Rumors that sent shockwaves through the martial world began to spread.
The Wind God Palace, which had not shown itself in the martial world for a long time, had been attacked by unidentified forces.
Even more surprising was the fact that the ones who discovered this first were none other than the Martial Soul Society, and that they had personally stepped forward to help the Wind God Palace and annihilate the enemies.
“Who would dare touch the Wind God Palace?”
Among the Four Gods passed down through the generations in the martial world, the Wind God had always been invincible. The disciples of the Wind God Palace could use the mysterious power known as Wind-Cloud Qi, which surpassed ordinary martial arts. No faction had ever even dared to think of invading them.
Yet what kind of force would dare to secretly strike the Wind God Palace?
“They were a mysterious force that had existed in the martial world for generations, and they were targeting the Wind God Palace’s Wind-Cloud Qi.”
The force known as the Eight Human Heavens could neither be explained to martial world people nor should it be explained. If their secretive identity were ever exposed, the subordinates of the True Demon might rampage across the martial world.
Thus, Bu Eunseol leaked information about the Eight Human Heavens using appropriately vague and plausible words.
“They were a sect that had branched off from the same root as the Wind God Palace long ago and harbored deep resentment toward them. After years of desperate preparation, this mysterious sect finally gathered enough forces to swallow the Wind God Palace and immediately launched a surprise attack.”
However, their movements were coincidentally detected by the Martial Soul Society. At that time, the Four Great Corps Leaders, who had a deep connection with the current Wind God, led elite warriors and immediately headed to the Wind God Palace.
The result was a resounding victory.
This was thanks to the relentless efforts of the Martial Soul Society’s warriors, who had undergone harsh training day after day.
“I will join the Martial Soul Society.”
The current Wind God, Palace Lord Hae Yeon, made a bold decision.
As an expression of gratitude toward the Martial Soul Society, which had fought for the Wind God Palace without asking for anything in return, she offered a vast amount of spiritual herbs and simultaneously proposed that they join the Martial Soul Society.
“The position of the Martial Soul Society will change now.”
Until now, the Martial Soul Society had built up a fairly large force, but unfortunately, the leaders of the outer factions and their troops accounted for more than half of the organization. Because it proclaimed itself as an unorthodox alliance between the righteous and demonic paths—a concept and banner that had never appeared in the martial world before—its position had remained somewhat ambiguous.
However, they had helped the Wind God Palace, one of the orthodox central plains factions passed down through the generations, and had even recruited them.
At this point, the martial world factions had no choice but to acknowledge that the Martial Soul Society was a united force of the central plains.
Moreover, through this incident, the Martial Soul Society had proven that it possessed formidable military power and was a faction capable of influencing the martial world’s political landscape.
From now on, their influence would only grow stronger, and someday they would become one of the major axes that moved the entire martial world.
***
Martial Alliance Elders’ Hall. Grand Conference Room.
There, the elders who controlled the Martial Alliance were secretly gathered for a meeting.
The purpose was to decide the fate of the Martial Alliance Leader, the Heavenly Emperor, who had not only failed to perform any of his duties but had also completely vanished into closed-door training.
The elders were seated around a large table, and at the center sat not the Elders’ Hall Master, but an old man known as the Wise Master.
He was the figure who represented the opinions of those rooted within the Martial Alliance. In a sense, he could be called the chief strategist of the shadows.
He usually did not show himself, but whenever an important matter arose, he would compile the opinions of all the elders and deliver them to the Martial Alliance Leader.
In truth, the veteran elders of the Elders’ Hall were no different. They appeared to do nothing but idle away their days with trivial tasks, but each of them oversaw their own organizations and quietly gathered wisdom for the operation and development of those groups.
Even if they seemed leisurely on the surface, they were making important decisions based on decades of experience and insight.
For example, Gwak Ja-cheong, the master of the Harmony Pavilion seated in the corner of the conference room, was in charge of the Martial Alliance’s secret assassination organization, the Blood Banner.
The master of the Myeongcheon Hall seated beside him, Jong Daemyeong, managed the secret organization known as the Seven Stars Hall, which secretly controlled the Black Faction.
In this way, the elders were effectively the hidden administrators who secretly managed numerous organizations that exerted influence both inside and outside the Martial Alliance.
Therefore, meetings of the Elders’ Hall were not only about internal Martial Alliance affairs but also served as a place to coordinate the opinions of countless interest groups.
