WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Dionysus
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◈ Cultivating Underground ◈
Chapter 12
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Ten days had passed since Yi Hyeon left for Black Crow Ridge.
He had not returned to Cheongha Valley.
The Outer Affairs Hall had paid little attention for a few days after his seven-day assignment ended. But when there was still no word on the tenth day after his departure, they sent three outer disciples at the middle stage of Qi Refining to Black Crow Ridge.
At the abandoned mine, they found the broken cart, yin sand soil scattered across the ground, a torn Cheongha Valley outer disciple robe, and Yi Hyeon’s identity token.
Marks resembling a beast’s claw marks remained on the rocks around the cart and the tunnel walls. Several nearby vertical shafts were too deep to see the bottom.
When the search party failed to find Yi Hyeon, the Enforcement Hall began an investigation.
An outer disciple going missing during an assignment did not necessarily mean they had suffered an accident. They might have faked their death to leave the sect, or stolen sect property and fled.
In Yi Hyeon’s case, however, there was nothing suspicious.
The harvested bone-rotting flowers, yin soul grass, and purple poison orchids in Withered Yin Field’s storehouse matched the quantities recorded in the ledger. There were enough seeds for the next planting, and the low-grade spirit stones used to maintain the Yin-Gathering Formation and Poison-Warding Formation had been left in the required amounts.
The Essence-Nourishing Pills, spirit stones, and Cheongha Rice paid to Yi Hyeon as wages were not in the storehouse, but those items belonged to the caretaker. Naturally, they would be in his storage pouch.
“He had almost no contribution points left.”
“Where did he spend them?”
“Mostly at the Scripture Repository. He borrowed several basic spell manuals and returned them as required. He used the rest when buying a spiritual artifact at the Equipment Hall.”
The Enforcement Hall steward nodded.
The sect liked its disciples to spend their contribution points at the Scripture Repository. Once books and jade slips had been acquired, they could be lent out repeatedly. Compared with handing out physical goods such as pills or spirit stones, this cost the sect almost nothing.
In truth, Cheongha Valley had received several years of labor from Yi Hyeon without losing much of anything.
“There’s no record of disputes with fellow disciples either...”
“Correct. Before moving to Withered Yin Field, he worked at Spirit Field No. 73. Its supervisor, No Baek-san, also gave him a good evaluation.”
The Enforcement Hall steward saw no need to investigate Yi Hyeon’s disappearance further.
“Record him as missing during an assignment and presumed dead. If he doesn’t return within three months, remove him from the outer disciple register. Separately, check the Black Crow Ridge area for signs of demonic beasts, and warn disciples taking assignments nearby.”
* * *
Meanwhile, Yi Hyeon was already far south of Black Crow Ridge.
He traveled mainly along mountain ridges and through forests, taking long detours whenever he spotted an inhabited village.
The body of a second-layer Qi Refining cultivator was far stronger than that of an ordinary person. He covered distances that would take an ordinary person an entire day to walk in just two to four hours, and he could climb steep mountainsides as though running across level ground.
...
Before he knew it, a month had passed since he left Cheongha Valley.
Yi Hyeon roughly calculated how far he had traveled.
‘Even at a low estimate... I must have covered six thousand li!’
Six thousand li was an enormous distance, roughly equal to three round trips between Seoul and Busan in his previous life.
Standing on a small mountain peak, Yi Hyeon looked north, but Cheongha Valley was already far out of sight.
‘They won’t be able to find me this far away, will they?’
Yi Hyeon decided it was time to leave the mountains. Continuing to travel only through the wilderness was too dangerous.
Demonic beasts might appear in mountains where few people lived.
Unlike ordinary wild animals, demonic beasts absorbed and used spiritual energy.
Even the weakest, early first-rank demonic beasts were at a level similar to early-stage Qi Refining cultivators. But demonic beasts had stronger bodies than humans, along with natural means of attack. Even at the same cultivation level, Yi Hyeon had little chance of winning when he was so inexperienced in real combat.
And in truth, other cultivators were even more dangerous than demonic beasts.
Cultivators had almost no interest in ordinary people of the mortal world, but they were extremely wary of their own kind.
In remote places beyond the influence of sects or great clans, killing weaker cultivators and stealing their possessions was not uncommon.
This was partly because many cultivators were cruel by nature, but above all, cultivation resources such as spirit stones and pills could directly extend their lives.
While they worked in the spirit field, Senior Brother No had sometimes explained the mindset of cultivators who enjoyed plundering others.
“They think it’s better for them to live for a hundred and fifty years while the other person dies at twenty than for both of them to live a hundred years.”
“Doesn’t that just make them lunatics?”
“Yes. The problem is that there are far too many lunatics. That’s why you have to be careful. Cultivators all have storage pouches, so they carry their entire fortune with them. Each one is practically a walking treasure.”
“How do I avoid them, then?”
