The Honwon Stone's Guardian
Perhaps because he had steeled his resolve, the increase in spiritual energy density felt somewhat more distinct.
Thanks to his sharpened perception, new knowledge, and the speed of the Five Elements Heavenly Escape Art, he scanned the area with incredible swiftness and advanced toward the source. Anyone watching from below would have seen nothing more than a single streak of violet light flashing across the sky.
Continuing his rapid search, he judged inwardly that sweeping through all of Beijing would not be particularly difficult. In game terms, it felt like walking around with a map hack permanently enabled.
This is the power of a cultivator.
There was no reason to feel discouraged simply because he could not oppose a Nascent Soul stage existence. It was enough not to grow arrogant. In truth, even a Core Formation cultivator was already a catastrophic being.
If he mobilized every means available without considering the side effects, the joke about conquering the Earth would no longer be a mere fantasy.
Therefore, whatever the true identity of the Eternal Goddess Cult might be, they could not possibly handle Han Yujin himself. If they could, they would not have hidden in the first place.
In the middle of these brief thoughts, he crossed an truly enormous distance and arrived at a place where the spiritual energy density had nearly doubled. It was so thick he wondered if such concentration was even possible.
Indeed, thanks to the incredibly dense spiritual energy, not only the vegetation but even the ground itself had taken on unique forms. This richness had clearly not appeared overnight.
The trees were not merely large; they bore crystal-like tissues emitting blue light across their bodies. All sorts of insects moved among those tissues, seemingly living in symbiosis.
The ground was covered with various spiritual herbs and plants, and crystals holding light grew everywhere. They appeared similar to spirit stones.
He considered descending to examine them, but at that moment his new senses detected something far more interesting.
At the center, spiritual energy surged outward in waves due to the extreme density.
There stood a stone pillar roughly the height of a three-story building. Embedded throughout it were small crystal fragments radiating a mysterious white light, beautifully illuminating the surroundings.
Within a radius of several dozen meters, crystals similar to those in the pillar—but of slightly lower quality—grew so densely that no vegetation or insects could intrude.
Finally, coiled around the pillar was the hazy, translucent form of a serpent that seemed to exist and not exist at the same time. It was no ordinary snake; long, twisting horns sprouted from its head, and wings grew along various parts of its body, giving it a bizarre appearance.
Is that a spirit body…?
While he observed from a distance, still uncertain, the serpent’s head suddenly turned in his direction. An indescribable sense of crisis crashed over him.
He was at a considerable distance with countless obstacles between them. Under normal circumstances, he should have had more than enough time to react to anything. Yet the feeling of danger only intensified.
Han Yujin realized naturally.
As expected, it truly is a Nascent Soul stage existence.
It would differ in many ways from a genuine Nascent Soul investigator, but he was certain it was an opponent his current self could not face.
If he wanted to live, he should flee immediately. Instead, without fear, he focused his attention on the stone pillar where the creature had coiled. It was clearly the cause of the thickened spiritual energy.
If it was something a being of that caliber cherished so preciously, he had to examine it closely even if he sensed nothing from it.
His knowledge was insufficient to identify it at once, but after considering every factor, a guess emerged.
Could it be a Honwon Stone?
It referred to a substance superior to spirit stones.
While spirit stones merely stored concentrated spiritual energy without loss, a Honwon Stone could generate spiritual energy on its own. This was because it connected directly to the Honwon Realm—the source of all spiritual energy filling the world and the cosmic flow of power existing in a state half-overlapping with reality.
Simply possessing one aided cultivation. When used in formations, it created semi-permanent effects. Most importantly, it was an essential material for crafting Tongcheon spirit treasures.
In short, it was an extraordinarily valuable treasure.
Something like that, at this size…?
As Han Yujin continued focusing on the pillar, greed rising unbidden, the serpent finally moved. After long years of solitude, no creature had ever dared show such insolence in its domain.
The moment the serpent opened its mouth to aim, Han Yujin’s figure turned into violet light and melted into the ground. An instant later, a white flash streaked past with a hair’s breadth between them, evaporating everything in its path without a sound.
The white ray erased everything in its trajectory.
Crackle…!
