Echoes of the Past
Whooooosh!
The cool wind howled.
Normally, he would have enjoyed the breeze brushing against his face, but not now.
Because right now, Jeok-un was falling.
'Good. The entrance is exactly the same as before my regression.'
On the deck—the surface of Gwiseondo—Jeok-un had stomped his foot to shatter a new passageway.
Even though it had been quite some time since he threw himself into the opening, he had yet to hit the bottom.
It made sense. Gwiseondo was a graveyard of ships destroyed and sunk during the Battle of Poyang Lake.
Its sheer size and scale were overwhelming; a normal fall from this height would reduce anyone to a bloody pulp.
Yet, even as he plummeted, Jeok-un remained entirely at ease.
'I was surprised the first time, but there's no way I'd be startled experiencing it twice.'
After all, Jeok-un had lived through this before.
In truth, the trial had begun the very moment he stepped onto Gwiseondo.
In this dazzling graveyard of ships, only those who found the precise entrance could proceed to the next stage.
Yes, the precise entrance.
Simply punching a hole anywhere wouldn't grant passage.
One had to destroy the exact spot where the true gate lay. In his past life, he had suffered immensely because of this.
'What a vicious trial. To think the very spot where the spatial rift drops you is the true gate.'
It was a test designed specifically to exploit the blind spot right under one's nose.
Before his regression, he hadn't known this and had searched all over the massive graveyard of warships.
This time, however, he knew the exact location and could enter immediately.
Thud—!
At that moment, a massive impact echoed as he hit the ground.
Tap.
Landing effortlessly, Jeok-un stabilized his posture and surveyed his surroundings.
He saw the interior of a ship, rotted and decayed from being submerged in water for ages.
It was a maze-like environment with structures so dizzying they made his head spin just looking at them.
On top of that, the stench of stagnant, rotting water was so overwhelming it threatened to paralyze his nose.
That wasn't all. The moment his shoes touched the eerie green liquid he had seen earlier on Gwiseondo—
Sizzle...!
The toxic energy melted his leather shoes in an instant.
"Damn it. I just bought these."
Though he was now barefoot, Jeok-un didn't care.
He had traversed plenty of filthy, disgusting battlefields.
The poison might have been a problem for others, but not for Jeok-un.
He was immune to almost all forms of poison and demonic energy.
"..."
Then, Jeok-un raised his head and looked at the ceiling.
A place of pitch-black darkness.
The ceiling was up there, along with the hole he had just fallen through.
Of course, it would have already repaired itself, leaving no trace of destruction.
As he thought of this, a faint, nostalgic look entered his eyes.
It was because he remembered the opponent he had faced just before falling: Heo I-gyeom.
"I never imagined I'd meet him here..."
He was a companion from before his regression.
Someone he had truly missed.
A friend with whom he had crossed the line between life and death, building deep bonds and memories.
And at the same time, someone he had parted with so tragically...
The man had introduced himself that way, but Jeok-un knew the truth.
He was not of the Heo clan.
"Did you become a Heo by adding 'Oh' to 'Eon'?"
His real name was Eon I-gyeom.
He was the last descendant of the Jinju Eon Clan, a prestigious orthodox family that had been falsely accused and annihilated long ago.
Before the regression, he was one of the Four Black Heaven Lords who served closely by Jeok-un's side, just like the Blood Empress Hae-yeon.
Specifically, he was the Black Bamboo, the Black Heaven Corpse Lord, Eon I-gyeom.
"You must have found traces of the sacred artifact at the Red Cliffs."
Yes, if it was him, it would have been possible.
Eon I-gyeom had likely found clues at the Red Cliffs—where Jeok-un had obtained his first sacred artifact—while serving in the Eastern Depot, and used sorcery to reach this place.
It was the same sorcery he had used in their past life to help Jeok-un obtain the Seven Sacred Artifacts.
However, there was no need to worry about him escaping this place and claiming the other sacred artifacts first.
'Getting here was already a stroke of luck bordering on a miracle. The Red Cliffs' byproduct he used as a catalyst for his sorcery must have dissolved by now. Unless I help condense the energy emitted by the sacred artifact like I did before the regression, his efforts will be in vain.'
To put it simply, further tracking of the sacred artifacts was impossible for him.
Jeok-un felt a strange sensation.
Seeing how they had met through the miraculous manifestation of sorcery, it felt as though their connection was indeed fated.
Rumble!
At that moment, the space trembled.
It shook violently in all directions, as if it were alive.
At the same time, it seemed to warn him of approaching danger.
'There's no need to force a connection right now.'
Despite the warning, Jeok-un's train of thought showed no signs of stopping.
'He is highly cautious. Approaching him hastily would only cause harm in the future.'
Yet, that didn't mean he intended to sit idly by.
Eon I-gyeom might not realize it, but his position within the Eastern Depot was extremely precarious.
He planned to pull him out of the Eastern Depot before he fell into dire straits.
But telling him that now would be useless; Eon I-gyeom wouldn't understand, and he certainly wouldn't believe it.
'I-gyeom is just as cautious and suspicious as Hae-yeon. I need to lay the groundwork step by step.'
That was why he had intentionally pushed him away.
While also leaving him a small gift.
Although he had met Eon I-gyeom several years later in his past life,
even the current Eon I-gyeom wouldn't be helpless against the anomalies.
