Chapter 393: Will of God (2)
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Confusion began to set in within my mind. This, too, was one of the traps of language. Because the beings humans regarded as gods were, in truth, phantom-like existences.
If so, they could be classified like this: Gods who vanished from our memories and consciousness; lingering thoughts performing delusionary acts while shed of their physical bodies; and those who had not yet transcended their physical bodies.
“That is why I desire. Before perishing, to die once more without ascending.”
Hyeon-wol spoke.
“If one ascends from here, do they not become that phantom?”
“Well. In my estimation, it seems no one wishes to become like that. After all, if one wishes to influence the human world and belong to it, having a physical body is far more convenient.”
“There must also be the fact that you are reluctant to ascend for fear of becoming like that.”
“There is that too. And in my estimation. If one endures for a long time without ascending, their physical body will perish, naturally leading to such a state. Because what we cultivate is not the physical body, but the spirit. Though one cannot know for certain until attempting ascension.”
“I see. But why are you telling this to me?”
I asked. There were many reasons for the confusion in my head, but this reason was the greatest. Why Hyeon-wol was saying such things to me.
“Listen further, Grand-disciple. So if my guess is correct, the conclusion ultimately converges into one. There are no gods, and only phantoms remain. The same applies to us. Because we are people who should have died according to natural laws. Is forcibly extending one’s lifespan not defying heaven?”
“It turns out that way.”
“At any rate, that is why I think it is right for me to die. It means I feel that a new life might be waiting beyond death.”
“Has anything been revealed about what lies beyond ascension or beyond death?”
“Indeed not. However, I am betting on death.”
“Is it the same for the people of the Immortal Realm?”
I asked. Hyeon-wol shook his head.
“They wish to ascend. They are merely postponing it out of fear.”
In the end, it meant that fearing ascension was identical. Right there, I saw the commonality between the Immortal Realm and the Immortals of the martial world.
They were simply harboring greed. Greed for eternal life. That was exceedingly human, and could not be considered the dignity of a transcendent at all. Rather, it was more similar to humans who revealed their desires even more blatantly.
Suddenly, I remembered when Hyeon-wol imparted the Wisdom Light Mind Voice to me. That moment when he showed his affection for Wudang Sect as it was.
That affection was distinctly different from mine. It was affection for the space and organization called Wudang Sect and Wudang Mountain. Whereas my affection for Wudang Sect was affection for the people belonging to Wudang Sect.
“There is something I wish to ask Grandmaster.”
“What is it?”
Hyeon-wol replied benevolently. In a tense state, I asked.
“How does Grandmaster view the disciples of Wudang?”
“They are beloved disciples. The same goes for you as well.”
“However, that is not love as equal beings, is it?”
“Indeed. Was that not something you also understood?”
I shook my head. These people already considered themselves not to be human. That perception determined their identity.
“Then let me ask just one more thing. If I were not a Wudang Sect disciple, would Grandmaster still hold affection for me?”
“Naturally not.”
Hyeon-wol spoke. I understood. The thought process of the person named Hyeon-wol. He loved Wudang Sect.
“However, are you not a Wudang Sect disciple? You, too, love Wudang Sect.”
“My love and Grandmaster’s love are somewhat different. Though, of course, I have no intention of leaving Wudang Sect.”
“Then there is no reason to even make such an assumption.”
“By the way, why are you trying to kill me?”
I asked. The corners of Hyeon-wol’s raised lips slowly lowered.
I, too, was now someone with divine powers. I could intuitively grasp the near future to some extent. The killing intent they painstakingly tried to conceal was also visible through my Heavenly Eye.
“What do you mean by that?”
“Grandmaster is currently trying to kill me, are you not? Shifting the blame for this war onto the Emperor and me. Is that the part the martial world’s Immortals agreed upon with the Immortal Realm?”
“Haha.”
Hyeon-wol chuckled. It was not the benevolent laughter he had shown until now, but a dry laugh.
“It is because I hold affection for you that I intend to do so.”
Hyeon-wol spoke.
“How difficult would it be to live alone as a transcendent after all of us die and ascend? One must have beings with whom they can empathize to find zest in living. Furthermore, death is not eternal annihilation, but a new beginning.”
“Are you saying you are killing me out of consideration for me?”
“You have understood well.”
“Grandmaster seems to view me as some sort of object or spare part. Are you saying I must die according to Grandmaster’s judgment? Why should I?”
I sneered. In my view, these people were by no means immortals. They were merely monsters entrapped in the delusion of eternal life, mistaking themselves to be so.
I knew love. By communing with Peng Chae-hyang, I felt the essence of the emotion called love. These people were not truly loving. They merely thought of me as something like a dog they were raising. A level of love where they could immediately kill me if I were to bite. That was the Immortals’ fundamental perception of humans.
“In my view, the people of the Immortal Realm and all of you are essentially identical. I understand why the Penglai Covenant was forged, and why you did not fight even after it was broken. In the end, it is simply that you do not wish to die ordinarily. Yet you casually speak of other people’s deaths.”
