The Great Heavenly Demon Sovereign - Chapter 621

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 621.
Song Ok was greatly startled.
The power generated by this dark divine technique was scarcely affected by martial prowess.
Yet this young man—neither Cheong Song Ja nor Young Cheong Ja—had shattered this space and forced his way through?
A heavy thud.
Bu Eunseol approached Song Ok and lifted the corners of his mouth into a smile.
“Quite the impressive dark divine technique. Where exactly did you obtain it?”
In that instant, Song Ok’s eyes narrowed to slits.
“Where did you hear such words?”
“It matters not.”
Bu Eunseol regarded Song Ok with a piercing gaze.
“Reveal your affiliation and identity.”
“Hmph. Do you truly believe that merely entering this place has subdued me?”
Song Ok extended his fingers.
The transparent ring worn on his thumb suddenly multiplied to two, extending to his index finger.
A tremendous boom!
In that same moment, an invisible colossal force poured forth toward Bu Eunseol’s body.
That power was formidable enough to rival the inner explosive energy that Tan Wang had unleashed.
A sharp crack.
Yet Song Ok’s mouth fell open in disbelief.
With nothing more than an unremarkable black iron sword, had he not just cleaved that invisible colossal force into two pieces in a single breath?
“How is this possible.”
“Who knows.”
Bu Eunseol spoke, surveying the divided space around him.
“There is nowhere to flee in any case, so you may as well surrender.”
Song Ok bit his lip.
Only now did he realize that Bu Eunseol was a martial master of such caliber that he dared not oppose him.
“What is your purpose in coming to Wudang?”
“Do you truly expect me to speak?”
“Yes, I suppose you would not.”
I harbored no such expectations from the start.
One who wielded a dark divine technique would be no mere foot soldier.
Thus, I had no choice but to either subdue or slay him.
A piercing hum.
In that moment, mysterious patterns and golden and crimson light began to swirl around the scabbard of the Muk Hon Sword.
I had channeled my divine technique at full power to shatter Song Ok’s rings.
“That is…”
In that instant, Song Ok was seized by great shock.
The pattern inscribed upon the sword this young wanderer possessed—
Was it not that legendary pattern, said to have been created by the one who possessed the most wondrous power in all the world?
“Die!”
Gripped by terror, Song Ok stretched out his fingers.
Light began to emanate from all ten fingers.
He had begun to unleash the full power contained within the Mu Gyeol Ten Finger Rings.
“Ughhhh.”
As the Mu Gyeol Rings activated, purple veins bulged violently across the fake Song Ok’s face.
However, unfortunately, he had failed to drain all the vital essence from the Wudang elders, so he could not fully awaken the power of the Mu Gyeol Ten Finger Rings.
“Very well.”
Left with no choice, he began to sacrifice his own vital essence, forcibly unleashing the power.
“Aaaahhhhh!”
With a scream, ten luminous rings began to engulf the entire world.
‘Is this all there is?’
Upon seeing the ten rings that covered the entire world, Bu Eunseol’s eyes widened.
Zing!
From Bu Eunseol’s body, five-colored radiance flowed forth of its own accord, and a circular protective barrier began to form.
As overwhelming power that could never be blocked by martial technique pressed down upon my body, all the energy raging within my meridians aligned itself.
And harmony was naturally manifested.
Zing!
The ten rings instantly engulfed Bu Eunseol’s body.
Each ring seemed to carry the weight of the entire world, pressing down upon my entire being with suffocating force.
‘Impressive.’
Crack.
As the protective barrier created through harmony finally began to shatter, Song Ok—now covered in purple veins across his entire body—burst into radiant laughter.
“The power of the Mu Gyeol Ten Finger Rings cannot be stopped by anyone!”
Whoooosh!
At that moment, brilliant light began to flash from the sheath of Bu Eunseol’s Muk Hon Sword.
It was as if the sword had completed its preparation to shatter the dark divine technique.
‘How am I supposed to unsheathe it under this pressure?’
Before Bu Eunseol’s quiet murmur could even finish,
Thud.
A strange sound echoed from near the sheath, and suddenly my body felt lighter.
One of the inscribed patterns had shattered, though Bu Eunseol did not yet realize it.
Whoosh!
Freed from the pressure, Bu Eunseol immediately unleashed the Meteor Chasing Moon technique.
The target was the Mu Gyeol Ten Finger Ring adorning Song Ok’s thumb.
Zing.
As the tip of the Muk Hon Sword touched the Mu Gyeol Ten Finger Ring, five-colored radiance began to scatter in all directions.
―Screeeech!
Simultaneously, from the transparent Mu Gyeol Ten Finger Ring came a wailing sound like that of a witch’s scream,
Crack.
The Mu Gyeol Ten Finger Ring adorning Song Ok’s finger became covered in cracks,
and shattered with a piercing sound.
