Invitation to the Chatroom of the Gods - Chapter 113



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Episode 113 – Error

The emperor said that the stars outside the sky were demons.

The Grand Prince of Murim answered with a firm shake of his head.

“No, I can tell you for sure. Cheon-oe-seong was definitely weaker than Cheon-ma.”

“Have you ever met a heavenly horse?”

“That’s not it. The only time Cheonma was active was during the Great Battle of Jungwon.”

The Great Battle of the Central Plains, a war with the Demonic Cult over control of the Central Plains.

The Great Battle of Jungwon broke out about 50 years ago. At that time, the Grand Prince of Murim was not yet of an age to even learn the art of learning.

Prince Murim was too young to participate in the Central Plains War, so he could not meet the Heavenly Demon directly. However, as a member of the generation that ‘experienced’ the Central Plains War, he was able to hear and directly encounter rumors related to the Heavenly Demon.

“A ‘star outside the sky’ can still be defined as a ‘star outside the sky,’ but a ‘demon’… cannot be defined that way.”

“Are you saying that Cheonma is that strong?”

“Yes.”

“Just how strong is it?”

The emperor could not contain his curiosity.

Of course, there were quite a few records related to the Heavenly Demon in the imperial library. However, for some reason, only fragmentary facts were written down.

There were no records of what the Heavenly Demon was, who it was, or how strong it was.

Additionally, nothing was recorded regarding the reason for invading the Central Plains.

Although 50 years was a long time, it was not so long ago that the records were erased.

For example, the outbreak and progress of the Zhongyuan War were recorded in considerable detail.

However, for some reason, there are almost no records related to the Heavenly Demon.

It was as if someone had deliberately erased the records; the only thing the emperor could know about the Heavenly Demon was the ‘experiences’ of those who had personally experienced the events at the time.

“I’m not sure because it happened when I was young, and like I said, I only heard rumors and not saw it myself···.”

The Grand Prince of Murim was silent for a moment as if recalling a memory from long ago.

“50 years ago, the Great Battle of Jungwon was known as the ‘alliance’ between the royal family and the martial arts alliance to stop the Demonic Cult, but in reality, it is more accurate to view it as a war between the royal family and the Demonic Cult rather than an alliance.”

The emperor nodded calmly at the words of the Grand Prince of Murim.

The outbreak and progress of the Great Battle of Zhongyuan were recorded in considerable detail in the imperial records, so it was a known fact.

The power of the Murim Alliance, which united the entire martial arts world, could never be ignored, but if you were to ask whether it could match the power of the imperial family, then it was not.

Just as the saying goes, “well water does not violate a river”, the Battle of the Central Plains was essentially a war between the “royal family and the Demonic Cult” for supremacy over the Central Plains.

However, there was one reason why it was known as the ‘alliance’ between the royal family and the martial arts alliance.

“The Murim Alliance formed a special force to directly target the Heavenly Demon. As a result, elites from thirty-five sects and martial arts families, including the Gupa Ilbang, were selected.”

A story before the current emperor was born.

The emperor’s eyes sparkled as if he was listening to an old story from an adult member of the royal family.

“It is said that a hundred thousand warriors were mobilized.”

“······To catch a heavenly demon?”

“Yes.”

“Ugh······!”

An exclamation escaped the Emperor’s lips without his knowledge.

This is 100,000 in name only, but when you add them up, it is a number that reaches all the way to the horizon.

Even in the imperial court, 100,000 people could be considered a ‘main force’ rather than a ‘separate force’.

Moreover, they are not just ordinary people, but the elite of the elite.

It would be believable if they said that the army was mobilized to wipe out the entire Demonic Cult, but 100,000 people were mobilized just to catch one Heavenly Demon?

“It is said that all ten of the greatest masters of the time were mobilized.”

······It was a story that was completely unbelievable.

As is often the case with rumors, they tend to be exaggerated and inflated.

I even thought that as time passed, it might have spread like a ‘ghost story’.

If the person telling this story was not the Grand Prince of Murim, it would have been such a ridiculous story that the emperor would have dismissed it as nonsense.

“Of course, as the Emperor knows, it ended with the defeat of the Heavenly Demon······.”

In conclusion, it was the defeat of the Heavenly Demon.

