WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR
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Episode 25: Natal Spirit Artifact (2)
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“Are we starting right away?”
It was immediately after the demon-beast island had been cleared.
The hall members had fought nonstop for half a day. Their stamina and internal qi were depleted, and their bodies were caked in blood and soot.
They were covered in untreated injuries, great and small, and clearly desperate for time to circulate their qi.
Pi Garam asked out of concern for the exhausted hall members, but when he saw Ise’s resolute expression, he gripped his long spear.
The Azure Dragon Hall Master Pi Garam knew was someone who carried through with anything he decided to do.
Since they had chosen to serve him, all they could do was follow.
Once the hall members formed up behind Pi Garam, Ise spoke.
“Come at me with everything you have. Think of this as a real battle. Think of me as the enemy who killed your family or friends, and attack.”
Shin Hyeon stepped forward to dissuade him.
“That cannot be allowed. How could we dare harbor disloyal thoughts toward the Hall Master and aim spells at you? It violates the Great Exorcist Order’s rules.”
“Don’t the other halls hold instructional sparring?”
“They do, but only within prescribed limits. A spell duel conducted as though it were real combat is...”
“Then there’s no problem. Don’t get complacent. Worry about your own future instead.”
At a loss for words, Shin Hyeon fell silent.
Ise counted off the rules on his fingers.
“I won’t use primordial qi. In return, none of you may use consumables. Talismans and medicinal pellets are forbidden. And Seolryeong, put away your combat puppets.”
“What? But they’re part of my full strength...”
“If you want every one of the little things you worked so hard to make destroyed, I won’t stop you.”
“...My little ones, stay inside for a while.”
Seolryeong, who had apparently planned to let the combat puppets fight while she quietly slipped to the rear, immediately stored them in her storage pouch.
Ise put the Black Phosphorus Axe away in his Cosmos Pouch.
He intended to face them with nothing but his bare fists and spells.
Expecting them to reach his realm was, in truth, asking too much.
He wanted only one thing, that in the coming war, they would not die pointlessly to stray spells, but survive and do their part.
‘It will be hard for them to truly fight with killing intent.’
It would not be easy for them even to direct hostility toward their Hall Master.
There was only one solution. He had to make them furious enough to charge him.
Ise cracked his neck from side to side and loosened up.
The hall members swallowed dryly and adjusted their weapons.
The six of them naturally spread into a fan-shaped formation around their Hall Master.
Their faces were still full of hesitation.
The instant Ise used the Wind-Riding Art, he vanished and reappeared before Pi Garam, who stood closest.
Before Pi Garam could raise his long spear and form a defensive spell, Ise’s fist struck his jaw.
“Too slow.”
As Pi Garam spat blood from his shattered jaw, Ise headed straight for Seolryeong beside him.
A thin scream rose after a feeble, flailing counterattack.
* * *
By sunset, every Azure Dragon Hall member was sprawled flat on the beach.
“This is... instructional sparring?”
“It seems the Hall Master has been holding something against us. Otherwise, there’s no way he could be this ruthless.”
“My wings... are they still attached...?”
Bisang tearfully preened the wing joints where so many feathers had been knocked loose.
Ise had beaten the hall members without mercy.
Who knew a Daoist’s fists could be this vicious?
He had certainly kept his promise. He had not used primordial qi even once.
He had entered the sparring match after setting aside the advantage he held as a Core Formation Realm great cultivator.
Yet the spells he cast by drawing heaven-and-earth spiritual energy through Spirit Drawing remained terrifyingly powerful.
By skillfully controlling his spells and using them at precisely the right moments, he overwhelmed six Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators as though playing with them.
He suppressed Five Elements spells through elemental counters, and answered swiftly cast spells with even faster casting.
No matter how broadly they spread their spells, the Hall Master found and tore through their openings like a monster.
His relentless assault seemed to ask whether that truly was the best they could do.
He overcame the numerical disadvantage by forcing them into close combat.
Before Shin Hyeon’s sword could trace its path, an earth-element spell broke apart the ground beneath Shin Hyeon. Before Pi Garam could lay down a formation, flames crushed the formation gate.
Doksu, with the strong bones unique to the dokkaebi clan, endured somewhat better in close combat, but did not last more than three exchanges. Hong Wonseo and Seolryeong could barely follow the Hall Master’s movements even with divine sense.
After being beaten down and thrown across the ground four or five times, they grew desperate and earnestly counterattacked, but it was useless.
Even when the six Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators joined forces to attack him together, the result was the same.
He moved through the gaps between the six cultivators like the wind and tormented them so diligently that, by the end, it was hard to tell who was the one and who were the six.
The hall members clicked their tongues at his impartiality. He beat up everyone without discrimination, regardless of age, gender, or even whether they were human or spirit beast.
Seolryeong rubbed her swollen face with a cooled stone and sniffled.
