A vast space unfolded before his eyes.
Its overwhelming scale could not be compared to the fake tomb he had seen earlier within the formation.
A place where the leaders of the Alliance throughout history came to rest forever after death.
Geom Mugeuk stood on the boundary between the living and the dead and greeted them in a loud voice.
“I am Geom Mugeuk, Young Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult. Though the path I walk differs from yours, I revere the great lives of my seniors, who protected what they held dear with a single sword. In the murim of this era, there is a force attempting to disturb the order of the Evil, Demonic, and Orthodox paths and seize control of the murim. I have come here to stop them, so I ask that you forgive this junior’s unpermitted steps today.”
After Geom Mugeuk bowed his head respectfully and paid his respects, he stepped inside. Then he added a remark very much like himself.
“I like and respect the current Sado Alliance Leader. And I’m friends with the next Alliance Leader! So please look kindly upon me!”
Geom Mugeuk stood at the entrance for a moment, overwhelmed by the power of the long, ancient years, and looked around the hall. The scent of incense seeped through the dry, heavy air.
The interior was vast, but he thought he would have enough time to look around. Dan Sojin would not be able to come and go from this place freely either. He, too, would likely only be able to enter on fixed dates.
But what mattered was not time. If he was fated to find it, he would do so even in half a shichen; if he was not, then even ten years in this place would not be enough.
He could only hope that the final bead was fated to him.
The interior had been built in a huge circular shape, and in the center at the rear stood a stone statue of a martial artist seated in a grand preceptor’s chair.
Though it was only a stone statue, a powerful authority could be felt from it. It seemed likely to be the figure who had founded the Sado Alliance. Blood jade had been set into both of its eyes, making it frightening just to meet its gaze.
Before it stood an altar where rites could be offered, and around that again, dozens of pillars had been erected.
Writing was inscribed on each pillar, records of the Alliance Leaders throughout history.
One pillar for one person’s life.
Where and when they were born, what martial arts they learned, how they became the Sado Alliance Leader, what they accomplished after taking the position, and when and how they died—all of it was recorded there.
Each and every one of those pillars was the history of the Sado Alliance.
Geom Mugeuk slowly read the contents.
Reading someone’s life, especially words left behind like a record, was an extremely tedious thing.
But Geom Mugeuk knew. There was always something to learn from another person’s choices. Life was not long enough to make all those choices oneself.
And so Geom Mugeuk read through the most important choices the Alliance Leaders had made throughout their lives, and the results of those choices.
When he finished reading one person’s life, he read the life on the next pillar, and then the life of another Alliance Leader.
He laughed, and he frowned. There were Alliance Leaders who pleased him, and there were also Alliance Leaders who made him wonder how such a person could possibly exist.
As he continued reading the pillars, one name caught Geom Mugeuk’s eye.
Ju Gasin.
It was him—the foremost master of the Sado path and the Sado Alliance Leader from three hundred years ago.
When the sword tomb beneath the lake where he had fought the Twelve Zodiac Kings earlier had also become known as Ju Gasin’s tomb, masters had once gathered there in the past.
But his true remains had been enshrined here.
Geom Mugeuk read Ju Gasin’s life. How he learned martial arts, how he became the foremost sword of the Sado path, and how he became the Sado Alliance Leader.
—After becoming Alliance Leader, he always kept a wolf called Jeokrang, the Red Wolf, by his side.
A Sado Alliance Leader who traveled with a wolf? Somehow, it struck him as impressive.
Then, among Ju Gasin’s deeds, one passage seized his gaze.
—Together with the Muhwang Divine Sword, he defeated Cheonui Palace.
‘Ah, so Ju Gasin was there too!’
That day three hundred years ago, during the final bloody battle between the Murim Alliance and Cheonui Palace, it had not only been the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult that came. The Sado Alliance had intervened in that fight as well. And the one who had done so personally was Ju Gasin, the Sado Alliance Leader of that time.
It was clear that the final bead being kept here was no coincidence, but the continuation of that destiny from three hundred years ago.
Had he not read the contents of this pillar in detail, he would never have known.
Geom Mugeuk read all the remaining pillars as well. There was still no pillar for Baek Jagang. After his death, his pillar would surely be erected somewhere here too.
‘Will my name be able to appear as one line in the Alliance Leader’s history?’
—Together with the Young Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, he destroyed the lineage of Cheonui Palace!
I hope so, Alliance Leader.
After reading the history of all the pillars, Geom Mugeuk moved toward the place where the legacies of the past Alliance Leaders were kept.
