The Taste of Victory and the Scent of Medicine
Crunch! A massive chunk of the catfish's flesh tore away. Jekyeong swallowed it in a single gulp and shoved his mouth and head into the exposed, raw flesh. The catfish's colossal body writhed in agony, but Jekyeong pinned it down with his entire weight, crushing any attempt to resist.
By now, the catfish must have realized its life was in dire jeopardy, as it suddenly shifted its strategy. The moment Jekyeong felt the pain and pressure on the area the catfish had been biting slacken, he sensed the anomaly and braced himself.
Sure enough, a powerful suction force gripped him, feeling as though it would tear his entire body apart. Jekyeong couldn't turn his head to look, but a small vortex had formed directly above him.
Ugh! If he kept holding on like this, every single scale on his body would be ripped clean off. Yet, the sharper the pain grew, the darker the venomous malice in Jekyeong's eyes became. This catfish was truly no ordinary beast. Just when he thought it was running out of strength, it unleashed an ability like this.
I will never let go. He knew with absolute certainty that the moment he loosened his grip would be the moment of his death. Jekyeong squeezed every ounce of strength from his body, constricting the catfish. He wasn't just binding it to prevent escape; he was squeezing with such ferocity that he intended to burst it open.
The catfish's blood and flesh sliding down his throat immediately converted into raw vital energy, fueling his muscles.
"Kwooooh!" A strange, distorted cry from the catfish reverberated throughout the entire river.
"Ugh..." Cheongo looked down at the churning river with anxious eyes. The bird knew something extraordinary was unfolding deep below, but unable to see the exact situation, its anxiety only mounted.
Boom! Suddenly, the entire river shook violently, and a massive geyser of water shot up to the height where Cheongo was hovering. Drenched before it could even react, Cheongo was momentarily startled, but soon cried out in sheer delight. "Jekyeong!"
Within the soaring column of water, Jekyeong and the catfish were entangled as if they were a single entity. Though Cheongo hadn't caught a clear glimpse as they shot upward, it saw them perfectly as they plunged back down: Jekyeong, his single eye flashing as he tore into the catfish's head, and the catfish, its eyes rolled back as its body convulsed.
Splash! They crashed back into the river, and a crimson stain began to spread rapidly from the point of impact. At the scent of blood, countless aquatic creatures that had previously fled in terror began to swarm toward the spot as if possessed.
Cheongo wasn't surprised by the sight. It was only natural for ordinary beasts to be drawn to the blood of a Yo-beast. Hadn't Jekyeong himself once frantically licked up a few drops of a spiritual bird's blood when he was still a mere serpent?
It's over. Jekyeong won. Waiting for Jekyeong to surface, Cheongo began to wonder what the catfish's meat would taste like. It had eaten plenty of Yo-beast meat before, but surely the ruler of a Spiritual Spring would taste entirely different from ordinary beasts. Just the thought made its mouth water.
"Huh?" Cheongo's eyes, previously glazed with happy anticipation, suddenly sharpened. "Mokyo! Others are coming!"
Mokyo, the Wood Yao, who had remained steadfast by the riverbank even after the vortex vanished, stirred at Cheongo's warning. *Wooooo!* Mokyo let out a deep, rumbling roar, asserting its formidable presence.
Cheongo also screeched as fiercely as it could. Their combined threats halted or slowed the approach of the Yo-beasts creeping in from the distance. Opportunists driven by greed are naturally highly sensitive to potential harm. These beasts had only approached to test the waters after sensing the disturbance in the river, so the warnings from Mokyo and Cheongo were more than enough to make them hesitate.
Caw! Caw! It was the first time in its life that Cheongo had ever cried out so freely. Usually, it had to live in the shadows, holding its breath as a weakling. To shriek like this now, as if it owned the world, brought an indescribable sense of exhilaration.
Though its initial intent had been to drive away the uninvited guests, it soon found pure joy in the act of shouting without restraint, cawing merrily. The noisy crowing continued until Jekyeong finally surfaced, holding the massive catfish in his jaws.
"Jekyeong!" Jekyeong was about to fling the catfish onto the shore when he paused, sensing the auras of several Yo-beasts in the distance. They sure are quick on the uptake. Had they already gathered, drawn by the scent of blood? Even if the catfish couldn't leave the river, it was still the ruler of this territory. For these drifters to show their faces so brazenly was bold indeed.
"Jekyeong! A lot of bad guys have gathered! There are Yo-beasts and even demons! What are we going to do? Are we going to eat them all?"
"No. Even if I wanted to, I don't have the strength right now." The catfish had been foolish, but it was incredibly strong. Even though Jekyeong had fought under the best possible conditions against an opponent in the worst, he was completely exhausted. In this state, even with Cheongo and Mokyo by his side, they wouldn't be able to handle a pack of scavenging jackals.
"Tell Mokyo to step into the water. We will divide the spoils inside the river." This would deter those jackals from acting rashly. And if any of them actually had the courage to enter the river? He would simply deal with them. While it might be difficult on land, Jekyeong was confident he could handle any ordinary drifter in the water, even in his current state.
A moment later, the surging river water submerged more than half of Mokyo's trunk. Cheongo perched on one of the dry branches, preening its feathers, while Jekyeong coiled his massive body around a thick root that stretched above the water.
"They're not coming in," Cheongo muttered, licking its beak in disappointment as it watched several Yo-beasts and demons lingering along the riverbank.
"As long as they don't enter the water, ignore them." "Okay."
