Chương 691: Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity (3)

Jeon Myeong-hoon launches the first strike.

Kwaaaaang!

Thrust!

Jeon Myeong-hoon grips his spear and swiftly assumes the stance of Zha, piercing toward Do Gon's soul.

A thunderous blast resounds as he is flung backward.

And that is the end of it.

"... Ah."

Jeon Myeong-hoon regains awareness.

"... This place is..."

The Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain.

It is the land of the Nether Ghost Realm.

Jeon Myeong-hoon assesses the situation.

With a single strike from Do Gon, he was instantly expelled from within Do Gon's body, pierced through the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain, tore through the Heavenly King Heavenly Domain, and fell all the way into the Nether Ghost Realm of the Sun and Moon Heavenly Domain.

"Kuleuk!"

A waterfall of lightning erupts from Jeon Myeong-hoon's mouth.

"Is this... a Supreme Deity?"

There was not even a moment to respond.

It wasn't their main body—merely a spirit.

And yet, with just a single strike, he ended up like this.

A terrifying force and endless authority.

A being that transcends common sense, detached from all limits and boundaries of a True Immortal.

Supreme Deity.

It is only then that Jeon Myeong-hoon feels as if a massive wall stands before his eyes.

'Can I win?'

He sees no answer.

Every Immortal Art, every Heavenly Tribulation, every dharma treasure he had prepared for Do Gon— He was blasted away without the slightest chance to activate any of them.

Barely managing to survive Do Gon's strike is Jeon Myeong-hoon's greatest achievement.

'...'

Yet, Jeon Myeong-hoon rises again and regains his stance.

'I will win...'

He decides to discard all other thoughts.

'No, it's not about winning.'

There is no time to cast spells or Immortal Arts against Do Gon.

Among all that he can do right now, the most feasible is to seize a single instant and land one thrust.

To thrust.

Even if only once, to thrust his spear at them.

In that way...

He will return the pain and anger he received, if only for a single moment.

He erases every other possibility from his mind.

Jeon Myeong-hoon maintains that resolve and steadies his stance with gleaming eyes.

Kwajijijik!

Thunder rumbles around him.

In that instant, Jeon Myeong-hoon utters a single phrase.

"Returning Lightning Strike."

Kwarung!

The spell of Returning Lightning Strike activates, and Jeon Myeong-hoon reaches the place he was just a moment ago.

Red Lightning Heavenly Tribulation.

Returning Lightning Strike.

Now having entered the domain of Immortal Arts, Returning Lightning Strike ignores all obstacles and returns Jeon Myeong-hoon to his previous position.

And immediately after— Without even a moment to perceive, Jeon Myeong-hoon is flung back out to the Outer Sea.

But like a roly-poly toy, Jeon Myeong-hoon bounces back up and activates Red Lightning Heavenly Tribulation.

"Returning Lightning Strike."

Kwarung!

He returns again.

And is blasted away again by Do Gon.

And he returns again with Returning Lightning Strike.

And again, he is blasted away by Do Gon.

Again and again and again, he endlessly returns in front of Do Gon, repeating thrusts like a roly-poly toy.

The damage gradually accumulates in Jeon Myeong-hoon, and he begins to approach death, but it doesn't matter.

"Returning Lightning Strike."

Kwarururung!

Jeon Myeong-hoon knows.

He is a coward, full of greed, often angry, and hot-tempered by nature.

There is not a single thing he has achieved with his own hands.

Even now, it is the same.

Among all the Immortal Arts and dharma treasures Jeon Myeong-hoon uses, not a single one is something he obtained by his own effort.

But precisely because he has achieved nothing by his own hands— Jeon Myeong-hoon grits his teeth and keeps charging at Do Gon.

"Returning Lightning Strike!"

Again and again.

"Returning Lightning Strike!"

Kwarururung!

"Go back again!"

Kwarururung!

"Again!!"

Kwarurung!!

There is nothing he has accomplished.

There is nothing he has protected.

So now, for just this one moment— For just this fleeting instant— He will protect with his own hands.

Carrying that vow in his chest, Jeon Myeong-hoon is ceaselessly flung away by Do Gon, suffering fatal injuries over and over, and continues to accumulate the causality he will return to Do Gon.

"Again!!!"

Kwarururung!

Then, at some point— Jeon Myeong-hoon suddenly feels that his hand is connected with the lightning spear.

Simultaneously, he feels something 'blooming' inside his chest.

It is a flower made of paper.

Jeon Myeong-hoon suddenly feels like he has seen that paper flower somewhere before.

"Again!"

Kwarururung!

Returning once more to Do Gon's front, Jeon Myeong-hoon listens closely to the feeling blooming from that paper flower.

Wo-woong!

The Sword Spear Heavenly Lord Ji Hwa suddenly becomes aware of something resonating in her chest.

'This is...'

Her star, made of paper flowers, is resonating with something.

