Got a Gallery in the Wild - Chapter 2

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Got a Gallery in the Wild ◈

Chapter 2: Fortuitous Encounter (1)

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Who was the strongest person on the continent?

It was one of those classic arguments that came up not only on the Continent-Wide Gallery, but in everyday life too.

Some would name the Swordmaster of the Empire, while others would point to the Kingdom's Archmage.

Someone else would name the princess of the demonkind, and another would bring up the Hero who had vanished without a trace.

Everyone had a different answer depending on where they came from, who they were born to, their background, and their ties. Still, there was no denying that all of them were strong.

[Post title] Who Is the Strongest Person on the Continent?

[Post] 1. Ash of the Messiah Empire

[Post] 2. Kadir of the Iris Kingdom

[Post] 3. Kaelin of Mephisto

[Post] 4. The Missing Hero

└ [Heavenly Demon]: How strange. Why am I not on this poll?

└ Who are you?

└ [Heavenly Demon]: I am the rightful heir and master of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect, the Heavenly Demon.

└ I'm asking who the hell that is LOL

Most people did not know it, but a monster lived in the Central Plains, a land known for its mystery.

The Central Plains were far more closed off than other countries, so little information ever made it out. Still, they could not block the gallery itself.

└ If that really is the Heavenly Demon, then she's right. She's strong as hell.

└ How strong?

└ She'd beat every one of them in a one-on-one LOL. All the masters in the Central Plains got wrecked by the Heavenly Demon too.

└ Then why isn't anyone talking about her? I think I've seen stories like that on the gallery.

└ Why don't you buy stocks based only on rumors too, buddy? Yeah.

└ Ah.

└ LOL

But gallery rumors were never trustworthy. They were unofficial, after all.

More importantly, the very idea of the Heavenly Demon browsing the gallery was ridiculous.

Why would someone who had made every master in the Central Plains kneel and unified the Martial World spend time on the gallery?

And she invested quite a lot of time in it. The Heavenly Demon posted shitposts practically every day.

└ Heavenly Demon, who do you think is the strongest person on the continent?

└ [Heavenly Demon]: Naturally, it is this lady.

└ LOL Why ask her? Of course she'd say herself.

└ Heavenly Demon Then let this lady ask in return. What realm have they reached? Have they reached the Transformation Realm?

└ [SwordTasteMaster]: I'm a Swordmaster.

└ [Allfather]: I'm a tenth-circle mage.

└ [PrincessChaenggu]: I'm a ninth-circle mage~!

└ [Heavenly Demon]: What are those things? This lady does not know the language of the Western Kingdoms well.

└ LOLLLLLL

└ What a fossil LOL

That was why users treated the Heavenly Demon as either a roleplay addict or an old fossil.

People from the Central Plains who used the gallery generally did not understand other countries' languages or slang very well.

The gallery automatically translated everything, but it could not translate proper nouns or slang into the language of each country.

It was a consequence of their isolationism, but ironically, that was why so many of them used it.

└ If you're really the Heavenly Demon, do something about the Emperor. They say anyone who uses the gallery gets executed.

└ [Heavenly Demon]: To dare obstruct this lady's hobby. He truly does not know to fear the heavens.

After that post, rumors spread that the Emperor of the Central Plains had been assassinated, and gallery use became free again.

Thanks to that, everyone began to wonder whether the Heavenly Demon might actually be the real Heavenly Demon.

[Post title] Heavenly Demon, look.

[Post] If you're really the Heavenly Demon, post a face reveal. Then we'll believe you.

└ [Heavenly Demon]: To demand that this lady reveal her honored face. How insolent.

└ Don't tell me you're ugly? A hag? LOL

└ [Heavenly Demon]: When this lady entered the Martial World, this lady also earned the title of the most beautiful woman under heaven.

└ Yeah, bullshit.

As time passed, the Heavenly Demon became more and more famous as a fossil completely consumed by roleplay.

Someone even wrote that if the real Heavenly Demon saw this, she would dismember their organs and personally sentence them to death by a thousand cuts.

