Chief Seong, Ju Soa, and Namgung Wonyang.
These three, who had decided to accompany Unhwi, finished all preparations while Unhwi was meeting with the others.
They had organized the luggage, secured a carriage, and obtained horses as well.
The One-Origin Plateau was the base of the Blood Heaven Sect.
Its scale surpassed even that of Geongon Fortress adjacent to Yangryeong Province, and on its eastern outskirts lay Viper Valley. To the south stood the Heavenly Demon Palace, with the Thunder Demon Cult situated not far from it. To the north was the Red Spirit Court, and to the west, the Palace of Wandering Souls.
These five sects were organizations referred to as the “branches” of the Blood Heaven Sect, and each of them was powerful enough that even standing independently, they would rank among the very strongest of the Five Great Sword Sects or Five Great Sects of the martial world.
They had no reluctance about following Unhwi, but honestly, there was no helping the tension they felt.
Those five sects would even pretend to be dead with a single word from the cult leader of the Blood Heaven Sect.
And the place they were heading to now was not one of those five branches, but the central headquarters of the Blood Heaven Sect itself.
Really.
There was no choice but to steel their hearts.
Just then, Unhwi, who had gone to meet Noh Cheonmyeong, returned.
He asked,
“Are the preparations complete?”
“Yes, Young Master.”
“Then let us depart.”
Strangely enough, Unhwi did not seem tense at all.
Chief Seong, who knew the truth behind things, simply accepted it, but Ju Soa and Namgung Wonyang could only think once more just how extraordinary he truly was.
The carriage departed.
And inside the carriage.
Unhwi spoke quietly.
“Are you nervous?”
He was speaking to Ju Soa and Namgung Wonyang.
The two women nodded.
“I understand. And while this is not something to speak carelessly of elsewhere, the two of you are at least trustworthy enough that I can entrust my back to you. So I intend to tell you.”
At this suddenly begun conversation, not only Chief Seong but everyone widened their eyes.
Tell them what?
After thinking for a moment, Chief Seong was greatly startled.
Surely not.
“......Young Master?”
Looking at Chief Seong, Unhwi gave a small nod.
If it was Unhwi’s decision, there was no helping it.
Chief Seong also nodded and straightened his posture.
As the atmosphere became serious, the two women unconsciously straightened themselves as well.
“When I first fled the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Palace, I was weak and fragile.”
“......Pardon?”
“There was nowhere in the Central Plains I had not gone. And the place where I eventually settled was the Blood Heaven Sect.”
“......?”
“There, I rose to the position of Blood Heaven Arbiter, unified the martial world, and reached the very end of the pinnacle.”
The two women could not even begin to understand what they were hearing.
“With my own hands, I destroyed the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Palace and personally severed the head of Yang Seoljin, who was the Palace Lord at the time. Even now, I can still see it clearly. The look on his face as he begged me to spare him.”
“.......”
“In the end, I no longer wished to remain there and left the Blood Heaven Sect. There were those who pursued me. I had already been poisoned, and I had not properly detoxified myself. No, I could not. It was a poison that could not be cured.”
While afflicted by that poison, he had taken the head of the master of Heaven Gate and severed the heads of every pursuer that came after him.
And in the end, he had taken the head of Yeongunseong as well.
“I came to the ruined Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Palace searching for a place to die, split the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Mountain in half, and died. But when I opened my eyes, I had returned to my childhood.”
It was a clean summary.
“It all began at Seolap. Namgung Wonyang.”
“Y-Yes......?”
“You will remember it. The moment I changed.”
There was no way she could fail to remember.
Seol Unhwi, who had once possessed nothing and could do nothing, had suddenly severed the head of a deputy branch master, slaughtered Beggars’ Sect disciples, and massacred martial artists of Yangryeong.
Unhwi’s story ended there.
It had been brief, but it was a remarkably dense account that contained everything necessary.
After hearing it all, Ju Soa swallowed dryly and spoke.
“......So...... to summarize...... you regressed...... is that it?”
