WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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Chapter 14: Episode 3: Great Exorcist Order Entrance Exam (7)

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Of course, that did not apply to Ise.

“Then that would be a problem. Do it once you decide you’re all right.”

He did want to trade blows, but he was not foolish enough to overexert himself before something important.

“Um, you two?”

At that moment, an unfamiliar, clear voice came from behind them.

Its owner was a girl who looked two or three heads shorter than either of them.

She was as white as jade, with snow-white hair and golden eyes.

“Wow, you’re really white. Was there someone like you here?”

“She was standing with you when they called the preselected candidates.”

When Hae Unchan said it with a look of wonder, Ise corrected him.

“Ahaha... Calling someone a preselected candidate right in front of them. I’m Seolryeong, from the Seol Clan.”

“You really are tiny. How did you pass the third examination?”

A vein bulged on Seolryeong’s forehead, but she barely held herself back. This dark-skinned bastard was terribly rude.

Ise answered instead.

“She mainly turned her opponents' strength against them. She kicked charging people in the groin with all her strength until they bled, so it makes sense that she passed.”

“What, were you interested in her? Why were you watching her so closely?”

“I remembered her because it was funny watching her drive her foot between their legs whenever she saw an opening, until everyone started fighting while guarding their groins. Of course, I memorized every successful applicant’s fighting style.”

“All one hundred and twenty of them?”

“You never know who you might have to fight.”

Seolryeong, who had been standing there blankly, cut in with only her eyes smiling.

“Could you stop treating me like a wooden doll? The person you’re talking about is right here.”

“Sorry. What did you need?”

“It’s nothing much. There’s a team assessment in two days, where four people form a group to hunt a demon. Could I join your team?”

Hae Unchan tilted his head at Seolryeong’s words.

“You want to be on the same team as us?”

“Mm-hm. You both fight well. I’m hoping to become a shaman, so I’ll be useful if we have to deal with evil spirits. Later, I want to join Vermilion Bird Hall and become a talisman artisan or spirit-artifact artisan like Senior Hong Mi-hee! There’s no harm in getting along, right?”

This time, Ise turned to Hae Unchan.

“Talisman artisan? Spirit-artifact artisan?”

“A painter who draws talismans, and a blacksmith who makes spirit artifacts.”

“You can’t become a talisman artisan.”

“What? Where did that come from? I wasn’t planning to become one in the first place.”

Hae Unchan frowned at Ise’s firm declaration.

Seolryeong could no longer hold herself back and shouted.

“Did you just look down on the technical arts?”

“...Me? When?”

“For the crime of daring to insult the Four Great Arts, you have to accept me as a team member. Otherwise, when I join Vermilion Bird Hall, I’ll tell Hall Master Hong Mi-hee that you called her a painter. Then she’ll probably divide you into head, chest, and belly.”

Hae Unchan burst into loud laughter at the sight of her threatening him with a throat-slitting gesture, despite not looking frightening in the least.

What was such an adorable little thing doing taking this examination?

“That’s quite a scary threat. But there’s a problem. We haven’t formed a team yet, and we didn’t even know there was an exam like that. Do you want to be on my team?”

“I don’t mind.”

“Then let’s do it. Seolleong, if you’re fine with it, join us.”

“It’s Seolryeong. Then I’m sitting beside you at meals from today onward.”

Before even waiting for an answer, Seolryeong naturally took a seat.

She immediately scolded them for eating too quickly, then looked sick of them when the two said they planned to eat several more rounds.

“Somehow, there’s one more chatterbox now.”

Ise let out a faint sigh.

Fortunately, he did not dislike it.

* * *

There were not many areas in the training academy that entrance applicants for Great Exorcist Order were allowed to visit.

Yet if one walked a little way down the slope near the academy’s main gate, there was a sparsely populated cliff made up of all kinds of strange rocks.

It was scenery worthy of being called spectacular.

Cheongsan’s landscape was impressive as well, but something else mattered more to Ise.

A massive concentration of spiritual energy.

That was the most accurate way to sum up Cheongsan in a single phrase.

Like a boiling cauldron, endless spiritual energy rose from all over the mountain and blanketed the surrounding area.

Whenever he sat cross-legged and meditated, he could distinctly feel the spiritual energy and demonic qi flowing through his body.

‘How am I supposed to use this power?’

He could only sense it. He did not know how to use it.

He had tried various things, but it was like trying to move his internal organs at will. No matter how much effort he put in, only his abdominal muscles twitched uselessly.

Still, something had changed.

Ise picked up a fallen ancient tree with one hand, then set it back down.

Simply awakening to spiritual energy had altered his body.

It felt as though he stood on the boundary between a human and a superhuman.

His vision had brightened, his five senses had become sharper, and the muscles throughout his body had grown firmer and more resilient.

‘Once I can use spiritual energy in earnest, I’ll become even stronger.’

Ise wanted to finish the examination quickly and use this power.

Then his sharpened senses detected someone approaching.

Light footsteps. Short strides. A gentle presence.

Small. Female.

“So this is where you were.”

It was Seolryeong, who had joined their team yesterday.

“Couldn’t you two stay together? I’ve been looking everywhere.”

Ise gave her a brief nod.

“A notice was posted this morning. It says there’s a team examination tomorrow, so four people have to form a group.”

