Invitation to the Chatroom of the Gods - Chapter 85



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Episode 85 – A Sense of Generational Difference (1)

Plague.

An acute outbreak of infectious disease.

Epidemics, also known as infectious diseases, epidemics, or pandemics, varied greatly in severity, but when they broke out, entire cities were often devastated.

And it was only a couple of months ago that news of an epidemic raging in Guizhou Province was heard.

When the whole world was abuzz with stories about the Yongbongjihoe, news came that an epidemic was spreading in a small village in Yeojing.

Since an early response to an epidemic was important, Pungjamyeong quickly sealed off the town, and it seemed as if the epidemic was being suppressed, but then suddenly news came that the same epidemic was spreading in Daebang.

Usually, epidemics spread from person to person.

However, Yeo-gyeong and Dae-fang were located almost at the ends of the Guizhou Province.

Even if the plague had leaked out, it would never have spread so quickly to the city at the end, let alone skipping the middle city.

Still, the blockade of the other side was only temporary.

News of an epidemic spreading throughout Guizhou Province spread like wildfire: Inhwa, Jeongan, Dongin, Ganggu, Samdo, Ryopa, etc.

The epidemic that broke out simultaneously spread rapidly without any time to respond, and in just a few months, it engulfed all the cities in Guizhou Province, and now it was safe to say that the entire province was infected with the epidemic.

Rather than focusing on preventing the ‘spread’ of the plague, the focus should be on ‘curing’ the plague.

Fortunately, Guizhou Province bordered Sichuan Province to the north, so it was close to Sichuan Tangmun, which was renowned for its medical skills.

So, Pungjamyeong asked Sacheondangmun for help, but was coldly rejected. The answer was that the treatment costs were not worth it.

Of course, the nominal justification was that the epidemic that had spread throughout Guizhou Province was too dangerous and could not be treated even by the Sichuan Tangmun, so doctors from the Sichuan Tangmun could not be dispatched.

But the satirist knew that it was only a ‘justification’.

Guizhou City, which had nothing, could not afford to pay the price that Sichuan Tangmun demanded.

He also sent a petition to the imperial family to ask for help.

However, Guizhou City, which had nothing, had no connections with the higher-ups, and there was no ‘bribe’ to open their ears.

The reaction was that they were lowly things.

Even so, the only ones who died were the ethnic minorities, which was due to indifference.

Guizhou Province was eventually abandoned.

Now, there were virtually no functioning cities or towns within the current Guizhou Province.

As things got to this point, Gui Zhucheng started to go crazy.

A being that spreads plagues, a god of disaster.

Fanatics who created and worshipped bizarre gods began to appear one after another.

They say that only by believing in the god of disaster can one avoid the disaster of the plague, and they offer people as sacrifices to appease the god of disaster.

Horrible and inhuman things were happening all over Guizhou Province.

Guizhou Province has become a place of death where all hope has disappeared.

A place where no one offers a helping hand.

It was a time when we had no choice but to watch Guizhou City collapse helplessly.

“Hyemin Party······”

It was through the satirical name that I heard the name ‘Hye-Min-Dang’.

It was only recently that I heard the rumor.

Hyemindang, a treatment center whose name I had never heard of before, was a relatively new treatment center in Gangseo Province, and was rumored to be able to completely cure any illness.

Moreover, since they said they would not charge any medical fees, honestly, I had no choice but to dismiss the satirical name as a false rumor.

Rumors are always exaggerated, and there is no such thing as an unmerited favor in this world.

It is true that the person who runs Hyemin Party thought of the possibility that the satirical name ‘Hwarongdaehyeop (火龍大俠)’ might be···?

Still, he shook his head.

The plague that spread through Guizhou was by no means something to be taken lightly.

The plague that infected the entire province of Guizhou in just a few months was nothing short of a ‘disaster’.

I dare say that even if there are many editors, there is nothing they can do.

So, it was a hopeless Guizhou Province···..

“Hyemin Party······.”

Still, the satirical name had no choice but to grab onto even a shred of hope.

* * *

Wuhan, Hubei Province.

Wuhan is a key point for land and water transportation connecting the Yangtze River, and has been called a major road leading to nine provinces since ancient times.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that all the traffic going around the world was gathered here, and as such, it was also a place where all the rumors from around the world gathered together······.

“thank god···.”

Namgung Yerin was greatly relieved by the rumors that were causing a stir in Muhan.

Upon hearing the news that Dang So-hyang was in critical condition, Namgung Ye-rin sent Cheong-un away first and followed him diligently to the missionary office.

