A Regressor’s Tale of Cultivation Chapter 602: Bird Trapped In A Cage (3)

Kudududuk...

I clench my fist.

"...I will leave."

"Hahaha, how great would it be if that was possible. Did you not hear what I said?"

Maek Jin looks at me with gloomy eyes and speaks.

"We are trapped here. Unless Bong Myeong lets us out...we can never leave!"

"...I have never given up until the end."

"What...?"

In one hand, I hold soap bubbles.

Sizzle sizzle sizzle...

In the other, I ignite Glass True Fire.

I see the True Immortals simultaneously recoil in shock.

"No matter how many times, how many thousands of times... Even when déjà vu took hold and this world tried to impose its influence on me...I did not let go.

"Even as all my memories blurred and the truths I believed in all this time collapsed...I did not let go.

"Even when the world forced lies upon me and sought to erase my very existence...I did not let go!"

Maek Jin speaks in a trembling voice.

"This is absurd...I remember roughly what realm you were at when you entered. You were definitely an Upper Immortal. Seeing as you lacked winged garments, you must have been an Earth Upper Immortal. On top of that, you hadn't even properly received an Immortal Crown. At best, you were a mere fledgling who had just stepped into the realm of an Earth Upper Immortal..."

Somehow, it sounds as if they cannot accept it.

"It is a Supreme Deity's Immortal Art! The one who borrowed the power of the Underworld as a Heavenly Lord was Bong Myeong. Because They wielded the Underworld's power, They were already at the level of a Supreme Deity even in Their days as a Heavenly Lord. After becoming a Supreme Deity, though They may no longer have been able to draw upon the Underworld's power, The degree of completion of Their Immortal Art must have become even more perfected..."

Maek Jin lets out a roar, their voice shrieking like a scream.

"Are you trying to say that you, a mere Earth Immortal, have defied the will of a Supreme Deity head-on!!??"

"...I am not an Earth Immortal."

Kugugugugu!

Resplendently brilliant morning light begins to shine around Maek Jin.

In an instant, they turn into a black cloud.

Transformed into a massive black cloud, they press down on me with their entire being.

Kuguguguk!

We have both trained our powers in the same Liberation Peach Garden Village.

But is it because Maek Jin has five hundred thousand years of training?

The pressure emanating from them is incomparable to mine.

They are the storm itself.

I, on the other hand, have only trained the mere power of soap.

"Soap, of all things!"

"...I am not soap, either."

Bubble bubble bubble...

I look at the soap bubbles rising from my body.

Then, I blow them away.

'Once, I certainly had the thought...of wanting to dominate the world with soap.'

My first life.

Back in the 0th cycle, when I went senile just before death.

Back then, even soap had been taken from me, leaving me with nothing... It left a wound too deep for me to bear.

'But looking back now...'

The soap bubbles sprouting from my body have dissipated before I knew it.

'I wanted to make soap. I never wanted to become soap itself.'

I completely suppress the bubbles rising from my body.

They are no longer necessary.

Soap is undoubtedly my karma, my authority, and what I have built up, but it is not who I am.

'Soap can never be myself. It was certainly a precious dream...! But I am me! Even if dreaming of soap became a part of me!'

"I am not soap...I am made of everything I have encountered in my life."

Hwarurururuk!

Glass True Fire bursts forth.

Then, its form gradually becomes transparent, until it turns completely formless.

Kwaaaaaang!

I shake off the formless Glass True Fire and shout.

"I AM ME!"

With a tremendous explosion, the colorless and formless flames pierce straight through Maek Jin's black cloud, deflecting them away.

"Kuheok!"

As they return to their human form, Maek Jin lets out a dry cough and glares at me.

They close their eyes.

"...I have no choice but to acknowledge it. You are remarkable..."

Maek Jin, looking strangely enraged, roughly tears away the bandages covering their face.

Beneath them is the face of a rather handsome man.

"You have won! I will not bother you any longer... Rather, with you and that person together, you could complete the plan several hundred million times faster than I could..."

