Call Of The Spear [EN]: Chapter 294

Tales of the Spirit Blade – Part 2, Episode 3

The swarming Spirit Insects numbered nearly a hundred, but the Sa Clan quickly dealt with them.

The suddenly appearing Spirit Insects were said to be Bu Insects, a type of bug commonly found near the Insect Realm.

I overheard the Lesser Immortals murmuring that it was strange for them to appear so early, as their breeding season was still a long way off. They seemed puzzled as well.

‘So, Spirit Insects are nothing special.’

They didn’t possess Spirit Orbs, nor did they have any intelligence.

Even the Lesser Immortals could handle them, so there wasn’t much to worry about.

Bu Insects were probably Upper Realm creatures, similar in power to Lesser Immortals.

“Are you alright?”

“I apologize for showing you such an unsightly 모습 [Korean: appearance/state].”

“It’s nothing.”

Saha was covered in the vermillion blood of the Bu Insects and didn’t look very presentable.

She had been smashing the Spirit Insects with her fists like a wild beast, but now she was acting shy, as if she were a different person.

Still, a Water Realm being was a Water Realm being. Since this was the domain of divine beasts, they seemed to prefer using their bodies more.

‘But why is she in her transformed state?’ That was a bit of a question.

“Sa, Senior Immortal! Are you alright!”

The Huang Clan’s young master, who had been hiding behind the Lesser Immortals, rushed out, belatedly expressing his concern.

“The Huang Clan’s Lesser Immortals suffered some injuries.”

“They are not serious. More importantly, I am relieved that you are unharmed, Senior Immortal.”

The Huang Clan’s Lesser Immortals were slightly injured, but none were seriously hurt.

Strangely, the Sa Clan’s Lesser Immortals, who had fought fiercely, were not injured at all. It seemed to be a difference in experience.

Cheonbeom looked at Saha, one of the Sa Clan’s Lesser Immortals, and raised the corner of his mouth with interest.

“Your divine power is remarkable. It was like looking at a small sun.”

“It is merely a paltry skill.”

She was modest, but her face betrayed a subtle pride.

“Perhaps, something passed down from your clan…”

“No. It is my unique technique.”

“A unique technique…?”

Cheonbeom’s expression twisted.

“Yes. It is a lacking divine power. Extremely crude.”

Cheonbeom’s expression became strange as he looked at Saha, who had lowered her head.

But as if nothing had happened, he raised the corner of his mouth and patted her on the shoulder.

“To create such a technique independently, you have the talent to stand shoulder to shoulder with me in the future.”

“That is an overstatement.”

Cheonbeom smiled faintly and put his hands behind his back, while the Huang Clan’s young master, looking uncomfortable, subtly interjected.

“Then…”

He was asking for a decision.

The Spirit Insects had caused a delay.

The time had come to decide whether to go to Yongma Valley or Sangseo.

Cheonbeom readily opened his mouth.

* * *

Yongma Valley (龍麻骨) [Dragon Numb Bone]. It was said to be a place where the numbed bones of a dragon had fallen.

Seen from the sky, the massive mountain range seemed to take on the shape of a dragon, appearing mystical. At its center, a vibrant village had formed, and at its innermost part was the base of the Huang Clan, which ruled over the Yongma Valley area.

“Lord, it seems the youngest young master has returned.”

“Hmm? Oh, come to think of it, he said he was going to escort an Ascended Immortal.”

“Yes.”

The Huang Clan’s head, Hwang Gon, stroked his long, pointed beard.

“Did he succeed?” He looked skeptical.

“They say a man he has never seen before is accompanying him, so it seems he has succeeded.”

“Oh! This is truly a cause for celebration. Now that a new Ascended Immortal has settled in Yongma Valley, we must hold a grand feast.”

Hwang Gon, surprised as if it were unexpected, was about to call the servants immediately.

“Lord, but they say a Sa Clan girl was also with them.”

“…What? Why is that child here?”

“I do not know the reason.”

“Ahem.”

Hwang Gon pondered. He was curious as to why the Sa Clan girl had come to Yongma Valley, which was like a sworn enemy, but the important thing was that the Ascended Immortal had entered his territory.

The Huang Clan was just one of the hundreds and thousands of clans in the Water Realm. Currently, it was in a position to be somewhat well-off among the peripheral clans, but Hwang Gon had a dream of making his Huang Clan one of the glorious Five Great Clans.

‘To become one of the Five Great Clans and reign supreme, even one Ascended Immortal is a valuable asset.’

He didn’t know what was going on, but since they had come to Yongma Valley, he, as the owner and the head of the Huang Clan, had to treat them with the utmost hospitality.

“I should go out and see.”

It was fastest to confirm what was going on with his own two eyes. As Hwang Gon rose from his seat, he turned into a wisp of smoke and disappeared.

* * *

At the same time.

Cheonbeom fanned himself with a folding fan.

Yongma Valley was an incredibly humid place. Unlike the Lower Realm, the abundance of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy made it unavoidable. Unlike Cheonbeom, the Huang Clan’s young master took a deep breath, like a fish that found water. His face was radiant.

However, the expression of the Huang Clan’s young master, as he entered Yongma Valley, was not as good as his face. Behind him was the Ascended Immortal in a palanquin, fanning himself, but next to him was the Sangseo girl he never wanted to see, even in his dreams.

‘Things have become troublesome.’

An hour ago, the Ascended Immortal with the Cheon surname had told him this:

‘I don’t know much, so I can’t make a proper decision. I’d like to go to a place called Yongma Valley first and hear the opinions of others. What do you think?’

