The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 521

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Heavenly Supreme Has Died – Episode 521
I did not rest.
I repeated my training through the nights and traveled during the days. Nothing particularly remarkable about mountain journeys, really.
Then I arrived at a village.
The reason was straightforward.
“We need to take a boat?”
They said we had to travel by boat from this place.
[You must cross the river.]
Mee Yeon-hwa speaks while wearing a mask and veil. She was responsible for guiding our path. Cross a river here?
‘I’ve heard there was a river, but-‘
It’s clearly drawn on the map. They said it didn’t exist before, but was created from a battle between two martial artists in the past?
This borders on legend. How could such a vast river be born from martial artists fighting? A river of this size is the sort of fairy tale and folklore that exists everywhere.
It’s the same wherever you go. Those stories woven into nature itself.
‘But I have to cross that river.’
This seemed to be quite a famous place. I wondered if coming here before heading to the Divine River was the right choice.
[This is the fastest route. Any other way would require a significant detour.]
Mee Yeon-hwa speaks with certainty. I admit this part makes sense. Looking at the map, crossing the river was overwhelmingly faster.
It’s just the fact that we need to take a boat that’s somewhat unsettling.
“I need to arrange passage on a boat.”
Given the number of people and the carriage we had, I needed to secure and prepare boat passage quickly.
So I had to send someone.
“What are you doing?”
“…Yes?”
Dok-ryong, who was managing the carriage, hesitates. What is he doing right now?
“Go find out.”
“Me?”
“Then who else would go?”
“…But there are many of us here?”
His expression asks why he should go when there are so many others. His gaze even shifted toward the Sword Emperor, who was managing the horses.
Is he crazy? Surely he’s not telling the Sword Emperor to go?
“…Go quickly. No excuses.”
“…Ugh.”
Dok-ryong lets out a groan and moves. I let him head toward the village.
About two hours passed. Dok-ryong, who had left, appeared again.
“How did it go?”
“…The boat departs in two days, they said.”
“Two days means I need to arrange lodging.”
“I inquired about that while I was there.”
“Oh.”
He does his work well. If he hadn’t found out, I would have sent him again, but he managed to find out on his own.
I was given several options to choose from. It seemed I just needed to pick one of them.
Considering the price and location, one place stood out as perfectly suitable.
I headed straight there.
I left the carriage at the stable and secured lodging. With our group’s size, the innkeeper naturally welcomed us.
After obtaining several rooms, I stepped back outside.
“I’ll take a walk around the area.”
I set out with my sword. I wanted to explore the village near the river. There was one reason for this.
[There are many strange things here.]
The Celestial Demon seemed to understand my intention.
‘Indeed. Disgustingly many.’
Ghosts filled every direction.
This was typical for a village adjacent to a river like this.
It was natural that rivers had more ghosts than mountains.
‘This is strangely excessive.’
Their numbers were abnormal. No matter how I looked at it, I felt I’d chosen the wrong village. Or perhaps—
‘There couldn’t be this many.’
Even for a river, having this many ghosts was abnormal. As if to understand the unease I’d felt upon arrival, I grabbed an old man nearby and asked him.
“Excuse me, sir.”
“Huh?”
The old man drinking midday liquor looked at me. His nose was bright red.
“Has there been a tidal wave or storm in the village recently?”
“A storm? No, it’s been calm for years now.”
“…Is that so?”
No tidal wave and no storm? How could that be?
It was puzzling.
“Are you a stranger?”
The old man looked at me with curiosity and asked.
“Ah, yes. I’m traveling.”
“Oh. Where are you from?”
“I came from Hanam.”
“Wow, Hanam?”
At my words, those nearby turned their attention toward me.
“From Hanam, you say?”
“What brings someone from such a city to this remote village?”
Both adults and children showed interest. It was certainly unusual. There wasn’t much to see even if one took a boat from here.
“How fascinating.”
“What sort of young man is this? Remarkably beautiful, isn’t he?”
“In all my years, I’ve never seen such a handsome young man.”
The grandmothers’ attention focused on me. I had to smile awkwardly.
“Tsk, tsk. He looks like a courtesan’s older brother, but what’s so good about that?”
“That’s right. A man must have backbone.”
“Old Man, can’t you see? My frame is quite large.”
Due to my rebirth, my muscles and bones had grown proportionally. Tsk, tsk sounds echoed from various directions.
“In any case, thank you for telling me.”
I hastily excused myself from the gathering. It seemed unwise to linger any longer. This much attention was becoming burdensome.
‘Besides.’
Within that barrage of attention, I sensed something else.
A chill. A cold, unsettling presence.
‘Though that alone wouldn’t matter.’
I could tell from the state of the ghosts themselves. These were not mere spirits lingering with unfinished business.
‘Tsk.’
A horde of demons.
This village was teeming with demons.
Unnaturally so.

