Book 17 Chapter 12

Destruction & Regeneration

-Mountains and skies

Devastated grounds, burning pavilions, beams burning and crumbling, beautiful columns reduced to black ash, scattering like black snow in the cloudy sky. In the midst of it all, a weak being named Mo Yonghui was burning.

It lay on the ground. He looked at it with trembling eyes. It was small, so he had to look down. He had always been forced to look up, and now he was forced to look down. It was a face, a face he had admired and revered, a face that had always been kind to him, a face that had shown him the way to the sword, a face of loving blood, and an end goal that he thought would last forever.

The face lying on the ground was the face of his grandfather, the Sword God Mo Yongzheng, and he was looking down at it. His ancestor's body didn't exist beneath him. All that lay there was his neck. The earth had sucked up the red blood, dyeing his own color, yellow, a crimson red.

Who dared to do this to him? Tears streamed down his cheeks.

'Who dares to do this…….'

Mo Yonghui lifted his sticky left hand and looked down into his palm. A blood-red hand filled his vision. No, blood. It was unquestionable blood. It was the hot blood that had been coursing through someone else's body just a moment ago.

"Whose blood is this?

Mo Yonghui looked at his right hand again. There was a sword. The sword that was now under his eyes was the very same sword that the man had given to him at the age of fifteen to commemorate his coming of age after a ceremony.

The blade of the sword, so precious that he never skipped a day without it, always as sharp as the first snow, was now soaked with a thick, fresh blood. But whose blood is this?

At that moment, Su Yuan's severed eyes flashed open. His blood-red eyes glowed with hatred.

"Have you forgotten, whose blood it is!"

A roar erupted. Tears of blood flowed from my grandfather's eyes.

"No, no, no, no, that can't be right!"

Mo Yonghui shouted frantically. He wanted to run away, the truth was too much for him to bear, so he wanted to turn away, to disappear somewhere else, somewhere not here.

The sky cracked and the earth split. He felt a sickening fall. He tumbled into a pit of nothingness.

The world has fallen apart.

"Grandpa!"

With a tearing scream, Mo Yonghui kicked off the quilt and stood up, his body bathed in sweat.

"Shut up!"

Boom!

Puck!

Suddenly, a pillow flew out and hit him in the back of the head. The playful attack, which he would never have allowed in normal circumstances, worked well for him now that he was completely defenseless.

"Shut up, how many times has this happened, let's get some sleep!"

Bi Ryuyeon shouted in annoyance as she pulled the covers over her head. From that day forward, her nightly struggle to sleep had blossomed. It was not a pleasant experience. It could be said that eating and sleeping were not the most important matters for humans, but they were also things that no one could avoid in order to maintain life.

"Meh, sorry. I had that horrible dream again……."

"That dream you've been having lately?"

Mo Yonghui nodded cautiously, his pale face drenched in sweat.

"Tsk, tsk, a dream is a dream, and like the dawn fog, it's gone when you wake up, and you shouldn't be disturbing other people's sleep with your mere dreams, don't you think?"

The words consolation and sympathy were not in his vocabulary, but somehow Mo Yonghui felt a weight lifted from his heart when he heard the poignant words that treated his troubles as lighter than a feather. Intentionally or unintentionally, he was lucky to have someone to share his troubles with.

"But… Ryuyeon."

"What is it?"

Still wrapped in the futon, Bi Ryuyeon replied.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"If it's a declaration of love, I'll pass."

Bi Ryuyeon replied bluntly.

"Whoa, who said anything about love? I'm serious. Can't you be serious too?"

"I need a consultation fee for that!"

"Consultation fee? Do you charge for that?"

Mo Yongyu asked, looking puzzled.

"Of course. There's an extra charge for late-night consultations. No exceptions, even for friends."

"Since when has there been such a thing?"

"Just now! If you're willing to take my advice, you'll pay for it. You should be that prepared to spend someone else's precious time, shouldn't you? You should feel lucky that I've waived the sleep interruption fee. Okay? So why should I pay you? Let me explain. By paying, you're saying that you're willing to listen to my advice, but if you don't, how can you say that you're putting any value on my words? If you want my sympathy, you'd better give it up, and if you want real advice, you'd better pay for it. If you're not willing to do that, your body isn't in need of my advice, it's just an act of self-satisfaction that you did something, so don't even bother trying such a pointless endeavor. I don't have the energy to give you advice that you won't listen to anyway. It's called the law of diminishing returns."