In an instant, thousands of points of light scattered in all directions.
A deep rumble echoed.
As the Mu Gyeol Ten Finger Ring shattered, the black mist that had enveloped all directions gradually dissipated.
A groan escaped.
Song Ok collapsed to the ground with a pained sound.
The black space slowly vanished, and the sunlit sky began to appear once more.
“This place is…”
I had thought the Dark Divine Technique had transported us to an enormous space.
But Bu Eunseol and Song Ok had been standing at the foot of Wudang Mountain all along.
“You…”
At that moment, Song Ok, who lay collapsed with blood trickling from his lips, looked toward Bu Eunseol and spoke in a trembling voice.
“She is still alive, is she not.”
“She?”
“Do not play dumb with me.”
The false Song Ok’s gaze fixed upon the mysterious patterns carved into the scabbard at Bu Eunseol’s waist.
“I see. You too crawled out from Jijoong Mountain.”
The young Song Ok’s skin withered and collapsed, and the face of an elderly man, aged by decades, slowly began to reveal itself.
“She is still alive, then…”
The false Song Ok uttered these strange words,
and with a sharp crack,
twisted his neck and collapsed to the ground.
He had breathed his last.
“Jijoong Mountain, you say.”
Bu Eunseol urgently shook the body of the now-elderly Song Ok.
“Which Jijoong Mountain was he referring to? Who was she speaking of…”
The false Song Ok had already expired, his entire body drained of vitality like a withered tree.
‘Jijoong Mountain.’
Was that not the place name that had surfaced when Cheonghae Gye mentioned the bizarre force known as Inbiyin, or those strange organizations?
A faint sound echoed.
At that moment, dozens of figures descended from the mountainside.
They were Cheong Song Ja, Beok Goong Ryung, and members of the Wudang Sect.
“We have him.”
Cheong Song Ja nodded upon seeing the half-melted face of Song Ok overlapping with the visage of an old man.
“Where is the ring he was wearing?”
From Cheong Song Ja’s tiger-like eyes, a piercing light emanated.
“Where is that Dark Divine Technique artifact.”
Remarkably, Cheong Song Ja knew that what the false Song Ok had been wearing was the Dark Divine Technique.
“It has been destroyed.”
Bu Eunseol, having regained consciousness, pointed to the fragments of the Mu Gyeol Ten Finger Ring scattered across the ground.
“How is that possible?”
When Cheong Song Ja asked in astonishment, Bu Eunseol replied matter-of-factly.
“It appears it was not in a perfect state. As it poured out an enormous amount of energy, its body eventually ruptured and destroyed itself.”
“Hmm.”
Young Heo Ja, who had been carefully examining Song Ok’s corpse, nodded to Cheong Song Ja.
It was clear he had verified through the wounds whether there were any flaws in Bu Eunseol’s explanation.
‘So the Wudang Sect knew all along.’
A chill ran down Bu Eunseol’s spine.
The Wudang Sect had already known everything about the Black Divine Technique.
Then why had they summoned Beok Goong Ryung? They possessed more than enough ability to overcome the Black Divine Technique and its user.
‘Indeed, the elder’s Inner Elixir Explosion could have countered the power of the Mu Gyeol Ten Finger Ring.’
Perhaps the Wudang elders had suspected that the draining of vital energy was the Black Divine Technique.
And they had summoned Beok Goong Ryung as a counter to it.
‘Wudang is truly Wudang.’
Outwardly appearing endlessly peaceful, yet possessing potential exceeding even Shaolin.
Perhaps equal to the Sam Gye or beyond.
The forces of the Abyss, cultivating military strength capable of overturning Murim and orchestrating grand schemes,
May have known of Wudang’s true power and deliberately sent those wielding the Black Divine Technique.
“You have labored well.”
Cheong Song Ja regarded Bu Eunseol, nodded, and slowly turned away.
Then Young Cheong Ja approached Bu Eunseol and Beok Goong Ryung and nodded to them.
“You have labored well.”
Young Cheong Ja gazed at Beok Goong Ryung with a faint smile.
“Bong Gong, you are truly both a friend of Wudang and a guardian of Murim.”
Beok Goong Ryung’s complexion also grew rigid.
Only now did he realize that all of this was not coincidence, but a thoroughly planned trial.
“Was I so untrustworthy in your eyes?”
His eyes burned with indignation.
“Or did I appear to be mere chaff, to be entangled in Wudang’s affairs carelessly?”
“How could that be?”
Young Cheong Ja exclaimed in great surprise and took Beok Goong Ryung’s hand.
“Bong Gong, dispel your anger. I shall explain the details to you.”
In the Guest Hall of Jinmu Hall on Wudang Mountain.
