Reincarnation Sword God

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Chapter 15: The Grand Heist of God

“Wow, this is more chaotic than I thought.”

I figured being a Count came with a touch of class and some serious dough, but that was just me being naive.

“I refuse to eat this!”

“Aida, there are folks starving outside who’d kill for a crumb of this. Quit your complaining.”

Aida, my little sister, hurled her bread aside and burst into tears, while our father, Count Bradley Somerset, gave her a stern talking-to.

I took a look at the food in front of me, realizing that dining in a noble household was somewhat like eating at any average home.

On the table was a thin, mystery soup and bread that could double as rocks.

Definitely not the kind of food that would entice even a kid.

Determined to eat, I tried dipping the bread into the soup, but as soon as I tore it—

Crack!

Was that the sound of wood splintering?

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849——————==

True Martial Home

To think that the Dharma Guardian, Han Baek-ryeong, is here!

I stealthily initiated a conversation with Zhuge Sa using the suspicious fishhook technique.

[Zhuge Sa! Why didn’t you mention this with the suspicious fishhook beforehand? Ending up face to face with Han Baek-ryeong like this is… devastating!]

[It’s not that dangerous of a situation.]

[What?]

[Han Baek-ryeong barged in a half moment ago. If she intended to use her power as a Dharma Guardian, she could have ripped me to shreds or captured me ages ago.

But all she did was break my formation and wait patiently. Basically, she came here to chat.]

[Hmm…]

[It’s entirely your choice whether to fight or negotiate with Han Baek-ryeong. If you’re being held back by someone like her, then you can’t go looking for the Four Great Artifacts or challenge Miyamoto Musashi.]

This meant I should get my act together and he wanted to see my decision. Is Zhuge Sa looking to assess my abilities as well?

I grasped Zhuge Sa’s choice and turned to Han Baek-ryeong.

“What brings you to Jangryeong Valley?”

“I heard all about you from Jin Seong-ki. You’re recently known as the infamous grand thief, the Supreme Thief, who summoned the spirit of our White Spirit sect’s ancestor, the Jade Dragon Divine General, Han Geum-wol, to obtain information on the Supreme Thief.”

“…….”

“It seems you’ve been using a peculiar treasure for instantaneous travel around the world. So I initially half-gave up on finding you. However, thanks to Yong Jun-il’s tail, I was able to discover the location of Jangryeong Valley, which is suspected to be your base.”

“What…?”

Han Baek-ryeong smirked lightly.

“Yong Jun-il, the leader of the Huashan Sect, is also a minor prince of the Wind Spirit lineage. He sensed the presence of a pickpocket approaching him yet pretended to be oblivious, leaving behind some traces, allowing him to track your movements with his secret techniques.”

“Hmm…!”

“Your most frequent haunt is this Jangryeong Valley. So, that’s why we decided to wait here.”

In that moment, I felt something click.

[If this world is in danger, then only I, the Reborn One, could save it.]

[After the life of Seon Woo-pajae ended, my fifth life as Mong Oh-sim revolved around mastering ancient martial arts and sorcery from the Daoists. During that time, I acquired ancient books from the White Lotus Sect and studied their sacrificial rituals quite a bit. I also dug into the hidden cultural secrets of the ancient otherworldly races sheltered within the Daoist and Buddhist disciplines.]

These were words Yong Jun-il had said when he discovered my identity as a Reborn.

‘That’s right… Yong Jun-il isn’t just a martial artist. He’s also skilled in sorcery!’

Life as Yong Jun-il was my sixth reincarnation. In my previous fifth life as Mong Oh-sim, all my time was dedicated to uncovering sorcery, magic, and ancient secrets, so the attainments from that must have been significant. It wouldn’t be strange if I learned tracking techniques equivalent to what a Reborn should possess!

‘So… when I disguised myself as the elder of the Huashan Sect, did he harbor suspicions about my true identity?’

Having suspected but not realized, he must have let me pickpocket him, simultaneously confirming my identity and invoking the elements of sorcery to activate his tracking techniques.

As I fell silent, Han Baek-ryeong spoke up.

“The reason I came seeking you is to understand your true intent.”

“True intent?”

“According to Jin Seong-ki, you’ve been hunting for the secrets of both the Baek Byun’s inheritance and Gong Sun’s clan. Why do you seek them? And what’s the deal with stealing from the great sect leaders lately?”

