“However, wasn’t it true that the Heavenly Qi didn’t include the full details?”
Sword Sage’s faded whitish beard fluttered gently.
“Sword Sage, it only describes your actions and the events that followed. No reasons for your actions are separately explained, right?”
Tang Sobaek responded boldly.
Being able to sit in front of a legendary martial artist without the slightest tension is probably something only she could manage, across the vast lands.
“Normally, the all-knowing perspective of Heavenly Qi would include the thoughts of the characters in detail, but for some reason, the scenes related to your death and the formation of the Void Heaven Ravine are written in simple third person?”
“Hmm, indeed. It’s understandable. Seeing as I deliberately moved to deceive the Heavenly Qi.”
“Deceive the Heavenly Qi?”
“More precisely, to deceive the ‘scribe’ watching us from somewhere. That’s also why I created the Void Heaven Ravine. You might’ve guessed, with your sharp mind, why I named it ‘Void Heaven.'”
“Oh, so the meaning hidden behind the name ‘Void Heaven Ravine’ was that?”
“Exactly.”
Joy danced in Tang Sobaek’s eyes.
This was the moment where the questions she’d pondered ever since starting to read the Heavenly Qi finally had answers.
How could she not be excited?
“You committed suicide in front of Woo-yong Jin of the Power Division, didn’t you?”
“Yes, I did.”
“Did you have a particular reason for this? Why reveal your story to him and then take your own life in front of him?”
Faced with her rapid-fire questions, Sword Sage replied calmly.
“I needed to inform his close friend about the concept of ‘regression.’ If the future inheritors he meets cannot quickly accept the truth, it would be troublesome for both him and the inheritors.”
“Those inheritors.”
“They also need empathy. After regressing just nine times, I felt the need to commit suicide because it was so painful. I hoped that when my friend encounters his inheritors, they’d understand that these individuals have regressed thousands of times, sacrificing themselves entirely.”
“You mean the inheritors are Sword Sage Namgung Cheolbin and your descendant, right?”
“That’s correct.”
While there were still parts that were hard to comprehend, like how he prepared everything 500 years in advance, Tang Sobaek did not press the matter. She simply accepted it and moved on.
There was plenty of time, after all. No need to rush.
“Oh, by the way, I saw the Sword Sage without his mask during the last Seven Flowers Tournament, sitting calmly next to Moon Blossom?”
“Perhaps Woo-yong Jin suggested it. He has a straightforward personality.”
“They’ve already met, I take it? It seems the Sword Sage belongs to the Taewon Jin Clan, and the Power Division was sealed within the Moonlight Division.”
“Perhaps, although the full truth will only be revealed once they arrive.”
“Understood. Moving on then…”
Tang Sobaek turned her head slightly, her green gaze following.
Her vision landed on a modest vase tucked away in a corner of the study.
“The younger brother of Woo-yong Jin— did he die?”
“No one, not even I, can live forever.”
“Is he with you here?”
“If you’re curious, you may open that vase. All of this was prepared for you and Namgung Cheolbin.”
Sword Sage extended his arms wide, an indirect gesture encompassing the treasured artifacts scattered about the study.
Tang Sobaek redirected her gaze from the artifacts and posed another question.
“So, how were you and the younger brother of Woo-yong Jin acquainted?”
“Lord and retainer. Unknown to others, he was a loyal subordinate ready to give his life for me.”
“Could you explain the events surrounding that day?”
“Of course. Before my death, I gave him instructions. I taught him a soul-trapping spell, telling him to use it on me, imprisoning my soul in the Moonlight Division. I chose him because I wanted Namgung Cheolbin to feel a bond of shared suffering when meeting Woo-yong Jin.”
“So, you used this method to bring Woo-yong Jin to the present day, 500 years later. But why did he bring you here, to the Void Heaven Ravine? None of the events inside the ravine were documented.”
“….”
Sword Sage paused briefly before answering.
“Because my soul, sent to the afterlife, needed to be summoned back.”
“Hmm?”
“Did you think the Void Heaven Ravine was naturally connected to the dark depths of hell? Or that the haunted caves existed without reason?”
“So, care to explain? On the day the younger brother of Woo-yong Jin was trapped in the division, what exactly happened between you and him?”
Tang Sobaek’s curiosity never waned, like peeling layers of a fruit, each layer revealing a new surprise.
Sword Sage answered earnestly without hesitation.
