—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Cyno
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The Azure Light Sword showed Yoo So-eun many things.
Meeting Jin Ga-young, visiting the Hang Mountain Sword Sect, reuniting with Namgung So-so, and even the scene where Byeok-rak endured the Blood Tribulation at the Hang Mountain Sword Sect.
But what truly shocked Yoo So-eun was—
“S-Sir…?”
—the fact that not once did Byeok-rak commit any vile deeds.
It wasn’t just about cutting down bandits or slaughtering the Black Dao.
Humans are supposed to have desires—whether hunger, sleep, or lust.
People have urges.
But what about Byeok-rak’s behavior so far?
“Why… do you restrain yourself to such an extent…?”
He never let his desires show.
Even if he did, it was only at the most minimal level—like enjoying a chicken leg.
Even if his cultivation had reached the heavens, allowing him to control the Five Desires and Seven Emotions, some basic urges should have remained.
But Byeok-rak didn’t.
He was like a machine.
Sleeping when it was time to sleep.
Eating when it was time to eat.
Spacing out when idle, doing what needed to be done when necessary.
A monotonous, rigid lifestyle.
There was no such thing as leisure in his life.
Every single day was the same.
Like a worn-out person—no, like a machine living out a predetermined routine, waiting only for death.
Yoo So-eun knew the reason.
“Ghk…!”
Worry for Byeok-rak surged through her like a tidal wave.
In the end, wasn’t this also because of her?
He had worn himself out rewinding time for her sake.
And what had she done to him in return?
“Quickly, show me the next scene…!”
Overwhelmed by guilt, Yoo So-eun pressed the Azure Light Sword.
Watching her, the sword let out a mocking sneer (誹笑) and skipped ahead slightly.
Of course, the Azure Light Sword held no goodwill toward Yoo So-eun, so the next scene was far from pleasant.
“Wh… Where is this?”
“You brat! What kind of son-in-law doesn’t bow to his father-in-law?!”
“……???”
At those words, Yoo So-eun reflexively turned her head.
As far as she knew, there was only one person who could be called Byeok-rak’s father-in-law.
Her own father, the venerable Dokgo Gu-pae.
But when she turned her head, filled with anticipation—
“Jin Woo-yong. Remember this name well.”
—it wasn’t her father, but a grotesque-looking old man sitting cross-legged.
She could have been disappointed, but Yoo So-eun quickly shifted her focus.
Or rather, she had to.
Because—
“Just what kind of life have you lived?”
“What kind of life could leave your inner world in such a state?”
“What kind of life turns a soul into that? Even the Asura Demon Emperor’s soul wasn’t that bad back in the day.”
The mental landscape unfolding before Yoo So-eun’s eyes was—
“Wh-What the…? Why… Why is it like this…?”
—so horrifying that words failed her.
The Asura Realm. The Hell Realm.
Those were the only two terms that could describe it.
Moreover, Byeok-rak’s soul—missing chunks of its torso, covered in blood and wounds—
—was enough to shatter Yoo So-eun’s mind.
“H-How… How can a person’s heart be so… so…”
“Let’s see what kind of life you’ve lived.”
Jin Woo-yong ruthlessly tore open Byeok-rak’s memories.
Simultaneously, a grotesque scream echoed.
“AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!”
“Holdonholdonholdonholdonholdonholdonholdonholdonholdonholdonholdonholdonholdonholdonholdon!”
“Can’tgiveupcan’tgiveupcan’tgiveupcan’tgiveupcan’tgiveupcan’tgiveupcan’tgiveupcan’tgiveup!”
“Canliveagaincanliveagaincanliveagaincanliveagaincanliveagaincanliveagaincanliveagain!”
Maddened phrases repeated endlessly, followed inevitably by guilt.
Yoo So-eun, unable to bear it any longer, begged to skip ahead.
But the next scene only held greater suffering.
“Ahh… S-S-Sir…”
Forgetting that bloody tears were streaming from her own eyes, Yoo So-eun empathized with Byeok-rak.
“Don’t suffer anymore… It’s my fault… I’ll hold you…”
She spread her arms to embrace him, but—
Of course, her translucent body passed right through.
“Ugh…”
If there was a god in this world, she prayed—just for this moment—to let her touch him, to comfort him.
But the gods were cruel.
“Aaaaah…”
Time in the memories flowed swiftly, and before she knew it, Yoo So-eun had reached the events near the Seven Blossoms War.
Which meant—
“Aah…”
—she had now fully witnessed the erosion of Byeok-rak’s humanity, something even the Records of the Forgotten had occasionally mentioned.
“What do I do… Sir… What do I do about you…?”
