Fragment. (3)
When thinking of the Iron Fist Golden King, Yeon Il-cheon.
He was a figure from the early days when the Demonic Realm opened in the Central Plains.
He was the one who rose to the position of the strongest under heaven in his generation by fending off countless calamities.
Furthermore, he was one of the heroes who joined forces with five masters to block the Blood Calamity of the Blood Demon, putting an end to the Great War against the Blood Demon.
That very Yeon Il-cheon.
‘A regressor like me?’
My widened eyes from Sin Noya's words refused to shrink back.
If turning back time wasn't this, then what was?
‘So....’
Suddenly, when Sin Noya learned of my regression, or even before that when he seemed to have noticed it to some extent.
I felt like I somewhat understood how he could accept it so easily.
If he had already experienced this...?
If it was because he knew such a person, making the situation relatively uneventful to him.
It was a part I could understand regarding Sin Noya's reaction.
‘Does this mean there was another regressor besides me?’
I didn't think it was in this current era, though.
If the Yeon Il-cheon of that time was truly a regressor as Sin Noya said....
‘How do you know that?’
-How would I know? I know because he told me directly.
Although Sin Noya answered dismissively.
I had to think about various things.
‘He told you directly...?’
-Before the final fight with the Blood Demon, that bastard Il-cheon told me, told us.
That he had turned back time.
That this was his second time.
‘Did you believe those words?’
-I couldn't easily believe it, but it wasn't something I couldn't believe either.
‘Why did you think so?’
-Because it was a level that couldn't exist otherwise; rather, hearing that made me understand.
The overwhelming majesty that crushed his surroundings with talent alone.
The back of the man who fended off all calamities alone.
The way he acted without hesitation as if he knew everything.
Sin Cheol was able to find comfort in the words Yeon Il-cheon brought up at the last moment.
While I swallowed dry saliva.
The old man spat out words as if warning me.
-Do not reveal this part to that bald monk bastard.
I had no intention of revealing it in the first place, so it seemed strange that the old man would bring this up.
‘...I understand.’
However, I didn't bother to ask and simply accepted it.
Because right now, rather than that, my mind was full of thoughts about the other regressor.
‘If the Iron Fist Golden King truly regressed.’
Just how?
How did he regress?
I wondered if he might know the reason that I do not.
[Is the talk over?]
While I was thinking about this and that, Cheol-yeong spoke.
It seemed he knew I had been talking with Sin Noya for a bit.
[Your perceptiveness is still as quick as ever.]
[I always said it, didn't I? There is nothing as strange as you, Sin Cheol.]
At Cheol-yeong's words, the old man suddenly coughed repeatedly.
‘...And here he acts like he's incredibly quick-witted.’
It seemed the old man didn't have much perceptiveness either, now that I thought about it.
He only cursed at me every day.
[...Cheol-yeong.]
[Yeah.]
[Are the other bastards also in the same state as you right now?]
At Sin Noya's question, Cheol-yeong remained silent this time as well.
Just when I thought he couldn't answer this question either.
[...This is an answer I can fortunately give.]
Cheol-yeong continued speaking through his gaping mouth.
[It seems you will look for that bastard Il-cheon.]
[Yes, because if it's him, he might give you an answer.]
[Sin Cheol, I understand your wish. But that cannot be done.]
Cheol-yeong was resolute.
[Because Il-cheon is no longer on this earth.]
[...Why?]
[...]
[You rotten bastard, why even bring it up if you can't answer?]
[Sin Cheol, we simply couldn't overcome our fate.]
[So? You were the first to say from your own mouth that the Blood Demon dreams of resurrection, and now you're saying you'll just wash your hands of it?]
[I hoped it wouldn't come to that. Didn't I say it? You were the hope.]
Just why was the old man the hope? The old man had always been curious.
Why he had to remain on this earth, and what his empty memories truly meant.
In the end, it was what made me set foot toward Shaolin.
It must have been because I wanted to know something.
Knowing that, I too made my way here.
[What you, what we. I don't know what we dreamt of to end up in this situation.]
Sin Cheol's voice became rather calm, unlike before.
