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Unexpected Announcement from the Master of Twelve Joules!

But neither Mangnyang nor Zhuge Clan seemed to be fazed; they wore expressions that implied, “Finally, it’s here.” Mangnyang spoke heavily.

“Are you thinking of breaking the truce of the three-party talks?”

“What was the point of the three-party talks again? Your Bancheon Alliance was supposed to act as a bridge. So, what’s the situation now that the White Lotus Sect has received the teachings through that bridge?”

“……”

“Since it was a pact made out of mutual need, there’s no point in feeling regret now. Be it me or the Sect Leader…”

The Master of Twelve Joules continued coldly.

“And as you know, the Imperial Palace is the common enemy. The ceasefire is over.”

With gritted teeth, Mangnyang replied.

“Aren’t you being a bit hasty?”

“What do you mean?”

“We all agree that we must strike the Imperial Palace someday. We just needed time to calm down and prepare, fearing the Palace’s retaliation. But… I can’t be certain we’re truly ready to strike the Palace now.”

The Master of Twelve Joules seemed to chuckle softly with his hand near his mouth.

“Hehe.”

“……?”

“That can’t be it. You guys at Bancheon Alliance must need time. Do you think we’re fools?”

Master of Twelve Joules leisurely said.

“I don’t know what you’re planning, but we can’t wait any longer. The Sect Leader and I have already reached a consensus, so I hope you will respond to our stance.”

“And if we say we can’t follow?”

“Then it would be your turn after the Imperial Palace.”

“……”

Blatant threat!

‘Looks like the Master of Twelve Joules thinks they can attack the Imperial Palace without us.’

Clearly, the reason for coming all the way to Jangryeong Valley was to notify the mediator, the Bancheon Alliance. Plus, since the Bancheon Alliance holds a significant position in the current power balance, they were here to coerce us into collaboration. The Master of Twelve Joules genuinely intended to attack the Imperial Palace and had no qualms about hitting the Bancheon Alliance afterward.

Mangnyang strained to say, “Just give us a little time.”

“What kind of time? To spread the word all over town? So the Palace has time to prepare when they see your movements changing?”

Master of Twelve Joules pointed at us sharply.

“There’s no room for choice. Decide right here, right now.”

“……”

Then, the Extreme Tiger beside Mangnyang stepped forward, visibly annoyed.

“I don’t care how grand the Master of Twelve Joules thinks he is, but isn’t he overlooking something? Do you really think you can defeat all of us alone?”

“Hahaha. Is that so? Well, I certainly have no intention of fighting all of you and winning.”

Snap!

As the Master of Twelve Joules snapped his fingers, four figures appeared around him. They were his three masters and the special position, Miyamoto Musashi. Had I been ignorant, I might have brushed them off, but Extreme Tiger, having received my past life memories, knew their strength and flinched.

The Master of Twelve Joules said, “This should be enough… to bring you to the brink of death.”

Mangnyang took another step forward and asked, “What do you want?”

“I told you, join us.”

“I can’t trust you. There’s a possibility that Joules made this up all by himself, and we can’t act on that.”

“Made up? Why would we bother?”

“Show us proof that the White Lotus Sect agreed.”

“Fine.”

Whoosh!

At that moment, a door opened in the air again, and three Dharma Guardians appeared. All were masked, but the infinite energy they radiated left no doubt that they were indeed Dharma Guardians. The sight of their appearance left me feeling dizzy.

‘It’s real…’

If it were just Yongbi-cheon, I might have had my doubts, but Dokgo Jun, a devoted follower of the Sect Leader, was also here. That meant the Sect Leader must agree with this as well. Thankfully, since we had mostly prepared countermeasures, the identities of Lee Cheong-un and the others seemed to remain unknown, but it was still dangerous.

There was no avoiding it.

The Master of Twelve Joules wasn’t trying to deceive us; he was genuinely planning to attack the Imperial Palace. Their decision to collaborate with the White Lotus Sect was sincere. If we refused here, we would be facing two experts from the Absolute Realm, three mystics, and three Dharma Guardians at once. Facing two of the three major forces simultaneously was a guaranteed loss.

Han Baek-ryeong, wearing a fox mask, said in a clear voice, “Bancheon Alliance, what are you hesitating for? Surely you see the Imperial Palace as a thorn in your side?”

“Do we really need to join in? With the current power of the Imperial Palace, they can’t deal with even the White Lotus Sect.”

Then, Yongbi-cheon, who stood beside me, scoffed.

“Hmph! Even if you can’t match a minor force, we’ve gathered enough strength to surpass the Nine Great Sects. If you’re going to do this, let’s crush them with overwhelming power to minimize our losses. Stop whining and help us out.”

Feeling like I had no more ground to retreat to, Mangnyang reluctantly said, “Joules, then you must grant us just one condition.”

“What is it?”

“Once this is over, if a conflict arises between the White Lotus Sect and the Master of Twelve Joules, you must accept our mediation at least once.”

“Alright. That’s not a difficult request.”

The Master of Twelve Joules nodded and brought Miyamoto Musashi forward. As Musashi approached us, Joules stated, “He’s our special position. He will explain the operation plan, so make sure to attend at the scheduled time.”

After a while, the Master of Twelve Joules, his three masters, and the three Dharma Guardians vanished through the dimensional door. Then, Miyamoto Musashi nodded at us and said, “May I explain?”

Mangnyang sighed.

“Just… wait a moment. We need time to confer as well.”

“Okay. Try to wrap it up quickly.”

“We’ll meet you in the reception room.”

After a storm had passed, we left Miyamoto Musashi in the reception room and began our meeting. Of course, Lee Cheong-un stood watch over him to prevent him from recklessly rummaging through Jangryeong Valley.

