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“Is this what Great Sage means…”

As Great Celestial Sage decided to help me, Jang Sam-bong spoke with his arms hanging by his sides.

“Baek Woong, there’s no guarantee that everything you say is true, especially the claim that Queen Mother of the West is Nüwa. Is there any evidence for that?”

I calmly replied, “The Heavenly Mysterious Woman has been skeptical for thousands of years, and so has the Great Celestial Sage, indirectly. Isn’t that enough? Moreover, there’s no way to prove this through normal means. And who do you think can punish Nüwa if proven? Even the Three Sovereigns cannot. It would be meaningless.”

“…”

“If Nüwa declared her logic of power in the shadows, then all we can do is counter it. Wouldn’t Great Immortal Yuan Yuanzi help us?”

Upon my suggestion, Jang Sam-bong fell silent before he spoke up.

“I… want to join you, but there’s something I must check first.”

“What do you mean?”

“I won’t tell anyone about this. You and I will meet again.”

Hissss

Jang Sam-bong’s figure vanished. Yet, even as he performed his technique to disappear, there wasn’t anyone in the hall to stop him. Curious, I looked at Cheon Woo-jin, who remarked,

“Jang Sam-bong is making a vow of silence. Therefore, there’s no one to tell. And stopping him would be a headache.”

“Hmm, is that so…”

“He seems to have a secret of his own. Without building trust, you won’t hear his stories.”

That must be related to the Divine Sword.

Previously, I had asked the Bright Dragon about the location of Wudang Sect’s Divine Sword and tried to draw it out, but no matter how hard I tried, it wouldn’t budge. So, I had called Jang Sam-bong to inquire about how to extract it. However, at that time, he had outright refused.

“Before I ascend, I personally sealed the Divine Sword with all the insights of the Absolute Realm. Even if you raze down all of Wudang Mountain, no one will be able to wield it. Even if I were to return everything you’ve offered, I won’t consider unsealing the Divine Sword.”

“That sword is万害无益 (without benefit). It’s a testament to a false history and a false Divine King’s sword… If the dual nature of that sword is awakened, it would be unmanageable. If you have the ability, I would rather recommend you break the Divine Sword.”

“I can’t share more since it’s Heavenly Secret. Return the offerings.”

“…”

Until now, I merely considered Jang Sam-bong as a martial arts master who reached the Absolute Realm. However, judging by his words and actions concerning the Divine Sword, he might have encountered the ‘darkness’ of this world. He was also Tsukiyomi, who met with the Martial God along with Yeodong-bin.

“I also met the Martial God before I ascended.”

“He was like a mirage…”

“Yet… just for an instant, he showed me the extremes of void. Just seeing that ignited a passion within me to strive through endless ages to reach the extremes of void.”

“My personal solution regarding the Martial God’s question…”

Yeodong-bin still conceals the secrets of the Martial God from me. If Jang Sam-bong has encountered him, then he likely knows something as well.

‘Maybe next time I should delve into the capabilities of the Divine Sword?’

This might create an even stronger link with Jang Sam-bong. Pondering further, I remarked, “I think we need to act according to Mangnyang’s scheme.”

“What are you planning to do?”

In response to the Great Celestial Sage’s question, I quietly replied.

“Currently, I believe the Moon Sovereign and Wood Element have fled to the Underworld, and my companions are doing their best to explore the Underworld, but they haven’t found them yet. So for now, those two Luminaries won’t be found, leaving us with Xuyou and Golden Crow in our hands. Therefore, the remaining Luminaries on earth are Fire Spirit and Earth Spirit.”

“Are you saying you want to seize Fire Spirit and Earth Spirit?”

“Yes, of course, it won’t be easy, but it must be done. If four Luminaries are in one faction’s hands, even the Three Sovereigns won’t easily provoke us.”

Upon hearing this, the Great Celestial Sage tilted his head.

“Why? Please explain.”

“…”

I hesitated for a moment about whether to speak or not. However, since the Great Celestial Sage had accepted me as a companion, I decided to share significant intelligence.

“Queen Mother of the West, that is, Nüwa, fears the liberation of the Luminaries. The act of gathering them itself is a weakness for her.”

“What?”

“Compared to the other Three Sovereigns, she fears it more than anything else. If she isn’t careful, we could use that as leverage to threaten her with the simultaneous liberation of the Luminaries. With the combined strength of the Heavenly Mysterious Woman and the Great Celestial Sage, it would be possible to forcibly liberate them.”

