wavenovel Chapter 273 : Thousand-Year Seeking Dao Institute
Chapter 273 : Thousand-Year Seeking Dao Institute
Chapter 273: Thousand-Year Seeking Dao Institute
After the clash between the Heavenly Blade Lord and the Heavenly Demon Lord Muk Geom-yeong, Jang Sam-bong asked the Heavenly Blade Lord for one favor.
-At least for a while, please watch over the Central Heavens Martial Realm.
Unable to refuse the request of the severely injured Jang Sam-bong, the Heavenly Blade Lord blocked the strange beings targeting the Central Heavens Martial Realm from outside.
“Ah, what a pain. This is all because of that black bastard and that serpent bastard.”
Because the Dragon Emperor Heavenly Lord had stirred up trouble and the Heavenly Demon Lord rampaged wildly, she had ended up becoming the protector of the Central Heavens Martial Realm despite never wanting such a role.
Right now, floating before her was the fragmented corpse of the Ten-Thousand-Year Centipede, a gigantic centipede said to devour even dragons.
“What a peaceful life I could’ve had if not for those bastards. I’m old already, so what the hell am I even doing?”
The Heavenly Blade Lord lazily waved her hand.
A gigantic burning blade descended from the heavens and incinerated the shattered centipede corpse.
“I don’t want to do this. Seriously don’t want to. Hm?”
While grumbling, the Heavenly Blade Lord suddenly turned her head to one side.
Far away, she sensed the energy of an unpleasant bastard.
“That serpent came outside?”
Yong Cheon-myeong called himself a dragon, but the way he acted resembled a sinister serpent hiding in darkness while hunting prey.
As long as he remained within his territory, it was difficult to invade recklessly.
No one knew what preparations Yong Cheon-myeong might have made, considering he had even defeated the previous Sword Heavenly Lord.
“He came this far?”
A sinister energy could be felt far away from Yong Cheon-myeong’s territory.
This meant he had opened his Microcosm and that his true body, not a Projection, had personally moved.
“You just wait.”
The Heavenly Blade Lord slashed through the air with the blade she held.
The dimension known as the Central Heavens Realm split apart, revealing a void resembling outer space.
Smiling, she stepped forward.
---
“Ah, he already ran away!”
The sinister energy that had filled one part of the Central Heavens Martial Realm abruptly vanished.
Yong Cheon-myeong’s Microcosm had disappeared.
‘At this point, it should already be over.’
The Heavenly Blade Lord stopped midway toward Yong Cheon-myeong’s location.
As she debated whether or not she should continue—
She noticed several people fleeing while being chased by dozens of dragons.
“What are those brats now?”
Unable to suppress her curiosity, the Heavenly Blade Lord appeared before the fleeing group.
She spoke to the fool apparently trying to die alone and instantly erased the pursuing dragons.
“Heavenly Blade Lord…….”
“Oh? At least you’ve got some sense.”
The Heavenly Blade Lord’s gaze turned toward the spellcaster who had recognized her.
“What are you people doing? And why are you being chased by that serpent?”
“…….”
At the question, Seon Tae-gyeong nervously stepped in front of Yong Seo-hee.
Although the Heavenly Blade Lord had helped them, he could not relax since he had no idea what her intentions were.
“Don’t be so scared. Maybe I’m trying to help.”
The Heavenly Blade Lord smiled as she stretched out her hand before lowering it again.
“Huh?”
“What the……?”
At some point, Jang Woo-hyun was already in her grasp.
“Let’s save this brat first. He’s practically dying.”
Smiling, the Heavenly Blade Lord drew her blade and stabbed directly into Jang Woo-hyun’s side.
“Stop!”
“Please wait!”
Startled, Yong Seo-hee and Seon Tae-gyeong rushed forward.
However, the moment the Heavenly Blade Lord’s gaze turned toward them, both froze in place.
It was not because fear stiffened their bodies.
They simply could not move.
An incomprehensible force bound the two of them.
“Just wait.”
