Six colors of light poured down upon Geom Mugeuk.
Saaaaaa.
The light seeped into Geom Mugeuk’s body like rain soaking the earth.
Once inside him, the light flowed through his body like a river, as though it were internal force. Each time his heart beat, the lights spread swiftly throughout his entire body.
The light was hot, and it was cold; it was electrifying. It was refreshing, cozy, and it also brought fear.
Geom Mugeuk did not resist this light.
It was because he knew instinctively. He knew that this light was for him. No matter how hot it was, no matter how cold it was, no matter how deep a terror it stirred within him.
After circulating through every corner of his body, the six lights gathered in Geom Mugeuk’s head.
The lights gathered in his brain all burst forth with radiance at once.
Swaaaaaak!
The next moment!
The Black Essence, the Azure Essence, and the White Essence that had been sleeping within Geom Mugeuk’s body began moving along his meridians on their own.
Astonishingly, Geom Mugeuk knew the incantation formula for the internal cultivation method.
The clusters of light that had entered him moments ago had directly taught Geom Mugeuk the formula. No, rather than teaching it to him, they had made him fully comprehend it.
He had heard of transferring internal energy to another person, but this was the first time he had ever heard of imparting knowledge in an instant like this.
The internal cultivation method taught by the secret coffer was completely different from existing methods of circulating qi.
The three energies moved along his meridians in an order he never would have imagined. The landscape of the meridians through which they raced was different from what he knew. It was an exceedingly precarious and dangerous landscape.
True qi even flowed in reverse, and at times it forced its way along paths that seemed likely to cause internal injuries.
This internal cultivation method shattered, in a single stroke, all common sense of martial learning he had known until now.
But Geom Mugeuk trusted this formula. He did not know what the energy within his body was, nor what this internal cultivation method was, but he decided to simply trust anything related to the secret coffer.
Just like the inexplicable sense of relief he had felt when he first absorbed energy from the secret coffer, he trusted this instinct that told him it was an energy favorable to him.
When he had thus circulated the true qi through one full cycle, at the final moment, the three energies merged into one.
The very instant he felt an enormous power.
The three energies scattered weakly once more and quietly fell asleep throughout his meridians.
Geom Mugeuk could tell. As the words left behind by the secret coffer had said, this internal cultivation method would only be completed when all six energies were gathered.
Everything else remained unknown.
What would happen when all six energies had gathered and he operated this internal cultivation method? Would the gathered energies be operated separately, or would they merge with his existing internal energy?
Was there a martial art suited to this internal cultivation method, or would the method itself display some kind of power?
How, in the end, would it grant him the greatest power of all time?
It was at that moment that his surroundings began to change.
Sarururureung.
As though bidding farewell, the secret coffer made a cheerful sound he had never heard before.
Chiiiiii.
The six circles engraved on the secret coffer disappeared. They had been patterns carved deep as though etched by a blade, but they began to fade slowly until they vanished completely.
Starting with that, everything returned to normal.
Jjiiiiik.
The space torn open before him began to close. Within that space was a deep darkness.
Geom Mugeuk did not dislike that darkness. Because he knew better than anyone that a night spent awake alone was not lonelier than daytime.
Rumble!
The overturned surface of the earth began to descend back down. As it slowly sank, it seemed to be greeting him, saying, Rest assured, I am beneath the ground you stand upon.
Kwakakakaka.
The icicles that had been shining white began disappearing back into the ceiling. Perhaps reluctant to part, the ice sparkled with pure white light at the final moment.
The flames that had been surging fiercely began to gradually die down. As the flames swayed left and right, they looked as though they were waving goodbye.
Whooooosh.
A gust of wind blew in and brushed past the lightning marks carved into the floor, and astonishingly, the traces on the ground disappeared cleanly. They vanished like a drawing in sand washed away by waves.
The wind coolly fluttered Geom Mugeuk’s clothes and hair one last time before disappearing completely.
Thus, everything around him returned to the way it had been.
Now this place looked exactly as it had when Geom Mugeuk first entered.
It felt as though he had dreamed.
But Geom Mugeuk sensed the change.
The three energies were still asleep within his body, but they were different from before. If the previous energies had felt as though they were merely being stored inside him, now he felt, Those energies are mine.
It was as if they had once been guests in a guest room, but had now become the owners.
And from those energies, he could sense unprecedented potential. If three energies were like this, he could not know what would happen when all six were gathered.
Geom Mugeuk took the secret coffer from his robes.
