WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Dionysus

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◈ Xianxia Cultivation with a Dragon Heart ◈

Chapter 28: A Useless Guy

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Since it had not been all that long ago, Han Yujin was able to revisit the monkey monsters' nest by following his memories without getting lost.

It was a small ravine hidden among thick grass, the sort of place one would easily pass by without Spirit Vision Art.

Prepared for any possibility, Han Yujin entered with Jade Skin Art active and the Five Elements Sword in hand. A few minutes later, he reached an open area.

Screee...! Squeak!

Screech!

At the same time, he heard unfamiliar sounds.

Small monkeys, clearly the monkey monsters' young, were panicking in surprise. Some fled up trees, while others ran blindly toward the ravine walls surrounding the clearing. A few simply stood frozen in place, unsure what to do.

"Hm."

Killing even the young left him feeling unpleasant. But he had no intention of taking responsibility for raising them, and if he left them alone, they would die anyway. It would be better for him to end it himself.

"I'm sorry, but your guardians attacked me first. I'll make it as painless as possible."

With a trace of regret in his voice, Han Yujin immediately activated the Five Elements Sword's inscribed spell restrictions. Golden energy shot forward in flashing streaks.

It took less than ten seconds for every terrified cry to fall silent. Han Yujin gathered the young monkeys' corpses with Object Manipulation Art, then took out a jade box.

'They're young, and they're primates, so I'd rather not eat them. Good thing I have this.'

He took out one improved Bloodwood Seed from the jade box. Casting a spell contained in the Bloodwood Spirit-Fruit Brewing Art, he dropped it onto the corpses with Object Manipulation Art.

A moment later.

The seed sprouted rapidly, took root in the young monkey monsters' corpses, and grew at an incredible pace. It was like watching a time-lapse video.

The Bloodwood was dark reddish-brown overall, but its metallic red sheen gave it a very unusual appearance. Its leaves were blue-green with bright edges, making it look rather ornate.

Once the Bloodwood had grown to around chest height, it produced a fruit as red as blood. It was about the size of a walnut and perfectly round, almost like a jade bead at a glance.

Before Han Yujin could do anything, the fruit fell off on its own. As soon as he caught it, the tree withered even faster than it had grown, crumbling into something like soil and sand.

"...Wow."

Impressed by the mystery and profundity of the spell, he sifted through the dusty remains with Object Manipulation Art. Before long, he found the seed he had used, completely intact.

Depending on the spell used to sprout it, it could bear fruit as it had this time or produce another seed. Naturally, there was no reason to replenish seeds he did not lack.

After returning the seed to the jade box and putting it in his Storage Pouch, Han Yujin examined the fruit for a while before storing it as well.

Then, at last.

He looked at the black tree in the center of the clearing, which he had been watching from the beginning.

Unlike when he had seen it before, it did not look withered at all. Its lack of leaves was certainly strange, but what drew the eye more were the six fist-sized scarlet fruits hanging from its branches.

As he examined them up close, he soon realized they were more special than expected. They did not merely contain dense spiritual energy. They also gave off dharma pattern fluctuations.

In other words, it was an intermediate-grade spirit plant.

'They can't be high-grade spirit plants.'

From high-grade spirit plants onward, even Core Formation Stage cultivators considered them precious treasures. No matter how rich this place was in spiritual energy, they could not be something such weak monkey monsters could occupy.

'Even occupying an intermediate-grade spirit plant is surprising enough.'

It would have been impossible outside an environment like this.

Fortunately, Han Yujin had attended Tianyuan Star's alchemy lectures, so he had learned a simple spell that allowed him to harvest spirit plants like these without damaging them.

After briefly testing them with several alchemical dharma patterns and confirming that they had no properties requiring special care, he began harvesting them.

A faint golden energy flowed from his hand. As it gently wrapped around a scarlet fruit and blocked its spiritual energy and dharma pattern fluctuations, the fruit came off with a soft pop.

