Call Of The Spear [EN]: Chapter 553

Nangseon’s Adventures – Part 2, Episode 262

Fault.

Cheonbeom, catching the falling Mangak Byeonwang, checked the sword lodged in his chest.

“Kuh-heuk!”

He groaned in pain.

The sword was grotesquely intertwined with Mangak Byeonwang’s flesh.

Thuck.

As he placed his hand on the hilt, he felt the power of a strange law.

‘Similar to what Hwadam possesses.’

Could it be a law related to absorption?

If left alone, it seemed it would devour not only Mangak Byeonwang’s flesh but also his very essence, extinguishing his existence.

‘Is this the power that eliminated the Wonseon [Perfected Immortal] of the Missi Family?’

He wondered what exactly it did; it was a power that stole not only the life and strength of the victim but also the memories of those left behind.

“To show such an unsightly appearance before my son-in-law…”

“Please, don’t say that.”

Veins bulged in Cheonbeom’s hand as he gripped the sword.

But at the same time, both Mangak and Beom’s faces contorted.

One from pain.

The other from a thought that was one step ahead.

‘The position is not good.’

Wonseon Taesa [Great Perfected Immortal] is one whose mind, body, and spirit are united.

Even if it were Hyangseon, having one’s body damaged after reaching Wonseon has a different meaning than before.

“The position… isn’t good, is it?”

He also knew, spitting blood from his mouth and smiling bitterly.

“That is not true.”

His heart was pierced.

Moreover, Geomno’s sword was parasitizing Mangak Byeonwang’s energy and flesh.

If he recklessly pulled out the intertwined flesh with force, his heart, a major organ, would be damaged.

Even then, he wouldn’t die… but it would be as good as dead.

If it were somewhere else, it wouldn’t matter, but the battle here was not over.

‘Even if I pull out the sword…’

He would die even if he didn’t.

Either way, he would die.

“As expected, you noticed right away. It would have been quite a sight if you had pulled out the sword.”

“…”

Swish.

The Sword Demon Iltaek appeared as the seven-colored clouds faded.

By now, Jiranwi and Ubaekja were also with him.

Only then did he seem to roughly understand how the situation was unfolding.

‘The Sword Demon is strong.’

Even among the Wonseon Taesa, there was a clear difference in power.

But Mangak Byeonwang was not one to be defeated so easily.

However, the combined attack of the three was different.

“Ubaekja! Jiranwi, you bastards!! Even in this situation, you follow the Sword Demon Iltaek!!”

The Heavenly Outlaw Army shouted in anger, but Jiranwi and Ubaekja did not respond.

Moreover, the atmosphere was also a bit strange.

As the Heavenly Outlaw Army frowned, Mangak Byeonwang, wiping the blood flowing from his mouth, opened his mouth.

“It’s no use… They have long been in the grasp of the Sword Demon.”

“What do you mean… Could it be?”

The answer to that was heard not from Mangak but from the Sword Demon’s mouth.

“It would have been better if they had become swords through a formation, but just in case, I had already taken measures with them. Unlike you, I have had exchanges with them for a long time.”

Already, they were.

“My swords.”

* * *

In the center was the Sword Demon with his white hair.

On either side of him stood Jiranwi and Ubaekja with expressionless faces.

And opposite them were five Wonseon who could not hide their astonishment.

So.

In the end, this was also.

“Your arrangement, I presume.”

“How could I carry out any great undertaking without preparing to this extent? When I struck you down in the past, I did even more than this.”
The Sword Demon seemed somewhat excited, as if recalling distant memories.

And then and now.

“You are always just angry.”

Kwaduk.

Beom clenched his fist, but his gaze was directed at the Sword Demon.

At the same time, the memories of the mountain flashed vividly through Cheonbeom’s mind.

The sight of his children being plunged into Geonwon Haejeong [a type of spiritual prison] and the mountain sacrificing himself to save them.

‘And those despicable eyes looking down on me, then and now.’

He could not forget.

The face of the bastard who made him angry even though it was not his own business.

With that in front of him, how could he not be filled with anger?

“The failure of the Divine Sword Unification was quite unexpected. I never dreamed that the things left behind by that friend Yedeong, not you, would break it.”

But that was all.

“That’s all it was. Tsk, tsk, considering my old friendship, I didn’t bother to take your head, but if that was your fate, I should have taken it myself. The arrow that turned into a sword would have been interesting too.”