The secret coffer was smiling brightly, just like his own heart.
Geom Mugeuk was happy. Truly happy. What made him happier than anything was that this power had not fallen into the hands of the enemy, but had come to him.
Since his regression, he had steadily changed his life from before, but now he felt as though he had passed through a major turning point differently.
‘Don’t let your guard down until the very end. Keep striving.’
Now, Geom Mugeuk put the small secret coffer back into his robes and looked at the large secret coffer. His gaze deepened as he stared at it.
Geom Mugeuk performed a deep bow to the secret coffer. With his entire body, he could feel that this ancient power was not something that could be obtained with a mere spiritual medicine.
“If this is the will Heaven has bestowed upon me, I will gladly accept that destiny.”
He meant it sincerely. After all, the very fact that he had been able to regress in the first place had only been possible because Heaven had valued his efforts.
After formally paying his respects, Geom Mugeuk approached the secret coffer and placed his hand upon it.
“Thank you, secret coffer.”
Heaven’s will was Heaven’s will, but he still considered these secret coffers his friends.
At that very moment!
Swoooop.
Geom Mugeuk’s hand entered the secret coffer. Before he could even resist, his body was sucked into it. The secret coffer had begun absorbing Geom Mugeuk.
“Huh? No! I still haven’t seen the final battle!”
But as if to say that he was not permitted that much, the secret coffer began sucking Geom Mugeuk in at once.
Geom Mugeuk did not resist. Just as he had not when he first entered.
Fine, if this is the destiny you have chosen.
‘I’ll see you in three hundred years!’
* * *
The Sword King was examining the walls of the space where the secret coffer stood.
Several days had passed since Geom Mugeuk had been sucked into the secret coffer. But he had not yet returned.
During that time, the Sword King had explored various methods to enter the secret coffer.
Of course, he had first examined the secret coffer thoroughly. He had knocked on it, tried moving it, and infused internal energy into it. But the secret coffer showed no response at all.
He had returned through the gates and inspected the previous gates as well, and had reread the secret manuals stored there. But nowhere was there any clue about how to enter the secret coffer.
After examining the surrounding walls that way, the Sword King came back to the secret coffer and sat leaning against it. The place where he sat now was the very spot from which Geom Mugeuk had been sucked in.
Just in case he might also be able to enter, he made sure to sit there and lean against it once a day, but today as well, the secret coffer was only cold and hard.
“Hooo.”
For the first time, a sigh escaped the Sword King’s lips. He could not simply keep waiting like this forever.
In truth, his mission was to take that secret coffer.
Whether Geom Mugeuk was inside it or not, once he delivered it, his job would be done.
And yet… he had been waiting here for days.
He was worried about Geom Mugeuk, yet on the other hand, he was not worried. Looking at it coldly, it was closer to not being worried.
The sight of him being sucked in had looked exactly like someone sinking into a swamp, but he did not feel that it had swallowed him in order to harm him.
Perhaps it was because of the special quality Geom Mugeuk had shown.
‘You’re not someone who would die so meaninglessly, are you?’
When he thought of Geom Mugeuk, foolish words came out on their own.
“If you don’t come out today either, I’ll take you away with you still inside.”
Even at the Sword King’s threat, Geom Mugeuk did not come out.
This time, he threatened the secret coffer.
“If you don’t hand over my officer, I’ll cut you clean in half.”
He spoke as though joking, but there truly was a part of him that wanted to cut the secret coffer open with his sword and look inside.
But Geom Mugeuk could not possibly be inside that hard coffer, so he could not do that either.
‘If this really is something that can change the fate of the murim, why did it swallow the Young Cult Leader?’
The Sword King, fiddling with the shoe hanging at his waist, spoke as if to himself.
“Don’t tell me the person who will change the fate of the murim… is you?”
It was right then.
“Uwaaaaak!”
With a scream, something shot out from behind the Sword King’s back. The person who emerged over the head of the Sword King, who had been leaning against the secret coffer, and rolled across the floor was none other than Geom Mugeuk.
The Sword King stared at Geom Mugeuk with a startled expression. He had been so shocked that he had nearly cut Geom Mugeuk down reflexively.
After startling someone this badly.
“Instructor, you’ve gotten haggard in just a few days.”
At those first words, the Sword King spoke with an incredulous expression.
“You look like you went off and had a good time.”
Geom Mugeuk’s eyes were even clearer, and the vitality felt from his body seemed even more vigorous. It was a change that could be sensed because the Sword King was an expert of his caliber.