Only that faint sound echoed through the surroundings like countless leaves brushing together.
Then the serpent slammed its tail into the ground.
BOOM—!!
An enormous roar that shook heaven and earth erupted. The shockwave concentrated entirely into the ground instead of dispersing, triggering a massive earthquake.
Countless trees toppled with deafening noise. Rocks shattered like successive thunderclaps. Landslides erupted across every steep slope.
Underground, Han Yujin ignored most of the impact thanks to the subtlety of the Five Elements Heavenly Escape Art. However, he could not disregard the spiritual energy waves projected alongside the shock.
The power was so vast it seemed almost alive. It locked onto him and surged from every direction, carrying ferocious hostility.
Realizing the underground offered almost no advantage, he burst onto the surface and aimed the Blood Spirit Red Flower Wine Bottle. Rather than fleeing, he had chosen to close in and attack.
The serpent’s roar shook with pure rage.
The creature’s furious roar at such insolence seemed to have struck a reverse scale rather than merely relieving its boredom.
The pillar must be that precious to it.
The Blood Spirit Red Flower Wine Bottle’s attack shot forward but failed to achieve any real effect. The empty space before the serpent boiled like haze and captured the incoming strike as if freezing it in place.
With the black threads now irretrievable, Han Yujin remained calm and unleashed every divine ability and spell at his disposal.
He activated the Six Paths of Reincarnation at full power. Using Monghwan Yusim, he tried to substitute reality with illusion to break the seal on the Blood Spirit Red Flower Wine Bottle. He infused the Origin Power Great Hand with Deep Sea Cold Ice Water, added a Thunder Dragon, and swung it with devastating force.
While the Great Hand struck the haze-like barrier, his other hand fired more than twenty strands of Pure Yang Extreme Flame Bullet Thread.
Yet none of these techniques could break the spatial barrier. They left only faint aftershocks.
Instead, the serpent’s ray breath—faster than before—vaporized his head along with his left arm and shoulder.
Ha…!
Surprisingly, even in that state, he did not die.
From the Core Formation stage onward, the head was no longer the most vital part. It was certainly a heavy blow, but given time he could recover.
Moreover, his Dream Dragon Dao Body possessed recovery and endurance that rivaled any divine ability.
After dodging the incoming ray breath several times using the Five Elements Heavenly Escape Art, more than half his injuries had already healed by the time he briefly revealed himself in the air. Violet light flickered like a dream, restoring his body to its original state.
Of course, that did not make the fight even. Far from it. He was simply being beaten one-sidedly while desperately struggling.
With a sharp tearing sound, the black threads of the Blood Spirit Red Flower Wine Bottle finally snapped within the swirling haze. The enchanting red light dimmed drastically, showing severe damage.
His entire field of vision blinked once.
The moment he thought he glimpsed something infinitely bright, everything plunged into darkness.
Silver letters floated before him, mysterious and cold.
Han Yujin looked at the mysteriously floating silver characters and simply let out a hollow laugh.
What did I die to?
He guessed the bright presence had been another ray breath, but since he had not even detected a precursor, he could not say for certain.
Please select your spoils.
Still, it was not particularly upsetting. It would have been better to fight moderately, retreat safely, and continue exploring the Primordial Forest. Yet dying like this had been a valuable experience in its own way.
He had learned that one must never fight recklessly against a Nascent Soul stage existence.
Now it was time to work in reality as planned.
Before returning to the Great Rift, he met Lee Won-hee again and bought her a meal at a famous handmade burger restaurant. Given their age difference, playing together felt awkward, so taking her to good restaurants was an excellent way to build rapport.
“Are you still getting along with those friends you mentioned before?”
“Yes.”
It was about her new school life after transferring. After thinking for a moment, Lee Won-hee seemed to decide she should answer more sincerely and continued.
“Last time…”
She told him about visiting a shop that sold diaries and stickers, buying various items, and playing at decorating them.
Once she started talking, the stories kept flowing. Her manner was exactly like a child her age, and Han Yujin found himself smiling.
Experiences playing with peers were important. Even if the friendships felt temporary and the activities trivial, those small things accumulated and shaped a person’s values.