It made sense. Nearly everything the Heavenly Demon posted was basically a shitpost.

The prevailing opinion was that nobody could write that much unless they had an insane amount of free time.

“How strange. Why does no one believe me?”

And the real Heavenly Demon stared at the gallery with a puzzled expression.

Skin as white as milk, plump lips, a lovely face, and curves that even her black martial robes could not conceal.

Yu Sowol was the being who stood as the sole Demon beneath the heavens.

Today too, she was the Heavenly Demon, diligently browsing the gallery.

“I have proven everything to them. Tsk, tsk.”

Yu Sowol clicked her tongue, yet there was not a trace of irritation on her face.

If anything, she looked interested. The gallery was the Heavenly Demon’s only hobby, after all.

People might ask what someone like the Heavenly Demon was doing on the gallery, but she was still human in the end.

Even after defeating every master in the Central Plains and gaining the title of the strongest person beneath heaven, she could not ease her boredom.

She was so overwhelmingly strong that there were not even any challengers. So she had shut herself away in the mountains under the excuse of closed-door cultivation.

[Post title] Upvote if the Heavenly Demon looks weak as shit LOL

[Post] Me first LOL

└ Upvote LOL

└ Upvoted LOL

“Hehe. You wretches. Chewing you to bits still would not satisfy me. To dare mock this lady.”

This was the good stuff. People babbling whatever nonsense they pleased from behind the shield of anonymity.

Back in the Divine Cult, most believers could not even meet her eyes.

Yu Sowol was the sole supreme being beneath heaven. All they could do was revere her.

The gallery was different. Sheltered by anonymity, people spouted rudeness they would never dare say aloud.

There were times when they even sexually harassed her, but Yu Sowol generously let it slide. They were faceless fools, after all.

‘I would like to fight a master from the Western Kingdoms, but...’

There was one thing she found disappointing. Whenever people discussed the strongest person on the continent, they always left her out.

The other nations actively exchanged with one another, so the names of their masters were widely known.

The Central Plains were different. Their closed policies had turned them into frogs in a well.

She had considered going herself, but strangely, her believers strongly opposed it.

“No. If Heaven makes the journey herself, countless problems will arise.”

“Why?”

“If you leave your position for too long, the believers will be thrown into confusion, and wicked martial artists will seize that chance to attack. Above all...”

“Above all?”

“Should not those arrogant barbarians come to us? Does it make sense for the Supreme One to go to them personally?”

“Hmm. That is true.”

The Heavenly Demon had been persuaded by the Demon Brain she trusted.

The Demon Brain, however, had a different reason.

The moment she fought a master from another country, things would become hopelessly tangled.

The Central Plains had not even been fully brought under control yet. What if foreign barbarians got dragged into it too?

The Heavenly Demon Divine Sect, which they had built with such effort, might collapse. It was a realistic judgment.

[Post title] Fuck, serving this bitch is driving me insane

[Author] Smart Demon

[Post] That woman has nothing in her head but martial arts, and she's trying to cause trouble again. Good thing I barely stopped her. Otherwise, I would've run away immediately.

└ Hang in there, buddy. What's your job, though?

└ [Smart Demon]: Secretary? Butler? Think of it as something like that in the Western Kingdoms.

└ Must be rough because of your boss.

└ [Smart Demon]: Sigh... Fuck, I really want to quit.

└ Why don't you?

└ [Smart Demon]: It's a lifelong job LOL. I started with the boss's parents.

└ LOLLLLLL

└ But if you're a secretary, do you really go under the desk?

└ Are you insane? LOL

└ [Smart Demon]: My head would explode if I did that.

A cryptic post appeared on the gallery right afterward, but the Heavenly Demon ignored it. It was nothing unusual.

Afterward, she stayed shut away in the Divine Cult, briefly appeared because of the Emperor, then returned and lived ordinary days again.

Yu Sowol the human, trading insults with others, was far more fun than Yu Sowol the revered Heavenly Demon.

Then, after obtaining an insight by chance, she entered closed-door cultivation and encountered an obstacle she had never expected.

