Chapter 361: An Empty House

***

The Dao Sovereigns of the Heavenly Law Palace flew at an incredible speed, traversing the uncharted lands.

“Is Jin So-myeong still in the same place?”

“Yes.”

As Yeon Mok-ah, who was skilled in tracking techniques, nodded, the Dao Sovereigns narrowed their eyes.

“…This is suspicious. Could it be that he does not know we are pursuing him?”

“There is no way. He must already know. Did Jin So-myeong not ascend to the Unity stage with the status of a rogue cultivator?”

“True, since he must have gone through all kinds of hardships, he would be quick-witted.”

The muscular giant, pondering deeply, frowned.

“I do not know what his intention is. Could it be that he still has not recovered from his injuries?”

“Well…”

Not fleeing even now. They could not understand it.

Unless he was confident in facing the entire Heavenly Law Palace alone, he should have left the place even if he had to drag his broken body.

“However, what is slightly puzzling is that I also feel as if he is deliberately leaking his energy. It seems like he is luring us.”

“…Let’s hurry. Let’s go and check what his intention is.”

How much time had passed?

The nine Dao Sovereigns appeared in the area that had been a sea of lava until not long ago.

Arriving at the location where Jin So-myeong and Yu Cheon had fought, they narrowed their eyes.

In the middle of the ruins, which could be described as a giant pit, Jin So-myeong, clad in a black dharma robe, was sitting cross-legged.

But why?

Jin So-myeong did not react even though they had arrived.

The way he concentrated only on meditation without even making a single movement was extremely suspicious.

“…Is it a clone?”

Glancing at one another, the Dao Sovereigns skillfully narrowed the encirclement, and Yeon Mok-ah, who was at the front, snapped her fingers.

Swoosh!

Dharma power condensed in the shape of an awl flew toward Jin So-myeong’s face.

The moment the awl, sharp enough to pierce even a decent mountain range, stabbed his brow.

Clang!

The sound of metal colliding was heard, and the half-embedded awl stopped.

Simultaneously,

Jin So-myeong, who was sitting cross-legged as if meditating, slowly opened his eyes, and,

Boom!

an explosion occurred. A very grand and massive explosion.

Although it was a powerful explosion that would be dangerous even to a Unity stage Dao Sovereign, no one was flustered.

Not a single one of the Dao Sovereigns present here was an ordinary entity.

The moment the dark red flames expanded,

Yeon Mok-ah waved both hands like windmills, and the pouring flames came to a sudden halt.

Sss…

As if turning back time, the flames inversely contracted and were sealed inside a bead smaller than a fist.

Yeon Mok-ah narrowed her eyes. Examining the flames trapped in a glass-like transparent barrier, she spoke.

“It was indeed a decoy.”

At her gesture, the bead split into two, revealing a black mist that had been hidden within the dark red flames.

They did not know what this black mist was, but they could tell what trick Jin So-myeong had used.

He had created a shell using the black mist that interfered with tracking techniques, injected his own energy, and lured them in.

“It does not seem to be an ordinary clone.”

“Yes. It is more accurate to view it as a type of puppet.”

If it were a clone, at least a sliver of consciousness should be contained in it, but the puppet that exploded just now had no consciousness at all.

It meant they had made a wasted trip, but it did not matter.

A trick like this was nothing but a delay.

“Can you track him?”

“Yes. Since we obtained the energy left behind by Jin So-myeong, we will be able to grasp a more detailed location.”

Yeon Mok-ah, who was staring at the bead in which the explosion was sealed, froze.

“What is it?”

“Well…”

Just as she was about to answer,

the transmission talismans held by the Dao Sovereigns vibrated simultaneously, and an absurdly bizarre piece of news was delivered.

“Jin So-myeong has appeared at the main headquarters of the Heavenly Law Palace…?”

The Dao Sovereigns, lost for words in sheer dumbfoundment, turned their gazes.

When they looked at Yeon Mok-ah, who had unfolded the tracking technique, she nodded.

“The result of my tracking says the same.”

“Ha.”

When running away and hiding with all his might would not even be enough, he had invaded in reverse instead? Was he in his right mind?

“To think I would meet such a crazy bastard in my lifetime.”

“Could he be aiming for the treasures in the main headquarters of the Heavenly Law Palace?”

It was so absurd that even a hollow laugh did not come out.

Who could have imagined it?

They were always in the position of pursuing and attacking someone. Their main headquarters had never once been raided like this.

“We will return immediately. I have a transfer talisman, so gather here.”

The muscular giant took out a Rank 7 transfer talisman.

With this talisman, they could return to the main headquarters of the Heavenly Law Palace in an instant.

Although it was a talisman too precious to be used carelessly, it was not to the extent of saving it even in a situation like this.

