872——————==

True Martial Home

“You’re going to seal me?”

Jin Cheon-hwi received the words with a blank expression.

Swish

At the same time, Zhuge Yulong pulled a talisman out of his robe, and upon seeing the engraved talisman, Jin Cheon-hwi muttered.

“The supreme talisman with the binding spirit technique artificially engraved. You’re serious, huh?”

“Don’t resist.”

“Can you at least tell me why?”

“Considering the circumstances, I can’t fully trust you.”

“Haha, are you saying I’ve been carrying out the plans of someone you don’t trust even after I died? That’s quite funny. What’s up with that?”

Jin Cheon-hwi let out a hearty laugh, but Zhuge Yulong spoke seriously.

“Weren’t you the one who said, the day before your death, that you shouldn’t trust anyone in this world anymore?”

“… I did say that.”

“That was your own words. It’s not odd for me to doubt someone who is living under your ghost’s influence.”

“Ho ho.”

“If your doubts clear up, I will let you go.”

Jin Cheon-hwi merely smiled bitterly as he sat there. Seeing his expression made my heart feel complicated.

‘That guy seems like just a regular human… if he’s oppressing an innocent, that would be quite unfortunate.’

If he were just a pure human, it would be a shame to bring misfortune upon a great hero who saved the Great Ming Empire and aimed to save the world. I couldn’t shake off the guilt.

But since it was Zhuge Yulong himself who requested Jin Cheon-hwi’s resurrection and wanted to seal him, I had no reason to stop it. Moments later, Zhuge Yulong threw the talisman containing the binding technique towards Jin Cheon-hwi, and as Jin Cheon-hwi touched it, his entire being was sucked into thin air.

Swoosh!

Soon after, a fluttering talisman dropped down at the spot. Picking it up, Zhuge Yulong stored the talisman in his robe and said to Zhuge Sa.

“This ends Jin Cheon-hwi’s matter.”

Zhuge Sa glared sharply at him.

“Can you just end it as you wish? Are you going to gloss over unresolved doubts?”

“What doubts are you talking about?”

“Why did the corpse disappear? Why did a god hesitate to revive a mere human’s soul? None of those questions have been resolved, yet you think sealing the body in the Void Space is the end… do you think we’re that foolish?”

As Zhuge Sa spoke with an irritated voice, Zhuge Yulong responded calmly.

“You know as well as I do that asking him wouldn’t yield answers. It’s obvious he’ll say he doesn’t know. In the end, we would just be going in circles with our doubts, so what’s the benefit of leaving him out? I think sealing him is the rational choice.”

“The sealing’s fine.”

Zhuge Sa’s continued words made the atmosphere in the hall grow tense.

“We need to take Jin Cheon-hwi out and definitely kill him right away. Isn’t that the surest way to eliminate suspicion? Take him out of the talisman.”

“……”

“Though I regret losing the black veil, we did bring him back to life, so don’t we have the right to kill him?”

Gugugu

“We can’t.”

At the same time, an unsettling killing intent emanated from Zhuge Yulong. For him, it seemed like Jin Cheon-hwi was an area that he absolutely couldn’t compromise. The moment I saw Zhuge Yulong’s expression, I sensed he might ignore the fact that I was a reborn person and outright obstruct my path with full force. And that could undoubtedly become a huge risk now that I had given away all my memories.

I hurriedly intervened between them.

“Wait! For now, let’s just leave it sealed. Jin Cheon-hwi may be suspicious, but this will do. And Zhuge Yulong, since we cooperated with your request, you need to help us.”

“… I acknowledge that. From now on, we’re in the same boat.”

“Alright.”

Zhuge Sa had a reluctant expression.

He seemed to think that the right answer was to kill Jin Cheon-hwi immediately. I could understand Zhuge Sa’s feelings, but I thought it was too extreme, so I figured it was better to go along with this for now. If we couldn’t receive Zhuge Yulong’s help, this situation might just become too difficult.

I asked Zhuge Yulong.

“Zhuge Yulong. If you’re going to attack the Celestial Realm anyway, how do you plan to do it?”

“… Do you know the specific extent of the Celestial Realm’s power?”

I answered as best I could.

“Well, it’s packed with Celestial beings like Earth Immortals and Divine Beings, and formidable opposing forces are holding their ground, led by the Great Immortal with powerful Divine Ability and the Kunlun Ten Celestials. Also, there’s the Queen Mother of the West…”

“Exactly. Logically, the Celestial Realm’s power is far too formidable for this planet. If we were to fight head-on, we wouldn’t stand a chance, so I’ve been searching for various methods.”

Zhuge Yulong continued.

“The method I’ve chosen is to enter the Demon Path and gain the power of darkness while reaching out to the recluse, Chi You, for assistance from his Eight Parts of the Divine. But as you know, even that alone wasn’t enough to avert destruction.”

