Invitation to the Chatroom of the Gods - Chapter 119



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Episode 119 – As a Shaman (2)

The leader of the Demonic Cult, Cheonma.

And that was all I knew about Cheonma.

Cheonma is about 50 years ago.

He was only active in the Central Plains War, which was a war over hegemony in Central Plains.

It was a long time before I was born. What’s more, even the records of it are not properly preserved today.

I had absolutely no idea what the Heavenly Demon was, who it was, or how strong it was.

Moreover, they did not know the reason for invading the Central Plains.

There’s one thing I know about Cheonma.

The fact that he was the leader of the Demonic Cult and that he was a person of the ‘secular world’ was all that could be guessed.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: Of course I know. Where in the celestial world is there anyone who doesn’t know the Heavenly Demon, the ruler of the Great Desire Realm?

But now, the words of Jongli Kwon floating above the table are floating.

For some reason, Jong-Ri-Kwon knew of Cheon-Ma’s existence. As it turned out, it wasn’t just Jong-Ri-Kwon.

It seemed like all the immortals in the celestial world knew about Cheonma.

That means that Cheonma (天魔) is a person from the celestial world······.

“The ruler of the world of great desires···?”

I wondered what this meant.

└[Cheongun]

: Senior, what is the ruler of the Great Desire Realm?

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: What is it? He is literally the ruler of the world of great desires. Oh, youngest, you don’t know what the world of great desires is?

As if reading my thoughts, Jong-Ri-Kwon recalled the words again.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: Youngest, what is the immortal world that you know?

└[Cheongun]

: I know that it is a world that can be reached by those who have achieved enlightenment in the secular world and transcended the status of the world.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: That’s right. To be precise, it is a world of results that cannot occur due to worldly causes. To put it simply, it is a world where beings that transcend worldly laws gather.

In the portrait, Jong-Ri-Kwon stroked his protruding belly once and then recalled the words.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: And to transcend the law means to go against the laws of the secular world. Therefore, the secular world does not recognize the existence of such a being. So, they created a world called the celestial world and confined it there.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: So, rather than saying that one reaches the celestial world, it would be more correct to say that one is ‘banished to the celestial world’. And even if one transcends the level, not everyone comes to the celestial world.

Jong-Ri-Kwon continued by saying that the world of immortals is a world where those who have attained enlightenment through the teachings of Taoism and transcended class live together.

But are there only Taoist teachings in this world?

Of course that wasn’t the case.

There were Confucianism and Buddhism at the time. In addition to these, there were numerous teachings of the Tao.

If you receive the Buddha’s teachings and become enlightened, you will reach Nirvana.

If you receive the teachings of Taoism and become enlightened, it is called becoming a feathered immortal.

And very rarely, there were those who achieved enlightenment without following the lineage.

The three divine physicians of Jian’an, including Ku Yazawa Bian Que, the founder of blacksmithing, were just such cases.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: The celestial world simply means the world where immortals who have ascended to the heavens come.

And the world of Buddhas of the Buddhist lineage who have reached Nirvana is called Sukhavati.

The official name is ‘Buddha’s Pure Land’, which means the land where Buddhas live.

In the Pure Land of Buddha, there is no suffering from the seven emotions or from birth, aging, illness, and death.

Since we have cut off the attachments of the mind and are free from afflictions, things like worry, concern, and anxiety do not structurally exist.

Then all that remains is the joy of enjoying existence.

Therefore, in the Pure Land of Buddha, one can pursue the ultimate pleasure, so it is called ‘Supreme Happiness.’

The Confucian lineage is said to have no special name because they were not particularly interested in the afterlife.

And those who did not follow the lineage. The same was true of the founder of blacksmiths, Guyaja, as well as Bian Que and the Three Divine Physicians of Jian’an.

Therefore, the place where they reside is called by various names such as the spirit world, the next world, etc.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: All of these different worlds where these people who have transcended class gather are collectively called ‘Heaven’.

Heaven, a place where those who have transcended the worldly realm can reach.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: The world of immortals where our gods reside is a part of the ‘heavenly world.’

It was similar to the world being divided into 23 provinces.

Heaven is one great world.

The 23 provinces can be considered as the heavenly world, paradise, spiritual world, and next world.

The heavenly world is divided into different ‘regions’ based on how one has achieved enlightenment and transcended it.

