Call Of The Spear [EN]: Chapter 455

Tales of Demons and Gods – Part 2, Chapter 164

Regret Before Becoming Himself

Beom couldn’t precisely discern what that meant, so he had to ask.

“Are you saying you are the Geum-eun sisters?”

“Yes.”

Beom stroked her cheek.

However, he couldn’t find the face he missed in her.

She was an existence born from the union of Geum-mae and Eun-mae.

A completely new existence.

Thus, Beom’s expression cooled.

“You knew who I was from the beginning.”

From the start.

She had pretended not to know who Beom was, even though she knew from the beginning.

“Yes. I had a few intense memories myself.”

A few intense memories.

That meant she didn’t remember everything.

From the outset, she had told him that the pus was from the Geum-eun sisters and that it was her regret.

“The pus belongs to the Geum-eun sisters.”

“That’s right.”

Regret.

What regret could she, who had ascended to the Upper World and been reborn, possibly have?

It must be the memories and hearts of the Geum-eun sisters, which were like a past life to her.

“I thought it was an unattainable desire, so I discarded it. I had to shed it, so I threw the pus away like that.”

But she must have been afraid.

If she easily eliminated it and it remained deep within her heart, she wouldn’t be able to erase it.

“You were afraid of a Heart Demon arising.”

“Yes.”

If regret for her previous life remained and tormented her, it would become a Heart Demon, a wall blocking her cultivation.

She feared that.

It was natural, as all cultivators feared their cultivation being blocked.

“So you approached me.”

“That’s right. The timing was perfect.”

When Hwa-yang first saw Beom, she recognized him instantly.

She knew he would erase her regret and resolve her long-standing heartache.

She also thought she could make the marriage with Okbyeol Heavenly King futile, so she pushed ahead.

‘I see.’

Rumble.

A faint dark cloud covered the sky, instantly darkening the clear sky.

As if reflecting his feelings.

Beom didn’t know how to react to Hwa-yang’s confession.

He was unsure whether to miss the now-vanished sisters or to grieve.

The Geum-eun sisters had disappeared, but their union had brought forth the existence of Hwa-yang.

Then, wouldn’t Hwa-yang be no different from the Geum-eun sisters?

‘But no.’

Even though she was made up of them, Hwa-yang was not the Geum-eun sisters.

So it was truly ambiguous.

“Was it their choice?”

“Yes, they were blocked by a wall and their lifespans were running out. At that time, Father happened to come and make a proposal, and they followed it.”

“I see….”

Cheonbeom put his hands behind his back, looked at the distant mountains, and took a deep breath.

‘No wonder I couldn’t see them.’

That’s what had happened.

Beom had succeeded in ascension without difficulty, thanks to his luck and skill.

He had overcome the walls blocking his cultivation without hesitation and reached his current state.

But.

Not everyone is like him.

Some ordinary people find it difficult to even reach the realm of Sword Immortal and give up.

That is the nature of cultivation.

There are times when you can’t rise no matter how hard you try.

Why are there more Lesser Immortals than True Immortals in the Upper World?

Even though cultivators can gain near-eternal life, many Lesser Immortals in the Upper World do not.

Or rather, cannot. What could be the reason?

‘Because it is too high.’

Our Dao [path or principle] moves towards the sky and resists it.

Cultivators are beings who ignore the laws, so not everyone can do it.

For that reason, he could understand to some extent why the Geum-eun sisters were blocked by the wall of cultivation and made such a choice.

In contrast to only being able to grow old and die, they could shed their human flesh, unite as one, and become a Gui Xian [Spirit Immortal], if they did that.

They could ascend.

They would be able to see a wider world, so they couldn’t refuse.

How could they refuse when they could unfold the Great Dao [the fundamental nature of the universe] in their hearts?

It was a good proposal for them.

Even if they became different beings, no one could dare to judge their choice as right or wrong.

Moreover, they were sisters with good intentions, so it would have been a good choice in the end.

“Why didn’t you tell me from the beginning?”

“Because time has passed. I had to test whether the you they knew and the you now were the same.”