Han Yujin caught it lightly and took a sniff. It looked somewhat like dragon fruit, but its scent reminded him of green plums.

'If they were peaches, they'd suit monkeys perfectly.'

With that pointless thought, he harvested the remaining fruits in the same way and put them in his Storage Pouch. As long as he renewed the spell around once every fifteen days, there was no danger of their medicinal potency fading.

'I should get a lot of jade boxes as harvests someday.'

Then he would not need to go through the trouble of renewing the spell at regular intervals.

He would also need containers if he found spiritual ingredients that did not have a fixed form, such as honey.

Just as he thought that.

The black tree, stripped of all its fruit, visibly began to shrivel. Han Yujin studied it closely, then nodded.

At least it did not seem to be dying.

It would be strange for a tree to die just because its fruit had been picked. If he had to guess, this was its natural state, while its previous appearance had been swollen to sustain the fruit.

He did not know when it would bear fruit again, so he would need to return at suitable intervals to check on it.

Now that he had finished harvesting, it was time to watch the monkey monster corpses and wait for the Rabbit-Weasels.

Feeling expectant but slightly nervous, Han Yujin left the clearing.

* * *

On the way back, Han Yujin tried casting Earth Escape Art instead of Wind-Cloud Art. He had lacked a suitable place and enough time to practice it on Earth, but that was not the case here. His future cultivation would naturally include spell practice as well.

Han Yujin's rapidly moving figure suddenly vanished as though melting into the ground. A pale glow raced across the surface at tremendous speed. Then Han Yujin abruptly emerged somewhere else and hurriedly stopped.

"Um..."

He had nearly crashed into a tree trunk in a most undignified way, just as he had when first practicing Wind-Cloud Art.

In short, it was difficult to control. Its spiritual power cost was also tremendous. If he used it three or four more times, he felt he would be completely exhausted. If that was the case even in a favorable environment like this primeval forest, he might be exhausted after only two or three uses on Earth.

'I'll need to reach the Dharma Soul Stage before I can properly practice it.'

Still, it was an excellent spell. Even that clumsy attempt had been enough for him to feel its power.

Earth Escape Art was an escape art not known chiefly for speed, yet it felt incredibly fast. The sensation of moving as though sinking into the earth was mysterious, as if he had become a bodiless spirit.

'No wonder it consumes so much spiritual energy.'

It allowed him to move through the earth. It would make no sense if it required little spiritual energy. Even if such a spell existed, it would surely have another weakness.

A while later.

When Han Yujin reached the place where he had slaughtered the monkey monsters, he considered lying among them as he had before. Deciding that was not necessary, he hid in a nearby tree and waited for daybreak.

While waiting, he thought about the Spirit Beast Training Formula.

Despite its many advantages, the Spirit Beast Training Formula was considered a spell with serious drawbacks.

There were two in particular. First, the lifespan of a bound spirit beast became synchronized with its master's. Second, it could only grow to a level one stage below its master's realm.

Why were those disadvantages?

When cultivators took in spirit beasts, they usually tamed powerful yao monsters with extremely long lifespans.

A yao monster that already lived for at least several centuries could be passed down to family or acquaintances even after its master died, provided it had been properly tamed. As time passed, it would grow stronger and its lifespan would increase, becoming more and more formidable.

Naturally, the Spirit Beast Training Formula offered no such benefit.

The second drawback also made it awkward to use. If one could not expect help in important moments such as battle because it could only remain below its master's realm, then no number of other advantages could make it entirely appealing.

'But that doesn't matter to me.'

He was not taking in a spirit beast because he expected that sort of help.

If he instead tried to take in a stronger spirit beast for that kind of help, raising it would not be easy at all. Nothing in the world came with only benefits.

The Spirit Beast Training Formula was easy to learn and cast, and made sensing and controlling a bound spirit beast extremely convenient.

It also allowed its master to easily pass on several learned spells through spiritual communication. For a creature like a Rabbit-Weasel, whose natural lifespan was unlikely to be particularly long, its lifespan being synchronized with its master's would instead be an advantage.