"Well, is that the case, and if so, would you listen to my questions if I paid you?"

"Inward!"

His answer was simple and straightforward.

"What do you say?"

"I'll pay!"

Mo Yonghui nodded. He was determined to put the money into the ground now. But it was also a sign of desperation.

"Okay, well, let's hear it for this, it's called lending a hand, and you should know."

There were too many other things in the world that he needed to know for that, so I decided to forget about the vocabulary. Instead, I asked him about the questions he's been having lately.

"What do you think it means to kill a person?"

"It's about excluding them from my world."

Bi replied simply.

"Exclusion?"

"Yes, sir. It is my belief that anyone who trespasses on my world without permission should be dealt with firmly."

"So when you say the world is being invaded, what does that mean? Does it refer to a threat that wants to kill you?"

"Hmm, it doesn't have to be a desire to kill me, in which case it's rather simple, you just have to return what they're trying to do to you. If they're trying to kill you or harm you, shouldn't you always be prepared to do the same to them in the event of an emergency? If they're only looking for human rights when they're being harmed, they deserve to die. Wouldn't it be better to keep one more good person alive?"

His words were poignant and sobering.

"That's a radical statement."

For Mo Yong-hui, who has always followed tradition, Bi Ryuyeon's unconventional thinking was very uncomfortable.

"Well, it's not just the will to kill. There are some things you can't know unless you're the one giving them, and there are always people who want to give advice to others. Good intentions don't always lead to good results, and in some cases they can lead to trampling on someone else's world with muddy feet, which is why advice should always be given with caution."

He's unexpectedly stubborn, and that's probably a value he's trying to uphold.

"……."

"So, what do you think, are you going to ask me to advise you on that? I've warned you before, that means I'm going to be invading your world, and are you willing to accept that?"

"Did the advice really mean that much?"

"At least I think so, which is why I don't like it when people unnecessarily interfere in the name of giving me advice, because it invades my world."

Her mind was made up. But the question remained.

"Still, humans can't live alone, can they?"

"Of course, sometimes you need advice, but shouldn't you take a good look at yourself first? Knowing when you need advice is a skill, and I don't have it yet, but I need it when I know what I need. Forcing me to break my rules isn't advice. It's an invasion. Are you willing to do it? This is my last warning. What will you do?"

"There you go."

Mo Yonghui's heart was so desperate right now that he wanted to hang on by a rotten rope.

Finally, Bi Ryuyeon shook herself out of her seat and stood up.

"Here we go!"

And Mo Yonghui could see a white hand extended in front of him. Mo Yonghui was slightly moved and was just about to take his friend's hand in his own, when the friend said.

"Prepaid!"

"So you're saying you don't know what to do with that murderous demand you got from Mr. Hyuk's grandfather?"

"Right."

Mo Yonghui nodded.

"Why not just kill him?"

What's the point of worrying about something like that, she asked.

"Ryuyeon, that's called a horse!"

Mo Yonghui was truly angry and shouted. He was always quiet, but once he lost his temper, there was a murderous feeling as if a thousand blades were surging out of his body.

"Okay, okay, I was kidding, I was kidding. What are you so upset about?"

"Be serious. You got paid up front, didn't you?"

The words stirred up Biryun's sense of commerce.

"Hmm, okay. How about we look at it this way?"

"How?"

"There are other hidden agendas behind that demand."

"Hidden intent?"

Bi Ryuyeon nodded.

"It's dangerous to take what others say at face value. Humans tend to be reluctant to express their intentions directly. They always want to hide behind layers of language. Maybe you didn't see the intent because it was so shocking to you at the time that you were confused. What do you think?"

Bi Ryuyeon interrogated him, but Mo Yonghui just shook his head.

"Actually, something's been bothering me, too, and I've been thinking about it over and over again for days. I even had a nightmare about it, but no matter how much I think about it, I can't figure it out. I don't have a clue, and it's frustrating."

"Are you sure there isn't? Think about it, how about being a little more flexible in your thinking?"

Bi Ryuyeon urged.

"I still don't know."

"Grunt∼"

Bi Ryuyeon felt a little nervous. He couldn't go on like this. He had to win the bet. But his promise forbade him to help beyond a certain level. He had to come up with something less direct and more circumventive. After thinking for a while, Bi Ryuyeon finally snapped his fingers and said that he had an idea.