That way, she could trust him.

At her answer, Beom looked a little lonely before turning his head.

“…So, why did you bring me here?”

Beom’s tone changed.

She noticed that fact but didn’t say anything in particular.

“Please let go of their regret with your own hands now.”

Rumble…!

Whoosh!

A storm rages.

The sea of Geonwon churns violently.

Thick fog billows, and waves crash against the rocks, creating a commotion.

“Are you saying to kill the pus?”

“…Yes.”

He agonized.

What is death?

If the life activity of the flesh stops, is that really death? If the souls of Geum-mae and Eun-mae were mixed and they shed their human flesh, did they truly reach death?

Now that they can no longer remain in this world, possess self-awareness, and move, are they dead?

‘Was death this complicated?’

You die when you stop breathing.

Death was that simple.

But now it has become so complicated.

When Munmu Seon, who followed him, died, Beom grieved.

When Beom heard of the death of his own daughter, his heart was torn.

He tasted the utmost sorrow.

That is what death is like.

It is sorrowful.

‘Am I grieving now….’

Unfortunately, no.

He knows he won’t see them again, but he’s not that sad.

He didn’t know if it was because their memory had faded over the long years or because his heart had become dull.

-Aaaaaaaah

Beautiful melodies begin to be heard in the storm.

A beautiful and sorrowful tone that purifies the ears. Beom slowly descended from the sky towards the sound as if possessed.

“I don’t know.”

The rough wind and waves crashed over him but could not stop him.

A transparent green shield formed around Beom, blocking everything.

Kugugugugugung….

At Beom’s gesture, the sea parted, opening a path. Inside, golden and silver whales, each with a horn, were swimming.

The whales opened their mouths, emitting the beautiful melodies and swimming towards the sky.

Beautiful whales.

Just looking at them frolicking on the golden and silver currents made his heart swell. They were truly enormous in size and possessed a strange energy.

Saha deserved to be defeated.

Hwa-yang had already approached Beom.

She gazed at the whales with a wistful look and murmured.

“That’s what regret is like. You know it’s impossible, but you can’t let go.”

She called what came out of her pus regret.

Beom looked at Hwa-yang.

Unlike the whales, her eyes held an emotion that could not be described.

Cutting off regret.

So that she can run towards the future, not the past.

That was what she wanted.

But the reason why Hwa-yang doesn’t do it herself and asks Beom is….

“I see.”

Weak regret and sympathy for the past.

A futile regret tinged with the hearts of the sisters.

Even having him face that was her small act of sympathy.

A trace of sympathy and regret for the pus that made her who she is now.

“Is it sympathy for the past?”

He spread his hand.

A golden light flickered in his palm, and a small spark floated up.

When he blew on it, the spark flew away precariously like a dandelion seed.

The golden spark soon attached to the tails of the golden and silver whales and burst into flames.

The slowly burning whales swam through the sky, unaware that their bodies were on fire.

Golden sparks fell everywhere beside the whales as they swam forward.

The golden light, brighter than ever, spread all over the place.

Until their entire bodies were burned and disappeared, they continued to swim towards the sky and disappeared like that.

The sky, which had been full of dark clouds, had turned blue and clear.

The Hyoguga was quiet as if nothing had happened.

But a moment later. The Gui Xian [Spirit Immortals] and Bunggye’s Maseon [Demon Ascetics], wondering what was going on, began to gather.

“You can go now.”

Beom glanced at Hwa-yang and nodded calmly.

The regret of the past has disappeared.

Now that her pus has been erased, both Hwa-yang and Beom have abandoned their regrets.

“Our relationship is now severed. Since it was a relationship connected to the past in the first place, I wanted to make sure to end it.”

“I see.”

He understood exactly what she meant.

There was no point in staying any longer anyway. It was right to part ways here now, as he didn’t know when Okbyeol Heavenly King would appear.

Because it is wartime now.

“But if we meet again next time, then it will be a relationship that touches me, not a relationship with them, not the past.”

Beom did not answer.

“…Will that time come?”

“Well. The war is in full swing, so it might end here as it is.”

