Ascension of the Heavenly Demon - Chapter 199
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 199
Wooden splints and kudzu vines.
These are what currently bind Zhuge Munhyeon’s limbs tightly.
With his limbs, spine, and even neck firmly secured, he cannot move an inch.
Meanwhile, crushed medicinal herbs covered his entire body like moss clinging abundantly to rocks.
But why is Yeongmun here?
Why is he?
“Hmm, how do you know me?”
Yeongmun, puzzled by the words shouted the moment he awoke and saw his face, stopped his healing touch and tilted his head.
Well, from his perspective, it would be surprising when someone who suddenly fell from a cliff recognizes him.
But right now!
I need him.
“I am Munhyeon.”
“Munhyeon?”
“Yes.”
“….”
His confusion only deepened.
Seeing him tilt his head again with a puzzled expression, it’s clear he doesn’t remember the name.
It seemed more explanation was needed.
“Yes, Munhyeon. The son of Eight Gates Genius Zhuge Doyun and Dangang Flower Baek Suhyeon. You even gave me blessings on the day I was born, didn’t you?”
“What? You’re Doyun’s son?”
“Yes! I am that very Munhyeon.”
“No, how could you be… Huh?”
His face, which had seemed slightly surprised, suddenly stiffened.
Why is he acting like this?
His eyes are narrowing with suspicion, and he’s even furrowing his brow.
“Are you certain you’re Munhyeon, Doyun’s son?”
“…Yes.”
“Immeasurable Buddha.”
Yeongmun’s expression turned serious as he suddenly chanted quietly.
“What exactly are you?”
“Pardon?”
“Zhuge Munhyeon, you say? Doyun’s son, you say?”
“….”
The atmosphere is somehow strange.
Why exactly?
“You’re a monster.”
“Pardon?”
“You’re a heart demon.”
“What?”
“You’re an illusion trying to disturb my mental state. No wonder your body is strangely filled with spirit energy…”
“….”
The story began flowing strangely, matching his expression that had hardened and even turned menacing.
Monster? Heart demon? Illusion?
‘Oh no…’
At that moment, Zhuge Munhyeon realized his mistake.
What a stupid fool I am…
Wudang Taoist Yeongmun, who cultivates spirit energy.
The only time he met him was on the day he was born.
He hadn’t seen him since then.
Yet despite the urgent situation, he immediately recognized that face and revealed his identity, so naturally anyone with their wits about them would find it strange.
Where would you find someone who remembers things from when they were a newborn?
Naturally, the healing touch stopped.
‘H-hey, wait a minute! What’s that aura gathering in your hands?!’
Yeongmun, whose benevolent gaze had turned fierce, asked with the attitude of killing him on the spot.
“Speak, what are you? How did you come to my cultivation grounds? What do you want?”
“….”
He was suddenly treated like a villain.
My mouth is my enemy, my enemy.
I should have asked who saved me first, then when he said Yeongmun, acted greatly surprised and said ‘Ah, Uncle Yeongmun!’…
But now I have to somehow scoop up the spilled water.
“Uncle! Wait a moment! Please wait just a moment.”
“….”
“You mustn’t do something you’ll regret. You’d be killing your sworn brother’s son!”
Zhuge Munhyeon desperately moved his mouth and shouted.
After all, his mouth was the only thing that could move.
He had to explain.
Recalling everything from that day he was born – the situation, what he said, the atmosphere.
He had to convince him of the absurd story that he was such an extraordinary child that he could speak before his hundredth day and remembered even the moment of his birth.
“Back then, you looked at me and said, ‘Ha ha! Look at that loud voice of his. Your son will probably become a general!'”
“….”
“I remember Uncle’s expression as you genuinely rejoiced. You also said my black eyes were cute and remarked, ‘From the way you’re staring at me, you must like me too.'”
“Did I say that?”
“You did!”
“I don’t quite remember…”
“Then my father said, ‘A general from our family? I will raise this child to be the most outstanding strategist in our Zhuge Family!'”
“Hmm…”
“And he added! Since it was the Mun character generation, he would name me Munhyeon! So Uncle said you would recite blessings for my peaceful life. Don’t you remember? You even chanted healing spells when I developed a fever!”
