Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 802

Crash!!!

Fragments of steel scattered above my head. A rain of glass poured down onto the underground hollow of the ossuary.

The shattered pieces of stained glass and the cracks etched into Lenok’s Incarnation were also clearly visible.

The Yiragucheon of the Nine Heavens Transmission Stele [a martial arts technique].

A new martial art technique of the Eight Forms, obtained almost simultaneously by imitating the guardian spirit that protected the ossuary.

However, the Incarnation’s arm that unleashed the Yiragucheon was shattered on the spot.

The power of the technique was more than enough to crush the guardian spirit and the door of the ossuary, but the Incarnation could not avoid the backlash.

Crackling…!!

The pure white gauntlet that replaced the Incarnation’s arm was cracked and looked as if it would break at any moment.

I tried to repair it by connecting the cracks with magic power, but it was only barely maintaining its original shape.

As expected, its durability is too weak to last long if I use techniques other than the Eight Forms.

If I want the Incarnation to do more than just defend in direct combat, I’ll need some other measures.

Lenok, having pushed the Incarnation back into the shadow robe, looked around at the scene of the ossuary before him.

Whoosh!!

A chilling cold swept through the barren underground of the ossuary. At the end of the hollow, a huge black door twisted, holding endless darkness.

The moment he intuitively knew that it was the reverse gate of the Void that Lenok had been searching for.

“To go to the Void through the reverse gate, you must cross the spirit realm in between.”

A quiet voice echoed from beyond the mist.

“But how can a living body cross the spirit realm where souls come and go?”

Whoosh!

The mist surrounding the hollow began to condense in one place, transforming into a tangible form.

The form of a huge beast, coiled and lying down as if it were wrapping around the entire ossuary.

A head resembling a lizard, a long, stretched neck, and two wings fluttering slowly, scattering mist.

Is that the manifestation of the ancient species of Kundara, the ghost dragon that died and became a military spirit?

The ghost dragon, which appeared before Lenok in an instant, spoke with its reptilian eyes gleaming.

“That is why the Incarnation Technique is needed.”

“……”

“To cross the spirit realm with a living body, you will need a spirit body to support you instead of your flesh.”

The moment the boundary between the material realm and the spirit realm is reversed.

An explanation that a living body and the spirit body of the Incarnation are needed to exist as oneself in both boundaries.

“It’s ironic. Even at the reverse gate, which only the living can enter, you cannot reach the Void without a spirit body.”

Yao Xun, raising his gaze as if recalling a memory, said.

“But that is the essence of the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons [a procession of spirits] that Yorta pursued. That’s why the spirits of the Soul Calming Garden began to create a guide who would lead the night parade, traveling back and forth through the spirit realm…”

“Yao Xun. This is different from our agreement.”

At that moment, a calm female voice echoed from beside Yao Xun.

A woman with a cold expression, arms crossed, looking at Yao Xun next to the reverse gate.

The woman did not pay any attention to Lenok and protested to the ghost dragon in a cold voice.

“Why is that person here? Wasn’t I the one chosen as the successor of this ritual?”

“Hmm.”

The woman spoke again, ignoring Yao Xun’s indifferent nod.

“There was an agreement with the Outer City. Keep the agreement. Pass on the technique to me as promised.”

“No, I can’t do that. I have already finished passing on the Incarnation Technique to that sorcerer.”

“…What?”

“That person’s talent is far superior to yours. If we only consider the necessary aptitude, it’s hard to compare even to me.”

Yao Xun said calmly, ignoring the woman’s distorted expression.

“If properly refined, he is a material that can be shaped more perfectly than anything else. I don’t want to ruin things because of an old promise.”

“You…!!”

The woman glared at Yao Xun with a furious look and began to gather her magic power.

“How can you call yourself upholding the natural order while openly breaking the promise you made with Kundara?!!”

“Valia. You know what kind of being I am.”

Yao Xun replied calmly.

“I am not a member of Kundara. I am merely acting as his Incarnation, taking his will in place of the dead Yao Xun.”

“……”

“Strictly speaking, the promise he made with the Outer City has little to do with me.”

The fact that the Yao Xun in front of him was not the ancient dragon species himself, but merely an Incarnation he had left behind.

Only then did Lenok understand why Judge Oris had said that the ghost dragon was a being bound by a peculiar technique.

The fact that he had recognized Lenok’s talent and helped him build his Incarnation on the spot was also because he felt the possibility as a fellow Incarnation.

The silent woman quickly regained her composure.

She swept her hair back and said to Yao Xun.

“Okay. Then if I kill that sorcerer, I will become the successor of the technique again, right?”

“Hmm.”

Valia’s eyes turned cold as Yao Xun did not deny it.

“You’re like a sly old man. You wanted me to fight that sorcerer from the beginning, didn’t you?”

Whoosh!!

Valia said that and turned her head, striding forward to face Lenok.

Valia, who had raised her magic power and held it in her hand, looked at Lenok and asked.