"Then why don't you do this: ask them directly."

"What… are you asking? Who are you talking to? Hyuk-No-Ya is nothing……."

"Who told you to ask the old man? He wouldn't teach you anyway, even if he knew."

"And who am I supposed to ask?"

"Look who it is, your grandfather."

Mo Yonghui's jaw dropped at Bi Ryuyeon's assertion.

"That's ridiculous, there's no way that's possible, are you out of your mind?"

"Well, that's normal. It's not impossible yet, unless you decide it's impossible, and that's up to you."

"Absurd. What do you mean, 'Someone ordered me to kill my grandfather, what am I supposed to do'?"

"That's nice because it's straightforward."

Mo Yonghui was furious.

"Are you telling me that you have a grandson who is troubled by such a question? Isn't it the proper attitude of a grandson to turn down such a ridiculous request? That's a shame."

Bi Ryuyeon clicked her tongue in disapproval.

"So if you're so smart, why are you struggling?"

"Well, that's……."

Stutter.

"Maybe you're struggling because something is bothering you?"

Yes, there was something nagging at the back of his mind that he couldn't quite put his finger on right then. His mind was whispering to him to look beyond the surface, but after several nights of tossing and turning, no answer came.

"Some answers don't come from consulting. Some things you don't know until you're in the middle of them. Your grandfather might give you a new interpretation. Words are lousy communicators anyway, they're open to interpretation. I wouldn't use it if it wasn't the only thing I had."

"Say… authorize……."

"Go ask him. And make sure it's a mountain or a sky. Maybe then you'll know what it means. That's the end of our conversation for today."

He went back to bed and pulled the covers over his head, but Mo Yonghui couldn't stop asking questions.

"So, you're saying that you're getting to the bottom of what Hyuk No Ya means?"

She didn't even flinch.

"…Our session is over, so good night."

Bi Ryuyeon waved dryly from under the covers.

"Will the consultation continue tomorrow?"

"For an additional fee."

And then he went back to sleep.

Instead of feeling lighter, Mo Yonghui's heart became heavier and he asked himself what was the point of spending so much money on such a reckless consultation. Why did I pay so much money to listen to that human's nonsense?

"If you're willing to take my advice, pay the price."

Bi Ryuyeon's words rang in my ears again. Should he turn a blind eye to the value of the money he paid, or should he go through with it like a drain? In the end, the choice was once again his own.

"Why don't we pretend to be really crazy and do it?

It reminded me of the phrase "near-miss".

"What's the matter, Whee? It's not like you to fidget."

As she poured tea for her adorable grandson, Mo Yongzheng asked in a gentle voice.

"That's… me……."

Mo Yonghui accepted the teacup with his head bowed and a look of restlessness on his face.

"Why am I sitting here like this, casually accepting tea from my grandfather?

Is there some kind of hypnotic power in his words, and if not, why does he find himself acting on them the next day?

"……."

No matter how many times he asked himself the question, he couldn't come up with an answer. Seeing his grandson fidgeting, the swordsman spoke up.

"Tell me what's on your mind. You have something to say, don't you?"

You can't cheat age after all. Gongsheng had pinpointed Mo Yonghui's mind.

"A man of good behavior is never afraid to speak his mind, and I wonder what is troubling you, who is always so obsessed with following the rules, that you hesitate to speak to me."

The words were so kind that they almost brought tears to his eyes. He was exhausted and wanted to lay the burden down as soon as possible, but it was a burden he could not share lightly. There is no spell as powerful as a kind word. Finally, the locks of his heart opened. At the same time, tears poured out. Mo Yonghui began to talk about what had happened. Once she started talking, she couldn't stop.

"Poohahahahahahaha!"

After hearing all of his grandson's story, Gongsheng's behavior was unexpected. He smiled. Very loudly, as if he was pleased and amused.

On the sidelines, Mo Yonghui was surprised by his grandfather's sudden behavior and tried to calm him down, but to no avail. Only after laughing for a long time did he finally show signs of calming down.

"Pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft, pfft. Truly a homework assignment worthy of him."

"Would you call that homework?"

"Then it's homework, and a very hard one at that. Hehehe!"

Xiao Sheng chuckled again. Mo Yonghui suddenly began to feel angry as one situation after another unfolded in front of him that he couldn't understand.

"Why aren't you angry?"

"Eh? Why should she be angry, there is no reason at all for her to be?"