“It would be more accurate to say that regression and previous life are mixed together.”
“......This is driving me insane. I know better than anyone that you are not someone who would joke about something like this, which means this is real...... But is that even possible?”
“The result stands before your eyes, does it not?”
“.......”
“The Thousand-Year Demonic Cult possessed what were known as the Three Divine Relics.”
“I have heard of them. The Heavenly Demon Divine Sword and...... well...... some kind of jewel, I think.”
“The name of that jewel was the Primordial Spirit of Heaven and Earth. It embedded itself into my heart and fulfilled my wish.”
Even now, Unhwi did not know the details of the Primordial Spirit of Heaven and Earth. There was no way for him to investigate it properly.
There was simply no information.
However, through his conversation with the Heavenly Wayfarer and the chain of events that had unfolded, he had become convinced.
The Primordial Spirit of Heaven and Earth possessed one of two effects.
One was granting the wish of a person.
The other was cleanly returning the user to the exact point in time they desired.
Both possibilities shared one common trait.
The world itself was reconstructed.
And regardless of which explanation was applied, Unhwi’s current situation could be explained.
Ju Soa raised her hand as though she had another question.
“Go ahead.”
“Is it single-use?”
In a way, it was the core question.
Was the Primordial Spirit of Heaven and Earth a single-use artifact?
The place where the Primordial Spirit of Heaven and Earth should have existed no longer contained it.
Whatever the case, once Unhwi used it, the Primordial Spirit of Heaven and Earth had vanished.
Then what about before that?
The Heavenly Wayfarer had known what sort of power it possessed.
The Heavenly Wayfarer had been the Vice Leader of the Thousand-Year Demonic Cult and a figure who had lived for nearly several hundred years.
Naturally, Won Geukcheon, the cult leader of the Thousand-Year Demonic Cult whom he had served, would also have known of its effects, and so too would his successors.
Recently, there had been no opportunity to enter secret realms or meet the Demon Lords, so Unhwi had never had the chance to ask, but this was certainly an issue worth examining at least once.
Naturally, Unhwi himself had thought about this matter before.
That was why he could answer Ju Soa’s question firmly.
“I do not know.”
“Ah.......”
“There is no choice but not to know. There is no information.”
“......Right? Because if such an absurdly powerful divine relic were not single-use, then this world would become someone’s playground...... and that would be a little terrifying.”
Unhwi let out a faint chuckle.
“Has your tension eased?”
“......A little?”
“That is enough.”
Unhwi sank deeply into his seat.
“It will take quite some time to reach the One-Origin Plateau. So make yourselves comfortable.”
It was simple.
Really.
They only needed to continue as they always had.
The carriage headed toward the One-Origin Plateau.
Smoothly.
***
The One-Origin Plateau.
The far southwestern edge of the Central Plains.
A vast plateau surrounded by mountain ranges like folding screens.
It was called the One-Origin Plateau because one could supposedly see the sun rise and the moon rise at the same time there.
And here stood the Blood Heaven Sect.
Unhwi entered the plateau one month after leaving Yangryeong Province.
Snow did not fall this far.
It was warm.
The unique climate of the plateau.
Unhwi walked.
Along a familiar road.
A road he had walked countless times in his previous life.
......It has not changed.
The surrounding scenery remained exactly the same.
Red earth.
Rugged rocks.
Trees growing sparsely here and there.
Everything was exactly as he remembered it. How long had he walked?
A massive structure appeared ahead of him.
The Blood Heaven Sect.
The main headquarters of the Blood Heaven Sect.
A structure where black and crimson intermingled.
It was oppressive.
But to Unhwi—
......It feels like home.
Strangely enough, it was comfortable.
The place where he had stayed the longest in his previous life.
He had spent decades here.
Training, carrying out missions, and mingling with others.
Unhwi’s carriage stopped before the main gate of the headquarters.
The gatekeepers tilted their heads at the sight of the carriage.
Someone bringing a carriage not merely to the outskirts of the Blood Heaven Sect, but directly to the main headquarters?
