Bachelor [EN]: Chapter 25

Master Wen, knowing Han Li had been isolated from the world for so long, had prepared two false identities for him at his hidden residence.

He included items to prove each identity, along with a certificate written in his own hand, instructing Han Li to choose whichever suited him best.

He also meticulously listed his trusted aides, people to be wary of, his enemies, and various precautions.

Finally, he added instructions on how to control and summon the Iron Slave and the Cloud Winged Bird.

The letter subtly revealed that the Iron Slave was already a soulless corpse.

It was merely a walking body, its original soul long gone. Therefore, Han Li need not feel any guilt in commanding him.

For Han Li, who was always mindful of finances, Master Wen’s deal was very tempting. However, the fact that he had to marry Master Wen’s daughter bothered him.

He was just beginning to understand his feelings for the opposite sex, so he wasn’t keen on marrying a woman he had never even met. But he had no time to dwell on such thoughts now.

The adversaries he would face in the future were not to be underestimated. A single misstep could cost him his life.

* * *

He paced around the stone chamber several times before finally stopping.

“Let’s take the antidote first and then worry about it. It’s not too late to decide then.”

As Han Li made his decision, he noticed the giant outside the stone chamber. The letter stated that the giant could be controlled using a magical artifact called the Soul-Guiding Bell.

The Soul-Guiding Bell was made of brass, very intricate, and a perfect size to hold in one hand. Other than a faint bloodstain on its surface, there seemed to be nothing unusual about it.

Han Li left the stone chamber and cautiously approached the giant, stopping a safe distance away as a precaution.

The giant stood motionless with his back to Han Li.

‘Ding!’

A clear bell sound rang out, and the giant’s shoulders began to twitch. It seemed to react to the sound of the bell. Pleased, Han Li rang the bell repeatedly.

‘Ding! Ding! ……’

The more the bell rang, the more the giant’s body trembled, until he finally staggered and collapsed to the ground. The heavy body hit the floor, raising a cloud of dust.

Han Li darted forward and snatched the bamboo hat off the giant’s head. The ugly face beneath it made Han Li shudder.

Pushing aside his unease, he quickly cut his wrist with a dagger. He splashed the red blood flowing from his wrist onto the giant’s face.

Only after the giant’s face was covered in blood did he stop the bleeding and bandage his wrist. Han Li watched the giant’s reaction from a distance.

The blood he had poured on the giant’s face soaked in, leaving not a single drop. As the blood was completely absorbed, the giant opened his eyes and slowly rose to his feet.

There was no sign of life or emotion on his face. When the giant raised his head and met Han Li’s gaze, he hesitated. But he quickly regained his composure and gave the giant a low command.

“Break down the door of that stone chamber.”

The giant strode towards the stone chamber. He raised both fists high, as if to strike the stone door with a hammer. After swinging his fists four or five times, the stone door shattered.

Then, he immediately turned to Han Li, waiting for the next command. Han Li, who had always been reluctant to be swayed by emotions, was grinning from ear to ear.

If he could command such a powerful subordinate at will, there was nothing to worry about. Unlike his initial reaction, the more he looked at him, the more satisfied he became. The face he had originally thought was ugly, now looked familiar the more he looked at it.

‘Familiar……’

Han Li was startled by this feeling. He couldn’t understand how this ugly face, which he had never seen before, could feel so familiar. Han Li began to examine the giant’s eyes, nose, and mouth closely.

Then, he could guess the original appearance from the giant’s swollen face. When he put it all together, a very familiar person came to Han Li’s mind.

“Brother Jang… is that really you, Brother Jang?”

Han Li was shocked. He reached out with both hands and gently touched the giant’s face.

The giant’s face was too similar to the face of Han Li’s friend, Jang Seok-cheol, who had disappeared a few years ago.

Considering his relationship with Master Wen, it was highly likely that this giant and Jang Seok-cheol were connected.

‘Is it really Jang Seok-cheol’s body in front of me, and his soul has already vanished?’

* * *

Han Li looked into the soulless eyes of Jang Seok-cheol and thought about his unfortunate fate. It must have been the work of Master Wen and Lim Ja-dong.

They had likely made it look like Jang Seok-cheol, who was practicing the Elephant Armor Skill, had run away to deceive the Seven Mysteries Sect, then eliminated Jang Seok-cheol’s soul and controlled him.

His current appearance was almost identical to the appearance that was said to appear when the Elephant Armor Skill was successful.

Han Li’s guess was correct. At the time, Master Wen had suddenly had a strange idea when he saw Jang Seok-cheol. He had tried to combine the Elephant Armor Skill he possessed with the corpse refinement technique he had obtained from Lim Ja-dong to create a puppet that would absolutely obey him and be strong enough to conquer the martial world.

However, he didn’t have much time, so he had only managed to create one. He had hidden it somewhere down the mountain, and brought it with him when he returned to the sect last time.

But Lim Ja-dong was not interested in such a pathetic puppet at all. He even laughed at Master Wen for making the puppet, because its power was too inferior compared to the high-grade Ironclad Corpse he had created.