[Even if what we thought went astray, I believed you were not someone who would easily crumble over such things.]
[...]
Did he say he endured hundreds of years alone?
Hundreds of years with his body permeated into a relic.
It was clearly a different life from Sin Noya's, who had been sealed and only just awakened.
If it were me, could I have endured Cheol-yeong's time?
I might have lost my mind long ago and lived literally like a carp.
[If you're looking at my weary self with pity, there's nothing I can....]
[Why would I look at you with pity?]
At Sin Cheol's words, Cheol-yeong's mouth gaped.
As if he couldn't understand what it meant.
Sin Noya looked at him and continued speaking.
[Even if I ignored and mistreated you my whole life, I never looked down on you with pity.]
[...You damn bastard?]
[If you let go, I will simply take hold.]
The words Sin Noya spat out as if it were nothing were truly solid.
[Didn't we promise that?]
[...You.]
[Even if you and I were in opposite positions, would it have been any different?]
At Sin Noya's words, Cheol-yeong fell silent as before.
However, this silence clearly contained an answer.
[If you are tired and wish to rest, you just need to rest.]
[It seems you still haven't gotten rid of that personality.]
[What do you mean still, I am the same as yesterday.]
It was peculiar.
The unique Daoist aura, which usually wasn't felt even a tiny bit.
Was currently being felt from Sin Noya.
[If you wish to rest, then rest. If you have been waiting for me...]
He said in a much calmer voice.
[I'm sorry, it seems I'm very late.]
The one without memories offered an apology to his old friend.
Sin Noya surely wouldn't even know what he had to apologize for.
Yet he spoke his apology.
How could that be?
Although I pride myself on having lived for no short time, it was something I couldn't understand.
‘Is this the difference in our capacities?’
Is that what the vessel of a hero who saved the world looks like?
It felt like a presence that wasn't there before had been born just a little.
[So hurry up and spit out some information, you damned bald monk.]
‘...’
The sprout that had just risen was immediately trampled.
[Sin Cheol.]
[Yeah.]
[Are you thinking of blocking the Blood Demon?]
[You're asking something obvious.]
It was a reaction to being asked something so obvious.
[What we tried to do was that, and if I failed that day, shouldn't the me of now do it?]
That really wasn't something to say so casually.
[Didn't you say there was no method? That you were the hope....]
[I'm sorry, but, Cheol-yeong.]
‘What.’
In the stopped time, a faint scent of plum blossoms was felt.
The Daoist energy in my body had quieted as Sin Noya calmed down.
Where was this coming from?
[If we lost hope, we just have to gain it back.]
[...]
[Haven't we always lived like that? Even if your years have flowed by, I am still the same.]
[...Sin Cheol.]
The long whiskers of the Baek-ah fish slipped out of the lake and pointed at me.
[Perhaps, is this child your hope?]
“No.”
I immediately denied such nonsensical words.
Hope my foot, what damn hope.
I contorted my face as if it was the last thing in the world I wanted to do.
I'm already busy enough as it is, why would I take on more?
However, unlike my denial, the old man spoke with a hint of a smile.
[It's roughly similar.]
“What kind of crazy talk is that? What do you mean similar?”
[Stop being so fussy.]
“What fussy? I didn't even put anything in!”
[If you're going to do similar things anyway, wouldn't it be fine to just do them together?]
“Are you telling me to buy some vegetables on the way to run an errand?”
It was a Blood Demon whose resurrection was uncertain.
Getting involved in this unnecessarily wasn't exactly appealing.
I already had a lot to think about because of bastards like the Heavenly Demon Dokgo Jun.
If the Blood Demon gets involved here too, my head might just explode and kill me.
[Look at this bastard? I fed and clothed this useless guy and made him somewhat usable.]
“Why are you saying such nonsense? I grew up well on my own.”
Though it didn't seem like I grew up that well.
Still, this much was fine.
Actually, rather than feeding and clothing me, the old man only ever hurled profanities at me.
[You used me however you wanted when you needed me! And now that I want to use you a little!]
“Why are you causing such a fuss right after waking up from sleeping all day....”
Ah, if it's going to be like this, I should have just let him keep sleeping.
