Soul Summoning Sword

Chapter 28: Radiance in the Dark Night (3)

Gugwi collapsed onto the floor. The cold stone ground dug into his spine.

Closing his eyes in silence and taking a deep breath, his Dantian slowly began to emit warmth.

Entry into the Realm of the Threshold.

Blue light pulsed along his blood vessels.

“Un Serim!”

The whisper split through the darkness. The mist slowly cleared away.

The figure of Un Serim appeared. It was a form of light. Waves of fury poured out.

“What makes you so enraged?”

This was his first conversation with Un Serim.

Gugwi had not thought it possible to converse. In this place, all spirits only said what they wanted to say.

“Dark Spirit… Sect!”

Un Serim spoke with a cracked voice. Every word was laced with killing intent.

A formless light spoke. For a spirit in the Realm of the Threshold to speak meant it trusted Gugwi. It meant that within the Realm, it had recognized someone other than itself.

“Dark Spirit Sect? I’ve never heard of it.”

“Cloud Flow Sect… exterminated… conspiracy… behind…!”

The words fell, broken and disjointed… but Gugwi clearly understood what Un Serim wanted to say.

He furrowed his brows.

For the past half year, while training in Soul-Summoning Arts, he had studied Murim in depth. He had meticulously learned the activities of existing sects and famous martial artists, but Dark Spirit Sect was a name he had never heard of.

‘It must have been a group that disappeared long ago….’

Un Serim… a condensed mass of wrathful light, trembled.

“Dark Spirit Sect… destroyed us….”

“That I understand. But there is no such sect as Dark Spirit Sect in Murim now. Your anger should be let go here….”

“Dark Spirit Sect!”

“Can’t I give you something else in place of Dark Spirit Sect? Something to fulfill your vengeance?”

“Dark Spirit Sect!”

It was impossible to reason. Un Serim’s fury was focused on only one thing. Even if Dark Spirit Sect had somehow continued to this day, what he sought was not the current sect. It had to be the very Dark Spirit Sect that annihilated the Cloud Flow Sect.

There was no way.

Perhaps this was why Soul-Summoners could not liberate spirits.

And another thing—conversing with a spirit within the Realm of the Threshold. That was something only Dark Control–level Soul-Summoners could accomplish. Yet it was happening now. Of course, Gugwi himself did not know this.

Though Gugwi’s stage was certainly low, strange phenomena were occurring. As if overturning the entire system of Soul-Summoning Arts.

Then, suddenly, the spirit of Un Serim, who had been conversing, burrowed into Gugwi’s Dantian.

Resonance with the Spirit Flow Core?

An inexplicable thirst for vengeance spread along Gugwi’s veins.

“Revenge!”

The fierce cry stabbed into his chest.

Gugwi clenched his teeth.

The Spirit Flow Core flared as if exploding from within his Dantian. Rampage! Indiscriminate fury toward an unknown foe!

Gugwi absolutely did not want his power to run rampant in this way.

“Calm down!”

He pressed his hand against his Dantian.

If the Spirit Flow Core had resonated with Un Serim’s grudge, then he tried to use its power to soothe the spirit.

Boom!

Light burst out, shaking the cave. Blue flames seemed to scatter in all directions. Un Serim’s grudge intensified even more. A sense that it was breaking through his control and surging outward from his body….

Gugwi staggered.

“What is this!”

He panted heavily.

Stabilizing the spirit with the Spirit Flow Core had failed. Instead, it seemed to fan the flames of fury.

‘At this rate, Un Serim’s spirit will break free. It’s trying to use my body to escape into the world. My body… was the passage out of the Realm of the Threshold. Was his grudge really this strong?’

Countless thoughts flashed through him in an instant.

Just then, the door swung open and Yeon Sohye rushed in.

“Gugwi!”

Her voice was sharp. The moment she saw Gugwi’s confused face, her eyes trembled.

“What’s happening?”

Quicker than her question, she drew her dagger.

She swiftly made Spirit Contact with her Spirit Union partner, So Ryeonghwa. A silver mist poured out.

Bang!

She entered Spirit Contact with So Ryeonghwa. But instead of summoning her out, she herself followed So Ryeonghwa into the Realm of the Threshold.

So Ryeonghwa’s figure stood beside Un Serim. Though both were forms of light, So Ryeonghwa radiated warmth.

“Un Serim, calm yourself!”

