novelraw Chapter 71 : It's an Order (1)
Chapter 71 : It's an Order (1)
The Divine Monk, standing in front of Yoo Jae-ha, recalled the past.
The Gansu Province battle had resulted in neither victory nor defeat for anyone.
Instead, it had raised a new problem in the martial world.
That there was a third force in the martial world besides the Orthodox and Demonic factions.
The aftermath was greater than expected. The Demonic Cult had ceased all external activities and chosen to seal its gates.
However, unlike a sealing done out of weakness after losing power, this was a sealing done while retaining their full strength, so no one thought the Demonic Cult's influence had diminished.
The Demonic Cult had simply made the decision to seal its gates to consolidate its internal affairs.
Perhaps when the sealing was over, the Demonic Cult would draw the hidden blade it had been sharpening.
It was unknown where that blade would be pointed.
And the Orthodox Faction, too, had undergone many changes over the past three months.
First and foremost, the Suicide Squad had disappeared. Thus, the new rising masters who had belonged to it returned to their respective sects, and the Orthodox Faction also did its best to weed out the third force that had infiltrated the sects in order to consolidate its internal affairs.
However, this was not a complete solution. The Orthodox Faction would have to give something up to the Demonic Cult again in the future when it unsealed its gates, and this time, there was a high probability that they would lose more than what they had lost in the past.
Therefore, there was one great man who urged for change.
The current head of the Namgung family and the man called the number one sword of the Orthodox Faction before the Sword Emperor appeared, Sword King Namgung Je.
He led the re-establishment of the Martial Alliance.
No one could object to the actions of the Sword King, who possessed both power and justification. Above all, if one were to object here, it was obvious that they would be branded as part of the third force.
The timing was too perfect.
Thus, the Demonic Cult chose to seal its gates to filter out the enemies within, and the Orthodox Faction was moving to gather its strength again, taking advantage of the temporary lifting of the Demonic Cult's pressure.
Currently, the Orthodox Faction was outwardly searching for the third force, and inwardly moving to establish the Martial Alliance.
***
The Shaolin Temple was also riding this current.
The Divine Monk had made every effort to find the third force hidden in the Shaolin Temple for the past three months, but in the end, he had only found about ten people.
And those ten people were only found because they had revealed their identities themselves; if they had hidden their identities and not revealed them, they were figures who would surely not have been found.
What was most surprising was that one of the third force members hidden in the Shaolin Temple was the head of the Disciplinary Hall.
He was a fellow disciple who had trained under the same master as the Divine Monk, and their relationship was so deep that it had already been half a century.
At a time when the shock of that had not yet subsided, the Divine Monk, as the greatest elder of the Orthodox Faction, had to confirm one fact.
Neither the Demonic Cult nor the Orthodox Faction had known of their existence until they revealed themselves.
Even after they actually revealed themselves, it was still a mystery.
The search was ongoing, but the effect was minimal. Above all, it was extremely suspicious that they had revealed their identities themselves in this situation.
The Lord of the Demonic Cult and the current number one in the world, Soul-Stealing Heavenly Demon Hyeok Sa-wol, had not noticed their existence.
The greatest elder of the Orthodox Faction and the Divine Monk, who had reached the Profound Realm, had also not noticed at all.
The same was true for other people.
But how did he know?
If one were to pick the most suspicious person at this point, it would naturally be the very person who had revealed all these facts to the world.
The Divine Monk had investigated this man, Yoo Jae-ha, for the past three months. And there was not just one or two suspicious points.
His past was too clean.
As if he had suddenly appeared in the world.
Like them, the third force.
He couldn't even find out his name.
Therefore, the Divine Monk had to confirm.
About this man.
To do that, he had to not die, so the Divine Monk used all the means he could to save the man.
If he were to die, all the things that had been revealed might sink back under the surface and never show themselves to the world again.
Currently, this man was the only one in the martial world who knew the most about them.
