Call Of The Spear [EN]: Chapter 46

Nangseon’s Romantic Fantasia – 45

After that, the Mountain Lord continued to pepper Geumgin with questions.

“Baekguiyahang” [Hundred Ghost Night Parade] is a festival and ritual for ghost masters who select the Three Ghosts, with the strongest among them chosen as one of the Three Ghosts.

The new Three Ghosts undergo a ritual called “Baekguiyaroegup” (伯鬼夜雷怯) [roughly, ‘Hundred Ghosts Night Lightning Subjugation’], said to grant a body capable of withstanding “Cheonsibyeokgeop” (天試霹怯) [Heavenly Trial of Thunderous Calamity].

Mountain Lord’s eyes widened at this.

“Cheonsibyeokgeop” is one of the trials that “Yuksa” [Six Paths Adepts] who have reached “Yeonggeop” [Spirit Calamity Realm] occasionally face.

Since this ritual supposedly created a body capable of withstanding it, he listened intently.

“So, demonic beasts also undergo such trials? This is the first I’ve heard of it.”

“Me too.”

Unlike humans, he only knew that achieving ascension to immortality was more difficult for demonic beasts.

He was surprised, vaguely thinking that increasing one’s realm was simply difficult, but it seemed there was more to it.

The old monster also mentioned that capturing the one who killed the Three Ghosts would be a great reward from the Ten Ghosts.

Mountain Lord listened silently, his expression unchanged, and followed him.

Suddenly, Geumgin stopped, staring intently at one spot with a strange expression.

“What is it?”

“I thought it was strange you came here, but it seems those guys have been up to something.”

At the old monster’s words, Mountain Lord enhanced his eyesight, trying to pierce the hazy mists. But he couldn’t see anything.

He frowned, not understanding, and the old monster chuckled and moved on.

After walking for about an hour, the mist dissipated, revealing a secret chamber and the figures of Taoists.

“That’s him.”

He recognized the Taoist named Hansu, whom he had seen before.

Mountain Lord slowly surveyed the scene, then was startled to see a woman dying in the corner.

‘The Geumeun sisters? What are they doing here!’

Disoriented, Mountain Lord knew he needed to understand the situation first.

He wanted to rush in, but held back, noticing Geumgin’s flashing eyes and strange expression.

Geumgin stepped forward, emitting a tremendous aura.

“Kuh!”

The Taoists trembled, as if crushed by Geumgin’s spiritual pressure. Some even knelt.

“Y-You, Lord Geumgin!”

Hansu looked at Geumgin, a strange expression on his face, and raised the corner of his mouth.

‘……’

Mountain Lord narrowed his eyes, remaining silent.

“Hoo- I wondered who it was… I see. So, the Hwanjin [Illusionary Formation] was in this state because you were clearing the way.”

“Y-Yes! By Lord Geumgin’s command, this Hansu opened the way! And not only that, please take these treasures and Taoist immortals as well!”

‘……Is that so.’

No wonder the Taoist immortals weren’t afraid of the demonic beast corresponding to Hwanseon. [Presumably a reference to a previous event or character]

The two seemed to know each other from the start.

“Taoist Hansu! What are you saying! You’ve colluded with a demonic beast!”

The other Taoists shouted, their faces pale, as if they had never heard of this. Hansu sneered at them.

“That’s right.”

“H-How could you, with a mere demonic beast….”

“I’m sick of being in a human body. Even if you ascend in realm, it’s hard for humans to live even a thousand years. Isn’t our life just wandering around looking for elixirs and dying a sudden death? In that case, it would be more peaceful to become a demonic beast and live for a thousand! Ten thousand years!”

The other Taoists were speechless or dumbfounded.

As Hansu said, Taoists are ascetics who train to become immortals.

However, quite a few feel such skepticism and re-enter the secular world to live leisurely.

“Even so, to become a demonic beast! Aren’t you ashamed!”

“What is there to be ashamed of when you can live for a thousand, ten thousand years? Even if I live for another thousand years, you will disappear from this world without a trace.”

Hansu sneered and looked at Geumgin.

“I’ve cleared the way as promised. So, please turn me into a demonic beast!”

“Kikik, very well. I’ll turn you into a demonic beast as promised!”

All eight of Geumgin’s eyes widened. Eight pupils opened strangely, and another pupil popped out from within.

Immediately after.

Hansu’s body twisted grotesquely, turning mottled. Bones pierced through flesh, skin turned black, and his body swelled up grotesquely.