The Heavenly Blade Lord pulled the blade from Jang Woo-hyun’s side.
Puhwak!
Green smoke burst out wildly.
A short while later—
Jang Woo-hyun’s condition improved.
The white energy that had poured from his mouth as though he were vomiting blood disappeared.
His body stopped trembling, and he no longer expelled white energy.
The stab from the blade had not been an attack.
She had merely drawn out the poisonous energy inside his body.
“That serpent bastard really does disgusting things.”
Shaking the unconscious Jang Woo-hyun in her hand, the Heavenly Blade Lord spoke.
“Well then, let’s introduce ourselves. I’m Seonwoo Baek-rin.”
At that instant, a heavy pressure spread outward.
Merely hearing the Heavenly Blade Lord’s name nearly caused Seon Tae-gyeong and Yong Seo-hee to collapse.
The Heavenly Blade Lord, Seonwoo Baek-rin.
Although she appeared endlessly carefree, there was dignity and composure hidden within her.
At times, she resembled a wandering warrior more than an absolute ruler of the martial world.
It was not an act.
That temperament was simply part of Seonwoo Baek-rin’s nature.
“I am Yong Seo-hee of the Divine Dragon Family.”
“I belong to the Demon-Slaying Corps. My name is Seon Tae-gyeong.”
“The Demon-Slaying Corps?”
Hearing the name for the first time, Seonwoo Baek-rin showed interest.
She asked several more questions, and Seon Tae-gyeong began recounting everything they had experienced.
The battle between the Five Elements Cult and the Radiant Light Sect.
The passage to the Corpse-Blood Realm created by Hyeonwol.
The Dream Heavenly Lord coming to close the passage.
The sudden appearance of the Dragon Emperor Heavenly Lord, who attacked everyone.
And finally, how they fled and encountered the Heavenly Blade Lord Seonwoo Baek-rin.
As he finished explaining everything, Seon Tae-gyeong suddenly found himself wondering.
‘Is this even real?’
The Six Heavenly Lords were beings most people would never encounter even once in their lifetime.
Even Seon Tae-gyeong, who was fairly well-known within the Central Heavens Martial Realm, had only seen the Dream Heavenly Lord once before.
Yet today, he had encountered three of them.
The Dream Heavenly Lord, the Dragon Emperor Heavenly Lord, and now the Heavenly Blade Lord.
Even if the Dream Heavenly Lord had only been a Projection, he wondered whether this kind of thing was even possible.
‘How did things end up like this?’
It felt as though he had been swept into some enormous current.
Antlered White Mask, one of the Ten Thrones of the Radiant Light Sect, was recognized no matter where one went within the Central Heavens Martial Realm.
But now, that meant nothing.
In the current situation, it felt as though even the Seventeen Lords were insufficient.
Only someone on the level of the Ten Thrones truly mattered.
As Seon Tae-gyeong considered the reason behind this absurd situation, his gaze shifted toward Jang Woo-hyun.
‘It’s because of the Division Leader.’
Jang Woo-hyun of the Cheonrin Sword Alliance.
He had been strange from the moment they first met.
When he claimed to have fought together with the Great Monster Wind-Passing Great Sage of the Demonic Spirit Realm, Seon Tae-gyeong had thought he was insane.
Yet after confirming it, he realized it had not been a lie.
And every event afterward had been equally absurd.
He summoned the Wind-Passing Great Sage and treated him like a friend.
He accepted the Battle Fiend Division, called the craziest lunatics in the White Martial Society, as subordinates.
Not only had he defeated the Heavenly Demon of the Gathering Demon Hall, but the enemies he opposed were True Immortals and their followers.
He executed the traitor of the Five Elements Cult, aided the war against the Radiant Light Sect, and even survived after falling into the Corpse-Blood Realm.
Looking at everything he had done so far, he was writing a completely new history for the Central Heavens Martial Realm.
Perhaps the current situation had been inevitable from the moment they became entangled with Jang Woo-hyun.
“So the Five Elements Cult is where the serpent is?”
