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"It was a few years ago.... When we were about to conquer the Cold Spirit Race, I wondered why the Integration cultivators didn't stop the Mad Lord, remember?"

Her words continue.

"I heard that near the Human Territory , a massive upheaval of fate shook the entire Bright Cold Realm. Rumor has it that a portal to the Immortal Realm opened, diverting the attention of all Integration cultivators to the Human Territory ."

Kim Yeon playfully taps my shoulder.

"And only recently, the rumors about the Immortal Realm were sorted out. Can you guess what happened?"

She takes a deep breath.

"The Golden Divine Heavenly Thunder Sect, where Section Chief Jeon Myeong-hoon had gone, was annihilated by a True Immortal’s attack. The upheaval of fate, the opening of the portal to the Immortal Realm, it was all a precursor to the True Immortal seeking the Golden Divine Heavenly Thunder Sect. Haha... Section Chief Jeon was the only one to survive the horrifying True Immortal’s bombardment. He became half-crazed, wandering here and there. Strangely, wherever he goes, lightning strikes, earning him the title 'Lightning Harbinger.'"

There’s a bittersweet expression on her face.

"Lightning Harbinger Jeon Myeong-hoon wanders around searching for something, annihilating anyone who blocks his path, be it an individual or race. This has caused him to accrue much enmity, being pursued here and there, then seeking revenge in turn and annihilating entire races... He's been repeating this for years, earning quite the infamous reputation... But, of course, not as much as us."

Thump!With a flick of her finger, puppets move, bringing the corpses of a race in front of us.

Kugugugu!

Above, [She] is emanating an Integration stage aura, looking down in all directions.

After conquering the Cold Spirit Race and strengthened with materials from the Light Spirit Pond,

[She] and the puppets in the Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress have all significantly increased in power.

"Anyway, since all the Integration cultivators flocked to the Human Territory , our forces in the Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress have grown stronger, and he’s already created several Integration stage puppets... Escaping the Mad Lord's grasp seems even more distant now."

A blood-stained battlefield.

The puppets are busy clearing the battlefield, and Kim Yeon sits on a throne made of puppets, placing 'me' beside her as she talks.

"Anyway, I'd like to meet Section Chief Jeon sometime. Will he understand my feelings? The feeling of losing someone precious? Ahaha..."

She laughs weakly and buries her head on my chest.

"Min-hee Unnie is currently traveling the Bright Cold Realm with the Black Ghost Valley, honing her skills. I heard she controls millions of ghosts with one hand... Now, in the entire Bright Cold Realm, there's no one who doesn't know of her. If we're famous for our infamy, she's famous for her tremendous reputation. There were even attacks on her by spies from the True Devil, Blood Yin, and Nether Ghost Realms. Hahaha..."

Through Kim Yeon's words, the whereabouts of our companions emerge one after another.

"Chief Oh is making a name for himself in the Azure Heaven Creation Sect. As the direct disciple of the sect founder, Azure Tiger Saint, he's known for his heroism. Maybe, he'll join an alliance to confront the Mad Lord in the future. Haha... It wouldn't be bad to be saved by the hands of our colleagues, right?"

She kept looking at me as she spoke, yet 'General Seo' didn’t look back but kept watching the battlefield as commanded by the Mad Lord.

"Hye-seo, Hye-seo Unnie... I haven't heard much about her. Rumors say she married Seo Hweol, the Sea Dragon King, and became the Dragon Queen... Seo Hweol is active as a military advisor in the True Dragon Alliance, but there's no news about Hye-seo Unnie. It's strange, right? Even the dragons in the True Dragon Alliance don't know much about her... It's as if the information is deliberately blocked. Haha... Mad Lord said Seo Hweol must have intervened, that he's the most cunning in the world or whatever... I wonder if a madman is qualified to talk ill of others."

Squeeze...

She grips General Seo's body, which she had been tapping and stroking.

"Director Kim... Well, of course, there's no news. If there was a way to contact him in the lower realm... I'm not even sure if he's alive. Oh, now that I think about it, wasn't he sent somewhere by Mad Lord with Eun-hyun Oppa? Eun-hyun Oppa, what do you think happened to Director Kim?

"..."

"Oppa?"

"..."

"...I'm asking you."

Creak....

Kim Yeon's intent becomes unstable.

