Moonlight Golden Grass
"What… what absurd speed…"
A storm of emotions churned in the eyes of the man whose throat had been cut by Jin Somyeong: emptiness, fury, and even resentment. He refused to accept that he was about to die.
But what could he do? His head had already been severed. All that remained to him was a curse.
"You will never die in peace! Only after you have suffered every agony in this world will—"
Just before the last spark of life left him, the man howled in defiance—only to be split vertically in two.
Crack!
The second sword stroke, unleashed the instant Jin Somyeong drew his blade, sent the man from this world without even allowing him to finish his final words.
"Hm?"
Yet the malice he left behind did not vanish so easily. It began to merge with magical power and take shape, its hazy outline resembling writhing, grotesque tentacles. It was thoroughly revolting.
Was he a demonic cultivator?
No wonder Jin Somyeong had disliked that gloomy face from the start.
He swung his sword at the squirming energy, intending to scatter it with Sword Qi.
Slash!
Even after being cut into dozens of fragments, it did not disappear. The energy was far more tenacious than he had expected. It regenerated again and again before finally fusing back into one mass and transforming into an invisible wave.
Whoosh!
It was the grudge left behind by a Golden Core demonic cultivator on the brink of death. That resentment had become an actual curse and came flying toward him.
I should burn it away with the Five Elements Divine Lightning.
Since ancient times, lightning had been famous as a power that repelled heresy and evil arts. Jin Somyeong was just about to draw upon the Cheonroedochegyeol to deal with it when an icy chill welled up from deep within his body.
Crack!
The incoming curse froze in an instant, then shattered into countless pieces. This time, it did not even regenerate. Like something that had met its natural predator, it perished the moment it touched the cold energy blooming from within him.
This is… the Flowing Water Reflection Mirror?
He soon realized what had happened. The mirror he had installed inside the Mental Secret Realm—a magical treasure that blocked curses and divination—had activated.
"Oh."
He was still admiring the unexpected assistance when terrible screams filled with agony rang out from every direction.
Kiiiiieeeek!
The swarm of spirit insects that had surrounded him writhed in torment. They lasted only a few seconds before their lives were snuffed out. With the death of their demonic cultivator master, the restrictions placed on them had activated and killed them as well.
…Tsk.
It was an unpleasant sight, one that made his brow furrow on its own. Clicking his tongue, Jin Somyeong raised his magical power.
Wooooong!
He stirred up a wind, gathered the corpses of the spirit insects into a single heap, and burned them all away with the Cheonroedochegyeol. Then he walked over to the headless man and collected his storage pouch and spirit beast pouch.
I wonder what's inside.
Truthfully, he did not expect much. How useful could a demonic cultivator's belongings possibly be? At most, he would sell them off and replenish his stock of high-grade Spirit Stones.
Still, I should check.
He pushed his Divine Sense into the storage pouch, but as expected of something used by a Golden Core cultivator, it had restrictions placed upon it. Since Jin Somyeong was also at the Golden Core realm, he could break them if he spent a few days on it, but that was a nuisance.
After a moment's thought, he simply activated the Mental Secret Realm's divine ability.
An absorbable spatial-type spiritual object has been discovered. Would you like to absorb it?
You may preserve the contents by consuming 10 Boundless Great Ability beads.
The information displayed by the status window felt strange.
Only ten?
The cost in Boundless Great Ability was so low that he found it puzzling. At this point, ten beads were practically free.
Back when I was at Foundation Establishment and tried to absorb a Golden Core storage pouch, it cost a thousand…
After thinking it over, he understood the reason. The amount of Boundless Great Ability required was proportional to the difficulty of fulfilling the wish. Now that his realm had risen and his abilities had improved, it was only natural for the cost to decrease.
That's good news.
There was no need to hesitate. He activated the Mental Secret Realm's divine ability, spending ten beads twice—for a total of twenty—to absorb both the storage pouch and the beast pouch in their entirety.
He roughly examined the items that had newly appeared in his subspace, but every last one of them was related to spirit insects.
As expected.
Nothing looked especially useful. He could simply think of it as having expanded his subspace and earned some high-grade Spirit Stones.
After sweeping the surroundings with Divine Sense to make sure he had not missed anything, he flicked his finger.
Rumble!
Red lightning poured down. With the fire attribute of the Five Elements Divine Lightning, he cleanly burned away the corpse and every trace left behind.
Now, back to the formation.
It had taken him about thirty minutes to track down and eliminate the demonic cultivator wearing the wind-cloaking robe. He was worried about the companions guarding the Moonlight Golden Grass, but he trusted that they would be fine.
Surely they haven't already been overrun.
The Black Cloud Insects were powerful, but a Golden Core cultivator who had set up a formation and prepared defensive measures should be able to endure.
Whoosh!
He flew back along the path he had taken through the sky. Unlike when he had been pursuing the enemy earlier, the Black Cloud Insects no longer interfered with him, so he was able to return in barely ten minutes.
