Myriad Immortals Return to Origin
By now, the hours I used to spend meditating beneath the waterfall had, without any particular decision on my part, turned into hours of illicit coupling with Rang.
And today, after another round with her, I went looking for Ho Hwa-rin.
She was sitting at the mouth of the cave, tail swaying, and the moment she spotted me she tossed out a single line.
"Seo-jun. You've been enjoying yourself with Rang again today, haven't you?"
"…I washed. You can still smell it?"
"It reeks."
"Hmm. Guess I'll have to scrub the evidence off more carefully next time."
"More importantly, Seo-jun. I'm hungry."
"What do you want today?"
"Chicken and cola!"
She was completely hooked on the real-world food I kept pulling out of my inventory.
Her appetite is insane. The money's starting to worry me…
Rang and Ho Hwa-rin in particular were bottomless pits. Being demon beasts, they ate about three times what a human would.
My balance was draining fast. If I wanted to keep feeding these women, I was going to have to start making money back in the real world sooner rather than later.
"All right. Chicken and cola, then?"
"And those snacks from last time."
"Butter chips?"
"Those."
I opened the inventory and took out a whole chicken, two cans of cola, and a bag of butter chips.
Ho Hwa-rin's eyes lit up as she reached for them.
The look on her face as she tore into a drumstick in a single bite was pure bliss.
"By the way—where's Seo Ran?"
She wasn't anywhere near the cave, and I hadn't felt her presence for a while.
"Mmph… said she was going to pick someone up and stepped out for a bit."
"Ah. So the two of them are here, then."
Seoha—who I was supposed to start calling by that name instead of Dan Ha—and So Ryeong must have arrived. The rat messenger Ho Hwa-rin had sent had done its job properly.
After that I split the chicken with Ho Hwa-rin while we waited for them, and one thing led naturally into another—post-meal exercise.
Schlick, schlick, schliiick—
"Haahng…♡ Seo-jun…♡ Put another fresh little one in me today…♡"
I held her by the waist, keeping rhythm, and focused on my dantian. Circulating the Yin-Yang Dual Cultivation Scripture, I drew in Ho Hwa-rin's spiritual energy. Hers was on a completely different level from Seo Ran's or Rang's. The volume that poured into me with every bout of sex was overwhelming.
Then it happened.
Something shifted deep inside my dantian.
"Hmm?"
"Seo-jun, what is it?"
"Nothing. I just… suddenly saw the path."
Spiritual energy well past the Foundation Establishment stage had already piled up in my dantian, and yet there'd been no sign of a breakthrough—until now. Suddenly the core of it began to seethe. The compressed masses of spiritual energy thrashed all at once.
This…
I couldn't stop.
Without pausing the motion of my hips, I poured my focus into my dantian.
I spun the Yin-Yang Dual Cultivation Scripture at full force. Ho Hwa-rin's spiritual energy flooded in even faster. An even more staggering volume slammed into my already overflowing dantian, prying it open by force.
Schliiick—!!
"Hieut…♡ Why so rough all of a sudden…♡"
"Quiet."
My dantian felt ready to burst. The sensation of climbing one full stage beyond Foundation Establishment. My meridians stretched open under pressure, and my entire body burned hot.
Here it comes.
Spiritual energy exploded outward. Pressure as if the dantian itself were swelling, then that pressure racing out along every meridian in my body. In the same instant Ho Hwa-rin's pussy clenched around my cock like mad, the pressure hit its limit.
"Uuugh…!"
Reason threatened to fly apart. Ho Hwa-rin's spiritual energy was nothing like a normal human's. Every time I absorbed it, something wild and primal came with it. As if a beast's instinct itself were dissolved into the energy.
Baaang—!
My dantian burst open in expansion, and a fresh wave of spiritual energy poured through my whole body. The feeling of surging past mid-stage Foundation Establishment and driving hard into the late stage. Meridians blazed; every vessel seemed to come alive.
Instinct swallowed reason. I drove my hips harder, like an animal.
