Chapter 280
Chapter 280
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 280
Chapter Title: Hwan-gol-tal-tae
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Ye-ryeong looked down at Soo-hyuk with anxious eyes.
After consuming the Immortal Herb, murky black sweat poured from Soo-hyuk's body.
She fidgeted her hands countless times, wondering if he might need help. But worried she might ruin it by interfering, Ye-ryeong clenched her fists and crossed her arms.
'It's not that he can't control his energy.'
Problems with absorbing spirit medicines could be detected in the energy flow.
Uncontrolled energy always leaked outward. If something went wrong during consumption, it would show clear signs.
But Soo-hyuk's symptoms were different.
Unexplained murky, filthy sweat. Ye-ryeong had no idea what it signified.
Then.
Drip-.
Black, dead blood trickled from Soo-hyuk's mouth.
"Wha?"
Startled, Ye-ryeong uncrossed her arms and stepped toward Soo-hyuk.
But the moment she moved, Jeyun-hak held her back.
"It's fine."
"It looks like a problem!"
"That's why it's fine. It's not a problem—it's expelling the problems outward."
"Expelling the problems?"
"The Immortal Herb can be a spirit medicine or a poison depending on usage. This is the process of forcing out the accumulated waste in the body."
At Jeyun-hak's explanation, Ye-ryeong hesitated before returning to her spot.
For Murim players, there was the process of circulating qi through the Small and Grand Heavenly Cycles to expel impurities.
It seemed something similar was happening to Soo-hyuk now.
Gazing at the impurities emanating from Soo-hyuk's body, Jeyun-hak muttered to himself.
"But it's odd. Normal people expel far more impurities than this."
"This is considered little?"
Jeyun-hak nodded.
"Not just a little—practically none. Expelled impurities reek like filth."
Ye-ryeong had heard about this before.
After the Small and Grand Cycles, thick, filth-like sweat would flow out as impurities were discharged.
Indeed, the sweat flowing from Soo-hyuk was relatively clean. It was a bit murky and dark, but at least there was no foul stench.
"Anyway, it's a good sign, right?"
"For the moment, we have to assume so..."
Crack-.
The sound of bones snapping drew both their gazes to Soo-hyuk simultaneously.
His arm bent backward unnaturally, his shoulder dislocated and twisted into a grotesque shape. Sounds of hips, knees, and every bone and muscle in his body screaming leaked outward.
As if feeling no pain, Soo-hyuk simply continued sweating without any reaction.
This time, it was Jeyun-hak who was startled.
"I'm not sure if even this is a good sign."
In contrast, Ye-ryeong remained calm, unlike before.
"It'll be okay."
"This?"
"Yes. I've never witnessed it myself, so I'm not entirely sure. But perhaps this is..."
Observing the changes in Soo-hyuk's body intently, Ye-ryeong continued in a trembling voice.
"the beginning of hwan-gol-tal-tae."
Ye-ryeong and Jeyun-hak's chatter didn't reach Soo-hyuk's ears.
The energy charging toward his heart suddenly spread throughout his entire body. The once-uncontrollable energy settled calmly under the dominion of his Lightning and Thunder Heart.
Thanks to that.
He could feel this profound stillness now.
It was like drifting on a windless sea. That sea was the controlled flow originating from the Immortal Herb and channeled through his heart.
From his veins to his bones and organs—there was no part of his body untouched by the Immortal Herb's power.
Soo-hyuk focused intently to prevent even a single drop from leaking away.
His body felt thoroughly purified. Vitality surged through him like reclaimed youth.
How much time had passed?
As he concentrated on holding onto the energy, Soo-hyuk's consciousness gradually returned.
'...I've gained a fateful opportunity.'
Soo-hyuk's eyes slowly opened, sparkling like stars.
'Two of them, even.'
Soo-hyuk had felt something similar once before.
It was when he first met Odin. To restore Thor's spirit using Soo-hyuk as a conduit, Odin had prepared numerous gifts.
Fateful opportunities that would have belonged to Thor, Asgard's would-be next king.
Taking those had given him a sensation much like this one.
As Soo-hyuk smiled faintly in satisfaction.
Swish, swish-.
Suddenly, a palm waved up and down before his eyes. He stared blankly at it for a moment before his gaze traveled upward.
Naturally, it was Ye-ryeong waving her hand.
"What're you doing?"
"How many?"
"...Five, obviously. Your palm's fully open."
"This one?"
"One. Fold your middle finger."
Ye-ryeong sighed in relief at Soo-hyuk's response, though her middle finger remained extended.
"Phew. You seem okay."
"Why the overreaction? How much time..."
As Soo-hyuk pressed against the floor to stand, he felt something sticky on his palm.
Black, watery liquid. He quickly realized it was the sweat that had poured from his body.
"Get it now? Why we were worried?"
"Yeah."
"How are the bones?"
"Bones?"
Ye-ryeong explained what had happened while Soo-hyuk wore a puzzled expression.