Furthermore, in exchange for being unable to surpass a level below its master's realm, it required almost no resources to grow to that limit.

All in all, there was a reason its name contained the phrase "shared fate." If one did not intend to use a spirit beast for anything important, there was no better beast-taming art.

'So just show yourself already.'

As he thought that, dawn began to break. At last, the Rabbit-Weasels he had been waiting for appeared.

They carefully surveyed the surroundings, but they could not spot Han Yujin, hidden in the tree with Concealment Art at full strength. Apparently reassured, they began nibbling at the monkey monsters' corpses.

Once two of them began eating, two more soon joined them.

Yet Han Yujin's expression was not bright at all.

'Why isn't she coming...?'

The one he had been waiting for was nowhere to be seen. They all looked similar, but he had spent three or four months with her. Even with Spirit Vision Art active, there was no way he could fail to recognize her.

'Is this where the butterfly effect shows up?'

Why was she not appearing? What could possibly be the reason?

His mind was in turmoil, and he sat blankly for a while.

"Ah."

The sound slipped out before he realized it.

He knew the instant she appeared. It was her.

His mood brightened in an instant, as though his mind had never been a mess and his heart had never felt so heavy. Then another thought suddenly came to him, making his heart sink again.

Without making a sound, he leaped down from the tree. He released Concealment Art some distance away and waited.

Before long, several Rabbit-Weasels engrossed in their meal noticed him. They flinched in surprise, but did not immediately run away.

The one Han Yujin was watching was among them.

'I should've just collapsed among those corpses.'

Regretting it too late, Han Yujin did not know what to do. Should he use Object Manipulation Art to pull her over immediately, or should he lead her to close the distance herself as she had before?

'Was I always this stupid?'

He was on the verge of becoming confused over something so trivial when a thought occurred to him. He took out the Spirit-Liquid Flask, opened its stopper, and let a few drops fall onto the ground.

The faint yet distinct scent of spirit liquid wine spread through the air. A beast with a well-developed sense of smell should be able to detect it even more clearly.

But after doing it, he wondered if this was wrong too.

'There's no way she'll be lured in just because of this...'

What if some other creature got curious and approached first? Should he chase it away? What was he even doing, making such a fuss over taming one beast?

He was drowning in feelings too subtle for even himself to distinguish, to the point of self-loathing.

Then, the one he had been watching was the first to cautiously approach, and Han Yujin's mood immediately lifted again.

"That's it!"

His reflexive exclamation startled several Rabbit-Weasels. Even the one who had just shown curiosity flinched and froze, making Han Yujin freeze as well.

"Fuck..."

At last, he could not stand his own pathetic behavior.

"Just come over here, you little bastard."

With Object Manipulation Art, he immediately bound her and brought her over. As she struggled in alarm, he placed her down right in front of him, then dropped over ten more drops of spirit liquid wine.

"Eat it or don't. If you eat it, we're together for life. If you run away without eating, that's the end of it."

Though he said that, he thought he should give her the sense that he would not hurt her. Han Yujin crouched in front of her and stroked her head.

He watched her twitch her nose and roll her black eyes around. When he decided that was probably enough, he completely released Object Manipulation Art.

For a while.

Even after sensing that the force binding her had disappeared, she did not run away. Perhaps she could not understand the situation, or perhaps she was simply too scared to move carelessly. She stayed still.

"Is that how you got caught and eaten by that lizard bastard? You're quick only when it doesn't matter, then slow when it does."

Muttering, Han Yujin pulled over a nearby leaf with Object Manipulation Art and poured spirit liquid wine onto it. He even made her a bowl.

"If you still don't drink it, then seriously..."

At that exact moment.

Apparently thinking Han Yujin's attention was elsewhere, she suddenly darted away.

Han Yujin silently watched her vanish beyond the grass, then closed his eyes.

"You fucking bastard..."

It seemed his approach had been wrong.