“Cough!”

Splurt!

A handful of black blood poured out when Yu Sowol coughed. It was a considerable amount.

She wiped the blood from her lips, her expression complicated.

‘To think this lady would suffer Qi Deviation...’

That was right. She had fallen into Qi Deviation while devoting herself to cultivation.

People might ask how the sole supreme being beneath heaven could suffer Qi Deviation, but it was a kind of trial.

A trial much like an insect shedding its skin, where success or failure determined whether it lived or died.

Anyone could suffer Qi Deviation. The Heavenly Demon was no exception.

‘My Internal Energy is becoming far too powerful.’

The Heavenly Demon was strong.

The problem was that she was too strong.

Yu Sowol looked down at her hand. Cracked like a spiderweb, it looked as though it could shatter at any moment.

Her outer shell could no longer withstand the energy within and was collapsing on its own.

To overcome this, she had to either contain the energy inside her or neutralize it with an elixir.

She had repeatedly attempted the former, but her Internal Energy only grew stronger. It did not lessen at all.

‘The heavens are heavens, and the earth is earth...’

Even so, she continued browsing the gallery until the very end. In truth, she had already half given up.

As her Internal Energy continued to grow stronger, all that remained was for her pathetic shell to fail and burst apart.

She was no different from someone with a terminal illness, so she wrote on the gallery with an empty mind.

[Post title] Is There No One Who Wishes to Have a Deep Conversation With This Lady? It Is a Grave Matter.

[Author] Heavenly Demon

[Post] That is precisely the matter.

└ Heavenly Demon Death Beam!!

└ Waaah!

“Hehe.”

Yu Sowol smiled. It was the expression of someone looking at a pitiful idiot.

The fact that the gallery was her only remaining place to turn left her beyond self-deprecation and into self-loathing.

That only worsened the Qi Deviation, but she had already let go of everything.

‘Is this how it ends...?’

She would browse the gallery one last time. She did not want to die alone in silence.

At the very least, she wanted to leave something behind until the very end. It was a natural human instinct.

Before making her final post, she opened the post sitting at the top of the page.

It had been written by a new registered username, the person a dwarf had insulted by asking if their head was an anvil.

[Post title] Does Anyone Know What This Medicinal Herb Is?

[Author] Wild Grylls

[Post] (Photo of a crescent-shaped herb)

[Post] I don't know what kind of herb this is. Does anyone know?

“!!!”

Yu Sowol’s eyes widened at the photo in the post.

It showed a medicinal herb with crescent-shaped flowers.

‘C-could this be...?’

Though the Heavenly Demon was obsessed with martial arts, she knew her medicinal herbs.

Having been born and raised in the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect, she had consumed every elixir imaginable.

She had also learned how to regulate their effects while consuming them. Her knowledge of medicinal herbs rivaled an expert’s.

‘Could it be the New Moon Spirit Herb? I am certain.’

The New Moon Spirit Herb.

A medicinal herb exceptionally effective at controlling surging Internal Energy.

For Yu Sowol, who was dying because she could not control her qi, it was a herb she needed even more than the Herb of Immortality.

Yu Sowol commented without hesitation. Her mind worked several times faster than most people’s, allowing her to claim first place.

└ [Heavenly Demon]: Halt! This lady claimed it first, yet you are all consumed by greed!!

└ Nope~

└ Claimed it? LOL The seller gets to choose who comes first.

└ Move along, fossil~

“Y-you filthy bastards...!”

Her claim meant nothing.

A pack of hyenas had caught the scent and swarmed in during that brief moment.

Yu Sowol was furious, but soon became troubled. The competition was too fierce.

She had already tried sending a trade request, but Wild Grylls had not accepted it.

‘How pathetic.’

Yu Sowol laughed bitterly. Even at the end, she was acting shamefully.

Still, she was furious. She had wanted to die fighting, not in this miserable way.

The energy inside her grew stronger beyond her control, and her remaining lifespan steadily dwindled.

Just as Yu Sowol lamented her predicament and was about to close her eyes...