With an expression that somehow conveys a sense of defeat, he looks at me and speaks.

"I envy you, Seo Eun-hyun. To be loved by someone like that..."

Then, I realize that he is not looking at me.

What he is looking at is...

"Treat Kim Yeon well. That one talked about you all day long. As if that wasn't enough...she confidently declared that you would show a far greater miracle than her when you come here.

"In the end, she was forced to the point of even wagering herself...but without a moment's hesitation, she bet that 'you would be greater than her'."

Sarak!

I widen my eyes at the arms gently embracing me from behind.

"The bet is my loss. I had wagered that you were nothing but a bug, but...huhu. It turns out only bugs could be seen from the eyes of a bug. I will hand over the stakes I had placed."

Maek Jin rises from his place and bows deeply before me.

"I, Maek Jin, candidate for the Envoy of the Final Age of Dharma under Radiance Hall, along with the Flying Immortal Alliance under my command, pledge our allegiance to you until we leave Liberation Peach Garden Village."

Following Maek Jin, all the True Immortals who had surrounded us bow towards me and the arms wrapped around me.

I nod, accepting their bows, and speak.

"Please...give us a moment alone."

"As you command."

Maek Jin and those who appear to be his subordinates from the Flying Immortal Alliance vanish in an instant.

I gently place my hand over the arms wrapped around me.

Truly...

Truly...

"Long time no see, Yeon-ah..."

I turn around and embrace Yeon, whom I am meeting again after more than ten million years.

"Hey, Seo Eun-hyun!"

It is Jeon Myeong-hoon.

He strokes the wooden box in his chest and looks at us with weary eyes.

A somewhat bitter smile forms at the corners of his lips.

"That's not the time to be saying 'long time no see,' you dumbass!!"

"..."

"Say 'I missed you' properly!!! It's not like you don't know what kind of feelings she had before your True Immortal advancement!!"

"...Yeah. Thanks, Jeon Myeong-hoon..."

I hold Kim Yeon even tighter and speak.

Jeon Myeong-hoon looks up at the sky, and Kim Young-hoon, too, wears a face filled with yearning.

"I missed you..."

"..."

She still cannot speak.

But I can feel Kim Yeon holding me and exerting strength in her finger.

It is an Immortal Art.

A powerful Immortal Art is being displayed from her.

Kugugugugugu!

A gigantic force so immense it feels infinite gathers at her fingertip.

It is to the point that if it were not her holding me, I would have doubted whether she is trying to kill me.

The power condensed at her fingertip is in no way inferior to the Sword-Guided Star Rain of the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord.

I realize that she awakened to her own fate and discovered her true strength.

And this is...

A fragment of it.

Just as I, in Liberation Peach Garden Village, did not let go of the power I accumulated, allowing me to retain a part of the Impermanence Sword...

She, too, even after falling into this place, never let go of this power.

My Impermanence Sword is my entire life.

However, what she refuses to let go is a far smaller and narrower concept than what I grasp.

Jeeoooong!

If I am trying not to forget All Phenomena (萬狀),

She is trying not to let go of a Single Thought (一念).

I can feel a single portion of the world's force being pushed back by the power gathered at her fingertip.

The will of the Liberation Supreme Deity recedes by a portion.

At the same time, I sense that one of the restrictions covering Kim Yeon, unable to withstand that terrifying power, briefly 'breaks'.

Sururuk...

With the very fingertip that gathered the overwhelming force and pierced through part of her own restriction...

She gently traces my back.

I feel her touch.

Her movements form a character.

—Me.

I realize what she is trying to convey and hold her even tighter.

—Too.

The single thought that wishes to express that small will is a heart she could never let go of.

Kakang!

After conveying that brief will, the power of the restriction covering her once again engulfs her.

It lasts only a fleeting moment, but it is enough.

'Yeon-ah...'

It's been ten million years.

In that dark and empty spacetime of Hyeon Mu, I endured ten million years.

Though loyal subordinates and connections more than I deserve sustained me...

As I embrace her tightly, I understand.

'...Hyang-hwa.'