“…….”

I stared intently at Han Baek-ryeong and replied.

“Did you come here alone?”

“Yeah.”

“I can’t believe that.”

“I don’t think I could catch someone with your mysterious abilities. Even with Yong Jun-il’s tracking techniques, I could only vaguely sense your location. I know you can move freely across the world if you wanted. This might be the only opportunity to talk with you.”

“…….”

“What do you want? If you tell me, our White Spirit sect can assist you.”

“Assist? Not really necessary.”

“Then why didn’t you cause great harm to Jin Seong-ki?”

The unexpected question made me meet Han Baek-ryeong’s gaze. Instead of animosity or hostility, her eyes held a flicker of curiosity.

“You possess incredible martial prowess, yet you’ve been oddly restrained. It wouldn’t have been strange to kill Jin Seong-ki, yet you chose to let him go without a threat… that’s what intrigues me more.”

I sensed it. Han Baek-ryeong truly did come here alone, and my earlier act of sparing Han Jin-seong significantly influenced that choice. If I had brainwashed or killed Han Jin-seong using the Soul Exchange Technique at that moment, Han Baek-ryeong would have had no qualms about coming here to finish me off by any means necessary.

“That’s…”

In that moment, I activated the Fire Eye Golden Spirit and pulled out the Moon Sovereign’s mirror to reflect myself. There, I saw the thread of sorcery connecting me, which definitely had to be from Yong Jun-il’s tracking technique.

“I can’t tell you what you’re hearing, Yong Jun-il.”

<Spot>

I immediately swung my sword infused with Yin Spirit Power and severed that thread. Instantly, I felt the sorcery completely fade away, assuring me that I wouldn’t be pursued by Yong Jun-il anymore.

‘Since the sorcery was unraveled, Yong Jun-il must have suffered quite a blow.’

I shook off the risk of eavesdropping and turned to Han Baek-ryeong.

“Han Baek-ryeong. There are circumstances preventing me from carelessly disclosing the entire situation surrounding me. However, one thing is certain: I’m not acting to harm your White Spirit sect or the Four Great Families or the White Lotus Sect.”

“Then what is your goal?”

“My goal is to find the traces of the Supreme Thief and become the greatest thief in the world!”

At my response, Han Baek-ryeong’s eyes sharpened.

“Then what was the reason for querying our ancestor about Gong Sun’s clan?”

“The Xuanyuan Sword.”

“Xuanyuan Sword?”

“The sword of the legendary Emperor Gong Sun Xuanwen. If I possess that divine sword passed down through generations of Gong Sun’s clan, I could claim to be the greatest thief. However, I came up empty.”

“Hmm….”

Han Baek-ryeong seemed deep in thought.

Then she spoke.

“Yong Jun-il suspects you’re a master of the Thunder God lineage. Is that true?”

“Indeed. I’m learning the martial arts of the Thunder God lineage.”

“Who’s your master?”

“I don’t see a reason to reveal that to someone from another sect.”

“Are you perhaps harboring a grudge against the Thunder God lineage and scheming in secret?”

Han Baek-ryeong’s probing attitude slightly irritated me. So I replied.

“Enough already. I’m not your subordinate. I’ve even promised not to harm your sect, and now you’re being quite rude for a chief of the White Spirit sect.”

“Rude or not, I’d still like to see a bit of your skills.”

<Swish>

In the next moment, Han Baek-ryeong flicked a coin from her palm towards me.

Although it wasn’t a special secret technique, it was imbued with her boundless internal strength, glowing a fierce red, so much that it felt like it could explode at any moment. I knew that catching it incorrectly could mean disaster even for a Peak Master, yet I couldn’t help but scoff internally.

‘Hmph!’

Now, wanting to assess my skills?

What an audacious notion!

I utilized the Seven Great Techniques and intercepted the coin with soft internal capabilities. The coin, despite accelerating at an immense speed, was still within my grasp to detect. And as I caught the coin in my hand, a shocking wave of absolute internal power surged through me, but I calmly raised my own internal power to withstand it.

<Thud>

With a nimble flick of my wrist, I casually caught Han Baek-ryeong’s coin, leaving her wide-eyed in shock.

“……!!”

