Chapter 577: Radiance Ten Heavens (光明十天) (6)
Endless darkness.
I try to bend space with attraction force to escape from this empty void.
Gigigik...
But even after warping space and moving thousands of light-years, even after traveling for days,
Nothing in my surroundings changes.
How many days have I been moving like this?
"Master."
"...Hong Fan?"
Hong Fan speaks to .
"I lost consciousness for a mont due to the presence of so imnse being. What happened?"
"Hmm..."
I hesitate for a mont.
Hyeon Mu's words about how if Hong Fan regains his mories, he would abandon our family play lingers in my mind.
But I shake my head and tell him.
I recount everything that happened between and Hyeon Mu.
"...Master. Please offer ."
Hong Fan grits his teeth as he speaks.
"Rather than being shackled by soone like , it is far more important for Master to advance in realm by sacrificing ."
"It's not happening."
"Master!"
"Silence! It is already a decided matter. Even if I must wander this void for ten million years...no, a hundred billion years...what cannot be done cannot be done."
"Master..."
As if sensing my resolve, Hong Fan lets out a quiet sigh.
Then, nodding, he speaks.
"...Understood. If that is Master's will...then within the boundaries Master set, I will find an escape route for Master."
Hong Fan settles within my body and begins drawing sothing on the ground.
They are formulas and diagrams.
"There must be a way. This place has turned into sothing like the Interdinsional Void, but it is still the Astral Realm. If that is the case, then there may be a way to escape by passing through the Interdinsional Void, Source River, the Underworld, or the Eastern Heaven Flower Field. I will calculate every possibility and thod with all my strength."
With a solemn expression, he continues with determination.
"I will exhaust all my talents to ensure that Master escapes this place and walks your rightful fate!"
"Hong Fan..."
Feeling his loyalty, I suppress the surge of emotion rising in my chest.
Yes.
He is my family.
How could anyone carelessly doubt soone who believes in them so completely?
"...I will trust you as well."
"I will not disappoint you. I will find a way out!"
From that day on, Hong Fan devotes himself to analyzing the Astral Realm's attraction force, spatial currents, and the flow of the planes of Qi, Soul, and Fate, searching for a way to escape this empty spaceti.
Thanks to that, we uncover a new truth.
"This space is unfolding with Master at its center."
“With at its center?"
"Yes. An imnse region of space moves with Master as its core. Because this empty space shifts whenever Master moves, Master will never be able to leave it and arrive at another location through ordinary movent."
"Hmm... Then what must I do?"
"There are a few thods. The first thod is to commit suicide. If Master takes your own life, the space structured around Master will collapse. However...this is absolutely not an option, so please do not even think about it."
"Yeah. I don't commit suicide so easily"
"The second thod is to approach the brink of death 'as close as possible' then revive abruptly.
Hong Fan's explanation is as follows.
This space unfolds with at its center, influenced by my actions and state.
So, if I die, the space collapses. If I beco weak enough to be close to death, the space contracts.
And if I revive abruptly after reaching that near-death state, my restored presence will surpass the shrunken space, allowing to escape.
"...However, as this is far too dangerous, I do not recomnd it. I suggest the third thod instead."
"The third thod...?"
"Yes. The third thod is to create a substitute."
"Hmm? A substitute?"
"Yes. I recalled a mory from my past life... Have you ever heard of a way to desecrate fate?"
"I know it well."
"Then there is no need for a lengthy explanation. The thod is to elevate the Immortal Treasure or devotees within your body—like Yeo Hwi, Ham Jin, or Yu Hwi—to the True Immortal Realm. Then, Master transfers the spaceti of emptiness affixed to you onto them."
I frown at Hong Fan's words.
"That...that is far too cruel. I have no desire for such a thod of desecrating fate."
"Once Master passes this space onto them, Master can seek out the existence known as the Owner of Void and either negotiate or fight to unravel this spaceti. That will resolve the issue."
"But..."
Hong Fan watches my hesitation, then suddenly slaps across the face.
Jjaak!
"...!"
"Get a hold of yourself, Seo Eun-hyun! Do you really think you can escape this place without any sacrifice!? The only things you can obtain without sacrifice are empty ones like words and hearts! This world is built upon sacrifice, and you yourself have made it this far because of sacrifice! What you must do is not to whimper at those sacrifices but to step upon them and move forward towards a better future! You must walk your path of rightful fate!"
With a furious expression, Hong Fan continues his outburst.
"Are you planning to sit around here for thousands, tens of thousands years? A hundred billion years!? Have you not even thought about the people waiting for you outside? Right now, you need to get out of here no matter what thod it takes!"
