Chương 595: Pen (1)

Kurururung!

A sound as if the world is collapsing comes from somewhere far away.

Startled, I look in that direction.

"... Huh?"

My neck and body separate.

Just when I can properly grasp what's happening, my body turns into a pile of salt and begins to scatter wildly into the chaos.

"W-Wait..."

As I panic, my head splits in half, and I truly feel the threat to my life.

'This can't go on like this!'

I grit my teeth and start reciting the Phenomena Extinguishing Mantra.

'Immortal Cultivation is repentant enlightenment...!'

Kigigigik!

With that, from the part of my split head where my consciousness resides, attraction force begins to arise.

Kurururung!

From within the chaos, the parts of my physical body that had been flung away as a pile of salt all return.

However, they remain in the form of salt, and do not transform back into my body.

'Impermanence Sword!'

I imbue the Impermanence Sword into the salt mass that is my body, and only then does my body return to its original state.

"Th-That just now was..."

When I look at Hyeon Mu with bewildered eyes, she answers indifferently.

"Isn't it obvious? You almost got swallowed by chaos. This is the true world of chaos. Unlike inside the safe Mount Sumeru, where the planes of Qi, Soul, and Fate are properly divided, this is the world of true chaos antiquity (混沌上)."

I look at Hyeon Mu and ask.

"In this... dangerous world of chaos antiquity, just why did you bring Kim Young-hoon?"

"Why did I bring him, you ask... Isn't it obvious? It's for training. Do not worry too much. He is currently in the process of finding himself, and with just a few measures, he will definitely return to normal."

"... Are the measures nearly impossible by any chance...?"

"No. No one needs to sacrifice anything, just a few rounds of sparring will suffice."

Only then do I feel relieved and offer my gratitude to Hyeon Mu.

"Thank you..."

"You worry too much. Since you are here, and he is safe, just ignore him and take a look around the Outer Sea. Do not forget to maintain yourself with the mantra."

"Yes, thank you again for the opportunity to expand my knowledge. To think such a world exists... It is... truly vast."

I set aside my worries about Kim Young-hoon and look around at this vast and boundless chaos.

The perspective of Mount Sumeru in the distance seems very strange, but compared to the world of chaos, it looks infinitely small.

"In comparison to this world... even Mount Sumeru seems very cramped. Truly... it looks small. The world we lived in..."

It's when I comment on Mount Sumeru while observing this incomparably vast world.

"Kukuk..."

Hyeon Mu chuckles, seemingly amused by something.

"Does Mount Sumeru appear small? Does this world appear large?"

"Yes, well... it does."

"Whether as a Heaven Immortal, Earth Immortal... or martial artist, one can't help but feel that way due to their low realm. Come back after you've significantly raised your realm. You will find it suffocating."

"...?"

"I will just say that Mount Sumeru is by no means small. In any case, since you are here, take a good look at Mount Sumeru. There may be things you cannot see... but it will be somewhat helpful."

I follow her words and look carefully towards Mount Sumeru.

Mount Sumeru is essentially intertwined with three bizarre somethings.

'That is...'

"Those are the planes of Qi, Soul, and Fate. And the spaces where those Qi, Soul, and Fate overlap are called the True Immortal Realm."

"I see..."

"There are a total of nine Heavenly Domains within Mount Sumeru: Earth Boundary, Elephant Nose, Horse Ear, Good Sight, Bearing Tree, Earth Axis, Twin Holding, Heavenly King... and Sun and Moon. Each Heavenly Domain is merely the space perceived by mortal beings. In reality, they are divided into Qi, Soul, Fate, and Immortal. Four parts."

"Hm? The Underworld, Source River, Interdimensional Void, Flower Field... and Astral Realm. Isn't a Heavenly Domain composed of five?"

"Kukuk... Except for the Astral Realm, the rest are merely pseudo-dimensions clinging to each plane. It is the same for the Underworld. Only the planes of Qi, Soul, and Fate are absolute. The Immortal Plane does not truly exist, but it is roughly recognized for its absoluteness as it is the intersection of the three planes."

She continues her explanation.

"Anyway... each Astral Realm, or Heavenly Domain, is composed of these four planes. And... when you combine all the planes of each Heavenly Domain, each plane is referred to as a Heaven. They are called the Thirty-Two Heavens."

"Thirty-Two Heavens...?"

I sense something strange in her words.

"Does it relate to the fact that the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain is called the Thirty-Third Heaven?"

"Why state the obvious? The eight Heavenly Domains of Mount Sumeru are each split into four planes, which is why they are called the Thirty-Two Heavens, and the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain the Thirty-Third Heaven."

"... That's strange."

I speak as I look at Mount Sumeru from afar.

According to Hyeon Mu's words, something doesn't add up.

"If you include the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain... should it not be... Thirty-Six Heavens...?"

If all nine Heavenly Domains are divided into the four planes of Qi, Soul, Fate, and Immortality, making Thirty-Two Heavens, then why is the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain alone referred to as Thirty-Third Heaven?