But then…
What the hell is this?
If he had to describe the clearing where the Moonlight Golden Grass grew in a single word, it would be this: chaos.
The formation was on the verge of collapsing under the Black Cloud Insects. Perhaps because it had already been half destroyed, it no longer functioned properly, and the scenery inside the formation was plainly visible.
Hye-gong, who had been controlling his puppets, lay unconscious with blood flowing from his abdomen. Meanwhile, Un Bi was pouring fire-type spells at Madam Ryeo, who stood with the Moonlight Golden Grass at her back.
"Ryeo Jeong! Four petals. No, just give me three, and I'll leave at once. Please, move aside!"
When Un Bi swung a crimson rod, hundreds of flaming throwing blades rained down. Under heat fierce enough to melt the ground, Madam Ryeo's pale skin flushed red, but she gritted her teeth. Panting harshly, she swept out her folding fan and shouted with firm resolve.
"Absolutely not!"
"Damn it! They were supposed to be my share in the first place!"
"Don't be ridiculous! What if you pluck the petals while it's still transforming into Moonlight Golden Grass and damage the spiritual herb?"
Watching the scene from a distance, Jin Somyeong pressed his fingers against his temples.
Well, now.
It was obvious at a glance that someone had betrayed the group. He narrowed his eyes and examined the situation more closely, but it was easy enough to tell who the traitor was.
Un Bi.
The middle-aged man trying to forcibly tear petals from the Moonlight Golden Grass before it had even fully transformed was the culprit.
…Was this because of me?
If the man in the wind-cloaking robe and Un Bi had been accomplices, what was Un Bi feeling right now? Probably as if his blood had run dry.
What loyalty could there be among demonic cultivators? The moment Jin Somyeong and the demonic cultivator clashed, Un Bi's identity as a traitor would be exposed, so he must have decided that he needed to flee immediately.
The ironic part was that even as the demonic cultivator died, he had not mentioned Un Bi's name. The decision had probably been born from malice, hoping Jin Somyeong would be stabbed in the back, but one way or another, he had kept faith.
This truly is a mess.
A sigh escaped him. In truth, the sight was not particularly pleasant to witness. But what could he do? It had already happened.
Step. Step.
As he openly approached the formation, Black Cloud Insects flew at him from every direction. He advanced one step at a time, cutting them all down.
Un Bi, who had been unleashing a fierce offensive against Madam Ryeo, suddenly flinched. He whipped his head toward Jin Somyeong and widened his eyes.
"How are you already back?"
"Ah! Fellow Daoist Jin!"
Their reactions could not have been more different. Jin Somyeong ignored Un Bi, who stared at him as if he were looking at a ghost. In a calm voice, he spoke to Madam Ryeo, who was guarding the Moonlight Golden Grass while controlling the formation.
"Could you open the formation for me? I'll take care of him."
Madam Ryeo's expression brightened at once, and she was just about to nod when Un Bi cried out urgently.
"W-wait! If you open the formation now, the Black Cloud Insects will come pouring in! If even one gets through, the Moonlight Golden Grass will be devoured!"
Madam Ryeo froze just as she was about to manipulate the formation disc. Seeing her frown in hesitation, Jin Somyeong raised his magical power.
Whoooooosh!
For the first time in actual combat, he unleashed the Wind-Fire Divine Scripture at full power. A vast gust of wind, nearly comparable to a typhoon, shook the canyon.
Wooooong!
With one strike into which he poured half his magical power, the surroundings trembled as if an earthquake had struck. The wind swept through the canyon like a natural disaster—and the moment Sword Qi infused it…
Crackle!
The Black Cloud Insects surrounding the formation burst all at once. The sky, which had been dyed black, cleared in an instant.
"Is there still a problem?"
At a divine ability so absurd that no one would believe it came from a first-layer Golden Core cultivator, Madam Ryeo's and Un Bi's eyes shook violently.
"…You're insane. Ryeo Jeong, get a hold of yourself. Do you really think a powerhouse like that will let you live?"
"What are you talking about?"
"He'll kill everyone here and monopolize the Moonlight Golden Grass. It would be better for you to join hands with me and kill him first."
For a moment, Jin Somyeong nearly applauded in admiration.
Hah.
They said a thief saw thieves everywhere. As expected of a traitor, Un Bi spewed nonsense without the slightest hesitation.
His eyes met Madam Ryeo's. It felt like a moment when he should offer some kind of excuse, but he merely shrugged.
Would she believe him even if he said he had no intention of doing such a thing unless they became hostile first? In a situation like this, words meant nothing. Only actions mattered.
Several seconds passed. Madam Ryeo chewed at her lip before finally manipulating the formation disc, and the formation protecting the clearing opened.
"You foolish wench!"