After a long time, Han Li took his hand off the giant’s face. He stared at the broken stone door, lost in thought again.

At that moment, he felt a chill in his heart. It wasn’t because of Jang Seok-cheol’s miserable fate, but because he was uneasy about his own cold and heartless mind.

Originally, if he had known that his friend had fallen into such a terrible state, he would have been furious and shouted Master Wen and Lim Ja-dong’s names in hatred.

But while he felt sad, he wasn’t furious. It was as if the person in this predicament was not his close friend, but someone he had no connection with.

‘Is it because what’s in front of me is just Jang Seok-cheol’s body? Or am I becoming a cold-blooded person?’

Han Li felt fear at his own selfish behavior. He was changing without even realizing it. He looked at the giant with complicated feelings, but he didn’t know what to call him. Han Li looked up at the sky and quietly murmured.

“Brother Jang, you must have already passed away. What use is a body without a soul? I, your junior brother, will borrow the body you left behind. I will use it carefully, so please don’t blame me from heaven.”

Han Li, as if praying to the sky or hypnotizing himself, finished his muttering and commanded the giant.

“You are the body left behind by Brother Jang and have already lost your soul, so from now on, I will call you ‘Gokhon’ [Warped Soul]. Help me out from now on.”

The giant did not react to Han Li’s words. He only showed a submissive expression.

“I’m talking to a body without consciousness, how foolish!”

Han Li said self-deprecatingly and headed towards the stone chamber.

“Gokhon, follow me.”

His depressed mood had already improved. It seemed that he had indeed become the cold and rational person he had thought, someone who was not easily swayed by emotions.

Whether this change would be a blessing or a curse for Han Li, who was about to walk the path of an immortal, was unknown.

After that, Han Li spent a long time there cleaning up. First, he buried Master Wen’s body under a large tree, and burned all the useless items left in the stone chamber.

He even ordered Gokhon to completely destroy the stone chamber itself, so that it would be impossible to tell what had been there. After a long time, the sun was gradually setting over the mountains. Han Li looked around in front of the stone chamber to see if he had missed anything.

“Gokhon, let’s go! I have a mountain of things to take care of tomorrow. It’s a shame you don’t have consciousness. If you could talk, it would be nice to discuss things with you.”

The red light of the setting sun shone on Han Li, casting a long shadow behind him. He confided his innermost thoughts to the giant he had named Gokhon. The current Han Li was like an ordinary boy, with no trace of the cold or heartless person he had been.

Han Li hid Gokhon well and returned to his residence. As he entered the room, he stroked and examined the furniture as if he had been away for a long time, and murmured.

“Today was too long. It feels like ten years have passed since I left the room.”

He immediately collapsed onto the bed and fell into a deep sleep.

‘It’s so good to be back alive.’

* * *

Han Li was sitting in the chair that Master Wen had always used, reading a book titled ‘The Scripture of Longevity’. This book, which was the secret formula of the Eternal Spring Technique, was so fascinating that he felt like he would be drawn into it.

He had wondered why Master Wen never got tired of reading this book every day, but now he understood everything.

Master Wen seemed to have been unable to accept that he could not cultivate magical power. He did not believe Lim Ja-dong’s words that he needed a spiritual root, and had silently tried to decipher the secret formula on his own.

This secret manual was kept with other hidden items. The book contained not only the six levels of the formula that Han Li had already mastered, but also the remaining two levels of the technique that he had not yet learned.

Han Li’s heart was pounding. After learning that what he was cultivating was the magical power to make it rain and summon wind, his desire for this technique grew even stronger.

‘Who wouldn’t want to become an immortal who enjoys eternal life!’

* * *

The warm sunlight was shining on Han Li through the window. He was sitting comfortably, leaning back and reading a book, looking very relaxed. Han Li slightly raised his head and looked at the window.

It was too dazzling. When he raised the open book to cover his face, the shining sunlight was blocked. It was so comfortable when his eyes were in the dark. In that moment, Han Li unconsciously had a flash of inspiration and silently recited the seventh level of the formula.

Because he had been continuously taking elixirs, he was recently trying to break through the limits of the Eternal Spring Technique again.

He seemed to be reaching the boundary between the 6th and 7th levels soon. If this happened, he would be able to achieve success faster and know its effects.

It had been half a year since the day Master Wen had tried to take his body.

Only two days after that incident, Han Li began to move to cover up Master Wen’s death. He personally forged Master Wen’s handwriting and created a fake letter saying that he was going back to his hometown to check on his relatives, and gave it to the patrol elder of the sect under Master Wen’s name.

In the letter, using Master Wen’s tone, he stated that Han Li had inherited all of Master Wen’s medical skills and had already completed his studies, so there was no problem in diagnosing and treating injuries of others.

Also, since Master Wen’s journey back home would be long, and it was unknown when he would be able to return, he asked several sect leaders to have Han Li temporarily take on the role of physician and perform his duties until Master Wen returned.

# 27