“….”
At his desperate explanation, the aura that had gathered in Yeongmun’s hands faded.
His gaze wavered.
His eyes moved to the upper left.
He was searching his memory.
I mustn’t miss this opportunity(?).
“You remember my father, don’t you? He was… And my mother was…”
Zhuge Munhyeon rattled off various information about his father and mother, whether Yeongmun knew it or not.
What Yeongmun knew and what he knew.
Hoping something among them would resonate.
After pondering briefly, Yeongmun still seemed unable to dispel his suspicions but lowered his hand.
And then.
Thwack.
He attached a talisman.
…Am I a ghost, you bastard?
* * *
Yeongmun’s suspicions were never fully resolved.
I learned later that the talismans he attached all over my body were completely different from the items Taoists use to ward off ghosts.
Body-Binding Spirit-Sealing Talisman.
Literally.
A talisman that binds the body and seals spiritual energy.
What a truly pointless thing to do.
All my bones are broken and I’m tied up tight with splints and kudzu vines, so how am I supposed to move my body? Meanwhile, the spiritual energy sealed in my chest is abundant but utterly useless…
Still, as long as it puts your mind at ease.
From then on, Zhuge Munhyeon had to continue asserting his innocence.
That he really was Zhuge Munhyeon, that he hadn’t approached with any ulterior motives.
It was the first time in his life he’d had to explain his entire life story.
Of course, after great effort hiding some parts and revealing others, he was finally able to open a part of the man’s heart.
“My journey began when Wudang asked me to repair Hyeoncheonja’s secret cave.”
“Hyeoncheonja’s secret cave?”
“Yes. It had collapsed in heavy rain.”
“Good heavens! Such a thing happened to our sect?”
Yeongmun, who had been away for a long time, knew nothing about what had happened at the Wudang Sect.
“Fortunately, since the formations and mechanisms deployed there originated from the Eight Formation Diagram…”
“That’s right. Your father said the same thing.”
“Father did?”
“Yes. At my request, since I was very interested in ascension, my younger brother began studying the Eight Formation Diagram.”
“Ah…”
So that was it.
Why Father had begun studying the Eight Formation Diagram.
“Anyway, there I came to see records left by Hyeoncheonja.”
“What? There were records?”
“Yes. Hyeoncheonja deeply regretted having lied to Heavenly Demon Baek Ganghwi, who had sought the Ascension Method at that time. He blamed himself entirely for Murim becoming this wretched state… It was recorded that he had lost a hero.”
“Come now… surely he wouldn’t have called that Evil Seed a hero?”
“…”
Of course, he had sprinkled a bit of lies on top of the truth.
But why did he have to call him an Evil Seed again?
“You didn’t see it yourself.”
“…”
“Have you heard of the Hyeoncheon Records?”
“Hmm.”
When he pressed with momentum and blinked his eyes, Yeongmun subtly averted his gaze.
If you haven’t seen it, don’t talk about it.
How would someone like you understand adult affairs?
Anyway, thanks to Father, his suspicions were somewhat relieved.
The Eight Formation Diagram.
Because they had memories of studying it together.
“Anyway, from then on I became interested in ascension too. Then I met an ascetic called Geumri at Dongho Lake, and learned the identity of that object as well.”
At Zhuge Munhyeon’s words, Yeongmun’s gaze fell on Eunhangon.
The thing he hadn’t let go of even while falling down the cliff and crashing into various places.
“Amazing. To think that was the Eight Trigrams Celestial Wheel.”
“I call it Eunhangon. I only learned its identity after hearing from the ascetic I met at Dongho Lake.”
“Hmm… you obtained spiritual energy then too?”
“I obtained it but didn’t know how to use it, so I kept it trapped in my body.”
“Immeasurable Buddha. To think such a thing happened.”
“After that, I traveled to various places to learn about the Eight Trigrams Celestial Wheel and the Ascension Method, eventually coming here. I also met Chiljangjja in Yunnan.”
“Chiljangjja?”
“Ah! Come to think of it, if you want to know that my words are truthful, checking with him would be faster. He’s probably somewhere below Aenoe Mountain. Why don’t you go see him now? As you can see, I can’t even move.”