This was something the emperor also knew, and it could be said to be a natural result.

Is it even possible for just one person to defeat 100,000 of the most elite warriors?

No matter how expert you are, you are no match for Dagul.

Even if he is a heavenly demon who dyes the sky with demons, he is ultimately a ‘human’ and there are bound to be limitations.

Furthermore, it was said that all ten of the greatest martial artists of the time were included, so the defeat of the Heavenly Demon was no different from a fait accompli.

but······.

“So 90,000 warriors had to be sacrificed to the Heavenly Demon.”

The emperor’s eyes widened and flashed at the words of the Murim Grand Prince.

That makes sense, 90,000 unmanned soldiers were sacrificed?

90,000 unmanned soldiers were not spared but ‘sacrificed’?

“All ten of the greatest martial artists of that era were killed by the Heavenly Demon.”

The Emperor’s eyes flashed with shock. The Emperor’s mouth fell open involuntarily at the impact of the blow to his head.

“So, what you’re saying is that… there were only a few survivors?”

Of the 100,000 unmanned vehicles, only 10,000 survived.

But for some reason, the Grand Prince of Murim slowly shook his head.

“If you talk about the survival itself, there are ten thousand unmanned people, but they are all either idiots or half-mad.”

It is a state of being alive but not alive.

“And······They too all died before they could last more than half a year.”

Virtually total annihilation.

“It is said that the corpses piled up like this formed a mountain, and the blood that poured out from them formed a sea, dyeing the whole world red.”

A mountain of corpses and a sea of ​​blood.

“It is said that even now, traces of the fierce battle at that time can be seen in Qinghai Province.”

Qinghai Province, located at the end of the world.

It was also the area where the Kunlun sect, one of the old sects, was located.

“How could that be······.”

The emperor could not help but sigh and be surprised.

It wasn’t like I was fighting the entire Demonic Cult.

In just one fight with the Heavenly Demon, 100,000 elite soldiers and the world’s top 10 masters were all killed.

Of course, Cheonma (天魔) wasn’t okay either.

It was reported that as a result of the sacrifice of the ten best swordsmen and 100,000 warriors, the Heavenly Demon met his death.

In the records, it was recorded as the death of Cheonma (天魔).

The Emperor, and everyone in the world, knew this until recently.

But a series of events have been happening recently.

Several incidents announcing the revival of the Demonic Cult.

The Heavenly Demon is alive and not dead.

For the past 50 years, he had been hiding and building up his strength, and now he thought it was time to slowly rise up.

If the Heavenly Demon were to return once again, would the current Central Plains be able to stop him?

“······.”

The Emperor’s face suddenly darkened at the question he had asked himself.

The Grand Prince of Murim spoke to the Emperor as if he could see through his thoughts and intentions, reassuring him.

“Your Majesty, there is nothing to worry about. Even 50 years ago, the Demonic Cult was unable to cross the Central Plains wall. The imperial family that you protect is still intact, and I am by your side.”

“······.”

“More than anything, as long as there are outstanding juniors in the martial arts world like Cheongun, the Demonic Cult will never be able to surpass this place.”

Only then did the emperor’s dark face brighten up.

To be exact, it was after the word ‘Cheongun’ was heard, but for some reason, the emperor trusted and relied on Cheongun more than the Grand Prince of Murim.

“Your Majesty, you have personally crossed swords with Cheongun.”

“Yes.”

“Then, in your opinion, how good is Cheongun?”

“To be honest······.”

The Grand Prince of Murim briefly recalled the life-or-death battle with Cheongun.

By facing Cheongun and the sword, we were able to catch a glimpse of Cheongun’s martial arts.

“······I can’t estimate it.”

The emperor’s eyes opened wide at the words of the Grand Prince of Murim.

“Are you saying that even Your Majesty, one of the five best in the world, cannot estimate the future?”

“Yes.”

“Are you saying that… Cheongun has surpassed the five absolutes of the world?”

“That’s not what I meant.”

The Grand Prince of Murim slightly shook his head from side to side.

“To put it bluntly, Cheongun’s current level is not even close to the top ten in the world, let alone the top five.”

The martial arts that Cheongwoon used could be said to be beyond human understanding, but it seemed that he could only cast them once.