Of course, she couldn’t help but be surprised. After all, that coin was launched without holding back any power, and dodging it would be the normal expectation, yet I had caught it head-on. This meant that the boundless internal power she possessed was almost ineffective against me.

“Cough.”

As I played with the coin for a moment, I then tossed it back to Han Baek-ryeong.

<Swish!>

She caught it effortlessly, just as I had, but since I unleashed the hidden techniques of the Seven Great Techniques with the momentum of the coin, she found herself momentarily thrown off balance by the unexpected force.

She regained her footing but her cheeks flushed slightly, proving she was embarrassed.

“You…!”

“What’s wrong? Thought we were just playing catch!”

As I smirked, Han Baek-ryeong slowly reached for the twin swords at her waist. Knowing that this meant she was truly ready to fight, I raised an eyebrow but steeled myself as I drew the Moon Sovereign’s Heavenly Gathering Cloud Sword.

I had a strong chance to win.

Yet as the atmosphere of confrontation rose, Han Baek-ryeong lowered her hands.

With a sour expression, she said, “Let’s stop here.”

“…….”

“I apologize for being rude. However, it’s been almost fifty years since someone as strong as you in the Thunder God lineage has appeared, so I wanted to see firsthand.”

“Stop making a scene and leave now. I have no interest in entangling with your White Lotus Sect any further.”

“Who knows what the future holds?”

<Whoosh!>

Leaving that short remark, Han Baek-ryeong invoked the Fire Spirit Technique and departed the Jangryeong Valley. As the commotion settled, I let out a sigh.

“Phew….”

Was I too careless after the thrill of thievery? Getting snagged by Yong Jun-il’s tracking technique was a big blunder.

Sure, I had severed it with the Fire Eye Golden Spirit and the Yin Spirit Power, but being under the watchful eyes of the White Spirit Sect and the Wind Spirit lineage wasn’t particularly pleasant.

I was worried Zhuge Sa would scold me for that, but he completely avoided the topic and shifted to a different conversation.

“Baek Woong. Did you really intend to fight Han Baek-ryeong just now?”

“…yeah.”

“What were you planning to do if you won?”

“Well… I thought I’d subdue her and then head off to steal from the Emperor.”

This brought a chuckle from Zhuge Sa.

“I really don’t get why you’re so soft… Why not use the Soul Exchange Technique to manipulate her once she’s down and take control of all the White Spirit sect?”

“I don’t want to rely on the Soul Exchange Technique too much.”

“You’re worried that using the Soul Exchange Technique on someone means losing the possibility of being comrades in your next life? Also, considering how often you use the Soul Exchange Technique, if it exposed you to the Obsidian, others in your team would be wary and find it hard to trust you.”

“…….”

Looks like he hit the nail on the head.

“Hey, that’s not morality. It’s something that can’t be called morality.”

With those words, Zhuge Sa put his hands behind his back and began to walk slowly.

“Baek Woong. Still, it’s okay. Even with the talents you’ve gathered, you’ll do fine if you manage them well. So, feel free to use the Soul Exchange Technique. Who’s going to stop you?”

“It’ll become harder to gather comrades.”

“Oh come on. Regardless, comrades will have to be selective. Do you think it’s possible to get along with every human you’ve met through your reincarnations, sharing laughs and holding hands? When faced with the great crisis of humanity’s extinction, do you really think everyone will unite? That’s simply impossible.”

“If you don’t try, you won’t know.”

“Why wouldn’t you know? You’ve seen the results. Humanity received warnings for centuries that they would face extinction, yet they did nothing to prepare and continued to fight and divide among themselves. There’s no way a foolish species like humanity can achieve a virtuous cycle or unification. Even if it were possible, they still wouldn’t.”

After saying that, Zhuge Sa sat down and paused for a moment. Then he spoke.

“The last step remains—stealing from the Emperor. Picking pockets from the Emperor’s sleeve is petty and too easy, so raise the difficulty a bit and challenge yourself.”

“How?”

“Steal the Imperial Seal.”

“The National Seal is already….”

“Not the National Seal, but rather, the Imperial Seal that the current Emperor cherishes. That should be challenging enough for you given your current standing.”

<Clap!>

I decided to follow Zhuge Sa’s instruction.