“Once you leave the sect, be especially careful in remote places where there are no witnesses. Cultivators do care somewhat about their dignity and reputation. If you aren’t confident in your strength, you’re better off traveling through populated places.”
Remembering Senior Brother No’s advice, Yi Hyeon decided to make his way onto the main road.
It bothered him that he had not properly learned the Spirit-Hiding and Qi-Concealing Art and could not hide the fact that he was a cultivator. Still, he could hardly stop here and train until he mastered it.
‘I should avoid anywhere too busy and mostly pass through small towns. Cultivators probably don’t visit the mortal world often, since its spiritual energy is so thin. There should be even fewer in the countryside. I hope I don’t run into any...’
Yi Hyeon put the Earthspade Sword into his storage pouch. He tied the pouch inside his belt and concealed it beneath his clothes.
...
Four hours later.
After reaching the main road and following it for a while, Yi Hyeon spotted a passing merchant caravan.
Twelve carts and a long line of loaded mules traveled along the road, with guards carrying spears and bows protecting the front and rear.
Yi Hyeon walked in the same direction, keeping a little distance from them.
Unlike the mountain paths, the main road was well maintained. Stone markers along its edges occasionally showed the distance and direction to the next village.
...
Two days later.
The caravan arrived at a small walled city.
A wooden sign bearing the name “Pyeongneung” hung above the gate.
Though called a city, it was not very large. Tile-roofed houses and mud-walled homes crowded together within the low walls, and carts and travelers lined up outside the gate.
At the entrance, guards counted the goods on the carts and assessed taxes. When the caravan master handed a guard something, all twelve carts were allowed through at once. Behind them, an elderly traveler with grain loaded on a single donkey was held up for a long argument.
With no visible baggage, Yi Hyeon passed straight through the gate.
First, he decided to find out how far he had come.
‘Is this the Untaek Kingdom?’
He happened to spot a peddler sitting beside the road, sorting through their goods.
Yi Hyeon approached and asked politely.
“Excuse me, elder. Is this the Untaek Kingdom?”
“The Untaek Kingdom? Tsk, tsk. Young fellow, you’ve taken quite a wrong turn. This is Pyeongneung County, Saknyeong Province, in the Anneung Kingdom. Right at the kingdom’s northwestern edge.”
“The northwestern edge?”
Yi Hyeon wondered whether he had misheard.
The Anneung Kingdom bordered the southern side of the Daeyeon Kingdom. Yet even after traveling six thousand li south from Cheongha Valley in southwestern Daeyeon, he was still at Anneung’s northwestern edge?
“Do you know how much farther I’d have to go to reach the Untaek Kingdom?”
“A good fifteen thousand li farther south from here.”
“F-fifteen thousand li?”
‘Ah... Is it because this is a cultivation fantasy world?’
Yi Hyeon belatedly remembered the novels he had read in his previous life.
The worlds in cultivation fantasies were usually much larger than Earth.
A powerful demonic beast might claim an entire mountain range, while a single sect could exert influence over tens of thousands of li. In that case, the scale of the geography might be much larger too.
Yi Hyeon was briefly taken aback, but he had plenty of time anyway.
‘Well... I’ve already come six thousand li. I’ll get through fifteen thousand eventually.’
He decided to continue to the Untaek Kingdom as planned.
Just then, his stomach growled.
He had refined a Fasting Pill two days earlier, so it was about time he felt hungry again.
At that moment, his keen nose caught the scent of something frying in oil and meat roasting.
‘Why don’t I save my Fasting Pills and buy some mortal food?’
The mortal coins he had saved while working as a woodcutter before joining Cheongha Valley were still sitting in a corner of his storage pouch. For now, he had enough money for his journey.
He walked toward the market. But the moment he reached its entrance, he stopped.
‘Ugh... What is that smell?’
Shabby stalls selling fish and meat clustered along one side of the market entrance.
A merchant gave the knife they had just used to gut a fish a quick rinse in murky water, then set it back on the cutting board. Beside them, a customer pressed a piece of pork several times with a bare hand before putting it down again.
Blood running from the stalls mixed with dust to form muddy pools, while flying insects hovered over the meat.
Perhaps because his senses had sharpened after he reached Qi Refining, and because he had grown used to Cheongha Valley’s clean surroundings, even smells he would once have thought nothing of now seemed especially revolting.
“...”
Yi Hyeon backed away a few steps, then left that section altogether.
There were cleaner-looking shops and restaurants farther inside the market, but his appetite was already gone.
He decided to try mortal food another time, when he found somewhere a little more refined.
...
Yi Hyeon continued south.
He mainly walked along busy main roads. When he found cargo boats that carried passengers for a small fare, he sometimes traveled by river as well.
Grain transport boats filled the rivers, with private vessels carrying salt and timber moving among them.
Traveling by water was not bad either. He could enjoy the scenery along the banks, and while resting, he could circulate the Primordial Unity Single-Qi Art to refine his spiritual power.