Donggwi Eojin’s martial art where if you don’t kill your opponent, you will be killed yourself.

In cases like that, it’s usually the case that internal energy is the problem.

However, in reality, internal energy was something that could not be solved all at once.

Moreover, since it was an overwhelming martial art of the Blue Cloud that could burn all things, even the great martial arts commander could not imagine the internal energy required for it.

So the only way was to achieve enlightenment and transcend the realm, which was even more difficult.

Internal energy can be filled through the expedient method of elixir, but enlightenment cannot be filled that way.

Of course, even as a great martial artist, Cheongun’s martial arts knowledge was so deep that he could not measure it.

However, the deeper the martial arts, the more time it takes to acquire them.

Internal energy and enlightenment.

At the age of twenty-two, Cheongwoon was too young to solve all of that.

That was why Cheongwoon needed time, but the Murim Grand Prince was confident that it wouldn’t take that long.

“But in one year at the earliest, or two years at the latest, Cheongwoon will proudly be listed among the ten best masters in the world.”

In other words, the Grand Prince of Murim was certain that Cheongun would become one of the ten best martial artists in the world by the age of twenty-four at the latest.

I said it as if it were normal, but in reality it was something that didn’t make sense.

Where on earth is the warrior who rose to the rank of the ten best warriors in the world at the age of twenty-four?

Throughout the history of martial arts from the beginning of the world to now, there has not been a single person like that.

However, if it was the great prince of Murim who saw Cheongun, he was a great man who could do it more than others.

“And after another 10 years, I think Cheongwoon will be able to dream of becoming the best person in the world, not just the top 10 in the world.

Every martial artist dreams of being the best in the world.

The one who stands at the very top among those who discuss martial arts.

“Are you saying that Cheongun can surpass Cheonma?”

“As for the Heavenly Demon… it’s difficult to give you a definite answer. As I said, I’ve only heard about the Heavenly Demon through whispers.”

That is why the world’s best was a legend and a ‘dream’ that could never be reached.

Because the logic of who is stronger only through words has no meaning.

In the end, you can only know for sure if you directly cross swords, but the problem is that a sword fight between two experts does not end with a simple sword fight.

And even if you lose in a duel, it’s the same.

In a life and death situation, the outcome is uncertain.

It is not the strong who survive, but the survivor who is strong.

If this was a world where only the strong always won, the Grand Prince of Murim would not have been here right away.

That is why, although it can be called the ten best in the world (天十絶) or the five best in the world (天五絶), the best in the world cannot exist.

There could not have been a true and undisputed strongest person that no one could deny.

But the Grand Prince of Murim did not bother to tell that fact.

The emperor’s eyes were filled with curiosity.

I did not want to spoil the small pleasure of the Emperor, who was tired from taking care of state affairs.

“Then what about that guy named Cheon-Oe-Seong? Haven’t you ever crossed swords with Cheon-Oe-Seong?”

“That too is something that happened 10 years ago, so I’m cautious······. I think that in about 5 years, Cheongun will be able to surpass Cheonwiseong.”

The Grand Prince of Murim answered with as much memory as he could muster, and the Emperor was silent for a moment.

And then for a moment.

“······This won’t do. Since Your Majesty says so, I just can’t stay still.”

The emperor suddenly stood up from his seat as if he could no longer bear it. And then, wasn’t he the emperor who was moving his feet quickly?

“Where are you going in such a hurry?”

“I have to go see Sehwa!”

Then, the emperor quickly disappeared from sight as if he was performing a light technique. The Grand Prince of Murim tilted his head to the left without realizing it.

“Why is Princess Sehwa suddenly······?”

The Emperor’s younger sister, Princess Sehwajang.

Why did you suddenly go see her when you were talking to her?

The Prince of Murim suddenly had a question, but the Emperor who would give him the answer was already far away, leaving the Eohwawon.

And that was when it happened.

Suddenly, numerous footsteps felt like the aura of the Great General of Murim.

The martial arts grand prince, who confirmed that they were the unmanned soldiers of the Golden Guard, quietly opened his mouth.

“Have you found the cause of the explosion?”

