NOVEL NEXT Chapter 613
**Chapter 613 – Dark Heaven Village**
“So you got marked by the Heavenly Mysterious Woman?”
“What does that even mean?”
As I asked Cheon Woo-jin, he pressed his temple as if he had a headache. After a moment of thought, Cheon Woo-jin swiftly turned to Mangnyang and said, “It can’t be just a minor mistake, right? I believe your older brother thinks controlling all variables might not be possible and is strategizing to thoroughly evaluate everything.”
Mangnyang nodded at Cheon Woo-jin’s words. “I think that’s the shortcut. It fits Baek Woong perfectly.”
“Hmm… Not a usual way of thinking for someone who devises efficient plans like your older brother.”
“Seeing Baek Woong’s 23 past lives naturally leads one to think as I do.”
“I can see that.”
Cheon Woo-jin, who had been conversing with Mangnyang, suddenly turned to me. “The reason your power doesn’t get exhausted when activating the Divine Sword Technique, yet your internal organs feel as if stabbed by a needle… that means the Heavenly Mysterious Woman is rejecting the idea of lending you her power.”
“I figured that much from Mangnyang’s explanation. But is it directly related to being marked?”
“Perceive the nature of the technique. When I say the Heavenly Mysterious Woman lends you strength, I mean that the Divine Sword Technique closely resembles a Spirit Summoning Technique. Additionally, it implies that you are borrowing the actual power of the Heavenly Mysterious Woman directly. In other words, while activating the Divine Sword Technique, you assume the position of a vessel representing her will.”
“……!!”
“So the Divine Sword Technique isn’t just a technique; it places a significant burden on the Great Immortal themselves as a trade-off. The stronger the restrictions, the greater the power of the technique.”
I gasped at Cheon Woo-jin’s explanation. He sat down on a nearby stair and continued, “No Great Immortal would be pleased with a stranger casually borrowing their power. Usually, these sorts of techniques should be acquired by making offerings like in the Ritual of Seven Luminaries, obtaining cause and effect through legitimate trade, but you haven’t done anything of the sort in this life, have you?”
“No, I haven’t.”
“The more troubling part is that since she doesn’t know how the cause and effect are aligned, the Heavenly Mysterious Woman can’t appear directly to ask you. Instead, she applies a strong pressure each time you attempt the Divine Sword Technique, asking ‘Who the heck are you?’ instead.”
“I see.”
“This isn’t something you can just brush off. It’s similar to when you forcibly activated the power of time at the end of your past life, incurring the wrath of Jeon Wook.”
Cheon Woo-jin stated bluntly. “You’ve tried activating the Divine Sword Technique twice so far? Up to now, the Heavenly Mysterious Woman has just been warning you gently like a celestial sage. However, she is originally a battle saint from the emperor’s era, known for her temper.”
“……”
“Nobody knows what consequences will come if you attempt the Divine Sword Technique one more time.”
I swallowed nervously at Cheon Woo-jin’s warning. If what he said was correct, it meant the Heavenly Mysterious Woman had been letting me off lightly just because her grasp on her temper was softer than Jeon Wook’s. But since her nature was that of a furious battle god, further provoking her with the Divine Sword Technique could lead to disaster.
“Damn, so that’s how it is…”
Just as I resolved to be cautious in my thoughts, Mangnyang spoke up. “Baek Woong, I’m sorry. However, I felt it was necessary to clarify the nature of the Divine Sword Technique.”
I nodded in understanding of Mangnyang’s reasoning. “It’s fine. As you said, it’s worse to gloss over things without understanding.”
“Then what do you plan to do next?”
“For now… I need to obtain the Yin God Power from this statue.”
I pulled out the statue of Jeon Wook from my wooden armor. Cheon Woo-jin grimaced and remarked, “A literal walking embodiment of fortuitous encounters…”
Whooooosh!
A moment later, I headed toward a place beneath a waterfall inside the village, known for its powerful spiritual energy, making it an ideal spot to absorb Yin God Power. Cheon Woo-jin set up a barrier just in case and said, “I won’t be helping for free, so you’ll need to pay me back later.”
“……”
Truly, he was someone meticulous about his own interests. He was definitely not the kind to help for free.
Once ready, I started chanting the incantation I learned from Cheon Woo-jin in my past life. This incantation was effective in absorbing strength from the statue, and soon, I felt a response from the statue in my hand, sending a shockwave through my body.
Ssss!
As the power entered my body, I felt warmth spreading through me, quickly followed by a cold and chilling sensation as if I’d entered an ice cave, twisting through my bodily vessels. The dreadful Yin energy felt as if it was squeezing my insides.