'Should it not be Thirty-Six Heavens?'

"Yes, it is a reasonable point... But because that is not so, it is named as it is."

"Pardon...?"

"Look closely."

Following Hyeon Mu's fingertip, I gaze at the approximate peak of Mount Sumeru, where the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain.

"... Huh?"

And I see something strange.

'What is this?'

It is [one].

The other Heavenly Domains have the planes of Qi, Soul, Fate, and Immortal as usual.

However, the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain is peculiar.

'The planes of Qi, Soul, and Fate... and the Plane of True Immortality... are not visible...?'

I am filled with confusion.

Hyeon Mu, observing me, turns to look at the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain and speaks.

"... The Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain... has no distinction of planes."

"... What do you mean? I clearly sensed the planes existing in the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain during the Sacred Vessel stage. I also distinctly sensed descending from the True Immortal Plane to the Lower Realm. Yet you are saying there are no planes?"

"You seem to expect something by questioning me... but I cannot answer right now. Just look. It's one, is it not?"

"Just what...?"

'Could everything I felt in the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain... be a lie...?'

I can only stare with wide eyes at this explanation I can't comprehend.

"The space where there is no distinction between Qi, Soul, and Fate is the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain... Yet, strangely, despite being chaos, the world functions with an uncanny order. From inside, it feels like the planes of Qi, Soul, Fate, and True Immortality exist. What feels true inside, from a different dimensional perspective, feels false. Haven't you experienced something like that before?"

"..."

At those words, I close my mouth.

The Head Realm's sun and moon!

From inside, it looks as if the sun and moon rises and sets normally.

But in truth, it is actually an optical illusion caused by the rotation of the Yin and Yang energy of the Head Realm, with the sun and moon of the Head Realm being fixed.

"... So the planes I felt in the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain... were just an illusion?"

"That's one way to think about it. The Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain appears that way due to the 'misunderstanding' that Qi, Soul, and Fate are divided. In reality, it is 'one'... which means it is the optimal place for learning Immortal Arts and for Immortal Arts to be born."

"... One..."

"Does anything come to mind? Well, in any case, the important point is this: the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain is essentially the same as this Outer Sea. In other words, it is fundamentally no different from the world of chaos. The peak of Mount Sumeru and the outside of Mount Sumeru are essentially the same... which means, by endlessly distancing yourself from Mount Sumeru through this Outer Sea, you might achieve the same effect as reaching the peak of the mountain."

"Pardon...?"

"Climbing Mount Sumeru to penetrate its vertex and distancing yourself from Mount Sumeru by swimming through this world of chaos produces the same result. Yes... it means you can escape."

I sense something strange in Hyeon Mu's tone and ask.

"Saying that we can escape... feels like saying we are trapped."

"..."

She remains silent at my question.

After a brief silence, she suddenly brings up an unrelated topic.

"You Enders..."

It is about us.

"You do not belong to this world, do you?"

"Yes... that is correct."

"Then where do you come from?"

"... It is a place called Earth. Originally... I thought it might be somewhere in the Astral Realm... but upon reflection, it seems not. Our homeland doesn't appear to exist anywhere in this world."

"Earth... such a common name. But certainly, from that name, I sense it... the feeling of another world..."

Hyeon Mu points somewhere.

It is the peak of Mount Sumeru.

"The Head Realm at that peak. Beyond that Head Realm... there surely lies another place. And that other place is probably the passage to the other world you came from."

"..."

I let out a silent sigh.

Indeed, it is something I had vaguely suspected after seeing the structure of Mount Sumeru.

'In the end, to return home... for us to go back to our homeland, must we pierce through the Head Realm.'

"The Head Realm... is a place the Supreme Deities, the Heavenly Venerables, and other high persons refer to as the Audience Chamber. Why is that?"

"Audience..."

She gazes at the peak of the Head Realm with vacant eyes and responds with an inexplicably gloomy expression.

"... No one knows, except perhaps the Underworld..."

"Pardon...?"

"The Head Realm is a [door]. A door that leads to another world is hidden there. And... that [door] never opens. It is not simply because of its structure or a lack of power..."

As she continues, I feel a chill creeping in.

"[Someone]... is holding the door shut from the other side. And... it only opens when an Ender grows into the existence known as a Heavenly King and returns to the Head Realm. We have tried and tried again in the past. Myself, Sal Tree, Time... and several Supreme Deities. We have tried to open and exit through the [door] with our power alone. But it was not possible."

Her eyes are shared in a deep darkness.

For the first time in a while, I can read an 'emotion' in the eyes of emptiness.

It is despair.

"That is why it is called the Audience Chamber. Someone named it with the will to one day meet the existence holding the door shut... No one has succeeded in opening that door. Apart from the Salt Sea Supreme Deity and the Heavenly Venerable of the Underworld, I mean... However, those two are of a different rank, and no one even dared to reach their level of authority..."