Almost at the same time as the question was asked, the warriors of the Golden Guard appeared in front of the Great King of Murim. Soon, the leader of the Golden Guard, the Commander, stepped forward and spoke.

“I think I found it······.”

“I think I found it?”

The head of the Grand Prince of Murim tilted on its own.

No, if you find the cause, you’ve found it. What do you mean by it feels like you’ve found it?

“What was the cause?”

“That······.”

The commander couldn’t easily answer the Murim Grand Prince’s question again.

Just a moment ago, as if he had said, “I think I found it,” his expression clearly showed a look of “Is this right?”

More precisely, it was a look of disbelief at what he was seeing.

The other guards were not much different from the commander. No, they were more so than him, not less so.

Of course, it was hard to believe that the explosion that shook the entire city of Beijing was happening······.

“It is difficult for us to make a decision······.”

What on earth caused the explosion?

After a moment of hesitation, the Grand Prince of Murim spoke to the warriors of the Golden Guard.

“The Emperor said he was going to see Princess Sehwa. So, except for the commander, you should go to Gyeongin Palace right away.”

“Your name.”

As soon as the Great King of Murim finished speaking, the warriors of the Golden Guard quickly dispersed. And the commander of the Golden Guard was left alone.

“I will guide you.”

The Grand Prince of Murim continued speaking, walking slowly.

“Let me personally check what caused the explosion.”

* * *

······Really surprisingly.

It was true that the footman had caused an ‘error’.

It was true that the folding chair was not ‘broken’ but had an ‘error’.

That is, it was true that the accumulated merit of mine was still over 9,999 years.

Regarding this, not only Taesang Nogun but also the entire Damsobang was left speechless and an outrageous and bizarre incident occurred, but anyway.

The Grand Prince said the following about the reason:

└[Taishang Laojun (Great Elder Lord) Laozi]

: Hmm. I guess it’s because your level of Cheon-dun-geom has improved, youngest.

The Cheon-dun Sword Technique is a ‘sword technique’ and at the same time, it is also a ‘method’ for me to survive from heaven.

In other words, if the level of the Cheon-dun Sword Technique is high, I can escape from the pressure of heaven that oppresses me.

Even if someone unknown intentionally moves the will of heaven, I can be free from it.

And in the fight with the Blood Heavenly Goddess, she was able to awaken the ultimate stabbing technique by using the second stage of the Heavenly Sword Technique, the Heavenly Extermination Flame Dragon Strike.

The ultimate slash, the Extermination Fire Dragon Slash.

The Heavenly Flame Dragon Strike, which contains the ultimate stabbing attack.

My level of Cheon-Tun Sword Technique has been raised by reaching both extremes of cutting and stabbing, the two fundamental skills that the sword possesses.

Accordingly, the interference and pressure of heaven were weakened, and the consumption of merit that had been skyrocketing was reduced, while the amount obtained was also restored to some extent.

······That is what the Supreme Lord said.

Since it is none other than the Supreme Lord himself who is speaking, it must be true without a doubt.

In simple terms, as the level of the Cheon-dun Sword Technique increased, the ‘efficiency of merit’ increased.

└[Taishang Laojun (Great Elder Lord) Laozi]

: Youngest, I didn’t know you would learn the essence of the Cheon-dun Sword Technique so quickly······.

The foundation that Taesang No-jun spoke of was the introductory level of the Cheon-dun sword technique.

Cheon-dun-geom-beop is divided into a total of 5 stages. First, the process of acquiring the basics and fundamentals of swordsmanship, Bon (本).

The process of completely understanding the basic principles of the sword and breaking away from them, Jin (眞).

The process of uniting the previous enlightenment of the original and the true, the state of union.

The process of breaking away from the form of the sword and the formula of martial arts, emptiness.

Thus, by realizing martial arts, one finally reaches the state of hiding one’s existence from heaven, Cheon-dun.

In this way, it was divided into five stages and realms.

And the realm I have reached now is the process of learning the basics and roots of the sword, the basics.

“This is the extent of the effect of reaching the basic level.”

It was so efficient that even after consuming 35,000 years of merit, the scroll was still making mistakes.

Of course, it was because the amount of merit he had earned by saving millions of lives in Guizhou Province was great.

