AR Chapter 1

Gwi Ryeongja^[1] silently stared at the midnight visitor.

As the master of the Ghost Clan^[2] who had traversed the Sword Forest of Blade Mountain^[3], he had experienced many intruders.

They came in various types. Some were brash, others meticulous, some skilled fighters, others adept at scheming. Occasionally, there were those who possessed all these qualities. Of course, even they never left this estate alive.

But the man before him was different from all previous intruders.

Looking at those weary eyes that had tasted all the bitter flavors of life, only one thought crossed his mind.

‘Shit, is today my death anniversary?’

Gwi Ryeongja, struggling to hide his unease, calmly asked, “Have we met before?”

“No,” the man replied.

His voice was low, yet remarkably pleasing to the ear.

“Then what brings you here at this hour?”

Please, don’t let that pleasant voice say, ‘It’s a good day to die, you ghostly relic!’

“I’ve come with a request.”

Gwi Ryeongja, who had nearly been pushed to hell’s gates, inwardly sighed with relief and asked, “Speak.”

Then, truly, the most astonishing request he had ever heard in his life fell from the man’s lips.

“Send me to the past.”

A moment of silence fell.

Gazing at the other with a subtle look, Gwi Ryeongja quietly asked, “How can a human defy time?”

“I don’t know. You, who alone in this world can perform the Great Regression Technique^[4], should tell me.”

Gwi Ryeongja didn’t deny this fact.

“How did you know I could perform it?”

The Great Regression Technique was a secret method passed down only within his family.

“Seo Jin^[5].”

At this familiar name, Gwi Ryeongja was overcome with emotion.

“How do you know my sister?”

“We were comrades during my wandering days.”

“Where is she now?”

“Dead.”

“Ah!”

Gwi Ryeongja let out a deep sigh. The Great Regression Technique had been researched and passed down in his family for hundreds of years. It was still incomplete in his father’s generation, so he and his younger sister had strived since childhood to help their father complete it.

Then, ten years ago, his sister, unable to bear it any longer, left the family, almost like a thief in the night. Gwi Ryeongja understood her. She had dedicated her entire twenties to research under the guise of the family’s great work.

“How did Jin die?”

“I’ve already taken revenge, so you needn’t worry about that. Before she died, she asked me to tell you this: She lived a life without regrets. She hoped you would do the same. Don’t live a life solely devoted to researching the technique, but please live your own life.”

Gwi Ryeongja was plunged into deep remorse.

The man waited for him to collect his emotions before asking the most important question of the day.

“Have you completed the technique?”

Gwi Ryeongja slowly nodded.

“Yes. I finally completed the technique in my generation.”

For a moment, joy flashed across the man’s face. As he smiled brightly, it became apparent that he was quite a handsome man.

“How far back can I go?”

“That can’t be determined. You might go back ten years, or thirty years. You could return to your infancy, or if you’re unlucky, you might only go back to yesterday.”

“I tend to be lucky, so I’m not worried.”

“You seem to think you can return right away.”

A bitter expression crossed Gwi Ryeongja’s face.

“The technique is impossible. If it were possible, I would have gone back already.”

“Didn’t you say you completed the technique?”

“I haven’t gathered all the materials needed for the technique.”

“I’ll gather the materials.”

“It’s impossible, I tell you.”

“Tell me what they are.”

“Out of the ninety-nine materials needed for the technique, there are five that I ultimately couldn’t obtain. The first one alone is absolutely impossible to get. Have you heard of the Sound Thunder Bell^[6]?”

“The sacred object of the Heavenly Wind Cult^[7]?”

“That’s right. That very one.”

The Heavenly Wind Cult, successor to the Blood Cult^[8], was the most powerful force outside the orthodox sects.

“To perform the Great Regression Technique, we need the sound waves produced when the Sound Thunder Bell rings. But that bell is a treasure of the Heavenly Wind Cult, placed behind the cult leader’s throne. Do you still think you can obtain it?”

Gwi Ryeongja couldn’t even ask to borrow the Sound Thunder Bell. If he did, his entire family would be wiped out by the ill-tempered Heavenly Wind Cult leader.

“I’ll get it.”

With this resolute answer, the man turned and left before he could be stopped.

‘Is this man insane?’

That’s what Gwi Ryeongja thought at the time, regretting that he couldn’t ask more about his sister.

