Inner Core (Part 4)

The Heavenly Demon had told me that a Neidan was a treasure of supreme rarity.

From what she said, the moment even a single one surfaced on the market, the entire world was thrown into turmoil. Martial artists poured decades of agonizing discipline into ascending to the next realm, and unless blessed with extraordinary natural talent, accumulating internal energy that defied the bounds of time was nearly impossible. That was why everyone lusted after a Neidan. With one in hand, leaping across realms became a reality.

That was the dilemma. Who was I supposed to give this Neidan to? Ideally, I wanted to pass it to the fixed handles who had supported me, but even that wasn't as straightforward as it seemed.

Sword Master flatly turned it down on the grounds that he didn't want to become any healthier. What about the others? I waited for more comments to trickle in.

The very first to reply was Starlight Princess. While not quite as frequent as the Heavenly ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Demon, she was still one of the most reliable regulars on my threads. Seeing her state that she had no need for the Neidan, I typed out a quick response.

First she wanted to name Wonmo "Gym Rookie," and now she was turning into a gym rat herself? Well, she had mentioned spending practically her entire life bedridden, so it was only natural that her thirst for physical exercise would run deep.

With Starlight Princess opting out as well, I waited to hear from the rest of the gang.

Here they went again. Those two seemed to get into it surprisingly often. In particular, KingLeor never missed an opportunity to pick a fight whenever Princess Chaeng-gu made an appearance. Personally, I didn't love watching him antagonize her, especially considering all the favors Princess Chaeng-gu had done for me.

With Princess Chaeng-gu declining the Neidan as well, I checked in with the others.

Both Allfather and Praise the Sun rejected the offer. True ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠to form, they only ever pursued the specific things they needed. That left only one fixed nick remaining...

The dwarf was just an incurable drunkard. Being a dwarf through and through, booze reigned supreme above all else. In the end, every single fixed nick I knew had voiced their refusal. The Heavenly Demon had already taken one and insisted she had no need for another, claiming it felt like she was receiving far too much unearned grace.

Whatever. To hell with it.

I didn't agonize over it any further and simply listed the Neidan on the auction house. Neidan or not, prepping breakfast was far more urgent. Tossing the fish head and innards to Wonmo, I thoroughly washed out the cavern's interior just like yesterday. The intake hose wasn't clogged today, sending fresh water cascading out in a brisk, crystal torrent.

That fish really was delicious, though.

A hearty breakfast would give me the fuel I needed to reinforce the hideout, and by lunchtime, I could erect the barricades the dwarf was providing.

Sizzle—!

Resting atop the cast-iron skillet I'd purchased from the auction house, thick fillets of fish crisped to a mouthwatering golden brown. I had completely descaled the skin, seasoned the meat generously with salt, and sliced the flesh into manageable portions. Tearing into an entire fish whole yesterday had been far too messy and inconvenient.

"Here, Wonmo. Eat up."

Naturally, I had no intention of eating alone. Grabbing a few piping-hot pieces of cooked fish, I handed them over to Wonmo. Instead of setting down the entire scorching pan, I carefully fed him using chopsticks. Being Korean, chopsticks just felt far more natural than a fork.

"Kkyuu!"

His eyes sparkled as he devoured the tender fish with unrestrained relish. Considering the owlbear's rapid growth, this small portion was nowhere near enough to fill his belly; for a beast of his stature, it was essentially an appetizer. I planned to feed him a hearty slab of meat later in the day.

"Do you want some too?"

I held up a beautifully browned piece of fish toward the Fast Tree Sloth. I knew he was an herbivore, but I figured he might be curious.

Nod—

The Fast Tree Sloth slowly, deliberately tilted his head forward in assent.

Wait, so you aren't strictly a plant-eater?

Then again, he had originally ambushed me to steal my fish in the first place, so his interest wasn't entirely unfathomable. Pinning a thick flake of fish between my chopsticks, I brought it close to his muzzle.

Sloooow... ly...

"...Hurry up and eat, man."

How on earth could a creature even part his jaws this slowly? And to think this exact same bastard had held me hostage at the most terrifying speed on the planet earlier. He was an absolute paradox, defying any rational attempt to comprehend him.

