Absolute Regression

Chapter 588: When One Realizes Being Alone Is Harder

Geom Mugeuk and the Sword King walked through a dark passageway.

Once again, all kinds of patterns, characters, and drawings were etched on the walls. The style was similar yet different from the artwork they had seen earlier. It didn’t seem like they were drawn by the same person, but they gave off a similar impression.

‘Could they be fellow disciples?’

The thought crossed his mind—it was possible.

Having deciphered a method of breaking the formation from the previous illustrations, he didn’t overlook a single character this time.

“Please look here.”

At the spot Geom Mugeuk pointed to, there was a drawing. The same pattern that had served as the method to break the formation earlier was depicted here as well.

“It seems to be a symbol of significance to those who created this place.”

The Sword King gave only a single nod, saying nothing more.

Just as the two reached about the middle of the passage—

Ssssss—

At the very moment they sensed a formation activating, the surroundings instantly changed.

‘This place?’

A blue sky reflected beneath his feet. It felt as if he was standing in the sky. This was the same place Geom Mugeuk had reached when he pressured someone with his qi.

Which meant the sea lay below. Above, the sky was boundlessly clear and peaceful, but below, an endless abyss of ocean spread out.

“Instructor!”

Geom Mugeuk shouted, but the Sword King was nowhere to be seen.

“Should I have tied the rope again?”

Of course, it was a joke. Even if he had tied the rope, it wouldn’t have allowed the Sword King to enter this space with him. This gateway was undoubtedly one that each person had to cross alone.

“You're not just relaxing and watching me struggle, are you?”

Just as Geom Mugeuk’s voice resounded loudly, someone appeared straight ahead.

Surprisingly, it was Geom Mugeuk himself. Though another version of himself had appeared, Geom Mugeuk wasn’t startled.

He was well aware that this kind of manifestation—of oneself—was commonly used in illusion arts or formations. This gate was surely a trial testing inner strength.

This place was within his own heart. So he had to believe in himself.

With that thought in mind, Geom Mugeuk steadied himself and approached the other version of himself.

As he silently gazed at the face, Geom Mugeuk spoke to himself.

“It’s been a while.”

At the greeting, the other Geom Mugeuk showed a puzzled expression.

“I see you from time to time.”

To anyone else, it would sound like the rambling of a madman. But in truth, whenever Geom Mugeuk took moments of rest alone, he would occasionally face the version of himself from the lonely days before regression.

There was even a time when he stood across a massive chasm, warning himself not to fall into it.

“So, today you came to put me in a tough spot.”

Just as the other self’s eyes sparkled, the place where they stood changed in an instant.

Geom Mugeuk was running.

‘This place?’

The destination he was headed toward was the Heavenly Demon Pavilion within the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.

‘Father!’

It was that day. The day when all the household members of the Heavenly Demon Pavilion were slaughtered by Hwa Moogi!

Calling out for his father in desperation, Geom Mugeuk ran madly toward the Heavenly Demon Pavilion. He shouldn’t have acted like that, but back then, he had been too agitated to think clearly.

Collapsed bodies lay all around. Not only martial artists, but even those who didn’t know martial arts—all the household members of the Heavenly Demon Pavilion were lying lifeless. The sight only agitated him further.

‘The outer guards were unharmed, so how on earth did they break through into the Heavenly Demon Pavilion?’

As if answering that question, a figure appeared.

Someone was standing atop the wall surrounding the Heavenly Demon Pavilion, arms crossed as he looked down—Soul Reaper Demon Supreme, in his former days.

It was a scene he hadn’t witnessed on that day in the past. A vision that appeared only within this formation.

He had considered the man a traitor, and perhaps that was why he saw him now. After all, this place was born of his own mind.

Far in the distance, the figure of Hwa Moogi came into view.

His face couldn’t be seen clearly. But it was clear he was smiling coldly in this direction.

Without a word, a stream of sword qi flew at him.

He also saw Lee Ahn throwing herself in front of him.