And although the world was vast and wide, the world under the sky was not only the world.

There is a world outside of the world called Saewoemurim (塞外武林).

The same was true of heaven.

The world outside of heaven.

The world that was a kind of new world of martial arts was called ‘Yokgye (欲界)’.

And the beings that reside in the world of desire are, in other words:

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: This is the world where those related to demons or evil go.

Simply put, it could be said that it was a world inhabited by beings who had attained enlightenment through demons and evil.

You may wonder how one can transcend class with evil and misfortune, but enlightenment is not necessarily about pursuing only the value of ‘goodness.’

The Tao also contained the concept of what we commonly call evil.

Even the Great King Taesang Laojun said, “Heaven and earth are not benevolent, so they treat people like dogs made of rags.”

From the beginning, it can be seen that the concept of good and evil does not exist in the principles of the Tao.

In any case, the world of desire is related to evil, and things like hell and the world of asura correspond to this world of desire.

And the Great Desire Realm is a general term for the highest world among the Desire Realms.

The world of great desires was a world inhabited by demons and evil spirits.

Just as there are countless rivers in the world, there are countless paths in the heavenly realm that pursue the Way, including not only Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, but also demons and evil spirits.

And in the end, as if they were flowing into the sea at the end, everyone transcends class.

All religions return to their original form.

No matter where we start, we all end up at one place.

However, Taesang Laojun said that the only thing that is the same is the ‘result’.

He taught that just because the ending is the same, it does not mean that the essence is the same.

So he said that the result is never just in the destination.

I feel narrow-minded because I think that arrival is more important than the process, and efficiency is more important than experience.

The teachings of Taesang Laojun, which were difficult to understand at first.

But now, I felt like I could vaguely understand that teaching.

I feel like I’ve gotten one step closer to the realm of knowing.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: Pashun is the ruler of that great world of desire.

The words of Jongli Kwon that came to mind soon came to mind.

I shook off my thoughts and asked Jong-Ri-Kwon again.

└[Cheongun]

: Are you a parsley?

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: That damn Cheonma.

└[Cheongun]

: Was Cheonma’s real name Pasun?

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: Real name? Well? Was Cheonma’s real name Pasun?

└[Cheongun]

: ······yes?

As I tilted my head, Jong-Ri-Kwon quickly recalled a phrase.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: He doesn’t have anything that can be called his real name.

Then, there are Pasun, the Demon King of the Sixth Heaven, the Heavenly King of Tahwajajae, Mara, Fabiya, etc.

The names for each system are very diverse.

And here is the Taoist chatroom, and in Taoism, it is said that there is a being that dyes the heavens with demons, so it is called Cheonja-ma (天子魔), and this is shortened to ‘Cheonma (天魔)’.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: That’s the name that Senior Noh gave me. When was it? There was a time when the world of the celestial world was turned upside down because of that guy Cheonma. It wasn’t really chaos at that time.

As if recalling that time, Jong Li-kwon’s expression in the portrait sank for a moment.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: Even now, when I think about that time, oh my. If Dongbin hadn’t stopped that bastard Cheonma, the current world of the gods wouldn’t exist.

It looks like Yeo Dong-bin has been very active.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: Dongbin fought that guy Cheonma and got defeated. He was probably one of the few guys Dongbin fought with all his might.

Looking at it again, it seemed that Cheonma had similar strength to Yeo Dongbin.

That’s why I suddenly have a question.

└[Cheongun]

: How much would it be like if senior Yeo Dong-bin fought with all his might?

Of course I knew that Yeo Dong-bin was strong.

But I didn’t know exactly how strong it was.

Other investigators were able to guess its strength through the actual tutoring.

However, since Yeo Dong-bin had not received any tutoring from Hyun-shin, he had no idea how strong he was.

Of course, I had no idea how much power Yeo Dong-bin had.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: Dongbin? Well? I think Senior Noh might have a hard time too.

└[Cheongun]

: Are you saying that too, Your Majesty?

······Was Yeo Dong-bin like that?

I wondered if the Jongri Kwon was exaggerated.

His arms were bent inward, and he seemed to be puffing up his disciple Yeo Dong-bin as if he had no love for him.

That would be the case. Not long ago, Yeo Dong-bin and Gu Cheon-hyeon-nyeo attacked Taesang No-jun as a pair, but were completely defeated.

Of course, there was the words of Taesangnogun that it was difficult, but I still thought it was to that extent.

