The Heaven-Overturner
Han Yuhyeon caught on at once. The Heaven-Overturner was none other than himself. That very phrase had appeared the moment he entered this world.
"A few months ago, the spiritual veins of the cultivation world fell into chaos. As you well know, for spiritual veins to be thrown into such disarray usually requires a natural disaster of enormous scale—volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, typhoons. But this time, only the veins themselves trembled. So quietly that ordinary people and cultivators of low attainment never even realized anything had happened. Those who had reached the True Immortal Realm, however, heard a thunderous roar within that silence. It was truly the roar of heaven being overturned."
The Vice Palace Master continued in a gentle voice as Han Yuhyeon fumbled for a response. The quality of the transmission was degrading in real time, yet the old man seemed utterly unconcerned. The one growing anxious was Han Yuhyeon.
"What exactly does Heaven-Overturner mean?"
"Heaven-Overturner... Truth be told, even I do not know for certain. It is a being that exists only in legend. All I know is that whenever a Heaven-Overturner appears, the world is swept by change so vast it turns everything upside down. An upheaval beyond the imagination of ordinary people—and beyond even those of us who have reached the True Immortal Realm."
The more Han Yuhyeon listened, the more fear took root. Was he truly an existence capable of influencing this world on such a scale?
The problem was that his actual power fell absurdly short of that influence. At his current level, even a single Foundation Establishment cultivator could cut him down.
"You yourself may not know whether you are the Heaven-Overturner. I understand perfectly why you cannot answer easily. Still, from the way you fail to give a clear and immediate denial, it seems you have some idea of your own."
"If I were the Heaven-Overturner... how should I conduct myself?"
Han Yuhyeon asked. At least the Vice Palace Master before him did not look like the type who would leap forward to kill him on the spot simply for being one.
"Before you overturn the heavens, you would do well to hide yourself beneath the earth. Those who currently sit in the heavens will find a Heaven-Overturner an eyesore, will they not?"
"That stands to reason. But is the Vice Palace Master not also one who currently sits in the heavens?"
"The heavens, you say. Well... to your eyes I may appear to dwell above the sky, yet beyond the sky there is always another sky. And the Heaven-Overturner is the one who flips the very highest heaven of all."
The Vice Palace Master smiled. So the reason he was not hunting Han Yuhyeon was simply that he himself was not "the heavens." Which meant that monsters even stronger than this man were already searching for him.
"In truth, I suspected you were the Heaven-Overturner from the first moment I laid eyes on you."
"Why is that?"
"Because you have the face of someone who would overturn the heavens."
"..."
Han Yuhyeon wore an expression of pure disbelief, yet the Vice Palace Master remained entirely serious.
"I am not joking. Viewed narrowly, the world is unfair. Viewed broadly, it is perfectly fair. Is that not so?"
"I am too ignorant to grasp your meaning. I would be grateful if you could explain further."
"Suppose there is a man more handsome than you, stronger than you, taller than you, and born to better parents. Even so, that man will die in the end, and so will you."
"Are cultivators not the exception?"
"That is precisely why cultivators face heavenly tribulations. I myself have weathered two of them. Merely recalling those moments still chills my spine."
The Vice Palace Master shuddered as if reliving the memory, then continued.
"And so I thought: if your face is this ugly, something else about you must be outstanding. Even if it is merely good fortune in the afterlife. Of course, now that you are a cultivator, afterlife fortune no longer applies. Instead, you have already climbed to the middle stage of Qi Condensation with Five Spiritual Roots in such a short time. That, too, must be a blessing granted by your appearance."
Astonishingly, the Vice Palace Master had seen straight through Han Yuhyeon's character customization. He had deliberately made his face as ugly as possible in exchange for superior traits and stats. Not a rebound of appearance, but a blessing of appearance. To a cultivator of this level, external charm clearly held no meaning whatsoever.
"It is exactly as you say."
"Indeed. Both mortals and cultivators are creatures of desire, yet a cultivator must harbor greater desires than a mere human. A human might desire both your Five Spiritual Roots and a handsome face on top of them. A cultivator, however, must take that ugly face as a blessing and desire even greater spiritual talent."
"I will keep that firmly in mind."
