Chapter 81
Chapter 81
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 81
Chapter Title: Art and Love
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The eldest member of the Black Bamboo Sect was Yeo Mujin.
He had turned 922 this year.
As a bonus, he was also the strongest cultivator in the mortal world.
Yeo Mujin's daily routine was incredibly regimented.
He repeated meditation and cultivation exercises without a single day off.
The only exception was one day a year: bamboo shoot harvesting day.
Today happened to be bamboo shoot harvesting day.
Yeo Mujin visited the bamboo grove as usual.
It was summer, so he could hear children splashing and playing in the water.
The clear, lively laughter of the children.
To Yeo Mujin, it was a distant memory from long ago.
He gathered the bamboo shoots and returned to his abode.
It was a slightly larger amount than usual.
Yeo Mujin skillfully prepared bamboo shoot rice.
Then he divided it equally into three portions.
One for Yeo Mujin, one for his wife, and one for Seoran.
Today was the day of their regular lesson.
Seoran arrived right on time.
Yeo Mujin and Seoran exchanged words with familiar ease.
"Try using the Spirit Eye Technique."
"Yes!"
Seoran activated the Spirit Eye Technique.
It was different from the moment she first became a Foundation Establishment cultivator.
The overwhelming pressure from Yeo Mujin was gone.
The reason was simple.
The gap between them had narrowed.
Seoran's soul had quietly ascended to unimaginable heights.
Now, only a few steps remained.
Ryu Seoran's growth speed was simply unbelievable.
It was the result of her innate genius combined with the power of the Dharma Treasure.
It was time to aim for the next realm.
Yeo Mujin spoke.
"Today, I'll teach you about the Primal Soul Ceremony."
Seoran's eyes sparkled as she focused intently.
"In truth, you don't need to memorize detailed preparation procedures for the ceremony. The sect will handle all that anyway. The only thing you need to worry about is one: Heavenly Tribulation."
"Heavenly Tribulation?"
"Yes, Heavenly Tribulation. The trial sent down by the heavens themselves."
Yeo Mujin continued his explanation.
The Primal Soul Realm was the transcendence of the soul.
Upon reaching this realm, the soul sheds a layer of husk.
And it condenses into the form of a newborn infant.
The once insignificant soul is reborn in this way.
Leaping to a higher existence.
That was why the Primal Soul took the form of a newborn.
In a sense, it was like defying reincarnation.
Thus, the heavens send down the trial known as Heavenly Tribulation.
Only those cultivators who endure Heavenly Tribulation and prove their worth can reach the Primal Soul Realm.
Seoran was scheduled to attempt it in a few years.
Having finished his explanation, Yeo Mujin handed her a book.
"Read this repeatedly until the Primal Soul Ceremony."
"Understood."
Yeo Mujin also handed her a bundle.
"This is bamboo shoot rice. Share it with your friend at home."
"Oh, this is too much. Thank you so much."
Seoran left with the book and the bamboo shoot rice.
Yeo Mujin carefully set the table.
It was bamboo shoot rice that his beloved wife had enjoyed, and before long, Yeo Mujin had come to love it too.
He placed it before his wife's memorial tablet.
Yeo Mujin still loved his wife.
*****
Seoran ate the bamboo shoot rice with Yi Agum.
Yeo Mujin's cooking was excellent.
After the delightful meal, they enjoyed a cup of tea.
Seoran asked.
"Agum, did you look into what I asked about?"
"Yeah."
"What did people say?"
Seoran was curious why her book wasn't popular.
So she had asked Yi Agum, who had wide connections, to investigate.
Why puppetry books weren't popular.
Yi Agum announced her findings.
"First, the most common response was indifference. They said they had no particular interest in puppetry, so they didn't borrow related books."
"Hmm, I see."
It was a believable result.
Puppetry was a fringe art in the Western Continent.
The important part was the second most common response.
Yi Agum continued.
"The second most common reason was preconceptions. They saw the pottery dolls you made, sis, and got biased against puppetry. They think it's vaguely difficult, so they don't even glance at puppetry books."
"I only wrote one chapter, and it's really easy..."
The third response was as expected.
"The third most frequent answer was lack of interest. They pulled a book from the shelf in the library, read a few pages, found it boring, and put it back."
"It's fun after the beginning..."
Seoran lowered her head.
She felt crushing despair, as if her heart might break.
She couldn't believe this was reality.
For reference, the most popular book this month was an introductory go manual.
"Aah..."
Seoran's heart turned pitch black.
Puppetry is cutting-edge technology in the cultivation world...
How could a technical book lose to a go book?
This would be unimaginable on Earth...
Suddenly, another thought crossed her mind.