I wonder if there is a true side of Yeo Dong-bin that I don’t know about.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: Dongbin acts like he’s some kind of lunatic and does everything half-heartedly, but when he’s serious, it’s no joke.

···Honestly, I couldn’t tell if it was true or not.

Perhaps because of Yeo Dong-bin’s usual bluster, it was hard to imagine him being serious.

I thought that I would have to face the sword myself through a Hyeonshin private lesson to find out the truth.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: Anyway, that was the first time I saw Cheonma, and I understood why even Sakyamuni had a hard time against Cheonma.

└[Cheongun]

: Did Sakyamuni ever fight a heavenly horse?

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: It was a long time ago, but it did exist.

It is said that this was the time when Sakyamuni attained the great awakening and reached nirvana.

It is said that Cheonma fought a decisive battle to prevent Sakyamuni’s nirvana, leading an army of 1.8 billion from the Great Desire Realm to fight Sakyamuni.

It is said that even though Cheonma was defeated, Sakyamuni was not spared from defeat.

Therefore, in Buddhism, the Heavenly Demon is called Ma-sin (魔神) as he is the opponent of Sakyamuni, and is also called ‘Ma-guni (魔仇尼)’ or ‘Bul-ryeong-hae-tal (不令解脫)’ as he is a great demon who prevents liberation.

And so, putting all this together,

‘It doesn’t seem like we’re the same being······.’

It seemed like the Cheonma (天魔) that Jong-Ri-Kwon spoke of was a different being from the Cheonma (天魔), the leader of the Demonic Cult that I spoke of.

Indeed, the existence of the celestial world could never interfere with the secular world.

To be exact, it was a being of heaven and the world of desire, but whatever.

Even appearing briefly consumed more merit than even the Supreme Emperor could bear, so it was completely absurd to even start the Central Plains War.

The leader of the Demonic Cult, Cheonma, is not the ruler of the Great Desire Realm that Zongliquan speaks of.

But is there no connection······?

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: Well, anyway. I think this is something that Cheonma-nom made.

······I couldn’t be sure until then.

I knew absolutely nothing about the leader of the Demonic Cult, Cheonma.

└[Emperor Divine Right]

: Youngest, where on earth did you learn this?

└[Cheongun]

: Oh, that’s right···.

I shook off the thoughts that were coming to mind and described in detail what had happened earlier.

There wasn’t anything particularly detailed, but just one thing.

└[Hyeonhyeonja (玄玄子) Jang Sambong]

: Are you saying that the shaman’s children taught the magic of Cheonma?

He explained in detail about the shaman without hiding anything.

As I was checking the diary, Jang Sam-bong’s words came to mind. And Jang Sam-bong’s wrinkled face in the portrait was filled with a look of confusion.

That would be the case, as we have summarized all the explanations of Jongri Kwon above.

‘It seems like something is going on with the shaman.’

Even to me, it seemed like something was wrong with the shaman.

However, it was not clear what the problem was.

So, did the shaman really teach magic to a lay disciple?

‘Or maybe the disciples lied to me.’

That would be the case, since most lay disciples did not have much affection for their sect.

Especially in a situation where he had been expelled, it was definitely strange for him to come to me and kneel down to ask for something.

But it is not as certain as it sounds.

It’s not like there weren’t some lay disciples who loved the sect more than the regular disciples.

I thought I would have to go to a shaman in person to find out more.

However, Jang Sam-bong, who was in the celestial world, could not go to Mt. Mudang in the secular world.

└[Hyeonhyeonja (玄玄子) Jang Sambong]

: Oh, how could that be······.

Jang Sam-bong’s helpless words came to mind.

Jang Sam-bong’s face in the portrait had become even darker than before.

Even now, it was getting darker by the minute, and that was understandable, as Jang Sam-bong was the founder of the Gaepa sect who first established shamanism.

No matter how much time has passed, the shamans are Jang Sam-bong’s disciples and children.

But since those disciples learned nothing but magic, I couldn’t help but worry.

And I was Jang Sam-bong’s direct junior and disciple, so I happened to be in Hubei Province.

└[Cheongun]

: Senior, I will go to a shaman and find out.

I couldn’t just sit back and do nothing as if it were someone else’s business.

Then, Jang Sam-bong in the portrait jumped up in surprise.

