Reincarnation Sword God

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Chapter 620 – Dark Heaven Village

I conveyed the story I heard from the Sword Demon to Zhuge Sa, who then replied, “What’s important right now isn’t that; it’s about turning Jin So-cheong into the Master of the White Lotus Sect’s disciple. I think investigating the tomb of the divine will be quite challenging.”

“Is that so…?”

“Let’s hear what you’re thinking.”

I pondered deeply before speaking to Zhuge Sa. “How about raising Jin So-cheong’s abilities using obsidian and then presenting her to the White Lotus?”

“That’s just a result-oriented idea. We need a way to naturally infiltrate without arousing the Master of the White Lotus’s suspicions.”

“Hmm…”

“The Master of the White Lotus has a pure martial arts obsession, so it might work out. However, he’s also a ruler of the world and a schemer. Any clumsy attempt will only result in losing Jin So-cheong.”

Zhuge Sa’s words hit hard. It was true that the Master of the White Lotus appeared to be benevolent, but I couldn’t say I had truly exploited him effectively. As I fretted over Zhuge Sa’s comments, he crossed his arms and said, “What’s crucial is to have a way to rescue Jin So-cheong in case things go south and to create a natural reason for her to enter as a disciple.”

“Is there a way?”

“First, we must give her the Suspicious Fishhook. And…”

Zhuge Sa explained his scheme to me. It certainly sounded much more plausible than my haphazard idea of just dropping Jin So-cheong at the White Lotus Sect.

To rapidly enhance Jin So-cheong’s growth, I utilized the Obsidian Phoenix to impart detailed knowledge and experience. The Obsidian Phoenix possessed information transfer abilities far beyond any standard obsidian, so there was no need to mine a massive obsidian rock. A moment later, Jin So-cheong seemed to wobble from the overwhelming influx of experiences but soon spoke with confidence, “I feel ready to advance to the next stage.”

Hearing Jin So-cheong say that meant she would soon grow stronger. I did the same for Extreme Tiger, transmitting memories to him as well. After finishing that, I administered Sacred Lotus and Black and White Lotus to enhance their internal powers.

Following this series of actions, I took the Obsidian Phoenix and headed back to the Sword Demon. I reinforced him similarly with the Obsidian Phoenix and Spiritual Pills. However, even though I had mined a lot of Spiritual Pills, I had consumed quite a bit until now, and it was starting to show with Sacred Lotus and Black and White Lotus running low.

‘I’ll have to count on Mangnyang to cultivate more Spiritual Pills…’

Muttering to myself, I said to the Sword Demon, “I want to go to Liaodong for the investigation soon. But before that, I have a request…”

“What is it?”

“It’s Zhuge Sa’s plan. Jin So-cheong needs to be naturally highlighted within the Martial Arts World to infiltrate as the Master of the White Lotus’s disciple.”

I explained Zhuge Sa’s scheme to him. The Sword Demon stroked his beard thoughtfully and replied, “I see… Then I will need to collaborate with Bright Dragon.”

“Excuse me?”

“I know the things of the Martial World well. Zhuge Sa should know that too, so there’s no need to worry.”

The Sword Demon seemed to be planning to deepen Zhuge Sa’s scheme. After all, given his position as the owner of the heretical sect and his strong influence, he couldn’t possibly fail. The Sword Demon then said to me, “Speaking of which, I retrieved the Fire Dragon Sword from Luoyang, but have you sealed it properly?”

“Well, it’s like this—using the divine energy from the National Seal, Yeodong-bin temporarily sealed it.”

Though it wasn’t the method using sacred artifacts or the Nine Stars Main Capital, it was manageable thanks to using divine energy and the National Seal. After all, the divine energy reaches the level of divine power.

The Sword Demon then said with a serious expression, “We should think of a solid method to secure the seal in Luoyang. Zhuge Sa probably isn’t too concerned, so he didn’t mention it to you.”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“To Zhuge Sa, the unsealing of that tomb and making Luoyang a Hell’s Map isn’t something to worry about. That means it’s something you need to keep an eye on yourself.”

“……!!”

“Isn’t it rather okay if it were to be unsealed? Your goal in this life is to enter Dark Heaven Village. So if the ancient path created before opens up, even if Luoyang becomes a Hell’s Map, you would be able to easily enter Dark Heaven Village.”

“That doesn’t make sense…”

I thought about denying it but hesitated, as it sounded too realistic.

If the entrance to Dark Heaven Village sealed in Luoyang were to be opened, countless monsters and otherworldly beings could pour out, annihilating Luoyang overnight. Millions of humans would be massacred.

But that wouldn’t be Zhuge Sa’s concern. If my goal in this life was to enter Dark Heaven Village, regardless of human casualties, I would come up with ways for me to access that path. Because traveling through an already opened path was undoubtedly safer than other high-risk methods!

‘So… it turns out there are four methods to get to Dark Heaven Village, not three.’

The method through the realm of dreams. The direct method of crossing dimensions. Responding to the summoning of the Golden Lamp. Until now, I had planned to test the three one after another, but it turned out that there was already a path open to the terrestrial realm!

A safe passage to Dark Heaven Village that would open up instead of massacring the people of Luoyang! It was as if Zhuge Sa wanted that path, waiting in silence without saying anything about my blunder.

“……”

As I was quietly unsettled, the Sword Demon remarked, “Talking to Zhuge Sa right now will just get you reprimanded for your inefficient pursuit of humanity. Do you really need that? If you think you’re pursuing righteousness and chivalry, I recommend going far to the Arasa Empire to safely retrieve a sacred artifact. You can discuss it with Zhuge Sa afterwards.”

