WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
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Episode 20: True Intentions (1)
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The walls of the room were covered with talismans and countless ritual implements.
A white-haired Taoist sat inside, meditating with closed eyes amid candles arranged according to the directions of the Five Elements. Then the Taoist opened his eyes.
‘!?’
His eyes trembled.
The sharp-featured, white-haired Taoist could not hide his bewilderment.
‘It cannot be.’
Gripped by foreboding, he rose and left the room, walking down the corridor.
What he had just felt was the backlash that should return when a spell he had set was broken.
But that could not be possible.
‘Even if the Poison Parasite were completed, it could not break this Pavilion Lord’s art.’
Before long, the white-haired Taoist stopped before a door.
He opened it.
His expression hardened.
A formation that appeared to be a barrier was drawn on the floor. Within it stood a thick jar covered in talismans, bound in chains.
Yet,
Shudder...
The old man’s beard trembled violently, as if rage had surged through him.
The talismans attached to the candles had been torn away, and the chains had been broken.
The old man approached and grasped the severed chain with a trembling hand.
Closing his eyes, he recited an incantation.
“Buyeon Jusang, Yeonwon Bigyeong, Mujuji Sin, Hurry, Hurry, Act According to the Law.”
Rattle...
The chain shook violently.
‘What happened? Show me the cause.’
Creep...
Something formed in the old man’s mind as he kept his eyes closed.
Countless vengeful spirits were devouring one another and transforming.
On the day Corpse-Blood Valley was held, he checked on this two or three times a day to make sure there were no problems.
Had everything not been fine until just moments ago?
What in the world had happened?
Then he saw something whose entire form was pitch-black approach the Poison Parasite that was nearing completion.
“Mujuji Sin, Hurry, Hurry, Act According to the Law!”
‘Show me. What is it?’
He needed to know what variable had arisen.
As he poured even more spell power into the incantation,
Crack!
Blood streamed from the old man’s left eye. The broken chain in his hand crumbled completely into dust and scattered.
The old man staggered back.
‘...’
What had that been?
Something vicious, shrouded in deathly energy, had interfered with the Poison Parasite nearing completion.
It was certainly not an aberration in the form of the dead, like a vengeful spirit.
Then...
‘Did spirits and goblins breach the talisman barrier on the cliff?’
The old man wiped away the bloody tears with his sleeve.
If spirits and goblins had broken the cliff’s talismans and meddled with vengeful spirits that had transformed and risen so greatly in rank, even before completion, they had to be above monstrous beasts.
‘Could a demon beast or a demonic beast have appeared?’
No.
A demonic beast was too much.
If it had been of that level, he would have sensed it immediately, no matter the distance.
If a demonic beast had appeared here, even a martial-world organization would have suffered considerable casualties.
Grit!
But even if it was not of that rank, he could not contain his anger.
The Poison Parasite he had painstakingly cultivated over fifteen years had turned to nothing in an instant.
Bang!
The old man threw open the door and strode through the corridor, then out of the building.
Someone was kneeling there.
It was Taoist occultist Jo Ui-gong.
When the old man appeared, Jo Ui-gong raised his head, his face brightening.
“Master, no, Pavilion Lord!”
The sharp-featured, white-haired old man was Pavilion Lord In Seo-ok of the Origin-Killing Pavilion, which served as the Heaven and Earth Society’s advisor in occult arts.
He was also Jo Ui-gong’s master, a Sun-ranked Taoist occultist. Only fourteen Taoist occultists had reached that highest realm of occult arts.
Aside from the Six Taoist Gods, said to stand at the pinnacle of the six Taoist occultist ranks, few could rival him in occult arts.
“Pavilion Lord, will you report this to the Council Head?”
At Jo Ui-gong’s question, Pavilion Lord In Seo-ok shook his head, his expression terrifyingly grim.
Jo Ui-gong could not hide his disappointment.
Among all the talents he had seen, that boy was the finest.
That was why he had intended to beg the Pavilion Lord to somehow remove him from Corpse-Blood Valley.
But it was not that In Seo-ok had changed his mind.
‘Ah...’
