Quelling the Rebellion with Purple Heaven Divine Lightning
The news that he had subdued every person in the detached palace and even set up a formation naturally reached the Zhou King’s ears.
Fortunately for the palace, no buildings had been damaged, there were no valuable treasures that could have been stolen, and—most importantly—since the culprit was a cultivator, it was difficult to demand an explanation for what he had done alone.
In the end, Han Yujin’s violation of the taboo was quietly buried without anyone learning the full truth.
From the Zhou Kingdom’s perspective, it was a relief that he had no intention of committing further taboos or stirring up trouble.
Once he realized this eerie phenomenon was the work of some lofty, overwhelmingly powerful entity, he no longer dared to act recklessly.
If I draw their attention, I might die for nothing.
It would be wiser to grow strong enough first before freely roaming this world and digging into its ghost paths and forbidden knowledge.
So he spent his remaining time on simple training, researching divine abilities and spells, and digesting what he had learned about ghosts.
Fortunately, he did not have to wait long.
After about half a month, the Zhou royal family finished their preliminary verification and opened the second floor of the archive. Han Yujin immediately moved in and devoured every book with ravenous hunger.
The knowledge here was far more important than what he had found on the first floor, and naturally there was less of it. Thanks to that, he absorbed everything in just nine days and was able to hand over the middle section of the Purple Heaven Divine Lightning Manual.
This time, there were many things he could put to truly practical use.
In particular, he had made significant gains regarding his original purpose for visiting this world—methods to reduce a ghost’s aggression and ways to command them without worrying about backlash.
The method for lowering aggression was something called Clear Spirit Tranquil Mind Incense. While he had no idea about the other ingredients, acquiring the core material was exceptionally difficult. It required gathering people’s happy and peaceful emotions through a special ritual.
But Han Yujin was an exception. He was confident he could replace the cumbersome ritual by infusing the incense with the emotions of the Heaven’s Blessing Path from his Six Paths of Reincarnation.
The method for commanding ghosts while blocking backlash was a special technique and spell called the Treasure Pearl Ghost Commanding Art.
It involved crafting a custom treasure pearl using various powerful and precious materials, then using it as a medium to form a contract with a specific ghost and command it. Naturally, the most important and difficult part to prepare was the pearl itself.
Yet once again, Han Yujin was certain that his Ghost Soul Banner—refined with Tongcheon Spirit Treasure—was a superior contract medium compared to any pearl.
It’s actually fortunate I haven’t finished the Three Realms Harmony Art refinement yet.
He had nearly wasted his time. If he had completed it, he would have had to start the refinement all over again using the Treasure Pearl Ghost Commanding Art.
The vengeful ghost currently sealed inside the Ghost Soul Banner might cause a slight headache during the process, but since he could overwhelm it with raw power, things should be fine as long as he remained cautious.
Thus, during this sudden stretch of free time, he focused on gathering and processing materials for the Clear Spirit Tranquil Mind Incense while re-refining the Ghost Soul Banner.
Because concentrating on only one task tended to reduce efficiency, he also devoted some attention to merging the Yin-Yang Five Elements Force with his Origin Power Great Hand divine ability.
Since the work was nearly finished, he had already decided on a name for the upgraded technique: the Yin-Yang Five Elements Extinction Great Hand.
As the name suggested, he expected it to completely annihilate its targets. In everyday use, he planned to simply shorten it to Extinction Great Hand.
And so it went.
He spent his days diligently, waiting for the day he could enter the third and final floor of the royal archive and for the arrival of the Taiyi Festival, when the Ghost King would grow weaker.
His body no longer required sleep, so he was immersed in light meditation as usual, tracing a thread of inspiration, when—
In the deep of night, a time that should have been especially quiet in this world, a faint commotion arose outside. Far from dying down, the noise grew steadily louder and clearer.
The clash of metal, the explosive sounds of spells, roars, and screams—anyone but a fool would recognize the clamor of battle.
…A fight inside the palace?
What naturally came to mind was the conspiracy he had witnessed at the local government office and the sight of the Zhou King’s face twisted with fury after hearing the report, as if he had guessed something.
It doesn’t seem like a simple ghost invasion… Is this a rebellion?
Jjik…?
Just as that thought crossed his mind, Mu-yong, who had been dozing peacefully on his lap, blearily opened her eyes and lifted her head.
Having reached the Dharma Soul stage, she no longer needed sleep, yet this lazy creature loved it anyway. She even clutched the Infinite Mix that Brenar had given her like a drunkard hugging a wine jug.
“Sometimes I wonder if it’s all right to leave you like this.”
…Jjik?
“You just laze around and eat the fruits of my hard-earned labor. It’s utterly shameless.”
She really was a completely useless little thing. He felt, once again, that he had named her perfectly.
Even as he scolded her, he gently stroked her head.
The sounds of battle drew closer rapidly. Soon the doors to the detached palace burst open violently. A group of people rushed in, shouting at the top of their lungs.
“Venerable Master! Please help us!”
It was a party that included the two old civil officials he had seen in the audience hall before, along with two military officials from the Zhou Ghost Division. One of the latter was carrying the unconscious Zhou King on his back. Behind them were three women in luxurious robes—presumably the king’s wife and concubines—along with several court ladies. They all looked disheveled, as if they had fled in desperate haste.
After a brief moment of thought, Han Yujin stood up, properly cradling Mu-yong in his arms. He then vanished from the bedroom of the detached palace.
The very next instant, he reappeared right in front of the panting group in a faint swirl of light.