“What kind of instructional sparring is this? This is just internal bullying...”
Doksu groaned and raised his upper body.
“Isn’t instructional sparring just a phrase those above use when they want to beat up those below?”
“...So that’s a custom you learned from the dokkaebi clan. What violent dokkaebi.”
“At this moment, it doesn’t feel like an insult.”
Doksu agreed with Seolryeong’s grumbling.
A beating disguised as instruction.
It was a sensation he had forgotten for some time after leaving the dokkaebi clan. But after taking one hit, memories from his days as a young dokkaebi immediately came flooding back.
Pi Garam, seated with his spear shaft serving as a cane, added flatly, “If you have enough energy to talk, rest instead. He said we’re doing this again once he comes back from hunting.”
The blood drained from the hall members’ faces.
Ise had flown off to secure materials by hunting sea demon beasts. He did not seem tired despite clearing an entire island in half a day, then engaging in spell-duel sparring for six hours straight.
Seolryeong muttered with half her face buried in the sand.
“So that’s what minor misfortune meant? Divinations have never been wrong, but I never imagined it was pointing to a fate of getting beaten by Ise...”
Prompted by her grumbling, Shin Hyeon, who had taken the worst beating yet resisted the Hall Master’s violence to the end, rebuked her.
“How dare you speak the Hall Master’s honored name so casually? Restrain yourself.”
Seolryeong pouted and fell silent.
She knew that much. One should show proper respect even when he was absent.
She was merely making a light complaint about his merciless hands.
“Let her be. People criticize the ruler when the ruler isn’t around.”
“But the Hall Master’s dignity... Wait. Hall Master?”
At the voice that had joined in from somewhere, Shin Hyeon sprang up.
Ise, who had supposedly gone searching for prey, had already returned with a demon-beast corpse impaled on a metal-element spell harpoon.
“You still have enough strength to run your mouth. Your training is lacking, Seolryeong. Get up.”
“That isn’t it, Hall Master...”
“You can start sitting down if you want.”
“I’m sor...”
A golden harpoon formed in his other hand and shot toward Seolryeong.
“Eek! Aah!”
She immediately rolled across the dirt with all her strength, screaming.
Though she cut a pitiful figure, spells continued to fly at her.
He truly looked like a murderous fiend.
* * *
Ise and the others traveled northwest along the sea route.
As they diligently made their way toward Ilgwang Island, the hall members were constantly beaten as though dust were being shaken from bedding.
They flew when the sun rose, and got beaten when it set.
The small mercy their Hall Master showed was that he still strictly guaranteed them time to cultivate.
Ise went even further, deliberately seeking out sea routes that passed through demon-beast islands.
Fortunately amid the misfortune, there were not many such routes.
After all, it was common sense among the people of the Archipelago to plan sea routes that avoided demon-beast islands whenever possible.
By the time they began to wonder whether the man they served was their Hall Master or their mortal enemy, they entered the waters near Ilgwang Island.
Even the hall members had developed somewhat usable looks in their eyes.
No matter how loyal they were, being beaten this thoroughly was bound to awaken their competitive spirit.
“Today, I’ll definitely take one of your arms, Hall Master!”
“Please get hit! Just let me hit you once!”
The hall members were beginning to turn into something increasingly bizarre, sometimes shouting things like that as they charged him.
Still, Ise proudly watched them grow more Daoist-like, then buried them in the ground with only their heads left exposed.
In the end, the hall members failed to land a single blow before reaching Ilgwang Island.
They could somehow keep up with him in other areas, but there was no way to match the acrobatic flight that made their eyes feel ready to burst from their sockets.
* * *
Ilgwang Island consisted of two islands connected by land.
The larger one was a massive island as broad as the Three Peninsula Kingdoms. Three Core Formation sects shared its skies and coexisted there.
It contained three third-grade blessed grottos and one Extreme Yin Demon Ground, so there was no shortage of demon prey.
It was also said to have abundant resources, including numerous large Spiritual Stone mines.
At its center stood Haerin Market, the largest market town in the northern Inner Archipelago, and cultivators came through its streets in every season.
The market town they visited on their way to the spirit-artifact artisan was a port city where a waterway stretched far inland, forming an enormous channel.
True to its reputation, even the docks were an impressive sight.
Flying spirit artifacts and merchant ships, large and small, came and went in endless streams. The street stalls were piled high with materials from the sea and spirit artifacts rarely seen on the continent.
Buchun’s eyes shone as they surveyed the streets.
“I’ve heard Ilgwang Island has four market towns of comparable scale. With a population and market this large, resources should be plentiful. It would be suitable for opening a shop.”
“Is that so? That’s a relief.”
Ise headed for Hanjang Sect, located at the southern foot of the island.
It was one of the three Core Formation sects, a Daoist sect renowned for spirit-artifact crafting.
