WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Dionysus
Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried
◈ Cultivating Underground ◈
Chapter 39
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The current master of the Jangchun Sect, known to be at Great Perfection of Foundation Establishment.
He, too, was a Golden Core cultivator.
It wasn’t that the Jangchun Sect had no Golden Core cultivators. It had two!
Whoooooosh!
The inner barrier of the Nine-Peak Rejuvenation Formation expanded in an instant.
The blue curtain reached all the way to Oesa Market, pushing the attackers back. The six Vein-Reversing Spikes driven into the ground were torn free amid streams of red energy flowing backward.
Crack!
The Foundation Establishment cultivators operating the Six-Spike Vein-Reversing Formation coughed up blood. The Jangchun Sect’s elders did not miss their chance.
Swish, swish, swish, swish!
Dozens of streams of sword light rained down on the Foundation Establishment cultivators disguised as independent cultivators.
“The sect master has reached Golden Core!”
“Our sect has two Golden Core seniors!”
The cheers of the Jangchun Sect’s disciples shook the nine peaks.
Meanwhile, the independent cultivators in Oesa Market scrambled in confusion. The attackers hidden among them exchanged glances.
Magical light flashed through Venerable Scarlet Furnace’s eyes as he studied the Jangchun Sect Master.
“You deceived us. You didn’t just reach Golden Core.”
A moment later, his voice rang across the battlefield, filled with magical power.
“Very well! We now have another piece of evidence that the Jangchun Sect has deceived the cultivators of the Ram Kingdom.”
The disciples’ cheers briefly died down.
The independent cultivators in Oesa Market also looked at one another.
“How utterly devious! The Jangchun Sect concealed the rise of a new Golden Core cultivator. You pretended to be a sect led by a Foundation Establishment master while selling Origin-Raising Pills to collect spirit stones from the Ram Kingdom’s independent cultivators!”
Venerable Scarlet Furnace spread both arms.
“And now that you’ve been caught selling defective pills, you flaunt your strength? Are you telling us not to challenge you because you’re a Golden Core cultivator?”
The Jangchun Sect Master answered calmly.
“Nonsense. There’s nothing wrong with our pills. Nor am I obliged to announce my cultivation realm.”
Venerable Scarlet Furnace shouted.
“The pill-verification seal is genuine, and so are the victims! Even the sect master’s golden core is real. Why do you insist that the Jangchun Sect’s crimes are false?”
Murmurs spread among the independent cultivators in Oesa Market again.
It was a forced argument.
The existence of a pill-verification seal and victims did not mean the Jangchun Sect had made fake Origin-Raising Pills. The sect master’s cultivation realm had nothing to do with the matter in the first place.
But the powerful spiritual sense carried by Venerable Scarlet Furnace’s magically amplified voice made the Qi Refining cultivators accept these unrelated facts as parts of one great deception.
Lady White Ash also spoke quietly.
“The Jangchun Sect took spirit stones from the Ram Kingdom’s independent cultivators while concealing its own strength. You shared in the profits, then hid behind your gates when it was time to take responsibility.”
She gazed sadly at the seven coffins.
“Is that right?”
“You’re still as good at spouting nonsense as ever.”
The Grand Sect Master rested his staff lightly across one shoulder.
His gaze swept over the coffins and the injured in Oesa Market.
“I wonder how many of these people are actually independent cultivators. Those youngsters over there even seem to be from the Namnyeo Kingdom, not the Cheongno Kingdom. Who are you trying to fool? The reek of the sea is overwhelming.”
The Grand Sect Master pointed his staff at the remains of the Vein-Reversing Spikes scattered across the market.
“Did the victims prepare the implements for that formation? And are the flying boats and cultivators hidden beyond the outer barrier all mourners brought here to help with the funeral?”
The independent cultivators turned toward the broken iron spikes and the flying boats outside the outer barrier.
“We didn’t know those things were there!”
Someone shouted as though wronged. Beside them, another independent cultivator muttered blankly.
“...Come to think of it, why am I here?”
More and more people began glaring toward the Hongno Sect. The crowd was starting to divide.
Venerable Scarlet Furnace wasted no more words.
“It seems force is the only way to teach you.”
Dooong.