"I’m asking you, so answer me…Why aren’t you answering me! Why! Answer! Answer! Seo Eun-hyun! I’m telling you to answer me!"

Kugugugugu!

As she rages, the sky trembles and the earth shakes.

Though she is merely at the Heavenly Being stage, her power, amplified by her vast consciousness, reaches the Four-Axis level.

Natural disasters occur, and the world in all directions is in turmoil.

"Just why! Why did you leave me behind! Why! Please answer me! Eun-hyun Oppa, I've told you about our colleagues, haven't I? Isn't there anything else you're curious about? I'll tell you. Please, just answer me... Comfort me like you did back then..."

Kim Yeon, in a frenzy, sobs uncontrollably, clutching General Seo's shoulders.

"Waaaaaaah!"

And I, feeling her intense pain beside me, grit my teeth internally.

It’s been 80 years since I became General Seo.

Eighty years since I started trying to take over General Seo's spiritual circuits.

Wo-woong!

I have managed to gain control over some circuits inside the upper dantian.

Now, when I move up to the upper dantian, I can instantly crush and utilize the clumps of spiritual energy replicating my soul as my resources.

Yet, I still can't express anything externally.

I haven't yet gained control over the circuits in the facial or neck areas, and as I gain control over more circuits, more consciousnesses linked to them emerge.

Through these consciousnesses, more and more of the 'murmurs' of the Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress reach me.

The Mad Lord has been rampaging across the Bright Cold realm for 80 years, conquering races and creating puppets.

One billion.

Around one billion new puppets have joined the Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress, and their 'murmurs' grow louder.

Each time I take control of a circuit, another gateway for murmurs opens, and the murmurs only grow louder over time.

The immense pressure almost drives me mad, but I persevere, clenching my teeth.

"Please answer me! Respond..."

'I can't accept your heart.'

But,

'Even so, you keep giving your heart to me...'

This heart.

'Someday, I will surely return it.'

If I don't repay the one who weeps for me,

This life will be worthless.

Even if I have no intention of accepting their heart,

I hope that the one who weeps for me will someday find salvation.

For that, I must survive...!

I acknowledge Kim Yeon sobbing beside me and exert more effort to take over the circuits.

And then,

500 years passed.

Kim Yeon reached the Four-Axis stage.

The Mad Lord's Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress grew even more, and now there are over fifteen Integration stage puppets.

The Mad Lord became famous across the entire Bright Cold Realm, and his direct disciple, Kim Yeon, became well-known too.

But her eyes lost more and more light, and she increasingly spent time clutching General Seo, sobbing madly or lost in madness, repeating 'I love you.'

"Eun-hyun Oppa, there's news about our colleagues again. Do you want to hear it?"

"..."

"Thank you for listening. As always, you're all I have. Hehe..."

At some point,

Kim Yeon started muttering to herself while looking at me.

I spoke nothing, but she seemed to be imagining and making up conversations on her own.

500 years.

During this time, having lost me and living alone with the residents in the Mad Lord's Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress,

She has gone mad, accepting the madness of the Fortress.

"Lightning Harbinger Jeon Myeong-hoon became famous as a mass murderer. Anyone who provokes him ends up annihilated along with their entire race. Well, Jeon Myeong-hoon was already famous like that before..."

Crunch, crunch...

Kim Yeon continues, biting her fingers.

"Oh, Min-hee Unnie! Ah, poor Min-hee Unnie. She mastered the Ghost Path Method and reached the level of controlling billions of ghosts. But, she took in too many ghosts and went insane. She devoured her own sect, the Black Ghost Valley, annihilating it, and swallowed the entire territory of Black Ghost Valley. Only a single Nether Crossing Ship managed to escape from there. Now, cultivators who have reached the Integration stage are gathering to subdue Min-hee Unnie. Kiek kiek… Even though they dare not challenge the Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress, they go after poor, ambiguous Min-hee Unnie…. After consuming and commanding numerous ghosts, and becoming a powerful ghost monster, Unnie is currently establishing her base in the middle of the Swiftwind Domain, undergoing metamorphosis into something more powerful. Huhu…”

Chew, chew...

Biting her fingers, Kim Yeon continues.

"After Azure Tiger Saint died, Chief Oh seemed to have become mentally unstable. Indulging in alcohol, women, drugs, and all kinds of pleasures. Who would have thought that such a dependable man at the company would fall apart like that? He looked happiest under Azure Tiger Saint, and to think he would break down so much after the death of just one person…... Well, it's true that anyone can fall apart when a precious person dies."