And upon hearing it, Soo-hyuk thought the same thing.
"Hwan-gol-tal-tae."
"Can't think of anything else."
Hwan-gol-tal-tae was a phenomenon experienced by only a tiny fraction of Murim players.
A complete overhaul of the body—including bones and organs—along with meridians and inner energy. For some, it even altered their appearance or made them look younger.
Most players who underwent it ascended to higher realms. Inevitably so, as the transformed body could unleash far superhuman power compared to before.
"Does it feel right?"
"Yeah. Pretty sure."
Soo-hyuk nodded.
Since reopening his eyes, he'd been sensing the changes in himself.
Hwan-gol-tal-tae. Every part of his body truly felt renewed.
'Bigger than the mana increase... the physical transformation is immense.'
Most spirit medicines primarily contributed to accumulating mana. But the Immortal Herb's energy hadn't dramatically boosted his mana.
Instead, it permeated every aspect of his physique—bones, organs, joints, muscles, and more.
It felt as if every bone and muscle in his body had been removed and replaced with brand-new ones.
He itched to dash outside right now and sprint at full speed somewhere, anywhere.
"There's something peculiar, though."
Jeyun-hak spoke up, sounding puzzled.
"For hwan-gol-tal-tae, the expelled impurities are too few. A normal body holds dozens of times more."
In truth, the sweat around Soo-hyuk wasn't abundant.
The waste from a hwan-gol-tal-tae physique typically carried an unprecedented stench. Yet Soo-hyuk's sweat merely smelled like strong perspiration.
"Probably because I've been through a similar process once before."
"Similar process?"
"I once consumed an extraordinary spirit medicine in the past."
Soo-hyuk recalled Odin's trial.
Back then, to save Thor, Odin had poured vast resources into him. Thanks to that, Soo-hyuk claimed them all—from Mimir's Well of Wisdom to every other fateful opportunity.
He'd expelled virtually all accumulated waste back then. What came out this time was just the remnants.
'The Immortal Herb alone couldn't have done this.'
The Immortal Herb's power was tremendous. Its energy was several times purer and richer in mana than expected.
But it couldn't trigger hwan-gol-tal-tae by itself. This fateful gain was the culmination of his past accumulations combined with this moment.
"Anyway, good outcome—relieved. Thought we were just wasting time, especially midway when it seemed off."
Soo-hyuk asked Ye-ryeong, who spoke with evident relief.
"Time wasn't that long, was it?"
"What are you talking about? A full day passed."
"...A day?"
Soo-hyuk's eyes went wide. It had felt like maybe an hour—such a massive discrepancy.
"We're too late. No word from Si-woo?"
"Oh, right!"
She'd been so focused on monitoring Soo-hyuk that she'd forgotten to check her kit. Ye-ryeong hurriedly pulled it out in a fluster.
Sure enough, several messages waited. As she read them, her eyes narrowed sharply.
"..."
"What's wrong?"
Sensing the ominous atmosphere, Soo-hyuk asked.
Rereading the texts, Ye-ryeong unwittingly leaked wisps of killing intent as she replied.
"Kim Il-su... came by."
"...!"
Soo-hyuk's expression mirrored hers.
Kim Il-su.
A name and face he never forgot for a single day. But this was the first time it had been mentioned so directly.
Still, judging by the message to Si-woo and Ye-ryeong's relatively composed reaction, it didn't seem to have turned dangerous.
"Hyemin? She okay?"
"Yeah. She must've gotten word and escaped ahead of time."
"Good call. Better not to clash needlessly."
"Tell me about it. If I'd been there, I couldn't have held back."
Just thinking of Kim Il-su reverted Ye-ryeong to her Dark Queen persona. Her expression was even more murderous than when facing the Dangpaegun.
Naturally, Soo-hyuk felt the same. Sensing the shift in the air, Jeyun-hak glanced between them.
"Sounds like... some ancient grudge."
He too had lived in the same era as Soo-hyuk and Ye-ryeong.
He wasn't unaware of who they meant or the relationship they'd once had.
Only then did Soo-hyuk and Ye-ryeong register Jeyun-hak's presence and withdraw their unconscious killing intent.
"Ah, sorry, Elder."
"No need to apologize. It wasn't aimed at me."
Jeyun-hak understood them. He didn't know the full story, but just days ago, he hadn't been so different.
Those who lose someone precious remain bound to that day. To let time flow again, they must sever the lingering regrets somehow.
"Time to head back?"
"Yeah. Friends are waiting."
Soo-hyuk's eyes weren't gentle as he answered.
At first, his only thought had been to obtain the medicine and rush to Hyemin. In focusing on her, he'd overlooked one person.
'Right. You were there.'
Kim Il-su's face materialized before Soo-hyuk's eyes.
In the final moment, the man's face as half of it was lost to Soo-hyuk's hand. It was twisted in pain yet filled with ecstatic joy.
Probably a victor’s smile.
But.
'You didn't win.'
The battle from that day still wasn't over.