Nine fire dragons emerged from the pill furnace floating behind him.
The Grand Sect Master raised his staff.
“Yes. Isn’t it better now that you’re being honest, Scarlet Furnace?”
Thump.
The moment his staff touched the ground, the forests of the Jangchun Mountains rose as one.
Hundreds of trees and roots tangled together in the air to meet the flames.
Beside the Grand Sect Master, the young Jangchun Sect Master held a single branch. It looked ordinary, but the waves of magical power flowing from it were anything but.
Four leaves grew at its tip. A deep green leaf overlapped a newly sprouted pale green shoot. Below them hung a golden leaf and another as white as though covered in frost.
Opposite the sect master, Lady White Ash opened her fan.
“A magical treasure containing the changes of the four seasons...”
She swept her fan, and white ash filled the air like a blizzard.
Whenever a fire dragon twisted its body, dozens of ancient trees burned. But wherever ash fell, even more roots sprang up.
Kaboooom!
A massive ancient tree covered in green roots struck the red pill furnace. Venerable Scarlet Furnace was driven back dozens of jang, red cloud and all, and a fine crack appeared on the furnace’s surface.
Within a few breaths, Lady White Ash’s ashen wind drained the pale green leaf of vitality and rotted the golden leaf. But the moment frost from the white leaf froze the ash, hundreds of seeds burrowed through the opening.
...
On the ground, magical implements and spells wielded by dozens of Foundation Establishment cultivators flew back and forth without pause.
The Foundation Establishment and Qi Refining cultivators had to watch the sky even as they continued the battles before them.
Every time the Golden Core cultivators cast a spell, the entire Nine-Peak Rejuvenation Formation shook.
Kabooooom!
Each stray shock wave from their spells carried enough power to kill dozens of Qi Refining cultivators.
The Nine-Peak Rejuvenation Formation blocked most of those aftershocks, but the burden on the disciples operating its formation bases was growing rapidly.
As Yi Hyeon watched the battle, Bae Gyeong-song spoke.
“We’re pushing them back.”
He was right.
Venerable Scarlet Furnace and Lady White Ash were powerful, but this was the Jangchun Sect’s home, protected by the Nine-Peak Rejuvenation Formation.
Venerable Scarlet Furnace’s robes were torn in several places, and the red pill furnace floating behind him had developed a fine crack. A green leaf was embedded in Lady White Ash’s faded fan.
The Jangchun Sect’s disciples cheered.
But Yi Hyeon felt that something was wrong.
Neither Venerable Scarlet Furnace nor Lady White Ash looked anxious.
‘Strange.’
Their initial attack on the Jangchun Sect had been reasonable enough. If the sect had no Golden Core cultivator, or only one too old to fight properly, it would have been a perfect chance to seize a new Tier 3 spirit vein.
With a suitable excuse, the Ram Kingdom’s great sects, which had Nascent Soul cultivators, would be unlikely to interfere much.
But that only held true if they could win. In a fourth-rank cultivation kingdom, Golden Core cultivators stood above everyone except Nascent Soul cultivators. There was no need to risk their precious lives by continuing a losing battle.
It happened then.
‘Hm?’
Yi Hyeon raised his head.
The wind had changed direction.
A faint salty scent had mixed into the battlefield wind, which had been thick with the smells of burning and blood.
Splash.
The sound of a wave came from somewhere.
The Jangchun Sect’s cultivators looked around.
Splash.
This time, it was closer.
Clear water seeped between the ruined buildings of Oesa Market. Water that had reached their ankles rose to their waists in the blink of an eye.
Someone screamed and clapped a hand over their mouth, then lowered it with a blank look.
Something was strange.
The buildings and people were submerged, but no one was struggling to breathe. Their clothes were not wet either.
A small fish with silver scales passed beside them as though swimming through the air.
Dozens of blue fish followed it.
Before long, the entire Oesa Market looked as though it lay beneath the sea.
‘An illusion formed from water qi and spiritual sense?’
Only one kind of being could display such power so casually.
Sim Yeon-ju spoke, face pale.
“Another Golden Core cultivator.”
The sunlight vanished from the sky.
Everyone looked up.