The man returned years later.

On a sleepless night, plagued by insomnia, he who had vanished like a midsummer night’s dream reappeared before Gwi Ryeongja.

He was carrying a large Sound Thunder Bell on his back. The evil spirits carved on the bell looked even more hideous, as if angered by the long journey from the unorthodox world to here.

“Shall I ring it once?”

Gwi Ryeongja examined the Sound Thunder Bell with wide eyes, over and over.

“This can’t be! Oh! This can’t be!”

It was hard to believe, but this was the genuine Sound Thunder Bell, with the Blood Qi^[9] of the Blood Cult faintly flowing through it.

“You madman! How on earth did you obtain this?”

“I’m a man of my word. What’s the next material?”

The man’s calm yet confident gaze showed that his earlier boast was no empty talk.

‘He’s no ordinary person.’

But soon, Gwi Ryeongja sighed.

“You may have been lucky enough to bring the Heavenly Wind Cult’s sacred object, but the next material is impossible to obtain.”

“What is it?”

“It’s the Divine Profound Brazier^[10], a sacred object of the New Dragon Clan. The technique requires the incense that rises from the Divine Profound Brazier.”

The New Dragon Clan^[11].

They were the symbol of the newly risen orthodox faction after the sealing of the Righteous Martial Arts Alliance, and the family with the most powerful strength. A force said to be stronger than the Heavenly Wind Cult.

“I understand. I’ll hear about the third material after I bring the incense burner.”

“Are you leaving the Sound Thunder Bell with me? What if I run away with it?”

“I’ll inform the Heavenly Wind Cult. I’ll tell them you stole the bell and ran.”

Leaving behind words that seemed to say ‘Try it if you dare,’ the man hastily departed.

And again, years passed.

—Will he bring it this year?

This doubt arose every new year. After this doubt had repeated five or six times, one autumn, the man returned with the Divine Profound Brazier.

“You really brought it!”

Gwi Ryeongja couldn’t believe it even as he saw the Divine Profound Brazier with his own eyes.

“How on earth were you able to bring this?”

“If I wrote it all down, it would take five or six volumes.”

“Tell me. I’d read even ten volumes. I’m curious!”

“There’s no time for that.”

What exactly allows this man to turn the impossible into possible? With this ability, he could live well in this life too. Yet he still wants to go back so desperately?

“Is your reason for wanting to go back revenge?”

“Yes.”

“With your skills, couldn’t you take revenge in this life?”

“Impossible.”

“Who on earth is your enemy?”

A name flowed from the man’s lips.

“Hwa Mu-gi^[12].”

“Ugh!”

That name that made Gwi Ryeongja exclaim in shock.

Hwa Mu-gi.

He has two epithets. The first is Sam-bong. An epithet fitting for a learned old scholar skilled in academics or arts. But his ‘bong’ is not the ‘bong’ meaning peak^[13]. Nor is it the ‘bong’ meaning to serve^[14]. Hwa Mu-gi’s ‘bong’ is the ‘bong’ meaning to seal^[15].

Sealing of the Righteous Martial Arts Alliance^[16]

Sealing of the Unorthodox Alliance^[17]

Sealing of the Heavenly Demonic Divine Cult^[18]

The leaders of the three strongest forces supporting the martial arts world all died by his hand. The Alliance Leader died, the Unorthodox Alliance Leader died, and the Heavenly Demon died. Their families and the high-level experts who didn’t surrender all died too.

Thus, his second epithet is the Greatest of All Time^[19].

Hwa Mu-gi, the Greatest of All Time.

The absolute ruler of this era.

After sealing the three places, Hwa Mu-gi declared his house as the World’s Greatest Alliance, and thousands of high-level experts who revered him gathered to him. People called him the Immortal Martial God for achieving unification of the martial arts world.

“Good heavens! He’s an opponent you can’t defeat even if you go back in time!”

“I will definitely kill him.”

“But how? He’s the greatest martial arts genius since the beginning of the martial arts world.”

“I’ve heard the genius talk too.”

“They say he has the Heavenly Martial Body bestowed by heaven!”

“I have the Heavenly Martial Body^[20] too.”

“What? Who exactly are you?”

“The Heavenly Demon he killed was my father.”

“!”

Gwi Ryeongja was greatly shocked by the man’s words. He never dreamed that he was the son of the deceased Heavenly Demon.

