Chapter 90: Divine Monk (1)

‘Here…?’

Sewoon regained consciousness, yet he still felt as though he was in a dreamlike haze.

That was because he could not feel a single sensation from any part of his body.

There could only be one reason for his current state.

‘……This must be the aftereffect of surrendering my body to the demonic energy that seized my Upper Dantian when I entered the 4th Star of Reverse Heaven Qi. The Blood Demon always spoke of it—the Hell Gate of the Blood Fiend has opened.’

In that instant, he realized.

Even the slightest mistake here could mean he would never open his eyes again and truly die.

Sewoon slowly and carefully circulated the Golden Bridle Movement Technique.

It was the only art he could perform even while lying bedridden.

With no sensation in his body, all he could do was rely on his memories and endlessly repeat the attempt.

He could not even sense the flow of time.

No matter how much he tried, the energy refused to settle into his meridians, dispersing into nothingness over and over again.

Yet Sewoon did not give up.

He tried and tried without end.

And at last—

Sssaaa!

Golden Bridle Qi surged through his meridians, and his dormant senses slowly began to awaken.

The first thing Sewoon felt in that moment was—

‘-!!’

An excruciating pain so severe he nearly fainted on the spot.

The price of surrendering his body to the demon dwelling within Reverse Heaven Qi was devastating.

From his Dantian to every meridian touched by true qi, waves of pain tore through him as though his body was being ripped apart.

Clenching his teeth, he endured, focusing even harder on the Golden Bridle Movement Technique.

‘……Damn. At this rate, I’ll need at least a month of treatment and recovery.’

It was frustrating, but he had no one to blame but himself.

Upon learning that his sister had been attacked by the Blood Cult, he lost his composure and wielded a power far beyond his control.

Though that allowed his stagnant Reverse Heaven Qi to rise to the 4th Star—

‘If the ones who came to rescue me had not been the Sword Queen and the Sword Dragon of Mount Hua, but Namgung Myeong instead, I would have been executed on the spot.’

Yes, emotion played its part, but the real problem was this—

To block Hyeollato’s spell, he created a Divine Weapon using Divine Weapon Creation, recklessly exhausting too much Golden Bridle Qi.

The moment the balance of his qi collapsed, Reverse Heaven Qi struck at his mind, ultimately shattering it.

Reverse Heaven Qi was a beast that could never be tamed.

If Sewoon showed even the slightest opening, it would mercilessly sink its fangs into his throat.

He swore never to make the same mistake again, never to grow careless.

Just then—

Sssaaa.

‘-!’

The foreign qi within him pulsed softly.

It was warm, like sunlight.

‘……Ha-yeong.’

It was none other than a trace of Golden Summit Divine Qi that Do Ha-yeong had left behind.

As it spread through his meridians with restorative power, it felt almost as though her warmth lingered there.

The image of her, reaching out to him despite being attacked by his own hand, surfaced in his mind.

Sewoon’s chest ached.

More painful than the torment tearing through his body was this ache.

He tried to push it away.

He tried to flee.

He vowed never to get close.

Because he thought that was the only way to protect her.

And yet—

Perhaps this was a bond that could not be denied.

‘Trying to forcibly run away… was never the answer, was it…….’

In that moment, a new realization dawned on Sewoon.

Nothing would change by running away and avoiding it.

‘Even if it means being hurt and scarred, I must face it head-on and move forward.’

Since his regression, Sewoon’s foremost goal had been to ensure no one around him was harmed.

That was why he always acted by making the best use of the past he remembered.

And he was careful that his actions and words would not bring about changes too great.

But he had been mistaken.

By clinging only to the orthodox path, he could not keep up with the Blood Cult’s schemes.

Yet if he resorted to any means necessary, he himself would fall into the demonic path.

Thus, no matter how painful and difficult,

He had to carve open the narrower, harsher road.

‘I must stand at the very front, face the storm myself, and lead the world into change.’

At last, Sewoon understood.

He now knew which direction he must take.

‘Yes, the path I must walk is…….’

At that moment, suddenly, a voice whispered in his ear.

[Amita Buddha. Why has the Tathagata guided me to this place?]

‘……Who is that?’

It was a voice he had never heard before.

A weary voice, carrying the weight of long years lived.

And yet, it held an undeniable profundity.

Merely hearing it seemed to ease his pain.

[Hmm, what is the meaning of this?]

Then, the mysterious old man reacted with surprise.

Sewoon faintly sensed that he had approached right to his bedside.

Though he tried to remain alert, Sewoon could not help but be shocked at the next words he heard.

[For a mere human to break free of the Wheel of the Six Realms of Samsara and return to the beginning.]

‘-!!’

In Buddhist terms, the Wheel of the Six Realms meant the cycle of reincarnation.

For him to have broken free of it and then returned meant only one thing.

‘……He knows that I have regressed?’

Indeed, the old monk had realized that Sewoon had turned back time.

The revelation was so shocking that even the mental composure Sewoon had barely regained faltered.

Even Sword Emperor Yoo Jinhak had never noticed his regression.

Then who in the world was this man before him……

[Fear not, child. I merely see what is visible, nothing more.]

The old monk once again spoke words that Sewoon could not understand.

[In both your past and present lives, you have endured much suffering.]

[When you try to bear the weight of all the world’s karma alone, how could it not be suffering?]

