Chapter 86: Falling into Contemplation-1
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 86: Falling into Contemplation-1
Woooooooong.
Sun-woo poured every ounce of his internal energy into the sword he gripped.
'More... just a bit more!'
Soon, a brilliant white Astral Qi began to form around the blade.
But this wasn't enough.
He began to pour his internal energy in once again.
Woooooooong.
The sword resonance wailed as a waterfall of internal energy surged into the blade. The size of the Astral Qi grew even larger.
'Good!'
Now, he compressed the massive Astral Qi, which had grown as much as it could, into the very tip of the sword.
'Compress... compress... compress!'
The large mass of Astral Qi gradually shrank until it finally gathered at the tip of the sword in the shape of a round bead.
He had formed a Sword Ring.
Sun-woo thrust the newly formed Sword Ring straight toward the Poison Demon.
As long as his lower body remained immobile, he couldn't achieve maximum speed, but he could still execute his best possible move.
He twisted his waist, rotated his shoulders, and extended his arm.
It was the best strike he could muster in his current state.
However, without the support of his lower body, his speed dropped by more than half, and the sword's momentum was inevitably sluggish.
As the Sword Ring traveled through the air, Sun-woo saw the Poison Demon’s sneering face.
The demon was likely laughing because the attack was slow enough to make him yawn.
It was Sun-woo's best move, but it didn't seem like it would reach the Poison Demon.
'Did I fail?'
A sense of despair washed over Sun-woo.
It was then.
Puk!
The Poison Demon’s sneering face began to distort.
A hideous object had burst through the Poison Demon’s chest.
It was a dark, incredibly sharp limb, as thick as an adult woman’s thigh.
It was the leg of the Human-Faced Spider.
The spider's leg had impaled the Poison Demon through the chest.
This was his chance.
Sun-woo extended his arm fully.
Kwajik!
He successfully crushed the head of the bewildered Poison Demon.
After one long, final breath, he had killed the Poison Demon.
Thud.
The headless corpse of the Poison Demon collapsed onto the floor.
Flop.
Hearing that sound, Sun-woo also collapsed where he stood.
As the tension broke, the strength in his lower body, which had barely been supporting him, gave out completely.
Thump.
He fell flat on his back.
All the strength had left his body.
He didn't even have enough strength left in his waist to support his upper body.
Sun-woo stared blankly at the ceiling.
Even though they were inside the Godok Hall, which was filled with all sorts of poisonous creatures, he found himself thinking that the sky looked blue.
Countless thoughts began to swirl in his head.
Although he had succeeded in killing the Poison Demon, the Human-Faced Spider had recovered.
He was going to die.
Right now, he didn't even have the strength to lift a finger.
The state of his body, which he had pushed to the limit through his awakening, was more disastrous than he had imagined.
Muscles were torn everywhere, and numerous bones were broken.
And then, his heart and head began to throb with agonizing pain.
In this state, he had no choice but to accept death.
Yet, his heart felt heavy with regret.
By killing the Poison Demon, he had saved two of the three women, but in the end, he would lose Ok-ryeong.
'I'm sorry, Ok-ryeong. I'll go ahead and wait for you.'
Sun-woo offered a deep apology to Ok-ryeong.
To the fragile woman who was about to lose her life because of him.
He vowed to apologize to her again once they met in the afterlife.
"Kugh!"
It was then.
A level of pain incomparable to anything he had felt before began to wrap around Sun-woo’s body.
His rapidly flowing blood began to slow down.
His heart, which had been racing madly, began to beat slowly.
The time had come to pay the price.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!"
An incomparable agony began to surge through his entire body like a tidal wave.
It hurt.
It hurt so much that he could do nothing but scream.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaagh!!!!!!!!!!"
He tried to operate the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art to reduce the pain as much as possible, but he couldn't concentrate.
The sensation of tens of thousands of needles piercing him from his toes to the top of his head enveloped his entire being.
He wanted to die.
His mind was filled with nothing but the desire for death to escape the pain.
His eyes rapidly became bloodshot, and tears began to well up.
Even though he was injured, having just reached the Transcendent Realm, he had been able to stand on equal footing with the Poison Demon, who was at the peak of that realm, if only for a moment.
How great a price would be required to bridge that gap?
It was likely an enormous one.
Sun-woo was paying that price in full.
"Aaagh! Aaaaagh! Aaaaagh!"
Sun-woo began to thrash violently, letting out guttural screams.
His skin, muscles, bones, internal organs, tendons, heart, and even his brain—every single part of him began to throb and ache.
The pain was so intense that he couldn't even pass out.
If only he could lose consciousness, but even that mercy was denied to him.
The thought of wanting to die flashed through his mind hundreds, thousands of times.
It was horrific.
