Gwiungok (4)
Immediately upon returning to the hot spring, Dang Sobaek's first order of business was to have the monkeys bind Jim-il tightly to a tree trunk. It was a necessary precaution to prevent any unforeseen incidents.
However, this was no easy task.
“Kee-eek! Oo-kik?!”
The memory of Jim-il was deeply engraved in the monkeys' minds.
As the monkey beast cultivator had put it:
A mad bird. Or rather, the "Mad Bird."
Hmm...
Recalling Jim-il when he was consumed by ghost qi, Sobaek could not entirely blame them.
His eyes had been completely white, devoid of pupils, and a tangible, ink-black ghost qi had billowed around him.
...
Even if it had been any other beast instead of a monkey, they would have likely fainted from sheer terror.
Nevertheless, Sobaek managed to control the restless monkeys and successfully bound Jim-il tightly with the vines they had gathered.
Yet.
Will this really be enough?
To be honest, he could not guarantee it.
Ideally, he would have preferred to bind him with an artifact like the Thousand-Year Celestial Silk. Not only was it incredibly durable, but it was also capable of blocking ghost qi to some extent.
The reason Sobaek was so wary was simple.
Having fought him directly, he knew.
Jim-il's cultivation was the most outstanding among the siblings.
He was incomparable to Jim-sam, who was naturally gifted but inherently lazy, or Jim-i, who possessed nothing but swift movements.
Jim-il was well-rounded.
From the beast qi he had accumulated to his physical strength, movements, and even what seemed to be considerable combat experience, he excelled in every area. Had his opponent not been Sobaek, he would not have been captured so easily.
If Jim-il were to break his bonds and succumb to the ghost qi while Sobaek was away—
The aftermath was all too predictable.
With neither the chief monkey nor Jim-i present, everyone here would be slaughtered in less than an hour.
By the way, where on earth did that girl go?
If only they were here, things would be much easier. Sobaek grumbled inwardly, complaining that they were always missing when they were needed most.
Even as night fell, the two did not return.
Did something happen to them?
It was not outside the realm of possibility.
If they had somehow wandered into Gwiungok, their survival could not be guaranteed. Even Jim-il, whose cultivation was superior to Jim-i's, had been consumed by Gwiungok's ghost qi.
He felt like a parent who had left their child by the water's edge.
Though he had no intention of playing parent, he could not help but feel a lingering concern.
Sigh.
The reason he did not set out to search for them, however, was because he constantly reminded himself of his true essence. If he did not, he feared he might grow complacent and satisfied with his life as a Jimjo.
Unlike when he first reincarnated, he now occasionally thought that living like this might not be so bad.
But he could not allow that.
Though he currently inhabited the body of a Jimjo, Sobaek was the Supreme Patriarch of the Sichuan Tang Clan and, fundamentally, a human.
Therefore, he was determined to escape this island. His ultimate goals were to eventually take human form, ascend to the upper realm, and face Namgung Danwu once more.
If that were possible...
Or if fortune favored him...
He might even reunite with his daughter, Dang Seoah. Since he had completed the manual for the Formless Poison (Muhyeong-jidok), it was not an entirely foolish delusion.
Thus, whether it was Jim-i or Jim-il, they were merely relationships of utility to him.
He had no intention of giving his affection to beasts.
Yet, as the saying goes, one can measure the depth of water, but not the heart of a man.
Sobaek found himself thinking unconsciously:
I must give them a stern warning when they return.
Letting out a soft sigh, Sobaek quietly examined the spiritual fruit he had taken from Jim-il.
It was a spiritual fruit of the ghost tree, resembling a peach.
Consuming it would likely grant him a significant boost in cultivation. However, Sobaek did not eat it immediately; instead, he stored it inside his curved jade. It was best to save it for an emergency.
Jim-il did not wake for a long time.
He merely slept like the dead, drenched in cold sweat.
Is he having a nightmare?
Just in case, Sobaek channeled his beast qi to inspect Jim-il's internal state, but there were no signs of internal injuries.
How exhausting.
It was likely because Jim-il had been exposed to the ghost qi in Gwiungok for too long. Sobaek was contemplating whether to close his eyes for a moment when he looked around.
...
One by one, the monkeys were collapsing. They were not dead, but merely falling asleep.
Only then did he realize something was amiss.
There was only one who remained awake.
The one-armed monkey.
“Oo, oo-kik?!”
The creature tried to shake the fallen monkeys awake with its single arm, but none of them budged. They simply slept as if dead.
An ominous wind blew.
Sobaek quickly formulated a poison and channeled it into his upper dantian. A sharp sting spread through him, instantly sharpening his mind.
At that exact moment—
Jim-il's closed eyes slowly fluttered open, revealing only their whites.
An ink-black flame erupted, swallowing Jim-il whole.
This was bad.
Riiip—
The vines binding him began to snap one by one as Jim-il thrashed wildly to break free. It was only because Sobaek had sealed his acupoints that it was limited to this. Had his body been fully mobile, disaster would have already struck.
Should I kill him?
It was time to make a decision.
Sobaek would be fine, but if Jim-il broke free, the monkeys would be slaughtered.
And Jim-il would not survive either.
Looking at his state, he had no intention of stopping halfway. He seemed ready to burn even his True Origin Qi to ashes.
Just then,
Splash!
The one-armed monkey suddenly threw water over Jim-il.
