The next morning, I was in my private training ground.
I had slept soundly for the first time in a long while, waking up more refreshed than I had felt in ages.
Having woken up so well, and feeling relieved after concluding a major affair, I decided to attempt something I had been putting off.
In the center of the training ground, where no one could enter without my permission, I unleashed the Space-Time Displacement Art and the Heavenly Time Secret Art in succession.
Then, the time within the Space-Time Displacement Art began to flow slowly.
Now, with the Heavenly Time Secret Art, I could use three times more time than in reality.
Being able to use three times more time than others was a tremendous advantage, but it was still not enough for my goal of reaching Twelve-Star Great Mastery in the Nine Calamities Demon Art.
I needed to secure even more time.
Still, I spent half my training time on the Nine Calamities Demon Art.
The reason I did not dedicate all my training to the Heavenly Time Secret Art was because I never knew what might happen at any given moment.
Within the world of the Space-Time Displacement Art, I unleashed the Nine Calamities Demon Art.
First Form: Annihilation Form.
Shaaaaa!
Chilling to behold, the dreadful illusions of four evil spirits appeared simultaneously in the east, west, south, and north, swinging their swords.
Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!
A fearsome one, a handsome one, one with a strange mystery about him, and one who looked smarter than anyone else.
They were always a reassuring sight, and I had seen them so often that they now felt like friends.
There had been changes as well.
The four evil spirits of the east, west, south, and north were faster and stronger than before.
From their positions and attack directions to the timing of their disappearance, I could control them with greater freedom.
If I could achieve great mastery in the Nine Calamities Demon Art and summon the Heavenly Demon Soul, could I establish an emotional connection with them too? Would the Heavenly Demon Soul and the little evil spirits stand before me in a relationship like the one I had with the Demon Sovereigns? Such a pointless hope arose in me.
Next, I unleashed the Second Form: Great Annihilation Form.
Sssssssssss.
Originally, the fearsome-looking evil spirit from one of the four directions would split into six, but now it had increased by two, splitting into eight.
Kwakwakwakwakwakwakwakwak!
The eight evil spirits swept through everything in front of them, pushing forward.
Whenever I used the Great Annihilation Form, it felt truly refreshing.
Third Form—Great Demon Wall.
A giant wall of force erected itself before my eyes.
Just as my father had said it would shrink in size as my level of mastery increased, the Great Demon Wall was smaller than when I first used it.
When I reached the final level of mastery, it would become as small as a shield protecting a single person.
But I had a grand plan for this Great Demon Wall.
I would create the completed, shield-sized Great Demon Wall, but at its current size, with its full power intact.
It was something that couldn't be done with Ten-Star Great Mastery.
But if I could achieve Twelve-Star Great Mastery, perhaps?
Until now, I had been repeatedly practicing up to the Third Form.
And today, I intended to use the Fourth Form for the first time.
Having recently faced the Twelve Zodiac Kings, my perspective on martial arts had changed, and my level of mastery had risen.
I felt that the time had finally come to seriously train in the Fourth Form.
Nine Calamities Demon Art, Fourth Form.
Dark Sun Slash.
The moment I unleashed the form, my surroundings flickered.
It felt as if I had closed and opened my eyes.
Although it was a failure, it was not a bad start.
I recited the formula again and attempted the Fourth Form.
This time, too, my surroundings darkened and then brightened.
The duration of darkness was longer than before.
It was as if a hand had covered a lantern and then revealed it again.
I repeated it again and again.
As with most martial arts, the Nine Calamities Demon Art required a greater amount of inner energy for its later forms.
This Fourth Form also demanded an enormous amount of inner energy, making it a technique that could not be used carelessly.
That was why even I, with my vast inner energy, had to replenish it through energy circulation in between attempts.
The attempts continued.
Finally!
Whoosh!
Complete darkness descended around me.
The world went dark, as if the sun had vanished.
It was darkness itself, an abyss where one could not see an inch ahead, as if light had never existed in the first place.
It was a pitch-blackness that even the Divine Eye Technique could not pierce.
Shwiiiiing.
A single streak of light cut through the darkness.
A single streak of light that could sever anything.
After the light passed, the surroundings brightened.
For now, I was facing an imaginary opponent, but if I had unleashed it against a real person, they would be lying in front of me, their body severed.
‘I did it!’
I unleashed the Dark Sun Slash once more.
Darkness fell on all sides.
Shwiiiiing.
This time, the light streaked diagonally.
The user could determine the direction of the slash according to their will.
Filled with a sense of accomplishment from successfully executing the Fourth Form, I stood alone in the space of the Space-Time Displacement Art and laughed out loud.
Supreme martial arts like the Nine Calamities Demon Art could be mastered in a single day if things went smoothly, but they could also take months, or even years, to learn.
Of course, just as the other forms continued to evolve, this was not the end for the Fourth Form.
The more I trained, the deeper the darkness would become, and the more powerful it would be.
It was said that the Dark Sun Slash at great mastery could not be blocked by any protective energy.
When the darkness descends, the opponent will surely die.
This was the Fourth Form of the Nine Calamities Demon Art, Dark Sun Slash.