“As you know, I was an alchemist. Collecting treasures and spirit pills, setting up traps here—all of that was my doing. However, turning this place into a ghost-infested den was not my doing. I merely gave orders.”
“Hmm?”
“True Sword, the nickname of Woo-yong Jin’s younger brother. He loaded my dead body onto a cart, sealed it with cold iron to prevent decay, and brought it here to Void Heaven Ravine. Following the path I had told him, he avoided the traps and descended to the bottom.”
“That’s where the major event took place?”
“Yes. The ritual that brings the soul of a dead person back from the afterlife… goes against the natural order profoundly. We all know its name: The Great Heaven-Inverting Ritual, a forbidden art absolutely forbidden by all. The ground shook fiercely that day, and the sky turned red as the true sword succeeded in defying the natural order. Even now, Void Heaven Ravine remains perpetually shrouded in dark clouds due to its aftereffects.”
“Even the top sects of the demonic path, like the Blood Cult, Devil Sect, or Ming Sect, shun the Great Heaven-Inverting Ritual. For someone who is a paragon of the righteous path, it’s impressive how you dared to perform such a feat.”
“Doesn’t the saying ‘eventually all rivers return to the sea’ apply? Hehe.”
With a light chuckle, Sword Sage studied Tang Sobaek’s face intently.
While she gave surface responses, her internal focus remained unwavering.
He was genuinely amazed, even though he’d heard about this before.
“In any case, although bringing my soul back was successful, there were side effects. The boundary between the afterlife and the mortal world weakened. Souls from the afterlife, yearning for the flavors of the mortal realm, slowly gathered here in the Void Heaven Ravine.”
“So, this is why it became a haunted cave.”
“Indeed. With the body of a jiangshi that I obtained to endure for five hundred years, I couldn’t control the souls. Eventually, I confined only a few loyal followers into the vase. The other spirits… still wander aimlessly inside the ravine.”
“There are jiangshi here, right? You couldn’t make use of their bodies?”
“Hehe, no spirit willingly enters a decaying corpse unless it serves a specific purpose. It’s immensely painful, you know.”
Tang Sobaek nodded, chiming in with agreement.
“I’ve read in books that a spirit entering a jiangshi’s body feels like insects wriggling all over.”
“You’ve done well-researched reading.”
“Then… does that mean you… endured for five hundred years for this day? With the torment of feeling insects crawl all over your body?!”
At this revelation, Tang Sobaek’s furrowed eyebrows drew even closer together.
This was an unimaginable hardship for someone as neat-freakish as her.
“Indeed.”
The response from Sword Sage contained only a slight smile, confirming the truth.
“Are you crazy? Or is this the standard for people who can regress? I mean, giving something grand to Namgung Cheolbin doesn’t really seem like enough motivation for enduring five hundred years of such torment!”
“Withdrawal back to the beginning, they call it, isn’t that right? Hehe.”
Upon hearing this, Tang Sobaek’s voice faltered.
“….”
The ease and calmness with which Sword Sage replied left Tang Sobaek entirely deflated.
Then, suddenly,
Drrrrrr!
A loud vibration startled them.
Following the sound, their eyes landed on that same vase on the shelf that began to shake violently, as if pleading to be noticed.
“What is that?”
Seemingly unruffled, Tang Sobaek asked calmly.
“Ah, it seems one of the souls inside wants to meet you.”
“Should I open it?”
“All the souls in the vase entered willingly and trust me. There should be no problems.”
With Sword Sage’s implicit guarantee, Tang Sobaek carefully approached and opened the vase.
After a moment, a faint white smoke began to seep out of the vase.
Gradually forming into a human figure, Tang Sobaek couldn’t help but be startled.
The figure and its face were not just similar but exactly like someone she knew.
No, they were identical—like a carbon copy. Though she’d only seen his portrait in the secret archives of her family.
“Beg your pardon! But did you not just say earlier that my master is present here?”
The form created by the smoke was plump—extremely plump, one could even say obese.
“Please! I beg of you with all earnestness! Allow me to meet my master!”
“…??”
The soul grabbed Tang Sobaek’s shoulders and pleaded.
Her mind was thrown into chaos upon seeing the familiar ‘blue eyes’ staring back.
“…???”
“Please! I implore you earnestly! There is something I must absolutely tell my master!”
It was baffling to see the head of the Namgung Family kneeling before her as a ghost.
“Namgung Bin… when did you die…?”
It was truly incomprehensible.
