Shattering the Spirit Beast
Ju Ho-ryeong's Unique Ability, Goryeok Nanshin. I had no idea what it really was, but it was one hell of a peculiar power.
The red mask that had only covered his face now enveloped his entire body, making him look less like a man and more like a monster. A monster that resembled a gorilla made entirely of red bark.
"How dare you...!"
The bastard ballooned to an enormous size and swung his fist. That red fist moved with blinding speed, belying his massive bulk.
Boom!
His house-sized fist slammed into me. It wasn't just big—it packed some serious raw power. I crossed my arms to block, but the impact sent me flying into the air.
"Die!"
Ju the executive bellowed and pressed the attack on me midair. But this time, it wasn't a fist. His arm had sharpened into a razor-like blade, charging straight at me with enough force to skewer me clean through.
Caught in the air, I could already see the smug smile of victory creeping across his lips.
Sorry, but I had no intention of letting something like this end me.
"Hup."
Wham!
I kicked hard against empty air, propelling myself as if I'd shoved off solid ground, dodging his strike.
"Hmph! Using some fancy Unique Ability, eh?!"
It's not a Unique Ability.
There were abilities like that out there—ones that let you fly freely through the sky. But what I'd just done was nothing more than kicking the air hard enough to launch myself.
Screeech!
Ju didn't let up, swinging fist after fist. Sometimes they took the form of massive boulders, other times sharp swords or spears—morphing freely into whatever shape he needed.
Kaboom!
Occasionally, his arms detached from his body and shot toward me like arrows.
For now, I focused on evasion while analyzing his power. As a test, I grabbed one of those arrows hurtling my way.
"Hm."
The red shaft trembled in my grip before melting away like smoke. Hard to believe it had been so rigid just moments ago.
"You little rat...!"
As I kept dodging and observing, he roared in fury. Another punch thrust my way. Needing confirmation, I didn't evade this time—instead, I met his fist head-on with my own.
Crack.
Our power-packed punches collided—his red bark-like skin against my knuckles.
"......"
The sensation was off, like striking not solid rock but something alien. I yanked my fist back and leaped away.
By now, I had a rough idea of what kind of power this was.
What a pain in the ass.
I didn't know the details, but it seemed like some kind of spirit body. And if my guess was right, neither raw force nor overwhelming power would work on it.
After all, that bright red thing wasn't physical—it was a spirit, a ghost-like entity.
Back in the other world, I'd fought things like this before. Liches. As a demon clan member, I'd often clashed with them on the opposing side.
The king of necromancers—one of the demon realm's three great dukes—commanded hordes of liches as his underlings. Annoying bastards.
Liches had no physical bodies to begin with. Pure souls summoned into this world, unleashing insane skills and attacks. In a way, their very existence was their Unique Ability.
"Sigh."
But on the flip side, that meant I'd dealt with plenty of spirits myself.
Strip away the spirit body, and you're left with a fragile true form weaker than anyone else's.
Though getting there is the annoying part.
"If you think you can just keep dodging...!"
Thud! Boom!
Ju, who'd been relentlessly attacking, suddenly slammed both arms into the ground. They rooted like ancient tree trunks.
And then...
"Huuuup...!"
His mouth gaped open, unleashing a ferocious suction. He was trying to reel me in and smash me.
Boom!
I planted my feet hard, anchoring myself to the earth.
"Huuuup...?"
Ju's face twisted in confusion as he floated, his massive body inching toward me instead.
While that happened, I gathered power in my fist.
To dispel a spirit body, you needed holy power. If Saintess Eliza were here, she'd snap her fingers and be done with it.
But without horns, holy arts, or anything else, my most effective option right now was brute force—pummeling it until the spirit peeled away.
It'd take time, but...
"Hup."
I leaped toward his gaping maw, fist cocked—when...
"Kyaaak!"
"Huh?"
I turned to see Ji-hyang soaring through the air, spinning helplessly toward Ju's mouth. Not a Unique Ability—just getting sucked in.
"Oops."
I'd forgotten about Ji-hyang.
Snap!
Ju snatched the incoming Ji-hyang with one hand.
"Heh heh heh! You seem like a tough one, but this girl's nothing!"
"M-Master!"
With Ji-hyang as a hostage, he let out a creepy chuckle. Reckless punching could put her in danger now.
"......"
I hesitated. Whatever my dilemma, I kept it to myself for her sake.
"Eek! Let go!"
"Hahaha! That tickles!"
Trapped in his grip, Ji-hyang thrashed wildly.
"Let me go, you ugly freak!"
Bam!
Then she slammed her fist down hard.
Shimmer.
For a split second, the spirit body where her fist hit wavered faintly.
"Hahaha!"
"...Oh?"
Ju himself didn't seem to notice. I shouted to my captive disciple.
"Ji-hyang! You go to church?!"
"Y-Yes? Why all of a sudden...?"
"Hurry! No time!"
"W-Well... I've been Catholic since I was little!"
"Holy shit. No way that works."
He didn't notice, but her punch must've carried a trace of holy power. Enough to slightly damage the spirit body.
Totally busted matchup.
"Ji-hyang. Swing again—one more time. Pray while you do it if you can."
"...Got it!"
She pushed aside her confusion and acted.
Bam!
"Ungh?"
A small ripple from her fist spread to the arm holding her. Only then did he sense something off, letting out a faint groan.
