Great Spirit stage, Western Twin Lake.
‘Now, perhaps…’
For a moment, his heart was moved, but he barely managed to calm it down. Breaking through to a new realm was never an easy task. Looking back to when he first became a spirit beast, there had been a clear conviction following a powerful intuition.
It felt as if the gate of the Great Dao had swung wide open for him, a feeling that it had to be now or never. In contrast, while his heart was stirred now, he didn't feel that same conviction. Was it that he wasn't fully prepared?
Hesitating, Jaekyung suddenly let out a self-mocking laugh.
‘How ridiculous. Am I just waiting to be handed everything on a platter?’
What did it even mean to be fully prepared? No matter how thoroughly one prepared, there would always be lingering regrets. Should he then shake his head each time, muttering ‘a little more’?
No. Instead of sitting still and waiting for the gate to open, he had to open it and step forward himself. If he could only move forward when pushed from behind, he was not qualified to advance in the first place.
‘Besides, there’s no time.’
The battle between the Upper Demon Forest and the Flame Lotus Sect had just ended, and it was highly likely that the Flame Lotus Sect had won. In that case, both sides would make a move, and this quiet land would soon become noisy in one way or another. Would the victorious Flame Lotus Sect push this far?
Or would the Upper Demon Forest, their pride wounded, launch a massive counterattack? Unaware that the fight between the two powers was a staged affair, Jaekyung could only let his imagination run wild. From his perspective, both the Flame Lotus Sect and the Upper Demon Forest were factions he had to avoid.
The Flame Lotus Sect would try to peel his skin off the moment they saw a demon race, so he naturally had to avoid them. As for the Upper Demon Forest, he had killed one of their Great Spirit Beasts, so he had to avoid them as well.
Perhaps the Upper Demon Forest didn't know he had killed Sagye-wan, but perhaps they did. After all, all sorts of unimaginable methods existed in this cultivation world. Jaekyung really didn't want to leave his life to chance if he could help it.
‘This won’t do. I’m too weak right now.’
After molting, he had gained the confidence to face any spirit beast in the world without bowing, but that was only at the spirit beast level. Jaekyung had struggled for a long time, unable to deal with a single dying Great Spirit Beast.
If Sagye-wan had retained even a little more of his strength, Jaekyung would surely have been the one to die.
‘I must cross the Great Spirit barrier.’
Jaekyung steeled his heart. With his mind made up, his current state was, for him, perfect readiness.
‘Forging spiritual energy into spiritual power. But is spiritual power what I should be forging?’
He had used the Fire Crystal as his spiritual seed to build his spiritual nature. This method was different from the human way of relying on a spiritual root, and also different from the demon race’s way of relying on a bloodline.
While he couldn't grandly claim to have created something from nothing, there were certainly aspects different from the cultivation methods of both humans and demons. Therefore, Jaekyung intended to refer to their methods but not follow them blindly.
‘My spiritual nature stems from the fire energy of the Fire Crystal. My body has also become more attuned to fire energy through two moltings. In that case, the power I forge must also be fire energy or possess a similar quality.’
Theoretically, Jaekyung had a sufficient understanding of the second realm of the Immortal Path. However, he did not forget that the theories he knew were ultimately derived from the experiences of others. He had to be especially mindful of this, as his Immortal Path was quite different from others.
‘The power of my spiritual nature must become something other than spiritual power or demonic power. Or… combining the two is also an option.’
Jaekyung thought that if he had to define his identity, it would be half-human, half-demon. His body was that of a spirit beast, but the essence dwelling within was human. Moreover, he affirmed both his spirit beast and human identities.
His Immortal Path was built upon that very identity. In that case, shouldn't the power he wielded conform to it as well?
“Good.”
Jaekyung focused on his spiritual nature. The land of his spiritual nature, once a barren wasteland, was now vigorously alive and squirming. At its center was a fire, still small, but considerably larger than before.
