The Nature of Spiritual Power
Spiritual beasts — (3)
Spiritual power wasn’t all that different from handling demonic energy at its core. I could wield it as naturally as moving my own limbs, without anyone teaching me. It also let me do things that would be physically impossible. If there was one clear distinction, it was this: demonic energy felt cold, while spiritual power felt warm.
After my conversation with Sangun, I began seriously exploring my spiritual power. Naturally, my primary test subject was Depo.
“Why me, squeeeak!”
“Because you’re the easiest target.”
“There are tons of other weak yokai besides me! You could clean up plenty of them with your current level, Miho!”
“Look at this little rat. Where the hell did you pick up that internet slang?”
“You’re the one who taught it to me.”
“…Whatever.”
“Squeeeak!”
“Anyway, just cooperate nicely. If you help me properly, I’ll give you a big present.”
“Present? What kind of present? Acorns?”
“Nope. Something way better than acorns.”
The moment he heard the word ‘present,’ Depo’s eyes lit up. He poked his head out from my chest and started enthusiastically advertising himself as the perfect assistant.
Yeah, that’s all fine and good, but…
“Could you come out of there first? Seriously, before I shave off all that fluffy fur.”
“No way. It’s so soft and cozy. Do the experiment like this.”
“…Do whatever you want.”
Ever since I’d manifested my seventh tail, Depo had practically taken up permanent residence in my chest. He slept there, ate there, drank there. I had no idea what my boobs were turning into — some kind of squirrel den? — but Depo’s constant squeaking was oddly cute, and the sensation of his fluffy little body was surprisingly pleasant. So I just let him stay.
Anyway.
I started testing out my fox sorcery… no, I suppose I should call it fox spiritual arts now. I was careful to keep the power low since I had zero intention of actually hurting Depo.
Through the experiments, I learned a few things.
First. Spiritual arts — or rather, spiritual power — had the ability to erase demonic energy, much like how a Force Arts user’s force worked. Which meant that once I mastered using spiritual power, it would be incredibly useful for hunting down yokai.
Of course, just like how Lee Ha-neul couldn’t wipe out every yokai just by using her force, there would probably be limits. Still, it was clearly a very useful power.
“Squeeeeeeak! My demonic energyyyy!”
“Ah! S-sorry!”
Oops. I’d accidentally started devouring Depo’s demonic energy with my spiritual power. I thought I’d been controlling my strength, but apparently not enough. The poor guy whose life force I’d just nibbled on immediately started thrashing around inside my chest.
“Apologize! Give me back my demonic energy, you stupid idiot brainless fox!”
“I said I was sorry… kyaaaaah! What are you doing?!”
“Squeak squeak.”
Wriggle wriggle.
Depo started squirming all over the place inside my chest. The sensation was so strange and oddly sensual that I couldn’t help but scream.
For a yokai, demonic energy was basically their lifeline — precious energy. So it made sense that Depo was throwing a fit after I’d erased some of it.
…That said.
“That’s enough.”
“Squeak…”
Everything in moderation. That was the second thing I learned from the experiments.
Unlike demonic energy, spiritual power was an infinite resource. It took some time to recover, but it replenished naturally on its own without needing to suck out anyone’s vitality or devour their liver. Truly infinite energy.
At first glance, one might think that gaining an extra tail had made me ridiculously stronger. But it wasn’t that simple. The total volume of power I could hold had actually decreased. It felt like the vessel containing my power had gotten smaller.
Demonic energy wasn’t infinite, but if I had a wicked enough mindset, I could gorge myself on it endlessly. Let’s say, for example, that I was a perverted fox yokai whose hobby was draining the life force from human men.
“…”
“What’s wrong, Miho?”
“…Nothing.”
Just thinking about it gave me a serious case of reality shock. Not that I actually wanted to do that — it was purely hypothetical.
Alright. Let’s say I went out into the human world today to feast on men’s vitality. One guy. Two guys. Ten. A hundred. A thousand. Even if I drained ten thousand human men dry, that massive amount of demonic energy wouldn’t leak out of my body. Of course, with only three tails out I wouldn’t be able to handle it, but with six tails or more, I could endure it without much trouble.
On the other hand, spiritual power recovered naturally without any crazy acts like draining men’s vitality. However, once it reached a certain threshold, it stopped recovering. Unlike demonic energy, which had no upper limit, spiritual power had a clear ceiling.