Furthermore, the fact that the distribution of rewards was properly implemented had a significant impact, but it was still clear that the effectiveness of merit had increased tremendously.

Then what will the next state of truth be like?

Furthermore, what will the state of union be like?

Wouldn’t automatic merit alone accumulate for years each day?

The realm of emptiness was something I could never have imagined.

What if we finally reach the end?

I will no longer be oppressed by heaven, and I will no longer have to worry about merit.

It was truly a dream come true.

And, as the saying goes, it was a ‘dream’.

└[Sword Immortal Yeo Dong-bin]

: So! Let me briefly explain the next state of truth. All conditions, causes and effects are interdependent and interrelated, youngest!

Yeo Dong-bin suddenly woke up from fainting.

In the portrait, Yeo Dong-bin recalled the words like an excited child.

└[Sword Immortal Yeo Dong-bin]

: In Buddhist terms, this is the impermanence of all things, the non-self, and the three dharma seals. And this is easier to explain in Buddhist terms than in our Taoist concepts.

└[Sword Immortal Yeo Dong-bin]

: So, if we continue to explain with the concept of the Buddha, this exists because that exists, that arises because this arises, that ceases because this ceases. The interrelationship between this and that is not independent, and they are not unchanging entities.

└[Sword Immortal Yeo Dong-bin]

: Therefore, all things in the world are one and whole, and the whole is one. To put this principle into the form of a sword and unfold the formula is the next state of the true Cheon-dun sword method.

······Should I be honest?

“What does that mean?”

I couldn’t understand a single thing that was being said.

Seriously, I’m not kidding, I didn’t understand a single word.

All I understood was that it was the secret and principle contained in the next true state. I could not understand its contents at all.

“You have to master that to advance to the next level of the Cheon-dun Sword Technique.”

······It was already daunting.

But what can I do?

└[Sword Immortal Yeo Dong-bin]

: Grab your sword right now, youngest!

I just held onto the dragon’s fangs tightly.

* * *

······Should I be honest?

“What do you want me to do?”

I really wondered what I should do.

I barely managed to calm my ragged breathing and wiped the sweat that was pouring down like rain with my sleeve.

I couldn’t tell how much time had passed. But looking at the sun in the sky, it seemed to be the hour of the monkey.

And when I came here to Yeongsan, it was the same hour of the monkey, so a full day had passed.

That is, I received Yeo Dong-bin’s teachings for almost a day.

however······.

“What has changed?”

······There was no progress.

There was no difference between me a day ago and me now.

That is, he did not understand or accept any of Yeo Dong-bin’s teachings.

“What do you really want me to do?”

So I was wondering what to do about this situation.

To be honest, if you just use your internal energy to improve your merits and virtues, that’s all there is to it.

It was a problem that could be solved by earning merit and taking the elixir of the Supreme Emperor.

In other words, the expedient method worked, but in the realm of enlightenment such as the mysteries and principles, expedient methods did not exist.

I had to ‘realize’ on my own the things that seemed like nonsense and logic. And then I put those things I realized into my sword.

“How do you do it?”

······It was truly incredibly frustrating.

Enlightenment itself is so vague, and trying to capture that enlightenment in a sword was so vague that it didn’t even have a form.

Who would call it a novelty? It was literally no different from catching clouds.

“There are definitely limits to what you can learn from text.”

Truth is indescribable and unwritten.

It is not for nothing that the saying, ‘Truth cannot be expressed in words or writing’ came about.

Even though it was the teachings of Yeo Dong-bin and the other immortals, there were limits.

“I think I could learn it quickly if senior Yeo Dong-bin showed me directly.”

Seeing once is better than hearing a hundred times, and seeing a hundred times is better than doing once.

Even just the recent appearance of Gucheonhyeonnyeo was like that.

The space-time suspension demonstrated by Gucheonhyeonnyeo.

My world of consciousness expanded through this.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t get past the wall to the next level because Gucheonhyeonnyeo passed away quickly, but it was still a great help.

Just by ‘experiencing’ the distant realm that the Nine Heavenly Women have reached.

Likewise, if I could just see Yeo Dong-bin’s Cheon-dun sword technique in person, it would be of great help.

So, that’s when my thoughts reached this point.

“Can’t I make my seniors appear with my own merits?”