Chapter 296: Her (2)
'Why? Didn't he say he's going to go catch Seo Hweol? Was he unable to objectify himself? Or does [She] track me automatically, regardless of such things? Cut off my leg? If [She] followed me here, cutting off one leg would be useless. Should I fight? How in the world did [She] follow me all the way here...'
My mind is entangled with countless thoughts and confusion.
And before I know it, we arrive at the place where Jeon Myeong-hoon's Returning Lightning Strike had started.
We reach the entrance to a city of various races, where the teleportation array to the Human Race Grand Alliance is located.
"Heugh... Huk..."
It's only then that I can properly grasp [Her] identity.
'I see…'
It's not [She] who followed me.Only [Her] left arm!
[Her] left arm had detached itself and followed me by grabbing onto my leg.
With a sigh of relief, I grab [Her] left arm that's clinging to my leg.
"What, what is that?"
"That, that's...[Her] left arm?"
Jeon Myeong-hoon looks puzzled, while Kim Yeon's face turns pale.
I wipe the cold sweat from my brow and shake my head.
"It's a part of the strongest puppet possessed by the Mad Lord. There's no need to worry. It's not for attack, not even for tracking."
Wo-woong!
As I operate the Wonderfully Mysterious Innate Heart Canon, I connect to [Her] arm, which contains the sane will of the Mad Lord.
'I see. It's teaching material for his disciple.'
Though separated by distance and unable to teach anymore, the briefly sane Mad Lord wanted to teach his disciple even just a little.
Within [Her] left arm, in that brief period of time, is not only knowledge about the entirety of the Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress but also various operating methods of the Wonderfully Mysterious Innate Heart Canon and manipulation methods for the puppets.
And finally, it even hints at how to activate 'Yeon's Play'.
Tstssts...
I read the consciousness of the Mad Lord contained within [Her] left arm.
Gradually, as if entranced, I read his message.
―My disciple. Listen.
Suddenly, I see the illusion of an old man sitting in front of me.
―I already know that you will resent me. You will probably hate me to the core. You might not even consider me your master. All I can say to you is that I am sorry. However...despite everything, there is something I must achieve with your power.
The emotion of 'remorse' exudes from the Mad Lord's message.
―I will not ask for the extravagant favor of forgiveness. Instead...use me. Just as I use you, use the knowledge I have sent you to grow and become as strong as possible. From what I have seen, you also have desires, a loved one."
He looks my way with a sorrowful expression and smiles.
In the Wonderfully Mysterious Innate Heart Canon activated to the extreme, I can somehow see a scene behind him.
It's an old tree.
No, it's a stark, bare tree that had lost all its leaves and flowers on a cold winter day.
And on that tree, countless pink strings are hanging.
'Ah…'
Just what does this scene possibly mean?
I don't know the details.
Only that somehow, it seems to be related to the next stage of the Wonderfully Mysterious Innate Heart Canon.
―In this wonderfully mysterious and beautiful world, I hope you find what you desire…
Tstssts...
For a moment, I can't take my eyes off that wonderfully mysterious and beautiful scene.
And then suddenly.
"Ha!"
My startled body shivers.
It's a mysterious feeling.
This is the message the Mad Lord left in [Her] left arm.
And, as I look at that message, I have a sudden realization.
The enlightenment the Mad Lord had placed in the left arm has awakened my mind.
'I see…there definitely is a problem with my mind right now.'
Only then do I realize that the anxiety I felt from Seo Li wasn't just an overreaction.
If it hadn't been for the awakening induced by the Mad Lord's enlightenment, I might have died and continued on without ever recognizing it.
'Thank you, Elder Jo Yeon.'
After silently expressing my gratitude to the Mad Lord in my heart, I look at Kim Yeon.
"Yeon-ah. Try operating the Wonderfully Mysterious Innate Heart Canon while holding this left arm."
"Yes?"
She obediently follows my instructions.
As her Wonderfully Mysterious Innate Heart Canon connects with [Her] left arm, she too appears to have received the Mad Lord's message.
She chews her lips, remaining silent for a while.
Her emotions are evidently complex.