Ho Hwa-rin answered as if she were resonating with me.
"Hnyaaang♡ It feels weird…♡ Ooooh…♡"
As the Yin-Yang Dual Cultivation Scripture hit its peak, our spiritual energies tangled together and stimulated both our dantians at once.
And the moment I came, a final explosion went off in my dantian.
Brrrrrrrt—!!
"Hiiiiiit—♡!!"
Spiritual energy spread evenly through my body and settled into a new realm.
I collapsed onto Ho Hwa-rin, breathing hard.
"……I broke through."
"Seo-jun… something just changed."
"I advanced a stage."
"What does that mean."
"It means I got stronger."
"Good."
"All thanks to you."
"Then another chicken."
"I'll give you the chicken later."
I lifted my head.
Two familiar presences were approaching from the cave mouth.
They're here.
I slowly peeled myself off Ho Hwa-rin. At the same time, three silhouettes stepped into the cave.
Seo Ran in the lead, with Seoha and So Ryeong following carefully behind her.
The first thing that caught my eye was Seoha—her hair no longer black, but that purple shade.
So Ryeong stuck close behind her. She glanced around, then locked eyes with me, and her expression froze solid.
"Long time no see, both of you."
"Kyaah! Pervert!"
"You idiot, put some clothes on!"
Both women covered their eyes with their hands, faces burning red. So Ryeong cracked her fingers just enough to sneak another peek, then shrieked even louder.
Seo Ran let out a long sigh and pressed a hand to her forehead.
"You really have no concept of moderation, do you?"
Only then did I look down at myself and snort a laugh. I'd stood up mid-mating with Ho Hwa-rin, so my cock was still half-hard, and my whole body was slick with sweat and fluids.
"Sorry. Things got a little urgent."
"Ha… you really are—wait. Your cultivation…"
"Ah. I broke through while I was with Hwa-rin."
"…I told you to seek enlightenment through meditation, and you advanced through copulation?"
"If the result's the same, does the method really matter?"
Seo Ran stared at me like she couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"…Your blood vessels are unnaturally pure, and now you're raising your stage through dual cultivation. The more I learn about you, the less sense you make."
She sighed again and waved a hand.
"Just put some clothes on first."
"Putting clothes on like this would feel gross. I'll go wash up with Hwa-rin."
"…Fine."
Short answers only. Even reacting seemed to tire her out.
Ho Hwa-rin was already on her feet beside me, tail swaying slowly.
"Going to wash?"
"Yeah."
"I'm coming too."
Once I'd washed and gotten dressed, I finally looked like a person again.
Inside the cave, Seo Ran, Seoha, and So Ryeong were sitting together. Seo Ran seemed to be explaining something, and the other two were listening quietly.
The moment I stepped in, all three pairs of eyes locked onto me at once.
Seo Ran sighed first.
"Now you look halfway human."
Seoha stared at me with those red eyes, then gave a small nod.
"…I'm glad you're alive."
"Glad you're safe too."
This time So Ryeong spoke up.
"Seo-jun, you're not hurt anywhere?"
"As you can see—no."
"That's a relief… But who's the person next to you?"
So Ryeong's eyes were glued to Ho Hwa-rin's ears and tail.
"Hmph. Curious who I am, are you?"
Ho Hwa-rin folded her arms and took a step forward.
"I am the ruler of this Hongyeon Valley—Ho Hwa-rin."
So Ryeong blinked.
"Hongyeon Valley… the ruler?"
"That's right."
"Then… what kind of relationship do you have with Seo-jun?"
Ho Hwa-rin answered without a shred of hesitation.
"We mate!"
"M-mate?"
So Ryeong's eyes went round as she whipped around to look at me.
"Seo-jun… when she says mate, she means… that kind of mating?"
"Yeah. That kind."
"……."
So Ryeong's mouth slowly fell open.
Seoha said nothing. Her red eyes simply drifted from Ho Hwa-rin to me, then slowly over to Seo Ran.
Seo Ran had her eyes shut, hand pressed to her forehead.