Now that both of my campmates were fed, all that remained was to fill my own stomach. Splitting the meat between the three of us meant my portion was noticeably smaller than yesterday's feast, but I didn't mind in the slightest. Yesterday, while I had stuffed myself silly, the two of them had stared at me with unblinking, guilt-inducing eyes that practically screamed, Are you seriously shoving all that delicious food down your gullet alone? My conscience simply couldn't handle that kind of psychological warfare twice.

Besides, there's still plenty of meat left anyway.

The fish was massive enough that wrapping both arms around it barely spanned its girth. Sparing a few choice cuts wasn't going to leave me starving. In retrospect, yesterday's fever might have just been indigestion from gorging myself sick—though as the Heavenly Demon suggested, an overwhelming clash of raw spiritual energy was the far more likely culprit.

"Man, that hits the spot."

Having cleanly polished off the meal, a deeply satisfying fullness settled in my gut. In place of a toothpick, I used a fine fish bone to pry out the bits of meat wedged between my teeth. Truly, nothing had gone to waste. Cleaning up after the meal was a minor chore, but burying the scraps in the dirt outside handled it effortlessly.

Time to get moving.

Lounging around was a luxury I couldn't afford. I wasn't planning on retiring ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠in this death-trap forest forever, and turning lazy this early on would be a death sentence.

Gotta circulate my internal art first, though.

With breakfast digested, I sat cross-legged to guide and temper my internal energy through the Mind Cultivation Method, reciting the mnemonic oral formula the Heavenly Demon had bestowed upon me. The verses were archaic and heavily poetic, making them conceptually dense, but visualizing the imagery made grasping the flow far more intuitive.

If the first verse is already this intricate, how brutal is the second going to be?

I silently prayed the entire manual wouldn't end up being a sprawling classical epic on par with the Gwandongbyeolgok. Memorizing something of that scale would be a torturous ordeal in its own right.

Well, I'll cross that bridge when I get to it.

Closing my eyes, I gathered my focus and directed the surging currents within my meridians. Perhaps it was just my imagination, but the energy felt far more potent and domineering than it had yesterday—surging not like a placid, winding stream, but crashing forward like a tempestuous ocean wave. It wasn't an uncomfortable sensation; if anything, that roaring vigor accelerated the circulation speed exponentially.

"..."

Having completed a full cycle of the cultivation method, I slowly parted my eyelids, only to be met point-blank by the droopy, half-lidded visage of the Fast Tree Sloth.

"Whoa! Holy crap!"

"..."

"Hah... Seriously, stop scaring the living daylights out of me."

I clutched my chest, letting out a ragged sigh. My heart had nearly dropped straight into my stomach. While I appreciated that he hadn't disturbed my meditation, waking up to that face lingering inches from my nose was enough to shave years off my life.

And Wonmo is... fast asleep already.

Our adorable ball of fur was currently dead to the world, taking a deep, blissful morning nap. As expected of an infant beast, his entire daily routine consisted of eating, sleeping, and pooping. Fortunately, he handled his business strictly outside the cave barricades, so hygiene within our shelter remained spotless.

Crawl— crawl—

The moment I stood to begin my chores, the Fast Tree Sloth clambered onto my back. While I had grown thoroughly accustomed to his weight over the past day, a sudden thought struck me regarding his personal hygiene.

Wait a second. This guy hasn't bathed once, has he?

I needed to heat up some bathwater immediately. Left unchecked, he was a walking biohazard waiting to breed illness. Allfather had mentioned that while ticks might not inhabit his pelt, an entire microscopic ecosystem of bizarre insects undoubtedly nested within his fur, to say nothing of the high probability of fungal mold. Just like Wonmo, this guy desperately needed to be scrubbed squeaky clean.

Breakfast is done, so the timing couldn't be better.

Without delay, I rinsed out the large iron drum and filled it to the brim with fresh river water. Once set over the hearth, all that was left was to let the fire do its work; I could adjust the temperature later. In the meantime, I grabbed a shovel and headed outside to dig trenches for the barricade, planning to stake out a wide rectangular perimeter around the cave entrance.

Thwack! Shovel!

Wait... why is this so easy?