Gumsung said, looking like he'd listen to anything.

"Am I not the ugly grandson who could not refuse the order to kill his paternal grandfather? I have nothing to say about being insulated! Please rule this ugly grandson strictly by family law!"

Mo Yonghui cried out, falling to his knees in a heap on the floor.

"Hehe, this old woman can't understand why I should punish you. Aren't you my dear and proud grandson, why would I punish you?"

"But I have sullied the honor of my family!"

"No, no. You have honored your family. I'd like to do a little shoulder dance with you."

Mo Yonghui's head snapped up like a prisoner awaiting sentencing.

"What's that……?"

Mo Yonghui's movements came to a screeching halt at Gongsheng's words.

"Kill the sword!"

Mo Yonghui's body twitched.

"…surely He said so?"

Mo Yonghui nodded. Just because he denies it doesn't make it go away.

"Yes, it's a shame, but it is."

Even as he spoke, he dared not raise his face.

"What a happy and sad thing that is!"

With very compassionate eyes, the old man looked at his grandson.

"Yes?"

Mo Yonghui's eyes widened and he asked. I could understand being sad, but happy?

He's been talking about the murderous teacher for a while now.

Gongsheng continued.

"If He told you to kill me…whoa……."

Starry-eyed Swordsman sighed heavily and lamented.

"Hehe, I'm very happy to know that the person you admire most is not the highest peak of this clan, the Godless One, nor the God-Man, but this insignificant old swordsman Naboorin, but it grieves me to know that the great obstacle to your progress is also me."

The former fact made the old man genuinely happy, but the latter weighed heavily on his heart, but he knew that the ordeal was a rite of passage that everyone must go through at one time or another.

"I don't really understand burnout."

The only thing that was certain was that they had completely different perspectives on the same words, and because of the gap between them, he couldn't understand his grandfather's behavior.

"Your limit is me, the person. It's that you see me as a wall you can't cross."

"What's wrong with that, what's wrong with honoring my grandfather, I'm still nothing compared to him?"

"Wow-what's wrong with that, I'm happy about that. It's just that I'm not the end, and it pains me to realize that deep down, unconsciously, you perceive me as the end."

Mo Yonghui had no intention of denying it; it was his boast, his pride.

"Grandpa is my lifelong goal!"

Mo Yonghui shouted. A loud bang came out of him. Ever since he first understood the concept of martial arts as a child, he had never changed his mind about it. In his world, it was an unquestioned truth, and that was that.

But Mo Yongzhengtian shook his head.

"It's okay if you've been doing that up until now. But from now on, you can't."

It was a firm voice that would not tolerate any defiance.

"I don't know what path you're going to take, I don't know what He's entrusted you with, but I can be sure of one thing."

Gulp.

Mo Yonghui unconsciously swallowed dryly.

"The path you must take in the future, the path that will surely lie ahead of me. The path I have not yet traveled, the path you must walk, the path you must take, the path you must not see me as a mere waypoint."

His words were a mixture of bitter sorrow and joyous exultation. Swordsman continued to speak.

"To do that, try it. Jump over this barrier that stands in your way. I will wait for it with joy. Nothing would make me happier than to close my eyes under your sword. But I, as an elder, as a trustee of the future, will stand in your way with all my might. So leap, if you will, but you must do so with the intention of killing me."

A sense of impending doom radiated from his entire body, as if a mountain stood in his way. It was indeed a prayer worthy of the name of the sword.

Mo Yonghui's body trembled as if struck by lightning. The upright young man had finally realized something. He could clearly see what Xue Yunya meant when he gave such an order.

If you get intimidated, it's all over. Everything you've built up to this point will be for naught.

Mo Yonghui, who had been kneeling, jumped to his feet, his eyes sparkling like stars, his right hand holding the sword thrust forward, and he exclaimed in a proud voice, "I'm going to kill you!

"Shaoshen Hui, I must surpass my grandfather, I will never let you down!"

"Heh, heh, heh, heh, that's good ambition. That's what it takes to be a blood relative of the Moyonse family, Cancer."

Gongsheng was genuinely pleased.

"Let's give it a try, then."

Gongsheng said in a lighthearted tone of amusement.

"Is this a test?"

Gongsheng nodded lightly.

"Yes, indeed, what your current accomplishments are. I'd like to see where you stand, then."

