---

“`html

“Wait, are you saying you can just swap out a personality like it’s nothing?”

I was stunned as I turned to Zhuge Sa.

“What are you talking about? Can you really just replace a personality?”

Usually, that kind of talk is completely absurd – but Zhuge Sa was nodding as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

“What do you think a personality is?”

Zhuge Sa chuckled before continuing, “The human mind can’t be defined by a single term. It’s divided into external personas and internal attitudes, and when it touches the unconscious, the layers of the soul can pile up by hundreds. It can even split apart as needed, and you can’t just casually cover up such a complex entity as a personality with basic mental techniques. But…”

He poked Zhuge Bu, who was in a stupor, right on his forehead. “If you flip it upside down from the ground up, it doesn’t matter. Rather than replacing it, it’s better to blow it away.”

“…?!”

“If you take your time, you’ll first restrain them, then inject drugs and brainwash them. You’ll sow despair from the fine details. If you want to do it quickly, well, you’d need the Soul Exchange Technique and alchemy, among other things.”

I felt a bit lost, thinking I had an inkling of what Zhuge Sa was talking about.

“So, you mean you’re going to completely obliterate his mind and personality, starting from the unconscious?”

“Of course! Otherwise, you couldn’t use him!”

I hesitated for a moment before speaking up.

“…No way! That’s no different from killing him!”

Having spent a long time under Zhuge Sa, learning advanced knowledge like the Soul Exchange Technique and alchemy, I understood his intentions and meanings. What he was saying was that he intended to destroy everything related to Zhuge Bu’s personality – that meant the human known as [Zhuge Bu] would essentially die.

Then Zhuge Sa coldly responded, “Oh really? Then why not just kill this piece of trash with a knife right here? What’s the difference between stabbing him to death and psychologically killing him? What’s the difference?”

“Uh…”

“What are you even trying to do after asking for my help?”

Unable to reply, I fell silent. I realized how contradictory it was, even to myself.

“Get your head together and listen carefully. It’s not the time to fuss over morals or ethics in the human world right now. I’ll explain the advantages we gain from completely erasing this guy’s personality.” Zhuge Sa began explaining, looking at Zhuge Bu.

“You probably heard from a prophet before that human [talent] is closely related to personality. Talent is a byproduct connected to mental strength, so they can’t really be separated.”

“That’s right.”

I remembered asking the prophet about ways to enhance my talents long ago, and his words still echoed in my mind.

[It’s extremely rare to receive a blessing that raises talent itself… The methods are quite limited…]

[Talent includes the ability to make efforts… intuition… flexibility… creativity… innate aptitude… potential for development… all of these mean… raising talent implies changing one’s personality, doesn’t it?]

[Yes… personality…]

[If one’s personality doesn’t change… talent can’t increase… because it would fundamentally alter the structure of the mind… well… the reverse is also true… that’s why techniques to enhance talent are… inherently complicated and tough… they can leave severe aftereffects on the subject…]

Since the prophet’s clan was reputed to have extraordinary mental abilities, it was likely all true. As I recalled the prophet’s response, Zhuge Sa continued.

“Zhuge Bu had immense talent from a young age. He grasped peak martial arts theories in his early teens, devoured the Four Books and Five Classics, and entered the realm of the floating technique known as Divine Positioning. Anything he did was easy, so he found no reason to pursue further development. The problem was his growing arrogance, which kept him stagnant even after reaching thirty.”

He looked down at Zhuge Bu with a somewhat cold expression.

“Without the desire for improvement, a person can only stay stagnant. Originally, he had the potential to reach the Absolute Realm in martial arts and Great Immortal Level in magic, but he squandered that himself.”

I tilted my head in confusion, “But it doesn’t make sense… Isn’t he a genius? Doesn’t he understand how powerful he could become once he reaches that absolute state? I don’t get why he’d throw that chance away.”

Zhuge Sa answered, looking at me as if I were foolish, “Because he’s a genius, he gives up quicker, you blockhead. No matter how talentless you’ve felt all this time, haven’t you been knocking at the door of the Absolute Realm after dying twenty-three times? Even if you come from the Central Plains and are one of the top ten martial arts prodigies, reaching the Absolute Realm isn’t simple. It takes at least twenty years of focusing entirely on training, giving up everything. Still, it’s uncertain whether you’ll even achieve it. Such a journey is bound to be arduous, and Zhuge Bu had no reason to strengthen himself like that.”

