WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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Episode 19: Poison Parasite (3)

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It was nearing the end of its transformation, and its sanity was slowly returning.

Even so, madness still consumed it. Its endless hunger could not be helped.

So it devoured anything it could find.

The only things it could devour were vengeful spirits trapped in the same plight as itself.

For ten-odd years, it had been trapped beneath this cliff, eating and eating the vengeful spirits that screamed in torment.

It had not been like this from the beginning.

When the vengeful spirits devoured one another, it had only fled and hidden, driven by the desire to survive.

But that desire eventually led to an eruption of resentment and madness.

It had spent ten-odd years devouring whatever it could in its insanity. Then, within that endless cycle, something unexpected intruded.

It stared at the being bound in chains as though puzzled.

‘A human?’

Could it truly be a living being?

For a long time, this place had been filled only with vengeful spirits.

New spirits were periodically added, but no living being had ever appeared here.

And now, a living being had appeared in this hellish place?

Shudder!

It could not contain its excitement.

The dead vengeful spirits alone could not satisfy its maddened hunger.

Yet this living being was enough to pique its curiosity.

‘Fear me.’

It intended to fill this being with fear and terror.

Fear and dread from a living being were tremendous nourishment for a vengeful spirit.

Yet,

“It seems we agree.”

What was this human?

He was smiling in a situation like this.

Moreover, that smile carried such malicious intent that it was deeply unpleasant.

His arms and legs were bound in chains and could be torn apart with the slightest exertion of force, yet he acted so relaxed. It was infuriating.

Very well. It would tear apart his limbs one at a time, devour them, and enjoy watching him suffer.

Claaang!

At a gesture from it, Mok GyeongUn, bound by chains, was forcibly dragged closer.

Knowing he could not overcome this with strength, Mok GyeongUn offered no resistance.

Even then, a smile remained on his lips.

His composure only enraged it further.

It pulled him directly before itself with the chains and spoke.

“I will strip away every inch of your skin, peel off your flesh piece by piece, and eat you down to the bone.”

Mok GyeongUn sneered at the threat.

“What a refined hobby you have.”

“Refined?”

Insolent human.

How dare he remain at ease right before it?

Fine. It would see whether he could still act that way after experiencing pain.

Thud!

Rattle!

One of the chains pierced Mok GyeongUn’s left shoulder.

It did not matter whether he had nerves of steel or was simply numb to fear.

Once he felt pain, he would be no different.

Yet,

“Is that all?”

His expression did not change. He still sneered.

If that was not enough, then so be it.

At its glance, the chains that filled the floor like writhing snakes moved as though alive.

Clang!

Rattle!

Thunk! Thunk! Thunk!

One chain pierced Mok GyeongUn’s right shoulder, while two more pierced his thighs.

As if that were not enough, another burrowed into his abdomen.

Thud!

This would not be pain that could be endured through willpower alone.

The chains felt both frigid and scorching. The moment they touched flesh or organs, they inflicted agony as though they were burning and freezing him at once.

All things originated in the mind.

This human must have been suffering the worst pain imaginable...

‘!?’

What was this bastard?

His expression had still not changed.

He was even scoffing as he stared directly at it.

How could a living being bound by the constraints of a physical body endure such pain as though it were nothing?

As it stood astonished, Mok GyeongUn spoke.

“Did you think I would become afraid or suffer because of this?”

“...”

“You are wasting your time.”

Rumble!

The instant Mok GyeongUn finished mocking it, the entire space shook as though an earthquake had struck.

It was furious.

How dare this insignificant thing laugh at it?

Fine. It would grant his wish and devour him alive.

Rattle!

The chains pulled, dragging Mok GyeongUn, whose limbs were restrained, right before its face.

It opened its mouth wide.

The mouth visible through the gaps in the chains was nothing like a human mouth.

Perhaps from devouring countless vengeful spirits and transforming, hundreds of sharp thorns had grown within it, and violet smoke flowed from its mouth.

Grrrrrrr!

Its mouth widened enough to swallow Mok GyeongUn whole.

Rattle!

The chains embedded in Mok GyeongUn’s body came loose one by one.

With a clank, his body was brought closer to its mouth.

Rattle!

Just as his head and shoulders nearly reached the gaping mouth, something strange fell from Mok GyeongUn.

Plop!

It paid little attention, assuming it was blood or a piece of flesh.

But the moment it swallowed the object,

Sizzle!

Its throat burned as though it were on fire.

“You! What did you...?”

“Never let your guard down just because you think you have caught someone.”

The ring on Mok GyeongUn’s hand was gone.

That was right.

What had entered its throat was the ring bearing an incantation, made by Taoist occultist Jo Ui-gong.

Then Mok GyeongUn formed a hand seal with one hand and shouted.