The giant holding the transfer talisman concentrated his mind, but for some reason, no change occurred.

“Tsk. It is not responding.”

“Does that mean the formation has already been breached?”

It seemed Jin So-myeong had smashed the facilities in the Heavenly Law Palace.

In fact, although the Rank 7 transfer talisman was a great talisman, it was not without restrictions.

To move to the main headquarters from such a far distance, they needed various facilities to amplify the power of the transfer talisman.

“It cannot be helped. I will go to a place as close to the main headquarters as possible first.”

The moment the Rank 7 transfer talisman was activated,

the nine Dao Sovereigns leaped across a vast distance and headed straight for the main headquarters.

***

A disturbance arose in the Heavenly Law Palace, where peace had never once been broken for a very long time.

Rumble…!

When Jin So-myeong suddenly appeared and swung his sword, a wall as massive as a castle wall collapsed.

A high-level formation was installed on the outer wall, but it was not enough to block him, who possessed all kinds of divine abilities.

Around the time the mouths of those staying in the Heavenly Law Palace fell wide open at the sudden situation.

The transmission arrays connected to various cities, towers presumed to be for communication, and the Unity stage-level puppets pouring lightning toward intruders…

He cleaved them all.

In particular, he paid a lot of attention to breaking the transmission arrays more than anything else.

Doing so could delay the time for reinforcements to arrive from the outside.

Bang!

In just a few minutes, he completely devastated the base of the Heavenly Law Palace, which no one had ever been able to invade.

It was not particularly difficult either.

Because those guarding the Heavenly Law Palace were all at or below the Void Refinement stage.

In fact, it was embarrassing to even say they were guarding it.

It was more appropriate to say there were just a few people managing the facilities.

He had thought a senior expert stronger than Yu Cheon might be guarding it, but that was not the case at all.

‘Did they not expect to be raided?’

It felt like an apex predator loosening its guard.

Of course, it was not that there were no preparations at all.

If it were a Dao Sovereign of the Sacred Scale Alliance’s level, even breaching the formation installed on the outer wall would have been a struggle.

Even if they managed to breach it somehow, they would have been struck by the Unity stage-level puppets that followed soon after.

The Heavenly Law Palace did have its own defenses in place.

It was just that they were meaningless to him, who had surpassed Yu Cheon.

‘Cheon Jin-il.’

He summoned his clones specialized in formations.

While installing a formation on the outskirts of the Heavenly Law Palace to prevent others from entering, he glanced aside.

“Hey there.”

“Y-Yes?”

He asked a Void Refinement stage cultivator who had completely lost his mind and was blankly staring only at the smashed transmission array.

“Where is the pavilion where cultivation methods or dharma spells are stored?”

“…It is over there.”

Focusing on the direction indicated by the hesitant young man, he saw a pavilion where over a thousand jade slips were stored.

“Thank you for letting me know. Ah, by any chance, do you also know the warehouse where cultivation resources are stored?”

“…Yes. It is over there.”

“What about the spiritual herb field?”

“…”

Sending his clones to the places pointed out by the kind young man, the main body headed toward the pavilion where the cultivation methods were stored.

Swoosh.

Taking a single step, the pavilion that had been far away appeared right in front of him.

“Greetings, Senior.”

The woman guarding the entrance bowed her head.

She was a woman with the appearance of someone in her early twenties and a tiger tail, but she was surprisingly calm.

“Are you not running away?”

“Guarding this place is my duty.”

“I am sorry then.”

Just as he was about to draw Mugeuk, who had ascended to Rank 7,

she hurriedly blocked the entrance and bent her waist.

“Senior. There is no need for that. I will open the entrance.”

“…Did you not say guarding this place is your duty?”

“I am guarding it to the best of my ability in my own way.”

As she took out a jade token, the formation blocking the entrance split wide open.

Through the wide-open entrance, over a thousand neatly organized jade slips were visible.

Surprisingly, every single jade slip was a Profound Text Jade Slip.

To think there were so many jade slips specially crafted to contain precious knowledge, knowledge that could not even be recorded by ordinary means.

‘Incredible.’

Indeed, it was a grandeur befitting a force connected to the Grand Unity stage.

While inwardly admiring, the moment he stepped inside,

the woman who had been guarding the entrance followed him with quick steps.

Turning back in disbelief, he saw her stand a slight distance away, just like a maidservant attending to her master.

Was she not even afraid?

When their eyes met, she gathered both hands at her lower abdomen and slightly bowed her head.

Chuckling at her exceedingly bold appearance, he asked just in case.

“You seem to be the administrator of this place. By any chance, do you know where the cultivation method Yu Cheon practiced is?”

“I am sorry, but Elder Yu practiced more than just one or two cultivation methods. I must know at least the characteristics to tell you.”