“It seems we can no longer delay the selection of the next Alliance Leader.”
Gwak Ja-cheong rose from his seat and spoke in a hoarse voice.
“Especially the current Alliance Leader, Shin Domubi. He has caused various problems in the past as well. However, because he became a symbol of the righteous path… we could not expel him from the position of Alliance Leader.”
He raised his voice even louder.
“But now he has become completely useless baggage. Because of his negligent management, the Azure Sky Alliance was born and the youth faction of the Martial Alliance was split apart.”
Upon hearing this, Mak Cheonpung, the master of the Hoyeon Pavilion—who was in charge of exchanging information with the demonic path factions—spoke up.
“Isn’t the splitting of our alliance actually more convenient? The useless opinions of the senior members have decreased as well.”
“Nonsense.” Gwak Ja-cheong replied. “If the visible authority of the Martial Alliance disappears, our influence will eventually vanish as well.”
Then, Jong Daemyeong, the master of the Myeongcheon Hall, spoke.
“Isn’t influence ultimately relative? Until now, the Martial Alliance has never been shaken no matter what happened and has steadily maintained its existence, hasn’t it?”
He shrugged his shoulders.
“When looking back at the history of our alliance, something like this doesn’t seem particularly worrisome.”
As opinions clashed and the discussion grew longer, the elders eventually turned their gaze toward the Wise Master.
After all, it was he who was responsible for deciding whose opinion to accept and how to convey it to the higher-ups.
“I agree with the opinion that we must quickly select the next Alliance Leader.”
The Wise Master stroked his chin.
“However, considering the influence and symbolic value of the current Alliance Leader, Shin Domubi…”
Creak.
At that moment, the door opened and a middle-aged man dressed in white strode in without hesitation.
He had a gentle face with strikingly white sideburns, and a golden dragon ornament was pinned in his hair.
The Heavenly Emperor, Shin Domubi.
No—it was the Martial Venerable, disguised as the Heavenly Emperor.
“The elders were holding a meeting, I see.”
The Martial Venerable smiled brightly and walked straight over to sit in the empty central seat.
“Since I have broken my closed-door training after a long time and returned to duty, shall I listen to your opinions directly now?”
The elders exchanged glances.
It was a principle that the Alliance Leader did not attend elders’ meetings.
Moreover, the man who had always been in closed-door training had suddenly appeared here and was speaking so casually?
“Alliance Leader.”
At that moment, Gwak Ja-cheong opened his mouth with a displeased expression.
“This is the place where the elders’ meeting is held. No matter if you are the Alliance Leader, you cannot enter as you please.”
“I am aware.”
The Martial Venerable looked straight at Gwak Ja-cheong and asked.
“But doesn’t it seem strange?”
“What does?”
“The rule that the Alliance Leader who manages the alliance cannot enter the elders’ meeting.”
“Alliance Leader.”
Gwak Ja-cheong spoke with a solemn expression.
“That is the alliance rule passed down through the generations of our alliance.”
“That is exactly why I find that generational alliance rule strange.”
The Martial Venerable spoke calmly.
“Why is it that I, the one who manages this alliance, am not allowed to directly hear the opinions of the elders? I simply cannot understand-”
Then, the Wise Master, who had remained silent until now, abruptly cut him off.
“Seeing that the Alliance Leader has personally attended the meeting, it seems you have some noteworthy opinion of your own.”
Even though the Wise Master had interrupted him mid-sentence, the Martial Venerable answered without any sign of displeasure.
“Not at all. I truly came because I was curious. And…”
He grinned.
“I fully agree with the opinion mentioned earlier that we should quickly select the next Alliance Leader.”
The moment their eyes met, a sharp glint flashed in the Wise Master’s eyes, which were hidden beneath his long drooping eyebrows.
‘He has changed.’
The aura of the Heavenly Emperor, Shin Domubi, had completely transformed.
It had reached a level that even he could not ignore.
No—if all the elders here attacked together, the outcome would no longer be certain.
“Then, Alliance Leader, you will ultimately follow the results of the elders’ meeting?”
“That is correct.”
The Martial Venerable smiled gently.
“And from today onward, I intend to continue attending the elders’ meetings.”
Gwak Ja-cheong sneered at that.
“Won’t you just go back into closed-door training anyway?”
“Do you think more closed-door training is necessary?”
The Martial Venerable looked at Gwak Ja-cheong and smiled.
In that instant, the sneer on Gwak Ja-cheong’s lips vanished completely.