I nodded, finally comprehending.

“It’s because he’s smart. He keeps choosing the easy path and doesn’t want to walk the difficult one.”

Zhuge Sa coldly mocked Zhuge Bu, “He probably thought that with his natural talent, he’d achieve something big in thirty or forty years. But ultimate realms aren’t something you gain just by passing the time.”

Got it.

I was lost in thought for a moment when a sudden idea struck me.

“Wait a minute. What about Zhuge Yulong? He has every reason and desire to grow stronger, right?”

Zhuge Sa fell silent for a moment before responding, “Hmm… His motives are probably different from Zhuge Bu’s. His aim is to bring about the destruction of the Celestial Realm, and personal strength becoming Absolute or Great Immortal Level would be meaningless. So, to beat that monkey you made a contract with in this life, he would need hundreds of years of training.”

That made sense.

Considering the power of the Celestial Sage, no ordinary human could possibly counter it. The gap was so massive it felt almost like the difference between divine beings and humans.

“Moreover, I think he probably already knows of Queen Mother of the West’s identity and strength. Do you think he’d think that a mere Absolute Realm would be enough to face someone like her?”

“……”

“If you weren’t an insane freak reincarnating infinitely, giving up on personal power like him is totally normal.”

His argument was convincing enough to render me momentarily speechless.

“He sincerely wants to destroy the Celestial Realm. That’s why he’s saving time for schemes instead of training personally. The scary thing is, he might actually achieve that.”

Sensing water in his throat, Zhuge Sa took a sip from the tea beside him and continued, “Anyway, back to the main point, this guy’s laziness, coldness, and selfishness are blocking his talent. Once we completely wipe out his personality and start fresh, only pure talent will remain. Got it?”

“… Can that really happen? What if the personality goes away, and the talent disappears too?”

When I rebutted, Zhuge Sa replied, “Of course, there’s that possibility too. Which is why we need precision in using the Soul Exchange Technique.”

“Soul Exchange Technique?”

After nodding, Zhuge Sa raised both hands, palms facing up. He prepared to perform the technique to draw the soul into his hands.

“By intensely training the Soul Exchange Technique, you can not only pull someone’s soul with pure power but also infiltrate your own spirit into them to seize control of their mind and body. Simultaneously, it’s possible to copy and temporarily transfer their unconscious representations and perceptions to yourself.”

“What?!”

“Just in case, we can temporarily store his memories and personality, then use the technique to completely erase his internal and external persona. I’m confident that this method will have no side effects. We can suppress his mental resistance during the copying process.”

“Theoretically, that might work, but…”

I gasped in shock.

Having practiced the Soul Exchange Technique quite a bit myself, I understood it was indeed theoretically possible. It was the premier technique in history for handling the soul, allowing substantial influence on someone’s spirit and mind.

However, it was possible only in theory. From my experience wielding it, even the simple act of pulling someone else’s soul demanded extensive sensitivity and concentration. Let alone erasing their mind while simultaneously copying their representations—now that required an insane level of proficiency.

Maybe reaching such perfection in the Soul Exchange Technique was a distant goal beyond my reach. As I lost my words, Zhuge Sa calmly pressed on.

“I just told you. If you want to follow the method I suggest, don’t make excuses or talk nonsense.”

“Hmm…”

“I can’t give you any further plans. It’s impossible. Keeping this brat alive as he is is absurd. Even if we use the Soul Exchange Technique to control him with his soul subdued, with someone as sly and capable as him, he would find any chance to stab you in the back. Maybe he and Zhuge Yulong will join forces against you? It’s bound to be a messy situation and I can’t stand that.”

Zhuge Sa growled. “Make a choice! Either obliterate his mind or just kill him right here. Losing the Nameless Ritual Book can be considered minor.”

I was deep in thought. Zhuge Sa’s reasoning was sound, and this whole affair felt like my fault. Sure, I had fought against Zhuge Bu to relieve the pent-up frustration from dying repeatedly and confirm my strength, but ultimately, it was a loss. Continuing to resist in this situation wouldn’t yield any benefits.

But—psychologically killing him would still amount to murder.

Had Zhuge Bu really committed enough heinous acts to warrant outright execution?

