Kuuuuung—!!!

The moment my fist struck the ground, the floor collapsed in an instant.

The sheer force played ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) a role, but as I felt the ground crumbling beneath my touch, I was certain—

‘The foundation is weak.’

It wasn’t solid. Almost as if nothing was supporting it from below.

Boom! Boom-boom—!!!

I continued striking, and each hit shattered whatever it touched.

Of course, my strength had increased, but beyond that, this place was unusually fragile.

I kept breaking and breaking.

Just in case, I sealed off my energy field to prevent the vibrations and noise from spreading.

After smashing away for a while—

Crack—!

"Oh."

The ground gave way, revealing a space below. When I landed, I found a staircase leading downward.

I ignited a small flame and sent it flickering up the stairs.

The twisted, tangled structure made it impossible to tell where the starting point was.

After confirming that, I looked up to check the hole I had come through.

‘I’ve descended quite a bit.’

It seemed I had gone deeper than I expected.

Brushing off the stone fragments clinging to my hands, I examined both ends of the staircase.

Going back up didn’t seem like an option. Naturally, I chose to keep descending.

*********

I kept descending the stairs.

The path seemed endless, a suffocating sensation creeping over me.

For a moment, I considered just breaking through and dropping down. But since I had already found a path, I convinced myself it was better to endure and continued walking.

At least I had something to think about as I walked.

And that was none other than my battle with Yusa.

‘Why didn’t it activate?’

I had tried to use Nine Flames Ultimate Peak Technique, but after unleashing Nine Flames Firewheel, the technique had failed to fully manifest.

‘What happened?’

Why? It wasn’t like my martial arts had been completely sealed. My flames had erupted without issue, and I could still use Cheonma Divine Art, so it wasn’t an issue with my energy.

‘Hmph.’

Did I misexecute something? If so, what exactly was the mistake?

I thought about it, but no answer came to mind.

If I had to make a guess—

‘Does it need time before I can use it again?’

Whenever I used Ultimate Peak Technique, a ring would form behind me. It would spin, channeling its power to enhance my martial arts.

But—

‘After using the technique once, the ring wouldn’t turn again.’

Judging by that, it might have a cooldown period before I could use it again. That was the only explanation that made sense.

If so, how long did I need to wait?

‘I need to pinpoint the exact time limit.’

If I didn’t want to make the same mistake in real combat, I had to confirm this.

‘I’ll have to spend some time figuring it out later.’

I hadn’t had the luxury to test it before, which made me realize it even more now.

Reaching transcendence was one thing, but if I didn’t fully understand my own power, I would only run into trouble when trying to use it.

Hadn’t I already experienced that in my battle with Yusa?

‘It didn’t seem too dangerous at first.’

That was just how it appeared.

But if I really thought about it, it wasn’t safe at all.

‘A single graze would have been fatal.’

If I had been hit, I would have needed to concentrate all my Qi in one spot just to defend myself.

If I had focused less on evasion and taken a proper hit even once—

‘Would I have won?’

I wasn’t sure.

In the end, I had to rely on Dragon Speech to secure the victory.

"Tsk."

It was frustrating. A damn shame.

Using Dragon Speech at the last moment was one thing.

But more importantly—

‘I didn’t get everything I needed from him.’

The guy who was supposed to reveal the location had suddenly died. Because of that, I had lost most of what I should have gained from him.

And among all that—

‘Devour.’

That was the ability I was most interested in. The power to grow stronger the more one consumed.

It was another ability akin to Demonic Heaven Absorption Art and Tam’s power.

There was something I had learned from Yusa back when I was with Blue Leader.

And that was—

‘Even a General’s Authority can be devoured by Tam.’

The moment that bastard had tried to use his Authority on me, Tam activated, tearing it away instead.

As a result, Tam absorbed the knowledge of Devour.

Which meant—

‘Not only Dragons, but even the Authorities of these bastards won’t work on me.’

And also—

‘I can devour their Authorities too.’

The moment I forced them to acknowledge their defeat, Tam could seize their Authority.

Thinking about that only made it more frustrating that I had missed the chance to take Yusa’s Authority.

It would have suited me perfectly.

‘And yet, he just up and died.’

Since Yusa had died right in front of me, I lost my opportunity to take it.

"Tsk."

What an absolute waste.

The whole fight with him had been frustrating.

‘Think positively.’

I hadn’t walked away empty-handed, after all. I forced myself to see the silver lining.

‘Right? I learned that magic doesn’t work well against me. I learned that Generals can be turned into demons...’

And most importantly—

‘I found the location of the Divine Tree.’

Considering that, this wasn’t too bad of an outcome.

Reassuring myself, I kept walking for a long while—

“...Finally.”

At last, the seemingly endless staircase came to an end.

After descending the steep stairs to their final steps, I found myself before a massive wall with a heavy iron door embedded in it.

No matter how I looked at it, I was meant to go through there.

Naturally, I reached out my hand—

Uuuuuuung.

"Hmm."

