Chapter 987: Is it the Fruit of God?
He shook his head in confusion after hearing the turtle’s words. He had heard of the sacred trees, but he had never encountered the concept of a “fruit of God.”
‘From what I gather, it seems like it’s just a fruit that comes from a sacred tree.’
That means…
‘Does this imply that tree was also a sacred tree?’
The tree he had seen back then seemed to fit the description of a sacred tree.
‘What on earth?’
It was indeed a strange line of thought.
‘But it was way too small, wasn’t it?’
To call it a sacred tree, it was rather small. Even beyond that…
‘…But which place’s sacred tree could it be?’
Which of the five sacred trees Noya had described could this refer to?
‘The distance doesn’t seem that far.’
The location was relatively close to Yawol. Of course, it was still possible that Yarang had carried him off to the far reaches of the world, but he deemed that less likely.
The reason was simple.
‘The timing is just too vague.’
When he had been carried, and when he opened his eyes, he had been back in his original spot.
If he considered how much time had passed during that whole process… it couldn’t have been a long time.
What this all meant was…
‘If that tree is indeed a sacred tree, then it shouldn’t be far from Yawol.’
If not…
‘That means Yarang has another means of travel.’
Maybe there was a way for Yarang to move around without needing to walk or run.
‘…That’s not the crucial point right now.’
What he really needed to focus on wasn’t Yarang’s abilities, but the current situation.
“Are you saying that the tree I saw was a sacred tree?”
“I heard you saw it with your own eyes. Didn’t you feel anything?”
“…Was I supposed to feel something?”
What was he supposed to have felt? He did experience a strange discomfort at the time, but that was pretty much it.
‘I didn’t feel anything special or out of the ordinary.’
Just a peculiar tree.
The atmosphere around it felt unique, and that alone was all he had sensed.
‘Does that mean I should have felt something more?’
He could feel something oddly off in the turtle’s reaction. Turning his gaze away, he looked into the distance.
It was directed towards the sacred tree located within the volcanic area.
Would I feel something if I looked closely?
He pondered as he stared, filled with questions.
Thump—!
“…!”
His eyes widened involuntarily.
‘What in the world?’
The feeling was different. Everything had changed drastically from his previous observance. The moment he looked at the sacred tree, he could feel that stark difference.
“Why? Can you feel it?” the turtle asked, observing his reaction closely.
“…Yes, I can feel it.”
Why had he not realized this sooner?
Huff…
Phew…
He inhaled and exhaled slowly, clearly sensing the difference in the air between his breaths.
From the moment he gazed at the sacred tree, things had shifted.
‘It feels extraordinary.’
Extraordinary and somehow noble.
Just looking at the sacred tree filled him with feelings of admiration and intense emotions he couldn’t quite place.
It felt as if he were watching a magnificent being.
What a strange sensation.
‘Could that be the reason?’
He often saw people maintaining a distance to pay their respects to the sacred tree of the volcano.
Not only the martial artists of the Volcano sect, but most of the residents in the area behaved similarly.
‘Does this mean everyone else felt this way except for me?’
If they were experiencing such feelings, he could understand it. He could also comprehend why.
‘But why not me?’
Why was he only now sensing this extraordinary stuff in this situation?
Before, he hadn’t felt anything like this.
Yet, as it turned out, this had a simple explanation.
‘It was that guy again.’
The one who had eaten the God fruit.
The changes in his body as well as his present circumstances were all tied to that.
“What on earth is this God all about?”
“Hmm.”
The turtle stroked its chin, deep in thought. The lack of fingers made the gesture rather comical.
“You’ve only just realized… So it’s really something that happened after eating the fruit of God?”
“Yes. So, please explain what this God is.”
What on earth did that even mean?
“Why did your body change so strangely, and why did these situations unfold?”
Wouldn’t you suddenly become a member of the Moonlight Tribe? Wouldn’t bizarre things happen while looking at the sacred tree?
He simply couldn’t wrap his head around the situation.
So he turned to the turtle for clarification.
“That’s incorrect.”
The turtle spat out with clear denial.
“Long story short, this is not merely a change.”
“…Then what is it?”
“More accurately, it should be called a return.”
He was momentarily taken aback by the turtle’s words. A return?
He contemplated it closely and followed up with another question.
“…What do you mean ‘it returned’?”
If it is not a change but a return, then what exactly has come back? In response, the turtle shot a serious glance at Shin Noya, who was standing nearby.
Noya nodded subtly at the turtle’s gaze.
Was this a sign of permission? The turtle, noticing this, immediately turned to him.
“Hey there, kid.”
“…Yes?”
“How much do you know about souls?”
“Are you talking about the ‘soul’ in terms of souls?”
If it’s regarding souls, was he referring to the essence of one’s spirit?
“Uhm… not much?”
When asked how much he knew, he couldn’t give a straightforward answer.
Since he didn’t know it thoroughly nor did he know nothing about it.
Who was to say he fully understood?
As his martial arts developed, his understanding grew with it; once he mastered the internal and spiritual aspects he naturally came to comprehend.
Whether in martial arts or otherwise, in the end, it all has a connection to the soul.
