Chapter 25
Chapter 25
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: Became the Gallery's Only Reptile
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Those who possess the Yeouiju all become Imoogi, gaining the qualification to become dragons.
However, among them, only an extremely tiny fraction actually become dragons.
It is so difficult that the word "hellishly" comes to mind naturally.
You know how in games, the probability of getting the best item from a gacha pull is incredibly low? It's like that, but 100 times—no, over 1,000 times—more difficult.
For a snake to become an Imoogi, it must create a Yeouiju.
And for an Imoogi to become a dragon, it must amplify the power within the Yeouiju and climb the heavenly gate known as the Dragon Gate.
Thus, compared to the process of becoming an Imoogi through long-term training and accumulation of power—which is relatively simple if you just invest enough time—this is far more straightforward.
But as I mentioned earlier.
The chance of an Imoogi becoming a dragon is exceedingly rare.
Why exactly?
What is the problem that prevents them from achieving this seemingly simple task and becoming dragons?
There is a hidden secret here that remains unknown even in the distant future.
The reason countless Imoogi fail to become dragons.
It is because the Yeouiju they use was not forged by their own hands, but given to them by another.
This is a fact unknown even to the Dragon King who created such Yeouiju.
The Dragon King himself became a dragon in the same manner and believes there is no issue at all.
If he knew, he would not have simply created Yeouiju for those who pleased him; he would have helped them forge their own.
A vicious custom passed down from time immemorial.
And the heavens despise this vicious custom greatly.
Those who become Imoogi using another’s Yeouiju suffer a curse that gradually inflicts mental damage called Heart Demons as time passes.
Of course, some endure it and become dragons.
The current Dragon King is a prime example.
Oh, do you know this?
All existing dragons have blue scales, brown deer antlers, and golden manes.
You might think now that all dragons share the same appearance, but does that make sense?
For reference, the primordial dragon that bestowed the first Yeouiju had blue scales, brown deer antlers, and a golden mane.
Yes. The clever ones have probably figured it out by now.
Those Imoogi who shine with blue scales even in their Imoogi state have inherited the traits of the primordial dragon that bestowed the Yeouiju.
And now, here.
In an era where it is taken for granted that all receive their Yeouiju from the Dragon King of the time and unwittingly bear the heavens' curse as Imoogi.
One has appeared who denies this directly.
The wise serpent did not use the Yeouiju created by the Dragon King as is.
Instead, it absorbed the energy within and sought to create its own Yeouiju.
The wise serpent once again realized that the Yeouiju it had consumed was no ordinary item.
It had been fine upon swallowing it, but as time passed, the Yeouiju's energy began to shake its body, churning its insides.
The sight of it suppressing the pain and exerting force to shatter the Yeouiju was utterly heartbreaking.
But for some reason.
Though it looked painful and pitiful, worry did not arise.
As if it were a radiant protagonist from a manga who, though struggling now, would surely triumph in the end.
This time was no different.
The wise serpent succeeded in a method thought impossible.
The shattered Yeouiju within it dissolved into its body like cotton candy melting in water, absorbed in an instant.
Fire. Water. Wood. Metal. Earth. Wind. Thunder.
The Five Elements forming the Yeouiju, along with the two energies shaping its form, had fully taken root inside.
"......!!"
But here, an unexpected problem arose that no one could have foreseen.
The Wood energy, which had already settled inside before absorbing the Yeouiju, began to rampage.
The Wood energy was already abundant to begin with.
And it couldn't skip meals, so it consumed Amrita, further increasing the Wood energy, and now the Yeouiju's power added on top—finally, the dreaded event occurred.
The wise serpent thought.
Oh, this might really kill me if it goes wrong.
But it wasn't entirely without options.
If it's rampaging due to excess energy, then just expel all the overflowing energy, right?
"Shaaaah...!"
Should this be called heavenly fortune?
Though the Wood energy rampaged due to the Yeouiju, in that process, the wise serpent gained clear awareness of energies it hadn't felt before.
The wise serpent thought.
