WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: DereKimchi
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Carefree Tale of Cultivation ◈
Chapter 23: Demon Beast Hunt (2)
──────
The six companions took out their flying magical artifacts and descended into the ravine.
The ravine was not particularly wide, but it was extremely deep.
As Jin Hyeon descended toward the dense darkness below, he felt as though he were walking into the mouth of some enormous monster.
That might not have been far from the truth.
The lower reaches and underground caves of this hilly region teemed with demon beasts. There might really be something down there capable of swallowing him in one bite.
Of course, no such creature would appear along a route frequented by independent cultivators.
Following the group led by Seol Ga-yeong, Jin Hyeon landed on a cliffside ledge near the ravine's edge, where there was enough room to stand.
“Qi Refining stage cultivators like us cannot venture carelessly down there. We only explore the cave systems accessible from the ravine's edge.”
Seol Ga-yeong explained as she gazed into the distant abyss.
Jin Hyeon simply nodded.
He had no desire to go somewhere like that either.
“Be careful from here on. Unlike outside, this is an enclosed space. We could be attacked by demon beasts lying in ambush.”
With that, Seol Ga-yeong took a small sphere from her storage pouch.
She lightly infused it with spiritual qi. The sphere gave off a soft yellow glow and floated above her head.
Jin Hyeon recognized it.
He had seen it several times while browsing the shops at the market. It was called a Yellow Butterfly Orb, a light source used by cultivators traveling through nearby caves.
It was difficult to even call it a magical artifact. Its only function was to give off light using powdered wings from a special butterfly demon beast.
Cultivators had vision enhanced by spiritual qi and could see in dark places without much difficulty, but a source of light provided reassurance and helped them prepare for unforeseen dangers.
Thus, Jin Hyeon entered the cave near the rear of the group, with only the two weakest members, the brothers at Qi Refining, Level 3, behind him.
He was awed by the vast underground space he encountered for the first time.
It was far too enormous to call a cave.
The space beyond the modest entrance was larger than the massive buildings he had visited in his previous life.
Stalagmites taller than he was rose from the floor, while even longer stalactites hung from the ceiling. Their sheer grandeur made the place feel like a temple.
Moreover, Jin Hyeon spotted various mushrooms and plants he could not identify growing along the distant ceiling and in every corner of the cave walls.
Some of the mushrooms even glowed faintly, lending the place an air of mystery.
This world truly was vast.
Jin Hyeon felt that deeply.
This was not some renowned terrain or famous dangerous region, merely one area where Qi Refining cultivators came and went to make a living.
Yet even the space slumbering beneath it surpassed most of the natural environments he had seen in his previous life.
Ever since entering Blue Willow Sect, he had known that the Wol Kingdom and the few neighboring countries he had considered most of the world during his mortal days were actually only a small part of it.
But his imagination still seemed inadequate to grasp this world's true scale.
Filled with wonder, Jin Hyeon moved along at the group's pace.
Perhaps there were no dangers nearby. Seol Ga-yeong and the others passed through the cave at a fairly quick pace.
Jin Hyeon did not know the route, but his enhanced memory had retained every path they had traveled so far, so he had no fear of getting lost.
After moving quickly for around thirty minutes, the group arrived in a circular open space unlike the cave passages they had crossed before.
While Jin Hyeon looked around, the other independent cultivators began making their preparations.
This seemed to be a safe area used by independent cultivators, and they appeared to be preparing themselves, body and mind, for the battles ahead.
Jang Cheon, the mid Qi Refining cultivator who had not welcomed Jin Hyeon's participation, took out a dark-colored spear and rested it against his shoulder.
Jin Hyeon recognized it as a mid-grade magical artifact that ranked among the more powerful ones of its class.
The middle-aged woman known as Madam Hong merely took out several talismans and tucked them into her sleeves.
Seol Ga-yeong did not take out any particular magical artifact. The only ones in the group who caught Jin Hyeon's attention were the two cultivators at Qi Refining, Level 3.