They were experiences no one—not Han Yujin or anyone else—could replace no matter how much care they provided.
After finishing the casual conversation, they moved on to discussing Hoe-won Gong training. They spread a notebook on the table, creating an atmosphere like a tutor reviewing homework.
“You did very well!”
When he offered genuine praise, Lee Won-hee’s face flushed slightly. The saying that praise could make even a whale dance was not empty words.
Drawing spell patterns with a pencil made it difficult to tell whether they were correct. Spell patterns were subtle; even identical shapes could be wrong depending on the order of strokes.
However, having reached Core Formation, Han Yujin could discern with his new senses alone the exact order and speed with which she had drawn them. He could even guess the faint intent behind each line.
“This part should flow a little more smoothly. As I’ve said many times, this is for when you draw it with spiritual energy later.”
“Yes.”
After carefully pointing out the few shortcomings, he said, “If you continue learning at this pace, you’ll be ready to begin Hoe-won Gong training in a few months.”
Lee Won-hee looked subtly expectant. Now that she had decided to learn, interest seemed to bloom naturally.
After the meal, he walked her home.
On his way back to the Great Rift, he thought naturally that talent at the level of a Heavenly Spiritual Root made Lee Won-hee’s value feel even greater. If she could properly overcome the Three Tribulations of Cultivation, reaching Nascent Soul seemed almost guaranteed.
Moreover, she no longer felt like merely a child with precious talent. He was slowly growing fond of her and purely wanted to watch her steadily achieve success.
Raising a disciple was a sufficiently rewarding and satisfying endeavor even without personal gain. It was something he had learned well in the Gangho Murim world.
While walking and entertaining various idle thoughts, he noticed Mu-yong in his embrace seemed to want more Okro Wine. He looked down at her.
“You still have room after eating that much?”
“Jjik-! Jjijik! Jjik!”
Of course, he and Lee Won-hee had not been the only ones eating at the burger place. Mu-yong had devoured an entire burger the size of her own body.
Yet here she was asking for Okro Wine again. He wondered if he should allow such gluttony, but her sparkling black eyes made it impossible to refuse.
“Fine… It’s not bad for you, and I got it for you in the first place.”
Muttering, he gave her the wine and took a sip himself. Enjoying the never-tiring taste and aroma, he walked a little further before suddenly turning into a streak of violet light and shooting toward the Great Rift at a speed impossible to measure by ordinary means.
The reason for returning to the Great Rift this time was not for hunting.
He immediately met Park Seryong and asked how the knowledge dissemination project was progressing. After confirming that results would appear soon, he inquired about the National Intelligence Service, which was supposedly investigating the Eternal Goddess Cult.
Park Seryong had been completely unprepared for the question. Yet after briefly leaving the Great Rift and returning, he had skillfully brought back some related materials in document form.
It was impressive enough to draw involuntary admiration.
“How did you even obtain information collected by the National Intelligence Service?”
“I have somewhat… wide connections.”
“That must be connected to the Axion Group as well, correct?”
“Yes.”
The influence of global conglomerates—so-called chaebol—in Korea could not be ignored. Contacting desired government officials to request or negotiate was entirely possible.
As the S-class hunter who symbolized the Axion Group guild, Park Seryong possessed sufficient standing to borrow that influence.
Moreover, the requested information concerned Han Yujin himself, another S-class hunter whose value had risen dramatically recently. There was reasonable justification.
“I think I’ll go investigate it myself.”
“…In Beijing?”
“Yes.”
“Wouldn’t that be… dangerous?”
Even as he asked, Park Seryong looked uncertain whether the question was appropriate.
“It’s not dangerous. If I go, I should be able to resolve it immediately. Probably.”
“In that case… it would be better to coordinate with the National Intelligence Service for the visit. The information I brought is only superficial and won’t be of much help.”
Finding the suggestion reasonable, Han Yujin nodded.
“Then please make the arrangements. There’s no need to prepare separate transportation.”
“Understood.”
Park Seryong busily left the Great Rift once more.
While waiting for his return, Han Yujin turned into a streak of violet light and instantly left the base fortress.
His intention was to uproot any elements that might cause problems while he was away in China.