I had noticed it while felling timber earlier, but digging into the packed earth took practically zero effort. Normally, the sheer heft of a heavy iron shovel biting into rocky soil should have strained my shoulders, yet the tool felt as light as a feather. All of this had to be the miraculous payoff of the internal cultivation art. Heavy manual labor was turning out to be an ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠absolute breeze.

"...Done already?"

The problem was that it had become too easy. In less than thirty minutes, the foundational trenches were completely excavated. Once the dwarf handed over the wooden barricades, I would simply need to drop them into the ditch and backfill the earth to anchor them securely. A few scattered trees stood in the way of the perimeter, but clearing them was just a matter of logging.

CRASH! THUD! CRACKLE!

Even clearing the timber took barely half an hour at a blistering pace. Calling it "chopping trees" was no longer accurate; it was closer to demolishing them outright. The moment an axe strike shattered their core, the towering trunks lost all structural integrity and toppled helplessly to the dirt, needing nothing more than a solid shove from my boot to send them crashing down.

Watching the massive logs smash into the forest floor, I was almost unnerved by how absurdly strong I had become in such a short span.

Well, stronger is better. No sense complaining.

Scratching the back of my neck, I surveyed the fallen timber before giving a light shrug. I listed all but one of the harvested logs on the auction house, setting the final trunk aside to chop into firewood. Speaking of firewood, the thought reminded me of the bathwater simmering on the hearth.

Worrying that it might have reached a rolling boil, I rushed back inside, but was relieved to find only dense, warm plumes of steam drifting off the surface.

"Alright, pal. It's your turn to get scrubbed down."

"..."

Crawl— crawl—

As if understanding my words, the Fast Tree Sloth peeled himself off my back. At first, I assumed he was dutifully shambling toward the steaming tub under his own power. Instead, the creature casually bypassed the water and headed straight for the dim interior of the cavern.

He was fleeing from the bath. The painfully slow bastard was actually trying to stage an escape.

"Hey! Not that way. Over here."

"..."

Left with no other choice, I stepped forward, scooped him up into my arms, and moved to drop him into the iron drum. Or rather, that was what I intended to do.

CLING!

Refusing to detach, his limbs locked onto my forearm in a desperate, ironclad embrace. He was even trembling faintly, looking thoroughly horrified. Seeing a beast that could pluck arrows out of the air with his bare claws shivering in terror was utterly baffling.

"...Hey."

"..."

"Do you seriously hate taking baths that much?"

No answer came. Naturally, he couldn't speak, but his stubborn, unyielding grip made his absolute hatred of bath time abundantly clear. Even so, personal hygiene was non-negotiable. Gritting my teeth, I tried to pry him off and shove him into the water.

Whoosh! Swish! Zip!

Every single time I tried to force him downward, his body blurred with blinding agility, scrambling across my shoulders, back, and torso as if treating me like a jungle gym. He slipped through my grasp effortlessly, moving with dizzying speed as though stepping into that tub of warm water would instantly result in his death.

"Aargh, seriously?! Fine, do whatever you want! I'll just wash myself!"

"..."

I finally threw up my hands in surrender. Seeing me openly declare defeat, the Fast Tree Sloth finally slowed his frantic movements, settling down into a languid crawl.

"...IS WHAT YOU THOUGHT I'D SAY!"

"?!"

Psych, you little bastard!

Seizing the split second his guard dropped, I lunged forward and locked my grip firmly around his foreleg. With his arm immobilized and his leverage broken, he had no choice but to take the plunge. Even if he still had one free limb, what could he possibly do to stop me?

SHRRRRK—!

It was a fatal miscalculation.

In the blink of an eye, the sloth whipped his remaining free claw toward the heavy iron drum. A silvery arc flashed through the air, and the thick metal was sliced cleanly into several disjointed segments, instantly collapsing to spray its reservoir of steaming, warmed water across the stone floor.

He wasn't helpless with one arm. Not in the slightest.

"..."

"..."

Amidst the profound silence that engulfed the cavern, I stared at the Fast Tree Sloth. The Fast Tree Sloth stared right back at me.

And through his blank, tranquil expression, his eyes seemed to be asking a very simple question:

What are you gonna do about it?

And just like that, I logged another defeat for the day.