Does the Heavenly Demon Use Taoist Magic? (5)

I visited the location of the Shinseon Gate as I had before, but the one waiting there was not Geomseon. It was another immortal.

That old coot. He must have been quite upset about losing to me. To think he would drag his ancient bones off for more training. Tsk.

I had planned to tease him that the Falling Sun Swordplay wasn’t truly dropping the sun with a sword but cheating by mixing in Taoist magic. Looks like he caught ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠on quickly. The next time we meet, I’ll definitely have to say something.

When I showed my token to the immortal who was watching me with a furrowed brow, he drew in a sharp breath.

“That is…”

“Jongsen told me that showing this would let me pass.”

The gatekeeper didn’t answer my question. He simply glared at me before stepping aside. When I held the token up to the gate, it opened naturally.

Hoo. How interesting. So the Shinseon Gate opens this easily? Well, up until now I never had the key, so I had to pry it open by force. It makes sense that it would open smoothly with the proper key.

Stepping through the gate into the Spirit Realm, I found Jongsen waiting right at the entrance.

“It has been a while. Well? How is your training in Taoist magic progressing?”

He greeted me with a familiar chuckle, but his eyes told a different story. The way he carefully observed me made it obvious he was wondering why I had come here. A high-ranking figure like him coming out in person must be to deal with me directly.

However, that worry vanished the moment Baru appeared from behind, shouting “Jongsen-nim!”

Did he think I wouldn’t cause any madness if I brought Baru along? A rather accurate assessment.

“It has been a while, Divine Spirit. Is your training going well?”

“Of course. Thanks to your guidance, I have made significant progress.”

“Is that so? I would love to see it sometime.”

“I would also enjoy conversing with you, but before that, there is something I wish to ask.”

Baru explained my current situation to Jongsen. That I could use Taoist magic despite ignoring its fundamental premise. Everyone I had asked so far had shown shock upon hearing it, but Jongsen was different. He simply nodded as he listened, and once Baru finished, he spoke as if it were nothing special.

“Pardon?”

“Huh?”

The words that came from Jongsen’s mouth were definitely in a language we understood, yet they were not words we could comprehend. What did that mean? The world had acknowledged me as nature?

“It means the level you possess is extraordinarily high. I assumed you already knew, but judging by your question, it seems you were unaware.”

So because my level had transcended humanity, there was no hindrance in using Taoist magic? I was going to lose my mind. If some quack had said that, I would have dismissed it as nonsense and moved on. But this man was the immortal who had lived the longest. I could not simply brush off his words as rubbish.

“I have no desire to become an immortal, though.”

Their way of life is far too different from what I desire.

At my blunt remark, Jongsen let out a light chuckle.

“Worry not. Even if you wished to become an immortal right now, it would be impossible.”

“Then that is a relief.”

I have not the slightest intention of casting aside my mortal body to ascend to the heavens.

*

“Min-ga. You are far more extraordinary than I thought.”

On the way out of the Spirit Realm after finishing our conversation with Jongsen, Baru’s eyes sparkled as she spoke.

“Are you saying you previously thought I was not that impressive?”

“You know that is not what I meant.”

“It was a joke. A joke.”

I understood what she was trying to say. Honestly, even I was somewhat surprised. My level had surpassed humanity. I had thought I was still living on the ground as a human, but it turned out I was already climbing above that level.

If that was the case, could the wall that had blocked me also be related to my level?

“According to Jongsen-nim, you are in a state similar to us divine spirits, so teaching you should be much easier. We can simply use the methods we already employ.”

“Do divine spirits also learn about Taoist magic?”

“Of course. We were not born knowing how to see and draw the Dao freely.”

The divine spirits I had met usually carried a certain dignity, but it seemed that was all the result of education. I had never considered divine spirits all that impressive to begin with, yet I could not shake the feeling that my internal evaluation of them had dropped even further.

“So what is this method?”

“Repetition and mastery. Just like when you teach martial arts to others. First, I will demonstrate. Then you will follow.”