Jaekyung focused on that fire. His spirit melted into the fire, as did his spiritual nature and the land of his spiritual nature. When everything that was Jaekyung was contained within that small fire, with nothing left to add, the flame flared greatly.
‘Now I understand.’
Only after throwing everything into the fire did Jaekyung truly realize. Only one thing was needed to reach the second realm of the Immortal Path: resolve. The resolve to be able to cast away everything he had cultivated so far just to forge a single strand of power.
The resolve to take a step forward without fear, knowing that failure meant everything would be for naught. That resolve was different from simple courage. It was an unwavering desire for improvement, the Dao Heart.
Jaekyung’s mind was tranquil. He did not waver in the slightest. Because his heart had been as firm as a ten-thousand-year-old rock since he was a lowly beast.
‘A single strand is enough.’
For that one strand, he could cast away all the trivial things he now possessed. The moment even Jaekyung’s serene mind was contained within the fire of his spiritual nature. The fire, which had grown quite large, shrank back into a spark the size of a dust mote.
But that spark was far hotter, far purer than the fire before it.
Crack-!
The spark became a spiritual nature, igniting his mind and life. Jaekyung’s body, which had lost its vitality and gone limp, regained the warmth of life. At the same time, the scales all over his body cracked, shattered, and fell away.
“Hoo-wook!”
Still unconscious, Jaekyung gasped for breath. With each breath he took, black smoke flowed out, evaporating the elixir water of the spiritual spring.
Crack! Crunch!
With each puff of black smoke, Jaekyung’s body contorted. Old scales fell away and new ones sprouted; his bones and muscles heated up and cooled down countless times. As the violent changes in his flesh began to subside, Jaekyung’s limp head twitched.
The two bumps on top of his head split open without a sound, and a small horn sprouted from each. It was at that moment that Jaekyung opened his eyes.
‘Success.’
The Great Spirit stage. The second realm of the Immortal Path. It was significant in that he had overcome the first wall that brought countless cultivators to their knees, but for Jaekyung, it was more important that he had confirmed his Immortal Path was not wrong.
This success proved that even if he were to face a broken path again someday, there would be no need for despair.
‘Has a new path opened up again?’
After crossing a small hill, a low mountain greeted him from afar. That mountain’s name was Core Formation. * When Jaekyung appeared, Cheong-o was so startled he fell backward.
He even foamed at the mouth, and this intense reaction made Jaekyung wonder if he had failed to properly contain the aura of a Great Spirit Beast, but fortunately, that was not the case.
“You, you!”
Propping himself up unsteadily with a wing, Cheong-o stuttered as he looked at Jaekyung. Jaekyung understood Cheong-o’s feelings and gave the fellow ample time to calm his surprise and excitement.
“Jaekyung, amazing! So amazing!”
The clever Cheong-o did not ask about Sagye-wan. Instead, after praising Jaekyung to his heart’s content, he stared at him blankly.
“What do we do now?”
Just as Cheong-o looked at him, Jaekyung looked down at Cheong-o. In truth, for him who had reached the Great Spirit stage, cooperation with Cheong-o was not essential. Having reached the Great Spirit stage, he could now use divine sense, so Cheong-o's reconnaissance abilities were no longer indispensable.
On the contrary, if they were to face a crisis in the future, Cheong-o would likely become a burden. Just recently, on the battlefield between the Upper Demon Forest and the Flame Lotus Sect, Jaekyung had to worry about Cheong-o and Mook-soo.
He hadn't suffered any harm because of them, but if they hadn't been there, he could have escaped the battlefield faster and more safely. All things considered, continuing to bring Cheong-o along was more of a loss than a gain. However, he was not a machine.
He valued gains and disliked losses, but he did not act solely based on profit and loss. He had a heart. Cheong-o was weak, but he wasn't a high-maintenance fellow.
Sometimes he was annoyingly talkative, but without this chattering fellow, it was boring and empty. Most importantly, this fellow was the first friend he had made since coming to this strange world.