Ah, this massive energy causing the chaos right now is the power of Wood!
It released the energy.
The Wood energy it couldn't contain flowed into the earth to which it offered its body.
Releasing the energy wasn't particularly difficult.
If it were like before, when it didn't even know how much energy it had, that would be one thing. But now, it clearly perceived the energy.
Carefully releasing the Wood power to avoid any mishaps causing new problems, a small sprout peeked out before the wise serpent.
To restore balance, to reach the limit its body could endure, it released the energy—and before long, the sprout had grown into a full tree.
A single tree made of pure Wood energy.
The wise serpent looked up at the tree it had created, then turned its attention to begin the main task.
Now that balance was restored, it was time to properly create the Yeouiju.
Thanks to prior experience, gathering and merging the energies wasn't too hard.
Demonstrating perfect control with virtually no loss as it merged them, the wise serpent watched something gradually take shape before it.
Still just a lump infused with the Five Elements' energies.
Now, if it enveloped that with wind and thunder, the Yeouiju would be complete.
Since the wind and thunder powers were already fully stored inside via the Yeouiju, there was no need to summon Silpi or pray for lightning.
The wise serpent thus wielded wind and thunder to gently caress the Five Elements' energies, which slowly began to form into an orb.
A Yeouiju created not by another, but by itself.
Naturally, this Yeouiju bore no curse from the heavens.
With the Yeouiju's completion, changes began in its body.
Having obtained the Yeouiju, it was now time to acquire the dignity and physique befitting its master.
"......!"
Its bones twisted, and its muscles rebelled against the brain's commands, thrashing wildly.
Since its body wasn't properly prepared, it was forcibly transforming into a suitable physique.
To better absorb mana. To better withstand mana.
Thus began the exaltation of a true dragon candidate—young in age but wise beyond years, appearing after a long time.
El's exaltation of existence first elicited a reaction—hilariously—from far away, deep in the ocean, from the ruler of the Dragon Palace, the Dragon King.
"Hm?"
The Dragon King frowned at the faint tremor from the sea and the energy spreading from the distant sky.
"What is this..."
An Imoogi.
An Imoogi seeking to become a dragon was being born.
But why was the sky rejoicing so much?
Countless Imoogi had appeared before, but never had the heavens reacted so intensely.
"Hahaha. Could it be that snake?"
The location was far away, outside the domain ruled by he, the Dragon King.
Then it must be the owner of the Yeouiju taken by the Wind Spirit King recently—the snake said to have gained wisdom transcending its race.
"But this is strange."
The Dragon King narrowed his eyes, trying to discern the heavens' intent from afar.
Countless Imoogi had been born until now.
And several had ascended to dragons.
Why show a sight never seen to those before, and only now?
"Why on earth."
Was it welcoming it so warmly?
Perhaps because it was a land serpent.
Unaware of the curse in the Yeouiju, the Dragon King wondered if El's race was the cause.
"In any case, it's certainly worth celebrating."
Another Imoogi is being born into the world.
I wonder if this one can become a dragon.
Gulp.
The Dragon King emptied his glass, cheering for the distant snake that became an Imoogi with his Yeouiju.
Of course, the odds were slim, but the Wind Spirit King had intervened personally, and the heavens welcomed it fervently.
So who knows.
Perhaps this one could climb the Dragon Gate that none have scaled recently.
While the Dragon King tilted his glass, far to the west.
In a high mountain range shrouded in thick fog, a tiger with gleaming brass eyes bared its fangs toward one direction.
"Grrrrr."
Nothing was visible in its sight.
But its senses told it otherwise.
At the far end in that direction, something powerful enough to warrant tension had been born.
The tiger, covered in scars, gleamed its eyes and leaped forth.
An opponent its instincts cried out about.
Fearful. But all the more reason to fight.
The mad tiger called Gwangho thus began moving toward the somewhere where the Imoogi awaited.
As the world's powerhouses, following the Dragon King and Gwangho, noticed the anomaly.
In a world swarming with blue Imoogi.
A black Imoogi gleamed red eyes.