The Fox and the Demon's Reluctant Lesson
The standoff between Cheonma and Hoya ended the moment I manifested my Ghostly Qi.
“Fine, then. Shall I teach you how to use Ghostly Qi like I promised earlier…? First, you already know what it is, right?”
In the end, I chose to properly learn Ghostly Qi. Even Cheonma, who had been vehemently against it, finally nodded in acceptance of my decision.
And so began Hoya’s lessons. The very first thing, as in any class, was theory—what exactly Ghostly Qi was.
“To put it simply for easy understanding, it has higher output and destructive power than mana. Plus, Ghostly Qi itself responds to the user’s will, allowing for much more delicate control.”
Yeah. That’s exactly why Ghostly Qi was so ridiculously overpowered. The downside was that most yokai who used it weren’t exactly intellectual fighters, so they couldn’t properly utilize its capabilities. A rather pathetic setting, really.
“First, show me your Ghostly Qi again. Oh, and use mana in your other hand as well.”
“Understood.”
I raised Ghostly Qi in my right hand and mana in my left, keeping them completely separate. Maybe because I had fully internalized Ghostly Qi this time, handling both energies at once wasn’t difficult at all.
Woooong.
While mana looked like a condensed blue mist, Ghostly Qi resembled flickering silver flames. Hoya watched the two opposing forces for a moment before telling me to withdraw them. After observing that process as well, she then instructed me to manifest both the Heavenly Demon Divine Art and Ghostly Qi together.
“The Heavenly Demon Divine Art?”
“Since we’ve already confirmed the interaction between mana and Ghostly Qi, now we need to see how it works with the Heavenly Demon Divine Art. Is that difficult for you?”
“No, it’s not difficult.”
Thump. Thump.
Using my heart as a medium, the power of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art slowly began to spread. But I couldn’t let the energy flow through my entire body like usual. Instead of the spot where I had gathered mana earlier, I concentrated the Heavenly Demon Divine Art there.
“Hmmm……”
Hoya narrowed her eyes as she observed my Heavenly Demon Divine Art, muttering with a slightly troubled expression.
“…This is a little irritating.”
“Is there some kind of problem?”
“If you call it a problem, then yes.”
Her swaying tails accompanied the motion as her finger pointed toward my heart.
“That ridiculously brutal power you learned refuses to accept Ghostly Qi.”
“So you’re saying I can’t use Ghostly Qi because of the Heavenly Demon Divine Art?”
“Not completely.”
Hoya said that and then manifested Ghostly Qi above her palm. Silver flames, identical to the ones I had produced. The decisive reason I had obtained Ghostly Qi was through Hoya, so it made sense that our Ghostly Qi looked so similar.
“Anyway, it really suits that stubborn fool, doesn’t it?”
“…I can hear you.”
“Ahem. Don’t interrupt the class! Stay back!”
Hoya had just thrown in a casual diss at Cheonma mid-lesson. If she weren’t currently in the position of my instructor, those fluffy tails would probably have been mercilessly trampled by now.
“I’ll leave figuring out how to operate it alongside the Heavenly Demon Divine Art to you two. For now, I’ll teach you how to use Ghostly Qi first.”
With those words, Hoya demonstrated various forms—changing the shape and properties of her Ghostly Qi in all sorts of ways. She created things in an instant that would have required intense concentration if done with mana. So this was what it looked like when Ghostly Qi recognized and obeyed the user’s will.
“Whoa… You really do have talent, don’t you?”
“Haa… Do I?”
Unlike me, who was sweating while handling Ghostly Qi, Hoya manipulated hers with perfect composure. Did Ghostly Qi require talent just like the other attributes?
“Alright. Then let’s move on to wrapping Ghostly Qi around your body.”
Ghostly Qi possessed greater power than mana, but it was equally ferocious. Since it followed the user’s will, that violent nature never disappeared. Therefore, body reinforcement using Ghostly Qi might be stronger than using mana, but the backlash that came afterward was beyond imagination.
‘Yokai can endure it because their bodies are inherently strong.’
Humans couldn’t. That was why contracted humans usually mixed mana and Ghostly Qi. While that provided better reinforcement than pure mana, the power was significantly weaker than using Ghostly Qi alone.
‘But maybe I’m different.’
Having trained in the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, my body’s vessel had grown considerably. My stats still weren’t fully complete, but I had definitely passed the foundational stage. At this level, attempting body reinforcement with Ghostly Qi alone should be possible.
“Are you really sure you’ll be okay?”
Hoya looked deeply worried at my words. Only after I told her that even if I died here, I would just resurrect, did she finally allow me to attempt body reinforcement using Ghostly Qi alone.
“This talisman will reduce your pain and help your body accept Ghostly Qi better.”
Before we began, she stuck a talisman on me. Then, following her instructions, I circulated Ghostly Qi inside my body to stimulate my nerves.
Thump. Thump.