Hyeon Mu looks somewhere.

It is beyond the distant sea of chaos.

"Sal Tree, Time, and I each tried through our own means to reach a place similar to where Underworld and Salt Sea are. But it was impossible for us."

"What do you mean by impossible?"

"... It is our disgrace. It is such a painful disgrace that we cut out the 'memory of the cause of impossibility' and sealed it after turning it into ancient force. Do not try to find out, just know that it was impossible."

"... Understood."

"In any case, knowing it was impossible, we started seeking other methods. Sal Tree continued searching for a way through cooperation with Underworld, I explored the domain of purity, and Time... ventured into the world of chaos."

She gestures towards somewhere in the chaos.

"The chaos that the Salt Sea Supreme Deity wandered through quite freely, the Great Salt Sea... Time believed They could navigate this Great Salt Sea by Themself. And They tried to escape this world by sailing the Outer Sea. In the end..."

"They failed."

"No, They succeeded."

"...? Pardon...?"

Despite speaking of success, Hyeon Mu's face doesn't seem bright.

"They discovered a way out of this world. They contacted us from beyond the distant chaos, saying They found what could be considered the boundary of this world. That if we crossed that boundary, we might see hope of leaving... Finding that clue and contacting us was a recent matter."

She meets my eyes.

"Back when They reversed the time of all of Mount Sumeru at the cost of Their existence! They said They passed that clue to someone worthy of being my disciple. Someone worthy of being my disciple would inevitably be the likes of the Golden Body Heavenly Kings or the Silver Basket Heavenly Kings who end up training in Martial Arts. That is why... I brought both you and Kim Young-hoon to this space."

"...!"

"I do not know whether you are Golden Body or Silver Basket. Since that guy is golden, he could be Golden Body, but... frankly, the existence of you Enders is chaos itself, so it can't be determined by color alone."

"..."

"Sal Tree boasted of a plan to open the Audience Chamber with Underworld, claiming that beyond the Audience Chamber, They will rescue Time at the boundary on the [outside] and bring Them back... However, the Heavenly Venerable of the Underworld suddenly changed Their mind, turning the plan to dust, and everything became twisted. All that remains is the anger of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity, who stepped on the same boat as Sal Tree and Underworld...

Great Mountain, shaking over the betrayal, seeks to reach the Audience Chamber even if it means destroying Mount Sumeru."

I come to understand the plans of the Heavenly Venerables and Supreme Deities to some extent.

"Of course, I never trusted the insidious Underworld from the start, so I didn't believe it. Instead, I tried to find the clue given by the Heavenly Venerable of Time. Among the two of you... the Heavenly Venerable of Time, Cheon Woon, said they surely let a clue."

Surung— She thrusts something sharp toward me.

"From now on, I will dismantle you."

"Pardon...?"

"I will dismantle everything that constitutes you, to find the clue left by Time."

Chill!

I grit my teeth, sensing the sincerity in Hyeon Mu's aura.

"... So this is why you brought us here."

"Do not worry. You will not die. It will only hurt a little. Don't you like that kind of thing? You have no hesitation about inflicting what you consider 'painless' by your own standards upon others..."

"I am fine, but I absolutely cannot allow it to happen to Young-hoon Hyung-nim. Besides, there is no guarantee that you will put us back together after dismantling us, right? I can't just let it happen willingly."

"..."

"Can we not... explain what the Heavenly Venerable of Time gave us through words?"

"How laughable. You think you can explain the wisdom implanted in you by the Heavenly Venerable with words? Do not look down... on the Heavenly Venerable of Time."

Surung—

"We must leave. Especially I... must leave this world."

The eyes of the Heavenly Venerable of Emptiness are deeper and darker than ever before.

"Because we Heavenly Venerables... to the point of desperately seeking death... are being forced into eternity by Mount Sumeru. Therefore... even if it means dismantling you, I will obtain Time's clue and leave this world."

Shukak!

With the ensuing dance of the Heavenly Venerable of the Void, I feel my entire body being dismantled.

Barely managing to restore my body with the Phenomena Extinguishing Mantra, I begin to face the dance of emptiness.

A golden Peng senses the killing intent and flies towards us.

Kieeeeek!

Yet in an instant, Kim Young-hoon turns to dust, like me, from Hyeon Mu's dance.

The golden Peng Kim Young-hoon restores his body and charges in.

I look at the Heavenly Venerable of the Void.

'Emptiness...'

In her eyes, an 'emotion' more vivid than ever can be seen. That emotion is a desire more powerful than anything else for suicide.

Seeing this, I feel...

That the Heavenly Venerables somehow seem like livestock trapped in a pen.

The dance she performs seems like...

The mournful cry of an animal confined in a pen.

Kieeeeeeek!

Thus, in the world of chaos, we suddenly find ourselves confronting the Heavenly Venerable, who is crying out, trapped in a pen.