“… Is that true? I’ve never heard such a thing in my life.”

“I didn’t know that either.”

The Great Celestial Sage, as well as the Heavenly Mysterious Woman, showed expressions of disbelief. Yet, I stated plainly, “It’s true. If we threaten her with the liberation of the Luminaries, she would comply. I risked my life to find this out.”

“Hmm… what kind of adventure did you go through? Regardless, I believe you.”

As the Great Celestial Sage scratched his temple, he seemed convinced, likely due to the sincerity in my expression.

‘I saw it firsthand.’

And it makes sense since in my past life, I charged to the Celestial Realm where the Queen Mother of the West resided and summoned Gong Gong. I actually witnessed Gong Gong using the liberation of the Luminaries to threaten Nüwa. Given that Nüwa would go as far as harming the Queen Mother of the West herself, it was a very effective method.

That knowledge and experience have allowed me to devise a strategy against Nüwa in this life.

“Therefore, if we secure the two Luminaries on earth, we will have four. Furthermore, if we can discover the Twelve Joules and strip them of the Luminaries, we can gather all six of them together on earth.”

“Oh… I see.”

“Also, once we acquire all six Luminaries, a portal leading to the Divine Temple opens, as Shenglong personally descended to inform me.”

“… Are you really thinking of going to the Divine Temple?”

“Yes. Ultimately, I would like to proceed that way, but I will leave that decision to you later on. I promised to offer this once I gathered the Luminaries.”

“Hmm…”

“Whether we do a re-sealing of the Luminaries or go to the Divine Temple, please proceed according to your wish.”

While the Great Celestial Sage wore a contemplating expression, Cheon Woo-jin stepped forward and said, “Baek Woong seems to just blabber about grand strategies but doesn’t mention the immediate actions we need to take, speaking too straightforwardly of things he heard from his older brother.”

“What should we do?”

“Right now, the urgent matter is that the resurrected Dragon King of the Death Sea, who rose with magic a few days ago, is coming with millions of Sea God Clan troops to attack the humans. If Great Celestial Sage isn’t aware, it might take a while to send responding forces from the Heavenly Altar to meet them.”

“Therefore, we need to incite Chi You.”

“Chi You?”

Afterward, Cheon Woo-jin briefly explained Mangnyang’s scheme. Upon hearing it, the Great Celestial Sage frowned severely.

“Do you think I would agree to something like that?”

“There’s no other way. Chi You and the Eight Parts of the Divine have probably sensed the disaster from the south already, but they won’t act right away. They would clearly want the Celestial Realm to expend their power fighting against the Sea Gods. If both the Celestial Realm and Sea Gods weaken, their own control will strengthen.”

“That makes sense.”

“If we want to provoke him, we must put the fire on his feet. Besides, it could lead to their mutual destruction.”

“But what if the villains join forces?”

“He told me that Chi You can’t be that kind of person. Given this opportunity came centuries earlier, he must achieve success regardless, so he wouldn’t easily bring anyone into his home.”

“I don’t know much about your older brother’s cleverness, but I don’t think there’s a guarantee that prediction is accurate.”

As the Great Celestial Sage muttered in dissatisfaction, Cheon Woo-jin crossed his arms.

“If you can’t trust your older brother’s scheme, none of the strategies from any strategist would hold weight.”

“Baek Woong, do you agree?”

“Yes.”

“Ha, this is really going too far.”

The Great Celestial Sage sighed. For someone so unpredictable and headstrong, saying something like that means Mangnyang’s strategy is genuinely outrageous. He then remarked, “Fine. While they’re set to destroy each other, what will we do? Just eat rice cakes and watch?”

“No. Then…”

As I sequentially laid out Mangnyang’s plan, the Great Celestial Sage wore a half-defeated expression.

“Alright, let’s give it a shot. But if you break the promise of providing the Luminaries, you better be ready to face the consequences.”

“Yes, of course.”

We quickly devised a strategy and then tossed a mirror into the lake to summon Mangnyang. Once we briefed Mangnyang on the happenings thus far, he said to me,

“Baek Woong. Regarding the whereabouts of the Twelve Joules, it seems he’s not in the Underworld.”

“……? What do you mean?”

Stunned, I retorted at Mangnyang’s words.

“He’s dead. He must’ve taken his body and soul to the Underworld and concealed himself somewhere with the Luminaries, right? Isn’t there any other possibility?”