Merely meeting his gaze had caused such intense pain that it felt as though his eyes would burn away.
“Cough.”
It was not only Gwak Ja-cheong; every elder present felt it.
The Heavenly Emperor, Shin Domubi—the man who had reached the position of the greatest expert of the righteous path yet had always carried a generous aura and shown the appearance of a good person—had suddenly begun radiating an intense energy like the sun.
Faced with that sharp and explosive momentum, the elders felt a suffocating pressure.
An awkward silence fell for a moment.
Unable to endure the heavy atmosphere any longer, the Wise Master spoke.
“If the Alliance Leader wishes to attend the elders’ meeting, it would violate the generational alliance rules. If you truly wish to attend… it seems we would need to go through the Grand Justice Assembly to amend the rules.”
“I see.”
The Martial Venerable nodded, rose from his seat, and looked around the conference room before smiling faintly.
“There is no need to go that far.”
“……”
“I was just saying it casually.”
In that instant, the elders’ expressions turned bizarre.
‘Just saying it casually.’
Such words were absolutely impossible to utter in an elders’ meeting—utter nonsense that no one would dare say in front of the elders.
Regardless, the Martial Venerable politely bowed.
“I apologize for interrupting the meeting.”
He slowly turned around and left the conference room.
The elders’ faces stiffened as they watched his departing back.
Only the Wise Master nodded slightly, as if he somewhat understood.
He knew that the Heavenly Emperor’s internal energy had greatly declined for some unknown reason.
That was why he had not found the repeated closed-door training particularly strange.
It must have been an effort to regain his strength.
‘But he has become too strong.’
Even if he had recovered all his power, for someone who had reached such a level of martial prowess to suddenly achieve another leap in cultivation…
It was an unprecedented event that could not be found anywhere in the history of the martial world.
‘It seems we need not a simple adjustment, but a complete reevaluation.’
The Martial Alliance had stood at the center of the martial world for a long time, and its influence could be described as absolute.
Yet there were forces that could not be touched…
What if the Heavenly Emperor was connected to them?
All plans up until now could be thrown into disarray.
***
After leaving the Elders’ Hall, the Martial Venerable walked leisurely toward the Heaven and Earth Pavilion. However, the place where his steps stopped was not the Heaven and Earth Pavilion, but the Martial Alliance’s archive pavilion, the Solitary Enlightenment Hall, located directly opposite it.
“Hmm.”
He looked up at the Solitary Enlightenment Hall for a moment.
Come to think of it, it was truly a strange place.
The Solitary Enlightenment Hall, where the secret martial arts manuals of the righteous path were stored, had existed alongside the history of the Martial Alliance. In reality, it was more like a treasure vault than an archive.
Complex mechanisms that ordinary warriors could never see were installed everywhere, because hidden within it were mysterious books not listed in the official archive catalog.
‘Fate, huh.’
Those hidden books were things that the various organizations crouching in the darkness of the Martial Alliance had concealed.
And the reason they had hidden them was said to be to find successors who would carry on their will.
Even he, the Alliance Leader, had no way of knowing what books were there or who managed them.
The previous Alliance Leader, Cheol Muhon’s signature technique, the Heon Won Bright Sword, had also been discovered by chance in the Solitary Enlightenment Hall. However, the original had mysteriously disappeared after Cheol Muhon’s death, and only half of it had finally been found by Bu Eunseol.
‘You have always been like that.’
The beings crouching in the abyss of the Martial Alliance acted as if they were gods, manipulating the people of the world like pieces on a chessboard from the palm of their hands.
But the Martial Venerable had now escaped their grasp and soon, he would completely sever the chains of bondage they had created.
Creak.
Having finished his thoughts, the Martial Venerable opened the door of the Solitary Enlightenment Hall without hesitation and stepped inside.
As he entered, an old man with pure white hair slowly revealed himself, as if he had been waiting.
It was the master of the Solitary Enlightenment Hall, the Hidden Forest Pavilion Master, Mok Do-in.
“Alliance Leader.”
“Pavilion Master.”
The two greeted each other warmly, like old friends.
“Congratulations, Alliance Leader. You have achieved great success.”
“You flatter me.”
The Martial Venerable was modest.
“It is merely a small accomplishment. Nothing worth boasting about.”
The conversation was warm and friendly, but the eyes of the two men staring at each other were as cold and sunken as frozen glaciers.
“What brings you here?”