The Mad Lord, who had modified and used her almost to the point of torture.
Had I come to rescue her a bit later, her mind might have been severely affected.
However, independent of the 'Mad Lord,' the message left by the person 'Jo Yeon,' the wonderfully mysterious enlightenment contained within that message, is enough to stir a person's heart.
Kim Yeon bites her lips for a while then turns her head.
"...Are we staying here?"
"No. We'll take the teleportation array here to the Human Race territory."
"Then please, let's go there. I want to move for now."
"Alright."
Jeon Myeong-hoon, Kim Yeon, and I leave the place and return to the Human Race Grand Alliance.
What a relief…"
I sigh with relief and look at the sweat on my hands.
When the main body was captured, I could do nothing but sweat and watch over the main body.
Fortunately, it seems that 'I' had escaped safely from the Mad Lord, and through the Mad Lord's Wonderfully Mysterious Innate Heart Canon, 'I' had also realized there's something amiss with the mind.
But for some reason, I still feel a lingering sense of unease.
'Is it simply a mental abnormality?'
What the main body did was 'discover' the anomaly in the mind, not 'cure' it.
I need to find a solution somehow.
'I need to continue keeping an eye on it.'
Deciding so, I arrive at Black Ghost Valley to find the Ghost Soul Hall.
Since the main halls of Black Ghost Valley are all inside the Nether Crossing Ship, I just need to go to the Nether Crossing Ship.
I enter the Nether Crossing Ship and find the Ghost Soul Hall inside.
"Bi Yul. You haven't forgotten my instructions, have you?"
[No. I'll just ask a few things and leave right away.]
Naturally, with my status and cultivation, I can't immediately meet Kang Min-hee.
However, with Bi Yul, a Ghost King who was a Heavenly Being Grand Elder, there's a good chance that a meeting request with her would be accepted.
Duk Duk—
I knock on the door to the office of the deputy hall master of the Ghost Soul Hall.
Shortly after, a dark ghost pokes its head out from above the door.
[What business do you have?]
Then Bi Yul steps out of my body and speaks.
[I have come to meet Ghost Soul Hall's Deputy Hall Master Kang Min-hee. Open the door.]
[Yes, elder!]
The gatekeeper ghost immediately bows its head upon seeing the Ghost King Bi Yul and quickly withdraws back inside.
Creeeeak!
I hide my tense emotions and step inside.
Sssss―
The vice-hall master's office is cold.
It isn't just the chill of the Five Elements attribute, but a bone-chilling coldness stemming from death itself that stirs my soul.
Kang Min-hee's office is quite dark, and blue will-o'-the-wisps looking things are flying around.
And there, Kang Min-hee is drawing some design on the floor with dye, paying no attention to me.
Seeing her, I suddenly think that she hasn't changed at all from before.
'If there was work and people, work always came first.'
Her face, like when she had worked several nights before coming to Ascension Path, is haggard and weary-looking.
As I look at her, pondering how to start the conversation, I open my mouth.
"Respected Lady Kang, the elder whom I serve has something to discuss with you."
At that, Bi Yul bursts forth from my body with a cough.
[Ahem. Ghost Soul Hall Vice-Hall Master Grand Elder Kang, this is the first time we meet. I am Ghost King Bi Yul of the curse lineage.]
With Bi Yul's introduction, Kang Min-hee finally stops drawing her design and looks our way.
Sssss―
I feel the atmosphere in the room drop even further under her gaze.
"...What brings you here, senior Ghost King?"
Kang Min-hee's voice is soft and lacks strength.
To an ordinary person, it might just seem like a quiet voice.
However, as soon as Bi Yul hears Kang Min-hee's voice, his ghostly body trembles as if it will collapse, shivering uncontrollably.
[Uhh, uh… Hmm. Hmhm. It's nothing serious…]
'What is this...'
I look around with Nether Perception, startled.
As soon as she spoke, the Nether Perception itself was shaken, and cracks began to appear and shrink in the outer boundary of the Netherworld as if they had come to life.
Though she doesn't directly harbor death in her soul like I do, I directly feel overwhelmingly inferior to her in terms of 'commanding' death.