Although I moved very diligently, it was so far from Henan that it took more than two weeks before I could reach Wuhan in Hubei Province.

And then you come across a rumor that has stirred up a great deal of noise, namely the rumor about Hyemin Hall and the goddess of heavenly flowers.

Namgung Yerin was able to determine the truth of the rumor and immediately knew that the Heavenly Flower Goddess was Dang So-hyang. Furthermore, she was able to know that she was safe.

And when I heard rumors about Hyemin Party, I couldn’t help but think that it was truly a great success.

His ability was his ability, but the vessel that he had to embrace people was so great that it was difficult to even describe him as a great knight.

Maybe that’s why.

“······.”

Namgung Yerin couldn’t shake off the feeling that she was inadequate.

Namgung Yerin was too inadequate to stand next to Cheongun.

However, Namgung Yerin’s love for Cheongwoon had grown even bigger than before.

To be honest, I wasn’t even interested in other men anymore, and I especially didn’t pay any attention to the letters that came to Namgung Yerin every day.

A message and letter from none other than the shaman’s later index, Yang Jong-cheon.

Namgung Yerin knew that he was in Hubei Province, and he kept coming every other day.

After all, Hubei Province is the realm of shamans, and shamans reign supreme in Hubei Province. Since Namgung Yerin attracts so much attention from the people around her, it seemed like she had heard the news that she was in Hubei Province.

The content was to meet once, but of course, Namgung Yerin didn’t even pay attention.

“Let’s go back.”

Namgung Yerin simply turned around and walked away.

And that direction was not ‘Gangseo-seong’ where the missionary office was located. It was even less ‘Mudangsan’ where Yangjongcheon was located.

The place Namgung Yerin headed to was none other than ‘Anhui Province’ where the Namgung family was located.

I wanted to become a missionary, but······ I was too lacking to do that.

Above all, there was an endless comparison with Dang So-hyang. Namgung Ye-rin was not able to help Cheong-woon like the goddess of heavenly flowers, but to compete with him on beauty… Honestly, Dang So-hyang was too pretty.

So, although I was jealous of Dang So-hyang being with Cheong-un every day, I was more relieved and happy that Dang So-hyang was alive.

That was all Namgung Yerin felt towards Dang So-hyang, who was like her older sister.

In that sense, I hated seeing Cheongwoon flirting with another woman, but when it came to Dang Sohyang······.

“But I liked you first.”

······No matter how much I thought about it, I never wanted to see Cheongwoon flirting with any other woman besides me.

Anyway, Cheongun didn’t care about a woman’s beauty.

In other words, things like beautification didn’t work, so even if Dang So-hyang was beautiful, it would be of no use.

It was the same for Namgung Yerin, and that was why qualifying herself was the only way to be with Cheongwoon.

That is, to become the ‘moon’ that Cheongun can lean on and rest for a while when he is tired and worn out.

“I will never give up.”

Namgung Yerin’s passion was only directed towards ‘Dang So-hyang’ and no one else.

* * *

[Conversion of Merit] – 1,271 months and 22 days (+1,000 months)

The merit that suddenly increased by 1,000 months.

Of course, this could not be said to have been an amount that had risen automatically through merit.

To begin with, it was not a situation where merit was automatically accumulated, and even if it was, it did not accumulate for 1,000 months at once.

So, what we can immediately guess is that it was ‘Dangbaekgun’s request’.

The only explanation I could give was that by granting his request to continue kidnapping Dang So-hyang, I had accumulated 1,000 months of virtue.

“Is that all there is to it?”

But I thought it was about this much.

No matter how much I thought about it, it wasn’t to that extent······.

“Could it be because of Lady Dang?”

I think this one is right.

The merit of me curing Dang So-hyang’s illness and saving her life.

However, originally, it was the fate of Dangso-hyang that should have been cut off, and because the threat of Sacheon Dangmun still remained, its merits were not accumulating.

But this time, it seemed like the merit had been accumulated by eliminating the threat called Sacheondangmun.

That is, by making Dang So-hyang completely my own, I was able to completely embrace her fate and it piled up······.

“Is that all there is to it?”

······But I still thought it was to this extent.

It was strange to measure a person’s worth by their merits, but it meant that Dang So-hyang’s life was equivalent to 1,000 months of merits.

So, it was almost 100 years, but the amount of merit gained was significantly reduced.

If it were original, it would have easily piled up for hundreds of years.

