WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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Episode 10: Silver Dragon Mine (1)

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Ise took a deep breath in front of the cultivation cave in the cultivation district.

With each breath, a trace of turbid qi entered his spiritual meridians.

The headquarters had the least turbid qi of anywhere.

Before, such a tiny amount had barely bothered him. Now that he had completed about half of Cast Off Turbidity, Purify Spirit, even the little turbid qi he inhaled felt unpleasant.

It was like breathing sand through his nose.

His body had become purer, bringing about that change.

The effects showed elsewhere too. His complexion and skin had both improved greatly.

His skin was smooth and glowing, soft as a baby's. It would be hard to jokingly call him a country boy who had run through fields and helped with farm work.

Even the scars he had received as a very young child had completely vanished.

Ise started toward the residential district.

He had made considerable progress over the past six months. For someone with a single spiritual root, breaking through the eighth-star minor realm boundary usually took at least three years.

That was only for people with exceptional focus and persistence. Some took as long as ten years.

Ise's goal was to break through the eighth-star barrier within the next year.

If he did, he could reach the ninth star, Great Completion, and the Foundation Establishment Realm within the remaining six years, breaking Hall Master Woo Yu-hui's record.

‘...That really is monstrous speed.’

The higher his realm rose, the longer cultivation took.

Even now, he wondered whether he could do it in time. If he had not encountered a tenth-star demonic cultivator and gained that strange fortuitous encounter...

‘There’s no way I could have broken Hall Master Woo Yu-hui's record.’

‘Don't be impatient.’

He was already progressing quickly enough. At this pace, he could at least reach the Foundation Establishment Realm without trouble. That would secure him a lifespan of at least three hundred years.

He could afford to take things a little more slowly and grow accustomed to a cultivator's sense of time.

‘I should get some medicinal pellets.’

He had used up all the immortal-cuisine ingredients he had secured on his last mission, and he could not go demon hunting because he needed to maintain the balance of yin and yang.

He had spent some Spiritual Stones on medicinal pellets and a Spirit-Gathering Formation, but he still had plenty left.

After quickly cleaning the dust from Cheongyu Pavilion One, which had been empty for half a year, Ise was about to head for the commercial district.

Tap. Tap tap.

Something knocked against the paper window.

When Ise opened it, a Message Talisman flew in and landed in his palm.

- Formal mission assigned. Supervision and management of a Spiritual Stone mine, Silver Dragon Mine. (Duration: 6 months)

“...”

For a moment, Ise doubted his own eyes.

Supervision and management? Six months?

Formal disciples only had to complete one mission per year. Could they really assign one that lasted six months?

Then if they kept giving him year-long missions, would he be unable to do anything else... trapped in an endless cycle of missions...?

After thinking for a moment, Ise decided to ask at the Mission Pavilion in person. It seemed likely that someone had written month instead of day by mistake.

Ise strode confidently into the Mission Pavilion and quickly looked around.

Then he carefully approached the youngest cultivator there, who had the lowest realm, and raised his objection.

It looked like there had been an error in the notice.

“No. It is a six-month mission, Senior.”

“But can they give me such a long mission when I only have to do one each year? Even if it’s harder, can’t I take another mission instead?”

“I’m sorry, but that is not under my authority. Would you like to ask the Pavilion Master over there?”

Ise's gaze followed the official's pointing finger. There stood an irritable-looking senior cultivator at the late Foundation Establishment Realm, clearly overwhelmed with work.

Still, should he ask...?

If he used Hall Master Haeil's assignment as an excuse, they might change it for him.

As Ise lingered deeper inside the Mission Pavilion like a puppy that needed to relieve itself, someone called out to him.

“Senior?”

The voice was familiar.

Cho Jeongjin. Already at the fourth star, Cho Jeongjin was one of Ise's peers with the fastest growth.

“It’s been a while. Have you finished your closed-door cultivation? It seems you’ve... reached the seventh star.”

Ise had actually reached the seventh star before that, but he did not bother explaining.

“Yeah. It wasn't closed-door cultivation, just focused cultivation.”

“Are you leaving on a mission right away?”

Ise explained what had happened. Cho Jeongjin burst into laughter.

“Usually, these long-term missions are assigned to disciples who have only recently arrived at headquarters or cultivators whose cultivation is progressing slowly. Most of our peers, including me, went during spring or summer. Since you went through something serious, they were probably being considerate by delaying yours. There’s not much to do once you get there, so just think of it as changing your cultivation location.”

“Is that so?”

At the thought that the Mission Pavilion cultivators had delayed his assignment out of consideration, Ise looked at them anew.

When someone showed him consideration, he should be grateful. Ise accepted the explanation and decided to withdraw.

Walking beside Cho Jeongjin, Ise asked, “Is there anything I should watch out for on a mine-supervision mission?”

“Hmm. I’m not sure. As I said, it isn't particularly difficult. Ah, it would be best to avoid contact with the miners if possible. And don't pity them either.”

“Miners...”

Ise did not fully understand, but he decided to remember it.

This too would become a new experience and add to what he carried within himself.

“Have you heard anything about Buchun or Gangseo?”

“Fellow Daoist Park probably took on a Training Compound mission to train entry disciples.”

“He really seems to like that mission. Is becoming a teacher his dream?”

“Ha ha. As far as I know, Buchun mostly takes delivery missions. Buchun is probably out on one right now.”

Great Exorcist Order missions were so varied that even someone as untalented as Buchun could earn Spiritual Stones if they worked hard enough.

Buchun had said they would become an administrative official next year, so they would likely work diligently on missions this year.

“Anyway, thanks. It was good seeing you. See you next time.”