Its Grand Sect Master was the master artisan Ise sought, Go Yubaek.
Even before they reached the sect gate, the sound of hammering iron echoed through the valley.
The place resembled an enormous workshop more than a sect.
Forges of all sizes stood in tiers along the mountainside, while smoke from each chimney wound around the peaks and rose into the sky.
The gate-guarding disciples were visibly flustered by the appearance of the large group that had arrived.
Looking at Ise uncertainly, one asked, “Could you perhaps be a Core Formation Realm great cultivator?”
“Yes.”
“May I ask your affiliation and the purpose of your visit?”
“I come from the Great Exorcist Order of the Eastern Continent. I wish to commission Grand Sect Master Go Yubaek to create a treasure artifact. Please request permission for me to enter the mountain.”
The gate disciple’s face turned upside down with shock.
“You came all the way from the Eastern Continent?”
“Yes.”
“I apologize to a guest who has come so far, but the Grand Sect Master no longer accepts commissions for spirit artifacts. He retired more than twenty years ago.”
“Just send word. Tell him Great Cultivator Haeil sent me, and that should be enough.”
The gate disciple sent a message with a doubtful expression. The response did not take long.
Permission was granted. Thinking it an extraordinary matter, the gate disciple led the guests inside.
“This way.”
They were guided to a separate courtyard deep within the sect.
In the courtyard, an enormous furnace that appeared to have been cold for a long time crouched like a mountain.
An old man with white hair came out to greet them.
He had a slight frame, but his hands were as thick as bear paws.
Burn scars covered the backs of his hands and forearms like medals, testifying to a lifetime spent before the fire.
‘They say true artisans deliberately leave the scars they receive from spirit-artifact crafting untreated.’
Ise glanced at Seolryeong’s hands, clean and delicate as jade.
“...Why are you looking at me like that?”
“It’s nothing.”
Who knew when this small, fragile-looking spirit-artifact artisan would gain the bearing of a master?
The old man surveyed the group and immediately gave his impression.
“It must have been a long journey, yet you brought enough force to establish an entire sect.”
“Greetings, Grand Sect Master Go Yubaek. I am Ise, Hall Master of the Great Exorcist Order’s Azure Dragon Hall. While searching for a master artisan to create a life-bound treasure artifact, I came on the Order Lord’s instruction to seek you out.”
The old man’s expression grew complicated.
He seemed pleased, but wary as well.
The Order Lord had said they were close. Had something gone wrong?
“Prove your identity. If you are falsely claiming to be the Azure Dragon Hall Master, you will have to remove this old man’s corpse today.”
“...Usually, when threatening someone, you say they will be the corpse.”
“I have no talent for battle.”
At the old man’s amusing threat, Ise gave a brief laugh and produced the Azure Dragon Hall Master’s gold plaque.
“Even so, I would hardly kill a friend of the Order Lord.”
Go Yubaek accepted the plaque and inspected it from every angle, then sent divine sense into it through his fingertips.
“It is genuine. Senior Haeil sent you... Did he give you no other message?”
“No. There was no further message.”
“That is like him as well. In any case, he did not forget my request. If you are the Azure Dragon Hall Master, you must be his direct disciple. He has arranged for this old man to repay the debt to his disciple, rather than to him.”
The old man murmured as though speaking to himself, then asked, “Which direction is the Great Exorcist Order?”
Ise retraced the route they had traveled, gauged the direction, and pointed northeast.
“It should be around this way.”
Go Yubaek adjusted his clothing.
Then, facing northeast, he made a deep bow until his forehead touched the ground.
The following disciples’ eyes nearly popped from their heads at the sight of the Grand Sect Master of a Core Formation sect throwing himself onto the bare ground.
After finishing his bow, the old man rose as though nothing had happened and instructed the disciples.
“Light the furnace. It has been a long time since I last lifted a hammer.”
The disciples hurriedly scattered. Go Yubaek turned back to Ise.
“An artisan does not give away their work for free. You understand?”
“Yes. Naturally, I intend to pay a fair price. But may I ask the expected budget in advance?”
“That depends on what sort of item emerges. How much can you spend?”
The old man narrowed his eyes.
They were the eyes of an artisan who intended to measure the client’s means the moment a price was named.
Ordinarily, Ise would have begun by cutting the price in half through negotiation. But life-bound treasure artifacts were things whose price was whatever the artisan demanded.
For an artisan’s work, its price was the measure by which its value was recognized.
“No matter the cost, I want the finest item.”
“Even if it costs two million or three million?”
Ise did not even blink.
“Yes. I will earn it.”
Go Yubaek grinned broadly.
“Open my personal treasury. Let us make a masterpiece and strip the Azure Dragon Hall Master of the Great Exorcist Order down to his underwear.”
At the mention of stripping him down to his underwear, Ise flinched, then quickly composed his expression.
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