Since I could already see the paths of the Dao and was well-versed in handling energy, my fundamentals were already complete. From now on, I simply needed to observe, learn, and master Taoist magic the same way one trains in martial arts. That was what Baru told me.

“Let us begin with the basics. First…”

*

The chat messages poured in the moment I turned on the stream. It felt like they were all just waiting for me to start broadcasting. I never set a specific time, yet they always jumped in so quickly.

“That one is getting old too. Isn’t it time to change the script?”

It used to annoy me at first, but now it was simply boring. How many times a day did they think I heard the same nonsense? If they wanted to tease me, they should bring something more creative.

“No matter how much you all flail about, my composure will not be shaken.”

When I lightly provoked them, all sorts of comments flooded the chat, but every single one was something I had heard before. Tsk. To think the collective intelligence could lack this much creativity.

“Enough of that. Instead, let me tell you what we will be doing today. We are going to finish the Hwaryong Muin tutorial and take on a simple request.”

When I laid it all out like this, I realized I had done quite a lot in the world of Hwaryong Muin. Most of it had been impulsive, but none of it was small in scale. I hadn’t intended to cause such a stir even in this world.

I cleared my throat once and returned to the main topic.

“However, if I use my full power, things will become too easy. So today, I will only use Taoist magic when attacking opponents.”

“What do you take me for? This time I learned it properly.”

I should show off my results before I get called a wandering rogue again. Before starting the stream, I had learned Taoist magic from Baru. She had even complimented me on how well I was doing after watching me perform.

“Watch closely.”

First was a spell that summoned wind. Not a gentle breeze, but a blade-like gale strong enough to slice leaves in two. Next was a spell that created a water orb above my palm. It had no destructive power, but it was quite useful. Lastly, the will-o’-the-wisp. I could create flames in the air and move them at will.

After demonstrating the three spells I had just learned from Baru, I checked the chat. How about that? I had mastered this much in a single day starting from zero. Wasn’t my talent astonishing? I turned my gaze expecting praise, but the reactions that came up were rather ambiguous.

“What kind of nonsense is that?”

What did Hwasan and Fireball have to do with each other? Was it because the word “Hwa” was in Hwasan Sect? Ha. This was beyond ridiculous; it was actually irritating. The idea was so childish that it wasn’t even worth arguing about.

The moment I frowned, a completely different wave of enthusiastic reactions poured in. Damn bastards. When I showed them the spells hoping for admiration, they pretended to be impressed, but the second I got annoyed they were overjoyed? Fine. This was all my fault. It was my mistake for expecting anything from people with no discernment.

“To have learned something so cleanly in such a short time. As expected of Min-ga.”

Baru. You are the only one I have. Someone with real discernment like you offers proper praise, while these ignorant fools are busy criticizing me. I suppose I should be understanding. After all, the unskilled can only live as the unskilled.

I gently stroked Baru’s head where she hung around my neck like a scarf, then headed toward the tavern to proceed with the tutorial.

The Rogue Tavern looked exactly as it had the first time I saw it. Since it served decent food, expanding it a bit wouldn’t be a bad idea. With that thought, I opened the door, and the eyes of every martial artist inside locked onto me. Then, as if they had rehearsed it, they all looked away. Clearly not wanting to get involved with me.

In that silence, I walked toward the tavern owner. She was desperately rolling her eyes as if seeking help, but no one met her gaze. In the end, she had no choice but to look at me with a face full of panic.

“I-it has been a while, Sect Leader of Hwasan.”

“Indeed. It has been a while.”

Her face was deathly pale as she answered me. What on earth had I done here to warrant such a reaction? I had caused ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a bit of a scene, sure, but wasn’t that the kind of thing that happened all the time in the Murim world?

“What brings you to this humble establishment?”

“I came to take a request.”

“...Pardon? A request, you say?”

“Yes. Am I not affiliated with this place?”

What was so ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠strange about a rogue taking on a request?