Chapter 54
Chapter 54
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 55
Chapter Title: Star Flower Colony
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The Star Flower colony existed somewhere in that cliff zone, a miniature Grand Canyon.
The reason it was "somewhere" was because I didn't know the exact location.
But that wasn't a problem.
I had excellent eyesight that wouldn't miss even the slightest sign.
I enhanced my vision and scanned the entire cliff meticulously from left to right, bottom to top.
If not here, then the next spot. If not there, then the one after.
I delved toward the center of the V-shaped gorge surrounded by cliffs, and as a result...
I detected a strange ripple from a round crevice located about 150 meters away horizontally and 200 meters up vertically.
The way my vision distorted finely indicated it was a heat haze.
One of the peculiarities caused by the Star Flower drawing in surrounding mana...
"There it is."
Now that I knew the precise location, there was no reason to hesitate.
I gauged the target position and fired the sky silk thread like a harpoon.
Swoooosh.
The sky silk thread shot out in a straight line and embedded itself flawlessly in the desired spot.
I tested it several times, leaning my body weight into it like an airborne assault trooper preparing to rappel.
Confirming it was taut without any shake, I launched myself upward.
As I neared the crevice, I slowed my speed and hovered at eye level.
Thanks to the accumulated proficiency, my movements were quite skilled.
I braced one hand against the side and peered in.
And for a moment, I forgot to speak.
"......"
Unlike the somewhat narrow entrance, the space widened the further in it went.
Even if it was just a cavern about 10 pyeong in size, it was filled with hundreds of glowing orbs scattered in the darkness.
Like a nebula blooming from the earth, captured in a miniature universe...
It was the Star Flower colony I'd been searching for.
[Achievement-148: Lucky Explorer]
[You are the first discoverer of the Star Flower colony.]
[Reward: 3 days added to remaining time.]
An achievement too?
For a brief instant, I was drawn to the system message, then returned my gaze.
Staring at it again, I let out a shallow sigh.
During the webtoon serialization, I thought I'd put some effort into drawing it, but seeing it in person, it was maybe a tenth of the real thing.
The gap between reality and the artwork's quality was incomparably vast.
The number of specimens seemed even greater than described...
Tsk.
In any case, this bitter realization was a perfect buzzkill.
I squeezed my body through the narrow gap.
Crawling in on my belly, I stood once the ceiling rose higher.
But then.
"What is this?"
That's when I spotted an unusually vivid glow.
It hadn't been visible when I'd only poked my head in—an anomalous phenomenon.
At the center of the colony stood a massive, brilliant flower bud rising straight up like the central star of a nebula, illuminating its surroundings.
Even unbloomed, it devoured the surrounding light, emanating an intense glow and asserting its presence.
Was there a setting like this?
I approached cautiously, unsure.
* * *
At the same time, Cheon Seo-yoon was pacing around the cliffs.
Her goal was hunting, but with no prey in sight, it had turned into pointless wandering.
"What kind of herbs grow in a place without a single blade of grass?"
Cheon Seo-yoon pouted at the cliffs, but soon realized her folly and slapped her lips.
Anyway, today's goal of 3 million won was already achieved.
All thanks to the man she'd just met and started calling "hyungnim."
"He's impressive."
Recalling the hunt, Cheon Seo-yoon stuck out her tongue in admiration.
How could he navigate this vast Suri Mountain like his own backyard without a map?
He seemed to just go wherever his feet took him, yet here was a bride moth haunt, there a red flame ghost spot.
It was uncanny, like he was a mountain spirit—every warning hit the mark.
For a pathfinder like Cheon Seo-yoon, who sometimes forgot the way back to the dorm, it was utterly baffling.
"Anyway, solo hunting's off the table."
Pushing further might get her lost and make reuniting impossible.
She scanned for a decent spot to lie down, spotted a grassy patch, and headed there.
She roughly cleared a space with her feet, then flopped down, using her arms as a pillow.
The suddenly vivid blue sky filled her retinas, and the buzzing of nameless insects hummed in her ears.
The deeply inhaled breath was full of fresh green scent.
......
In this rare moment of rest, Cheon Seo-yoon reflected.
She was glad she'd come out.
Rules be damned—once outside, she felt alive...
Encountering a new environment and people was like spreading a blank canvas over one crammed with dense lines, exaggerating a bit.
If time allowed, she wanted to come out more often.
Alone felt awkward, but with that hyungnim from today...
It wasn't just his near-miraculous scouting skills.
Spending time together, she found the person himself decent...
He acted aloof but was considerate; gruff, yet earnestly so.
Experience couldn't be ignored—it had that quality that put people at ease.
"But why's his nickname 'Limited Time'?"
Her thoughts reached there, and curiosity struck.
Didn't "limited time" refer to someone with little life left?
No way...
"Nah, that doesn't make sense. Why would someone about to die come to a hunting ground?"
Cheon Seo-yoon shook her head, dismissing it, then paused again.
"One hour. A flower I must collect... just call it a kind of herb."
Their parting words had felt oddly meaningful.
"Whoa."
Cheon Seo-yoon bolted upright, her imagination soaring.
A congenital illness from birth; the herb to cure it grew nowhere but these cliffs... Frequent visits sharpened his sense of direction, letting him navigate blindfolded...
"That's it. That's gotta be it..."
As her imaginings turned into a pitiful reality,
A sudden chill wind blew, carrying an ominous aura.
"......!"