‘The Imperial Seal…’

In terms of value, the National Seal completely dwarfs it. It has been passed down since the Warring States period, with significant relics involved in its creation brought forth by the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, so how could a mere seal stand a chance against that? That’s why I never even thought of stealing it before. But as a ruler’s stamp on this continent, its present-day value was indeed noteworthy.

It seemed Zhuge Sa’s suggestion to steal the seal was a means to closely observe the imperial palace’s dynamics while also encouraging me to reevaluate the “Emperor” character I had easily overlooked.

I set off to infiltrate the Imperial Palace, employing stealth techniques to map out the seal’s location over several days.

After gathering bits of information here and there, it became apparent that the current Emperor’s seal was managed by the astrologers. Specifically, the head astrologer held the key to a special inner room where the seal was kept.

I deduced this means that Zhuge Bu was already in the loop.

At the same time, I was able to grasp the influence of the astrologers over the imperial family. The seal itself signifies the Emperor’s authority, and no matter how trustworthy they are, entrusting another lineage with the key to the room holding the seal seems suspect!

I was wary from my previous experiences. If I tried to overpower the astrologers or the guards too hastily, it might lead to unwanted attention. So, I pondered carefully when suddenly a location sprang to mind.

‘Hmm… there was one particular spot among the 173 wings of the palace that stood out as odd, wasn’t there?’

Some time ago, Mangnyang had shared a map of the inner palace with me, which I memorized perfectly. Plus, after countless reincarnations, I became very familiar with the layout of the palace.

To me, there had been one dark, ominous palace that had always given off an unsettling vibe, and it begat my suspicion.

<Clap!>

I snuck into the vicinity of the black palace and began to survey the area. Two Golden Eagle Guards were patrolling, along with around ten regular soldiers on standby.

I watched their patrol patterns closely and utilized the Fire Eye Golden Spirit to peer inside.

It’s cramped for a palace.

‘Just enough space for four or five people to lie down… something was crammed in there!’

Focusing my inner strength, I caught a glimpse of a large box resting quietly in the innermost area. That box seemed highly suspicious, and it sparked the thought that I should steal it before anything else. I decided to wait until nighttime when the guards would be less vigilant, then swiftly used the transformation technique to shrink my form and infiltrate through the narrow entryway.

<Creek!>

It was a space so small it would be cramped even for a six-year-old, but with the transformation technique, I was somehow able to squeeze in.

Once inside, I grabbed hold of the targeted box and opened it right away.

“……!!”

The Imperial Seal!

I was seeing the seal for the first time, and it was captivating.

Unlike the distinctive patterns of the National Seal from the Warring States period, this one was engraved with a dragon’s head, showing clear signs of being used on documents.

The moment I laid my hands on the seal, I employed the Golden Lamp technique and made my escape.

Upon returning to Jangryeong Valley and presenting the Imperial Seal to Zhuge Sa, he inspected it briefly before disdainfully tossing it to the ground and said.

“I thought it would be a little challenging, but it’s meaningless.”

“What on earth are you talking about? If I had failed, it would’ve been a real hassle!”

“Do you understand what it means that you stole the Emperor’s Imperial Seal?”

“What does it mean?”

Zhuge Sa replied nonchalantly.

“Congratulations. You’re now the greatest thief on the continent! The End!”

“…….”

“How does it feel to be a deity in the world of thieves?”

His lack of genuine praise felt more like he was mocking me. I scratched my head and replied.

“…was it really pointless? Does this even lead to a clue about the Supreme Thief?”

“Well, I guess there’s some significance in becoming better at thieving. Since you’re a Reborn, even experiences like this hold value.”

“Is that so?”

But just then.

<Swoosh!>

I felt the scenery before me shift, and suddenly, I was standing in what seemed like a void space. In this emptiness, an infinite whirlpool spiraled out, vast enough to make one shudder.

What the?!

Where is this?!

‘No, more importantly, this looks familiar….’

I’ve definitely seen this before!

But where?

An endless whirlpool…. Where have I seen it? As I was baffled, a cheerful voice came from behind me.

“Are you my junior?”

I turned to look.

There stood a middle-aged man, looking quite foolish with a straw hat perched on his head, grinning mischievously while crossing his arms.

With a beard like a bandit, he gazed at me for a while before adjusting his hat.

“The world’s greatest thief, the Supreme Thief has arrived!”

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