Chapter 24
Chapter 24
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 24
Chapter Title: Sparring Tournament (2)
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Yuk-gyeong had barely scraped by under the Response Qi 8th Star limit, so in truth, his cultivation level fell far short of what was needed to aim for victory.
Those gunning for the top spot were all at Response Qi 9th Star—and not just any ordinary 9th Stars, but brilliant prodigies highly valued by their sects.
For example, the sword genius Geum Muk that everyone had been talking about earlier, the flame sorceress Man Sa-yeong, the Thunder Spiritual Root wielder Deung Cha-jin, and so on...
Right on cue, the first match began.
Yuk-gyeong watched it intently.
Anyone could be someone I'd have to surpass. Gauging the victors was crucial. Know thyself and thy enemy, and you'll win a hundred battles!
Yuk-gyeong's goal was, naturally, victory.
As a Single Spiritual Root cultivator at the Response Qi stage, he had to prove he was the finest budding talent among the rising stars of the sect.
Moreover, he'd fully mastered the Supreme Primordial Yang Chant Scripture and had more than enough time to push to Response Qi 9th Star,
so his level was effectively teetering on the edge of 9th Star.
Through his eyes, he could now roughly gauge the prowess of a 9th Star cultivator. Just one minor realm apart, after all.
Yuk-gyeong widened his eyes.
One of the two had an overwhelmingly superior aura. From the way the spiritual energy raged wildly around him, Yuk-gyeong predicted his victory.
The spiritual energy was spiking and crackling—it wasn't ordinary spiritual energy at all... It had a special attribute.
Pew! Flash!
Rumble!
A bolt of lightning erupted from his hand, charring the freckled-faced youth's skin pitch-black. Unable to bear the excruciating pain, the youth cried out in surrender.
"Aaaagh! I yield!"
"Good work."
The man had turned his opponent into a soot-covered wreck in an instant, offered a curt greeting, and stepped down from the arena without so much as a glance at the loser.
It was so overwhelmingly dominant that the match ended with a single spell. Yet the face of the man who wielded lightning showed boredom rather than fatigue.
The victor was,
"Deung Cha-jin wins!"
Deung Cha-jin, possessor of the rare Thunder Spiritual Root!
Assigned to the same batch as Yuk-gyeong, currently at Response Qi 9th Star!
He had Three Spiritual Roots, but thanks to his rare spiritual root, he was highly regarded in the main sect.
The Thunder Spiritual Root was exceedingly rare, allowing one not only to absorb thunder-attuned heaven-earth spiritual energy but also forging deep ties to the heavenly tribulations known as sky lightning.
He wielded thunderbolt spells renowned for their devastating power yet notoriously difficult to control, and word was he handled thunder spiritual energy with effortless mastery.
He even had a nickname already: Thunder Spirit Young Master Deung Cha-jin.
One of the top contenders for victory, Deung Cha-jin was infamous in the main sect for his arrogance.
Look at him.
Strutting off without a word to the loser, just tossing him a haughty glance. What a jerk.
Yuk-gyeong thought as he watched him.
His face is serpentine. A snake that'd devour its own kin. Coiled and waiting, sinking fangs into any exposed nape—a cold-blooded psychopath who feels nothing even after killing!
He was handsome, sure, but his expression was chillingly impassive.
And just then, Deung Cha-jin's gaze turned this way.
And he started sauntering over.
Yuk-gyeong, who'd just been thinking of him as a snake and a psychopath, felt a twinge of guilt, but steeling himself with the thought that no one could read minds, he asked the man who planted himself right in front of him,
"Do you need something from me, Senior Brother Deung?"
"Nothing major. Just thought it might be nice to mingle with a fellow butterfly, like butterflies drawn to each other."
Deung Cha-jin's voice was low and resonant.
He'd approached Yuk-gyeong out of the blue with this bizarre remark, but Yuk-gyeong couldn't make heads or tails of it.
Butterflies? Out of season? What butterflies?
And his voice was worlds warmer than the curt "good work" he'd uttered on the arena.
Wasn't he supposed to be a jerk...?
"Fellow butterfly?"
"You're handsome, aren't you? So am I. It's human nature to be drawn to beauty."
Cha-jin spoke as if stating the obvious.
So, handsome guys are butterflies, huh?