“Venerable Master!”
They looked startled yet overwhelmingly relieved as they hurried to pay their respects. The two old civil officials even cast aside all dignity, dropping to their knees and bowing their heads to the floor.
“Treason…! A rebellion has broken out…! If the Venerable Master helps us, we will surely repay this favor with everything we have!”
“It is unfortunate, but I have little desire to involve myself in conflicts between humans. Not unless one side’s wrongdoing is clearly evident.”
There were many things in the world where good and evil could not be clearly distinguished. Power struggles were especially like that.
Yet upon hearing those words, the officials instead cried out as if they had found hope.
“The rebels are practitioners of ghost arts!”
“They are evil beings no longer worthy of being called human!”
“…Hm. Then the story changes somewhat.”
As he answered, he glanced outside at the increasingly noisy and desperate situation.
“As for what you will offer in return…”
He had been about to say that they did not need to state it immediately, but they would regret it if they disappointed him.
“The Enlightenment Dao Mysterious Mind Tea…! We will offer you the Enlightenment Dao Mysterious Mind Tea!”
One of the old officials shouted immediately.
Enlightenment Dao Mysterious Mind Tea.
It was a name he had never heard before, but his transcendent comprehension allowed him to infer its nature at once. He already knew of similar items in the cultivation world.
A spiritual tea that can induce enlightenment.
It was, without question, an extraordinarily precious treasure. The old official’s desperate yet confident demeanor suggested his guess was correct.
“Will it be enough if I kill all those who wield ghost-like powers?”
At his calm question, the old man froze for a brief moment before answering with all his strength.
“That alone would be more than enough!”
“Very well.”
With a nod, Han Yujin’s figure vanished as mysteriously as it had appeared.
The next moment, he revealed himself in the sky above the chaotic detached palace.
Looking down, the royal palace was a scene of hundreds of people clashing in battle, with fires blazing everywhere. At the same time, corpses littered the ground as spiritual energy across the battlefield twisted into malevolent ghost energy.
Within that destruction and slaughter, beings who had clearly transcended humanity were gaining power. How could anyone still call them human when they radiated ghost energy from their entire bodies and swung mutated, monstrous limbs?
Every time those creatures roared like beasts, shattered the palace’s protective arrays, and attacked the Zhou Ghost Division members, deafening booms and explosions shook the earth. Gusts of wind carried the smoke of fires and the stench of blood, producing sounds akin to ghostly wails that spread across the battlefield like a curse.
He did not know about other places, but at least here the rebels held the upper hand.
They launched a rebellion despite knowing there was an obvious variable like me… Perhaps the Zhou King intentionally used this to pressure his opponents?
It was entirely possible.
The fact that the king had been carried away unconscious suggested a mistake had occurred in the process, but he might have kept the surprisingly reasonable and cooperative “cultivator” as a trump card for the worst-case scenario.
Later, while treating him, I can use the Dream Illusion Mind Snatching Art to read his memories. Perfect.
After all, healing him would be a separate transaction from receiving the Enlightenment Dao Mysterious Mind Tea for suppressing the rebellion.
As he thought this, the Monghyeon-gyeong appeared above his head. The moment its mirror surface reflected the image of countless bolts of purple lightning striking down—
Purple Heaven Divine Lightning
BOOOOOOM—!!!
A terrifying roar and flash that swallowed every other sound on the battlefield erupted.
The thick purple lightning that fell from the sky connected with the Monghyeon-gyeong above Han Yujin’s head, taking on the massive form of a thunder dragon.
─…!!!
The indescribable roar of the thunder dragon shook everyone’s bodies. Immediately afterward, a burst of light intense enough to paralyze even a cultivator’s divine sense exploded outward.
Over a hundred streaks of lightning rained down in every direction across the battlefield.
It was impossible to describe every explosion and shockwave caused by that overwhelming Purple Heaven Divine Lightning attack.
A noise like the sky collapsing and the earth splitting tore at their eardrums. Within the storm of blinding flashes, no one could even perceive their surroundings, let alone move properly.
At first glance it seemed like an indiscriminate barrage that did not distinguish between friend and foe, but with the support of the fusion-intelligence spirit Elb, Han Yujin did not make even the slightest mistake.
A moment later.
When the explosions finally subsided and the flashing light faded, the “ghost technique users” who had been arrogantly wielding their power had all been completely annihilated, not even leaving behind ash.
Han Yujin’s mental command echoed across the half-dazed battlefield.
Mysteriously, it was heard only by those who had not joined the rebels. The voice also carried the effect of clearing their minds and calming the chaos.
It was an imitation of something he had experienced long ago in the Heavenly Origin Star, borrowing the power of the Six Paths of Reincarnation.
He could not compare to the ability of Gu Sobo, the Incarnation-stage Star Lord of the Heavenly Origin Star, but here it was more than enough to produce a similar effect.
With clear minds and renewed courage, the loyalists began to move. The rebel forces, who had held the advantage only moments before, were swept away like sand before a wave.
Since this had never been a battle between ordinary humans, once such an opportunity was created, the outcome was decided almost instantly. It also helped that all the important rebels above the Dharma Soul stage had been wiped out.
Among the dead were even two who had stepped into the threshold of the Core Formation stage.
I really have become much stronger.
Once again realizing his own power, he surveyed the rapidly stabilizing battlefield.
After determining there was no longer any significant danger, he headed back toward the detached palace. He intended to treat the unconscious Zhou King as planned and, while doing so, read his memories.