He wasn’t sure how closely tied they were, but they weren’t entirely unrelated either. He knew this; hence, his answer remained ambiguous.
Hearing his reply, the turtle nodded again and spoke.
“God corrects distortions.”
“Distortions?”
“The very existence of sacred trees is directly tied to the will of this world. The fruit born from there merely corrects the abnormalities that your soul experienced. Do you get it?”
“No. I don’t understand at all…?”
How could he be expected to digest that? It was as if he was eating soup with a fork.
“…”
The turtle frowned at the response. How absurd!
How could he be expected to understand with that half-baked explanation?
At that moment.
“Therefore,”
Noya, looking like he was feeling exasperated, directed his words towards him.
“God is an elixir that wipes clean the filthy stains accumulated through your life and restores your soul to its original, beautiful form, correct?”
“Hmm…”
After a moment of consideration, the turtle drew in his thoughts on Noya’s description.
“…Right. That sounds about right.”
He nodded with a face that suggested he had resigned himself to that conclusion. It seemed he wanted to explain further, but ultimately chose to drop the subject.
“Ah.”
He suddenly clapped his hands at Noya’s explanation.
An elixir meant for the soul. That hit home!
As he began to grasp what he was learning, the turtle continued.
“However, consuming it doesn’t mean your soul will become stronger or that your abilities will increase. It literally only serves to return you to your original condition.”
“No. That doesn’t align with how much I’ve changed!”
If he only looked at his current form, he could easily tell there was a significant change.
There was also that sudden transformation into belonging to the Moonlight Tribe and all the related anomalies.
How could that not be called a change?
To that question, the turtle spoke with a seriousness that contrasted his earlier demeanor.
“I’ll say it again: the fruit of God can only return things to their original state.”
“So… for something like that…”
“If you experienced any changes, it does not mean a transformation occurred. It signifies that your soul has returned to what it ought to be.”
“…!”
His eyes widened at the turtle’s explanation.
So, it was supposed to be this way originally?
In other words…
“…Are you implying I was fated to be a member of the Moonlight Tribe?”
He was picking up on something. He had heard this before. Shin Noya had mentioned it to him just moments ago.
Bringing this up, the turtle responded with a stoic expression.
“There’s really nothing odd about it, is there?”
“Why? Is this about my mother?”
“Exactly. That too.”
Glancing over at Noya once more, the turtle seemed perplexed. Why was he staring at Noya so often?
Just as he planned to inquire further about this strange pattern…
“By your standards, it seems you might have brought back a lost soul.”
The turtle declared.
A lost soul?
“Did you lose your soul or something?”
What could that possibly mean?
Are they saying my soul has gone off somewhere?
“Why bring up my soul?”
What was their deal with his soul anyway? To his surprise, the response to this question came not from the turtle, but from Noya.
“Yangcheon-ah.”
“…Yes?”
He narrowed his eyes at the call.
The title was what raised alarms. Whenever Noya called him Yangcheon, it usually foreshadowed something serious.
That’s why I felt so tense.
“Do you remember that I mentioned having something important to say?”
“…I remember.”
That was how he had come here; he stated he had something to share.
And now he seemed poised to deliver it.
“Is this what you wanted to tell me?”
As he leaned in closer, listening intently…
“It’s about your mother and your very existence.”
Noya spoke with a serious demeanor, earnest in presence.
“Are you aware that your mother was a disaster for the Central Plains?”
“…”
He nodded gravely after hearing that. He knew that story.
The Blood Demon had been the first calamity.
His mother was the second.
But…
“Does that have any relevance to the current business?”
Why was Noya bringing this up now?
Was this truly the moment to mention such things?
As he mulled over these questions, Noya resumed.
“Yangcheon-ah.”
“Yes?”
“This damn world refuses to repeat the same mistakes.”
“I know that as well.”
He was aware that the establishment of other Central Plains was destroyed when the Blood Demon failed to enact his plan.
However…
“Indeed, the Blood Demon failed, thus sending your mother. But there was a flaw in that too.”
“What…?”
“Not repeating the same mistakes also applies to disasters. It’s very likely the world didn’t want the same mistakes to be made by your mother.”
“…But she didn’t succeed.”
Even if one does not repeat the same mistakes…
If she couldn’t succeed anyway, isn’t it much of the same?
His mother never did become a disaster for the Central Plains.
She met his father and then gave birth to him and Gu-ryeong-hwa.
And the Central Plains remained intact. That was the situation at hand.
What was Noya trying to convey?
He had spoken his thoughts aloud.
“Indeed, your mother gave birth to you. To be precise, she gave birth to you.”
Noya said that as though it were something problematic.
“No. What’s so wrong with that…”
He hesitated mid-sentence as a thought struck him.
And then he froze, staring blankly at Shin Noya.
“…Please don’t tell me.”
He desperately wished for a denial.
Praying for it to be anything but true. Determined to persuade him not to say it…
“Somehow,”
Noya dismissed all his hopes.
“It seems like it was destined for you to become the disaster for the Central Plains.”
He delivered the words he dreaded the most.
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.