Yes. A friend.
Jaekyung thought of Cheong-o as his first friend in this world.
“We don’t know when the forces of the Upper Demon Forest or the Flame Lotus Sect might descend upon this place. So we’re leaving.”
“Okay. Are we leaving right now?”
“Yes.”
“Got it. So, where are we going?”
Thanks to Sagye-wan, he had learned that this place was a sort of buffer zone between the Upper Demon Forest and the Flame Lotus Sect. That was very useful and important information.
“You remember where we came from, right? Beyond the river where you saw the humans. It's highly likely the Flame Lotus Sect is in that direction.”
“Yup!”
“Do you remember the direction Sagye-wan came from?”
“Yup. It was that way.”
Jaekyung looked in the direction Cheong-o pointed with his wing. There was a possibility that Sagye-wan had changed direction after stopping somewhere else, but either way, that direction was also out.
That left…
“We’ll follow this spiritual spring.”
Jaekyung’s gaze turned downstream of the spiritual spring. He didn't know where this waterway led, but for now, there was no other way. He had to find a path, even if it was like a blind man feeling an elephant.
“Grab the fruit. We’re moving now.”
“Okay!”
Once Cheong-o returned with Mook-soo’s fruit, Jaekyung took Cheong-o in his mouth and entered the water. * Following the spiritual spring downstream, Jaekyung's party was greeted by a massive lake called the Western Twin Lake.
On the water were several fairly large islands, and beneath the water, there were enough resources for various races to coexist, albeit with occasional growling at each other.
‘Dozens of islands large enough for a nation to be established. Countless other smaller islands… and yet this is just a lake?’
Jaekyung was once again speechless at the vastness of this world. If he hadn't heard a few things about the Western Twin Lake from a Great Spirit Beast he happened to encounter, he would still think this was an ocean.
It was absurd, but in any case, arriving at this vast lake by following the spiritual spring downstream was an excellent outcome for Jaekyung's party. Here, assuming they kept a low profile, they wouldn't have to worry about the Flame Lotus Sect or the Upper Demon Forest.
In this Western Twin Lake, factions like the Flame Lotus Sect and the Upper Demon Forest were numerous, and there were even more powerful forces present. External factions of their middling level couldn't even make their voices heard here.
‘I have to be careful.’
Not having to worry about the Flame Lotus Sect and the Upper Demon Forest was good, but in other words, it meant this place was that much more dangerous. Even a decent human Foundation Establishment cultivator or a demon race Great Spirit Beast couldn't act arrogant here.
Moreover, races other than humans and demons existed here, making it a true melting pot of chaos. After getting a rough grasp of the information about the Western Twin Lake, Jaekyung took over a small, remote island.
The monstrous bird that had been playing master of the small island froze as soon as it was exposed to Jaekyung’s killing intent, and just like that, it became a meal for Cheong-o and Mook-soo’s fruit.
“Not bad.”
In the center of the island was a small rocky mountain and a cave, which had been the nest of the island's former owner, the monstrous bird.
“There’s water inside too!”
“Water?”
Intrigued by the words of Cheong-o, who had just inspected the cave, Jaekyung began to excavate it. The monstrous bird had been quite large, and its cave was bigger than an ordinary one, but it was too small for Jaekyung, making expansion work necessary.
Bang! Bang!
He didn't even need to use his full strength. The brutish power of Jaekyung, who had reached the Great Spirit stage, was not something a mere natural object could withstand. After easily finishing the cave expansion, Jaekyung discovered a pool of water inside the cave.
He recognized at a glance that it was seawater, no, lake water.
‘Is there a water vein connected here?’
Having roughly grasped the situation, Jaekyung began work on expanding the pool. This task was also smooth. With each swing of his tail, the ground cracked and broke.
Occasionally, when he encountered a hard rock layer that didn't break at once, he spewed fire and melted it whole.
Fwoosh!