...
As he passed through the Anneung Kingdom’s provincial cities, Yi Hyeon gradually found food he was willing to buy.
Eggs boiled in their shells, fruit he could peel, and nuts he could shell himself were relatively easy to stomach. As he found more things he could eat in the mortal world, he used fewer Fasting Pills.
Sometimes, when he spotted common medicinal herbs at the foot of a mountain, he gathered them and sold them to an apothecary to replenish his supply of silver for use in the mortal world.
...
Another three months passed.
Only after traveling roughly fifteen thousand li farther from Pyeongneung’s county seat did Yi Hyeon cross the Anneung Kingdom’s southern border. Counting from Cheongha Valley, he had traveled more than twenty thousand li.
Despite that, the climate had changed surprisingly little.
Even the sun’s height around noon was not noticeably different.
‘This really is different from Earth.’
He could not tell whether this world was simply a planet much larger than Earth, or whether the structure of the universe itself was entirely different.
Walking along, lost in thought, Yi Hyeon finally arrived in the Untaek Kingdom.
...
Cheongnyu, a county seat at the northwestern tip of Imgang Province (臨江道) in the Untaek Kingdom.
Yi Hyeon looked around as he passed through the city gate.
A broad river ran through the middle of the city, with boats of all sizes moored in rows along its banks.
Long rows of storehouses beside the ferry landing held grain collected as taxes from Cheongnyu County and nearby towns. In front of them, local clerks counted sacks with brushes in hand.
Since entering the Untaek Kingdom, he had seen noticeably more rivers and lakes.
Having reached his destination safely, Yi Hyeon felt much more at ease.
‘Should I look for one of those markets where cultivators gather?’
He still had about thirty low-grade spirit stones.
Although he had brought spirit-plant seeds from Cheongha Valley, he wanted to obtain more varieties worth growing underground for many years to come.
The problem was that he had no idea where to find a cultivator market. As Yi Hyeon walked along the street, listening to the voices around him, he overheard merchants talking in a nearby teahouse.
“I hear there’s no room left on boats heading southeast these days.”
“The capital examination is being held in Ungyeong, isn’t it? Scholars selected from every province are all flocking to the royal capital. It’s only natural.”
‘The capital examination...’
It seemed to be a system in which the kingdom tested scholars to select officials.
Yi Hyeon slowed his pace.
‘So Ungyeong must be the Untaek Kingdom’s capital. Wouldn’t a market for independent cultivators be somewhere near the capital too?’
For a moment, Yi Hyeon considered looking for a boat to Ungyeong. Then he suddenly remembered his own circumstances.
‘I’m only at the second layer of Qi Refining. I have no combat experience, barely any attack spells I can properly cast, and my main spiritual artifact is the Earthspade Sword, which is closer to a spade than a sword...’
Nothing much had happened in Cheongha Valley because he had lived among fellow sect disciples. But the independent cultivators gathering at a market would all be complete strangers.
‘Damn it. Why was I already thinking of getting involved with other cultivators? I nearly forgot that all I wanted was a peaceful life...!’
‘First, I’ll build my own underground tunnels and focus on cultivation. I can visit a market once I’m confident that an ordinary Qi Refining cultivator won’t be able to kill me easily.’
...
After leaving Cheongnyu’s county seat, Yi Hyeon walked south in search of sparsely populated hills and mountains.
‘Now, then... Where should I build my historic Underground Tunnel No. 1?’
The first place that came to mind was a mountain. But he could not simply dig a tunnel anywhere in the mountains.
Cultivators visited notable mountains with spiritual veins, spirit herbs, or mineral deposits. Deep mountains might be home to demonic beasts, or herb gatherers might pass through them. With bad luck, he might even stumble upon the cave abode of an independent cultivator living in seclusion.
That did not mean flat land was a good choice either.
‘If there’s groundwater under flat land, the tunnel could flood. It would be hard to hide the earth I dig out too. Disguising the entrance and air vents as natural features would also be harder than in the mountains.’
Yi Hyeon had not been an earth science expert in his previous life. Nor was there any guarantee that this world’s geology was the same as Earth’s, so it was difficult to judge what conditions would be best.
‘I suppose I’ll have to find somewhere with no people and very little spiritual energy, then try digging if it looks suitable.’
Whenever Yi Hyeon passed a low mountain or hill, he examined the nearby waterways and looked for signs of people. In places that looked promising, he tested the ground with the Earthspade Sword.
After several days of moving from place to place, he found a low mountain with gentle slopes about three hundred li southeast of Cheongnyu’s county seat.
There was plenty of soil at its foot, with gravel and rocks gradually becoming more common farther up. A valley stream was not far away, but the mountainside stood well above the watercourse.
He could not yet tell whether it was the perfect location, but it looked better than anywhere else he had examined.
‘Hmm... This looks like it might do.’
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