Chapter 170: Question
After the beating disguised as a sparring session ended.
Except for Cho-yul, who was working, and Gwak Yu-chan, who was injured, the other four gathered in one place.
“Ha-un’s chest was pierced?”
Cho-su’s voice rose at Jang Woo-hyun’s explanation.
Outwardly he looked fine, so it was an unexpected remark.
“Then how is he walking around so normally right now?”
“Cheon Heo-jin-nim is supplying his power to substitute for the injured area. That’s why I’m asking—by any chance, is there anything that might help Ha-un? Sothing that could heal his wound or such.”
Hearing that the injury was more serious than expected, Cho-su sank into deep thought.
“Nothing really cos to mind. There are only weapons and armor here. Ha-un, are you really alright?”
“Yes, don’t worry. I’m tough.”
Jin Ha-un patted his chest with a thud-thud.
“This isn’t really sothing to joke about with a smile. There’s bound to be a limit, isn’t there?”
Pung So-bong, who had just been listening, interjected.
His assessnt was accurate. Jin Ha-un couldn’t exert power indefinitely, nor could he live long.
He was only postponing death with the power of Cheon Heo-jin for now. Once that power ran out, he would collapse again with a gaping hole in his chest.
“How about visiting Hwanhwanmun?”
“What’s there?”
“It’s a union of spellcasters, so they likely have more unique items compared to sects filled with martial artists. Most sects only have weapons when it cos to artifacts or Dharma Treasures.”
Hwanhwanmun was a place where spellcasters who had ascended or learned sorcery gathered.
Naturally, most of its mbers were spellcasters, so they made heavy use of unique Dharma Treasures and artifacts. Perhaps they possessed sothing that could help Jin Ha-un.
But there was a problem.
“Hwanhwanmun is currently in a difficult situation.”
After Hyeonwol, the second-in-command of the sect, beca the new Sect Leader, they attacked the Beast King Sect. Jang Woo-hyun had already encountered Man-un, one of the Ten Lords of Hwanhwanmun.
Given the current situation, it would be difficult for Jang Woo-hyun—who had ties to the Beast King Sect—to contact them or receive help.
“Then we’ll have to think of another thod.”
As the four talked, Cho-su said he would search around just in case he could find sothing useful and took Jin Ha-un to Cho-yul.
Left alone with Pung So-bong, Jang Woo-hyun suddenly rembered sothing and rummaged through his Inner Robe.
“Give this to Senior Gwak too. It might be helpful.”
Jang Woo-hyun handed over the wooden case he had received from Choryeong while raiding Yangjeon-gun’s warehouse.
“This is...”
Inside the wooden case was an herb resembling ginseng, shaped like a bolt of lightning from sky to root.
“I heard it’s called Byeokryeokcho. It’s a dicinal herb usable by the Wood Spirit Tribe.”
“Thunderbolt Vein Herb. It’s not just usable—it’s an excellent spiritual herb. Especially for martial artists who learn arts based on thunder power or use thunder qi. But it won’t be of much help to that Gwak guy. This isn’t an ordinary spiritual herb.”
It was a spiritual herb specialized in a certain direction, so it wouldn’t help treat Gwak Yu-chan’s injury. Nor would it help him grow stronger.
At Pung So-bong’s explanation, Jang Woo-hyun put Byeokryeokcho back into the Inner Robe as if it were nothing, and casually asked about sothing else.
“The difference between Ascension and Flight to the Heavens?”
“Yes.”
It was sothing Kim Min-soo had ntioned.
Others said they had no thoughts about Ascension, Flight to the Heavens, or the Heavenly Tribulation that only affected cultivators.
Taking the chance to et a cultivator he could actually converse with, Jang Woo-hyun brought it up.
And he also ntioned that when he returned to Jungcheon, he had sohow gotten involved with True Immortals and ca up via a thod similar to Flight to the Heavens rather than Ascension.
“I also know the rough idea of Ascension. Unlike Flight to the Heavens, it ans rising to Jungcheon with ease. But we—aning cultivators—face trendous pressure and must fight during Flight to the Heavens.”
“Fight? Fight with whom?”
“You didn’t encounter them? During Flight to the Heavens, there are monsters that appear.”