At Seonwoo Baek-rin’s question, Seon Tae-gyeong pulled his gaze away from Jang Woo-hyun.
“Yes. The Five Elements Cult, the Demon-Slaying Corps, and remnants of the Radiant Light Sect are still there. Heavenly Lord, I have a request.”
Normally, he would never have dared say such a thing.
The heavens of the Central Heavens Realm might cut off his head for his insolence.
But in order to save his comrades, Seon Tae-gyeong took the risk.
“Please save our compani—”
“It’s over.”
Seonwoo Baek-rin cut him off.
Instead of cutting off his head, she merely shook her head.
“……What do you mean by that?”
“The situation’s already finished. If they escaped, then good for them. Otherwise, they’re all dead.”
“…….”
The eyes of Seon Tae-gyeong and Yong Seo-hee trembled violently.
The words were so shocking that both stood blankly for quite some time.
The first to recover was Seon Tae-gyeong.
“……Everyone must have escaped safely.”
He forcibly discarded negative thoughts and tried to think as positively as possible.
Otherwise, it felt impossible to endure.
“R-Right? Everyone’s strong after all. They definitely escaped.”
Yong Seo-hee also nodded vigorously beside him.
If everyone had truly died, then the three of them here would be all that remained of the Demon-Slaying Corps.
Even imagining such a thing was horrifying.
Seon Tae-gyeong and Yong Seo-hee trusted their comrades.
Everyone must have survived somehow and escaped.
“But why did the serpent appear? I really can’t understand what he’s thinking.”
Seonwoo Baek-rin extended the unconscious Jang Woo-hyun toward them.
“Take this brat. And you two are coming with me.”
As Yong Seo-hee accepted Jang Woo-hyun, Seonwoo Baek-rin turned her head to one side.
Toward the direction where Yong Cheon-myeong was located.
“Sinister bastard, if you’re still watching, then come after me. I’ll deal with you myself.”
Kurururung.
Seonwoo Baek-rin’s will crossed through space itself.
If it was Yong Cheon-myeong, he would undoubtedly hear her words.
After provoking Yong Cheon-myeong, Seonwoo Baek-rin took Jang Woo-hyun’s group and departed.
---
The battle against the Gyoma King ended in Yong Cheon-myeong’s victory.
No matter how capable the Gyoma King was at controlling dragons, the difference in power between them was enormous.
The summoned Gyoma King only possessed power at the Infinite Realm.
The only reason she endured at all was because she was a being capable of controlling dragons.
Had it been anyone else, they would have been torn apart and erased the moment they were summoned.
Even after dealing with the Gyoma King, Yong Cheon-myeong did not leave the place where he stood.
He remained motionless, staring at the silver nail embedded in his palm.
He paid attention to nothing else.
He ignored the fleeing survivors and even disregarded Seonwoo Baek-rin’s provocation echoing from afar.
Slowly, Yong Cheon-myeong moved his hand and grasped the silver nail.
Along with a tingling sensation, someone’s voice echoed out.
When he had first been struck by the silver nail, he became so focused on understanding the will transmitted through it that he even forgot about capturing Jang Woo-hyun alive.
This was undoubtedly the power of a True Immortal.
And the lingering thought embedded within it also belonged to a True Immortal.
As Yong Cheon-myeong removed the silver nail, he read the lingering thought contained inside.
The will and voice of a True Immortal.
At first, what he heard was no different from the message Kim Min-soo had deciphered and relayed to Jang Woo-hyun.
【……Th……ose……fragments……from another world……◆■ ◆҉■҉wor҉ms҉…҉ ◆ ҉■҉ ҉punishment҉…҉ ҉ ◆ retches…….】
A voice filled with heavy static.
To hear the complete message, Yong Cheon-myeong manifested his will.
He wanted to hear more.
He wanted to approach the hidden truth.
The dragon blood flowing within his body answered that desire.
Light burst from his vertical pupils, and the horns atop his head began shining brilliantly.