I chose to carve myself away to build a mountain.

And the sharper I became through carving myself, it became clear.

A sharp blade can never stand alone...

'I still love you.'

She appears before my eyes.

Now that I think about it, I was able to endure the Immortal Art of the Liberation Supreme Deity because she was reflected in Hong Fan's sheen.

'So...'

But here, this child endured a Supreme Deity's Immortal Art while thinking of me.

Even if she borrowed the power of fate.

Even if she was born with the talent of infinity...

She persevered with her own will, thinking of me.

'The love I received from you...'

Buk Hyang-hwa is dead.

Even if that heart still lives within me...she is already gone.

That is why...

I will carry on that heart.

Everything I received from her was a blessing.

The blessing that I can no longer return to her...

I will share it with others and pass it forward.

'I will continue to share it...and remember.'

I do not want to lose anything anymore.

I do not want...to stand alone anymore.

It is a selfish, greedy, and self-indulgent thought.

But...

I need a support now.

The moment I realize that someone wished to see me again,

I feel my legs give out.

'Ah...damn it. This isn't how it should be.'

Tears begin to fall.

Tremble...

Holding her tightly, leaning on her, I begin to cry in silence.

'Crying my heart out...should be something I do after everything is over...'

That is what I swore in front of Yu Hao Te.

But once the tears begin to flow, they do not stop.

I hold her close and speak.

"...Thank you...for wanting to see me."

And as I embrace her, I come to understand.

That I am far lonelier than I thought.

Like that...

For the first time in endless years, I sob in her arms—not as the [True Immortal Seo Eun-hyun], but as the [human, Seo Eun-hyun].

"Thank you, Jeon Myeong-hoon."

"..."

Jeon Myeong-hoon does not respond.

He merely strokes one side of his chest with a sunken face.

"...Ask Kim Yeon if she knows a way out. I think she said she did."

"What? How did you figure that out?"

"Hong Fan told me."

"Ah, I see."

I nod and ask Kim Yeon,

"Yeon-ah, do you perhaps have any clues on how to leave this Immortal Art World?"

Nod, nod.

She nods, and seeing that nod, Hong Fan speaks up.

"There is a way, but it seems we will need the help of those Flying Immortal Alliance people and the Great Net Immortal Maek Jin."

"I see. Then let's head to them first..."

Before I can even finish my sentence, Maek Jin reappears in an instant.

"You called?"

"Hoh, that was fast."

"What Great Net Immortal would not notice when their name is spoken within the same world?"

"I am not a Great Immortal yet, so I would not know."

"No need for formalities. From what I see, you are more than qualified to aim for the position of Supreme Deity. Speak casually."

"Hmm...if you insist..."

"Relax. If my way of speaking is burdensome, I can speak comfortably as well."

Maek Jin looks as if he has sorted out all his emotions regarding our brief exchange earlier.

"Alright. If that's the case, I'll speak freely. It seems that if we want to leave this world, we will need the help of you and the Flying Immortal Alliance."

"Well...even if you call it help, we won't be doing much. Rather, it would be Kim Yeon and you who can use a portion of Immortal Arts that will be doing most of the work."

"I see... By the way, didn't you say you've been talking with Kim Yeon all this time? You also mentioned earlier that she talked about me, but how did you know that?"

"Candidates for Envoy of the Final Age of Dharma are extremely sensitive when it comes to 'wisdom'. Let alone the Envoy of the Final Age of Dharma themselves... That's why figures like them, or those of a position above them, such as the Radiance Eight Immortals, can vaguely perceive even the will of beings who can't communicate. Well...in any case, the peculiar restriction placed on Kim Yeon seems to have been directly imposed by the Liberation Supreme Deity, so it took me quite some time to interpret, and even then, my understanding is not entirely accurate."

"Hm, I see. Anyway, does that mean there is a way to escape?"

"There is."

Maek Jin draws a picture in the air.

"First...there are a few things I've discovered while living in this world for the past five hundred thousand years."

The drawing is a [Black Snake Biting Its Tail].

