Chapter 54
Chapter 54
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: Damn It All
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He couldn't afford to waste time like this, not when he thought of his mother and uncle worrying in the outside world. So, whether it worked or not, he had to try everything he could.
On the other hand, Namgung Urin's actions were concerning.
Wow.
This is too much.
This is just not right. He's going to smash the sacred Gate of Primordial Chaos? Even if he's the Master of Primordial Chaos, this is going too far.
What if something happens after he really breaks it?
What if the gate never opens again?
What if it's destroyed, something goes wrong with the Primordial Chaos, and the Shadows themselves are annihilated?
All sorts of terrible thoughts made the Shadows tremble.
What their lord was doing was truly the act of a madman.
But...
Their lord was about to do it.
“Lord!”
“Shut up!”
“...”
They knew it was futile, and they were right.
Sigh.
We don't know what to do.
Ignorance wasn't a solution, but they were at a loss.
The Shadows let out a deep sigh, and as if giving up, they retreated behind Namgung Urin, plopped down, and simply watched what he was doing.
Ignoring the Shadows' attempts to stop him, Namgung Urin formed a sphere of blue energy in his hands. The blue sphere was exquisitely beautiful, but it possessed immense destructive power. The kind of power that could obliterate an entire pavilion.
And then, the very thing the Shadows had feared came to pass.
KABOOM!
BANG!
As the blue energy struck the Gate of Primordial Chaos, a tremendous roar filled the abyss.
“Oh, no.”
“Good heavens.”
“He's crazy.”
“...”
Namgung Urin bit his lip.
“It's really not working.”
Far from showing any impact, not even a speck of dust was stirred.
But.
In Namgung Urin's dictionary, there was no such thing as 'impossible'.
Again.
Once more.
And again.
Until it worked.
“Hah!”
He unleashed his energy for a quarter of an hour, but to no avail. Still, Namgung Urin didn't give up. Wasn't it in his nature to do whatever he set his mind to?
In the Abyss of Primordial Chaos, his energy would never run out.
A day, two days, three days... ten days... twenty days passed.
Now the Shadows went about their business... no, wait, there was nothing to do.
Nothing at all.
Normally, when Namgung Urin didn't call them, the Shadows slumbered within the abyss. It wasn't sleep like humans experienced; they simply closed their eyes in a state of unconsciousness.
But with Namgung Urin in the abyss, they couldn't sink into that unconscious state. It just wouldn't happen.
Damn it all.
Thanks to Namgung Urin's constant assault on their eardrums, they couldn't even rest in peace.
Another ten days passed like that.
*Thud.*
His primordial chaos wasn't lacking, but his stamina was.
No.
There was no reason for his stamina to drop in the abyss. It was just that, as time went on, he grew weary from the nagging anxiety that this truly might not work.
The Shadows, too, felt so sorry that they couldn't bring themselves to look their lord in the eye.
It was something they had done in a rush, without thinking of the consequences. They didn't know the way out, but surely, there was always a way, wasn't there?
The Shadows had believed some method would present itself.
But...
There was no method.
None.
Namgung Urin glared at the Shadows as if he could kill them. Naturally, they avoided his gaze.
“It's probably been a month already! Aaargh!”
“Uhm... Lord.”
“What! Why!”
“I'm only saying this because you don't seem to know...”
“What is it?”
“Here, the concept of time doesn't really exist.”
“So... you're saying time here is different from time in the outside world?”
As expected, Namgung Urin was sharp.
“That is correct.”
“How much of a difference is there?”
“Even we don't...”
They had always been in an unconscious state, so they had no way of knowing for sure.
“A rough estimate.”
The First Shadow spoke.
“By my feeling, I would say about three or four days have passed.”
“Really?”
“I cannot know the exact number of days. It could be as long as five days. It should be around that much.”
*Phew.*
“That's a relief.”
It was then.
*Rumble...*
The entire Abyss of Primordial Chaos began to shake, as if in an earthquake.
The abyss wasn't the world where humans lived, so the Shadows had no idea what was happening.
The large, circular gate also shook violently.
Namgung Urin's eyes widened.
Could it be?
It was the hope that the gate might be opening.
The vibrations in the abyss continued for a while before stopping. But unfortunately, the gate did not open as Namgung Urin had hoped.
A sigh of disappointment escaped Namgung Urin's lips.
“Ugh.”
Just then, the circular gate shook again. Then, the large characters for 'Primordial Chaos' carved in the center of the gate vanished.
The Shadows' eyes grew as wide as lanterns.
“...That's...”
“...Why...”
“...A bad omen...”
“...”
In place of the vanished characters, tiny letters and drawings appeared.
Namgung Urin and the Shadows moved closer to the circular gate to get a better look.
The first thing that caught their eyes were the characters at the very top: The Origin of Primordial Chaos.
Below it, an explanation of the origin followed.
The original meaning of Primordial Chaos refers to the entire world, but more precisely, it is the source from which the world was created and formed.
In other words, according to the explanation, the world began from a single, tiny piece of Primordial Chaos. And as countless pieces of Primordial Chaos were created, the world was formed.
Among those countless pieces, those with special properties and density are the Primordial Chaos that Namgung Urin now wields.
To put it simply, Primordial Chaos can be thought of as something like gold and jewels. Gold and jewels also began from the earth. They are special things created over long periods as earth with different properties and densities accumulated.
Shimmering and beautiful, gold and jewels are.
Primordial Chaos is the same. That is why it glitters.
At the text that followed, Namgung Urin and the Shadows instinctively frowned.
Namgung Urin was the first to speak.
“Hey. This is bullshit, right?”
“Probably...”
“Wouldn't you say so?”
“...Nonsense.”
“...”