Before, he had been able to recover quickly thanks to the Yin-Yang Demon injecting him with Yin-Yang Qi, but now there was no one around to help him.
Despair set in, and that despair began to manifest as tears.
Please.
He even found himself wishing that the Human-Faced Spider would just end this pain quickly.
If it were her, she could liberate him from this agony.
However, even though fifteen minutes had passed since he started screaming in pain, the Human-Faced Spider had not taken his life.
Was she enjoying the sight of his suffering?
Sun-woo felt a surge of anger.
"Human-Faced Spider!!!!!!!!!"
He began to call out to her.
"Hurry... hurry up and kill me!!!!!!!!"
He began to demand death from her even more loudly.
That woman was the only one who could grant him peace right now.
"Please!!!!!!!! Please!!!!!! Just kill me!!!!!!!!"
He called out to her with all his remaining strength, but it was no use.
Despite Sun-woo’s shouts, she didn't move an inch.
Sun-woo wanted to lift his head and look at her immediately, but his body wouldn't listen.
What kind of expression was she wearing as she watched him?
Was she wearing a joyful expression?
Or was she looking at him with pity?
He didn't know.
He really didn't know.
"Aaaaagh!!!!! Aaaaagh!!!!!!!!"
He simply continued to scream until the pain subsided.
.
.
.
.
.
.
How much time had passed?
The pain finally began to recede.
The intense agony remained, but it felt like it had reached a level where he could finally lose consciousness.
Drowsiness began to wash over him.
Sun-woo felt relieved.
If he lost consciousness like this, he didn't know if he would live or die, but at least he could escape this eternal-feeling pain.
Sun-woo slowly closed his eyes.
And then, he lost consciousness.
*
"Ugh..."
Sun-woo groaned as he opened his eyes.
A piercing pain began to wrap around his entire body once more.
Unable to withstand the renewed agony, Sun-woo had been forced awake.
Irritation flared within him.
He had already repeated the cycle of passing out and waking up several times.
His consciousness was so hazy that he couldn't even remember how many times he had lost consciousness or how long he had been awake.
However, one thing he was certain of was that the pain significantly decreased each time he regained consciousness.
Though he still felt extreme pain, it wasn't to the point of making him suicidal like it was at first.
"Shit."
He was now composed enough to let out a curse instead of a scream.
At this level, it seemed he could finally manage to operate the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art.
It still hurt, but he felt that if he concentrated, he could do it.
Sun-woo closed his eyes of his own volition.
This time, it wasn't because he wanted to pass out, but because he intended to circulate the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art.
Woooooooong.
As he operated the technique, nature qi began to envelop his body.
Soon, the nature qi surrounding him began to permeate into his flesh.
Sssssss.
Sun-woo slowly began to circulate the nature qi through his acupoints.
'Ugh...'
Sun-woo groaned inwardly.
Perhaps because he had used his awakening, his acupoints were torn to shreds.
Because of that, he felt considerable pain every time the energy circulated.
'Screw it.'
But Sun-woo forced the circulation to continue.
If he gave up now just because it hurt, his acupoints might be permanently ruined.
He had to circulate the nature qi as quickly as possible to maximize his recovery.
Woooooooong.
'Aaaagh, fuck!'
However, since his entire network of acupoints was torn, the further the circulation went, the more intense the pain became.
It hurt.
It hurt like hell.
But he couldn't stop.
He didn't know why the Human-Faced Spider hadn't finished him off, but he had gained time to recover.
He had to heal his body as quickly as possible.
Before she decided to cut off his breath.
'Whew.'
He had finally completed one full cycle.
Using the internal energy that had gathered in his dantian, Sun-woo began to circulate the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art again.
Over and over.
He felt a sickening pain, as if salt were being rubbed into open wounds, but he endured it.
He could feel his mangled acupoints slowly beginning to heal.
And the more he circulated the energy, the more the pain subsided.
Now was the time.
Sun-woo began to operate the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art at its peak.
A waterfall of internal energy began to churn through his acupoints.
'Kugh.'
It seemed to be a burden on the acupoints that were just beginning to heal, as he felt significant pain, but he didn't care.
Once he endured this, his recovery would be maximized.
Vitality began to surge.
He could feel his torn muscles slowly knitting back together.
His broken bones began to realign.
It was the result of his maximized recovery.
Thanks to that, the pain gradually began to fade.
He had regained a certain amount of strength.
However, it was still too much to try and stand up.
Since his lower body muscles had been completely ruptured, it seemed it would take more time to heal them.
Sun-woo focused on his recovery once again.
Hope began to bloom in his mind—the hope that he might actually survive.
Woooooooong.
The efficacy of the Yin-Yang Harmony Divine Art began to reach its zenith.
.
.
.
.
.
