Triumph Over Past Enemies and the Army of Liberation
“Uwaaaaack—!!”
Han Yujin roared in victory even as one arm was blown clean off and more than half the skin on his scalp had melted away. His head was already regenerating under healing spells, but the injury was unmistakably severe, and the missing arm needed no further explanation.
Beneath his feet lay the corpse of a youkai that looked like some grotesque fusion of mantis and scorpion. Its entire body was charred, severed in multiple places, and crushed beyond recognition.
It was the very same youkai that had once slaughtered him instantly, leaving him with that sickening, helpless rage.
“I won—!! You pathetic piece of shit—!!”
It had been anything but an easy fight.
He had nearly died more than a dozen times along the way, and the creature was so cunning that it never fell for even the smallest psychological ploys. In fact, Han Yujin had often found himself at a disadvantage because of them.
Yet in the end, he had won. The victory was seized with such difficulty that he could not possibly calm the wild surge of excitement coursing through him.
Before facing this particular youkai, he had even driven off a three-headed, six-armed monster to protect one of his allied Dharma Soul stage investigators—the very same creature that had once chewed the man’s head off alive before retreating.
I’m not the same person I was back then!
Through Perfect Foundation Establishment he had ascended to the Dharma Soul stage and learned numerous spells appropriate to his level. He also possessed the supreme-grade Dharma artifact known as the Five Elements Ring, so he lacked nothing in terms of equipment.
Unlike before, there were almost no other Dharma Soul stage investigators who could display superior combat strength. No—there were none at all. There might be someone somewhere, but at least in Han Yujin’s eyes right now, none existed.
The moment he began to bask in the satisfaction of having completed every additional objective of this visit to Cheonwon Castle—
A bold one, for a human!
Another Dharma Soul—no, Youhon stage youkai charged toward him. This one had the form of a bipedal tiger.
“With a face like that you should be munching on corn flakes, not daring to challenge me!”
Han Yujin shouted boldly as he met the creature head-on.
The other Youhon stage monsters rushed in as well, regarding him like the most irresistibly tempting prey.
“Hahahaha…! That’s right—come at me, all of you!”
Han Yujin, who had already given up on surviving, laughed heartily and threw himself against the horde. Since he was going to die anyway, he might as well accumulate experience fighting multiple opponents at once.
Roughly one minute later.
Overwhelmed by sheer numbers, every limb torn apart and his heart crushed to pieces, he spat every curse he knew inside his mind.
It was a far more painful death than he had expected.
* * *
There was no question what to select as his harvest: the scissors, the jade dew wine bottle, the illusion array device from the exchange meeting, and the jade book on array paths he had received from Song Jamun.
Because the karma expenditure had been lower than anticipated, his mood improved instantly despite the rather agonizing death.
Waking in bed, he completed brief preparations and left the lodging with Mu-yong cradled in his arms just as he had the day before. Naturally, it was to continue the subjugation operation.
He needed to work diligently to accumulate karma and build up enough merit to purchase spirit stones later.
“Good morning.”
“Yes, good morning to you.”
Everyone he encountered while moving greeted him with the utmost politeness and respect. Returning their greetings naturally lifted his spirits.
It had only been two days of activity, and today was merely the third, yet it seemed there was no one who had not heard rumors about him.
Getting famous is surprisingly easy.
He let out a soft chuckle at the thought.
The reason fame came so easily? Simple—he possessed the strength to match it. Intricate, meticulous schemes were only necessary when one lacked power.
What ultimately rules the world is strength. Whoever first spoke those words, they were absolutely correct.
A short while later.
Once outside, he immediately left the base fortress and began the subjugation “work.”
Using the Wind Riding Technique to move at high speed, he would detect monsters with Divine Sense and Spirit Eye Technique and kill them regardless of what they were.
Thudthudthudthud—!
Golden beams of light fired from the sword formula pierced straight through the fleeing dog-like creatures, knocking them down. He quickly closed in and mercifully ended the suffering of those still writhing in pain, all while his mind wandered.
Where should I visit for the next world…
Having learned array techniques and obtained the illusion array artifact, the problem of safety was essentially solved. Now he simply needed to search for a world containing a dragon whose heart he could claim, just as originally planned.
At the same time, he wondered if it might be acceptable to spend a day or two exploring an entirely different kind of world.
For example, a science-fiction world with advanced technology, or one specialized in commanding or exorcising ghosts.
I could also open a door hoping for a place as powerful as the xianxia worlds.
There were simply too many options, which made choosing difficult. Still, after a moment he shook his head and decided to follow the original plan first. Every task had its priorities.
Exploring other worlds could wait until he felt he lacked the necessary means.
Right at that moment—
Ptoo—!
Suddenly, Mu-yong, who had been resting quietly in his arms, fired a single golden beam from her mouth.
It was the Hard Metal Sword Technique transmitted through their Tongmyeong Eosu-gyeol contract. The target was a fist-sized beetle clinging to a nearby tree trunk.
The perfectly aimed sword qi mercilessly sliced the insect in two. Han Yujin, who had stopped in surprise, vigorously stroked the creature in his arms and praised her.
“Aigoo, well done!”
“Jjik—! Jjijik!”
Delighted by her master’s praise, Mu-yong wagged her tail furiously even though she was not a dog. It was her own way of expressing joy.
