---

“I’ve finally made it to Aokigahara Life Sea,” I thought in excitement.

‘Oh right,’ I remembered, as I decided to check on Elder Cheongwol from the Thunder God Lineage. I headed to the secret location in the Entering Sea where he was hiding. Time had passed since my last life, and he looked even more worn out. Still, it seemed he had become quite accustomed to surviving here.

“Could it be… I’m finally getting out of this hell?” he said with a tear—not very warrior-like, right?

Being stuck in this hell, trying to dodge monsters daily wasn’t exactly a walk in the park. I already got all I needed from Cheongwol, so saving him wasn’t for any gain, but I figured there was some significance in just rescuing him. I asked Cheongwol,

“Elder Cheongwol, have you ever seen the exit to the end of this Entering Sea… heading towards the Death Sea?”

“No clue about that. The monsters here are too powerful for me to think about such things… Oh.”

Suddenly, Cheongwol seemed to have remembered something. “I did see a warrior pass through here.”

“What?”

“Twice, in fact.”

I turned around in surprise. He stammered and continued, “A long time ago, shortly after I entered the Entering Sea and was looking for a hideout, I saw a fellow dodging monsters as he flew by. He was dressed like a Dongyoung martial artist and went in and came out.”

“That was years ago.”

“He wielded an extraordinary sword qi. It made me wonder if there was such an expert even in the Central Plains…”

As he bit into the chicken I provided, Cheongwol continued, “Oh… and once more recently, about a month ago, there was this guy in a straw hat who charged at a giant monster. I saw him die mid-fight, anyway.”

“He died? How?”

“He got sliced up by a monster that was like a hundred-headed Natzal with eight arms.”

“How skilled was he?”

“Not sure, I saw from a distance, but it ended quickly. The monsters here are way too strong.”

I sensed that Cheongwol’s stories were a bit jumbled. I mean, expecting anything coherent from someone who danced between life and death every day seemed a stretch. Yet, something inside told me he had hit on something important.

‘That latter straw-hat guy… he must be someone I’ve seen before.’

Last time he got caught in a monster’s breath and died; looks like he’s at it again. Whoever he was, to come all the way to the Entering Sea to battle high-level monsters meant he wasn’t in his right mind. Nonetheless, since he was dead, it wasn’t something to worry about; the key figure was the former warrior.

I promptly told Cheongwol, “Let’s escape from here right away. Then, share the details back at our base.”

Crack!

I took Cheongwol and gave him food and water to recover. After three days, he regained his strength and we could hear the full story. Cheongwol meticulously pieced together his memories and began to draw.

“I can’t remember every detail, but the face of that Dongyoung warrior felt like this.”

I examined the outline and features of the drawing with my advisors. Something struck me, and I realized what it was and said, “It’s definitely him.”

It was a face I had seen before.

No, it was something I was very familiar with.

“It was expected, but it’s important that we’ve confirmed it.”

Mangnyang said calmly. After thinking for a moment, he added, “We can meet him later. Let’s stick to the plan for now.”

“Got it.”

Crack!

I, along with Mangnyang, Cheon Woo-jin, Zhuge Sa, and Jin So-cheong entered the entrance of Aokigahara Life Sea. The location was a dark cave leading from the Living Sea to the Death Sea, packed with ruins from the Otherworldly Race and overseen by a Yin-Yang Master family.

Oh!

On the altar appeared a shadowy figure. As it fully took human form, ‘it’ was dressed in white and wore specially crafted attire. The Yin-Yang Master garb rolled off a polite greeting to us.

“I am Abe no Yoshihira, the overseer of the Life Sea. May I ask who you all are?”

I responded, “Why should we tell you that?”

“Considering you entered this place directly using a demon artifact, I figured you must be someone of great secrets.”

He was on the ball, it seemed.

After all, overseeing a faction might give them some information, huh?

I fell silent, prompting Mangnyang to say, “We wish to meet your leader, Abe no Seimei.”

“That might be difficult. Our leader typically avoids foreigners whose backgrounds cannot be determined.”

“We come from the Central Plains; I’m Mangnyang, disciple of Master Mangnyang. This is the righteous Baek Woong, Jin So-cheong, Zhuge Sa, and finally, my disciple, the Illusory God Cheon Woo-jin. We’re here to fight against the forces of darkness.”

“And?”

“We’re willing to help strengthen your barriers in exchange for an audience with Abe no Seimei.”

“…”

Abe no Yoshihira contemplated deeply. He then raised his index finger to point at Zhuge Sa.

“All is well, but you cannot enter. Someone as powerful as you, a demon sorcerer, simply cannot join us.”

Zhuge Sa grinned and replied, “So you want me to scram?”

“Anyone affiliated with the dark arts is not allowed passage.”

“What about that guy?”

Zhuge Sa pointed at me. My confused expression mirrored that of Abe no Yoshihira.

“What do you mean… he looks like an average human.”

“Hehe… right!” Zhuge Sa chuckled, as if he found it amusing, waving his hand dismissively.

“Then get lost.”

Swish!

As he vanished using his secret arts, Abe no Yoshihira remarked, “The leader wishes to meet you. Please follow me.”

Feeling uneasy, I said, “So that was not your decision but Seimei’s will to kick Zhuge Sa out?”

“No, he simply instructed me to bring you here.”

“What? Who gave you authority to interpret the leader’s orders yourself?”

As I dug into it, Abe no Yoshihira bit down on his lips and replied, “This is the front line against dark forces. We simply cannot allow a demon sorcerer in.”