└[Hyeonhyeonja (玄玄子) Jang Sambong]

: Is that really true?!

└[Cheongun]

: Of course.

└[Hyeonhyeonja (玄玄子) Jang Sambong]

: Didn’t I say that there was a lot of work to do right now…?

······That’s true.

As soon as all the emperor’s rewards were loaded onto the ship, I had to go to Sacheondangmun with Dangso-hyang.

It was to collaborate with Sacheon Dangmun regarding the expansion of Hyemin Dang, but since it was Jang Sam Bong’s business, I had to put everything else aside and do this first.

It was the same not only for Jang Sam-bong, but also for Wang Jung-yang, Ho Gyo-tong, and Gwang Seong-ja.

Even if it was a volcano, a public space, or a Jongnam, I was willing to resolve it right away.

└[Cheongun]

: I have received a favor from my senior, so how can such a busy job be a big deal?

The favors I received from the gods of Damsobang were ones I could never repay in my entire life.

Even if you have a busy schedule, it’s something you have to put aside.

└[Hyeonhyeonja (玄玄子) Jang Sambong]

: But I wonder if I’m wasting my time because of this old man······.

└[Cheongun]

: I took up so much of your time, and I feel bad that you are apologizing to me like this, Senior.

I recalled the words with a feeling of utter disappointment.

I’m not just saying this, I’m really upset.

But Jang Sam-bong didn’t seem to think so. Still, he seemed sorry for taking up my time······.

└[Hyeonhyeonja (玄玄子) Jang Sambong]

: But still… Ah! Now that I think about it, didn’t you say that you lack virtue?

└[Cheongun]

: That’s true, but······.

I glanced up and checked the merit of conversion written on the upper right side of the folding screen.

[Conversion Merit] – 26 days

‘It’s gotten smaller in the meantime.’

Before arriving at Muhan, I checked and there were 27 days left.

But did someone unidentified intervene in the meantime? Not even a day had passed, but the time had already been shortened to 26 days.

That is why I had to accumulate virtue as soon as possible.

└[Hyeonhyeonja (玄玄子) Jang Sambong]

: Now, I will give you all the merits of the old man that I was unable to give you last time.

The first thing that came to mind was Jang Sam-bong’s words.

I opened my eyes in surprise.

‘···Come to think of it, I didn’t receive as much merit as senior Jang Sam-bong did during the Yongbong branch.’

It was because the shaman’s later index, Yang Jong-cheon, rejected my teachings.

So, I could only teach the 9 members of the Yukryongsambonghoe, excluding Yang Jong-cheon. How much merit did I gain from teaching the Yukryongsambonghoe at that time?

‘I think it was 1 to 2 thousand years per person.’

I don’t remember the details, but I think it was around that time. The accumulated merit was about 10,000 years.

After that, by adding the 10,000 years of merit sent by Bian Que and Jian’an Samshin Yi, it was certain that he could purchase a 20,000-year-old dragon’s tooth.

In other words, if you receive the merit of Senior Jang Sam-bong, you can obtain the merit of at least 1 to 2 thousand years.

But this time, it wasn’t just about teaching and helping ‘one’ person with the later index.

Teaching and assisting the entire sect of shamans.

I could receive merits far greater than that.

└[Hyeonhyeonja (玄玄子) Jang Sambong]

: I will give you all the merits that this old man has accumulated to the extent that his justification allows. So please······.

Maybe I could gain more merit than when I was the Blood Heavenly Goddess.

I had been thinking of going to a shaman even though I had no merit, but in this case, there was no reason not to go.

I wrote the text right away and sent it.

└[Cheongun]

: Don’t worry, senior. I’ll go and check and if the juniors go down the wrong path, I’ll teach them a sharp lesson.

As soon as I wrote the words, I paused for a moment. I wondered if it was right to call the entire non-partisan faction my juniors.

···But, well, what is it like?

My teacher is none other than the shaman’s founder, Jang Sam-bong.

The shaman’s officers, elders, and seniors were all below me in terms of rank. Not just below me, but far below me.

This means that.

└[Hyeonhyeonja (玄玄子) Jang Sambong]

: If the shaman does not listen, you may use force. No, I beg you to use force. Even if the shaman faction is destroyed, I don’t care. Please make sure that the shaman does not go down the wrong path······.

As long as there was a perfect justification for Jang Sam-bong, there was nothing to hesitate about.