The Kitchen Ghost
“Is anyone there?”
He had wandered around calling for someone about a dozen times, but nothing changed.
“...Is it because of you, by any chance?”
Jjik…?
Mu-yong looked up at Han Yujin with a slightly disappointed expression, mixed with worry that he might go have fun without her. It was as if she feared being left behind.
I was told that speechless beasts have no effect at all.
Perhaps it was because Mu-yong, though unable to speak, had already reached the equivalent of the Dharma Soul stage.
With that thought, he headed toward a deeper, darker corner of the detached palace.
“Is there truly no one here?”
He had just begun to call out with a hint of disappointment, wondering if anything would actually appear, when it happened.
Clatter…!
A tiny presence that sent chills down his spine suddenly reached his ears.
His head snapped around like lightning. The source was the kitchen of this detached palace—one that had clearly gone unused for a long time.
A kitchen.
By its very purpose, it would see no activity without residents. It only bustled during meal preparation and was typically tucked away in a corner of the building.
In other words, a shadowy area.
“......”
“......”
Han Yujin and Mu-yong stared at each other. Then they both looked back toward the kitchen.
“Is someone… there?”
The moment his voice rang out again—
Clatter… rustle…!
The presence grew clearer, as if in response. It was an utterly incomprehensible sound, impossible to guess what it might be doing.
He had been about to extend his divine sense when he suddenly froze, realizing this could act as a trigger. From the knowledge he had gained in this world so far, problems often escalated the moment one clearly perceived the “opponent.”
Crunch…!
While he pondered briefly, another sound came from the kitchen. It was a bizarre noise that gave no hint of its purpose—which only made it more horrifying.
Could I assign it some kind of purpose?
An interesting idea suddenly occurred to him, and he spoke.
“Are you the head chef? Preparing a meal?”
A few seconds after the words left his mouth—
Clatter… splash…!
The presence became far more distinct and gained clear intent. The sounds of bowls clattering and water flowing began, as if someone were genuinely preparing food.
Sizzle…!
Next came the sound of something cooking on a hot surface. A faint smell of food even wafted through the air.
Jjik…?
But the moment Mu-yong caught the scent, she recoiled in horror and covered her tiny nose with both front paws. Only then did Han Yujin realize the odor was strangely unpleasant.
He knew exactly why it felt that way.
The smell of burning corpses.
It resembled the scent of cooking meat at first glance, but with his ample experience in battle and killing, it was a smell he could never mistake.
When he looked around, the once ordinary atmosphere inside the detached palace had turned gloomy and icy. It wasn’t yet filled with ghostly energy, but it felt as though it soon would be.
“...Seeing it in person, it’s honestly ridiculous.”
He muttered without thinking.
Just by searching for someone in an empty place, such a phenomenon occurred? And this wasn’t even the Guimunjeol.
At that moment—
Bang—!!
An enormous noise erupted from the kitchen, impossible to ignore. It sounded like something had been dropped, or perhaps like someone in a rage had hurled or slammed an object.
If I run away now, will this phenomenon disappear completely?
According to the knowledge he had gained, there were indeed cases of people who broke taboos and survived by sheer luck. But the very fact that such cases had been recorded proved how rare they were.
In any case, he had no intention of simply fleeing. This wasn’t like a child carelessly playing with fire, starting a blaze, and running away. He naturally planned to clean this up.
Steel himself mentally and physically, he approached the kitchen. At the same time, he sent his divine sense inside to observe the scene.
In the kitchen, where even the lanterns were barely lit, only a faint, flickering flame rose from the stove below—its origin unknown. There, a woman was busily preparing food.
Bang—!
The sight of her slamming something on the cutting board with a large kitchen knife covered in dried blood and rust filled his vision.
Blood splattered. Flesh tore. Bones snapped. The gruesome sounds echoed.
Bang—!
When she brought the knife down again, blood sprayed violently this time, staining not only the kitchen floor and walls but even the ceiling.
Splat…!
The spray of blood didn’t stop after one burst. It gushed fiercely, threatening to turn the entire area into a sea of blood.
By then, Han Yujin had walked right up to the kitchen entrance. He instinctively sensed that the “ghost” had already detected his divine sense and crossed some kind of threshold.
Let’s see just how powerful this terrifying, spine-chilling spiritual phenomenon really is.
Thinking that a Geumdan-gi investigator could hardly be scared off by something like this, he boldly opened the door.
The ghost, which had been raising its cleaver high as if to strike again, froze mid-motion. Han Yujin stared at its back for a moment in silence before asking.