There was sincerity in the Sword Demon’s attitude as he spoke with regret.

Cheonbeom looked down at Mangak Byeonwang in his arms and moved his lips.

Soon, a small spark moved from him to his sword, and a small clone from the bracelet of the Five Dragons on his wrist flowed into the sword.

Only then did Cheonbeom entrust him to the Heavenly Outlaw Army and rise from his seat.

“I have infused it with the power of my law and Tam’s clone. Even if complete healing is difficult, it will stop the progression of the spell.”

A little of the power of the Three Lives and Three Gods and Tam’s clone would stop it to some extent.

It was not right to pull out the sword, and if he could not pull it out, then stopping it first was the best.

‘Now, what should I do…’

Fortunately, the only Wonseon who had become the Sword Demon’s swords were Jiranwi and Ubaekja.

The other Wonseon were still fine.

Nokmyeon Wiwang of the Chunggye [Central Realm].

Jeolma Daegun of the Bunggye [Northern Realm].

The Heavenly Outlaw Army of the Sugye [Water Realm].

‘Mangak Byeonwang of the Sagye [Sand Realm] is…’

It seemed difficult, so there were four who could fight, including himself.

‘The opponents are three.’

Ubaekja, Jiranwi, Sword Demon Iltaek.

“We are numerically advantageous.”

But the Sword Demon Iltaek’s power was so terrifying that the meaning was diluted.

‘A divine power that turns the opponent’s power and existence itself into a sword…’

A power he had never heard of.

In a way, it was a creation-type power with prominent laws, but it was also subtly different.

‘Rather than creation…’

It would be more reasonable to see it as a mixing power. It was similar to Tam’s power.

“Chaos, perhaps.”

A power like that.

It was quite troublesome.

“I’ll take care of Jiranwi.”

It was the Heavenly Outlaw Army.

He had evacuated Mangak Byeonwang somewhere, so his hands were free.

“Then I’ll take this side.”

It was Nokmyeon Wiwang.

“Then I’ll take this side too.”

Jeolma Daegun.

Nokmyeon Wiwang and Jeolma Daegun were facing Ubaekja together.

“I am enough alone.”

“Wouldn’t it be good for each other to finish together and help quickly?”

Because this is the time.

Nokmyeon Wiwang did not answer further to Jeolma Daegun’s words.

As if to say, do as you please.

“Geumcheon, are you alright?”

To Jeolma Daegun’s question, Cheonbeom drew the sword from its scabbard and said.

“Of course. Shall we turn the tables for now?”

Whoosh.

A strange wind stirred.

As golden waves rippled in all directions, his sword fluttered and disappeared into flower petals.

As the sword’s form completely disappeared, golden buds bloomed on the ground.

The blooming buds were golden lotuses.

Golden lotuses.

What it held was Hwajeong [Essence of Fire].

The essence of fire.

Instantly, thousands, tens of thousands of golden lotuses bloomed and released the Hwajeong they held.

The golden lanterns brightly illuminated the surroundings, as if the sun had risen and illuminated the world.

“Taehwa Mandung – Gyeomse (Great Flower Lanterns – Illuminating the World).”

Sarrrreuk.

Amid the fluttering petals, Hwajeong exploded.

The tens of thousands of Taehwa Mandung exploded in an instant, but the expressions of the Sword Demon and Cheonbeom did not waver.

Soon, in the explosion as brilliant as sunlight, the gazes of the Sword Demon and Cheonbeom met.

The explosions of the Taehwa Mandung, which would have deafened the ears, subsided, and soon it became as calm as a quiet lake.

When the Sword Demon Iltaek opened his eyes, what he saw was a very quiet garden.

A single path made of white stone and a lotus field filled around it.

A garden filled with golden lotuses.

Fog was thick above the lotuses, so nothing could be seen, but it was a place with a somewhat dreamy atmosphere.

“A phantom realm… no, it’s not a simple phantom realm. It’s a middle ground between illusion (換) and reality (現).”

He didn’t even need to ask who had created this place.

The Sword Demon Iltaek knew that he had created it to intentionally separate himself and those who had now become swords.

“It’s not like I don’t have time.”

The Sword Demon Iltaek walked and walked along the single path made of white stone.

As he walked along the outer path and looked around, stairs appeared in front of him.