Fortunately, the man woke up healthy, and he was finally able to confirm.
Where the man belonged.
Whether he was a spy sent by the Demonic Cult.
Whether he was a spy of the third force.
Whether he was a member of the Orthodox Faction.
The Divine Monk stood in front of the man, Yoo Jae-ha.
To solve the situation that had become twisted.
"I am sorry to make such a proposal as soon as you have regained consciousness."
"It's alright. I've been lying down for a long time, so I wanted to stretch my body too."
A tone as if a duel with him was no big deal.
Had he ever been so blatantly ignored by someone after reaching the Profound Realm?
Come to think of it, it had happened a while ago when he went to the Demonic Cult. The Heavenly Demon was the real deal. If he hadn't bowed his head so low, he would have ascended by now and been seeing his Wudang friend.
"I heard you played a big role in the Gansu Province battle."
"I just sacrificed for the martial world. I only did what I had to do."
Just from his words, it sounded as if he were some noble monk. But the Divine Monk, who knew the hidden facts behind the revealed circumstances, could not believe those words at face value.
Because the ones who had hidden their identities until now had also been like that.
The Divine Monk intended to fight with all his might.
To the extent that the man would actually think he might die if this continued.
That way, he would spit out the truth.
If he was an enemy, he would subdue him and torture him until he confessed the truth. He had also made preparations for that. The best torture technician was now in this Shaolin Temple.
The Medicine Sage, Dang-ho.
He was the best in the Orthodox Faction at saving people, but conversely, he was also the best at killing people.
Life and death, the difference was how you flipped the paper.
If not, he could just apologize.
If he said, 'The situation was like this, so I did this,' the man, who had also sacrificed himself for the martial world, would surely understand, saying, 'It was an unavoidable sacrifice for the greater good.'
Therefore, the Divine Monk did his best in this duel with all his heart.
"Huh?"
"A killing move?"
This situation was by no means what he had predicted.
'It was blocked.'
And too ridiculously at that.
For a moment, he thought he had made a mistake.
"A mistake? I don't think so. Right? It would be strange to kill someone and then say, 'Oh, sorry! It was a mistake,' wouldn't it?"
Yoo Jae-ha was definitely not this strong when they first met.
Although it was true that Yoo Jae-ha had reached a realm unprecedented for his age, from the perspective of the Divine Monk who had reached the Profound Realm, he was still a distant junior.
"Did the Divine Monk join their side? Is that why you're trying to kill me?"
Something had changed.
A cold sweat ran down his spine.
"Amitabha."
He chants the name of Buddha to calm his mind.
"Amitabha my ass. You bastard!"
He's a man who will be punished by heaven for insulting Buddha.
"I knew someone would come to kill me, but I never imagined it would be the Divine Monk. How absurd."
Yoo Jae-ha’s tone had become short. The man, who was approaching while tilting his neck back and forth, was the spitting image of a ruffian. However, the momentum he felt was like the great sea.
'Can I win?'
The answer did not come easily.
"Some people throw away their own lives to save others, while others, well. There are people who work and people who play and eat separately, right?"
Come to think of it, the one who had been playing and eating for the past three months was that man.
"Let's start by lightly piercing your stomach."
He could see the sword being raised.
At that moment, the symbol of the Profound Realm appeared in his eyes.
That was a phenomenon where the enlightenment that a person who had transcended the realm had gained was engraved on their soul.
Of course, since it only appeared when revealing the power of the Profound Realm, it could also be hidden forever if one intended to.
And this was proof that the man had entered the Profound Realm.
"W-wait! Let me just say something!"
"Yeah! Let's see if you can still be so relaxed after your stomach is pierced!"
"I just!"
"No questions asked!"
The sword fell.
Its speed was so incredibly fast that it was as if space itself was being compressed.
At this, the Divine Monk also had no choice but to use all his power.
