A Regressor’s Tale of Cultivation Chapter 211 - Lightning Flash (5)
Ziiing—
A chilling, otherworldly vibration resonates through the air.
The moment that sound reaches me, my mind feels as though it is about to fracture under immense pressure.
'It is so far away!'
This presence originates from a distant dimension, far beyond the reach of the Black Dragon.
Previously, every True Immortal-level entity I had encountered was merely a projection, an avatar, or a lingering fragment of will trapped in a drop of blood.
But this is different. Despite the vast dimensional distance, the being manifesting here is undeniably the 'true body'!
'I must not look!'
Haunted by the memory of my encounter with [Him], I press my face toward the earth. I struggle to purge the entity from my thoughts, desperate to avoid making direct eye contact with the True Immortal.
Even with my gaze averted and my thoughts suppressed, that piercing vibration seems to flay my very soul.
I snap my eyes open as I witness the state of Jin Byuk-ho before me.
"…! Krrrgh!"
"…!"
Jin Byuk-ho is transforming into lightning.
This is no figure of speech; his physical form is literally dissolving. Starting from his eyes, his entire being is converting into bolts of electricity that dissipate into the atmosphere.
Despite the agony of his dissolution, Jin Byuk-ho claws at his head, his teeth bared in a desperate snarl.
"D-don't listen! That... [that thing] is speaking! You must not, under any circumstances, listen to those words!"
'Words...?'
It appears that for Jin Byuk-ho, that eerie vibration translates into actual speech.
Perhaps it is similar to how only those who have mastered the Golden Divine Heavenly Thunder Sect's arts can perceive the Heavenly Lightning Banner. These 'words' are likely only audible to those who have deeply Cultivated the path of lightning.
"Stop speaking! No, do not address me! Do not look at me! I beg of you! Ahhhhh!"
I fight with everything I have to banish the image of the True Immortal's 'eye' from my mind. Shoving my face into the dirt, I force my entire consciousness to fixate on a single geometric pattern of the teleportation array.
I need a distraction!
Anything else!
At that moment, the Heavenly Lightning Banner, Zhengli, begins its ascent.
Tsstststst!
Upon reaching a specific height, the Heavenly Lightning Banner erupts in a blinding radiance.
Kwagwagwang!
In a flash, a massive bolt of golden lightning strikes the earth exactly where the banner had been—right between myself and Jin Byuk-ho.
As the golden bolt connects with the Heavenly Lightning Banner, I sense something being 'unchained' from within it.
Brilliant beams of light explode from the banner, and a figure begins to materialize within the glow.
"...?"
I see a small foot.
Sarak...
The hem of a simple garment, woven from pure electricity, brushes against the ground.
From beneath the robes, delicate, pale bare feet come into view.
A melodic, haunting voice begins to reverberate through the surroundings.
[My lord, my master. Have you finally arrived to liberate me?]
Shiver!
The sound of that voice sends a violent shudder down my spine.
[O exalted one, I beg you, take me with you.]
The entity, draped in lightning-spun cloth, drops to its knees.
I cannot see its face, but the voice, framed by cascading white hair, feels dangerously divine. The kneeling figure clasps its hands in a gesture of intense devotion, praying toward the heavens.
[Grant me the grace to return to your side. Let me go back. Allow me to serve you once more....]
As 'it' begins its prayer, a horrific transformation sweeps across the area.
"Re… return..."
Jin Byuk-ho, whose body is already crumbling into sparks, mimics the entity's posture. He kneels, clasps his hands, and bows his head in worship.
"Return... to thee."
He is not the only one.
My senses scream as I realize this is happening across the entirety of Heavenly Human Island.
"Return... to thee."
"Return... to thee."
"Return... to thee."
From commoners to high-level Cultivators, every person on the island drops to their knees in prayer, regardless of their status or power.
Simultaneously, their bodies vaporize into lightning at an accelerated pace, soaring into the clouds. It is as if every spark of life is being reclaimed by a greater, more terrible source.
Suddenly—
———!
The ziiing sound thunders once more.
The white-haired entity speaks again, its voice thick with emotion.
[Ah, I understand. Since this settles the 120,000 years of resentment I held while being used by the Golden Deity's lineage, I shall obey your decree.]
The barefoot being begins to float toward the sky.