* * *
Two more days passed. Soon enough, we reached the time when we would need to board a vessel.
As if to prove it, a massive ship had arrived at the harbor.
“Begin loading the cargo at once!”
At the command of what appeared to be an administrator, cargo began being loaded onto the ship. We didn’t have much, but since there weren’t many passengers, most of the cargo was ours.
When we’d filled roughly half the hold, the loading finished. We then boarded the vessel.
“It’s enormous.”
Quite massive indeed. Both the ship and the river. Could this even be called a river? It looked more like a sea.
‘I’ve never seen a river like this in my previous life.’
Boarding a ship was something I’d scarcely done before. There had always been other methods of travel available to me.
“All the cargo has been loaded.”
“How long did they say the journey would take?”
“Approximately a day and a half, or so I heard.”
“Hmm…”
A duration that seemed both long and short. Since all the passengers were martial artists, seasickness wouldn’t be an issue.
We probably wouldn’t even need a night watch. It felt like it might be a proper rest period.
“We’re departing!”
After confirming all passengers, the ship began to move. We were setting sail. The massive vessel slowly made its way along the river.
‘Let me see.’
I perched myself against the railing and surveyed the riverbanks.
‘Nothing yet.’
I sensed water ghosts. I was observing the spirits within the waters, but the starting point of the river had few water ghosts.
Just the ordinary amount you’d find anywhere. They didn’t even show interest in humans.
Seeing this, I nodded slightly. It seemed it wasn’t yet the time.
“What are you doing? Aren’t you going to eat?”
“Ah, I’m going.”
Peng Dojun speaks as he enters the boat. He moved from there and entered inside the vessel. That’s when it happened.
‘….’
Without turning my head, I expanded my Gigam. My gaze pierces outward.
“What will you do?”
Peng Dojun asks, approaching quietly and speaking in hushed tones.
It seems he’s noticed something too. In any case, being Cheonmu Jiche, his senses are truly remarkable.
“I’m still considering.”
“I just wanted to rest comfortably, but now it’s become troublesome.”
Hearing that, I laughed.
“Rest comfortably? Yet you train so violently every single night?”
“Training is supposed to be violent. Why would someone who knows this say such things?”
“I don’t know anything. I don’t train as violently as that.”
Who would train as crudely as this man? Unable to help myself, I speak, and Peng Dojun’s expression changes.
“…You really think that?”
“Pardon?”
What’s with that expression? It’s strange. What is it?
“What kind of look is that?”
“Even watching you train for just a moment from the side, anyone would know. The fact that you alone don’t realize it is utterly absurd.”
“What did I do wrong?”
“Does it look normal to you, moving around with those heavy iron weights strapped all over your body?”
“They’re not that heavy.”
I need to wear them for efficient training. Otherwise, my body takes far too long to tire.
I’m not being crude—I’ve simply found efficiency. That’s what I tell myself.
“…Ah, I see?”
Peng Dojun, seemingly unconvinced, wears a peculiar expression as he disappears inside.
What was that reaction?
‘That left a bad taste.’
Is it really so strange to just do some training?
[Kuhkuh.]
I hear the Celestial Demon laughing. Hearing that, I asked him.
“Why are you laughing? Am I really training strangely?”
[It’s not strange. If you ask whether it’s excessive, then perhaps.]
“…Me?”
[Of course. Have you forgotten who taught you that training method?]
“….”
Hearing that, I found myself nodding slightly. Yoo Cheon-gil. It was training taught by that monstrous old man.
‘That’s right.’
Then being crude is fitting.
I had simply forgotten that for a moment.
“…I must be crazy too.”
I hadn’t even realized I was doing something beyond all reason.
Remembering that, I laughed.
“…Let me rest for a moment.”
I needed rest. It was necessary until nightfall came.

* * *
A pristine white expanse stretches before me. A place both alien and strangely hollow.
Opening my eyes there, I recognized it immediately.
“It’s a dream.”
A dream. A space I hadn’t visited in a very long time.
I’d forgotten about it since I hadn’t come here in so long. Yet suddenly I’ve arrived.
‘What could it be.’
A prophetic dream?
I survey my surroundings. The white space looks no different than usual. Nothing seemed to have changed.
‘What is this.’
I remained still, examining the area. If nothing changes, should I attempt to wake? As that thought crossed my mind.
A crackling sound.
“Huh?”
In the distance. Something appears roughly a dozen paces away.
A spark of fire blazes in the empty air.
Crackle! Crackle! Snap!
Blue flames. They materialize in the void and slowly ignite.
What is that? I narrowed my eyes.
A ghost? Could it be Yoo Cheon-gil? No. It was neither a ghost nor Yoo Cheon-gil.
Merely energy. Merely a spark.
Something beyond description—just a simple word.
That was exactly it. There was no further way to express it. That was all I could sense.
As I watched the flames, they slowly began to change shape.
The form of a human.
Whoooosh—!!!
The flames soon took on a human shape.
Then it collapsed to the ground and suddenly pointed a finger at me.
Aiming at me with its index finger.
“What is this.”
What is it doing? It’s staring at me strangely.
[Hurry.]
The flames suddenly spoke to me.
[Shatter it.]
“…!”
Whoooosh—!
Upon hearing those words, my vision blurred. My mind spiraled into confusion.
My consciousness was forcibly awakening from the dream.
I tried to cling to it, to resist the awakening, but it was futile. The pull was beyond my control.
“….”
I opened my eyes.
The dark ceiling came into view.
“Ah, you’re awake.”
Peng Dojun’s rough face appeared before me.
It was a decidedly unpleasant way to wake.

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