Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 319

Han Li let out a long sigh and asked,

“You keep calling this place the Land of Yin and Yang. Is it perhaps connected to the underworld where the dead go? Also, how can we break the restriction that limits our magical power? And please, tell me how to get out of here.”

The old man also shook his head and sighed.

“A way out? If it were that simple, would we be stuck here, barely surviving day by day? Most of us were born and raised here, but even those who were swept in by the ghost fog like us have families and roots outside. We just have no choice but to settle down here.”

Since it was true, there was nothing to say.

“However, who knows where this place is or if it’s related to the underworld? According to the research and speculations of our predecessors who arrived here long before us, this place is a spatial rift connecting the human realm and the underworld, which is why the Yin energy is so strong and why the Yin-Yang water is created.

Also, according to legend, this place is inside the belly of the mythical beast Rahu. Rahu is said to swallow the sun and moon and can tear through space, which explains the irregular appearance of the ghost fog. The beast Rahu is said to live hidden in the deep sea and only comes up to hunt for food occasionally.”

At the old man’s theory, Han Li’s expression changed.

“Rahu, a mythical beast? That’s absurd. How can such a monster exist?”

“I had the same reaction when I first heard this story. Of course, it may sound ridiculous, but I can’t deny that it might be true.

Those who have been absorbed into the spatial rifts come from completely different sea areas, and some even come from places so far away that we don’t even know about them.

For example, I came from a small island in Mannam Province of the Great Jin Dynasty, while others came from the Oryong Sea, the coast of the Cheonsa Continent, or the Nanseong Sea.”

Han Li was dumbfounded. When he was in the Cheonnam region, he had heard of the Great Jin, a super-large empire.

“If you are from the Great Jin Dynasty, does that mean you are from the Jin Kingdom?”

“Could it be that you are also from the Great Jin Dynasty?”

Seeing the old man’s eyes light up, Han Li shook his head.

“No, it’s not that. I just know the reputation of the Great Jin, a super-large country. However, it’s so far away that I’ve never been there myself.”

“I see. That’s a shame… If I have the chance, I would like to go back there again.”

When the topic of his hometown came up, the old man’s face regained some color.

“If you were to visit our Great Jin, you would know what the true world of cultivation is like. There are many bases for cultivators in the world, but compared to our Great Jin, they are incomparable in terms of scale and prosperity. It is worthy of being called the holy land of cultivators.”

Han Li just scratched his nose and listened to the other person’s story, but he couldn’t help but smile wryly.

“Haha! This old man has strayed off the path for a moment. But I can definitely tell you how to recover your magical power. You should give up on the idea of staying in the Land of Yin and Yang and recovering your magical power to regain your original abilities.

This is because, except for the power of Yin and Yang or what we call the spirit-sealing energy, no other spiritual power can be used here.

The spirit-sealing energy spreads out from the depths at regular intervals, causing everyone to lose their magical power. This time, it seems that the spirit-sealing energy has spread to the outside world due to the overlap with the spatial rift.”

Even with the old man’s clear explanation, Han Li’s frustration deepened.

‘What terrible luck. Why did I have to encounter a ghost fog with spirit-sealing energy and fall into this place?’

“Then, is there no way out at all? I can’t believe it.”

“It’s not like that.”

“Is there a way?”

Mae Eung, who had been quietly listening to the conversation between the old man and Han Li, was also startled.

“That is…”

“Is it difficult to tell us?”

The old man, who had been looking at Mae Eung and Han Li’s faces for a while, narrowed his eyes and spoke meaningfully.

“It’s not something to hide, so don’t misunderstand. It’s a good thing if the number of cultivators in the village increases, but I have no intention of forcibly holding you two here. I’m just worried that I might tell you the way and cause you to lose your precious lives.”

Han Li, who had been momentarily stunned, smiled lightly.

“Don’t worry. Although I look young, I have lived a long life as a cultivator. If it’s impossible, I won’t throw my life away carelessly, so please tell me the way.”

“Since you say so, I will tell you without hiding anything…”

* * *

After a while, Han Li, with a blank expression, walked out of the main hall and stood at the door, lost in thought. Mae Eung, next to him, bit her red lip and asked with a pale face.

“Brother Han, what should we do? Do we really have to climb Mount Storm?”

“No matter how I think about it, I have to try the challenge.”

At that moment, they heard footsteps approaching them. It was a boy, about sixteen years old, with very dark skin.

“You must be the newcomers. I’ve been ordered by the elder to guide you to your lodgings. Newcomers are provided with free food for the first three days, but after that, you will be kicked out of the village if you don’t go on missions.”

“I understand. Please lead the way.”

The boy nodded and led them to one side of the village. After a while, the boy stopped in front of a building made of black stone. Mae Eung, checking the bed, blushed.

“Is there only one bed?”

“Don’t men and women use one bed when they live together?”

Embarrassed, Mae Eung’s face turned even redder, and she was about to say something when Han Li calmly spoke.

“We will sleep separately, so please bring another bed.”

The boy, pouting his lips, looked a little annoyed, but said he understood and left the room.

“Then, rest. I’m going to look around the village.”

At Han Li’s words, Mae Eung hesitated for a moment before silently nodding. Han Li immediately left the room, looked around, and headed towards the tower in the center of the village.

He had become quite interested in the method of controlling the power of Yin and Yang. There was no one guarding the four sides of the stone tower, so it was not difficult to get close.

It was quite high, and the slope of the stairs was steep, but after looking around for a moment, Han Li began to climb lightly.

Han Li was looking at a strangely shaped disc at the top of the empty tower.

The disc was a flat stone about a meter long, with bizarre patterns and spells engraved on it. Although no one was casting a spell now, purple mist was still slowly emanating from it, merging with the purple clouds above the village.