As he had expected, they were brothers.
The Dan brothers, named Yeok-il and Yeok, prepared for battle as the elder brother, Yeok-il, took out a wooden puppet in the shape of a giant slightly larger than a man.
‘A puppet construct?’
It was a puppet construct, something Jin Hyeon had known only through a brief mention in the Essentials of Cultivation.
In his previous life, the word puppet would have first brought to mind the puppet regime of the dictatorial state to the north, but it originally meant a marionette.
And in the cultivation world, puppet constructs went beyond merely controlling wooden dolls. They were practically combat robots beyond even the scientific technology of his previous life.
Jin Hyeon had not understood their practical use or true nature from the description alone, but seeing the puppet brought out by the brothers broadened his perspective.
‘The brothers are at Qi Refining, Level 3, but that puppet is at Level 4... no, nearly Level 5.’
He wanted one the moment he saw it.
Jin Hyeon had been curious in both his past and present lives. That curiosity had led from various hobbies to an interest in cultivation arts such as artifact refinement and formations.
He had already been thinking of making magical artifacts himself lately, so puppet constructs were immensely interesting to him.
‘Robots are the stuff of dreams.’
Jin Hyeon took out his hammer-shaped magical artifact to show that he was prepared. He decided to ask the brothers about puppet constructs once the hunt was nearing its end.
Under Seol Ga-yeong's guidance, the group entered a cave that was somewhat narrower than the previous one, with no stalagmites and a smooth floor.
“First, we'll hunt the demon beasts we usually hunt. Then we'll go to the Thunder Horn Snake nest I found, kill a few more, and finally hunt a first-rank upper-grade demon beast.”
As she advanced beneath the Yellow Butterfly Orb's light, Seol Ga-yeong approached Jin Hyeon and explained.
“A first-rank upper-grade demon beast. Can we kill it?”
“Normally, it would be impossible, but with Fellow Daoist Jin's help, it should be possible. It is a type of pangolin with exceptional defense. We could not pierce its hide with our strength alone, but if we add Fellow Daoist Jin's power, we can bring it down.”
“Then after killing it, we'll go hunt the other lightning-aspected demon beast I asked about?”
“Yes. Their habitats are not far apart, so there will be no problem with our route.”
As their conversation was drawing to a close, Jang Cheon stopped.
“They're farther out than usual. A flock of Purple-Winged Bats.”
He spoke in a stiff voice and aimed his spear ahead.
At his declaration, everyone stopped in place.
Jin Hyeon focused spiritual power in his eyes, extending his sight beyond where the Yellow Butterfly Orb's weak light reached.
Then he spotted more than ten bat-like creatures flying toward them.
They looked exactly like bats, but they were larger than an adult's upper body, and their wings were dyed a deep purple that gave off a dangerous air.
“Be careful of the poison they fire from the tips of their wings.”
After warning Jin Hyeon, Seol Ga-yeong waved a hand and drew up her spiritual power.
In less than two seconds, cold energy filled the air before her. Five icicles as long as Jang Cheon's spear formed in midair.
She sent them flying. Jin Hyeon saw three of them pierce the wings of two Purple-Winged Bats and bring them down before they could approach.
With a deeply furrowed brow, Jang Cheon sent beam-like streams of spiritual power from his spear to attack the bats.
Madam Hong also withdrew behind the group, supporting them with Fireball Arts and whips made of water. The Dan brothers did not step forward themselves, instead sending their puppet construct ahead.
Controlled by the brothers' spiritual power, the giant-shaped puppet charged without regard for the purple venom the bats fired at it. It leaped up, seized one of the bats directly, and began fighting it.
Jin Hyeon did not simply stand idle either.
Although he did not take out a magical artifact, he gathered a thunderball more slowly than usual and sent it into the middle of the flock.
Boom!
Bright lightning erupted with the thunderball's explosion and wrapped around the bats.
His seven thunder marks, along with the control of spiritual power developed through Gwang Seung-hyeon's instruction, greatly amplified the thunderball's might.
