“Cough…!”
I sat with my arms crossed, glaring at the corpse of the Shiheonsun.
Is it really okay to eat this?
After all, even though it’s called a Shiheonsun, it used to be a person. The Four Fairies just resurrected a corpse of a decent Taoist; there’s a good chance it was a good Taoist in life.
Is it really fine to eat the corpse of such a being? I’m worried it might be treated as cannibalism. It’s not like there’s a sect that makes pills from people, and this thing even happened.
“If only it hadn’t come to this! I’m torn apart!”
I’m being torn apart inside!
Since I brought it, I’ve been thinking about it non-stop!
“Honestly, I think it might be better not to eat it…”
“More than that, I find it strange that the Shiheonsun has a yo-dan. Shouldn’t martial artists and Taoists have inner cores too? But there are no such cases.”
Serin expressed her concern, while Hayoung analyzed coolly.
“That is a bit odd.”
Why does the Shiheonsun have a yo-dan, but martial artists and Taoists don’t? Now that I think about it, it is strange.
The inner cores of spiritual beings are rare, but demons often possess yo-dans.
“Maybe it’s easy for spiritual energy to accumulate.”
“Huh? Now that you mention it, that sounds plausible.”
Hayoung reacted to my words.
“Right? I’m sharp like that.”
“Easy accumulation of spiritual energy… Then it does explain why the Shiheonsun has a yo-dan. It feels a bit unsettling, but it should be okay to eat, right? I’m in favor of eating it.”
“Weihayoung. This isn’t something to judge hastily. What if Geunhyeop is wrong?”
“If that were the case, they wouldn’t have given the yo-dan in the first place. I think I’ll be fine.”
“Hmm…”
Alright.
I’ve decided.
“Let’s eat!”
This can be considered a new experiment. Whether the Shiheonsun can be classified as a complete demon or not—no one knows that.
But I’m going to keep consuming the yo-dans of various demons in the future. The classification of demons is inherently inaccurate, anyway. I shouldn’t fear one thing after another.
“Are you really okay with this?”
“Serin, think about it. Is the classification of demons really accurate? Some demons come from hell, while some lived on the Central Plains originally. I’ve eaten from both kinds and I’m fine. I don’t think there’s any need to be afraid.”
“…”
Serin made a dissatisfied expression at my words.
“I will follow Geunhyeop if you feel that way.”
“Good. Just trust me. But let’s be cautious. Hayoung, can you check it out? Is there anything strange?”
“I already checked it. There’s nothing special besides the spiritual energy.”
“Then I’ll eat it.”
It can’t be said to be completely safe, but I feel like this is something I’ve experience every time I eat a yo-dan.
I consumed the yo-dan of the Shiheonsun without hesitation.
–Saaaah.
A familiar sensation.
The alien energy of the yo-dan melts away and descends toward my dantian. What kind of effect will it have?
I focused on collecting new inner strength while practicing breathing methods.
* * *
As my vision darkened, my consciousness faded away. I felt my awareness moving to a place I didn’t recognize.
This phenomenon I experience every time I eat a yo-dan, commonly known as a “vision.” What kind of vision will I see this time? After consuming so many yo-dans, I was getting a vague idea of what was happening in this hazy state.
But…
“…”
Nothing was visible.
It felt like I was thrown alone into a pitch-black infinite space. I twisted my body and turned my head to see if there’s anything, but it was just dark.
Like a universe without a single star.
Suddenly, I felt a chilling fear seep into my brain. What kind of vision is this? Just when I tried to shake off the fear…
“Ah.”
I saw it.
A sight of countless gigantic eyes staring at me.
“Ahhhhhh!”
“Geunhyeop! Geunhyeop! Snap out of it!”
“It’s okay! My qi isn’t twisted!”
“Gasp, gasp!”
As I opened my eyes, I saw Serin and Hayoung moving busily. What’s going on? Did I have a seizure while seeing a vision after eating the yo-dan?
Breathing heavily, I checked my condition. There was no problem with my inner power or qi. My heart was just racing, and I must be sweating a bit too.
“Geunhyeop! Are you okay?!”
“Uh, um… I think I was a bit startled. I feel like I saw something terrifying, but I can’t remember.”
“It seems eating the yo-dan of the Shiheonsun was the problem. It would be best to take a moment to stabilize. Weihayoung, we need to examine Geunhyeop’s condition.”
“I’m bringing it right now!”
Soon, Hayoung brought various tools and examined my condition. I lay still, calming my mind.
What was that…?
The only clear memory left is that I felt fear from something I saw. What on earth could it have been? Did I see the Four Fairies in that vision?
“Hmm… There’s no problem. You’re fine.”
“That’s a relief. Thanks for worrying, everyone. My body is just fine.”
I got up from my spot.
“But you saw something terrifying?”
Hayoung frowned as she spoke.