Yoo So-eun recalled one detail from the Records of the Forgotten—that this cycle was the last one.
Naturally empathetic due to her gentle nature, she couldn’t help but sympathize with Byeok-rak’s position.
And that made this untimely tragedy all the more heartbreaking.
“This can’t be… How could you be treated like this…?”
After abandoning thousands of lives just to create a single peaceful cycle—
In that very cycle, she was the one who ended up ruined.
And this was the final cycle—with no more chances left.
“Ghk.”
A sharp pain twisted in Yoo So-eun’s stomach. She had been feeling this ache the entire time she watched the memories.
“Why are you… here…? No… Why does your voice sound like that…?”
“…So now you’re speaking formally again.”
The gazes of the memory-Byeok-rak and memory-Yoo So-eun clashed in the air. Between them stood another Yoo So-eun, drowning in despair—unaware of her own existence.
“D-Don’t do this…”
The spectral Yoo So-eun pleaded with her memory-self.
“Quickly… Quickly apologize! What are you doing just standing there?!”
Desperate. Frantic. Begging, praying for her voice to be heard.
“Was it… thirteen years ago? When your love for me started fading?”
“Stop it…! Just stop…!”
“The moment I came of age, you suddenly turned cold. Now I think I know why.”
“What do you know?! You stupid, clueless bitch…! Just shut up already…!!”
“You never once saw me as a woman, did you?”
“Back then, I didn’t have emotions, so… Ugh, whatever. Just leave.”
“Fine. I’ll go. Sorry for bothering you with my personal nonsense.”
“What are you apologizing for…?! That’s not it, you idiot!!”
Her futile screams went unheard.
Their bitter parting.
Their backs growing further apart.
To the present Yoo So-eun, each moment was like having her heart torn to shreds.
And the fact that there was no way to turn back made it all the more tragic.
“Shall I skip ahead again?”
“…Please.”
“You wanted to see your lord so badly, but now that you do, it doesn’t seem very enjoyable, does it?”
“I’m sorry.”
“Stupid bitch.”
Once again, the Azure Light Sword fast-forwarded.
Scenes from the Seven Blossoms War flashed through Yoo So-eun’s mind.
From the moment she and Namgung Su-ah were pelted with snowballs to the scene where Hwasan’s sword clashed with Jin Ga-young’s Great Moon.
Coincidentally, the sword stopped skipping right as Byeok-rak’s fury began.
“Sword Saint, are you truly evil?”
“Feel the energy I’m emitting right now.”
“…Ah.”
“Do you sense even a speck of demonic energy?”
“As I thought… You weren’t.”
The conversation with the Heavenly Lord—and his subsequent weeping.
Watching this, Yoo So-eun felt a flicker of joy. At least some of the false accusations against Byeok-rak were being cleared.
“You, who have watched me longer than anyone, should know better.”
“You think I’d lose to you?!”
“I am not evil. The world—and you—are.”
“…! Y-You…! What trick are you trying to pull now?!”
“Does it look like I’m playing tricks?”
Next came the conversation with Ok-hwa.
Like Yoo So-eun, Ok-hwa had mistaken falsehoods for truth—but unlike her, she awakened to reality in a slightly different way.
“Dogo… deserves divine punishment a thousand times over…”
“And what do you want me to do about it?”
“If I don’t die right now… I don’t think I can bear living as the vile creature I am…”
Thus, unlike Yoo So-eun—who realized too late—Ok-hwa sought repentance early.
“Then atone while living. I don’t care how, but live.”
“Right… I should. Thank you, Cheol-bin.”
“I told you to call me Byeok-rak.”
In the end, she received noble forgiveness.
Unlike Yoo So-eun, who was already too late.
“Ghk…!”
For some reason, Yoo So-eun’s stomach twisted as she watched.
This was supposed to be a precious moment where Byeok-rak’s name was being cleared.
She shouldn’t be feeling such impure emotions.
“I… I should’ve apologized back then too…”
Could she have been in Ok-hwa’s place?
Could she have been the one bowing deeply to Cheol-bin?
Once again, regret came too late.
And then—
“Ah.”
The long-awaited moment arrived—memory-Yoo So-eun’s turn.
She still remembered that day vividly.
How could she forget?
A day she once thought humiliating, but now only felt guilty about.
“Wh-Why are you here…?”
“I was feeling gloomy, so I went for a night walk. Got a problem with that?”
“…No. It’s not like I have anything to say to a ‘stranger’ anyway.”
“D-Don’t say that… Please… Please don’t speak so rudely to him… I don’t have the right…”
She choked back sobs.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
[Your Text Here]