"What the hell is this...!"
As he tried to crush her like a bug, I launched myself at him.
And drove my fist into the tiny crack that had formed.
Splat!
The spirit body, rigid until a moment ago, squished like jelly. From the impact point, it began dispersing.
"Fuckin' bastard. Almost got a game over there."
"Wh-What...?"
Snap.
I opened my clenched fist, forming a sharp blade hand.
The honed edge sliced into the softened spirit, right into Ju Ho-ryeong's left armpit.
Squelch!
"Guh... ack...!"
I pulled back, and blood sprayed from the hole like a fountain. At the same time, the spirit body—Goryeok Nanshin—scattered like red dust and vanished.
"Whew."
Thanks to Ji-hyang, I saved some effort.
"Eek!"
She broke free from his grip too—dropping from three meters up. Better than dying, though.
"You filthy bugs...!"
Somehow still alive, Ju spat curses through ragged breaths. But death seemed inevitable.
"Yeah, maybe live nicer next time."
"...Heh heh heh!"
Right before the end, he laughed creepily again.
Hack!
Suddenly, he vomited a glob of red blood. It vaporized instantly, invading my lungs.
"Urk...?"
My head spun. Looked like some kind of poison.
"Heh heh... It's already kicking in... Soon, the Seven Apertures Blood Eruption will make death seem merciful..."
"Ugh."
"......"
I shook my head hard, clearing the daze. My body was still detoxing—left me a bit drowsy.
"This... impossible..."
Thud!
With a dumbstruck look, Ju's head hit the dirt for the last time.
"M-Master! What was that just now...?"
"Eh. Nothing major."
Not just the poison—tension release hit me with drowsiness too.
"Ugh. Suddenly so sleepy. Just gonna close my eyes for a sec..."
That was my last memory.
* * *
"Gasp."
I woke in my room. A solid night's sleep left me refreshed.
"Ugh... Master... don't die on me..."
Ji-hyang was dozing against the bed beside me. She'd clearly worried a lot.
Just some sleep fixed me right up, but it must've looked grim to her.
"Ow. Told you no ~yong."
I'll let it slide this time. Kid's got a good heart.
"Aigoo. You're up?"
"Oh. Sujin. Slept well... Oof!"
Sujin punched my gut the second she saw me awake.
"Told you not to do anything stupid... You come back half-dead? Where the hell have you been?! Said you were going for new otherworld crops!"
"Half-dead? Just got sleepy and slept it off."
I lifted my shirt to show her. Spotless, not a scratch.
"I saw earlier! Jeez! Carried in on Ji-hyang's back, scared the shit outta me. Then you snore like a pig."
"Ahem. Just needed sleep to recover... Ack!"
"Aigoo!"
Another gut punch, then she tossed me fresh clothes.
I changed and got up, laying Ji-hyang on the bed. Carrying me all the way here must've been rough.
"...Ah."
Speaking of... what now? Somehow ended up killing a Cheonma Group executive.
Should I head to the So-nae-ho Dungeon quick and dispose of the body? No, it's a dungeon—other monsters might clean it up.
Still, better check.
"Sujin. Sorry, gotta step out again real quick! Forgot some—"
"Hold it!"
"Ow! No hitting!"
She reared back for another but stopped.
"Where now?! ...Hoo. People watching, so I'll hold back."
"...People?"
Yelena? Come to think of it, she was MIA. Hiding again?
"We have a guest."
"Oh. Got it. I'll sneak out quietly then..."
"No! Not for me. For you."
"...Me?"
A guest for me? After 20 years trapped in another world, all my ties severed?
Old classmates maybe?
"Yeah. From Cheonma Group."
"...Cheonma Group?"
"Yep."
"Woman?"
"Nah. Guy. Youngish? Order anything?"
Young guy—relief. Was worried it might be that Jin So-wol director lady. Not if it's a man.
"He's waiting at the coffee table out front."
Where Sujin pointed stood a long-haired man. Delicate features.
"......"
He met my eyes and waved lightly.
"Who's that?"
First time seeing him. Here to check on Do-cheol?
"Where's Do-cheol and Yelena?"
"Yelena's got him—they're hiding together."
"Phew."
Good. Sujin knew about Do-cheol's state. No way Cheonma Group could find out without trouble.
"Anyway. Coffee's here—pour him a cup."
"Sure."
I grabbed two cups from Sujin and headed to the yard.
A backless chair from a tree stump, simple table. Rustic countryside furniture.
Yet this guy somehow looked classy.
"Ah, hello. Park Soo-hyeok."
"Ah! Yes! Nice to meet you. Heard a lot about you. Successful otherworld crop farming, right?"
"Well... yeah. Haha."
To ease the awkwardness, I handed him coffee.
"Thanks. Smells great."
He bowed politely and sipped.
"Mmm. Delicious. Coffee's all about Starbucks, huh."
"Ahaha."
Sounded like an old man, only drinking Starbucks and nothing else.
Anyway.
Who the hell was this guy?
"Um... who might you be...?"
As I finally asked—
"Ah! Sorry. Should've introduced myself first."
He waved apologetically and reached into his pocket.
Pulling out a thin, tiny card. Plain as could be—just a name and number.
Chairman. Cheon Ji-hoon.
"Nice to meet you. Cheon Ji-hoon."