WeTried Translations

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◈ Ophidian of the Immortal World ◈

Chapter 97: Hypnotist Cheongo

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A strange situation continued.

Cheongo was the conductor, and their awkwardly outstretched wings served as the baton.

Yet it was not musicians they conducted, but the emotions around them.

When Cheongo’s wings settled, the joy faded. When they began flapping fiercely, the corners of Jegyeong’s mouth rose.

Still, despite his twitching lips, Jegyeong’s eyes turned cold.

The enjoyment he felt resembled laughter forced out by being tickled.

‘These waves are affecting the divine soul.’

Jegyeong had been continuously tormented by the waves radiating from Cheongo. Thanks to that, he had gained a rough understanding of how they affected him.

He did not know how such a thing was possible, but the emotions Cheongo felt in dreams were reaching him.

How should he describe it?

Diffusion? Contagion? Neither seemed quite right.

One thing was certain.

This bizarre phenomenon stemmed from the mind and soul, in other words, the divine soul.

Jegyeong had once received and learned the Soul-Seeking Technique from Gwak Jeongsin, so his senses concerning the divine soul were somewhat developed.

‘I can sense it, but I can’t resist it. What a disgusting feeling.’

The irregular waves gradually became regular, then slowly began to weaken.

Cheongo’s expression, which had resembled that of a child arriving at an amusement park for the first time, softened into something contented.

Jegyeong instinctively realized that Cheongo’s transformation was nearly complete.

‘Is this ability something like that fellow’s... Innate Divine Ability?’

Jegyeong understood Divine abilities as particularly unusual techniques.

No one could blame him for that understanding.

Even the senior cultivators of Forget-Me Garden had not offered a better explanation. At best, they had merely dressed it up in more refined words.

They used Dharma Power to produce mysterious, strange, and powerful phenomena.

How was that any different from a technique?

The difference was that most techniques could be learned somehow, given enough time and suitable cultivation conditions. Divine abilities were different.

Uh Dobaek had once said this about Divine abilities.

Their cultivation depended not on a cultivator’s Dao Heart, but on Heaven’s favor.

Jegyeong did not know how much exaggeration was mixed into those words, but he understood that Divine abilities could not be mastered through talent or aptitude alone.

Divine abilities were already strange enough, but Innate Divine Abilities went a step further.

They were Divine abilities one was born with naturally, as though they were flesh attached to the body, requiring no effort at all.

There was no point asking how that could be possible.

Had they not said that obtaining a Divine ability depended on Heaven’s favor? Innate Divine Abilities suited that description perfectly.

‘It’s truly unfair.’

He knew that seeking fairness in the Cultivation World was one of the clearest ways to expose his own foolishness.

Even so, he wanted to look up at the sky and lament.

Cheongo dreamed sweet dreams, crossed the Great Demon Gate, became a Great Demon Beast, and gained an Innate Divine Ability.

How could this be? Was this really acceptable?

What sort of incredible Good karmic bond did that lucky crow have?

Was this related to that so-called Immortal too?

“Ngh.”

Jegyeong suppressed his displeasure and watched as Cheongo’s breakthrough reached its final stage.

* * *

“Caw!”

With an oddly plaintive and gruff cry, Cheongo opened their eyes.

The first thing Cheongo saw was Jegyeong, coiled up and sending an inexplicably unfriendly look their way.

“Jegyeong.”

“You’re finally awake.”

“Hm?”

“You’ve slept enough. Why don’t you get up now?”

Cheongo, who had been lying flat on their back and blinking, pushed against the ground with their wings and rose.

“Did I become a Great Demon Beast?”

“You did. Absurdly enough.”

“Hm?”

“It’s nothing. How do you feel?”

“Um... good. Really good.”

Cheongo shot energetically into the air, then flew straight into the ceiling with a thud and staggered.

Jegyeong watched the falling stone fragments in silence.

“You certainly look good.”

“I do! I feel great!”

Most members of the Demon Race gained Spiritual Intelligence after crossing the Great Demon Gate. Though there were differences between individuals, they all became somewhat smarter.

Cheongo, though, was just the same as before.

They were still as innocent as a child.

For some reason, Jegyeong found Cheongo’s unchanged nature satisfying.

“You’ll need to get used to the changes.”

“Yeah. I’ve changed a lot. I’m stronger now. It’s hard to adjust.”

Cheongo nodded and began picking through the feathers that had become slightly disheveled after hitting the ceiling.

“It’ll be fine. If you fly around for a while, you’ll adjust quickly. Jegyeong, can I go beyond the island now?”

Cheongo’s bright eyes were filled with expectation.

The corner of Jegyeong’s mouth trembled briefly, but he soon turned away without a word, as if annoyed.

He had wanted to discuss Cheongo’s newly awakened Innate Divine Ability, but it looked as though that would have to wait.

* * *

Cheongo returned ten full days after flying away with excited flaps of their wings.

Cheongo claimed to have flown continuously without resting for even a day, but perhaps they had taken their time sightseeing along the way. Even upon returning, they were still brimming with energy.

“Jegyeong. This place is unbelievably big. No matter how far I go, there’s no end.”

Cheongo had become a Great Demon Beast, but aside from gaining a little more confidence, nothing had changed.

They were still excitable and prone to making a fuss.

“I told you before. Yangseo Lake is vast.”

In the world of his previous life, this place would have been called the Yangseo Sea, not Yangseo Lake.

More than ten years had passed since he settled here.

Yet Jegyeong still did not fully understand the geography of Yangseo Lake.

