Chapter 99: Assembly

“Neung Un-bi? Who’s that?”

“You don’t know?”

“Never heard the name before.”

“Then why were you just surprised?”

“Because it’s the Realm of Wish.”

“Ah……”

The two weren’t surprised because they recognized the name, but because it mentioned a master of the Realm of Wish.

Jang Woo-hyun explained what had happened before Tang Myung arrived.

The way Neung Un-bi had asked to share a table, the fact that no one from the Taeguk Sect or nearby recognized him, and the glimpse he showed into a new domain.

Before parting ways, Neung Un-bi had mentioned that an annoying person was coming, and Tang Myung had appeared soon after. Jang Woo-hyun had thought Neung Un-bi was avoiding him. But judging from Tang Myung’s reaction, it seemed unrelated.

“Must be an old monster from the Taeguk Sect.”

“Looks like that to me as well.”

When Jang Woo-hyun looked on blankly, not understanding, Cheol Geuk-jin continued the explanation.

“Like I said before, there are countless eccentric masters hiding out there. Especially in ancient, massive sects like the Samcheong Taeguk Sect, it’s not unusual to have a few unknown monsters. You probably just happened to run into one of them. Still, since he helped you, he doesn’t seem like a bad person. Even if the realm is too high for you to gain something directly, just the experience alone will benefit you later.”

A hidden master who had reached the Realm of Wish.

Why he had appeared before Jang Woo-hyun remained a mystery. Jang Woo-hyun continued to ask more about the Realm of Wish, and Tang Myung answered.

“Applying the law of the Microcosm to the world—while that sounds impressive, simply put, think of it as some kind of singularity? A trait? Something like that. Does that sound weird? Basically, it’s about gaining a unique ability. For instance, if Geuk-jin reached the Realm of Wish and applied the law ‘I am a giant,’ then he would show a form of a giant far different from what we just saw—almost perfect. Hmm… hard to understand, right? That’s just how it is. Just think of it as gaining a unique ability. That’s all I can explain.”

When asked about the level of masters, Cheol Geuk-jin answered.

“Right. The martial prowess of the Seventeen Lords is at the pinnacle of the Boundless Realm. Among them, a few at the top have reached the Realm of Wish. And those hidden monsters known as the Ten Jang—consider them as being in the Realm of Wish. The Six Sovereigns are beyond our understanding. They’ve reached the Immortal Realm.”

Roughly, Jang Woo-hyun now had a grasp of the skill levels of the top experts in the Central Heavens Martial Realm, and he asked another question.

“What exactly is Space Severance?”

The question surprised both of them. He’d claimed not to have ascended long ago and hadn’t yet transcended, yet he was asking about things far beyond his supposed level.

“How did you come to know about that?”

Seeing their surprise, Jang Woo-hyun decided to hide the fact that he had experienced it firsthand. It just felt like a hassle to explain.

So he pulled out [Introduction to Central Heavens Martial Arts] from the Inner Robe.

“I never thought someone would actually read this kind of book.”

Tang Myung gave a hollow laugh at the sight.

But for Jang Woo-hyun, it was natural. He had learned martial arts without a master from the beginning. He never really needed one.

At most, the only one who taught him the basics when he first entered martial arts was White Tiger Martial Hall’s Hall Master, Yang Hyo-myung.

Because of that, Jang Woo-hyun had always read and learned whatever he could if it could help him. Anything useful.

“This book calls it Space Severance, but there are many names—Space Slash, Severance, Soul Cut, things like that. Literally, it’s an attack that severs principles and cuts invisible souls.”

Tang Myung pulled a sword from the box on his back. Then he began to channel power into it. Perhaps to demonstrate, the power being infused gradually increased.

Past sword qi, to Qi Projection, then to compressed Qi Projection. For a brief moment, the Qi Projection crackled like lightning, but only for a fleeting instant. Then suddenly, the energy being emitted collapsed.

This was different from before. Instead of spreading outward, the energy seemed to draw inward. In that state, Tang Myung swung the sword.

Crack.

He had clearly swung through empty air, but a faint trace was left in the path of the sword, like a crack forming in a mirror.