Zzzt, zzzt...
'This is death.'
I have to leave.
I need to escape right now.
But...
'If I move, I will be pulled toward that being!'
I feel that even the smallest step will cause me to dissolve into lightning and be consumed by the sky. The only reason I remain whole is that I was the one who invoked the name 'Zhengli'. That is my only protection.
The voice of the ascending spirit, the essence of the Heavenly Lightning Banner, booms across the island.
[I, the Essence of the Great Heavenly Punishment, decree the Heavenly Tribulation in the name of my lord....]
Kugugugugu!
The heavens begin to churn as an unfathomable amount of light converges above.
[The hour of judgment has arrived.]
Then, it happens.
Fwoooosh!
Blinding pillars of light saturate Heavenly Human Island, instantly vaporizing the headquarters of the Human Race Grand Alliance.
Jeon Myeong-hoon's eyes snap open.
"Ugh, where... where am I?"
His last memory was walking down a street before being swallowed by an abrupt darkness.
"My private quarters?"
Recognizing his own training chamber, he scans the room, only to find a woman in golden robes resting beside him.
"So-hae...?"
The woman, Jin So-hae, stirs and opens her eyes.
"Oh, junior brother. You have finally woken up?"
"So-hae... what occurred? What happened to me?"
"Honestly, you silly man! Do you have any idea how terrified I was when you suddenly vanished?"
"What?"
"Even if a villain was pulling your strings, how could you turn your back on me so coldly? Huh, huhuk…."
Jin So-hae chokes back her words, dissolving into tears as she throws her arms around Jeon Myeong-hoon.
Confused and disoriented, Jeon Myeong-hoon awkwardly rubs the back of his neck.
"I don't remember any of that… but I would never abandon you, So-hae. Never."
"...I see. That is good."
"What is going on?"
"...Step outside. See for yourself."
The two of them exit the chamber together.
Jeon Myeong-hoon freezes, his eyes wide with disbelief.
The Golden Divine Heavenly Thunder Sect lies in total ruin, looking as though it had been struck by a divine catastrophe.
"What happened here..."
"A villain from outside, seeking you and the Heavenly Lightning Banner, launched an assault on our Sect. You were under their control for days, aiding their cause."
"That... I did that?"
"The Sect Leader has departed to slay the villain using the Heavenly Lightning Banner. He should return shortly."
"I can't believe it..."
Noticing his distress, Jin So-hae looks at him with a piercing, solemn gaze.
"...While you were under that influence, you said without hesitation that you would leave me and the Sect behind."
"...I really said those things?"
"You did. So, I must ask you something."
She stares directly into his eyes.
"If the Golden Divine Heavenly Thunder Sect faces a crisis in the future—something beyond our power to stop—will you desert us?"
Jeon Myeong-hoon closes his eyes, thinking of his time within the Sect.
"…That is impossible. I won't."
"Do you swear it?"
"I swear. I, Jeon Myeong-hoon, will never betray Jin So-hae or the Golden Divine Heavenly Thunder Sect, no matter what happens."
He offers his pinky finger to her.
"Is this the custom of your home?"
"Yes, it's a promise."
They hook their fingers together and seal the vow with their thumbs.
"Why would I ever leave? Everything I love is right here. My previous words about running away were just born of frustration."
Jeon Myeong-hoon stands tall, offering her a confident smile.
"Do you believe me?"
Just as Jin So-hae begins to respond, the sky is dyed a sickly yellow.
Cherung!
"…!"
A Heavenly Tribulation descends upon the Golden Divine Heavenly Thunder Sect.
No—this is something else. It is too massive, too saturated with pure spite to be a mere trial of the heavens.
Kugugugugung!
The strike originates from above Thunder Spirit Island, a landmass nearly the size of a continent. High above, the projection of a colossal 'eye' looms, and a deluge of lightning begins to annihilate the island.
Kugugugugu!
Sound vanishes. Color bleeds away.
The world is reduced to a void of pure, blinding white.
Under the weight of a Heavenly Tribulation they cannot hope to endure, the members of the Golden Divine Heavenly Thunder Sect begin to melt. The very ground liquefies as they fall into the abyss.
Everyone is being erased.
Everyone except Jeon Myeong-hoon.
"No, this can't be happening...!"