Zhuge Sa said, “So it has all come to this.”

“Uncle, shouldn’t we prepare for the end of this life?”

Mangnyang said, and Zhuge Sa paused before replying.

“I think that’s the case. The current crisis, despite the blessings from the Great Immortal Zhongli Quan that altered our fate, has ultimately found us. It wouldn’t be strange if everyone here were annihilated.”

Then, Extreme Tiger glanced at me and said, “Isn’t it better just to go to strike the Imperial Palace and leave Baek Woong alive? As long as that guy is alive, at least he has time to train.”

“I considered that too.”

Mangnyang wore a serious expression.

“The truth is, neither my uncle nor I did not suspect that Joules would come today. So it’s quite hard to judge whether to waste this valuable experience and information.”

“What do you mean?”

“The Master of Twelve Joules and the White Lotus Sect didn’t break their pact for no reason. For the past few months, the movements of the Imperial Palace have become suspicious, and they mobilized people and rituals for a large-scale ceremony at Mount Ye. It seems clear that the two remaining powers rebelled upon sensing that the Palace was plotting something.”

As I listened, I had a guess.

“The Ultimate Portrait Immortal!”

“That’s right, Baek Woong. They are conducting a ceremony to complete the white-haired Portrait Immortal using the Divine Blood buried at the Tomb of Qin Shi Huang in Mount Ye. Thus, attacking the Imperial Palace now is an inevitable choice.”

“So it was simply that we hesitated because we were the objective witnesses to the truce treaty.”

“Exactly. The Imperial Palace must be struck now. And securing the Portrait Immortal from Mount Ye is of the utmost importance.”

Mangnyang continued.

“Snatching the Portrait Immortal against the two great powers will surely be no simple task. We can’t even gauge how much they know about it, so even with our full force, it might still be difficult.”

“So I must participate, huh?”

“Indeed. We must avoid our deaths becoming meaningless. Even if we die, we must at least find a clue to move forward, which means you, Baek Woong, have to gather all that information. Just the Silver Phoenix Fragment alone made you roll through ten rounds without obtaining any info.”

“……”

It really was a tough problem. Thinking about my training time, sending my companions into dangerous situations felt wrong, but it would lead to us gathering insufficient information. We could end up circling without clear knowledge about the Imperial Palace and the Portrait Immortal for dozens of rounds.

I cautiously asked, “What about predicting the situation through Baek Woong’s foresight?”

“No point. It’s obvious that the outcome will change due to the observation, plus we lack information on the Tomb of Qin Shi Huang in Mount Ye, which will distort the future seen.”

“Hmm…”

At that moment, Sword Demon, who had been listening quietly, said, “It wouldn’t be too late to decide after hearing Miyamoto Musashi’s information.”

“Seems so.”

Finally, we headed to the reception room where Miyamoto Musashi was waiting. Musashi was calmly sipping tea, with Lee Cheong-un sitting beside him, keeping an eye on him. Musashi spoke with interest.

“Amazing. To think such a top-tier talent was anonymous… The Bancheon Alliance truly has monumental potential as Joules said.”

Lee Cheong-un casually replied, “If you’re so itching to fight me, hold that desire. Once this is over, we can get together when there’s time.”

“I’ll take that as sincere.”

Clearly, Musashi must have gauged Lee Cheong-un’s level and was throwing subtle challenges at him. While we held our meeting, an energy clash between the masters of the Absolute Realm was happening in the reception room.

Finally, Miyamoto Musashi spoke.

“The time will be three days from now, at the hour of the dog (戌時), at Mount Ye. The Imperial Palace is plotting something at the Tomb of Qin Shi Huang, and on the previous day, the Emperor and high-ranking officials will visit. We plan to wipe them all out within the Tomb, and you all will need to assist significantly.”

“In the night.”

“The guards, including the Golden Eagle Guard and Duke of Guanzhong, will be concentrating all their forces, and there are also some unidentified phantoms. Joules has warned that they seem to be modified by evil techniques, so be cautious.”

They were likely the demon race and spirit beings.

‘Well, we won’t be overwhelmed by force but…’

To a minor martial world force, the power of the Imperial Palace was nothing less than a calamity, but we had the Master of the White Lotus Sect, the Master of Twelve Joules, and the Dharma Guardians on our side. As long as there was no equal powerhouse on the other side, we shouldn’t face issues.

Yet why did I still feel uneasy inside?

After detailing the small plans, Miyamoto Musashi left for Jangryeong Valley. As his figure completely vanished from sight, Lee Cheong-un spoke up.

“That guy is a battle maniac.”

“Is it dangerous?”

“When I face him again, it seems there will be no way to avoid combat. Regardless of the opponent, I sense a mad desire to test every blade against them.”

“……”

Now, if he would be swinging a Divine Kill Slash at the Three Sovereigns, you can imagine how reckless he is.

Aside from that, there’s no doubt Miyamoto Musashi’s obstinacy and pride were the best in the world.

Then Zhuge Sa, who had been beside me, said, “If that’s the case, you should lure him on the day of battle, Lee Cheong-un. If we can eliminate the variable of the Master of Twelve Joules, it will be a lot easier for us.”

“What about the Master of Twelve Joules or the Sect Leader?”

“We have our own secret weapons too.”

“Is that so?”

Secret weapon?

I tilted my head, but Zhuge Sa continued.

“Baek Woong. Joules will use the chaos to try and eliminate both the White Lotus Sect and us at the Tomb of Qin Shi Huang. So you must play a crucial role because we should consider that we will be fighting Joules on that day!”

“What role?”

“That is…”

Bang!

I turned and headed for the prophet. As the prophet came out to see me, I directly proposed the deal.

“Prophet! Let’s make a deal.”

 

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