Chapter 29: Life (4)
1 second.
My fist dug into Nok-hyeon's face.
2 seconds.
As his intent stretched out to escape my trajectory, I attacked the blood vessels in his legs, making him roll on the ground.
3 seconds.
Taking advantage of rolling on the ground, he swung a poisoned iron piece at me. I deflected the iron piece with a hidden weapon and kicked him in the face.
...
10 seconds.
I disarmed Nok-hyeon of all his weapons and lifted him by the scruff of his neck.
"You're saying you want to invade the Imperial Palace with these skills?"
"...I'm prepared to die."
"Even if you're prepared to die, you can't get past the Shadow Guards. You might stand a chance against the weakest among them, but if two or more join forces against you, you’re as good as dead."
"......"
"Let's go back. You're not skilled enough yet."
He bit his lips hard, blood dripping down.
"How long…how long do I have to train?"
"......"
"While we train, are those Shadow Guards just sleeping? Do the ones guarding the Emperor not get stronger? Are they all fools?"
Nok-hyeon shouted with veins bulging in his eyes, his eyes seemingly flowing with flames.
"They will keep getting stronger too! Then when, when can we take our revenge!
Master is right. I am such a person. It's true I like Kae-hwa and dislike Man-ho. But! But...Even if it means throwing away my entire life, I must take revenge!"
I looked at the child with pity.
Though he appeared to be exuding energy on the outside, his intent was a dark blue hue.
It was the intent of sorrow.
Deep and profound.
He was crying without tears.
"What do you expect us to do!"
Shuffling sounds were heard around us.
I frowned.
"How did you get here?"
"The overseer opened the formation for us. He said to come and help Hyeon."
"That damn overseer."
I looked around annoyed.
Man-ho, Hae-woong, Kae-hwa, Cheong-ya, Yeo-lo, Hee-a...
About 500 of my disciples were surrounding me.
"Do you intend to hold me back so Nok-hyeon can escape?"
"Yes. And not just Nok-hyeon, a few others will go too."
Grinding my teeth, I glared at my disciples.
"Didn't I say it was suicide. You are all too weak."
"Nok-hyeon spoke well. We're not the only ones getting stronger. The Shadow Guards will surely continue to train and get stronger as well."
"So you want to go despite all this."
"We can't just sit back and do nothing."
"Fine."
I spoke with a murderous intent.
"I’ll make my position clear. I cannot send any of you. Because all of you will have suffered injuries in training, needing a few days to recuperate.
Even if it means making you rest forcibly, I cannot let..."
I drew my sword.
"...any of you die."
"Everyone wants to die for their cause."
Swoosh-
My sword sliced through the air.
The next moment, confusion appeared in my disciples' eyes.
Record of Transcending Cultivation and Exhausting Martial Arts!
There's a difference between those who have and haven't learned this martial art like the difference between an adult and a child.
Can 500 kindergarteners beat an adult?
With my combat experience, swordsmanship, and poison, I was confident I could tie down a large number of peak experts.
Now, I even began using the martial art of Record of Transcending Cultivation and Exhausting Martial Arts.
"Everyone, fight as if you are facing a mid-to-late-stage Qi Refiner"
I unleashed a roar in all directions with Lion’s Roar, then moved stealthily, cutting off their perception.
As my mastery deepened, I discovered more intents.
The completion rate of the Record of Transcending Cultivation and Exhausting Martial Arts kept rising.
Now, unless one was at the level of Three Flowers Gather at the Summit, they stood no chance against me.
Puk, puk, puk!
I spread paralysis poison on my hidden weapons, refined intent with Record of Transcending Cultivation and Exhausting Martial Arts, and scattered it in all directions.
With one move, dozens of disciples fell.
"Don’t panic! Everyone, tighten up!"
Man-ho tried to take control but I knocked him unconscious with the hilt of my sword.
Chaaaaak!
After spreading poison dust to blur their sight and breath, I knocked out my disciples one by one.
It took about 3 minutes to knock out all 500 disciples.