She realizes what is happening.

'Have the Enders... internalized the Sword Extreme Heart Method and reached the mid stage?'

Through the Sword Extreme Heart Method, she senses Kang Min-hee and Oh Hyun-seok.

Kang Min-hee, through the Celestial Lord Incense Burning spell, is calling upon Seo Eun-hyun by strengthening the connection.

Oh Hyun-seok is borrowing the power of 'Names' held by the Naming Supreme Deity to call Seo Eun-hyun through his name.

'Such powerful thought. So these are the Enders...'

But suddenly, she feels a wave of worry wash over her.

'But this still isn't enough. To summon Seo Eun-hyun... a stronger thought is needed. What is Jeon Myeong-hoon doing? Until just recently, he was definitely calling Seo Eun-hyun the most strongly...'

She cannot understand it.

The thoughts felt through the Sword Extreme Heart Method from Kang Min-hee and Oh Hyun-seok are strong, but Jeon Myeong-hoon's thought has suddenly vanished.

'Just why...?'

She can no longer feel Jeon Myeong-hoon's thought.

It feels as if...

Jeon Myeong-hoon has died.

'No way... did you die from Do Gon's single strike? Jeon Myeong-hoon...!'

The light in the eyes of the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord tremble slightly as she assumes the worst situation.

Because such a possibility certainly exists, she swings her sword more quickly, so subtly that no one can easily notice.

It is a result born from a faint sense of urgency.

And the Rain Dew Heavenly Lord glances at her subtly from the rear ranks of the Radiance Eight Immortals.

'Where... is this place?'

Jeon Myeong-hoon suddenly realizes he has entered some strange space.

'Ah... I see.'

A pure white space where nothing exists.

Jeon Myeong-hoon suddenly realizes that he is dead.

The accumulated damage from being struck and repelled by Do Gon has eventually led to his death.

'I'm dead. How empty.'

But that thought lasts for but a moment.

Jeon Myeong-hoon becomes aware that, for some reason, he keeps repeating the motion of holding a spear and thrusting at something.

'I'm dead, but... what am I doing right now?'

How long has he been in that dazed state, repeating that action?

At last, Jeon Myeong-hoon comes to a realization.

'I'm... right now...'

He hasn't arrived somewhere after dying.

His physical body still remains in the current world, and only his mind has accessed this strange space.

'... thrusting...'

It is at that moment when he realizes this.

Something appears in front of Jeon Myeong-hoon's eyes.

It is a corpse.

Jeon Myeong-hoon's own corpse, already killed by Do Gon, still continues to move and endlessly repeats the act of thrusting even after death.

Do Gon repels Jeon Myeong-hoon's corpse, and the corpse uses Returning Lightning Strike again and again, returning to Do Gon and repeating the thrust.

A bizarre phenomenon where the dead repeats the action performed just before death.

It is the same kind of situation as when Seo Eun-hyun, having been beheaded, decapitated Makli Hyun.

But Jeon Myeong-hoon, who would know nothing of this, simply stares blankly at the scene, unable to understand what is happening.

Then, Jeon Myeong-hoon suddenly hears someone speaking quietly.

—You've at least practiced thrusting well.

'Me... practice...?'

He reflects on his past.

He was dull, short-tempered, talentless, lazy, and greedy.

There's no way someone like him would have practiced anything diligently.

He always wanted to get by easily, doing the bare minimum while expecting the best results—that was Jeon Myeong-hoon's way of life.

'Was I... that kind of person...?'

And perhaps the voice reads his thoughts.

The voice responds.

—You were that kind of person.

'Of course... as if I ever really practiced...'

—But you also weren't that kind of person.

The voice continues slowly.

—There's no such thing as a person who's perfect in every aspect. Everyone just puts effort into what they're good at... and that's what gets called talent. Just as a person has many sides, you too have that kind of side, and this kind of side.

Jeon Myeong-hoon opens his eyes wide.

—So, have confidence. You have plenty of flaws, but at least right now, at this very moment, the side of you being shown is your best.

He feels as if someone is holding the spear together with him.

The spear feels unbelievably light, and countless flaws he never noticed until now while thrusting flood into his mind.

With a sense of exaltation he has never felt before, he widens his eyes.

—Trust in the sides of yourself you've accumulated. For it is already... overflowing with you.

And finally, Jeon Myeong-hoon understands who the owner of the voice is.

Blink— Jeon Myeong-hoon becomes aware of where he is once again.

"Again."

Kwarururung!

He is, once again, standing before Do Gon.

And he understands what state he is in.

The scent of plum overflows from his mouth, and he is already dead yet not dead.

And, he is holding a spear.

The eyes of Jeon Myeong-hoon and Do Gon meet.

:: You've become... somewhat worth watching.:: A smile of unknown meaning appears on Do Gon's lips.

Jeon Myeong-hoon gazes at that smile and raises his lighting spear.

