Hidden Dragon Emerges

I had already completed a full Iljucheon cycle with the Palgwae Muguk Simbeop, and my body felt perfectly fine. That meant I could master this martial art completely.

"Alright, shall we make a proper dantian for real~?"

A tune started humming from my lips unbidden. I closed my eyes and focused my mind on my lower abdomen, where the lower dantian should form. Another Iljucheon cycle began. The dragon's mana surging from my heart flowed through my meridians, transforming into smooth internal energy. I positioned that energy in the dantian and whispered the Dragon Word softly.

"Suh."

Woooong—!

It didn't require much power at all. Energy had no physical weight, and the mana consumption was practically negligible. I could feel the framework of the lower dantian holding steady. After all, this was mana that stayed contained within my body without dissipating.

It felt like just allocating a bit of the energy from my heart to the dantian. And the effect of Suh wasn't just bundling the energy—it was drawing it in. Like water swirling into a bathtub drain, the internal energy that had passed through my meridians vortexed naturally and powerfully toward that spot, getting sucked right in.

That was the moment.

"...Whoa?!"

I snapped my eyes open and stared blankly at the system window floating in the air.

"SS-grade...?"

In the modern hunter world, even a single S-grade skill made you national-level power. And this was a system-certified SS-grade skill? It really felt like a heart method created by a legendary dragon from myths...

"Huuu..."

I let out a long, turbid breath, and my body felt as light as a feather. My vision was several times clearer and sharper than before. My senses themselves had changed. Was this how martial artists saw the world?

Above all, I was certain that even if I stepped onto the Hunter Association's mana measurer, that damn "measurement impossible" error wouldn't pop up anymore. The dragon mana in my heart and the internal energy gathered in my lower dantian emitted completely different wavelengths, inexplicable but qualitatively distinct.

"This is insane. I actually formed a dantian. Gotta test it out right now!"

I immediately grabbed the Black Iron Spear leaning against the wall and headed to the backyard piled high with scrap metal.

In the chilly dawn air, I circulated the Chilryong Palgwaechang heart method and drew energy up from the lower dantian.

Woooong—!

The sensation was totally different from before. The blade of the Black Iron Spear, infused with freshly condensed ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠pure internal energy, began to blaze with a deep blue light. In my grip on the shaft, I felt the fierce vibration of the internal energy itching to surge forward violently.

'Gently... not too strong...'

I thrust out the first form once more.

Jaryongchultu.

Jaryong—also called Waryong or Bokryong in wuxia tales and Romance of the Three Kingdoms—refers to a hidden prodigy. I felt an ecstatic thrill, like I myself had become that hidden dragon.

I thrust the spear toward the haphazardly stacked piles of metal materials in the yard—not too fiercely, just with moderate force.

Then, a massive blue dragon image the size of my torso climbed up my arm along the path of my internal energy, coiled around the spear shaft, and shot forward terrifyingly.

'Oh, that's badass!'

As I marveled uncontrollably, it happened.

Thudkwaak—!!

With a noise that wasn't as loud as I'd expected, a perfectly round hole—like it'd been drilled by a giant awl—punched clean through the heavy stacks of scrap. The hole went all the way to the back wall.

I alternated dumb stares between the Black Iron Spear and the blasted-open backyard.

"Whoa, fuck. What the hell...?"

A pure piercing attack with no explosion. A single blow that screamed "all power focused in one spot."

But joy was short-lived. I hurriedly sheathed the spear and surveyed the damaged wall.

"Gotta patch the wall tomorrow. Wait, or should I remodel the whole thing while I'm at it?"

Either way, I finally had some serious close-range firepower. Feeling my heart pound with satisfaction, I hummed another tune, returned to my room, and fell into sweet sleep.

The next morning, I woke refreshed, washed my face, and immediately opened the Multidimensional Secondhand Market community app.

"Oh, she's finally online."

The friend list, gray all last night, now had a welcoming green light next to the cleric 'OldPriestess'.

I opened her message window without delay. It was a reply to the photo I'd sent of Baek Hayeon's 'Spirit Communication Resonance Stone', inquiring about repair costs.

Huh? Check out this lady? Called a saintess, but she's got a materialistic streak?

Her desperation came through crystal clear in the text.

Clean water was essential for treating illness. Without it, recovery was a pipe dream.

Scratch materialistic—she was selfless. I was angling for a curse-purifying item, but this saintess just wanted water to save lives.

Clean water delivered like a missile if I ordered online. Reading her texts made me realize how blessed my life was. Polluted water spreading disease, impurities lingering even after boiling—a hellish situation.

Huh? Roughly 500ml per mug? Times 1,000 is 500,000ml... About 5,000 liters?

I opened the online shopping app right away.

'Lemme see, 30 packs of 2L for under 20,000 won?'

I even searched for large water tanks, just in case. Delivering tap water in one wouldn't be bad.

But.

Fuck, why are water tanks so expensive? Millions of won?

Ended up with bottled water. I texted OldPriestess immediately.

Aha, why the saintess came to me specifically. Same-continent users were price-gouging water.

Felt less guilty trading curse item for mere bottled water now.

'Playing with lives, those assholes. Can't stand it. Order delivery and hit the supermarket now.'

I dashed to the mart and swept up all the bottled water there. The shop auntie eyed me like I was nuts.

"How you gonna carry all this?"

"Deliver the rest, auntie."

"No way, Daesung boy, my hubby's back will snap."

"Just load it by the junkyard on the truck—I'll unload!"

Back at the junkyard with the water, I attached it to OldPriestess.

Saving lives—had to help first somehow.

Then.

Hm? The mail contained one item from OldPriestess.

It was the exact same as the bottled water I'd just sent.

Her words warmed my chest. I wasn't that nice, though...

I ended the chat with OldPriestess.

Divine punishment...? From god...? Gotta be careful.

The transparent, sparkling PET bottle that entered my inventory with a gleam. Already clear water, but now it subtly shimmered with golden light.

'Oh right, gotta order water.' Needed it tomorrow, so missile delivery it was. Sorry delivery guy, but I ordered 50 sets of 30-pack 2L bottles.

She trusted me—I'd send extra, she'd be happy. Delivery dude probably thinks I'm some weirdo. But oh well.

After shopping, I pulled out Baek Hayeon's blackened spirit stone, placed it on the desk, and carefully dripped a drop of the blessed holy water from the bottle onto it.

Tssshiiiik—!!

"Oh? It works?"

A creepy scream-like hallucination rang out, and the curse blackening the spirit stone boiled up, evaporating into white smoke. Slowly pouring more holy water, in under a minute, the dull stone fully regained its original clear, transparent emerald glow, emanating faint mana waves.

"Holy water's OP."

Grinning in satisfaction, I grabbed my phone and typed a message.

Tap tap tap—