The Path of Cultivation
The ferret slept for three full days inside Mother Jimjo's cave.
‘Cultivation...’
Even thinking about it now, the goal felt incredibly distant.
Qi Condensation was said to have twelve stages, and it had taken Jim-il and Jim-i—both blessed with Heavenly Spiritual Roots—over five years just to reach the first stage.
‘...’
As one's realm advanced, the difficulty would undoubtedly skyrocket.
Even if a Jimjo's lifespan was three hundred years...
‘Is it truly impossible, even if I dedicate my entire life to it?’
For someone with Five Spiritual Roots, which were dismissed as mere trash roots, there seemed to be no hope.
But he could not simply give up.
First, he had to take it one step at a time, starting with what was within his reach.
While the ferret slept, Dang Sobaek occasionally slipped outside to scout the surroundings and watch Jim-il and Jim-i train from afar.
Because he utilized the Turtle Breathing Technique, they failed to notice his presence.
"I'm hungry. Let's go eat."
"Quiet. Stop clinging to me."
"Why! We have to eat."
"Sigh."
Well, they bickered, but they seemed to get along well enough in their own way.
The aura radiating from them was also significantly different than before. It felt more refined, more dense.
It was only today that the ferret finally opened his eyes.
"Ugh..."
The ferret stretched his body flat against the ground like a cat, letting out a long yawn. He looked around for a moment, tilting his head with a dazed expression.
"Uh..."
He didn't seem fully awake yet.
Then, spotting Dang Sobaek, he jumped up in surprise.
"You! How long have you been standing there?"
"Since you fell asleep. Someone had to keep watch. I was merely guarding your meditation."
"That's not what I meant. Whew... fine, whatever. How long has it been since I fell asleep?"
"About three days. Now that you are awake, let us move."
Just as Dang Sobaek was about to take flight, the ferret stopped him.
"What a heartless fellow. Wait a moment."
"What is it?"
"I cannot keep calling you 'you' forever. Do you happen to have a name?"
The ferret muttered to himself, quickly coming to his own conclusion.
"A foolish question. Of course you wouldn't."
"I do."
"A name carries one's destiny within it. So, I was thinking of giving you... What? You do?"
"Yes. I already have a name."
"I suppose it is some random name you cobbled together. Did I not tell you? A name is far more important than you think. It seems you still do not understand..."
"It is not a name thrown together carelessly. And..."
Dang Sobaek hesitated for a moment.
Though he spoke informally because honorifics did not sit well on his tongue, he had decided to treat the ferret as a senior.
Furthermore, he would be learning cultivation methods from him in the future. It was only proper to share his name.
However...
"Before inquiring after another's name... is it not proper etiquette to introduce yourself first?"
"What a prickly, old-fashioned fellow. Call me Soyo."
Soyo.
It meant to wander the world, free and unfettered.
It was a starkly unfitting name for someone trapped inside the narrow cage of Gwisu Island, but...
"A fine name indeed."
It perfectly captured the ferret's deepest desires and yearnings.
"So, what is your name, then?" the ferret asked, his curiosity piqued.
"Sobaek. You may call me Sobaek."
Dang Sobaek landed in front of a building on the left side of the temple alongside Soyo.
Until now, a spell had sealed the place, preventing him from even approaching.
Click!
As Soyo placed his paw on the door and channeled his spiritual power, the seal instantly dissolved, and the door swung open. It seemed the spell had been cast by Soyo himself.
"It is because of this place that I was able to continue my path of cultivation even on Gwisu Island..."
Soyo's voice trailed off as he opened the door, a hint of nostalgia in his tone.
Creak—
Stepping inside, the distinct scent of temple incense mingled with the sweet, dusty aroma of old paper.
However, unlike the exterior, the interior was lined with endless rows of towering bookshelves stretching far into the distance.
It was far more spacious than the interior of Sobaek's jade magatama.
‘Is there a space-warping spell cast on this place?’
This library was practically a spatial treasure in its own right.
However, the vast majority of the books were written in a language Dang Sobaek could not comprehend, and the few he could decipher were closer to scriptures than cultivation manuals.
Soyo scurried quickly through the library and returned with several volumes.