The sinister vibe prickling her skin made Cheon Seo-yoon leap to her feet.
Rustle rustle.
In response, the bushes ahead began to shake.
"What the hell is this guy..."
As a massive aura unlike any in Suri Mountain surged, Cheon Seo-yoon muttered under her breath.
Growl.
A black, monstrous form charged like lightning.
* * *
Here was the Star Flower colony.
I was approaching the suspicious flower bud.
['Gluttony,' dormant, startles awake.]
[It warns that flower bud is dangerous and ugly—don't get close.]
Why's this guy acting up?
Gluttony suddenly flared after being quiet, so I paused briefly but continued.
The aura from the flower bud felt oddly familiar...
Yeah, Samjae Gong.
It was astonishingly similar to the pure mana I'd felt when practicing Samjae Gong.
['Gluttony' says it's a misunderstanding. That's not pure—it's damp and ominous.]
But isn't calling evil evil making it good?
['Gluttony' says that's too much...]
"Quiet down. Don't distract me."
[Grumble]
I approached with my right hand lightly clenched.
Stopping within reach, I extended my left hand and activated simple scan.
[Flower bud containing Star's ???.]
[Grade: ???]
[Description: Placenta of ?? containing star essence. Can bloom by absorbing specific person's ?? and ???.]
But the key info was question marks.
[More mana needed for additional info.]
[Scan?]
After deliberation, I refused.
Didn't know the mana cost, and knowing more wouldn't change anything now.
Gonna take it anyway.
"Should I snap it off?"
That was the real question.
Its radiant glow felt almost holy, making me hesitate guiltily.
But no other way, so I acted.
Snap.
Fortunately, a light tug broke it off. Easily plucked, really.
I carefully wrapped the fist-sized bud and stowed it in my subspace pouch.
With the unexpected bonus secured, time to fulfill the objective.
"Let's see."
I wove through the waves of light, scanning the floor.
To secure seeds easier to store and use than flowers—and with so many specimens, I found them quickly.
I opened my subspace pouch wide and frantically gathered seeds.
Processed petals made expensive curatives too—this was all money, extra lives...
"Hm?"
Then, suddenly, a sense of incongruity.
I thought I was the first discoverer of the Star Flower colony.
In my unmapped vision, near a recessed corner, I spotted suspicious traces.
As if a blind beast had barged in, rolled around, trampling and devouring everywhere.
"What?"
The doubt flared like oil on fire but quickly died.
Static crackle.
My waist radio spat harsh mechanical noise.
...nim, where... are you. Cliffs... run now. Here... Irregular... attacking.
Cheon Seo-yoon's voice was fragmented from distance, but "Irregular" said it all.
Facing this original-unforeseen anomaly, incomprehensible, I glared into the void.
As if waiting, the view ahead warped.
[In the original, Star Flowers had minor role despite unique setting.]
[To compensate, expanded colony scale, added Star's ?? to elevate value.]
[However, to prevent easy early acquisition, added contrary setting and Irregular within plausibility.]
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[Inter Quest]
[Objective: Consume Star Flower, defeat 6th-grade demonic beast Strange Centipede, who luckily became Irregular.]
[Reward: 5 days added to remaining period, 15 SP]
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[6th-Grade Demonic Beast: Strange Centipede] [Irregular]
[Attribute: Wood (88%)]
[Authority: Prolificacy]
[Traits: Centipede-type demonic beast. Upon combat, hatches eggs in belly, spewing dozens of offspring. Offspring are expendable non-breeding types driven solely to self-destruct.]
Ah, that explained it.
An Irregular in Suri Mountain? Eating Star Flower turning Irregular was funny too...
D-grade background plausibility limit?
Opponent being 6th-grade Irregular was a silver lining.
Cheon Seo-yoon and I could handle that.
"Time to head out."
I grabbed a few more seeds, embedded sky silk thread at the colony entrance, and leaped without hesitation.
Swoooosh.
Like rappelling, body bent L-shaped, I dropped straight to the ground.
Then sprinted.
Toward the battlefield where Cheon Seo-yoon clashed with the Irregular.
Heightened senses detected mana waves not far off—thankfully.
Approaching suitable distance, I maxed my eyesight.
Revealing a 2-meter giant centipede and opposing Cheon Seo-yoon in stark clarity.
Blue sword strikes intertwined with black pincer trajectories, dazzling the eyes.
Judging strictly, Cheon Seo-yoon was at a disadvantage.
Splat sizzle.
The Strange Centipede alone was tough, but hatchlings bursting from its chest targeted her relentlessly, tangling her limbs.
"Can't have that."
Main episode neared; injury would complicate things. Better intervene early.
Situation grasped, I activated manifestation, summoning One Sword and binding it with sky silk thread.
Distance about 150m, target the egg sac—its weakness.
Trajectory clear, should succeed smoothly...
One regret.
Attribute.
Strange Centipede was single-wood attribute at 88%; fire on One Sword would hit harder.
"No way around it?"
I pondered briefly.
Though I handled all base attributes, it was spell-limited—couldn't infuse weapons directly...
"Ah."
Solution nearby.
Deemed viable, I hurled the sword without delay.
Propelled by one breath and a running step, Chungyongwi's shortsword cleaved the air.
......
Simultaneous enhancement.
[Imbue Yeon Gaesomun's One Sword with temporary fire attribute?]
[Required SP: 3]
Accepted instantly; red hue bled into the formless trajectory.