The stairs were also foggy, so he couldn’t see the end.

“Hmm, stairs.”

In his view, this staircase was a very suspicious place.

It was also quite suitable for hiding something. For example, a trap.

The Sword Demon Iltaek stroked his long beard, caressed it, and stepped onto the stairs with a sneer.

“But isn’t it the true nature of a man to move forward even knowing it?”

Tuk.

One step, one step.

The Sword Demon Iltaek easily climbed the stairs.

There was no activation of a golden restriction or the emergence of a related formation, as if he had been waiting.

Step by step.

The higher he climbed the white stairs, the shorter his beard, which had reached his chest, became.

Soon, his steps became lighter, and his white hair and beard began to darken.

The fine wrinkles became those of a robust young man.

Tak.

And soon, when he reached the end of the stairs.

The Sword Demon Iltaek.

No, Ageom in the old days.

He had become the figure of a young man.

“You’re doing pointless things.”

Ageom, having checked his condition, scoffed and crossed his arms.

His gaze rested on the top of the stairs.

It was a man sitting in a classical pavilion prepared there.

A man sitting on a jade throne in the pavilion with weary eyes.

It was Cheonbeom.

“You’re finally here. It took longer than I thought, so I dozed off for a moment.”

He had no idea what he was thinking.

Ageom let out a hollow laugh and strode towards him.

Then, sitting in the prepared chair, he asked.

“Are you trying to buy time?”

“Buy time… am I?”

It was the tone of someone asking if there was a need.

“Rather, I shouldn’t buy time. The Wonseon Taesa are all bodies trapped in your Divine Sword Unification’s Sword Prison. They might be becoming swords in your eerie divine power, so why would I buy time?”

“Then why are you doing this?”

Why would he bother to create such a space and make his appearance young?

“Well. That’s what I want to ask.”

“What do you mean?”

“Ageom, how did you climb the stairs?”

“…What are you trying to say?”

“It’s as it sounds. Originally, those who climb the stairs have something they want.”

Whatever it is.

They climb the stairs because they have a wish.

If they don’t, they don’t climb.

It’s a very natural principle.

“If you say that, wouldn’t it be the same for the one who made the stairs? San.”

Cheonbeom’s lips curved into a smile at the words that the one who made the stairs was also the same.

“What you want is probably to make me a sword. After that, you would leave Sangcheon [Upper Heaven] without any regrets and head to Daeracheondo [Great Freedom Heaven], and if you’re lucky, you might even become a Jinseon [True Immortal].”

“That’s right. I don’t want to make the mistake of killing you twice with my own hands. So, I want you to achieve my long-awaited goal. But you won’t obediently follow my will.”

“It would be strange to follow. I haven’t lived my life to become your sword.”

“I was thinking of trying to persuade you, but it would be meaningless.”

“You’re saying that knowing it. I can’t move forward without killing you.”

It was a bad relationship that had continued since Geomryeongdo [Sword Spirit Island].

No, maybe even before that.

So now is the time to cut off the long-standing cycle of bad blood.

“I’ve been thinking countless times about what to do.”

Revenge was already a given.

But dragging him down and taking his life was not enough.

The resentment of the Sajuks [Sword Clan Members] who had a relationship with him in Geomryeongdo.

The wills of the swords who became brothers against their will and entrusted him with their backs.

Even the cries of the children vividly left in San’s memory.

As long as he carried that.

It is not enough to pierce his heart, take his head, and prevent him from reincarnating.

“Ageom, do you know this saying?”

Cheonbeom, who had risen from the jade throne, looked down at him and said.

“What?”

“They say that there are three reincarnations in the life of a living being.”

“…”

Three reincarnations.

Three lives and deaths.

“Do you know why they give three lives?”

“Well. I’ve never lived three lives, so I don’t know.”

“They say it’s to give a chance.”

“A chance?”

“Yes, a chance. A chance to repent for sins.”

But.

“I am not so merciful…”

I won’t give you three chances.

“The name of the stairs you climbed is Byeokgong Bucheokmyeoldan (Azure Sky Untouched Extinction Stairway). There are a total of 13,546 stairs.”

One stair is one world.

One stair is one life.

“The stairs you climbed one by one.”

It was sometimes someone’s sky, or someone’s land.

“To judge your sins will be the sky and the land you have trampled on.”

I will call it hell.