Call Of The Spear [EN]: Chapter 118

Nangseon’s Romantic Tale – 117

Beneath the surface, an intense miasma and the stench of blood, unlike anything he’d encountered before, permeated the air.

The deeper San-gun descended the stairs, the more a strange sense of unease prickled his senses.

Frowning, he fiddled with the centipede-shaped bracelet coiled around his left arm.

“It’s here,” Geummae said. She and Elder Mak, who had gone ahead, stood before a door plastered with talismans.

Creak.

The tightly shut door opened, and through the gap, a chorus of ghostly wails erupted.

It was a bizarre sound, a disturbing mix of crying and laughing.

San-gun immediately activated Danryeong Geumjeong [a technique to enhance perception] to peek inside.

‘Huh…’

The situation was even more dire than San-gun had anticipated.

Eunmae’s once beautiful silver hair was now disheveled and stained with blood, and her entire body was covered in sealing talismans.

Moreover, she was bound by blood-red chains, and thousands of needles were embedded all over her body.

“The horns of the Manbyeongakgwi…” [a powerful evil spirit]

A long horn had sprouted from the center of her forehead.

Geummae simply gazed at her with a pitiful expression, her eyes reddening.

“Sister… I’m here.”

She cupped Eunmae’s drooping face in her hands and tried to lift it, but Eunmae didn’t open her eyes. Her consciousness seemed deeply suppressed by the sealing.

San-gun stared at her through Danryeong Geumjeong, then narrowed his eyes.

“This sealing technique is…”

“Our Moon Lord and Great Elder performed it themselves,” Elder Mak replied quietly.

“I see…”

San-gun looked at Eunmae for a moment before asking, “Has Eun Sojeo’s [young lady] Danryeong [spiritual core] also been corrupted by the Manbyeongakgwi’s blood?”

“Danryeong? Well, I’m not sure…” Elder Mak tilted his head, and Geummae, who had been listening quietly, also furrowed her brow.

“Why do you ask that?”

“If, hypothetically, Eun Sojeo’s Danryeong hasn’t been corrupted, wouldn’t it be possible to extract the Danryeong first and then slowly treat the body while searching for a solution?”

Unlike San-gun, who spoke calmly, Geummae’s eyes widened.

“C-Can you really do that?”

If that were possible, they could find a new body for her, even if it meant searching far and wide! It would be infinitely better than leaving her like this.

“I won’t know until I try, but I believe I can extract the Danryeong with a good chance of success. But if the Danryeong has already been corrupted by the Akgwi’s blood, then it’s all for naught.”

“Gongja!” [a term of respect]

Geummae immediately grabbed San-gun’s hand, tears welling up in her eyes.

Tears sparkled in her golden eyes, as if filled with golden light.

“C-Can you save my sister? Is it true?!”

“It’s just extracting the Danryeong. And even that isn’t certain.”

“Even that would be…”

After comforting the distraught Geummae, he turned to Elder Mak and asked, “I want to know more about Eun Sojeo’s exact condition.”

“T-That…”

He was requesting a meeting.

“Didn’t you say that the Moon Lord and Great Elder of the Yacheongwimun sealed Eun Sojeo? To confirm her exact condition, I think I need to meet those two. I heard that Eun Sojeo is especially cherished in the sect, so they’ll rush over, right?”

Elder Mak could only smile bitterly at San-gun’s gentle smile.

* * *

400 li [approximately 125 miles] south of Yacheongwimun.

On the summit of Gwisan, there was a desolate pavilion.

Two figures stood there, exuding an ominous energy that suggested they followed a dark path.

“What happened to the mixed-bloods? We need to complete the Sagwihwa (死鬼化) [transformation into a dead ghost] of the remaining one to finally open the Four Realms, right?” A woman with bloodshot eyes asked her companion. He was a handsome man with delicate features.

“Isn’t it just a matter of time? One of them is already undergoing Sagwihwa. Because of that, the Great Elder of the main sect and I have suffered a bit. Eungak is almost finished, so now we need to balance it with Geumgak to complete the Sagwihwa and welcome the incarnation of the Four Realms.”

The handsome young man closed his eyes for a long time, then suddenly turned his head.

A small dandelion seed floated in from the direction he was looking.

The handsome young man smiled slyly at the seed and welcomed it.

“You’re trying to trick someone again.”

Just then, the pure white seed emitted light and transformed into a middle-aged man.

“Haha, you are indeed Gwisilgwiju (鬼室鬼州) [Ghost Chamber Ghost State]. Other old men wouldn’t have noticed this Eun-sul!” The handsome young man, called Gwisilgwiju, smiled and invited him to sit down.