The air distorted, and a ripple ran through my hand. It felt as if I had dipped my fingers into water.

However, I didn’t get the sense that the door was blocked or damaged.

I simply felt the rippling sensation as I grasped the handle.

Creeeeak—!!! 𝓯𝙧𝓮𝓮𝒘𝓮𝙗𝙣𝒐𝒗𝒆𝓵.𝓬𝓸𝒎

I pulled it open.

Fortunately, the door wasn’t difficult to move.

As soon as it opened, the strange rippling sensation vanished.

I pushed the iron door fully open, and light immediately poured in. I squinted.

It was so bright that I couldn’t help but narrow my eyes.

Shielding my eyes with one hand, I waited until they adjusted. And once they did—

"...Hah."

I gasped in awe at the space that unfolded before me.

"What the hell...?"

It was absurd. Given that the place was surrounded by iron doors, I had expected to find something like an underground grove.

But the inside...

It didn’t feel underground at all.

A paradise. Rolling fields stretched before me, a breathtaking lake shimmering under the light. Beyond it, a sea of flowers covered the landscape.

How could such a beautiful garden exist here?

I struggled to contain my amazement.

Never in my life had I seen a garden this magnificent.

Even the grand parks of Shaolin, built with an absurd fortune, weren’t on this level.

I stood there, dazed, entranced by the mesmerizing scenery—

"...Ah."

I barely managed to pull myself together. I couldn’t afford to forget why I had come here.

"The Divine Tree..."

That was what I was here to find.

Reminding myself, I scanned my surroundings, searching for the tree.

‘What...?’

Something was wrong.

The garden, though beautiful, wasn’t particularly large. The ceiling—if there was one—was so high and bright it felt as though sunlight was pouring in.

But there was no towering tree like those in Mount Hua.

What was going on? Why couldn’t I see the Divine Tree?

There were trees scattered around the field, but they were just ordinary trees.

Nothing that could be considered the Divine Tree.

What the hell?

‘Could it be... that the Divine Tree isn’t here?’

Was this the wrong place?

Everything about this space screamed secrecy. It was exactly the kind of hidden sanctuary where something as rare as the Divine Tree should exist.

And yet—

It was missing?

That made no sense.

"It has to be here."

There was no way it wasn’t. It had to be somewhere.

Believing that, I channeled my energy.

Just like before, I concentrated on sensing the presence of the Divine Tree.

Fwoooosh—!

To my surprise, I didn’t even need to try.

The energy came to me instantly.

Refreshing and pure—

And at the same time, sacred.

Back at the assembly hall, I could barely sense it. But here, it was unmistakable.

A presence so thick it was impossible to ignore.

Feeling that overwhelming energy, I turned my head.

"There."

A cluster of trees.

The Divine Tree’s presence was coming from there. Without hesitation, I moved toward it.

Striding through the trees, I felt the wind grow stronger the further I went.

"Wind? In an enclosed space?"

If this place was truly underground, there was no reason for wind to be blowing.

Which meant—

"This place isn’t normal."

That was proof enough.

Proof that this space wasn’t what it seemed.

And proof that I was in the right place.

Feeling certain, I pushed deeper into the trees—

Until I finally stopped in front of one particular tree.

"...Hm?"

I tilted my head, my brows furrowing instinctively.

"This... is the Divine Tree?"

What stood before me was an utterly ordinary tree.

Just a plain tree with green leaves—nothing special about it.

It wasn’t particularly large, nor did its leaves have any unique traits.

It looked no different from the other trees around it.

"...What the hell."

And yet, the energy I felt was undoubtedly coming from this tree.

Was this truly the Divine Tree?

"This is nothing like the ones I’ve seen before."

The tree at Mount Hua had been enormous, towering high enough to block out the sky.

And the Divine Tree I had suspected to belong to the Lord...

It had been small for a Divine Tree, but its presence and appearance made its nature obvious.

But this?

"What is this supposed to be?"

A tree so ordinary that I would have walked right past it had I not sensed its energy.

Tilting my head repeatedly, I decided to confirm it for myself.

I reached out and placed my hand against its trunk.

Its bark was rough beneath my fingertips—

Just like any other tree.

And then—

Saaaah—!!

"...?"

A gust of wind suddenly burst from the tree.

Not from the surroundings—directly from the tree itself.

What... is this?

The tree’s leaves rustled as it released a crisp, refreshing breeze.

Why was it doing that?

Frowning in confusion—

"What do you think?"

"...!"

A voice sounded behind me.

I immediately turned my head.

I hadn’t sensed any presence.

Assuming an enemy, I tensed and prepared to strike—

But then, I froze.

I had to stop everything.

Because the person standing behind me—

"It may look ordinary, but it is strong and kind."

A woman.

Her long white hair framed a face of elegance, dressed in simple yet refined clothing.

She smiled warmly as she looked at me.

That smile made the whole world blur around me.

I stood frozen, unable to speak, my body rigid.

"It has been a long time, hasn't it?"

She spoke to me, her voice gentle.

And she was—

"My son."

—My mother.