As I spoke scathingly, the faces of the gathered Immortals hardened.
“Inwardly, you all already know it yourselves. Your own contradictions and disgust. Harboring more human desires than anyone else, yet wanting to be distinguished from humans. That is your limitation.”
“They said you were famous for wielding your tongue skillfully, and indeed that reputation was not in vain.”
“I merely speak the truth. If you felt pricked by it, would the problem not lie with you all?”
I said. Both the people of the Immortal Realm and the martial world’s Immortals turned red and blue in the face. It was the moment it came to light that they had not yet transcended emotions either.
Rather, because they regarded me as an inferior existence, they appeared even more hurt in their pride.
“I also understand why you spoke to me at great length about ascension. You must have wanted to make death acceptable to me. But do you think that would work?”
“You have not yet learned everything. Death is another beginning……”
“Nonsense. You simply want to clear Immortals entirely from this world. With yourselves as the last. Because you were currently exerting tremendous influence upon the world. When you actually obtain a new life, you don’t want beings above you to exist. How selfish is this?”
At my words, even Hyeon-wol fell silent. They, too, were people who had cultivated the Dao. They would sufficiently understand at least my words.
“I do not know why killing people is judged as virtuous karma. Nor do I know by what basis and qualification nature holds humans to original sin. But this much is certain. Though I do not know how nature distinguishes between you and humans, if a divine will exists, it will judge you all to be more evil than ordinary people.”
“…….”
“A person who ascends vanishes from memory. I think I now understand what that means. In a situation where one does not know whether ascension is eternal life or eternal annihilation, the person who can choose ascension is one who has truly transcended life and death. Because they ultimately view both eternal life and eternal annihilation as one. However, the people of the Immortal Realm are trying to ascend looking only at eternal life. In my view, then, ascension is bound to fail. Phantoms will probably remain. That is my thought.”
At my words, the people of the Immortal Realm were also shaken. All those present here were human.
“They say no karma accumulates when an Immortal kills an Immortal. In my view, that is not because Immortals do not harm nature, nor because they are part of nature. It is simply because you are half-baked phantoms or minor ghosts. Because exorcising them is not magnificent enough to distinguish good from evil. In my view, you are currently less valuable than ordinary commoners.”
Both the people of the Immortal Realm and the martial world’s Immortals appeared furious at my words, yet could not actually refute them.
“Let us alter our thoughts just a little. What if ascension is actually neither eternal life nor eternal annihilation? Perhaps ascension is the gate of hell leading to eternal torment. Would accumulating evil karma by killing people not be slightly more convincing than accumulating virtuous karma?”
“Shut up! You are throwing people into confusion with your wicked tongue!”
Unable to listen further, Hyeon-wol drew his sword. They were clearly being shaken by my words. However, they could not consciously acknowledge it.
That was probably because they believed they had attained some enlightenment, harboring a strong conviction that they were right.
“I do not know whether what I said is true or false either. However, even if truth is shown right before your eyes, you will not accept or understand it. How unfortunate is this? If one cannot recognize truth even when facing it.”
Hyeon-wol was not the only one filled with fury. The person named Zhu Jung-sik, said to be the master of the Immortal Realm, also had a face flushed bright red, having grown exceedingly angry.
“Listening quietly, your arrogance has reached the heavens. How long has it been since you learned immortal arts that you denounce and slander senior cultivators like this?”
“I merely stated my opinion. Wanting to transcend human flesh and soul, yet insisting on seniority—a human convention—is quite a rare spectacle.”
At my words, Zhu Jung-sik’s mouth shut tight. Of course, that did not mean he accepted it. Immediately, killing intent erupted from Zhu Jung-sik’s body, and he stomped with a shock step.
The ground between Zhu Jung-sik and me split open with a loud crack, and an enormous shockwave erupted from the fissure.
“I shall dispose of that fellow. Do not touch him.”
Zhu Jung-sik ground his teeth. Then, gathering the surrounding earth and leaves, he formed the shape of a sword. He had reached the realm of crafting a sword through will alone. Indeed, the master of the Immortal Realm possessed a momentum somewhat different from other Immortals.
“Let us all clear the area.”
The Immortals, including Hyeon-wol, spread out widely centering around us. They spread so broadly that they blurred to the naked eye, which indirectly conveyed the destructive power Zhu Jung-sik could unleash.
However, I did not just stay still. Because when the shockwave poured forth, I soared into the sky. The shockwave failed to surge up to where I was and struck down against the ground again. In the process, the ground was completely ruined.
If a single shock step’s force was enough to scorch this vast land, it was certainly destructive power difficult for the current me to handle.
However, there was something they had not anticipated either. That was precisely the Emperor’s head handed to me without much thought.
[ Martial God ― Grade 1 ]
[ Price : The Emperor’s Head ]
I floated the Emperor’s head into the sky. And I purchased the final remaining talent in the Martial Talent Shop.
Light radiated from the Emperor’s head, and soon it vanished, leaving behind a thick fragrance.
I closed my eyes and opened them. As if blinking. The world I confirmed anew in that manner was vastly different.