“I saw your face during the inspection, sorcerer of the Demon Realm.”

“……”

Lenok knew what she was talking about, but he didn’t bother to reply.

An encounter that was just a brief passing by with the monk at the pier.

He remembered her going straight to the Heavenly Demon District, but there was no reason to react to her.

Valia, as if she didn’t expect it either, immediately continued.

“I heard the story? Prepare yourself. As a member of the Kundara clan, I don’t want to kill a human who is not prepared.”

“I never agreed to any of your conversation.”

Lenok replied indifferently.

“Who do you think you are, talking about qualifications and all that?”

“You came all the way here to learn the Incarnation Technique, what are you talking about?”

Valia mocked Lenok’s words instead.

“If you passed the test, you would know. That old man just needs a living person to enter the reverse gate of the Void in his place. Do you think I’ll fall for such a scheme?”

“Then our goals are completely opposite.”

Lenok looked at her and smiled back.

“Because I came here to enter the reverse gate of the Void.”

“……”

“I think I know why Yao Xun chose me.”

“…I don’t care.”

Valia, who had lost her words for a moment, immediately raised her hand towards Lenok.

“If I become the only one who passed the Spirit Transformation Ritual, Yao Xun will stop his useless worries…!!”

Kiriirik!!

Red blood gushed from Valia’s hand and instantly turned into a long whip of blood.

A rough movement to grab Lenok’s neck in an instant and pull it out.

She must have taken the paralysis drug several times, but her movements are incredibly agile.

A vampire who wields blood magic. Is it because she is a being who draws and manipulates her own blood that she can be more free in the test?

‘Techniques that manipulate mediums. Peculiar power and twisted nature.’

The words that Monk Kraya had said when explaining the aptitude suitable for learning the Incarnation Technique. It was an accurate description even for the vampire in front of him.

However, Lenok put aside such impressions and grabbed the whip that had wrapped around his neck without hesitation.

Crack!!

The moment he grabbed the whip with his gloved hand, sharp thorns popped out and pierced Lenok’s hand.

“How foolish. Have you never seen a vampire in your life?”

Valia mocked Lenok.

“To come into contact with my blood while not avoiding it and getting hurt, you must be out of your mind, you…”

At that moment, Valia’s expression changed drastically as she looked at Lenok.

Because the whip was not tearing through Lenok’s palm, but rather being crushed by a pale flash of light.

Crunch!!

A pure white gauntlet appeared on Lenok’s hand and grabbed Valia’s whip instead.

The gauntlet was cracked and shaking precariously. But the moment it touched the whip, the color of the whip turned pure white.

Crackling…!!

It was as if it was contaminating the blood whip on the spot, instantly covering it with its own color.

Valia, feeling a sense of dread, immediately tried to throw away the whip and distance herself, but it was already too late.

The whip, which had turned pale white, was now firmly holding her hand in reverse.

“Blood magic that uses blood as a medium is highly efficient, but it is vulnerable to interference when facing the same medium technique.”

Lenok said, looking at the Incarnation that was holding the whip.

“And my Incarnation is quite talented at ‘conducting’ its own power or will.”

“…!!”

Whoosh!!

The moment the pure white whip bound Valia’s arm tightly.

The Incarnation’s arm swung the whip greatly and slammed Valia’s body into the wall of the ossuary.

KWA-AA-ANG!!!

“Kuhak!! You, you…!!”

Valia, who screamed as if she was about to lose her breath, fumbled while hanging from the whip.

A being who knew about blood magic in an unusually detailed way, and who had the ability to immediately pierce through its compatibility.

Moreover, a person who was so skilled that he could implement such abilities through his Incarnation.

“Are you… a vampire hunter?”

“Vampire hunter?”

Lenok laughed.

“Did you need a hunter to kill a mosquito?”

“…!!”

Valia’s expression distorted at the sarcastic reply, and the moment her magic power vibrated greatly.

The pure white whip swung Valia’s figure once more and slammed it down at Lenok’s feet.

Thud!!!

Lenok slowly moved his steps towards the vampire who had collapsed, trembling.

A battle that ended unilaterally without even a brief exchange.

A result that was so one-sided that it was hard to believe, even if he had thoroughly pierced through her compatibility and weaknesses.

Valia, covered in blood, muttered as if she couldn’t understand.

“H… how…”

“It’s not that I’m not interested in the vampires of Kundara, but I have more urgent matters to attend to.”

Lenok turned his steps towards Yao Xun, leaving the vampire who was breathing faintly.

“A powerful and unique, yet infinitely precarious and unstable Incarnation.”

The ghost dragon, who had been watching the scene with an expressionless face, said.

“Even though you passed all the Spirit Transformation Rituals, the construction of the Incarnation was not properly done.”

“So you wanted to see that and let that vampire and I fight.”

Lenok scoffed.

“You were comparing me to that woman and showing off, just to see what state my Incarnation was in, right?”

“……”

There was no reason to have only one successor of the Incarnation Technique.