Jang Woo-hyun shook his head at Pung So-bong’s question.
“So have beastly forms, so are human-shaped. So are unidentifiable. But all of them seem to be ford from shadows—or black mud, maybe. Anyway, those kinds of things attack. If you're lucky, you et them once; if not, you may face them over ten tis.”
Jang Woo-hyun had never experienced anything like that. Even when he flew toward the coordinate for Flight to the Heavens after erging from the pillar of light that assisted Ascension, no such entities attacked.
‘Why is that?’
No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t find a clear reason.
It could be because of his fight with the Silver Giant, or maybe he was just too strong. Or perhaps there was another unknown reason.
Since he couldn’t figure it out now, Jang Woo-hyun moved on to ask sothing else.
“Martial artists don’t get hit by the Heavenly Tribulation—why is that?”
Pung So-bong looked at him like he was pathetic.
“Why would you ask sothing like that? It’s obvious.”
“Huh? Obvious?”
“Of course. Flight to the Heavens isn’t permitted by the heavens. So the heavens are enraged and punish them.”
“But Ascension doesn’t involve any of that. It’s easy to co up to Jungcheon, and there’s no Heavenly Tribulation either. Isn’t that strange?”
“I don’t see why you’d say that. Ascension is aided by the heavens. It’s about bringing a powerful martial artist to a broader world.”
“Then shouldn’t cultivators be able to co up the sa way?”
Jang Woo-hyun asked again, unable to understand.
“Would the heavens ever help cultivators ascend?”
No matter how many tis he asked, Pung So-bong replied in a tone that questioned why such a question was being asked at all.
Just like how it becos day when the sun rises and night when it sets, or how streams flow from high to low, Pung So-bong had no doubts whatsoever about the difference between Ascension and Flight to the Heavens.
He spoke as if it were a truth, as if it were a fixed law.
‘Just like Senior Kim said.’
Perhaps he was wrong, and Pung So-bong was right.
As it was, cultivators tear through dinsions to ascend without the heavens' permission, while martial artists receive aid to ascend via Ascension.
That much, Jang Woo-hyun could understand.
‘But then shouldn’t the cultivators waiting in the Lower Realm get help from the heavens?’
Yet such people didn’t exist.
Every cultivator was struck by the Heavenly Tribulation upon every realm breakthrough, and had to perform Flight to the Heavens on their own.
He asked a few more tis, but nothing changed.
At first, Jang Woo-hyun hadn’t thought much about the difference between Ascension and Flight to the Heavens. But after talking with Kim Min-soo, he realized his thinking had been wrong.
Pung So-bong was different. He had no doubts, no thoughts that anything was wrong.
On the contrary, the more they talked, the more Pung So-bong looked at Jang Woo-hyun like he was pathetic—asking why he was talking nonsense.
The Pung So-bong that Jang Woo-hyun had known wasn’t like this, but now he felt like they couldn’t communicate.
Eventually, without continuing the conversation, Jang Woo-hyun left the place where Pung So-bong was staying and stepped outside.
‘Sothing is here.’
A hidden secret of this world.
So unknown force was altering everyone’s perception.
Only Kim Min-soo and he had realized sothing was wrong.
‘Probably because we aren’t people of this world.’
The only difference was that.
While heading back to his lodging with that strange feeling in mind, Jang Woo-hyun suddenly realized that he was in a different world.
“……!”
The world had changed in an instant.
It was clearly Cho-su’s house just a mont ago, but now he was walking through a vast field.
So distance away.
Beneath the shade cast by a massive tree stood an old man with clear eyes.
“I made such a grand departure, and now it’s embarrassing to et again like this.”
Taecheong Divine Sovereign Jang Sam-bong, who had shown his back as he left.
He had co to find Jang Woo-hyun once again.
“Are you alright?”
“As you can see. I’m perfectly fine.”
The space they were currently in was Taecheong Divine Sovereign’s Microcosm.
A Projection couldn’t exert this level of power. The one present here now was the real Taecheong Divine Sovereign himself.
“I made a little ti. Since Yonghwangcheonju is injured, he won’t be able to move right away. What were you thinking about so deeply by yourself?”