"I am not yet among those who sit in the heavens, so I find myself curious what kind of sky you will overturn. When that day comes, will the trees grow upside down? Will rivers flow up into the mountains?"
By now the Vice Palace Master seemed to have fully accepted that Han Yuhyeon was the Heaven-Overturner. Given what he had been asked and what he had learned, there was no point in falsely denying it. Still, it was a relief that the old man did not seem the type to go around broadcasting that Han Yuhyeon was the Heaven-Overturner.
"Take this."
His image had grown so faint that even his voice was barely audible, yet the Vice Palace Master drew something from his sleeve and tossed it over. Han Yuhyeon caught it with both hands—a ring set with a jewel.
This was clearly a soul projection, yet the man had produced a physical object and thrown it. Truly marvelous.
"What is this?"
"It is called a Spirit Guardian Ring. A talisman I crafted myself. It will save your life once when you face certain death."
"...!"
A talisman personally forged by a cultivator who had reached the True Immortal Realm. A treasure whose value defied estimation. Han Yuhyeon immediately pressed his forehead to the floor.
"Thank you. I do not know how I can ever repay this grace."
"I am not giving it freely. The stone set in that Spirit Guardian Ring is a spirit stone of the highest grade. Even if you continue your cultivation all the way to the True Immortal Realm, that stone will still have room to spare. Record your deeds within it and show them to me later. I am curious about the trail a Heaven-Overturner will leave."
"I shall respectfully obey."
Han Yuhyeon knocked his forehead against the floor once more and cautiously lifted his head—only to find the Vice Palace Master already gone. The spiritual energy that had been planted must have run out.
He looked around the suddenly silent room. It hardly felt real that he had just spoken with the Vice Palace Master of Cheonbong Palace inside this shabby hut. Only the Spirit Guardian Ring clutched in his hand proved that it had truly happened.
Before leaving, Han Yuhyeon made absolutely certain of the mine's ownership with a written contract. He forced the village chief to stamp his fingerprint, his personal seal, and the official village seal. Unless the man completely lost his mind, there would be no going back on the deal now.
The spiritual veins were currently twisted, so no spirit stones were coming out. But once the veins returned to normal, people might start talking differently. Ordinary folk might fear cultivators, yet old men were another matter entirely. There were always those mortal NPCs who, having nothing left to lose, would say whatever they pleased.
"Kyaaaang!"
The raccoon coiled around Han Yuhyeon's neck seemed thoroughly pleased with its seat. Remarkably, after eating the spirit herb the Vice Palace Master had given it, the raccoon's energy had completely synchronized with Han Yuhyeon's own.
The leakage of a spiritual beast's energy that Im Su-weol had worried about had been solved by that single herb. To anyone who did not know better, the creature would simply look like a particularly affectionate raccoon nestled within Han Yuhyeon's aura.
When they returned to the Baekun Sect on Jeong Cheon-o's flying sword, the entire sect was bustling with activity. The Sect Master, it turned out, had turned the day of their departure for So-ui-ju into something resembling a festival.
Un Song-byeok clearly intended to use this expedition to expand the Baekun Sect's influence in earnest.
"Our sect's representatives have returned!"
Perhaps because of that, by the time they climbed up to the Grand Hall, the Sect Master, the elders, and the disciples were already gathered and preparing to welcome them.
"And Hyeon Yong-gang... well. So it turned out that way."
That was the full extent of the mention of Hyeon Yong-gang. Sect Master Un Song-byeok apparently had no desire to cast a pall of grief over the festive day.
"What is that raccoon?"
"I intend to keep it as a pet."
"Hmm, yes. A cultivator must find ways to steady the mind. Excellent."
Elder Geum Wi-hyeong asked the question, but Han Yuhyeon answered as if it were nothing of consequence. Jeong Cheon-o flinched at having to lie in front of the Sect Master and elders, yet as long as he and Im Su-weol kept silent, the crime was perfect.
In exchange for their silence, Han Yuhyeon had promised each of them a hundred low-grade spirit stones later. Those stones had originally been meant for Hyeon Yong-gang and Jeong Cheon-o anyway, so it was no real loss. Once the Yeong-ha-san mine recovered, that amount would be less than nothing.
"I have prepared a banquet in your honor. You should enjoy yourselves properly before departing for So-ui-ju."