The unique secret manuals they had used were placed upright in display cases. They were truly divine arts and supreme techniques that would throw the murim into an uproar if even a single volume were to leak out.
Of course, Geom Mugeuk passed by without even opening them. What interested him were the objects displayed in front of them. He wondered if the bead might be mixed in among them.
All sorts of weapons, protective armor, gauntlets and hidden weapons, even the clothes and shoes the Alliance Leaders had enjoyed wearing. All manner of objects were displayed there.
Since there was nothing written to say what each item was or to whom it had belonged, he could not tell who had left which object behind.
Geom Mugeuk did not touch the objects either.
No one was watching, but he maintained the courtesy he ought to preserve as much as possible. He merely looked closely from nearby in case the bead was mixed in among them.
However, even after he examined all the objects, the Bigwe did not resonate.
‘Right. They wouldn’t have hidden it this easily.’
Thinking back on what he had obtained until now, it would not be easy to find. He had obtained the Black Essence from So Baekta, who had become the next leader of the Pungcheon Cult, by saying, I’ll choose this.
At a glance, it seemed he had obtained it far too easily, but if one considered the process that had allowed him to say those words, it had never been easy at all.
This time, Geom Mugeuk walked toward the surrounding wall.
Stone statues of martial artists stood along the wall, swords planted against the floor, as if guarding something.
Murals had been painted on that wall. They depicted various scenes of people who appeared to be former Sado Alliance Leaders.
There were scenes of them fighting bloody battles while drenched in blood, shouting with banners raised on battlefields piled with corpses, and splitting cliffs with swords.
There were scenes of them running while carrying children, and even scenes of them brutally killing someone. All manner of varied images were painted there.
Countless paintings covered a large portion of the broad wall, making the mere sight of them magnificent.
The stone statues stood encircling the murals at regular intervals.
There were far too many of them to say they had simply been placed here as symbols guarding the tomb. Moreover, the distance between each statue was precise, without even a hair’s breadth of error.
‘Who are you standing there to protect?’
Geom Mugeuk placed his hand on the wall between two of the statues. The wall was so thick that even a master could not know what lay beyond it, but Geom Mugeuk, whose martial arts had reached the pinnacle, could sense what was past that thick wall.
‘There is a space behind the wall.’
Geom Mugeuk looked at the stone statues standing all around the circular wall.
‘So the coffins of the Alliance Leaders are indeed kept between each of these statues!’
These stone statues were a kind of guardian statue protecting each Alliance Leader’s coffin.
Even if he tried to open it, there was no door in the wall. There was not even a trace that could be called a door. They must have made it so that it could be opened and closed, so there had to be some unknown, intricate mechanism.
‘What if the bead is inside someone’s coffin?’
That would be a truly difficult situation.
Finding the final bead was more important than anything, but even so, he could not break the wall and open a coffin.
Not because of Dan Sojin, but because of Baek Jagang and Bi Sain, he could not do such a thing.
‘Please, let it not be hidden in there.’
Geom Mugeuk circled along the round wall and examined the guardian statues first.
‘Please resonate, Bigwe! Let the statue’s eyes glow with purple light and pop out, let that ornament hanging from the sword hilt drop off with a click!’
But that was only Geom Mugeuk’s wish. The Bigwe did not resonate even by the time he had examined all the guardian statues.
He examined the stone statue seated in the grand preceptor’s chair as well, and even flew into the air to inspect the ceiling, but he could not find the bead.
‘Could it not be in this tomb?’
No, that could not be.
—If the Sado Alliance Leader does not die, the murim will be destroyed.
It was something for which even a prophecy had been handed down.
They had clearly intended to kill the Sado Alliance Leader of this era, discover the location of this place, and take the bead.
‘It is definitely inside here.’
Geom Mugeuk’s gaze turned once more to the walls between the statues.
‘Those are the only places left now.’
There had to be a mechanism somewhere that opened the door. If not, he would cut the wall without leaving a visible trace if he had to—
The moment his thoughts reached that point, Geom Mugeuk realized something. Unlike himself, he was being far too impatient. Even now, without realizing it, he had clenched his fist tightly. Because it was the last remaining bead, his heart was hurrying.
‘The beads until now weren’t things I obtained by trying to forcefully seize them.’
Geom Mugeuk opened his fist. He had to open his hand if he was going to grasp the bead with it.
Geom Mugeuk flopped down on the spot.
“Aigoo, Alliance Leaders. This unworthy junior will rest for a moment. Demonic Cult bastards are naturally this impatient. Please understand.”
Geom Mugeuk’s voice echoed through the hall. Sitting there like that, Baek Jagang suddenly came to mind.