He asked out of curiosity at the sight of Jang Woo-hyun imrsed in thought.
Jang Woo-hyun spoke to Taecheong Divine Sovereign about what he had just asked Pung So-bong.
“The difference between Ascension and Flight to the Heavens? I’m not sure. Is it strange?”
At first, Taecheong Divine Sovereign’s reaction was not much different from Pung So-bong’s.
“To be honest, I don’t really know.”
But there was a difference between him and Pung So-bong.
“What I think and what you think might be different. At this mont, I’m not really sure either. But I do believe there must be a reason you’re thinking that way.”
Taecheong Divine Sovereign didn’t think anything was necessarily wrong, but he tried his best to understand Jang Woo-hyun’s doubt.
“If sothing feels off, take a mont to think again. Try to find the reason behind it. Whatever it is, there must be a reason. Didn’t I say it before? There’s a reason for the talent given to you. The sa applies to what you’re thinking now. There might be a reason behind it.”
Jang Woo-hyun agreed with Taecheong Divine Sovereign’s words. There had to be a reason. Whether it was a good reason or not was unknown.
“Co this way.”
As Jang Woo-hyun walked over, Taecheong Divine Sovereign examined him.
“How did you do that the last ti?”
“What do you an?”
“You forcibly opened your Microcosm. That.”
“I… I’m not really sure. I just thought I had to sohow fight Yonghwangcheonju to save Ha-un, and it happened.”
“Hmm.”
Taecheong Divine Sovereign let out a small sigh.
He had sohow managed to stop Jang Woo-hyun from being consud by rage, but even he didn’t know the exact reason.
No matter how exceptional Jang Woo-hyun was, he shouldn’t be able to manifest a Microcosm at this stage. And yet, he had forcibly opened it to oppose Yonghwangcheonju recently.
If he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, he would never have believed it.
“Is that why you ca?”
“I ca out of concern. You are indeed outstanding, but at the sa ti, you’re too different.”
When Jang Woo-hyun asked what made him different, Taecheong Divine Sovereign answered.
“The opening of the Microcosm. I’ve never seen anything like it before.”
Previously, he had felt a similarity to Macheonju, but even that had been a misconception. Jang Woo-hyun could not be compared to anyone.
“Just in case sothing else went wrong, I wanted to see you again. But I guess I worried for nothing. To think you’re doing this well.”
Taecheong Divine Sovereign spoke in a half-joking manner that hinted at so regret, and Jang Woo-hyun smiled at his words.
“Let say this once more. Rember, you are not a sword.”
At those words, a refreshing breeze blew and wrapped around Jang Woo-hyun’s body.
The words Taecheong Divine Sovereign left behind weighed heavily in his heart.
“Perhaps that last ti was your Qi Deviation. A side effect of too rapid growth, or even an Inner Demon.”
The Inner Demon that should have co at a certain stage may have passed with an “Oh?” mont because of his rapid growth, and the struggle he should have faced at the next stage may have also passed the sa way. Everything might have burst out at once.
“Don’t try to shoulder everything alone. You can consult the people around you, and there are things you can only find by confronting them yourself. This is ‘Murim’, after all.”
Traveling through Murim might not be a bad idea.
Taecheong Divine Sovereign gave a few pieces of advice and carefully observed Jang Woo-hyun’s condition. After confirming there were no abnormalities, he prepared to leave.
“Now that I’ve seen you, that’s enough. Take care.”
After confirming that Jang Woo-hyun was fine, Taecheong Divine Sovereign vanished from the spot.
‘He ca all this way because of .’
Jang Woo-hyun deeply bowed toward the place where he had vanished.
He spoke as if it was nothing, but Taecheong Divine Sovereign must have been injured too.
‘If he had been fine, he would’ve co to right away.’
Seeing that he hadn’t co while Jang Woo-hyun was at the Taeguk Sect but only now, he must have been injured to a degree that prevented imdiate action.
He had co to help him, to teach him.
Taecheong Divine Sovereign was the master who pointed the way forward and the benefactor who granted him a miraculous encounter.
‘Thank you.’
Jang Woo-hyun kept his head bowed for a long ti.
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