Thrust.

Paaang!

For an instant, Jeon Myeong-hoon's body passes beyond lightning, beyond light, beyond spacetime, and reaches Indra's Net.

Within his chest, paper flowers shake loudly and forcibly pull him into a new domain.

At some point, Jeon Myeong-hoon finds himself in the domain of Indra's Net.

Within the realm of Araya Consciousness, he is able to strike his spear head-on toward Do Gon's unfolding blow.

Paaang!

How many times has he charged at Do Gon?

At last, Jeon Myeong-hoon succeeds in matching a thrust against Do Gon's weapon.

Of course, his thrust is pitiful.

Rather, it is Jeon Myeong-hoon's own body, despite being the one doing the thrusting, that is unable to withstand the shock of Do Gon's thrust and is flung away again all the way past the edge of the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain.

However, for the first time, he perceives Do Gon's attack.

"... Again."

Kwarururung!

That alone is enough.

It still feels like he has achieved nothing by his own effort.

Even the perception of Do Gon's attack is not due to his own skill.

But it doesn't matter.

Even if he has accomplished nothing with his own hands, the moment he now grasps—the 'present' he clenches—is shining for the first time.

Jeon Myeong-hoon charges at Do Gon once more.

Kaaaang!

This time, the sound of his clash with Do Gon's spear is even louder.

'Again!'

He simply charges again, unable to produce even a physical voice.

Yet his footsteps now are lighter than in any of the previous strikes when he had screamed and rushed at Do Gon.

He feels it.

'Again!!!'

Kwaaaaang!

At last, Seo Eun-hyun begins to fight alongside him.

Aside from Jeon Myeong-hoon, who is half-conscious and whose mind has drifted into the domain of emptiness, all other beings hold their breath.

For a brief moment, a dreadful silence descends upon the battlefield of Radiance Hall and the Jade Pivot Lightning Immortals.

Everyone present feels it.

"... Gan... dhara...?"

The Ten Thousand Laws Spiritual Lord and the Eastern Brilliance Spiritual Lord, who received martial teachings from the True Martial Great Emperor Hyeon Mu, tremble and look around.

All those who have once witnessed Hyeon Mu's Gandhara now feel a chillingly similar sensation and frantically scan the surroundings.

Right now, in this very place, Something akin to Hyeon Mu's Gandhara is descending.

It is while everyone—except for the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord and the Enders—is flustered by the sudden appearance of a third power.

Kurururururung!

A flash of white seems to flicker, and a massive spiraling light begins to engulf the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain.

The Radiance Eight Immortals immediately realize what that light signifies and can't help but be shocked with fright.

:: What...!? This is... Seo Eun-hyun!:: The Great Forest Heavenly Lord reveals their fury and glares at the spiraling light now appearing in this place.

:: Has he returned!? Sword Spear, the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity is no longer what matters right now! His return means...:: The Great Forest Heavenly Lord tries to order the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord to change targets.

However, the Sword Spear Heavenly Lord flatly rejects the request.

:: No. We continue to engage the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity as-is.:::: Sword Spear!:: The Sword Spear Heavenly Lord hides the joy on her face as she gazes at the spiraling light now summoned and covering the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain.

'He... has begun to return.'

For some reason, even though the amount of thought she sensed is far less than what she had calculated, Seo Eun-hyun has started to descend into this place.

However, that is only a 'part' of Seo Eun-hyun.

:: Can you not feel it? Seo Eun-hyun hasn't been fully summoned. That is merely a portion of Seo Eun-hyun's true body.:: She quickly uses the Immortal Cultivation system of the paper flowers to identify which part of Seo Eun-hyun's true body has been summoned.

That is, the [Left Arm of Seo Eun-hyun], who has melted himself into the world and become part of its laws.

:: Seo Eun-hyun's mind has not been summoned yet. The feared Immortal Beast King advancement will not occur. Judging by the speed of the summoning, it will take several months before the true body is fully summoned. For now, we first subdue the Heavenly Punishment Supreme Deity, then we suppress the half-summoned Seo Eun-hyun. That is the best strategy!:: As the wartime commander, Sword Spear Heavenly Lord gives the command.

:: At present, Seo Eun-hyun cannot affect any of us. For now, we focus not on Seo Eun-hyun but on Do Gon! This is a command from the representative of martial force, hence the Radiance Eight Immortals are to obey!:: At those words, the Great Forest Heavenly Lord and the Rain Dew Heavenly Lord briefly glance at each other.

But for now, they nod.

::... Understood. We obey the command.:: Thus, everyone ignores the [Left Arm of Seo Eun-hyun] summoned to the Bearing Tree Heavenly Domain, and resumes the war once more.

—Immortal cultivation is repentant enlightenment...

With no one noticing the extremely faint mantra arising from the [Left Arm of Seo Eun-hyun].