Chapter 94
Chapter 94
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 94
Chapter Title: Reward
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Ha-ryeong did not choose a Tang Clan martial art.
"It's not complete, but I did learn the Tang Clan's martial arts."
For hidden weapons, the Emotionless Killing Style. On top of that, the Myriad Blossoms Falling Like Rain she secretly learned by peeking. For internal energy heart method, the Vast Righteousness Returning to Origin Art.
"I only learned about half of each incantation, but I thought it would be better to get a completely superior martial art now rather than obtaining the latter halves at this point."
The Emotionless Killing Style is indeed the representative hidden weapon art of the Tang Clan. But there's a trap in that word 'representative.'
In other words, it means the Emotionless Killing Style is a martial art that most Tang Clan warriors can use. Of course, since the Tang Clan occupies the leadership in the massive Killing Guard Sect, there aren't that many Tang Clan warriors themselves. But since it's a martial art that most of the clan members can learn and use, it's not a technique of particularly high grade.
On the flip side, it means Ha-ryeong wasn't even allowed to properly learn the Emotionless Killing Style, which most Tang Clan warriors could learn.
Similarly, the Vast Righteousness Returning to Origin Art is treated as a basic heart method in the Tang Clan.
"Isn't the Poison Blood Ghost God Art a pretty good martial art?"
It was in the game, but Ha-ryeong shook her head.
"There are too many things needed to learn the Poison Blood Ghost God Art."
That martial art creates a poison mass in the dantian, transforming the internal energy itself into poison. It's an art that makes one's qi and blood flow with poison instead of blood and internal energy, turning one into a poison person.
What represents the Tang Clan is hidden weapons and poison. The Tang Clan has accumulated all sorts of poisons throughout the clan's history. The Poison Blood Ghost God Art requires steadily consuming poisons stage by stage from the moment of initiation to form the poison mass in the dantian.
In other words, it's a martial art practically impossible for outsiders to learn. Even if one somehow obtains the manual and initiates into the Poison Blood Ghost God Art, without the poisons, it's meaningless.
"The Heavenly Woman Veil Art is of a lower grade. When there's a chance to obtain a supreme divine art, choosing the Heavenly Woman Veil Art just because it's a Tang Clan martial art would be foolish."
Taiji Reverse Intent Scripture.
The martial art Ha-ryeong chose was one that didn't exist in the game, completely new even to Yuri.
A poison of intent martial art. It's the art of the warrior known as the Heavenly Killing Poison Physician from a hundred years ago, a supreme divine art without any shortcomings in name.
As such, it's profoundly difficult, and until reaching a certain realm, one can't expect much power as a poison art. One must at least reach the minimum of 6th Tier to properly use intent, and even reaching 6th Tier doesn't mean one can immediately use Intent Poison.
But if one can transform intent into poison and control it according to the Taiji Reverse Intent Scripture—then with will alone, one can destroy protective aura and infiltrate to poison the target.
"Until reaching the realm, Intent Poison can't even be used, but it's incomparable to my half-assed Vast Righteousness Returning to Origin Art. The internal energy operation itself is on a different level."
It sounded that way, but calling it a poison art while not being able to properly handle real poison seemed quite fatal. Though the detailed incantation wasn't known—based on Ha-ryeong's story alone, the Taiji Reverse Intent Scripture seemed like a half-assed martial art.
Because it doesn't handle real poison, only Intent Poison. If she didn't focus solely on Intent Poison and added the Tang Clan's real poison arts to handle poison qi, Ha-ryeong's martial prowess would undoubtedly see a massive leap. Since she had been holding goodwill and become a comrade, Ha-ryeong growing stronger was in no way bad for Yuri.
'Either way, I need to resolve the Tang Clan issue.'
Thinking positively, it was fortunate that Ha-ryeong didn't choose the Poison Blood Ghost God Art.
In the game, the Poison Blood Ghost God Art is a unique skill.
The current Tang Clan patriarch is the Poison King, but killing the Tang Clan patriarch in the game, the Venom King, drops an epic poison skill. If Yuri's guess was right and Ha-ryeong was the current patriarch's illegitimate child, in a position to claim legitimacy in the Tang Clan—then if the Tang Clan's situation was properly resolved, it would be possible for her to inherit that epic skill.
"I'll be holed up in my room for a few days to initiate into the Taiji Reverse Intent Scripture, so even if you miss me, Yuri, please hold back."
"Yes."
"Even if you can't endure and knock on the door, I won't open it."
"I won't knock."
"If you force the door open or sneak in through the window at night, then."
"That won't happen, so don't worry."
They exchanged their usual silly banter and returned to their respective rooms.