[System] Wild Grylls has requested a trade. Would you like to accept?

A saving hand descended from the heavens.

Yu Sowol’s eyes grew wider and wider.

Why?

Why choose this lady among all those people?

Her thoughts ran long, but her actions were swift. She hurriedly accepted the request.

When she did, a rectangular window appeared before her. It was empty.

[Wild Grylls]: hi hi, you're Heavenly Demon, right?

A brief greeting filled the blank space.

It was frivolous, yet surprisingly polite.

Yu Sowol unconsciously cleared her throat and sent a reply.

[Chat participant] Heavenly Demon

[You]: Yes. This lady is the sole heaven of the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect, the Heavenly Demon.

[You]: You wish to trade with this lady?

[Wild Grylls]: Yeah. You commented first.

[Wild Grylls]: First come, first served.

[Chat participant] Heavenly Demon

[You]: Thank you. You are one of the rare people who knows courtesy.

Thankfully, Wild Grylls was not completely uncouth. The Heavenly Demon sighed in relief.

The gallery was like a garbage dump. Many hid behind anonymity and exposed their desires without restraint.

Such manners in that garbage dump felt like a rose barely blooming amid filth.

[Chat participant] Heavenly Demon

[You]: Is there anything you desire?

[You]: This lady will obtain anything within my means.

[You]: For now, her circumstances limited what she could obtain because she needed to cultivate. But once she returned to the Heavenly Demon Divine Sect, she intended to give anything.

[You]: Even the Heavenly Demon did not forget favors and grudges. If Wild Grylls wished for it, she was willing to pass on a secret martial arts manual.

[Wild Grylls]: For now, I need something to start a fire and a compass.

[Wild Grylls]: A weapon to protect myself, and simple food.

[Wild Grylls]: That should be enough.

The Heavenly Demon was puzzled.

That was all Wild Grylls wanted?

What was the New Moon Spirit Herb? It was a supreme medicinal herb she would buy even for a fortune.

[Chat participant] Heavenly Demon

[You]: Is that truly all you want?

[You]: As you know, the New Moon Spirit Herb is an extremely precious medicinal herb.

[Wild Grylls]: Is it worth more than my life?

[Wild Grylls]: I only need what I need.

[Chat participant] Heavenly Demon

[You]: Hmm... Very well.

[You]: Given the circumstances, there are things this lady cannot obtain immediately, but I can obtain them with time.

[Wild Grylls]: My circumstances are urgent too.

[Wild Grylls]: So, can you do it?

I can.

The Heavenly Demon turned her head and looked toward the corner of the cave.

There was a secret manual containing the insights she had gained, a large pile of Fasting Pills, and even her beloved sword.

Two of the requested conditions were fulfilled. She did not have a tool to start a fire, but there was another way.

[Chat participant] Heavenly Demon

[You]: What realm have you reached?

[You]: Have you entered the Transformation Realm?

[Wild Grylls]: I'm just a regular person, okay...

“Oh dear.”

In that case, she could not teach Samadhi True Fire.

Yu Sowol hurriedly moved on.

[Chat participant] Heavenly Demon

[You]: I am sorry, but this lady can only fulfill two of your requests.

[You]: The weapon and food.

[Wild Grylls]: Um...

[Chat participant] Heavenly Demon

[You]: But if I descend to the Divine Cult, I can provide the other two as well.

Yu Sowol grew desperate. The stronger her Internal Energy became, the more cold sweat poured down her body.

On top of that, they only had three minutes to trade. Once those three minutes passed, they would be unable to trade for a full day.

[Wild Grylls]: Okay, got it.

[Chat participant] Heavenly Demon

[You]: Truly?

[Wild Grylls]: You said you'd give them to me, so I should trust you.

[Wild Grylls]: If you don't, I can stop trusting you then.

“Ah...”

How could someone be such a polite young man(?)?

Yu Sowol was moved.

Meeting Wild Grylls in her moment of desperation had been a fortuitous encounter, and Wild Grylls was her benefactor.

She had never experienced anything like this when she first entered the Martial World, nor when she unified the Central Plains.