“But…”

As I began to argue back, Mangnyang interrupted with a clever remark.

[Baek Woong, stop this. They are Yin-Yang masters who fight right on the front lines, and naturally sensitive and conservative to such matters. Further discussion will only worsen their impression of us.]

[Got it.]

We passed through the various gates decorated with Eight Trigram symbols and intricate mystical arts. Finally, we arrived at an otherworldly place. It was a massive town, seemingly built with human constructions perched atop a divine tree. Everyone in this town was donned in Yin-Yang clothes.

After a while, we ended up at the highest point where a silver-haired beauty stood tall. This beauty was androgynous with the elegance of a fox, captivating and beautiful all the same. Abe no Yoshihira kneeled at the sight and spoke, “Seimei-sama, I’ve brought them.”

“Step back, and ensure no one else approaches,” the beauty commanded. “I want to speak with them alone.”

“Yes.”

Even a child commanding, Abe no Yoshihira obeyed without a hitch. This had to be the Abe no Seimei, the top Yin-Yang master we had been searching for, that much was clear.

Looking at us with his pearl-like eyes, he said, “You’ve come well. I am Abe no Seimei.”

Abe no Seimei! The legendary sorcerer who first succeeded the Taishan Duke Ritual and the leader of the Dongyoung Yin-Yang clan who seals Aokigahara Life Sea.

I couldn’t help but ask with curiosity, “I’ve heard you are hundreds of years old—why do you look so young?”

“Isn’t it cute? Respect my tastes.”

“Um… so, are you a man or a woman?”

“Doesn’t matter.”

“…”

His calm demeanor left me flustered. With an expression of indifference, he then turned to Mangnyang and said, “You mentioned helping maintain the seal; what kind of assistance do you propose?”

“We will offer to give you our divine treasures. Someone of your caliber can surely use their strength to reinforce the barrier.”

“Alright, then please take a seat.”

As Seimei pointed, the space dramatically shifted as chairs appeared for all of us. He created his seat, sat down, and interlocked his fingers, saying, “If you have any questions, feel free to ask.”

I cautiously asked, “Are you not suspicious of us? If it were me, I’d check out what kind of treasures you have to offer first.”

“Why bother being suspicious?”

“Huh?”

“If you’re Mangnyang’s disciple, that’s enough guarantee. Plus, I know you don’t lie, so there’s no need to stir up bad feelings.”

“……!!”

“There are very few humans willing to stand against the dark arts. If you can trust someone, it’s beneficial.”

Just by being a disciple of Mangnyang, he trusted me that much?

I realized Mangnyang’s influence must have been beyond my expectations. If a Yin-Yang master, who’d lived for centuries, could accept that blindly, it clearly proved he was recognized as an absolute ally. As I was taken aback by this revelation, Mangnyang spoke up.

“You conducted the Taishan Duke Ritual, thus acquiring immortality. You summoned the Southern Dipper Star Lord and the Northern Dipper Star Lord during the ritual, correct?”

“So, you’ve also summoned the Taishan Duke.”

“Yes.”

Seimei responded slowly, “Indeed, the essence of the Taishan Duke Ritual is to connect with the Southern and Northern Dipper’s Star Lords to meet the King of Hell, and erase one’s name from the Book of Life and Death.”

“Didn’t you feel something was off?”

“What are you specifically talking about?”

“Did the Southern and Northern Dippers engage in any underhanded dealings during their exchanges with the Underworld?”

As Mangnyang posed his question, Seimei relaxed his clasped fingers slightly.

“Nothing specific comes to mind. But I can see what you’re hinting at.”

“What do you know?”

“It’s true the Underworld has its rotten parts. It’s akin to a con artist with scam contracts riding on deals.”

“Scam contracts?”

“The very act of dying and going to the Underworld is essentially a scam contract.”

What? I was utterly baffled at his assertion as I listened.

“I’d like to hear the full backstory of what led you to pursue their fraud.”

I exchanged glances with Mangnyang. With a growing sense that Seimei was a reliable ally, we recounted how we had been tasked by Xiang Yu to locate Yu Ji’s soul and ended up unearthing secrets about the Underworld along the way. After pondering our story, Seimei remarked.

“Looks like they want to keep the fact that the King of Hell was annihilated under wraps. If they’re behaving suspiciously, that’s not surprising.”

I was taken aback. “Wait… The King of Hell was annihilated?”

What did that even mean?

Isn’t the King of Hell the ruler of the Underworld who judges human virtue and sin, deciding souls’ fates? I was shocked, and Abe no Seimei casually replied, “The King of Hell is merely one among the many Hell Kings. They’re famous, that’s all. And he had already been obliterated over five hundred years ago when I conducted the Taishan Duke Ritual. That’s why I managed to charm the Southern and Northern Dipper Star Lords, offering bribes and erasing my name from the Book of Life and Death.”

“Is that true? Why did the King of Hell die…?”

“I’m not too sure myself.”

Abe no Seimei carried on, “And it seems you have further questions.”

“Oh right… Could it be that Miyamoto Musashi ever came to this Sea of Death?”

“He did.”

So it was true! After seeing Cheongwol’s portrait, I had my hopes up, and indeed, Miyamoto Musashi once ventured into the depth of Aokigahara Life Sea! I gulped and queried, “Then… did he pass beyond the Entering Sea to the Death Sea?”

“No.”

“He couldn’t pass?”

“That’s correct.”

Abe no Seimei explained, “Miyamoto Musashi lost to the King of the Life Sea. He will never be able to challenge it again.”

 

---