In the next moment, Sword God's finger was pointed at Mo Yonghui's brow, and Mo Yonghui was seized with the sensation that his entire existence was trapped within that finger. He was nothing more than a pitiful worm on a giant finger. In the next moment, the high blue sky spread out before him.

"What did you see?"

"I saw the sky."

Hmmm.

Mo Yonghui's body twitched. For a moment, a glimpse of disappointment and regret flashed across his grandfather's face. It was brief, but there was no mistaking it.

Why? Why? Why? Why?" captured his entire thinking.

"Hehe, does this mean I'm not ready yet?"

An unintelligible sigh escaped Gongsheng's mouth.

"You didn't want to be the shackles that bind your grandson's ankles. Looks like my shackles are heavier than I thought. Pity, pity!"

"Ouch!

At his grandfather's lament, Mo Yonghui suddenly realized something.

What's the point of being a bird in a net? It's no wonder the grandfather was disappointed. It was clear that he hadn't made up his mind yet.

He didn't want to be the grandson who put the cart before the horse.

"Wait!"

The grief in his eyes had not yet subsided, and he turned to Mo Yonghui.

"Please do it again… one more time!"

He gazed longingly into his grandson's dark, deep eyes, waves of intention rippling in that black sea.

"Good. But this is the last one. Besides, the second test will be harder."

As he spoke, Mo Yonghui's sword was already in his hand.

"Uh, in the middle of nowhere!

Mo Yonghui, who hadn't sensed any signs, was stunned.

Gongsheng's favorite sword, the Bough Divine Sword, was simply strapped to his belt.

This time it was a warning, not just a finger. Though he had reached the point where he was no longer a man of arms, his prayers before and after he raised his sword were worlds apart.

"Are you ready?"

This was going to be an ordeal beyond anything he had faced before, but there was nowhere to back down and he had no intention of doing so. If he backed down, he would be letting his grandfather down. He would be a liar, unable to keep his word. He didn't want to be such a miserable man. He wanted to live with pride.

"Ready."

"Come on, then I'll go!"

Without another word, Mo Yongzheng extended his sword straight ahead. In his hands, it was no longer something that could be called an ordinary sword.

Mo Yonghui was struck by such a powerful impact that he thought he was being split in two.

My foot kept trying to take a step backwards against my will, but it wasn't working because my muscles were tightening up. I tried to use my willpower to hold on, but to no avail.

A terrifying, soul-crushing flesh was pressing on his existence.

"Man, she's really going to ring me!

The rich flesh on the tip of that blade was the will to kill.

'I die…….'

I was losing my mind in fear and panic.

* * *

"There's an additional fee for additional consultation, is that okay?"

Bi Ryuyeon asked in an annoyed voice, having been forcibly awakened from her early morning sleep. Of course, she had already exploited the sleep disturbance compensation fee.

"It doesn't matter."

He nods dryly.

"Okay, follow me then."

He took him to the top of the wall that surrounded the Academy of Heaven and Earth.

I woke up to a gust of wind and an open field.

He pointed one finger at the edge of the earth.

"What do you see there?"

He asked.

"I can see the horizon."

I replied.

"Can you see over there?"

"I can't see it."

"So that's the limit of the land. Isn't it?"

I shake my head.

"Not quite. Back there is new land again."

It was so obvious. A three-year-old would know that.

"Yeah, but why do I only see that far?"

"Because the human eye can only see so far."

"Is it human vision or your own?"

Pause for a moment.

"My, my own sight."

Then he pointed a finger at the other and asked.

"Well, what if we get to the top of that mountain?"

"Then you'll be able to see what's beyond, beyond the horizon of your current vision."

"That's weird. Is there some kind of magic to that mountain? Why do I see better when I get to the top?"

Hot! Then he realized something. He jerked his head around sharply to look at his friend's face, which had a calm expression that said, "Why?

"What do you mean, unintentional?

No way, he says again.

"Interesting, so it's not because your eyes have suddenly gotten better that you can see over that horizon?"

"Of course not."

"So it's not the eyes that have changed, then?"

It was a no-brainer.

"…What's changed is the eye level."

He nods. Then he speaks in a nonchalant tone.

"That's the kind of frame you put yourself in anyway. It changes when your eye level changes. If you want to see farther, you can climb higher. The trick is to know where the heights are and how to get there."

Then he pauses. You wait patiently.

"The same goes for the human cognitive horizon."

He starts talking again. Before I know it, I'm listening to him. Something is constantly swirling in my chest.

