Chapter 47
Chapter 47
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: Spell Arts Competition
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Meanwhile, in the spectator stands on the outskirts of the competition grounds, two old loafers were chatting about the spell arts competition.
“Senior Brothers Geum, Deung, and Man have all ascended to the Response Qi Greater Completion stage. I knew it would happen. Those seniors are at Response Qi 9th Star. They've been on the verge of Response Qi Greater Completion for ages. They're the ones who'll claim the Gathering Qi Pills at the Gathering Qi Trials, right?”
“What are you talking about? Sure, they're outstanding, but they'll fall short in the Gathering Qi Trials.”
Geum Muk! Deung Ja-jin! Man Sa-yeong!
They had shone in the Response Qi Realm martial tournament, but in the Gathering Qi Trials, they were merely secondary figures in terms of presence.
Their fame had peaked at Response Qi 9th Star. Once they reached Response Qi Greater Completion, they were just newcomers.
Response Qi Greater Completion—the specters of the Response Qi Realm haunting the gateway to Gathering Qi.
In the Gathering Qi Trials, these specters emerged to vie for the Gathering Qi Pills.
“So, who do you think will claim the Gathering Qi Pills?”
“I'd say the highest odds in this Gathering Qi Trials go to those two...”
Two specters who had been immersed in cultivation for inferior Gathering Qi had broken out of seclusion.
The winner of the previous Response Qi Realm martial tournament, Heavenly Spirit Young Master Jang Su-wi!
Born with the Heavenly Spirit Body perfectly suited for spell arts, Jang Su-wi was renowned for wielding spells powerful enough to damage even Gathering Qi Realm cultivators.
He had proudly claimed victory in the previous Response Qi Realm tournament and had long since grown accustomed to the Greater Completion stage.
Next,
Capable Dao Young Master Seok Chun-sam, known as the closest to Gathering Qi.
He was a long-time Response Qi Greater Completion specter. According to rumors, he was just one step away from inferior Gathering Qi.
But lacking that final trigger, he had wandered beyond the sect gates seeking enlightenment, only to fail. Now, he aimed to form earthly Gathering Qi with a Gathering Qi Pill in this Gathering Qi Trials.
Having lingered so long in Response Qi Greater Completion, his understanding of the Response Qi Realm ran deeper than anyone's, and he could wield its power with complete freedom.
Rumor had it that even during his Response Qi days, he had caught an elder's eye and would be accepted as a named disciple upon reaching Gathering Qi Realm.
These two were the ones expected to stand out in the Gathering Qi Trials.
The promising stars of this tournament, who had been at Response Qi 9th Star not long ago, had certainly drawn attention—but how could they compare to the Response Qi Greater Completion specters?
“You think those two are the frontrunners?”
“The other three great sects have their share of formidable talents too. But our Radiant Moon Sect's two Response Qi Realm pride themselves no less!”
The old loafer swung a fist at the air. The other, as if about to counter, stammered his question.
“Th-that's right. There's the winner of this Response Qi Realm tournament. Yi Yuk-gyeong, the Single Spiritual Root wielder! What about him? Doesn't he have a shot? The elders called him half a step from Gathering Qi!”
“Him in the Gathering Qi Trials? He was at Response Qi 8th Star back then. I don't know how he reached Greater Completion, but it'll be tough. In Response Qi Greater Completion, only time determines the power. Only the long-aged Response Qi Greater Completion specters wield true might. No matter how much 'half a step to Gathering Qi,' Greater Completion is still just Greater Completion.”
“What if Yi Yuk-gyeong is a genius who transcends that time gap? He's a Single Spiritual Root, isn't he? Couldn't he leap over the gap?”
“If he's a genius who can surpass time itself, sure. But can a Single Spiritual Root overcome time like that? I doubt it. Of course, reaching Greater Completion so quickly is impressive—talent for the Radiant Moon Sect's history books. But that's only up to late Response Qi. After Greater Completion, it's a whole different story.”
“I see. Even a Single Spiritual Root can't beat the passage of time, huh?”
No hero stands against the ravages of time.
Recalling this adage, people paid little attention to Outer Disciple Yi Yuk-gyeong.
His rapid ascent to Response Qi Greater Completion was astonishing, but could he shine in the spell arts competition among the time-tempered Greater Completion cultivators?
Most thought not.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Spell arts competition.
For Response Qi Greater Completion disciples, it was a decisive contest much like the martial tournament.
However, the spell arts competition was more serene and traditional. The two competitors stepped forward and took positions at opposite ends of the stage. Then, they unleashed spells at each other to see whose was stronger.
The first match was,
Coincidentally, between Yuk-gyeong and someone else.
“Disciple Yi Yuk-gyeong and Disciple Jin Wi-an! Ascend to the competition stage!”