“This is Space Severance. It’s a technique that can destroy space itself and cut the soul.”

Jang Woo-hyun stared silently at the trace. After a moment, the trace slowly faded away.

“This is……”

“World Restoration Force. Just now, you left a trace on the world itself—on the dimension we exist in. Not merely breaking mountains or tearing the land, but scarring the world itself.”

“……”

“Hmm, how should I put this?”

Tang Myung paused briefly before continuing.

“Think of this world as one reflected in a mirror. Destroying mountains and land is like destroying the image in the mirror. But Space Severance shatters the mirror itself. Not the image within, but the mirror.”

Tang Myung swung the sword again. A line appeared in the air and slowly vanished.

“When the world is wounded like this, it heals itself—that’s the force known as World Restoration. It’s the power that maintains and stabilizes the world. Without it, there would be holes everywhere from all the martial artists using Space Severance.”

The concept of World Restoration was not mentioned in [Introduction to Central Heavens Martial Arts], and without meeting Tang Myung and Cheol Geuk-jin, he would not have learned it.

“Senior Cheol, can you block that?”

“You mean Space Severance? If you overlap your will repeatedly, you can block it. Though it’s inefficient.”

“This isn’t just about destructive power—it destroys the very source. You’d understand if you fought Cultivators… oh right, you said you had. Then it’ll make sense. They’re notoriously hard to kill and often escape with just their souls. But if they get hit with Space Severance, that’s not so easy. It wounds the source itself. It can cut nearly anything—be it soul or dimension.”

“This is Space Severance……”

“And although it’s not perfect, it can counter the laws used by those who have reached the Realm of Wish. Severance, after all, means cutting through principle.”

Jang Woo-hyun quietly revisited what he had witnessed. Then he asked them several more questions.

“…I don’t know. I used it, but when I was ascending, it didn’t seem like it wanted me to.”

About matters related to Yongwangrin.

“The Three Leaders are very different from the Ten Sects… those guys……”

Countless stories about the Central Heavens Martial Realm followed.

Through many conversations, a foundation for growth was laid.

To Jang Woo-hyun, the two were seniors and teachers who had walked the path ahead.

That evening.

While Jang Woo-hyun was recalling the battle with Cheol Geuk-jin and Tang Myung, Maeng Ye-ju contacted him through the Telepathy Division. The Telepathy Division had been slightly damaged during the fight, but there was no major problem in delivering sound.

—Come toward Okchu Mountain once morning comes.

When he asked how and exactly where to meet, Maeng Ye-ju simply told him to head to Okchu Mountain.

After reflecting on the battle all night, Jang Woo-hyun left the inn at dawn.

“Take care, Great Hero!”

The waiter came all the way outside the inn and sent him off energetically.

On the way back to the inn yesterday, Jang Woo-hyun had saved the waiter, who had almost gotten injured in a scuffle among martial artists.

The waiter had already been friendly, but after receiving a favor, his attitude became even better. Jang Woo-hyun patted the head of the Beastkin waiter once and stepped out onto the streets of the city.

It was barely dawn, not quite morning, yet the city bustled with people. Especially martial artists in matching attire moved in small groups.

‘They said that martial artists from the branches, not the main sects of the Ten Sects, would be gathering.’

The waiter had said yesterday that members affiliated with the Ten Sects were entering the city.

With various sects gathering, small and large commotions had broken out, and the waiter had gotten caught up in one such ruckus yesterday.

Even now, the sounds of arguments could be heard from various alleys.

Leaving behind those who were boisterously stirring trouble from the break of dawn, Jang Woo-hyun exited the city walls.

A towering mountain visible in the distance.

His destination was Okchu Mountain, the center of the Central Heavens Martial Realm.

Once he was out of the city, Jang Woo-hyun increased his speed. The more strength he put into his legs, the faster the scenery was swept behind him.

There was no need to enter the Transcendence; he simply ran for the first time in a while. The mountain looked close because of its massive size, but it was still a considerable distance away.

As he ran, someone flew toward him from the opposite direction.

“Jang Woo-hyun!”

