NOVEL NEXT Chapter 672
Dark Heaven Village
“Are the Eight Parts of the Divine coming?!”
I was taken aback by the statement, but quickly realized it made sense. Given the circumstances, with the Asura from the Eight Parts of the Divine coming to capture me in Dark Heaven Village, it wasn’t strange for others to cross into this world. However, what truly surprised me was the fact that the Eight Parts of the Divine were mobilizing to protect Empress Wu Zetian.
Does that mean she’s under the protection of Changhil as well?
‘No… if that were the case… the assistance from Yacha of the Eight Parts of the Divine…’
It felt like everything was interconnected. But right now, it wasn’t the time to sort out those complicated matters. After quickly assessing the situation, I calmly addressed Empress Wu Zetian.
“Thank you for informing me, but why are you telling me this…?”
[…Because I’m weary.]
“What?”
As I questioned her, Wu Zetian slowly lowered her arm onto the throne. She directed her gaze into the void.
[It has been a long time. However, I cannot shake off the thought that this is not what I desired…]
“……?”
[Baek Woong, do you see me as a human?]
Upon hearing her question, I was at a loss for how to respond.
To anyone watching, Wu Zetian was undoubtedly no longer human. Yet, I had no idea what kind of answer she was looking for. If it were someone like Mangnyang or Zhuge Sha, perhaps they would have grasped her intentions immediately, but I simply didn’t have that level of insight.
Reluctantly, I answered honestly.
“Currently, you are not human. However, if Empress Wu Zetian considers herself human, then she is human.”
A slight flinch.
It seemed that Wu Zetian was taken aback by my unexpected response.
[Is that so? Do you see me as a human?]
“Yes. If you think so.”
[There is no hint of falsehood… That perspective is indeed on a different level from a commoner’s. Truly, a hero who has come this far…]
Wu Zetian gazed at me as if I were something intriguing.
‘Huh? Is my answer really that strange?’
I pondered over my reply, unsure if it was genuinely that odd. While I was wrapped up in my thoughts, Wu Zetian continued speaking.
[You may not know, but I have been pondering this for a long time. In the land of the otherworldly race, having acquired eternal life… I have governed the people who have transformed into the otherworldly, according to the decrees of my previous life. The first 300 years of experiencing a new reign were filled with joy and happiness. However…]
“Does that mean the later years were not so?”
[Because many of the people, who chose to reject their human identity, left for the treacherous lands of Dark Heaven Village…]
“……?”
What does that even mean?
Wu Zetian continued.
[They wished to shed their human selves as they adapted to the life of the otherworldly. In their minds, the existence of humans was inferior and repulsive, hence they could not align their evolved selves with those they deemed inferior. Initially, I purged such individuals, but in the end, I let them go.]
“You mean they abandoned being human?”
[Correct. Of course, they did not form a majority, but their numbers were significant.]
She sighed briefly.
[Huh, what does it mean to be human? I always believed that even after changing appearances, to maintain a human life and experience eternal life is the best way to live. But if one denies humanity itself, what meaning does this kingdom hold?]
“……”
[For hundreds of years, I have sought this answer. Occasionally, I summoned the remarkable intellects of the human world to converse with them, yet no conclusion was reached. And thus, I have been growing tired.]
“… But.”
I spoke up to Wu Zetian.
“There are still over five hundred years until the end. If you’re already pondering such things, won’t you struggle to endure?”
[That is indeed the problem. Having lived for a thousand years, the remaining five hundred feels exceedingly long.]
“Hmm…”
This was unexpected. I had thought Empress Wu Zetian was managing her own Peaceful Millennium Kingdom well, yet it turns out she was troubled by the identities of the otherworldly and humans? As I reflected on her concerns, I suddenly grasped her underlying thought.
“You believe I might be the key to resolving that dilemma, don’t you?”
[Precisely.]
Boom!
At that moment, a grand sound reverberated, and I felt the entire building shake violently. The endlessly circulating magical energy transformed into an formless flow, surging throughout the hall. Moreover, I could see a massive stele rising into the sky.
Wu Zetian declared.
[The first seal of this magic tower has been activated.]
“A seal?”
[Though the Eight Parts of the Divine long to step into this place, I have reinforced the dimensional gate’s closure.]
“……!!”
So, it means the Eight Parts of the Divine could have summoned themselves here much earlier?!
If I had engaged in battle with Wu Zetian as per Shin Gong-pyo’s intentions, the magic tower would have opened wide shortly after, allowing the Eight Parts of the Divine to rush in! It seemed that Wu Zetian was deliberately preventing them from crossing dimensions by activating the magic of the tower.
But why is Wu Zetian showing me this level of favor?
When I looked at her, our eyes met. Despite being an otherworldly being and a divine entity, any trace of humanity had vanished, yet for some reason, I felt ‘emotion’ emanating from her gaze. She spoke.
[Having conversed with you just now, I am convinced. You are not someone who should die in vain in a place like this… You may be the only one who can offer salvation to humanity.]
“Empress.”
[Today, I will provide you a path, so go and escape. The Earth Star Eight Trigrams Diagram is located at the very top of this magic tower. If you come back to this palace later, I will hand it to you then.]
The location of the Earth Star was atop the magic tower!
As that fact sunk in, Wu Zetian continued.
[The Eight Parts of the Divine are gathering strength… I must raise the level to the second stage.]
Boom!!
Another gigantic stele erupted near the magic tower. It appeared that the Eight Parts of the Divine were exerting their power from the outside dimension, attempting to force their way through the dimensional gate. Noticing her burden, small cracks were starting to form on her stone-like body. I gasped and said.