The bright bolts illuminated the cave, and the group's attention briefly focused on its tremendous power.
“Fellow Daoist Jin, what an impressive spell art!”
At Seol Ga-yeong's brief praise, Jang Cheon's face twisted, though only for a moment.
The six cultivators and one puppet construct continued their assault, and the battle that had begun so suddenly did not last long.
Thud!
Before long, Jang Cheon drove his spear into the back of the final bat struggling on the ground, bringing the fight to an end.
Jin Hyeon watched calmly as Seol Ga-yeong stored the bat corpses in her storage pouch, half ignoring Jang Cheon as he clung to her with praise.
The others' combat had been within his expectations, but he found her ice-aspected spell arts interesting because he was seeing them for the first time.
In any case, Jin Hyeon's first demon beast hunt had proceeded rather blandly.
That was only natural.
A single Purple-Winged Bat was only around Qi Refining, Level 2. Even if dozens rather than ten had swarmed them, the three mid Qi Refining cultivators alone could have defeated them.
‘Most independent cultivators must be used to this sort of life. I don't know what the future holds for me either, so it would be good to get used to it...’
After that, the group followed the cave paths, encountering narrow tunnels and reaching enormous caverns several times larger than the first.
However, since this was a route Seol Ga-yeong's group had already traveled, they anticipated the dangers and hunted demon beasts without much trouble.
Beginning with their attack on the Thunder Horn Snake nest, where they killed several grayish-white snakes, they also hunted a pack of wolves that, according to Seol Ga-yeong, had entered from the surface despite not belonging in a cave environment. They even hunted frog-like demon beasts that shot fireballs.
Most of their prey consisted of first-rank lower-grade demon beast packs or single first-rank mid-grade creatures, so there were no fierce battles.
As Jin Hyeon hunted with the group, he understood firsthand why so many independent cultivators gathered companions even if it reduced the spirit stones they earned.
Before long, six hours had passed since they had set out to hunt.
“Good. Let's recover our spiritual power here for a moment.”
Seol Ga-yeong announced this in a cavern that was not particularly large, but where spiritual power was fairly dense and blue moss covered the entire space.
At her words, the group immediately scattered throughout the area.
Jin Hyeon studied the moss with interest before approaching the Dan brothers.
He hoped to gain knowledge related to puppet constructs.
In one corner of the cave, Jang Cheon narrowed his eyes and glared at Jin Hyeon as he spoke with the brothers.
‘Damn it, some nobody who rolled in from who knows where...’
Whether Jin Hyeon had not noticed or simply did not care, he gave no reaction. But Jang Cheon had noticed Seol Ga-yeong's gaze frequently turning toward Jin Hyeon since earlier.
Was it simply because of his handsome appearance? Or his lightning arts and Qi Refining, Level 7 cultivation?
Or was there something else?
Jang Cheon gritted his teeth.
He had fallen for Seol Ga-yeong's beauty and had been with her for several months already.
He had no intention of letting someone else take her from him now.
Moreover, Jin Hyeon's presence was an unexpected variable.
After hesitating briefly, Jang Cheon approached Seol Ga-yeong, who was sitting on a moss-covered rock and replenishing her spiritual power.
“Fellow Daoist Seol. Can that man called Jin Hyeon be trusted?”
With her eyes half closed, Seol Ga-yeong answered calmly.
“You saw it as well, Fellow Daoist Jang. Fellow Daoist Jin is skilled. At the very least, his spell art is enough to pierce that pangolin's hide.”
“That isn't what I mean! Who knows what he might do, and Immortal Maiden Seol...”
“Please refrain from calling me Immortal Maiden. Fellow Daoist Jin is only in the mid Qi Refining stage. Even if he harbors ill intentions, we can handle him. That is enough discussion. Fellow Daoist Jang, hurry and recover your spiritual power as well.”
Seol Ga-yeong closed her eyes and caused a wall of ice to rise around her, blocking Jang Cheon out.