The entire southern sky over the Jangchun Mountains had become an overturned sea. Waves rolled where clouds should have been. Beyond them passed the shadow of a whale dozens of jang long.
Whoooooosh.
The whale spouted water, and blue rain poured over the Jangchun Mountains.
Then someone walked across the upside-down sea.
One step.
Silver ripples spread beneath his feet.
Another step.
The man drew closer.
His hair was bound beneath a crown woven from white jade and coral. Silver threads embroidered waves and unknown sea beasts across his long, flowing robes.
Whenever his sleeves moved, the embroidered fish and sea beasts swam as though alive.
A round ring as tall as a person floated behind him.
Its outer edge was silver, while blue waves turned endlessly within it. Unfamiliar formation inscriptions covered its surface.
The moment Yi Hyeon saw the token hanging at the man’s waist, his expression changed.
‘The Azure Tide Merchant Alliance?’
The Azure Tide Merchant Alliance had not originally had a Golden Core cultivator. At least, that had been true when Yi Hyeon left the Namnyeo Kingdom.
A Foundation Establishment elder on Oesa Peak recognized the man and uttered his name with a groan.
“Vast Sea Guest... The Golden Core guest retainer the Azure Tide Merchant Alliance invited from beyond the Nammyeong Sea.”
Vast Sea Guest.
His name had only recently begun to spread through the southern Namnyeo Kingdom.
Vast Sea Guest glanced over Venerable Scarlet Furnace’s and Lady White Ash’s wounds, then looked down at the Jangchun Sect.
“The sea receives the waters of ten thousand rivers.”
His voice rolled over the Jangchun Mountains like waves.
“It embraces clear water and muddy water alike. But it cannot accept poisoned water.”
Waves rose in the blue sky.
Those who heard his magically empowered voice felt lost, as though standing alone before an endless horizon. Disciples with weaker spiritual senses took half a step back without realizing it.
He sighed softly.
“The Azure Tide Merchant Alliance has distributed alchemical pills and spirit plants throughout the Ram Kingdom for many years. Having witnessed the suffering of its independent cultivators, how could I remain silent as the alliance’s guest retainer?”
The Grand Sect Master looked at Vast Sea Guest.
“I didn’t know the Azure Tide Merchant Alliance’s guest retainers were also responsible for attacking other people’s sects.”
“Before I am a guest retainer, I am a cultivator who has formed a golden core. If I ignored injustice, how could I face my juniors?”
“Well said.”
The Grand Sect Master nodded.
“But how strange. You say you rushed here after hearing of an injustice. How did you know exactly when the outer barrier would fall?”
Vast Sea Guest smiled.
The Jangchun Sect Master asked a question.
“Were you the one who brought Tongwon Pills into the Ram Kingdom, fellow cultivator?”
“The juniors handle the distribution of pills themselves. I don’t know all the details.”
“Is that so?”
Yi Hyeon did not miss Vast Sea Guest’s brief silence.
‘He’s involved.’
Vast Sea Guest studied the Jangchun Sect Master for a moment, apparently curious about his cultivation. Then his gaze shifted to the Grand Sect Master’s withered body and the staff in his hand.
“For Golden Core cultivators to be this weak... It seems this much is enough to claim a Tier 3 spirit vein in the Ram Kingdom.”
The Jangchun Sect’s cultivators bristled at his insult.
Venerable Scarlet Furnace spoke.
“Fellow cultivator Vast Sea. It seems the Jangchun Sect has no intention of admitting its crimes willingly.”
Lady White Ash quietly added her voice.
“They must open their gates, if only for the sake of the dead.”
Vast Sea Guest nodded.
“Then we have said all we can about what is right.”
He raised his right hand.
The silver ring floating behind him began to turn.
Whooooooosh.
The entire sea hanging in the sky poured down toward Jangchun Peak.
“...!”
The Grand Sect Master and the Jangchun Sect Master formed hand seals at the same time. The forest surged upward, and a ring of the four seasons appeared to support the sea.
Kabooooooom!
The force of the collision spread across all nine peaks. Spirit stones set into countless formation bases crumbled to powder at once, and the disciples operating the bases coughed up blood.
But the sea did not stop.
Even with the two Golden Core cultivators working together, its surface continued to descend little by little.