Instead of answering, the Martial Venerable spread the powerful energies flowing within his body in all directions.
Shrrrr.
Then, black ink seemed to flow down over every visible scenery.
It was as if the real world was being visualized as one entering a nightmare.
Gurgle.
Finally, when everything was completely enveloped in perfect darkness, the Martial Venerable spoke in an utterly cold voice.
“I will speak briefly.”
Using his original voice and raising a momentum that seemed capable of tearing the world apart, he said, “Do not interfere in my affairs again.”
“Interfere?”
Mok Do-in shook his head.
“We maintain a neutral stance and do not take any side.”
“Neutral?”
The Martial Venerable’s voice was so icy cold that it seemed as though ice powder would scatter from it.
“You leisurely move between both sides observing, and you think you have become a god?”
“……”
“Or was it fun to manipulate everything in place of the Clear River Realm Lord while claiming to uphold neutrality?”
At that moment, Mok Do-in’s kind eyes turned sharp.
“Alliance Leader—no, Dan Mok-gi.”
Before anyone realized, Mok Do-in’s pupils had become a pair of blazing red ghost lanterns, and his teeth, which had once formed soft curves like corn kernels, had turned jagged like saw blades.
“Whether you used that strange coffin and the secret passages inside the Solitary Enlightenment Hall or played the role of the Heavenly Emperor… this old man has never intervened.”
Mok Do-in’s face twisted grotesquely like a nightmare from a dream.
“But if you provoke this old man just because you gained some trivial power, truly unpleasant things will happen from now on. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
“Fufufu.”
Instead, the Martial Venerable burst into maniacal laughter.
“Hahahahaha!”
After laughing madly for a long time, he suddenly stopped.
With a cold expression, he said, “Instead of just talking, why don’t you try using your hands?”
“Are you saying you will stop pretending to be the Martial Alliance Leader?”
“I could erase the Martial Alliance entirely.”
Madness flickered in the Martial Venerable’s eyes.
Sensing that these words were not empty threats, Mok Do-in slowly opened his mouth.
“State clearly what you want. Only then can I decide whether to erase the Martial Alliance or erase you.”
With an extremely serious expression, the Martial Venerable said, “Restore the Absolute Array once more.”
Light burst from his eyes as he continued.
“He is mine.”
“You seem to be mistaken.”
Mok Do-in shook his head.
“That person left the Absolute Array on his own feet. That is something we cannot interfere with.”
“Are you hoping that I will destroy the Martial Alliance from my side?”
The Martial Venerable began to radiate a sharp energy as if he would act at any moment.
“He, who can read heavenly secrets instantaneously, has had his whereabouts exposed?”
“…I understand what you mean now.”
Having finally grasped the situation, Mok Do-in spoke calmly.
“I promise that I will absolutely not interfere in what happens from now on.”
As if satisfied with the answer, the flames burning in the Martial Venerable’s eyes slowly died down.
“That will be all for today.”
“……”
“However, if you wish to keep the Martial Alliance in existence, you will need to change your attitude from now on.”
Faced with the chilling threat, Mok Do-in instead showed a faint smile.
“I will not forget today’s conversation.”
It was an ambiguous remark—whether he meant he agreed with the sentiment or that he would remember today’s events and take revenge later.
The Martial Venerable snorted as if he did not care either way and turned around.
Without hesitation, he walked out of the Solitary Enlightenment Hall.
“Such a powerful soul magic weapon…”
Mok Do-in clicked his tongue.
“I don’t know exactly what happened, but… things have become troublesome.”
Shrrrr.
Once the Martial Venerable left, the interior of the Solitary Enlightenment Hall, which had been dyed black, returned to its original colors, and the black mist disappeared as well.
“Well, it was part of the process anyway.”
Mok Do-in narrowed his eyes.
“The Wood Buddha. He must still remain alive for now.”
In any case, the Sacred Domain was calculating everything. All he had to do was entrust himself to this history.
***
On a towering cliff, a shadow stood with hands clasped behind its back, looking down below.
Kwaaa!
Below, a violent river flowed, churning wild waves. The madly rushing torrent looked like a blue dragon writhing and moving between the reefs.
The shadow stood completely motionless, like a figure carved from rock. Its appearance was hidden in the twilight darkness.
It was an extremely ordinary-looking old man.
Only his eyes were deeper than the sea, making it impossible to tell where he was gazing.
It was none other than the sky of the demonic path, the Demon Emperor, Sado Muryeong.