My body reacted to the Ghostly Qi moving within me. The violent response of Ghostly Qi—something I had never experienced before—caused my body to instinctively go on the defensive. I suppressed the rampaging energy and forced it to adapt. My body sustained injuries during the process, but the talisman Hoya had attached handled the pain. The wounds were healed by the unique properties of the Soul Sanctuary.
‘Ughhhhh.’
It hurt. It hurt like hell.
‘But it’s bearable.’
Compared to the pain I had endured in my previous life, this was nothing. In fact, I even felt a tiny bit disappointed that it ended at this level.
What? The pain might be so great that I could die from shock?
At this rate, I could probably do it without the talisman.
Kyahahaha!
And as if sensing my thoughts, the Ghostly Qi moved through my body with even greater ferocity. It wanted to grant its master—who wasn’t satisfied with ordinary body reinforcement—even stronger power.
‘Hahaha! That’s right! Come at me harder! This is still less than thirty percent!’
Kyahahahahaha!!
“Wow… This guy is actually insane.”
Hoya looked down at Zeon with tired eyes as he rolled across the floor, bursting into maniacal laughter. Seriously, what kind of crazy human laughs while enduring that kind of pain? Had he simply gone mad halfway through?
But his eyes remained perfectly clear and focused, so it didn’t seem like he had lost his mind.
‘He’s not actually enjoying the pain, is he?’
There were occasionally people like that—perverts who took pleasure in their own wounds and suffering. Hoya was quietly beginning to suspect that Zeon might be one of them when she noticed Cheonma standing nearby, watching him with concern. She turned her gaze toward her.
“You’re really not going to step in?”
“It is what my disciple desires. As his master, how could I interfere?”
“He really must be precious to you. You haven’t even known each other that long.”
Her well-honed instincts and intuition, developed over her long life, told her that the two of them hadn’t known each other for very long. At most, it couldn’t have been more than a month since she began teaching him.
‘Both master and disciple are monsters.’
That was precisely why it was so absurd. How could anyone grow at such a ridiculous speed?
Hoya had originally planned to teach him Ghostly Qi usage gradually over several months, not just one day. But Zeon absorbed everything she taught him like a sponge. In the end, he had reached the point of attempting body reinforcement with Ghostly Qi—a process that should have taken years—in just a single day.
She glanced sideways.
“…By the way, tell me the truth.”
“About what?”
“The real reason you called me here.”
Hoya met Cheonma’s eyes as she spoke.
“You didn’t actually call me just to teach him one technique called Ghostly Qi, did you?”
“……”
“Go on, tell me. If I can help, I’ll help as much as I can.”
At first she had been annoyed, but in the end, Cheonma had helped her obtain her own rank and had even shown her a brilliant talent that would one day be recorded in history.
“…There isn’t one.”
“What?”
“I really did call you here just to have you teach him Ghostly Qi.”
“…For real?”
“…For real.”
Fwoooosh.
“Whoa… And here I thought there was something important going on. Are you actually a total lunatic?”
“Your words are getting rather crude again.”
“No, I mean…!”
Hoya started to say something more but quickly withdrew her flames and lowered her head. Yeah, pushing it any further wouldn’t do her any good. While that monster’s disciple was busy wrestling with Ghostly Qi, she wouldn’t have anyone to shield her. The chances of a fight breaking out were high. And although it pissed her off, she would lose one hundred percent of the time. Maybe in a hundred years she might stand a chance, but right now she wasn’t even proficient at using her rank properly.
“How is Zeon?”
“…He has talent. Enough that he could probably specialize in Ghostly Qi alone instead of that Heavenly Demon Divine Art or whatever it’s called.”
“Heh. As expected of my disciple.”
It wasn’t exactly normal conversation to have while watching someone writhe in agony. But for beings like them, such scenery was nothing out of the ordinary. They could chat casually even in far worse situations.
“Hey, fox.”
“What?”
“Teach him well.”
“I was planning to even without you telling me. I’ll make sure he uses Ghostly Qi more than that Heavenly Demon Divine Art of yours.”
“Don’t get cocky.”
Tap.
“Ow!”
“If you teach him well, I shall lend you my power.”
“Your power?”
“Didn’t you mention it? That there are rebels.”
“They’re not exactly rebels… Well, once the fighting starts it won’t end until one side is dead, so I guess it’s similar.”
Cheonma leisurely raised a single finger as she spoke.
“If your teaching satisfies me, I will specially grant you the power of one finger infused with my sincere intent.”
One finger to defeat someone? Anyone else might have scoffed at such a claim. But if the one offering that help was a great mage, a sword saint, or a saintess?
The great mage would sweep away enemy forces with grand magic. The sword saint would cut down the enemy’s supreme commander with a heart-piercing strike. The saintess would reduce allied casualties with her sacred touch.
And if it was Cheonma?
Gulp.
Having fought Cheonma before, Hoya knew. Even during their battle, Cheonma hadn’t used her full strength.
“You’d better keep that promise.”
“My standards are quite high, so you’d better work hard.”