novelraw Chapter 203 : Chapter 203
Chapter 203 : Chapter 203
Chapter 203. We Must Join Hands, Right?
In fact, in a general situation, Cheon U-jin’s opinion would be unconditionally correct.
Since ancient times, the power of the Western Regions united around the Potala Palace had been a great threat to the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, and the Dalai Dharma Emperor’s martial power was comparable to the Heavenly Demon, so that was also a tremendous burden.
From the perspective of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, the civil war of the Potala Palace and the division of the Western Regions were unconditional benefits, so they couldn’t help but worry about future trouble if they joined hands with one side.
Wasn’t that why they accelerated and incited the division of the Western Regions even while paying many sacrifices?
However, Jin Cheon had a greater cause than that…….
“Do you remember what dominated Senior Sister’s body before?”
“What dominated Junior Sister? Why does that story come up suddenly now…….”
Cheon U-jin’s expression hardened.
Since he also roughly guessed what the existence that resided inside Cheol Yu-ra’s body was.
“Are you saying it is a problem related to the Heavenly Demon Founder?”
“Yes.”
Jin Cheon nodded.
“But he is…….”
“There are more.”
“……!”
Cheon U-jin was startled by Jin Cheon’s words.
To think there are more souls of the one already extinguished; how could that be plausible?
“Two souls still remain and are wandering under the heavens.”
“That means…….”
“Yes, I have confirmed that he is currently located in the Potala Palace. For that reason, it is my judgment that joining hands with one side is inevitable if necessary.”
“That is…….”
Cheon U-jin could not easily give an answer.
It was understandable after hearing the explanation of the whole story, but breaking the board he had painstakingly built over the last several years did not sit well with him easily.
Jin Cheon did not pressure or urge such a Cheon U-jin.
‘He will judge for himself.’
Jin Cheon trusted Cheon U-jin’s judgment.
Looking back at the aspects he had shown so far, it was because he evaluated him as a person who knew how to put his own thoughts or emotions aside for the Great Cause, no matter how unreasonable the treatment might seem.
In fact, hasn’t Cheon U-jin shown the qualities to become the successor of the Iron-Blooded Demonic God as the First Senior Brother so far?
“The Heavenly Demon Founder and the solidarity of the Potala Palace…….”
Cheon U-jin muttered with a serious expression.
“Those who know about this information are…….”
“Very few.”
“Indeed. It must be so.”
Cheon U-jin nodded as if it was deserved.
Because if it was revealed as a settled fact that the First Heavenly Demon Dokgo Seong was plotting resurrection, agitators might appear even within the Cult.
“So, you have to meet the Dharma Emperor out of necessity?”
“Yes, First Senior Brother.”
“Right, if necessary…… we must do so.”
Cheon U-jin spoke with difficulty as if it was hard to open his mouth.
Thinking that the efforts put in with blood and sweat so far would come to naught, it was mentally very difficult.
“Then the plan is…….”
“Permission.”
Cheon U-jin answered Jin Cheon’s cautious question.
“That too is for the safety of the Cult; is there any other way?”
“Thank you, First Senior Brother.”
Jin Cheon took a clasped hands greeting toward Cheon U-jin.
“There is nothing to thank me for. As the First Young Master of the Cult, and as the first disciple of that person, I merely made the decision I ought to make.”
“First Senior Brother…….”
“Since meeting the former Dalai Dharma Emperor inside the Potala Palace is realistically difficult, I will let you meet Dharma Emperor Awangra first as per your request.”
“Yes, then I will wait.”
Jin Cheon could not look properly at Cheon U-jin’s face out of regret.
Because he had heard and knew well how much Cheon U-jin had suffered in the meantime…….
* * *
Unexpectedly, the meeting between Jin Cheon and Dharma Emperor Awangra was accomplished with lightning speed.
Dharma Emperor Awangra had readily agreed to the request of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.
“When and where did we decide to meet?”
“Tonight. He said he would come personally.”
“Pardon……?”
Jin Cheon was quite surprised by Cheon U-jin’s answer.
Whether he was real or fake, Dharma Emperor Awangra was the leader of a faction currently bisecting the Western Regions.
For such a person to readily step into the middle of the enemy camp, the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult’s camp, would by no means be an easy task.
“I don't know if it's true or not, but since the letter came like that, we should watch for now.”
“Hm.”
Jin Cheon thought about Dharma Emperor Awangra’s intention for a moment.
However, an answer came soon.
‘He knows we won’t kill him anyway.’
The reason Jin Cheon thought so was because it was true that the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult could not touch even a single hair of Dharma Emperor Awangra.
Why?
If a problem occurred with Dharma Emperor Awangra’s safety, the civil war of the Potala Palace would end, and the situation of the Western Regions, which had been fragmented, would stabilize at a rapid speed, likely leading to unification eventually.
For the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, which was more wary of the unification of the Western Regions than the Imperial Family of the Central Plains, harming Dharma Emperor Awangra was practically preposterous.
Because the civil war of the Potala Palace could happen only due to the existence of Dharma Emperor Awangra…….
“Well, thinking about it, it doesn’t seem like a place he can’t come, so there is nothing to worry about greatly.”
“Right, it will be so.”
Cheon U-jin looked at Jin Cheon with eyes that saw him anew.
Seeing Jin Cheon quickly grasp in what context Dharma Emperor Awangra’s visit was made, he realized that he possessed a mind above a certain level.
That evening.
Dharma Emperor Awangra visited the camp of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult accompanied by Guardian Protectors following him around sunset.
Surprisingly, he was merely a boy who didn’t even look twenty yet.
He put his palms together toward Jin Cheon.
“I have waited for the meeting with you for a truly long time. I am boundlessly glad to meet you like this.”