He missed the man who had looked at him with those small eyes. Alliance Leader, please come and find it for me!
“When time passes, you too will rest here, Alliance Leader.”
Baek Jagang’s figure would also be painted on the mural.
Much later, would Bi Sain be painted there too? Once he left this place, he would never be able to return, so it was a painting he would never see.
“If I really miss you too much, I might sneak in here.”
Imagining Bi Sain arguing about why he only pictured the case where Bi Sain died first, Geom Mugeuk smiled.
Regaining his composure like that, he looked around. Geom Mugeuk gazed at the murals. Until just a moment ago, because he had been searching for the bead, he had paid attention only to the vibration of the Bigwe rather than to the paintings.
‘Ah, Ju Gasin must be somewhere in these paintings too.’
He might not know the others, but he wanted to find Ju Gasin. After all, he was the only person here he knew. If the bead had been hidden in this place, it would surely have followed his will.
But because he could not tell who the Alliance Leaders in the paintings were, it was impossible to find Ju Gasin.
The objects were the same, and so were the secret manuals. Not a single name was written down. What an unfriendly Sado Alliance.
As Geom Mugeuk sat there appreciating the murals, something entered his sight.
It was a painting of a wolf with magnificent red fur.
“Hey, you’re really handsome!”
Just as he was about to pass it by, Geom Mugeuk’s gaze turned back to the wolf.
At the same time, a single line came to mind.
—Even after becoming Alliance Leader, he kept a wolf called Jeokrang, the Red Wolf, by his side.
If it was Jeokrang, then it was a red-furred wolf!
Geom Mugeuk sprang to his feet and approached the painting.
After studying the wolf in the painting closely, Geom Mugeuk’s eyes widened.
The wolf wore magnificent armor around its neck and body, and in the center of the armor encircling its neck, a bead was embedded.
‘It’s a blue bead!’
The bead he had obtained from the steel wolf statue at the Sado Alliance before had been the Blue Essence.
Geom Mugeuk looked at the Alliance Leader standing beside the wolf.
A middle-aged man was depicted wearing his formal robes properly, dignified as if setting out to war. A martial artist who suited the wolf perfectly.
At that moment, Geom Mugeuk’s eyes widened even more. A bead was embedded in the belt around the man’s waist, and its color was purple.
‘This man is Ju Gasin!’
The bead on the wolf’s armor being blue could have been a coincidence, but even the bead on this waist ornament could not be a coincidence.
‘That day, Ju Gasin obtained two beads.’
So he hid one in the steel wolf statue, and the other? Where did you put the other one?
Geom Mugeuk threw himself back toward the place where the relics had been gathered and searched for the belt Ju Gasin had been wearing.
“So it was here!”
There was no bead embedded in that belt. But Geom Mugeuk sensed it. From this belt, he could feel some inexplicable profound energy.
“Pardon me for a moment, Alliance Leader.”
Geom Mugeuk carefully picked up the belt.
“Perhaps we might have met that day.”
But the Bigwe had sent him back to reality before that battle three hundred years ago. If he had been there, he might truly have met him.
After looking down at the belt in silence, Geom Mugeuk fastened it around his own waist. However, nothing happened.
Geom Mugeuk’s gaze turned back to the painting.
‘Could it be?’
Geom Mugeuk slowly walked over and stood beside the steel wolf statue. He stood exactly as Ju Gasin did in the painting.
Sssrk.
It was at the very moment he felt the metal ornament of the belt being drawn toward the steel wolf statue by magnetism.
A clacking sound seemed to ring out from within the wolf statue.
Srrrng!
One section of wall between the guardian statues on the far side swung wide open. What slid out from the opened door was a coffin. Both the door and the coffin that moved forward had been made with an extraordinarily intricate mechanism.
Geom Mugeuk instinctively knew.
‘It’s Ju Gasin’s coffin!’
Charrrng.
The panel covering the coffin slid smoothly aside and down, opening wide.
With trembling eyes, Geom Mugeuk walked toward it.
The moment he looked inside the coffin, his chest was swept up in emotion.
Ju Gasin’s white bones lay within the coffin. The skeleton had both hands gathered over its chest, and between those two hands lay a single bead.
The final bead he had sought for so long, the Purple Essence.
The bead, revealing itself to the world after three hundred years, freely emitted a purple radiance.
Wooooong.
The Bigwe in his chest began to vibrate. It was stronger than any vibration he had felt until now.
“Resonate louder, Bigwe!”
At the same time, the five energies that had been sleeping within Geom Mugeuk’s body awakened all at once.
“We finally found the youngest!”