“...Who are you?”
What exactly are you?
At the half-sincere question, the ghost slowly lowered its knife-wielding arm and turned around.
Yet even after turning, it had no face.
Only the back of its head was visible—covered in long, unkempt hair. The ends fluttered messily with the spinning motion. And it wasn’t just one turn.
It spun again. And again.
Crrraaack…!
One horribly mangled arm, repeatedly hacked on the cutting board, flopped about, spraying blood everywhere in time with the rotations.
Then, suddenly—
—Kyyyyaaaaaaaah—!!
It let out a piercing, bone-chilling shriek and lunged at him.
Booom—!!
A streak of Purple Heaven Divine Lightning shot forth mercilessly, striking with a roar that rivaled the ghost’s scream. The charging ghost vanished like smoke without the slightest resistance.
…Weaker than I expected? It’s only at the early Initiation stage.
Just as that thought crossed his mind, something came scrambling madly from behind.
It was so sudden that even a Geumdan-gi investigator like him flinched and spun around. There was the same ghost he had just destroyed—crawling frantically across the floor before leaping at him.
Bang—!!
The Origin Power Great Hand unfolded reflexively and smashed the opponent to pieces. Blood sprayed everywhere. Crushed limbs, torn completely apart, flew in all directions and scattered.
The instant he dealt with it, a third identical ghost fell headfirst from above.
Thud—!
It crashed upside down, its skull splitting open and spilling blood and brain matter. Its limbs twitched violently as if it were a living person, then suddenly—
It sprang up into a handstand, wildly shaking its filthy hair, and charged once more.
“Fuck…!”
Booom—!!
The Purple Heaven Divine Lightning he fired this time was far more powerful, born from genuine goosebumps. In a flash of light and thunder, the ghost disintegrated without even a scream.
Yet the situation showed no sign of improving. If anything, it was getting worse.
Heeheeheeheek…!
A sinister laugh echoed from somewhere. The surrounding darkness grew thicker and more viscous. Sensing a similarity to the phenomenon he had experienced in that rural village, he summoned a streak of Crimson Lotus True Flame.
In the light that pierced the darkness, the figure of a woman ghost hanging by her neck appeared, swinging back and forth, only to vanish in the blink of an eye.
Just as it disappeared, it reappeared, struggling violently. Then it vanished again, only to show up even closer, thrashing even more desperately.
It clutched the noose around its neck with both hands, writhing like someone on the verge of death. Then, all movement stopped with eerie abruptness. It looked down at Han Yujin with a face that clearly did not exist.
Blood gushed from its abyssal eyes. From the darkness of its gaping, suffocated mouth, a swollen, bluish-purple tongue protruded far enough to drag on the floor and convulsed.
Hik…! Hiiik, hik…!
The bizarre sound that poured from it felt like the agony of imminent death, yet also like the playful torment of a cat toying with a trapped mouse.
At that moment.
Han Yujin, who had seemed frozen in fear, suddenly let out a dry chuckle. It quickly grew into full-blown laughter.
“Alright. Let’s see whether you win or I win.”
With that declaration, his pupils took on a cosmic hue and elongated into vertical slits. The halo of the Six Paths of Reincarnation appeared, and the Monghyeon-gyeong materialized above his head. Its mirror surface reflected a world engulfed in crimson flames.
Whoosh—!!
The Crimson Lotus True Flame surged forth like a tidal wave and incinerated the hanging ghost that had been mocking him in an instant.
It didn’t stop there. The flames spread in every direction, transforming the entire interior of the detached palace into a blazing inferno in a single moment. Yet nothing actually burned—an utterly wondrous sight.
However.
—Kyyyyaaaaaaaah…!!
From somewhere came the agonized screams of people burning alive. The cries didn’t stop at one; they multiplied, overlapping until it felt as though countless people were dying in a fire within this very palace.
Even Han Yujin, who had boldly unleashed the Crimson Lotus True Flame, felt a chill run down his spine as the situation showed no signs of calming.
…Don’t tell me once a taboo is properly triggered, it can’t be stopped?
At least, the first floor of the royal archive had held no such information. It might not exist even on the second or third floors.
Does this phenomenon only stop if I die?
While continuing to fill the palace with Crimson Lotus True Flame, he suddenly cast a spell that mimicked the Yin-Yang Eyes with great care. His previously dragon-like vertical pupils transformed into a black-and-white taiji that revolved in perfect circulation.
It was a profoundly mysterious and arcane sight.
