The Essence of the Abyss
I went to the guest residence where Zhuge Hyeonggeon was staying to inspect the remains of the Specter Blade Hound he had prepared. When I opened the door and stepped inside, a neatly arranged collection of materials on the table caught my eye.
“Is this everything?”
Zhuge Hyeonggeon nodded.
“Yes. After you collapsed, I brought back everything I could recover, Young Master.”
I slowly examined the byproducts one by one. Among them, the most striking was, naturally, the Illusion Stone.
This is...
The fist-sized Illusion Stone was completely different from the ordinary kind. Black and crimson were mixed through its surface, and a faint light flickered deep within it.
A special Earth Class Illusion Stone.
The instant I reached out to touch it, the Dragon Pearl in my dantian reacted violently. I snatched my hand back at once.
It’s still dangerous.
I looked at Zhuge Hyeonggeon and said, “May I keep this one separately?”
“Of course. You should take all of it, not just that. You saved my life, and you defeated it on your own.”
Zhuge Hyeonggeon’s gaze held nothing but warmth and admiration. I let out a small smile.
“Thank you. Even if I take everything, I’ll still need your help to study the things worth studying.”
His face brightened instantly.
“That suits me perfectly.”
At that moment, there was a knock at the door.
“Senior Brother, it’s Jinu.”
“Come in.”
The moment Jinu entered, he spotted the special Illusion Stone on the table and sucked in a breath. But after noticing Zhuge Hyeonggeon was present, he quickly composed himself.
“Wow... is that an Earth Class Illusion Stone?”
“Yes. What do you think? Can you sense anything special?”
Jinu carefully studied it, then said, “No. I’m not sure.”
I placed the stone back into the box and said, “Let’s store it for now. It looks too dangerous to handle carelessly.”
Jinu held out a medicine to me.
“You were hurt, Senior Brother, so I made this especially for you.”
“I see. Thank you.”
After I drank the medicine Jinu had made, I could feel my body growing lighter and more comfortable by the second. Zhuge Hyeonggeon watched the medicine with interest.
“What is this?”
Jinu answered.
Jinu smiled shyly and began to explain. “I named it Vitality Pill. The base is an adaptation of the recipe for an internal injury remedy, but I added essence extracted from the heart of a Phantom Fox and marrow from an Earth Fox.”
Zhuge Hyeonggeon’s eyes lit up.
“You used beast byproducts as medicinal ingredients?”
“Yes! The heart essence of the Phantom Fox rapidly restores damaged meridians, and the marrow of the Earth Fox replenishes vital energy. I neutralized the medicine’s properties by blending in powdered hundred-year-old wild ginseng and wild caterpillar fungus.”
Jinu kept talking, growing more and more enthusiastic.
“And this time I used a special method. When refining the ingredients, I added a very small amount of Illusion Stone powder and aged it at low temperature for two days. That way, the ingredients fuse with each other and the effect becomes much stronger. There are almost no side effects, either.”
Zhuge Hyeonggeon was astonished.
“Incredible. I’ve never heard of a method like that.”
“It’s not perfect yet. But if someone with inner power as strong as Senior Brother’s takes it, the recovery speed should be at least three times faster than usual.”
The conversation between the two geniuses showed no sign of ending.
“Jinu, thank you for the medicine. You should go take care of your own work.”
“Yes, Senior Brother.”
After Jinu left, Zhuge Hyeonggeon said, “But Young Master, the Soul Memory Stone we originally came here for...”
“Ah, right. We’ll have to go back tomorrow and extract it then.”
The next morning, I headed back to the cave with Zhuge Hyeonggeon. This time, Zhuge Ho came with us as well. Jinu’s medicine was truly remarkable. Zhuge Hyeonggeon even let out a cry of admiration at how perfectly recovered I looked.
“The Illusion Gate’s energy has stabilized.”
Zhuge Ho muttered at the cave entrance. I turned my gaze deeper into the cave.
“Wait a moment. There’s something I need to check.”