I appeared before Nok-hyeon, who watched the battle with a shocked expression.
"Did you see what I just did?"
"...I didn't see."
"That’s your level, all of your levels. You can’t even perceive it. With your skills, you can't match Three Flowers experts. Understand?"
"......"
"Get up and call the servants from the estate. We need to move these guys."
He briefly wore an angry expression, then closed his eyes.
"...Understood."
After a while, I moved my disciples back to the training ground with the servants.
In fact, they were not weak at all.
It was just that the Record of Transcending Cultivation and Exhausting Martial Arts, a divine record created by the genius named Kim Young-hoon to combat cultivators, was ridiculously powerful.
With their level, if only about twenty gathered, they could have infiltrated the Imperial Palace safely, assassinated the Emperor, and returned unharmed.
'But the cultivator clan would never allow such large-scale movement.'
It was a stupid reason saying that it gave the Makli Clan an excuse to attack the Jin Clan.
So, the Jin Clan sent one, maybe two or three assassins a day, not caring how many died.
'Those Jin Clan bastards...'
They don't value human life.
Perhaps they see the lives of the assassins as tools in their political struggles with the Makli Clan.
Just tools.
'To Makli we are livestock. To Jin we are tools?'
Watching my disciples, who had forcibly entered the Pinnacle Realm by accepting resentful spirits, I smiled bitterly.
'I thought they were better than the Makli Clan anyway. But it's just a difference in degree and scale. Aren't the Jin Clan the same?'
After a while, as my disciples woke up, I looked around and said,
"I know your abilities well. Many of you must be dissatisfied with the current situation. But with those skills, you absolutely cannot stand against the Shadow Guards."
I stood up and continued,
"But you must be unsatisfied, thinking with your logic: doesn't the Emperor's Guards get stronger as you do? Yes, that's correct. However..."
Whoosh!
I vanished like a phantom in front of them, then reappeared.
"As you just saw, my martial arts exist on a different level than those of ordinary Three Flowers masters. If you can master this martial art, I will allow your assassination."
Of course, Record of Transcending Cultivation and Exhausting Martial Arts, with Three Flowers as the minimum entry requirement, would not be easy.
Especially for those who had forcibly raised their realm with resentful spirits, it would be even harder than for ordinary people.
However, I lied to them, giving them hope.
To keep them alive with an unattainable hope.
"The condition to learn this martial art is to defeat me. All 500 of you can attack, ambush, poison me at night, attack me while I'm asleep, or take hostages. Whatever it takes, if even one of you defeats me, I will teach all of you this martial art."
Whether they defeat me or not.
If they don't reach Three Flowers, they can never enter the Record of Transcending Cultivation and Exhausting Martial Arts.
But I made a promise with an unachievable delusion.
"If you show the possibility of overcoming me, I will teach you martial arts of a different dimension!"
At those words, the intents of many disciples stirred.
Anger, excitement, surprise, joy, anticipation...
'I see it.'
I could see several more hues that I couldn't before, amidst the changes in emotions.
'That's why there are few recluses among the masters of Three Flowers.
There are almost no hidden masters of Three Flowers Gather at the Summit in the hermit world.
Most are in the councils of major factions, involved in their affairs.
I used to wonder why there are no recluses practicing in isolation, but observing the fluctuating intents and emotions is the most helpful way for masters of Three Flowers,
So they continuously observe intents in important positions of major factions.
After making that promise to my disciples, a day passed.
Pffft!
While using the toilet, a sword flew out from the dung heap and stabbed at me.
"Bold for the first day."
In a flash, I threw a hidden weapon under the dung to deflect the sword, then released paralytic poison under the toilet.
After finishing my business, I reached under the toilet.
Squish!
Despite the unpleasant sensation, I ignored it and pulled out the paralyzed disciple.
"Fool, what would you have done if you died in the feces?"
I dragged the paralyzed disciple to a stream, pressed his acupoints to slowly release the paralysis.