“Old man, you’re not talking about me, are you?” The woman with bloodshot eyes glared at him.

“If you’ve lived for over a thousand years, you’re all old men. Why pretend otherwise?”

“Hmph! That’s why Gwokri Gwiju (霍里鬼州) [Gwokri Ghost State] smells like a bachelor.”

“Bachelor! How dare you say such ugly things to a bachelor who hasn’t even married! If you’re going to be like that, then Wanyan Gwiju (完顔鬼州) [Wanyan Ghost State] is the same! An old maid who couldn’t even get married at that age!”

The beautiful woman, called Wanyan Gwiju, glared and exuded murderous intent.

“Have you finished speaking?”

“I’m done! What are you going to do about it!”

The two’s murderous intent collided, and just as a strange whirlwind was about to erupt, Gwisil Gwiju waved his hand and stopped it.

As his slender fingers spread out, the two’s murderous intent dissipated like smoke.

Gwokri swallowed his groan and sat down, opening his mouth.

“The Hae tribe seems to be plotting something again. There were rumors that they were badly defeated by a Taoist a few years ago, and it seems to be true. Because of that, innocent Taoists are being beheaded. It may just be unnecessary worry, but it seems we need to accelerate the great work.”

Gwokri plucked a strand from his thick beard and blew on it.

Wanyan, who was looking at Gwokri unpleasantly, opened her mouth with a reluctant expression.

“Unlike the Hae tribe, the Ik tribe (翼族) [Winged Tribe] are quiet. If only Eungak and Geumgak are completed, miasma will once again spread throughout Dongguk [ancient Korean kingdom], and we can drive out the incompetent Seondo [Taoist hermits] bastards. If we can summon the incarnation of the Four Realms, what is there to fear?”

Just then, a winged snake flew in from the air, and as Gwisil reached out and grabbed it, it turned into a talisman.

Soon, Gwisil’s expression hardened as he grabbed the talisman, and his eyes turned cold.

“Isn’t that a Jeoneumbu [urgent message talisman]? What happened?”

“It’s nothing. We have a guest at the main sect. I’m sorry. I invited you, but I have to leave.”

“Haha, why are you so concerned between us? Aren’t you one of the three Sapa (死波) [Death Wave] among the Five Great Sects representing Dongguk? If we ascend to immortality, we may go to the Four Realms together and share joys and sorrows! Don’t worry about it.”

As Gwokri spoke jovially, Gwisil also smiled faintly and greeted him.

“Then I’ll go first.”

Gwisil’s body poured out like ink and disappeared. It was a mysterious Dunsul [escape technique].

After that, the two spent a long time insulting each other with personal attacks, engaged in a brief sword fight, and then parted ways.

* * *

Gwibingak in the central gate of Yacheongwimun.

San-gun was sitting cross-legged.

The Great Elder of Yacheongwimun had left, so he couldn’t meet him. Fortunately, the Moon Lord would arrive in three days, so he was using the remaining time to study scriptures and secret arts that he hadn’t been able to focus on.

Then, suddenly, a dozen or so small, blue-glowing tiger cubs poured out from his head. They were San-gun’s Danryeongs, divided by Bunhap Sugeol [a technique to split one’s spiritual core].

The tiger cubs rolled around in the bedchamber for a while, then were quickly sucked back into San-gun’s head. Only then did San-gun’s eyelids open as he took a deep breath.

“It’s not bad for the Danryeong to have spirit, but it’s so difficult to control. Using it like the Hae tribe will require a lot of training.”

It wasn’t easy. He tried to learn the divine power that the Hae tribe used, but controlling the Danryeong wasn’t easy.

Except for the main Danryeong that was directly connected to San-gun, the other Danryeongs were impossible to control.

Perhaps it was a reaction to the increase in Danryeong due to Bunhap Sugeol.

San-gun shook his head and immediately formed a Sugeol [hand seal]. Then, two horns appeared above his head.

Soon, a ring of blue spiritual power was created.

As pure spiritual power spread throughout his body, his body began to expand.

He was beginning to return to his original form: a giant tiger.

However, he couldn’t help but be flustered as he swelled up twice as large as his original size.

San-gun scattered the divine power.

“Unless I ascend to Yeonggeop [a high level of cultivation] and achieve Talhyeong [perfected transformation], it will be cumbersome to use.”

What San-gun performed was Hwicheongakgo 2-seong [a transformation technique].

Gakcheyongson (角體涌孫) [horn body surging grandson] it was.

