Chapter 292

Ding.

System

A Sudden Quest, I’ll Take Only Half the Internal Energy I Digest., has been generated.

Will you accept it?

Y / N

Damn it. Why now?

I was dying to check the Quest window.

But I was in the middle of True Qi Guidance. Circulating my own qi would be one thing, but if I let go of control here, I could easily suffer an Internal Injury.

System

• If you do not answer within five seconds, the Quest will be canceled automatically.

• Five, four, three…

Do I go for it or not?

Judging by the Quest title, it wanted me to do something about that thing in Team Leader Choi’s dantian. Even at a glance, it contained well over one jiazi’s¹ worth of energy.

System

• Two, one…

Fuck it. I don’t know. It’s not like I’m going to die.

Accept!

Ding.

That had been close. The moment the notification confirmed that the Quest had been accepted, I realized what I had to do.

System

The mysterious qi has been dormant for a long time, and its owner lacks the power to control it. Now is the time for you to step forward!

Just as I thought.

I had encountered a situation like this once before in Murim.

I dredged up an old memory.

Hundred-Year-Old Snow Ginseng.

From the moment I first opened my eyes in Murim, the internal energy of the Hundred-Year-Old Snow Ginseng had lain dormant inside my dantian.

It was internal energy that the Third Rate wastrel Jin Taekyung—not me—had been unable to fully digest.

That was when I first learned that even if you consumed an elixir, you couldn’t make its power your own unless you had the ability to digest it.

Just like Team Leader Choi now.

He was an outstanding talent compared to that Third Rate wastrel, but without a Mana Cultivation Method, he had no way to control such an enormous reserve of energy—nearly one jiazi’s worth.

The Quest wanted me to serve as his digestive aid.

But how does Team Leader Choi have that much energy in the first place?

Now that I thought about it, it pissed me off.

I’d been put through the fucking wringer in Murim and had only just managed to accumulate a little more than one jiazi. What the hell had this guy ever done to have such monstrous energy deposited in his dantian?

Ah, right. His maternal grandfather was Cheon Taemin.

Was this what they meant by being born with a hero’s silver spoon?

I gave up on thinking about it. Right now, I needed to focus on breaking down that mysterious energy of unknown origin.

And this time, I was confident.

Let’s do this.

A bolt of Scorching Yang Qi shot forward like a spear and plunged into the solid mass of qi. A combined total of more than two jiazi’s worth of qi collided and tore into each other.

Rumble.

As the clash erupted inside his dantian, Team Leader Choi’s body began to shake violently.

The hospital room had become an impregnable fortress, sealed against all visitors.

Butler Kim, Im Kkeokjeong, and Song Song watched the two young men with fascination.

“Hngh.”

“Hup.”

“Ugh.”

“Kk.”

Every time the veins bulged on Jin Taekyung’s forearm, Team Leader Choi’s body trembled.

Before long, his back arched, and a groan escaped through his clenched teeth.

“Haaagh!”

Song Song muttered as she watched.

“His back arched like a bow…”

Im Kkeokjeong, lying on the bed, asked, “What did you just say, Miss Song?”

“Nothing. I was just saying it was gross and fascinating.”

“Ah, you mean that black sweat?”

“…Yes.”

Song Song had a lot she wanted to say, but she held it in and nodded.

After all, the black sweat pouring from Team Leader Choi’s entire body was every bit as gross and fascinating.

“My God, what even is that…?”

As a Hunter, you saw all kinds of bizarre things. But this was the first time she had ever seen someone sweat black.

The pitch-black, sticky fluid wasn’t particularly abundant, but it gave off an unbelievable stench.

“Ugh, it reeks.”

“Damn, that smell is awful.”

As the two of them pinched their noses, Butler Kim spoke.

“That is waste accumulated inside his body being expelled through his sweat. It is one of the benefits of a Mana Cultivation Method.”

“Waste?”

“Kim hyung,² is that really so impressive?”

“Of course. Even healing magic cannot remove waste from inside the body.”

Song Song thought for a moment, then replied, “It can. A truly top-tier healer could do it. But if what you’re saying is true… that’s incredible. Even healing potions retain trace amounts of Troll toxicity. You’re saying it can flush out that as well.”

“That is one of the remarkable aspects of a Mana Cultivation Method.”

“Who created this Mana Cultivation Method, exactly? And how?”

Song Song was an experienced Hunter, but she had never heard the term Mana Cultivation Method in her life. It was just as unfamiliar to Im Kkeokjeong, despite his twenty-year career.

“Exactly. I’ve been a Hunter all these years, and this is the first I’ve heard of anything like this. Martial arts, sorcery, whatever it is.”

“During the Great Cataclysm, the Elder created the first Mana Cultivation Method. It is treated as a closely guarded secret, so it is only natural that neither of you would know of it.”

“When you say the Elder…”

“You are thinking of the right person.”

Cheon Taemin. The hero who had saved all of humanity and the greatest Hunter in the world.

Butler Kim continued slowly.

“A Mana Cultivation Method is a powerful weapon in its own right. Many incidents occurred because of it, and most have vanished from history. It truly was an age of cataclysmic upheaval.”

What had happened? Why had Cheon Taemin’s Mana Cultivation Method fallen into the hands of an ambitious man like Lee Jungryong instead of his sole blood descendant?

Song Song and Im Kkeokjeong had many more questions, but they fell silent.

It wasn’t merely because Butler Kim’s expression had become unbearably bitter. The moment he finished speaking, an ominous change came over the two men.

“Nggh!”

“Hup!”

Jin Taekyung and Team Leader Choi groaned at the same time.