“… Ugh…”
But it was more bearable than before. While previously it felt like dozens of ice shards were tearing my lungs and innards, now it was merely an intensely queasy feeling. To put it simply, it was like feeling hungover after a wild night of drinking.
Seeing me persist despite grimacing, Cheon Woo-jin chuckled. “I guess after consuming 20 years’ worth of Yin God Power in your past life, you’ve built some resistance to the tainted energies.”
“Haha… Ugh!”
Suddenly, I was overtaken by a chill throughout my body, causing me to tremble and collapse.
“That said, the Yin God Power is no walk in the park.”
“……”
Damn, Cheon Woo-jin was right. This pain would not become familiar quickly.
A while later, as the last of the Yin God Power was absorbed, Cheon Woo-jin picked up the fallen statue and said, “Now you have accumulated the equivalent of 40 years’ worth of Yin God Power in total.”
“Um… So I need to absorb it 12 more times?”
“To be honest, you might not need to go that far…”
“Huh?”
“As I mentioned before, the more powerful the energy, the more training points accumulate. It looks like you have thoughts of dying quickly this time around, so I won’t say much, but it would be better to also engage in practicing your techniques. That way, you won’t need to die 12 more times to reach a level where the Great Heavenly Skills can be achieved.”
Mangnyang at the side interjected, “Baek Woong, before pursuing other matters, let’s head to Mount Huang first.”
“Why Mount Huang?”
“We need to cultivate spiritual pills in the Earth of Relief.”
“Oh…!!”
I couldn’t help but feel amazed at this unforeseen point. Mangnyang smiled broadly and said, “It’s probably a hassle for you to consider such things, so I’ll take charge of that.”
“Thanks.”
So, I headed to Mount Huang with Mangnyang and handed over the Black and White Lotus as well as the Sacred Lotus I had obtained. According to Mangnyang, if we successfully transplant these, we would soon have seeds suitable for sowing, allowing the spiritual pills to thrive if I ended up living for a long time.
Next, I journeyed to the Secret Location of the Namgung Clan to retrieve the treasure, the Suspicious Fishhook, and rescue the women trapped within. Ideally, I would destroy the Namgung Clan further and devise various means to annihilate them, but since what mattered in this life wasn’t the Namgung Clan, I carelessly pulled out a bomb from my wooden armor.
Swoosh!
Suddenly, I appeared in the center of the Namgung Clan, searching for the clan leader, Sword King Namgung Myeong. All eyes were drawn to me as the Namgung Eight Swords were present. I hurled the bomb towards him without hesitation.
Boom!
As the bomb I had brought from the pirate base exploded, chaos erupted before my eyes. It was a method I had previously employed, and it was remarkably effective, causing most of the Namgung Eight Swords to either perish or become disabled.
“Ughh… This brat…!!”
Namgung Myeong, taking the brunt of the blast, trembled uncontrollably, his body charred by soot. Despite sustaining significant injuries, I could still see the venomous glint in his eyes and the protection of his critical points. Meeting his gaze, I muttered nonchalantly, “Still alive, huh? Looks like you managed to avoid fatal injuries by surrounding yourself in Protection Energy.”
“Die!!”
Wham!
Namgung Myeong charged at me, burning with a fierce fire. Even though he was severely injured, seeing him come at me with all his might like a mad tiger couldn’t be taken lightly. However, I simply smiled coldly and mused, “The reason I haven’t just left this time is simply that I’m curious about the outcome.”
In a flash, ten tendrils of sword energy lashed out in line with his sword stance, whipping around with terrifying momentum. Yet, I evaded gracefully, reading every trajectory. Compared to Lee Cheong-un’s attack, this was nothing more than a playful gesture.
“After I detonated the bomb, whether you lived or died.”
Swish!
I effortlessly avoided Namgung Myeong’s onslaught using the Three Treasure Technique, quickly getting behind him. With a swift motion, I struck with a powerful palm strike, and driven mad by rage and his injuries, Namgung Myeong easily fell victim to a lethal blow.
“Ugh!”
Blood spewed from Namgung Myeong’s mouth as he collapsed, and I looked down at him, who was dying in a horrific state, and said, “Well, the result is the same.”
Even as his spine broke, I felt no sympathy whatsoever. Sword King Namgung Myeong deserved to perish for all the sins he had committed until now.
Boom!
Using the Golden Lamp Technique, I now moved to the underground of the Imperial Palace to acquire the Crystal Stele. Originally, I avoided provoking the Imperial Palace forces, as it risked my future cause and effect, but since I might die quickly this time, I decided to throw caution to the wind. Afterward, I headed to the Inner Imperial Pavilion and obtained the Nameless Ritual Book, then set my sights on the Prophet of Astana.