“Ah, don’t even ask. I suffered quite a lot without any internal energy.”
Geom Mugeuk first examined his own body. The majestic internal energy he could feel in his dantian.
Fortunately, he had returned to the body he had before going in. His sword had also returned to the Black Demon Sword. The secret coffer was still safely in his robes as well.
Geom Mugeuk rose to his feet and took a deep breath.
The scent of three hundred years later. I came back alive!
“You were really worried about me, weren’t you? You must have even stopped eating and drinking.”
“Not at all. I ate meat every day.”
But Geom Mugeuk felt it. The relief the Sword King had felt when he saw him.
He had been waiting for him here. Worried, he had waited for him to come out.
“What happened in there?”
This was truly the first time in his life that the Sword King had ever been this curious about something.
“Before I tell you, please wait a moment.”
Geom Mugeuk walked toward the secret coffer.
The feeling he had when he saw the secret coffer upon first entering this place and the feeling he had now, after meeting the secret coffer three hundred years ago and returning, were completely different.
That secret coffer had passed through three hundred years and was now before his eyes again.
Geom Mugeuk placed his hand on the secret coffer.
‘You must have been lonely for three hundred years. You endured much all this time. And thank you. Thank you for sending me back here.’
It was regrettable that he had not seen the final fight, but it was a fight whose outcome had already been decided.
After greeting the secret coffer that way, Geom Mugeuk turned back to the Sword King.
How much should he tell him? Geom Mugeuk decided to leave out only two things.
The prophecy concerning himself, and the fact that he had learned the secret coffer’s formula.
“Have you heard of the Martial Sovereign Divine Sword?”
Just how much did the Sword King know about this history?
“I’ve heard of him. He was the Murim Alliance Leader three hundred years ago.”
He was, after all, the most famous Murim Alliance Leader.
“Why are you suddenly asking about him?”
Then astonishing words flowed from Geom Mugeuk’s mouth.
“I met the Martial Sovereign Divine Sword and came back.”
“What?”
At first, the Sword King’s eyes seemed to say, This is a joke, right? But gradually, surprise bloomed across his face. He realized that Geom Mugeuk was not joking.
“It’s true!”
“I even ate with the Martial Sovereign Divine Sword.”
Geom Mugeuk’s gaze turned toward the secret coffer.
“This box took me three hundred years into the past.”
The Sword King also stared at the secret coffer in astonishment.
Geom Mugeuk continued speaking.
“This box was once a divine relic of a mysterious force called Heavenly Will Palace.”
Geom Mugeuk watched how the Sword King reacted to Heavenly Will Palace.
It was not a special reaction, but an ordinary one.
“I know of it. The Martial Sovereign Divine Sword destroyed Heavenly Will Palace.”
The history known by most people who knew of the Martial Sovereign Divine Sword went only this far. From this reaction, Geom Mugeuk could guess. The current Sword King was not connected to the descendants of Heavenly Will Palace. To him, Heavenly Will Palace was merely a part of history.
“Don’t tell me you met the palace lord of Heavenly Will Palace too?”
Geom Mugeuk nodded. As if that was all he had met. He had even met the Divine Maiden.
“I spent several days at the place where the final war between the two sides was taking place.”
“Why did it take you there?”
Since he intended not to tell him about the prophecy concerning himself, Geom Mugeuk had no way to explain.
“How would I know? Perhaps because I’m better-looking than you, Instructor? If one is going on a long journey, then of course it’s better to take someone young and handsome…”
“Enough nonsense!”
The playfulness vanished from Geom Mugeuk’s face. Now it was finally time to ask this question.
“Why did you bring me here? Please tell me the real reason.”
There had definitely been some intention behind it. It had not been to save those underground, nor because he would be useful in dismantling the mechanisms. There had clearly been another reason of his own.
At last, the Sword King spoke his true feelings.
“Because I wanted to see whether you were the one who would change the fate of the murim.”
Their gazes tangled in midair.
“Why did you think it might be me?”
After a brief pause, the Sword King answered.
“Because you changed our fate.”
They had believed that they would change the fate of this murim, but Geom Mugeuk had changed their fate instead.
“And now you are trying to change even my fate.”
Geom Mugeuk could sense it. This was the moment when the fate between the Sword King and himself would be decided. It would be decided by the answer to this question.
“What if I am the person who will change the fate of the murim?”
Looking straight into the Sword King’s eyes, Geom Mugeuk added another question.
“Can our relationship change?”