It felt as though the whole world had brightened. Though the cave was pitch-black, her conversation with Wild Grylls shone like the sun.

‘Ah. This is no time for that.’

Yu Sowol hurriedly gathered up the sword and Fasting Pills.

They were things she would no longer need if she entered the next realm.

Having used the gallery consistently, she knew how trading worked. All she needed to do was hold or touch the items she wished to send.

[System] Wild Grylls has registered trade items.

[System] Heavenly Demon has registered trade items.

[System] Would you like to trade?

She accepted immediately.

The other side must have accepted quickly too, because the message changed.

[System] The trade has been completed.

[Wild Grylls]: Mine arrived. Did yours arrive too?

Yu Sowol did not see that message.

She was too busy stuffing the New Moon Spirit Herb into her mouth.

She felt terribly sorry toward Wild Grylls, but her life was in danger. The moment she consumed the herb, she began Qi Circulation and Breath Regulation.

As expected, once she absorbed the herb’s energy, her Internal Energy, which had been hot like an active volcano, gradually began to stabilize.

Even Yu Sowol was surprised.

At this rate, she could break out of her shell and enter the next realm.

Yu Sowol felt relieved, but she did not lose focus. She did not want to waste the opportunity she had barely seized through some careless mistake.

‘Just a little... A little more...’

Hummmm-

Yu Sowol’s body slowly rose into the air as she performed Qi Circulation and Breath Regulation.

Her beautiful ebony hair floated as if swimming through water, and a faint light seeped from her body.

Crack!

Like a bird breaking out of its egg, Yu Sowol underwent a similar change.

Though she had already undergone Body Reforging, she was going through the process once more.

Her cracked skin fell away as new skin formed. Her skeleton and body also changed into a more suitable shape.

The realm of Demonic Transcendence, freed from all demonic influences.

In the Central Plains, it was called the Mystical Realm.

Swish.

Yu Sowol’s closed eyes slowly opened.

They were not the eyes of someone who had faced death.

Her black eyes were calm as a still lake and gentle as a soft breeze.

The Heavenly Demon, Yu Sowol, had broken out of her shell once more and taken in the world anew.

“Hoo...”

Yu Sowol exhaled.

It was a sigh mixed with countless complicated emotions.

Then she looked at her hand.

Fresh white skin had formed over it. It was a hand as delicate as carved jade.

She was satisfied. A smile naturally spread across her face.

She did not know how she could repay this favor.

‘Ah. Damn it. I have not thanked them.’

Yu Sowol hurriedly connected to the gallery.

Time had passed, and her conversation with Wild Grylls had ended.

All she could do now was write a post on the gallery.

Even after reaching the realm of Demonic Transcendence, Yu Sowol the human had not disappeared.

If anything, the opposite was true. Having met a benefactor in her moment of crisis, her human side had grown even stronger.

She wanted to repay the favor somehow.

How could she repay this debt?

She had never received kindness in her life.

She had incurred more grudges than she could count, but this was the first time anyone had done her a favor.

Her heart pounded, and a smile naturally formed on her lips.

It was a reaction she had not even realized she was having.

[Post title] Wild Grylls, heed me.

[Author] Heavenly Demon

[Post] Thanks to you, esteemed sir, I have incurred a debt of gratitude I will spend the rest of my life repaying. This lady will certainly obtain whatever you desire, so tell me anything you wish for. If you want, I can personally give you a secret martial arts manual.

[Post] Ah. Just in case, the items you requested will certainly be delivered as well.

The Heavenly Demon had even called Wild Grylls “esteemed sir,” an exceptionally respectful form of address.

A few comments appeared afterward, but the one she wanted never came.

Yu Sowol waited.

And waited.

Until her benefactor left a comment.

But even after several minutes passed, Wild Grylls did not reply.

“...Why will you not answer me?”

Yu Sowol voiced her disappointment.

Only a few minutes had passed, but they felt painfully long to her.

‘Could it be because I did not thank them immediately?’

Yu Sowol’s worries deepened.