"..."
I et Hong Fan's gaze.
He appears furious, but his eyes hold not anger, but concern.
He is only pretending to be angry for my sake.
"...A sharp rebuke. I appreciate it..."
Accepting his words, I give a bitter smile.
"Fine. If you insist this much, I will accept it to a degree. But!"
I look directly into his eyes.
"Aren't you still hiding another thod from ? Tell that first."
"...Understood. There are two more. The fourth thod. Master advances to the realm of a Great Net Immortal. If you do, Master will be free from the attraction force of the True Immortal Realm and will be able to properly move through it. That will make escaping to other dinsions, such as the Source River or the Eastern Heaven Flower Field, incredibly easy."
"And the last thod?"
"The fifth thod...is to observe every flow that composes this spaceti of emptiness and dismantle the gaps within it. If that can be done, even without a high cultivation realm, Master will be able to escape to other dinsions like the Source River, the Flower Field, or the Underworld."
Having finished his explanation, Hong Fan sighs and speaks.
"But to be honest, given the current situation, I will speak realistically. Master, you are a dullard. You have yet to even grasp your own fate, so your talent as a True Immortal is the worst. At your current state, I estimate it would take Master about a billion years to beco a Great Net Immortal."
His blunt criticism feels like a nail being driven into my chest.
'A...a billion years...'
No matter what, could it really take that long?
"And the last thod is the sa. This space has a specific flow, and it can be analyzed, but the problem is...Master must have felt it too, right?"
"...Yeah. This space...has a will."
"Yes. It is likely the will of the Northern Heavenly Venerable, as you ntioned. The mont I attempt to analyze this space, that will most certainly will begin chaotically scrambling all the flows of this vast space that stretches beyond comprehension to obstruct . To analyze this space from complete ignorance while being obstructed by a Heavenly Venerable, even for , would take fifty million years. Well...it is certainly a far faster option than waiting for Master to advance to Great Net Immortal, but...fifty million years is still an unfathomable length of ti."
"..."
"Realistically, the quickest thod is to raise Yeo Hwi back to the Entering Nirvana stage and then kill her to aid her advancent to True Immortality. Afterward, handing over this spaceti to her as a True Immortal would be the quickest course of action. In that case, it would take at most ten million years, and at the fastest, around four thousand years...but..."
Hong Fan and I turn our gaze in the sa direction.
Clank, clank...
At so point, Yeo Hwi awakened and began eavesdropping on our conversation.
The mont our eyes et, Yeo Hwi quickly escapes from my body and tries fleeing towards a distant void outside this spaceti.
Kwaadeudeuk!
But as my Immortal Treasure-bound entity, she cannot escape the attraction force between us, and she is caught and pulled back to .
"What exactly is the problem? We were discussing aiding your advancent to True Immortality."
"H-Haha...Master. Are you joking right now?"
"What?"
Yeo Hwi, seemingly forgetting that she is bound as my Immortal Treasure, starts raging at , even while stricken with fear.
"This spaceti of emptiness. There is no trace of any dinsion of death here! No Source River, no Eastern Heaven Flower Field, no Underworld, no Interdinsional Void! C-Can't you feel it? That a great being has sealed off the domain of death? How can I advance in a place like this?"
"Do not worry. There is one domain even a Heavenly Venerable cannot seal."
Indeed.
Currently, this spaceti of emptiness is tightly sealed by Hyeon Mu to prevent our escape.
From the Underworld to the Source River, all spacetis of death are severed within this Astral Realm.
However, even if it is Hyeon Mu, there is one thing she cannot seal.
The domain of purity.
'Even now, I can feel that I can use Heavenly Escape.'
The true world of death.
If it is there, advancing to True Immortal is definitely possible.
"If you advance in the sa manner I did, there will be no issue."
"Damn it! Damn it all! I already know, Master! I know what you are saying! That so-called purity or whatever. Given my age, I've heard the rumors passed down among the Entering Nirvanas!
"In ancient tis, advancing to True Immortality was practically a brutal and horrific ritual no difference from suicide. But after the rise of the Four Heavenly Venerables—Underworld, Sal Tree, Ti, and Void—the success rate for True Immortal advancent skyrocketed! That ans there is a thod to advance without passing through the conventional dinsion of death. But the probability is just too low! I will definitely die!"
"I will pass down my own advancent experience without reservation. And if I teach you martial arts—"
"I refuse!"
Even as an Immortal Treasure-bound entity unable to escape my attraction force, Yeo Hwi lashes out at before suddenly breaking into tears.