The brief moment of joy at meeting him passed, and what rushed in was regret.
At my reaction, the old man chuckled quietly.
[It was a joke.]
It didn't seem like it, it definitely didn't seem like it....
As we were bickering briefly like that, Cheol-yeong interjected.
[What a nostalgic sight.]
This was not directed at anyone, but closer to a soliloquy.
Sin Noya didn't bother to ask a question about this.
It seemed he already knew the answer.
[Sin Cheol.]
[Yeah.]
[No matter what I say, you won't give up.]
[You know it well. Could you even say the words to persuade me in the first place?]
[...]
It seemed there were no words that could come out of his tightly shut mouth.
[I am merely doing what must be done. Cheol-yeong.]
[Do you truly believe that is what we must do?]
[For those words to come from you, who I thought was closest to Buddhahood, it is truly preposterous.]
In an instant, I felt the sensation of someone's hand touching my shoulder.
I shuddered and wildly brushed off the shoulder where the hand was felt. Even if it was an illusion, it was an incredibly creepy feeling.
[If you have made up your mind that it is something you must do yourself, what else could it be but what must be done?]
[...]
Splash.
A sound was heard following the movement of the carp, but the stopped world remained the same.
Bul-yeong, who had been silent for a moment, broke the silence and spat out words.
[The Blood Demon scattered his flesh and soul across this earth by severing them.]
[What do you mean scattered? Didn't you say he was sealed?]
[That was the best he could do. It was the final means that bastard Il-cheon chose.]
Severed and scattered.
Putting the flesh aside, how could one sever a soul?
[The flesh to the Demonic Realm, the soul to the east, and countless parts including the mind were severed and sent in all directions. In particular, the Blood Demon's five senses were repeatedly severed and cast into the Celestial Sea.]
It was utterly incomprehensible to hear. The separation of flesh and soul.
Let alone the mind, the very mention of severing the five senses was absurd.
However, the important part was elsewhere.
Sin Noya, perhaps feeling the same as I did, asked about the question.
[...If such a method is possible, how can you be certain the Blood Demon will break the seal?]
It was doubtful if this could even be called a seal.
From the sound of it, it seemed worse than killing him.
At the question, Cheol-yeong fell silent.
It meant he could not speak of this.
[...Alright, then can you also not tell me what must be done?]
The moment the old man asked something else, the carp's long whiskers swiftly brushed past me.
“Um...?”
Was it an illusion?
Before I could even feel the subtle sensation, Cheol-yeong continued speaking.
[Find that bastard Myeong.]
[What? That bastard Myeong is also here!]
‘...If the name is Myeong.’
It was a name I had heard a few times from Sin Noya's mouth.
Lightning Heaven One Blade, Namgung Myeong.
Sin Noya had recalled the movements of the Lightning Heaven One Blade and compared them during his spar with Namgung Jin.
In terms of evaluation, he was an unlucky and annoying bastard, but a man with undeniable talent.
...Was that person also somewhere right now in such a form?
Hwasan was a stone, and Shaolin was a carp.
What was Namgung?
Whatever he became, I wasn't really curious.
[Are you saying we just need to find that bastard Myeong?]
[For now, that is the wisest answer I can give.]
[It's not the answer I was hoping for, but still. It's a relief that there is a way.... Then, Cheol-yeong, where is that bastard Myeong right now?]
At Sin Noya's words, Bul-yeong moved his swishing tail and spoke.
[I don't know, Noya.]
[...Hmm?]
“...?”
What is he talking about.
[You don't know...?]
[How would I know that? I've lived in this lake for hundreds of years.]
[Then what the hell is the helpful information! You bald monk!]
[Amitabha.... I've said several times that I can't tell you even if I know, so why can't you understand and keep throwing a fit?]
[You brat, catch that bastard and grill him right now.]
“Grill him? How can I grill another sect's relic?”
[Where is it written you can't grill it! Our family relic gets tossed around just fine as a drinking game.]
“That's the Hwasan Sect, so that's possible....”
[What, you little shit...?]
While Sin Noya couldn't contain his indignation and raved for a while, Cheol-yeong was looking at me with a faint gaze, knowingly or unknowingly.