“Do you know me?”
“If you say I know, I know; if you say I don’t, I don’t. However, since this meeting was already scheduled a long time ago, I can only be glad.”
Dharma Emperor Awangra smiled whitely and answered.
‘Different.’
Jin Cheon instinctively thought that Dharma Emperor Awangra was a person of a different caliber from those he had met so far.
The distant mysterious energy felt from his words was one thing, but the feeling was quite different.
Like the feeling of a bronze incense burner holding incense burning in a mountain temple?
Jin Cheon carefully observed Dharma Emperor Awangra and decided to guide him to have a separate seat.
“I am Jin Cheon, the Seventh Young Master of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.”
“Please call me Awangra.”
The Dharma Emperor smiled.
“How did you know we would meet?”
“It is destined to flow that way, so I merely said so.”
“Destined to flow that way?”
“The meeting between me and the one who came against the past was scheduled from a very long time ago.”
“……!”
Jin Cheon’s heart almost stopped for a moment.
One who came against the past…… that meant Jin Cheon was a Regressor.
Until now, the only person who knew that secret was the Iron-Blooded Demonic God, and even that was said by Jin Cheon himself.
But since Dharma Emperor Awangra recognized such a history at a glance, it was no wonder Jin Cheon was surprised.
“How…… did you know.”
“I merely saw it.”
“Saw it……?”
“Eighteen years ago from now. At the point ahead of the next reincarnation, I saw the future. The future of meeting the one who came against the past.”
Jin Cheon could not regain his senses at Dharma Emperor Awangra’s words.
Just recognizing Jin Cheon’s history was enough to make him faint, but he saw the future?
That meant Dharma Emperor Awangra had the ability of foresight.
Furthermore, since he said he was ahead of reincarnation, it seemed that the saying that the Dharma Emperor of the Potala Palace is an existence who repeats reincarnation was by no means an empty word.
“So what was the conclusion?”
“I do not know.”
“You don’t know?”
Jin Cheon frowned.
“I only saw the future of meeting the one who came against the past; I did not see after that.”
“Hmm.”
“It would be correct to say that since I divided my soul in half, I did not have the reserve to peek at the future beyond that.”
“It gets more and more immense like Mount Tai.”
Jin Cheon clicked his tongue.
Now he even divided his soul in half; the more he heard, the more dumbfounding it was.
But only for a moment.
‘No, it’s not strange. Dokgo Seong is also like that.’
Thinking about it, Dharma Emperor Awangra’s words were by no means absurd.
Right now, didn’t the First Heavenly Demon Dokgo Seong repeat reincarnation and plan resurrection by dividing his soul into several pieces?
Since there is an example called Dokgo Seong, there is no law that the Dharma Emperor of the Potala Palace, an existence comparable to him, cannot do so.
“The reason you divided the soul in half?”
“It must have been because of abrasion.”
“Abrasion?”
“A human soul is not hard enough to stay in the human world for hundreds of years. When one life ends, a process of purification through Samsara leaving the human world is necessarily required. But I did not do so. Repeating reincarnation for hundreds of years, I continued to stay in the human world.”
According to Dharma Emperor Awangra, from a certain moment, the soul was abraded, making it hard to maintain a sound mind.
The soul, which should have been purified through Samsara originally, was as dirty as it could get, so no matter how much he stayed alert, he could not stop falling into the temptation of corruption.
So the Dalai Dharma Emperor said he divided his own soul in two just before the last reincarnation.
He left the dirty and abraded soul alone, and sought purification by making the separated soul reincarnate.
“……Thus, the Dharma Emperor currently in the Potala Palace is my stained and abraded soul.”
“So that’s why there are two?”
“Correct.”
Dharma Emperor Awangra nodded.
“I who am meeting you here, and I who am in the Palace, can be said to be originally one soul.”
“Similar.”
Jin Cheon recalled Dokgo Seong separating his soul after hearing Dharma Emperor Awangra’s words.
If there was a difference, Dokgo Seong did not even engage in the consciousness that his soul was abraded and dirty in the first place.
He had merely prepared the Soul-Splitting and Life-Returning Great Art in preparation for his possible death.
Though eventually, both the Dharma Emperor and Dokgo Seong came to be in the same position by dividing the soul into several pieces.
“Then, I will ask one thing.”
Jin Cheon spoke to Dharma Emperor Awangra after contemplation.
“Can different souls become one?”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Literally. I mean, can different people’s souls be combined into one.”
“That is.”
Dharma Emperor Awangra’s face hardened.
It was an expression clearly showing that just imagining it was terrible.
“How can you speak of such a dangerous idea?”
“Because there is a possibility that such a thing happened.”
“Surely.”
Dharma Emperor Awangra’s face hardened even more stiffly.
Inferring roughly the meaning of Jin Cheon’s words, he thought that the First Heavenly Demon Dokgo Seong and his separated other soul might have combined with each other.
“According to what I grasp, currently the First Heavenly Demon Dokgo Seong is inside the Potala Palace. But what is the probability that the other you did not notice that?”
“……I assert there is none.”
“Then it means the two souls combined into one, or they exist respectively and are joining forces.”
“If such a thing happened…… a catastrophe hard to even imagine will unfold.”
“As expected, right?”
Jin Cheon made a twisted smile as if he knew it.
First Heavenly Demon Dokgo Seong.
And Dalai Dharma Emperor.
If it is the union of two corrupt souls, wouldn’t they be able to wield all sorts of magic arts never seen or heard of anywhere?
For Jin Cheon, who had to face such a monster in the future, it was truly a headache.
“Eventually, is there only one answer?”
“By answer, you mean…….”
“We must join hands, right?”
Jin Cheon reached out his hand toward Dharma Emperor Awangra.