Zhuge Hyeonggeon nodded as if he understood.
“You mean the Specter Blade Hound’s corpse? I handled it in a hurry, but some of it should still be inside.”
“You couldn’t have recovered it completely. There isn’t a single useless part on a Specter Blade Hound.”
Carrying a torch, I headed to the place where I had fought the beast. Sure enough, the enormous corpse was still lying there.
“Its size... is truly monstrous.”
Zhuge Ho looked at me in awe. His eyes held the same expression one would have after seeing me defeat such a colossal beast with my own hands.
“All right. Just a moment.”
I took out the specially made disassembly tools from my robes. Remembering the beast-dismantling techniques I had learned in Kunlun, I began my work. First, I carefully separated the shadow hide that had not yet been peeled away. The blade tip slid precisely between skin and muscle, and the black-lustered hide came off cleanly.
Next came the claws.
The Specter Blade Hound’s claws were harder than steel and carried a unique attribute.
Clang! Clang!
By striking the claw roots precisely with my specially forged chisel, I made the palm-sized claws loosen one by one and fall free. Finally, I checked the most important part of all—the place near the heart, where the power of shadow had gathered most densely.
Carefully splitting open the ribs, I revealed a strange organ glowing with a dark red light.
The Shadow Sac.
It was one of the rare organs possessed only by special-beast variants. I had no use for it yet, but with time it would become something of unimaginable value.
“What is that?”
Seeing a rare organ for the first time, Zhuge Hyeonggeon could not hide his curiosity.
“It’s the source of the Specter Blade Hound’s power to manipulate shadows.”
I carefully removed the Shadow Sac and placed it in a special container.
“That should count as a complete recovery.”
Zhuge Hyeonggeon admired the sorted remains.
“Young Master, your disassembly skill is truly extraordinary. It’s as if you’ve spent decades dismantling beasts.”
I gave a small grin.
“I’ve always had a good hand for this sort of thing.”
After finishing the recovery of the Specter Blade Hound’s byproducts, we began extracting the Soul Memory Stones, which had been our original goal. Fortunately, the Illusion Gate was completely shut, and the stones were still embedded in the walls.
“Let’s be careful this time.”
I suppressed the Dragon Pearl’s energy as much as possible and started prying the stones loose. Beside me, Zhuge Hyeonggeon sorted the stones I had extracted, grinning from ear to ear.
After gathering a sufficient amount of Soul Memory Stones, we returned to Jigeom Sect.
“All right, shall we begin creating the beast-warding formation in earnest?”
Zhuge Hyeonggeon said with enthusiasm.
Zhuge Hyeonggeon and I began making the beast-warding talismans. We cut the Phantom Fox hide into suitable pieces, then used the tail fur of the Three-Tailed Fox to make brushes. After that, we ground the Soul Memory Stones into powder to make special ink.
“The theory checks out, but...”
Zhuge Hyeonggeon held the brush with a tense expression. Through Dragon Eye, I observed every movement he made. The intricate patterns drawn by the brush tip carved themselves clearly into my mind.
An hour later.
“It’s complete!”
Zhuge Hyeonggeon cheered. Ten talismans had been finished.
“Now we should test them, right?”
We headed to Jigeom Sect’s training ground. We arranged the talismans on one side of the yard and activated the formation.
Wooooong—
A faint light rose from the talismans, and an invisible veil formed in the air.
“Hwaung, go inside.”
At my order, Hwaung stepped into the formation.
“Huh? That’s weird. It feels... comfortable.”
“Then we’ll need a real-world test, won’t we?”
At Zhuge Hyeonggeon’s suggestion, I nodded.
“Good. Let’s go to Qinglin Valley. There should be Livestock Class beasts there.”
We took the completed talismans and headed for Qinglin Valley. Duseong, Hwaung, and Jinu came with us as well.
“You’re testing it on a real beast?”
Jinu asked nervously.
“That’s the only way to verify the effect properly.”
When we reached the outskirts of Qinglin Valley, we found a flat clearing and set up the talismans.