‘Lee Ahn...’

He could feel the sword qi that pierced Lee Ahn’s chest also pass through his own heart.

Since she collapsed atop him, her hot blood trickled down his chest.

That day, so powerless and helpless, was being vividly reenacted within the formation—something he had always tried not to recall.

As he lay there, someone approached and looked down at him. It wasn’t Hwa Moogi, nor was it Soul Reaper Demon Supreme.

It was Blood Heaven Blade Demon, carrying a massive blade on his back. His gaze was colder than ever.

Beside him stood Evil Smiling Demon, looking down at him. The smile behind his mask felt unfamiliar. Other Demon Supremes gathered around the dying him.

He saw the massive fist of Fist Demon King, and the heavily made-up face of One-Slash Sword Supreme. The stench of liquor from the unsteady Drunken Demon was overpowering, and the light emanating from Demonic Buddha’s body wasn’t golden, but deep crimson. The poison pouches at Poison King’s waist no longer looked cute—they were terrifyingly shaped.

All of them were looking down at him, sneering.

Geom Mugeuk understood. That this formation was bewitching him. Telling him that everyone on that day had been a traitor.

—Be enraged!

It was trying to boil his blood like lava.

Had he been his ordinary self, one who had not regressed, this pain and hatred would have completely consumed him. The unknown energy emitted by the formation endlessly paralyzed his reason, drawing out suspicion and fury. It was a force no ordinary person could ever withstand.

This formation was none other than the Blood Wave Mad Soul Formation, a formation that drove people to madness by provoking the deepest anger and hatred within their hearts.

But it didn’t work on Geom Mugeuk.

‘From the moment I first regressed, I already believed all of them were traitors.’

He had come this far with that mindset.

Then why had he treated them so sincerely? Because this life was different from the one before.

It didn’t matter who had betrayed him in the past life. The Demon Supremes in this life were not the same people as before. He had made them into different people. Their destinies had all been changed.

Looking up at the Demon Supremes sneering at him, Geom Mugeuk smiled brightly instead.

“Enjoying the show?”

Geom Mugeuk stood up. At some point, Lee Ahn’s corpse had vanished, and the wound that had pierced through his body was also gone.

As Geom Mugeuk smiled and faced them, the formation began digging into another weakness.

—You really think you can protect them all?

When he turned around, there were more people now.

Not only the Demon Supremes, but Lee Ahn, Seo Daeryong, Jangho, his older brother, and even his friends appeared. Bih Sa-in, Jin Hagun, Jin Haryeong, Han Seol too. The Enforcement Martial Artists and Jo Chunbae. Everyone he knew had appeared.

—You’re arrogant. Life is hard enough when you're only trying to protect yourself, and you think you can protect all of them?

Another version of himself walked toward Geom Mugeuk.

—Admit it. Say it’s hard. Admit you can’t bear it anymore because it’s so damn hard.

Splash.

The Demon Supremes began clinging to Geom Mugeuk’s arms and legs. He started to be dragged down into the abyss beneath his feet.

Everyone else rushed in as well, grabbing onto Geom Mugeuk and pulling him down. They were all shouting for him to save them.

And so, Geom Mugeuk sank into the depths of the abyss.

Just as the other Geom Mugeuk looked down into the water with a satisfied expression—

Splash!

Geom Mugeuk leapt up from the water once again.

Everyone who had pulled him down was now holding him up and rising together above the surface.

They were not the illusions conjured by the formation that had pulled him earlier. They now bore the faces of the people who stood with Geom Mugeuk in the present.

The formation had failed to take control of Geom Mugeuk’s heart.

“I’m not struggling.”

—Don’t deceive yourself.

Geom Mugeuk could feel it. The moment he admitted that it was hard, the person caught in the formation would collapse.

At the same time, the way to break this formation was precisely to not acknowledge that difficulty. To make the formation accept that refusal.

“It’s not as hard as you think. Once you realize being alone is harder.”

“!”