It was not because he was lazy or uninterested in the outer region. He simply could not learn it, no matter how much he wanted to.

Most of Jegyeong’s knowledge had come from Gwak Jeongsin and the Human Race.

Still, knowledge acquired that way had its limits.

He did not think Gwak Jeongsin had deliberately withheld information from him.

Perhaps neither Gwak Jeongsin nor the other high-ranking members of the Human Race on Yangseo Lake possessed geographical information for the entire lake.

Yangseo Lake contained not only the Demon Race, who were hostile to them, but also the Horned Insect Race, the true overlords of Yangseo Lake.

Could the Human Race really enter their territory and map the region? Such a provocation might immediately trigger a war between races.

“Don’t get too excited. As you said, Yangseo Lake is very large, and there are plenty of frightening creatures that can easily hunt a crow as big as you.”

“Caw!”

Cheongo let out a dissatisfied cry and habitually returned to their nest to lie down.

Yet when they lowered their body halfway into it, Cheongo had no choice but to stop awkwardly.

“You’ve gotten fat. Then again, after lazing around for so long, it would be stranger if you hadn’t.”

Cheongo cried out in protest again, but that did not suddenly make the narrow nest larger.

“Caw!”

Cheongo floundered around, unsure what to do.

Their glittering nest had been carefully built bit by bit over a long time.

Cheongo’s attachment to it was close to obsession.

Jegyeong had accidentally damaged the nest a few times during cultivation. Each time, he had been forced to endure Cheongo’s complaints for days.

‘I hope that useless, shiny monstrosity collapses completely while I have the chance.’

He had been at fault, so he had no choice but to quietly endure the complaints.

But that was then, and this was now.

“Caw!”

Cheongo finally flew up in a hurry.

They stared at the nest, which had begun to tilt slightly, with mixed feelings, then glanced down at their round belly.

Their already gloomy expression grew even more dejected.

“It’s fine. If you set your mind to it, you can lose weight quickly.”

Jegyeong displayed his excellent acting skills once again.

Cheongo had not gained weight. Their body had naturally grown larger after becoming a Great Demon Beast.

That plump belly? Cheongo had possessed it long before becoming addicted to sleep.

“Haah. I’ll have to build a new one.”

Cheongo’s sighing murmur nearly broke Jegyeong’s concentration.

Had they not given up yet? Did this fellow really have to sleep in such a gaudy nest to be satisfied?

Forget it. I give up.

“Whether you build a new one or not is your business. More importantly, ten days have passed, so you should have some idea about your new ability by now.”

“Hm? Ability?”

“Yes. The ability you used to your heart’s content while sleep-talking.”

“Huh?”

Cheongo tilted their head from side to side, as though they had heard something incomprehensible.

“You don’t know?”

“Yeah. I don’t know what you mean.”

Jegyeong narrowed his eyes.

Cheongo would not try to deceive him over something like this.

Did they really not know?

Jegyeong slowly explained, in detail, the Innate Divine Ability Cheongo had used, based on what he had experienced and understood.

“Innate Divine Ability?”

Cheongo’s eyes widened after hearing the explanation.

They looked visibly delighted and excited, as though they had received an unexpected gift.

“Hup!”

Forgetting the sorrow of their tilted nest, Cheongo began flapping their wings in earnest.

At first, they waved their wings through empty air. After struggling for a long time without any result, they eventually extended a wing toward Jegyeong.

“...It’s not working?”

“......”

Jegyeong looked at Cheongo as if watching an idiot.

“Use common sense. How could a Divine ability be that simple?”

“But I don’t know what I’m supposed to do.”

“If you don’t know, would I? In any case, you definitely have that ability. You’ll have to work out for yourself how to draw it out and use it.”

Watching Cheongo make a fool of themself gave Jegyeong a rough idea.

Cheongo had definitely awakened an Innate Divine Ability.

He had witnessed it himself, so there could be no mistake.

Still, awakening an Innate Divine Ability did not seem to mean one could immediately use it freely.

At least Cheongo had not even realized they possessed such an ability.

‘Is this how it normally is?’

Innate Divine Abilities themselves were so extraordinary by his standards that this ordinary situation felt strange instead.

“I don’t know. I really don’t know.”

Cheongo’s declaration of defeat did not matter much.

Jegyeong had not expected that birdbrain to find the answer in the first place.

As always, figuring it out was his responsibility.

“Your Divine ability is related to the divine soul. Let’s try something in that direction.”

Jegyeong took out the Soul-Seeking Technique Gwak Jeongsin had given him before.

This was the only one among his cultivation methods and secret arts that concerned the divine soul.

He had only learned this useful secret art to a basic level, for the same reason as the Bloodline Restriction Art.

He lacked the aptitude and talent for it.

The Soul-Seeking Technique was also more difficult than the Bloodline Restriction Art.

A small mistake could easily leave the target crippled, so he could not recklessly attempt it.

“Try learning this.”

Jegyeong did not expect much.

The Soul-Seeking Technique was far too difficult for a birdbrained Great Demon Beast to learn.

He would try it for now, but later he would have to find something easier...

“What’s your name?”

“My name is Bumak.”

“Why did you come here?”

“I was caught smuggling.”

When the crow asked, the person answered.

Their unfocused eyes looked as though they had abandoned thought, and their limp body resembled a puppet with its strings cut.

“......”

Jegyeong silently looked up at the sky.

The clear sky, without a single cloud, looked especially unpleasant today.

Footnotes:

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