"But he who thinks that is the end of the earth will not climb the mountain in search of it; only he who knows that there is no end will climb it to go beyond it, to see beyond it."

He asks again.

"Where is the end of your land, and where does the horizon within you span?"

"That, that's……."

He knew the horizon himself. The final upper limit, the taboo, the sanctuary that he thought he could never cross, was…….

"Swordsman Mo Yongzheng, that's the end I want to reach."

I answer without a shred of doubt.

"Well, that's fair enough. Besides, in front of that old man, you're completely defenseless. You're usually so neat and tidy, but you're completely vulnerable, which is fun to watch."

"Well, I never did."

"That's your claim."

I dismiss it with a single word.

"But have you ever imagined beyond that horizon, have you ever dared to look beyond it?"

"That's……."

He was a god.

As a child of the Mo Yong Clan, born into the Mo Yong Clan and living by the Mo Yong Clan's laws, he dared not imagine a world beyond the realm of the Sword Saint Mo Yong Realm. It was a blasphemy against the gods, a gross disrespect. Regardless of God's own will, it was just the way it was, so everyone took it for granted that it was just the way it was.

"I never imagined such blasphemy."

He clucks his tongue. As in pathetic.

"You sound like a blind religious believer. Did your god tell you that directly? Don't jump me."

"No, he didn't! There's no way he would say that, is there?"

Your voice naturally gets louder.

"That's blasphemy against him……."

He's suddenly speechless. No, he never said that. They had made up their own minds. They were too busy exalting and praising Him, not wanting to know what His intentions were.

Were they really what He wanted? How did He feel about those who looked up to Him? Pity and pity, or disappointment?

Wouldn't it be a blasphemy and a disrespect to him to have his mind so arbitrarily shaped, molded, and determined? As soon as there was a gap in his firm faith, his words came through.

"Just because you shout 'I believe!' a hundred times out of the corner of your eye doesn't mean the gods are going to like it, but humans love that kind of pretentious blind adherence, so of course they assume the gods are like them, and that's the worst kind of blasphemy, devaluing them to the level of humans."

"……."

I couldn't answer that with a phrase that had a sting in it.

Once again, he points his finger at the limits of the land.

"How can humans know what's over the horizon when they've never been there? I've never been there, I've never experienced it."

"I don't know."

He says.

"It's the grandiose imagination of the human mind. Abstractions. It's the source of the ability to reason, to infer, to draw analogies, or whatever else you want to call it. It's the imagination that allows humans to perceive, even indirectly, worlds they've never been to, worlds they've never experienced. You have to know there's a world beyond before you know what it takes to see it. So are you ready to imagine what lies beyond that horizon, are you ready to make that shift in perception, are you ready to destroy the world that your horizon holds?"

Language is constantly spewing from his mouth. Each word knocks at his psyche. As if to tell him to wake up.

"What is the mountain you need to climb to see beyond your horizon? I'm sure you know the name of that mountain."

It was exactly what it said. He knew the name of the mountain, the giant mountain, and it was… …….

"Do you have a sincere desire to get up there?"

It is impossible to climb that mountain without courage, faith, wisdom, and perseverance.

"Are you ready to climb that mountain, that great mountain that bears the name of Sword Castle?"

Flash!

My foggy mind lit up again.

* * *

I have nothing but respect for this man. I'm proud to be his grandson, so if you are…….

'To surpass him is the highest tribute I can pay, the highest respect!'

Thus, he was able to say that it was the Sword Saint Mo Yongzheng that made him the strongest.

It was not blasphemy or disrespect; it was the highest form of homage.

Then his trembling ceased, and his bright eyes looked directly at the point of the sword held out to him. He looked proudly at the high mountain that stood before him. Nothing can be gained by denial.

"I will definitely outrun my grandfather, I will definitely!"

Gongsheng stopped everything for a moment and looked at his grandson in silence.

"Are you sure you want to do that?"

"Yes, of course."

"Great!"

Then, with a smile on his face, he sheathed his sword. Then, the ten thousand muscles weighing down Mo Yonghui's shoulders disappeared as if washed away. It became a little easier to breathe.

Gongsheng asked again.

"What did you see?"

Same question, but different answer.

"I saw a mountain, rising toward the heavens, a waypoint between heaven and earth."

Gongsheng clutched both of his grandson's shoulders, nodding in satisfaction as he exclaimed, "I'm so glad you're here!