"There are not many cultivation manuals suited to your level here. This one here is the Five Elements Circulation Art. It is the most suitable for someone like you with Five Spiritual Roots. It is the manual most commonly chosen by beginners who have just set foot in the cultivation world."
Sobaek listened intently to Soyo's explanation, but he was not particularly enthused.
Had he not spent his entire past life dedicating himself to martial arts and poison techniques?
There was a saying: All paths return to the source.
Surely, there would be aspects of cultivation that connected with the martial arts he had already mastered. In fact, listening to the explanation, he couldn't help but think how incredibly convenient it would be.
But that felt akin to taking a winding mountain path.
Perhaps it was greed, but...
He wanted something that would be of immediate, direct help.
Observing Sobaek's expression, Soyo offered another manual.
"Then how about this? This is the Imperial Heaven and Sovereign Earth Palace technique. It establishes two pillars representing heaven and earth within the body, granting the practitioner overwhelming defensive power. Wouldn't this align somewhat with the 'martial arts' you desire?"
In essence, the Imperial Heaven and Sovereign Earth Palace was akin to an external martial art.
While it would undoubtedly be helpful, it felt like a half-measure. With overwhelming internal energy, a protective qi barrier would suffice.
Moreover, Dang Sobaek was a martial artist who prioritized evasion; he had never favored brute-forcing his way through attacks with raw physical endurance.
Soyo only suggested it because he knew little of true martial arts.
"I do not care for that one either."
"You ungrateful wretch."
Soyo grumbled but brought over several more manuals. Yet, each time, Dang Sobaek shook his head in refusal.
"You don't want this! You don't want that! What on earth do you want?! You have to tell me something so I can recommend a manual accordingly! You... you uneducated wild bird!"
Sobaek did feel somewhat apologetic about that.
But what could he do?
Even Sobaek himself did not know exactly what he wanted.
He simply desired a cultivation method that would be useful without straying too far from his original path.
"Aaaargh!!!"
Finally, Soyo lost his temper and shrieked, his voice echoing through the library.
"Just find one yourself! I am leaving!"
Dang Sobaek pondered for a moment before carefully speaking his mind.
"Wait. Do you happen to have any cultivation methods related to poison?"
Soyo looked back, surprised.
"Poison?"
"Yes. Poison."
"Uh... I do not think we have anything of the sort. What a bizarre request. Are you trying to act like a Jimjo just because you look like one?"
"Let us say that is the case for now."
Soyo stroked his chin with a tiny paw, lost in thought.
"Hmm, no matter how much I think about it, there are no poison-related cultivation methods here. How about a curse technique instead?"
"A curse?"
"Yes. If you think about it, isn't a curse quite similar to poison?"
That made sense.
There was such a thing as Gu poison.
It was a parasitic venom fed to a target to nest in their upper dantian, allowing the user to control them through sorcery. It was a notorious technique favored by the Blood Sect, and Sobaek had researched it in the past to devise a countermeasure.
"That does not sound bad."
"However, curse techniques have a fatal flaw."
"What is it?"
"They are exceptionally difficult to master, yet their power is mediocre at best. I strongly advise against it."
"I will be the judge of that once I see it."
"Stubborn fool. Fine, wait here."
While Soyo went to search for curse techniques, Dang Sobaek fell deep into contemplation.
Most of the poisons Sobaek had concocted in his past life were physical in nature. Although some incorporated internal energy, their limits were clear.
But...
‘If I can fuse curses and poison...’
It would be akin to forging an entirely new system.
‘Of course, I doubt I am the first to attempt such a thing...’
But it was well worth the try.
The reason Dang Sobaek had this thought was simple.
He believed the malice of the Won-myeon-jiju was essentially a form of poison. One could call it "resentful poison."
‘A formless poison...’
There could be no poison more terrifying. It would inflict profound damage on the soul rather than the physical body.
In a way, it could be considered a higher stage of the Formless Poison—the Muhyeong-jidok Sobaek had researched in his past life.
And even if he was reluctant, he had to master a cultivation method to eventually achieve human form.
He simply wanted something that would be of use to him.
Soon, Soyo returned with several manuals.
They were all sinister demonic arts—methods that involved feeding on corpses or draining the life force of others to refine curses. Though Sobaek was pragmatic, he had still been a member of an orthodox sect.