In that sense, if we were only talking about the peak potential of ‘power,’ spiritual power was actually weaker than demonic energy.
Well. Since I had zero intention of ever draining livers or sucking vitality anyway, this was actually better for me.
The third thing I learned from the experiments: unlike demonic energy, which was negative in nature, spiritual power was a positive energy.
…Even I’m not entirely sure what that abstract, vague statement really means. There’s no concrete evidence. But I can say with certainty that using spiritual power fills my heart with warmth, unlike when I use demonic energy.
“It’s warm…”
It seemed the subjects I used it on felt that warmth as well. Truly, the term ‘sacred power’ suited it perfectly.
Thanks to Depo, I’d learned quite a lot. So as promised, I presented him with his gift.
“Here.”
“What is this?”
“A hamster wheel.”
“O… ohhh, ooooooh!”
Before leaving the Yokai Extermination Office, I’d asked the director to buy one. The moment Depo saw the wheel, he didn’t even need instructions. He instinctively climbed inside and began running with his tiny legs as fast as he could.
“This is fun… so fun, so fun!”
“You like it?”
“Yeah, I like it! Not as much as Miho’s boobs, but I still like it!”
“…”
Did he really have to add that last part? Sigh.
Another issue that came with manifesting my seventh tail was my changed body. Why the hell had it grown so unnecessarily large? Would gaining another tail make them even bigger? They were already heavy, uncomfortable, and burdensome. If they got any larger…
…It would be seriously problematic.
It was as if some god had looked at me and thought, ‘Here, I’ve given you the perfect body for draining vitality. Enjoy your delicious meals!’ But I had no intention of sucking anyone’s life force. Unlike that lewd fox Dalki, I still retained my identity as a man and my humanity as a fox.
Whirr whirr whirr whirr.
Depo, who had been running diligently in his wheel, suddenly looked up at me with a curious expression.
“Miho.”
“Yeah?”
“You’re in human form right now, aren’t you?”
“Yep.”
“Then why are you walking on all fours?”
“It’s more comfortable this way.”
“Aren’t humans supposed to walk upright?”
“They are, but this is still more comfortable.”
My body was one thing, but these ‘fox instincts’ were proving to be a real pain.
“Really? Well, if you say so.”
Since Depo was also an animal-type yokai like me, he just accepted it with a shrug. Humans, however, were a different story. Imagine what they’d think if they saw a crazy woman with huge tits and a plump ass crawling around on all fours. It would be an absolutely catastrophic sight.
Since I’d probably be visiting the human world frequently from now on, I figured I needed to train myself to suppress my fox instincts. But how was a beast supposed to train without a trainer?
…That wasn’t a metaphor or self-deprecation. I was being serious. Once I let out my fox nature, I really was no different from a wild animal. I’d need a proper trainer.
Still, asking a guy to train me felt a bit weird. I should ask Lee Ha-neul later.
…She wouldn’t punish me if I didn’t listen, right?
It had been five days since I returned to the Hidden World.
When I left the Yokai Extermination Office, the director had earnestly asked me to come back in five days. So I headed out of the Hidden World once again.
At this point, I was starting to wonder whether my real home was the Hidden World or the Yokai Extermination Office.
I didn’t want the civil servants to see me crawling around in my transformed state, so this time I didn’t even bother disguising myself as a human. They already knew what I looked like anyway.
As I was walking down the path, I started hearing the sound of trees falling up ahead. Was Lee Ha-neul training again? She was probably busy testing the power of her goblin club.
I headed toward the noise to greet her, when—
Sniff sniff.
Sniff sniff sniff.
I caught a scent. It wasn’t Lee Ha-neul’s, nor was it the scent of a human woman. It was the smell of a human man. A terrible stench of alcohol. A nasty smell of cigarettes.
Ah.
“What the hell? It’s a fox.”
“Whine…”
“Huh. Seven tails… Wait, are you Miho?”
It was a Taoist master I already knew — Hojun.
Seeing that even Hojun had shown up, it seemed the director had called us together for something important. That was one thing, but I still had to do what I had to do.
“Grrrrrrrr… Yap!”
Irritated beyond measure by his thoughtless behavior, I kicked off the ground, leaped into the air, and chomped down hard on his hand.
“Gaaaaaaaaaah! Fuck! What the hell was that for, you crazy bitch?!”
Crazy bitch? If anyone’s crazy here, it’s you. What kind of lunatic smokes cigarettes on a sacred mountain, you damn psychopath?