Even if it’s not a war, isn’t that what life is like?

It is a world where it is not strange for someone to die unexpectedly at any time, anywhere.

It is a world full of mysteries, so it is not strange to disappear with any kind of death.

Like the now-vanished Geum-mae and Eun-mae.

“That’s right. That’s right.”

Hwa-yang looks a little disappointed.

But Beom knew it and remained silent.

“Then I’ll say goodbye here. I quite enjoyed it for a while.”

Hwa-yang turned her back.

“Perhaps. If we meet again next time, we may face each other as enemies depending on the situation.”

“Maybe.”

“Then this might be the last time we can talk comfortably like now.”

“….”

“You are a man who will become a hero of the Water World, so you will play a big role in the Seonsal War. And I may have no choice but to clash with you as a princess of the Four Worlds.”

“That’s right.”

“Then the place where we will meet next time will be the battlefield.”

That might be the case.

Each has their own role and background.

It’s a perfectly possible story.

“Are you okay with that? Meeting me as an enemy.”

It is a question with many meanings.

Beom seemed to know what kind of answer she wanted.

“I have my role and responsibility, and you will have your role and responsibility… If that time comes, we will have to fulfill each other’s roles and responsibilities.”

“…That’s right. That’s right.”

Hwa-yang took out an iron mask from her arms with calm eyes, put it on her face, and said.

“Then goodbye.”

At her farewell, Beom summoned his party with telepathy.

Saha, Huhae, and Sabi, who didn’t know what was going on, approached him.

Beom wrapped the party in golden energy and disappeared into the sky, trailing behind him.

Left alone, Hwa-yang looked up at the sky where he had disappeared for a long time and then exhaled as if her strength had given out.

She laughed in vain at the feeling of emptiness and then turned her back.

* * *

Several days later.

On top of a giant black orc dragon soaring through the sky, a man stood with his hands behind his back. It was Cheonbeom.

“It’s sudden. Are you okay even though you got married?”

Behind Cheonbeom were Saha, Huhae, and Sabi, who seemed bewildered by the sudden departure.

“What’s okay or not, it’s not like we got married sincerely anyway. And the fact that we had a wedding with a Gui Xian [Spirit Immortal] of the Four Worlds doesn’t make sense in itself.”

Sabi spoke as if blaming Huhae, but Beom said nothing.

Saha glanced at him subtly, but he didn’t meet her eyes as if he had something to think about alone.

Saha was curious if something had happened between the two, but she didn’t bother to ask.

She was afraid to ask, and it seemed like he wouldn’t tell her in that state.

“But where are we going?”

“We have to return to the Water World’s camp. There are more Maseon [Demon Ascetics] here than I thought, but there won’t be any difficulties.”

They met Sal Seon [Killer Ascetics] or Ma Seon [Demon Ascetics] from time to time, but most of them were killed by Beom in an instant before they could even step forward.

It was more difficult to talk to him because he killed them all in an instant as if he was venting his anger.

It’s been several days since he’s been sitting on Tamhwa’s head without moving.

“Hmm?”

It was then.

The party sitting on Tamhwa’s body all shuddered at the clash of energy felt far away.

“Beom!”

It is an enormous amount of energy.

It was so huge that Saha and others were nervous.

At least a Hyangseon [High Immortal]-level battle is taking place.

“Don’t make a fuss.”

Beom rebuked in a low voice and slowly spread his divine sense forward.

And soon he twitched his eyebrows and slowly raised the corners of his lips.

“It seems that the Sal Seon [Killer Ascetics] of Bunggye and several Su Seon [Water Ascetics] of the Water World are fighting.”

“Then shouldn’t we go and help?”

Huhae shouted, but Beom chuckled and shook his head.

“There’s no need to do that. It wouldn’t be bad to watch the situation a little more.”

“Yes? Why is that?”

“I know the guy who is leading the Water World’s army.”

Even in the fierce battle, he felt a unique and familiar energy.

“Misi Se-ga’s Mise-pa…”

It was the guy who was in charge of Palyeoldo.