“I will take my leave now. Please do not overexert yourself.”
[…Baek Woong, can you promise me one thing?]
“Please tell me.”
[If you can save humanity… can you also save Nüwa and her people?]
I vigorously nodded my head.
“Of course.”
[…Thank you. There are numerous paths within this magic tower, so if you head to the Room of Heaven’s Source above, you will be able to use one of them.]
At that moment.
With a sudden thrust, a scythe embedded itself in Wu Zetian’s chest, bursting out from her back.
[Ugh… Yacha…]
Though her body thrashed briefly in pain from the enormous scythe, it suddenly lifted vertically, splitting her form apart.
Thump!
Wu Zetian’s physical body was severed as the magical energy she harbored diffused like mist into the void.
Sssssss.
And then, from the dimensional gate that shattered behind her, the ominous eyes of a monstrous being pierced through, glaring at me with a chilling glow. The Yacha, having completed its transformation into a divine being, extended monstrous claws from behind the dimensional gate, radiating a dark wave.
[You can’t even play the role of a puppet properly, Wu Zetian… now we must take control of this place ourselves.]
“……!!”
I grasped the situation.
They had disregarded the fact that Wu Zetian was their target and had eliminated her simply because they considered her a puppet from the start! Without time to mourn her death, I shouted towards Shin Gong-pyo at my Ruyi Staff.
“Shin Gong-pyo! Attack that thing!!”
[Closing the gate is sufficient.]
In an unexpected, cold response, Shin Gong-pyo’s spirit summoned the Eight Trigrams formation in the air, casting a powerful technique.
Brief Form (簡式)
Spirit Summoning Technique (營鎭抱一術)
Crack!
As soon as Shin Gong-pyo’s spell activated, the dimension gate that Yacha had painfully forced open began to constrict rapidly, and Yacha hastily withdrew its claws. The depth of Shin Gong-pyo’s technique proved to be so profound that it rendered Yacha incapable of sustaining its effort.
[Ugh… Let’s meet again soon.]
With a hideous sound, Yacha vanished.
“……”
With vacant eyes, I stared at Wu Zetian’s lifeless body. No matter how much of a divine entity she was, or how immortal, could she truly be overpowered by the transformed Eight Parts of the Divine in such a surprise attack? Of course, since she was a deity, she likely hadn’t truly died yet, but with such critical injuries, she was effectively as good as dead. Moreover, if the Eight Parts of the Divine labeled her a traitor, there would be no chance of survival ahead.
How could such an important figure like Wu Zetian be easily discarded like this?!
As my anger towards the Eight Parts of the Divine simmered, Shin Gong-pyo spoke bluntly.
[There is still time until Wu Zetian’s life is extinguished, and until then, the seal of the magic tower will remain intact. Don’t lose focus and head to the Room of Heaven’s Source.]
“I got it!”
Ta-daht!
I rushed toward the Room of Heaven’s Source. The instant I entered, I found myself surrounded by mirrors, reflecting my image infinitely. Unsure where the passage was, I glanced around, and Shin Gong-pyo advised.
[Just walk straight. This mirror corridor itself is the dimensional gate.]
“Where does it lead to?”
[It’s a secret passage that Wu Zetian prepared for a worst-case scenario, so it shouldn’t be dangerous.]
He was right. Wu Zetian informing me of the Room of Heaven’s Source must have meant as much. I cautiously walked through the mirror corridor.
After some time, I emerged into an unknown dark space. I peered around, wondering if I might be in outer space, but it didn’t seem like that at all. My earlier belief that I was in outer space stemmed from the intense starlight flowing as meteors fell around me.
Shin Gong-pyo said.
[It seems escaping won’t be easy.]
“What do you mean?”
[This isn’t far from the magic tower. It’s probably only thirty or forty li away.]
Boom, boom, boom!
No sooner had Shin Gong-pyo finished speaking than a massive cloud of searing heat billowed up behind me. Turning around, I witnessed a formidable explosion blooming like a mushroom and covering the vast heavens, originating from none other than Empress Wu Zetian’s city.
And hovering above that city were the transformed bodies of the Eight Parts of the Divine.
They had unleashed their true power to breach the dimensional gate.
The might of the Eight Parts of the Divine that could annihilate an entire city in one strike!
Shin Gong-pyo remarked.
[Six of them, I see.]
“… Damn it!!”
If there were six, that meant all of them had arrived! The dragon was slain by Yeodong-bin, and Asura had perished at Shin Gong-pyo’s hands, leaving all the rest to show up. It seemed that everyone was on guard after Asura was taken down.
Against the six divine beings of the Eight Parts of the Divine, there was no way I could win.
Just thinking about what kind of calamity would befall me if they combined their powers sent chills down my spine.
‘How far can I run away?’
If those godlike beings are openly chasing me, I don’t know how long I can elude them. If they used tracking techniques to follow me, would the Soul Removal Technique or martial arts even help me? As I anxiously pondered, Shin Gong-pyo subtly interjected.
[…Don’t you want to live here?]
“What sinister plan is this?”
[I know you still possess the Yin Spirit Power you used to break the seal of the Heavenly Ruler of Tai Xu.]
At Shin Gong-pyo’s follow-up words, I flinched.
[Use that to break the final seal placed on this Ruyi Staff by the Heavenly Ruler of Tai Xu. Then, I will regain my body and powers, resurrect, and take down those Eight Parts of the Divine.]