It had scooped up hot spring water in a halved gourd and splashed it.
An incredibly crude method.
Sobaek had assumed it would be useless, considering it was just a beast's desperate attempt, but—
Sssss—
To his surprise, there was a reaction.
The raging black flames subsided slightly.
The one-armed monkey continuously ran back and forth, scooping up hot spring water and dousing Jim-il. The creature looked incredibly earnest.
Desperate, even.
Sobaek did not know why.
Perhaps because it had lost its arm to a ghost beast, or perhaps because it knew it could never handle Jim-il on its own.
Damned body.
But there was nothing Sobaek could do to help. Lacking hands, it was impossible for him to carry water.
Still, the situation was encouraging.
The more hot spring water was poured over him, the more Jim-il's pupils began to return to normal.
“Cough, hack.”
Jim-il coughed up the hot spring water he had been forced to swallow. The water he spat out was pitch black.
Sobaek gestured for the one-armed monkey to step back, tore the remaining vines, and snatched Jim-il.
Though the black flames were not entirely extinguished, they were manageable now.
Still half-conscious, Jim-il thrashed, making it difficult for Sobaek to keep his balance.
Well, his body is sturdy enough. He won't die from this.
Once he got close enough to the hot spring, Sobaek threw Jim-il straight in.
Splash!
Water sprayed everywhere.
Startled by the sudden plunge, Jim-il flapped his wings frantically.
The hot spring water instantly dyed ink-black.
“Ppyak?”
Soon, a familiar chirp escaped him.
Having completely regained his senses, Jim-il looked at Sobaek, then—
“Snort.”
He snorted and turned his head away.
His attitude was insolent beyond belief.
Of course, he had always been a brat.
But...
Since it has been a while since we last met...
It would not hurt to re-establish the hierarchy.
Ppeeee—
Conveniently, it sounded like Jim-i had just returned as well.
Jim-i had not given up on the album of spring paintings.
For some reason, she felt she absolutely had to see it again.
With the now-lucid chief monkey on her back, Jim-i flew all over the island.
Though the monkey had initially shaken its head in embarrassment,
“Aaah! Aaack!”
It eventually began to shriek in excitement, thoroughly enjoying the ride.
There were so many wondrous sights here.
They saw a transparent mountain floating on the water,
Roaaar!
And even a strange, entirely white bear.
Eventually, the sun began to set.
It was time to head back.
Sobaek was probably waiting anxiously for her return.
As his older sister, she could not just enjoy her trip alone while her younger brother waited. Thus, Jim-i turned around and flew back toward Sobaek's location.
As she flew past the mountain emitting that unpleasant energy once more and crossed the stream that ran through the island,
“Ppyak?”
She spotted something peculiar on a cliff overlooking the sea.
It was something she had never seen before.
It sat precariously on the boundary where the mountain of ominous energy ended. After a moment of hesitation, Jim-i descended cautiously.
In truth, Sobaek had passed by this place before. However, the fog had been exceptionally thick that day, and Sobaek, scanning from high above, had failed to notice it.
Hesitating briefly, Jim-i approached slowly and touched it. It was made of wood.
It looked like a cozy nest constructed by stacking and overlapping pieces of wood in a peculiar fashion.
She did not know what kind of beast had built it, but she found the craftsmanship highly impressive.
Jim-i felt a sudden desire to build a nest like this for herself one day.
However, the chief monkey seemed to recognize it. Fidgeting, it spoke to Jim-i in an anxious, urgent voice.
“L-let's go. We shouldn't stay here long.”
“Ppyak?”
But of course, they could not understand each other.
Jim-i was curious about what lay inside this nest. So, carrying the chief monkey along, she stepped inside.
And there,
“Ppyak!!! Ppyaaa-ack!!!”
Stood a massive, bizarre beast. Jim-i shrieked at the top of her lungs, gripped by an instinctive terror. Its face was incredibly hideous.
What Jim-i had actually seen was a golden statue of some deity. It held a sword in its left hand and gripped a demon in its right.
After a moment, Jim-i calmed down. She realized it was not a living creature.
Wearing an embarrassed expression, she set off once more toward Sobaek.
She thought it would be fun to bring Sobaek here later and see his reaction.
By now, night had fully fallen, and the sky was pitch black.
Only after the full moon had risen high into the sky did she finally arrive back at the hot spring.
Familiar figures came into view.
The one-armed monkey and Sobaek.
And...
?
Jim-il.
Her mind grew momentarily muddled.
It was not because he had bullied her in the past.
Jim-i was not particularly bright, so she had long since forgotten about those old grievances.
It was simply because it felt unfamiliar.
This was their first meeting since they had gone their separate ways.
He seemed to have suffered greatly in the meantime.
His once-brilliant silver feathers were stained black.
From a distance, Jim-i watched Sobaek personally place Jim-il into the hot spring.
It seemed he was taking care of his older brother.
Though Sobaek's greed was a bit of a flaw, he was still a reasonably polite younger brother.
Jim-il flapped his wings frantically, perhaps because he was unfamiliar with the water.
She thought that much was understandable.
!!
However, the water began to turn pitch black. In contrast, Jim-il's feathers were gradually returning to a lustrous silver.
...
Jim-i's eyes narrowed. For some reason, she did not want to go near him.
If they were to live together from now on...
She felt like she would have to wash him very often.