“I’ve been searching the entire Underworld through the Mirror of Clarity, but I can’t sense the energy of the Luminaries anywhere, not in the Void Space or hidden spots. No matter how extraordinary the Twelve Joules are, I don’t think he could hide them from the exploration of the ultimate treasure of the Wheel King for years.”

“Then what…?”

“I’m considering what if he didn’t go to the Underworld after he died.”

“Hmm…”

Is that even possible?

Regardless, if he’s a living being, doesn’t he go to the Underworld after dying?

As I pondered, Mangnyang added, “Baek Woong. Once you gather two or more Luminaries and situations stabilize, you must certainly eradicate the remnants of the Twelve Joules. Among them, the clan of the Dan family will undoubtedly know something.”

“I understand.”

Swoosh

We used the techniques of Cheon Woo-jin and the Heavenly Mysterious Woman, heading to the moon together. Upon reaching the lunar surface, a dark light started seeping out, and the Great Celestial Sage began reciting the spell of the Golden Crow slowly, holding it atop his hand.

Whoa whoa whoa

It was said that this spell was taught by the legendary sorcerer Subori, and he had reportedly surpassed even Subori. Since he was also a practitioner of the techniques himself, it was not a challenge for him to draw out the power of the Golden Crow and use it. A moment later, the light of the Golden Crow brightened intensely, and the Great Celestial Sage called out.

“Haah!”

Clang!

At that moment, the sky twisted violently, and it seemed as though a giant chaotic rift capable of swallowing the darkness of the universe appeared for an instant. The Great Celestial Sage temporarily unsealed the binding on the Golden Crow and utilized that power to create a summoning portal. Simultaneously, the Heavenly Mysterious Woman and Cheon Woo-jin reached forth their hands, activating additional great spells.

Crash!

The chaotic rift vanished shortly after. Cheon Woo-jin, looking around, quickly said, “Let’s hurry and escape before Shabi God notices.”

Swish

We returned to earth. Cheon Woo-jin gazed far in the direction of Luoyang and commented, “It’s connected well.”

“Is the summoning in progress?”

“Yes. Initially, Jeogok allowed them to pass. A passage of darkness has formed above Luoyang.”

Using the Heavenly Eye Technique of the Fire Eye Golden Spirit, the Great Celestial Sage added, “The Eight Parts of the Divine are working to close the gates.”

“It won’t close that easily. In the end, Chi You himself will have to confront Jeogok.”

“And since Chi You will be short on time, he’ll likely try to extinguish the flames beneath him and the fire outside the gates simultaneously…”

“Exactly. From the host’s perspective, that’s a natural line of thinking. There won’t be enough leisure to just watch the Celestial Realm expend their power.”

The Great Celestial Sage spoke confidently, “There’s a portal created from Venus to Earth in Luoyang, so Chi You will surely expend his strength resolving this. In the meantime, we can recover the remaining Luminaries.”

Indeed.

The strategy of Mangnyang was to summon the Amatsukami returning to earth in a year to Luoyang, which had become Chi You’s base. While Chi You likely has the power to close the gates, the return of Amatsukami is something the Three Sovereigns eagerly desire, so it was obvious Jeogok would apply pressure from behind.

Crack!

The evidence for that was the dimensional gate that had opened above Luoyang, which showed no signs of closing any time soon. Even Chi You, who boasted magical energy comparable to the Old Ruler, would want to seal it. This implied Jeogok and the Three Sovereigns are maintaining that portal out of stubbornness. However, the balance of power appears to have reached a state of equilibrium; full-scale summoning has not yet commenced.

‘The Three Sovereigns are trying to utilize the ancient evil god Amatsukami for the purpose of cleaning up the earth, desperate to rid themselves of their masks. Naturally, they won’t easily let go…’

Chi You wouldn’t be able to simply close the portal, leading him to negotiate with Jeogok, and due to the situation evolving, the Heavenly Realm might begin to receive direct commands from the Three Sovereigns. The moment Queen Mother of the West sees Chi You as a burr under her saddle, she’ll mobilize the Celestial Realm like her limbs and strike first at Chi You.

Amatsukami, Chi You, Eight Parts of the Divine, Celestial Realm, Sea God Clan—it’s a chaotic jumble!

In the midst of all this, we can exploit the distraction to break the seal of the Fire Spirit and seize it. Then we’ll have the chance to assault Chi You’s weakened Luoyang to obtain the Earth Spirit as well.

“Then let’s go, to claim the Fire Spirit.”

 

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