*
When I came out after my training, a welcome visitor had arrived.
“Young Cult Master!”
It was Seo Daeryong, who now looked perfectly suited to the great blade he carried, exuding the dignity of the Underworld Pavilion Lord.
“Have you eaten?”
“No.”
“I’m hungry. Let’s talk over lunch.”
I had a servant bring lunch for Seo Daeryong and me.
I was starving, having trained for a much longer time than had passed in reality.
“Congratulations on safely concluding the meeting yesterday.”
“Thank you.”
“It’s all anyone in the sect is talking about right now.”
“They’re only talking about the dancing, aren’t they?”
Seo Daeryong smiled sheepishly, unable to deny it.
The incident of the Unorthodox Alliance's Young Alliance Leader dancing, joined by the Divine Sect's Young Cult Master and the Martial Alliance Leader's granddaughter, was a major event.
It was news that would not only spread throughout the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect but soon across the entire Central Plains.
“I should have been there.”
Yes, Seo Daeryong would have joined in.
He would have made a fuss about how embarrassing it was, but he would have jumped in even before Jin Ha-ryeong.
“I considered sneaking in to watch, but I couldn't.”
As only the Division Lords were mobilized for security, he, a Pavilion Lord, was unable to attend.
“I didn’t care about the others, but I did want to see Miss Jin again.”
“You should have come. You could have kicked open the tavern door and shouted, ‘I am the champion who defeated Miss Jin in the final match of the Young Dragon Tournament!’”
“If I did that, I would have been beaten up by the masters of the Righteous Path. No, my Master would have beaten me up first.”
Geom Mugeuk laughed at Seo Daeryong’s jest.
“What about the results of the meeting? Did it go well?”
“The Demonic, Righteous, and Unorthodox Factions have agreed to make it their top priority to join forces and eliminate them.”
“You have truly accomplished something amazing.”
At Seo Daeryong’s admiration, Geom Mugeuk humbly replied.
“It was something my father accomplished.”
Seo Daeryong quietly stared at Geom Mugeuk’s face.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
“I just thought you could boast a little at times like this. You’ve achieved a great feat that will never happen again in this world, haven’t you?”
The reason he came today was to say this.
It was what Geom Mugeuk had always done for him, after all.
He never missed a single small thing to praise him for, again and again.
Empowered by that expression, a once gloomy and pessimistic investigator had come this far.
“This humility is a calculated boast.”
“You’ve succeeded. You look good even when you’re being humble.”
Seo Daeryong asked various questions about the meeting.
What was the Martial Alliance Leader like, what about the Unorthodox Alliance Leader, and which masters had accompanied them.
He asked if Jo Chun-bae was nervous, asking about every little curiosity.
“Are you disappointed? That you couldn’t be there?”
“A little.”
“You should have asked. I would have granted your request.”
If it were Seo Daeryong, he might have been specially placed next to Jang Ho.
“Everyone already knows that I’m close to you, Young Cult Master.”
He didn’t want to be caught up in rumors about personal favors being exchanged.
It was more about not harming Geom Mugeuk than being criticized himself.
“What’s wrong with that? This is when you show it off. That I cherish our Pavilion Lord Seo this much, so no one but me should bother him!”
“What do you mean, no one should bother me? That’s not a compliment!”
Even if it was a joke, Seo Daeryong felt good.
The two of them finished their meal and went out to the courtyard.
“Don’t just eat whatever because you live alone. Make sure you eat well.”
“I will.”
Seo Daeryong, who was about to say his goodbyes and leave, stopped in his tracks.
“By the way, have you heard any news about Martial artist Lee?”
“No.”
“You don’t know where she is either?”
“She’s probably doing fine.”
At the casual reply, Seo Daeryong shook his head with a look that said, ‘How can you be so indifferent!’
“You might not remember, but there’s a person under you named Lee Ahn. The woman who was called ‘pretty heart’.”
Geom Mugeuk played along with Seo Daeryong's banter.
“I think I might remember.”
“That’s too much! You should at least know where Martial artist Lee is and what she’s doing!”
“Do you know?”
“Of course, I do. Right now, Martial artist Lee is in the Northern Sea. Her heart is freezing in that cold place!”
“In the Northern Sea? Why is she there?”
“Well, I don’t know that.”
Lee Ahn’s purpose for leaving the sect was to recruit Seo Jin, the Ghost Spirit Master’s younger brother, as the Second Squad Leader of the Ghost Shadow Branch.
Since it was her first mission in the martial world alone, I had told her not to rush and to travel around and see many places.
It seemed she had gone all the way to the Northern Sea.
“Aren’t you worried?”
“What’s there to worry about? This is a chance for her to travel around and experience the martial world. She’ll meet villains and lechers.”
You fool, who are you worried about?
Lee Ahn has nine tails.
And her Flying Heaven Sword Technique is at the Ninth Star.
She is only the kind Lee Ahn in front of us.
If anyone needed to be worried, it would be the enemies who stood before her.
Geom Mugeuk trusted Lee Ahn.
He trusted her skills and intelligence, but he trusted something more than that.
She was the one who saved me and brought me back like this.
I believe in our connection, and I believe in her destiny.