Then, a mark appears in the Divine Monk's pupils as well.
'Hwa (花)'.
The enlightenment the Divine Monk had gained after long training was that a flower blooms even in the mud.
To live meant to be exposed to numerous desires.
The Divine Monk had lived for nearly a hundred years.
He had always overcome all the desires that came to him head-on.
Because he believed that that was the path a person who had taken refuge in Buddhism should walk.
The destination he had reached at the end was the place where he was standing now.
Although he had gone through numerous mudflats, he had not fallen into them and had finally made a flower bloom.
Therefore, the flower that had bloomed was not stained with filth, always moved towards the truth, and even if his humble body grew old and shabby with age, its reason for existence did not wither with time.
The Divine Monk had succeeded in making the flower that only he had cherished bloom.
'Yeonhwa (莲华).'
The only flower that bloomed in the mud.
At this moment, a silence falls upon the Divine Monk's world.
His mental strength, cultivated for a hundred years, had now transcended what could be called human.
To put a definition on it, the Divine Monk now could be said to be a being close to Buddha.
Therefore, the Divine Monk's eyes could see the answer to this situation.
It was like a divination that did not go through consciousness.
The Divine Monk called this mastery.
A realm beyond enlightenment, a realm of finding the answer.
He understands just by looking.
Where that sword will fall.
What kind of power it possesses.
On what principle it is being swung.
What kind of strength the hand holding the sword has, where the center of gravity is, what kind of power the respective muscles that perform it have, what the flow of internal energy is, and so on.
All the information about the being in front of him comes in.
Therefore, he could tell. The moment that sword touched his stomach, he would have to live with his stomach pierced forever, a cruel truth.
What mastery tells is a future more accurate than future sight.
Therefore, the Divine Monk accepts.
The immutable truth that must happen.
The Divine Monk opened his mouth as quickly as possible.
"I'm sorry for the misunderstanding! I thought you were the enemy!"
Stab!
The sharp point of the sword stopped, having just barely pierced the outer skin of his stomach.
"That's strange! Only you alone know a fact that no one else knows!"
The sword is withdrawn.
"Come to think of it, that's true."
"My point exactly!"
The Divine Monk found himself becoming servile to a man not even twenty years old. So what!
Was he not able to protect his precious stomach with this one humiliation!
Even a lotus flower will die if it is cut.
"Still, it was too much to just punch me in the stomach. I have a bit of a bad memory with my stomach, so I'm sensitive."
"I see! I didn't know! I'll be careful not to let such a thing happen again!"
"No, it's alright. I can see how my actions could have been suspicious. By the way, didn't you also show me too much consideration, Divine Monk?"
"Consideration?"
"Yes. I was a little excited about the matter just now, but I wanted to see how much I had improved after gaining a small enlightenment, but if you do nothing like this, I can't know."
"Haha! Right! That's right!"
"So, I'll try my best, so please gauge how much I've improved."
"Um... wasn't that your full power just now?"
"Roughly 50%? My body wasn't warmed up yet. Now that my body is warmed up, I think I can do it properly, what do you think? Now that we've cleared up the misunderstanding, let's end it cleanly with one last technique."
"Ugh! The pain from the stab just now is immense. Let's have the duel next time!"
To say it again, a flower will die if it is cut.
"It just barely touched the surface..."
"Then, I'll be going first!"
The Divine Monk thought. If that man had decided to kill him, there was no need to have kept him alive until now.
Therefore, that man was clearly an ally.
Yoo Jae-ha, bewildered by the sight of the Divine Monk, who was clearly faking his illness, turned his head at the presence he felt from behind.
"I need more blood!"
A crazy old man was shamelessly demanding blood, so he answered.
"Get lost."
He had become stronger.
To the extent that he could have a light duel with the Divine Monk, a master of the Profound Realm.
This was an amazing development compared to the past, but there was one fact he had bitterly realized from the last Gansu Province battle.
