Chapter 47
Chapter 47
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 47
Chapter Title: Chain Rampage Incident (10)
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Those Wood People who couldn't withstand their own power and turned into monsters were called Ents, while the humans who seized the power of Wood People were known as the Corrupted.
The standards of this world were governed by the will of the World Tree, so it was only natural that what they were called changed depending on whether they wielded the World Tree's power well or not.
Then,
what should a World Tree that had become a monster be called?
At first glance, there was the view that the fall of a World Tree—positioned as absolute good—was impossible.
Just as the many faiths in other worlds denied their gods' corruption, so too did the churches of this world reject the notion of their god's fall.
However, tracing back through the hidden paths of history revealed that just ten years ago, corrupted World Trees that had been denied did exist.
That shocking truth had incited riots,
yet though many deliberately averted their eyes, the facts remained unchanged.
Some scholars, shunning society's gaze, classified such beings accordingly.
If World Trees were termed Divine Trees—
then it was fitting to call them Wood Ghosts.
And those Wood Ghosts slumbered in this world's deep seas, its skies, and its vast earth.
The scholars murmured their consensus in secret. They issued no such definition to the outside world.
-Grrrrrr.
And so the Wood Ghost was born.
It took the form of a World Tree that had degenerated into neither monster nor Ent.
One might mistake it for a colossal beast at a glance. Yet the aura emanating from within was unmistakably that of a World Tree—a presence felt not only by me, but by everyone there.
The incomplete descent of an evil spirit.
How many Wood People and Ents had it absorbed to achieve that form?
It was in no condition to sustain the fight.
Death alone awaited us.
"You're still alive."
Cheon-do's low voice warmly caressed the nape of my neck.
"Te-teacher!"
"Boss, fuck, why'd you take so damn long?"
Rosie and P reacted each in their own way, their tension finally easing.
I too released the iron grip on my shoulders and let my throbbing eyelids droop.
"Phew. It's not like we're fated to die."
"Laying down your life? Seems premature for that."
"Don't jinx it."
A massive vine lunged at Cheon-do's back.
-Slash.
The severed vine fell limply to the floor. Had the support magic's time limit expired? My eyes couldn't even track her drawing her sword.
"Still, surviving that explosion was impressive."
"Heh heh. Really thought I was done for."
Cheon-do's smiling eyes fluttered, her eyelashes dancing in the wind.
"Learn anything?"
"Nothing specific. Just memories of smashing stuff."
"You really take after Baek-do."
"Hate hearing that."
Cheon-do sheathed her sword at her waist with a smirk. She seemed to smile more today than usual.
"Well. This is training—a lesson too. Watch closely. It'll all build bone and muscle."
Her hair turned snow-white.
Baek-do soon opened her eyes, gripped her shoulder, shook her neck, then turned to check on me.
"Third disciple. I don't like hearing you take after me either."
She spat the words curtly, then drew mana up through her entire body.
"From now on, these words are Cheon-do's."
The massive Wood Ghost churned its bloated shell as it lumbered toward Baek-do.
-Kraaaaa!
A ear-splitting roar filled the abandoned factory. Stone dust rained from the ceiling, the sound waves making it tremble.
"Si-heon. Watch and learn well."
Baek-do's serious voice matched Cheon-do's so uncannily it felt like she herself was speaking.
"It's no easy task. But I believe you can grasp it fully."
The air vibrated.
Baek-do rose into the sky, her eyes gleaming blue as she clenched her fists tight.
"Beginning."
She stepped back with one foot, assuming her stance.
I captured that profound mystery with my own eyes.
