Chapter 2346 – 2346. The Ascent To Radiance
The atmosphere was completely ruined for further training. After confirming that the sky had returned to normal, Wiyu and I went back home.
Mireong was waiting for us at the entrance. As soon as she saw me, she fussed over me.
“My lord! The sky was so strange! What on earth did you do?!”
“I was trying to grasp a sudden enlightenment.”
“Ah, so that was enlightenment! If enlightenment comes twice, will the world end…?! Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I’m perfectly fine.”
Wiyu ignored us and went inside, sitting on the sofa. There were leftover snacks on the table.
I approached her. Mireong followed behind me.
“Master, what does it mean that the heavens do not allow defiance?”
Even when I thought back to the original story, I couldn’t quite grasp it. This world had changed a lot as various worlds had mixed together.
“You know that there is a celestial order in this world. The sun rises during the day, the moon rises at night, and the stars twinkle in their places. Things that should be as they are. The celestial order is the natural order, and defiance is going against that order.”
“Why is my enlightenment going against the natural order?”
My tone was sharp. I felt wronged, and my voice was filled with emotion. Calling someone else’s enlightenment defiance. What was the standard for that? This was just unfair.
“How can humans understand the will of the heavens?”
“Defiance? That was a real thing?!”
Mireong was surprised. I looked at her.
“You know about defiance too?”
“When I was learning sorcery under my mother… I heard about it. They told me to be careful of defiance. And that I should move forward within the natural order. At the time, I didn’t know anything about defiance or the natural order, so I just brushed it off… But defiance is actually a thing.”
“Is the celestial order like fate?”
“No.”
“No, it’s not.”
The two shook their heads simultaneously.
“My lord, unfortunately, I don’t know much about the celestial order. Reading and interpreting the celestial order requires special talent and insight, separate from sorcery skills. But I do know that the celestial order is not fate.”
My gaze turned to Wiyu. Wiyu could read the celestial order, albeit slightly. It wasn’t a level that was of great help, though.
“I know the concept of fate. You’re asking if everything is predetermined.”
“Yes. Isn’t it defiance if I tried to go against that fate?”
“No. There is no such thing as fate. Life begins with chance, and death also ends with chance. But there are connections. Just as people are drawn to each other, there are connections where something attracts something else. In the first place, the idea that the heavens decide human fate… doesn’t that seem too arrogant for humans?”
“Humans are arrogant, not the heavens?”
“Think from the heavens’ perspective. Why would they have to assign a fate to each and every human? If they had to assign fate, what would be the purpose?”
“……Certainly. If I were the heavens, assigning fate to humans would be… a bothersome and uninteresting thing to do. But when people die, don’t they go to the underworld? Yama’s register has the names of those who will die… Doesn’t that mean people’s fates are predetermined?”
“You’ve killed people, so you should know. Have you ever seen a grim reaper?”
“No, I haven’t.”
I had seen messengers in the Manmu Tower. But those guys weren’t the grim reapers Wiyu was talking about. Grim reapers take the dead. These guys write the names of the living in the register and kill them.
Since then, even though I’ve killed people, I’ve never seen a messenger. The grim reapers I know and the messengers here are similar yet different beings.
“Even without grim reapers, this world is already flowing according to the natural order. To put it in a way that’s easier for you to understand… the natural order is a kind of system. Don’t ask more than that. I don’t know much either.”
The conversation paused for a moment. They had their own thoughts, and I had mine.
“Rather, I want to ask you. What enlightenment did you gain that made the heavens label you a defier?”
“It’s hard to explain in words… I focused on my breathing and tried to become lightning. Then enlightenment came… and Master killed me.”
“It was for your own good. Try doing it like when you gained enlightenment. If it seems dangerous, I’ll knock you out to stop you.”
“Well, okay.”
Inhale, exhale.
Inhale, exhale.
Inhale, exhale.
I focused on my breathing. Sparks flew out with each exhale. But the sensation didn’t intensify like before. I focused on my breathing for ten minutes, but nothing happened. I frowned.
“Why is it not working?”
“It was an enlightenment that came by chance. I think it’s fortunate.”
“Fortunate? My enlightenment disappeared!”
“You said you were trying to become lightning? At that time, you weren’t becoming lightning but turning into a monster. A monster with many legs… a beast that’s hard to describe.”
“A monster….”
“The enlightenment you gained was ultimately half-baked. You were trying to become lightning? You were only focused on the Lightning Sky Style. But the martial arts you’re currently learning aren’t just the Lightning Sky Style, are they?”
“The Heavenly Demon Divine Art…. Are you saying that even if I had gained enlightenment, it wouldn’t have gone the way I wanted?”
“Disciple, let go of your attachment to enlightenment. What’s important is… the Lightning Sky Style and the Heavenly Demon Divine Art. You know better which one is greater.”
Of course, it was the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, not the Lightning Sky Style. I didn’t know before, but now, after absorbing several Heavenly Demon Divine Arts, it had grown even bigger.
The Lightning Sky Style and the Heavenly Demon Divine Art. The one I was more familiar with was the Lightning Sky Style. Unlike the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, the Lightning Sky Style was supported by the features of the game app. The Lightning Sky Style was bound to be more comfortable.