An individual can never defeat a group.
If the Rakshasa Divine Maiden had not awakened at that time, he would have undoubtedly died at the hands of his junior sister.
A bigger fight would be waiting in the future.
He also needed people who would move only for him.
The Medicine Sage, whose shoulders were slumped, was turning back powerlessly.
That quack was definitely not it.
Then the Divine Monk?
He had enough power and justification, but it didn't seem like he would move according to his will.
He called the Medicine Sage.
"I'll give you blood."
The Medicine Sage's slumped shoulders rose high.
He had something to ask.
"Do you know the date the Divine Monk was invited to the Namgung family?"
The Divine Monk dies when he goes to the Namgung family.
"It's in a month, why?"
There was more time than Yoo Jae-ha thought.
"I'll give you the blood next time. I have something urgent to do!"
Yoo Jae-ha went to the Divine Monk, leaving the Medicine Sage, whose shoulders had slumped again, behind.
The Divine Monk, seeing Yoo Jae-ha, was startled and chanted the name of Buddha.
"Amitabha. Y-yes. Why are you here? My stomach is still, ugh!"
"You're going to the Namgung family in a month, right?"
"That's right."
"I have somewhere urgent to go, so I can't explain in detail, but be especially careful of the Namgung family. Of course, I'll be going with you in a month."
If Yoo Jae-ha were to tell the Divine Monk here that he would die if he went to the Namgung family, the Divine Monk would surely become suspicious of him again.
Even if he asked for the reason, he couldn't answer, 'Because you died in the Namgung family before I regressed.'
Therefore, Yoo Jae-ha said only enough not to arouse suspicion.
"By the way, where are you going?"
Yoo Jae-ha made up a random excuse for this.
"To the Heavenly Maiden. I have to thank her for saving me."
"I see. If you want to meet that child, go to the Wudang Sect in Hubei."
"Yes."
Yoo Jae-ha answered vaguely. Because he had no intention of going anyway.
The place Yoo Jae-ha was going was not Hubei, but Xinjiang, which was called the Demonic Cult by the Orthodox Faction beyond it.
Because no matter how he thought about it, the only place where there were people who would not question what he said, would unconditionally take his side, and whom he could completely trust, was the Heavenly Demon Cult.
And so, after repeatedly telling the Divine Monk to be careful of the Namgung family, he left the Shaolin Temple.
And he happened to run into the Rakshasa Divine Maiden in the capital.
The Demonic Zenith and the Soul Detachment Realm have a clear difference.
The Demonic Zenith is a realm that transcends limits, and the Soul Detachment Realm is a realm that accepts the infinite.
What the infinite meant was different for each person.
Some called it the universe, some called it the sword, and some called it the dao.
Because it was not fixed, it was a realm where anything was possible, that was the Soul Detachment Realm.
Yoo Jae-ha had not completely entered the Soul Detachment Realm.
Yoo Jae-ha had just followed what his junior sister had done.
If the Divine Monk had done it properly at that time, he would have lost without being able to do anything.
Still, because he had glimpsed the Soul Detachment Realm, he could see things that he couldn't see before.
Like the immeasurable amount of Buddhist nature that the Divine Monk had accumulated.
It was like a single lotus flower blooming in the mud.
His soul was so clear and bright that just looking at it made his heart feel at ease.
Now, there was a person in front of Yoo Jae-ha. Chains as thick as an adult's forearm were wrapped around her entire body.
Grumble.
As soon as he regained consciousness, he was hungry because of the duel. He should eat a hearty meal before he leave.
"It's a good day for gukbap. How about some gukbap?"
"Is that an order?"
The chains reacted to the word 'order' and tightened around the woman even more.
Yoo Jae-ha said.
"Yeah. It's an order."
The Rakshasa Divine Maiden, Eun Ga-yeong.
Yoo Jae-ha intended to repay the debt of his life to her.
(End of Chapter)