## Chapter 2569 – 2569. The Ascent To Guangming

I enter the palace. The underground palace is dark and chaotic. Looking closely, it feels like it lacks any sense of unity.

‘Was it originally a small palace that was repeatedly expanded? These bastards didn’t care about aesthetics or practicality and just expanded it however they pleased. Thanks to that, it’s a total maze.’

I move forward. I spot some monsters. They seem to be monsters doing menial labor. I kill every monster I see.

I also see some rather disturbing things. A freezer filled with the corpses of monsters and humans, and a human livestock pen where pregnant women are kept.

“Ugh… uhhh….”

The humans being raised in the livestock pen can’t speak. The monsters didn’t even teach them how to talk. These human livestock are born here, raised here, and become special meals for the monsters.

The Martial Alliance Leader, who had been following me while hiding his presence, briefly reveals himself.

“…This horrific act has been repeated for at least hundreds of years. For them, life must have been hell itself. Their lives are nothing but pain, so ending their lives will be a salvation for this world.”

“Is a Taoist saying we should kill people to save them?”

I ask, dumbfounded.

The Martial Alliance Leader doesn’t even raise an eyebrow.

“Taking them away and saving them would also be a way. But aren’t they already domesticated as livestock? Look at their limbs. They’ve been cut off so they can’t escape, so they can’t even dream of rebellion. Even if we take them and force them to live, their lives will only be arduous. If you won’t do it, I will.”

“You’re a real piece of work.”

“They committed sins in their past lives, and in this life, they are suffering terrible pain. In a way, they can be called sinners. But our arrival here means their karma has been cleansed. So, isn’t this also fate?”

“Ah, sure.”

I reply casually. I don’t believe in fate or anything like that. Or at least, I want to say that, but considering this world’s setting, it might be possible. Either way, I don’t really care. For me, this world is just a game.

“May you be born in a good place in the next life and enjoy blessings. May the Primal Celestial Lord watch over you.”

“The Primal Celestial Lord wouldn’t care about them at all. If he cared about this world, he would have done something already. You guys might really be reincarnated… but if you are, reincarnate as someone powerful. You need power to have choices.”

“Haha. That’s a very Demonic Cult-like thing to say.”

The Martial Alliance Leader kills the human livestock. He places his hand on their heads and uses his inner energy to end their lives painlessly.

“We must kill the White Tiger here. For such a being to become a celestial is an insult to the celestial realm.”

“This is a world where people ascend with power, not Tao. Why are you making a fuss now?”

The celestial realm isn’t heaven. It’s just another world.

The Martial Alliance Leader hides his body and presence again. I start moving my legs again.

And finally, I arrive at the place where the White Tiger is.

A huge White Tiger is sitting in a pavilion built on a lake of underground water. The spiritual energy of heaven and earth is fluctuating around him, but the lake itself is calm. Next to the pavilion, the corpse of a spider monster, half-eaten, is hanging.

I tighten my grip on the Hwaryeon Flying Daggers.

‘Now is the chance, while he’s concentrating on his ascension. I’ll kill him in one go.’

It was the moment I was about to draw up my inner energy. The White Tiger, who had been closing his eyes, suddenly opens them and stares at me.

“…You’re stopping the flow of the spiritual energy of heaven and earth and your own power? Have you given up on ascension?”

“I didn’t suddenly stop. I planned to do so from the beginning. That spider monster is quite something. I never thought a star would really come to me.”

The White Iron Forbidden Tiger laughs lowly. It sounds like nothing more than a beast growling. Red demonic energy pours out of his body relentlessly. If he’s a White Tiger, he’s likely a distant descendant of the White Tiger of the Four Symbols, but there’s not a trace of divinity in him.

“Heuh. Heuh. I can’t stand it. You look so delicious. I’ve lived for hundreds of years, but you’re the first human to smell this delicious. You must be the ultimate delicacy….”

“You were targeting me from the start? It doesn’t make sense for a mere fortune teller to know about me. Who told you about me?”