"Attacking from dung doesn't work against a real master. You should focus more on the sword."
After giving advice to the disciple, Wul-yuk, who attacked me from the dung, and advice on controlling the flow of intent, I headed to the training ground.
Ting!
Upon arriving at the training ground, two disciples skilled in hidden weapons, Cheong-ya and Hwan-hyeong, threw their weapons at me.
Swoosh!
At the same time, thin threads hidden in the sand of the training ground revealed themselves, trying to bind me.
Jump!
I leaped into the air, dodging the hidden weapons and threads, and drew my sword.
Severing Mountain Swordsmanship.
Mountain and Valley Transformation!
Boom!
My sword energy tore through the ground.
The figures of disciples who were hiding underground to ambush me were revealed, along with a few of their traps.
"Is this the end for the morning?"
"Attack!"
However, Man-ho led disciples wielding swords and formed an encirclement.
Their intents filled the formation, attacking me.
So dense there was no space to dodge.
I smiled and looked around.
"Is this your sword formation? A good formation that completely grinds anyone trapped inside."
If the opponent was not me, it would be excellent.
Mountain and Valley Transformation!
Boom!
I once again sent sword energy to the ground, disrupting the formation.
The formation's shape was disturbed.
However, under Man-ho's command, the disciples quickly reformed the formation.
But it was not enough.
"In the gap you took to reform the formation, you all died three times."
Shush!
Mountain Severing Swordsmanship
Mountain Echoes, Valley Responds!
My wave-like sword energy sliced the front of my disciples' chests.
"Get your mind straight. Would you do the same in real combat?"
Severing Mountain Swordsmanship
Flowing Ridge
Deep Mountain.
I penetrated through the gaps in their formation with Flowing Ridge, then made a path with Deep Mountain.
Severing Mountain Swordsmanship
Joy of Mountains and Peaks
Simultaneously scattering fine sword energy in all directions, I induced a chaotic fight.
Within that chaos, I observed the trajectory of the sword formation.
'If I break three places, it'll collapse.'
The flow was clear.
Mixing in Severing Vein Saber Method, I unleashed sword energy and force.
About 15 minutes later.
Eventually, the sword formation led by Man-ho collapsed, and the disciples were gasping for breath.
"When forming a sword formation, too many of you are distracted. Being in a group gives you a false sense of security? The larger the group, the more you should concentrate on your position. Even when forming a sword formation, think of it as a life-or-death duel."
After giving some advice on the sword formation and the intents and distractions of some disciples, I left the formation.
Clank, clank, clank!
This time, disciples skilled in long-range weapons like long swords, spears, and moon blades surrounded me.
"A spear formation after the sword formation?"
Intending to drain my energy.
But I laughed heartily, holding my sword.
"Let's see you try."
I hadn't even properly used poison or Record of Transcending Cultivation and Exhausting Martial Arts yet.
They were already struggling against me at this level.
Could they even drain my stamina?
I raised my sword and smiled at my disciples.
"If you can’t even touch my clothes today, you'll train naked from now on."
As I joked, numerous spear attacks rushed at me.
I adopted a defensive stance and charged at my disciples.
A month passed.
"Spreading poison on the path I walk, not bad at all."
I chewed an antidote, looking at Kae-hwa who brandished a dagger at me.
"The poison's making my fingertips tremble and my breathing quick. You might have a chance. Come at me."
Whoosh!
Kae-hwa's dagger sharply stabbed at me.
At the same time, she reached out with her intent to match mine.
If her opponent had been a typical peak master, it would have been worth trying.
But.
"You're struggling to fight an intent battle at your level."
A master who just reached Three Flowers and can only see purple might not know, but I can see dozens of colors.
The flow of intent read is incomparable to other peak masters.
To even have an intent battle with me, one must at least reach Three Flowers.
Ting, ting, ting!
I deflected all of Kae-hwa's daggers, extending dozens of intent.
Each represents the optimal movement I can make.
From that movement, endless intent branch further.
Kae-hwa seemed to try to shake off my intent momentum with her own.