Venerable Scarlet Furnace’s fire dragons and Lady White Ash’s ashen wind seized the opening to strike the inner barrier again.
Crack, crack, crack!
Standing on the upside-down sea, Vast Sea Guest looked down at the Jangchun Sect.
“The ocean’s tides do not count the number of peaks.”
The shadow of a gigantic whale rose behind him.
The whale swimming through the sky opened its mouth, and blue waves gathered in overlapping layers within it.
“Let us see just how lofty the Ram Kingdom’s Dao arts are...”
The Golden Core cultivator from the southern sea lowered his hand.
“I, Vast Sea, shall experience them for myself.”
Dark blue waves crashed down toward the Jangchun Sect.
Jangchun Peak looked like a tiny reef.
It was at that very moment.
“Ji, the character for ‘stop.’”
A calm voice rang out, as though its speaker were writing on paper with a brush.
A purple stroke appeared in the middle of the dark blue sea. Vertical and horizontal lines joined to form one enormous character.
【Stop】
Ruuuuumble.
The falling sea froze above the Jangchun Mountains. Even the droplets spraying from the tips of the waves and the fish swimming within them were fixed in midair.
Vast Sea Guest looked north.
A purple cloud was slowly approaching. A middle-aged scholar in a traditional crane robe stood upon it.
They wore a simple crown and held a white jade ruler one chi long in one hand. Their beard, divided into three locks, and their calm eyes gave them the air of a scholar from the mortal world.
“Master Jaun!”
“It’s Master Jaun of the Taehwa Sect!”
A stir spread throughout the Jangchun Sect.
The Taehwa Sect.
It was a great sect occupying a Tier 4 spirit vein in the central Ram Kingdom. Beneath its Nascent Soul Grand Ancestor and sect leader were several Golden Core cultivators. Most major pacts between the Ram Kingdom’s sects and clans bore the name of either the Taehwa Sect or the Jami Sword Sect.
Master Jaun raised their jade ruler.
“You seek to destroy beautiful mountains in another country. Is this what they teach as proper conduct beyond the Nammyeong Sea?”
Vast Sea Guest laughed.
“I simply couldn’t endure injustice.”
“Are you referring to the Jangchun Sect’s Origin-Raising Pills?”
“I am.”
Master Jaun took a thin golden ledger from their sleeve. When they tapped it with the white jade ruler, the written characters floated into the air.
「770 Tongwon Pills and 80 geun of Meridian-Severing Grass.
Received by the Azure Tide Merchant Alliance.
Jangchun Sect Origin-Raising Pill bottles and damaged Spirit-Sealing Talismans purchased.
Over 1,100 in total.」
The cultivators in Oesa Market looked up at the records.
Master Jaun pointed their jade ruler at the ledger’s final section.
The flow of Tongwon Pills and spirit stones into the Azure Tide Merchant Alliance’s various warehouses had split along many complicated routes. But when traced back through the locations and dates, most converged on a single sea route.
It began in the southern Namnyeo Kingdom and led deep into the Nammyeong Sea.
At the end of the route was a wave emblem not found in the Ram Kingdom’s cultivation world.
Master Jaun spoke.
“These are the findings of the Taehwa Sect’s Inspection Office.”
Oesa Market erupted.
“They bought over a thousand pill bottles and Spirit-Sealing Talismans? What would they use those for?”
“So the Azure Tide Merchant Alliance brought in the Tongwon Pills too!”
Master Jaun spoke again.
“Tongwon Pills are perfectly normal pills in themselves. But the pills recovered from the victims bore both the fire patterns left by melting down and recondensing Tongwon Pills and the poison of Meridian-Severing Grass. During the same period, the Azure Tide Merchant Alliance bought Tongwon Pills, Meridian-Severing Grass, and the Jangchun Sect’s empty pill bottles and Spirit-Sealing Talismans, storing them all in one warehouse. A rather precise collection of necessary materials for a coincidence.”
Master Jaun turned their gaze toward Venerable Scarlet Furnace, Lady White Ash, and Vast Sea Guest.
“You disguised poisonous pills as Origin-Raising Pills to kill people, then brought their bodies here to use as shields. Hearing such people speak of what is right makes me ashamed on your behalf.”