Thick veins bulged across their exposed skin, and deep furrows formed between their brows.

Team Leader Choi’s reaction grew increasingly violent. His entire body trembled as though caught in an earthquake.

“Team Leader Choi!”

“Is something seriously wrong?”

Song Song and Im Kkeokjeong instinctively stepped forward, but Butler Kim held out an arm to stop them.

“No. There can be no physical contact while practicing a Mana Cultivation Method.”

“But…”

“Hunter Jin Taekyung is not someone who would put the Young Master in danger.”

Butler Kim looked at the two of them, concern and trust mingling in his eyes.

The trembling intensified, along with the groans of pain.

Before long, his faith was vindicated.

“Haaah…”

At some point, Team Leader Choi’s lips parted, releasing a calm breath.

It signaled the completion of his first complete circulation. It also meant that he had become a martial artist who had learned the Jin Family’s Cultivation Technique.

“Young Master?”

At Butler Kim’s call, Team Leader Choi’s eyes slowly opened. Astonishment and joy filled them.

“This is…”

Team Leader Choi—Choi Minwoo—clenched his fists tightly.

The massive energy surging from his dantian raced freely through his body.

Normally, his mana would have remained scattered throughout him. Now he could move it at will.

Not only that, but the amount of mana he possessed had nearly doubled.

So this is a Mana Cultivation Method.

As Choi Minwoo calmly examined his condition, he reconsidered.

No. It isn’t the power of a Mana Cultivation Method. It’s the power of the Jin Family’s Cultivation Technique.

And it had only been possible because of one person’s ability.

“Mr. Jin.”

Choi Minwoo slowly turned around. Jin Taekyung still had his eyes closed and was breathing deeply.

The air around him trembled. An active volcano stood there, ready to erupt at any moment.

He’s strong. Unbelievably strong.

Was he always this powerful?

Now that he could properly control his mana, Choi Minwoo could glimpse a fraction of the power Jin Taekyung possessed.

Every breath Jin Taekyung exhaled released waves of fiery qi that heated the hospital room.

It was November. The first snow had fallen only a week ago, yet everyone felt parched, and heat haze shimmered above the floor.

Just then, Choi Minwoo’s eyes slowly widened.

What… is that?

An illusion created by the heat haze? Or something real?

He couldn’t tell. Before he knew it, everyone in the hospital room was staring openmouthed at the sight before them.

Whoosh.

Jin Taekyung’s cross-legged body was rising into the air.

Little by little. Slowly, without stopping.

Above his head, blazing blue flames formed the shape of flower petals.

One flower. Then two.

And just as the third and final flower was about to take shape, Jin Taekyung’s eyes flew open.

Whoosh! Thud!

Like a bird struck by an arrow, Jin Taekyung plummeted and slammed his butt onto the floor. A piercing scream tore from his throat.

“Fuck! My tailbone!”

The air in the hospital room froze solid.

I screamed at the top of my lungs.

“Aaaargh!”

It hurt. My tailbone hurt from slamming into the floor, but my heart hurt ten times more from losing the perfect opportunity.

“It was almost done! I almost had it!”

Damn it. With only one step left to go, the Supreme Peak realm had slipped out of reach.

I didn’t know whether my understanding of martial arts was too shallow or there was some other reason.

Maybe it was both. But what mattered was that I had no idea when another opportunity like this would come.

“Damn iiiit!”

I could have achieved Three Flowers Gather at the Crown in one stroke and become a Supreme Peak master!

As I pounded the floor and wailed, System notifications pierced my ears.

Ding. Ding. Ding.

System

• Trance has been dispelled!

• Internal Energy has risen to 100 years!

• You have achieved a great feat! You have acquired the Title I’m a Master!

• The Sudden Quest, I’ll Take Only Half the Internal Energy I Digest., has been successfully completed!

• The Repeat Quest, Back, Back—Let’s See Your Back!, has been successfully completed!

• The realm of Fire Gate Divine Technique has risen to Seven Stars!

• You have acquired a massive amount of EXP!

• Level Up!

…

…

…

“Just leave me alone!”

Everything had been perfect. While melting the energy that had been solidified in Team Leader Choi’s dantian, I had absorbed half of it. My mind had gone blank, and I had momentarily slipped into a trance.

But…

“Why! Why can’t I be happy!”

Gaining half a jiazi’s worth of internal energy? Great!

Acquiring a Title, completing Quests, raising the realm of the Fire Gate Divine Technique by one stage, and even leveling up—all of it was great. It was all good, so why!

“Why didn’t I reach the Supreme Peak realm!”

As I howled toward the ceiling, whispers reached my ears.

“Has something happened to Mr. Jin?”

“I’m not certain, but I have heard that some people end up crippled while practicing a Mana Cultivation Method…”

“More importantly, did everyone see those flower petals just now? Was I the only one? Why isn’t anyone saying anything?”

“Song-i, you saw them too? I thought I’d been dropped into the Goyang flower expo.”

The concern and astonishment in their voices snapped me back to my senses.

That was right. It wasn’t over yet. If those three had even half as much energy as Team Leader Choi, I might still have a chance to advance to the Supreme Peak realm.

I still have three test subjects.

With the resolve of Admiral Yi Sun-sin before the Battle of Myeongnyang,³ I spoke.

“Everyone, pay attention.”

“…?”

“…?”

“Take off your tops immediately. That’s an order.”

Ding.

System

• The Repeat Quest, Back, Back—Let’s See Your Back!, has been generated!

“Back, back—let’s see your back!”

The others edged away, their faces pale with fear.