“……”

“But if you help me, it won’t be that difficult to dismantle more than half of the Celestial Realm. To be precise, if you have the power of those treasures you possess…”

“Alright, I’ll lend the treasures. What exactly do you need?”

“First of all, the Seven Luminaries. The power of the Seven Luminaries is essential for this to work. Fortunately, when you got information from the prophet, you received everything except the Seven Luminaries, so you still have it.”

“How do you plan to use the Seven Luminaries?”

I flinched in surprise at Zhuge Yulong’s next statement.

“I will make an Offering.”

“……!!”

Zhuge Yulong said to reassure me.

“No need to be surprised. I’m saying I want to gain power through a normal Offering, not a Demon Ritual.”

“If you’re going to make an Offering, you need someone to offer to. Who are you planning to offer it to?”

I squirmed slightly, continuing.

“If it’s something like the Old Ruler, making an Offering to a Demon would be no different from performing a Demon Ritual!”

The Seven Luminaries possessed such powerful strength that it could significantly alter the balance of this world. Its symbolism was terrifyingly immense as well. If such Seven Luminaries fell into the hands of a specific Old Ruler, that ruler would rapidly expand their influence, resulting in a drastically increased density of dark power in the world. It wasn’t that I didn’t know such a simple method existed; I just didn’t want to use it.

Then Zhuge Yulong said.

“Normally, if that were the case, I would have made an Offering to Chi You whenever the Seven Luminaries arose. Chi You’s power is just below that of the Three Sovereigns, so if I were to get the Seven Luminaries, we could easily flip the world upside down… and he would also share my intentions. But with Chi You having suddenly gone missing, I have to change my approach.”

“How?”

“First of all, the prerequisite for breaking the Celestial Realm is that the divine power we make the Offering to must surpass the Three Sovereigns. The Queen Mother of the West, being Nüwa, means that to break the Celestial Realm, we would have to fight her, wouldn’t we?”

“… That’s right.”

If we lacked the power to defeat the avatar of the Queen Mother of the West, breaking the Celestial Realm would be nothing more than a dream. As I confirmed his statement, Zhuge Yulong continued.

“Not all Old Rulers are evil. Furthermore, among those who aren’t evil, there are still existences that exceed the strength of the Three Sovereigns.”

“What! Is there such a being?”

“They’re commonly referred to as Ancient Gods.”

Ah, I think I heard about them in martial knowledge. Existences that aren’t particularly friendly to humans but don’t harbor evil intentions! Although they are also classified as Old Rulers, it’s practically unheard of for humans to encounter them.

I racked my brain for memories and said.

“… But the Three Sovereigns are quite significant existences among rulers. Is there someone among the Ancient Gods who could handle Nüwa?”

“There is one.”

“Who is that?”

“Pangu.”

“……”

The Creator God, Pangu!

That existence was known to every Central Plains person. The enormous deity who created heaven and earth, who supposedly supported the universe at the beginning! There is a legend that Pangu collapsed when he could no longer support the heavens, and his corpse became the world, and afterward, the Three Sovereigns emerged.

Zhuge Yulong spoke with a completely serious expression, not joking at all.

“Pangu exists. To provide more concrete evidence, you must have seen Pangu’s shrine when you visited Mount Heng.”

“… I did see it.”

During a past life, I had discovered Pangu’s shrine while climbing Mount Heng during an Offering Ceremony, and I had spoken with a monk there and heard the Pangu legend. As I recalled the memory, Zhuge Yulong continued.

“Pangu’s shrine isn’t the only one. At least one exists in each of the Five Great Mountains, and they have only fallen into disrepair over time. At least according to Oracle Bone Script, Pangu worship was an actual belief during the Silver Age, and the Three Sovereigns also recognized the Pangu worship.”

“……”

“Additionally, Pangu’s curse is a spell that brings forth the Creator God Pangu’s power to annihilate the world. Could there be a clearer proof? If there wasn’t an object to lend the power, it would be impossible for the spell to take effect.”

“Hmm… But… if a giant that existed in the age of chaos truly exists, then why is it that the Three Sovereigns are wreaking havoc on the ground without any intervention?”

“The will of the gods is something no one can fathom. But it’s certain that there was something [gigantic] on this planet and this land before the era of the Three Sovereigns was established. That period belongs to the realm of mystery, so we can’t know for certain, but nothing existed during a time before life.”

“Hmm… Do you have any solid evidence to support that level of certainty?”

“My experience reading various grimoires… and the Giant Race.”

“Giant Race?”

