Call Of The Spear [EN]: Chapter 51

Tales of Nangseon – Chapter 50

“Those demonic beasts are naturally troublemakers. But there’s something a bit odd.”

He was Su Gae, one of the Taoists stationed at Subang Peak.

Before him sat a neat-looking man, a mountain lord disguised as a human.

He had been solidifying his cultivation, so he often interacted with Su Gae, who acted as the leader of Subang Peak.

The Mountain Lord enjoyed hearing various stories, and Su Gae was pleased to solidify his position through conversations with a Biseon [a celestial being or immortal].

“What’s so odd?”

The Mountain Lord asked, setting down his teacup.

“Those demonic beasts are looking for someone named Yoo Jung! Whoever he is, he seems to have earned their deep resentment.”

The Mountain Lord’s lips twitched.

He was ambivalent about whether to be happy or not. They were looking for Yoo Jung, but in reality, they were looking for the Mountain Lord.

Fortunately, they knew the Mountain Lord by the name of Yoo Jung, at least for now.

But he couldn’t rest assured.

There was a high possibility that his appearance, treasures, and the Blue Flame he wielded had been revealed.

‘…It’s time to leave.’

If possible, he wanted to take Hongyeon with him. But Hori was still in secluded training, so he couldn’t.

She would never abandon her master to follow the Mountain Lord.

The Mountain Lord concluded his conversation with Su Gae and returned to his training room.

The light of his Golden Cudgel was fading. The reason was absurd: the gluttony of the monkey.

It had devoured a leg enhanced by Geumgin’s Tongsul [a powerful magical technique] in a flash when he wasn’t paying attention.

He was too engrossed in Yeongyeol [a state of spiritual connection or enlightenment] to stop it.

Hwaran didn’t mind and let it be, and the monkey gnawed on the leg for a whole month.

Perhaps because it ate a leg imbued with such powerful divine power, black light mixed into the golden Cudgel, making it slightly murky.

It wasn’t necessarily bad, but he needed to do something about its gluttony.

The Mountain Lord put the monkey in his arms and began to gather his other treasures one by one.

Red prayer beads and Ryugokja. And a purple gourd and the Nine Ringed Blade leaning against the wall, he smiled.

He had reforged the remaining leg of Geumgin into the Nine Ringed Blade with Hongyeon’s help. He thought it would suit the Nine Ringed Blade well, given the strength it had shown back then.

The Mountain Lord packed Mansam [a type of ginseng] and the Solar Flower Pear, and cast Tongsul, floating a crystal ball in the air towards the Hangboshinmok [a mythical tree].

Then, the Hangboshinmok was sucked into the ball, and the transparent ball was dyed green.

Only then did the Mountain Lord look at the cleanly emptied stone chamber and go outside.

“Are you leaving?”

Hongyeon appeared as he stepped outside.

“It’s about time to leave.”

Even if he had achieved Yeongyeol, there were still many stronger than him. No matter how powerful his divine powers and treasures were, it was still dangerous.

Besides, he had been there for 10 years, which was a long time.

He must have received a lot of help from Hongyeon without realizing it. Subang Peak had been peaceful for 10 years without any attacks from demonic beasts.

The reason was obvious without having to think too deeply.

‘So I have to leave.’

Hongyeon’s master is Black Hori.

Not the Mountain Lord.

If he thought about the future, it was right to leave now.

In a few more years, the Taoist world would turn into a living hell. The war between demonic beasts and Taoists would spread like wildfire.

The powerless would not escape their fate of being a lamp in the wind [powerless and easily extinguished].

‘I can’t be satisfied with Yeongyeol.’

The first thing to do was decided.

‘I have to make Geummyeongjireong my ally.’

That was the best option, both to ascend to Yeongmyeong [a higher realm of existence] safely and considering other factors.

To ascend to Yeongmyeong safely, it was good to receive his help or the help of his clan.

‘Now that I know Geummyeongjireong is a descendant of Sawolrang, it’s never bad to create a debt.’

“…Since you are the Mountain Lord, you will handle things well. I will follow soon, so I wish you good fortune.”

The Mountain Lord said goodbye to Hongyeon and immediately transformed into a hawk, soaring across the sky.

* * *

Fifteen days later.

A hawk flying in the sky suddenly changed direction and descended.

This was an unnamed mountain located in the middle of Banggok and Suwol.

Then, a woman’s voice came from the hawk’s embrace.

-Why are you doing this?

It was a questioning voice.

-Something’s strange.

The hawk was the Mountain Lord in disguise.