“Yes, Senior.”

Cho Jeongjin really did give the impression of being a solid cultivator. Ise watched Cho Jeongjin's retreating back with approval.

His next destination was the alchemy chamber in the research district.

More precisely, it was the alchemy chamber in the red building where Hong Wonseo's pill furnace was located. Various expensive-looking pill furnaces and alchemy tools filled the spacious chamber, yet Hong Wonseo was the only person inside.

It looked like a group alchemy chamber, but there was apparently another communal alchemy chamber elsewhere.

“You're alone every time I come. Don't tell me you use this place by yourself?”

“No. This building and alchemy chamber belong to the Yeomhwa Hong Clan.”

“Ah, that explains it. What about the other alchemists?”

“There aren't any. I’m the only Qi Condensation Realm cultivator from the Yeomhwa Hong Clan. Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators have private alchemy chambers.”

“...So you do use it alone.”

“You came because you need these, right?”

Hong Wonseo held out Low-Grade Fasting Pellets and Healing Pellets. Ise paid her Spiritual Stones at the lowest market price.

“Can't you just buy them at the market? This isn't a retail shop.”

“Then they’ll take a commission. What are colleagues for? Have you made any other medicinal pellets?”

“I just made some Low-Grade Spirit-Burst Pellets. Do you want them?”

Spirit-Burst Pellets temporarily caused spiritual energy to erupt, producing greater power. Their aftereffects were severe, though. It was like borrowing strength from the future.

“Not something like that. Something that helps with cultivation, like Spirit-Gathering Pellets or Qi-Condensing Pellets.”

“No. I don't have any.”

“Come on. If you have some hidden away, bring them out. I’ll pay well.”

“I don't even have enough for myself.”

Hong Wonseo lowered the foot she had tucked beneath herself in front of the pill furnace and returned her attention to the alchemy process. Ise quietly picked up a Spirit-Burst Pellet from the floor and slipped it into his storage pouch.

There would not be any medicinal pellets at the market anyway.

Even Low-Grade medicinal pellets cost whatever sellers demanded, and cultivators pounced on them like hungry ghosts the moment they appeared. He had struggled to obtain them last time too.

Ise let out a sigh.

‘Should I have learned alchemy instead of making immortal cuisine?’

Soon, he shook his head.

That was the reality of alchemists. Without ingredients, they could not even properly practice their craft.

“Pay for that Spirit-Burst Pellet before you take it.”

Unless one had been born with a golden spoon in their mouth like Hong Wonseo.

* * *

Silver Dragon Mine in northern Tabaro.

Ise let out a hollow laugh beneath a small, hill-sized mountain.

‘A Spiritual Stone mine...’

He had wondered how Spiritual Stones were made. It turned out they were simply mined from the ground like any other mineral.

According to the information Cho Jeongjin had given him, Spiritual Stone mines were places where enemies of the Great Exorcist Order had their spiritual roots sealed and were forced into labor.

The manager of Silver Dragon Mine was a Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator. They introduced themselves as a spirit-stone artisan, one of the Hundred Arts of Immortal Cultivation, specializing in processing Spiritual Stones.

There really were all kinds of arts in the world, Ise thought.

“Seventh star. You are the cultivator with the highest realm among the mission personnel currently at Silver Dragon Mine, so you will serve as the supervisor overseeing the other cultivators. I will call the previous supervisor so you can receive the handover.”

“Yes, Senior.”

Soon afterward, a sixth-star Qi Condensation Realm cultivator entered.

“I’m Goe Tong. I’ll show you around.”

The short cultivator with the unusual name led Ise around Silver Dragon Mine and explained the supervisor's duties.

“Silver Dragon Mine is a small mine that produces around one hundred thousand Spiritual Stones a year.”

“One hundred thousand is... small?”

“Yes, it is. Some of the major mines managed by the Great Exorcist Order produce several million.”

Ise was startled by the staggering scale, and Goe Tong smiled as though they understood.

“Still, isn't the resident force a little lacking?”

There was one Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator and only around twenty Qi Condensation Realm cultivators, all at the middle stage or below.

It did seem somewhat insufficient to guard a mine that produced one hundred thousand Spiritual Stones.

“Senior Seok Gongju is here, for one. There is also a defensive warding barrier. If we are attacked, nearby disciples will come to support us at once, so there is no great cause for concern.”

“So it does get attacked?”

“More often than you might think. The last raid was around thirty years ago, I believe. Foundation Establishment Realm sects of the Zheng Empire and demonic sects sometimes try to make one last score before they collapse. Once they succeed and cross the empire's border, pursuit becomes difficult.”

Goe Tong added that the Great Exorcist Order's weakness was its desperate shortage of Core Formation Realm and Foundation Establishment Realm cultivators.

“Successful raids are extremely rare, though.”

“So that’s why seniors are always saying they’re so busy.”

As they spoke, they passed the laborers' quarters.

Former cultivators huddled together in thatched huts worse than the spirit-beast pens at headquarters.

Their faces had no life in them, and their starved bodies were little more than skin and bone.

A young miner who spotted them approached with a deep bow.

“Cultivators, please give me something to eat. I haven’t eaten anything for three days...”

Ise threw the miner a piece of demon beast jerky he had put away because its effects had weakened.

Cho Jeongjin's advice came to mind, but whether from simple pity or memories of losing his family and going hungry as a child, Ise could not easily pass by.

“Ah. Senior, it’s better if you don’t...”

The miner stuffed the entire large piece of jerky into their mouth and started running away as though fleeing.

Then the other miners chased them down, beat them, and pulled the jerky from their mouth to eat it themselves.

The ugly sight made Ise frown.

Footnotes:

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