“Understood.”

“If even you feel this is a patch-up job, then releasing the seal will be an urgent matter. Move quickly.”

I nodded and immediately used the Golden Lamp to move.

Pa-at!

I arrived at the Arasa Empire and headed toward the location where the resistance against the Arasa Emperor was stationed. There, I spotted Belov, the Archbishop of the Eastern Orthodox Church and an excellent monk. I approached Belov and bluntly said, “Belov! I am Baek Woong from the East. I want the sacred icon you possess.”

“……?”

Belov, along with the western knights and soldiers present, surrounded me with bewildered expressions. He looked at me in disbelief and said, “A boy from the Ming Empire… I recognize your talents, but what’s with this sudden demand? Are you an assassin sent by the king?”

Well, asking for a sacred relic out of the blue wouldn’t exactly draw friendly responses. I calmed my mind and replied, “You are probably trying to resurrect the corpse of the [Dragon] from Romania as a trump card to subdue Ivan IV, correct?”

Murmurs…

The regular soldiers seemed unfazed, but Belov and the high-ranking generals were taken aback. Suddenly, three knights beside him charged at me with a trident, a giant sword, and a spear.

Clang!

I effortlessly deflected their attacks with a single swipe. The knights staggered back, landing on their backsides, and the sound of soldiers and knights around us drawing weapons echoed loudly.

Belov shouted, “Stop!!”

The soldiers halted their advance. Belov spoke in a grave tone, “Impressive. How did you know our top-secret information?”

“That’s not important. But if I were an assassin, I wouldn’t bother coming here to explain every detail.”

“What do you want?”

“I possess the technique to resurrect that dragon. If I succeed in bringing it back to life, grant me the sacred relic.”

Belov shot me a sharp glare. “I cannot believe that.”

“You needn’t believe me.”

I calmly replied. Belov hesitated before nodding.

“Follow me.”

I followed him, along with the knights, to the location where the dragon’s corpse was kept. Just as I had seen with Miho long ago, a massive dragon trapped in ice came into view.

It was enormous and emanated formidable power! Its massive wings looked like they could effortlessly soar through the sky, and its fierce reptilian face, along with its powerful forelimbs and legs, was striking!

I recalled what Miho had said before.
[Unlike the dragon from the East, this one exudes a very evil aura. I can’t say how strong it is, but it would undoubtedly bring calamities. Is there really a need to awaken it?]
[The dragons I saw in the Celestial Realm all possessed incredibly powerful divine abilities and were beings that revered order. They wouldn’t even need to be sealed in such a manner.]
[It may be a cousin to the East’s dragon, but that western dragon is definitely not one to be friendly to humans. I’m beginning to doubt whether Belov, the monk, could control it considering its power.]

Miho had concluded that the dragon was sealed away due to its evil and brutal nature. Hence, we never attempted to resurrect it and slipped away unnoticed back then. Yet this time, I intended to secure the sacred relic from Belov by claiming the merit of resurrecting the dragon.

‘It should be possible.’

Woosh!

With one hand collecting my internal power and the other condensing divine energy, I focused myself. As I approached the massive ice, I gathered my spirit.

“Haaah…”

Crackling…

As the divine energy and my tremendous internal power began to seep into the ice, it suddenly felt like the ice was quivering as if responding. My divine energy, being pure ‘power,’ could influence the barriers without the need for spellcasting. Feeling the enormous seal begin to warp under my strength, I grew even more exhilarated and pushed harder.

Crack! Crack!

The tremors intensified. Belov, seeing the energy erupting from my body take the shape of a pillar, gasped, “Se-Such… is this a terrifying prana?! To attempt to break the ancient barrier with just internal power… how can an Eastern practitioner be this strong?”

It seemed the Eastern Orthodox Church referred to energy as prana. However, with his keen observation, Belov could only discern my immense internal power, failing to grasp the true nature of divine energy. After all, considering he could recognize the divine power of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, it would hardly be easy to mistake anything that wasn’t a mythical being!

‘The shell is cracking.’

Crack! Crack!

I still had quite a way to go before fully breaking it, but I felt that with a little more persistence, this dragon’s seal would be released. Just as I was getting fired up and focused on getting stronger, suddenly two distinct voices echoed in my head simultaneously.

[Stop! Do not unleash calamity upon the world!]
[Hoo… Hoo… Are you trying to release me?]

These voices were clearly coming from different intentions. It appeared the barrier had been sufficiently damaged, causing both [the one who sealed it] and [the dragon] to speak to me simultaneously. For now, I decided to ignore both voices and continued focusing on breaking the seal.

[Stop! If you release this being, there will be no one left to seal it in this age. This entity is a powerful apostle of a great ruler.]
[…I feel the powerful essence of the Evil God… Hoo… Hoo… Are we of the same kind?]

A stronger noise surged in my head.

[What do you need? I, the king’s sorcerer, the resting place of the holy sword, and the seeker of the holy grail, will grant you any treasure you desire! Just stop unsealing it.]

Treasure?

As I hesitated, stopping my attempt to break the seal, the dragon’s voice reached my ears.

[Keep going… If you free me… I will pierce your adversaries to death with blood-red stakes.]

“……”

I found myself in a paradoxical situation, where both the sealer and the trapped dragon were pleading with me.

‘What should I do?’

If I cater to one side’s demand, I won’t be able to receive the price from the other.

Which side should I choose?