As if trusting Jin Somyeong had been the wrong choice, Un Bi roared and was engulfed in flame. He had cast one of the Five Elements Escape Arts, counted among the fastest movement techniques in the cultivation world: the Fire Escape Art.
Fwoosh!
He split into four streams of flame and fled in the four cardinal directions.
Grrrrnk!
A sound rang out like rough stone being forcibly ground together. It came from the Black Grinding Wheel, the millstone-shaped magical treasure Jin Somyeong had hurled into the sky as it began to rotate.
When he activated the magical treasure he had obtained from Hyeok Cheon-ung, a False Golden Core cultivator, spiderweb-like energy spread from the millstone.
"Kgh?!"
Un Bi, who had just begun to soar upward, suddenly stiffened and struggled. He desperately raised his magical power and broke free of the binding, but he was one step too late.
The instant a sword light resembling moonlight flashed through the air, three of the rising streams of flame scattered like smoke, and a fountain of blood erupted from the last one.
In the brief moment when the energy released by the Black Grinding Wheel had bound him, he had been struck by Jin Somyeong's sword.
Thud!
Un Bi, whose upper body had been split diagonally, crashed to the ground. It was no ordinary wound. It was fatal damage inflicted by Sword Qi, severing his meridians strand by strand.
"S-spare me."
As Un Bi coughed up blood and mumbled in slurred words, Madam Ryeo looked down at him with complicated eyes and shook her head.
"Why did you do it? We've known each other for more than thirty years."
"A m-mistake. I lost my senses for a moment, keugh! Spare…"
He was on the verge of his final breath, but neither Jin Somyeong nor Madam Ryeo helped him. If they spared a traitor, it was obvious that he would burn with vengeance rather than gratitude.
His twitching movements soon stopped completely.
After confirming that Un Bi was dead, Jin Somyeong picked up his storage pouch and the rod-shaped magical treasure. He was just wondering how to divide the spoils when Madam Ryeo spoke.
"Fellow Daoist Jin, you may keep those."
"All of them?"
When he looked back in confusion, Madam Ryeo's attitude seemed a little strange. She was smiling softly, but the corners of her eyes trembled faintly, and whenever their gazes met, her shoulders flinched.
She was clearly tense. It seemed that Un Bi's nonsense had bothered her after all.
Is she afraid I'll kill her?
He sighed inwardly and held out the rod-shaped magical treasure.
"Madam Ryeo, you also went through quite a bit fighting Un Bi. It wouldn't feel right for me to take everything alone. You should keep this magical treasure."
"Ah… thank you."
He had no particular need for a magical treasure that controlled flames, so he did not feel it was a waste. He glanced at Madam Ryeo, who kept stealing looks at him, and asked about the situation in detail.
"What happened?"
"After Fellow Daoist Jin left, we were blocking the Black Cloud Insects when he suddenly launched a surprise attack. I barely managed to defend myself, but Fellow Daoist Hye couldn't withstand it."
It was more or less what he had expected. After seeing Jin Somyeong's abilities, Un Bi had judged that things were going wrong and had tried to grab the petals and flee.
There was just one problem. Jin Somyeong's actual ability was several times greater than Un Bi had predicted. The demonic cultivator had been unable to stall for even a moment before dying to a single sword strike.
From Un Bi's perspective, it had been an unfair death.
"Mm. For now, let's activate the formation again. The Black Cloud Insects will gather soon."
"Ah, yes."
Leaving her to hurriedly reactivate the formation, Jin Somyeong moved. He approached the unconscious Hye-gong and crouched beside him.
Has he been poisoned?
After studying Hye-gong's darkened complexion, Jin Somyeong took out recovery pills from his subspace. Internal injuries, external wounds, detoxification—he ground all kinds of pills into powder and poured them into Hye-gong's mouth.
You're a lucky man.
The pills he was feeding him now were high-grade goods with almost no side effects. They were fairly expensive, but to the wealthy Jin Somyeong, they were nothing significant.
"Uuugh."
Seeing Hye-gong's eyelids tremble, it seemed he would wake soon. As Jin Somyeong rose and brushed himself off, he sensed that Madam Ryeo's tense expression had relaxed considerably.
"It seems I made the right choice asking Fellow Daoist Jin for help."
After seeing him treat Hye-gong, she appeared to have decided that he was not the sort of person who would slaughter his companions just to monopolize the Moonlight Golden Grass.
Wiiiiiiing!
As they dealt with the Black Cloud Insects that began to gather, time quickly passed.
By the time the round moon set and the sun began to rise, the clear fragrance filling the canyon gradually faded.
At last, the Moonlight Golden Grass had been born.
Jin Somyeong stared intently at the flower, now completely dyed in golden light, and thought.
After I helped this much, won't she give me a few more petals?
He hoped Madam Ryeo had a conscience. No, perhaps more accurately, a sense of tact.
And if she did not?
Well… he would probably feel rather deeply disappointed.