The Dharma Treasure
In this world, there is a concept called investment. A bold investment where, if necessary, you even take out loans or turn to loan sharks to raise the funds. You say that's just the "win it back and pay it off" mindset of a degenerate gambler? Who cares? If I win, I win.
Ryeo-ah agreed. Our eyes were locked onto a single target: a massive, dark-red crossbow floating high in the sky, looking down on everything.
I knew that better than anyone. For someone in the Qi Circulation (Ungi) realm, obtaining a Dharma Treasure was utterly impossible unless they had an extraordinary background like Kang So-ye. At the same time, I realized just how much importance they placed on this expedition. It was like bringing an aircraft carrier to a children's toy boat fight. No wonder there were so many Qi Circulation experts crawling around.
"That's fine." Peak potential or flaws were things I could worry about after it was safely in my pocket. "So, do your job."
The moment she finished speaking, the barrier began to ripple.
"The barrier is opening! Everyone, prepare to enter!"
Several Qi Circulation cultivators moved busily, preparing to breach. Once those forces cleared out, it would be my turn.
Then I absolutely had to take it. The barrier fluctuated wildly. Soon, a massive wave of forces began pouring into the mine entrance like ants.
"Right."
Needless to say, I had absolutely no talent for military strategy. Striking the enemy's weak point, making a feint to the east while attacking the west—what even was that? I didn't know any of those fancy tactics. But if there was one thing I was intimately familiar with, it was reading the room and sensing the atmosphere. Knowing exactly when to show off, and recognizing the perfect moment to push all my chips in. I had seen enough of that in my life to be sick of it, which made it second nature. And right now was the absolute perfect timing.
"Go! All forces, charge!"
Just to be clear, that wasn't my voice. It was Jeongha, who was leading the troops below. I couldn't exactly drag a massive horde of Core Condensation (Yeondan) cultivators around myself, so I had handed her the commander's baton, thinking it was a good opportunity. She actually seemed quite pleased. Well, right after reaching the Qi Circulation realm, all she had experienced was a humiliating defeat followed by sex, so she hadn't had any time to celebrate. Power and authority always feel foreign when first handed to you. You have to wield them properly on the battlefield to truly feel their weight. It was a good thing. Since the enemies below were nothing but a disorganized mob of Core Condensation cultivators, Jeongha would easily secure victory even with the meager forces left to her. That meant only we remained.
"Really?"
In that case, I had to trust her. "Heheh."
The dark-red crossbow in the sky was nocking an arrow behind its crimson protective barrier. Mounted on the roof of the vessel, it strongly reminded me of the tanks I had seen all too often in my past life. Though in terms of actual destructive power and strategic importance, it was far superior to any tank.
"You..."
I had entered the range of the protective barrier deployed by the Dharma Treasure. But there was no avoiding it; that crazy war machine wasn't just a one-trick pony built for raw firepower. It handled detection, firepower, and transport all on its own. There was a reason it was classified as something far beyond a mere Dharma artifact. It possessed an out-of-spec power that, in gaming terms, would be described as an ancient relic or futuristic technology.
"Die!"
Creeeeak— The crossbow tilted toward me. Watching it nock its bolt with vicious intent, pointing straight down as if ready to fire at any second, felt like having a blade pressed against my throat. A single click, and I would end up in the same state Bo-ah had been in. Still, launching an attack without asking any questions... it was reacting far more sensitively than I expected. Or was this just natural?
Creak, creak— The arrowhead glowed with a crimson light as the eerie string groaned. I felt it intuitively. Even if I tried to dodge or defend now, it was already far too late. It was an absurd, overwhelming force that practically commanded me to just take the hit and die. It felt almost unfair.
'But I've got something similar on my side.'
A Dharma Treasure? Sure, it was great. But if you asked whether it was more impressive than an entity who had reached far beyond the Samgeuk realm in her prime... well, I had my doubts.
Whoosh! Without warning, the bolt was unleashed. The attack flew before the sound of the snapping string could even register. To eyes trained in sorcery and spells, the sheer power and profound principles woven into that single strike were nothing short of miraculous.
"Sure-hit. Sure-kill. Homing. Disintegration. And what on earth is that last one?"