To be precise, I thought he might be looking at the old man inside me.
[Sin Cheol.]
[Don't call me so quietly now, you bald bastard.]
Sin Noya spat out the words gruffly as if angry, but.
He clamped his mouth shut at Cheol-yeong's words that followed.
[...It was nice meeting you.]
..
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It wasn't an illusion.
The scales were definitely more murky than when I first saw them.
Noticing that, the strength slightly left Sin Noya's growling voice.
[Are you planning to leave?]
Cheol-yeong's voice, which had looked exhausted for a while.
Recalling his words that it seemed he had to let go now, it meant Cheol-yeong was thinking of departing....
[Leave to where?]
[...Huh?]
At the unexpected words, Sin Noya let out a foolish sound.
[...Weren't you trying to leave?]
[To where?]
[Ascension...?]
[Ascension to a Buddhist? What kind of nonsensical talk is that.]
[The atmosphere was exactly like that, wasn't it.]
Hahaha!
Cheol-yeong gaped and laughed loudly.
[I intended to leave, but I cannot. It seems he is not as light a companion as bound shackles.]
[Indeed.]
[However, it seems I can rest a bit.]
Crack.
My ears reacted to the rough sound.
I immediately looked in the direction of the sound, and a crack began to form in the air.
Was the bizarre, stopped situation finally about to break?
[Child.]
At Cheol-yeong's sudden call, I shifted my gaze.
The scale color, which had appeared white and elegant, was now closer to gray due to becoming somewhat murky.
‘Is it okay for it to be like that?,
It seemed the Baek-ah fish was no longer what it used to be.
[I cannot read the heavenly gates. But living through the years, the things I can see have increased a little.]
Crrrack.
As Cheol-yeong's words continued, the cracks deepened, and it began to take on an appearance as if it would shatter at any moment.
Perhaps it was because the end of this incomprehensible situation was slowly approaching.
[It seems Sin Cheol has a wish for you, but do not bother yourself with it.]
Making me hear all of that and then saying something so carefree.
How could I not care.
[This bitter karma was ultimately started by us. It is not a burden for you to bear.]
While Cheol-yeong continued to speak, I asked him.
“May I ask you one thing?”
[Ask away.]
“You said you knew the Blood Demon.”,
Perhaps because he didn't expect me to ask about the Blood Demon.
Cheol-yeong reacted as if somewhat surprised.
[...Yes, I know him well. I know him far too well.]
“Do you perhaps know the Blood Demon's name as well?”,
I wonder why.
Why am I asking something like this, I thought.
I had to release the thoughts that had ballooned in my head while listening to Cheol-yeong's words beside me.
Not a single bad premonition I've had in my life has ever been wrong.
If this too was a talent, I might belong quite heavily to the genius side.
Even so, I hoped with all my heart that this time would be different.
I was finally able to ask the question I had desperately suppressed, only at the very end.
Originally, I was going to ask Sin Noya if he knew his name.
And now, the form of the question had changed, but the essence was the same.
[Why do you ask that, isn't it written in history?]
It was just as Cheol-yeong said.
The Blood Demon's name and such were not recorded in history.
Only how great the achievements the five martial artists had accomplished. And it was written only about the peace obtained through that.
It was a part I had never once found strange.
“Is this also perhaps a part you cannot speak of?”,
[...What a truly peculiar child. Leaving aside the visible talent, accepting Sin Cheol is one thing, but the attitude of not being surprised seeing me is another.]
Because I had experienced so many strange situations.
Now, something of this degree wasn't even surprising.
I've even turned back time, so what does this little thing matter.
[...The Blood Demon's name.... Yes, I know it.]
Crrrrack!
In the crumbling sky.
Cheol-yeong enunciated each word to me.
[Dokgo Jun.]
At those words, I clenched my fist.
My grinding teeth was a bonus.
Damn it, my intuition for sensing bad things was creepingly outstanding once again.
Look at this.
[Yes, the Blood Demon Dokgo Jun. It was definitely a name like that.]
Since it wasn't wrong this time either.
Just how outstanding is it.
In a completely shitty way, at that.