He might struggle, but he wouldn't fall into mortal danger.
'With the power he possesses, he should be more than capable of handling it.'
The countless corpses and skeletons strewn across the deck.
Those were Eon I-gyeom's greatest source of strength.
Rumble...!
Once again, the space shook.
As if screaming at him for standing still, the tremors snapped Jeok-un out of his thoughts.
'Anyway, since I dropped a hint about the Eon Clan's sacred relic, he'll seek me out on his own.'
The Eon Clan's relic he had mentioned right before entering.
Eon I-gyeom was searching for the relic to revive the Jinju Eon Clan.
Since Jeok-un had exposed both his identity and the relic, Eon I-gyeom would undoubtedly come looking for him even if Jeok-un did nothing.
'Well then, I'll postpone our reunion until that time.'
Jeok-un's eyes gleamed as he began to move.
"First, let's clean up this place."
As if determined to prevent anyone from reaching the sacred relic,
an endless maze stretched out before his eyes.
Now was the time to break through this place and claim the second of the Patriarch's Seven Sacred Artifacts.
'First, the mechanisms to filter out unworthy intruders are exactly the same as before my regression.'
The first filter created by the spatial rift was poison.
The entire area was filled with acid and toxic energy potent enough to dissolve even shoes.
Most people would focus on the toxic water pooling at their feet and prepare only for that.
But the true threat of this trial was the toxic mist.
The air was thick with a poisonous fog that would infect a person without them even realizing it, just by breathing.
"Though at best, it's only slightly stronger than Dang Maeng's poison."
Thus, the poison did not bother him at all.
Considering he had been completely unaffected by Dang Maeng's Poison Source Blood Flow Art before, this could be considered solved.
As explained many times, poison techniques could not harm Jeok-un, who wielded the power of the stars.
"To sacrifice us and survive alone!"
"You coward! I will never forgive you!"
As he ignored the poison and pressed forward, he heard someone shouting.
Sobbing, screaming, pleading...
The voices were diverse, and their words were chaotic.
But their intent was singular.
To trigger psychological trauma and shatter his mind.
This was the second filter.
However.
Whoosh!
The moment Jeok-un activated the power of Nok-jon, the voices vanished as if washed away.
As if they had never existed in the first place.
"Give it a rest. I blocked the bullshit spewed by the Heavenly Demon himself. Do you really think this cheap trick will work on me?"
The power of Nok-jon, which neutralized and dispersed all forms of energy, was the natural counter to mind-controlling arts and mental demonic techniques.
As demonstrated, it was even easier to dismantle than the poison.
"So all that's left is..."
Just one thing.
Finding the correct path through this endlessly sprawling graveyard of ships.
"It's just a maze, but it's funny how this is the easiest part."
He had already demonstrated the method to break through this back at the Jegal Family Manor.
He smirked.
Smiling faintly, Jeok-un began to lightly warm up his body.
After thoroughly stretching his arms, legs, and entire body, Jeok-un assumed a specific martial arts stance.
"Now, Old Man Hwang. Let's see if the footwork you taught me is truly the best under heaven."
It was the Ghostly Footwork.
The footwork technique that had made Old Man Hwang the greatest assassin under heaven.
It was also the martial art Jeok-un had received as a reward for resolving Old Man Hwang's long-standing grudge.
"Hmm, how strange..."
"What is?"
"Compared to your other martial arts, Leader, your footwork is trivial... no, a bit lacking, I mean."
"Hey, even with this level of footwork, I've slaughtered everyone who dared to act up in front of me!"
Jeok-un had flared up in annoyance, but he was quickly rendered speechless.
Because when Old Man Hwang demonstrated the Ghostly Footwork before his eyes, he truly looked like a ghost.
Thus, Jeok-un had practiced the Ghostly Footwork whenever he had a spare moment.
Even on the way to Tongseong County, and on the journey from Tongseong County to Poyang Lake.
As a result, he judged that it was now refined enough to be used in actual combat.
Boom!
Thump!
With each step Jeok-un took, afterimages seemed to manifest like ghosts.
This was due to Jeok-un's innate disposition.
While Old Man Hwang's Ghostly Footwork focused on stealthy approach for assassination,
Jeok-un's intent and nature lay elsewhere.
Instead of silently eliminating enemies,
'A stride where the dead ruthlessly toy with the living.'
Displaying a stride that made the living envy the dead.
That was Jeok-un's version of the Ghostly Footwork.
The moment he felt that resolve manifest inside and outside his body—
Flash!
Jeok-un stomped his foot and charged forward.
His target was straight ahead.
Not a dark passageway, but a massive wall.
First Form: Lingering Soul Body
There was no sound of tearing air, nor any noise at all.
It was as if the sound had been muted.
Anyone watching would have instinctively recoiled from the sheer unnaturalness of it.
There was movement, yet absolutely no sound.
A truly ghostly stride.
However.
Rumble-boom—!
Wherever Jeok-un's footsteps landed, colossal explosions erupted.
Crash!
Leaving nothing but debris in his wake.
Naturally, Jeok-un's actual body had already moved away.
Though the toxic debris rained down, targeting the culprit,
none of it could touch him.
"Wahahaha! This really blows away all my fatigue!"
Rumble!
Boom!
Smashing through everything that blocked the path to the sacred relic,
Jeok-un forged ahead in a literal trail of destruction.