Disciple Jin Wi-an.
He climbed the stage with supreme confidence. His bold stride seemed downright arrogant.
And rightly so—he was a veteran of Response Qi Greater Completion, having reached it quite some time ago.
Yuk-gyeong faced him and offered a light cupped-fist salute.
Jin Wi-an merely tilted his head in response. A rather insolent gesture.
“Yi Yuk-gyeong? I'm Jin Wi-an. Let's have a good match.”
“Likewise. I look forward to it.”
As the two exchanged greetings, a vortex of spiritual energy swirled between them.
The calm before the storm.
It was as if the pair were reefs in an ocean of spiritual energy, generating massive flows between them.
Proof of how powerfully they interfered with heaven-earth spiritual energy.
The true spell arts competition began!
The Response Qi bottleneck hadn't just been a trial for Yuk-gyeong.
It had blocked his path forward, but in turn, forced him to look back.
What was the Response Qi Realm?
Also called Qi Response, it was the stage of refining qi. It accustomed the body to spiritual energy and built the foundation for harmony with it.
At Response Qi Greater Completion, Yuk-gyeong's body could theoretically harmonize with spiritual energy.
He couldn't yet store it within to form inner force since he hadn't reached Gathering Qi, but he had achieved free inflow and outflow, where inner and outer qi were no longer vastly different.
In other words,
When heaven-earth spiritual energy passed through his body and lingered for a moment, casting a spell then allowed control rivaling Gathering Qi Realm.
Gathering Qi cultivators stored spiritual energy as inner force, while Response Qi Greater Completion mimicked it.
Thus, their spells weren't easily disrupted by simple spiritual interference like lesser Response Qi cultivators.
In simple terms, Yuk-gyeong could now wield spells proficiently!
'Not quite Gathering Qi level, but this is proper spell arts. Anything before Greater Completion was too crude. Let's start with the Fire Snake Spell.'
Yuk-gyeong formed a hand seal with one hand while muttering an incantation. A slender stream of fire appeared in the air and surged toward his opponent.
Yuk-gyeong's preemptive strike.
Screeech!
Roar!
“Trying to face me with a basic Fire Spell?!”
His Response Qi Greater Completion opponent confidently formed a hand seal.
Water overcomes fire! His Water Flow Spell countered the Fire Spell with the ferocity of a waterfall.
The moment Yuk-gyeong's Fire Spell was swallowed by the Water Flow Spell,
The moment the slender Fire Spell seemed on the verge of extinguishing,
Yuk-gyeong's exceptional spiritual energy control made even the same Fire Spell stronger and more refined. That was why his was particularly slender.
Moreover, the Flame Demon Ring he'd practiced had accustomed him to fire-attribute spiritual energy while honing his skill in summoning and wielding primal demons like the Fire Spell.
In short, Yuk-gyeong's Fire Spell was as powerful as one from a Gathering Qi cultivator!
Sizzle! Crackle!
Meeting Yuk-gyeong's Fire Spell, the Water Flow Spell boiled violently and began evaporating.
Water overcomes fire? Affinity reverses before overwhelming power.
Against Yuk-gyeong's scorching Fire Spell, the opponent's Water Flow Spell was like tea in a cup—boiling over and vanishing into steam in an instant.
“H-how?! How can a fire spell devour a water spell instead of being devoured?!”
The opponent cried out in shock, formed another seal, gathered the evaporated steam, and erected a wall of water.
Clearly no pushover, as he cleverly used his surroundings.
Creating spells like Fire or Water Flow from nothing was hard, but forming a barrier from existing steam was far easier.
Thus, even in panic, he successfully raised the water wall.
However,
Sizzle! Crackle!
“N-no!”
Yuk-gyeong's Fire Spell hadn't lost momentum after vaporizing the Water Flow Spell—it was enough to evaporate the water wall too, a fact his opponent had overlooked.
Roar!
Yuk-gyeong's Fire Spell exploded right before his foe, shooting into the sky.
Yuk-gyeong had deliberately detonated it in his opponent's face.
“I-I concede...”
“Winner: Yi Yuk-gyeong!”
He won the first match handily with a single Fire Spell.
Response Qi cultivators unfamiliar with advanced spell arts didn't grasp the profundity of Yuk-gyeong's Fire Spell, but they knew the victor was extraordinary.
Cheers for the genius Single Spiritual Root wielder Yuk-gyeong erupted from the crowd.
“Yi Yuk-gyeong! Senior Brother Yuk-gyeong!”
“Single Spiritual Root! The best! As expected of one who reached Greater Completion so swiftly!”
“Yi Yuk-gyeong! Yi Yuk-gyeong! Go, senior brother!”