“What’s the examination about?”

“It doesn’t say. But I told you yesterday, didn’t I? It’s an exam where we hunt demons.”

“Could that change?”

“Great Exorcist Order’s examination is practically a famous tradition. Of course, plenty of people still fail even knowing that.”

Seolryeong urged Ise on.

“Anyway, is there no team member you like? You keep disappearing, and Hae Unchan said he was leaving it to you, so people keep bothering me. How did they even find out?”

Just that morning, several applicants had sought him out and strutted around while boasting about how many times they had taken the examination.

Honestly, Ise did not care much who joined, but since he did not know the exact contents of the exam, it was hard to pick anyone in particular.

“I don’t really care who it is. But when they come over acting smug, I want to choose them even less.”

“You really have no hope of becoming a true Daoist. Are you going to keep speaking casually to me? I’m seventeen.”

“Seventeen? Is this your second attempt?”

“No! It isn’t! I couldn’t take the exam last year because of personal reasons. I couldn’t take it!”

If that was the case, why was she shouting?

Ise rubbed his stinging ear, then spoke to Seolryeong.

“I don’t particularly care who it is, so if there’s an applicant you want to bring in, you can choose.”

“Really? You can’t take it back!”

Looking excited, she hurried away from Ise with quick little steps.

Ise worried that she ought to eat more, then resumed his training.

* * *

The fourth examination was optional.

As the name suggested, applicants could freely choose whether to take it or not.

No one failed this examination. Instead, it gave extra points to applicants with other talents even if they were somewhat lacking in martial ability.

For that reason, Great Exorcist Order cultivators had a concept known as a specialization, something that existed only within Great Exorcist Order.

Demon Hunters, who subdued demons with weapon arts.

Healers, who handled medicine, medicinal pellets, and poison production.

Shamans, skilled in spellcraft and crafting spirit artifacts and talismans.

Shadow Agents, who specialized in infiltrating and defending strongholds through tracking, stealth, mechanisms, formations, construction, and Arcane Gate Evasion.

Hae Unchan did not even enter the examination area, saying he would focus on what he did best.

Ise had no intention of pursuing any specialization other than Demon Hunter, but he wanted to learn as many skills as possible if he could, so he decided to take every examination.

There was never such a thing as learning too much.

‘There’s no time limit except that it must be done by today. They said there’s no limit on the number of exams, so...’

He planned to divide his time well and take all three examinations.

The first place he headed was the Healer examination site.

The moment he entered, the acrid scent of medicinal herbs stung his nose.

Two types of pellets sat at the front of the examination hall, while countless medicinal ingredients, herbs, and poisons were laid out before them.

The test was simple.

Make one medicinal pellet and one poison pellet that most closely resembled the provided samples.

Any amount of ordinary ingredients could be used, but each person had a fixed amount of spiritual herbs and spiritual material by-products.

There was only one chance to submit an answer.

Ise picked up one of the medicinal pellets and asked the examiner.

“May I taste it?”

“No.”

Hiding his disappointment, Ise brought it to his nose and smelled it. Many different scents were mixed together. He could also sense a faint trace of spiritual energy.

Curious, Ise asked again.

“Doesn’t Great Exorcist Order avoid medicinal pellets made using spiritual material?”

“We simply do not deliberately go against the natural order. We do not forbid collecting or purchasing spiritual material that has naturally reached the end of its lifespan to make medicinal pellets, nor taking those pellets when necessary. Still, Great Exorcist Order’s secret cultivation methods are not particularly compatible with medicinal pellets.”

“I see.”

It did seem like a rule created for convenience, but Ise soon changed his mind.

This was an organization he hoped to join. There was no reason to deliberately view it negatively.

“Why, does it seem like a cult?”

“I did not think anything quite that disrespectful.”

“Want to hear something even more disrespectful? We plunder too. We plunder other cultivation sects, clans, and demonic sects for resources.”

As Ise scratched his head, the examiner added jokingly.

“Plunder naturally corrupts the mind, but it is fine if the targets are cultivators.”

“May I ask why?”

“Do you think the resentment of thieves becomes karma just because you take their things? So treat mortals with care, and kill every cultivator you see. That benefits the world.”

Was Great Exorcist Order perhaps the public enemy of the cultivation world for good reason?

He stopped entertaining disrespectful thoughts and returned to his examination station.

After making several attempts, he submitted the medicinal pellet that seemed most potent and a poison pellet that gave off a strong poisonous aura.

“Six points and seven points. Thirteen points total.”

Ise let out an impressed sound at the higher-than-expected score. Perhaps it was because his sense of smell had become far sharper, or because he had been exposed to many mountain herbs since childhood.

“Can I eat what I made?”

“If you put anything into your mouth, you will not escape sudden death.”

Understanding, Ise headed to the next examination site.

The next one was for Shamans.

This seemed to be a relatively popular specialization compared to Healers, and quite a few applicants had gathered there.

He spotted a familiar face as well. The tiny white cultivator, Seolryeong.

“You’re still taking exams.”

“I’m practicing while I’m at it. It’s been a while, so I’m not doing very well...”

Sweat beaded on Seolryeong’s face as she drew on a sheet of talisman paper.

Footnotes:

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