Flap! Flap! Flap! Flap!

“By the Jade Emperor’s edict, Divine Ink spirits, manifest. Take the form of cloud and mist, array the nine stars above. Divine Ink, startle demons. Thunderbolts, scatter them. Hurry, Hurry, Act According to the Law!”

It was the Edict-Ink Divine Incantation.

The instant his words rang out, brilliant light burst forth from inside its mouth.

Hummmm!

It was spellcraft that summoned a deity into the ring bearing the incantation, causing it to unleash powerful force and exorcise vengeful spirits.

Since the ring contained the incantation and exploded from within, its power was immense.

“Aaaaaaah!”

Even it, which had continuously transformed, cried out in pain from the exploding spell power.

However, this was still not enough to exorcise something of its rank.

Its body briefly crumpled in agony, but it still retained its form.

Rattle!

Yet because it had weakened, if only temporarily, the chains binding Mok GyeongUn scattered and vanished.

At that moment, Mok GyeongUn launched himself toward its agonized, open mouth.

‘!?’

What was he doing?

Was he jumping into its mouth of his own accord?

It did not miss the chance. It tried to chew up Mok GyeongUn as he leaped inside.

Then Mok GyeongUn reached toward its throat.

Smack!

And,

‘Let all deluded thoughts vanish. Let form nourish the heart. Cast off the self and all appearances. Let formlessness perfect the form. Let demonic bonds be released. Reverse the sea, open the Boundless Acupoint.’

He recited the verse formula for movement of Adhesion.

This was his decisive move.

The most direct means of absorbing the deathly aura of that massive mass of resentment was to target its insides.

Its chains would bind him if he attacked from outside, so this was his only option.

Yet,

Whoooosh!

‘Hm?’

Rather than absorbing its energy, Mok GyeongUn’s body was drawn deep into its mouth, as though overwhelmed by its sheer mass.

As if there were a hidden space inside its mouth, Mok GyeongUn fell far within.

Whoooosh!

Within darkness like a bottomless abyss, Mok GyeongUn’s body was drawn toward its origin.

Along the way, fragments of its memories flowed into him like a revolving lantern.

[Brother! Brother! I will always be with you.]

[I will support our Clan as your right-hand man. Do not worry.]

A younger brother who followed him with a bright smile.

And a stern father.

[This is for our Society’s long-cherished wish. The descendants of the other Five Kings have all agreed, so you must participate and set an example.]

[I will remember.]

Soon, a familiar place appeared in the memories.

The place emerging from the darkness was the valley where the struggle for iron beads had taken place, as though the same scene had played out many times before.

[Huff... Huff... Brother...]

[Take it.]

[But did you not find this one?]

[Go on ahead. I can find another soon.]

[Brother...]

Then another memory crept in.

Someone struck the back of his head with a sharp stone.

Gasping for breath, he turned his head. The younger brother who had once followed him so brightly was looking down at him with cold eyes.

[Y-You... How could you...?]

[You damned bastard. Once you are dead, everything will work out.]

[You... You...]

[You had everything, yet you always acted superior and pitied me...]

[I... I never...]

[You were only born before me.]

With those words, the younger brother struck his face with the stone.

As though not satisfied with striking him only once, the younger brother struck him repeatedly before simply leaving.

A surge of anger and emotion followed.

Then the scene changed completely.

These did not seem to be memories from when it was alive, but memories that continued after its death.

[Let me eat you. Let me eat you!]

[Die! Die!]

[I said die!]

Vengeful spirits rushed at it like mad.

Extreme fear and despair filled it.

Those feelings steadily intensified.

[Why... Why must I be devoured even after death?]

[Did I live only to suffer like this?]

[Am I meant to be devoured?]

[I...]

[I... cannot... be... devoured...]

[I will... devour... everything!]

As it was torn apart and devoured by the vengeful spirits, its madness finally erupted.

“Aaaaaaah!”

Its mad resentment was so powerful that Mok GyeongUn felt as though he would be devoured in an instant.

At the same time, an unbelievable amount of deathly aura surged through his palm, and the screams of countless resentments rang within his head.

[I will devour you too!]

Its madness was transmitted to him.

Mok GyeongUn felt as though the desperate wails would split his head apart, but he did not stop movement of Adhesion.

‘Let all deluded thoughts vanish. Let form nourish the heart. Cast off the self and all appearances. Let formlessness perfect the form. Let demonic bonds be released. Reverse the sea, open the Boundless Acupoint.’

* * *

Crunch!

A vengeful spirit’s head was crushed, then scattered through the air like ash.

The owner of the hand that had crushed its head was none other than Blue Spirit.

Her blood-red eyes gleamed as she shouted at the vortices closing in around her.