This time, Geom Mugeuk walked toward his other self.

Behind this Geom Mugeuk stood everyone. The other Geom Mugeuk stood alone.

Geom Mugeuk looked at his other self. He wasn’t just an illusion created by the formation. He was himself—before the regression.

“Because you existed, I was able to create these people. That’s the truth.”

And so, the gaze he directed at himself was nothing but gentle.

“You ask if it’s hard? Of course, it is. If I want to just run away somewhere alone? Sometimes, I do. But if you are me, then you already know.”

Now, Geom Mugeuk no longer spoke to himself, but to the one who created this gate.

“You must have never lived a life of solitude. You must have never spent countless nights alone, or walked endlessly while speaking only to your own footsteps. If you've experienced that kind of suffocating loneliness, you'd know—being alone isn’t all that peaceful, nor does it make you feel free. It’s only when there are people to walk alongside that the time spent alone gains meaning. You know this too, don’t you?”

With even softer eyes, Geom Mugeuk spoke to himself and to the formation.

“This formation doesn’t work on me. Withdraw.”

The moment those words ended, the formation astonishingly began to collapse.

Sssssss.

The people around him began to vanish one by one.

Geom Mugeuk turned to look at them as they disappeared. They had been born from his heart and now returned to it.

“See you all back at the main cult!”

The others disappeared first, and the Demon Supremes disappeared last.

Since they were born from his own heart, they disappeared in the way Geom Mugeuk wanted.

Blood Heaven Blade Demon sat down with his great blade driven into the ground and held out a cup of liquor, Evil Smiling Demon removed his mask, Drunken Demon stumbled and fell over, drunk. “Sorry, brother.” Poison King crouched down, watching his poison insects, One-Slash Sword Supreme pointed her sword at him, Demonic Buddha carving a statue of Buddha, Soul Reaper Demon Supreme greeted him with a smile.

And his father, just like always, wore that smirk on his face.

As his father disappeared, the formation fully dissolved, and Geom Mugeuk found himself standing once again in the dark corridor.

“Phew.”

Letting out a light sigh, Geom Mugeuk slowly resumed walking until he reached the end of the passage.

Clank.

At that moment, the door at the end opened.

He had passed this gate more easily than the first. Because his will was stronger than anyone else’s, the Blood Wave Mad Soul Formation had been unable to pierce his spirit.

But the Sword King had yet to appear.

Instead of stepping through the door, Geom Mugeuk sat down, turning his back to the door and facing the path he had walked.

“Stop wandering and come on out.”

Sitting down, Geom Mugeuk closed his eyes.

How long did he wait like that?

“Phew.”

With a deep sigh, the Sword King finally appeared.

From that sigh alone, one could sense how difficult this trial had been. Who had grabbed him and tried to drag him into the abyss?

“Glad to see you managed to shake it off.”

The Sword King asked with a surprised look, seeing that Geom Mugeuk had come out first.

“Wasn’t it difficult for you?”

“My life’s pretty simple, you see.”

The Sword King gave him a look that said, Is that really so?, then turned toward the open door behind them and asked again. The scent wafting from beyond was one that no martial artist could resist—the distinct, pleasant aroma of rare elixirs.

“Why didn’t you go in alone?”

“Because I have enough loyalty to wait.”

The Sword King approached Geom Mugeuk and said,

“I’ll acknowledge your loyalty—so I’ll give you half again.”

The Sword King swung the door wide open.

When Geom Mugeuk and the Sword King looked inside, once again, neither could say a word.

A greater sense of awe than they felt in the first room spread across their faces.

“You were right. That room wasn’t what we were meant to enjoy.”

This room was truly a sanctuary for martial artists. All around, on ornate pedestals, various elixirs were neatly arranged.

Geom Mugeuk slowly stepped forward.

“Can I really take half?”

The Sword King nodded.

“These are things money can’t buy, you know. Still alright?”

Even with a fortune, obtaining the elixirs in this room would be no easy task. Of course, it could be done—if one were willing to spend tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands of nyang for each.