“……”

After thinking it over, I concluded it wasn’t that serious. Sure, he was a vicious, selfish prick who didn’t care about the common people’s suffering, but he hadn’t behaved as ruthlessly as those pirates yet. He was just aligned with what benefited him. I knew from experience that guys like him could eventually turn wicked, but up until now, Zhuge Bu hadn’t reached that level of malice.

With a heavy sigh, I said, “Sorry. Give me a moment to discuss with Mangnyang.”

“Sure. I’ll use the Soul Exchange Technique to detain him. Finish what you need to and come back.” Zhuge Sa replied disinterestedly, as if he thought talking to Mangnyang wouldn’t be a bad idea. I left the room to find Mangnyang, who was dealing with the ingredients from Mount Huang.

Pa-at!

I handed Mangnyang the obsidian and showed him what transpired so far. He took it, contemplating before speaking. “Personally, I feel quite complicated about you, brother. As you’ve noted, he can’t really differentiate right from wrong—just an intelligent person who happens to be callous. However, I feel inferior due to my lack of talent in magic and left the Inner Imperial Pavilion without pointing out his flaws.”

He gazed at the far-off sky. “… Lately, after learning of the confidential information through your memories, I’ve been beginning to wonder if that was intended by my father.”

“……?”

Was it intentional?

Curious, I looked at him as he smiled sadly. “It’s still just a hypothesis. However, I believe the small amount of kindness you have towards him is not misplaced. He is not such an evil man that he can’t be improved.”

“So, what should we do?”

He nodded. “I’m in favor of erasing his personality with Uncle’s Soul Exchange Technique. But once we do that, we should then accept him as a comrade and treat him well. After he develops a good heart, we can restore him to his original self.”

“Ah…”

Did Zhuge Sa’s mention of copying perceptions and representations also carry that implication? As I understood this late realization, Mangnyang firmly stated, “As Uncle said, there’s no other way. Even I think safely using someone with Zhuge Bu’s talent through the Soul Exchange Technique isn’t feasible, so it has to be this way.”

Surprisingly, Mangnyang seemed to agree on temporarily erasing Zhuge Bu’s consciousness. However, his approach was aimed at temporarily punishing Zhuge Bu and ensuring his redemption. My curiosity swelled, and I questioned Mangnyang, “Mangnyang. If Zhuge Bu were to purely unleash his talent, how much potential do you think he would have?”

“Hmm…”

He pondered for a moment before replying, “He would become a true Treasure of the Central Plains. I really dislike him, but I cannot deny his talent.”

“Got it…”

Hearing Mangnyang’s words helped me solidify my decision. Just as I was about to head back to Zhuge Sa, Mangnyang called out to me.

“Baek Woong.”

“What is it?”

“Finding the descendants of Guan Yu shouldn’t be too difficult, so leave that to me. Just lend me the halberd for a while.”

“Um, sure. But what makes you think it’ll be easy?”

He chuckled, “Good heavens… have you forgotten how long it’s been since you studied? Guan Yu, the legendary general who served alongside Liu Bei during the Three Kingdoms Period and was regarded as a god of battle? Does that ring a bell?”

“Oh!”

At that moment, recollection flooded back, and I gasped in realization. ‘How could I have forgotten about that?’ While Guan Yu wasn’t famously heroic on every front, he was an undeniable figure and well-remembered in folklore. As I flustered, Mangnyang said, “It’s no surprise. You’ve spent decades studying and have rolled around through mystique and adventure without enough time to care about history.”

“Hmm, maybe I need to hit the books again…”

“That’s not necessary. A descendant of someone like Guan Yu should be relatively easy to track down. I’ll employ the Bancheon Alliance to explore.”

“Please, do.”

While I answered, an unsettling notion gnawed at me. ‘The memory retention from the Thunder Spirit Classic isn’t perfect…’

Up until now, I’d used the classic to elevate my memory and brain functionality whenever I needed to recall something crucial. Though this helped minimize memory leaks throughout my reincarnations, evident gaps were now surfacing. Because no matter how enhanced my memory was, over time, recollections would naturally blur.

‘That’s a problem!’

I recognized that I needed a different way to securely store my memories. Without it, once I hit cycle 50 or 100, I risked losing far more critical information and leads than something as trivial as Guan Yu’s lineage. Missing details on divine vulnerabilities or secrets could pose serious threats.

My past lives amassed to what felt like hundreds of years in experience, yielding treasures of knowledge no ordinary human could acquire in a lifetime.