“It is a method that divides the body and soul into a Yin Soul and a Yang Soul. Even if one of the two dies, he revives.”

When he told her the characteristics he had figured out while fighting Yu Cheon, she nodded after thinking deeply.

“It seems to be the Sun, Moon, and Stars Scripture. Shall I find it for you?”

“That would be appreciated.”

Traversing the pavilion with quick steps, she picked up a Profound Text Jade Slip and offered it respectfully.

[The Sun and Moon are the vessel, and the Stars are the passing light.]

[If the vessel is whole, the light will naturally dwell in it, so what is important is the process of shaping the vessel.]

Reading the jade slip, he was certain.

‘It is indeed Yu Cheon’s cultivation method.’

However, it was a far more outstanding cultivation method than he had vaguely guessed.

Dividing the physical body into a Yin Soul and a Yang Soul was merely one of its effects.

The Sun, Moon, and Stars Scripture stated that once the vessel was completed, all the starlight floating in the night sky would become one’s power.

‘Does it mean my dharma power will never run dry no matter how much I use it?’

Come to think of it, Yu Cheon had an unusually large amount of dharma power.

He had thought it was thanks to the golden bead that emitted massive energy, but looking at it now, the influence of this cultivation method also seemed to be there.

‘Not bad. I must master it.’

He tried to register it in the proficiency system, but failed.

This was because the required amount of the Supreme Great Ability was immense.

‘It requires 30 trillion?’

It was too excessive.

Although Yu Cheon’s cultivation method was outstanding, it was not to the extent of consuming 30 trillion just for registration.

Frowning, the thought suddenly occurred to him that there might be a problem with the cultivation method.

‘True, if it is a cultivation method given by a Grand Unity stage expert, he might have played a trick on it.’

If it consumed 30 trillion to resolve that problem, it was actually a cheap price.

‘I will have to master it later.’

To exceed a maximum of 30 trillion in the Supreme Great Ability, he had to at least be at the mid Unity stage.

Scanning through the jade slip, he nodded.

In any case, it was clear that it was an outstanding cultivation method. Just as he was about to pack it for later,

“Um, Senior.”

“Yes?”

“You are an outsider, so you might not know, but the jade slips here will turn to dust and disappear if they leave the pavilion. It is to prevent leakage.”

“…Is putting it in a storage pouch also not allowed?”

“Yes. And it is also not allowed for an unauthorized person to read the jade slips. If this is violated, the entire pavilion will perish along with the space itself, so please refrain.”

An unauthorized person reading the jade slip would cause the pavilion itself to perish?

Contrary to the grandiose warning, the surroundings were still quiet.

Although he had clearly read the jade slip, there was no sign of it collapsing.

When he looked at her with a questioning expression, she bowed her head.

“I am not trying to take credit, but that Sun, Moon, and Stars Scripture is something I exchanged using the contribution points I gathered with great difficulty.”

“Since the Sun, Moon, and Stars Scripture was exchanged with contribution points, it is fine, but are you saying that if I try to look at other jade slips, the pavilion will perish as a whole?”

“Yes.”

He did not know if it was true or not, but he did get an ominous feeling when he tried to inspect other jade slips.

Seeing that his intuition, which had become highly sensitive after obtaining the foresight divine ability of the Three-Eyed Giant Cat, warned him, it seemed it was not a complete fabrication.

“I see…”

It seemed she had followed him in to prevent the pavilion from perishing entirely.

Crackle!

Searing yellow lightning surged in both of his pupils.

As he unfolded the Lightning Insight Spell-Breaking Eye to its limit, he felt a faint connection existing between the pavilion and the jade slips.

‘Is it structured so that if that connection is broken, the pavilion perishes?’

Pondering for a moment, he gestured with his chin to her, who stood politely a few steps away.

“I understand, so you should step outside for now.”

“…Yes.”

Parting her lips to speak, she let out a short sigh and left the pavilion.

Remaining alone in the pavilion, he read the jade slip of the Sun, Moon, and Stars Scripture thoroughly once more.

He intended to memorize every single word without exception before placing the jade slip into the subdimension.

Since they said the jade slip would turn to dust if it left the pavilion, he was preparing for that moment.

Strangely, the contents contained in the Profound Text Jade Slip kept being forgotten and were difficult to memorize, but he remembered them clearly by even mobilizing his Supreme Great Ability.

‘Done.’

Repeating deep breaths, he pulled up his concentration. Now that he was fully prepared to cause trouble, it was time to execute.

Taking the jade slip carelessly would cause the pavilion to perish along with the space?

He was sorry, but he had no intention of giving up without even trying.

The Heavenly Law Palace was already an enemy.

And he was not of a kind disposition to show consideration for the enemy’s circumstances.

Even if the pavilion itself flew away, he intended to obtain even a single additional cultivation method.