Chapter 339: The Unity Stage Trial

===================
Translated by Frog in the Well

Read it only at Nineheavens.org
===================

The moment he regained his blurred memories and reason.

He realized where this place was now, and what he had been doing.

‘The Unity stage. I was in the middle of breaking through the great boundary.’

The sea of starlight. Captivated by the galaxy, he had lost consciousness at some point, and it was only now that he barely regained his senses.

Tracing his memories, Jin So-myeong lowered his gaze.

Seeing the black lotus burning hotly in his grasp, he also recalled that he had chosen the Ink Lotus Flower instead of the Dao Integration Pill.

When he was captivated by the galaxy full of star clusters.

Just before losing consciousness. He had instinctively swallowed the Ink Lotus Flower, and thanks to that, he had come to his senses like this.

‘Are there two petals remaining?’

Actually, the Ink Lotus Flower held in his hand right now was an illusion.

It was a projection of the energy of the Ink Lotus Flower nestled in his mind and body, and the petals signified how much of the Ink Lotus Flower’s energy remained.

If all the petals burned away like this?

He would have to break through the great boundary without the help of the Ink Lotus Flower.

It meant that if he failed, he would die.

While the energy of the Integration spiritual object remained, one could save their life even if they gave up or failed.

However, if the energy was exhausted and he failed after continuing to attempt…

He would truly die, or suffer a wretched state worse than death.

Staring blankly at the petals of which only two remained, he averted his gaze.

What was the point of thinking about failure? Believing he would succeed, he was busy enough simply pressing forward with all his might.

At any rate, since it seemed there was not much time left, he concentrated.

‘The Unity stage is the realm of becoming one with the Dao.’

If so, what should he do to break through the great boundary?

Should he join the majestic flow of the massive galaxy before his eyes and melt into it?

‘Must I simply maintain my reason within the flow?’

Strangely, he could not remember this part.

Although he felt he had researched a lot about the Unity stage, he did not know what to actually do.

After contemplating for a moment, he properly examined the surrounding scenery.

The starlight blooming profusely.

Looking at the galaxy drawing a spiral, an impulse surged.

He wanted to throw his soul into it and become one.

Why hesitate? That place was precisely the final destination that all living souls must arrive at.

‘Phew…’

The thirst he thought he had shaken off came seeking him once more.

He closed his eyes, but it was useless.

The starlight did not disappear. It was distinct even in the darkness.

Suppressing the impulse surging from deep within his soul, he opened his eyes again.

How could he avoid the starlight that was visible even when he closed his eyes?

He changed his method. Instead, he stared intently at it, seeking to grasp the identity of the starlight first.

Gathering his mind that was about to grow distant, he concentrated all his nerves to observe the galaxy.

And he realized that truly many things were contained within the starlight.

Could he call it the principle governing the entirety of the natural world?

The rules that all creation and phenomena must follow were contained.

Suddenly, curiosity arose.

Where did that mass of light start from, and where was it flowing to…

All kinds of thoughts followed one after another, and he suddenly realized.

What the leisurely flowing galaxy meant.

“Is that the destiny I must sever?”

At the moment he recalled the long-cherished wish of the human race, Silent Life.

Whoosh!

One of the Ink Lotus Flower petals flared violently and turned to ash.

His panic was brief. The powder that was scattering to pieces gathered in the void and formed a human shape.

“Preposterous.”

A man who looked completely identical to him curled the corners of his mouth.

“How truly laughable. For someone who is swayed by destiny more than anyone else to speak of severing life. Haha!”

“…Am I being swayed by destiny?”

“The sword of humanity. A truly pleasant sound. But since when did you wish for such empty fame?”

The mocking man said.

“Look at your state now. Swept away by the madness of dreamers, you had the misfortune of becoming the target of a Great Ascension stage cultivator. That is precisely the result of being caught up in destiny.”

“…”

“You have never once made a choice. You were simply swept away by the situation.”

Was that truly so?

Before answering hastily, he thought deeply.

From starting at the Red Yang Market to standing in this place, he had truly made countless decisions.

In fact, since he possessed the Supreme Great Ability, he could have grown more safely than anyone.

But he did not do so.

He risked his life hoping for fortuitous opportunities.

When encountering formidable enemies, he fought back rather than fleeing. Even while unstintingly pouring in his lifespan.

Why?

If the Great Dao of Longevity had been his sole purpose, he would not have lived such an extremely dangerous life.

Countless questions tangled in his head, but the answer was too simple.

A single phrase was enough.

Did he regret it?