But this was no simple fix. I could execute numerous techniques involving the obsidian to store memories, but fundamentally, this wouldn’t prevent leaks. Each iteration, the obsidian didn’t carry over with me as I reincarnated.

But how could I secure memory the essence of past lives when I didn’t even understand how the Heavenly Secret’s rebirth ability worked?

‘What do I do…?’

I realized how crucial it was to devise some sort of permanent memory storage device for my reincarnating self. Though the Thunder Spirit Classic had been my buffer thus far, it was becoming apparent that wouldn’t suffice much longer.

‘I need to clear my mind.’

After some deliberation, I made my way to Cheon Woo-jin. No matter what, I had to get things rolling for the National Seal first.

When Cheon Woo-jin saw me, he flatly remarked, “I don’t believe I’ve received payment for the barrier last time… Are you coming to ask me to break down the National Seal’s barrier for free?”

“……”

“Pay up now. Otherwise, I won’t move a muscle.”

As expected, this guy was meticulous about remuneration. However, a while back, I’d distributed a good chunk of Sacred Lotus and Black and White Lotus to the prophet, and I was left with mostly only imperative treasures. I considered giving him the Inner Dan of the Human Face Pillar, but I thought it wiser to give that to Tang San, so I hesitated.

During my contemplation, I said, “Um… how about the secret techniques of the Transformation Art?”

Cheon Woo-jin grimaced. “What am I supposed to do with your thief techniques? Sure, that would be useful for your Jianghu people, but I don’t want them!”

“… So, do you want platinum instead?”

“Show it to me first.”

As I produced about ten pieces of platinum, Cheon Woo-jin’s eyes widened slightly.

“Oh, wait a minute. This doesn’t seem too enticing either. Got anything treasure-wise in the arts department?”

“Are you asking for a treasure?”

“That would be nice.”

It seemed this guy was subtly angling for treasures like Baek Woong or the Suspicious Fishhook. Considering the significance of the National Seal, I could indeed part with some, but I felt oddly reluctant. After all, I had just accepted Cheon Woo-jin into my ranks and was looking to conserve some treasures.

‘Hmm… I’d need a lot of preparation for going to Dark Heaven Village… It might be better to save treasures for that… Is there any alternative… Ah!’

Suddenly, a realization struck.

“You owe me a debt!”

“What?”

I shot him a piercing gaze. “You got to avoid the clues to reach the state of Resurrectioning because of the information I read through the obsidian. Why are you sitting there like nothing happened?”

“……!!”

Cheon Woo-jin looked shocked, having expected only to receive. He faltered for a moment before retorting, “Th-that doesn’t really count as a debt. After all, I was the one who discovered it and delivered it.”

“Would you have gotten it without me using the obsidian?”

“Ugh!”

“You ungrateful scoundrel!”

As I hammered him with words, he looked utterly flabbergasted. Then, with gritted teeth, he said, “Fine… Alright! I’ll break the National Seal’s barrier for free!”

“Haha!”

“But from now on, let’s call this debt settled. Whatever happens this life, it’s over.”

I shook my head. “Not a chance.”

“What?”

“Reaching the state of Resurrectioning isn’t child’s play. This isn’t just a regular debt. You’ll be my slave forever…”

Cheon Woo-jin’s expression turned drastically alarmed, making my smile grow wide.

‘Uh-oh…’

I suddenly felt a wave of drowsiness washing over me, and I realized my vision was blurring. Cheon Woo-jin seemed to be experiencing the same, as I could see his form becoming unstable. There was no resisting this overwhelming fatigue, and I fell into a deep slumber.

In the Dream World.

I found myself standing in a village with a winding path. Beside me stood Cheon Woo-jin.

Before us, a pitch-black cat sat, lapping at its paw.

The black cat, Master Mangnyang, turned to me and declared, [That’s three free tries.]

“Huh?”

Master Mangnyang yawned. [You really love freebie stuff, don’t you? Don’t exploit your teacher too much.]

Pa-at!

I awoke with a start and locked eyes with Cheon Woo-jin, who appeared equally put off. He wore a glum expression but also looked a little relieved.

“Let’s go.”

“… Alright.”

I felt a twinge of disappointment. ‘Master Mangnyang stepping in…’

With Mangnyang mediating, I’d lost my chance to make use of Cheon Woo-jin’s power for free. But at least for the next three reincarnations, I wouldn’t have to pay him any dues, so there’s some comfort in that.

“`

 

---