When this Tongsul [mystical art] was used, power surged throughout his body, increasing his already powerful physical abilities several times over.

However, it was troublesome because this secret art would undo his transformation.

San-gun often had to hide that he was a Yeongsu [spiritual beast].

It was a secret art that he could only use by taking some risks.

It would be different if he achieved Talhyeong and had a body similar to a human, but there was no way to do that now.

However, the item he was about to take out next was even more troublesome: the Ogyeongbipa [Five-Realm Lute], one of the Chilseon Bogu [Seven Immortal Treasures].

“Pearls before swine, I suppose.”

San-gun had no talent for sound arts.

He tried it while looking at the Gyoin tribe’s Tongsul book, but San-gun was someone who was equally tone-deaf and rhythmically challenged. He couldn’t do anything even with the Chilseon Bogu in front of him.

The Ogyeongbipa was a top-notch Bogu among instrument-type Bopae [spiritual treasures]. The skill to handle it had to be top-notch as well.

San-gun, who was only smacking his lips, put the Ogyeongbipa in his arms.

There was still some time until the Moon Lord arrived, so it was good to generally check his belongings again.

Three days later.

Swish.

A Jeoneumbu flew in through the crack in the door.

San-gun snatched the Jeoneumbu, blew Shinshik [spiritual energy] into it, read the contents, and sneered.

The message stated that the Moon Lord of Yacheongwimun had arrived.

“Let’s see how it turns out.”

San-gun, fluttering his Dopo [Taoist robe], left Gwibingak and flew to Sangmun in a streak of blue light.

When he arrived at the entrance of Sangmun, Geummae bowed deeply and greeted him.

He was about to tell her not to do that, but he held back.

“The Moon Lord has arrived.”

“Yes, I will guide you.”

Geummae, who seemed nervous, bit her lip and guided him with a forced smile.

After a while, San-gun, who had come face to face with the Moon Lord of Yacheongwimun, wore a slightly surprised expression.

Originally, Taoists sought to increase their realm only when they were close to the end of their lifespan, so their appearance was mostly aged.

However, the Moon Lord of Yacheongwimun was a young man who looked no different from San-gun.

It wasn’t that there were no elixirs that could maintain youth, but they weren’t easy to find.

Yeongsu achieved Talhyeong when they reached Yeonggeop and had a young appearance, but Taoists were not like that.

‘Is it because of related Tongsul?’

It was unknown, and it wasn’t the time to think about such trivial things.

“Are you the Nangseon who can extract Elder Eun’s Danryeong?”

“Yes. As I wandered around, I gained some knowledge of various secret arts.”

“Gongja is also friends with my sister, so he readily stepped forward!” Geummae hurriedly added, unable to hold back.

“So you want to know Elder Eun’s condition more clearly?”

“That’s right.”

The Moon Lord sat on the jade throne and tapped the handle with his finger.

Geummae seemed anxious, constantly wringing her hands and swallowing hard.

“I refuse.”

As the Moon Lord’s gentle voice was heard, Geummae’s face turned pale.

“W-Why! If you can extract my sister’s Danryeong, you can save her even if you have to abandon her body!”

Despite her passionate plea, the Moon Lord quietly shook his head and raised his index finger.

“First, no matter how close you were before, this isn’t a world you can trust. Besides, you’re a Nangseon, so I don’t need to explain it.”

He raised his middle finger.

“Second, I don’t know what kind of secret art it is, but forcibly extracting the Danryeong will definitely have side effects. How can I do such a thing to someone who will become a pillar of Yacheongwimun in the future? There’s still time, so maybe we can completely stop Sagwihwa in another way.”

And he raised his ring finger.

“Finally, I’ve already found a cure.”

Geummae’s eyes widened.

“R-Really?!”

“Haha, this person is really something. Do I look like someone who makes false statements?”

“N-No. You’re definitely not! Oh, my sister really doesn’t have to become a Sagwi… Heuk!” Geummae began to sob and prostrate herself, overwhelmed with emotion.

The Moon Lord nodded with a benevolent expression and looked at San-gun.

“I heard you’re close to Elder Eun of the main sect… You don’t seem happy.”

“Why wouldn’t I be happy when Eun Sojeo can recover? However…”

As he tilted his head and pondered, the Moon Lord comforted him.

“It’s okay, tell me. What is there to hesitate on such a happy day?”

Then San-gun, twisting up the corners of his lips, asked innocently, “Perhaps, is that method a treatment that Geum Sojeo has to endure?”

At that moment, the Moon Lord’s constantly smiling face suddenly hardened.