Ho Hwa-rin tilted her head, clearly not understanding the reactions.
"Why those faces? Seo-jun told me mating is a good thing."
"I-I'm a virgin, so I don't know about that sort of…"
"You don't know? How unfortunate. You should try mating with Seo-jun too. It feels excellent."
So Ryeong's face turned as red as a ripe apple, and a flustered Seo Ran rushed in to cut Ho Hwa-rin off.
"Hold on—that is not the important thing right now. Let's move on to something else."
"Ran, why are you so flustered? You also mate with Seo-jun—mmph?!"
Seo Ran's hand shot out like lightning, clamping over Ho Hwa-rin's mouth, and she hissed something into her ear.
Only then did Ho Hwa-rin nod and shut up.
Seoha carefully spoke up.
"Mom… since when have you been speaking so casually with Seo-jun?"
"That just… sort of happened along the way."
Seo Ran's excuse came out awkward.
Seoha looked back and forth between me and her mother, suspicion plain on her face.
I took that gaze head-on, shrugged lightly, and let my eyes travel naturally over Seo Ran and Seoha together.
Seeing the two of them side by side like this… they look delicious.
They say the finest rice bowl of all is the mother-daughter special.
Seo Ran and Seoha—same purple-toned hair, similar eyes, even their figures. One a cold, mature beauty; the other still fresh, but clearly growing into her mother's looks.
Seo Ran felt my stare and narrowed her eyes slightly.
"…You're thinking something filthy right now, aren't you?"
"No. Not at all."
"Just try thinking something filthy."
Feeling guilty for no good reason, I looked away.
"Then… are we staying here from now on?"
So Ryeong's question got a nod from Seo Ran.
"Yes. For the time being, this is the safest place. As long as Hwa-rin is here, this is as close to a perfect hideout as we can get."
"Correct. This is my territory. No one enters without my leave."
So Ryeong's eyes sparkled at Ho Hwa-rin's confident bearing.
"Lady Hwa-rin, you're so cool."
"Ahem."
Ho Hwa-rin's shoulders rose high under the praise. But then something seemed to occur to her, and her expression shifted quickly.
"However… there are too many people in the cave now. I don't like it."
The cave was large enough for everyone. But the owner of this place was still Ho Hwa-rin, no matter what.
"Then we'll set up our own place nearby."
"Somewhere around the shrine, maybe?"
"Wait. Seo-jun stays in my cave."
"Just me?"
"Yes. Seo-jun has to mate with me every day."
At that, Seo Ran stepped in.
"That is not going to happen."
"Why not? Seo-jun is mine. Therefore he stays here with me."
Somehow, without my noticing, I had been fully reduced to property.
Seo Ran took a step forward and faced Ho Hwa-rin.
"Seo-jun is…"
She glanced at Seoha mid-sentence and stopped. She clearly didn't want her relationship with me exposed.
Well, yeah. Announcing in front of your daughter that you're involved with a guy around her age would be a bit much.
Seo Ran cleared her throat and chose her words carefully.
"That man was mine from the start. I only lent him to you for a while."
"Even if you lent him, he is mine now."
"Hwa-rin."
Seo Ran's voice dropped a full tone.
"Even between friends, there are lines."
Two women who'd been getting along so well suddenly locking into a cold staring match sent a chill down my spine all by itself.
"Ran. Even if you are my friend, I will not yield on this."
Tension crackled between them.
If I left them like this, something big was going to blow. I cut in.
"Both of you—calm down for a second."
"Stay out of this."
"Seo-jun, stay out."
Didn't land at all.
So Ryeong poked me in the side, looking entertained, and whispered,
"You're pretty popular, Seo-jun."
"Well… yeah, I guess."
Then Seoha came over.
"You. What happened between you and Mom while we were gone?"
I thought for a second, then answered as naturally as breathing.
"I'm your new dad."
"What are you even saying? Are you insane?"
Seoha looked at me like I was repulsive and clearly didn't believe a word of it. A reasonable reaction, to be fair.