In all their lives, they had never seen such a person.
Then the carriage door opened and Unhwi stepped down.
He looked at the gatekeepers.
“Discipline has fallen into disorder.”
The gatekeepers’ brows instantly twisted fiercely.
“Who are you to dare come to the headquarters and speak of discipli—”
Before the gatekeeper could finish, someone hurriedly covered his mouth. It was the gatekeeper standing beside him, and that man approached Unhwi.
“......Unless my eyes deceive me, are you perhaps Hyun Seollin of the Ten-Thousand-Year Snow Palace......?”
“That is correct.”
“......What brings someone as renowned as you to this place......?”
“I made a promise with this seat.”
“......Pardon?”
“Go inside and deliver the message. Tell them Hyun Seollin has come to ask the second question he could not ask back then, and that he will accept this seat’s proposal.”
From the perspective of the gatekeepers, the situation was utterly abrupt.
No, how could anyone possibly anticipate something like this in their lifetime?
“P-Please wait a moment.”
Unhwi nodded and shifted his gaze toward the other gatekeeper.
The man’s face had completely stiffened.
Who are you to dare— those words flashed through his mind.
Along with the remark that discipline had fallen into disorder.
The man hurriedly formed a fist salute toward Unhwi.
“......I have committed a discourtesy.”
“It is fine.”
Without another word, Unhwi closed his eyes.
How long did they wait before the carriage like that?
The gatekeeper who had gone inside returned. Just by looking at the sweat covering his face, it was obvious how frantic he had been.
“P-Please...... come inside.”
The main gate opened.
Unhwi climbed back into the carriage, and it began moving again.
The dazzling interior scenery revealed itself.
Unhwi felt little reaction.
It was simply too familiar to him.
But for the members of his group, who had entered this place for the first time, it was impossible to hide their shock.
The might of the Blood Heaven Sect.
There was no need to even mention its reputation in the martial world, but none of them had imagined the interior would be like this.
This did not resemble a mere city.
It looked like a royal palace.
After leaving the horses and carriage at the headquarters stable, Unhwi’s group entered deeper into the headquarters.
They passed through corridors.
Martial artists appeared.
The moment they saw Unhwi, every one of them stopped.
These were elite Blood people.
No matter who the opponent was, they would never show fear.
They lightly bowed their heads toward Unhwi in a formal gesture.
Unhwi also inclined his head lightly toward them.
Without a word, they passed one another.
Unhwi’s group continued walking.
Toward the central grand hall.
The doors stood open.
A voice came from within.
“Come in.”
The Heavenly Wayfarer’s voice.
Unhwi quietly entered.
Inside the grand hall.
The Heavenly Wayfarer sat at the seat of honor, while six elderly men occupied the seats to either side.
The Six Great Elders of the Blood Heaven Sect.
Among them, the man seated foremost was the Great Elder, Yeongunseong.
Mid-seventies.
His bald head was still striking.
A master of the Taehumusal state.
Without anyone noticing, he gave a slight blink with one eye.
It meant he was pleased to see him and welcomed the fact that he had come here.
The Heavenly Wayfarer smiled faintly.
“This rascal. First you made a fool of me, and now you are even exchanging glances elsewhere.”
Unhwi let out a faint laugh.
“You fooled me so thoroughly that I decided to repay you once, Elder Cheon.”
At the brief exchange between the two, every elder blinked.
It was unreal.
To them, the Heavenly Wayfarer was the heavens themselves.
And yet this young man spoke to him like that? Such ordinary conversation, and inside this grand hall no less?
It was absurd to the point of disbelief.
“Now then, shall we move to the main matter?”
“Very well, Elder Cheon.”
“Before I hear your second question, let me ask something first. Why did you leave the Snow Palace?”
“Was that not what you wished for?”
The Heavenly Wayfarer gave a faint chuckle.
“Wishing for it and wanting to hear the reason are different matters. Is that not so?”
“You are correct, Elder Cheon. Then I shall answer. I came here for the sake of my ambition.”