“I took a massive loss just to bring you that jade dew wine bottle, and yet you somehow knew to do something this cute? Hm?”
Even though it was only one beetle, Han Yujin was extraordinarily pleased and continued lavishing her with praise.
“From now on, when you see monsters, try attacking them yourself. Don’t just stick to killing timid little bugs like that.”
“Jjik—!”
He decided that letting Mu-yong gain experience attacking enemies with spells would not be a bad idea. It would also add a spark of fun to the subjugation work that had begun to feel somewhat monotonous.
A broad smile lingered on Han Yujin’s face as he resumed the extermination.
* * *
Cleaning up the aftermath of the sudden wave took nearly a full week. The time had been drastically shortened because Han Yujin had thrown himself into the task like a madman.
Thanks to his efforts, Korea no longer found itself at a disadvantage in the tense three-way standoff between Korea, China, and Japan over the level 7 mana stone open-pit mine.
Although China and Japan possessed more S-class hunters, the mine’s location was clearly within territory very close to Korea. The fact that both nations had claimed partial ownership from the beginning had been more than half unreasonable.
It was so absurd that even Han Yujin—who normally paid little attention to international power struggles—found it ridiculous.
Well… when you think about it, there are quite a lot of similar incidents.
There was no need to elaborate on what, how, or how many.
Had Han Yujin not intentionally patrolled the area near the open-pit mine after receiving Park Seryong’s request, the situation might have grown far worse.
In any case.
Based on his contributions, he was able to demand more forcefully that his compensation be paid in mana stones. At the same time, he demanded the right to purchase mana stones with money in the future.
Later, I should look for other mana stone mines.
He even harbored such thoughts. Demanding the discovery reward—which was normally paid in cash—in mana stones would allow him to accumulate karma much faster.
While his karma-securing work and plans in reality progressed smoothly—
The search for a Dragon Heart through his awakening ability was slightly stagnant. Of course, he had only attempted it seven times, but it still left him dissatisfied.
Two attempts had targeted beings who were only at the Nascent Soul stage, so after consideration he had placed them on hold.
In the remaining attempts the targets had been at the Soul Formation level, yet none of them felt right, so he had given up. The biggest disappointment was that every wish to simply extract a Dragon Heart from a corpse or ruin had failed completely.
Should I let go of some greed, or should I be even greedier?
After securing safety with the illusion array artifact, playing energetically with Mu-yong, and lying down in bed, he pondered.
I’ve only tried seven times. If I keep searching strictly at the Soul Formation level, neither more nor less…
Just before activating the awakening ability, a rather novel idea suddenly occurred to him.
Just in case, shall I try searching for a Void Refinement stage Dragon Heart once?
Generally, after the Nascent Soul stage came Soul Formation and then Body Integration. However, depending on the characteristics of certain cultivation methods, a special intermediate stage called Void Refinement sometimes existed between Soul Formation and Body Integration.
At the Void Refinement level, I might somehow be able to afford the karma cost.
Soon.
Han Yujin opened his eyes within the empty void after activating the awakening ability.
Naturally leaving Mu-yong behind, he finished his preparations, recalled a well-organized wish based on his previous experiences, and reached out toward the ever-changing door.
The successfully fixed door took the form of a stone gate with a distinctly fantastical aura.
A round white crystal was embedded in its center, flanked on both sides by angel-like figures sculpted from platinum, giving the entire structure a rather sacred feeling.
Astradia of Liberation, Submissive to the Stars.
Looking at the silver characters floating above, he made a simple inference.
Submitting while being liberated… does that mean changing masters?
What suddenly came to mind was the furious true speech of the at-least Body Integration stage dragon he had witnessed first.
He had been enraged, saying they dared to summon those disgusting Asterion bastards…
Astradia and Asterion—similar names that clearly seemed connected. Moreover, when interpreted through his transcendent comprehension, both words were proper nouns related to stars.
It felt as though he might be able to gain something by taking advantage of the conflict between the Asterion beings and the dragons.
Pushing the door open with force, he chuckled. During the previous seven explorations the feeling had always seemed promising, yet he had gained nothing.
The moment he stepped through the door and set foot on the soil of another world—
Waaaaaaaaah—!!!
A tremendous cheer from at least tens of thousands of people crashed over him.
There was no time to confirm that the door behind him had vanished.
Beneath a blue sky, the massive gates of an enormous castle opened with a heavy rumble. Inside, countless people stood in disciplined formation, cheering once more to raise their morale.
Everyone playing a central role in the scene wore either armor or robes. Those in armor gave off an overwhelmingly solid impression, their polished weapons gleaming. Those in splendid robes held large staves embedded with massive jewels, radiating an air of mystery.
The vanguard began to move, and heavy footsteps echoed across the ground.
Countless flags fluttered from raised poles, dazzling the eyes. Citizens packed not only the surrounding area but even the castle walls—where they would not normally be permitted—showered the army with cheers and flower petals, blessing their departure.
An overwhelmingly loud voice burst from the magician floating in the air above the castle gate. It seemed he had been delivering a speech, and those words were its closing line.
Han Yujin checked his own robe and began moving along with them. Since he stood at the edge of the formation, matching their pace while observing was not difficult.
It looks like some kind of grand departure ceremony.
Though the situation was sudden, the sheer majestic scale made his heart race. As he moved with the army, he quietly prayed that this visit would turn out well.