The Sword King nodded and said,

“I’ve got enough loyalty for that. Now, I’m hungry, so let’s eat first. If we leave it behind, someone else will just benefit.”

The Sword King tossed an elixir to Geom Mugeuk.

Surprisingly, the casually thrown elixir was the Divine Fire Pill—on par with the Millennium Snow Ginseng in efficacy.

“I never turn down elixirs that are offered.”

“I told you, half is yours.”

“Then I’ll gratefully accept.”

Geom Mugeuk chewed and swallowed the Divine Fire Pill and asked,

“But is it alright to just give an elixir to someone you’ll be fighting later?”

“That’s why I’m eating one too.”

The Sword King also chewed and swallowed a pill.

Geom Mugeuk sat down first and began channeling his energy to absorb the medicinal effect.

The Sword King was about to do the same when he walked over to Geom Mugeuk.

He stood in front of him, silently looking down.

Since Geom Mugeuk was circulating his energy to absorb the medicine, this was the perfect chance to strike. Naturally, a strange tension filled the air.

“What if I attack you while you’re focusing on channeling?”

Geom Mugeuk, eyes closed, said nothing.

The Sword King leaned in closer, peering into his face, and spoke again.

“You can talk while circulating energy, right? You can even move.”

Still receiving no answer, the Sword King moved as if to jab Geom Mugeuk’s eye. Just then, Geom Mugeuk swiftly turned his head, dodging it, and opened his eyes.

“I trust you're not the kind of person who'd do that.”

The Sword King shook his head with a face that said, Of course you’d say that. Talking while circulating energy, moving freely—he truly was the Young Cult Leader, someone who had long surpassed ordinary martial artists.

As the Sword King sat beside him cross-legged, this time Geom Mugeuk asked,

“What if I finish channeling first and attack you?”

The Sword King closed his eyes and replied,

“Then do it, if you want.”

As if he really did trust Geom Mugeuk, he began circulating his energy.

After watching him briefly, Geom Mugeuk closed his eyes again.

And so, the two focused entirely on channeling and fully absorbed the medicinal effects.

When they had finished, the Sword King tossed another elixir to Geom Mugeuk.

“This one tastes good too.”

This time, it was the Accumulated Cloud Pill.

“Judging by the properties, these two could probably be taken together, right?”

He tossed another pill to Geom Mugeuk. This one was the Radiant Clarity Pill.

“You really mean for me to eat all of these?”

“You don’t want them? Then forget it.”

When the Sword King reached his hand out to take them back, Geom Mugeuk popped both pills into his mouth in rapid succession.

“Not a chance.”

The two of them repeated the process—taking pills, channeling energy to absorb them, then taking more. To think there’d be a day they’d feel full just from consuming elixirs.

By the time they had finished channeling, both of their eyes shone with unmatched clarity and depth.

In particular, Geom Mugeuk’s internal energy mirrored his spiritual core. So clear and profound that its full extent could no longer be measured.

Even so, since there were elixirs left in the room, Geom Mugeuk packed his share separately.

“Why are you storing them like that? Planning to give them to someone?”

“There’s always someone who could use them.”

“Putting them in someone else’s mouth is a waste. Just eat them while you can.”

But Geom Mugeuk carefully tucked them away in his robe and stood again at the door.

The next passage radiated an even more intense energy than the one before—an aura of deep darkness.

Geom Mugeuk could feel it instinctively. This was the final gate.

Beyond this, there was something the Sword King desired. The true core of this underground treasure trove wasn’t the wealth or the elixirs—it was beyond that door.

“At this point, you should confess. ‘Truth is, I could’ve passed all these gates myself, but I pretended it was difficult just to test you. Now that your test is over, I’ll let you pass the final gate with no trouble.’”

The Sword King made a different confession.

“I almost died at the last gate.”

“……”

“……”

Geom Mugeuk stepped into the dark passage first and asked him,

“Are you giving me half this time too?”