Reading the celestial order is not something anyone can do. It requires special talent and insight, separate from sorcery skills.
“Martial artists do not learn more than two martial arts. To be precise, it’s the mind methods. The mind is originally one, so there can’t be more than two minds. But there are exceptions, and you are one of those exceptions. You seem to be maintaining a good balance while learning two martial arts… but it seems like you’re reaching your limit. The demonic energy has grown too large. If you leave it unchecked, it will have a negative impact in some way.”
Come to think of it, even the protagonists of martial arts novels, who learn multiple martial arts, usually have only one core mind method.
“What should I do? I think I heard about a way to learn two mind methods…. Should I learn that?”
“It’s useless. The famous Yin-Yang Mind Method of the Wudang Sect allows you to think two thoughts at the same time, but the body is ultimately one. Ah, there’s also the Mind Division Technique. I heard that a master of the Demonic Sect learned it… but they self-destructed due to the division of their ego.”
“…Is there no way?”
“How did you strengthen the Heavenly Demon Divine Art?”
“By absorbing other Heavenly Demon Divine Arts… Ah! I can absorb other Lightning Sky Styles!”
Wiyu sighed and shook her head.
“According to what you said, it’s different from the Heavenly Demon Divine Arts that came from other worlds. The Lightning Sky Style is unique.”
Wiyu didn’t know about the game app, but she knew that I could travel to other worlds. Perhaps because realms like the Immortal Realm and the Underworld existed, she accepted it without much doubt.
“…Then how do I strengthen the Lightning Sky Style?”
“There is no perfect martial art in this world. The Lightning Sky Style is the same. Is there any answer other than training and research?”
“Both seem like they’ll take a lot of time.”
“Referencing other martial arts is also a method. I know thousands of sword techniques alone. Take what’s useful, discard what’s useless, and develop it.”
“Indeed. You’re saying I should find and reference martial arts famous for lightning energy. But lightning attribute martial arts aren’t common… Is there no easy way to obtain them? Like a martial art you know….”
“I don’t know. There are many who learn unique martial arts among the cultivation sects, so look for them.”
Cultivation sects.
That’s what they call the sects that train for ascension, not wealth and fame.
Most cultivation sects operate discreetly, unlike the Martial Alliance or the Heavenly Demon Sect. They avoid getting involved in the secular world. And many of them are filled with a sense of superiority.
‘Those guys are basically holed up in places where people don’t go… It’ll be hard to find them without a plan.’
Something flashed through my mind.
The secret vault of the Shadowless Divine Thief.
Since the scale had grown larger than in the original story, the treasures inside the vault would be extraordinary. There might even be a lightning attribute martial art.
I had set my goal for this time. I would obtain a lightning attribute martial art no matter what.
“Mireong, are you free? How about we go on a tour of the martial world for the first time in a while?”
“My lord, I can’t this time.”
“Why?”
“The barrier was damaged by what happened earlier, so I have to fix it. And… after seeing the heavens in rage, I feel like I’ve caught a clue. I can’t keep falling behind my lord… I need to train too.”
“Don’t do anything dangerous.”
I decided to do this alone. The Heavenly Demon Sect was also doing well, so it was fine.
‘A supreme master is going out.’
• • •
I wore a stylish black robe and a bamboo hat on my head. I had the Fire Lotus Dagger in its sheath at my waist. The special sheath made by the dwarves would withstand the sharpness of the Fire Lotus Dagger.
I checked myself in the mirror with a blank expression. I looked every bit the master.
I neatly concealed my energy. A supreme master couldn’t go around carelessly leaking their energy.
‘Those with sharp eyes will know I’m a master. My aura as a master is overflowing.’
Even if I didn’t conceal my energy, ordinary people wouldn’t notice it.
There’s a reason for the saying, “returning to simplicity.” If the level is too high, people can’t even perceive it.
‘It’s the same with art. Only those with a certain level of understanding can recognize the true value of art.’
Even the famous works of Van Gogh just look like scribbles to my eyes. Well, recently I feel like I’m starting to understand them a little.
‘Still, with my aura as a master overflowing like this, the weaklings should know to stay out of my way.’
My clothes and hat were top quality. Not to mention my weapons. The weaklings would be wary of me.
I tore a space-travel scroll and teleported somewhere.
A forest.
‘I want to act like a master.’
A master shines when there are weaklings around.
Lightning Sky Style (雷天流) Electromagnetic Wave (電磁氣波).
As the electromagnetic wave spread, my senses expanded. I could feel even a single bug hiding in the bushes. Soon, a smile appeared on my lips. Luckily, I had found the location of some bandit scum.
‘As a supreme master, I can’t just ignore this. Subduing bandits is also a master’s duty.’
A master can’t run around like a commoner.
I walked through the air towards the bandit camp.
The bandits in the camp were shocked to see me walking in the sky and started shouting in alarm. The bandit leader stared up at me, frozen. I landed leisurely in front of him.
“W-what brings a great one here…?”
“Three seconds.”
“Huh?”
“I’ll give you three seconds.”
“W-well, calm down….”
1. 2. 3.
“Three seconds have passed.”
Lightning Sky Style (雷天流) Lightning Flash (雷光).
A red beam drew a line across the bandit leader’s neck. Then his head fell to the ground.
