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00401 천계(天界) ————————————————————————=

Negotiation with the Master of the White Lotus Sect.

Zhuge Sa suddenly forced an adventure upon me, but this time I wasn’t flustered. That’s because I had somewhat expected this moment since deciding to confront the Vermilion Bird. I pondered for a moment and then responded.

[Are you saying this is the position of a general?]

[So you understand the situation.]

[I thought the Master would notice that I gained new power, including from Moon Sovereign.]

Zhuge Sa chuckled at my answer and said,

[That’s all well and good. Now all that’s left is your resolution.]

[……]

I couldn’t easily reply.

The reason my situation was like a position of a general was simple: I had to negotiate with the Master right away.

The Heavenly Spirit Pill’s slave contract!

When I realized that the Heavenly Spirit Pill, the ultimate power and weapon of the White Lotus Sect, was actually a slave contract, there was no way I could monotonously accept crumbs under the Master’s rule. If I had accepted the Heavenly Spirit Pill but couldn’t release myself from it, I would end up like the other owners of the Heavenly Spirit Pill, forever tormented as a plaything of the [Old Ruler] after death.

Moreover, being merely an observer under the Master was reaching its limit. Whether it was the Moon Sovereign or the National Seal, someday I would need to retrieve that power. I was just choosing quickly now.

I hesitated and said,

[Zhuge Sa. Now that I am the master of Moon Sovereign, what are my chances against the Master?]

[You fool. Why are you thinking about chances? That’s nothing worth discussing.]

Zhuge Sa bluntly continued,

[Currently, the only one capable of defeating the Master in a direct confrontation is the Master of the Twelve Joules. The Moon Sovereign is merely the minimum qualification for conversing with the Master.]

[So you’re saying I can’t win.]

[There might have been a 20% chance against the Master when he showed no change… but given that you’ve lost all your treasures and the current Master has researched the Seven Great Techniques, there’s no chance.]

[Ugh…]

[But you’ve also obtained the National Seal. If you utilize that well, you might draw the desired information from the Master.]

I bit my lip.

‘Yeah, fleeing from the Master now would be pointless!’

I had obtained a significant amount of information from the Master, but it was still mere surface knowledge. I understood the truth of the Heavenly Spirit Pill but hadn’t grasped the Master’s true intent yet. Getting this close to the Master’s close aides was nearly impossible, so I had to resolve to find out everything about the White Lotus Sect in this life. If I didn’t, I would have to repeat a meaningless death over ten times.

Additionally, there was one more thing that concerned me. As I contemplated, Zhuge Sa remarked,

[There’s a deal with Sangwan Hyuk.]

[Do I not need to bring the White Feather Fan to him?]

[He demanded a powerful magical artifact. Who knows when I’ll acquire such a treasure. But…]

Zhuge Sa chuckled.

[If you just slightly change the order of operations, you need not worry about that.]

[Hmm?]

[Stop wasting words and answer. Are you resolved?]

Hearing Zhuge Sa’s prodding, I wandered once again. This could be the greatest crossroads in this life, and failure could lead to a fate worse than death. It wasn’t something I could choose easily. I hesitated and replied.

[I am resolved. But first, I want to test the ability of the Moon Sovereign.]

[Hehe… You want to show off a bit of strength?]

[It doesn’t make sense to talk without knowing the extent of the Moon Sovereign’s power.]

[Understood. Then let’s head to the Arasa Empire.]

[What?]

When I questioned back, Zhuge Sa said,

[It was already included in my plans. Since we’re at this, we might as well get things done ahead of time.]

Pa-at!

Following Zhuge Sa’s words, I arrived in a village in the Arasa Empire, where I had previously been. This place was where the Eastern Orthodox Church’s capital monk, Belov, and forces opposing the fallen emperor were gathering.

They looked startled when a young Eastern boy suddenly appeared. Zhuge Sa chuckled and said,

[I’ll translate for you.]

Zhuge Sa resonated his soul and synchronized with me. By responding to this, I was effectively partially transferring my linguistic function to Zhuge Sa, but I chose to concede it for now. As soon as the language function connected with Zhuge Sa’s intelligence, fluent Arasa was produced from my mouth.

“I am Baek Woong from the Ming Dynasty. I have come to meet the capital monk, Belov of the Eastern Orthodox Church.”

Murmurs

The gathered knights and soldiers murmured as they looked at me, fully understanding my fluent Arasa. A large armored knight spoke gruffly.

“What are you saying? Seize him.”

As the soldiers brandished their swords, a loud shout came from behind.

“Stop it!”

Then capital monk Belov walked up to me along the snow-covered path. He looked at me suspiciously and said,

“Are you an extraordinary person from the East? Why do you seek me?”

“Belov. I can help you. Because I can break the seal of the dragon.”

“……!!”

Belov stared at me in surprise. He looked around and then said,

“We need to talk in more detail.”