The Mountain Lord’s eyes gleamed as he examined the mountain peak.

His pupils dilated, and another pupil within them popped out.

It was Dallyeonggeumjeong [a mystical eye technique], which he had learned upon reaching Yeongyeol.

Of course, it wasn’t just a simple Dallyeonggeumjeong.

It was Geumgin’s innate divine power.

It was made by melting the monkey’s eyes containing Gwaebiyeogak [a rare and powerful ability] and mixing it with the Gyeol [essence or core] of Dallyeonggeumjeong.

It was an eye he couldn’t have made without Hongyeon’s help.

Anyway.

He narrowed his eyes as he carefully examined something, and suddenly flapped his wings.

The Mountain Lord, who had instantly ascended to the top and transformed into a human, raised the corners of his lips as he watched the fog fluctuate.

“It’s a Hwanjin [an illusionary formation].”

It wasn’t a very impressive Hwanjin.

The Mountain Lord fearlessly jumped into the illusionary fog and took out the Nine Ringed Blade, stabbing the air.

Crack!

With the sound of something breaking.

The illusionary fog that surrounded him disappeared in an instant, and the appearance of the summit began to appear. There was a thirty-jang-sized lake at the top of this mountain, and in the middle of it was a strangely shaped tree.

It looked as if a snake had tried to ascend to the heavens but had become a tree. The Mountain Lord stared at it intently and sighed.

“Ha, I wondered what it was, but it’s a Jinmyeongsumok [a tree formed from a failed divine beast transformation].”

“Jinmyeongsumok… Isn’t that when demonic beasts lose their lives while undergoing Jinsumyeonghwa [a process of spiritual transformation]?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

It was no different from the end of a divine beast that had failed to raise its cultivation. Unlike humans, divine beasts would turn into trees like this if they failed to ascend.

This tree was called Jinmyeongsumok, the tree of a beast that had not reached a high place.

“Perhaps they set up a Hwanjin for Jinsumyeonghwa but eventually couldn’t overcome it and died.”

The Mountain Lord silently nodded, slowly floated into the air, and approached the Jinmyeongsumok.

The end of the Jinmyeongsumok, which soared high into the sky, was lush with leaves, but upon closer inspection, it looked like a Gyoryong [a type of dragon] was gaping its mouth, creating a sense of bitterness.

It was like his own situation, since it had died while trying to reach Jinsumyeonghwa.

The Mountain Lord would also be preparing to ascend to Yeongmyeong in the future, and there was no guarantee that this wouldn’t happen to him.

“Are you worried?”

Hwaran, who had approached him, asked.

“It would be a lie if I said no. Even if heavenly fortune touches you, you can die from a single mistake in Jinsumyeonghwa, so why wouldn’t I be?”

Even at this moment, many divine beasts were undergoing Jinsumyeonghwa.

But half of them burst and died due to misallocation of their inner core, or they became Jinmyeongsumok, overwhelmed by Simma [inner demons or obstacles].

“It’ll be alright. You’re the Mountain Lord, aren’t you?”

Hwaran patted the Mountain Lord and looked at the giant Jinmyeongsumok.

The Gyoryong, which looked as if it had been denied ascension to heaven.

He felt a strange sense of loneliness and pity for the Jinmyeongsumok that it had become.

“Yes. It has to be. I have to make it so.”

The Mountain Lord said that and stroked the tree with his hand, igniting the Blue Flame.

His Bongak Cheonghwa [a unique type of blue flame] instantly soared into the Jinmyeongsumok, blooming blue flames.

The Jinmyeongsumok, which burned as the flames spread, was endlessly fleeting and beautiful.

The tree, which had stretched high into the sky, disappeared from the top, turning into blue ashes.

“I will not become like this.”

The Mountain Lord suddenly muttered, looking at it with complex emotions.

Hwaran looked at him with eyes mixed with various emotions and then disappeared.

At that moment, he saw something sparkling in the middle of the lake and reached out his hand.

Then, something that was about to sink to the bottom of the lake flew into his hand.

It was a round, gray stone.

A stone the size of his palm.

It looked like an ordinary stone on the outside, but when he examined it with Dallyeonggeumjeong, he felt a strange energy fluctuating, and the Mountain Lord tilted his head.

But when he poured spiritual power into it, there was no particular reaction, and he quickly lost interest.

“I’ll find out later.”

The Mountain Lord put it in Gongjeonggang [a storage space] and disappeared, looking at the lake where the Jinmyeongsumok had disappeared.

