Chapter 500: Seeing the Face

Read more at Nineheavens.org

Crunch!

Pa Ga-wi immediately bit down so hard his teeth nearly shattered and organized his spirit.

The reeking blood droplets quickly fell.

Drip, drip, drip, drip…

He had bitten so hard that even his lips had burst.

It was the origin of his resolve to resist desperately.

If he couldn’t avoid that mysterious energy of the mind’s eye lineage anyway…

‘Kuk! Bastard, don’t look down on me too much! At least peering into my head won’t be easy!’

With that, Pa Ga-wi’s eyes blazed.

It was a fervent gaze of repeated determination.

That he must firmly protect the secrets related to his master by any means.

Indeed, even if he died, he must endure and endure somehow.

So that the bastard couldn’t secure a decisive clue.

Wasn’t that his absolute mission and final duty as the Grand General of Central Heaven Tower in name and reality?

The first method he chose was suicide.

‘If I forcibly move my internal power like this…!’

Having shouted inwardly, Pa Ga-wi drew up his true energy through sheer will.

Thereupon, the blocked energy meridians and blood channels were forcibly opened and torn.

The internal injuries worsened in an instant.

If left alone, he would die quickly.

Seeing that, Cheol Ryu-heun immediately pulled his right hand back.

As his hand moved, the Gan Jiang was also pulled out smoothly.

Thud thud, thud thud…

It was the sound of even more blood pouring from the hole in his belly flesh.

Yet he still couldn’t move his hands and feet.

Because the restraint of the powerful formless energy was being maintained.

At that moment, Cheol Ryu-heun’s extremely indifferent voice was heard.

“Who said you could die?”

Saying that, he slightly shook the Gan Jiang.

In an instant.

Mysterious haze was quietly released following that blade.

Sword energy.

It was pure white.

It was energy that gave a mysterious feeling.

Reminiscent of fog surrounding a high peak.

No.

Like a summersault cloud wielded by an immortal, perhaps.

A pure white haze that gave the feeling of actually seeing fog or clouds.

At that, Pa Ga-wi felt shock and curiosity simultaneously.

What was that now?

It certainly looked like sword energy, but there was no sharp attribute at all.

It was too soft.

A force lighter than feathers.

In reality, it was an energy stream clearly visible to the eyes but untouchable by hand.

Truly the pinnacle of mysteriousness… Unprecedented sword energy for him.

The pure white haze flowed into the hole in his belly flesh in the blink of an eye.

It was instantaneous.

It was all a succession of instants.

A process so rapid that only a superhuman’s senses at the ultimate level could barely perceive it.

Immediately after, Pa Ga-wi’s internal pain disappeared.

The energy meridians and blood channels that had ruptured earlier had rapidly stabilized.

How to describe it? It was a feeling like being sewn with thread and firmly held so they wouldn’t tear again.

Pa Ga-wi was continuously shocked.

How could such sword energy exist in this world?

But he soon realized.

Where this power originated from.

‘Martial Immortal!’

It was precise.

The sword energy of white cloud mist that Cheol Ryu-heun had just executed was the Immortal Wandering Sword Energy… A wondrous supreme technique of Taoist attribute and legendary martial art that Martial Immortal Dongfang Ya had created.

Pa Ga-wi also well knew that it was a study of the supreme celestial realm that displayed two opposing subtleties.

The Death Formula and Life Formula.

In other words, a power that could kill people or save them.

That’s right.

When the Immortal Wandering Sword Energy seeped into the body, opposing results would appear according to the caster’s will.

In other words, it could inflict internal injury shock on the opponent, or conversely, perform a miraculous healing method.

It was truly a supreme technique of divine ability transcending the human world.

Cheol Ryu-heun had used that Immortal Wandering Sword Energy to stabilize the inside of Pa Ga-wi’s body.

In other words, he had blocked the suicide attempt.

What’s more, he had completely healed the internal injuries that had been worsening.

At that moment, the gu poison within his body reflexively responded.

It began to absorb the Immortal Wandering Sword Energy with the Star-Absorbing Great Art.

‘No! Don’t absorb it!’

The flustered Pa Ga-wi immediately operated a large amount of internal power and applied pressure to the gu poison in his dantian area.

With the intent to forcibly crush and burst it.

He had to.

Why?

Because if the gu poison continued absorbing the Immortal Wandering Sword Energy, the suicide attempt would completely fail.

He couldn’t beat the opponent, and he couldn’t escape this place.

Only death was the way to protect the Heaven Emperor Society Lord’s secret.

But the gu poison escaped his control.

It madly sucked up the Immortal Wandering Sword Energy that continued flowing into his body.

As a result, his physical condition rapidly normalized.

For Pa Ga-wi, it was an unexpected setback.

In the end, he turned to the next option.

A battle of mental strength with the terrifying Cheol Ryu-heun…

It wouldn’t be as easy as it sounded to peer into his head, but it was still too burdensome.

But there was no choice.

Now that things had come to this, he had to try to erect a solid mind-wall within his upper dantian as much as possible.

At that moment, the eye-light of the divine power Cheol Ryu-heun was operating advanced across the gap.

‘Huuu… Here it comes!’

Thus, when both their eyes were connected by flashing light.

Clunk!

Pa Ga-wi’s entire body was perfectly paralyzed.

‘Uuk!’

It was an eye technique with power far more tremendous than expected.

Still, his mental realm hadn’t been breached yet.

“Why struggle so hard? You’ll be penetrated anyway.”

“Shut… Up! You bastard…!”

The moment Pa Ga-wi snarled with bloodshot eyes.

‘Huh!’

He unknowingly made a rather surprised expression.

Because his vision had suddenly become blurry.