Whirring.
Suddenly, mysterious light fell from the sky behind the black shadow.
The points of light fell one by one and gradually gathered in one place, forming a human shape.
Flash.
The lights soon transformed into a masked figure wearing clothes that flowed with mysterious radiance.
“My Lord.”
The masked man knelt and prostrated himself, bowing with utmost respect.
He then carefully continued.
“As expected, the successor of that Sacred Domain who took the Harmony of Sun and Moon… was not there.”
“Hmm.”
The Demon Emperor kept his gaze fixed on the raging river and spoke in a low voice.
“Jin Seol. As long as that child is alive, he will eventually reveal himself.”
“Then shouldn’t we deal with the Martial Soul Command Lord as soon as possible?”
When the Demon Emperor did not respond, the masked man lowered his head and said,
“This time, the Wood Buddha’s whereabouts have been exposed. If the Nine Heavens Cloud Flower appears as well…”
The masked man suddenly widened his eyes as he spoke.
Only then did he realize he had made a grave mistake.
“I have committed a serious offense, my Lord.”
Thud, thud, thud.
He slammed his head against the ground and pleaded earnestly.
“Please forgive me.”
Uuuung!
At that moment, a black sphere formed in the air above the masked man’s head.
The sphere was engraved with mysterious twinkling stars, as if it contained the universe itself.
“L-Lord.”
“It has been about twenty years, hasn’t it?”
The Demon Emperor, still looking down at the river, clicked his tongue with a regretful expression.
“You have worked hard all this time.”
Psssh.
The masked man swallowed by the sphere instantly turned into black dust and scattered in all directions.
He had reduced a subordinate who had loyally served him for twenty years to powder in an instant.
“All disasters originate from the mouth…”
The Demon Emperor muttered lowly as he slowly turned around.
“Don’t you think so?”
Rumble.
With the sound of thunder, the earth turned black, and a pitch-black shadow rose from the ground right in front of the Demon Emperor as if surging upward.
There were many hidden secret arts in the martial world, including some that turned the entire body black.
However, the shadow that appeared before him had not simply turned its body black.
It had become darkness itself—a deep abyss that even swallowed light.
“Lord of the Returning to One Realm.”
Rumble.
The black shadow.
Instead of answering, the Returning to One Realm Lord shot a black river of energy that split the heavens into the sky.
A black flash that swallowed even light soared upward, soon creating a single black sun.
At the same time, the area around the cliff became a space where the laws and principles of the world no longer applied.
The ground had already turned into a sea, and blood droplets were falling from the black sky.
“You are the same as ever.”
When the Returning to One Realm Lord used his mysterious power, the Demon Emperor instead moved his hand and unfolded his martial arts.
Pa!
A short gust of wind rose, and the energy that had escaped the constraints of time and space instantly pierced all three hundred and sixty acupoints of the Returning to One Realm Lord.
At that moment, the form of a war demon appeared, scattering pitch-black darkness and erasing the Demon Emperor’s figure.
From the sea, black waves surged in fury, extending sharp tentacles.
Whirring.
Yet at the spot where the Demon Emperor had been, a single black lotus suddenly bloomed.
As mysterious radiance flowed from the lotus, massive eagles descended from the distant sky and began sweeping away the war demon and the tentacles.
Kwarung!
At that moment, a black dragon burst out from the sky and began destroying the eagles.
But in the meantime, the black lotus slowly began to bloom further.
Shrrrr.
Then, this bizarre world began to flow with even deeper darkness.
“Black reincarnation…”
From somewhere, the Demon Emperor’s low voice echoed.
“Wasn’t it supposed to be completed by taking Bu Zhanyang’s remains and perfecting the Seven Blood Tears Forms?”
Thud.
At that moment, a black greatsword stopped in mid-air.
That greatsword was held in the hand of the Returning to One Realm Lord, who was slowly revealing his form.
“Now, only one chance remains.”
Before anyone realized, a single black butterfly was perched on the tip of the greatsword.
“…Brother.”
Flash! Flutter.
The black butterfly on the greatsword soon turned into hundreds of fragments of light and disappeared into the distant sky.
“Uuuuugh.”
The Returning to One Realm Lord stabbed the greatsword into the ground.
—Uuuuugh!
He let out a roar that seemed capable of tearing apart the heavens.
In the meantime, thunder roared and a storm raged.
It was as if a demon that would destroy everything was awakening.
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