No. Although he was sometimes foolish and went a long way around obvious paths…

He did not regret it.

Because all the choices he had made so far were entirely of his own will.

And, was it only painful?

No.

He had even blown away thousands of years of lifespan purely for the sake of fighting, so what excuse would he make now?

The struggles crossing the line of death, the moments of setting off on adventures toward the unknown.

They were all enjoyable.

Although there were bitter moments… they were even more precious because of that.

“There was always an opportunity to step back. It exists even at this very moment.”

Therefore, today was indeed the life he chose.

“A comfortable thing to say since you do not even know what destiny is. Fine. I will show you what kind of dream-like nonsense you have blabbered.”

The moment the man gestured.

The hundreds of millions of stars right next to him grew distant and became a dot smaller than dust.

Ah.

Just how far a distance did they travel?

All the stars, numerous enough to form a galaxy, were entirely contained within a single dot the size of a speck.

“Did you see? The flow you regarded as destiny is nothing but a small dot. But… there is no meaning even if you escape it.”

Examining the surroundings at the man’s nod, hundreds of millions of starlights stretched out endlessly.

“Because another flow is simply waiting.”

Front, back, left, right, wherever he looked, it was full of starlight.

Suddenly, he realized.

That the galaxy, which had been massive enough to make his mind distant and which he had regarded as destiny because it was so far away, was nothing but a part of another flow.

“Did you think something would change if you escaped destiny? Not at all!”

“It is the same. No matter how much you struggle, it is meaningless. Nothing changes. You are simply swept away by a larger flow.”

“Since all creation and phenomena flow according to destiny, how could a fellow like you escape? Hahaha!”

As the smirking man stretched out his hand, the last petal remaining on the Ink Lotus Flower turned to ash.

Simultaneously with the Ink Lotus Flower that disappeared in vain.

“What is burned becomes ash. This is the principle of the world.”

A calm voice followed, as if imparting a lesson.

“Cause and effect. Only a single path exists between the two.”

“It is the same no matter how complex the phenomenon. Under the same conditions, only the same result is repeated.”

“The moment heaven and earth were born. The first cause arose, and the end was already decided.”

“Therefore, the Silent Life you dream of is an illusion. An unrealizable delusion.”

“It is useless to escape destiny. Because a greater destiny will be waiting.”

Jin So-myeong, who listened silently to the inner demon or the voice within, shook his head.

Destiny is decided. Therefore, it cannot be changed.

Of course, it could be so. However, it might also not be.

Who knew what kind of result would be waiting?

What was certain,

was that the master of this very moment was me.

Whatever the past, whatever the future. This moment alone was entirely mine.

An impossible goal?

Fine. I will verify if that is truly so.

I will go directly, and face directly with both eyes. What kind of result will be waiting.

Was there any need to give up in advance and conform?

“How foolish. To insist on going down an obvious dead end.”

“Whether it is a dead end or not is something you only know once you get there.”

Even if it was truly a dead end by some rare chance, it did not matter.

If it did not work, until it did. If heaven blocked him, he only had to shatter heaven.

The moment he firmly resolved, he realized.

What he had to do to become an Unity stage Dao Sovereign.

He turned his body.

Turning completely in the opposite direction, he faced the flow of starlight head-on.

Then, miraculously, the thirst to become one with the flow completely vanished.

At the same time. The flow, which had been gentle like a breeze, became a sharp, biting wind and gouged his soul.

Facing that vivid pain.

He took exactly one step.

He went against the flow that flowed precisely without a single error.

Did they say that to become an Unity stage cultivator, one must become one with the Great Dao of heaven and earth?

No.

That was not it.

“I am heaven and earth, so my will is indeed the Law.”

Simultaneously with the declaration that lowed and resounded, the majestic star cluster shattered to pieces.

Like an illusion.

***

Meanwhile, the Dao Sovereigns of the Sacred Scale Alliance were flying toward the center after breaking the formation that was on the outskirts of the city.

Although thick mist blocked them as they entered the city, they broke through it without difficulty.

Because heaven and earth Qi surged in one direction as someone challenged the Unity stage, they could easily find the way simply by following that flow.

Of course, there were many obstacles blocking them other than the mist.

A sharp Sword Qi storm that would be a threat even to a Dao Sovereign, traps using tens of thousands of talismans, a maze causing one to lose their sense of direction, and so on.

Over dozens of obstacles were installed, but that was all.

It was insufficient to block as many as twelve Unity stage Dao Sovereigns.

The Dao Sovereigns, who broke through all obstacles with irresistible force, pressed forward steadily and soon arrived at the fortress surrounded by black castle walls.