Then In Seo-ok said,
“That is not the issue now.”
“What do you mean?”
“A high-ranking spirit or goblin has ruined everything just as it was finished.”
“Surely not...”
“This Pavilion Lord’s Spirit-Shaping Gu Poison Art has been broken.”
‘!!!!!’
Taoist occultist Jo Ui-gong was stunned.
The Spirit-Shaping Gu Poison Art was something his master, Pavilion Lord In Seo-ok, had devoted fifteen years to cultivating.
“How could such a thing happen? Even spirits and goblins should not be able to breach your barrier, Master, no, Pavilion Lord...”
“Then it must be at least a demon beast.”
“A demon beast!”
Such beings were above ferocious beasts and monstrous beasts.
Even a monstrous beast required a Taoist occultist of at least the Skill rank to confront. If it was a demon beast, even a Moon-ranked Taoist occultist could find it difficult to face, depending on the creature.
‘Wait. The cliff valley where the Spirit-Shaping Gu Poison Art is being performed...’
It was connected to Corpse-Blood Valley.
Even if the Spirit-Shaping Gu Poison Art had not been broken, the appearance of a demon beast on that mountain was not a matter they could simply ignore.
Clicking his tongue, Pavilion Lord In Seo-ok said,
“Gather the talismans and ritual implements at once. Prepare to go to Corpse-Blood Valley.”
Jo Ui-gong inwardly thought this was fortunate.
His master was displeased that the Spirit-Shaping Gu Poison Art had been broken, but this might give them grounds to suspend the gates of Corpse-Blood Valley.
* * *
Mok GyeongUn absorbed the deathly aura remaining here and entered reverse ki circulation.
Gyu Soha, now his newest spirit familiar, watched with shining eyes.
Through Gyu Soha’s Ghost Eyes, Mok GyeongUn’s energy was not circulating normally. It was flowing in reverse.
What was more, he was circulating deathly energy, not Yang ki or living vitality.
‘Is Master truly a living human?’
Gyu Soha had wondered that all along.
It was strange enough that a human could absorb such an enormous amount of deathly energy and still appear perfectly fine.
Gyu Soha glanced to the side.
Blue Spirit sat leisurely on a large rock, smoking a long pipe.
Gyu Soha cautiously approached and spoke.
“Ahem. Excuse me...”
“Excuse me? Hmph! Call me Elder...”
Blue Spirit stopped and stared at Soha before snorting.
“Just call me Big Sister.”
Green Spirit or not, being called Elder by a girl that young was rather embarrassing.
Of course, the difference in age and rank was immense even for Big Sister.
Then,
“This...”
“This what? Try saying ‘this young master’ again, you insolent brat.”
“I am a man... ma’am.”
“...If you keep spouting nonsense, then whether that brat made you a spirit familiar or not, I will erase you.”
“No. I...”
Blue Spirit sharply raised her pipe.
Gyu Soha tightly shut his eyes and raised both hands.
Her unusual half-white hair aside, she looked no different from a girl of about fifteen.
“Do not linger before This Exalted One. Hmph! Mention being a man one more time, and I will show you no more mercy.”
Blue Spirit clicked her tongue and waved her hand as if telling him to get lost.
In the end, Soha could not even ask what they wanted to ask and got nowhere.
Just then, Mok GyeongUn opened his eyes, seemingly having absorbed all the energy.
“Whew.”
“Did you absorb all of it?”
“Yes. Once I gathered the remaining energy as well, it amounted to quite a bit.”
By collecting all the deathly energy left on the cliff, he had gained at least as much as he would have from killing fifty people.
It was far more efficient than roaming the entire mountain to hunt.
‘The energy has stabilized, more or less.’
Blue Spirit inwardly clicked her tongue as she watched Mok GyeongUn.
He had used ki circulation to make all that deathly aura entirely his own.
In terms of internal energy, both his Central Dantian and Lower Dantian had nearly reached true Expert, beyond the proficient stage of Expert.
‘This is absurd.’
The order was completely backward.