So Ryeonghwa’s voice was gentle. A soft aura enveloped Un Serim. Strangely, the thirst for vengeance began to subside.

“Calm down, calm down… calm down.”

So Ryeonghwa’s voice resonated gently, like music.

Gugwi’s heart pounded as if it would burst. The sound of his heartbeat rang in his ears.

He had both hands pressed against the floor.

He had no strength to rise. Panting, he gasped for breath. Sweat trickled down his back.

‘That was close….’

His hands trembled.

His knees lacked strength. Even when he tried to stand, his legs gave way and he fell again to the floor.

His breath was ragged, words would not come.

Un Serim had tried to escape into the world through his body.

Normally, it was impossible. But there was a reason this was possible now—the Spirit Flow Core!

The Spirit Flow Core had amplified the spirit’s rage.

It granted a far greater strength than the spirit originally possessed, opening a passage to the present world.

Uncertain, but without a doubt. His instincts told him so.

Yeon Sohye approached and supported Gugwi.

“Are you alright?”

Her eyes brimmed with worry.

“How… how could this happen….”

Gugwi looked at Yeon Sohye with astonishment.

“There’s no need to be too shocked. It’s relatively common. Evil spirits sometimes seize the bodies of beginners. In such cases, it’s our duty to mercilessly annihilate the spirit.”

“Then you’re saying I’m still only at beginner level?”

“No. But you have two problems. First, the Spirit Flow Core. It seems far more dangerous than expected. It’s like bait that draws spirits out. Until we know more, you should seal it away.”

“And the second problem?”

“Compassion.”

“……?”

“To us, spirits fall into only two categories. Tools to use, or targets to destroy. But because of your pity, you regard them as candidates for ascension. You’ve already helped a Nameless Martial Artist ascend, so I can’t argue against it… but that’s something only Dark Control–level practitioners can achieve. Not even the Sect Leader, the Seven Cold Wolves, or the Twelve True Armies can do that. And since you don’t even seem to know the proper method of ascension, you mustn’t attempt it again for now.”

“What you just did—soothing Un Serim—what was that?”

“Soul Return Technique. Returning a spirit that was trying to escape back into the Realm of the Threshold. It’s the greatest kindness we can give.”

“Resentment… prevents spirits from ascending.”

Gugwi murmured.

It was the experience he had gained when he helped the Nameless Martial Artist ascend.

“It’s not compassion. If I could just release Un Serim’s grudge, that would be enough. Do you know anything about Dark Spirit Sect?”

Yeon Sohye shook her head.

“Never heard of it.”

Gugwi slowly steadied his ragged breathing and pulled out the Soul Echo Manual.

The worn leather cover felt heavy in his hand. By now, even the touch had become strangely familiar.

Srrrk!

He flipped the page.

In that instant, he doubted his eyes.

On what had clearly been a blank page… words began to emerge. As though transparent ink was slowly regaining its color, the faded letters grew vivid one by one.

‘Wh-what! Why is this happening!’

So many unprecedented things had happened today that he wasn’t even surprised anymore. His mind simply felt numb.

How could such a thing be possible?

Perhaps the Soul Echo Manual revealed new content as the energy of the Spirit Flow Core grew stronger. His fingertips trembled slightly.

‘The Spirit Flow Core is… a fragment of the Heart of the Manifest Demon Emperor.’

Each word carved itself into his mind. A sentence he had never once seen before.

“The Manifest Demon Emperor….”

Gugwi’s face turned pale.

The ruler of the deepest depths of the Realm of the Threshold.

A being feared by all Soul-Summoners by name alone.

The one who governed every spirit at the very bottom of the Realm.

The very evil spirit that the Cult Leader of the Heavenly Sound Cult sought to summon.

This was all Gugwi knew. No one truly knew the exact nature of the Manifest Demon Emperor.

And yet—such a being’s heart was inside his Dantian?

“How… how could this be?”

His lips cracked dry. His voice split.

Could it be that even the Sect Leader, the Seven Cold Wolves, and the Twelve True Armies did not know that he carried a fragment of that being within him?

His Dantian burned hot.

The blue light pulsed even stronger.

“So that’s why….”

With a trembling hand, he pressed his forehead.

“So that’s why strange things keep happening around me.”

Cold sweat drenched his whole body. He was slowly beginning to realize the enormity of what he carried—the fragment of something vast and dangerous.

