The Lure of the Dragon Heart
I had always known there was a high chance I would die quickly. That was why I had never even considered bringing Mu-yong along.
But to say I had felt no greed at all would be a lie.
If there is even the slightest possibility of obtaining the heart of the greatest and most powerful dragon I could ever encounter…
That faint, lingering hope had once again shattered into pieces. He never imagined he would die without feeling a thing from a single word spoken by a creature that simply appeared before him.
Still, there was a silver lining.
Having witnessed a Soul Formation Stage investigator’s battle in the Heavenly Origin Star before, Han Yujin could roughly gauge the dragon’s strength from what he had just seen.
At the very least, it’s on the level of the Body Integration Stage.
In truth, this estimate alone fulfilled the minimum objective of his visit to this other world. He had witnessed the upper limit of the dragon race.
High racial value isn’t strictly necessary, but it’s obviously better the higher it is.
The most critical factor in External Elixir Cultivation was whether the vessel had reached at least the Nascent Soul Stage. Only after the vessel underwent that qualitative transformation could the investigator avoid complications when later conceiving a Nascent Soul.
If the racial value was also excellent, additional benefits could be gained. For example, he might obtain special divine abilities or constitutions, just like those described in the Book of Mystical Cultivation and Spiritual Landscapes.
In other words, for me, it means I simply need to obtain the heart of a Nascent Soul Stage dragon.
That would not only prevent any losses compared to those who had completed the Diagnostic Method, but also grant several minor advantages.
If I’m lucky enough to obtain a Soul Formation Stage heart…
Then he would surge far ahead of those who had completed the Diagnostic Method while enjoying several major benefits.
And if, by some miracle, I obtain a Body Integration Stage heart…
His delusions continued to escalate.
Han Yujin shook his head, casting off those fantasies, and left the waiting area with a hollow laugh in his heart.
Even if heaven itself smiled upon him and he somehow obtained a Body Integration Stage heart, he clearly wouldn’t be able to afford the Karma required to bring it into reality.
The plan of holding on until he accumulated that much Karma wasn’t even worth considering. Reality simply wasn’t that generous.
Although the confirmed timeline for the apocalypse was ten years away, he might need to achieve something much sooner to prevent it. It would be disastrous to grow complacent only to suddenly realize he was already a truck with failed brakes hurtling down a steep decline.
Therefore, the highest realistic target he could aim for was a Soul Formation Stage Dragon Heart.
Still, the Karma is the problem.
With a sigh, he opened his eyes and rose from the bed. Beside him, Mu-yong, who had been sleeping together with him, stirred awake and yawned.
“Let’s go.”
As he spoke, he lifted the still-drowsy Mu-yong into his arms.
Where they were going was obvious. Naturally, it was to carry out today’s extermination operation and earn Karma.
WHOOSH!
Where the two Flame Spirit Birds had streaked past like lightning, fist-sized mosquitoes or bees—impossible to tell which—fell in droves, burning as they dropped.
While those two swept through the surroundings, the other two Flame Spirit Birds were busy incinerating the massive tree that served as the monsters’ nest.
BUZZZZ—!!
The sound of the monstrous insects’ wings beat with desperate urgency. Some seemed intelligent enough to recognize Han Yujin as the source of this catastrophe and launched desperate suicidal attacks. A fair number of them did, in fact.
But of course, none of it mattered. Cloaked in Golden Light Radiance, Han Yujin had enough leisure to devote more than half his mind to other thoughts.
The average Karma gained per monster killed… To earn as much as I did from reporting that pseudo-religious group last time…
At least four thousand. At most, five thousand.
It sounded like an enormous number, but considering he had killed roughly two or three hundred yesterday, it was a figure he could reach surprisingly quickly.
Since the wave had been a special situation, it would be difficult to slaughter them at that pace every day, but a month should still be enough.
Assuming a Nascent Soul Stage Dragon Heart requires as much Karma as the Tongcheon Spirit Treasure…
Han Yujin exploded one Flame Spirit Bird, created another, and shook his head with a sigh.