Young Cheong Ja brought Bu Eunseol and Beok Goong Ryung and shared tea with them.
Originally, the two should have spoken at length in private.
But Beok Goong Ryung had brought Bu Eunseol along.
Young Cheong Ja acquiesced reluctantly and began his explanation.
“…And so the matter began.”
As the conversation continued, Beok Goong Ryung’s expression grew increasingly rigid.
It turned out that the Wudang Sect maintained close contact with the Murim Alliance Leader.
They were already aware that counterfeit operatives, indistinguishable from genuine members, had taken root throughout every faction in Murim.
Furthermore, this bizarre incident itself
had been orchestrated using the Black Divine Technique.
“If you knew all this so well, why did you need to summon this old man separately?”
Beok Goong Ryung suppressed the rising fury in his voice as he spoke.
“To a fool who wandered Murim alone for decades without even knowing the Black Divine Technique existed.”
“Why speak such words? Such matters were irrelevant.”
“I cannot comprehend this. If you knew the entire situation, you should have resolved it quickly—why did you deliberately summon me and waste time?”
At this, Young Cheong Ja’s expression grew somewhat apologetic.
“There is a deeper reason behind this matter.”
“What reason do you speak of?”
“The reason you were able to maintain such deep bonds not only with Bin Do but with all members of our sect was precisely because you harbored no ambition for Gong Myeong and remained indifferent to fame and profit.”
Young Cheong Ja spoke matter-of-factly.
“Yet you suddenly entered the Murim Alliance, had your name inscribed on the Heroes Monument, and assumed the position of Protector.”
Beok Goong Ryung understood Young Cheong Ja’s meaning and let out a hollow laugh.
“Surely you didn’t think I was a fake?”
Young Cheong Ja nodded with an honest expression.
“The Beok Goong Ryung that Bin Do knew would never have entered the Murim Alliance, even if offered the position of Alliance Leader itself.”
Beok Goong Ryung fell silent, unable to refute.
In truth, Young Cheong Ja was right.
Had I never met Bu Eunseol? Had the concept of righteousness not blown away from my heart?
I would never have entered the Murim Alliance.
Even my entry into the Murim Alliance came from Bu Eunseol’s persuasion.
I could no longer survive as a solitary wanderer of Murim.
Without building power and operating an intelligence network, I could not survive the grasp of the Three Realms.
If I were not to claim a position in the Demon Palace, then following Bu Eunseol’s counsel, the Murim Alliance was the only place I could go.
But the Wudang Sect, unaware that I had undergone such a drastic change of heart because of Bu Eunseol,
could not help but find me suspicious.
“So.”
Beok Goong Ryung’s expression grew deeply displeased.
“You tested me?”
“Testing is perhaps too strong a word. After all, you and Bin Do have maintained good relations for many years, have you not?”
Young Cheong Ja spoke with an embarrassed expression.
“Had you been a fake, your safety could have been compromised. I had to verify it without fail.”
Beok Goong Ryung sighed.
In the end, having Song Ak resolve this matter served to address the Wudang Sect’s concerns, but
it was also meant to confirm whether I was truly Beok Goong Ryung.
“If you had genuinely worried for me, if you had truly sought to verify my authenticity, there were many other methods available.”
Beok Goong Ryung rose from his seat and spoke coldly.
“If you had truly considered me a friend, you should not have verified it in such a manner.”
With that, I turned and walked out of Jinmu Hall.
“….”
A frigid silence descended upon the Guest Hall.
Young Cheong Ja, who had been sitting with a vacant expression, gazed at Bu Eunseol with an embarrassed look.
“I have nothing to say for myself.”
Young Cheong Ja spoke to Bu Eunseol.
“He has possessed a strong pride since his youth. I forgot that point and proceeded with this matter.”
“It was not pride, but loneliness, I believe.”
“Hmm? Loneliness, you say.”
As Young Cheong Ja blinked, Bu Eunseol explained with a composed expression.
“All this time, my master has stood alone and unrivaled in Murim, living with such loftiness that no one could find fault with him.”
“….”
“Yet when the friend he thought he had—Beok Goong Ryung—proceeded with such a plan… it must have felt as though his entire life was being denied.”
“But that was not because he doubted Beok Goong Ryung, but because he was concerned for him.”
“Did my master not say so himself? If it were merely for such a reason, there would have been many other ways.”
Young Cheong Ja let out a sound of realization.
Though he had carried the intention of acting for Beok Goong Ryung’s sake throughout this plan, he had failed to truly understand his heart.
In the end, what Wudang had revealed was a plan filled with obstinacy and self-righteousness.
“Your words are correct.”
Young Cheong Ja lowered his head and sighed.
“I truly have no face to show him. I have made a grave mistake.”
“It is fine.”
“Hmm?”
“He will soon forget it.”