The independent cultivators were outraged.
“They deliberately killed people and framed the Jangchun Sect!”
Venerable Scarlet Furnace’s expression hardened.
“Fellow cultivator Jaun. Do you intend to slander even the Hongno Sect without clear evidence?”
“Fellow cultivator? Since when did the likes of the Hongno Sect dare challenge a cultivator of the Taehwa Sect? After joining hands with an overseas power, you still have the face to speak to me?”
“...”
Master Jaun closed the ledger and extended their white jade ruler.
“Even if the Jangchun Sect were guilty, it would answer under the laws of the Ram Kingdom. We cannot allow a blade from beyond the southern sea to pass judgment on our sects.”
The amusement vanished from Vast Sea Guest’s eyes. A crescent-shaped wave shot out of his silver ring, seeking to cut through both the floating ledger and Master Jaun.
Swiiiiish!
Before it could reach them, a black bamboo leaf passed through its center.
Shhk.
The silver wave, dozens of jang long, split cleanly in two.
Rustle.
A white scroll unfurled in the air. A woman who looked to be around twenty-five stood at the tip of an ink-black bamboo stalk painted upon it.
She wore simple black-and-white robes. Her waist-length hair was secured with a single ink-black bamboo hairpin, and she held a slender brush.
Vast Sea Guest spoke.
“What sort of spell is this?”
Someone among the independent cultivators shouted.
“It’s Lady So Juk-yeon of the Taehwa Sect!”
So Juk-yeon was a renowned talisman crafter in the Ram Kingdom, an extraordinary figure who cultivated the Dao of Painting.
She painted a wave in an empty part of the scroll. The sea pressing down upon the Jangchun Mountains began to be drawn into the painting. The whale’s shadow, the schools of fish, and even the droplets fixed in the sky formed a massive whirlpool as they flowed into the scroll.
Vast Sea Guest sounded impressed.
“So the Ram Kingdom does have some spells worth seeing.”
Master Jaun spoke.
“If you leave now, the Taehwa Sect will not pursue the matter of your rudeness.”
“...”
“Do you intend to face both of us alone?”
Vast Sea Guest looked from Master Jaun to So Juk-yeon.
Then he gave his sleeve a light shake.
“What difference does it make whether there are two of you or three?”
The sea inside the silver ring began turning faster.
Twelve lights appeared in its depths.
They were twelve dark blue pearls.
Each pearl contained the scene of a different sea.
It was a magical treasure made with spirit materials and refinement methods never seen in the Ram Kingdom.
“I shall experience your Dao arts as well.”
So Juk-yeon’s eyebrow twitched.
“Wait, are you...”
Just then, the horizons of the twelve different seas inside the pearls brightened at once.
Their light stretched out of the pearls and beyond the southern sky.
Master Jaun’s expression changed. So Juk-yeon also looked south, then moved her lips rapidly.
No sound could be heard, but the Jangchun Sect Master and the Grand Sect Master immediately turned toward them. The lips of all four Golden Core cultivators moved almost at once.
A moment later, the Foundation Establishment elders’ expressions grew solemn.
Then the identity token at Yi Hyeon’s waist gave a faint tremble.
[Yeon-ju, Gyeong-song, Dongi. Listen carefully, and don’t be alarmed.]
It was Go Won-hak.
[Return to Third-Stem Fire Court. Pack your things and head to North Gate Three within half a gak.]
Sim Yeon-ju asked a question.
[What’s happened?]
[A Nascent Soul cultivator may be coming. Don’t let it show. Nothing good will come of them discovering the evacuation.]
Go Won-hak’s voice transmission was swift and firm.
[Take charge of ten disciples at the middle Qi Refining stage or below.]
[What about you, Master?]
[Having a Foundation Establishment cultivator with you would make you a target. The elders and stewards will divide the core inheritances among themselves and travel separately. Don’t board a large flying boat. Stay below the forest canopy. Run or fly low through the valleys and between the trees. Once you’re two hundred li away, split into smaller groups again. Don’t stop until you reach the territory of the Taehwa Sect or the Jami Sword Sect.]
The voice transmission ended.
The three hurried toward Danjeong Peak.
