Chapter 46: Reunion (2)

Ah!

Because I thought of it as a novel method, it had slipped out of my mouth without thinking.

Interrogating a guy who died and fell into Hell—if utilized properly, this would certainly create a tremendous ripple effect.

The problem was that it belatedly occurred to me that this question did not take Master Heavenly Demon’s feelings into consideration.

It was no different from saying I would order my master around for my own convenience.

Moreover, Master Heavenly Demon had said that he was frying evil men in sewage in Hell of all places. That fell under two of the dirty, difficult, and dangerous jobs that people avoided. At the very least, it could not be denied that it was a dirty job.

[Hmph!]

As expected, Master Heavenly Demon did not answer right away.

[Well, I am indeed frying those pathetic bastards in sewage in Hell.]

Fortunately, he answered in a more cheerful voice than expected.

Although it did not seem like he found me completely free of insolence, I supposed he thought what I was doing was cute in its own way.

Let’s be careful. Even if they were informal enough to talk to easily, the masters were not my friends.

As I engraved that resolution in my mind, Master Heavenly Demon’s voice continued.

[What you want is to beat up the bastards who must have fallen to Hell and extract information, right?]

“Yes.”

[It is indeed a clever idea. But you had better know that things might not go well due to the issue of causality.]

Causality?

Causality refers to cause and effect. If interpreted in Master Bodhidharma’s way, it could also align with the words “karma of good and evil” or “retribution.”

Come to think of it, Master Zhang Sanfeng had also mentioned the word causality in passing before.

[In the heavens, the gods no longer permit their power to be used in the mortal world. That is why this object called the Zi-Wu Mirror is peculiar. For some reason, it is bearing all the karmic tasks of establishing a master-disciple relationship between you and us. However, as to whether even such a Zi-Wu Mirror can bear the causality of directly utilizing the power of the heavens… well, who knows?]

“The heavens do not permit it…”

What would happen if I crossed the line that the heavens did not permit?

I did not really want to imagine it.

Certainly, what I was about to ask Master Heavenly Demon crossed the line. Because it was a form of a living human trying to use the power of the heavens by utilizing an entity that managed Hell.

[Anyway, I am saying it might not work. It is not that there is no way at all if there is a price to offset the causality, but that would make the story too long, so I will cut it short. Well, I will see what I can do. Since it is a request from my disciple whom I got after a long time.]

“Master…”

Master Heavenly Demon, is he a nicer person than I thought?

Since I came from a place with high Orthodox influence, I had thought of the Heavenly Demon as some sort of source of evil, but surprisingly, a sense of closeness was developing.

[Besides, seeing the way things are turning out at Mount Hua, it seems some interesting story is hidden there. Hahahaha!]

Yeah, no.

He is just enjoying himself.

I was suddenly fully convinced.

‘Still… does he look a bit different now?’

An untouchable, distant being. Unlike Master Zhang Sanfeng or Master Bodhidharma, it was true that there was a strange distance with Master Heavenly Demon.

But having a conversation like this, it felt as though that distance had narrowed.

And.

Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh.

There was one damn childhood friend spinning his finger next to his head in front of me.

At that action asking if I had gone mad, I let out a light sigh.

“What is so strange about talking to myself a bit to organize my thoughts?”

Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh. Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh.

Since I had shown him my habit of talking to myself from time to time, I excused it as talking to myself this time too, but Baek Mu-ho was now spinning both of his fingers.

‘If it felt like the distance with Master Heavenly Demon had narrowed, this guy has too little distance.’

“Sigh…”

There is no effect without a cause. If that was the fundamental order that moved the world, was my connection with this fellow also one of the causal relations?

Thinking like that, I suddenly grew a bit curious about my past life.

If I could find out someday, I would definitely want to know.

Definitely!

***

[Go just a bit further and you will see it.]

While Master Heavenly Demon left for Hell (his workplace) at my request, Master Bodhidharma pointed out to me the location of a fortuitous opportunity on Mount Hua.