Maeng Ye-ju, who spotted him first, maneuvered the Flying Apparatus and descended nearby.

“Let’s go.”

“Were you waiting for me?”

“Yes, we have to meet someone early. We need to get there and secure our spot while watching the other sects arrive. It's not often that so many sects from the Ten Sects gather like this. Hop on.”

The Flying Apparatus carrying Jang Woo-hyun accelerated, and before long, they landed on a distant peak.

“I heard it’s not allowed to directly fly into sect grounds or cities with a Flying Apparatus. Is this okay?”

“It’s etiquette, but we were granted permission, so it’s fine. Over there. Greet him. He’s the Sub-Sect Leader of the Suwang Sect.”

As she got off the Flying Apparatus, Maeng Ye-ju pointed to someone.

A short-haired, short-statured old man with a square face and piercing gaze reminded one of a tough stone.

Though it wasn’t an encounter with an enemy, Jang Woo-hyun tensed slightly. The man before him was that powerful. He tried to gauge the man’s strength while locking eyes.

‘A master of the Boundless Realm.’

“Nice to meet you. I’m Yeom Jong-myung of the Suwang Sect.”

Seeing Jang Woo-hyun’s probing gaze, Yeom Jong-myung was impressed. He had already heard about him from Maeng Ye-ju and Kang Yong, but seeing him in person was different.

As he slowly approached, Jang Woo-hyun clenched his fist. Though short, the man felt like a giant walking toward him.

‘Comparable to Senior Tang? No, perhaps slightly below?’

It wasn’t an exact judgment. But it wasn’t wrong either.

From the time he began learning martial arts, Jang Woo-hyun had been excellent at assessing opponents. He had already encountered four masters of the Boundless Realm and even met the Projection of the Windstorm Great Saint and Neung Un-bi, who were at the level of the Realm of Wish.

With eyes that had already glimpsed higher places, combined with talent and experience, Jang Woo-hyun had developed the ability to roughly assess opponents even within the Central Heavens.

“You’re not just looking, are you… are you gauging my strength?”

Yeom Jong-myung had not released any aura. If so, someone below his level like Jang Woo-hyun should not be able to detect him. But those eyes didn’t look that way. It was as if he was trying to unearth the hidden power within.

‘So this is why they spoke so highly of him?’

Now he understood why Maeng Ye-ju and Kang Yong took such a liking to him. Seeing him firsthand confirmed that their judgment was not wrong.

“I’m Jang Woo-hyun.”

Only when Yeom Jong-myung drew closer did Jang Woo-hyun clasp his fists and introduce himself.

“I’ve heard much about you. Those two talked about you endlessly. Yong.”

At Yeom Jong-myung’s words, Kang Yong, who had been fidgeting behind like a restless puppy, rushed forward. As a notorious troublemaker, he was under strict control.

“Jang Woo-hyun! You’re alive! I was just about to go see you after hearing from my sister!”

Kang Yong ran up and hugged him tight.

As a Beastkin over seven feet tall, Jang Woo-hyun was engulfed like a child in his embrace.

“Let go. I’m not into hugging guys.”

“Damn it! Do you know how worried I was about you?! You said you’d stay behind alone to fight Miho Wang like a madman! Argh, I seriously can’t even talk about that time… No, what matters is that you’re safe. That’s all that matters!”

Judging by Kang Yong’s tail spinning round and round, he seemed to be in an excellent mood. For a while, Kang Yong's story continued as his tail swirled as if he might take flight.

“That’s enough.”

“Yes, sir.”

At Yeom Jong-myung’s words, Kang Yong stepped back. He looked like a well-trained hunting dog. Jang Woo-hyun even wondered, ‘Is this really the same guy who picked a fight so recklessly?’

“I owe you. Twice, at that. Do you want anything from us?”

“No. I didn’t do it expecting anything in return.”

“I didn’t even get to properly repay you last time. I never gave you something worthy.”

“Pardon? What do you mean by that?”

“Were you able to properly ingest the Blue Wolf Pill and the Hocheon Pill?”

Yeom Jong-myung asked with a knowing smile.

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