In the sky behind them, the battle between the seven Golden Core cultivators resumed.
...
Third-Stem Fire Court, Danjeong Peak.
By the time the three returned, Third-Stem Fire Court was already in chaos.
The seals on the medicinal ingredient storehouses were being released one after another. Stewards who would normally have checked every line in the ledgers were sweeping pill formulas and ingredients into storage pouches without pause.
Yi Hyeon headed straight to his quarters.
Most of his wealth was in Underground Hideout No. 2, so he had almost nothing to pack.
As he passed the communal alchemy chamber, a steward in charge of an ingredient storehouse spotted him and beckoned. At the steward’s feet stood a supreme-grade Tier 1 pill furnace, one of the better communal furnaces in Third-Stem Fire Court.
“Dongi, you don’t seem to have much luggage. Do you have room left in your storage pouch?”
“Yes.”
“Then take this too. If we leave it, it’ll only become their spoils.”
The steward pushed the furnace toward him.
Caught off guard, Yi Hyeon reached out and put the waist-high bronze pill furnace straight into his storage pouch.
...
Before half a gak had passed, dozens of disciples had gathered before North Gate Three.
Thirteen from Third-Stem Fire Court formed one group.
Sim Yeon-ju and Bae Gyeong-song stood at the front, while Yi Hyeon took the rear. The other ten were disciples at the sixth layer or below.
A Greenleaf Boat a little over five jang long was brought out of the emergency storehouse beside them. It was a middle-grade Tier 1 flying magical implement shaped like a broad leaf. Its streamlined hull and quiet movement made it well suited to passing through forests.
A Foundation Establishment elder sent a voice transmission to the three alone.
[Take turns operating it. Stay below the forest canopy, and don’t travel in the same direction as the other Greenleaf Boats.]
Without another word, the elder opened North Gate Three.
Hummmmm.
The Greenleaf Boat carrying the thirteen passed through the blue curtain.
Sim Yeon-ju lowered its altitude, bringing it below the treetops. Sometimes it glided along a valley. At other times, it slipped at an angle between thick tree trunks.
After they left the sect grounds, another gate behind them briefly opened and closed. Disciples from the different peaks were quietly scattering, each group taking a different route at a different time.
Spell light still flashed in the sky. Red flames, purple characters, blue waves, and black ink took turns coloring the forest, alternating like day and night. Even as the distance grew, the explosions shook the Greenleaf Boat beneath their feet.
...
A forest some sixty li northeast of the Jangchun Mountains.
Just as the Greenleaf Boat was about to leave a narrow valley, six bronze streaks flashed between the trees ahead.
Swish, swish, swish, swish!
Ten layers of Yi Hyeon’s Spiritlight Shields unfolded before the Greenleaf Boat.
Boom, boom, boom, boom!
The six outer shields shattered at once, but the inner shields tilted, deflecting the flying swords outward. The bronze swords narrowly skimmed the edges of the Greenleaf Boat before piercing the cliffs and trees on either side.
As the impact rocked the boat, Sim Yeon-ju immediately changed course and brought the flying magical implement down in a forest clearing.
“Everyone off!”
Before the disciples could even jump down, two waves of Foundation Establishment spiritual pressure bore down on the clearing.
A cultivator in dark gray robes stood among the shadows of the trees ahead. At his gesture, the six scattered bronze flying swords quickly returned and began circling overhead.
Another Foundation Establishment cultivator in navy robes appeared on the cliff behind them. He held a black iron spear taller than a person.
The two Foundation Establishment cultivators had blocked their escape from both front and rear.
Sim Yeon-ju and Bae Gyeong-song immediately drew their magical implements, while their ten junior fellow disciples formed ranks.
Yi Hyeon drew the Mountain-Subduing Sword.
Shiiing.
A wondrous light quietly wrapped around its blade.
The moment the cultivator controlling the bronze flying swords saw the sword wrapped in that light, he froze.
“You...”
As though unable to believe it, the cultivator tore off his mask. A somewhat familiar face appeared beneath it.
“Badger!”
‘One of the alliance elders I fought on Jeogyo Island?’
The cultivator in navy robes asked with a puzzled look.
“Someone you know?”
“Don’t underestimate that one. We have to kill them now!”
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