Even a casual glance revealed a stat sheet absolutely loaded with cheat codes. It made Bo-ah, who had managed to survive a similar strike from a Dharma Treasure, look like a completely different beast. But...
"Put away the toy."
As if dismissing it as utterly absurd, Bo-ah—or rather, Ryeo-ah borrowing Bo-ah's body—let out a mocking sneer.
Crack, snap— A massive maw tore through flesh and bone, asserting its presence. Bo-ah's body twisted and mutated. Smooth, dizzying patterns of scales sprouted over her soft, pale skin. *Rip, tear—* Her entire right arm transformed into a gaping maw, complete with vertically slit eyes and razor-sharp fangs. It looked as though Bo-ah's right arm had been ripped off and replaced with a living serpent.
"How clumsy."
The purple serpent that now served as Bo-ah's right arm swallowed the crossbow's bolt whole.
"Mmh."
The bulge of the arrowhead and fletching was visible through the arm. But soon, the swelling—resembling a snake crushing and digesting its prey—moved up and extended all the way to the floating Dharma Treasure in the sky.
Slither!
"Whoa!"
The right arm, or rather the right serpent, stretched long enough to reach the heavens. Coiling tightly around the vessel, it dissolved the five Qi Circulation cultivators inside... wait, what the fuck? Weren't there five inside? That meant they brought ten in total—five inside the vessel and five left on the hull? Talk about persistent.
"What's that?"
"Like a self-driving drone or something?"
Five Qi Circulation warriors had died with terrifying ease. As Ryeo-ah—using Bo-ah's right arm—dissolved, crushed, and swallowed them, human handprints occasionally bulged outward from the snake's body.
Laaaaaaa—
Then, from the half-open maw of the serpent, the sound of a harp, or perhaps a saxophone, echoed out.
"...What is this?"
"The vocal cords of this spiritual beast, which is an ancestor of Bo-ah's lineage, enjoy translating the noises and screams of those it swallows into beautiful music."
What a useless ability.
"Is it not truly elegant? Though the act of swallowing prey alive is barbaric, it instinctively finds art and gastronomy within the deed. It is indeed worthy of being called a spiritual beast."
"Hmm."
Is it really all that?
"Indeed! This creature is truly unique; the melodies it produces differ depending on what is inside its stomach. If there are ten thousand voices in the world, its vocal cords can replicate ten thousand instruments with just a single throat."
Uh, sure. Ryeo-ah was rambling passionately, but I couldn't really relate. I was a simple man, drawn to primal, stimulating pleasures rather than such grandiose concepts. Sex, I mean. Now *that* was art.
"...Tsk. Never mind."
Bo-ah, who had been explaining things as enthusiastically as an otaku passionately preaching about his favorite anime, frowned.
Crunch, grind—
Personally, I found the physical reality of it far more mind-blowing. Was the Qi Circulation realm really something you could just snack on like potato chips? I mean, those guys inside were supposed to be Qi Circulation experts. It was absurd.
"They were mere small fry. To think I have only drawn upon the power of the bloodline without even moving my true hand, yet this is all I can manage. I still have a long way to go."
"No, I think that's more than enough."
If she got any stronger, it would be way too much pressure on me.
"I have no need for a Dharma Treasure, so you may have it. I shall shrink it for you, so take it home and tame it well."
With those final words, Bo-ah's body began to collapse. The serpent scales sloughed off, and her physical form dissolved into a handful of bloody water, seeping into the earth. Watching her oxidize and evaporate into steam as she soaked the ground, I realized that even in my wicked, dry heart, a shred of pity still remained.
"What a waste of a spectacular rack."
Her body had been truly spectacular.
I covered the dissolved blood-water with dirt and offered a brief, silent prayer. At the same time, I realized just how absurdly weak I still was. Qi Circulation or not, in front of Ryeo-ah, everyone was just a walking piece of meat. I would need to reach at least the Samgeuk, or even the Johwa (Harmony) realm, to have any semblance of a voice in front of her.
Simultaneously, accompanied by Ryeo-ah's sweet, melodic voice, the demonic energy in my core began to surge violently. It didn't just extend outward to take shape; it completely seized control. How could I even describe this sensation?