‘You mean…’

‘They say that after receiving the Initial Tribulation [Trial/Test] after a thousand years, you don’t have to be tied to a clan. But looking at the way things are going, it doesn’t seem good to wander around the Water Realm alone as an Ascended Immortal. So, I have to carefully consider and choose when I choose once. I’m a cautious person, so please understand.’

He could fully understand. Most Ascended Immortals tend to rely on their clans even after undergoing the Initial Tribulation.

This was because they could receive benefits related to the Spirit Herbs needed for cultivation. And the most important thing for cultivation was Spirit Energy, also called Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy.

In places where Spirit Energy was lacking, they could not accumulate Spirit Power, so they could not even handle a single law, let alone cultivate.

So, unless they received an offer from a better clan, they tended to stay put. If they only had to fulfill a few requests from time to time, they could cultivate comfortably, so who would refuse and want to be a wandering Ascended Immortal?

‘The answer is already there, so why is he worrying so much…’ Even after seeing the Ascended Immortal Artifact, he was only slightly surprised and didn’t seem to have much greed.

If it were another Ascended Immortal, it was a treasure they would have wanted with a burning desire. As a ascended cultivator, he should have different desires, but he had no interest. He was an unpredictable immortal.

‘But if I have this Ascended Immortal, it will be much easier to swallow Sangseo. If I do, my father might even go out of his way to get me a Primordial Core, just like he did for my brother.’

The Primordial Core was one of the Spirit Pills that was like a dream to Lesser Immortals. It was a Spirit Pill that helped to condense a Spirit Orb, so Lesser Immortals who lost their memories every time they reincarnated wanted to have it with a burning desire.

To Lesser Immortals, reincarnation was no different from death. The only way to avoid death was to become an Ascended Immortal, so it was a natural story.

‘If this goes well, I will have Sangseo, so if I succeed in condensing, I will become an Ascended Immortal like my brother and gladly take you as my concubine.’ While the Huang Clan’s young master was having such sinister thoughts, the expression of the Sa Clan’s Saha was gradually darkening.

In fact, from the moment Cheonbeom said he wanted to see Yongma Valley, she had already abandoned even a glimmer of hope.

‘This person does not know the situation in the Water Realm.’ That was why she had come to Yongma Valley to find out. When she had argued with the Huang Clan’s young master, she had already noticed that Yongma Valley was a more prosperous place than Sangseo.

If an immortal with such quick wit heard a few stories in Yongma Valley, the result would be obvious.

‘A declining clan…’ That was not wrong.

Tens of thousands of years ago, the Sa Clan was a prosperous clan that was even included in the Five Great Clans of the Water Realm, but now it was just a declining and forgotten clan.

The Sa Clan’s fortunes had been declining for a long time due to frequent battles. The Lesser Immortals who were currently there possessed excellent martial power based on their combat experience, but after all, they were just Lesser Immortals.

Among the Spirit Insects flowing out of the Insect Realm, there were occasionally some that even Ascended Immortals found difficult to handle. If even one of those guys popped out, the current Sangseo would be annihilated. Because of that, the remaining Ascended Immortals had all died, the last one being hundreds of years ago.

She was more desperate than anyone else. If she could not bring back an Ascended Immortal this time, Sangseo would eventually fail to defend against the Spirit Insect’s attack, and its lineage might be cut off.

She had to bring back an Ascended Immortal at all costs.

‘But…’ If they knew it was a declining clan, who would want to join the Sa Clan? Even she would not want to join the Sa Clan.

To be honest, she had given up halfway. She had no conditions to offer the Ascended Immortal.

She raised her head and looked at the Ascended Immortal. Black hair and golden eyes.

‘It’s as the divination said.’ There was one more reason why she could not let go of the Ascended Immortal. That was….

“Sa Lesser Immortal?”

“Ah, yes! What is it?”

“You seem to have a lot on your mind.”

“I’m sorry. It’s been a while since I’ve been to Yongma Valley…”

“Have you been here before?”

“Yes, it’s located relatively close to Sangseo… I remember coming here with my brother a long time ago.”

“You had siblings.”

“Not anymore.”

A moment of silence lingered.

“…I said something unnecessary.”

“It’s nothing.”

An awkward atmosphere continued. Breaking the silence, Cheonbeom opened his mouth.

“By the way, your unique technique was quite impressive. Can you show it to me again?”

“Ah… of course.”

She neatly gathered her hands and emitted fire energy, creating a small sphere. The inside was rotating fiercely, but the outside looked perfectly calm.

Cheonbeom saw it and was convinced.

‘It’s similar to the Great Heavenly Outer Yang Divine Art.’

It was a crude divine power of fire, but its framework was not much different from the Great Heavenly Outer Yang Divine Art.

There was a possibility that a similar technique could have been created by chance after chance, but the composition itself could not be so similar.

‘That person couldn’t have left any successors.’ The reason he had given it to him was because he had not created any successors. That was what the Heavenly Outer Yang Lord had said. There should be no lies.

‘I don’t know what it is, but it seems like there’s some connection…’ It was even more puzzling that she called it a unique technique.

“Can you tell me how you created this divine power?”

It was a potentially rude question, but she was a Lesser Immortal, and Cheonbeom was an Ascended Immortal. Even if it was a little rude, he wanted to know.

Saha hesitated for a moment, sighed, and answered.

“Actually, I don’t know either.”

“You don’t know?” Cheonbeom’s brow furrowed. It wasn’t that she couldn’t tell him, but that she didn’t know, which didn’t make sense.

How could she not know how she created her own unique technique?

As Cheonbeom’s mood became uncomfortable, Saha hurriedly continued.

“It was left by my past life, so I don’t know how I created it either.”

“Past life?”

“Yes, as all Lesser Immortals do, I also died once.”