Once I brought down the Sword Demon, the twisted illusion unraveled before long.
The flames that had been devouring the Kunlun Sect vanished, and the Sword Demon's vicious killing intent was no longer felt, as if it had never existed in the first place.
But something remained.
As the Illusion Witch had said, the renegade monks of the Potala Palace who had met their deaths within the illusion were now truly lifeless corpses.
Their bodies were unmarked, without a single wound, yet they lay fallen with faces twisted in agony.
I looked at the renegade monk who had held out the longest against the Sword Demon.
Ordinary sorcery of this sort I had seen a few times in the Black Alliance, and I had also encountered it during the war against the Demonic Cult, so I was fairly familiar with it.
The techniques he had unleashed were Vajrayana methods, utterly foreign to me.
…Which made me think he must have known a great deal of information I had never encountered even before my regression.
"What a pity."
"What do you mean? Ah, if you're worried that your recent enlightenment flew away too quickly, don't be. That martial art wasn't built atop what you already had—it tore down everything you'd accumulated and rebuilt it from the ground up. The feeling is different from before, but it will soon become second nature to you."
"What are you suddenly talking about, Murim Alliance Leader?"
As I shook my head, the Murim Alliance Leader approached as if he had been waiting for the chance and spoke to me familiarly.
He had never treated me with hostility or wariness before, but there had always been a sense that he kept his distance, as if I made him uneasy.
But now, how should I put it? I could feel a deep goodwill radiating from him toward me.
I let out a hollow laugh at the oddity and the slight tickle of it, then lightly kicked the sprawled corpse of the defrocked monk with my foot.
"From the look of things, he seemed to be a fellow of considerable rank. It's a shame they all died just like this—I couldn't extract any information from them."
"…Ah."
For some reason, the Murim Alliance Leader wore a dazed expression, like a man whose blinders had just fallen away, or like one waking from a dream.
He looked up at the sky and let out a long sigh.
It was a sudden eccentricity. I wondered if the effects of the sorcery were still lingering, and glanced around at the Illusion Witch and the others.
"Heh heh. Cheon benefactor, you truly are a consistent man."
"There's a saying that when a person changes, it's time for them to die. It seems my son-in-law will live a long life yet."
Great Master Jeonghyeon recited a light mantra with his habitual smile, while Tang Jincheon let out a snort of relief.
Both of them had reacted similarly. The other two were at least a little different.
"Hmm. Usually a bad man, but sometimes showing a warm side… hmm…"
"Phew. Now this is the Hwi I know."
The Illusion Witch nodded with a face even more serious than when discussing her main business.
And Seomun Hwa-rin, with a smile that felt almost welcoming, smoothed down her flat chest.
It seemed the effects of the sorcery were definitely still lingering, as everyone was clearly not in their right mind.
I felt a heavy sense of responsibility for being the only sane one among all these people—but only for a moment.
The rescue party that had split off earlier was finally coming into view from afar.
From what I could tell, the mood was good and there were no casualties.
The Kunlun Sect disciples mixed in among them were staggering with haggard faces, but their eyes were clear—they'd recover with good food and a proper rest.
There had been dangerous moments and slightly disappointing ones too, but still, I was just about to relax, thinking things had worked out well enough.
"Hm?"
Suddenly, I spotted a single person tied up among the rescue party.
A bald man in tattered robes, being dragged along by the One-Blade Asura at the front with a triumphant expression.
It was only when I saw the oddly unfamiliar style of the robes that I realized—they were from the Potala Palace.
As I dashed toward the One-Blade Asura, he flinched for some reason and immediately drew his weapon.
"What's wrong?"
"Ah, no, it's just that a rather frightening memory came to mind."
"Dear me. How many martial artists are there without frightening memories? Still, someone at the Harmony Realm should be able to overcome that."
"…"
The One-Blade Asura shot me a look of utter disdain, but since I was in a good mood, I decided to let it slide.
"Put it away while I'm still speaking kindly."
"O-of course, that was my intention."
It was the kind of thing that could be settled with words alone.
The guy was frozen stiff, eyes wide open, as if some vital point had been struck.
Judging by the aura he gave off, he seemed close to the Harmony Realm, but… something was off.
He didn't have the natural bearing or presence that a Harmony Realm martial artist should have.
Yet the energy he exuded seemed to barely qualify him as a Harmony Realm martial artist.
I wondered if he was a half-baked Harmony Realm practitioner who, like the Sword Demon, had raised his realm with the Heavenly Demon's help, but he was far more stable than that.
After a moment's deliberation, I decided to just ask someone who would know.
"One-Blade Asura. What exactly is this guy?"
"You're not going to ask about that shaven-headed monk from the Potala Palace, are you? I don't know either. He came running here in a panic, and when he tried to use hostages to do something, I just slammed into him. However, I can say for certain that he's not a Martial Artist."
"Not a Martial Artist?"
"He's not ignorant of martial arts, but at best he's around the level between first-rate and Peak Realm. His internal energy is considerable, but instead of using it for martial arts, he employs things like Sorcery."
"I see. I get the picture now."
The defrocked monks of the Potala Palace, watching from a distance, fought the Sword Demon while harmoniously blending their martial arts with Vajrayana techniques.
But that man was more immersed in Vajrayana teachings than martial arts, and he had fled shortly after encountering the Sword Demon.
He was probably the one behind the trap prepared for me.
Having escaped alone, he didn't head for the exit but deliberately made his way to where the Kunlun disciples were being held.
More precisely, he hadn't fled—he'd intended to use a trap he'd prepared while the other rogue monks bought him time.
I didn't know what kind of trap it was, but given the nature of the Potala Palace, it was bound to be something quite sinister.