"The reason the symbol of Radiance Hall is specifically a [Black Snake Biting Its Tail]...aside from it being the form of the Radiance Supreme Deity, is because this symbol intuitively represents fate."

"This represents fate?"

"Yes. Fate isn't necessarily circular, but it operates in the form of a [snake biting its tail]. Birth, aging, sickness, and death repeat endlessly, and the same events occur over and over again."

That is true.

"And...everything is fixed in place. Haven't you ever found it strange? Why do intelligent beings keep waging war, never learning from it, and continuously suffer, unable to break free from the bridle... Why do the ideologies of intelligent beings keep spinning in circles like a rotating wheel? Why do they never develop superior ideologies, develop greater skills, or advance their civilization, only repeating the same level of civilization over and over again?"

"..."

I recall the words of Yang Su-jin.

That everything is aligned according to fate.

"It is fixed in place. So change never exceeds a certain level. So mortal beings cannot escape the bridle beyond a certain point...

"Even when superior ideologies, superior civilizations, or superior cultures are born, it is adjusted according to fate, just like a snake eating its own tail, regulated with just the right amount of change in fate.

"Fate locks the world in this manner. Sure, mortal beings may suffer a little, but this fate structure is incredibly stable, and that's why Mount Sumeru has remained intact to this day."

"..."

A fate where all civilizations, ideologies, and cultural levels eternally repeat.

It is literally a [snake biting its tail].

"But let's consider a hypothesis. Suppose this snake possesses the ability to 'regenerate as much as it consumes' and 'consume as much as it regenerates,' and it has a nature that compels it to 'consume whatever is in front of it,' causing it to eternally spin as it devours its own tail."

He flicks his finger at the drawing of the [snake biting its tail].

Tukwak!

"What would happen if someone were to cut off the snake's tail or a part of its body?"

"...The part it was consuming would be cut off."

"Exactly. But here arises a problem. The snake has a nature that compels it to 'consume whatever is in front of it.' However...what would happen if it is subjected to 'pain'? A snake with a severed tail would trash around...and what is in front of it would no longer be its own tail."

The symbol Maek Jin has drawn begins to shift, forming a spiral.

"Wouldn't the snake's trajectory change? If that happens, instead of simply forming a circle, it would start moving as it pleases, drawing something as it pleases... Instead of staying fixed in one place, it would progress forward in any direction."

"..."

As I watch the snake's movements, something familiar comes to mind.

A [Spiraling Yellow Snake].

The Salt Sea Supreme Deity.

It is the symbol my master once showed me.

"This is the ideology of the Great Mountain Supreme Deity, who has relentlessly hindered the path of our Radiance Hall. It is the ideology that most of us call the 'Way of Salt' and utterly despise. And...it was also the ideology advocated by the Vast Cold Heavenly Lord five hundred thousand years ago."

Maek Jin watches the spiraling snake and continues his explanation.

"What is important is this. It may be despised by Radiance Hall, but...it is an ideology that is very widespread. There are plenty of individuals, both inside and outside Radiance Hall, who abuse mortal beings to experiment with this ideology. It is also an ideology very deeply embedded in the Underworld faction that opposes Radiance Hall. The Liberation Supreme Deity Bong Myeong was originally the left arm of the Heavenly Venerable of the Underworld, so They delved deep into this ideology as well. And the result is this world."

"Hm?"

"Weren't the roles assigned to you 'pyromaniac,' 'spy who sows discord between nations,' and 'madman who turns people into soap'?"

"They were."

"Isn't there a pattern?"

"...They're all roles that bring harm to the inhabitants of this world."

"That's right."

Maek Jin nods and smiles grimly.

"Every single member of this Flying Immortal Alliance. Even Kim Yeon. All of us! We were all assigned roles that bring suffering, confusion, and chaos to this Liberation Peach Blossom Village. And even as we were consumed by our roles, we continued to drive this place further into disorder and destruction. We were...predetermined to be characters who bring pain and chaos to this world."

At that moment, I begin to grasp what Bong Myeong is trying to do.

"...Bong Myeong...