A fortune teller recognizing me, who has the energy of a star, just by fortune telling? That’s like reading the heavens at will. If they had that kind of ability, their fame would have spread throughout the world.

“The spider was useful, but that’s all. He set an auspicious day for me. I ate him just now because he was no longer needed. It was the Elder who told me about you. The Elder said that if I eat a human with the energy of a star, I’ll be treated well even in the heavens.”

“A monster of the Harmony Realm respects someone they call Elder? That Elder must be something else. Who is it?”

“The Elder is… Ah. I’ve been rambling too much. With the ultimate delicacy in front of me, I couldn’t help but get excited. Now, food of the stars, tell me your name. I will remember you forever.”

“Ultimate delicacy? The ultimate core is talking big. I wasn’t interested in butterfly soup… but they say White Tiger meat is good for the bones, so maybe I’ll try it this time.”

I raise the Sword Finger and point it at him.

Meteor Sword.

Twelve swords are created in the air and rush towards him.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

The swords are deflected without even scratching the White Tiger’s body. The White Tiger charges at me.

‘His movements are simple, unlike his power.’

It’s not hard to dodge. I dodge to the side and swing the Hwaryeon Flying Daggers.

Thunder Heaven Style (雷天流) Thunder Gang Blade (雷罡刃).

Clang!

An attack that can cut through even dragon scales is deflected. I feel a stronger-than-expected recoil and step back.

“My body is harder than diamond. Do you think you can cut me with that little skewer?!”

The White Tiger lets out a roar. The shockwave causes the underground water to splash everywhere. I lose my balance and stagger on the water. I can’t hear anything. It feels like my eardrums have burst.

I take out a top-grade potion from my inventory and drink it. My burst eardrums quickly recover.

The White Tiger swings his front paw. His sharp claws become slashes and fly towards me. I swing my sword and send out slashes. The slashes collide in the air and cancel each other out. The resulting shockwave sweeps through the surroundings.

‘Cloud Control.’

I create a wall of clouds to block the shockwave.

“Heuh… heuh….”

The White Tiger’s breathing is rough. His eyes are looking at my bleeding ears. Saliva is constantly dripping from his mouth. He’s completely dominated by his appetite.

“…This is absurd. You don’t even know how to fight, and you can’t even control one of the seven emotions, let alone all of them. How did you reach the Harmony Realm?”

“Hehe. Are you asking for guidance? Very well. It’s a good day, so I’ll gladly show my generosity. I have realized the truth. This world is a jungle. I have attained enlightenment by realizing that obvious truth. The others don’t understand even when I tell them this simple realization. You’re probably the same.”

Enlightenment is meaningless if you don’t internalize it. Even a simple realization can completely change your soul and mind. For the White Tiger, the realization that the world is a jungle must have been an enlightenment that changed everything about him.

“You’ve attained enlightenment? You’re weak, so you’re my food. Be eaten quietly!”

The White Tiger opens his mouth wide and charges at me.

Instead of dodging, I take a stance. Blue lightning bursts from my entire body and gathers in my fist.

‘He couldn’t have trained his insides!’

I summon Vajra Thunder in the air and punch forward at the same time.

Thunder Heaven Style (雷天流) Electromagnetic Cannon (電磁砲).

The Vajra Thunder, fired several times faster than sound, enters his mouth precisely.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

A metallic sound rings out. The White Tiger stops for a moment, then spits out the Vajra Thunder from his mouth.

“I can’t eat this. Heh. Are you surprised? I told you. I have achieved the Diamond Unbreakable Body. From head to tail! My body cannot be pierced by anything!”

“I’ll see if your mind is also Diamond Unbreakable.”

Heavenly Demon Divine Art (天魔神功) Heavenly Demon Descent Step (天魔君臨步).

I step on the true gait. Black lightning sweeps through the surroundings. The White Tiger pauses for a moment and tilts his head.