“Did Father know about this?”

Gugwi closed the Soul Echo Manual. His hand, touching the cover, still trembled.

“This is far too great a burden for me….”

A sigh escaped him. His father’s face surfaced in his mind.

“Father, what have you given me?”

Even his muttered voice shook.

“Guun.”

Gugwi called his father’s name. Then he slowly entered into the Realm of the Threshold.

A faint light approached from afar. It was so dim that it was hardly visible now.

It was his father’s spirit.

The light was on the verge of extinguishing. His heart grew heavy. Did this mean his father had no lingering regrets left in this world? Normally, a human soul could remain in the Realm of the Threshold for seven days. After that, it naturally ascended.

But his father had remained here for more than half a year. That meant he had carried many regrets.

Now, most of those regrets had been resolved.

Gugwi could read it from his father’s light—he had walked well, as his father had wished.

“What is the Spirit Flow Core? Why did you give it to me?”

The questions burst out.

“Whose was it originally? The Cult Leader of the Heavenly Sound Cult? Where did he obtain such a thing?”

The words poured out like a waterfall.

“Gugwi.”

His father called him.

At that moment, blue light rippled from Gugwi’s body. It was the first time the Spirit Flow Core had radiated light inside the Realm of the Threshold.

His father’s faint light absorbed that radiance and grew bright. Brighter, and brighter still… until suddenly—

“Gugwi, live well.”

His father’s voice rang clear.

Flash!

The light was extinguished.

It was ascension. His father had ascended.

It was the second ascension Gugwi had witnessed.

Gugwi stood alone in the Realm of the Threshold, dazed for a long time. It was a good thing, yes… his father had finally entered eternal rest… but now, only now, came the complete death. His chest ached with heaviness.

“Gugwi.”

A low voice called. Gugwi turned his head—then froze.

“L-Lord Yun!”

Gugwi stammered.

The one who had suddenly spoken to him was Yun Seoha, Lord of the Spirit Keeper Contest, and one of the Seven Cold Wolves, who oversaw the Soul-Summoning training of all Soul-Summoners.

In her hand was the Silver Spirit Fan.

Gugwi’s heart sank.

The Silver Spirit Fan was a weapon drawn only before an enemy. Never in ordinary times.

It meant she saw Gugwi as an enemy.

Indeed, Yun Seoha’s gaze had grown cold. The tension radiating from her body was sharp, as though she could attack at any moment, and her grip tightened on the Silver Spirit Fan.

‘How much did she see? What did she witness? Did the Spirit Flow Core’s power leak out?’

Gugwi’s throat went dry.

One of the greatest Soul-Summoners of the Cold Wolf Sect was warily watching him. No—more than wariness, she regarded him with hostility.

“L-Lord Yun.”

He barely managed to speak. His voice trembled.

Yun Seoha answered not with words, but by slightly unfolding the Silver Spirit Fan. Silver light glinted.

A warning.

“I came because I saw strange light leaking out….”

Yun Seoha slowly closed the fan. But her gaze was not on Gugwi’s face—it was fixed on another spot. The faint blue glow leaking from his Dantian.

Following her gaze, Gugwi realized. He tried to suppress the energy at once, but it was already too late. The light from his father’s ascension still lingered faintly.

Yun Seoha’s eyes narrowed. She stepped closer.

“That light….”

Her voice carried tension.

“Is it the Spirit Flow Core?”

Cold sweat trickled down Gugwi’s back. His throat dried. The sound of his swallow echoed in the training hall.

“……”

Gugwi lowered his head. He avoided her gaze. He could not speak a word.

Yun Seoha stared directly at him. As if seeing through everything.

A long silence passed.

Yun Seoha finally stepped back. Some tension eased.

“I will keep your secret.”

Her voice was firm. But it carried a warning.

“But be careful. The Blue Blood Unit is coming. I thought Jin Hoon summoned them out of jealousy, but… if this is the case, then even the Heavenly Sound Cult will target you. A cliff before you, a tiger behind.”

She slowly unfolded the fan again. Silver light flashed.

Gugwi’s face turned pale.

“You’ll need to grow stronger. As quickly as possible.”

Leaving those final words, she turned. Her steps quickened.

The door closed.

Gugwi stood there for a long while.

A chill crept down his spine. Yun Seoha had discovered it.

Now—what should he do?