“The clan of giants led by Zhu Rong originally had no reason to come to this world, being an alien race. If anything, they are completely different from the other three sovereigns, the twin gods of Fuxi and Nüwa, who are also categorized as Old Rulers. The probability of beings from distant dimensions coming to this world is incredibly slim.”

“Hmm.”

“Do you not think that there must be a reason for such dissimilar beings to choose to come to this world?”

“……”

“I hold my own convictions.”

It was an interesting story.

I caught onto the hidden meaning in Zhuge Yulong’s words.

‘The Creator God Pangu is a Giant… and Zhu Rong’s clan is also a Giant. So, does that mean the Zhu Rong clan returned to find their ancestral creator, Pangu?’

… Oh no, isn’t that a bit too much?

Totally fictional?

But listening to Zhuge Yulong’s tale couldn’t help but intrigue me.

‘Even if it wasn’t that, looking at the example of the Heavenly Mysterious Woman of Nine Heavens, Pangu’s existence has been proven… All Zhuge Yulong did was support this with an additional hypothesis.’

After thinking deeply, I said.

“Alright. Let’s say Pangu does exist, how would we make an Offering to him? Are you suggesting to go to Pangu’s shrine in the Five Great Mountains and offer the Seven Luminaries there?”

“No. That method won’t work. While wandering the Jianghu as the Old Sage of Mount Tai, I performed the Offering Ceremony at Pangu’s shrine many times, yet there was no response.”

“What? Did you fail?”

“The distance between a god and a human is enormous. Without precise rites, procedures, and location, it’s only natural that the voice wouldn’t reach. Originally, there would have been no way.”

Casually responding, Zhuge Yulong continued.

“… But you’ve already shown me a method to make an Offering to Pangu. In truth, there was no need for such a lengthy explanation. There are no problems.”

“Huh?”

“……”

Zhuge Yulong didn’t explain further. His demeanor suggested he was withholding something, prompting me to infer the method in my mind. As I struggled to figure it out, Zhuge Sa chimed in.

“Okay! Let’s say we’re making an Offering of the Seven Luminaries. But how can we be sure the power gained from that ritual is enough to compensate for the absence of the Seven Luminaries?”

“If Pangu is a god greater than the Three Sovereigns, it’s entirely possible.”

“Hmmm. So, it’ll be an attempt that hasn’t been tried before. Sounds fun.”

Zhuge Sa spoke to me.

“Let’s do it, Baek Woong. This isn’t a bad idea.”

“Ha, but if that’s the case, then all the Seven Luminaries I have now…”

“You don’t need them. After all, whether you wield the Seven Luminaries or Yeodong-bin wields them, neither will defeat the King of the Life Sea. It would be better to make an Offering to Pangu to gain power, then dismantle the Celestial Realm and charge toward the Life Sea.”

“Fine. I get it.”

I had no choice but to agree to give Zhuge Yulong the Seven Luminaries. If it were someone else, I might worry, but I didn’t think Zhuge Sa would betray me. Then Zhuge Yulong had more demands.

“Save Bu-a.”

“… I already used the authority of resurrection.”

“I’m not talking to you.”

Zhuge Yulong’s gaze was directed at Zhuge Sa. When Zhuge Sa fiddled with his ear, Zhuge Yulong coldly replied.

“You can create a new body for Bu-a and place her soul back inside, right?”

“Why should I do that?”

“There is an expression that says a rude act is repaid with death. Since Bu-a has already implemented that apology, isn’t it the duty of kin to save her?”

“If you’re going that far…”

“I won’t use the spell of reincarnation. I saw you take Bu-a’s soul with the Soul Exchange Technique.”

“Alright. I’ll resurrect her in a good body.”

Now that I thought about it, it seemed like Zhuge Sa had intended to kill Zhuge Bu once and then revive him from the beginning. The life and death of others didn’t seem to matter much to Zhuge Sa, the master of the Soul Exchange Technique.

Zhuge Sa said.

“We also need time to establish our plans and resurrect Zhuge Bu, so let’s meet again in three days. At that time, we’ll hand over the Seven Luminaries and perform the Offering Ceremony.”

“Three days is short. I need a full seven days.”

“Alright with that then.”

Paat

We made our arrangement and parted ways. Upon returning to the base, Zhuge Sa abruptly said.

“Baek Woong. Do not use the curse of the Evil God until we penetrate the King of the Life Sea and reach the Outer Dimension. You must not use it against the King of the Life Sea either.”

“Why?”

“… There’s a reason for that. I’ll go in to resurrect Zhuge Bu, so you should at least teach Seo Mun-hye some martial arts.”

Swish

As Zhuge Sa stepped into the laboratory to create the new body, I heard his low voice with a Suspicious Fishhook.

[Remember. In this life, our reincarnation must not be discovered by anyone else.]

—————————= Work Postscript —————————=

Content revised.