"I...I don't want to! I don't want to die. I...I'm so terrified of dying, so terrified of my life ending, that even with the easier True Immortal advancent, I was nothing but a voyeuristic piece of trash lingering in the Nether Ghost Realm! I'm afraid of dying. The thought of losing everything I have enjoyed and simply vanishing into a lump of nothingness terrifies to my core!"
She wails, sobbing uncontrollably.
"This... This is too much! If it's being imprisoned with Golden Shaking Bird for a hundred billion years to be tortured and refined, I would nod and agree! But forcing to advance is too much. I...I don't want to die!"
"..."
She does not want to die.
She wants to live.
That desperate, grief-stricken cry resonates deeply with .
Hong Fan glares at Yeo Hwi with a furious expression and shouts.
"What a disgraceful... How in the world did you even reach the Entering Nirvana stage? Do you not understand that so things cannot be obtained without being resolved to face death? From the Star Shattering stage onward, one must always be ready to risk their life! How are your previous advancents any different from advancing to True Immortality?"
"Shut up! How is certain suicide the sa as an advancent ritual where I can prepare and avoid death? I don't want to die! That's all there is to it!"
"Do you not understand that there are values greater than life? Even after surviving this long?"
"Shut your mouth, you bug bastard. How dare a re Star Shattering stage argue against ? I have already heard everything. As long as you are sacrificed, we can easily escape from here and even obtain a blessing, so why are you not slitting your own throat and offering yourself? If there really are things more important than life, prove it with your actions right now!"
"...Truly..."
Despite facing Yeo Hwi, who, being at the Sacred Vessel stage, is practically at the level of an Entering Nirvana True Person, Hong Fan, who has only just reached the Star Shattering stage, does not falter in the slightest. Instead, he grits his teeth as if looking down on her.
"...Pathetic insect."
"Ha! Say whatever you want. I...don't want to die. I just want to live. That is all."
"...You..."
I cut off their conversation.
"Enough. That is enough."
"Master..."
"That's enough, Hong Fan. I understand your loyalty, but I also fully understand Yeo Hwi's feelings. Because..."
I, too, absolutely loathe dying.
"Not wanting to die is only natural, isn't it?"
"..."
"Then there is no other way. Hong Fan, you have a total of five plans, correct?"
"Yes, that is correct."
"We will carry them all out simultaneously."
"Pardon...?"
Wo-woong!
Kugugugugu!
I raise my hand, drawing power from my true body.
My chest pain flares up again.
At the sa ti, a star begins to form above my hand.
"I will ask Ham Jin and Yu Hwi as well. And perhaps they will refuse, too. If that happens...I will ask others."
In the darkness, a single star is born.
It is not a fixed star, but a rocky planet. Still, a star is a star.
I begin to breathe life into the surface of that star.
"Either way...to cultivate the formula of the Radiance Ten Heavens, I will need living beings. I will ask them, and I will elevate my own realm as well. Hong Fan...I am sorry, but however long it takes, analyze this spaceti. anwhile, I will raise the cultivation of the lifeforms that will be born. I will raise them, raise them, and raise them even more...until one day, soone among them reaches True Immortality. Then, I will entrust it to them."
"..."
"Does that not settle everything?"
Kugugugugugu!
The pain in my chest intensifies.
I begin forming a fixed star using Immortal Arts and glance at Hong Fan with a smile.
"I do not know how many years this will take...but since things have co to this, let us think of it as an extended cultivation session. What do you think, Hong Fan? It may be a bit slower than you expected, but..."
I turn to Yeo Hwi.
"I cannot break the will of soone who wants to live, can I? And more than anything..."
I recall the words I spoke to Gwak Am.
A sharp rebuke to not force your ways upon those who refuse them.
'I...cannot be like Gwak Am.'
I despise Gwak Am.
As my senior brother, I grant Them the respect due, but Their thods, Their words, and everything about Them repulses .
So, even as I move forward, I will never follow Their way.
I will never force my path upon another.
Even if, by my own standards, it is a blessing.
"After all, you, too, respect my way. That is why, as Yeo Hwi said, you are not imdiately slitting your own throat to offer yourself, is it not?"
"..."
Hong Fan lets out a deep sigh and speaks.
"...Do as you wish. Now that Yeo Hwi has refused, my proposal no longer holds any aning...I will follow Master's will."
Thus, from that day onward, within this completely void spaceti of emptiness, I begin to place stars one by one.
Like that, one million years pass.
Kugugugugu!
The cultivation of the Radiance Ten Heavens formula.
The creation of a fixed star finally takes its first step.
At last, within the small world of stars I have ford, a fixed star is born for the first ti and scatters its light.
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