His body wasn't fully recovered yet, but he could sit quietly and do breathing exercises and meditation.
'Four Extremes Reverse Heaven Flag.'
He tried consciously summoning it as a test, but the red flag didn't appear. As he felt at first—this flag doesn't appear normally. It only shows when one reaches the Four Extremes, when death is imminent.
'If I use this, won't the War Church track me down?'
It was a worry he had even when first deciding to choose the Four Extremes Reverse Heaven Flag, but better than failing to overcome the Four Extremes and dying. Yuri quietly set aside thoughts of the non-appearing Four Extremes Reverse Heaven Flag and immersed himself in the Heavenly Principle Annihilating Evil Art and Four Gates Sealing Thunder.
*
Three days passed. He only had trivial chats whenever Estor visited, but Yuri didn't leave his room for those three days either. The servants brought everything needed, so there was no need to go out.
"I can't believe you really didn't knock even once."
Ha-ryeong grumbled when she visited after three days.
"You told me not to."
"Since when did you listen so well?"
"I don't think there was ever a time I didn't listen."
The time was too short to feel any joy of reunion.
"Did you initiate successfully?"
"It was quite arduous due to the difficulty, but yes."
Outwardly, there was no change. But Yuri's sensitive sense for mana could vaguely feel that Ha-ryeong's qi had qualitatively changed.
'No, in the midst of changing.'
That's why it was readable, being in that process.
"Congratulations."
"Congratulations."
Estor, who had been standing blankly, said the same. Ha-ryeong nodded with her usual stoic face and stared intently at Yuri.
"I want to congratulate you too, but I can't tell what change happened to you, Yuri."
"I was just in need of your help."
"You're really doing it?"
Estor grumbled with a fed-up face. If Ha-ryeong hadn't come today, he would have had to ask Estor to do it instead.
"What kind of help do you need exactly?"
Ha-ryeong tilted her head and asked, then upon hearing the answer, she openly scowled at Yuri.
"Are you insane?"
"It's better if you do it than Estor."
"Well... that does seem right. If it's what the crazy Yuri wants, I'll do it... but is it really okay?"
"Yes."
"Understood."
She didn't seem eager, but it wasn't a request she'd refuse while making a fuss.
Ha-ryeong stepped back a good distance, gripped daggers in both hands, and put on a serious expression.
"I'll ask again, are you really okay with this?"
"Wait a moment."
In the middle of the spacious room. Yuri, not only with eyes closed but also wrapped in thick cloth, nodded. Thanks to resting fully for three days, moving his body wasn't much of a strain.
"You don't look okay to me."
Estor, standing near Ha-ryeong, muttered with an anxious expression. Even to him, this seemed less like training and more like madness.
"You're not going to die, are you?"
"As Yuri said. Do you think I'd throw daggers at Yuri with intent to kill?"
"If you're doing it, put a bit of intent to kill in it."
"A bit? What does that mean?"
"You want to kill but actually hope I don't die..."
"Yuri. Put your hand on your chest and slowly mull over what you just said. Does it make sense?"
"Just throw as you see fit."
With eyes closed and cloth covering, nothing but pitch black darkness was visible. In that state, Yuri slowly deep-breathed and deployed Four Gates Sealing Thunder.
—Zzzt...
Such a sound came from within his body. An invisible web of thunder qi spread out centered on Yuri. Still not extending beyond 1 meter, the maximum distance Yuri could fully control. Yuri finished preparing and nodded.
"You can start..."
Ha-ryeong threw the daggers without letting him finish. Sharpened daggers sufficient to kill a person rushed at Yuri.
The daggers caught on the ends of the thunder qi web. The thunder qi itself couldn't slow, grab, or alter the trajectory of the daggers. But if the Four Gates Sealing Thunder level rose, imposing such constraints seemed possible.
Not yet. With current Four Gates Sealing Thunder, all he could do was 'read' the movement of daggers entering the domain. The interval was a mere 1 meter. Considering the daggers' speed, it was practically no interval, but the moment the daggers touched the thunder qi, Yuri's body moved. Because the externally spread thunder qi was connected to his body like nerve lines.
Pabababak!
Ten daggers assaulted. Thrown precisely targeting the body, predicting even evasion range—yet not a single one hit. Several daggers thrown at points that seemed impossible to dodge were outright grabbed by Yuri's hands.
"Wow."
He grabbed 4 daggers and dodged 6. Ha-ryeong let out pure admiration, and Estor gaped in shock. To dodge that many daggers, Yuri had only taken a few steps.
"Hmm..."