“If you are so desperate to be destroyed, come at me. You little ones.”

At her cry, the vortices stopped moving as if they had hesitated.

After she had destroyed around seven entities comparable to Yellow Spirit rank, they had finally become afraid, or so she thought.

Then,

Fwoooosh!

An immense deathly aura spread in every direction.

Blue Spirit frowned and looked toward it.

‘Could it be?’

The source was none other than the massive vortex.

Cracks had formed across the vortex, whose transformation was nearly complete. Then all the power it had gathered erupted at once.

These vortices had stopped moving in response to it.

Then all the vortices moved in unison toward it as its cracks spread and it began to reveal its form.

“Damn it!”

She had only just managed to divert the spirits’ attention, and this was deeply troublesome.

Had she spread her Ghost-Intent Domain, the Blood Realm, for nothing?

Just then,

Rattle!

Whoooosh!

Countless chains emerged from the cracks and indiscriminately bound the approaching vortices and the countless vengeful spirits nearby.

Their force was so strong that even the transforming vengeful spirits could not move.

Even several Green Spirit rank entities were no exception.

“Aaaaaah!”

“Ghk!”

They too could not withstand the chains and were soon dragged away while bound.

Whoooosh!

They were sucked directly into the opening fissure.

Blue Spirit could instinctively infer why this was happening.

‘Is it about to be completed?’

The Poison Parasite was finally about to be born.

It was filling itself with whatever it lacked, preparing to transform into the most ideal, no, the worst form possible.

Then a thick chain flew toward her.

It was not satisfied with devouring the vortices. It was targeting Blue Spirit as well.

“So, you failed in the end?”

Blue Spirit muttered as she watched the chain approach.

The red bond of fate connecting her to her master was shaking violently.

It was a sign that her master’s life hung in the balance.

If the red bond burned away into ash, she too would vanish.

Rattle!

The chain tried to coil around her body.

Blue Spirit swung her pipe.

The end of the chain, just before it reached her, shattered, and the destruction swiftly traveled up the chain.

Crack!

Blue Spirit followed the crumbling chain and shot toward the splitting vortex.

Rattle!

Whoooosh!

Countless chains burst forth to capture her, but,

Smack! Smack!

every one of them was knocked away by her pipe.

Before long, she passed through the fissure and entered.

At the center of the torrent where the deathly aura of resentment churned like a storm, she saw a being wrapped in chains.

The wails of the resentments dragged inside before her echoed by her ears.

[Run. Run. Run.]

[Resentment has reached its end.]

[A being bearing the blue malice of deep despair is being born.]

Blue malice.

That meant it had reached the rank of Blue Spirit.

It was originally the worst kind of vengeful spirit, one that could only be born after a deep grudge endured for a hundred years. Yet it was about to be completed as a Poison Parasite by being artificially made to devour its own kind.

Whoooosh!

Even the wailing vengeful spirits were sucked in, and the chains covering the being grew darker.

Blue Spirit snorted.

“You little thing are so full of yourself. Do you think I have never gone through that?”

As Blue Spirit stepped onto the ground, drops of blood rose from beneath her.

With every step she took, they spread in every direction.

As her domain collided with the chained being’s domain, space rippled throughout the area, and blue flames rose like tree roots.

Crackle!

Blue Spirit’s crimson eyes gradually deepened.

“Hand over that mortal, or the moment you are born, you will be destroyed here, little one.”

“Grrrrrrr!”

Its energy rose sharply.

At that moment, just as Blue Spirit was about to take another step, the chained being suddenly began twisting its body this way and that.

Condensed resentment poured powerfully from between the gaps.

Clank! Clank!

Was it doing this because the Poison Parasite was about to be completed?

Just as she wondered, the chains around it began tightening around its own body.

As though they were strangling it.

‘What is this?’

The transformation process was bizarre beyond belief.

As she watched in confusion, cracks suddenly appeared in the chains that had been tightening around it.

Crack!

One crack became two, then their number rapidly increased.

Before long, the chains did not merely crack. They shattered and fell to the ground.

Was the completed Poison Parasite finally about to reveal itself?

Blue Spirit raised her pipe, ready to receive it.

Then every chain fell away, revealing a human figure.

It was none other than,

“Mortal!?”

Mok GyeongUn.

Blue Spirit narrowed her eyes.

“Grrrrrrr!”

The enormous deathly aura flowing from his body was condensed as though ready to explode at any moment.

Had the completed Poison Parasite taken his physical body?

Blue Spirit aimed her pipe at him and spoke in an angry voice.

“You fool. Did it finally devour you?”

At that question, Mok GyeongUn’s lips twitched. Then he looked at Blue Spirit and spoke.

“It did not eat me. I ate it.”

‘!!!!!!’

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