Crunch, crack….

From her fingers, blood flows.

"There’s no news of Director Kim as always, well, he must’ve died. Keke…and Hye-seo Unnie…"

Crunch Craaackk!

"Still, there's still no news! No news!"

Crunch!

"I’m saying it’s good news!"

Craaak!

"It's good, right? Isn't it? Hye-seo Unnie, answer me. With Director Kim probably dead, me insane, Section Chief insane, Min-hee Unnie insane, and Eun-hyun Oppa like this! Hye-seo Unnie, at least you! You're living happily! Right? Everyone has become madmen. Only Hye-seo Unnie!"

Cruuunch!

"The situation is not so miserable, right? She must be living happily, loved, by the side of the Sea Dragon King, right? Tell me that's true. With all of us ending up like this, there should be at least one person who is happy, right? Isn't that so, Eun-hyun Oppa?"

Crunchh..

Before I know it, her hand has become completely mangled.

But.

Ssshhhh....

Spiritual energy wriggles, regenerating her flesh that reached the Four-Axis stage.

"Oppa... please…Please just answer me. Please... Until when, until when..."

Her consciousness chaotically spreads in all directions.

She has not achieved completion in the Wonderfully Mysterious Innate Heart Canon.

If she had, there's no way our eyes wouldn't have met, even now, within the puppet of the Mad Lord.

Only in front of the Mad Lord, I hide my heart essence with the enlightenment of Treading Heavens Beyond the Path.

In front of Kim Yeon, I always reveal my heart essence, so if she did reach completion, she would have recognized it.

I know the reason.

'The puppets of the Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress, who she controls in a sane state of mind, are gradually driving her mad with their ‘murmuring.’

Apart from the madness of the Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress, the Wonderfully Mysterious Innate Heart Canon itself is an excellent consciousness method.

But, becoming insane with madness before achieving completion, she couldn't take that last step.

'It’s very likely the Mad Lord went insane after achieving completion.’

Watching her with clouded, maddened eyes, I sort out my feelings.

Over the past 500 years.

Controlling General Seo's circuits, I learned some things.

First, the puppets created by the Mad Lord all have artificial souls.

Even the puppets made from corpses that died before their souls could be replicated, or from inanimate objects like wood, stone, or metal.

They all contain mass-produced lumps of spiritual energy, mimicking other puppets' artificial souls.

Such artificial souls, lumps of spiritual energy, allow the puppets to emit spiritual energy waves similar to intent.

The Mad Lord's spiritual energy circuits connect with other puppets' circuits.

Through this connection, the puppets exchange intent-mimicking spiritual energy flows.

These flows bind the puppets together, enabling the Mad Lord, whose consciousness isn't as vast as Kim Yeon's, to control the entire Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress.

Linked together, the puppets 'live their daily lives' within the fortress, strengthening the intent-mimicking connection.

Artificial souls emitting joy, child puppets playing together – these weak, but slightly amplified energy waves, when performed by billions of puppets, increase tremendously.

This amplified, strange flow of spiritual energy ties the entire Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress together, gradually converging towards its center.

Towards the center, emotional vibrations increasingly compress and amplify, resembling real intent.

This ‘intent’ in the center of the Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress, combined from billions of artificial souls, is nearly indistinguishable from real emotions.

In the center of this emotional whirlwind, [She] exists.

Inside Mad Lord's puppet, tracking and observing his actions, I can guess his goal.

'Maybe the Mad Lord is creating real intent, to create [Her] soul.'

[She] has no soul.

No, based on what I learned over 500 years under the Mad Lord.

[She] isn't even a living puppet.

Just an ordinary puppet, created with various precious materials, strongly reflecting the appearance of his lover.

Just a puppet, nothing more.

The Mad Lord has two ultimate puppets.

Both from the lower realm, now advanced to the peak of the Integration Stage from the Four-Axis stage.

[Her].

And the [Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress].

Through the Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress, he controls his numerous puppets, weaving replicated emotions from artificial souls into real intent.

Through the fortress, he processes intent, gradually completing [Her] soul.

'Yet, will a lover created by his own hands still be his original lover...'

I scoff inwardly at the Mad Lord's insane goal.

I’m not really interested in his purpose.