How much time had passed since then?
Snap.
Sun-woo’s eyes flew open.
He slowly curled his hands into fists.
It felt like his strength had returned to some extent.
This time, he applied strength to his lower body.
"Nngh."
It hurt, but it didn't seem impossible to stand.
Thud.
Using his sword as a crutch, Sun-woo slowly began to push himself up.
Pain assailed him, but it was manageable.
"Are you awake?"
It was then.
The clear, melodic voice of the Human-Faced Spider drifted from ahead.
Sun-woo quickly snapped his head toward the source of the sound.
There, the Human-Faced Spider sat demurely.
Sun-woo quickly raised his sword and pointed it at her.
"Why did you take so long to wake up? I was bored to death."
Despite Sun-woo’s hostile reaction, the Human-Faced Spider spoke with a bright smile.
Sun-woo was bewildered by her reaction.
Clearly, Sun-woo was now stronger than her.
After crossing the wall, the gap between them had become unmistakably wide.
Was she not afraid of his sword?
No, more importantly, why hadn't she attacked him when she looked so fine?
What was the reason for her just waiting quietly until he recovered?
Various questions began to take root in Sun-woo’s mind.
"Why?"
Sun-woo spoke with a grave expression.
"Why what?"
"Why didn't you kill me?"
He couldn't find the answer just by thinking about it.
He had to ask her directly.
"I wonder why?"
Despite Sun-woo’s serious question, she continued to speak with a playful expression.
Her behavior left Sun-woo even more confused.
Did this monster not realize that he could kill her in an instant if he put his mind to it?
Having reached a new realm, he now possessed power that was incomparable to before.
She had been a match for him when he was only at the Upper Stage of the Super-Peak Realm.
Now, he could kill her as easily as crushing an ant.
Sun-woo began to channel internal energy into his sword.
It seemed he would have to cut off a leg or two before she would start talking properly.
"Wait! Wait! Are you actually planning to kill me right now?"
As Sun-woo began to radiate murderous aura, the smile vanished from her face, and she asked back in a flustered tone.
"You'd better speak up before I put a few holes in you. Why didn't you kill me?"
"I couldn't!"
She raised her voice and shouted.
"What?"
"I haven't fully recovered yet, so I can't move my body."
She continued, her voice trembling.
The sight of her with moisture welling in her eyes was incredibly pitiful.
"You just stabbed your leg through the Poison Demon's chest earlier, didn't you!?"
"That one strike was all the strength I had left! After that, I was so exhausted that I just passed out."
The Human-Faced Spider continued her explanation.
"Ah."
Upon hearing her words, all the pieces of the puzzle began to fall into place.
She hadn't actually fully recovered; she had simply delivered her final move to the Poison Demon.
After consuming all her strength, she had lost consciousness without even having the chance to focus on regeneration.
Sun-woo wanted to cheer.
It didn't take long for his despair to turn into pleasure.
He couldn't have been luckier.
To have enemies so powerful that they were difficult to handle die off on their own.
"Hehehehe."
Sun-woo began to let out a villainous laugh.
He liked the situation very much.
This fragile Human-Faced Spider could no longer resist him.
In that case, there was only one thing for Sun-woo to do.
Sun-woo raised his sword and began to slowly approach her.
"Wh-what are you doing?"
Seeing Sun-woo’s sinister smile, the Human-Faced Spider asked anxiously.
"Just bear with it for a moment. It'll be over soon."
Sun-woo began to pour internal energy into his sword.
He intended to cut her down in a single stroke.
The Human-Faced Spider was truly like a "Giving Tree."
She had helped him reach the Transcendent Realm and was now even offering up her Inner Core.
"Wa-wait! I told you the truth!"
"I never said I'd let you live, did I?"
Sun-woo’s eyes turned bloodshot at the thought of killing her and consuming her Inner Core.
She was a walking treasure and an elixir.
From her shell to her Inner Core, there was nothing to waste.
Sun-woo’s eyes grew hazy and unfocused.
"You said humans don't do favors without a price!"
"So what?"
"I saved your life!"
"......"
For a moment, Sun-woo was speechless.
"I stabbed my leg into that old man's chest just to save you!"
"Are you saying you attacked the Poison Demon instead of me just because you believed those words?"
"Of course! Why else would I have helped you?"
"..........."
Sun-woo was dumbfounded by her words.
To think she had actually believed what he said and cooperated in killing the Poison Demon.
Come to think of it, she was somewhat right.
If that attack had been directed at Sun-woo, he would have lost his life right then and there.
In a way, the Human-Faced Spider's choice had indeed saved him.
And so, Sun-woo fell into deep contemplation.
'Should I let her live? Or not?'
Sun-woo stared at the Human-Faced Spider in silence, lost in thought.