Yuk-gyeong nodded. Fair enough—I'm beautiful, after all. Just look at this face. Anyone would call it sculpted perfection.
But...
"Beautiful?"
As Yuk-gyeong's expression turned peculiar, Cha-jin chuckled and said,
"Ah, don't misunderstand. Sure, there are folks with tastes for the same sex, but that's not me."
"I wasn't particularly misunderstanding."
"You had the look of someone who was. Anyway, I hope you put on a great show."
With that, Deung Cha-jin waved and walked away.
What the hell was that guy's deal?
Did he really just come over to build rapport? For one conversation?
I'd heard he was insufferably arrogant in the main sect because of his Thunder Spiritual Root. Why's he being so warm?
Even encouraging me to do well in my matches. Sorry for trash-talking you in my head.
A figure like Deung Cha-jin—top contender, Response Qi 9th Star powerhouse—would naturally be haughty. For someone of his near-anonymous status like Yuk-gyeong to catch his interest was absurd.
Even disciples had invisible ranks; not all were equal in others' eyes.
Disciples like Deung Cha-jin stuck to their own league: fellow Response Qi 9th Stars or sect-favored elites.
Well, if we're splitting hairs, Yuk-gyeong could count himself among the favored too. He was that remarkable Single Spiritual Root cultivator, after all.
Then why doesn't it feel that way to me?
Even Senior Brother Deung over there.
I'm a Single Spiritual Root cultivator, yet he came over because I'm handsome?
Yuk-gyeong vowed to win the tournament outright and show the world the majesty of a Single Spiritual Root cultivator.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Finally, finally!
I've emerged from years of grueling seclusion! Let my enemies tremble, and the world quake in fear!
How long was that seclusion? An endless torment of hunger, loneliness, and boredom.
But I'd overcome every trial and tribulation, reached my desired realm, and broken through!
Current level: Response Qi 9th Star!
I could already see myself ascending to Gathering Qi soon, earning sect support, and entering the inner sect.
And then...
My mission would truly be on track.
That's right. I'm a spy.
A demonic sect infiltrator sent into the Radiant Moon Sect to steal its secrets. Only a handful of key figures knew this. My deployment itself was top secret.
I, Bok Jae-seong, had entered the Radiant Moon Sect as a pure mortal without even the Capital Formation stage.
Who'd suspect a spy starting from a talentless youth with no cultivation?
They'd never imagine I'd been raised from childhood to swear loyalty to the demonic sects, with my entire family thriving there.
Thus, my disguise was flawless.
Here, posing as a talented disciple, my goal was to infiltrate the sect leadership and siphon off Radiant Moon Sect intelligence.
To that end, I'd endured agony in seclusion to raise my cultivation.
For the demonic sects and my mission alone!
Having toiled on the front lines for demonic prosperity, I'd surely be treated as a major figure upon my return.
And the key to that was ascending to Gathering Qi.
Response Qi disciples had severely limited access to information—mere trivia at best. I had to surpass Response Qi quickly.
But one can't just cultivate and seclude forever. Having solidified my desired realm, I broke seclusion for a breather.
So, for a bit of fun, I entered the Response Qi sparring tournament. A mood booster. A 9th Star like me competing felt almost like cheating.
Might as well snag an easy win while I'm at it?
Though billed as a break, this was part of the mission.
As a demonic sect operative, crushing these Radiant Moon Sect fools would implant defeatism, shatter their growth drive, and prevent them from becoming threats—uprooting the weeds at the root.
Yeah, I'm not playing around. This is mission work. For the demonic sects!
The sect boasted geniuses galore.
Geum Muk with sword immortal aptitude, Man Sa-yeong with spellcasting genius, Deung Cha-jin with his rare Thunder Spiritual Root, and more...
But none of them measured up to me.
I'm a Dual Spiritual Root cultivator, after all.
From sensing spiritual energy onward, we were worlds apart. They groped at it like the blind touching an elephant; I beheld the whole beast.
This innate gap showed in spellcasting too.
Response Qi spells might seem crude to higher realms, but even among them, tiers existed.
Naturally, Quad Spiritual Root spells paled to Triple, Triple to Dual—it stood to reason.
So how refined would a Dual Spiritual Root cultivator's spells be?
Today, I'd demonstrate that in the tournament.
My first opponent is,
Yi Yuk-gyeong?
What a nobody.
Better end this quick.