Upon arriving before the Prophet, I shouted as soon as they appeared, “Prophet!! Wait a moment!”
[ Hmm…?]
A peculiar silence hung as I faced the Prophet. Shortly after, Zhuge Bu teleported into the area, glaring at me fiercely.
“This brat… daring to steal the Nameless Ritual Book.”
“Hello, good to see you, Zhuge Bu.”
I raised my hand to greet Zhuge Bu and proposed, “I’m Baek Woong. I’d like to propose a bet with you, the one known as the Treasure of the Central Plains. Would you accept it?”
“A bet?”
I nodded at Zhuge Bu’s inquiry. “Let’s set the Prophet as an objective witness here and have a duel between you and me at this moment. And the loser will become the lifelong slave of the winner.”
“……”
Zhuge Bu responded incredulously, as if amused. “What a ridiculous brat. Do you even know the value of the Demon Book you stole? I could just kill you and reclaim it without a second thought.”
“Then why are you obeying my words right now? Aren’t you unable to grasp what scheme I might be weaving by leveraging my teleportation abilities? If I continue to evade here, you’ll never capture me for the rest of your life.”
“……”
“This is an opportunity I’m giving to you, Zhuge Bu. Let me give you a moment to think.”
Just then, the Prophet, who had been listening quietly, interjected. [ I never proclaimed that I would become an objective witness for your duel…]
I smirked at the Prophet. “Would you consider it if I pay the witness fee?”
[ Very well… Initiate the terms…]
“You’re insufferable.”
Why does that guy love being the initiator so much?! I felt I could finally understand how Zhuge Sha must have felt whenever he complained about this.
“……”
Deep in thought, I pulled out three sprigs of the Black and White Lotus from my wooden armor and extended them. The Prophet silently observed the Black and White Lotus before saying, [ A bit… insufficient…]
My frustration boiled over, and I shouted, “Aren’t you being a bit greedy?!”
[ Then… I won’t do it… Objective witness for your duel…]
“Damn it. Then I’ll throw in one more Sacred Lotus.”
Reluctantly, when I presented one more Sacred Lotus, the Prophet finally seemed satisfied and spoke.
[ Good… Now that I have received the witness fee, I will take responsibility and witness the results of this duel… As long as the other party agrees, we can immediately establish the duel ceremony.]
By this time, Zhuge Bu, who had remained quiet in thought, glanced at the Prophet and spoke.
“Now I understand. You are indeed the Demon King of the Zhuyong Tribe among the high-caliber otherworldly races, aren’t you?”
His tone had turned surprisingly polite. The Prophet responded to that question. [ Correct… Will you accept Baek Woong’s proposed duel…?]
Zhuge Bu decisively declared, “No. There’s not a single benefit for me in this duel. Especially not in such a place.”
[ Hoo… Is that so…]
Seeing the Prophet smile, I was engulfed in a sense of foreboding.
‘No! That guy’s planning to take the witness fee and bail!’
My plan was simple. I believed I had the strength to defeat Zhuge Bu alone, so I intended to challenge him to become my slave and act as my shield when crossing into Dark Heaven Village. That’s why I wanted the Prophet as the objective witness to enforce that condition.
However, it seemed the Prophet had no intention of persistently continuing the duel and was merely thinking of fleeing after taking the witness fee. I shouted urgently at the Prophet, “Wait! Then I’ll add to the witness fee.”
[ What do you mean…?]
I pulled out the Nameless Ritual Book from my robes and lifted it high, exclaiming, “Prophet! I will offer the Nameless Ritual Book as a witness fee. So please establish the duel!”
For a moment, the area fell into silence.
The gazes of the Prophet and Zhuge Bu clashed briefly, and Zhuge Bu quickly shouted, “Then I bid you farewell!”
Boom!
[ No, you cannot escape… It is the duty of a customer to oblige…]
Zhuge Bu disappeared using his teleportation skills, but the Prophet extended his tendrils, drawing a magic circle into the void. Moments later, Zhuge Bu was summoned back to this location like a ghost, visibly infuriated.
“Damn it!! This is ludicrous…”
[ The duel has been established.]
“……!!”
Whooooosh!
As the Prophet generated the otherworldly realm, Zhuge Bu and I appeared on lands neither of us had ever seen before. It seemed to be a dedicated duel arena created by the Prophet. Zhuge Bu displayed his fury, gritting his teeth.
“You reckless brat! Do you really think you could win if you fight me!?”
I raised my sword high, feeling the start of the duel. “Of course!”
At this point, retreating was not an option.
I was determined to turn that scoundrel into my slave, just to match the value of the Nameless Ritual Book!