“Hahaha! Hahahaha!!”

The skin soon turned into scales and hardened, and fangs protruded long.

He had become a complete demonic beast, unrecognizable as human.

However, he seemed satisfied, laughing so loudly that the cave shook.

“Heuhahahahaha!!”

* * *

“Heuheuh…. Heuheuh…….”

Hansu knelt on the floor, staring blankly at the air, laughing foolishly.

-He seems to be under a hallucination.

-He seems pleased, so he must be a demonic beast in his hallucination.

It was unsightly to see him drooling and laughing as if he had become an idiot from the hallucination.

Mountain Lord clicked his tongue as he looked at the Geumeun sisters, who were gasping for breath. It was obvious that they had been oppressed and their vital energy consumed, because their blood possessed the divine power to twist the Hwanjin.

Now he seemed to know why he had been sucked into Cheonyodong [Thousand Demon Cave].

“A mere human becoming a demonic beast? How ridiculous. Who would do that for someone who degrades us, the spirit beasts, by calling us demonic beasts.”

Geumgin sneered and emitted murderous intent as he looked at the other Taoists.

Immediately after, the space of Cheonyodong distorted strangely. A completely new world arrived. In the pitch-black space, hundreds, thousands of spiders flashed, revealing their ferocious teeth.

‘Hwangye (幻界) [Illusionary World]!’

Perhaps because the old monster had taken care of him, Mountain Lord was not affected by the Hwangye, so he could recognize it accurately.

This was Hwangye, which only those above Yeongmyeong [Spirit Illumination Realm] could use. Unlike hallucinations, it was a high-level divine power that deceived the surrounding environment.

-Even if he is a promiscuous demonic beast, how can he use Hwangye without even creating the necessary formation…? Is it the influence of the overlapping Hwanjin in this area?

-Maybe.

Mountain Lord answered Hwaran’s question as if he were listening or not. Because that was not what was important now.

The Hwangye also varies depending on the caster’s ability. In most cases, even those with the same level of mastery cannot escape once they fall into it.

But what would happen if he used it on the Taoist immortals?

“Uwaaaaagh!!”

One of the Taoist immortals threw down his sword and wielded the divine power of the treasure. But the spider did not disappear and instead pounced on him.

The man ran away without hesitation, but other spiders swarmed him instead. Eventually, the Taoist immortal, buried in the swarm of spiders, screamed as his flesh was eaten away and his eyes rolled back before collapsing.

Even if it is Hwangye, it is a type of hallucination. It may seem real to them, but it is fake. But the horror of Hwangye lies in breaking down a strong mind.

No matter how powerful a Taoist is, they are bound to get tired, and not being able to properly recognize the enemy even if they think it is an illusion is fatal.

Mountain Lord was chilled to the bone as he observed the horror of Hwangye from a third-person perspective.

Geumgin’s Hwangye created such mystery without building a formation, so it was impossible not to be amazed.

‘This is not the time to be amazed.’

It wasn’t the time to be just amazed.

Geummae and Eunmae’s faces were turning pale as the gradually narrowing Hwangye approached.

Mountain Lord immediately looked at Geumgin and said.

“Please spare those women.”

He said, pointing to the Geumeun sisters.

“Hmm? Why?”

“……They are Hona bloodlines [likely referring to a mixed human/beast lineage]. They are those who inherited half the blood of spirit beasts, so they will be very helpful in my cultivation.”

Gulp.

Mountain Lord swallowed hard without realizing it. It was because Geumgin’s Hwangye could turn towards Mountain Lord if things went wrong.

“Then let’s make a deal.”

“What is it?”

“You know that I have to leave Cheonyodong and participate in Baekguiyahang, right?”

“Of course.”

“Yes. Since I don’t know if my disciples are alive or dead, you’ll have to be my companion.”

“…….”

-This is…….

“Companion” implies a companion who walks the road together. For a Yeongmyeong, who is on par with Hwanseon [Transcendent Immortal], to ask him to be his companion was suspicious.

Why would he try to take him to Baekguiyahang? There was no reason to do that.

As soon as he thought that, an anxiety scattered throughout his body.

‘Does he know I killed the Three Ghosts?’

But how?

That was the question. Mountain Lord had met him for the first time in Cheonyodong, and of course, they had not had a conversation about the Three Ghosts.

There was no reason for him to realize that he had killed the Three Ghosts.

‘But how does he know…….’

The reason is unknown.