Whoosh!
My sword aimed at her chin, piercing through her intent.
"Good concentration and clean practice. But you lack experience. Have practice battles with others that are close to real combat."
"...Thank you."
She pretended to salute me, then controlled a thin thread with her fingertips and threw it at me.
Shush!
I extended a hidden weapon with my fingertips and cut the thread.
"Good. Keep progressing."
I praised Kae-hwa.
Months passed.
It's been about half a year since I promised to teach Record of Transcending Cultivation and Exhausting Martial Arts.
Only half a year, but my disciples have made significant progress.
They focused on forming fighting formations, researching ways to overpower me, and delving into surprise and ambush tactics.
At the same time, to confront me, they had to continuously and tirelessly train in martial arts.
Thanks to that, the side-effects of reaching the Pinnacle Realm inappropriately seemed to gradually decrease.
'Until now, to be honest, they were only sharing the same vision as a real peak master, but they all had flaws.'
But now, I could see those flaws gradually disappearing.
When my disciples reached the Pinnacle Realm by maximizing their talents using resentful spirits, I was unimpressed.
However, watching them refine their movements and the flaws disappearing over time, I started to feel moved.
It wasn't just the disciples who had grown.
'I, too, have made even more progress in my understanding of intent.'
After realizing six types of intent.
I began to notice hundreds, thousands of shades of intent derived from those six.
This rapid growth was a speed I had never felt before.
'Fast, no... is this slow?'
I observed the countless human hues and delved into them, lost in thought.
Some hues I could immediately understand their meaning, but others, I had no clue what to name.
However, even realizing these countless hues, there was one thing I still found hard to grasp.
The last of the seven emotions.
The emotion of desire (欲).
'Desire.'
I couldn't see the color of desire no matter how hard I looked.
No matter how much I observed, I couldn't even get a trace of desire.
'What is desire...'
I dodged my disciples' attacks, lost in thought.
"What is desire..."
Kim Young-hoon, whom I met after a long time, said while sipping tea.
He said he had almost gathered all the like-minded warriors while traveling around Yanguo recently.
"Desire is a longing hidden deep within. There's no human without desire. That's why everyone expresses their desires in their own unique ways as they live. In a way, desire is the driving force of human life.
What is your greatest longing? Keep pondering over it, and you'll understand the color of desire."
"Hmm, could you tell me the color of desire?"
Then, at least I could try to see that color.
However, Kim Young-hoon shook his head.
"You know this, right? The colors seen by masters of Three Flowers are similar, but each is slightly different. Both you and I might see the intent of joy as gold, but the emotion we each see has a slight color difference. Mine is pure gold, and yours is..."
"Golden."
"Right, like that. Everyone sees a slight difference in the shades of intent... Especially the intent of desire. It varies greatly because everyone has different longings. So only you know what color your desire is.
Thus, you have no choice but to observe your own longing."
"Is that so..."
I pondered over Kim Young-hoon's advice.
What I want the most.
What is it?
Even after receiving his hint, I kept pondering and observing for days.
On that day too, I was fighting within my disciples' fighting formation.
Clang, clang, clang!
Reading countless intents, finding their weaknesses, dodging and deflecting the incessant poison darts and hidden weapons.
I was lost in thought.
'My longing.'
What I want in this life.
Firstly, to reach Five Energies Converging to the Origin.
But to reach Five Energies, I first need to know what desire is.
But 'knowing desire' itself became my desire.
'This is troublesome.'
Let's broaden the criteria a bit.
Why do I want to reach Five Energies?
'To become a cultivator.'
Why do I want to become a cultivator?
To enter the Ascension Gate as a cultivator and return to my original world, to see if I can eliminate my regression ability.
'Why do I want to get rid of my regression ability?'
Because of my regression ability, all the lives I've built up will eventually be negated.
Therefore, I need to find the origin of my regression ability to eventually escape from it.
'Ah, I see.'
Somehow, I felt like I roughly understood what my desire was.