Jang Cheon trembled before the ice wall, which reflected his face perfectly.
Then he finally made up his mind.
He took a small bead from his storage pouch and crushed the black bead, which carried a faint red aura.
The break was not long.
Jin Hyeon did not learn how to make puppet constructs from the Dan brothers, but he did learn that they were willing to trade.
That alone was good news. Jin Hyeon decided to negotiate with them again after the hunt was over.
Seol Ga-yeong led the group as before, but she was far more cautious now.
“It does not have particularly keen spiritual perception, but it is excellent at sensing vibrations. We need to move carefully if we want to ambush it.”
Seeing Jin Hyeon's puzzled expression, Yeok-il explained.
Jin Hyeon had praised their craft and respected them despite being at a higher cultivation level, so Yeok-il had taken a liking to him.
“Have you been hunting this pangolin demon beast for quite some...”
“Wait!”
Just as Jin Hyeon was about to ask something, Madam Hong, who had been following behind them, cried out.
When everyone's attention turned to her, she hurriedly added,
“Something is approaching from behind! It has a powerful aura!”
Jin Hyeon immediately focused his spiritual perception behind them.
Sure enough, something with powerful spiritual power was approaching at high speed, though it was still far away.
If they possessed divine sense, they could have examined it more closely, but with only spiritual perception active, the group could only vaguely sense the approaching flow of spiritual power.
“Is it the pangolin?”
“No, its burrow is still some distance away. And at this speed... a cultivator?”
Seol Ga-yeong's complexion darkened as she denied Jin Hyeon's question.
Anyone traveling through the cave system at such speed would be confident in their abilities.
And she knew well that encountering another cultivator in such a lawless place could not be a good thing.
“Move forward! We must first reach the cavern near the pangolin's burrow and face them there!”
Seol Ga-yeong immediately shot forward.
The others followed her without objection.
It would be foolish to face an unknown opponent in a narrow passage.
As he moved, Jin Hyeon took a jade tablet from his storage pouch, his expression grim.
If necessary, he would have to use it immediately.
After readying the jade tablet in his sleeve, Jin Hyeon took out a Diamond Talisman just in case and activated it.
A faint golden barrier briefly covered his skin before fading away.
The group quickly traveled at least one ri and reached a cavern with a low ceiling.
Without needing to be told, everyone readied themselves for battle.
During that process, Jang Cheon retreated and moved beside Jin Hyeon. Seeing this, Jin Hyeon's eye twitched.
But after a brief moment of thought, he merely took out the Pipa Sword without saying a word.
The powerful spiritual-power aura continued approaching without slowing.
In less than three minutes, a small figure wearing black robes entered the cavern.
He was short. More precisely, he was a hunchback whose back was severely bent.
His face, half obscured by his shaggy hair, had a hooked nose and was covered in age spots, yet he had no wrinkles. He looked like a middle-aged man.
More than his appearance, Jin Hyeon frowned when he realized that the man's spiritual power had reached Qi Refining, Level 12, matching Myeong Seokho's.
Seol Ga-yeong and the others also sensed his cultivation level and looked grim.
“Hehehe, you youngsters are quite quick. This old man would like to have a brief conversation. Would that be all right?”
Seol Ga-yeong realized that the situation was worse than expected.
Contrary to his words, the movements of his spiritual power seemed ready to erupt at any moment, telling her that he had no good intentions.
“Hm. Yes, there are quite a few useful ones here. And that pale-faced bastard must be the one who suddenly joined you. Put him down first.”
As though proving Seol Ga-yeong's suspicion, an attack came the moment his casual words ended.
But the attack did not come from the front.
“Jang Cheon, you!”
Seol Ga-yeong witnessed Jang Cheon thrust his spear, wreathed in dark-red flames, into Jin Hyeon from directly behind her.
As Jin Hyeon was struck, lost control of the Pipa Sword floating in the air, and collapsed to the ground, she despaired.
Join our discord at https://dsc.gg/wetried