But if he refused, the Geumeun sisters would die, and perhaps even he would be in danger.

“……I understand.”

“Kulkul, yes, you thought well!”

Geumgin immediately waved his hand and erased the Hwangye. The space that was like hell disappeared like a mirage and returned to the original underground space.

Mountain Lord finally breathed a sigh of relief. Geumgin shot a finger and shattered the heads of the Taoist immortals.

“Hmm?”

Geumgin’s eyebrows rose.

It was because Hansu’s condition, who had been drooling, had suddenly changed.

The aura he was emitting was also unusual.

He tilted his head grotesquely and then returned to normal.

Soon, he calmly groped his body and clenched his fist.

“Oh dear. The situation is not easy.”

Hansu, who was laughing with a chuckle, was calm as if he had become a completely different person.

Decisively, Mountain Lord could no longer grasp his realm.

“For a ghost to steal a young man’s body…. You should be ashamed.”

Geumgin only clicked his tongue as if he knew something and scolded him. In Hansu’s hand was a strangely shaped brush.

“What’s going on?”

When Mountain Lord couldn’t stand his curiosity and asked, Geumgin said that a ghost who should have already died had taken over his body.

He roughly guessed that he had hidden his soul in that unknown brush and used a secret technique to steal Hansu’s body.

“I don’t like this guy from beginning to end, really.”

“The time wasn’t right…. Oh dear.”

An ominous atmosphere flowed.

Geumgin and the man wearing Hansu’s mask’s auras collided, and sparks suddenly began to fly in the air. As a result, a violent wind blew, and Mountain Lord took the trembling Geumeun sisters and fled far away.

It was then.

Suddenly, the surrounding scenery flowed down, and hundreds of spiders reappeared.

It was Geumgin’s Hwangye.

But when Hansu waved his hand, the scenery changed again to a blue sky.

It was impossible not to be amazed.

Admiration arose at the exquisite divine power, like a battle between immortals.

“Give up! No matter how great your divine power was when you were alive, it’s obvious that you’re not as good as you used to be now that you’ve stolen a Taoist immortal’s body!”

“Even so, since it’s a chance I’ve found again, I have to struggle!”

Kwang!

Cheonyodong shook violently.

Geumgin and the man’s spiritual powers collided with each other, and the Hwangye was reversed dozens of times.

It was hard to come to one’s senses as the ground was the sky, the sky was the ground, and everything was mixed up. Mountain Lord hugged the Geumeun sisters, who had already lost their minds, and rolled his body.

It was a struggle to escape as much as possible. Of course, he wanted to avoid being crushed like a shrimp in a whale fight.

Due to the influence of the Hwangye, the surroundings were dizzy, but the light was dazzling as if it would sting his eyes.

Hansu and Geumgin were standing there like stone statues, not moving at all.

They were just staring at each other as if they would kill each other, continuing the fight to occupy the Hwangye.

Then, silence flowed like a dead mouse, and before he knew it, both of them had closed their eyes.

“Are they fighting in their consciousness?”

That was probably right.

Otherwise, there was no way they would be facing each other with their eyes closed.

He didn’t know for sure, but they must be having a tremendous fight in their consciousness.

Mountain Lord hesitated for a moment and took out a dagger from his chest.

It was a simple dagger treasure.

Both Geumgin and Hansu were threatening, but it was more profitable to help Geumgin now.

Geumgin wouldn’t kill him right now, but that guy wearing Hansu’s mask was different.

If Geumgin was defeated, he might be killed right away.

In that case, it would be better to help Geumgin to escape this situation.

And he could gain his trust, so it could be said to be killing two birds with one stone.

After organizing his thoughts, he threw the dagger.

Swish!

The dagger flew, cutting through the wind.

It was then.

The man opened his eyes wide and caught the dagger with a snap!

“Oh no…!”

“Haha! Well done!”

The scenery twisted in an instant, and blood flowed all around in the dark scenery. In it, eight sharp eyes flashed.

Soon, a bursting sound was heard, and a heartbreaking scream was rampant before the Hwangye disappeared.

Soon, the smell of blood hit his nose.

“Hoo, it would have been dangerous if it weren’t for you. That wily old monster’s obsession with life is extraordinary. That damn guy even summoned something weird. Tsk.”

Geumgin said, stroking his chest.

Hansu, whose limbs were torn apart, was dead with a tragic look on his face.

Mountain Lord looked at him, then looked at the Geumeun sisters and thought it was their own fault.