The lake where he had disappeared only showed gentle ripples, reflecting the blue sky.

* * *

Baeksan, soaring high into the sky.

Among the 16 peaks there, the highest peak, General Peak (將軍峰).

A white swan flew there like snow. It soon transformed into a human form, a fairy-like woman with white hair tied up with a hairpin.

“……”

The giant cave of General Peak.

Cheonhogun (天虎君) [Cave of the Heavenly Tiger].

The woman’s eyes, looking at it, were filled with indescribable emotions.

She seemed to recall distant memories, but there was a light of conflict, and it was marked with regret and remorse.

“If I had come sooner……”

She muttered that and tightly closed her eyes. Even if she had, nothing would have changed.

Why did she abandon that name and call herself Baekryeon [White Lotus]? She hoped that the name he called would not fade, and she did not abandon that name to avenge him.

“This place hasn’t changed.”

The claw marks on the tall, old tree.

[Husband! Is that yours?]

[Of course, it’s mine. I have to do that so that even those who are not even a handful will be intimidated.]

The path to the secret lake.

[Where are you going?]

[Going for a stroll.]

His back, heading towards the mountain path without consideration, was still vivid in her mind.

“That’s how it was.”

Baekryeon bit her lower lip and recalled the old days for a long time with a face that seemed to be crying and laughing.

The day she came to Cheonhogun in a flower palanquin.

The day she was robbed of wild ginseng in Eongol Village.

The day he found the wild ginseng again.

The day she rode on his back.

The day she fell asleep in his arms.

Insignificant things.

It settled in her heart and brought a cozy warmth.

Recalling the events of that time made her feel as if she had returned to her childhood.

What would happen if she went into that Cheonhogun now and called him?

Would he frown and grumble?

Even so, would he embrace her as if he couldn’t help it?

Thinking about such things, she suddenly caressed her hand.

The chubby and short fingers had become slender. Not only that, but she had grown overall, and the appearance of her childhood could not be found.

“This place hasn’t changed… Only I have changed.”

Was this what they called a sense of distance?

Many things had changed.

The vivid events, as if they had happened just yesterday, had passed as much time as it took for a child to become an adult.

But only this place has not changed.

Only she has changed.

The overflowing heart soon calmed down.

The flushed cheeks turned as white as paper again.

Baekryeon stepped towards Cheonhogun with a bitter look.

At that time.

Her eyebrows furrowed.

“…Who is it?”

The gentle atmosphere changed in an instant, like her expression.

A chilling coldness spread widely from Baekryeon’s center.

The coldness spewed out with intense murderous intent.

It stretched out towards the person inside Cheonhogun.

“Who is defiling Cheonhogun?”

What kind of place is this?

She felt murderous.

But she didn’t want to shed blood in this place.

It was where he lived.

It was a place with memories of him.

She couldn’t defile it.

“Who are you to show such murderous intent?”

But the other person asked that with a firm voice.

Baekryeon’s eyes sank deeply.

Just as her hand was about to reach for the sword hanging on her waist.

“Perhaps, are you acquainted with my teacher?”

“Teacher?”

As she wondered and withdrew her murderous intent, footsteps clearly approached from Cheonhogun.

After waiting for a while, a woman holding a sword appeared from within.

A beautiful woman who seemed to have a firm heart.
The unknown woman widened her eyes as if surprised by Baekryeon’s appearance.

“Teacher? What are you talking about?”

Baekryeon asked.

“The one who gave me the sword.”

She said, looking at the sword covered in time with affectionate eyes.

Baekryeon narrowed her eyes.

“My teacher entrusted Baeksan to me. I don’t know who you are, but I can’t let you set foot here recklessly.”

The surrounding bushes rustled at the woman’s firm words.

When Baekryeon glanced around, dozens of divine beasts that appeared to be spiritual creatures revealed themselves.

All of them seemed to see Baekryeon as an intruder.

But Baekryeon was expressionless.

No.

She was trembling slightly.

She seemed to move her lips, but after being silent for a long time, she opened her mouth again.

“…Is the one who is your teacher perhaps, the Mountain Lord of Baeksan…?”

Then, the woman’s mouth, who came out of Cheonhogun, opened slightly.

“Are you really my teacher’s acquaintance?”

A surprised voice.

But that distorted Baekryeon’s face.

Ah-

It’s true.

It was really true.

It wasn’t a lie.

“He’s alive….”

My husband.

My dear is.

He was alive.

Cheonhogun of Baeksan, where the moonlight shines.

There, the white-haired woman shed tears of joy all night long.