He had scarcely gained any understanding or enlightenment regarding ki, so he could not even wield techniques like ki swords or internal force strikes. Yet his internal energy had reached true Expert.
This, too, was due to the strange principle of the Eight Forms of Force Breaking.
‘...It is as though he possesses twice the internal energy of one at true Expert. Yet the Central Dantian can only be gained after crossing the wall, so even its potential is impossible to measure.’
Even Blue Spirit found it difficult to judge Mok GyeongUn’s level with certainty.
She was certainly curious.
How powerful a master could this brat withstand now?
Then Mok GyeongUn asked,
“How much time has passed?”
“Um... Since Master has been here...”
“If you mean how long until dawn, less than half a two-hour period remains. At most, around three gak.”
Blue Spirit cut Soha off.
Mok GyeongUn looked up at the night sky.
The sky, once completely black, had already begun to turn a pale navy blue.
“Hmm.”
Contrary to his plans, it seemed he had spent too much time here.
Still, it was not a loss.
Rather than killing boys searching for flags, he had gathered several times more deathly aura and had even acquired a Green Spirit with formidable power.
But there was little time left.
Mok GyeongUn smacked his lips.
“What a shame.”
“What do you mean?”
“I intended to leave only seven, but three gak will not be enough.”
Blue Spirit clicked her tongue at his words.
His way of thinking truly was different.
His original aim had been to secure more deathly aura, but it seemed he had also intended to greatly reduce the number of participants.
Blue Spirit said,
“You should use that time to find a flag and group members first.”
Simply finding a flag would be one thing, but he needed to find one bearing the other half of the sword style verse formula.
With poor luck, he might only find flags bearing the same formula.
He also needed boys worth accepting as group members.
They had to hurry.
Then Mok GyeongUn took something from his clothes.
“You are in a hurry. What are you doing?”
“I need to put these back in.”
What he had taken out were the Golden Gate Locks needles he had removed from the acupoints along his spine.
If he did not put them back, he would draw suspicion.
“This Exalted One can do that for you.”
“What?”
Whoosh!
Before he could finish responding, Blue Spirit casually waved her hand.
The Golden Gate Locks needles in Mok GyeongUn’s palm flew into the ki gateways at the acupoints along his spine all at once.
Thk! Thk! Thk!
“Ghh.”
Removing them was painful, but inserting them was painful as well.
Even one needle hurt, but they had all entered at once. No matter how great Mok GyeongUn’s tolerance for pain, he could not help releasing a harsh breath.
Blue Spirit looked pleased.
“You need a device to remove them, but I can at least do this much. However, you...”
Blue Spirit’s gaze shifted toward Mok GyeongUn’s chest.
It was near where his Central Dantian lay.
Unlike the Lower Dantian, whose energy had dispersed and been cut off once the ki gateways were sealed, the Central Dantian remained active.
* * *
A quarter hour later, Mok GyeongUn discovered a group holding a flag.
There were exactly eight of them. They appeared to have successfully defended their flag a couple of times, with nine boys’ corpses scattered around them.
The moment one of the boys recognized Mok GyeongUn, he snickered.
“Hey. Where did you sell off your group members? Why are you wandering around alone?”
“Hahaha!”
“That is what I was wondering.”
At his question, the other group members all sneered as well.
Dawn was close, and they were certain Mok GyeongUn alone could not handle them.
After laughing together, the boy who had provoked Mok GyeongUn waved his hand dismissively.
“Our group is full, so get lost.”
“Your group is full.”
“Can you not understand? I said get lost. Oh, right. There are only about two gak left until dawn. I wonder if you can even find a group willing to take you...”
Thud!
“Ghk!”
Thump!
The boy fell before he could finish speaking.
Mok GyeongUn stood with his arm extended as if he had thrown something. A stone was embedded in the middle of the boy’s face.
It seemed the blow had killed him instantly.
“W-what...?”
“How did he do that when we cannot even use internal energy?”
The boy’s group members could not hide their shock.
Who could have imagined that he would kill one of their group members by throwing a mere stone?
Mok GyeongUn curled his lips into a mocking smile.
“What a shame. It seems you have one opening now.”
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