In that state, he slowly scanned his surroundings as if searching for something new. Mu-yong, sharing her master’s sensations through the Tongmyeong Eosu-gyeol, turned her head as well. She looked slightly frightened and hunched.
A moment later.
Whatever thought had crossed his mind, he extinguished every last flicker of Crimson Lotus True Flame that had filled the area.
As if it had been waiting, an even thicker darkness descended. It was as though it sought to reclaim the brightness that had briefly existed.
Ssssssh…!
As he stood still, faint presences began appearing at irregular intervals. The sounds of clothing or hair dragging across the floor.
Bang—!
Occasionally, loud noises erupted from somewhere as if trying to startle him—gruesome cracking sounds mixed with what seemed like skulls smashing against walls.
The heat from the Crimson Lotus True Flame that had filled the space cooled at an unnaturally rapid pace, leaving everything icy cold. From the shadows in every corner, unmistakably eerie gazes pressed down on him.
—Kyaah!
Finally, a ghost came flying from behind, hair whipping wildly. One hand still dangled limply while the other gripped the blood-and-rust-covered cleaver.
Crunch—!!
What he deployed in response was not Crimson Lotus True Flame or Purple Heaven Divine Lightning, but the Origin Power Great Hand.
The ghost was smashed to a pulp, scattering blood and flesh in all directions. The moment he turned his head thinking it was over, another ghost charged straight at his face.
Thud—!
—Kyaaaa…aaah…!
Pow—!
Kihihihik…! Hihihihihihihi……!!
Two times. Three. Four. Five. Six.
The ghosts kept appearing without end.
Sometimes immediately after being destroyed. Sometimes after a period of silence, waiting for the exact moment he moved.
They appeared at unpredictable intervals in countless different ways. The power that had clearly been no more than early Initiation stage grew stronger with every death, now reaching the Dharma Soul stage.
The rate at which it grows stronger is slowing, but…
If he dragged this out any longer, beings on the verge of the Soul Formation stage might start appearing.
He didn’t stay in one place. He had noticed that when he remained still, the ghosts sometimes grew quiet as well.
So he moved around, crushing every ghost that appeared with the Origin Power Great Hand. Before long, the detached palace had become a slaughterhouse littered with blood, flesh, bone fragments, severed limbs, and heads. It was an absurdly cruel and horrifying scene.
Naturally, such a sight was more than enough to generate an overwhelming amount of ghostly energy.
In a situation that seemed to offer no solution, he once again smashed an incoming ghost with the Origin Power Great Hand and suddenly—
He reached out into empty air and made a grasping motion. At the same time, the halo of the Six Paths of Reincarnation exploded outward. A heavy wave of divine sense, like the tolling of a great bell, spread through the air.
In that instant, the ghostly laughter or weeping that had filled the space stretched out like a broken videotape and distorted.
Swoooooosh—!!
Along with the ghostly energy that saturated the area, a faint yet enormous “Dao Gate”—visible and perceptible only through the Yin-Yang Eyes and the Six Paths of Reincarnation divine ability—began to be sucked into Han Yujin’s grasp.
The darkness throughout the entire detached palace surged violently. Screams resembling human cries echoed within the whirlwind.
In his raised hand, a sphere of dark teal light began to form.
The strange orb of light continuously generated countless spell patterns, manifested an unfathomably profound Dao Gate within itself, then scattered it—repeating the process over and over.
A short while later.
When all the chaotic phenomena had finally subsided, the interior of the detached palace had returned to its peaceful state before the taboo had been triggered.
He stared intently at the dark teal “Dao Gate sphere” held in his hand, observing it with both the spell mimicking the Yin-Yang Eyes and his true Dragon Eyes.
This is absolutely not a naturally occurring phenomenon.
After some time, he finally reached that conclusion.
Somewhere in this world… across this entire continent, there exists a being that intentionally creates these bizarre phenomena to ‘harvest’ people’s fear.
The hand holding the dark teal sphere trembled slightly.
A practitioner of the Ghost Gate Path.
The Black Soil Continent of the Ghost Gate Path.
This place was a world being raised like livestock by a single ghost or ghostly beast—at minimum at the Soul Formation stage or higher.
While examining the endlessly rising Dao patterns and spell formulas within the profoundly eerie yet mysterious sphere of light, his eyes gleamed.
He had only observed it briefly, and it was merely a fragment of the Ghost Gate Path, yet countless inspirations were already flooding his mind.
If he grew strong enough to visit this place in the future, he might be able to slay the mastermind behind these absurd acts and seize the fruits of their labor.
* * * * *