“Right? You guys think so too, don't you?”
All the Shadows nodded their heads vigorously.
But then again, it was strange.
Just thinking about the Primordial Chaos Art proved it.
In the martial world, the Primordial Chaos Art was a technique of unimaginable power and greatness. So much so that no one could ever master it.
And yet, hadn't Namgung Urin himself mastered that very art?
If so... then perhaps the words and drawings on the large circular gate...
Weren't bullshit after all?
Beneath the Origin of Primordial Chaos, the text read:
Sword of Annihilation.
When the ninety-six forms become a single sword path, only then is the Sword of Annihilation complete. And to the one who masters the Sword of Annihilation is given the duty and responsibility to save the world.
“Like hell.”
Namgung Urin had no intention of saving or taking responsibility for the martial world.
Though that was his father's will and the will of the Namgung family, Namgung Urin's own thoughts on the matter hadn't changed.
Unless, of course, the Namgung family conquered the martial world to bring about stability.
It seemed the 'world' mentioned by the Sword of Annihilation wasn't referring to the martial world, but to the world of common people—the human world.
In short, it meant to protect the common people from the martial artists.
“Well, in that case.”
He was willing to protect the world.
Next, the phenomenon that would occur upon the completion of the Sword of Annihilation was described. It was written very concisely.
‘A radius of one hundred *jang* (300m) will be annihilated.’
How could anyone believe this?
It claimed a single sword strike could annihilate the entire Namgung Family estate.
Was that something a human could do?
No. Was it even possible for a human?
It was truly an absurd claim.
Below that were ninety-six drawings.
Drawings of a person holding a single posture.
Namgung Urin let out a heavy sigh, as if the ground would collapse, and said.
“Haaah. Don't tell me I have to master this to get out of here?”
Weren't there stories like that in novels?
The ones where someone is trapped in a cave, finds a martial art, and can only leave after mastering it to a certain level.
The Second Shadow spoke.
“Lord. What can be done? If this is the way, then you should begin at once.”
“Haaah.”
Only deep sighs escaped Namgung Urin's lips.
He hadn't even properly mastered the Primordial Chaos Art yet.
And now I have to learn the Sword of Annihilation?
Wasn't he destined to train his whole life until he dropped dead?
Then again. He had chosen to live as a warrior, so it was only natural to spend a lifetime honing his martial skills.
But.
The Primordial Chaos Art was too difficult. He still hadn't gotten the hang of the Primordial Chaos Art, and now the Sword of Annihilation on top of it. Furthermore, each and every form of the Sword of Annihilation contained a different profound meaning.
It was absurd.
A deep meaning contained in every single movement?
It meant he had to imbue each movement with its meaning, and then express that meaning through the sword.
It would be nice if it ended with mastering all ninety-six movements... but didn't it say he had to connect them to form a single sword path?
How long would that take...?
Ugh.
A deep sigh seemed to block Namgung Urin's path forward.
But...
Strange?
There's nothing here that says the gate will open if I do this. Can I really open this gate if I master the Sword of Annihilation?
Or is there another way?
If not that... am I going to die here?
This is difficult, so difficult.
He felt he should start with what was given, step by step, but the desire to rush back and show his changed self to his mother, his uncle, and the Namgung family only fueled his irritation.
“Ah, hell. All of you, heads on the ground!”
“...”
Again? Why is he like this again?
“Now!”
Ah, damn it.
And so, the Shadows put their heads on the ground once more.
* * *
Time flowed on and on.
In the Abyss of Primordial Chaos, Namgung Urin's training continued every day... no, without rest. It was a place where sleep never came, nor was it needed.
For training, there could be no better place.
But...
“Aaaaaargh!”
*Tsk.*
Another fit.
The Shadows frantically looked for a place to rest their eyes. Of course, they knew this would soon lead to another 'Heads on the ground!'
He holds a serious grudge.
Before his personality changed, at least he didn't hold grudges.
The Shadows felt like they were aging by the day.
“At this rate, when the hell am I ever going to get out of here?!”
It felt like three or four months had already passed in the abyss!
He still hadn't mastered all the forms of the Sword of Annihilation. No, he'd memorized the forms, of course. But, deciphering the profound meaning held within each form was no ordinary task.
The only saving grace was that he had now mastered seventy-three of them. Of course, it didn't end with understanding the profound meaning of the forms. He had to connect the forms to create a sword path.
This form and that form, that form and that form, this form and this form.
That form over there with this form right here.
Oh, brother.
The Sword of Annihilation was making him feel murderous toward anyone who might ever ask to be called his 'brother'.
And!
There were tens of thousands of possible sword paths. Mastering them all was one problem, but he also had to forge them into a single sword path.
How in the world could he...?
“Damn it all!”
Exhausted one way or another, Namgung Urin slapped the circular gate inscribed with the Sword of Annihilation with both palms.
*Smack.*
The sound of his palms hitting the gate was sharp and clear.
“Please, just open. Please.”
Just then, a sound came from the gate.
*Zhiiiing.*
“...What was that?”
The Shadows' lantern-wide eyes also shot toward the gate.
*Creeeeak.*
...The gate is opening.
The gate!
The gate that wouldn't open no matter how desperately he tried was opening!
“...”
Namgung Urin and the Shadows were so dumbfounded they were speechless.
Namgung Urin had a feeling.
So, he placed his palm on the gate again. And said.
“Close...”
*Creeeeak.*
It closed.
Just in case, he placed his palm on it again.
“Open...”
*Creeeeak.*
It opened.
“You son of a...”
Namgung Urin's sharp glare fell upon the Shadows.
“All of you, heads on the ground!”
Ah, damn it.
How were we supposed to know it was that easy?
*Tsk.*