Bu Eunseol smiled.
“Though he possesses a hasty and obstinate temperament, he forgets wrongs just as quickly and calmly assesses situations.”
In truth, I have not known Beok Goong Ryung for an exceptionally long time.
Yet like childhood friends who have spent years together… we understand each other far too well.
Had it been otherwise.
The two of us could never have transcended formality and hierarchy to see through each other’s hearts so clearly.
We could never have become friends whose hearts are laid bare to one another.
“He once swore he would never nurture disciples, yet he accepted a student with such remarkable grace. I wondered why.”
Young Cheong Ja smiled broadly.
“It was because he had found a disciple like a true friend—one who understands his heart so deeply.”
Bu Eunseol smiled.
Though I failed to grasp the depths of this matter.
Young Cheong Ja too is a good friend to Beok Goong Ryung.
“Then I shall take my leave as well.”
As Bu Eunseol turned to depart, Young Cheong Ja spoke.
“Did you perhaps already know about the Black Divine Technique?”
It was a rather abrupt question.
Bu Eunseol, who had been pondering for a moment, tilted her head.
“I’m not certain what you mean.”
“I know. You resolved this entire matter single-handedly.”
Though Young Cheong Ja appeared merely pure and benevolent, he was the sect leader of Wudang, standing shoulder to shoulder with Shaolin.
He had discerned that Bu Eunseol’s cunning had brilliantly unraveled this crisis.
He had seen through her—a person who concealed excellence beneath an ordinary facade.
“Through circumstance, I merely happened upon the thread that led to resolution.”
“Hehe. There’s no need for modesty. Bong Gong knows much, but lacks keen observational insight.”
Young Cheong Jin’s eyes narrowed with knowing amusement.
“You brought her here precisely because you knew this matter couldn’t be resolved otherwise.”
When Bu Eunseol fell silent, Young Cheong Ja nodded gently and asked kindly.
“Tell me, which sect’s Young Hero are you?”
“I’m not sure what you mean.”
“Merely from witnessing the Sword-Spirit Unity that shattered the gap Song Ok created, one can see you’ve reached the realm of True Emptiness and Wondrous Existence, the Highest Ascension.”
Young Cheong Jin continued calmly.
“No matter how exceptional one’s talent, at your age you couldn’t stand shoulder to shoulder with a master called Tan Wang, could you?”
‘Indeed, Wudang sees all.’
I had merely unleashed a single Sword-Spirit Unity in that urgent moment.
Yet from my movements and techniques alone, Young Cheong Ja had immediately grasped
the level of martial mastery I had attained.
“The truth is…”
Unable to help myself, I attempted to evade the situation with a lie.
“If it’s difficult, there’s no need to explain.”
Young Cheong Ja waved his hand with a gentle smile.
“You’re someone Bong Gong trusts, aren’t you?”
Young Cheong Ja spoke plainly.
“If Bong Gong trusts you, then I can trust you as well.”
Young Cheong Ja understood.
That Bu Eunseol and Beok Goong Ryung shared absolute trust with one another.
Otherwise, even he—who had cultivated friendship over decades—would not have grasped Beok Goong Ryung’s true nature so clearly.
A soft smile graced my lips.
So long as someone like Young Cheong Ja led Wudang, the sect would weather any crisis.
“True Master, but there is one thing I’m curious about.”
Recalling that Wudang maintained close contact with Mu Jon, the leader of the Murim Alliance, I spoke carefully.
“If the Murim Alliance knew of such matters, why aren’t they handling it on a larger scale?”
“Our sect must fortify its internal systems to prevent future infiltration by external conspirators.”
Young Cheong Ja offered a somewhat unexpected answer.
“Therefore, we must suspend all sect operations for a time and reorganize our structure. That period will be quite lengthy.”
Yet Bu Eunseol found her answer within those words.
Countless spies surely existed within the Murim Alliance.
If one were to publicly announce such a matter and conduct a sweeping purge of infiltrators,
all operations within the Alliance would have to cease entirely.
Even a sect of Wudang Sect’s caliber would require considerable time for such an undertaking.
To execute this across the Murim Alliance—ten, twenty times larger in scale—would demand an astronomical investment of time and resources.
Moreover, conducting such operations openly would plunge the entire Murim into chaos.
What the Murim Alliance could manage was,
at best, maintaining covert contact with Gu Pa Sect to track the whereabouts of the Black Divine Technique, or eliminating those who had assumed false identities.
Only through such measures could the Murim Alliance reorganize its internal structure and restore normalcy.
“Does that answer your question?”
“Yes, thank you.”
A faint smile graced Bu Eunseol’s lips.
Wudang acknowledged its own mistakes and shortcomings, advancing ceaselessly through self-improvement.
Therefore… Wudang would grow ever stronger.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————