"Sigh... this is the last one. It is called Baek-aek-eunghon-gyol. It is a method that condenses a hundred misfortunes and resentful thoughts within the body. The deeper your understanding of these thoughts, the stronger the curse becomes, and your realm will rise accordingly. In a way, it is closely linked to consciousness-based cultivation."
"This is exactly what I was looking for."
As Dang Sobaek readily accepted it, Soyo asked with a worried expression, "Are you truly going to be alright? Pure, positive thoughts are rarer than dust. Most lingering thoughts are, in truth, resentful spirits. Slowly, bit by bit, they will erode your mind without you even realizing it. Even if your Divine Sense is extraordinarily vast... honestly, I would prefer you did not practice this. It is not something I can guide you through, either."
There was no need to give up just because of Soyo's warnings. If he sensed danger, he could simply stop.
"Well, I shall handle that myself. I will learn both Baek-aek-eunghon-gyol and the Five Elements Circulation Art you showed me earlier."
"What? Both of them, not just one?"
"Is there a problem?"
"No, no. Wise choice. I, too, believe that is the correct path."
Dang Sobaek smirked at his words.
It was obvious the ferret was lying.
Soyo likely assumed Sobaek would give up on Baek-aek-eunghon-gyol halfway through.
"Why... why are you laughing?"
"It is nothing."
The reason Sobaek wanted to learn the Five Elements Circulation Art as well was simple. Even when learning something new, one had to build a solid foundation to avoid future complications.
From what he gathered, Baek-aek-eunghon-gyol was an advanced technique far removed from the basics.
It was no different from a martial artist skipping the basics to learn high-level martial arts.
Whether one wielded a sword or practiced throwing daggers, everyone had to start from the basics to reach the peak.
Even the Sword Sovereign, hailed as the greatest of all time, had once said that he only reached his heights because of the most basic Three Talents Sword Style.
"Is there a separate cave suitable for my training?"
Because Jim-il and Jim-i had already claimed the best spiritual veins near the temple, there were no suitable spots left.
Thus, the place Dang Sobaek chose was Mother Jimjo's cave.
Although the distance was a drawback, the spiritual vein itself was peerless.
Since Soyo had promised to visit and instruct him for two hours every seven days, there would be no issues.
‘I suppose I have become a rogue cultivator now.’
According to what Sobaek had read in the records, rogue cultivators were not held in high regard.
Lacking masters to guide them, structured systems, and cultivation resources, most remained at low realms.
Thus, it was common for cultivators to join sects or form clans like the Tang Clan.
It was not much different from the Nine Great Sects and One Association, or the Five Great Noble Clans of the Murim.
However, there was one difference.
‘This is truly difficult to comprehend.’
Cultivators were a privileged class that stood even above the imperial family.
In fact, ordinary people without spiritual roots were dismissed as "mortals" and treated as an entirely different species.
‘It is hard to understand... but not something I need to worry about right now.’
Once he left this island, he could travel the world and see it for himself.
Dang Sobaek placed the Five Elements Circulation Art and Baek-aek-eunghon-gyol on the ground and carefully examined them.
First, Baek-aek-eunghon-gyol was not as difficult as he had anticipated.
Just as Soyo had explained, by absorbing resentful thoughts and understanding the minds of those who harbored them, he could advance the technique and naturally activate his spiritual veins.
It was also highly compatible with the poison techniques Sobaek already knew.
However, the side effects were severe.
It was said that most practitioners eventually had their minds eroded, losing their very sense of self.
No wonder a warning was clearly written on the preface of Baek-aek-eunghon-gyol.
The Five Elements Circulation Art, however, was different.
As the name suggested, it was a basic manual designed for those with Five Spiritual Roots. It required the practitioner to circulate the five elements—wood, fire, earth, metal, and water—through the body in equal proportions to activate the spiritual veins.
The ratio could not be off by even a fraction, and mastering it required a deep understanding of hand seals and mantras.
"This is certainly not something I can comprehend on my own."
Just as Dang Sobaek shook his head, a gust of wind blew into the cave. A small shadow fell across the entrance.
"Let's see just how much you've managed to understand on your own, shall we?"