Creating a human soul is a great taboo, but honestly, I’m more focused on breaking free from his control.

The reason for taking control of the spiritual energy circuits is also to ensure that it no longer obeys the Mad Lord's command.

And after 500 years, I finally managed to somewhat control the upper body of General Seo's spiritual energy circuit.

Even now, I can move my arm and pat Kim Yeon.

But.

'The Mad Lord will notice.'

The spiritual energy circuit is interconnected with the other puppets.

Through the interconnected circuits, the spiritual energy waves intertwine, and within the Mad Lord's hands, [She] is being completed through the entire Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress.

Therefore, no matter how isolated I am, no matter if I take full control of General Seo's spiritual energy circuit,

If I act independently against the Mad Lord's command, he will notice right away.

'And if the Mad Lord realizes this fact, he will try to completely extract my soul from this puppet.'

That must not happen.

Then, what should I do?

Over the past 500 years, I had found a way.

'Through the interconnected circuits, I will gradually take control of other puppets of the Mad Lord.'

It’s possible through the Wonderfully Mysterious Innate Heart Canon.

'As long as I properly execute only the commands given by the Mad Lord, there's no reason to be caught.'

There's no need to control the entire Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress.

Just the puppets around General Seo.

I only need to control the area where those puppets reside.

'Although the puppets strictly follow the Mad Lord's command, a few minor errors are inevitable, and such errors are corrected internally by the Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress, without information reaching the Mad Lord.'

After controlling one area,

By accumulating small errors and pushing them all onto General Seo,

For a brief moment, I can theoretically escape the Mad Lord's sight and control General Seo's body.

'Surely, it's possible.'

Already, besides General Seo, I have controlled the spiritual energy circuits of eight thousand puppets.

Regrettably, I had to indirectly control the puppets through General Seo's spiritual energy waves, not my own consciousness, so taking control was slower than expected.

And if I project my consciousness outward, the Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress will notice, so I can't even talk to Kim Yeon.

"Hu, huhu…."

I look at her for a moment, lost in thought.

And then.

'With around eight thousand, I can't move General Seo's body.'

I decided.

'But... one arm...'

Click, click, click....

Eight thousand puppets, all at once, made a very slight, insignificant error.

'I've found the method to some extent....'

And such small errors are corrected internally by the Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress.

Click, click, click....

Through the interconnectedness of the puppets, I concentrate all those errors into one of General Seo's arms.

Click, click, click!

General Seo's arm seems to twist, but my consciousness takes control of the arm.

And then…

'It took a long time.'

But forgive me.

Starting today, I will continuously express my existence to you.

Pat, pat….

"...?"

General Seo's arm, after 500 years, patted Kim Yeon's shoulder following my will.

'By using the errors, I can even control the mouth a little....'

It's risky, but if it’s just for a fleeting moment.

When Kim Yeon's gaze turns towards me.

I slightly lift the corner of General Seo's mouth.

And though the error is quickly corrected and my actions return to normal.

Kim Yeon's eyes widened in surprise.

"Oppa...?"

Her eyes, soaked in madness, clears up momentarily.

She might not truly believe it.

She might just need something to comfort herself.

But as if clinging to a lifeline of hope.

She who saw my small gesture, trembling, raises both hands, and grabs General Seo's arm.

"Are you... there?"

As a disciple of the Mad Lord for 500 years.

She knows all about how the puppets are made and what happens to beings turned into puppets.

"Behind…the artificial soul…are you there?"

But.

Knowing that fact, still holding onto hope, she looks at me and asks.

Though I have used up all the errors I could mobilize for the moment and couldn't respond, tears well up in her eyes.

Different from the murky tears she had been shedding until now.

"Aaah, you're there, aren't you? Eun-hyun Oppa, finally, you responded, didn’t you?”

Drip, drip....

Having received a response for the first time in 500 years, she bites her lips and embraces General Seo's body.

"Thank you, for responding... for staying..."

It might’ve been a very small signal.

But she clings to it, endlessly thanking me.

In the Mad Lord's Wonderfully Mysterious Fortress.

One of the madmen in the fortress of the insane.

Began to find her way back.

Psssttt....

Her consciousness clears.

And as the madness that hindered her achievement disappears,

Kim Yeon's Wonderfully Mysterious Innate Heart Canon fully blossoms.

'Aaah...'

Finally.

My eyes meet with hers.