“It seems he is inside that fortress.”

Judging by the flow of heaven and earth Qi and the dark clouds covering the sky, that place was precisely the center of the disturbance.

The fortress was covered with an opaque barrier, and at a glance, the black castle walls were the core of the formation.

“It looks quite sturdy.”

“Doing bothersome things. Tsk.”

The clicking Crocodile Flood Dragon Race Dao Sovereign revealed his true body.

Becoming a giant alligator-like body, he swung his claws, and the cutting wind that flew in the form of a slash struck the castle wall.

Woooong…!

Although it was a strike containing considerable power, the effect was flat. The castle wall only vibrated minutely, without a single small crack appearing.

Light flickered in the pupils of the Dao Sovereigns watching from the side.

They intended to analyze and breach the formation using their respective methods.

Just then.

“Hmm?”

Someone with the most sensitive senses looked up at the sky and discovered dark red lightning flickering in the dark clouds.

A malevolent aura that sent shivers down the spine simply by looking.

At the fierce thunder Qi that dried his mouth, his eyes, which had been frowning, widened.

“…Lightning Tribulation?”

Doubt and astonishment.

At the voice in which the emotion of bewilderment was clearly felt, everyone’s gaze gathered toward the sky.

“Heh, it truly is a Lightning Tribulation.”

“Already at the end of the Heavenly Tribulation?”

The Heavenly Tribulation undergone when breaking through a great boundary differed by race, but Lightning Tribulations usually tended to appear at the end of the Heavenly Tribulation.

If the one inside the fortress right now was Jin So-myeong,

it meant he was on the verge of becoming an Unity stage Dao Sovereign.

“To break through the great boundary in just two years…”

The time it took for them to arrive at the city and break through various obstacles was exactly two years.

But for the Heavenly Tribulation to already be ending.

Just as he was frowning, unable to understand it at all.

Crackle…!

The dark red lightning flickering in the dark clouds was completely dyed black.

A single line as black as pitch-black, denser than a shadow, plummeted into the fortress.

……………!

A brief flash stabbed their pupils,

and along with a roar that shook heaven and earth, the ceiling of the fortress disappeared.

The fortress, which had been perfectly fine even after being hit by a strike equivalent to the Unity stage, was pierced in a single shot.

Just as everyone was frowning at the absurd penetrating power.

A hot wind swept through a beat late, and because of the wind brushing past their cheeks, their skin turned red.

It meant the heat contained in the lightning bolt was hot beyond imagination.

Boom! Boom! Ka-boom!

Moreover, the Lightning Tribulation did not end with a single instance.

Not only did it strike continuously, but it also grew increasingly intense, to the point where approaching hastily was reluctant.

The Dao Sovereigns, who had serious faces before they knew it, infused magic power into their eyes.

They carefully examined the human figure enveloped in the black lightning.

“Is that person indeed Jin So-myeong?”

“…Yes.”

At the reply of Cheong Eung, whose face was rigidly frozen, the crowd watching from a distance groaned.

“Although it seems he will die even if left alone, let us handle him properly just in case.”

“I will do it.”

“Be careful, as you could get caught up if you rashly intervene in a Heavenly Tribulation.”

“I know, so do not worry.”

As an old man of the Soaring Snake Race with a snow-white beard grasped the void, heaven and earth Qi gathered from all directions became a massive longbow.

Creak!

Simultaneously with pulling the bowstring as thick as a rope.

The heaven and earth Qi gathered like a vortex became an arrow and was notched on the longbow.

Ping…!

The moment he released the taut bowstring.

The arrow that traversed the void flew toward the space between Jin So-myeong’s eyebrows.

Just before his head was pierced by the arrowhead.

Jin So-myeong, who was standing still with his left hand placed on the sword hilt, opened his eyes, and slightly shifted only his pupils to look at them.

In an instant.

The arrow that was on the verge of piercing the space between his eyebrows split vertically,

and Jin So-myeong, who was enveloped in lightning, disappeared.

And,

he appeared right in the midst of the twelve Unity stage Dao Sovereigns.

“…!”

Startled, the Dao Sovereigns backed away as if bouncing. They hastily widened the distance and poured out magic spells, but…

They were a step late.

Trapped in the magic domain spread by Jin So-myeong, they slowed down as if slugs were crawling.

“Is everyone doing well?”

“Th-this madman.”

Jin So-myeong, who glanced up at the sky, smirked.

“Then, everyone hang in there. If you survive, let us have a fight then.”

With those words as the end,

hundreds of lightning bolts began to pour down from the sky.