“There’s no need to discuss anything further. You just need to promise me.”

“What kind of promise?”

“If I awaken the dragon to take down the mad emperor, Ivan IV, you will give me the sacred relic that your Eastern Orthodox Church possesses.”

“Hmm…”

Belov sighed heavily and then said,

“Baek Woong, it seems you know our circumstances well. However, claiming you can awaken the dragon is far too unrealistic…”

“I’ll wait in the cave.”

Ta-dat

I used the Soul Removal Technique and headed to a secluded cave. I felt the panic of Belov and the Westerners behind me, but I couldn’t care less. As I went deeper into the cave, I saw a massive reptile trapped behind an ice wall, its size seemingly twenty times larger.

This was the Western dragon!

The Eastern Orthodox Church had decided to awaken a legendary beast to combat the emperor who had attained tremendous power through the hands of the apostles. I recalled my previous visit here with Miho.

[Unlike the Eastern dragon, this one exudes a very wicked aura. I don’t know about its power, but it’s bound to bring disaster, so do we really need to awaken it?]

[Perhaps a powerful sorcerer realized the evil of this dragon and devoted their life to seal it.]

[Though similar to the Eastern dragon, that Western dragon definitely won’t be friendly towards humans. However, I don’t think this monk Belov has the ability to control such a powerful being.]

Miho’s intuition and experience as a nine-tailed fox made her realize that the dragon trapped in the ice was extremely wicked and powerful. So I had just left to avoid being dragged into the trivialities of the Arasa Empire.

But now I was here to obtain a magical artifact to give to Sangwan Hyuk. I heard that a sacred relic ranks on par with a magical artifact, so I planned to finish what I hadn’t completed back then.

As I gazed silently at the dragon, Zhuge Sa chuckled.

[Understood… It’s Count Dracula, isn’t it?]

[What do you mean?]

[This is a being that was originally human but reincarnated as a dragon. I’ve heard rumors. If its origin is Romania, then it’s certain.]

[It was originally human?]

[An emperor, seeking immortality, traded with the otherworldly race to obtain a dragon’s body. Naturally, it must be filled with greed and wickedness.]

Zhuge Sa explained.

[Now, devour it. This is a golden opportunity.]

Swish

I extended my bracelet forward and began to amplify the power of the Moon Sovereign. Suddenly, an immense force poured down from the Three Divine Tools, resonating with the bracelet, and the heat seemed to slowly melt the millennium ice trapping the dragon.

And faster than the ice could melt, I felt a gigantic soul escaping from the dragon. The dragon’s soul was screaming desperately.

Koooh!

But as I activated the power of the Moon Sovereign, my sorcery amplified to an absurd degree, and the absorption power of the bracelet increased as well. There was no way it could withstand after being sealed for hundreds of years. Soon, the dragon’s soul was felt being absorbed into the bracelet completely.

Parking!!

In that moment, the jewel of the bracelet turned completely crimson, and I could feel the power radiating from it. Zhuge Sa explained the current phenomenon.

[The bracelet is filled with the soul. The dragon’s soul must have the power equivalent to tens of thousands of ordinary humans.]

[I did what you told me, but what’s so good about this?]

*Khehe… You’ll see.*

At that moment, Belov burst into the cave, followed by his soldiers and knights. He looked at me and said,

“You said you would awaken the dragon, what is this?!”

“This dragon is wicked, so awakening it is better than leaving it sealed. I will go defeat the emperor now.”

“No way…”

“I’ll ask you again. If I kill the emperor, will you give me the sacred relic?”

“……”

Belov nodded after contemplating.

“If you succeed… But how…”

Pa-at!

Before Belov could finish, I rode the Soul Removal Technique again, this time moving to the Kremlin Palace in the capital of the Arasa Empire, Moscow. The basement of this palace had the prophet’s secret library, and I recalled memories of emerging from the palace’s basement in the past. As I strolled down the grand corridors of the enormous palace, I heard a rumbling sound.

It sounded like a heartbeat. Hearing that sound, Zhuge Sa said,

[This place has already become a demon realm. There’s definitely an apostolic presence here.]

[Isn’t that dangerous?]

[Don’t worry. This place is far from the Central Plains, so plucking a tiger’s whiskers won’t bring any harm. It seems the apostle is exhausted and asleep as well. You can use the Moon Sovereign freely as you wish.]

Zhuge Sa advised,

[Since it looks like an apostle is sleeping deep in the palace, it would be risky to stay here much longer. Let’s head outside for now.]

As I left the palace and wandered through the city for a while.

Swoosh

A massive illusion rose into the air. It was a young man dressed in luxurious clothing, resembling the colorful-eyed person. The illusion of that young man loomed at a size of dozens. The young man emitted an eerie yet powerful aura as he shouted,

[Uhahahahahaha….!! A barbarian has come to visit my palace, and you plan to leave without acknowledging me? Come here at once!]