Jekyeong began tearing into the catfish draped beside him to distribute the portions. The hide that had been so incredibly tough while the beast was alive now tore away as easily as ordinary fish meat with a bit of muscle.
"This time, I take five parts. You two get three and two respectively. Any objections?" "Nope!"
Since arriving here, Cheongo's utility had grown, so they usually divided their spoils more evenly. However, because Jekyeong had fought this battle entirely on his own, his share was naturally larger. Neither Cheongo, who was drooling profusely, nor Mokyo, who was gently trembling its extended roots, offered a single word of complaint.
"Good." Jekyeong swallowed his portion of the catfish carcass in a single, massive gulp. Under normal circumstances, he would have chewed it thoroughly over several bites, but too many eyes were watching him eat. Though they were quiet for now, there was no telling when those beasts might lose their patience and plunge into the water. He didn't have the luxury of savoring his meal.
Awoooo! Disappointed howls erupted from the riverbank as Jekyeong's massive maw swallowed the dripping, bloody catfish whole.
Jekyeong ignored them entirely, focusing instead on the massive lump of vital energy settling in his stomach. Although his digestive capabilities had been vastly enhanced, processing this was still no easy task. It was only natural; after all, the catfish's cultivation realm had been higher than his own. Had he not shared half of it with Cheongo and Mokyo and swallowed the entire thing himself, he might have suffered severe internal backlash.
"Jekyeong! I—I feel hot!" Cheongo, who had been greedily tearing into its share of the catfish flesh, began showing an adverse reaction. Unlike Mokyo, who slowly absorbed the vital energy through its roots like nutrients, Cheongo tore and ate the meat directly, just like Jekyeong. However, Cheongo possessed neither Jekyeong's vessel nor his digestive capacity. It was now paying the price for greedily devouring the meat of a high-level Yo-beast.
"If you sleep it off, you'll be fine." "Sleep? Here? Okay... I understand."
In the past, even if its eyelids were heavy enough to collapse, Cheongo would have fled to find a safe haven before sleeping. But things were different now. Through sharing prey and surviving life-and-death crises together, Cheongo had come to trust Jekyeong and Mokyo. It trusted Jekyeong so deeply that it would land right in front of him without a second thought, even when they were alone. Thanks to that trust, Cheongo closed its eyes without a shred of doubt or worry the moment Jekyeong told it to rest.
Jekyeong glanced at Cheongo, who had fallen asleep the instant its eyes closed, and turned to Mokyo. "Can you stay here like this?" *Wooo...* "Ah, right. I'm the problem."
Jekyeong's weight was far too immense for even Mokyo to support with a single root. The root had already begun to sway slightly; at this rate, Mokyo would start groaning in pain within a few minutes.
"Stay here and protect Cheongo." *Woooo!*
Jekyeong was in a hurry. He could have waited a bit longer for the pests on the shore to disperse, but the frustration of his still-blinded left eye was becoming unbearable. At the same time, anxiety gnawed at him. What if there is no Medicinal Water here? Would he have to find another Spiritual Spring to check? But even with everything aligned perfectly in his favor this time, the battle had been this grueling. How could he possibly face the rulers of other territories? Would luck be on his side next time as well?
Burying the dark thoughts that kept rearing their heads, Jekyeong swam diligently through the river depths. He said I would know it when I saw it. Yoo Gyeyoon hadn't explained exactly what the Medicinal Water looked like. Just as he had when describing the Spiritual Springs, he simply said it would be recognizable at a single glance.
Recognizable at a single glance... he must have been referring to my spiritual awareness. Since it only forms in Spiritual Springs rich in spiritual energy, the Medicinal Water must also harbor an incredibly dense concentration of Qi. Reasoning thus, Jekyeong kept his spiritual awareness as sharp as possible as he moved.
This river—no, this Spiritual Spring—was far wider than it appeared from the outside. He felt as though he had barely traveled any distance, yet the depth of the water had already doubled. Huh? As he glided over a hollow in the riverbed, Jekyeong's eye gleamed as he sensed an exceptionally distinct trace of spiritual energy.
The spot where his spiritual awareness flared was directly below him—a deep trench in the riverbed that looked as though a giant had carved it out with a blade. Intrigued and filled with anticipation by its unusual appearance, Jekyeong slowly descended into the abyss. There's no mistake. I don't know if it's the Medicinal Water, but there is definitely something here.
The crevice, resembling a sword scar on the riverbed, was neither too wide nor too narrow. Jekyeong descended cautiously, following the direction pointed out by his spiritual awareness. He swam down for what felt like an eternity. At some point, the spiritual energy, which had been dense enough to refresh his mind and body just by being near it, suddenly grew faint. This is... Confused for a moment, Jekyeong quickly realized the reason. The surrounding spiritual energy was steadily flowing down into somewhere deeper below.
The steady, moderate flow was as natural as water trickling downhill. Now, he didn't even need to rely on his spiritual awareness. Jekyeong simply followed the current of spiritual energy. Before long, a small underwater cave appeared before him.
Though it was a cave, the entrance was wide and the depth shallow, allowing him to see everything inside without even entering. And so, he recognized it instantly. A translucent entity sat right in the center of the cave. Neither liquid nor solid, resembling a sort of jelly, it radiated a dense, concentrated spiritual energy unlike anything Jekyeong had ever felt before. Is that the Medicinal Water? Jekyeong approached it cautiously. Only when he drew close enough to touch it in a single breath did he realize it was pooling in one spot.