It wasn't ordinary fire, but demonic flame infused with demonic power. If it didn't take so long to prepare, its firepower would be perfectly suitable for combat, so there was no way a mere rock could withstand it.
Thud!
How long had he been digging like that? Seeing water fill the deep pit, Jaekyung smiled with satisfaction.
“Good.”
Although he had unexpectedly become a fire serpent upon reaching the Great Spirit stage, he still found the water comfortable and pleasant. Though he didn't plan to stay here long, he wanted to live as comfortably as possible while he was here.
‘This should be quiet enough for a while.’
The Great Spirit Beast he met before had given him a lot of useful information, but Jaekyung couldn't be sure if the creature had told him only the truth. So, for the time being, he would lie low and observe the situation in the vicinity. After he finished gathering information, he would then think about finding a spiritual land.
“Should I plant Mook-soo here?”
“Yes.”
Cheong-o now considered Mook-soo’s fruit to be Mook-soo itself. Jaekyung didn't deny it. The fruit certainly had the same aura as Mook-soo.
Jaekyung guessed that Mook-soo had transferred its aura and life to that fruit just before it withered and died.
“But will it be okay? Mook-soo doesn’t like hot things.”
“It can’t be helped. It’s dangerous outside.”
Jaekyung also thought that being with him wasn't good for Mook-soo’s fruit, but it couldn't be helped. It would probably be fine if he occasionally caught some aquatic spirit beasts for it.
“You should also stay on the island as much as possible and not wander around.”
“Okay! But will you be alright alone?”
“I’ll be fine. There shouldn’t be any problems.”
After reaching the Great Spirit stage, Jaekyung had gained several abilities. The demonic flame he could spew from his mouth was one of them, but although its power was decent, it required preparation time, making it almost useless in combat. On the other hand, there was an ability that was useless in combat but had overwhelmingly superior practicality.
It was the communication ability that Cheong-o had possessed from early on. Unlike the demonic flame, Jaekyung did not acquire this ability as soon as he entered the Great Spirit stage.
He had once heard from the senior cultivators of the Twilight Gathering that upon reaching the second realm of the Immortal Path, one could gain a communication ability that was not bound by language.
They said there was a thing called Tongue Bone, a shackle bestowed by heaven upon all living beings, and as long as it existed, they could only communicate with each other using specific languages. However, cultivators who reached the second realm of the Immortal Path and forged their own power would destroy this shackle and awaken a spiritual communication ability.
From the moment they melted the Tongue Bone, they would be freed from the constraints of language and could communicate freely. When he heard that story, Jaekyung had thought that melting the Tongue Bone wasn't about breaking a shackle but rather about mastering a divine ability for communication.
At the time, it was a distant story for his realm, so he had just found it intriguing and moved on. Now that he had reached that once-distant realm, the content of what he had heard naturally came to mind.
After a brief period of contemplation, Jaekyung found and melted away the Tongue Bone, finally obtaining the communication ability he had so envied. And thanks to that ability, he was able to hear various stories about the Western Twin Lake from a Great Spirit Beast he encountered while traveling along the waterway.
With this ability, obtaining information would not be very difficult. Although it wouldn't be easy to find an aquatic spirit beast he could have a proper conversation with, he could just seek out Great Spirit Beasts if necessary. Although he had just reached the Great Spirit stage, Jaekyung rated his own skills as decent.
If his opponent was someone like Sagye-wan, it would be difficult to win, but he felt it wouldn't be hard to escape. But fighting was an option to be considered only as a last resort, and Jaekyung had something else he was counting on.
‘A Great Spirit Beast knows how to use its head. It won't engage in a fight with no gain. Exchanging information for information shouldn't be a problem.’
And…
Jaekyung looked at his reflection in the water. In the overall familiar picture, one part felt particularly strange. The two horns that had grown on his head.
These very horns were his other ace in the hole.
‘In any case, thanks to these horns, I already got some free information once… who knows.’
Jaekyung stared at his two horns for a while, then submerged his body in the water that had now filled the pit.