"Long."

Mo Yonghui bowed deeply. The sword had long since returned to its sheath.

"Thank you, Grandpa."

The young man was on the verge of tears with joy at finally getting some recognition.

"For you, still on the road, the sky is forever out of reach. But as for the mountains, no matter how high they are, they are still above ground, and if you want to climb them, you can. Your grandmother will be waiting with joy to see you soar to the heavens from the top of the mountain."

The grandfather was incomparably pleased that his grandson was naked.

"I can't wait for that day to come. I believe in you."

I believe. It was one of the strongest words he'd ever heard, and the weight of the trust in those words enveloped him rather than crushed him.

Most of all, I'm glad I didn't disappoint my grandfather.

-It used to be the sky, but now it's Mount Tai.

The mountain was still connected to the ground he was walking on, even though he had not yet grown wings and could not fly. He may not yet have the wings of flight, but he has two strong legs and the passion, will, and determination to move them.

Mountain [艮] is the one yang standing on the foundation of two yin, the bridge between the earthly kon and the heavenly qian.

As long as the mountain was connected to the ground, if he walked without stopping, he would eventually get there. But walking wasn't enough for him now. Time was running out, and he had a long way to go. Now was the time to run.

He had only made one small shift in perception, but it had changed his universe and his destiny.

He has just recreated his world.

"What do you think, brother?"

After Mo Yonghui retreated with a bow, the lone male swordsman silently turned to the darkness behind him and asked.

Then a figure stepped out from the shadows behind him. It was as if he had never been here before and had suddenly appeared.

In fact, he's been here all along. Even before Mo Yonghui came to the sword castle. However, he did not exist in Mo Yonghui's world, as his existence was not recognized by him.

"Now that's something to teach."

Gongsheng nodded vigorously.

"Sure. It's somebody's grandson, and he's definitely worth teaching."

And so it was with Swordsman himself. Mo Yonghui was a great joy in his later years. To be able to hone and refine such a talent was a supreme pleasure for a teacher.

That's why Gumsung's voice was full of pride.

"But it took longer than I thought."

"What do you mean it's taking so long?"

"How long do you think it took you to play with your fingers?"

"Did it take that long?"

"I think you've had your fill, and I'm scolding you for your soreness."

Old Man Hyuk-jung patted his shoulder blades here and there, muttering to himself.

"Is that so?"

Gumsung himself hadn't even realized it.

"It's all because you're a bad housekeeper!"

Hyuk-Noya said in a slightly irritated voice.

"I don't want to hear that from you, because it's unfair. You're the one who's being a barrier many times bigger than me, right? It took me two hours to do it, and it would have taken you all day."

"You say you have blood in your veins… I think you, like your grandson, sell yourself short, but I think he's finally starting to be able to deny himself, to struggle out of your shadow."

What Mo Yonghui needed in the meantime was a thorough self-denial, for his world began with Sword Castle and ended with Mo Yongzheng Tian. For him, the shadow cast by the giant of Sword Castle Mo Yongzheng was too deep and too broad. He needed to deny his world, to know that this world was not just a world of shadows, that there was a sun beyond the shadows.

What does it take to cross the horizon, or better yet, what is the act of crossing the horizon? It's a process of constantly expanding your horizons.

To do that, you must first realize that it's not the end. And you have to humbly accept that fact. The process requires negation as transcendence, not negation as disillusionment. Only then can man expand his perceptual horizons to the next level. It is not the negation of the yin, but the negation of the yang that expands his worldview.

Up until now, Mo Yonghui's worldview has naturally been swordsmanship. Of course, the high level that a single swordsman can reach, called swordsmanship, has been a good horizon for his growth. It was an admirable goal. Perhaps Mo Yonghui had been thinking in his heart that once he reached it, everything would be over. Or maybe he was subconsciously thinking that he could never reach it. So the sword castle was both his world and his limit.

Idols have their benefits, but they are not without their negatives. So the biggest obstacle in his way was the very existence of his idol, Swordsman.

However, to fulfill the will of the Martial Gods, one must not be bound by the existence of a sword. To become a god, one must transcend humanity. Without that determination, Mo Yonghui would never be able to reach it.

There is no place in this world where you don't believe in something you don't believe in. There is no place in your inner world where what you deny exists. As long as it is outside, it can never be reached. Therefore, it was necessary for Mo Yonghui to break his mold. Without breaking the egg, the bird cannot be born, and without being born, it cannot fly.