In the meantime, taking time to think about the causality I had heard about earlier, many parts became understandable.

‘I did have a similar thought at Mount Song.’

The masters did not offer direct advice. In Master Bodhidharma’s case, he did not warn me about the Demonic Cult’s surprise attack at Mount Song, but simply observed.

Through that, I had thought that the masters might have some kind of restriction, and applying the causality I heard from Master Heavenly Demon explained a lot.

‘I should not burden them too much.’

The place my steps reached under Master Bodhidharma’s guidance was a certain cave.

Hidden in the middle of rugged and steep mountain terrain where human footsteps rarely reached, the cave was even dark.

However, there was inside that even the darkness could not fully conceal.

“What I felt at Mount Song…”

Inside the cave was the trace of martial arts that I had felt at Mount Song.

The trace left by Master Heavenly Demon, that was.

‘It is weak, though?’

But it felt somewhat weaker than what I had felt at Mount Song.

Was it a trace he engraved in his youth?

Well, just the fact that the energy remained until now was impressive.

In fact, the moment this fellow Baek Mu-ho felt the presence of that thing in the darkness, he rushed over like wild and immersed himself in it.

But I did not think this would be all.

[It is not here.]

Sure enough, disappointment was tinged in Master Bodhidharma’s voice.

[At Mount Song, with the help of the Golden-Haired Hou, we could easily transmit the power of the earth, but we cannot expect such a fortuitous opportunity here at Mount Hua.]

“It seems you had made a separate arrangement.”

[Indeed. If I only intended to pass down martial arts, there would have been no reason to bring you here, would there?]

Drawing a guess, I wondered if it was related to the true force of the Western Metal Deity, the White Emperor, which came up during Master Bodhidharma’s conversation with Master Heavenly Demon.

‘Since the western direction symbolizes metal among the Five Elements.’

Western Great Mount Hua.

The term “Great Mountain of the West” hit me with a new feeling.

‘Wait. Then the power obtained from that golden-haired ape was no ordinary power either.’

Mount Song is called the Central Great Mountain. The great mountain in the center. It symbolizes earth in the Five Elements.

Then, suddenly thinking of the ape Master Bodhidharma mentioned, the Golden-Haired Hou, I asked how it was doing.

“Is the Golden-Haired Hou doing well?”

[It is in trouble.]

So ascending to heaven does not mean there are only good things… in the future?

Is the work over there very hard too?

“Is there some bad news?”

[It seems the Victorious Fighting Buddha has taken an interest in it. Saying it is a magnificent handsome monkey.]

Victorious Fighting Buddha?

Seeing how the character for Buddha is attached, he seems to be one of the Buddhas, but I felt a sense of aggressiveness from it.

It was also a bit strange that a Buddha was judging the beauty of a monkey.

I think I have heard it somewhere… Where did I hear it?

“Huh?”

While scraping through my hazy memory, I found something on the floor and paid attention to it.

“Candle wax?”

Traces of someone having brought a candle to light the darkness were left on the floor.

Someone had been here.

Judging by the state of the candle wax, it was very recent. Not more than a day.

‘That Mount Hua Sect disciple?’

Seeing these traces of candle wax, I recalled the Mount Hua Sect disciple I had met near Immortal Peak.

“Hey, this is huge!”

Baek Mu-ho broke his silence and cheered.

I had said I would extend his silence by a day every time he broke it, but for him to forget even that and shout, it must indeed be huge.

Thinking I had secured something to tease him about, I walked over to Baek Mu-ho and slightly stiffened my face.

“There is writing here?”

“Isn’t it amazing?”

Baek Mu-ho was producing a faint light with the fire starter he carried to light up the darkness.

Although it was hard to see due to the weak light, I could tell that something was written.

[The Heavenly Demon wrote it in high spirits. There are mnemonic formulas, but they are only a part, and since it is imagery felt while gaining enlightenment, it does not seem to be a big problem.]

It seemed to refer to a phrase similar to what writers compose in high spirits when seeing a fine scenery.