Nevertheless, the reason why Yao Xun ignored Valia’s request and incited the conflict between the two was.

It was to check what state Lenok’s Incarnation was in and what abilities it possessed in the process.

“Stop the useless comparisons and tell me how to enter the reverse gate. You’ve been waiting for me until now because you want something, right?”

I don’t know what his purpose is, but Yao Xun definitely wants something from beyond the Void.

That’s why he was teaching the Incarnation Technique in this old fortress that no one recognized.

“No, it’s impossible like this.”

However, Yao Xun shook his head at Lenok’s words.

“At least with the form of your Incarnation, you will never succeed.”

“What?”

“You are right, sorcerer of the Demon Realm. The reason I pass on the Incarnation Technique is for myself, not for anyone else.”

“……”

“The ancient species of Kundara do not have souls, and after death, they only pay the price with the Outer City…”

At that moment, Yao Xun’s eyes became blurry as if he was retracing a very distant memory.

“But Yao Xun was afraid of that and tried to have a soul. He wanted to have a chance to choose a different answer from Kundara.”

“So you learned the Incarnation Technique?”

“Yes. I entrusted myself to Yorta to study the soul… and found a way to leave my will even after death.”

The ghost dragon’s Incarnation emitted a chilling thought.

“That way… he was able to leave behind an Incarnation even after death, but in the end, it was not the real Yao Xun.”

“……”

“An Incarnation represents oneself, but it can never replace oneself. I am the Incarnation of Yao Xun, but I can never become Yao Xun himself.”

Yao Xun, who had turned into a hollow expression, muttered blankly.

“Without ever reaching the goal that the real Yao Xun desired, I have been left here as a curse and a vengeful spirit.”

Only then did Lenok understand what kind of being the Incarnation of Yao Xun standing in front of him was.

Just like how the apostles of the cult who exist as Incarnations of the Outer Gods can never become the Outer Gods themselves.

The Incarnation is just a being that represents its master and can never become the master himself.

The ancient species of Kundara, Yao Xun, had already died and disappeared, and only the Incarnation he had left behind remained here.

Yao Xun realized that fact too late, and only his Incarnation was left bound in this military spirit city.

“Yao Xun participated in the Night Parade to learn the Incarnation Technique, and in return, my existence was bound to the other side of the Void.”

The ghost dragon’s eyes, which had turned gloomy, slowly turned towards the reverse gate.

“Until the moment this world sinks beneath the sea of darkness, I will suffer eternally with Yorta…”

Regret filled with despair, which he had never felt from him until now.

Lenok, who had been silent, asked.

“What do you want?”

“Rest.”

The ghost dragon replied with his eyes closed.

“If there is an inevitable ending and I cannot escape it… I want to be a little more comfortable before that.”

“Comfortable…”

Lenok muttered.

The Incarnation, a living curse, bound to the Void, Yao Xun’s Incarnation.

But if someone could enter the Void, they could free his existence bound as a curse.

The ghost dragon had been waiting for someone to replace him for a long time, hoping only for that.

“There were several living people who learned the Incarnation Technique and headed to the Void, but none of them succeeded.”

Yao Xun said in a subdued voice.

“They either couldn’t even enter the Void, or they couldn’t endure it and died… or they became military spirits and were subjugated to the Spirit Tower.”

“……”

“There were also those who occasionally returned from beyond the spirit realm with the techniques of the old world, but they did not achieve the purpose I desired.”

Thud!!

At the same time, Yao Xun’s Incarnation took a step forward towards Lenok.

“Sorcerer of the Demon Realm. You are a vessel with greater talent than anyone who has visited this fortress so far.”

He said, looking at Lenok’s obsidian mask with burning eyes.

“The moment I saw you, I was convinced. There is no next. No one who visits this place will be better than you…!!”

“……”

“You must succeed. You must succeed!! You must enter the Void and destroy my existence in that cursed sanctuary!!”

“The introduction is long. I think I’ve heard enough about your situation.”

Lenok, tilting his head indifferently, asked.

“So what do you want to say?”

After all, all this explanation is because he wants something from Lenok, isn’t it?

The ghost dragon’s gleaming eyes turned towards the pale Incarnation standing behind Lenok.

“Abandon that unstable and weak Incarnation and obtain a new Incarnation.”

“……”

“That weak Incarnation won’t do… With such an unstable existence, you can never reach the Void!!”

Yao Xun’s Incarnation said, staring intently at Lenok.

“Obtain an Incarnation that is strong enough to withstand the spirit realm, and cross the reverse gate to reach the Void.”

“Get a new Incarnation?”

Where would he get a new Incarnation now?

No, in the first place, is it even possible to change a sorcerer’s Incarnation so easily?

As Lenok adjusted his mask and shook his head, the huge dragon ghost puffed out its breath and pointed at itself.

“I will become your Incarnation.”

“…What?”

(……)

At that moment, Lenok’s Incarnation, who had been listening to the conversation between the two from behind the robe, twitched greatly as if displeased.