"Now he's going to have to develop himself by asking the same constant questions that we and the big boys did, and that's a process that's past."

"No one can help you with this. You have to do it yourself. Isn't that what the process of overcoming your own limitations is all about?"

"Yes, that's exactly what you said. There's only so much we can do."

"Good to know."

How do humans push the envelope?

The world, by its very nature, is open to wider horizons.

We exist in a constant state of questioning through 'being'.

In everything we know, we simultaneously recognize our ignorance. All knowledge is at the same time "knowing ignorance," and it is precisely this ignorance that takes us beyond the limits of our previous knowledge and awakens the movement of questioning. To know is to know what I don't know, which is why we ask questions.

We exist within the world by knowing, by understanding, but also, and just as importantly, by asking. We constantly go beyond our world by constantly asking. Through our questions, our world is constantly expanding. The walls of our perceived world crumble and open up.

The human world is essentially one open world, constantly expanding into existence, into infinity. Through constant questioning, humans are constantly expanding their own horizons. In doing so, he thematizes the limits beyond and strives to reach them. This requires a single-mindedness. A single-minded, single-minded, single-minded, single-minded, single-minded, single-minded, single-minded, single-minded, single-minded, single-minded, single-minded.

"Only when you know the mountain exists can you decide whether or not to climb it, and how to climb it. How can you climb higher if you don't even know there's a mountain?" The child has now seen the mountain. And she's decided to climb it. There's nothing we can do about it."

"No. I have."

Mo Yongzheng denied what he said. He admitted it.

"Okay, so you had something you could do."

Mo Yongzhengtian nodded.

"Yes, I will stand in that child's way with all my might, because that is the greatest love I can give him."

"I envy you that."

"He's the only one who can succeed me.

He wanted to say, "I'm sorry," but he held back. It was not something he should have said to the elder Xue. This god had his own painful memories and scars. Even though he was called a divine demon, he was still another human made of flesh who had yet to completely throw off the human yoke.

Loss of successor.

I preferred not to touch that wound.

'May we find a new successor as soon as possible…….'

Gongsheng sincerely hoped so.

"I am……."

Hyuk-jung spoke up again.

"That's what I want to say to her and other kids who have the potential for a future."

"What do you mean?"

Hyuk-jung replied with a serious face.

"Boy, become a myth!"

"……."

Seeing such a serious expression, Mo Yongzhengtian was silent for a moment.

"Even if the master of mythology says so……."

"Do you think I contradicted myself?"

Gongsheng nodded slightly.

"I want them to be willing to not only hear the myths, but to be the myths themselves. I want them to no longer let the myths of the past hold them back from their possibilities. If you're a boy, if you're a young man, don't you need to be willing to deny the gods of the myths and become a myth yourself?"

"Isn't that 'Boy, be an unbeliever' or 'Boy, be a rogue'?"

Hyuk-jung fired back.

"Pfft, maybe it's 'Boy, be a blasphemer'."

"Are you telling God to blaspheme himself, and are you sure he won't be outraged?"

"Huh? Why not? You should be actively outraged."

"What's that, saying one thing and doing another?"

"Uh-huh, what's the difference? How do you get to the next myth if you're that angry? You have to be so high-minded that you don't flinch in the face of that anger."

"That sounds ridiculous."

"No. It's perfectly logical. Shouldn't I stand in the way of my juniors by expressing active, bold anger, just as you stand in the way of your child by being a giant wall? That's what truly grand, great love is, isn't it. That. Isn't. that. true. of. the. sword. surname. You?"

Gongsheng flinched for a moment.

"Well… well, let's just say I don't want to be beaten over the head with a hundred."

"Uh-huh!"

The elder Hyuk coughed briefly and lowered his clenched fist.

Gongsheng looked into the distance, his eyes wistful.

"It's going to be another trip for them."

* * *

The next day, a copy of the room was posted on official bulletin boards around the school.

The title was

A list of candidate emissaries to increase interaction between the Heavenly Martial Academy and the Heavenly Palace.

Departure date:One week after the end of the entrance exam.

Participants:Yong Tianming, Maha Ling, Namgung Sang, Jinling, Ilgong, Mo Yonghui, Yun Junho, Jang Hong, Na Yerin…….

And… finally, the following three names.

Bi Ryuyeon (飛流連).

<Continued from Volume 18 of "Reliability"