Well, since this fellow Baek Mu-ho was someone who could fathom the depth and dig into it just from a single sword mark, he would definitely gain something.

But it would be impossible for an ordinary person.

[Ahem! The writing this master left must be nearby as well…]

Did he come along with Master Heavenly Demon?

Curious about what might be written, I moved to another spot and took out my own fire starter to light a faint ember, but saw something rather disappointing.

“It is broken, isn’t it?”

[Should I say it is a pity, or a relief? Haha.]

Perhaps thinking of the time he read out the contents of the Heavy Earth Divine Art to Divine Monk Gong-ryo without omitting a word, Master Bodhidharma felt embarrassed.

[However, looking at the traces, it seems to have happened not long ago.]

“Indeed.”

It is a bit strange.

Destoying Master Bodhidharma’s writing, yet only Master Heavenly Demon’s writing remains?

Looking at the handwriting in which the Heavy Earth Divine Art was written, it was highly likely they could not understand what it meant at all. But would they go as far as breaking it just because they could not understand it?

“Something is strange.”

Leaving behind Master Heavenly Demon’s trace which exuded an ominous aura, yet breaking Master Bodhidharma’s trace which would look like a remnant left by an elder of the Orthodox faction even if it could not be interpreted?

“Are they some kind of Demonic Cult member…”

It did not make sense, but if I forced a few assumptions into a hypothetical scenario, it did?

“……The Demonic Cult?”

***

Even though he was off duty, the Heavenly Demon, who came down to Hell, enjoyed the unfolding situation.

“How dare he order this body around.”

The newly accepted disciple was bold.

And he was smart.

If someone who knew the Heavenly Demon’s original personality saw this, they would have doubted their eyes.

“It must mean I like the kid that much too.”

He has talent, he is smart, and his ideas are fresh.

He possessed all the qualities the Heavenly Demon would like.

Though the time spent as master and disciple was short, his heart was drawn to him.

“Expectation…”

Just looking at the potential he was showing now, the disciple was bound to ascend to heaven. The amusement he would generate in the process was even infinite.

“Yes, if he is the Heavenly Demon’s disciple, he should at least have that kind of caliber.”

He was a body that once ruled the earth and looked down on heaven.

Watching the disciple’s actions of throwing himself into the providence of heaven and the boundary of causality without hesitation, he even felt delighted.

“Go ahead and run wild.”

Although the beginning was close to a time-killing amusement, he was now earnest.

The Heavenly Demon crossed Hell in a single bound, chasing the souls of the bandits and the martial artists who had attacked Hwaseong Village, whom the disciple was looking for.

Countless people die in a single day. Finding the necessary souls among them was not an easy task.

However, it was not so for the Heavenly Demon.

“Found them.”

The Heavenly Demon swept up some of the souls that had fallen into Hell.

Overwhelming power pressed down on the sinful souls.

[Gaaaaah!]

“Thrilling, isn’t it? Hell has a different way of calculating pain compared to the living world. Back when you had a physical body, there were limitations like pain receptors and nerves, but Hell has none of that.”

[Kyaaaaaah!]

A horrific wail of spirits shook the space.

But the accustomed Heavenly Demon trampled the souls along with their tearing screams.

“Answer what I ask from now on.”

The Heavenly Demon, proceeding with sheer violence from the start, cornered the screaming souls. The completely rattled souls began to vomit everything at the Heavenly Demon’s words.

In the process, the information they vomited was of such high density that it was hard to obtain in the living world. Faced with a level of pain they could not have imagined during their human days, they poured out information that could be of even the slightest help.

There was also the reason that to them, who were already dead, information from their time in the living world was meaningless anyway.

A thick smile hung on the Heavenly Demon’s lips as he received the information.

“This is turning out to be much more interesting than I thought.”

Although there was a lot of information mixed with personal thoughts to say even one more word, assembling all the pieces yielded something.

“A Mount Hua Sect disciple?”