I hate that my life is negated.
That means, I want to live.
Yes.
'I desire life.'
I don't need appetite, sexual desire, or the desire to sleep.
I don't need any desire or urge in this world.
I just...
'Want to live.'
I hope that all the lives I've built will not vanish vainly in the reverse flow of time.
Even though I haven't achieved everything I want, I hope my precious life, which records my achievements, is not negated by time regression.
Therefore, my desire can only be life itself.
"Ha ha, ha ha ha..."
While countering my disciples' moves, I might not have discovered the intent of desire,
But I realized how selfish I am.
"...Everyone."
Man-ho's great sword narrowly misses in front of my eyes.
Kae-hwa's dagger stabs at my back.
Jumping to dodge, Cheong-ya from mid-air attacks me with a hidden weapon.
I am definitely...
"I wish you live."
A selfish person who imposes his desire on others.
I desire life, so I impose life on those who wish to die.
But still...
"Because you are alive."
These children, even though they desire death, are undoubtedly alive.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!
As I knock down Cheong-ya attacking from the air, Man-ho and Kae-hwa attack from both sides, and Yeo-lo thrusts a weapon from below.
Nok-hyeon swings a metal piece to pressure my upper body, and other children scatter poison.
Excellent.
I couldn't escape even seeing the flow of intent.
'I won't be able to escape without using the ultimate technique of Record of Transcending Cultivation and Exhausting Martial Arts.'
Whoosh!
Immediately after, the children's weapons stopped right in front of me.
My condition was my 'subjugation,' not my 'murder.'
'In the first place, subjugation is much harder.'
And who would teach them if I died?
"Excellent. You all have grown a lot in such a short time."
"...I know you're hiding a trump card. You could easily escape if you use it."
Man-ho, knowing that I was holding back, said with a slightly dark face.
"That's right. With just this trump card, I could subdue all of you. You haven't even drawn out the 22nd move of Severing Mountain Swordsmanship. Let alone the 23rd and 24th moves."
"...."
"But now, I have no more flaws to point out. Teaching or sparring with you won't bring any more improvement. From now on, it's up to your enlightenment... You can't completely subdue me. If I reveal my trump card, it's too high a technique for you to comprehend. However, you all did all you could to push me this far."
Dang!
Suddenly, a loud bell rang from the direction of the cultivators' quarters.
[All mortals within the domain listen. All martial artists in the Pinnacle Realm gather at Yunryung (芸陵). There's an important announcement.]
Along with the bell, the voice of the chief administrator of this Jin Clan territory echoed throughout the domain.
I had a rough idea of what it was about.
"...Though you succeeded in cornering me, you didn't subdue me. So, I'll teach you a formation derived from the martial art, not the martial art itself as originally promised."
The name of the formation is Transcending Cultivation Formation (越修陣).
In the cycle where I formed the Heavenly Demon Army, Young-hoon Hyung derived a fighting formation from the Record of Transcending Cultivation and Exhausting Martial Arts.
A formation executed by late first-rate masters, powerful enough to capture a mid-to-late-Qi Refining cultivator.
"Learn this formation... and I hope you choose to live."
Confusion appeared in my disciples' eyes at my tone.
Eventually, I succeeded in not sending any of them for assassination.
However, I could no longer resist the pressure of the cultivator clan.
At least, I managed to buy time using Kim Young-hoon and changed the direction of the pressure.
Now, my disciples would undertake the mission of attacking the Makli Clan's territory, not assassinating the Emperor.
A task both harder and easier than the Emperor's assassination.
I will use everything I can to increase my disciples' chances of survival.
"...I'll make sure you live."
I realized my desire was life, but I still couldn't see the intent of desire.
Maybe I didn't understand what life was.
Still, even though I don't know life, I want my disciples to live.
'Because they are alive.'
That was enough.
Soon, I joined my disciples in Yunryung, listening to the operation plans of Kim Young-hoon and other Qi Building cultivators.
In two months.
We were planning to start attacking the Makli Clan's territory.