But has there ever been a case where this much merit was accumulated with just one person’s life?

There was a time when 9,999 years had accumulated in the Yongbongjihoe, but that was due to the merit of defeating the leader of the Demonic Cult, ‘Akjihak’, and saving the lives of ‘tens of thousands’ of people.

If we take the average, the accumulated merit per person’s life was not that much. Especially when the amount of merit acquired did not decrease.

However, since Dang So-hyang had only been around for 1,000 months while her acquisition amount had decreased significantly, I was at a loss.

She was truly an indispensable talent to Hye-min-dang, and Dang So-hyang was also indispensable to me.

Well, whatever.

“If this happens······.”

There was no need to learn the Cheon-dun sword technique while fainting.

That would be the case. 1,271 months is equivalent to over 100 years when converted to years. It was enough to purchase the Taesang Laojun’s Xian Dan, which had growth effects.

“Will it work?”

This was something I didn’t understand, as the amount of merit gained had decreased and the ‘consumption amount’ had increased significantly.

Taking that into account, I generously set the time limit at 100 years, but since it was just my guess, I thought I would have to ask the Grand Prince directly.

I went straight to the Taoist temple and instead of looking for Yeo Dongbin, I looked for Taesang Laojun.

└[Taishang Laojun (Great Elder Lord) Laozi]

: How long has it been since I used up 20,000 years worth of merit······?

And then the words of Taesang Laojun came to mind.

But, unlike last time, he didn’t go out of his way to make a fuss or go on a crazy trip······.

└[Taishang Laojun (Great Elder Lord) Laozi]

: ······Now I know why the heavens want to kill you so badly.

Now, it seemed as if Taesang No-gun had almost given up.

* * *

A spacious, neatly organized room.

It was none other than the room where Dang So-hyang was staying at the missionary office, and it was much better than the room where Dang So-hyang was staying at the Sacheon Dangmun.

Overall, Sacheondangmun had the upper hand, but it could never be considered ‘indifferent’······.

“I also heard this story from Prince Yun. He said that it was built by the best carpenters in the imperial family.”

Indeed, the imperial family could be called an imperial family.

It’s not a joke, but if the power is growing, it should be called ‘Sega’ or ‘Sect’ rather than ‘Seonmu-gwan’.

Anyway, Dangbaekgun felt relieved knowing that his daughter was staying in a place like this.

Dang Baek-gun had many conversations with Dang So-hyang.

Rather than having a conversation, Dang So-hyang mostly did the talking and Dang Baek-gun just listened, and it was mostly about what had happened in the meantime.

From the moment Cheongwoon barged in and saved her during the wedding ceremony, to the small, quiet stories that happened during their time at the missionary office.

Tang Baek-gun was able to hear all the stories that had transpired.

But as I quietly listened to Dang So-hyang’s story······.

‘Did I know So-hyang could smile like this?’

You could see Dang So-hyang with a smile on her face the whole time.

Even when I was at Sacheondangmun, I was a child who didn’t know what a smile was.

Although Dang So-hyang tried hard to keep a bright expression, there was always a dark shadow cast over her face.

“Especially when there’s a night market in town······.”

But now, not only had my daughter regained her lost smile, she was also showing a happy expression on her face that I had never seen before.

There was no longer any darkness visible on Dang So-hyang’s face.

Especially when it came to stories related to Cheongun, Dang So-hyang would smile brightly, but there was no one who wanted Cheongun like her.

Whenever she talked about Cheongun, her face looked like that of a girl in love, and anyone who saw her would know that she had Cheongun in her heart.

It was an absurd situation where he fell in love with the kidnapper, and Dangbaek-gun was secretly jealous that his daughter had a man she liked so much······but he thought it would be okay.

Because I thought that if it was Cheongun, he would be able to make Dangso Hyang even happier.

It seemed that the Seonmu-gwan could provide the happiness that the Sacheon-dangmun could not provide.

“My cooking skills have improved a lot while I was here. There is a person who manages the missionary center, Byuksam’s mother, and I learned a lot from her.”

It seemed like Cheongwoon could find and fill in what Dangbaekgun could not.

“Oh, that’s not right, Father. How about staying at the missionary office for a few days before you go? I’ll make you some delicious Ohhyangjangyuk, the dish you like!”

No, Cheongun was already making Dang So-hyang happy.

As time passed, conversation blossomed, and the smile on Dang So-hyang’s face continued to grow deeper.

And that was when it happened.

-Are you inside?