[This Seo Li fellow here has recently come to Black Ghost Valley.]
"Well, since senior Ghost King is with him, that would be expected."
[He is also an ascender. Elder Heo Gwak has also taken note of his potential.]
"I see."
[So, the thing is…can you allow this fellow to enter the Ghost Soul Hall?]
At this, Kang Min-hee looks at me with an expressionless face.
"How many merit points you have?"
I answer awkwardly.
"As of yet...none. I'm in the middle of a mission, but upon completion, I will receive 400 points."
"Is that so? Accumulate a thousand points and come back. Or reach the Heavenly Being stage and I will consider giving you a position."
At that, Bi Yul coughs again and speaks.
[Ahem…while the merit point system is certainly important…you can see this young man, can't you? This fellow has tremendous talent for the Ghost Path Method and, at least consider my face a bit…]
"Senior."
Ssssssss―
Kang Min-hee looks at Bi Yul with an expressionless face.
Faint ghost fire is burning in her eyes.
"If you continue to speak this way, I will report to the Corpse Soul Hall and proceed with enforcement. Please do not create problems with things not permitted by the sect rules."
[Uhh, uhhh…uh…]
Under Kang Min-hee's stern gaze, Bi Yul begins to tremble as if his spirit is about to collapse.
I smirk to myself seeing this.
'That personality… is still the same.'
Honestly, I'm a bit surprised.
A year and a half before coming to Ascension Path.
Due to a certain incident that occurred back then, she became very obsessed with 'rules.'
Should I call it FM?
Originally, I was the one who adhered more to FM, while she tended to disregard it.
"If you have nothing more to say, please leave. You are being a disturbance."
She gestures us away.
A sinister ghost wind blows, pushing us out.
But instead of leaving, I contain Bi Yul within me and take a step forward.
"Greetings, Grand Elder Kang. I am Seo Li, a recent Yin Soul disciple of Black Ghost Valley."
"What?"
She looks at me as if the whole world is a bother to her.
"You're a person that's hard to tell if you're human or ghost. You're so dark that your original face is barely visible. You do have excellent talent for the Ghost Path, but that doesn't mean I'll give you special treatment. Leave."
"Ah, although the Ghost King whom I serve hoped for that, I have come to inquire about a different matter with you, Grand Elder."
"…What is it?"
Before I fell in Ascension Path.
I recall an event from a year and a half ago.
"Grand Elder Kang, you are in charge of communications with the main branch at the Nether Ghost Realm, correct?"
"Correct."
A year and a half ago.
She made a significant mistake in a major project and ended up being severely reprimanded.
"I have one question...the Grand Elder in front of me right now...is this your main body?"
"No. This is an avatar The main body is located in a 'side path,' absorbing energy flowing from the Nether Ghost Realm to stabilize their cultivation."
"Stabilizing their cultivation?"
"The main body has reached the Four-Axis stage. Ah...! Thinking about it, this is confidential..."
Kang Min-hee presses her temples as if she's having a headache.
"Well, it'll become known once I leave seclusion in the side path anyway... Still, just to be safe, don't go around talking about it."
"Yes."
"...But it's strange. Have we met somewhere before?"
"...I don't think so. Why do you ask?"
She pauses to look at me and then gets up from near the design, flopping down into a chair beside it.
"Well...it's strange talking about such confidential things to someone I'm meeting for the first time. Technically, even discussing the side path should be off-limits... Haah, never mind. You've broken my concentration now... Might as well take a break since it's come to this."
Snap!
She snaps her fingers, and the eerie will-o'-the-wisps light up brightly, illuminating the room.
"If there's something you want to ask, go ahead."
I look at her who hasn't changed and ask my question.
"I would like to inquire about the Nether Ghost Realm itself."
"Are you interested in the main sect?"
"Yes."
A year and a half before falling to Ascension Path.
The mistake she made led to a disciplinary committee meeting, and although she wasn't severely punished, she was deeply shaken by the experience.
And the next week, on the day of a company dinner following the disciplinary committee meeting.
We, who had dated and then broken up in the early days of our employment, decided to get back together that very day.
***
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