But it seemed Seo Daeryong did not.
“Ah, our Martial artist Lee is so naive, I’m worried she’s being tricked somewhere.”
“Like you during the tournament?”
Back then, Seo Daeryong had almost been completely fooled by a woman.
“Why do you keep bringing up that old story? It won’t happen again. I’m a spicy ginger now.”
“To me, you still look like a crisp, green apple.”
Seo Daeryong pretended not to hear and changed the subject back to his worries about Lee Ahn.
“She has to check her food with a silver needle every time she eats. I wonder if she brought her hidden weapons. If she goes around without a veil, all sorts of men will be drawn to her.”
“But how did you know Lee Ahn was in the Northern Sea?”
“I went and asked the First Squad Leader of the Ghost Shadow Branch. He said the last contact they had from her was in the Northern Sea.”
It seemed he had gone to ask Blue Mask.
“Have you been to the Northern Sea?”
“Of course.”
“I’ve never been. Then have you been to the Ice Palace too?”
“Naturally.”
“Don’t tell me you’ve met the Ice Palace Master as well?”
Geom Mugeuk nodded.
Of course, it was before his regression.
He had a connection with the Ice Palace back then.
“If you go to the entrance of the Ice Palace, they have people frozen and displayed in a row.”
“Hey, no way.”
“It’s true. They’ve frozen everyone who opposed the Ice Palace and put them on display. It’s a powerful warning: this is what happens if you defy us.”
“Those people must all be dead then?”
“Who knows. Maybe they’ll move like corpses when the ice melts.”
Seo Daeryong flinched, as if the thought alone was terrifying.
“That’s not all. If you go to the snowy mountain behind the Ice Palace, snowmen live there. Those snowmen cultivate a spirit herb called Ice Snow Herb, and if you consume its fruit, you can gain immense inner energy.”
“Really? You can’t just make things up because I’ve never been there.”
“Don’t believe me if you don’t want to.”
Seo Daeryong was already intrigued.
You fool, a guy who falls for things so easily is worried about someone else.
Stories of freezing people alive for display, or of snowmen and the Ice Snow Herb, were all passed down as legends.
“If you’re so worried about Lee Ahn, go find her.”
“What about the Underworld Pavilion?”
“Take a vacation and go. I’ll make it so you can leave your post.”
“What about my salary?”
“Of course, you won’t get it. It’s a personal matter. You should be willing to sacrifice that much for Lee Ahn.”
After blinking and pondering for a moment, Seo Daeryong took a step back.
“We’re not that close. And I get cold easily.”
Geom Mugeuk laughed at Seo Daeryong’s jest.
“Then I’ll be on my way.”
After Seo Daeryong left, Geom Mugeuk looked up at the sky.
He realized that despite waking up in such a good mood that morning, he had started his day without once looking up at the sky.
Lee Ahn, how is the sky in the Northern Sea?
*
After sending off Seo Daeryong, Geom Mugeuk headed to the Blood Heaven Blade Demon's residence.
Geom Mugeuk, who was about to enter vigorously while calling for the Elder, stopped in his tracks.
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon was in the flower garden in a corner of the yard.
It was the same garden where he had once pruned the branches of a flowering tree with his Heaven-Slaying Blade.
There, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon was planting flowers with the Plum Blossom Sword Sovereign.
The man who stood proudly before the masters of the Righteous and Unorthodox Factions yesterday and the man planting flowers now felt like completely different people.
Just then, someone whispered beside Geom Mugeuk.
“They say a late bloom is a fearsome thing.”
He turned to see the Drunken Demon.
It was not something he should be saying, given the good atmosphere he had with Yeo Bin lately.
“He’s been like that all morning.”
“What are you doing here, brother?”
“I had something to say to the Sword Sovereign.”
“Then go and say it.”
The Drunken Demon’s gaze turned towards the two of them.
“Why would I ruin a rare good mood?”
It was worth hesitating.
The Blood Heaven Blade Demon probably didn’t know how broadly he was smiling while planting flowers with the Plum Blossom Sword Sovereign.
It seemed spring had come to the Blood Heaven Blade Demon’s heart as well.
Just then, the Blood Heaven Blade Demon shouted from inside.
“What are you two whispering about like a couple of rats?”
Geom Mugeuk shouted back at the Blood Heaven Blade Demon.
“Don’t mind us! We’re just passersby! Just two passing rats!”
He walked away from there with the Drunken Demon.
“Why did you want to see the Sword Sovereign?”
“There was something on my mind I wanted to consult her about.”
“What is it?”
“It’s fine. It’s nothing.”
But Geom Mugeuk didn't just let it go.
“Brother, many problems that arise later are because we dismiss them as ‘nothing’ now, right? What is it? Tell me!”
When Geom Mugeuk insisted, the Drunken Demon revealed what was troubling him.
“There’s a place that sends me wine every year. Every year, without fail, they send wine when March comes. But this year, the wine hasn’t arrived.”
If it were an ordinary sect, he wouldn’t have brought it up like this.
“Where is this place?”
An unexpected name flowed from the Drunken Demon’s lips.
“The Northern Sea Ice Palace.”