Yuri lifted the cloth over his eyes and squinted at the surroundings. He dodged what he could dodge and grabbed what he could grab, but it wasn't satisfactory compared to his initial thoughts.
He wanted to grab them all. But he failed to grab all the simultaneously flying daggers. And he'd moved his feet more than expected, which wasn't satisfying. It wasn't a problem with the spread web. Simply, his body's reaction was slow.
'I tried not to be conscious, but I was conscious of hearing too.'
The whoosh of daggers cutting air was heard whether he wanted or not. Relying on other senses wouldn't purely train the thunder qi. Should he be more conscious of internal thunder qi to maximize reflexes? But that would reduce the web's precision...
'Still a long way to go.'
His Four Gates Sealing Thunder training was still insufficient.
"This time, I'll plug my ears too."
"I, I want to try too."
Estor, who had been watching with mouth agape, rushed over.
"You? It'll be tough..."
"I am Sword Dragon Estor Orsia."
"So what..."
"I believe in myself."
With such stubbornness, Yuri stepped aside for now.
"Just close eyes... no cloth."
"I think that's better too."
Estor, who said he believed in himself, pondered briefly then nodded.
"Covered like this, it distracts more and breaks concentration."
Estor said that and even drew his sword.
"Why hold the sword?"
"I'm not a martial artist, I'm a swordsman. Having a sword in hand feels comfortable."
"Fine."
Ha-ryeong gripped daggers in both hands again. Yuri, watching quietly, handed her a few more daggers. Estor, standing in the room's center, closed his eyes and focused his mind.
Soon, daggers were thrown. —Kwangchang! A louder noise than with Yuri. Rather than dodging, Estor swung his sword at full speed to bat away the daggers.
"...Hmm."
Estor slightly opened his eyes and looked around. A few grazed, slicing his clothes, but not his skin. In the end, none hit.
But the surroundings were a mess. Windows broken, room furniture smashed by batted daggers, total chaos.
"You peeked, didn't you?"
"Even I saw you peek midway."
Estor didn't answer immediately, sheathed his sword, then slowly crouched to pick up the embedded daggers.
"Can't do this indoors."
"You peeked, didn't you?"
"Not used to swinging sword with eyes closed, so I did it unconsciously."
"This is all your doing, Estor."
"Yuri did some too."
"I didn't bat them everywhere like you."
Perhaps due to the noise, knock knock.
"What is it..."
The servant who entered after permission froze stiff. The top-class room, with nothing but luxury, turned into chaos, making the servant dizzy.
"We'll compensate."
Rich Estor, as if innocent, puffed his chest and replied. The servant pursed lips briefly, coughed awkwardly, and shook his head.
"I, I'll report to the patriarch first. And guests have arrived."
"If guests, then from the Mabeld Family, why to us?"
"Priests from the War Church and Anvil Church."
Yuri's face slightly hardened at the response. It was the awaited news, but whether good or bad was still unknown.
"Understood."
"We'll guide you to the reception room. The room..."
The servant glanced at the messy room again and gave an awkward smile.
"We'll prepare a new room."
Unintentionally moving rooms again. First move was due to Laysi vomiting, this time Estor batting daggers everywhere.
'Not my fault.'
In the guided first-floor reception room were patriarch Alnair, guard Eleia, and two priests.
'A woman?'
No, man? The priest in gray robes had an appearance that momentarily raised such doubt, but the slightly protruding Adam's apple and rough hands mismatched to the face confirmed it was a man.
Beside him, the man in crimson robes was a giant with an angular face and fierce eyes. The two priests nodded slightly to Yuri and Ha-ryeong entering.
"Pound Denet of the War Church."
"Allen Surface of the Anvil Church."
As introductions ended, Alnair stood from his chair.
"Now that the guests are here, no need for me to stay, right?"
"You're really not yielding the items?"
Pound asked, eyes flashing. Alnair frowned down at Pound.
"I don't like repeating myself."
"But, Mabeld Patriarch, those items..."
"Your War Church gave no help during the incident four days ago. Coming scavenging after it's over is understandable, but coveting the items is too much, isn't it?"
"The War Church couldn't intervene in the four-day-ago incident because there's no War Church temple in this city. And the Mabeld Family is the one who prevented building one, right?"
"So what?"
Alnair's retort choked Pound.
"If it's that bad, build a temple outside the city. How much offering has Mabeld given so far? Can't even do that? In my view, offerings from my generation alone could build a small city."
"..."
"For me, even you, a mere priest coming, is displeasing. Why? All high priests are rampaging in the Bernok conflict?"
"Mabeld Patriarch, don't insult me."
"Who's insulting whom? In my city, my house, you presumptuously demanding item transfer—what's that if not insulting me?"