He should have acted exactly as he had back then. How could someone become close to a wary wild animal this way?

But.

'It's not like I did this just because I'm stupid.'

Han Yujin knew that much.

'I wanted to feel that she was the same one.'

If she had loved spirit liquid wine so obsessively, he wondered whether he could approach her this way. He thought it would be fine as long as she did not run away.

From a philosophical perspective, there were many opinions on whether a pet one had lost could truly be considered the same being if one went back to the past and met an identical version of it.

And quite a few people ultimately concluded that it was a different being. Since they did not share the same memories, the unique psychological and emotional continuity from that time could not be restored.

But Han Yujin thought differently.

What if it was not a pet, but an enemy he could never live under the same sky with?

If he went back to the past and found that enemy before they had committed any crime, could he simply think of them as a different person and let them go? Could he do so while thinking that they had no connection at this point in time, and that there was clearly a possibility they might never become his enemy if the future changed even slightly?

'I probably couldn't.'

So he had tried to apply the same logic to the Rabbit-Weasel.

If he could not regard an enemy who had not yet wronged him in the past as a different being, then the same standard should naturally apply to the Rabbit-Weasel.

They did not share the same memories, so their psychological and emotional continuity might be different. But they still had the same body and soul, did they not?

'That's what I thought, but...'

It seemed reason and emotion could differ at times.

The sight of her fleeing without recognizing the spirit liquid wine she had loved so obsessively felt, surprisingly, almost like being stabbed.

'What is some damn beast to me, anyway?'

Ironically, the feeling was more difficult than when she had died.

So he just sat there blankly for a long time, doing nothing.

'They say things never go the way you want them to.'

He considered returning and perfectly repeating what he had done back then, but even if he did, it was clear that it would not erase this feeling.

'Yeah... At least it was a good thing I got revenge back then.'

As he thought that and let out a sigh.

"..."

When he opened his eyes, he saw her hiding among the grass and looking his way. He had no idea when she had crept back.

'This little shit, seriously...'

Han Yujin felt faintly glad and angry at the same time.

There was a limit to how much someone could toy with another person's feelings. Why reappear right when he had become emotional, was beginning to give up, and was about to finish things?

"Are you messing with me?"

Han Yujin growled deliberately. The Rabbit-Weasel flinched, but did not run away. She only twitched her nose and watched him carefully.

It was an extremely familiar sight. Before becoming close to him, she had always tested the waters like that.

A hollow laugh escaped him at the absurdity.

After that, Han Yujin showed no reaction and simply remained seated.

They continued staring at each other as time passed.

By the time the dim dawn had given way to full morning, the Rabbit-Weasel finally crept over and tried to lick the spirit liquid wine in the leaf bowl Han Yujin had roughly made. The way she immediately sprang back before licking it, as though expecting some trap to activate, was amusing.

"What a performance."

She was startled by his voice again, but did not run away in the end. She was clearly scared, yet apparently could not give up the scent of the spirit liquid wine.

Just like when she had rushed out with that gluttonous look back then.

"Hah..."

Another hollow laugh escaped him. In the meantime, the Rabbit-Weasel finally gave the spirit liquid wine one proper lick before jumping back again.

Her twitching nose stopped at once. Smacking her lips, she looked back and forth between Han Yujin and the leaf bowl.

"I told you earlier. If you eat it, we're together for life."

Speaking calmly, Han Yujin added more spirit liquid wine to the leaf bowl. The Rabbit-Weasel began twitching her nose again and could barely take her eyes off it.

"Your name is Muyong. Because you're useless."

It was not too embarrassing to call her, and he liked it a great deal.

Of course, it did not mean only that she was useless. It also meant that it did not really matter if she was useless, and that she should at least possess enough martial valor not to die as pointlessly as she had back then.

It was too embarrassing, so he had no intention of saying that part out loud.

Footnotes:

Muyong plays on similar Korean sounds: one means “useless,” while 무용 (武勇) means “martial valor.”

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