Even in the best case, it would take at least half a year. Over such a period, even small variables could cause massive fluctuations in the final result, making this kind of estimation meaningless.
Besides, the Karma cost for selecting harvest items wasn’t fixed. The same object could have completely different utility depending on his own situation and level.
Well, honestly… even if it takes a year or two instead of six months, it can’t really be called long.
If an investigator in the Cultivation World was promised, “Endure for just a year or two and I’ll give you a Nascent Soul Stage Yao Clan inner core,” the vast majority would go mad with eagerness. It wouldn’t be strange if they foamed at the mouth like rabid dogs.
Moreover, aside from this hunter work, he had other ways to earn Karma.
Knowledge dissemination.
Although he had heard it would take several months, that was something he could easily wait for.
He had considered it when first planning this. Recklessly dumping knowledge onto the internet in his haste would only result in loss.
Given the internet’s nature—flooded with garbage information where contamination and distortion ran rampant—there was no guarantee the knowledge would spread properly. If he earned money through proper licensing contracts, he could later use those funds for other Karma-accumulating activities.
So there was no need to rush any further.
Let’s not get too impatient. Everything in life has steps that must be taken one by one.
Composing his mind, he continued focusing on the massacre.
It truly was a massacre. He had little intention of properly recording his achievements. The special task force following behind would undoubtedly document everything thoroughly even if he didn’t obsess over it.
Several hours later.
After burning every type of monster he encountered without mercy, he finally reached the vicinity of the Level 7 Mana Stone open-pit mine.
And there, he happened to run into a group of twenty miners urgently transporting previously excavated materials.
“Uh…?”
“Hunter Han Yujin? Is that you?”
They were pulling a cart of unusual design while wearing backpacks. Somehow, they recognized him immediately.
“Yes. How did you know?”
He wasn’t using any concealment techniques, nor were his Flame Spirit Birds out. How could they recognize him just from his appearance?
The answer was Mu-yong, whom he held in his arms.
“Well… they say you always carry your pet with you…”
“Ah.”
Even he had to admit it was a distinctive trait, so it made sense that rumors had spread quickly.
I hope they’re not calling me a bit of a weirdo.
As he reflexively stroked Mu-yong’s head, Han Yujin’s gaze naturally fell on the cart the miners were pulling.
Come to think of it, this was his first time seeing Mana Stones and Spirit Stones like this.
“Could I take a quick look?”
“Of course.”
Knowing it was rude, he still began examining the Mana Stones. Since they were mid-grade rather than low-grade, he found it impossible to resist.
The Mana Stones varied in shape but were roughly the size of eggs. Since they formed through completely different principles than ordinary ores, they all looked like this from the moment they were mined.
They gave off a bright gray light, and when observed closely, it seemed as if clouds flowed within them. From time to time they released rainbow-colored glimmers, creating a truly captivating effect. It was probably more pronounced because they were mid-grade.
As he was absorbed in examining a mid-grade Spirit Stone—
Huh…?
He couldn’t resist the sudden, mysterious new sensation he felt and activated it.
Instantly, the Spirit Stone crumbled completely into dust.
“Eh…?”
“What…?”
The watching miners were startled. Their mission was to safely transport these Level 7 Mana Stones to the base fortress. The fact that they had moved even before the wave cleanup was fully finished meant this was no light task.
“Ah, I’m sorry.”
Han Yujin immediately apologized, but his eyes burned as they turned toward the remaining Mana Stones on the cart.
“Please deduct the damaged Mana Stone from my achievements.”
“No, no. One stone is nothing… These things can be lost unavoidably during missions, right?”
“I have a question. Is it possible for hunters to purchase these Mana Stones with their achievements?”
“Pardon?”
The mining team reacted as if they had never considered such a thing.
