WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: ZERO_SUGAR

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Episode 12: Dark Heaven Secret Realm (2)

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The skull required care.

If even a fragment of bone flew the wrong way, his brain would suffer fatal damage. He had to shatter it cleanly.

Ise kept his breaths as shallow as possible and finely controlled the movement of his internal qi.

His skull slowly fractured.

In that state, Ise quietly dispersed his internal qi.

The swirling internal qi spread gently through his body like dye mixed into water, seeping between the broken fragments of bone.

Spiritual energy began restoring the bone.

Where fractured bone had fused back together, a new organ formed, different in texture from ordinary bone. It was called a spirit bone.

Ise narrowed his eyes, then closed them again.

Once more.

Beside the restored area, he began compressing another part of the bone that he had not touched until now.

Sweat repeatedly dried from Ise's face, only to rise again.

Shattering and restoration continued without end.

The area of unbreakable spirit bone gradually grew wider.

At last, even when Ise struck his entire skeleton with internal qi, his bones no longer suffered damage.

Reforge Bones with Spirit was complete.

Ise drew in a long breath.

His body felt light. Not only light, but sturdy.

Even in the simple act of shifting his posture, he could feel his joints mesh smoothly with his internal qi.

Ninth-star breakthrough.

But he would not stop here.

Tenth star. Shed the Mortal Form, Remake the Body.

Ise set his internal qi swirling once more.

This time, the target was his organs. He would perfectly imbue the five viscera, the liver, heart, spleen, lungs, and kidneys, as well as his digestive organs, with spirituality.

The instant his internal qi slammed into his liver with a thump, Ise's back bent like a bow.

The pain was on an entirely different level from creating spirit bones.

Urk.

He vomited a clot of blood.

As restoration began while cracks still ran through his liver, the pain of reconstructing his first organ swept through his body.

Without even the chance to wipe the blood from his lips, he moved on to the next organ.

He slowly straightened himself.

Cold sweat streamed down his forehead, neck, back, and arms.

Blood was drying at the corner of his mouth, and his breathing had grown ragged.

It was a horrifying process beyond words.

He had thought he was used to pain, yet it was enough to make him want to give up.

The problem was that he had no idea how many times he would need to repeat this arduous, painful process.

For hours, it had felt as though blades were carving his body apart.

After reconstructing even one organ, he had to spend days collapsed, vomiting blood.

He could not tell day from night inside the cave, but he had already lost consciousness and come back to himself several times.

If he stopped now, he could leave having broken through to the ninth star.

Shouldn't he go out and at least prepare a spirit artifact or medicinal pellet that could manage the pain?

‘...No.’

He opened his closed eyes again.

If he mishandled the control of his internal qi, his organs could burst beyond recovery.

There was no way something like a pain-relief pellet could solve such a delicate process.

Now, when the spiritual energy and demonic qi within his body were in perfect balance, he had to see it through.

He took the Mind-Settling Mirror from his robes and looked into it once.

His reflection stared back at him, sweat-soaked, blood crusted around his lips, his eyes half unfocused.

‘...Focus.’

It truly was a spirit artifact that could suppress heart demons.

Ise lowered the mirror and moved his internal qi again.

One organ after another absorbed spiritual energy and was reconstructed.

Each time, blood poured from his body, and he spent days collapsed, vomiting blood.

Ise's unconscious body trembled violently once.

* * *

The stone door of the seclusion cave opened.

Sunlight poured through the gap, and the stale air gathered within the cave dispersed outside.

Ise stepped out.

His Daoist robes were ragged, and his hair had grown long, hanging down in an unkempt mass.

His footsteps were quiet. Yet each step left behind a weight that seemed to make the ground tremble faintly.

Paradoxically, his body felt light.

His body moved in complete harmony with spiritual energy. It felt as if he had cast off a layer of steel he had worn his entire life.

His bones had become unbreakable spirit bones, and his five viscera had been reconstructed into spirit organs.

Even if any part of his body except his brain were damaged, he would not die immediately. Eating was now a choice, not a requirement for survival.

Superhuman.

The word naturally came to mind.

He had surpassed the bounds of humanity long ago, but now he truly felt far removed from the species Heaven had defined as human.

Qi Condensation Realm Great Completion.

He raised his head and looked up at the sky. The clear weather made it hard to judge the season.

At last, he had become qualified to challenge the major realm boundary of the Foundation Establishment Realm.

Ise headed straight for the Mission Pavilion in the administrative district.

He needed to report that his seclusion had ended.

As he entered the Mission Pavilion, Ise's eyebrows rose slightly.

Normally, the place was orderly despite the crowds, but today the atmosphere was far more excited.

Officials hurried back and forth carrying bundles of bamboo slips, calling to one another. The area before the counters was packed with people milling around.

It was strange. If they had business, they only needed to wait in line. Had some spectacle appeared?

When Ise approached one of the counters, an official looked up.

It was a familiar face. The junior cultivator who was always worn down by official duties and complaints.

“It's been a while.”

“Ah, Senior. It's been a while. Are you here to register the end of your seclusion?”

“Yeah.”

The official reflexively bowed, then looked up at Ise's face once.

Their gaze froze.