Of course, all of this was mere speculation, but one thing was certain.
The man One-Blade Asura had captured was someone who held a position of some standing within the Potala Palace.
In other words, I now had access to quality information.
"Well done, One-Blade Asura."
"Hmph. I'd appreciate actual compensation rather than mere words."
"Let's see. I'll send a Spirit Beast scale to the Overlord Asura Gate."
After all, the flood dragon's scales were more than plentiful. One wouldn't hurt.
Of course, just because I had many didn't mean their value diminished.
"Just one scale seems a bit stingy."
"It's a scale from a Harmony Realm Spirit Beast. It can withstand a blow or two from an Aura if it lands off-target."
"How did you even get something like that? Even in my childhood, that level of Spirit Beast only appeared in my grandfather's old stories."
"I caught it when I had business in the North Sea."
"You actually took it down… Well, that explains it…"
The One-Blade Asura nodded carefully, as if he had much to say but chose not to. He was quick on the uptake.
"By the way, was this one really that important? I did catch him off guard, but he was so easy to subdue that I thought he was nothing special."
"Of course he's important. He's the sole survivor of the Potala Palace force that attacked the Kunlun Sect."
"Ah. So that's how it is. Well, you could have gone a bit easier on him."
The One-Blade Asura nodded calmly, showing no surprise at the news that the rest were all dead.
It was clear he had misunderstood something major, so I added a bit more.
"I didn't kill them."
"Hm? Surely there wasn't another force involved?"
"My Simma killed them."
"I understand perfectly. Let's go with that."
His expression said he understood nothing at all, but I didn't bother pointing it out. Perhaps it was because I had managed to etch the foundation of a new martial art into my mind. I felt a bit more lenient than usual.
I nodded and lightly struck the paralyzed monk's stiff lower abdomen.
Thump!
It was only a light tap of my fist, yet the sound rang out as loud as a drumbeat.
That was because the sound wasn't merely from the impact—it was the sound of internal energy scattering from his shattered Dantian.
For a moment, an energy similar to Shaolin's martial arts, yet tinged more with malevolence than the characteristic piety of Buddhism, flickered clearly before dispersing.
So far, so good. It was only natural that the more internal energy one possessed, the stronger the energy that leaked out when their Dantian was destroyed.
But the scenery reflected in his Heavenly Eye felt off—unlike what his Qi Sense told him.
He had expected the burst of red-gold energy to scatter in all directions, but instead it vaguely formed the shape of something screaming before flying up into the sky.
Internal energy was, after all, merely Natural Qi that had been refined by a Mental Cultivation Method to suit a human body.
What came from nature returns to nature—that was the natural order.
That was why, when internal energy was released, it scattered in every direction and dissolved into the air as if melting away. That was the norm.
But that bastard's energy clearly carried a direction—straight upward.
Since it was internal energy leaking out from a shattered Dantian, it wasn't a Technique but the very nature of the internal energy itself.
"Well, if I figure this out, that'll be the end of it."
I looked down at the unconscious defrocked monk and nodded with satisfaction.
***
After rescuing the Kunlun disciples, our destination was the Murim Alliance.
Of course, by the time everything was over, One-Blade Asura and the people of the Paecheon Hall had already returned to the Black Alliance.
"…You there. Is this gloomy thing really going to follow us all the way to the Tang Clan?"
"Say what you will, but when it comes to Sorcery, no one is a greater expert than the Illusion Witch. Besides, we agreed she'd look into the matter of the secret arts. We can't afford another incident like this one."
"Hmm. That's true, I suppose."
Seomun Hwa-rin eyed the Illusion Witch this way and that, looking thoroughly displeased. Perhaps she found the gaze burdensome.
The Illusion Witch shrank her neck and opened her mouth cautiously.
"Uhm…"
"If you have something to say, say it properly instead of hemming and hawing."
"It's a bit galling to be called shady by someone who lied about their age and tried to join the Dragon Phoenix Gathering pretending to be a rising talent…"
"Hurk!"
Struck by a sore spot from the past, Seomun Hwa-rin's mouth flapped open and shut as if she were having trouble breathing, before she fell silent.
Seol Ri-hyang, who had been lightly patting her on the back, asked.
"By the way, Cheon Hwi. You suddenly called us all here—what exactly do you want to talk about? Surely not…"
"It's about the secret technique."
"…Huh?"
Seol Ri-hyang's eyes, which had been about to sharpen, softened into a round, puzzled look. This time, it was Tang So-wol who answered in her place.
"We happen to have the Jegal family's military advisor here, and the Great Master Jeonghyeon as well. And I hear the Sect Leader of Zhongnan will be arriving shortly."
"Oh? Then?"
"Yes. Once the interrogation of the captured Potala Palace person is finished, the suggestion was made to use the secret technique here once more. This time, the Illusion Witch will be helping as well, so she asked us to tell her about what we experienced the last two times."
"Ah…"
Seol Ri-hyang nodded with a slightly embarrassed expression. She offered the Illusion Witch a light smile.
"Since that's the case, I'll leave it to you. Where should I begin?"
"W-well, from the start, I suppose… Ah, but there's one thing I'm curious about, if you don't mind me asking…"
"Yes? What is it?"
It was the moment Seol Ri-hyang lowered her guard, seeing how harmless the Illusion Witch appeared to be.
"Why did the two of you claim to be under a seal when neither of you actually was…?"
"What."
At the Illusion Witch's unexpected remark, she looked toward Seol Ri-hyang and Seomun Hwa-rin.
"…"
"…"
The two of them silently avoided my gaze, then began glancing this way with faces flushed bright red.
What the hell.