Jeon Myeong-hoon’s innate gift is so profound that even as the Heavenly Tribulation strikes him, he absorbs its essence, his body naturally diverting the lethal force. He possesses a talent beloved by the elements—the Heavenly Golden Thunder Body.
But as his Cultivation base surges and fluctuates wildly, he feels no triumph. He is paralyzed by horror.
Right before him, the woman he loves is being burned alive.
She doesn't even have the time to scream.
"No!"
He throws himself over Jin So-hae, trying to shield her with his own body. He desperately casts every defensive spell he knows to halt the lightning.
But this is a tribulation that spans a continent and tears the world asunder. It cannot be stopped by a mortal.
In his arms, Jin So-hae's life fades.
"No, no, no! Don't leave me! Stay with me!"
He screams, clutching her hand, his mind beginning to fracture.
The woman he holds is crumbling into ash. He is helpless, able only to wail in agony.
"No! Please..."
Amidst the roar of the lightning, he hears her final, whispered words.
"Golden Divine... Heavenly Thunder Sect..."
Jin So-hae, the descendant of Jin Byuk-ho and the Sect's greatest hope, shudders one last time as she gasps her final plea.
"Don't leave... please... stay..."
With those words, she disintegrates into gray dust.
Jeon Myeong-hoon lunges forward, trying to catch the particles of her being, but it is in vain.
She is gone. He is left clutching at nothing, howling into the storm.
Then, a voice emerges from the rain of thunder.
Whisper, whisper, whisper...
The Heavenly Tribulation itself is speaking to him. The bolts of lightning are murmuring in his ear.
—Repent....
—Return....
—Repent....
What sin must he confess? To what source should he return?
He has no answers. But through his grief, Jeon Myeong-hoon listens, his eyes wide and bloodshot.
Whisper, whisper, whisper...
Within those whispers, forbidden knowledge begins to flow into him.
"Ah... Ahh..."
He hears the truth of the tribulation. As he absorbs the lightning, he absorbs the secrets it carries.
He learns of the being who destroyed his life: the True Immortal.
"Aaaaaah...!"
Despair takes hold. He realizes the nature of the entity that took everything. It is a being that demands all, yet remains forever out of reach, no matter what he sacrifices. He is utterly powerless.
As the lightning feeds him information, he feels the gaze of the True Immortal fall upon him.
Under that cold, malicious stare, Jeon Myeong-hoon’s mind snaps. Caught between fury and hopelessness, crushed by the presence of that supreme being, he loses himself to madness.
"Aaaaaaah!!!"
Finally, the eternal storm of the Heavenly Tribulation ceases.
"...Huh?"
Jeon Myeong-hoon wakes up, surrounded by a landscape of ash.
"...Where..."
He looks around with dead, hollow eyes.
"Ah, I see."
A realization hits him.
"It was all a dream. Ha, haha… To think I was engaged to the daughter of an Integration stage Grand Cultivator... what a crazy nightmare…."
But then he feels something in his grip.
"Ah..."
It is a hand. A scorched, shriveled, and blackened hand, charred by the lightning.
He knows exactly whose hand it is.
"Ah, ahh… Aaaaaah!"
The truth crashes down on him. This is no dream. This is his reality.
"Aaaaaah!"
He shakes violently, sobbing as he stares at the fried remains of Jin So-hae's hand.
The woman he loved has been erased from existence, leaving behind only this gruesome fragment in his palm.
"Ah, ahah... Aaaaaack!"
In a fit of agony, he presses the hand to his chest, his eyes weeping blood.
From the depths of his madness and the trauma of witnessing the True Immortal, a new power awakens within him.
"Ah, yes... I understand now..."
One truth becomes crystal clear to him.
"I finally see what my destiny is..."
With blood streaming down his face, Jeon Myeong-hoon rises from the pyre of his former life and glares at the heavens.
"…Revenge… I must sate this rage. I have to…!"
Having consumed the very Heavenly Tribulation sent by the True Immortal, his power has skyrocketed, transcending Core Formation to reach the Heavenly Being stage in an instant.
Jeon Myeong-hoon lets out a dark, twisted laugh.
"Anyone who gets in my way... I can just kill them, right?"
And so, amidst the cinders of his world, Jeon Myeong-hoon, the Lightning Harbinger, was born.