“Hmm…”
At those words, Yeongmun frowned.
His expression was full of difficulty.
“What’s wrong?”
“That’s… difficult.”
“Pardon?”
“I cannot leave this place.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“Actually, I’m trapped too.”
“…”
“That Half-Immortal bastard from Aenoe Mountain you mentioned. I was also caught by him…”
He blinked several times.
Hmm, so… you too?
You mean you’re also trapped at the bottom of this ravine after being caught by that tiger bastard?
He called it cultivation grounds… but it’s actually a prison.
“Wait. But you’re saying that tiger bastard was a Half-Immortal?”
“Yes. He’s called a Tiger-form Gwi, one of the Golden Spirit Monster Immortals.”
“Golden Spirit Monster Immortals?”
“Hmm, I still can’t fully trust you, but I’ll explain.”
“…”
“Usually, those born with spiritual roots base those roots in the energy of the Five Elements. The ascetic from Dongho Lake you mentioned was probably a carp born with Water Spirit roots.”
“Water Spirit… no, wait, a carp?”
“If my guess is correct, it must be so.”
The absurdity was beyond measure.
It was a fish?
So I almost died to some fish?
“You must have heard the folk tales? About thousand-year carps, ten-thousand-year carps and such.”
“Aren’t those spiritual creatures that only exist in legends?”
“Correct. Spiritual creatures. Those born with spiritual roots usually grow that way. But if they gain enlightenment within that, their spiritual roots bloom and they become ascetics. To explain in terms you can understand, they’ve stepped foot on the boundary between the human realm and immortal realm. Do you understand?”
“…I’m not that stupid.”
How do you see me?
I’m someone who started talking a hundred days ago even without front teeth, someone great enough to remember the moment of birth – have you already forgotten that I explained all this?
“However, Golden Spirit Monster Immortals are different from ascetics. They’ve already surpassed that level and risen to Half-Immortal status.”
“Ah, no wonder… he was incomparably strong.”
Understanding that beast’s strength, he nodded involuntarily.
“I too came to Aenoe Mountain after learning about him. About three months ago.”
“Three months ago?”
“Yes.”
“Ah… then the person Dan Sojo saw was probably Uncle Yeongmun.”
“Dan Sojo?”
“The daughter of the Beast Palace Lord. She was born with spiritual energy already awakened.”
“What? You mean she was born with spiritual roots?”
“Yes, though I sealed them.”
“Huh? You sealed them?”
“Yes.”
“What do you mean? Sealing spiritual energy? How could you?”
His eyes showed disbelief.
This is why it’s problematic.
When others know something they don’t, they refuse to believe it.
“I used a formation.”
“A formation?”
“Yes. I established the true origin energy as an axis and installed a formation technique inside my body.”
“Th-that’s possible?”
“Did you only half-listen to what I said?”
“Huh?”
“I told you earlier. That as you saw, I trapped the energy of the bamboo threads consumed at Dongho Lake inside my body.”
“…!?”
Seeing his surprised expression, it seems he really was only half-listening.
Anyway, only his own words are important, only his own.
“Take a look. To your heart’s content.”
“….”
If he could move, he would have thrust out his chest boldly.
Still finding it hard to believe, Yeongmun carefully placed his hand on Zhuge Munhyeon’s chest.
A refreshing energy permeated his chest.
Yeongmun, who had closed his eyes with a serious expression, soon opened them wide in surprise and withdrew his hand.
“N-no! How is this… sealing spirit energy?”
“Didn’t I tell you? I am Zhuge Munhyeon, son of that Eight Gates Genius Zhuge Doyun.”
“….”
“You may still find it hard to believe, but this is a method I’ve already used on Uncle’s disciples Mujin and Dan Sojo, verifying its effectiveness.”
“Mujin?”
“Ah, I didn’t mention that.”
“….”
“There’s this lucky fellow called Mujin who obtained an unprecedented supreme technique called Mad Soul Art left by the Heavenly Demon at Taiji Cave….”
The explanation began again.
It was a story about a fortunate individual who obtained the world’s greatest martial arts left behind by a peerless hero.
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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