”
Jega's words strangely choked off.
Kang Seol hadn't even drawn his sword yet. Was it fear of death.
No, it wasn't.
It was already done.
Thud.
A thin line appeared across Jega's neck.
* * *
Thud thud thud thud…
Mounted soldiers ransacked Jega's residence.
They dragged out charred corpses and checked the guardian stones buried in the annex.
Oddly, as if to erase all traces, their actions were swift.
The mistreated Dragon Flowers dispersed to rest.
Chiwu had suffered badly and was dragged away by several physicians, leaving Kang Seol alone.
Thud…
Thud…
In a secluded spot, Seolhong bashed her head against the wall.
“Ugh…”
“……”
“Ughh…”
Thud…
Rip…
She tore her outer garment.
“Why… why…”
“Lady Seolhong.”
“Whyyyyy!”
Seolhong's eyes welled up.
“Why did I like it, why… why was I happy…”
Only after everything ended did she look back.
“I looked forward to today, like an idiot! New clothes the day before, new shoes… I anticipated it… Urged the Heavenly Lord… Laughed together. But… it ended like this.”
“……”
“I'm an idiot… a fool… I'm so pathetic, I… I have no right. I… waaah! Take this off me! I can't breathe! Can't… breathe…”
“Seolhong.”
Seolhong looked at Kang Seol through teary eyes.
“It's not your fault.”
“……”
“None of this is your fault.”
“U… uh…”
Tears welled in Seolhong's eyes.
“Lend me…”
“……”
“Lend me your embrace, now!”
Seolhong buried her face in Kang Seol's chest and wept. Her sobs didn't escape.
Her body, so small it seemed it might shatter. Kang Seol silently waited until her crying subsided.
* * *
Jangdu and Shinyo, exhausted, lay on beds under physicians' care.
“Ow ow ow… Don't we seem pretty close now?”
“Yes. If you had broken the door, this wouldn't have happened.”
“Anyone can just smash that? It's not because I'm incompetent, right?”
“I know. I'm joking.”
“Heh… really.”
Jangdu chuckled.
Shinyo thought while lying down.
Seolhong had changed.
What had changed her.
Why the ever-solitary Chiwu followed her, and who her suddenly appeared guardian stone was.
Everything was a mystery.
Still, she had to acknowledge it.
Seolhong had something that continually drew the eye.
“Jangdu, do you know what power rules the imperial citizens?”
“Well… ability, right? The most capable one…”
“Wrong. Even a newborn on the Khan's throne, and the empire's heart still beats.”
“What blasphemy is that?”
“It's true. When did Hongcheon last handle state affairs?”
“……”
“He's a corpse. Practically a well-displayed doll.”
“You're going too far.”
“Jangdu. I'm speaking to you sincerely.”
“Sigh… Understood. Just don't say this anywhere else.”
Shinyo asked.
“Can I become the Dragon?”
“Who else but you, Lady Shinyo? I heard what happened inside. You shone brilliantly, didn't you?”
“Shone? I just bought a little time.”
“Still not easy. Scar on the back of your hand?”
“Ah, the medicine Kang Seol gave via envoy worked well—no scar left.”
“…Kang Seol?”
“Why.”
“Kang Seol? I'm getting annoyed for some reason? Did you meet separately?”
“For reporting the Yonggung matter.”
“Oh, then fine. But what was that power to rule imperial citizens you mentioned? What it takes to become emperor.”
Shinyo paused, then said.
“Acknowledgment.”
“Acknowledgment?”
“Even without ability, strength, or wisdom, make the people acknowledge you.”
“……”
“Someone they can accept atop their heads.”
Jangdu eyed Shinyo cautiously.
“Um… that is…”
“I will become the Dragon.”
“Y… yes, of course! Who else but Lady Shinyo…”
“Taeil is the closest to perfection.”
“Not wrong.”
“But not the closest to Dragon.”
Closest to Dragon.
Shinyo pictured someone in her mind.
“From the next trial, full force.”