Suddenly, an unfamiliar voice was heard outside the door. Judging from the unfamiliar expression on Dang So-hyang’s face, it seemed like a guest had come to the missionary office······.

“Oh, I think we have a guest. Just a moment, Father.”

Tang So-hyang stopped talking and stood up. It seemed like she was trying to welcome a guest who had come to the missionary office, but Tang Baek-gun wondered if Tang So-hyang really needed to do that.

That would be the case, as welcoming the missionary’s guests was something the ‘host’ was supposed to do.

Nominally, Dang So-hyang was a ‘hostage’. No matter how you look at it, she was a ‘guest’. As a guest of the same missionary, there was absolutely no reason for Dang So-hyang to receive the missionary’s guests.

But Dang So-hyang acted so naturally, as if it was something she had to do.

Her appearance was no different from that of the missionary’s ‘mistress’······.

Dangbaekgun thought that exactly ‘five’ would be good, no more, no less.

One problem was that Dang So-hyang was weak, so it seemed necessary to immediately go back to Sacheon Dangmun and send some good elixirs.

-What brings you here?

-Ah, it’s not something else······I came to look for Hwalongdaehyeop.

– Prince Un? What should I do? Prince Un is out for a moment.

But come to think of it, poison was more effective for Tang So-hyang’s health than elixir.

-Ah······ Then, could you tell me when you will be back?

-You said you were going to Mt. Okhwasan, which is about half a day away, so it won’t take too long. By the way, may I ask why you are looking for Confucius Un?

Fortunately, when it comes to poison, there is no family in the world that can match the Sacheondangmun.

‘How many poisonous plants were there in the Tang family’s records······.’

I wondered who these beautiful grandchildren resembled so much.

-I have something to say about Hyemin Party······.

-Is this Hyemin Party?

It was just then.

Kuguguguguguguguguguung···!!!

Suddenly a huge earthquake shook the entire missionary center.

Tang Baek-gun hurriedly scattered his grandchildren who were floating around like illusions and ran out of the room like lightning.

And he was barely able to catch Dang So-hyang’s body, which was staggering and losing its balance.

“So-hyang, are you okay?”

“Oh, yes. Okay, it’s okay.”

Fortunately, Tang So-hyang only looked flustered and did not appear to be injured. Tang Baek-gun looked around only after confirming Tang So-hyang’s safety.

Even at that moment, the earthquake continued to occur with no sign of stopping, and it was confirmed that it was not only the missionary office that was shaking.

Kuguguguguguguguung···!!!

Beyond the missionary office, the entire village was shaking.

‘This is······.’

It was a sight that seemed to be the space itself shaking rather than the shaking caused by an earthquake.

This vibration could not be explained by a mere earthquake. It was because the immense internal energy felt by Tang Baek-gun’s skin was incredible.

This could be said to be a vibration caused by the torrent of internal energy, but the problem was that the direction and purpose of the internal energy were not felt.

This means that it is simply a vibration caused by the waves of internal energy that are being gathered.

It meant vibrations that easily occur as a ‘aftereffect’ of force······.

But… is that possible?

Was this possible with just the aftermath of simple force?

It’s impossible.

Dang Baek-gun could say with certainty.

As the head of the Sacheon Dangmun, Dangbaekgun did not neglect his martial arts training.

Although he was not one of the ten best martial artists in the world, he was a martial artist who had reached the peak of his power and was knocking on the door of the realm of transformation.

Yet, I could not only say with certainty, I could also say with certainty.

It’s impossible.

If it is an internal energy that is artificially detonated with a purpose, then how could it be ‘possible’?

However, this is absolutely impossible with just the internal energy that is ‘just for fun’ without any specific purpose.

To make this possible, it would require an internal energy that was literally impossible to imagine.

It would take all of the energy of Mother Nature to reach it. It would take an incredible amount of strength that is beyond words.

Therefore, not only could such an internal energy not exist, but even if it did exist, there would be no being that could ‘manipulate’ this internal energy.

With this level of internal energy, rather than being able to control it, you would be caught up in the torrent of internal energy and your entire body would be torn apart.

Surely… Surely that will be the case.

‘What the heck is this······!!’

What on earth is this power that is bursting out now?

The force that had been shaking the space was now destroying the space itself. Dang Baek-gun’s two eyes opened and turned to the source of the bursting force.

So, it is about a half day’s drive north from the missionary office where the Tang Baek-gun is located.

Kwakwakwakwakwakwakwakwak!!!

The three peaks of Mt. Okhwa were in complete chaos.