In a world where even training was done haphazardly, there was no way for individual hunters to know how to utilize Mana Stones. To hunters, Mana Stones were simply extremely important and expensive industrial resources.
But for Han Yujin, a cultivator, it was completely different.
Especially now that he had just discovered a new application method upon first encountering Spirit Stones.
I can convert Spirit Stones into Karma…!
It was a truly shocking fact and felt like a new breakthrough.
At this moment, he had finally found a proper way to spend the money he would earn from hunter activities and knowledge dissemination royalties.
Han Yujin slaughtered monsters with fierce dedication today as well. To anyone watching, it looked as if he were avenging his parents’ deaths.
Naturally, such behavior was unconditionally welcome from the pioneer group’s perspective. His reputation must have skyrocketed even further, whether he knew it or not.
If Park Seryong were still trying to oppose him, he would have felt considerable threat from these objective achievements alone.
Though I suppose it’s still similar now.
As long as Park Seryong’s power-oriented values remained unchanged, the wider Han Yujin’s own influence grew, the greater the chance their relationship would deteriorate. After all, people could rarely make their reason and emotions perfectly align.
Still, he’ll realize it naturally with time. That I truly have no interest in power.
He could only hope the man wouldn’t fall into paranoid delusions and trap himself in suspicion. After all, Park Seryong’s usefulness—including the information about Mana Stones they had discussed today—remained considerable.
With that hope that their current cooperative relationship would continue, Han Yujin returned to his quarters.
His eyes narrowed slightly on their own as the Water Mirror Technique activated. Immediately, a small paper card that had been invisibly inserted into the door gap was pulled out and landed in his hand.
— Into the new and great order, we invite you.
NEO DOMINION
[QR code printed on the reverse side]
Han Yujin, who had inferred various things in a short time with the intelligence of a Dharma Soul Stage investigator, let out a small chuckle.
How utterly typical.
Yet it was also the kind of secret organization whose absence would feel strange.
Those who awakened supernatural abilities and believed themselves clearly superior to the countless ordinary people, harboring ambitions that they should naturally rise to become the ruling class of society—how could such people not exist?
The fact that they had dared to slip this card into the gap of his tightly secured quarters suggested the organization wasn’t completely empty-handed.
But of course, Han Yujin had no interest.
I kind of want to round them all up and show them the world outside the well, just like I did with Park Seryong.
They’d probably wet themselves in front of Wonhui. The thought of them feeling satisfied with themselves for coming up with a grandiose name like Neo Dominion was simply laughable.
Surely there aren’t any S-class hunters like Choi Kangbaek or Park Seryong involved in this, right?
It was possible the organization had spread not only throughout South Korea but to other countries as well. Using the printed QR code might create some contact point and allow him to gather information, but…
I should hand this over to the Ability Management Bureau.
These annoying matters could be passed to the government agency with which he had a support contract. It would then go to the National Intelligence Service and be properly investigated.
He had no leisure to play with such small fry.
However, when he entered the room and thought about using his awakening ability again today, even though his divine sense confirmed there were no traces of them entering the interior, the mere fact that they had reached his door was irritating.
These bastards are really something.
As it was a high-class accommodation for important figures, the door was by no means flimsy and was extremely sturdy. Since it was located in the underground section of the fortress to begin with, there were no thin walls or windows that could be easily bypassed.
Even so, there was no guarantee they wouldn’t try something next time.
If they confirmed their target wasn’t reacting, they might do something annoying to prove their power.
I was originally planning to search for a world with a dragon whose heart I could obtain, but…
Securing safety when using his awakening ability here seemed more urgent for now.
It was something that would be resolved by simply sleeping once more, but the perceived time was completely different, so he felt quietly annoyed.
He stroked Mu-yong for a moment to calm himself. As expected, the power of animal therapy was great. Just watching the little one drink spiritual wine improved his mood considerably.
After that, he lay down on the bed with the intention of visiting the Heavenly Origin Star.
He planned to attend a lecture on formation techniques that would be perfect for securing safety.