"Ah—thank you."
"No need for thanks. It is this Sect Master who should thank you for volunteering."
Un Song-byeok wore his usual kindly smile as he led the three inner disciples into the banquet hall prepared inside the Grand Hall.
"Ohh..."
Exclamations of awe burst from the mouths of the inner disciples, Han Yuhyeon included.
The table was so lavish and abundant it would not have looked out of place at a feast of immortals. The rich aroma of food and fragrant oils filled the air. Behind the multicolored bowls stood a line of musicians. One almost wondered if this was what the legendary wine pools and meat forests of King Zhou of Shang had looked like.
"Eat and drink freely today."
Un Song-byeok said. It was a grand banquet attended by every inner disciple, registered disciple, and elder. Outer disciples, of course, were not permitted. From the inner disciples upward, they were considered family.
"Kkyang."
Just as Han Yuhyeon was about to take a sip of wine, the raccoon coiled around his calf gave a faint whimper and squeezed.
"..."
Han Yuhyeon slowly lowered his gaze to the creature. For a split second he wondered whether the wine might be poisoned. After watching Mun Il-pyeong get cut down in a single stroke right before his eyes, anything seemed possible. Perhaps the plan was to knock everyone out, turn them into pills, and consume them himself.
But that was pure paranoia. The raccoon squeezed and released his calf while pointing a paw at its own mouth.
Give me some too.
And Han Yuhyeon understood the message with perfect clarity. He had always half-doubted whether he truly understood the raccoon's noises, but this time it was so unmistakable that pretending not to hear was impossible.
Well, dragons were omnivores—so of course they could drink. He had apparently acquired a rather bothersome companion, yet it would likely prove useful later. So he pretended to drink while pouring the wine into the raccoon's mouth at his calf.
"Kyaaaaang!"
The raccoon licked its lips and let out a cry of pure delight. The way it kept its mouth open and poked him with a finger made it clear this was a raccoon that truly loved its liquor.
"Haha. That little one follows you remarkably well. What is its name?"
Un Song-byeok—who moments earlier had been turning everyone into pills inside Han Yuhyeon's fevered imagination—approached and asked. Still not fully free of the delusion, Han Yuhyeon flinched, then quickly composed himself.
"Its name..."
Han Yuhyeon hesitated. If they were going to keep traveling together, he could not keep calling it "dragon" or "raccoon" forever.
The creature seemed rather attached to him; giving it a name might even make it happy.
It was exactly like the agony of choosing a game ID.
"Kkik!"
Oh, for heaven's sake—it even had the hiccups. The way it staggered looked almost like dancing. No one would ever guess this raccoon was a dragon. And if anyone did find out, it would be a disaster. In that instant, a name flashed through Han Yuhyeon's mind.
"Biyong."
"Biyong? You mean Flying Dragon?"
"No. Biyong as in 'Not a Dragon.'"
"Well, of course it isn't. What an unusual name."
Un Song-byeok laughed in mild disbelief and moved on to other disciples. It had been an impulse, but the reaction was exactly what he had hoped for. Satisfying.
"Hey, Biyong."
"Kyaaang?"
Even while thoroughly drunk, this clever raccoon seemed to grasp at once that its name was now Biyong.
Then again, since Han Yuhyeon could understand Biyong's speech to some degree, perhaps Biyong could understand his as well.
"Now then, my disciples. Today is the day we declare that the Baekun Sect will advance even further. This Sect Master does not wish for our sect to remain merely the hegemon of Yeongil-ju. Even if danger awaits us—what is there to fear when we stand together? Raise your cups, all of you!"
While Han Yuhyeon was busy feeding Biyong wine, Un Song-byeok's face had flushed a deep red as he lifted his cup. Han Yuhyeon raised his as well.
"Drink this wine as though it were my own blood! From this day forward we become one body!"
Un Song-byeok roared. Everyone drained their cups with solemn eyes. Han Yuhyeon solemnly pretended to do the same while dumping the wine into Biyong's waiting mouth.
"To the Baekun Sect!"
"To the Baekun Sect!"
"Kkyang!"
In that moment, several dozen cultivators and one raccoon became one.
Of course, Han Yuhyeon—who had not actually drunk a drop—was not included in that oneness.