After uttering those words, the old monk slowly approached Sewoon.

Tok.

He lightly tapped Sewoon’s forehead with his index finger.

Wuuung!

At once, like ripples spreading across a calm lake.

Like the toll of a bell echoing through a mountain temple.

The chaos and confusion in Sewoon’s mind was instantly swept clean.

[Ah, so this was the final reason the Tathagata guided me here.]

The old monk’s profound voice continued.

Sewoon felt something small and round slip into his mouth.

The mysterious sphere touched his tongue and melted in an instant, flowing down his throat.

Fwaaah!

Fwaaaah!

At the same time, Sewoon felt a tremendous force rush through his entire body, flowing into every limb and bone.

‘……A pill?’

It reminded him of the time he had taken the Golden Small Pill of the Mount Emei Sect.

No—such a comparison was unworthy.

If the energy of the Golden Small Pill was a single wave,

Then the energy of this mysterious pill was an endless ocean.

Krrruuuumble!

A roar like thousands of thunderclaps erupted within Sewoon’s body.

[Listen well.]

[The demon entrenched within you can be subdued by no one but yourself.]

[But at the very least, I can help so that it no longer overwhelms you as it does now.]

Sewoon realized that what he was experiencing was the greatest of miraculous encounters.

He devoted his full attention to the old monk’s words.

[What I shall teach you is a cultivation to cleanse a mind tainted by filth and evil, with the mindset of the Tathagata.]

Sssaaa!

Then, under the guidance of the old monk’s intent, a new current of qi stirred within Sewoon’s Upper Dantian.

‘……!!’

Within him, his qi had taken the form of a great tree, standing firm.

The Divine Poison Qi as its nourishment, the Golden Bridle Qi as its roots, and the Reverse Heaven Qi as its trunk.

And now—

Through the old monk’s guidance, even a fruit began to grow upon that tree.

It shone brightly, like the Mani Jewel of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva that dispels the darkness.

Sssaaaaa!

The Reverse Heaven Qi, which had spread like poison and obstructed his flow, was drawn back into its rightful place by that light.

As the old monk said, it could not be eradicated—but it could be restored to where it belonged.

‘This is……!!’

At that moment, Sewoon realized that all the pain tormenting his body and mind had vanished as though washed away.

[Remember this well. The revered one once named this cultivation ‘Cleansing the Marrow.’]

At those final words, Sewoon felt a shiver run down his spine.

The Cleansing Marrow Scripture.

In all of the murim, there was only one martial art that bore that name.

And in that moment, he began to guess the old monk’s true identity.

Shoooosh!

Wuuung!

Suddenly, his Eight Extraordinary Meridians and all his body’s channels erupted in chaos.

The Reverse Heaven Qi that had spread like poison returned to its place, and the energy of the pill spread rapidly through his entire body.

‘This is my chance!’

Sewoon focused with every nerve.

The qi within his Upper Dantian and body’s meridians surged at an incredible rate.

As a result, his Golden Bridle Qi grew from five years’ worth to ‘nine years.’

His Reverse Heaven Qi rose from four years’ worth to ‘five years.’

And his Innate True Qi leapt from five years’ worth to ‘ten years.’

The only regret was that the Divine Poison Qi in his Lower Dantian remained at ‘six years.’

But Divine Poison Qi only increased by absorbing poisons or miasma—there was nothing to be done.

Even so, Sewoon felt a thrill run down his spine like lightning.

‘Thirty years!!’

He had reached the benchmark known as Half a Jiazi—the level of inner strength recognized as that of a true Peak Master.

A disciple of a great sect might wonder why he rejoiced so much at merely reaching half a Jiazi.

But Sewoon knew.

The inner strength he had now achieved, in terms of quality and efficiency, was comparable to the complete mastery of the Transformation Realm.

Ssshhh!

The faint remnants of the pill’s energy focused on his body’s recovery, its original purpose.

‘Just a little more……!’

Unable to resist, Sewoon tried to convert even that into inner strength.

[Enough! Excessive greed always invites disaster.]

The old monk’s stern rebuke rang out at once.

[Many are waiting for you. Stop oversleeping and rise at once!]

Kong!

A sharp pain spread across his forehead.

‘W-wait……!’

Sssaaa!

In that instant, Sewoon felt his consciousness being pulled away.

“……!”

With a gasp, Sewoon sat up on his sickbed.

Cold sweat streamed down his forehead.

But the pallor in his face had given way to healthy color.

“S-Sewoon!”

“Young Master!!”

At last confirming that Sewoon had awoken, Serin and Yeo Seon rushed over to embrace him.

His sister burst into tears, saying he had been unconscious for four days.

Seeing his sister’s tears for the first time, Sewoon hurried to reassure her that he was all right.

‘Where……?’

Yet no matter how much he looked around, the old monk was nowhere to be seen.

But Sewoon knew it had not been an illusion or a dream.

For the words the monk left still resounded clearly in his ears.

—Child, once you awaken, come to Jamun Pavilion.

Deep within the main stronghold of the Murim Alliance, Jamun Pavilion housed only a single resident.

A figure older than even Sword Emperor Yoo Jinhak.

The most ancient and the most exalted existence in all the murim—the former abbot of the Shaolin Temple.

‘The Divine Monk……!!’

It was none other than the Divine Monk, Grandmaster Gongseong.

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