“You tried to penetrate my mind. Mental attacks from someone who hasn’t achieved harmony are useless. My mind is also diamond. I’ll show you my true footwork.”

The White Tiger raises his front paw and strikes the lake.

Kwaaaaaaaang!

A shockwave mixed with demonic energy erupts, shattering the underground space. I am also pushed by the shock and fly through the ceiling into the sky.

‘Cloud Control!’

I gather clouds and stack them to create a cushion, preventing my body from flying too far and absorbing the impact.

Standing on the clouds, I wipe the blood from my mouth and look down at the ground. A mountain is collapsing and crumbling.

‘…A monster of the Harmony Realm with clumsy movements uses that much power so casually? It’s magic. It’s magic made possible by using the spiritual energy of heaven and earth recklessly. The Diamond Unbreakable Body must also be magic.’

There’s no way this beast truly mastered the true Diamond Unbreakable Body that can’t be scratched even by qi.

‘Inner energy. Or in his case, demonic energy, is being consumed like crazy by that magic. It’s certain that he can’t use that magic often.’

But now, he’s maintaining it infinitely. It’s possible because he’s using the spiritual energy of heaven and earth at will.

‘He’s not just lying about the ascension ritual, he’s also using the spiritual energy of heaven and earth as he pleases? Isn’t this beast afraid of the consequences?’

It’s something that would make the heavens angry. But for some reason, the heavens are quiet. There’s no reaction.

‘The Soul Shattering Spirit… No, I don’t want to show my trump card to the Martial Alliance Leader.’

There are two ways that come to mind.

One is to cut off the spiritual energy of heaven and earth being supplied to the White Tiger. The other is… to make it impossible for him to maintain the magic itself.

“Kuh-huh-huh-huh!”

The White Tiger roars from the collapsed mountain. I can feel his gaze turning towards me. I hide my body in the clouds.

The White Tiger jumps up from the ground, but he can’t find me and looks around the clouds with a puzzled expression.

Crackle! Crackle!

Blue lightning gathers in my right hand and rotates. I use Flying Thunder God to move behind him and grab his back. Ten Thousand Thunders transform into a long spear.

Thunder Heaven Style (雷天流) Ten Thousand Thunder Spear (卍雷槍).

The thunder spear, which has added physical force to the existing Ten Thousand Thunders, pierces into his back.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

The White Tiger falls to the ground, drawing a blue arc with the thunder spear. The thunder spear explodes once on the ground, dyeing the surroundings blue.

‘…….’

I couldn’t relax my hardened expression. It was a strike that used a considerable amount of inner energy, but I felt that it had failed to penetrate the Diamond Unbreakable Body. The energy of the beast that fell to the ground didn’t weaken at all.

The White Tiger jumps up again. I don’t dodge or hide. Instead, I extend my right arm and decide to endure. The White Tiger bites my left arm and neck. I concentrate my inner energy on my left arm, but the flesh is torn off in an instant, and only the bone barely withstands his teeth.

The White Tiger’s eyes go wild after tasting blood. His concentration is momentarily broken. In other words, the magic, the Diamond Unbreakable Body, has been released. I seize the opportunity and stab the Hwaryeon Flying Dagger into his left eye.

“Kuaaaaaa?!”

The White Tiger screams and falls to the ground.

“Alliance Leader. How long are you going to just watch?”

“Haha. I was just about to step in!”

The Martial Alliance Leader appears above the falling White Tiger. He clenches his fist. Energy gathers and a small Tai Chi forms in front of his fist and rotates. Then, he punches the White Tiger.

Kwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang!

With a huge explosion, another innocent mountain is blown away. A crater with a Tai Chi pattern is engraved where the mountain used to be. In the center of it, the White Tiger with broken limbs and shattered bones, and the Martial Alliance Leader standing proudly above him.

“Is it over?”

At that moment, the White Tiger’s eyes flash and he strikes the Martial Alliance Leader with his broken front paw. The Martial Alliance Leader flies past me and far away.

“No, it’s not.”