That meant Cheol Ryu-heun’s divine power was infiltrating his upper dantian.

It was a speed exceeding expectations.

He had thought he could hold out a bit longer.

‘Da… Mn…’

Pa Ga-wi’s vision grew dim as he heard Cheol Ryu-heun’s languid voice.

“See, I was right. That guy held out longer than you.”

After those words ended, darkness came to Pa Ga-wi’s eyes.

Darkness settling in his vision.

It meant forcible guidance into the spiritual realm.

Having drawn up his divine power to the maximum, Cheol Ryu-heun spoke inwardly.

‘Good, going in.’

Thus, his mental energy rapidly passed through the formless passage connected to Pa Ga-wi’s upper dantian.

A space that was pitch-black in all directions… He had finally reached the spiritual realm.

Shortly after, an invisible transparent wall blocking his path.

It was the spiritual realm shield seated in the opponent’s upper dantian.

‘Not bad.’

It was a very solid mind-wall, too solid to recklessly break through.

He couldn’t compare to Wang-ryu, but befitting the leader here, Pa Ga-wi was also of a considerable level.

Probably due to absorbing the energy of the mid-rank personnel, the subtlety of his upper dantian had been strengthened more than before.

Cheol Ryu-heun concentrated his mind and increased the power of his eye technique.

To break through the mind-wall and enter the interior where various secrets lurked.

He was currently consuming a large amount of divine power, but there were no bleeding symptoms like before.

Far from nosebleeds or such, not even fatigue could be glimpsed.

That confirmed something again.

The power of his divine abilities, which had leaped to a wondrous level through the great cosmic opportunity and Blood God Mu-wol’s arrangement.

Finally.

Flash!

Light spread and the transparent mind-wall in front split open lengthwise.

When Cheol Ryu-heun entered inside, a new darkness filled his eyes.

As if a pitch-black, large piece of paper had been spread out…

It was a space within his mental imagery.

In other words, it was a place where various secret thoughts were hidden.

Everything was dark, but it was approaching with a distinct feeling.

That pieces of Pa Ga-wi’s thoughts, memories, and such were invisibly drifting about in the spaces beyond the deep darkness.

From here on, it depended on Cheol Ryu-heun’s own ability.

‘I will definitely find it! Things related to that Heaven Emperor Society Lord bastard…’

He pushed his mental power to the limit.

Immediately after.

Hwaaak!

Brilliant radiant light spread from Cheol Ryu-heun’s entire body.

Thereupon.

Crack… Cra-crack…

The wave spread by his mental power harmonized with divine power created formless fissures.

Following that.

Rumble, rumble, rumble, rumble…

On the left.

Part of the pitch-black wall collapsed.

Then light seeped out and soon approached before his eyes, spread out like a large piece of paper.

It was a scene from his mind… A fragment of memory.

Cheol Ryu-heun began to see and hear clearly.

A series of scenes unfolding from Pa Ga-wi’s perspective.

It appeared starting with metallic sounds.

Clang, cla-clang, clang… Pong, popong, pong… !

In a spacious training ground, over a dozen swordsmen presumed to be Central Heaven Tower Great General-rank were sprawled in all directions.

Pa Ga-wi, the Grand General, was included among them.

Just then.

The figure who had perfectly received the combined attack of over twenty people spoke from the center with an arrogant posture.

“Everyone, your training is still lacking. Falling in just one exchange?”

Thereupon, the personnel around him shouted in unison.

“My Lord, we will work harder!”

At that moment, Cheol Ryu-heun’s gaze fixed on the central figure.

Though the outline was hazy, he was immediately certain.

That he was the vagabond who had destroyed the Divine Martial Sword… The Heaven Emperor Society Lord.

‘Closer…!’

The moment Cheol Ryu-heun heightened his concentration, the scene shattered.

Crack crack, cra-crack crack, crack crack…

Nine out of ten, it was Pa Ga-wi’s instinctive defense mechanism.

‘Ha. How annoying. Let’s see how far you can go.’

Just as Cheol Ryu-heun sneered inwardly.

Rumble, rumble…

A wall in another direction collapsed.

And a new scene rapidly approached, enlarging like a picture album.

Once again, Cheol Ryu-heun entered into that memory’s scene.

A splendid rectangular inner chamber.

Pa Ga-wi prostrated himself before someone seated with a desk in front.

“Please rejoice. At last, this subordinate has found the Divine Stone of the Ancient God.”

Then he placed a small object on the desk.

The identity was none other than the Spiritual Awakening Stone.

Seeing that, Cheol Ryu-heun’s gaze deepened.

‘The Spiritual Awakening Stone is the Divine Stone of the Ancient God…?’

Meanwhile, the one seated at the desk let out a satisfied laugh.

“Hoho… Befitting the head of the Central Heaven Tower, you have accomplished a meritorious service. Well done.”

He was laughing, but there was no human scent about him.

Appearing to be in his late forties, his attire was as magnificent as royalty.

Just from that dress, one could tell he was of no ordinary status.

Also.

From his facial features, a suffocating dignity emanated.

It was a face that gave off a heavy and solemn impression to that degree.

The nakedly revealed appearance… Could he be the Heaven Emperor Society Lord?

Right at that moment.

Click…

The lattice door of the inner chamber opened and a stately martial officer entered.

The man wore an indigo-black flying fish robe symbolizing belonging to a special organization within the imperial court.

Having closed the door, he looked at the middle-aged man seated at the desk and paid his respects.

“Did you call for me, Grand Marshal?”

Grand Marshal meant the military official who oversaw the entirety of the Five Armies General Commandery… The apex of the military administration under the imperial court… And the highest-ranking renowned general representing the nation.