"One (一). The white flower that blooms is the Baek-do (White Peach)." She detailed each stance and its name precisely, methodically destroying the trees lunging at her. "Two (二). The white one blooming in myriad layers is the Mancheop Baek-do (Ten Thousand Layers White Peach)." Two roots whipping in from both sides scattered into powder. "Three (三). The one that blooms red is called the Mancheop Hong-do (Ten Thousand Layers Red Peach)." White and crimson petals scattered in her wake. This time, the two falling blossoms converged to a single point. "Four (四). The one bearing both energies at once is called the Barae Boksado." The Wood Ghost's massive fist swinging at her shattered, pierced at one point. -Kraaaaa! Behind the screaming beast, Cheon-do murmured to me. "Five (五). The flat one is the Gam Boksado." Her gesture severed the Wood Ghost's neck. Yet it regenerated relentlessly. Still gazing at her prized disciple, she continued. "Six (六). The one pointy-tipped and round is the Yongan Boksado." The names of each fruit. Every form held its unique truth. Stances infused with esoteric aura, each with its own power. The flowing motions unified into one form. "Seven (七)." As I etched the final motion into my eyes. "The one shedding its rough fuzz: Cheon-do (Heavenly Peach). Or Seung-do (Monk Peach)." ⟨ Peach Tree Forms ⟩
The colossal Wood Ghost and trees had vanished, reduced to powder drifting in the air.
Baek-do, channeling mana of utter purity, gazed down at me impassively.
"This is the peach tree's entirety, handed down from antiquity. Fist, sword, and inner power as one. Do you grasp its mystery?"
I nodded silently, facing the blooming flowers in every hue.
Obeying Cheon-do's words, Baek-do gave a wry smile.
"As expected, you're a genius."
Tap—she placed her hand on my head.
My halted time resumed.
Goosebumps rippled across my skin without end.
The inspiration they granted chained endlessly, unrelenting.
Today, I finally acknowledged these women who so freely shared the vast power amassed over ages.
We trusted each other as master and disciple for the first time.
The moment I truly became her disciple.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Nameless pharmaceutical company.
In that place thick with the stench of rotting corpses, several men arrived gripping mop handles.
"Today it's here?"
"Yeah. Probably just need to finish that side."
What the hell had happened here?
Facing the shredded bodies, the men couldn't help frowning.
"Baek-do, right? She really tore them apart. Is this the power one person can wield?"
"Who knows. But as C-rank hunters, what's the point overthinking it?"
We just clean up the corpses and do the job.
The smirking man earned a firm nod from the other. To them, S-rank hunter prowess was inhuman.
They mopped blood, hauled bodies.
They puked a few times en route, but the pay made the revulsion tolerable.
"Heard academy cadets were involved this time."
"Yeah, the San Su-yu lady and... who was it? Lee Si-heon? He got an award yesterday too."
"Riding high. Teamed with that Baek-do woman, scored an award off it. Heh heh."
The chain Wood Person rampage incident—and Peach Blossom Haven's resolution of it.
Not long ago, it had caused quite the stir.
Front-page news on Baek-do and her team, portal sites, trending searches, even broadcasts—nowhere escaped coverage.
Drug trafficking sparking Wood Person rampages.
Tied straight to public safety, citizens unleashed fury on the government's incompetence.
"Come to think of it, Lee Si-heon's a human, right?"
"Yeah?"
And so Lee Si-heon's name began to rise.
Solving the prior cult fiasco dovetailed with his role in ending this crisis, catapulting cadet Lee Si-heon's value skyward.
Numerous guilds recruiting him, they said.
Various families eyeing him covetously—no article needed to confirm that.
"Cool, huh? First human cadet to blow up like this."
"Cool my ass."
One man's envy drew scoffing dismissal from the other.
"Just propping up a star. Human hunter. Human cadet. Perfect poster boy, no?"
"Well... but there's Jeong Si-woo too."
"Kid's a World Tree husband candidate."
Yeah, Jeong Si-woo was untouchable sainthood.
"But seriously, what kinda guy is this Lee Si-heon?"
Even if the Hunter Association wanted a star,
articles piled up because he had real worth.
So thinking, the man reached for a severed hand on the desk, picturing Lee Si-heon.
A letter protruded from the fist clutching something dear.
"...What's this?"
Handwritten missive.
He sensed instinctively it was no trifle.
He tore it open, scanned the contents.
A chilling endorsement of drug distribution, an offer of aid.
At the letter's close, a family name in brief.
Cornerus Family.
The man wiped sweat, muttering low.
"This...... looks like."
Another wave of fallout was brewing.