The official's eyes traveled over Ise's entire body. Their eyes widened, and finally their mouth fell slightly open.

“Wow... Senior, weren't you originally at the eighth star of the Qi Condensation Realm?”

“That’s right.”

“You advanced two stages. I'm seeing a line that will go down in the history of the Great Exorcist Order right in front of me. Congratulations.”

“Thanks. What year is it now?”

“It's the 319th year since the Order was founded.”

The 319th year since the Order's founding. There were about three years left until the ninth year he had set as his goal.

It felt close, but it was still within the range he had expected.

“But you look busy. Is something happening?”

Ise asked as he looked around. The officials passing through the corridor were moving at least twice as fast as usual.

“You heard about that thing people were talking about before, didn't you, Senior? The secret realm.”

“Ah. Don't tell me...”

“Yes. That secret realm has opened.”

“When?”

“About four days ago?”

Ise's expression stiffened. Seeing it, the official finally understood the situation.

“You had been planning to go too, Senior? Well, at your current realm, you're perfectly suited to enter the secret realm. But you happened to be in seclusion... You know that a sealed seclusion cave can't be opened from outside.”

“......”

Ise could only stand there with the expression of someone who had lost their country. How could his luck possibly be this bad?

“Still, you're fortunate. If you leave now, you might arrive just in time.”

“What? I can still enter now?”

“I heard this secret realm's entrance will remain open for around seven days and nights. If you hurry, you might be able to enter. Though I have no idea what the people who went in first will have left behind.”

Being late hurt badly, but at least he could still enter.

With a relieved sigh, Ise urged the official on in an excited voice.

“Can you tell me where it is?”

“That isn't under my authority. Go see Senior Guk.”

Ise immediately greeted the Foundation Establishment Realm senior seated in one corner and bought information on the secret realm for twenty Spiritual Stones.

As he shot away like an arrow, Ise checked what was written on the wooden slip.

【Dark Heaven Secret Realm】

- Entry Requirement: Qi Condensation Realm

- Location: North Aro Plains, near Igyeong Bridge in the upper reaches of the Goeun River.

- Type: Battlefield Remains

It was brief. Other than the location, it was not particularly useful information, but the location of the entrance was what mattered.

Without even stopping to catch his breath, Ise ran at full speed and crossed nine hundred li in a single day.

The scene at the secret realm entrance was unfamiliar.

Cultivators from several sects had gathered in small groups, waiting before the entrance.

Until now, he had only seen the white robes of the Great Exorcist Order or the black robes of Cheoryang Thunder Gate. Seeing Daoist robes of every color gathered in one place felt new.

Fortunately, the secret realm's entrance was open.

The entrance was a kind of rift, much like the tear in space that Hall Master Haeil had appeared through. Glimpses of the scenery inside could be seen through it, and spiritual energy leaked out.

“Ise?”

At the familiar voice calling his name, Ise turned his head.

Woo Yu-hui, the Winged Dragon Hall Master, was walking toward him with several disciples.

Ise immediately offered a respectful greeting.

“Hall Master Woo Yu-hui. Have you been well? I didn't expect to find you here.”

“Yeah. I'm here in case the Zheng Empire vermin try anything with our disciples.”

At once, the Zheng Empire cultivators who had been called vermin gave off a menacing air.

Hostile glances passed between them, but thankfully, no bloodshed broke out.

“Are you going into the secret realm?”

“Yes.”

“You're late. I thought you weren't coming.”

“I was in seclusion, so I received the news late.”

“Really? I see. You worked hard.”

Woo Yu-hui checked Ise's realm, then curved her lips beneath her half-mask in a pleased smile.

She patted Ise's hair a couple of times.

“So you couldn't prepare for the secret realm?”

“No. I came running as soon as I heard.”

“Irang.”

At Woo Yu-hui's call, a cultivator stepped forward. The same emblem as hers was embroidered beside the Great Exorcist Order's crest on their chest.

“Yes, Hall Master.”

“Here. Someone who wants to get themselves killed. Take care of him.”

“Yes.”

Without a change in expression, Irang approached Ise. Then they formed a hand seal and cast a spell.

It was a sound-blocking spell that prevented voices from passing through.

“Entering a secret realm without advance information is suicide. Remember that.”

“Yes, Senior. But shouldn't we enter as soon as possible?”

“It doesn't matter. What matters isn't when you enter, but whether you can come back out. There are two kinds of people who enter a secret realm. Those who enter as soon as it opens, and those who enter just before it closes.”

Those who entered as soon as it opened were either trying to claim as many resources as possible, or trying to secure only the resources they needed and hide.

Those who entered just before it closed either lacked confidence in their abilities and wanted to enter as late as possible, or intended to plunder the resources of those who had entered first.

“Then I...”

“Kill them and take what they have. That's the kind of place it is.”

“......”

“If you don't want to, turn back now.”

“No.”

“When you enter, where you land will be random. First, hide somewhere safe and assess the surrounding terrain and situation.”

“Yes.”

“Once you enter, you must endure inside the secret realm for one month. When the month has passed, the cultivators who entered will be expelled outside. That location will also be random. You won't be thrown too far from where you entered, but if you happen to be expelled into the Zheng Empire, leave immediately and return without being discovered.”

Footnotes:

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