The dragon’s eyes allowed him to see the unseen.
Its ears allowed him to hear everything.
He approached the hidden will and deciphered the lingering thought.
A short while later—
A completely restored sentence emerged from Yong Cheon-myeong’s mouth.
Standing motionless, he repeated those words for a long time.
“Insects who obtained fragments from those who came from another world.”
It was completely different from what Kim Min-soo and Jang Woo-hyun had expected.
---
The Ten Sects and Three Clans were the thirteen great powers representing the Central Heavens Martial Realm.
The Divine Dragon Family.
A clan said to have inherited the blood of dragons.
The Sovereign-Ruling Family.
Originally a family gathered through blood relations, it had now become an organization of people united by common goals.
They prioritized profit above all else.
It resembled the unorthodox sects of the Lower Realm, and many ascended practitioners of the unorthodox path belonged to it.
The Heavenly Sword Family.
A clan serving the martial artist who first earned the title Sword Immortal.
Due to attacks from the Divine Dragon Family and the Sovereign-Ruling Family, that name had now vanished from history.
The Samcheong Taeguk Sect.
The center of the righteous path within the Central Heavens Martial Realm.
Daoist martial artists and ascended practitioners from the righteous sects of the Lower Realm mainly belonged there.
The Gathering Demon Hall.
The homeland of all demonic practitioners.
The origin of the demonic path.
It was the ideal land sought by those who walked the demonic path.
The Five Wheel Five Elements Cult.
A group of practitioners who cultivated the unique martial-spell arts known as Five Elements Qi.
Since ancient times, they worshipped an artificial god that had always remained with them, which was why they bore the name Five Elements Cult.
The Radiant Light Sect.
The greatest alliance of spellcasters in the Central Heavens Martial Realm.
Whether native to the Central Heavens or ascended spellcasters from the Murim Realm, most possessed ties to the Radiant Light Sect.
The Beast King Alliance Sect.
A massive faction created long ago to save oppressed Beastkin.
Most of its disciples were Beastkin, and it served as the central force for Beastkin within the Central Heavens Realm.
The Solar Palace of Flame.
A sect composed of those who cultivated Heat Yang Energy techniques or were born with fire-aligned constitutions.
Its territories were often transformed into deserts due to the overwhelming Fire Qi gathered there.
The Northern Heavens Ice Palace.
A sect standing opposite to the Solar Palace of Flame.
Most members cultivated Yin Cold Qi techniques or possessed innate Yin Qi or Water Qi constitutions.
Their territory was mostly covered in snowy mountains or freezing lands.
The Myriad Streams White Martial Society.
A gathering of lunatics obsessed with martial arts and endlessly pursuing greater strength.
Regardless of purpose, race, or profit, they gathered solely for battle and martial arts.
The White Martial Society was also known as the most troublesome force to become entangled with in the Central Heavens Martial Realm.
The Central Heavens Guardian Sword Pavilion.
An organization that worshipped and followed the protector of the Central Heavens Martial Realm.
In truth, it was too small in number to even properly be called a sect.
Yet it was counted among the Ten Sects because the owner of the Sword Pavilion was the Sword Heavenly Lord.
After the death of the previous Sword Heavenly Lord, it had now faded into the back pages of history.
And lastly among the Ten Sects and Three Clans—
The Thousand-Year Seeking Dao Institute.
A group prioritizing cultivation and enlightenment over battle and combat.
Those who contemplated deeply and sought Ascension through reflection were known as the seekers of the Thousand-Year Seeking Dao Institute.
Overall, it was a quiet sect.
Even the people walking around there tried to avoid making loud noises whenever possible.
In that unusual place, Jin Ha-un opened his mouth.
“So this is the Thousand-Year Seeking Dao Institute.”
He had heard the name before.
And he had been curious about it.
But he never expected to arrive here like this.
Jin Ha-un and the other members of the Demon-Slaying Corps had arrived at the Thousand-Year Seeking Dao Institute after belatedly following Jang Woo-hyun.