The Heavenly Demon Advances (9) [Hwaryeong Finally Hits the Peak]

The live chat was already on fire before the stream even properly started.

The chat continued to scroll at blinding speed as the stream title drew even more curious questions.

The questions kept pouring in, shifting from Hwaryeong's sudden realm increase to the mysterious figure that had appeared in the broadcast.

After the endless flood of theories and jokes, the chat shifted to the state of Shaolin itself.

When I nodded at the question laced with bewilderment, Maryo gave an awkward laugh. He looked like he was desperately hoping it was a joke, but unfortunately not a single word I had spoken was a joke.

"Don't mind it. I simply smashed it because it didn't please me. You may give me only as much reward as you originally intended."

In modern terms, this was called service. How generous and merciful an act this was. Anyone watching would probably ask if I was a righteous man.

How strange. There was no one around me except Maryo, yet it felt like I could hear voices. Was there a ghost?

Despite the various sabotage attempts, I was able to hear Maryo say I had done well without much trouble.

As the message floated before my eyes, I felt energy engraving itself into my dantian. This was on the level of shoving precious elixirs down my throat. I had originally planned to accumulate internal energy by repeating the quest several times, but it seemed that wouldn't be necessary.

There was only one reason I had not yet reached the Peak Realm. My body simply lacked sufficient internal energy. In other words, once that was filled, my realm would naturally rise.

Maryo must have noticed the change happening inside me. His eyes widened and he urgently spoke.

"There is no need."

What need was there for energy circulation just to reach the mere Peak Realm? I was the one who could even control the internal energy that ran wild through my meridians when they were abnormally filled. This was nothing.

As always, I lit my long pipe and controlled the changes that came with the rising realm. At most, a few more blocked meridians opened and my body's foundation shifted into a form more suitable for using internal energy. It wasn't even a complete transformation of body and bones, so there was nothing more to it.

"...Just what kind of person are you?"

"A master of a realm so high it would be difficult for you to even guess."

Since things had turned out this way, there was no need to use the other rewards. There was no reason to go through the hassle of reaching the Transcendence Realm either. Besides, once I reached that level, fighting in this world would become far too boring.

Still, since they were offering, I accepted the elixirs and everything else. The question was what to use them for.

While pondering this with Baru—who was pouting and refusing to speak—held by the scruff of her neck and placed on my shoulder, a message flew in.