As the atmosphere suddenly grew rough, Yuri quietly observed. Contextually, the mentioned 'items' seemed to be the demon's dropped goods.
"Verification showed no issues, right? You collected them saying tracking possible with blood and flesh. Demanding the items too crosses the line."
"..."
"The right to the hunted prey belongs to the hunter. If you spout more nonsense, hmm, what can I do? Only reduce offerings."
At Alnair's sarcasm, Pound paled. He pursed lips, sighed deeply, and nodded.
"Fine. I can't represent the War Church, but I won't demand the demon's items anymore."
"Don't leave room. Even if the War Church's proxy bishop comes, my will won't change."
"Quite right."
Allen, who had been silently listening, spoke.
"Originally, the Anvil Church crafted holy relics mixed in the demon's items. The Anvil Church has no intent to claim ownership, yet the War Church demanding transfer is unpleasant to hear."
"Why were your church's holy relics with the demon originally?"
"Who knows? Most of our church's relics circulate outside."
"That's not something to boast about, is it?"
"It's regrettable that Anvil Church relics were among the demon's items, but not worth mockery. That wicked one probably killed the original owner and took them. And we only delivered works to the qualified. That's the will of the blacksmith god we serve."
At the calm reply, Pound's eyebrow twitched.
"Delivered to the qualified? Allen Surface. In your view, Ox God Head, that crazy possessor, was qualified?"
"The Limitless Venerable surely qualifies, doesn't he?"
"The problem is he's a possessor, that he's a possessor!"
"What's the connection between Ox God Head being a possessor and me crafting arms for him? And you War Church left that possessor alone from early on."
Alnair, uninterested in such talk, left midway. Yuri felt his chest itch irritably watching the two bicker after being called here.
"Excuse me."
Unable to endure, Yuri spoke. He scowled deeply, glaring at Pound and Allen.
"If you're just going to bicker among yourselves, why call us?"
"Ah, sorry."
Allen immediately turned to Yuri and bowed.
"The reason we wished to see you, Yuri, is to hand over the demon's items."
"Tch."
Pound openly clicked his tongue but, due to Alnair's threat, only glared at Yuri without demanding transfer.
"As War Church envoy, I came to hear details of the four-day-ago incident."
"We already submitted the report."
"I checked, but some matters need direct hearing. The opponent was one of that evil god's saints, after all. And the report wasn't very detailed, honestly?"
"Hmm..."
"So please, tell us in detail what happened within the pseudo-sanctuary. How the demon used miracles. And what the demon said."
It was a reasonable demand. Yuri sat opposite Pound, clearing his throat.
"You're saying the demon was one of the culprits behind the Raspeon Family massacre?"
Allen's voice rose midway. He twisted his handsome face, muttering.
"That's... surprising. As far as I know, the culprits in that incident haven't been identified yet."
"To be precise, suspicion overwhelmingly pointed to the Chaos Church. But we didn't know 'who' within the Chaos Church."
Pound's eyes coldly sank.
"According to War Church intel, the Raspeon sword art was highly rated among possessors. That sudden massacre surely targeted the Raspeon sword art. Perhaps the demon is a possessor. Cloud Dragon, did the demon say he was a possessor?"
"No, he didn't say that."
Yuri inwardly was convinced the demon was a possessor, but the demon himself never admitted it. No thanks to needless suspicion.
"Hmm..."
After hearing everything, Pound briefly scanned Yuri. The story matched the report, but hearing details allowed close grasp of the demon's abilities.
'Endured 5 minutes against such a monster...?'
Rumors said those two were 5th Tier.
Impossible for two 5th Tiers to buy time against an evil god's saint. Per report, demon was arrogant, but by Pound's common sense, 5th Tiers surviving a saint-level 'play' was nonsense.
Meaning those two are special. The War Church judged thus, but after hearing Yuri, Pound had to concede. Told to see, hear, and decide on recruitment— no reason not to for such prowess.
"We heard the saint escaped, but using gears to flee, so War Church judges the demon effectively lost saint power."
Pound stared sternly at Yuri and Ha-ryeong.
"Cloud Dragon, Dark Flower. You two made great contributions to exterminating this world's evil god and his minions."
Flow suggested something to give.
Yuri thought so, awaiting Pound's words.
"You qualify to become our brothers, sisters in glory."
"Pardon?"
"We invite you to the War Church's grand temple in Union."
Yuri even thought it worked out well. Failed to get demon's items. Can't forcibly take due to Mabeld Patriarch's threat.
Then, just take Cloud Dragon, rightful owner of items, to War Church, right?
"..."
For Yuri, it was an unwelcome gift.