It was the mad emperor, Ivan IV. I remembered the old days when I had run away without looking back out of discomfort confronting him. If it hadn’t been for the energy of the golden leaves bestowed by Belov, I wouldn’t have been able to confront him at all.

But this time, I had come here properly to face him.

“Moon Sovereign, awaken!”

As I shouted the command, the Three Divine Tools trembled greatly and summoned around my body. Simultaneously, I felt the released power of Moon Sovereign flow through my entire being. I could sense Ivan IV, the emperor, becoming flustered as he witnessed this scene.

[No? What force is that?]

“The power to defeat an uninvited guest!”

I replied roughly and created the Moon Shadows as Miho had done before. The Moon Shadows flickered like they were alive, arising in dozens, and as I willed them, I instinctively knew how to use them.

‘Ah, Moon Sovereign is quite friendly compared to the Water Element.’

I had previously handled the Water Element, which provided tremendous power but never shared any associated knowledge or technique. That’s why I knew of techniques like Heavenly Ice but had never managed to use them with the Water Element. However, with the Moon Sovereign, I could intuitively understand how to utilize techniques as soon as I felt inspired to use them.

Shriek!

The Moon Shadows flew forward, piercing through Ivan IV’s body. Despite Ivan IV being a semi-transparent spirit-like form, he screamed in agony as he was pierced by the Moon Shadows.

[Kraaaak!! You bastard!!]

‘It works?’

I was astounded. His body seemed like a mere thought, yet it was sliced like tofu by the Moon Shadows. It seems the power possessed by the Seven Luminaries was effective even against a mythical being. Ivan IV then conjured a palm infused with immense pressure to strike me, but I quickly deployed the Moon Sovereign’s barrier and repelled his force.

Simultaneously, I grabbed one of the Moon Shadows that drifted around my body. It was a sword among the Three Divine Tools, known as the Heavenly Sword—also referred in Dongyoung as the Heavenly Gathering Cloud Sword.

“Ha!

The space literally splits along with the Moon Shadows!

Wiiing

I used the Bowing Sky Slash, and a gigantic slash cleaved the space in half. Ivan IV, positioned in that trajectory, staggered and began to transform into specks of light.

[Kraaak… Aak…]

Such immense damage caused his spirit form to collapse! I stared at the terrifying Ivan IV, who had once been my overwhelmingly powerful adversary, now crumbling so easily. I had defeated a mighty spirit form that could have taken ten lives of mine in an instant.

Zhuge Sa snickered.

[The Seven Luminaries are divine-grade magical artifacts personally crafted by the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, infused with the power of the [Old Ruler]. An artificially created spirit like an apostle can’t possibly withstand it.]

[If I finish him off, won’t the apostle inside come after me?]

[Now your brain is working a bit. If you understand, stop showing off and let’s head back.]

[……]

[After being dealt such a blow, he might not be completely destroyed, but he’d certainly be weakened significantly.]

From what Zhuge Sa said, I realized Ivan IV hadn’t received a fatal blow yet. To eliminate him would be too much, and I saw no purpose in going that far, thus I taunted Ivan IV.

“What a pity to be beaten by an uninvited guest.”

[You…!!]

“Just don’t tell your mother.”

Pa-at

After provoking Ivan IV, I returned to Belov’s camp. I approached Belov and said,

“You must have been monitoring with the clairvoyant technique that oversees the capital? Ivan IV is now too weak to regain his former strength.”

“Hmm…”

“Hand over the sacred relic.”

Belov looked at me with a bewildered expression. Then, he sighed and said,

“Alright…”

He probably didn’t personally feel kindly towards me, but it didn’t seem wise to oppose someone as strong as me who had just taken down Ivan IV. As evidence, Belov had a rather uncomfortable expression but maintained his composure.

Soon after, Belov, accompanied by several elderly monks, brought a large chest and opened its seal with a key. Inside the chest, which was as tall as a person, lay a fragment of a stone tablet about the size of a fist.

With trembling hands, Belov handed me the stone fragment and said,

“This is a part of the Ten Commandments Tablet. It is the most valuable and sacred relic we possess in the Eastern Orthodox Church…”

“The Ten Commandments Tablet?”

“Thank you for your contributions.”

“Understood.”

I took the stone tablet from Belov and returned to Luoyang in the Central Plains.

‘I’ll have to give this fragment of the Ten Commandments Tablet to Sangwan Hyuk.’

I felt as if I had swiftly dashed back in no time, but at this moment I could feel it. Becoming the master of the Seven Luminaries meant borrowing the power of a divine being on an entirely different level!

Feeling confident, I said to Zhuge Sa,

“Alright, I’ll go!”

Now my mind was made up. I resolved not to hesitate any longer, and to persuade the Master of the White Lotus Sect using the power I possessed!