“Yeah. But I can’t remember clearly. When I ate Hadong’s and Yagujia’s inner cores, I remember seeing visions of swimming or digging into the ground. But this time, the impression of fear seems to linger without further detail.”
“Maybe the level of the Shiheonsun was high, making the yo-dan more powerful?”
“That could be.”
For now, my inner strength has definitely been reinforced.
Let’s test it out.
“Serin, give me a sword.”
“Ah, yes.”
Testing martial arts after consuming a yo-dan is a daily routine. Serin handed me a sword, and I went to the backyard to wield it.
–Swoosh!
I deployed the Flowing Stream Sword Technique while using the Cold Mind Technique. That much was standard. Then, I imagined a virtual enemy and…
–Swoosh!
In an instant, I dashed forward to stab and exploded in that spot. Next, I unleashed a fierce slash with an explosive force, completing my first round of attacks.
“Phew.”
The combination of Ghost Spirit One Sword, Ghost Spirit Wave Slash, and Spirit Strike.
Perfect.
Despite launching such a fierce assault, I still felt ample energy and inner strength remaining.
With such surplus, I felt I could do even more. It seems good to have another new technique.
Like, maybe a technique to deal with multiple enemies at once.
“Spirit Strike!”
Imagining that, I spun around and unleashed a large sideways Spirit Strike.
–Swoosh!
Will it work…?
I unleashed a spinning Spirit Strike like a top spewing flames.
“Oh, Geunhyeop. You just used a spinning Spirit Strike, didn’t you? The purple flames lingered through the entire rotation. It seems like it retained its power until the end.”
“Really?”
I had some inner strength left, so I tried it, and it seems to work.
“But the rotational strength is a bit weak. It feels slow. While it might be fine against demons, there might be openings when facing martial artists.”
“Alright. Then I’ll add the explosive thrust of Ghost Spirit One Sword.”
I still had inner strength to spare.
“I’m going to do it like using the Ghost Spirit One Sword… Adding thrust to my stationary rotation!”
–Boom!
Energy exploded from my feet, causing explosive acceleration. I held onto that power and swung my sword while rotating, delivering a Spirit Strike.
–Swoosh!
“How was that?!”
“Definitely improved from before. The speed is remarkable. Just a little more improvement should make it usable in real battle.”
Serin clapped and praised me!
“Haha! This is great! Then let’s name this move ‘Spinning Spirit Strike’ and consider it a derivative of Spirit Strike.”
“Sounds good.”
I’ve acquired a spinning slash technique.
It should come in handy when surrounded by multiple demons in the future.
But this is just a variation of Spirit Strike. It doesn’t feel like a brand new technique.
Can’t I create something entirely new? Since I just consumed the yo-dan of a being like the Shiheonsun, who uses Taoist arts, it feels like something could happen in that direction.
“Hey Hayoung. The Shiheonsun was a Taoist, right? So if I ate that yo-dan, can’t I use something like Taoist arts? By using my energy?”
“Are you stupid? Taoist arts don’t work that way! What the heck are you trying to pull by eating it?”
“You never know!”
“Try it out then.”
Long-range techniques.
I want to use something like that too.
“I’ll practice!”
From that day on, I began to train every moment I could to create a new technique.
Whether it’s because I ate the yo-dan of the Shiheonsun, I felt my senses in that aspect becoming more activated, and it became unbearable.
Moving and releasing the inner strength within me felt more natural. I used this to work on developing a new technique.
Eventually…
–Whoooosh!
I succeeded in creating a purple fireball made of spiritual energy in my hand!
“Ohhh!”
The ominous fireball blazed atop my palm. I gazed at it hypnotically before thrusting it forward as if I were throwing it.
–Whoosh!
It flew off, and…
–Boom!
It exploded against a tree!
“Wow!”
I succeeded!
“Guys! I did it! I succeeded!”
Overflowing with joy, I ran to brag about it to my wives.
“Hmm… After all that practice, did you finally succeed?”
“Yeah! Get up! Get up!”
“But it’s early morning…”
I awoke Serin and Hayoung and took them to the backyard. I then showed them what I had just accomplished.
–Boom!
“Oh my! Now you’re shooting fireballs from your hands? What kind of martial artist are you! You’re a Taoist!”
“Really, this is incredible, Geunhyeop… How on earth…”
“Hehe, surprised, right?”
I’ve decided on a name for this technique.
“But it’s not too weird. This is a type of palm technique.”
“Palm technique, you say?”
“Yeah. The name is Ghost Fire Palm (鬼火掌).”
Literally, it’s a long-range technique that shoots fire from my palm, but if used up close, it’s still a palm technique.
“Anyway, I see potential in this. My spiritual energy is indeed different from that of a martial artist, and it’s also different from that of a Taoist. Both can merge exquisitely, that’s how it works.”
If martial artists are warriors and Taoists are spellcasters, then I could be considered a kind of magic swordsman class.
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