Wait a minute, thinking about it, isn't that a bit shameless?
They play with puppets but won't read the introductory book?
Shouldn't they at least read it once out of conscience?
Seoran was heading sadly to her room when she ran into Geum Yeongyeong.
The three-month consecutive top reader was walking while reading a book.
She hadn't let it out of her hands even for a moment lately.
Seoran glared at her with axe eyes.
Come to think of it, no one borrowed my book.
No, does that mean this girl reads a hundred books a month but never once read the one I wrote?
She clearly said she liked puppetry last time!
Seoran asked Geum Yeongyeong, who was passing by in the hallway.
"Yeongyeong, what book are you reading?"
"I'm reading an introductory cooking book."
"Don't you read puppetry? You said it was fun when you tried it before."
"Nope, I don't."
Seoran stammered as she asked.
"Wh-wh-why not?"
"Because other things are more fun."
"Then if you read all the others, you'll read puppetry too?"
Geum Yeongyeong said firmly.
"Nope, still won't. Who reads that stuff these days anyway? I'm too busy with novels."
"Novels?"
"You didn't know? Novels are all the rage right now."
The trend had shifted from technical books to novels in the meantime.
Now even people without expert knowledge could write books and become authors.
All it took was imagination and storytelling.
Seoran asked curiously.
"But you're reading a cooking intro book right now."
"I'm reading a novel where the protagonist is a chef."
With that, Geum Yeongyeong went into her room.
"Ah, I see."
Seoran's question was resolved.
No wonder she was reading a cooking book that didn't suit her.
I thought she was taking bride lessons or something.
She just got interested because of the chef protagonist?
As she nodded, another thought struck her.
Huh, then maybe I could...
Seoran decided to become a novelist.
*****
Seoran firmly believed herself to be a great artist on par with Leonardo da Vinci.
And among the countless talents of the historic genius da Vinci, literary talent was included.
Seoran would not be outdone.
Literature was also art.
The Puppetry Primer wasn't popular.
But that was only because it was a technical book.
If it was a novel written by the great artist Ryu Seoran, it would be different.
Burn bright, my artistic soul.
Seoran began writing a full-length novel.
The elements of a novel's structure were three.
Characters, setting, and events.
Seoran started with characters right away.
To naturally pique readers' interest in puppetry, she made a puppeteer the protagonist.
As a bonus, she quickly created a puppet companion.
For the setting, she referenced reality for immersion.
A world blending the Eastern and Western Continents appropriately.
Her travels around the corners of both continents had been very helpful.
The events were journeys encountered during travels.
To complete a puppet with a soul, the puppeteer protagonist sets off on an adventure with her puppet.
She planned to string together short episodes while keeping the main storyline.
The genre was adventure.
The theme was based on good triumphs over evil, with a touch of sci-fi philosophy.
Humans colder than soulless puppets, a puppet girl confused by her sudden ego, and light touches on the anguish of existence and justice.
Looking at the completed manuscript, Seoran had a gut feeling.
"Ugh, it's a flop. Total flop."
It didn't seem like it would ever take off.
The fateful meeting between the puppeteer boy and the puppet girl.
A bland structure of introduction, development, climax, and resolution.
Clichéd tropes and overcooked themes boiled to the bone.
It reeked of a boring classic novel.
Literature isn't my path, I guess.
Yeah, no one can be good at everything.
It's humanizing to have one weakness. Humanizing.
Seoran regretted the half year spent writing and published the book anyway.
The title was 'The Puppeteer Boy and the Puppet Girl'.
She had no expectations of it succeeding.
And Seoran became a literary giant.
*****
Seoran's full-length novel shattered records.
There were so many people wanting to borrow it that it went into reprint after reprint, and then again.
In the end, the printing press broke down.
It swept every category: book of the month, recommended book of the month, popular new release of the month, recommended new release of the month.
The Puppetry Primer's rental ranking was still dead last, meaning she occupied both the top and bottom of the charts simultaneously.
An astonishing achievement.
The Scripture Pavilion's publishing manager came to see Seoran.
"Author Ryu, when will the next volume be ready?"
Seoran asked in surprise.
"Next volume? Already?"
"Will it take long?"
"At least half a year..."
The manager said.
"Oh dear, that's troubling. People are waiting..."
Seoran couldn't understand.
Is this novel really that popular?
It doesn't seem like it...
Maybe my sensibilities are that different from others?
After pondering, the manager said.
"Then let's cut it into shorter lengths and publish. We can bundle them later."
"But honestly, I have no confidence..."
The manager motivated her.
"The Puppetry Primer rentals are exploding right now too."
"Fine, let's give it a shot!"
Motivation boosted, complete!