Now he understood the feats the man had accomplished earlier. He knew he wasn’t an ordinary person, but he never imagined he was of this status.

“Then how did you survive?”

In response, the man undid his robe. The scar left on his chest was so fatal that Gwi Ryeongja cried out, “Oh my, aren’t you a ghost?”

“When I opened my eyes, I was in a pile of corpses. I crawled out of there just before being buried alive.”

“So that’s what happened.”

“The reason I can’t forgive Hwa Mu-gi isn’t because he tried to kill me. It’s not because he killed my father, nor because he killed my treacherous older brother. What’s so great about dying when living a life marked by ‘demon^[21]’?”

“Then?”

“That day, Hwa Mu-gi killed all the servants who didn’t know martial arts, the cooks, even the children. He even killed all the dogs and cats we raised. He annihilated every living being he saw.”

“That’s a lie! I can’t believe it.”

“Whether you believe it or not is not my concern.”

Gwi Ryeongja could feel that the man’s words were true. The man he had known until now wasn’t the kind of person who would lie about such things.

“What kind of person he is doesn’t matter anymore. In reality, he might be a great hero with grand ambitions. Some might applaud him for eradicating the demonic cult’s roots and branches. But to me, Hwa Mu-gi is just an enemy who killed my family and a cold-blooded man without a shred of mercy. I’ve considered every angle, and since I’m powerless to end his life in the present, I’m resolved to return to the past to do so. However, before I exact my revenge, there’s something I need to know. I must ask him: “Given your immense strength, was it truly necessary to slaughter even the innocent children?”“

Gwi Ryeongja stared at the man with a dazed expression. He never dreamed the man had such a story.

The man placed his hand on his chest.

“That day, my bodyguard died protecting me, getting a hole pierced here. A friend who never even had the chance to marry, let alone make a proper friend, because that person was guarding me day and night. Now, don’t waste any more of my precious time and tell me. What’s the third material?”

“You really are…”

“A busy man. So, the next material!”

Gwi Ryeongja heaved the deepest sigh since meeting the man.

“Even if it’s you, you won’t be able to obtain this one.”

“What is it?”

“The inner core of the Ten Thousand Year Fire Carp^[22]. The last recorded sighting of the Ten Thousand Year Fire Carp was three hundred years ago. It might not even exist in this world anymore.”

“What a fickle technique. Should I just cut you down right here?”

“Please, have patience.”

“I must be patient. How else have I come this far? Wait. This time, it might take quite a while.”

“Listen! Do you think the Ten Thousand Year Fire Carp just bites when you cast a fishing rod?”

“The Ten Thousand Year Fire Carp is still a carp, right? It must be in some water somewhere in this world. Wait. I’ll definitely obtain it.”

Watching his back as he walked towards the impossible, Gwi Ryeongja thought that the story about his sister and the man’s name, which he still didn’t know, weren’t that important after all.

1. 귀령자(鬼靈子) = Ghost, Spirit, 1st earthly branch[↩]
2. 귀문(鬼門) = Ghost, Clan/Gate[↩]
3. 도산검림(刀山劍林)[↩]
4. 회귀대법(回歸大法)[↩]
5. 서진(徐眞) = Calm, Genuine[↩]
6. 음뢰종(音雷鐘)[↩]
7. 풍천교(風天敎)[↩]
8. 혈교(血敎)[↩]
9. 혈기(血氣)[↩]
10. 신오향로(神奧香爐)[↩]
11. 신룡가(新龍家). The character 新 refers to birth, new or an abbreviation ‘Xin’ to a region called Xinjiang; an autonomous region of China, occupying the northwestern corner of the country, as opposed to 申 which refers to god, divine. It seems like the adaptation’s translation is using the latter but we’re going to retain its original meaning.[↩]
12. 화무기(華武技). The antagonist’s name literally meant martial arts[↩]
13. 峰[↩]
14. 奉[↩]
15. 封[↩]
16. 정도무림맹(正道武林盟)[↩]
17. 사도연맹(邪道聯盟)[↩]
18. 천마신교(天魔神敎)[↩]
19. 고금제일(古今第一)[↩]
20. 천무지체(天武之體)[↩]
21. 마(魔)[↩]
22. 만년화리(萬年火鯉)[↩]