“This spacing should be fine, right?”
Zhuge Hyeonggeon carefully placed eight talismans in the eight directions. In the center, he scattered Soul Memory Stone powder to create the heart of the formation.
Wooooong—
Once the formation activated, a transparent veil formed.
“Hwaung, go into the formation.”
“Yes, Senior Brother.”
As Hwaung stepped inside, Zhuge Hyeonggeon said, “Now we just need to lure in a beast.”
We entered the nearby forest and drove out an Earth Fox.
Grrr—
The Earth Fox, its eyes red, glared at us as if enraged.
“Duseong, lead it toward the formation.”
Duseong swung his sword and herded the Earth Fox toward the formation. Then something astonishing happened.
Keek!
As soon as the Earth Fox reached the boundary line of the formation, it abruptly stopped, then began circling uncertainly, as if uneasy.
“It can’t enter the formation!”
Zhuge Hyeonggeon was thrilled. But I shook my head.
“Not yet. We still need to check durability and verify the effect.”
I signaled Duseong. When Duseong pressured the Earth Fox more aggressively, it finally leaped into the formation.
At that moment—
Grrruu—
The Earth Fox’s movements slowed dramatically once it entered the formation. Its red eyes dulled, and the sharp aura around its claws weakened.
“It’s working!”
Hwaung easily blocked the Earth Fox’s attack with his shield.
“It feels much weaker than usual!”
And then it happened.
“Dangerous.”
With a sharp voice, martial artists in sky-blue robes emerged from the woods.
Kunlun Sect?
There were five of them. The middle-aged martial artist at their head gave off an especially unusual presence. I recognized him at once.
Kunlun Sect Enforcement Elder Dan Myeongsan.
Dan Myeongsan looked at us inside the formation and tilted his head.
“What are you lot doing?”
His sharp gaze swept over the formation. When he saw the Earth Fox’s condition inside it, his eyes gleamed.
“Did you weaken the beast with that formation?”
“That’s right.”
When I answered calmly, his gaze sharpened further.
“Oh? Is that so? Fascinating.”
His curious stare moved over me. At that moment, Dragon Eye reacted on its own. The flow of inner power circulating through Dan Myeongsan became vividly clear before my eyes.
This is... Red Sun Art.
It was a complete and perfected internal art, far beyond the Red Sun Art I had learned. Dragon Eye began analyzing and imprinting the structure of the art automatically.
“Hmm... curious. I’ve never heard of a formation like this.”
Then Zhuge Hyeonggeon stepped forward.
“Elder Dan, greetings.”
Dan Myeongsan looked at him and softened slightly.
“Oh? So you’re Young Master Hyeonggeon of the Zhuge Clan. Then this formation was set up by you?”
“Yes, that’s correct. I was testing a special formation I’ve been developing.”
Dan Myeongsan had clearly wanted the formation for himself, but once he realized the Zhuge Clan was involved, he could not push any further. He glanced at me once, then addressed Zhuge Hyeonggeon again.
“I don’t know what sort of formation it is, but it seems effective against beasts. If it wouldn’t be too much trouble, let Kunlun know about it later. We’ll pay properly for the information.”
Zhuge Hyeonggeon smiled softly.
“Of course. With the beast threat endangering the entire martial world, it would be unjust of me to keep knowledge to myself.”
Dan Myeongsan laughed heartily.
“As expected, you really are as admirable as they say. Then we’ll be off to hunt beasts again.”
After Dan Myeongsan left, a regretful sigh escaped me.
“Ah...”
Kunlun’s true swordsmanship, as used by Dan Myeongsan.
If I had only seen even one fraction of his technique with my own eyes, it would have been worth it.
Then a thought flashed through my mind. I looked at Zhuge Hyeonggeon and my disciples.
“We’ve tested the formation enough. You all should head back first.”
Zhuge Hyeonggeon blinked in confusion.
“Aren’t you coming with us?”
I grinned.
“Yes, I still have a few things left to pick up.”