Han Li, who had some understanding of formations, narrowed his eyes and began to study the stone disc.

Not long after, he heard a strange voice behind him.

“Do you have any insights, Fellow Daoist?”

“…”

Han Li, quite surprised inside, blamed himself. How could he not have noticed someone approaching right behind him? What if it had been a dangerous situation?

But it wasn’t entirely his fault.

He used to be able to grasp his surroundings thoroughly through his consciousness, but now he was not used to guarding his surroundings with his physical senses.

Han Li, with a blank face, carefully turned around. Then, he saw an old man with white hair and many wrinkles looking at him.

“Are you also a cultivator?”

“I am Pohwanja from the Oryong Sea. You must be one of the new Fellow Daoists.”

‘Oryong Sea?’

He immediately remembered the Great Elder mentioning such a region, and he became interested. Han Li replied gently.

“So you are Fellow Daoist Pohwanja. My surname is Han, and I am a hermit from the Nanseong Sea.”

“Nanseong Sea? There was a Fellow Daoist from the Nanseong Sea before, but unfortunately, he lost his life after encountering a powerful Yin-Yang water. There are not many cultivators who are well-versed in talismans, but seeing you studying the stone talisman, you seem to be quite knowledgeable in this field.”

“Stone talisman…”

Han Li looked puzzled.

“Haha! It’s natural that you don’t know about it. The methods of making talismans with stone or jade have already been lost in many regions. I also learned how to make these ancient talismans from a certain sect in the Oryong Sea, so I know about them.”

The old man’s voice revealed pride. Han Li narrowed his eyes as he looked at the old man.

“Indeed, it’s the first time I’ve heard of making talismans with stone or jade. But I’ve been studying talismans for quite some time, and I was surprised to see the disc. After hearing your words, many of my questions have been resolved. This stone talisman seems to have the characteristics of a barrier. Am I wrong?”

The old man with a long beard seemed a little surprised, then burst into laughter.

“I didn’t expect you to be so well-versed in formations. That’s right, this Danun stone talisman is not a true stone talisman. It’s a modified version that borrows the method of formations to operate using the power of Yin and Yang. This way, it has the characteristics of both talismans and formations, but its effectiveness is greatly reduced.”

Han Li, nodding and looking down at the stone slab, asked again.

“According to the Great Elder, only the power of Yin and Yang can be used here, so they combine the modification of Yin-Yang water with the effectiveness of formations to cast spells. But this stone talisman doesn’t have any modifications embedded in it. What’s going on?”

“That’s because of circumstances. As you saw today when we fought with Jaenggyosu, even if the village’s strong men are stronger than ordinary people because they have learned martial arts, they are no match for such a huge Yin-Yang water.

Even if they defeat the Yin-Yang water, many casualties are bound to occur among the villagers. Therefore, the spells cast using the power of Yin and Yang play a very important role for the people here.

And the amount of Yin-Yang water modifications they possess is the standard for the village’s strength.”

The old man smiled and paused for a moment before continuing.

“But finding modifications is not easy. In principle, the stronger the Yin-Yang water, the more likely it is to have a modification in its head, but that’s not always the case. On the other hand, sometimes they find modifications by catching a few small and relatively weak Hwarinsu [Yin-Yang water creatures], like yesterday.

Frankly, just casting spells to protect the village in daily life requires a considerable amount of modifications. But it’s common to collect only about one modification per year, so they wouldn’t leave such a precious thing lying around.

Usually, the village elders keep the modifications and allow the cultivators to use them when needed, like yesterday, and then immediately retrieve them after the battle. However, this stone talisman is used by injecting the necessary power in advance for a few days, so there is no modification embedded in it.”

The white-haired old man’s tone suggested that he didn’t like this method very much, but Han Li just maintained a smile and didn’t say anything.

The old man in front of him seemed to have jumped into the power struggle here like ordinary people after his path of cultivation was broken.

Han Li just sighed.

The old man seemed a little disappointed by Han Li’s passive attitude, but he quickly returned to a smiling face and brought up a casual topic.

“No one knows how long this strange place has existed. Although the number of cultivators who are dragged in is extremely rare, I think there must be at least a thousand. I’ve heard that even a Nascent Soul stage Fellow Daoist [a high level of cultivator] was trapped here and died.”

“Has a Nascent Soul stage Fellow Daoist ever been dragged into this place?”

“Yes, that’s right. Although he spent his whole life in this village after coming here. It seems that it happened when the spirit-sealing energy was released, just like you two. Otherwise, there’s no way someone with such strong consciousness and magical power would be swept away by the ghost fog.”

A bitter smile appeared on Han Li’s face.

“The spirit-sealing energy is indeed amazing. It seems that only a legendary Deity Transformation stage Fellow Daoist [an even higher level of cultivator] would not be affected by it.”

“A Deity Transformation stage Fellow Daoist? You have some wild ideas. However, that Nascent Soul stage senior left behind a few books before he passed away, and one of them was about his experiences in cultivation. If such a thing existed in the outside world, it would be extremely precious, but here… well, haha…”

“He left behind his insights on cultivation! Just hearing about it makes me interested. Where can I go to find it?”

Han Li was genuinely moved. He was quite curious about what was written in the insights left by the Nascent Soul stage Fellow Daoist.

“Haha! I also thought it was interesting when I first heard about that book. But after staying here for so long, that feeling has gradually disappeared. Although we can’t use magical power, if you’re interested, it would be good to take a look. The book is kept in the storage along with the other items left behind by other Fellow Daoists.”

The old man turned his body and pointed to a spot in the village, his fingertip pointing towards a very old building. Suppressing his joy, Han Li calmly expressed his gratitude to the old man.

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