"Contagion? No, overwriting?"
It felt as if I were painting my own energy over nature itself, stitching different colored fabrics together using myself as the needle and thread.
Ryeo-ah's elaboration lent confidence to my thoughts. At the same time, at some point, I found myself moving the energy on my own, moving past her assistance. It was like riding a two-wheeled bicycle for the first time, when your parents hold the back to keep you balanced and push you forward. Suddenly, you realize there's no one supporting you from behind. Yet, the bicycle keeps moving forward. Even without training wheels, even without parents holding you steady, the wheels just keep spinning rapidly.
Ryeo-ah sounded pleased. But even without her words, I would have known with absolute certainty that I had entered the middle stage of the Qi Circulation realm: Ta-un (External Circulation).
The Ta-un realm. Now that I could seize control of energies other than my own, my sensory field expanded dramatically. The sound of the wind rustling through bamboo leaves, the dust clinging to my skin, and the chaotic blend of scents from living creatures and nature in the air became distinctly clearer. It wasn't quite a sixth sense, but my senses were maximized to an extreme degree. And my heightened body did not miss the movements of three Qi Circulation cultivators emerging from the mine entrance.
Five had gone in, so did two of them die?
"That's a bit much." Isn't that overestimating me?
At some point, the weapon had shrunk and was now held in my hand as a longbow. It was no longer in the shape of a crossbow. Yet, this form felt far more natural than its previous one.
I didn't know how to use a Dharma Treasure. However, my body wasn't entirely my own. I had a roommate paying rent to stick around.
"Ryeo-ah. Time to pay rent."
"Show me how to use this."
My shoulder was pulled back. The string of the red-bodied bow, resembling a dark vein, bent back, and a wedge made of obsidian rock was nocked as an arrow. *Rustle—* A single feather dangled pitifully from the tip of the bow. The feather, clearly belonging to some wild bird of prey, fluttered in the wind, absorbing runic characters into the arrow.
Just as the Qi Circulation cultivators emerging from the mine entrance stared in slack-jawed horror, I sent an arrow straight to their faces via rocket delivery.
Thrum— The sound of the string snapping. *Splat!* Followed by the sound of a head exploding. Yes, exactly.
"If you get hit by an arrow, you're supposed to die."
Who did they think they were, trying to survive an arrow to the skull? Just as people die when they get shot by a gun, they die when they get hit by an arrow.
Thrum—! Splat! Another Qi Circulation cultivator's head burst like a watermelon. They couldn't defend, nor could they dodge. It was as if it was fated to happen. The moment the arrow left the string, it shattered the enemy's skull with absolute certainty, showing no discrimination.
"Now *this* is a weapon."
How dare a mere organic lifeform made of protein and phosphorus challenge a bow, the pinnacle of human scientific achievement?
"Yeah, exactly. People should just die when they get shot."
This was so much more elegant than dragging myself over to club them to death. I finally felt like a civilized man. I nocked another arrow. *Rustle—* The feather fluttered, and a bizarre power infused the obsidian wedge. And then, I shot.
Thrum— Splat! The last Qi Circulation cultivator's head exploded—wait, it didn't? What?
"How are you still alive?"
"Ugh... what is this..."
The Qi Circulation cultivator had half of his head pierced. He glared at me with his one remaining eye as if he wanted to murder me.
"...I will die today."
"Everyone dies eventually."
That guy was dangerous, so I needed to finish him off with another long-range click. Just as I was about to nock a fourth arrow...
"Huh?"
If my body hadn't suddenly collapsed to the ground, I would have said something. "Whoa, whoa, hey. Wait."
"...Goddammit."
Presumably a youth in white robes who had reached the Tong-un stage—meaning he was looking right at the Samgeuk realm—he crawled unsteadily toward me. But when he was only two or three paces away, he collapsed right on the spot. *Splat!* I don't know how he managed it, but his tightly bound brain matter and skull fragments scattered everywhere.
"Wow."
How should I put this... it felt like I had just acquired a gun. A magical tool of communication that kills people with a single click. It rolled on the ground, its feather drooping limply.